Speaking good and a dog bite! New comp Elder Carmona

Dear Family,

Elder Sirrine says goodbye to Companion leaving

Thanks to all of you for the emails and the updates that you sent me. It sounds like things are going awesomely for you. The updates for this week are that my new companion is Elder Carmona, he is 19 and has three months in the mission, he is also a meter and a half tall. I don´t know what that would be in feet. He is totally awesome. He is totally full of energy and the spirit and hasn´t been corrupted by any bad companions. I totally love him. This week we have found two or three families that said we could pass by again to teach them. It´s going to be really exciting to see how that all turns out for us. We also are starting to work a lot better with the members now. I can tell that he is going to help this ward a lot.

Elder Sirrine Says goodbye to Friend in district

Elder Sirrine and new companion Elder Carmona

The other really cool thing from this week is that he has got me to talk more in the lessons and with the people. Before him I was really quiet and didn´t talk to much. I always threw out the excuse that Spanish was a bit complicated for me but that was a lie. Most of the latinos tell me that I speak better than the majority of the gringos. I also had a family tell me that they thought I could speak really well and that I should do it more. So now I´ve got five weeks to change that here in this ward and then to keep changing it in all of the other wards that I go to. It´s going to be fun to see how that all turns out for me.

Elder Sirrine and Friend from Distric

The other updates from the week are that yesterday was Argentina´s independence day and that on Saturday I ate a TON of food. We had an activity in the church where we ate Locro. Which is a super stuffed stew that has just about everything in it. It has pumpkin, corn, three types of meat, beans, bones and you put spicy sauce on top. It was totally AMAZING!!!! I love the traditional foods here in Argentina. And then after that we went to visit our Bolivian investigators and they had all gotten together to celebrate Mother´s day. Which for Bolivia is tomorrow. They had an asado and when they saw us they invited us to eat too. That was way too much food for one day. I felt sick and my companion couldn´t finish off his portion of the meat. It was terrible, but cool.

Oh! I also got my first dog bite on Thursday. It totally took me by surprise and tried to eat my elbow. I got away with a ripped coat and a bruised arm, I have since sewed the coat up. It was a crazy experience and I don´t want to repeat it. Also the mission has a blog now, http://comodororivadaviamission.wordpress.com/ that´s the link. Visit it and you can see more of what´s going on here. Love you all tons and miss you lots! Have a great week!

Love, Michael

New Companion and MTC reunion

Dear Family,

Some of Elder Sirrine's MTC District

Momo the troll

Elder Sirrine's Comodoro North Zone

This week has been the week of goodbyes. My companion is going to Pico Truncado and I am staying here. It´s going to be interesting to have a new companion. Outside of that nothing really happened this week. We did an intense service project on Saturday digging a hole in a mountain to put in a garage and I was dead afterward. It´s been a long time since I´ve done manual labor like that. But it was good to do service and then afterward we went out for ice cream. We ate two kilos in 30 min between 6 guys. It was amazing. The weather is getting colder here too. To the point that I wear a coat or a sweater every day. I am totally loving it, the cold is the best. Also, P-day in Rada Tilly. We went to the beach at high tide so there wasn´t a whole lot of space to play soccer but it was still fun and then we went to a park and I found monkey bars and swings built for adults. That was probably the greatest discovery I have made in Argentina. It was an amazing way to spend my birthday. And the hermanas were with us too up til Hermana Bollwinkel fell down and hurt her pride and her butt. It was sad to see her hurt but was fun otherwise. I love my zone! And that´s about all that happened this week. I hope you all had a great week and that you all have fun. I´ll write more next week. Love you all!

 

Zone at the beach in Rada Tilly

Elders at the beach in Rada Tilly

Love, Michael

Happy 19th Birthday

Dear family,

Rada Tilly is a beach village on the Atlantic Ocean near Comodoro

Thanks for the email and all the updates. I loved talking to all of you guys on Skype yesterday. The only thing that I didn´t tell you there that is new is that we are going to go to Rada Tilly today and are going to finally get to see the beach. I am totally looking forward to getting some awesome pictures and to have fun with all the other elders. The other thing that happened or that is happening to me is that I am growing a lot more spiritually and as a missionary. On Friday Elder Fleitas my zone leader told all of us that the Paraguay mission is a whole ton better than us and why. It was interesting to see all of the things that the mission isn´t doing and to see how it all affects us. I made the personal goal to step up and in days I saw results. It´s totally crazy how a change of attitude can change your perspective on like everything. 

Beach in Rada Tilly

 

Sea Lions near Rada Tilly

Now I´m in week six of the transfer and I get to think back on all that I did here. I´m proud of what I have been able to do and learn here and I love all of the people in this ward. I may not be leaving yet but if I do I will know that my work will help some people out. Daniel and Maria are going to get baptized in June and I know that this ward has changed while I´ve been here. It has also changed me. I Love you all tons and loved seeing all of you yesterday.

To Naiah my favorite animals are the penguins. They were way cool. 

To Isabel I think you should all fast dinner because I can´t be there to enjoy it. ;) No, eat spaghetti because it´s still one of my favorites.

To Callista, my companion is Elder Abarca. And I miss you all tons!

To Max, I miss you tons bro. I look forward to seeing you all when I get home.

To Dad, Thanks for all of the updates about the family and all of the support. I love you guys a ton. I am sort of looking forward to being a trainer I think it´ll be a lot of fun and a cool experience. All of the elders here tell me that I´m going to be a district leader soon. It´s going to be interesting to see how the transfers all work out. I love you all and miss you tons. Hope you all have a great week and I´ll see you all for Christmas.

Love, Michael

Mission Conference

Dear Mom,

Thanks for all of the updates about the family and for the cool quote about love. It was awesome to read. The baptism did not happen this week because Daniel thinks that he needs more time and felt too pressured. My other investigators are all fine. My comp is a good listener and he´s really chill. He´s a cool guy and it´s been nice to get to know him. What I study is the new testament and the Book of Mormon. I just read til I find cool things to teach and if an investigator or member has a question I look that up til I find a good answer. And I´m going to Skype you guys at about 6 p.m. my time which should be like 3p.m. for you. I really look forward to talking to all of you guys. See you all then and I love you all lots.

Love, Michael

 

President and Sister Rogers and Elder and Sister Gonzales

Three Zones in Comodoro Area

Dear Dad,

Well, the baptism didn´t happen this week. Daniel thought that he needed more time to learn about the gospel and so they are going to set a goal as a couple and are going to tell us. We´re still trying to help them do it as fast as possible and now we´ve got ideas about how to do it too. Yesterday we had a meeting with the President all day and that´s why I did not email you. I am going to be able to Skype you all on Sunday and I´m going to do it at about 6 pm my time so it´ll be about 3pm for you guys. Please invite Kendall over too. The only other cool update from the week is that we had our conference with Elder Gonzalez. He was totally awesome! He told us basically that to be good missionaries we need to be like Christ was. What did He do when He taught? How did he walk through the streets? What kind of a man was He? And then from what you learn apply that to your life and be more like Christ. The other thing that he taught us is that we need to be direct in our teaching and our preaching. Call the people to repentance and those that are prepared will respond to the call and recognize the saviors voice. That was a totally awesome conference. The other cool thing that I learned from the other conference from the Hna Rogers was about manners. Apparently in Argentina the table manners are that you need to have your hands above the table at all times, you CANNOT put your elbows on the table, you need to say hello to the patriarch first and then the oldest to the youngest and you need to say goodbye to everyone individually also when you are done eating you need to leave food on your plate so that they know you are full. That was the weirdest for me because I am used to cleaning my plate when I eat. Now I know why they always ask me if I want more. It was definitely nice to learn that. And that´s really all for this week. Look forward to seeing you guys on Sunday! Love you all and have a great week!

Love, Michael

District Fun in the Park

Dear Dad,

Thanks for the message and the updates. I have no idea when we´ll be able to Skype but I´ll keep you all updated. My investigators are doing awesome. Daniel and Maria came to church yesterday and we´re trying to have a baptism for them this Saturday. They are totally ready they just need to accept  the invitation. Please keep them in your prayers. I am doing great here. The weather is starting to get colder but it´s still not really cold. I am totally looking forward to the time when it really is cold. I miss winter after two straight summers. Also, I cut my hair yesterday with my companion and he did a great job cutting it. It looks really good and I am really happy with it. The other cool thing that happened this week was that on P-day I got to have a great time with a lot of the other Elders in my zone. We ate sandwiches in a park and just enjoyed being together. It was tons of fun to be with all of them. And I found a little shop that sells the coolest souvenirs. I am going to pass by again some other P-day before I leave here to buy some stuff. It was legit. I hope that you guys all have a great week and that things go well for you. Love you all tons and miss you lots!

P-day with Zone in the Park

Love, Michael

Eating in the Park

Nice sandwich

Chasing Pigeons

Hey Zander!

I found some cool hats from the Heat here for really cheap and I think that I´m going to buy one for you. I´m still about 6´ and I have lost a ton of weight. I goa bit fatter here because we have a Bolivian family that gives us a ton of really good food. They are also thinking about having a party for my birthday which would be totally legit. I have also gotten a bit tanner here and my comp tells me that I sound less like a Gringo and more like a Chileno or Peruano when I talk and he´s also taught me a bit of ketchwa. It´s totally legit. Also I think that I may have a couple of baptisms this week. Their names are Daniel and Maria and they are totally awesome. I love this couple and I really hope that they get baptized this week. Pray for them and when I have your hat I´ll shoot you a photo. Love you tons and take care of yourself!

Lovew, Michael

 

Elder Sirrine's District

Dear Mom,

Thanks for the letter and the updates. Tell Zander to take care of himself. The cool updates from this week are that Daniel and Maria came to church and we are hoping that they get baptized this week. Please pray for them! The other cool things that happened are that I cut my hair yesterday and it looks really good, I´m finally happy with a hair cut. My companion is totally awesome. And that we´re going to have a conference on Wednesday with Elder Gonzalez of the 70 which should be really cool. That´s really all that´s new here. love you guys tons and miss you all lots!

Love, Michael

Hey Mormor!

It´s good ot hear from you even if things aren´t all fine there. I hope that Morfar gets better soon and that Martin figures out how to deal with things in Moab. I´ll remember all of you guys in my prayers this week. It´s way cool that you had an awesome blessing from brother Halverson I totally agree that the priesthood is the best. I hope you have a great time in the hospital when you are there and that the seminar is good. I am working to help a couple get baptized this week and I hope that things work out. Please pray for Daniel and Maria that they can get the answer to their prayers and that they´ll be baptized. Love you tons and miss you lots! Have a great week!

Love, Michael

Baptismal dates are set.

Dear Mom,

Nesquik is a favorite

Thanks for the updates about the family and for the highlights from your talk. They were cool to read. As of right now the only things that I think I need are another scarf and a pair of gloves. It´s starting to get cold here and my face is freezing. lots of the nights I can´t feel my chin. It´s weird. Outside of that thanks for putting my investigators on the prayer roll. Could you guys pray specifially for Daniel and Maria? They have a baptismal date for the 3rd and they need to come to church and Daniel is looking for a testimony. It would be awesome if you prayed for them. =) The other cool update is that Ronaldo another of my investigators accepted a baptismal date for the 17th of May. It´ll be way cool to see him progress. And my companion and I went to the saladita and got to talk to the people and see all of the cool stuff there. Zander still loves the Heat right because I saw some cool stuff there and I thought about him. Ask if he´d like that. Also, I´ve got pictures to send you and this Saturday we may go to the Chenque which´ll be awesome. Chenque is the hill here where you can see the entire city of Comodoro. It´ll be fun to see that. Love you all tons and miss you lots! Have a great week!

  

Chocolate egg for Easter

Sunset from Pension

Love, Michael

 

Dear Dad,

Cake

Things are going awesome for me. My stomach has been doing fine and my companion and I have been boiling our drinking water recently. So no more food poisoning problems. I just sat in the seat, the bus belongs to a member and he let us hop in and take photos in the driver´s seat. My investigators are doing awesome. Ronaldo now has the goal to get baptized on the 17th and Maria and Daniel are working towards the 3rd. If they come to church they can make it. Also, Daniel is looking for a testimony so it´s been hard to get him to commit to much of anything but next Sunday I think they´ll come because they have promised to be there. My Easter passed without too much of a celebration. My companion and I got some chocolate easter eggs from members and we also bought some. That was awesome. It´s interesting to see that the Catholic´s don´t eat any meat during the week of Easter it´s all fish. We didn´t get any fish this week but the lunches were awesome. The other two cool things that happened this week were that my companion and I went to the Saladita which is an open air market that runs Saturdays and Sundays it was really cool to walk around and see all of the things there that are a lot cheaper than the main stream stores. I bought a hat and my comp bought himself gloves, plums (which are delicious) and two Easter eggs. One for me and one for him. Also we got some cool sunrise pictures Saturday. You can´t see me but the sunrise is awesome. And that´s about all that has happened this week. I hope you guys have a lot of fun and I love you all tons.

Love, Michael

Down Pour Before Easter

Maximus: Rock on little bro! I love you tons. You are totally right. Two years will fly by crazy fast. Look forward to seeing you all on Mother´s day. Love you tons!

Elder Sirrine and cool statue

 Naiah: It´s different to have to worry about if the water is dirty or not and it´s weird to walk on dirt streets with houses made out of whatever they can find. But the people here are awesome and I love it. It would be way cool if you were a missionary too. Love you tons!

Ocean at Comodoro Rivadavia

Callista: Way to go on your reading and writing! Keep it up! Have lots of fun in school and make tons of friends! Love you too!

Elder Sirrine sits in Driver Seat of a Bus

 One of the times I felt the spirit this week was listening to the music that I got from my companion. It had a super uplifting message and was an answer to me. The other time was in the conference, not exactly this week but still, when they were talking about the temples I know that Comodoro Rivadavia will have a temple announced in the next conference. It will happen.

Love, Michael 

Rain Run-off Outside Elder Sirrine's Pension

Dear Mom,

Elder Sirrine in Rain By Graffiti

Thanks for the update about the family. I really appreciate hearing about all that you guys are doing. The one interesting thing that I have learned about Easter here is that the Jehovah´s Witnesses get together to commemorate the death of the Savior and that they take that custom out of what is supposed to be the sacrament. That is just weird to me. I also learned that the Jehovah´s Witnesses avoid talking to missionaries as much as possible. They say hi and then disappear, according to another Elder it´s because they know we´d win in an argument. Either way it was odd. The other crazy thing this week is that on Thursday it rained so hard that we got trapped in the pension. There was a legit river outside our house that went up to about my knees. It was crazy! Hope you guys have a fun week and I love you all!

Love, Michael

Rain River outside Pension

 Dear Dad,

Thanks for the updates and the pictures. Max looks good with his new glasses. This week the updates are that we had a river on Thursday appear outside of our house in about 20 minutes and it lasted all day. We couldn´t go outside at all because the rain froze our heads in about 10 minutes and everybody just kept telling us to go home and get out of the rain. It was a rather suckish day. Then on Saturday and Sunday things got a ton better we were able to set four baptismal dates with some of our investigators. The only problem is that they haven´t come to church yet. I know that they are way prepared they just need to meet the requirements of assistance and one couple needs to get married. So we´ll see how that all turns out. I think it´ll be awesome and my companion and I are going to work hard to get things ready so that they can get baptized on May 3rd. It´ll be crazy to see how this all works out. The other cool thing from this week is that we are finally able to use our chapel again. They still aren´t totally done remodeling but it´s close enough that we´re going to be able to use it again. I am so excited because that will make our work a whole lot easier because now our investigators can walk to church. Lots of good stuff is happening here for me. My companion and I are working amazingly well and things are progressing a ton. I love this area and this work. It´s the best! Hope you all have a good week and enjoy yourselves this Easter.

Love, Michael