DOGS! (Week 9)

So this week was super hot. Like what the heck??? Hot!! But… you know…. What’s preaching without a little dehydration, right?  There’s a TON of dogs here by the way. And they absolutely hate us missionaries!!! Dogs are constantly running at us and barking.  The other day I had to rip off my bag and start swinging it around to keep the dog’s away, haha,  super funny stuff. All the local kids just stand there and laugh at us as we try to kick dogs away from us. I wish I could get a picture of it. Oh, that reminds me, my camera isn’t uploading my pictures today for some reason. This is probably a blessing because I let Elder Schoonover cut my hair….and it is…. something!  My mom would have a heart attack if she saw a picture. 

  Also, I gave my first blessing this week and it was in Spanish too! double score. 

My comp was super paranoid about getting robbed again so we always had to look as “non- American” as possible. This was slightly harder for me, considering I’m taller than everyone here, have skin as white as snow, and light colored hair, but I did my best! 

 I had an encounter with a drunk guy  that was interesting. He really liked us, at least it seemed like he did (I still can’t understand most of what people are saying. Especially when they’re saying it while drunk). Anyway he talked to us for a while and the climax of the encounter was when he gave me a couple of loving slaps in the face.

 Oh yah, I had to play the piano in church yesterday, so that was super traumatizing! Luckily it wasn’t an organ or that would have been something else entirely. 

One thing I love here though is that you can find a lot of cheap knock offs. I found beats pill for 20 bucks the other day and they were selling Rolex watches for 30 bucks by the mission home.  Also they have delivery ice cream here and it is the greatest thing I have ever been the recipient of! 

So, we did divisions again this week and elder schoonover accidentally insulted one of the inactive ladies in my area hahaha. He felt super bad about it but I felt like she needed it. Plus, she hates him now and not me so I’m still allowed to go over and teach her. All he did was read a scripture to her that said she needed to come to church, but apparently that was all she needed to kick us out.

My spiritual thought is that you should always stay strong and always have a good attitude, even when it makes no sense that you should be happy. Jesus was never to tired to do good, so we shouldn’t be either. Just be happier, it makes hard days go faster. See you when I see you.

Elder Ren porter

Division Splits (week 8)

This week went by super fast. We met a lot of cool people. Some really kapo people (kapo means "super awesome"). One guy we found read the Book of Mormon and he now knows that..........evangelicalism is false, which was not our real goal but we will take what we can get. We also met this really nice kid, he's a kapo too. He came to church yesterday and seemed to really like it. We also went on divisions this week. Divisions are where you switch companions for a day and proselyte in your area or the other elder's area. So on friday we divided up and I went with elder oaks (who has been here as long as me)! We stayed in my area so I had to kind of be the leader, but since it's only my second week here, it was like the blind leading the blind as we walked around in this foreign country, which I still don't really know, using a language that neither of us can really speak or understand. I was very scared and nervous about  this experience unfortunately, so I decided to say a prayer which did end up helping with my faithlessness. So elder oaks and I walked a lot that day. We prayed a lot that day too because we had no idea what to do and I did not want to make the decisions about where we should go, but in the end I did have to make most of the decisions because we were in my area! Thank goodness God helped us or else that would have been a really wasted day. Towards the end of the day we saw a man peeing on a wall in public, so that was interesting. And some members tried to rob us right around the time of day we saw the peeing man. It took us a good while to realize it was a joke haha. Actually, Elder oaks was able to figure out that the members were trying to fake "rob" us but I just thought they were asking for directions. If I ever got robbed for real, I think I would end up telling them a joke or something. One of the scariest points of the day was when I got a call on the phone right before we were going to give a lesson to an investigator, because I didn't know who was calling or what they wanted or how I was going to understand and talk to them. But, in an act of faith I answered and it was my real comp Elder Ortolano (I sighed so hard it made the investigator laugh at me).  Unfortunately, I couldn't really understand what he was saying to me, even in english. I found out later that him and his "division comp" had just got robbed for REAL and were telling me but because I couldn't understand what he was saying, I just said "okay. good". And then hung up the phone. They told me later that that really confused them hahaha. They said some "pibes" (street thugs) (there's lots of kids here that just smoke and drink all day and annoy people. The older people hate them and call them pibes which is almost like "street rats" or something) were following them around and then they just came up from behind and grabbed them and held them up at knife point. My comp said one of them had a gun too. They took my comps bag and phone and the other elders bus card and then took both there watches. We had to go get a new bag for elder ortolano the next day at the office and they gave him a sick fanny pack. I want to get robbed now to so I can get one. Just joking mom (but not really). The funny thing is that because we didnt know they had been robbed, me and oaks were trying to call them all day and we were getting super mad that they weren't answering their phone. The other scary point was when we tried teaching a first lesson to this scary grandma who looked a little like ezma from the "emperors new groove" movie. 

the food here is fantastic, really unhealthy, stuff but totally worth it by the way. Also they give me grief here because I love honey and use it with everything here becuase its like the only flavoring I get, besides my beloved Tabasco sauce that I had to smuggle into the country. My mom bought me 400 little packets of Tabasco. They look like ketchup packets. Going two years without Tabasco was a deal breaker for me. They took up a big section of my suitcase, but it was worth it. Every time I whip out one of my packets I have to explain what it is because they don't have Tabasco sauce in Argentina. Of course my mission friends from America think I'm a freak, but I don't care!

Moving on, my spiritual thought for the week is this. This is based off of experiences I have had all this week. God cares deeply about each one of us and He knows perfectly how to help us. That being the case, me as a missionary am suppose to help these people come closer to Christ. And I'm suppose to do this with complete strangers. I know full well I am not capable of helping all these wonderful people here without Heavenly Fathers help. I am so grateful I have this opportunity to put my trust in my God and submit my will to His. All I want to do is let Him take the reins over the lesson and just help me to be His voice as I teach and say the things He wants these wonderful people to know. I had the opportunity many times this week to express the love He has for these people. And I was able to feel a mere fraction of that love He has for them and that "mere fraction" was more love than I have ever felt for anyone, ever. I have prayed in all earnestness and supplication for Heavenly Father to allow me to help some of the people I've met and I've been able to watch the spirit testify of Christ. Sometimes I think I'm to blessed. I love this work and this country.  I miss home a lot, but I'm so grateful to be here serving the Lord and His children. 

Love, 
Elder Ren porter
Ren's email: ren.porter@myldsmail.com
Ren's blog: elderrenporter.blogspot.com
Also, my new favorite scripture is still Isaiah 49: 15-16

My pictures for the week. I can't take any outside because my comp says if I step outside with a camera, I'm basically asking to get robbed. 

This is the view from my apartment window.

My bedroom that I share with 3 other elders. I sleep on the top bunk (just like I did at home)

Our desk/work area

This is my bathroom. One thing everyone forgot to mention is that Argentinians don't use toilet paper, they use a bidet! Everyone keeps telling me I'll get used to it, but I won't! I hate it!

Villa Tesei, Argentina (week 7)

Hi mom! I'm doing awesome right now. I'm having a great time here. My area is called villa tesei. My comp is elder ortolano. He's a great trainer. He's from Brazil but lives in Canada now so he speaks Portuguese and English. When he speaks Spanish here he has an accent so people always ask him where he's from. It's a little bit scary here but I'm okay with it. I haven't been robbed yet but we have an area that could definitely be good for getting robbed. It is really hot here and I've been sweating a lot, but it really helps when you don't drink any water throughout the day. We pretty much have to rely on luck and the kindness of people to get water or soda. We get mostly soda though because we can't drink the tap water here. I try to drink more water but none is readily available. I have to make one bottle of water last for an entire day. We have water at the apartment but if we run out then we have to boil some of the tap water. But its all good. I pretty much only eat during lunch because we have no food at the apartment and I'm to tired when I get home to make anything. But the food is great here. They have very good fruit and soda. Anyway, it's hard but awesome! We ARE going shopping today though, so I'll get some food for the apartment.

The people here are really funny. Everyone is really nice. They always try talking to me but I don't understand them so I just smile and shrugg my shoulders and look at my comp. Then they say something like "he doesn't  understand?" and my comps like "yah". And then they just laugh. They call americans here gringos or yankee (but they pronounce it more like "shonky"). The spanish is hard of course. I can either, barely follow a conversation or not at all, but I've been told I can speak it well when I know what I'm supoose to say, so I guess that's good. I'm in a suburb like area most of the time. People ask me how tall I am every now and then and then they laugh when I tell them (I guess being tall is funny). Also, people are always asking me what spanish words are in english. Like how do you say "play ball" "kleets" "girlfriend" "best in the world" random stuff, haha. I tell them and they laugh (are you sensing a "laughing" trend?) And for some reason people are always using english words around me and then I laugh and try to get them to say more but they just look at me confused (this is my pathetic attempt to let them see what it feels like to be in my shoes, I cherish these moments).
There's actually one youth in the ward who is as tall as me. His name is alan. He's really cool. Yesterday we had a lesson with some columbians and they were having an uproarious time measuring themselves next to me. That was the lesson that some girl asked me how to say "girlfriend" in english (not at all subtle)! Me and elder ortolano got out there real quick.

So, this is my first area of my mission and it is.....something. yep! sure something. New sights, new sounds, and new smells. I almost got into a crash getting to my apartment on day one.  People here are very offensive drivers and if the bad tap water doesn't get me, it'll be a grandma in a volkswagon! Also, I think everyone takes the mufflers off their cars and adds train horns. And they really like driving at about the time that we go to bed. Did I mention it's very hot? But I like it here. Lots of people wear american shirts but they don't even know what it says on them or they just don't wear a shirt at all. People here always say the same chiste (joke) when they see my name. "Oh, elder porter, elder harry porter". I laugh at the joke every time though because that's usually the only part I understood in the entire five minutes they've been talking to me. So, yah, the language is hard, of course. It comes and goes based on the person I'm talking to. Which I'm actually kind of grateful for because I've been trying to be more humble since I first entered the mtc and having no ability to talk to people gives me the perfect opportunity to rely heavily on the assistance of Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost. I know that relying on the spirit to help me speak is a test of faith and a witness doesn't come until after the trial of your faith. So I've been able to speak mas or menos because I just opened my mouth and spoke and I know God helped me at those times. 

On my way to the airport there was a train worker who came to the missionaries and shared some words of wisdom. He told us "that the Lord is with us wherever we go and that the church is true because if it wasn't then the missionaries would have destroyed it a long time ago". And that is as true, as it is hilarious. The first part especially is true. I was reading in Isaiah during personal study one time and I read Isaiah 49: 15-16. There is a part in verse 16 that I love. If I remember correctly it says "yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands".  I find it very comforting to read that personally,  because being out here in another country, living with four guys I've never met before, speaking a language that seems to change everyday and sharing personal testimony to people who seem all to willing to look at anything else but me, can be and has been,  tiring already and anxiety inducing. But I can't allow these thoughts and feelings to grow and become stronger because they will cause actions to occur, if circumstance allows; Selfish actions or lazy actions. So in a frantic scurry to motivate myself I was desperately searching for these motivating scriptures and I was blessed to find that scripture in Isaiah and it has helped tremendously.  Another thing that helps me is remembering something that president eyring said once. Which was that whenever he starts to feel tired or selfish, he remembers how Jesus Christ was never to tired to do good.  Even after the pain and agony He suffered in the garden of gethsemane and the great price He paid for it,  He still healed the ear of that man who came to take him away to be crucified. 

le amo este la Evangelio y yo estoy muy agradecido por los muchos oportunidades he tenido para enseñar mis hermanos y mis hermanas. yo se que los escrituras son muy poderoso y que oraciones pueden contestado. love you guys.  hope i was understandable...

Elder Porter
Email: ren.porter@myldsmail.net
Blog: www.elderrenporter.blogspot.com

My apartment

Me and the other elders who live in the apartment. My comp is right behind me (Elder Ortolano)

Me and my new comp (standing right next to me), then Elder Alexander and Elder Meyers (who was with me in the MTC)

Me at "the map" right before I left the MTC.

MTC (week 6)

Merry Christmas to everyone. So,  Monday was Monday (as in nothing really happened), Tuesday was Tuesday (I cant even remember what happened that day), Wednesday I think I remember a native-Spanish speaking missionary from across the hall laughing at me as I tried to speak spanish, but I can't remember exactly because I feel like the native-spanish speakers are always laughing at us! Thursday was Christmas eve and that day my fellow zone members and I gave some presents to our teachers. We created some binders for them with our testimonies and thoughts written down. As I wrote down my testimony I realized how truly helpful they were for me, and how much I'll miss them. We gave them the presents and Hermana Imbler was crying (haha whoops) she really liked it I guess. Hermano Savio was tearing up a little bit too, which was nice to see. Hermana Imbler also shared with us a spiritual thought that I'll share with you later in this email (because you got to end these things with a good note). So then friday was Christmas, bets were placed by some of the guys in my zone as to who would come and talk to us. We narrowed it down to Elder Bednar, Holland or Christoffersen. The verdict ended up being Elder Bednar, which I learned everyone was super excited about because apparently no teenager can handle remaining mature and keeping there YEEHAS and WHOOPS to themselves. It was totally obnoxious to me though! But anyway, he shared a great talk. He is a great speaker and his wife shared something that really helped me with my goals. Elder bendar also made it kind of seem like he's read the Book of Mormon a lot.... like a lot, a lot. He  gave some advice that might come in handy... he said that when he wants to work on a Christlike attribute or if he has a question then he takes a cheap paperback book of mormon and and he reads the whole thing, marking up, as he goes, all the parts that deal with that single idea or question he had. Then after he is done reading he reviews all that he read and all his notes and then writes a one page summary about what he learned. Then, on the spine of that Book of Mormon, he'll write what that one taught him. For example, he might write... "patience 1" Or "qualities of God" and then puts it on a shelf so that he can go back and read it again if he needs too. This was really amazing to me. 

Then we all got 20-30 minutes to call home. I loved talking to my family. I miss them so much. I got to share my testimony with them. My parents asked me what I've learned that will help me the most as a missionary. I feel like the most important thing I've learned is how much our Heavenly Father loves each and everyone of His us. Every time I'm teaching an investigator I feel such an overwhelming feeling of love and concern for them and all I want to do is help them. I'm positive that my feeling of love is just a tiny spark compared to our Saviors love for us. I've also learned that because of that love, Heavenly Father inspires His missionaries to teach and say the things His children need to hear. This has been a great testimony builder for me. I also got to tell my dad that EVERYONE around me is sick, but not me!!! Ha! My dad sent me with every vitamin and herbal remedy and drug he could think of to help me stay well. My roommates are constantly making fun of me every morning as I pull out about 20 pills and take them one by one! But I'm healthy and they're sick, so.....

Later that day we went back for another devotional but they tricked us and it was actually David Archuletta who came and sang for us. I wish I was a bigger fan girl or something because that would have totally been awesome and I can imagine it would be kind of fun to freak out like some sort of super fan nerd. But...it was whatever, you know? He was a really good singer though and he's kind of funny too. Sadly, that was like the closest thing I've ever come to seeing a concert, haha. So my first concert was me, sitting in my church suit, with a passive face, and clapping when appropriate. He did  share his testimony, which was great by the way. 

Okay, so I know I already shared this thought that my teacher Hermana Imbler shared with the class, but it was so impactful to me that I want to share it again with more detail. It's something she learned in one of her college institute classes. She warned that this is not necessarily doctrine, but when she shared this I felt the spirit so strongly that I'm inclined to believe. So she was saying that in Isaiah 53 it talks about Jesus Christ with some great imagery about the things he went through for us. Verse ten says "Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand." Two Parts are really important, the first part is "He shall see his seed" and "He shall prolong his days". From this we can form a thought that speaks this to our heart and soul. God being the Master of time and space, could've prolonged the life of His son Jesus Christ while he was atoning for our sins, and that when it says He shall see his seed, it means that He not only saw our faces but saw our lives. The thought is that, though it had only been hours for the apostles, the Savior Jesus Christ was in the garden of Gethsemane for billions of years, living each and every one of our lives, so that He could perfectly help us in our trials and weakness and know with exactness, how to comfort us or strengthen us. I love this personally because before,  I always imagined that the atonement was just a mass pile up of everyone's sins, sorrow and pain. But if you imagine it the other way, the atonement becomes exceptionally personal. I'm trying my best to articulate this perfectly so that you can understand and feel what I feel about this and I hope you did feel something. I know that the atonement did happen. It was the single most important event ever accomplished in the history of time. And now, as I imagine my Savior in the garden for billions of years, living each of our lives, I can see and feel more clearly the significance of Jesus's pain and I'm excessively grateful for his sacrifice.  

yo se' que el evangelio es verdad y la expia'cion de jesucristo fue por mi vida personalamente y por las vidas of todos personas en el mundo. yo se' que Padre Celestial es real y nostros somos hijos de E'l. God cares about us, that is why he sent His son. En el nombre de jesucristo amen.

I fly to Argentina tomorrow morning. I'm a little freaked out, but I'm also excited. Talk to you all from Buenos Aires next week.

Love,

Elder Ren Porter

Here's a bunch of group photos.....I'm pretty much standing in the back of all the pics, so you'll have to look closely.

MTC (week 5)

okay, so my flight plans came in today and the verdict is............I'm flying to Atlanta georgia and then straight to buenos aires Argentina on December 28th!!! I know I know its totally awesome.....you dont need to tell me. haha. My entire district has been waiting to look over our flight plans. I almost cried because I was so happy and sad that I was about to start my mission but that I was probably never going to see any of these guys again. AGGHHHHH!! I hate goodbyes!! I've bonded with these people so much. They are like my brothers and sisters now (at least to me). I don't want to say good bye. Luckily, there's lots of candy in my zone so I can just eat my feelings or something. Anyway, besides that I had a good week. We got new people in our zone and they're nice guys so I kind of have the best zone ever. Also elder udall's mom sent me and udall yoyo's. So we pretty much use the crap out of those things and I realized how much I love yoyo's!!! Everyone in the entire zone is jealous of our yoyo's though, so everyone is having there mom send them a yoyo too!!!! We started an epidemic pretty much. It is super cold here! My face and hands are purple alot. I look like the grim reaper walking around in my big jacket, but, at the same time I make the reaper look good. Everyone thinks its crazy that I've never seen snow fall before but I just laugh and say "dude I'm from the valley of the sun". 

The food here is really helpful.....helpful like laxative. The hermanas in our classroom hate being in there with us because it either smells like boys or like farts. I pray for them at night to have patience with us elders. 

So lots of really cool stuff happened this week and I learned alot. The experiences I'm about to share are really sacred to me. I won't go in to detail but I will tell you the general jist of them and I hope you will still feel the spirit. 

Experience number.....me and elder udall taught this last thursday to a member sister over skype in Mexico. We planned what we wanted to do and we hoped that God would help us to help her, and Heavenly Father did help her. Heavenly father was able to use me and my companion, the yoyo duo, to help this sister become closer to Jesus. I don't even know how, but Heavenly Father knew how and it worked. 

Experience number two happened on tuesday, we went in to help this guy get baptized and through Christ's help, and the guidance of the sprirt. He was able to read a scripture that had great impact on his life and that definitely helped him grow closer to God. 

Experience number three.  This happened last Saturday. This one was possibly the most important experience of my mission so far. Without going into to much detail, what happened was that this young women came in for us to teach. The people that come in are volunteers who act like an investigator. They usually follow a script and we practice teaching them. The young women that we taught last Saturday brought in her own personal deep feelings to the lesson and not the usual actor feelings they usually do. Because of that, me and my companion's original lesson derailed and we addressed her personal problems instead. The spirit taught her so powerfully, and it gave her solice and comfort. I feel so blessed and privileged that I was able to be an instrument to deliver the message that the Lord wanted her to hear. We didn't find out until later that they were her own personal feelings and not part of the script. Now why is this my most important experience? It was my most important experience because I was a witness to the reality of the Spirit. I Felt the Love that God had for this person. I knew then that when Jesus said, in D&C 84, that He would be on our right and on our left, that that was true. I have no doubt that my Older Brother was there with this, His little sister. Consoling her and telling us missionaries what to tell her for Him. I now know that I have no need to fear, because God knows and cares about each of His Children and I care about His Children and now I'm really excited to help more people in Argentina through His Loving guidance. I know now that we elders and sisters of the church do recieve revelation for members and non-members alike. yo lo se es verdad.

I love you all! Have a wonderful Christmas!

Love, 

Elder Ren Porter

Email address- ren.porter@myldsmail.net

Me and Elder Udall with our TRC investigator.

The two elders on each end are headed to Mesa, az for their mission. And us four in the middle are all from AZ, but headed to Argentina. I told them that Pete's fish and chips is a must!!!!!

MTC (week 4)

hey mom, my week was really cool. I got a lot done and I learned alot of new stuff about how to be a better missionary. Also everyone loves the beef jerky you sent up. I joined the MTC choir, the music director is a really cool guy. I whistle all the time here and my teacher, Savio, wants me to teach him how to do it. My comp tells me to shut up every now and  then but it's subconscious. I don't even realize I'm doing it until someone tells me to stop. (If any of you reading this have never heard Ren whistle, you're missing out. It's the most beautiful and odd talent he has). The spanish is coming along, its improving but super slow. I'm still getting along with my comp, his personality is like a mix between drexton and bridger, so I love being his comp! And we're not able to call home on christmas. and yes I'll send some more pics today. 

That's awesome that dad is taking piano lessons. Tell him he better be as good as me and cole when i get back!

Love,
Elder Porter 

My first haircut in the MTC AND my first haircut ever from anyone besides my mom....

Guys in my zone being weird....

A bunch of districts going to Argentina...

Random, weird pic...

The MTC (week 3)

So, last week was really good. One of my teachers is super cool and he always pumps us up and makes us feel motivated to learn, which is awesome. My Spanish is coming along. I set a bunch of goals for myself to learn it so hopefully I can stick with it. My comp, elder Udall is great. He's doing awesome with his Spanish, considering he's never taken Spanish before. He's been sick lately so that's not good. And he's constantly getting mad at me because I take to long to shower and get ready in the morning, the same thing you'd always get mad about mom (haha) but I can't help it, I'm just slow!!

This week my teacher showed us this video to get us pumped to learn and to teach us how to keep going even if we are tired. It helped alot and I'm glad he showed it to us. At then end of every day we have personal study, companion study and language study and it gets pretty hard to stay concentrated and awake at that point. So, one of the things that impressed me in the video was a quote from President Eyring. He said "whenever I feel like giving in to my laziness or when I feel tired I just need to remember Him and His atonement. That He was never weary to do good but always did what was good and right unto the end, even after He died he went to the spirit world and taught the people there and ministered unto them" and because He did this I can stay awake those three hours at the end of the day and learn the gospel and Spanish and not do it grudgingly!! 

My other teacher shared a thought that I really loved. She said that when she imagined the Atonement usually she imagined it being a couple of hours but then she read in the scriptures about how God did prolong the days of Jesus, since God is the master of time as well. So then she tried to imagine it like Jesus was in the garden for billions of years, living every single life of every person on the earth who ever lived and seeing each of our faces as He did so. I could feel the spirit very strong when she was sharing this thought and I really like that point of view. It makes the Atonement feel so much more personal in that way. I'm grateful that she shared that thought with us. Yo se que los profetas son verdad y el evangelio is en el mundo y yu se que Dios es nuestro amoroso padre celestial. En el nombre de Jesucristo amen.

Love you,

Elder Ren Porter

Elder Atwood, Elder Meyers, Elder Udall and me, in front of the Provo temple. There's also a random dude photo bombing us in the background. Do you see him? He's got a giant red beard and hat on!

Lunch time.

Me doing a selfie with Elder Hyer, who looks and acts just like my brother Cole (who's on a mission in Tahiti right now)

Four missionaries from Arizona, all headed to Argentina.