Week 20!

Hey mom! Thanks for writing me even though you're a real busy lady.  This week was pretty average other than the SKYPE CALL.  So that was amazing.  I literally just thought about it the whole day yesterday and today.  It's kind of weird how after a Skype call, we just go back to normal missionary work.  Like I feel like we should go home and be sad or something, but we just go to our next appointment, haha.  It was pretty weird.  We couldn't really do anything after because nobody wants to listen to the freaking missionaries on Mother's Day.  We kinda just visited some members, and went home a little early and played board games the rest of the night.  I was just on Cloud 9 the whole time because I got to talk to you guys.  It felt really good that it was just a normal conversation like we were just hanging out.  It just felt like we were just chilling and telling stories.  Other missionaries told me that their families invited like 15 people over and they couldn't even enjoy the call because everyone was trying to talk, haha.  So thank you for that.

So this week we had our investigator Wilfredo came to church with us.  I think he really liked it.  He told us he really loved it and he was there for all three hours! He even told us he wants to come next week.  The ward was also really good to him so I think he loved it.  He goes to one of those wacky churches where everything is like a really loud ritual and they chant and do weird things like yell AMEN during the talks and during the prayers, so it was a little different for him but I think he really liked it.  He told us about how he owes his life to God because God got him to where he is today.  He used to be an alcoholic, and wasn't really living the life he wanted, and when he found God in his life, he got it all together.  He really is the coolest guy, so I'm excited to see how we can continue to help him.

I'm kind of surprised how many people hear deny the missionaries.  The all pull the "I'm a catholic, and I don't want to change," which I guess I understand because it costs them like 200,000 pesos to get baptized into the catholic church.  THEY HAVE TO FREAKING PAY TO BE BAPTIZED.  Literally the catholic church is saying that if you can't afford to be baptized, then you cant go to heaven.  What the heck is that.  There are also churches here that require 50% for tithing.  People almost lose their house for it.  I just don't understand, haha, the people here love these churches, and are unwilling to change.  

The other day while contacting, we contacted a lady, and we were explaining the Restoration.  She goes, "Yeah, I know, I've already heard all of this" and we were like, "We also believe we have a prophet today," and she goes "Really? Who is your prophet?" and we told her Thomas S. Monson, and she goes, "Nope! Its William Santiago" and we go...well how was he called?  And she goes "By the guy before him," we said, "well who called him?" she goes "I don't know...I wasn't there" hahaha.  So we get all kinds of fun with these street contacts.  She also was pretty bugged that it doesn't say Joseph Smiths name in the bible....but it doesn't say William Santiago either, and she goes "Well yeah cuz he's new," and we are like...so was Joseph Smith.  Hahaha, good stuff.

Love you guys a ton!  I'm glad we got to talk two days in a row.  Thanks for being the best mom in the world!  See ya!

Love Elder Leishman