God Bless the USA!

Hey howdy hey! (Hola también...)

Hey! If you guys get this in time we could have a back and forth email conversation! I'll be here for a while.

Here I am! First P-day here in.... Juarez, Mexico! (Southeast - I think - of Monterrey.) Looks like I'll be in the Monterrey East Mission after all. But all is well!

My companion's name is Elder Diez, a native Mexican from the state of Sonorro (I think that's the name). He's a really cool Elder who's been out here for sixteen months. And because he's been out here for sixteen months and didn't just barely come out of the MTC, he's what we call ''Old school.'' A new teaching at the MTC is about the importance of conversion over testimony, the need to break from the lessons if need be, and the need turn every lesson into a personal conversation with every investigator. Let's just say I had a hard time explaining the concept to Elder Diez... But I think he understands where I'm coming from if not exactly what I've been trying to say to him.

It's been quite hot the last few days. Especially days 2 and 3. We basically walked through our entire area all day both days seeing as nobody was at home. We can't door contact, but we can street contact, so we did that while we were basically walking around.

Big culture shock. Like huge. I don't understand these people very well and would very much like to. They seem a bit abusive at times, have a very strange sense of humor, and tend to be annoyed (Elder Diez included) with the new white American guy trying to speak their language. 

I'm a bit frustrated right now seeing as I can't speak the language perfectly. More importantly I can't understand the words that these people are saying. But I have had some really cool experiences with investigators where I didn't know what they said but was able to pull out a scripture that they needed at that moment. Elder Diez gets very perplexed at me sometimes as I seemingly direct the conversation into a different direction than we were going. He likes to teach all of Lesson 1 in one sitting while I was taught at the MTC to go at a slower pace. My ''first lessons'' were always about the love of God, prayer, getting to know the person really well, trying to understand their religious background, asking them what they expect, and generally establishing an emotional connection with the investigator. I feel like we could both learn from each other and can meld the two into one nice big whole.

Not to be unoriginal and all, but this is not the language they taught me at the MTC! The accent is very odd and difficult to understand. Especially the first few days. Everything went way over my head into never-never land. Elder Diez's Spanish is much better (to an American's ears) than the accent here in Monterrey. Here they have a very sing-song way of speaking. As if they rush through part of a sentence, pause, and then pick it up. It's like "DA duh duh duh duh DA duh duh duh DA" so very difficult for a n00b fresh from the MTC. Also all these red underlines... And weird keyboard. They also have a bunch of slang words that even Elder Diez doesn't understand. He speaks more slowly and clearly. It's all very confuzzling. I've been told I speak like an Argentine by quite a few people. I don't know why...

Oh! I went to the temple on Saturday! Elder Diez had some former investigators who were going through the temple to be sealed so I got to go with him and see my first real sealing! And it was all in Spanish! I understood all of it (the temple worker talked a lot about the potential to become gods and goddesses) except for one part where he made fun of me and another missionary (who is also new who was there because the family was from his ward and his companion was their missionary too) who had just recently arrived from the mission. He said something about Americans that I didn't catch and all the Mexicans started laughing. Very confused. I also got to do a session of the Endowment in Spanish which I also understood. It was all very surreal. Also most missionaries don't go to the temple until the day before their last day when the President takes them through. I'm quite the lucky Elder.

Guess what?!?! Elder Holland is coming next month to speak to us! I'm quite pumped. Apparently a few months ago Elder Bednar came to speak to the East and West missions and my companion got to shake his hand. He'll be coming back in  2014 according to the reports.

I forgot about Eli's birthday! I can't really send him a letter seeing as I'm in Mexico. I'll send a special email to him that ya'll can give him. I think that packages to us are held by the President until we're transferred or something as there were a bunch of packages in the Mission home. I dunno.

Thanks for all the pictures and letters! They really help me remember that there's a real world out there. I'll pray for all of you if you pray for me! Trust me, I need it.

Love ya'll tons!

-Elder Decker (Brayden)