Tough Week ... Lots of Work Though

hey mom, life is good, yes you got all that right about the 3 some companionship...Alvarez is a missionary here and Jensen is waiting for a visa to Resistencia, Argentina...although he would just rather stay and keep doing what he’s doing....the guy is a stud and just wants to do the work...he doesn’t care where...haha. but they told him 2 weeks wait and he has already waited 3 sooo....haha...I think the lord had a fun lil plan for him.

Anyways this last week we had 2 entire days in the appt...do to the fact that I couldn’t get hold of a single priesthood holder and one day Alvarez was super sick and the other Elder Jensen...they had the beaver fever and the throw ups....I felt sooo bad for them...
But it was kinda crappy cus just how it all played out we didn’t get to see Rosio 1x during the week or Josefa... Benedito just needs to face the fact that he has his answer and stop procrastinating...the next lesson we are going to have with him is going to be a fun one...
he basically has a full testimony of the BOM and Joseph Smith and studies the BOM ridiculously well...but because he is on such a quest for knowledge he hasn’t listened to the spiritual confirmation...but he has proved the BOM true with his intense biblical studies and this and that and the others... its interesting...he can prove the veracity of the book because of his knowledge but its not knowledge that a person needs...its an answer from the Divine... he is such a stud though...he'll get it.
anyways last week with 2 complete days shot we still got 25 lessons and we were on bike all week too! Elder Alvarez is such a stud and he and I and Elder Jensen’s personalities mix sooo good that we just are constantly having fun, making jokes and workin our butts off...its sooo ballin. Elder Alvarez and I decided we are going to be selling guarana and sugarbears after the mission(look up sugar bears online, they’re the perfect pocket pet) and were going to train them to fly pass along cards to the world! haha and guarana is just plainly delicious.

I am glad that Brie went to the camp...its weird at first...but its sooo fun to be able to go somewhere where you can just focus on one thing and get good at it...especially if you love it.
and Bubba, you’re my hero, te quiero mucho che! you just keep on doing what your doin and don’t forget to read one page in the BOM every day ok? it’s a tough read but a ballin book!
anyways I love you Mom and I am glad that you wrote me this week...thank you. I hope you have tons of fun with the family and tell g’ma and g’pa that I love them super tons and ask them if they got my letter?
I love you all and keep on keepin on, stay classy
-elder richardson

Lots of Miracles

hey familia,
ok...first and I am sorry to say I have no audio to the video...and as much as I do want to watch ppl from my beloved family talk to me as I practice reading lips...creeds lips are hard to read and I don’t get a lot of time her eon the computer...haha...its crappy.
also the videos take up a ton of my space on my mail and so I have only gotten 2...but I think what we could do is if you burnt them to a disc and then sent them and then I might be able to find a member to play them sometime...sorry...these computers are kinda chafa.
also...nope I didn’t get your letter last week...probably for cause of the videos taking up all the space...sorry
but all is well...tell creed and auntie J I send my hi's...

I really wish I had time enough to tell you all the miracles we had this week...
elder alvarez had told me that he hadn’t had even 1 exchange the whole time he has been here and I set the goal with elder Knaras ( he is our ZL now) of getting 12 lessons with a member...we got 12! we had 4 exchanges and a few other lil pas buys during the day where members went with us. it was ballin. we also got 32 lessons total and elder alvarez said he has never in his mission had 32 lessons in a week...we are flippin dang dog tired but it was soooo sweet... I wish I had more time to tell you. but it was a super great week.
please keep a man named benedito in your prayers also rosio and josefa. and also keep the norton family in your prayers. i only have 2 min more on the comp before it’ll just shut down and erase everything so I am sorry I got to go...it took me a long time to read all the letters this week and I am sorry I haven’t written much...but everything really is just going soooo awesome.
I love you all
thank you for your prayers!
love ya!
elder richardson

Transfer

super crappy news...here in my new area we go to the library to do email and I don’t have speakers to listen to the videos...tell creed and aunt jozet that I will find somewhere to listen to those though cus i have my flash drive with me.
well...I kinda gave you a mid week email...this place is cool!
elder jensen decided he doesn’t want to go to Argentina because he just wants to work instead of having that looming phone call of his departure constantly around...he really has some neat experiences though that kinda made me think that he quite possible be meant to stay...idk...there are a lot of things that have happened that make me think that...but it’s a big story...anyways he said I could go in his place so if you don’t hear from me in a while its because I am lost in sur America.
also this area is sweet...yesterday was the first time I got to bear my testimony in Spanish as a Spanish missionary and nothing else! it was sooo sweet to not have to worry about translating or directing or worrying about the meeting and setting it all up or all that stuff... we went and chilled with our investigator that came...and chatted with the Spanish branch and there all ballers!
there is a lot of work here...lots...we had a good fourth of July...happy b day brie! and it was cool cus it was a beautiful day and then we had one of those Tennessee storms come in at night with Huge lightning bolts and rain like you never ever see in the west.
anyways I love you all I am sorry its short but so is my time cus I haven’t gotten a letter yet here and so I am only on a visitors pass here.
ooh really quick my new address is:

300 Kate St #F15
Madison, TN
37115

I am sorry that I cant write a lot but I love you guys tons and ill talk to you later.
-love elder Richardson

Update!!

[NOTE: sorry for not getting some updates in here ... Josh has stayed in touch with us, but I've not kept all the updates in ... my apologies.]

well the week went good...but kinda not too...I have never had so many appointments fall thorough! I mean given that the Hispanic people remember appointments worse than me without a planner but still!
Tuesday was zone conference...it was truly awesome.
there is a quote by Spencer w Kimball that states that he believes(believed) that one day the south will baptize more souls than all the state side missions combined...and we are the flippin’ belt buckle of the bible belt. I can really see a great change in the mission, everyone is baptizing more but it is really because there are just more people who are asking those very important questions of the soul. those questions that many many other churches just plain out don’t have the answer for...I know this because I meet tons of people daily and hear what they say and I have heard a noticeable difference lately...
the economy yes is sucky but I have the blessing of seeing families and people look to god more because of it...and instead of buying that nice m8ustange(mexicans love mustangs) getting the stuff for there family specifically...god gives us challenges out of love. my only hope is that I can learn and overcome my challenges with my faith always.
wherever there is a lesson there is a teacher close by...
Miguel is doing good, he is really trying and working on his faith...he has overcome so much but he still has more to go..he told us he wants to be baptized but we just don’t have a date yet. he said that he really felt from the spirit that this is the right church. and that he says that he is going to do it soon but he will let us know when.
Fransisca and Denis are going good. they are both reading and praying(at least Fransisca is for 100%) Denis is a stud he is finishing a house this week and afterwards decided he is not going to do another, he has 2 jobs and said how he is tired of not seeing his family "this is no type of life" he said...he is really focusing on the more important things in life...his wife and super cute lil daughter Jalena.
BTW his last name is Saquecagua...say that 5 times fast.
also Juan Francisco is doing good...he is the guy who is married to the lady from Thailand. she told us to call her ting because we cant get close to saying her real name...haha. Juan also said that he will get baptized if he gets an answer to his prayers. he is such a good guy, his family is cool...his 2 kids understand Thai, Spanish and English...and that is amazing. Juan also speaks 4-5 other dialects which is incredible because you have to learn dialects by hearing mostly because they aren’t written.
all is going well here. last week we went on exchanges and I went with an elder named elder martins. he is from Rio de Janeiro Brasil and speaks Portugese Spanish and English. elder martins is a flippin stud! the guy is just a champ and it was an awesome exchange. he is teaching me portugese so I can talk with him and Jordan and so I’ve been learning that...its super similar to Spanish...the accent is different and because he is from Rio the accent is even more different but its sweet.
and would someone shake there fist at Jordan and tell him he is a man di vaca(you say it like man gi baca) because he didn’t write agin!
anyways it was a super awesome exchange and next week elder Burnett(ZL and old comp) is going on exchanges with me and it will be the last time I will see that man...he is a stud and has as of today 14 more days left of his mission! after that he is most definitely getting hitched...haha...I give him about 2 months at the max...his girlfriend is pretty and loves him so. haha
tell Anita I got her rebuke...yo escribire mas, lo siento...pero in el mismo tiempo me gusto por fin a recibir una carta de ti, aunque me echaste la bronca! jaja
I didnt get your stuff sent out but I have it. I am going to try to do it today, we don’t have plans to do anything so I am going to clean the house and write letters.
also yea I got those pictures of Jeff and those were flippin hardcore! that guy sure does know how to crash...tell him he should send it into scarred the tv show. how many staples did you get? da da da dannnnggg gina!
I wanted to share a good experience that happened yesterday. it was a thing that really showed me the love and power of our Heavenly Father. always in a mission your constantly trying to be as good as you can...I am not the best but I sure do keep pushing myself. yesterday I had been right on though and during church I was translating agin and this guy got up there with a few books and a bunch of typed out papers and had about 25-30 min left...he was the last speaker...and I was like ooooooohhh crap...
a lot of times people don’t realize that translating is flippin hard...you have to hear and speak at the same time and do it in 2 languages. well I have done a lot of translating but there are those speakers who flippin rock me because the talk sooooo fast. well...he did just that...that guy talk sooo fast and he read from books and scriptures without pausing...the talk was amazing but so hard because he was using huge ridiculous words and it was rough...a few min into the talk I realized how zoned I was, I literally was speaking Spanish faster than I ever ever have before, and I was soon stinkin shocked because I like had stopped in my mind and kinda was shocked what I had been doing...my Spanish was correct and I was speaking fast. I just got in that zone agin and was literally keeping up almost word for word with the guy(keeping up word for word is actually impossible because something you have to say differently) but I was soooo amazed...and I honestly felt the spirit of peace come over me and my mind listened and spoke without pause. it’s a promise I have felt and experienced myself that as we truly do what the lord has asked he blesses us with help, strength, peace, clarity, guidance, new ideas, and our needs that we need. our Heavenly father has promised us that as we keep his commandments we will have our needs provided for. I know this because I felt that strength. I love you all and hope that you all have an awesome week. I love your letters and I hope to get some out today.
keep on keepin on vosotros!
-elder richardson

JOSE got baptized...honestly that was a pure blessing from the lord...we really didn't do anything that man was sooo prepared and ready that we just joined in basically. he is such a stud and he got the priesthood on sunday and he is going to go out with us soon...not sure when but it will be sweet.
we also had a inactive member who had wanted to have his name removed but we stopped by and talked with him about stuff for a while. and that sunday he brought his wife to church...she really wasn't sure what to think about it because everything is so new to her..but it went good. and later that week he gave us a call and just asked if we could stop by for a second at night and we were on exchanges with brother wehage who actually doesn't speak a word of spanish because he served in brasil (he is a baller) and we stopped by and they gave us a HUGE tres leches cake(3 milk cake) and it was probably the most delicious thing i have eaten on my mission...it was definitely very expensive and we couldn't believe they got it for us but it was so nice of them!
we had a weird week because of zone conference and a huge mission wide service day and some other stuff that came up that we didn't really have alot of time in our own area...i really didn't like that but..asi pasa...we couldn't do anything about it...
about that service day...we ended up going to this area and for 8 hours we pulled literal seats from cars that had been imbedded into a mountain for years out of the mountain...also we pulled out tires and sheet metal and a toilet and a bunch of stuff...i really think that there was more crud than ground...and after 8 hours of trackin through this forrestie stuff (my allergies that i have never had before going off like a flippin rage) we get back and this lady comes up with my most not favorite thing in the world...shots...
we then found out that all day we had been trackin though poison ivy and that we now all had the pleasure to find out that because no one had told us my legs that were shodden with shorts were totally going to be screwed because of the poison ivy and just so that we didn't die from the mass exposure to the ivy we were to all get shots...yay...NOT!
that was a sucky night sleep...
anyways elder treu was super nice to me and today gave me some zyrtec so that i am not practically knocked out from the dollar store brand allgery medicine. he is a good guy.
anyways ..i midway threw the week gave myself notice that jordan was done done...holy crap...good luck with the human world brother!
i love you all tons...tell jordan i am going to set a date this week and i will be doing it for the lord and the person but in a way for jordan too.
i love you guys!
Elder Richardson

Jordan's coming home! Cholos! More...

holy flippin crap!
jordan is done? that is stinkin increadable!(and i cant spell)...
how is he already done? that is soo weird to think of...i am such a pedazo de crap cousin cus i didn't write him much...i at least hope he got what i did write...i never got a confirmation of that...
dang...
well, if jordan's done that means...fudge...
anyways,there is nothing like a boy typing a commentary like he is speaking espically when he cant spell...but by any means i will work through it and you will understand beacuse i pray that you have the don de lenguas.
anyways last week was awsome, we got tons of lessons with members and the members are giving us referals to there friends and family and people they know. its super fun actually, elder santos and i don't even have to tract very much(we still have to tract alot but not anything compared to what it is usually like for a new area).
elder santos is a baller, we get along super well. he used to be a cagefighter in MMA so he and i fight alot, but its mostly just him teaching me how you can kill someone in 2 punches or something like that...not so useful for the missionary work but definately interesting. haha.
we had 2 investigators at church yesterday. jose cojem and rosa rodriguez. jose has a date for the 25 of this month(i think its april right?) and rosa is a wife to a very inactive member who really didn't want to come but when she came she liked it super tons. please keep them in your prayers.
other than that there really isnt too much exciting news...we have had some run ins with the cholos here, there from a gang called south 13 or sur 13 and there stubborn and not real nice but they at least don't jump us or shoot at us cus we are "holy men" haha.
yes we have a house and furniture...it all smells like smoke but...what can you do...oh well...
oh i just though i would tell you about hno. uki who is from peru but his ancestors are japoneese and he speaks spanish japanese english and portuguese...he is a baller, and he kicks everyones butt at futbol.
he told me he would teach me some portugese too so then i can talk with jordan...
anyways... my dreams are entirely in spanish and we speak spansih all day...i cant really do english too well sometimes because santos is learning english so we switch the roles and he only talk to the english ppl and i mainly talk to the spanish haha..its funny sometimes ppl start talkin to me in english and i just ask santos what they say and then he talks to them in english and translates for me and they get surpised when i don't speak english but he does haha...i am gettin pretty good at dumb looks and acting like i don't understand...haha.
also i am about out of time...sorry. but life is sweet...were dead dead tired every single night by the time we get home...
anyways tell brie i will absolutely pray for her...i pray for you all anyways so you might as well give me specifics so that i can pray for what you need help with. i love you all...tell jordan i love that stud tons and if you see him give him the BIGGEST hug you can for me and tell him he is the man that i always though he was...i cant really explain what kind of example he has been for me...
i love you guys tons...i am doin good here life is good. everyone is helping us so much...just remember that when you see those missionaries there at home and remember they also have families hoping they get taken well care of in there mission.
love you all
elder richardson

Update!

[NOTE: The last couple of communications from Josh have come in snippets and so they have not been posted. Suffice it to say: He got transferred to Burgess Falls, Tennessee. He has a new companion - Elder Santos from Barcelona, Spain - who he loves and is excited to be with (they have been telling people for a few months that they would be companions at some point). Burgess Falls is a new area for Spanish speaking missionaries, so they are opening a new area, with a new apartment (so new there was no furniture in it when they moved it ... including no beds). And they have been challenged to have a Spanish branch there in 3 months! This week's email follows:]

hey guys...your really going to hate me...i really dont have alot of time.
and honestly its due to the tornados that are dropping all over and the crappy weather were getting...i actually sent a pic of a tornado that i saw drop with my ver own eyes...it was about a mile from me and sooo flippin crazy.
but today were here, this last week was super chafa, santos had to go to sing in the choir so i was on exchanges with the english elders for the last 4 days...when we got here it was sooo flippin crazy...but that is a story that ill have to tell later all i can say is that satan really really dosent want us here...it was ver very clear upon trying to come over here and throughout our days together. but all is well santos and i are now reunited and with ganas we are going to tear it up here.
i sent pics!
and sunday i had to translate for the spanish agin...and i havent translated for sooo long...i was so nervous that it would be super crapy but it wasent i truly felt 3 min befor the sacrament a peace come over me and my mind started translating with such an ease that i have never had ever befor in my life...iam not going to lie it was really good, and it truly was beacuse of the help the lord gave me beacuse i have never never had that peace and ability befor in my best moment of speaking. it was odd how i fell back into the normal way of speaking afterwards. haha, so awsome is my god!
and iam really really sorry that i dont have a ton of time to write...i hope you dont hate me but we really have to get going. they told us that htere is another storm commin and we have to go and find somewhere to be. i love you all tons.
bubba,i hope you realize the importance of you practices now, there hecka important but i know that it wasnt all your fault and that your a stud and you get a move on, but sometimes were givin trials beacuse we are ready to learn lessons...learn and grow young padawan!
brie, your such a flippin studette! keep playing, the very best players are the ones that worked thourgh years of trials but for the love of the game and eventually kick some but and were so amazing that nobody could keep up...work yourself hard!
mom and dad, keep on keepin on! thank you so much for the videaos and my new address is:
1589 walter ln. #1
cooksville TN
38501
LOVE YA!
-ya boi yealda richarddd!
(your boy elder richardson)

ESTOY!
with all the tornado warnings its hard for us to get our email done...sorry

114-0118 elder knaras y su nino
114-0127 el bautizmo de jose
118-0019 knaras y yo y divina y hugo en su bautizmo
118-0078 a tornado that i literally saw drop in frount of my face(friday the 10 2009) it was about 1 mile from us and we took off in the car hecka fast and there was 1 inch hail falling too! frickin hecka crazy!

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