Oh what a beautiful morning...! Haha

Family and Friends,
 What´s up?! How are you all doing? I´m just dandy down here, living the
missionary life. There´s nothing better, and at the same time, I´m
convinced there´s nothing harder! Haha. That´s the way it should be
though, right? If it´s not hard, it´s not worth it.
 First of all, I´ll have you all know, I´ve been adopted yet again down
here in the ´Guay! So now I have my beautiful mother, Jewels, my birthmom,
and Hermana Martinez from my latino side! Haha. Hermana Martinez and her
husband are awesome members here in the branch. In July, they will have
been members for 31 years. He has been Branch Pres. 3 times, along with
various callings in the Stake, and Hma Martinez has probly held every
calling a woman can in the branch. Recently, she was called as Relief
Society Pres, again. So there ya go. She is taking good care of us-always
telling us to behave ourselves, and making sure someone is going to feed us
everyday. So, no worries, 6,000 miles away from home and I still can´t get
away from the seemingly-ever-present personage of a mother. I love it.
 Eduardo is doing awesome! He came to Church again yesterday, in a white
shirt and tie that Elder McFarland and I provided. In a lesson we had with
him while we were on divisions, he said that he felt a little awkward or
out of place with his jeans and blue shirt the last sunday. Pres. Lorenzo,
who was with us, told him not to be worried, that the Lord would provide a
way for him to get the appropriate clothing, if he continued to put Him
first. Don´t let it stop you from going to church, he said. Oh, I´m going
anyway, is what Eduardo responded. Elder Stoddard and I gave him the white
shirt and tie Saturday night. His face lit up. And then we taught him how
to tie it. Haha. It was awesome. He has a great spirit about him, even with
the hair to his shoulders and the tattoos! We found out that he has 2
daughters that live in Montevideo with their mother, and he has another
daughter that passed away about 20 days after being born, just over a year
ago. That still hits him really hard. We changed our lesson plan on the
spot and taught him the Plan of Salvation. What a blessing it is to know
that little children are ''alive in Christ.'' He was so grateful and
excited to learn about our Father´s plan for us. What an awesome
opportunity we have to share that message with our brothers and sisters.
 Last week it rained for about 3 days straight. Needless to say, it
chilled down a bit. Today is a beautiful day, short sleeves, but at nights
and in the mornings, we wear our jackets. It´s really nice not to have to
fight the heat.
 Questions from Elder Taylor-well, just a couple- Has Neil Draper gotten
his call yet? Elder Stoddard and I are anxious to hear! What about Dan Han?
Has he started on his papers? Anybody else who I should be waiting to hear
from? Oh, speaking of Dan-Dan, I got your letter a week and a half ago, and
I wrote you a letter last week, and then realized I had no stamp to send
it. So be patient, letters are coming. That is the status of letter writing
right now.
 Speaking of letters, I got an out-of-the-blue letter from Shayla Troff
this week. I don´t know her email, mom, so if there´s a way you could
figure that out and send this to her so she knows, I´d appreciate it.
Also, mom, I didn´t get the email you sent last monday, the 23, on
Thursday, the 26, so that means it´ll prolly come this week. So there´s
your report. Also, another request-If you plan on sending another package
sometime soon, maybe with Elder Damairu´s parents, could you send my
Christmas eclipse CD? I´m confident it would be appropriate, and I´m
going through a non-MOTAB-christmas-craving, so I´d appreciate it!
 I´m sending my pictures today, for sure, in a package, so you´ll have
to let me know if or when it gets to you, so I can delete them from my
card. There prolly won´t be a letter in it, so don´t hate me. Just be
grateful that you get letters each week. Haha. I´m calling in like 2 weeks
anyway, so it´s all good.
 Sorry if this letter is short, but know that it is sent with all my love!
Know that all is well in the work, and that the Lord´s hand is involved! I
love being a missionary and all the things it entails! The Lord knows us
and is aware of our needs! Let us be instruments in His hands, so He can
touch the hearts of His children! Christ lives and is the Savior! I love
Him, and I love all of you! As Hma Martinez says, Pórtense bién y
cuídense! Love you
 Elder Taylor

Beautiful day in beautiful Artigas!

¡Buen día a todos!
Yeah, that´s right, I speak Spanish. Haha. Not really, that was a straight up lie. But if you asked my Branch President apparently he would say yes, because he asked Elder Stoddard and I to speak in church AGAIN yesterday! That´s twice in like a month. No one wants to come to church and listen to the gringos try to speak Spanish again. Haha. But it went really well. I talked about finding and Elder Stoddard talked about retention. So yeah...good times...
¡PORFILIO GOT BAPTIZED! It was awesome! I love the mission! Haha. Thursday was a crazy day. We had planning in the morning, zone conference right after in the afternoon, and our baptism RIGHT after that. It was a full day. AND it was Porfilio´s birthday, so that was cool. After the baptism we had a small cake and just chatted until we had to run home to get in on time! Ah...the life of a missionary. Elder Stoddard baptized Porfilio. Afterwards we had a small little testimony meeting type thing, and we invited him to bear his testimony. He said he´s going to try his best to help his family follow his example. We have a really good relationship with his family, so we are hoping for the same...we will see! And, he was confirmed yesterday in church. He´s officially a Mormon! Yes! Seeing the change the Gospel brings in to people´s lives is amazing. I love it.
Ok, now some sad news. We found out like Tuesday night or something like President Bankhead is not coming back. Because of his health problems, he is being released. We do not know what the problem is, but yeah. As of right now, one of his counselors is our President and our new one comes the first of June or July. His name is Pres. Peterson and he is like the director of temporal affairs in Mexico. I think. We don´t really now much about him. Like at all. But I thought you might like to know.
We found an awesome guy named Eduardo. He´s never had much interest in any church, he said, but for some reason when we came by, the topic interested him. Saturday night we invited him to church, and he jumped at the opportunity! He came yesterday and loved every minute of it. We are really excited about him!
Fam, I got the package you sent this last Thursday-and I´ll have you know I made the very first shot on my hoop! And no, I wasn´t anywhere close, Nathanael! Haha. It´s been fun. The food-wow, I miss the goods from the States. But then again, they have stuff here that I´ll miss when I come home. I want the best of both worlds. Haha. And can I just say-I love how the tape you sent covered everything from Christmas day, to the beginning of April! Haha. Elder Stoddard and I had a good laugh at that! It was really fun to hear everything that´s been going on, though. Keep ´em coming! Especially if they have songs from my beautiful sister who sings like an angel! Yes mom, you sounded wonderful too! Haha
Ok, well we´re supposed to meet the rest of the zone over in Brazil in about 15 minutes for food, so I think that just about does it for this week. I love you all, the Church is true, and the work of the Lord is moving forward-don´t get left behind! Haha. I can´t wait to hear from all of you! I´m getting stamps soon, so I promise letters are headed out from here to all of you too, no worries!
Elder Taylor

P.S. What is this about a massacre at some college? We´ve heard bits and pieces, but not anything solid...

Well hey there!

Here it is, another week gone by. Time seems to go by so fast here. Maybe it's because I'm in a different hemisphere? Who knows... haha.
Well, at least I know that one family member loved me and thought about me last week- thanks for writing me Uncle Mike! I enjoyed getting your letter on Thursday! I hope my parents are still sending my emails to you!
This week has been good. We have a baptism this Thursday that we are really excited for. Porfilio is finally getting baptized! We have just been making sure he is ready and getting things set. He is almost done with the Book of Mormon already! He's basically inhaling it. Ha ha. Every time we go over there he has read like 50 chapters and has a million questions. Ok...that was a little bit of an exaggeration, but not too much!
Our main focus right now is finding new people to teach. It has been our focus for the last couple of weeks, but the area is really hard to find in. We talk to EVERYONE, sometimes multiple times, hoping that they'll be the one. We found one guy last week who we were really excited about, but we haven't been able to get back with him again because of work. Today is supposed to be his day off, so we're going back today. Yesterday we also found a mother who we have a hope for. Her parents and two young daughters are members of the Church, but she and her husband are not. We're hoping that through their example she will be able to see the importance of it. Have a lesson with her tomorrow.
Oh yeah, my girlfriend got baptized on Saturday. She's probably the 5th cutest girl in the entire world, behind my sisters and my beautiful mother! But no worries, she's 8 years old and the daughter of my Branch President. Ha ha. Had you scared, didn't I? Her name is Valentina and she is a doll, along with her two brothers. Her dad asked me to be one of the witnesses for the baptism, along with a brother from the Branch. I was so excited. It was the first time I've ever actually participated in a baptism. Cool experience. I think hekr dad forgot to tell her that right after the prayer she was going under, because it took her by surprise and her feet came off the floor. Her dad caught them in time, but it was kind of funny. She came up and started to cry...but we'll blame that on the awesome Spirit that was present!
Jose Luiz update...we went by to talk with him and his mom about La Obra Misional. It was way cool because before we even started alking he was telling us about this awesome responsibility he feels to share the Gospel with everyone!So we've found another member to go with us to lessons...!
I heard from one of the Elders from my zone in the MTC. Elder Adamson-he's in th eother mission here in beautiful Uruguay. So that was exciting. I LOVE TO HEAR FROM MY FRIENDS...! Hint hint. Ha ha. But really, if you ever find a spare minute, I'd love to hear what ya'll are up to and what's going on back in the crazy US of A and good ol' Utah.
Mom, I'm getting close to the end of my journal-what do you want me to do for a new one? Jus tfind one here or do you want to send me one like it so it "matches"? Just a question I had. I've been way good with my journal-I haven't even missed like 5 days. Why couldn't I do it before the mission? I was slackin...!
I got my pictures on CD's last week, so I'll send them to ya'll either today or, most likely, next week. We're probably going to go do some shopping today to see what there is to see, so I might be sending a little something home. Nothing too crazy big, I promise. I made a backup of the picture CD's to make sure we get them there ok, so just let me know if they don't make it. Ha ha. I"m almost positive we won't have a problem, but we'll see.
I didn't even knkow Julianne was engaged! Did I? I don't even know anymore. Ha ha. Make sure you give her a congrats for me. A hug too, if that's appropriate...? Ha ha. And make sure you threaten the fiance, Nathanael, since I can't. I'm counting on you...!
Well, know that I love you all, and the work of the Lord is moving forward! If you don't know the missionaries in your area, I give you a challenge to at least get to know their names! The work is a lot easier when you have the support of the members!
Christ lives, loves us, and He will come again! There is a power in the Book of Mormon-find it!
Elder Taylor

¡Felices Pascuas!

Fam and Friends,
I hope you all had a wonderful Easter! What an awesome opportunity to celebrate the Resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ along with the rest of the Christian world!
Well, first of all, to set your minds at ease-I´m still up north in beautiful Artigas. Every companionship in our zone had a change...except Elder Stoddard and I. We are together for at least the next six weeks! Three months-that´s a long time to be with one person for every minute of every day, but we get along great, so it´s not gonna be a problem!
Easter here is definitely different than Easter in the States. The week before Easter Sunday is called the Semana Santa (Holy Week) or La Semana de Turismo (The Week of Tourism). It´s like spring break, ´Guayean style-which means no one does anything. Haha. No, a lot of people travel or go see family and what not. But the city was basically dead, especially on Friday. Wow. It was like a ghost town. Everyone definitely takes advantage of the holiday.
I miss the good ol´Easter Bunny. Apparently Uruguay isn´t on his map. Or maybe just the missionaries. Haha. I didn´t really here anything about the Bunny from any of the kids or anything, but there are chocolate bunnies and stuff, so I don´t know.
Easter was just a normal Fast Sunday. Had a great fast and testimony meeting. I love the Branch we are in. The members are awesome. It´s so nice to be here with them and feel of their Spirit. It´s so cool here because the people are (mostly) SO converted. Of course, there are those who aren´t, but they make such awesome sacrifices to live the Gospel.
The people here in Artigas are such an awesome people. Very humble, and very kind. Most of the time. On Saturday, we talked with a very devout Catholic, probably the most faithful Catholic I´ve ever met, and it was just such a great experience. His name is Nelson, he´s 80 years old, and when he saw us he basically bolted to the door (as much as an 80 year old can) to let us in. He loves English, so he tried to speak some with us-it was way funny. We simply had a talk about the Savior, our beliefs about the Plan of Salvation, and just some other questions he had. It´s fun to talk to people like him because they respect your beliefs, just as we respect theirs. It was just an opportunity to talk about something greater than us all. He said he loves basketball, so he and I chatted about that for a minute. Haha. He loves the fact that we do missionary work, and he said he wished the Catholic church would do it. Really, he made me remember Grandpa Talbot for some reason. Mom, don´t cry. Haha. He was just a super nice man with an amazing spirit about him, just like Grandpa. We are not going to end up teaching and baptizing his family, but I am certain that he is going to be SOOOO excited when he passes to the next life and discovers the plan that has been laid before us. He will be embraced in the arms of our Savior as a Son of God who did all he could in this life to live the best he could. I am so grateful for the knowledge of the Plan of Salvation that I have. Without it, this life would be so difficult. Granted, this life is difficult at times regardless, but we know that this too will pass and one day we will be embraced in the arms of our Savior to hear the phrase "Well done, thou good and faithful servant" as long as we do our part in this life. What a marvelous blessing that knowledge is. I pray that we will be willing to open our mouths and share it with all, so that we can see the hand of God work through us.
Saturday night, Elder Stoddard and I decided to sleep up on the roof. We wanted to do it all last change, but we never did. So, we decided to quit talking and act! Haha. We took up the beds: frames, mattresses, and all. There´s a wall that we climb on and then you can climb on to the roof from there. It was awesome. We had a clear night sky above us, and a storm on the horizon. So we could see the bright stars and lightning: SO cool! About four in the morning it started to drizzle a little bit, but we stuck it out anyway. Haha. We hardly got wet at all. A fun memory.
Mary-Anne, I got the letter you mailed on like the 20th of March this last week. So March 20th to April 5th...that´s not too bad, right? I don´t think so. But Dad, I feel the same way you do-if I was to write a regular letter to the fam, what would I put in it? A copy of this letter? Haha. It just doesn´t seem logical. At all. But when I send a package home, I will put an actual letter in it, I promise.
Speaking of packages, if you send me a package sometime in the next 20 months...would you mind sending some US Postage stamps with it? I want to write some of my good buddies back in the States, and it´s SO much easier if I can just put a US stamp on it and put it in the mission bolsa. But i can´t do that with Uruguay stamps. Just a note. Oh, and Mom/Dad, could you let me know exactly what mission Carson is going to? I´m going to write him a letter today, but I can´t remember what mission it is in the Philippines, so I can´t send it yet. I´m not worried about it getting there in time, because he just barely went in to the MTC and he´s there forever, but yeah. I´d appreciate it.
Anyway, I think that´s about it for this week. I love you all, and think about you often. You are constantly in my prayers. Take care of yourselves and take advantage of opportunities to share the Gospel, even if it´s just planting a seed! Give it a chance to grow! I love you, and can´t wait to hear from EACH of you! :o)
Elder Taylor

Conference was AMAZING, no?!

Dear Family and Friends,
I figured I had better start with Conference. I absolutely LOVED it! Wow. I have tried to really focus and pay attention the last few years during Conference, and even take notes, but I have never been as attentive or had my hand hurt from writing notes! Just the first session alone I took like 4 pages of notes-I love it! Conference in the mission is definitely a different experience, but it is awesome. Almost all of our efforts last week were trying to get people to go to the Conference. Saturday there wasn´t a lot of people there, but there was quite a few on Sunday.

Ok, awesome story for the week. Yesterday, Elder Stoddard and I went to Conference and we were headed to the room set apart for us gringos who want to understand Conference, when we turned the corner and were greeted by...can you guess?...prolly not...ok, I´ll tell you...an ear-to-ear grinning, white-shirt-and-tie wearing, polished-shoes and pressed-slacks sporting, bright-faced JOSE LUIZ! I almost hit the ceiling with excitement. I cannot even begin to describe to you the change on his face. When he saw us turn the corner, his face lit up and he didn´t leave our side
for the next 20 minutes, when the Conference started. When we finally parted ways to go watch Conference and we got in our room, I just started crying. I cannot even begin to express how happy it made me to see Jose Luiz there, where he needed to be, when he needed to be there.

The Gospel truly brings happiness into people´s lives, and Jose Luiz is a testimony to that.

Alright, enough sentimental stuff...just kidding Mom! Friday I was on divisions with Elder Metcalf, one of our Zone Leaders, and we were over at their place. They live with the Coca. She is SO funny. She does everything for them, it´s kind of ridiculous, but amazing. I had talked to Elder Metcalf and Elder McFarland to see if they wanted to try and keep the Taylor Conference Tradition alive, and they were eager to accept. So Friday, Elder Metcalf and I asked the Coca if we could do it. She was eager to comply, and just drilled me with questions of what we needed and what I wanted. So Saturday, the tradition continued 6,000 miles away from home!

Yes, it had to be on Saturday, but that´s fine. We had pancakes (cuz waffles don´t exist down here) with bananas, apples, pears, pineapple, and syrup. It was ridiculously good. I took pictures, no worries. We watched the sessions live at 1-3, 5-7, and Priesthood from 9-11. we had to get permission, and we almost fell asleep in it anyway!) It was an amazing experience. The importance of prayer, a great way to start off the Conference.

The "afternoon" session of Conference was a little interesting. It was great, just felt like I was back in my Utah History class where we learned about those weird Mormons. It was quite the surprise for all of us, when right when they showed the first shot of the session, all of us just pointed and said, "Wait, that´s the Tabernacle!" It was nice. They are men truly called of God to lead and guide this Church. They are inspired to teach us and counsel us on the things we need to work on. The basics were emphasized in this Conference. Prayer, faith, repentance, forgiveness, gratitude, and gaining a testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith. I think the challenge we received is one we should all determine to take upon us-regardless of whether we have before, read the story of Joseph Smith and ask in sincere prayer for a testimony or a confirmation if he truly was a prophet of God. I know that God will answer our prayers, because He has answered mine, and I have seen Him answer the prayers of the people here in Uruguay.

Ok, now to answer/ask questions. No, Mom, I wasn´t being sarcastic when I said I love the rain. It´s fantastic. It´s not the greatest support to the work, but neither is the burning sun, and I´d rather have the rain.Haha.

The BBQ went well. Porfilio was there, and a lady whom we had met and had a first lesson with the day before, with her 11-year old son. Members were there and anxious to make sure they felt comfortable. About 30-35 people in all. Elder Stoddard and I shared a thought on the importance of having a prophet and apostles and then we had a short testimony meeting. Family and friends, the Church is true, even in Uruguay. The Spirit can be felt so strongly when the members of this church stand up and live what they believe. We as members can do SO much to move this work along. Help the missionaries in your area in whatever ways you can, including helping them find people to teach! It is such a blessing for them, and you will be blessed in return. Elder Stoddard has been here for like a year and a half. He´s headed
home August 10. He says he´s going to go visit the fam when he gets back-I´ll keep you posted.

Changes are this week. We´ll find out tomorrow night whether we stay or go, and who with, and then Thursday, if here´s a change, we head to our new area. Elder Stoddard and I are both pretty sure we are staying here, and together. Not sure why, but we just feel that way. But really, doesn´t matter either way, the Church is true in any area! I´m getting the pictures put on a CD today, so prolly next week I´ll get them sent off. I was worried about not sending them before, but since you guys are so far behind with my scrapbook anyway, I won´t worry so much! Haha. There will be a ton of pictures, I´m warning you...

Oh, Mary-Anne, I don´t know about the nintendo controllers. I can´t remember if I took them to Logan or not. Sorry. You could call Neil Draper and ask him, he might remember. Haha.

All in all, know I love you and the work is moving forward! The Spanish is definitely coming, but I could definitely still use your prayers!Especially with the understanding part. If I could just understand better, it would be easier to catch all the little rules. But everyone has their own way of speaking, or their own accent or something, so it´s tough. But, with patience, diligence, and prayer, all things are possible that are convenient for the Lord-so hopefully it´s convenient for Him that I share the Gospel here in Uruguay! Haha.

I love you all, and you are in my prayers constantly! Oh, funny story real quick-When I show people a picture of my family, about 90% of them say that I look a lot like my dad. I think that´s cool! But anyways, we are gonna go show the ´Guyans how to play soccer, so yeah! I want to hear from my little sisters. Haha. I still didn´t get Mel´s email, so yeah. Oh, and I want pictures! From the fam, from my friends, from everyone! One of the Hermanas has been razzing me because I still haven´t gotten a package and I´ve been here for a whole change! She got a 30 pound package of sugar last week from home...so if any of ya´ll want to help me out with that...!Haha.

Love you all. The Church is true!

Elder Taylor