spanish blessings and general conference

Hola mi familia y amigos!

So, I am in a trio right now with Elder Eskelson and Elder Christensen (who was in the MTC with me, same district and room). It's alright but I prefer just the normal 2 companionships. They had a different area than me and Elder Pugh and had much more investigators and members in it, so when we combined, we teach the 2 investigators I had and all the rest that they have. Our days can get pretty packed, but there's always the usual of people dropping us--which sucks but it's part of the work I guess. We went to one lady´s house earlier this week and she had asked for a blessing of health. I expected Elder Eskelson to take over for the blessing since Christensen and I haven´t been out for a while, I was hoping to be able to do the anointing (I told you I did the annointing for a lady last Sunday, right?) but anyway, we got ready and he looked to me and said, You´ve got the blessing Elder Franson! ... I had no idea what to do. Already I had only given one blessing--and that was in English. This would have to be in Spanish! So I said a silent prayer to myself, asked for help and the ability to communicate as much as needed to be the instrument in His hands for this lady. They wrote down her name on a piece of paper and held it up (it was super long haha) and then I gave the blessing. I´m pretty sure my hands were shaking the entire time and I might have freaked her out a little bit, but the Lord definitely answered my prayer in that moment. I gave a blessing to her and it was in Spanish. It´s hard to a explain, I just felt comforted and I was able to say what I needed. So that was one of the highlights of this week. 

Remember Javier? I think I talk about him a lot. Well anyway, we met with him as a trio and gave him a little lesson. But before we had started the actual lesson, I noticed that he was just much more open and friendly than he was to Elder Pugh and me--he was cracking jokes, laughing, he just seemed more like himself. He mentioned something about how Elder Pugh always talked about his mission and there wasn't really any fun in the lessons. As I looked back, I realized we would have a lot of fun in the streets and just talking, but when we started talking with someone on the streets or one of our investigators he just went into this mode where it was just work work work. Idk, its kinda hard to explain. But I finally knew why he never wanted to switch his religion while we were teaching him--we just never got a good relationship with him, we never opened ourselves up to him, and likewise he never opened his true self up to us. I was, wow I´m sorry, the guy sitting next to me in this internet cafe has horrible BO and its stinking up the whole room.. Gosh my eyes are starting to water. Looks like I´m gonna test my breath holding skills.. Ok back to Javier. I was feeling kinda down, just not too happy, thinking that I had wasted those hours with him trying to teach him about the importance of baptism when if we can just become someones friend (but at the same time, keep it clear we are here to bring souls to Christ and are doing His work) then it will bring about a whole different story. I don´t know, Dad and Jess do you remember any experiences with this? Elder Eskelsen told me not to feel down, but to realize that your whole mission is a growing and learning experience. Which is true, no one is a perfect missionary. 

Lots of you asked about conference--we got to watch it live with you guys! The canaries are only 7 hours ahead not 8, so we watched it from 5 p.m. to 7, then 9 to 11. Priesthood was replayed for us on Sunday morning though. It was AWESOME! I think one of my favorite talks was Ballard's, another was Richard G. Scott's. But man they were all so good. I definitely took conference for granted, and the easiness to watch and hear it. All we did was turn on the radio and/or the computer and sat in the living room as a family taking notes. But over here, either they watch it at home over the internet (but the connection for a lot of people is really bad I think) so they have to go to Santa Cruz (that's where we went, it's just the city right below La laguna) where they play it in the chapel. We fortunately enough got to hear it in English in a different room with super comfy couches and chairs. I want to share an experience with conference I had. A couple days before, while I was still thinking about the Javier thing, I came up with a question that I wrote down in my journal. I wanted to know how I could be a better missionary, how I could do my best and not waste the Lord´s time. I wanted to know something I could do that would be more successful. And as I watched conference, I heard over and over again the topic of members and missionaries working together! I thought to myself that yeah 80,000 or so missionaries is amazing and it's going to help, but what the Lord wants is 15 million missionaries! He wants all of us sharing with our friends or whoever. I challenge you, my family, to invite the missionaries over to our house for dinner and invite a nonmember friend or less active friend of either you two or Cady or Porter, or a family. You can eat together, let the missionaries get better acquainted with these friends and after that, the missionaries can have sort of a family home evening. That is what we are doing here, trying to get the members to invite one of their friends and then we have a FHE with all of them. Will you do it? The challenge goes to every family though, not just mine. Everyone who reads this letter should do it.  Oh boy those missionaries are going to be happy and fat :D haha

Oh. One more thing about conference--we watched the last session in Spanish because Isabel came (!) so we wanted to go sit with her. I said a prayer to be able to understand better and get something out of it. I didn´t understand all of it, of course, but I surprised myself at how much I was able to understand and get out of it. There are lots of cool things that can happen from a little prayer to our Father in Heaven. 

During conference I realized how amazing those men are, regarding their family life. It made me make a goal right there to be like Richard G. Scott, who so dearly loves his wife and can always feel her presence. I want to be that kind of husband and father. Thank you Mom and Dad for being perfect examples of that to me, you are incredible parents. 

Love you all, Take care! 

Love Elder Franson

PS Don´t forget about the FHE thing! I will check up next week