Literally finding in the holes of the rocks

Posted on December 17, 2012 by Aaron

Elder SnowHey! We arrive at week 3 of training Elder Ponce. What did you do this week Elder Snow? Well son, I’ll tell you.

We had 2 baptism dates that fell through due to church attendance issues, so we went this week looking for other chosen vessels of the Lord. The thing is, is that with Paniagua, Medina, and Rios, we contacted pretty much every suburb in our area, so Ponce and I decided to try and find people in the outskirts of our area. We were walking for about 10-20 minutes at a time finding houses way the heck out there, and it was done with success, we found some pretty positive people. We’ll see what happens, but it was a lot of fun. I felt like I was in the middle of no where. There were some really poor people out there. They looked like they have never changed their clothes. These people were literally living in holes in the rocks (of course they had huts made of sheet metal, but still, it was built out of the holes of the rocks–Jeremiah 16:16) so that was a lot of fun.

We got a new ward mission leader who was an AP in his mission and is a hard worker, so we have been blessed with this opportunity to not only plan, but DO activities. Our last mission leader was not the best… so now we can get some help. Thank goodness. We have an activity planned for this Thursday, so that should go well. I hope things work out perfectly.

This week for P-day, we got to go to the stadium again, and play football! It was legit… and we ate Mexican Tortas. Those are good my friends. Give them a try if you ever visit…. uh… Mexico.

That is about it. Another rough week until Christmas!!! I hope that everyone is enjoying their Christmas break. Take it easy. I love you all!

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

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My new son!

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Aaron

Elder SnowAttached is a picture of my new son Elder Ponce. He is from Peru! He is a VERY proud Peruano. He never shuts up about it. I know everything there is to know about his home. He also speaks very VERY fast… and at first I did not understand him, but now I am getting the hang of it. Better Spanish by the end of the next change????? I hope so!

That being said, he is a VERY hard worker, and loves missionary work. We have been working VERY hard. So this should be a good change.

So during changes, I met an Elder Morrow who apparently knows Scott Snow. He is a cool guy. Shout out to him and Scott! He already has a year. I remember reading his blogs when he was a newbie before the mission. So yea!

Elder Wimmer and I led the new group of trainers around Xela before we picked up our kids. We had the opportunity to visit the temple! That is one beautiful building! It was nice to visit.

After getting our kids and traveling back, we ran into December 7th. Apparently in Guatemala there is something called Dia del Diablo, or Quema del Diablo. At 6pm exactly, every Catholic brings out a full sized doll, dressed up like the devil, and they burn it! This is also an excuse to buy fireworks and set those off with it. I managed to sneak a picture. It was a bit dangerous, so we went inside and studied for about 30 minutes. It was interesting, though!

Well, That is about it. We have high hopes this week. Now that we are back to 100%, we can finally fix Cuchumatanes. I love you all. Take it easy! Happy Hobbit weekend!!!

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

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Six months

Posted on December 4, 2012 by Cheryl

Aaron has been gone six months. I look back at my posts that I made when the boy left: posts with titles like “suffering” and “sacrifice.” I have a vague memory of feeling that way. I had written the Missionary Moms when I was missing Aaron a lot, right after he left, and they all told me that if I could get to six months, I would feel much better. They were right. I assumed, when I heard their advice, I’d feel better because time had passed. That’s actually only part of the story.

Calendar_0Sure, time passes and we get used to a new normal. I will concede that time does tend to heal wounds. But I remember a point when I got one of Aaron’s letters where it was clear that he had found a home down there. He was talking about people like they were his friends. They were people that he would miss if he never saw them again, and they no doubt would miss him as well. Mothers were feeding him. Children were befriending him. Other missionaries were sharing their strategies with him to help him manage his new life.

Knowing that there are people in Guatemala who care about my son helps me know that I’m not the only one seeing to his welfare anymore. He is loving and serving, and, in turn, is being loved and served. His willingness to speak the language and eat the food and make friends down there is not only making it easier for him, it is making it easier for me. Love brings us so much support in our lives. He is loved in Guatemala. He is going to be just fine, and because of that, so am I.

I am starting so suspect that love is the answer to everything. It certainly has been a wonderful lesson to learn, and I’m not sure I could have learned it any other way.

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HAPPY 6 MONTHS TO ELDER SNOW!!!

Posted on December 3, 2012 by Aaron

Elder SnowI plan on celebrating this week by eating an entire chocolate ice cream cake all by myself. There is a very popular ice cream company here called Sarita, and they make PUAK (money in Quiche), because it is still very hot here in Huehue. There are a lot of them too, so I am very excited… but FIRST!

While Elder Rios was gone, I was put into a trio with my neighbors in an area called Las Rosas. An Elder Leguizamo from Ecuador, and my good pal/brother Elder Thomas. Yup…. another trio. Hey it wasn’t too bad though. We actually had a baptism. We got lots of good work done. It was nice to be back to my 100% missionary potential.

I will be training again, though. I go tomorrow to pick up my new kid! GAH! I feel like I have done this so many times. I hope this new one is as good as Elder Rios. He was a good companion. BUT we’ll see tomorrow!

Fun fact for you. I have attatched a picture of the top left corner of the ”Christ coming to the Americas” painting. Why? Because Spongebob is on it!! If you look closely, you can see it. It is engraved on one of the walls. Now you’ll never look at that painting the same ever again….. =)

Other than that, nothing much really happened. Found and incinerated giant spiders… chatted with very drunk men about God, and bought some more Christmas stuff for the apartment. I love Christmas. I can’t wait for it. I hope that everyone is as ready for it as I am =) Until then, I love you all. Take it easy, and have fun!

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

Sponge Bob

Sponge Bob

My trio

My trio

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Adios Elder Rios!

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Aaron

Dumps, what a week!!

Firstly. Elder Rios. We had a visit with Elder Duncan of the Seventy on Wednesday. He wanted to meet Elder Rios personally to see what would be done about his hurt hip. So the assistants told us to meet in some chapel in Xela. We go there, expecting to meet Elder Duncan or the assistants; however, we run into a dentist, from Las Vegas, named Doctor Woodbury, and his beautiful blonde assistant. I surprisingly (This was the first white normal person I have seen in months) said, hello and asked him if he saw any of the other Elders. He told me to check the gym of the chapel. We go inside, and it was FILLED with white dentists, doctors, etc. all from Utah and Las Vegas, and their blonde single women assistants. I nearly died. My missionary goggles came immediately off, and I got to smell perfume, drink A&W Root Beer, and eat Chips Ahoy cookies.

Anyway, Elder Duncan himself finally came, asked me to help out some of the dentists with their work, so I sat down next to a doctor Bob Rogers from Sandy Utah, and I made filling for teeth, sucked bloody saliva, and saw how real dentists do their job. It was pretty gross, but interesting. I have attached one of the funniest pictures I have ever seen. This guy did NOT want to smile for the picture. His teeth were particularly bad.

So Elder Rios talked with Elder Duncan, and they came to the conclusion that he should go back to the states to finish his treatment. He was very sad, but lots of people have been very supportive, and it has helped him get through it.

As for me, I will train again in a week. We have a giant group of 60 new Elders coming in, and I get to be one of the trainers. That should be fun. I will still be district leader, and I will be in the same area for 3 more months =-/. That I am not so thrilled about, but hey that’s okay. Gotta do what ya gotta do.

I am in a trio with some Elders in my district until I get my new kid next week. We are working both areas together! How crazy is that!!

As of now, Elder Rios is on his way to the USA. He should be there by Thursday. He was an excellent companion, and I will never forget the guy. He was awesome.

On a lighter note, we had Thanksgiving! Hermano Enrique from Cafe Zumbas is from Arizona, so he knows about Thanksgiving, and offered a massive Thanksgiving dinner to all the Elders for only 35 Quetzales ($5). It was wonderful. Every Huehuetenango Missionary was there. It was a lot of fun.

Fun fact! There is a Spanish gibberish. I am learning it right now. It is hard to understand, but easy to write. It is fun!

Other than that, we have another 40 contacts week. That should be fun. The mission goes on. I complete 6 months this week! Boy the time flies. I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving. 4 more weeks then things will be a lot more fun. Take it easy. I love you all!

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

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I love the internet

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Cheryl

Sure, I waste a lot of my time online. Today it actually paid off.

While checking Facebook, I noticed I was tagged in a post. A woman I have never met posted a picture with the caption: “Found another Vegas Elder. This shorty is Elder Snow!” and a fellow Facebook friend tagged me in it. My friend was friends with both me and the person who posted the pic, and so commented that she recognized Aaron. Here he is, in all his glory:

Well, you can imagine, this made my day. I had no idea what was going on or why Aaron was hanging around a fellow Nevadan, but the post said she was in Quetzaltenango. After looking through the album, I deduced that some Americans are doing some free dental/ medical work there in Xela, and for some reason, Aaron was there and saw them.

So, I am happy to say that shortly thereafter, I received some icing on my cake. I got an email from a woman down there who took this picture:

She said she was a mother of a missionary as well and thought I’d like to see what my son was up to. What a great Thanksgiving surprise!

I am determined to somehow pay this forward. I am planning on, the next time I see the missionaries here in our neighborhood, breaking out the good camera to see if I can’t send their moms a nice picture of their missionaries. I’m not much of a cook, and I don’t have many talents, but at least I can do that. I’m not the only parent who is missing their child–a parent who is happy they are serving, but missing them just the same. I wonder what each of us could do to brighten their day.  I’m glad someone in Guatemala saw fit to brighten mine.

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It’s the week before Thanksgiving already???

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Aaron

Hey! How’s it goin??

So we have had an interesting week. First of all, we went to Xela AGAIN because Elder Rios still has not improved. The doctor gave him more pills to take, and told him to take it easy. He got a call from the President, and he said that he is going to call the Brethren to see if he should leave Guatemala to get things checked out. The doctors here study in the United States, and are not that bad actually. The problem is that the technology is over 30 years behind. Their MRIs have found nothing wrong with the guy, but he still wakes up in pain. We find out what will happen to him next week. Keep him in your prayers.

Other than that, we got to go to the Mirador again, except in Daytime!! We could see all of Huehuetenango and them some. It was pretty awesome.

Christmastime is already here. (I swear it gets earlier and earlier every year) The giant Christmas tree in Huehue central is already up and decorated. We Gringos, however, are not as ready as the Chapines. We still have thanksgiving to deal with. BUT! I did buy a little 100 Christmas light set, so that should get things started.

Speaking of Thanksgiving though, there is a member here who is named Enrique and he is the one who owns Cafe Zumbas, he is from Arizona so he knows about Thanksgiving. He offered us Elders a free Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday! So that should be fun.

That is about it for this week. I hope that this has been a great week. Enjoy the weather, have fun, and you are all loved and missed!

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

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Daaaaa RUINS!!!!

Posted on November 12, 2012 by Aaron

Hey, so how are we this week? Good, good.

Well, to just clear the ice, many people have been talking to me about the earthquake that happened in San Marcos Guatemala this past week. We were on the bus to the mission nurse, and we got a call from some Hermanas freakin’ out about some earthquake asking if we were okay. I said, “uh…. yea were fine???” So we did not feel anything because we were on the bus to Xela to see the mission nurse. However, the earthquake was felt here in Huehue. 5.2 on the richer scale. In San Marcos, just up above us, it was 7.2 or something. Many deaths, lots of tragedy. It has been an interesting week in that aspect.

As for Elder Rios, he is doing great, and we have been up and working again which has been wonderful. We go again on Thursday to the mission nurse to do a quick check up. I hope things go well!

Anyway… so this P-day was special because our district/zone did very well this week, we got to go to the Zaculeu RUINS! Ancient, real Mayan ruins people. It was sick nasty. There are original Mayan people there who still do altar sacrifices. I wasn’t able to get a picture, but believe me, killing cows, prayers not spoken in Spanish, but in Mam and Quiche. It was nuts. We took a million pics. I have included some jewels.

Now that we are back up to speed, we have a lot of hopes for this week. 3 areas in our district have baptism dates, and so I think that means that it is our turn =). We should do great. We have been working and praying and fasting for this area, and I know we’ll get a good breakaway very soon.

I love you all. I hope that this week has been well. Enjoy the weather, enjoy Little Caesars pizza (I’ve been missin’ their $5 larges lately) and enjoy 4 more years of Obama!

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

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Maybe things aren’t so boring after all

Posted on November 5, 2012 by Aaron

Daaaaa, what a boring week.

We had a challenge this week from the assistants to contact 40 brand new people. So Elder Rios and I decided to do it in one day! On Thursday we contacted 41. Not all of them were SUPER positive, but we found some very interested people, and have taught some great lessons since then. We have great hopes for this zone. 2 new chapels opened up, and total we received over 200 references just from the chapel openings alone. Things have been very exciting lately! We have a lot of work to do! So maybe things aren’t so boring after all.

So Elder Rios is a very hard worker, but maybe works a little too hard. On Saturday he was having hip problems from walking up and down so much. We have the opportunity to go to Xela this week, so we might stop by and see how everything is going with him. So keep him in your prayers.

I have surpassed mile number 500 in my mission! Boy they are flying by. My pedometer is looking pretty ghetto as well. President Bautista thinks that it is hillarious, but encourages it. I plan on walking a lot more this week. We have a lot of work to do.

So this computer is busted and I can’t upload pictures >=( so until next week, we will have new ones. I just want to let everyone know that I love you, and that you are missed. I’ve been getting letters as well, so THANK you for that as well. I hope that you are getting mine. Take it easy, enjoy the weather, and HAVE FUN!

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

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I get a cell phone

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Aaron

So, big week.

Let one photo tell the story of my new kid! His name is Elder Rios! He looks like a Latino, and his name looks like a Latino name too, but he is actually from Los Angeles. He is a great guy. He wrestled in high school, is 5ft 2in, and really wants to work hard. I couldn’t have asked for anything better. He doesn’t speak much Spanish now, but that will change very soon. DAAAA!!!! He is a great companion.

So, we had a couple of kids turn 8 years old this year, and 2 of them chose me to baptize them! It was a lot of fun. Having to squat down to their level in order to baptize them was a lot of fun……. more or less. But I also got to confirm one of them too. That was special. I had never confirmed somebody before. So yea! People think that the white tall blonde guy has sweet blood or something, because they let me baptize their kids!

District leader…. it is tough. BUT! According to the picture… I’ve got a cell phone, and it is pretty sah-weet. That is about it though. I get a cell phone, give people permission to go outside of the area, and sometimes tell people to get to work. So it isn’t too bad.

Oh… and a random picture of a giant ant.

We have good hopes for this week. We started street contacting a lot more, and we’ve found a lot of positive people. I hope we can make something out of it =)

Hey I love you all. Thank you for all of your support, and letters! I got some on Friday, a few days ago. Thanks for all. You are missed.

-Elder Aaron Jacob Snow

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