Well, I'll tell you first off... I don't think I can think of any killer stories from this week. It was a good week, but I tell you right away, nothing like big huge stellar. But I'll tell you about life anyway.

Monday was normal. Today, Monday, we are in Santa Elena again, but I definitely don't want to be here. Long story, don't want to talk about it. 

On Tuesday we had interviews with President and Sister Watts. We had to wake up at 5 in order to get ready and then head up to Santa Elena in bus to get here by 8. It's about an hour and a half bus ride. Hooray. I don't mind the 1 and a half ride... but the hour was a little rough on Tuesday. However, I absolutely LOVE interviews with President and Sister Watts. I'm sure it's probably like this with all mission presidents and their wives, but I truly feel their love for me. It's absolutely incredible. There are a perfect midway between parents and grandparents in their love. It's a new lifestage I'm calling "Andparents" that applies specifically to Mission Presidents and their wives and/or parents of best friends. As for the interviews, in my interview with President Watts he asked me if I still feel like I'm progressing. I didn't really know how to respond to that question. My reply is a definite yes. I feel like I'm progressing a lot. However, I don't know how to explain my progress in words or like, what evidence there is. But then I was reminded of something a good friend of mine told me while looking through my mission pictures with my mom. As they looked through the older pictures, he commented that they weren't really me. As they got closer and closer to the up-to-date pictures, he said "That is the Andrew I saw!". I don't know if anyone else sees it.... 

I don't know if anyone knows this, but ever since about my 5 month mark, I began to take a picture of myself everyday after I was showered and dressed. Granted, I've missed about 5-10 days, it's a decent record of the last 12 months of my mission and will be a record of the last 18 months of my mission on a day-by-day basis. Maybe my eyes are seeing things, or I'm imagining things I want to see, but I honestly do believe their is more than just a hair length and tie difference. It's almost like you could call it the "light in your eyes" kind of effect. But I can definitely see in a difference in my overall appearance as time goes on. There are even day to day pictures where I can see when I had look happier than other days. There is a definite difference in me, and it's more than just physical.

On Friday I hit 1 year of having been assigned to the office. Talk about FAST. I had just barely hit 6 months when I was called to the office, 8 or 9 changes ago. Or in other words... 1 year. It feels weird to think that a YEAR has passed since I went to the office for the first time. I remember that day with exact detail. Everything about it. And everything that came afterward. As for the area on Friday, we had a lesson with a man who we found a few weeks ago who talked to the missionaries years ago. As we were teaching him the Plan of Salvation, we invited him to be baptized because we saw that he felt the Spirit or at least recognized the truthfulness of the parts of the message we were sharing. The most devastating moment in a missionary's experience is hearing someone say "No". Not because you feel personal rejection, just because you know that they are rejecting the most important message you can possibly share with them and you want so much for them to achieve eternal life and you know this is the only way. It's hard. But I know that future visits right now, won't help him overcome the answer he has currently accepted as coming from our Heavenly Father. It's difficult. But we just keep loving and teaching. 

Love,


Elder Andrew A. LaPray