Loving My New Area And Companion

In a letter to our family dated May 31, 2009, Justin wrote, "Hey Family- Well changes were last Wednesday. I love my new area and companion. I'm still in Cochabamba, in the stake Jaihuayco, ward Villa Mexico as district leader. I'm actually really happy that I not zone leader. It'll be good doing the district leader thing for a while. My companion is way cool. His name is Elder Viloria and is from Colombia. He was actually in Lima Sur for 2 months as well right when we got there. He was in the CCM right before we left Bolivia, so they kept him in Peru for a little to see how things were going to go in Bolivia. We think we met each other once there before. He looked really familiar. He really liked it in Peru and actually didn't want to leave at all. Sounds like President Fierro really liked him. He invited him over to his house to eat (I never went in their house) and even told him he would've wanted him to marry his daughter if he wasn't a missionary (not that I'd want him for a father in law or marry his daughter). He's probably one of my favorite companions so far. We just get along really well. I'm happy about it all.

Other good news. I got all 3 packages that you sent. (FINALLY!!) Looks like the first one took a month or so, but the last two got here to me in 16 days. Not too bad. But thanks so much for all the stuff! The two (big) cookies were great, and I'm enjoying the oatmeal one (Justin's favorite cookie flavor) right now. It was nice to get the pictures too. And I've already eaten one of the bags of Sour Patch Kids (another favorite of Justin's!). Those packages always get you going again.

We had a baptism yesterday. Gabriela Parra Aira, she is 11. Her whole family is members, but her dad, Freddy was inactive. He came and participated in her baptism though and also came to church for all 3 hours today. That was good to see. And now we have got to start searching for more people to baptize this week. I guess Elder Viloria and his last companion here didn't get along very well and so they didn't have many people to teach. We spent most of this week getting to know the members and so this coming week we'll concentrate more on finding new people. The ward that we are in is great too. The bishop just got called about a month ago and is really young. Today in the combined 3rd hour, we talked about the importance of member involvement in mission work. What I like doing in every ward I'm in is pass around sheets where every member can write their phone number and when during the week they can go out with us so that we can always have a lesson with members. We are also doing a training for the members today on how to teach the missionary lessons and be a member missionary.

On Tuesday, we are going to the temple which I am excited for because I still haven't gone since we've been back. Then we have interviews with President Tenorio afterwards. Should be a good day.

My companion woke up sick today with the flu. He ended up going back to the house during sacrament with a youth and I stayed with another member. The bishop is coming to pick me up now to go to that training for the members and Elder Viloria is going to stay home.

Our chapel is only 3 or 4 blocks from the house. It's actually one of the first ones in Cochabamaba. Our house is nice too. We live on top of a tienda (or little corner store like what Sonia had) again which is really convenient. It's a 5 story apartment building that they have. We have the second floor with two other missionaries, the zone leaders. It's a pretty nice apartment. Spacious. Kitchen, bathroom, 3 bedrooms, living space. Good deal. It's blue inside, the tile and all the walls. Got to go send this. Love you, Justin"

Love it when he is happy and doing well! He is doing great work as well.

Down 15 Pounds!

In his email dated May 25, 2009, Justin wrote, " Hey everyone, well this week went pretty well. After internet and everything last Monday, we went to our zone study thing then ran a couple of errands and went back to the house to eat the lunch that the cook made. It was soo good. Filet mignon, chicken, potatoes and rice. It tasted really American. I guess being in the wealthier parts of town has its benefits. I even got to enjoy it all twice! Going down, and coming back up 5 minutes after. (Funny, Justin) So I called Hermana Tenorio after that and she made me go to the doctors and I had to wait all day there for a doctor. I pooped in a cup for the first time in my life as well. And they took blood out. And I couldn't go out and work on Tuesday they said and they put me on a white diet. Turns out I didn't have anything, just something I ate, probably that chollita ice cream. But I had to get weighed at the doctors office and I have lost 15 pounds since I have gotten here to Bolivia! Oh well. She (Hermana Tenorio) is making me drink this ensure shake thing every day to strengthen my immune system and gain weight or something. We will see.

Well I am not exactly sure when changes are. They are supposed to be this Thursday, but President was going to postpone them until the other 10 gringos get here a few days later. But this morning we heard they weren't going to get here for 2 weeks still, so who knows. Supposedly a lot of people are finding out the changes today, but they say everyday they know, so who knows if what they are telling us is true. I've heard that I am going to just about every part of the mission.

I had to go to the offices this week and I saw President there and he told me he got grandpa's email and that he gave him permission to come visit me. I am excited about that. Have him bring me a bigger suitcase because I am sick of trying to get all my stuff into mine. It's a joke every time I have to pack.

Our toilet is currently clogged, but there isn't a plumber. But that's not stopping anyone from using it still. It is turning into a septic tank. It's pretty gross. We have got to get that fixed today. (OHHH, SOOOOO Nasty!! I don't know how he can stand that!) I bought toilet paper as well so I don't have to use the newspaper anymore. And I didn't poop for a week after that disaster Sunday night. But I'm back to normal, fyi mom. (Yes, I am a mother that asks if he is regular. Always have and still do!)

There is so much American stuff here. There is this one little store that is just full of it. It's the one that gets all the damaged Costco pallets. I bought Starbursts and twizzlers there last week. For breakfast, I have been eating Fruitloops or pb&j's. (Justin would not eat pb&j's before his mission)The Latins have never tried peanut butter, a lot of them. It's not too expensive either, only about 3 dollars for a jar.

I found a lady to wash my clothes! (He has been doing it himself and he said it takes so long because they have to do it by hand.) She comes every Friday to pick it up, then brings it back in 24 hours. And she does it all for only 3 or 4 dollars. That's probably cheaper than going to a laundry mat and paying for the machines, not that those exist here. But it's better than spending 4 hours doing it myself by hand. Got to love cheap Bolivian labor.

Well in church we had a couple of people. This old grandma encarnacion who lovesssss the church because it is closer to her house than her last one. But whatever gets her there. Then this other guy Jacob, who doesn't like his last church because he can't do anything, like play soccer or dance. They both seemed to really like it. The family that is going to get baptized the 13th is about to have their baby today or tomorrow. They are really great and love it all.

In Bolivia, Mother's day isn't until May 27th, so all of the Bolivians are calling home this Wednesday. Weird, huh?

Well, that's it. Love you all. Oh use this address to write me:"

Elder Justin Evans
Mision Bolivia Cochabamba
Av. Villarroel #1132
Edificio Confort, Piso 7
Oficina #7c, Casilla de Correo 1375
Cochabamba, Bolivia

Now memorize that one! I still haven't! I wonder if Justin has?

Visiting My Old Area Again, La Chimba

In an email dated May 18, 2009, Justin wrote, "Hey everyone. This week wasn't too bad. We found a bunch of people to teach. I am with Elder Rodriguez everyday now and we go out and work. His companion and Elder Cooley took the top half of the area in the hills and we are down below. This week we had a family come to church that really liked it and they are going to get baptized and the other two have a baptismal date for this Saturday.

Well, I made it just over a week without getting sick. I was puking everywhere last night. Sucks that the house is so big, I didn't quite make it to the bathroom and it started coming out. It was a mess. And so much. (Got a visual, everyone?) Then diarrhea. Then an hour later all over again. And again. And again. It wasn't too fun. Especially having to clean it all up right after. I think I puked and pooped everything out of my body that there is. There wasn't any toilet paper either.... newspaper is not fun to wipe with. But luckily I woke up feeling a bit better, I am just going to run a couple of errands today then go back and sleep. The lady we live with is having all of the gringos that work in the temple over for lunch today and is having a chef come over to cook filet mignon. (Justin's absolute favorite thing to eat!) Hopefully I feel good enough to eat it. I forgot how bad the food is here. It flat out sucks. I am having a hard time getting it all down again. But at least my pension is a lot better this time around. Last night we had tacos. I think what made me sick was that this member bought me an ice cream cone but it was chollita ice cream bought from this guy out in the middle of a field. Probably not a good idea.

I got to go back and visit my old area for a day in La Chimba. I was so surprised, everyone remembered me. I guess they heard I was coming to visit, so all we did all day was visit members. It was cool. I went to my old pension there, the Pinchi family to visit. The elders don't eat there anymore. ( Justin did not think that was a smart move. She was his favorite pension. He actually enjoyed her food.) But it turns out the husband Alex is from La Villa in Pisco! And he showed me a picture of his mom and I knew her. And remember that girl Sayuki I baptized? It's actually his niece! Small world, huh? They have lost contact with them for a while, so I'm going to help them get their phone number. And Pablo who got baptized the last Saturday I was here is still going to church and they are teaching his mom as well. Brian Torrico, from the taxi driver family, doesn't really go anymore. There are rumors that President is going to put me back there in La Chimba. That'd be pretty sweet.

I got permission to go to the Cancha or big old market here last Monday and got a new camera, so I am good to go.

So many people speak Quechua. I may have to learn some words. They actually have classes in Quechua in church for the people that don't understand Spanish that well. It's weird. The Lady that we live with told us that all the hugeee mansions built up in the hills belong to 1 of 2 people. They either work for the government, or the are huge drug lords. Ha ha.

Well that is all that I've got this week. Love you all. Write me. Justin"

He really LOVES to get letters. Hint, hint!

First Weeks Back In Bolivia

In a letter dated May 15, 2009, Justin wrote, "Family- Hey how are you? I found some normal paper to write on! There is so much American stuff here in Cochabamba, it's amazing. I've almost been back here for a week now. It was fast, but slow at the same time.

Today things got a lot better with my companion (the zone leader). He overheard me (he understands English) and Elder Cooley talking about how they don't work much. I kind of mentioned it in my letter to President and President called them and got mad. So my companion was kind of mad for most of the day, but we came around to talking and got to know each other better and agreed to just start over. I've noticed that if I'm ever having a bad day or something and kind of upset, getting to a good lesson and just teaching makes me feel so much better. Just turns my day around, probably because it lets the spirit in. I guess President told him that if I didn't want to be with Elder Rodriguez anymore that I could get a change, but of course I said no. The Lord puts us where He puts us for a reason and we need to learn from those experiences. And He will always give us all we need to get through them.

I guess this mission really kind of went downhill while we were gone, or maybe I just didn't notice it before. It just feels like a mess, like you don't even know where to start. Makes me just want to go back to Peru. But I guess you always want what you can't have. Things will work out. Elder Rodriguez even tells me this mission is really disobedient, especially the leaders. I've heard lots of reasons as for why, but that's just what I've heard, stories, so we'll keep it at that. I'd rather just see for myself. I actually really don't want to be a zone leader right now. It would be hard with no one wanting to do anything or all being disobedient. I'd rather just start from the bottom. I'd love to train again. But we'll see what the Lord has in store.

Everyday here reminds me of being back in California. Same weather, plants and smells. It feels like being back in the canyon by Saddleback or something and always smells like the mountains. It gets pretty cold at night and in the mornings. My clock said the lowest is 59 Fahrenheit. But then again, it probably feels so cold because I've been used to blazing hot humid Peru weather. It's a nice change though.

I noticed that the people here in Bolivia have their own distinct smell as well. I'd forgotten it when I went to Peru. It's not the most enjoyable, but you get used to it. (Justin has his mom's overly sensitive sense of smell.)

The water that comes out of the tap here feels like Utah water. It's so cold. But luckily, we have that water heater shower head. I guess there is a real water heater installed in the house as well. there just isn't a gas line in the neighborhood so they still can't use it. Would be nice though.

The lady we live with is named Lili. She is super loaded, so are most of her family. Most of them just did it on their own though. I guess she was one of the first people to bring Nalma Skin to Europe or something. She was always at world fairs there selling it or something. And she lived in Naples, Florida for 8 years as the "administrator" of this estate. Basically she was in charge of all the maids, cooks, etc. for this super rich family. But her kids and grand kids all live here so she built this house and came here to live. We live on the 2ND floor and her and her maid/ helper girl live below. They aren't connected from the inside, but you have to go outside and take an outside staircase to get up top, so it's like a separate house. Crown molding, wood floors, tile, nice bathrooms. It's great.

With Elder Cooley and I, there are 6 of us here. I guess her brother used to live on the 2ND floor, but not anymore. Elder Cooley and I live in the master bedroom, but we can't use the master bath because she is storing stuff in it, so we share with the elders across the family room. There's not furniture or anything, although the Tenorio's are buying all the houses new, nice furniture. Normally missionaries here just have a bed, desk, chair and dresser or something (I'm living out of my suitcase for these 3 weeks because there's not a dresser). We always laugh every time we watch the Preach My Gospel DVD's the Church made by filming a district of missionaries for a few months to demonstrate principles. The apartments they have (in the States obviously) are way nice with couches and a ton of furniture. But I guess President wants our houses to be like that so he's going to fully furnish all the houses as far as I've heard."

May 18, 2009

Justin continued, "It's Monday morning. Threw up a ton last night. That wasn't too fun. I guess you can't be in Bolivia without being sick. And diarrhea like you've never seen. And there was no T.P. so I had to use newspaper. Sucks. Well I am going to go mail email, send this and come and rest. Love, Justin"

Here we go again with the vomiting and diarrhea in Bolivia! A big worry we didn't have often in Peru. Keep this missionary in your prayers, please.

Grandpa Is Coming To Bolivia!

I thought I would post an email from President Tenorio to Justin's grandpa and the email from grandpa Hong to President Tenorio. Justin's grandpa received permission to visit Justin in July. They are both very excited to see one another!

>Dear Jim and Jenny,
I am forwarding the letter that I have received from Justin's Mission president. I am happy that I have received his permission to see him in Bolivia. Grandpa Hong
> Dear brother Hong,
>
> Thank you for your email and your expressions of kindness. I tell you that is an honor to have Elder Evans working in this mission. He is an extraordinary missionary and we are very happy that we got him again! I am sorry for the Lima Peru Mission, where his mission president reported that he did han outstanding job.
> Brother Hong, it was good to know that you are planning to visit Bolivia during your vacation. You are welcome to spend some time with Elder Evans and his companion during his P-day, and I will ask him to make the arrangements so you can attend a baptismal service if it's possible (regularly our baptismal services are on Saturdays).
> Please let me know of your arrangements and if you need some other help.
>
> Best regards,
>
> President Tenorio
>
> ________________________________________
> From: hongb6@cox.net [hongb6@cox.net]
> Sent: Thursday, May 14, 2009 9:43 AM
> To: Miguel Angel Tenorio
> Subject: Greeting from Elder Evans' grandpa
>
> DEar Pres. Tenorio,
>
> Thank you for welcoming Elder Justin Evans, a grandson of mine. He is very excited to be back to Bolivia where he was originally called to serve. I feel so blessed to have him under your care. Elder Evans is my forth among my grandsons to serve as a missionary. I know how important it is to have a great mission president whom a missionary respects whole-heartedly as he does to you.
>
> I would like to ask you a favor. During July, I like to stop by Boliva and visit Elder Evans during his P-day. As a former mission president (My wife and I have served in Korea Taejon Mission for 1995-1998), I know how hard mission presidents and their wives work. As I mentioned at my home-coming meeting, being a mission president is "the toughest job that I have ever enjoyed." With such knowledge, I send you my personal respect and compliment. If I am permitted to visit Elder Evans, I intend to visit Bolivia during the early part of July. Whatever your decision is, I will accept.
>
> If you are kind enough to permit me to visit Elder Evans, I will be glad to take him and his companion to a nearby restaurant. More than anything I like to hear from him will be his personal testimony on the gospel that he is teaching. Hopefully, I like to attend a baptismal service, too.
>
> Looking forward to hearing from you, I invoke the abundant blessings from our Father in Heaven upon your family and Bolivia Cochabamba Mission.
>
> Sincerely Your Brother,
>
> Byung S. Hong
>
>

The Blessed Phone Call! (and yes, you bet we answered this time!)

When you have a child on a mission, you look forward to the days you receive emails and letters from them. But two days a year are especially special! Christmas and Mother's day! Those are the two days a year your missionary gets to call home and talk with you! I forgot to post about my first Christmas phone call, but am here to post about our Mother's day call. We actually got a pre-call yesterday to make sure we had the proper means to communicate. At Christmas, there was no pre-call. Justin purchased a calling card in Peru and called us. We were able to talk for about 1 hour and 45 minutes. We had a couple of bad connections and lost his call. But he called back each time we were disconnected. At our pre-call, Justin called to give us the phone number of the home he was at and we were to call him there. He was obedient and only talked as long as it took to give us the information. Which was only a few minutes. Still exciting for us though! Once again, I was at the church setting up for a dance when Jim called me to say Justin had called and was calling to say he would call right back to give him the phone number we could call back on tomorrow. I don't think I ever drove home so fast! I got there right before the phone rang. A tender mercy! A quick but wonderful call. Just to hear his lovely voice!

On to the official call. Justin was quick to ask why dad kept hanging up on him. He was saying, "This is Justin!" To only hear dad say, "Hello? Hello? Pause... click!" Twice! Poor Justin was at the Lima airport excited to call home and no one was home and no one would talk to him. At least not on purpose! We explained ourselves and were forgiven. He then flew on to La Paz, Bolivia where he stayed overnight and left for Cochabamba early the next day. So early unfortunately that there was no time for a phone call at the airport. He arrived in between changes and is living with the zone leaders in what Justin called a "mansion." He said the home is really nice and he has hot water (!), and even granite counter tops in his bathroom. He said it is just like home. The owner used to live in the United States (Florida) and now works for the Bolivian government and is wealthy. He said it feels like I am starting a new mission all over again. He didn't remember the people there having an accent. He is having a hard time understanding them because they mix Spanish with Quetchawa. They all pronounce their "r's" like "z's". He said Peruvians speak a pure form of Spanish, but they do not in Bolivia and he doesn't remember that the first time he was there. He was very happy to see President and Hermana Tenorio again and said they were equally as happy to see him as they met him at the airport! He forgot how green everything is in Cochabamba. He really liked that. It reminds him of home. Peru is pretty much a desert with little or no rain. He said the mission went downhill after the North Americans were evacuated. He does not know why but there is a lot of work to do. The zone leader he is with does not want to work, so Justin is a bit frustrated to say the least. He will work it out. He is happy to be back! He mentioned that his camera broke so was not able to take any pictures of his trip back (bummer!), but will purchase a new one and get to taking more pictures for us (yea!). We got to talk for about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Now it is 7 months until the next phone call. After next Christmas we will have one more Mother's day phone call, and a few weeks later, he will be home! I must say, that was the best Mother's day gift ever!

UNBELIEVABLE!!!

Today was a usual day in the life of the Evans household until we were at Cole's high school volleyball game. Or shall I say right after his volleyball game. I had to leave the game a little early to attend a meeting at the church. When I got in the car to drive away, I checked my phone and saw that I had a missed call from a phone number that I did not recognize (you cannot hear your phone in the loud gym, even though it was right next to me!). I didn't think anything of it. A little time passes and I get a call from Jim (Justin's dad, who was still at the game) while I am in my meeting with him saying, "I think Justin has been trying to call me. I received two calls from a phone number I didn't recognize. The first one I didn't hear anyone so I just hung up. They called back the second time and I didn't understand the person, so I hung up again. It was as I was hanging up that I realized it was Justin!! I hoped and prayed he would call back a third time (PLEASE!!!!!)!" No such luck! We then wondered if he was on his way to Bolivia. Imagine how sad we were to have missed an opportunity to talk to him! Not once, but three times his call was unanswered or rejected! We got home to check the messages on our answering machine and lo and behold there was our Justin's voice. "Hi family it's Justin. I bet you will probably be pretty mad you weren't home to get this call, but I'm going to Bolivia, so.... Goodbye!" UNBELIEVABLE!! How we wished we had some notice and knew he was going and to expect a call. Oh well, thank goodness Mother's Day is this Sunday and we WILL be able to talk with him! How exciting! The day has finally arrived!! Bolivia here he comes..... again!

"This Week Went Pretty Good"

"This week went pretty good." We like when Justin starts out his email saying that! "I am just waiting for the phone call telling me to pack and come to Lima to get on my plane. Every time the phone rings at home I get a little excited. But until then, I am enjoying it here in Ica. Elder Brinton (Justin's first companion in Bolivia), who is in the Lima East mission, emailed me today and said that most of the kids from his mission are going back this week or next. "

"This week, two elders who live with us baptized a guy from Holland! I interviewed him. It was weird. He came to Peru a year ago and wants to live here the rest of his life. He knows Dutch, English, Spanish, German and one other language. He only wants to speak in Spanish though here so he can get the whole experience. His Spanish is really good. We were all kind of confused as to why he wanted to stay in Peru for the rest of his life but that's his choice. It was weird interviewing him though. He had an understanding of everything. It felt weird talking to him in the Spanish I normally talk to converts about the church. It sounds mean, but the people here don't always pick up on much. But he knew and remembered everything. It was weird. We were talking about the missionaries in Holland and how they would probably be so mad to know that he got baptized here, seeing as they hardly baptize anyone there."

"Things are going great with Elder Parker. Still enjoying being able to talk a little more English for these few weeks and having a little more in common. It's cool. I am excited to call home this Sunday (Mother's day!). That went fast! Oh yeah, I have 13 months in my mission today., Isn't it going fast? (YES it is!) One more month and I'll be halfway. Crazy. Hopefully I'll be back in Bolivia by then. "

"We have a hot water heater head but it doesn't work. Bummer. I miss hot showers. Oh well. I miss Mexican food as well. I am going to see what they have at the new supermarket today as well. Love you all, Justin." Oh how I wish I could send Justin his favorite Cafe Rio steak salad! In our dreams.....

Touching Lives and Having Success

In a letter dated May 3, 2009, Justin wrote, Things are going pretty well. It's Sunday night and I'm exhausted. I'm always tired Sunday nights. It was fast Sunday today. I always feel sick on fast Sundays. I'm always so hungry, then we go to a members for lunch and I eat so much and so quick that I feel sick after, In South America they don't have to skip lunch (their biggest meal of the day). They start fasting after lunch Saturday, don't eat dinner or breakfast Sunday, then eat lunch Sunday after church. Works out pretty well."

He is still in Ica, not Bolivia. "But I guess that means I should have a bunch of letters and packages once I finally do get there. President Fierro said he turned in a bunch of papers to the Bolivian consulate a week or so ago and was waiting for a response or something. I'm just waiting for the phone call telling me to come to Lima to go back to Bolivia."

Justin and Elder Parker have 3 people with a baptismal date for May. Diona (10), Angela (11) Felix Salazar, whose mom is a recent convert. He says they are really smart. Their dad didn't want them to get baptized, but he is now in Spain and so they are going to do it while he is gone. They should be getting baptized on the 16th. They also have Magda Astahuaman who is 21 and has been listening to the missionaries for 5 years now. Her parents are against the Church and support her financially and pay for her college. So she is secretly getting baptized. Justin says she has a really strong testimony of the Church and Book of Mormon. In their first meeting with her she told them she wanted to get baptized and May was her month. She has set her date for May 19th. They are also teaching another family that is progressing. The mom is a member but is separated from her husband because he drinks too much. Her son Junior, wants to live with his dad who lives across the street from the mom Veronica. Jorge, the dad wants to get back together with his wife, but she only will if he changes his life. So they started teaching Jorge and their son Junior. Justin said they really like it a lot. Then Rosario, Jorge's mom (are you following this?) listened one night and she was "way into it." "They all came to stake conference last week, a ward activity Friday and church again today. They all love it, so hopefully they'll be able to get baptized this month." Unfortunately for Justin, he may not be there to witness these baptisms. But that is not what is important."

For pday tomorrow, Justin is going to a resort called Huacuchina. He says it's an oasis in the middle of sand dunes. A big tourist place. He was planning on going sand boarding. I'll have to ask him about that for sure! Sounds fun, but potentially painful.

Justin also wrote that things are going great in his zone. "I guess like a year and a half ago, Ica was baptizing 25-30 people a month, but this past year it's been around 8-12 a month. So President told us that it is our job to bring it back up. So far, we are having some success. We have 5 baptisms so far, and 9 more with a baptismal date and we are only 3 days into the month. We are hoping to end May with about 20." My good, obedient boy!