Contigo Perú

 I ate 15 bananas in the span of 30 minutes this week. I am still not even kinda sick of the bananas. I did the math and have eaten more or less than 1,734 during my mission. 

On saturday the tabernacle choir was in Lima and it was a huge event. It was a huge thing for the missionaries as well. We received a ton of invitations, and the church had rented out the gobierno regional (litterally the biggest building in this town) it was going to be a huge live steam on a jumbotron with food and everything. Unfortunately the area ended up canceling the budget for us because we are in such a small branch. So we did it in the house chappel on a tv screen 🥲But it was still super super cool. The members were kinda bummed and felt left out because in the rest of Peru it was a massive event in every stake, but they are all set on doing their home visiting visits to make sure they can be a stake soon 👍I love peruvians so much. It wasn't quite the event we hoped it was but it was such a blast. The tabernacle choir is so insanely cool. They sang in spanish and the people absolutely loved it. We received the instructions from our mission president to just go enjoy ourselves. We were told not to teach lessons, contact, or anything. Just kick it with the people that came, get their number and talk with them. It was fun to just hang out and enjoy! It was litterally a party. We got to just hang out in the church until 10 pm and have a blast. 

The choir sang Contigo Perú and I realized that I can't even realize how much I love Perú. These people, these places I have served, and the memories I have made here I all love so much. 

The closing song was "the spirit of God" in half spanish/half english. It was so dang beautiful. It was seriously one of the coolest things ever to watch. 

On saturday it rained all day long. Super hard downpour. All of our apointments fell. We almost just called it and called references in the apartment but we decided to go out and try to just make the best of it. It turned into one of the funnest days of my mission. We were soaked to the bone, wet socks and all running around contacting people in the street. We were the only ones out in the open rain everyone else was standing under the overhanging roofs and looking at us like we were crazy. I'm not sure why but it was a really fun and memorable time. 

Jenny Pacherrez from pomalca was baptized. It was super cool to be able to participate on facetime. One of the coolest ladies I have ever met. 

I think it is super cool that multiple times in the BOM the missionaries get super beat down and rejected and are about to turn back right before something super cool happens. It is always right before the incredible experience that satan is working his hardest to beat us down. 

I love this work, love the Lord, love the Peruvian people, and love the oportunity to be a missionary. 

Gocta

We went to Gocta last Pday. It is one of the coolest places I have ever been in my entire life. I had gone there about a year ago, and even having seen it before it did not disapoint. It is an absolutely massive waterfall. We hardly saw anyone and it was so pretty. It is such a big fall that the water just turns into mist by the end. I was in awe just looking at the thing. I can't even describe how cool it is. We were able to go underneath the first part of the falls and the second. The hike was a beast but was worth every second. The pictures I took were from over a half mile away from it because once you get up close to it it is too big to capture in the picture. 

Last monday I had gotten ready for bed, said a prayer and was getting in bed. It was cold so I went to grab a blanket from the dress in the other room. I went opened the drawer to get it out and the entire dresser fell on me. It is a huge tall dresser that has three parts. The top part fell on my head. Somehow, the Lord protecting his missionaries being the only reasonable explanation, I left with a gash behind my ear and a minor headache. I don't know how it didn't crush my head into a pancake, break all manner of bones, etc. I am so lucky. The gash in the ear blead like crazy for a few days. I probably should have just gotten stitches. But finally it stopped bleading. As painful as it was, I am so incredibly lucky

During Christmas time we were teaching a family we had found in Pomalca. I had talked about them in a few emails. Familia Cabrejos Pacherrez. The wife getting baptized this week and asked if I would participate through zoom. So cool

There was a hail/lighning storm this week that was absolutely crazy. The hail hiting all the tin roofs was so loud and the lightning was right in the city. All that time in the burning hot really made seeing ice balls falling from the sky quite a joyful experience. 

The electric shower isn't working lately. The cold water has got to be no more than 40 degrees. It is seriously so cold. It is only about 55 degrees in the house in the morning, so the water is absolutely freezing. It comes straight out of the mountain so it is unbelievably cold. I have to do the hokie pokie one arm in one arm out one leg in one leg out for a couple minutes until I get up the courage to stand under it. After washing my hair I get a brain freeze. I absolutely hated it for the first few days but now I actually am starting to kinda like it. I get out of that thing feeling like an absolute man

The power of the sacrament is so strong. Yesterday it was pooring rain. The rain hitting the roof made it really hard to hear anything. Rain was leaking through the roof of the chappel and dripping into the seats. And yet the spirit can still be felt. I have seen all manner of different chaos during sacrament meetings in peru, but all have one thing in common, the peace that can be felt. 

The work can be kinda demoralizing sometimes here. The normal day usually includes 4-5 hours of contacting catholics that want nothing to do with us. It is completely different than any other area I have been in. I have started praying for and studying miracles and it has changed the way I see the work. I have started realizing the miracles that almost constantly are happening. I have never been an OMG HUGE MIRACLE SEND IT TO THE ZONE CHAT 5 times a day type missionary (and wont ever be) , in fact I usually find that kinda cringe, but lately I cant even count the number of times I have seen miracles throughout the day. I don't think God is making more things happpen, I think he is helping to realize when he does. Thats been a really cool lesson for me. 

Moroni 7: 

27 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased because Christ hath ascended into heaven, and hath sat down on the right hand of God, to claim of the Father his rights of mercy which he hath upon the children of men?

29 And because he hath done this, my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased? Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither have angels ceased to minister unto the children of men.

We belive in miracles. We believe in angels. 

Happy birthday to my estimado amigo Clayson James Woodward as well. What a good guy.

Sarcófagos de Karajía

 I could sit in combis and drive through the mountains listening to cumbias serranas all day long. I used to not like car rides but now a 4 hour car ride is an absolute treat for some reason.

We had zone conference this week in Jaen and it was awesome. It was so fun to see other missionaries, people that I baptized over a year ago, and listen to my mission president and his wife. I don't know how it is possible that Presidente and Hermana Giuria are so incredibly cool. They are seriously such inspiring people. Every time they talk it seems like the spirit is just speaking into my ear. I always say how cool presidente Giuria is, but hermana Giuria is an absolute angel as well. They are seriously such incredible people. 

Got my hair cut last week and the guy tried to shave me bald. I told him "ya mucho" like 4 times. Homie hit me with the "confía soli" and just kept going. 2/10 haircut. Will not be returning to peluquería el chato ever again.

We went last week to the "sarcófagos de karajía". Pretty cool. It's basically a bunch of super old mummified people perched on an unreachable cliff from the chachapoyan people. Serving in a place with such a cool culture is so cool. The people here are really cold and not accepting, but that is one way I have seen to find a way into them, asking them about their culture. 

Right now is "carnavales" time and they go absolutely nuts. Basically everyone in the streets throw water baloons and paint at each other. Im not sure exactly what it is to celebrate but every februrary it goes on for a few weeks. Absolute chaos. They are absolutely rutheless. No mercy on anyone. They usually leave us alone but ocasionally we get rinsed.

We got handed cups of coffee this week and told to drink it. It is impolite to reject anything. We explained the Word of Wisdom and they still wouldn't let it deny it. We ended up having to leave it and probably ruin our relationship with the family. Bummer. 

I've been sleeping so good here. Nice and cold and the rain pounds the roof all night. Heavenly. 

Jesus Christ is the Lord and Savior. He spilt his blood in this earth to free us all from the chains of death and sin. His sacrifice is infinate. Every single one of us is a sinner and are in dept greatly to him. Through the young prophet Joseph Smith the fullness of the Gospel has been restored in these last days. There is no better place to grow your testimony about that than in the Book of Mormon. Another testiment of Jesus Christ, his love for the people in every part of the world, and his infinite sacrifice. The Church of Jesus Christ is Christ's kingdom restored on earth once again. The same church Christ himself lead during his earthly ministry.

The articles of faith are so simple, yet incredibly powerful. 

3 We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the Gospel. 

4 We believe that the first principles and ordinances of the Gospel are: first, Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, Repentance; third, Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; fourth, Laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost 

Yalape

Last pday we went to a place called "Yalape". It is a super cool ancient city from the Chachapoyan people. There is a super cool story about how two brothers had their own cities but got into a bunch of wars. So to show that they were watching each other they put figures in the shapes of eyes on the walls of the forts facing each other across the valley. The younger brother lived in Yalape and the other in Kuelap. We are going to see Kuelap one of these weeks. Aparently it is super cool. Yalape was super cool too. It's just an ancient civilization on a mountain. There were over 600 of these little round fort things. Theres no gate, entrance fee, people that work there or anything. You can just go up there and hang out. I thought about bringing one of the bricks that the forts are made of home but figured a random brick would be pretty weird a couple years from now. 

People are always chewing coca leaves here. I don't know what it does but they sure love them. 

We were teaching a lesson this week and in the house there was an extremely old lady laying in her bed. Like probably 95 at least. She looked like mamá coco from the movie. I figured she couldn't even hear or see. About 10 minutes into the lesson she sat up and started listening. At the end she told us how she was raised in the mountains and never went to school or learned to read but that what we were reading and teaching was beautiful and that she loved it. I was baffled that she could even talk. I didn't think she could even move. She was litterally so old. It was such a cool moment. 

The goal here in Chachapoyas is to get the branch split in two. The goal is baptize the next branch president. Once we can baptize a few young studs that can be the branch president, it should split. It is crazy how much the Lord trusts people to grow his work. Some young guy is going to get baptized and then made branch president almost immediately. It is cool to be apart of such a young and growing part of the vineyard. It will be really cool to look back 20,30,40 years from now and see branches, districts, wards, and eventually a stake here. Maybe even a temple. It is pretty motivating to be laying the groundwork. It is cool to think that our task right now is baptize not only the new branch president but also potentially the first ever bishop and stake president here in Chachapoyas

Our veiw out our window is insane. I'll throw a picture in. 

There is a super cool lady we are teaching names Milu. She is so cool. Shes from venezuela. She came to church yesterday. I have never baptized anyone from anywhere other than Perú. Really hoping for her. 

I have heard from some peoples groans or discontent about studying D and C for come follow me this year. Up until I had about 13 months in my mission I had hardly even touched it ever and honestly wouldn't have been too hyped to read it either. I realized that it was a weak point of my testimony and decided to read all of it in one transfer (6 weeks). It was one of the best decisions I have ever made. It turned D and C from a mysterious list of seemingly weird revelations that I didn't want people in teaching to find out about into a powerful tool in my toolbox as a missionary and a strong point of my testimony. It is seriously so cool and can strengthen our testimonies so much if we let it. I hope you all got to read D and C 4 this week and feel the importance of missionary work. This is the most important work on earth. 

4 For behold the field is white already to harvest; and lo, he that thrusteth in his sickle with his might, the same layeth up in store that he perisheth not, but bringeth salvation to his soul 

The field is white...

-Elder Pohlman