Hello family,

I am finally over my cold. Just a stuffy nose remains (I have become a handkerchief missionary).A few more quakes, no more interested people, and a lot more sun. It gets hot here. I have to start using sun screen again. We have had a lot of earthquakes but yes the latest was just 6 on the Rictor Scale. It is not even considered a true earthquake here unless it is more than 7. We are also waiting for a super earthquake of 9.5 which would be the strongest in recorded history but they have been waiting 20 years and nothing has happened yet so don't worry too much.

Sadly our Papito has still not made it to church. We are working on it but one step at a time. We have a consistent number of attendance but each week there are different people. If everyone would come at the same time then we could have a good attendance.

This week we had several investigators with good questions from the scriptures. THEY ARE FINALLY READING! We also have 4 or 5 new families that said we should pass by to share. Good things are on the horizon.

I am glad that Jake had a good birthday party. Next year he can show me how to use those paddle board things.

 

I have no idea how many missionaries are on Easter Island. My mission map says that it is part of this mission but really it is part of Santiago North. Go figure.

I was sad to hear about the passing of Elder Scott. I wonder if they will announce a third apostle for this conference or wait until the conference in April.

Last night we had a cool show in the sky. First there was a "mega luna" where the moon looks huge. Then we had "la luna de sangre" where the moon turned red due to an eclipse. I tried to take pictures but my camera did not want to work with me. Oh well.

Good to know that I have at least 10 dates lined up for when I get home :-P  Unless they all get married before I get back but hey. That is the way it goes in the Singles Ward. I am glad that you guys are staying busy. It not only makes time pass faster but it also makes a life more fulfilling. Here in the mission I have seen Wards and Branches but Single Wards do not exist here. It will be interesting to get home and see the difference. 

Please tell Lindsey and the Triplets Happy Birthday for me. Thank you!

Anyway, I am doing well. This weekend is General Conference and Transfers so I will be busy. Should be interesting. I love you all. Take care and God bless.

Con mucho amor, Elder Brock Hunter

Hi family,

I am doing a bit better. When I wake up my throat hurts but then during the day I am fine. I did get sunburned today shooting penalties with a soccer ball though. Gotta love Chilean weather.

The miracle of the week would have to be the party we had on Thursday as a Branch. We had several investigators and less active members attend. Even our Papito showed up! That was outstanding to see. He still has not come to church but one step at a time.

From what we have heard the earthquake was 8.3 at the epicenter. We felt it here in Vallenar but it was not as strong. (yes, Vallenar is the most south of the mission) It was very long though. And that is scary because you dont know if it will get worse. We were in the chapel preparing for the activities when it happened. Vallenar is far from the coast but there were several cities affected by the tsunami that the earthquake caused.

On Thursday we had an activity as a Branch. We ate chorripanes (sausage) and played traditional chilean games. I cut my hand with rope burn during the tug-of-war but it was fun. I am learning to use a trompo which is like a chilean beyblade. On Friday we went to the District Center and participated in the activity there. They had each Branch prepare a presentation for a part of Chile (the south, the north, the center, and the islands). Each Branch had the typical food and a typical dance for their area. Sadly there was not time to play games. Our Branch was in charge of the Islands (specifically Easter Island). I have not been able to upload pictures recently but I will try to send some today.

For bills and stuff like that I can pay with mission funds and get a reimbursement later. That means that I have no money for this month but next month I will be rich.

Happy Birthday to Jake and Grandma Hunter. Also, I recieved the package of sunshine. Thanks for the cutout of Jake, though I was suprised by all the yellow. My companion wants to know if he also gets one of the frisbies. I am working on sending a package home as well. I have too much stuff and not enough space. We also do not have a vacuum so a space bag would not help much. But really, some things have broken in my bags because they get smashed between things (for example, some protection charms that I recieved last Christmas got smashed and one of the stones broke. not a good sign)

I hope that everyone is doing well and that you can recognize the blessings of God in your lives. Take care.

Con mucho amor, Elder Brock Hunter

Hey Kate,

The earth was moving back and forth during the earthquake. This one was not so jerky, it was more like a rocking sensation. Everyone here is fine. Elder Acosta and I get along most of the time. And yes, some companions are harder to get to know than others. I managed to kill three fleas this week between my fingernails. That seems to be the only sure fire way to kill them because I have not been bitten recently.

I have no idea how I have changed during the mission, let alone how much. I am a bit fatter but not so much that you can notice. I have no idea if I will have a get sexy plan before I end my mission or not. For now I am fine. We shall see what happens later. Each day we have 30 minutes in the morning to exercise. Not much but it is something.

My comp, Elder Acosta, saw the picture of you and your soccer teammates. He loves girls who like soccer so he wants you to set him up with one of your friends. He said any of them will do. He says he is from Peru, he is 19 years old, before the mission he worked out a lot and played on a professional soccer team, and he is currently learning to speak english. Just in case any of your friends are interested.

Anyway, keep up the hard work at school and in sports. Take care yourself sis. Dont worry about me, I have the Lords protection (though I am not about to go and try anything stupid either).

con amor, Elder Hunter

Dear family,

I do in fact know Tanner Mangum. He was the Assistant to the President here in the mission so EVERYONE knew him. He is a big guy with a bigger heart. I am glad to hear that he is doing well at BYU.

Here on the mission, several missionaries always mention movies made by members of the church like the Singles Ward, The RM, God´s Army, ect and I realized that I had not seen most of them. Or if I have, it was a long time ago. I have a few of the videos on a pendrive now thanks to other missionaries but I cannot watch them here on the mission. I can only watch videos BY the Church. So when I get home I will be having a movie marathon.

Congrats to Wendy and Tommy for being sealed. That is amazing, and what every missionary hopes for his converts.

Tell my grandparents that I love them.

Tell Jake that I did not even know that elementary school had a school council. And that for his birthday he should learn something new. Do something different.

I got on the church website and I saw a link for Mormon.org that talks about Tim Gates. I thought it was pretty cool to see someone that I had met. The world really is small, especially when you are a Mormon.

I currently have no money because I had to buy a tank of gas worth 43 thousand pesos. I will get a reimbursement from the mission but in about a month because I have to send the papers in. I believe it was worth it because otherwise we could not cook or have hot showers. And I like food and hot showers. Well, at least I already had food and this week we will eat a lot of bbq because it is Chile´s Independence Day. Definetly a good week to look forward to.

I do not know what else to say so take care everyone. I love you.

Elder Hunter

Kaitlin

You play guitar now!? Since when!? 

I have no idea how the different teams are doing here in Chile. Sorry. As missionaries we kicked goals at each other 3 weeks ago. And I can' tell you how long it has been since I played basketball. 

I woke up this morning with a cold. Everyone tells me that my voice sounds weird (it dropped, like it always does when I get sick).

Your schedule is worse than the missionary schedule. I am not jealous.

This week was good but VERY hot. I was burned but my companion just turned a darker shade of brown. He thinks I am making fun of him when I say that but I really am jealous. The most interesting investigator story of the week is when we passed by an investigators house to visit and they invited us in. The fun part was that they were having a party and people were drinking and smoking all kinds of things. We got out of there pretty fast and we plan on teaching the Word of Wisdom and the Law of Chastity as soon as possible. We pass by according to the schedules of the investigators. I like to pass by 2 or 3 times a week if we can.

As missionaries we have to work with those who are receptive. We could be great friends with investigators or with less active members but we cannot afford to waste time with people who refuse to change or to listen. We always try to help and we always have to be persistent. But if they do not want anything then that is their decision. Everyone has their agency. I am here to tell you that it is one of the most difficult decisions to stop visiting someone that you have come to love but sometimes it is for their good.

 Take care sis. Love ya.

Elder Hunter

First off, I want to wish my Parents a very happy aniversary. Secondly, I am VERY happy that Canyon View beat Cedar in Football. FINALLY!

I want you all to know that I am praying for all of you individually, especially those that are sick or struggling with other problems.

Sometimes we feel like nothing is happening like we want it to and we just wonder why. Then God reminds us that He has a plan and he knows how to make it work. This week we were having a hard time getting people to keep their appointments. Then, out of nowhere, a less active guy knocks on OUR door and asks us to go to his house and visit his family. He and his wife want to come back to church. They have a complicated marriage situation but they want to make things right before God. They were asking us some questions that we did not quite know how to answer but with the help of some local leaders we believe we can help them have a temple marriage and get sealed to their kids.

We also invited people to participate in activities and they did not show up. For example, on Wednesday we invited investigators to come to the chapel to learn to dance the cueca (cueca is the national dance of Chile. PS does the US even have a national dance?). Several said yes but no one showed up so in the end we had to leave. But then God came in. One of our investigators, Jackeline Vega, did not show up to the classes of cueca but she showed up an hour later to the choir practice and decided to participate. Long story short, the next day there was a Choir Competition in the Chapel in Centro and she participated with our Branch. (and we participated too without ever practicing the songs) Then she came to church on Sunday along with her son Diego who is 10 years old. The other missionaries always invited her to come but she never showed up. Now she is coming to activities and to church. We are seeing some great things that just suprise us.

In other news, I have some new items to add to my food list. This past week we recieved 2 liters of goat milk, a wheel of goat cheese, and 4 duck eggs. All for free. The goat dairy items we recieved from a recent convert named Yerelyn and the duck eggs we got from our Clothes Mamita. We had to boil the goat milk before we drank it and then we added sugar to it. It was actually really good. The goat cheese is good... but not my favorite. The duck eggs were harder than chicken eggs and had a larger yolk. The taste was just a little different. Not too much to notice.

That should be it for now. I love you guys and I hope that all is well. Trust in God. Have faith. It really works miracles.

Con amor, Elder Brock Hunter

Dear Family and friends,

This week we found several receptive people but we were mostly going around so that Elder Acosta, my new comp, could get to know people. Elder Acosta is from Lima, Peru. He actually lives like 2 blocks from the temple there. He is a convert of 5 years and he is an only child. His parents got baptized at the same time as him. He is a HUGE futbol fan and he was actually working to go pro before the mission. His coach called him crazy to put off his training to come out on a mission but he felt good about his decision and now he has 10 months in the field. The miracle for the week is the fact that we were able to enter several houses for the first time. Elder Holloway and I had passed by before but never been able to enter but now with Elder Acosta we could get in. I guess God was just waiting for Elder Acosta to get here.

The fleas continue to eat me alive so I think I would do very poorly as a fumigator. We also have not been able to find a new pension. No one wants to rent. It is weird to think that you guys are back in school. Just saying. For now my clothes are holding up. I actually have more than I need (another reason why there is so little room in my bags). The only thing that has gotten REALLY worn out are my tennis shoes. I only use them once a week and they are still the most beat up. I will keep using them for now and if I need to buy new ones later then I will but for now I am fine.

This friday we had a Dessert and Karaoke night and we had 55 people show up. I thought that was pretty good but you guys beat us with 75 youth. Well, maybe if more people were willing to sing we would have seen better attendance. And though there were several delicious treats, I did not get one recipe. I was kinda upset about that. I made brownies to take to the activity but they lacked sugar... and I might have broken the Mamitas mixer... but Elder Acosta decided to put condensed milk and cream on top of the brownies and with the addition of sprinkles and crushed up chocolate chip cookies it ended up tasting pretty good.

I am glad that you guys are doing well, even if you are a bit stressed at times. Remember that God tests his saints and that all things will work for our good if we are obedient. I dont know what else to say for today so I will just tell you that I love you, I appreciate your prayers, and I will be working hard to fulfil the Lords purposes here.

WAIT! I did think of something else to write. I recently found out that several investigators that I worked with in my other sectors have since been baptized. Lidia and Juan Manuel from Bolivar in Antofagasta have a baptismal date for this upcoming saturday and José Riquelme (the dad and husband) is going to baptize them. Also an investigator that I had in Copiapo has an appointment to get married so he can get baptized. I was pretty excited to hear about these things. I may not be there with them but I could help them get there.

Okay. Now that should be all. Have a great week everyone!

Take care and God bless. Con amor, Elder Brock Hunter

This week was busy. I was getting to know my companion. It is always interesting getting to know the person that you have to live with 24 hours a day. I cant think of anything awesome right off the bat. The investigators are doing well though one lady said she does not like Peruvians... we will have to see what happens with that. Pray for Joel, Jackeline, Danisa, and Cristobal. Pray that they will actually read and have the spirit touch their hearts.

As missionaries, sometimes we show people how to hold a Noche de Hogar, or Family Home Evening. We also ask that members will allow us to take investigators to their houses so that they can see how we do it and so that the investigators can meet more people. We do not have FHE with just missionaries. In my last ward they were doing a Ward FHE but here they are not doing that. A lot of times we get invited to share the spiritual part of the FHE with absolutely no heads up. They just ask us to do it. So we have to have several scriptures handy to use in such emergency situations. (Scripture Masteries as well as others that we find through our personal study). Here we have one large Branch Activity each month and we try to fit smaller things in throughout the month.

Work hard, pray hard, help others. Love ya sis. Elder Hunter

Dear Grandma and Grandpa Hunter,
Congratulations on 65 years of marriage! That is rather impressive. It gives a good example in a world where people dont even want to be married anymore. When I get home I will be eating peaches and tomatoes so be sure to save some for me. Thank you for your prayers. I pray for you guys every day too. Take care and stay safe. I love you.

Elder Hunter

We had a really good week this week. We had more lessons with investigators and we also found a few new ones. We have seen more progress in working with the Branch Council as well. The miracle of the week would have to be the fact that we got into several houses of less active members for the first time this week. I do not know what it is that changed but a lot more people became more receptive.

According to Elder Holloway, I was with him to learn patience. I think he has learned to love the people more (it also helps that he speaks spanish a lot better now than when I first met him). Elder Holloway actually went to Antofagasta on cambios this morning. I will have a latin comp but I still dont know him.  So far my companions have been Dad, Elder Hinton, Elder Stratford, Elder Riveros, Elder Ortega, Elder Plowman, Elder Holloway, and now Elder Acosta as my companions. Mostly good experiences, a few bad ones, and even a few "stress emergencies" but hey.

A few more flea bites but I think I got them (of course I said that last time). I have seen them before but mostly I just see the bites. I fumigated. Still looking for a new house.

Good luck with this school year. I imagine that everyone has a lot of homework but just stay on top of it. It is much easier to stay on top than it is to scramble up from the bottom. Tell Dad to delegate to and trust in the leaders of the Auxilary Organizations. He is in charge of a Young Adult Ward,so things are a bit different, but the Lord called him to serve there because he is needed and he is able.

The weather here has been bi-polar and we had a small earthquake last night but we are fine.

I have less time to write today because of Cambios but I wanted to let you guys know that I love you and I pray for you always. Take care and God bless.

Con amor, Elder Hunter

The problem with changing missionary apartments is that the Mission Office has to approve everything. They need to have photos, contact information, and house dimensions. We have found one house so far that might be an option as well as five other rental fliers that were outdated (the houses were rented weeks or even months ago). The missionaries have wanted to change houses for a while now but with the flooding in our kitchen we finally recieved official permission to change. The office wants at least 3 options before they make a decision. The flea situation is varying. I thought I had killed all the fleas but then I got bit 3 times last night. I bought some Raid at the store today. I plan to fumigate the house. I hate fleas. I think that I hate them even more than mosquitoes.

The splits we did with the members on Wednesday actually worked very well. The four of us were able to visit families with a member of the ward. I visited two less active families, Elder Holloway visited an investigator who is married to a less active member, Elder Malan visited an investigator, and Elder Spanbauer visited a new investigator family in their sector. We did have interviews with President Dalton but he did not bring any packages or mail with him. He came down here earlier than planned because they found fossils on the premise of a church building in Huasco. Kinda complicated. Plus at that same time he was trying to organize church efforts to go help people in Tocapilla after they got flooded. I will let you know when I recieve mail.

It kinda freaks me out that you guys are starting a SECOND school year while I am in Chile. Hopefully you can get everything ready in time but I am sure that you will be able to handle it. Did you get a new calling yet or just get released as the Young Womens President? And HOW IN THE WORLD DID BLAKE LOSE 40 POUNDS? I did not think he had 40 pounds to lose! I think I have gained 10 or 15 pounds and that is because they eat a lot of bread here. At least he is happy.

We did manage to teach a new family this week and they are very interested in learning more. The only thing is that they are only able to share on Saturdays... but slow progress is still progress. In other news, our landlord´s dog was poisoned yesterday. Someone has been putting out poison to kill the cats and dogs in the streets and the poor pup got into it.  I do not know what else to write... so I think I will call it a day.

I forgot to mention an activity that we went to on Friday. The ward in Centro hosted an activity called "La Dulce Historia de la Iglesia en Chile. They had three categories: old things, old things from the church, and desserts. They also had a local sculptor/artist come and show off some of his work. He is not a member of the church but he liked the idea of showing off his work. He actually lives in our sector so we will be passing by to share with him later. He made paintings showing off some of the local legends from the North of Chile. The best "cosa antigua" was a collection of small taxis from around the world; the best "cosa antigua de la Iglesia" were old tapes that were used for Family Home Evening; and the best "postre" was a dessert with coconut, chocolate, and strawberry. 

I love you guys and I want you to know that you are all in my prayers everyday. God bless.

Con mucho amor, Elder Brock Hunter

Sis,

Senior year will just fly by. Be prepared. Dont waste it.

There is Basico (elementary and middle school) and Medio (Highschool). Sometimes they call it Collegio or Liceo as well. They normally get a summer break and winter break with other holidays off, just like us, but recently the teachers were boycotting for a month and a half and now they have to make up all their lost time. Some schools are staying in class for longer hours and some are even going to class on Saturday. Normally in Chile the students get 1 hour to go home and eat lunch and get back to class.

There are about 60 active people in our Branch but we have an average attendance of about 40. That means that 20 people come every week, 20 people come weeks 1 and 3, and 20 people come weeks 2 and 4. There are probably 12 kids that are primary age that are active.

We try to mix up the things we do on Pday. Sometimes we just shop, sometimes we explore, sometimes we play, sometimes we cut our hair, sometimes we have to clean the house, it just depends. I have done a lot of service cleaning up places, painting, small building projects, and during the rain we made care packages.

There are a lot of wild dogs in all of Chile but yes we also have wild cats here. I do not know what other weird things I might have eaten. There are some different types of food here and some of it I love and some of it I have to swallow down and try not to puke. It all depends. Anyway, take care and good luck.

Love ya sis, Elder Hunter

Dear Grandpa and Grandma Hunter,

The District here in Vallenar has a goal to read the Book of Mormon two times this year. They finished once already and recently started again. It can be hard but the important thing is to be consistent.

I hope that the garden will start doing better. Some plants here have bloomed early and then got killed by the cold. The climate here changed after the big earthquake here in Chile in 2010.

I love you guys and I appreciate all of your prayers and support. Take care and know that I pray for you every day too.

Con amor, Elder Hunter