San Clemente says hi! :)

Hola Queridos! 

Well we had a good week this week! La Costa is a lot different, but I really like it! Before I get into that though I have to talk at least a little about my last weekend in Spegazzini! 

Alright so I am not going to lie it was hard to leave (Surprise right?) I was pretty sure that I was going to be leaving so I had been preparing myself as it was, and explaining to the members and our investigators that I would probably would be leaving. Even with all  of the preparation in the world, it still hurts to say good bye to the people you love. I was able to bare my testimony on Sunday, and during the Sacrament I sat thinking about what message I wanted to share, and really just taking a second to thank my Heavenly Father for sending me to Spegazzini, as I sat there I just felt a peaceful fulling of love that came over me, knowing that the Lord was happy with what I had done there. When I gave my testimony, I didn´t cry but I was choked up. I wrote in my journal that I didn´t know my heart had so much room for so many people, and that it was possible to love others as if they were my family. I felt like the grinch, where they put the little xray machine to his heart and they say that it grew 3 sizes that day! haha It was hard to say goodbye, but what was interesting, and I can´t explain it but there is still a big space in my heart, and I still know that there are people waiting for me that I haven´t met. 

Which brings me to the beautiful town of San Clemente on the Coast! Few things about it, it is a HUGE tourist destination during December, January, and February because there are beaches and it is home to Mundo Marino (Argentine Sea World) as well as a few other things, most people only work during these 3 months of and make the money that they need to survive during the rest of the year. A few years back San Clemente had it´s own branch. but because of lack of members it had to be closed, and it merged with Santa Teresita which is about an hour from here in bus. Recently they started to have meetings here in San Clemente again in the house of one of the sisters. This Sunday we had 9 members, 2 investigators, and then us missionaries. We blessed the sacrament, gave the talks, and taught a small sunday school. There is such a small group that we finished with church in an hour and a half! (Alright to some of you that might sound nice, but it is weird trust me! haha) We are trying to get some more priesthood holders, and to get our attendance up, there aren´t too many members here so honestly we have tons of work to do. The thing is, it is slow and hard work lots of working with members trying to motivate them, lots of contacts in the streets, and a whole lot of prayer and fasting! San Clemente is going to be a challenge but I am looking forward to what the Lord has in store for me here! 

I hope all is well at home, I imagine you are all enjoying cooler weather, while here it gets hotter, and more humid every day! Love you all! :) 

Elder Hall 

Video of Elder Brennen Hall-Spegazzini Oct 2014

SALUDOS DE LA COSTA! :)

Alright well, I couldn´t write yesterday because I got transfered! After a 7 hour bus ride, I have made it to San Clemente, in La Costa! Just a little about my area, we live 3 blocks from the beach, there are 5-10 active members, and we don´t even qualify as a branch yet! (emphasis on the yet!) My new companion is Elder Jared Racchumi from Peru! (Woohoo, another peruvian! haha), he has the same time as Elder Mortensen, and seems really awesome! So I am excited! 

Love you all! :) 

Elder Hall 

 La Familia Vaccaroni!

 My District! Elder Lopez, E. Mortensen, E. Wilson, Hermana Tolman, Hermana Ortiz!

 Our Zone! 

 I love them so much! :) This is our Patriarc and his wife! Pedro y Ramona Barli, some of the best members I have met in my entire life, they have been like grandparents too me, and they fed us every week (Its hermana Ramona´s fault that I started to get fat again!) haha 

 Alright I am starting to get pretty good in the kitchen as well, garlic potatoes, with pork chops in the oven! haha 

 Hermano Ismael, y Hermana Carmen Duarte, members that were always so great to me! :)

 Flor Silva got baptized! WooHoo! :)

 All of the family, and Flor´s Cousin! This family is amazing, I worked with them for 6 months, and finally they are back active again, and they have started the process to enter the temple, and get sealed! So in one year, I hope I am heading to a sealing! (Will work on travel plans later! haha) 

 Argentines literally have some of the weirdest things in their butcher shops, Armadillo anyone?

 Two awesome young men who will one day be great missionaries! The one on the right is Ivan (whose mom passed away.) and then on the left is Rodrigo (Hna. Elizabeth´s son) 

 Obispo (Bishop) Manzanos, and his wife Mary! He has been the bishop for 8 years now, and was branch president for a long time back before Spegazzini was a ward! haha poor guy... Really great people though! :) 

 A going away lunch Sunday! :) I just love them so much. They all are like family! 

Alright, I caved, I broke the rules and picked this cute little girl up for a picture! I have known her since she was a tiny little thing, and now she is about to turn a year! Nylah is the granddaughter of Elizabeth! 

 I will never forget this family, I can´t lie we all just started crying when I had to say good bye, and hermana Elizabeth was bawling, I could never share, or express all of the good, and hard things that my companions and I have passed through with this family, it was so hard to say goodbye. To make matters worse it was mother´s day here on sunday, and seriously Hermana Elizabeth has adopted me as her american son! But I left them knowing that their lives are going to be better, as long as they keep on the right track! 

 Kiki (KeeKee) (her real name is Victoria!) This sweet little girl is the best! Her mom told me that she spent a week writing me a letter, and just cried every night! She is 9, and will alwasy be another argentine sister for me! 

 Familia Gimenez, another less-active family who came back, and are making plans to get sealed!

 This is an active family who fed us every Wednesday while I was there! They are awesome! Familia Manzanos, he is the old bishop, and the bishop´s son! 

Hermano Claudio Blanco and his wife Carolina! He has been a member for a long time, and was menos activo, but he is back going strong, and his wife is starting to listen to the discussions! She is a gypsy! 

The Morales Family. Wow. Words can not describe the change that happened in this family. I think this family is a testament to me that these things are true I have never had people where we taught the commandments they started obeying them, and then wham! the blessings just came pouring out. Poor Bruno the minute we walked in sunday night, he ran up gave me a hug and said, ¨Hall, don´t go!¨and then just started bawling. Ugh.. but we talked and I explained that we would still keep in touch, and we ended the night happy, and I just had an amazing feeling of love, and peace knowing that I had done literally all I could to help this family! :) They all wrote me letters, and the parents are setting goals for the temple as well! :)))

Una Semana Mas! :)

Buenos Días mis muy Queridos Amigos,

Hope everyone has had a good week, we did! We spent a lot of time teaching this week, and preparing for a baptism that we are going to have this next weekend! Florencia Silva who is the daughter of a less-active family is going to get baptized! She had her interview on Sunday, and it went really well! I have been working with her family since I got to this area, and finally they are all attending church as a family. I have shared some pretty rough experiences with this family, from battling alcoholism, to just doing the simple things like reading scriptures, and saying prayers. In church on sunday Hermana Silva got up and shared her testimony and it was a special moment for me to hear her express her gratitude for coming back to the church, and the happiness that they have found since they came back. It just made everything worth it, to hear her testimony, and I was able to feel the spirit, and just be thankful that I have been able to help out this family!

Also on Sunday Bruno got up, and shared his testimony even though he is only 9 years old and has only been a member of the church for a little over a month you would think he has grown up going to primary since he was a little kid! It has been an amazing experience to watch him, and his family change as they have accepted the gospel into their lives again. Seriously this family has made a 180 degree change, and all they did was start going to church, start reading their scriptures, and say their prayers. 3 super simple things that literally have changed their world. It makes me think what simple things could we do to change our worlds? 

My companion and I have been talking a lot about how most of our investigators are kids of less-active members, and just kinda thinking about things and wondering what people are going to say when we are only baptizing little kids, and then the thought came to me. I came on my mission to help out families, because I wanted others to have what my family has, and so far teaching the kids has been working really well to reactivate the whole family, and it gets more people even closer to entering into the temple to be able to be sealed as a family for time and all eternity. I have really come to feel that one of my purposes here in the mission is to help out those less-active families in the church, it seems to be a blessing that the lord has given me! (Now if i could only get MY less active family to go to church! Hint..hint..) 

Alright so I did make a video yesterday morning but I am having heck getting it uploaded so we will see when it actually makes it! I hope you all know how much I love and think about ya! Have a great week! 

Elder Hall 

 My dessert from last weeks all you can eat restaurant Pear Crepes with a sugar glaze, and vanilla ice cream! Yum! 

 After lunch!

 Familia Manzanos! They are awesome! She is fluent in english, and works for designing church magazines!

 Happy Birthday lovebug! :) 

 Preparing for lunch yesterday! I have gotten pretty good at cooking these days, we made Pastel de Papas wich would be like a sheperds pie! It was super good! 

Chow Time!

Un Año en Argentina!

Buenas Tardes Amigazos!

 

We had a pretty good week here in spegazzini, the only thing is I wasn´t hardly in Spegazzini at all! On wednesday morning I left to go to Las Flores with my district leader because his companion was sick. So Elder Mortensen stayed with his companion and we took a little over 4 hour charter bus ride to Las Flores, and stayed until Friday morning! It was a lot of fun, and I enjoyed getting to work with the two missionaries who are up there!

Then this weekend we had conference, and so we had to travel to get to the stake center, so we basically werent able to work Saturday and Sunday! So it was a week that went by really fast! I loved conference, and was able to receive some answers to questions that I have had and what I need to do, to be better! I absolutely loved that the general authorities now have the option to speak in their native languages. This conference I watched all of it in spanish, and it is interesting because the spirit is just a little bit different when you get to hear their actual voice, and not just the voice of a translator. My favorite talks were President Eyring´s, the 70 who spoke in spanish that talked about following the Lord, and President Monson´s. What a privilege we have to be able to listen to the Lord´s modern day Prophet and Apostles. My testimony was strengthen even more to hear them speak, and receive counsel for my life, and counsel that I can help those that I love here in Argentina. It was a great weekend! 

It is also hitting me pretty hard that it was a year ago this morning, I was jumping on a plane to head here to argentina, tomorrow will be an actual year here in the mission field. And man does time fly. I hope everyone has a great week, and that you all can take the time to listen to conference! And if any one has any questions as to why us mormons are so set on sharing the gospel here is a great talk for ya! Elder Bednar

Love ya all! 

Elder Hall 

Pictures from September 30, 2014

 Noche de Hogar with the Morales family, had an awesome dinner, and then got to spend time with all of them! Never going to forget this family! :) 

 That is a giant bowl of bell peppers that when into about 8 pounds of meat that we had to cut up by hand! The sisters didn´t want to use ground beef,and I gotta say it was worth it! They were so good!

 Some of us cooking!

 On monday we went to Ezeiza for a district activity and made tacos with the missionaries, and sisters from the other district, and played soccer! Ton of fun! 

 We figured out how to make ¨almost¨ tortillas so we made some burritos! They were so good! (Kinda expensive though, but worth it!) 

 Birthday Party for mi compañero!

Que Rico!! :)