NEW COMPANION FINALLY ARRIVED FROM U.S.

Elder Corbett with his new companion, Elder Bushnell, and
President and Sister Olsen



Mr. and Mrs. Luna(right center) signing marriage document.


How time flies! Once again it has been three weeks since I last gave you an update on Benjamin’s comings and goings in Argentina and much has happened!

Well, about two weeks ago Benjamin was thrilled to travel to the mission home in the city of Córdoba to pick up his new companion, Elder Bushnell, from Ogden, Utah(see above photo).. After waiting 4 weeks to get his visa, he was finally there. He had spent a week or so doing missionary work in Chicago while waiting for his visa. Benjamin noted that as he observed the president talking to the new missionaries about why theirs was the best mission, it seemed as though it was just yesterday that he had been in their shoes. Benjamin recently noted that they are getting along really well that “Elder Bushnell is a great missionary, just a bit shy and not yet confident with his Spanish.” He concluded by noting: “I can tell I am going to learn a lot this transfer as I help him learn missionary work [and]…we are going to see a lot of miracles as we are obedient and faithful. I can’t wait.”

Probably the best experience Benjamin has had recently is with the Luna family, which is related to some members in their branch. He told us of one special teaching moment that he and his companion had with them. After having taught them the lesson on the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they had a prayer and then asked everyone to take 30 seconds to just sit and think about what they had learned and felt. Afterwards the father looked up and said “I know that it is true. … Each time I feel it more and more.” Benjamin noted that it was so “awesome” and that the Spirit was really strong. About two weeks ago, he and his former companion, Elder Jeppson helped the parents get married. They had been living together for 14 years in a relationship that is referred to as “common law” marriage. Benjamin and his companion helped them get their papers together and to set the appointment with the justice of the peace. Benjamin noted that it was great to see them make this important step in their lives(See above photo). Right after the marriage Benjamin and his companion helped them make empanadas for the party they had to celebrate this special event.. Benjamin also noted that they brought the family some banana bread, something that they seem to do for the members and investigators on a fairly regular basis. It is their hope and prayer that the Luna family will continue to progress and that they will be baptized in the near future.

In a letter that we recently received from him he shared with us a bit about what life is like for him and his companions there in Deán Funes. He noted that “We don’t really do groceries. We eat lunch with members[the biggest meal of the day in Argentina] and at night we sometimes order [out]. Delivery is free. For breakfast we eat bananas or bread. The food here is pretty basic, not too much variety, but it is delicious. Pasta, meat, potatoes, rice and bread are the basics.” As far as the weather, well it is now springtime in Argentina and Benjamin notes that the weather is quite changeable with some days cold(50’s) and others pretty hot(90’s). It is also quite windy and they have had a couple of dust storms, which, naturally, reminds him of West Texas. He noted that Deán Funes “is a quite ‘pueblo’ of about 22,000. Most people know each other and you can walk from one side ..to the other in 30 minutes.”. He also mentioned that some people ride through town in little horse-drawn buggies(carriages).

We want you to know that Benjamin truly appreciates the letters he has received from family and friends!

NEW COMPANION STILL DELAYED WITH VISA PROBLEMS

Well, about 3 weeks have passed since our last update and Benjamin continues to wait for the arrival of his companion from the MTC. The delay has been due to a problem getting his visa. The latest word that Benjamin received from the mission president is that he will arrive the first week of October.

But it’s not like Benjamin has been on his own and sitting around twiddling his thumbs! He has had a very good companion, Elder Jeppson(see photo), who is also awaiting the arrival of a companion from Utah. And they have been working very hard. They have found a number of people with interest in listening to the message of the restored gospel. One family, the Lunas, is the owner of the little pet you see in one of the new photos. Yes, it is an armadillo, a critter that we here in Texas definitely are familiar with. Ben has indicated that the Lunas want to be baptized and that he and his companion are going to help the parents get married next week.

Ben reported that he had the chance to eat something that he had never eaten before, “queso de pata de vaca”(Cow foot cheese). I want to share with you his own words to describe the experience. “The member cut me a slice and just smiled. I didn’t find out what it was until after I ate it. It’s a mixture of vegetables in a rubber form. They take the leg of a cow and chop it up and mix in vegetables. It makes this rubbery gelatin full of vegetables. It didn’t have a weird taste , it was just weird eating rubber. It’s a food that most people eat that are from the campo(country)…but that I hope I don’t have to eat again.”

Please remember to drop Benjamin a line. He loves to hear from family and friends!!!!


Cute little pet!???


Elder Jeppson and Elder Corbett

Love that "bife"!

It's a dog's life!

A beautiful Deán Funes sunset.

A colonial Catholic church in Deán Funes.

BEN REACHED THE SIX MONTH MARK!!!!

I’ll now report on a few things that have taken place during these past 6 weeks since his arrival in Deán Funes. In our previous updates we told you a bit about his his new companion, Elder Davis, and how he was known for being an enthusiastic, hard worker, and that he only had 5 weeks left before going home. Well, to say that Elder Corbett and Elder Davis, worked extremely hard is an understatement! Benjamin reported that their first week they found 19 new people to teach and taught about 64 lessons. . In his own words, it was the best week of his mission so far(although he added that every night when he goes to sleep it seems that the alarm goes off 5 minutes later). Needless to say, he and his companion got along very well and felt the Spirit of this great work during their time together.

Besides teaching people the gospel, Benjamin and his companion also had the chance to do some cooking. He reported that about three weeks ago they fixed a Mexican taco dinner for one of the families that they were teaching. The family had never even heard of tacos before. Benjamin reported that the tacos were very good and that he made some banana bread for dessert.

They also had some “interesting” experiences. Like about 2 weeks ago Benjamin said they had a very windy day. Later that day when they went to visit the home of a Church member he saw his name tag lying on the table. He said he was a little confused on how it had gotten there until she told him that a girl found it lying in the street and brought it to the house knowing that she was a member. It had blown off in the wind and he didn’t even notice. Some wind!


On August 24th Benjamin’s companion. Elder Davis, completed his mission and returned to the U.S. Benjamin was sad to see him go as they had grown quite close during the past month as they worked together in the service of the Lord. They were thrilled that on the 22nd two of the people that they had been teaching, a mother and her teenage daughter, decided to get baptized(See photo)

AND, on August 25th Benjamin reached the 6 month-mark of his mission! He reported that to commemorate the event, he burned one of this ties, as is the tradition in his mission.

Since transfers didn’t take place until September 1st, Benjamin worked one week with a young man from the Church who wanted to have a “mini-mission” experience. Although Benjamin was quite apprehensive about being the companion in charge of directing their efforts and not having great fluency with Spanish, the week went quite well, and they are teaching this woman who wants to be baptized later this month. However, he noted that he basically had to do everything, planning, contacting and teaching, and, in his own words, has concluded that “learning how to lead is a lot harder than learning how to follow!”

Then when transfers came, Benjamin got some very surprising news: His new companion was going to be a new missionary coming from the Missionary Training Center in Utah. In other words, Benjamin had been made “senior” companion after only 3 ½ months in Argentina and was going to be asked to be a trainer. However, since this new missionary isn’t going to be able to get his visa for another two weeks, Benjamin is now working with a missionary with only 6 weeks more experience than he has. Some pictures are found below.

Elder Davis and Ben in the capital of Cordoba-Guns Up! :)

Contreras Family- Go Tech! :)

Ben helping cook! Looks good!

Pollo Al Disco con Jose

Contreras Family Baptism