Oct. 18, 2014; Commissary for 6 more Weeks!

Hey mom, 

It is good to hear from you! Can you believe that 6 weeks have gone by that fast?! It is crazy... and yes I should have one more transfer in the office. Elder J and R go so we have a new assistant and secretary. Elder P is the new sec (he is a cool guy) and Elder A (my trainer) is the new assistant. I am sad to see Elder J and R go. They are really good friends.

Q & A.

1. It was a good week. It was a little lower key than normal, which is good. We did some maintenance on houses this week and we went up to Santiago to go buy study chairs for the missionaries. A lot of the chairs that the mission has are just poor quality. So that was a fun trip! We also helped Sister Warne prepare food for the final dinner of the missionaries who go home on Monday and Tuesday. We are getting prepped for the big changes that will be going on this next week. They will be fun! Waking up early to drop off and pick up. Ha-ha I will give you the report next week. We also had a lesson with Teresa and Jose this week. They are really evangelicals. It is hard to teach them because they just start talking and talking. We will see if they go to church with us tomorrow. I hope so! 

2. Yes we do still have companion inventory. It isn’t the same but we talk about what we can do better to help each other and if there is anything that we need to change and stuff along those lines. It is fun. Elder T is a great guy and I am so happy that I am with him. He is a way better commissary than I am but that is ok. He is going to make big changes for the mission! 

3. There was one time in this past week when I was driving and I was tired and it was night time. I was fighting against sleep and keeping my eyes open. Then I just had this impression that you (my family) had asked for my safety in the mission and after that impression I was fine driving without any desire to sleep. I know answers to prayers come in different ways and sometimes maybe when we don’t get an answer it is because no matter what we do it will turn out how it should.

Well, I hope you have a good week you guys. I love you. Miss you a ton. Sometimes I just want to give all of you a hug, cry on your shoulder and tell you all how much I love you. I love you a bunch. Sorry no pics. I forgot my camera but the only new pic is of a burger I ate at BK in Santiago this week! Ha-ha not too exciting. Have a wonderful day!! Love you TONS!!

Love, 

Elder Teg Hall 

Oct. 11, 2014; Life is So Sweet!

Hello my beloved family,

 How are you? I am glad to hear from you and know that everything is going well. Wow, the weeks keep flying by. It is crazy... ha-ha after p-day I think wow we have the 6 day grind before next p-day but that goes by so fast. So before I know it is Saturday. Man, I am tired today though! I will tell you why soon!

 I am glad that you enjoyed conference. Do you have a preferred message? I really liked Elder Packer’s message and Elder Bednar’s message; regardless all of them were inspired!

 Q and A

1. Well this week we were busy as always. We had zone conferences this week. We went down to Talca to help there and that turned out to be a whole day trip. Some of the days I am not sure what we did but it was a busy week, lots of driving. We had to go up to Santiago and switch out for our car that was getting repaired. That was a good day. I feel fairly familiar with Santiago now! There was a conference for the new missionaries yesterday so we helped with that and we helped Sister Warne prepare a lot of food for hungry missionaries! It was a lot of fun. There was a pot of rice that weighed probably around 70-80 pounds... it was crazy! There are some hungry missionaries here. Today we had to go to Talca and fix some things. Since it was our p-day too we went to this place called Siete Tazas and it was beautiful!

Look it up on the internet if you want. It is a series of waterfalls. We rode bikes there for a little while but then my pedal fell off so we headed all the way to Talca, had lunch, did a couple things for missionaries there, then went to Curico to help out some missionaries there too. It was a productive day and a productive week. It slipped out from between my fingers. We have been continuing with the opening of new houses and closing down old ones. There have been some owners who try and take advantage of us and who have gotten mad but those are just details. Things couldn’t be better! The Lord blesses me more than I deserve but I am so thankful for it. We were able to go to our sector a couple times this last week and do some contacts and get to know a couple of the members better. A very productive week and lots of work but I love it =) 

2. Every house in the mission has an iron and yeah I iron my shirts =) 

3. The tap water here is fine. Ha-ha one of my concerns when I got to the mission was just that. Elder A, my trainer, when I got here got a glass of water from the tap and I was like, "Whoa, you can do that?!" but it is totally fine to drink and I haven’t had any problems. The paranoid missionaries use water bottle filters here. It isn’t a big deal. I haven’t heard of anyone get sick from it and besides that, the MTC should give him a water purification bottle. They did to everyone that I know here in the mission

 Well I hope that you guys have a killer week and that you continue to abide in good works and be happy! Life is so sweet isn’t it? There are just so many things to be grateful for and so many ways to express that gratitude. I love each and every one of you and pray for you and your well-being. I got my garments and O Livro de Mórmon this week. I have been reading a little bit in Portuguese! =).

Have a wonderful week. I love you tons! 

 Love,

Elder Teg Hall 

Oct. 4, 2014; Happy Conference Weekend!

Dear family, 

How are you guys?! Happy conference weekend! I have loved the two sessions that I have seen up until now. I can’t believe that I didn’t treasure the sessions before the mission. I took them for granted and I definitely feel bad for that but I have changed. I love being spiritually nurtured by the words from the servants of the Lord. I hope that you guys have been able to enjoy the sessions as much as I have. I am glad that you are able to be up at the cabin with Phips this weekend and enjoy the nature that God has given us. It sounds like it will be a good day. Send some pics of Yellowstone =)  

We had a family home evening with a family on Monday and I shared the jalapeño jelly with them and they loved it! We ate half of the jar. Could you send me the recipe? They want to try and make it. I am glad that life is going well and that you are all having a good time at home I miss you and all of the fun activities that you do! But soon I will be home to do them with you =) 

 Q & A 

1. This week we were pretty busy. We helped some missionaries move houses this week and we also closed a house. The lady who we had to close the house with was pretty upset because she said that the house was in poor condition and that when we started the rent it was perfect. All of the owners say the same thing but in the end it turned out fine. It has been interesting to see the reactions of many of the people with whom we have closed houses. Also on Thursday we had to go down to Constitucion. That was a long trip. We took down a bunk bed and killed some fleas that are in the missionaries’ house down there. We stopped at the beach for about 5 minutes to appreciate the ocean and the fresh air. I loved it. Later we went to Talca to take care of some things. That went fine and in total we drove about 10 hours that day. We were exhausted. Yesterday we went to a leadership meeting at president’s house and that was great. It is fun to be around all of the zone leaders and President and Sister Warne. They are all great people. We had to go up to Buin and take a fridge to some elders up there. We were able to give Elder A a ride (he is now a ZL) and that was fun. I talked to him which was fun. I really enjoyed the time that I had with him. Also in the next package whenever that comes could you send some axe hair gel please. It is the red kind. Also Mt. Dew is low-ish. I have been sharing. People love it down here and I think that a lot of Latins are hooked ;) ha-ha they do like it. And now we have watched conference today. It has been great and I have loved all of the sessions. The talk that has particularly stuck with me is Elder Packer’s talk. He testified of our Savior and I felt the spirit very strongly. 

2. We are all getting along well in house. Some clean more than other but there aren’t any quarrels. It is a good time. We enjoy living with each other and we all help build each other up. I love all of the five other office missionaries. =) Thankful for the chance to live with them.

3.  We watched conference at one of the stake centers here in Rancagua. There are two of them here in Rancagua. It is the same stake center I went to for the last conference =) and in English. I was able to watch the one native Spanish speaker in Spanish. It was easier for me to understand instead of the hassle of the back noise Spanish with the English translation. It was a fun session today with the foreign languages. =) 

4. Today I start my new Advair disk of 60 puffs so I will be good for two months, until the beginning of December =) almost skype time! Ha-ha how time flies. 

5. I have been pondering on it a lot about school and I have been debating between USU and BYU. I am leaning towards USU. Still not quite certain but that is almost my final decision.

I love you guys. I hope that you keep having a good time in Yellowstone. I love all that you do for me. I have been blessed with the greatest family on earth and also friends. The Lord has blessed me bountifully. I am so thankful to be a member of His church. I am not even close to perfect but I do have a firm testimony of our Savior and His redeeming sacrifice. I love Him and I strengthen myself every day to follow Him as He invites us to do so. I invite you all to do the same too! =) Love you dearly! Talk to you next week. 

Love always, 

Elder Teg Hall

Sept. 27, 2014; Time is Flying...

Dear Mom and Family,

How are you?! It is great to hear from you again! =) The time in between emails now just seems like a day instead of a week.

Q & A 

1. Our week was good. On Monday we went up to Santiago to drop our car off to get some body work done because a couple commissaries back he crashed it so we got a replacement car for now. Santiago is crazy. I don’t like the big city a whole lot. On Tuesday we went down to Curico to talk to a house owner to decide how we wanted to close her house. We decided that we would paint and replace a few things. Later we had to go to a different missionary house and drop off a washer and do a number of different things. We almost had to make an emergency trip to a different zone because we got word that a house we were renting was getting foreclosed by the bank. That gave us quite the scare! Ha-ha but everything turned out in the end. We also kept on organizing our stuff this week. We have some awesome tools and they are all organized so when we have a specific task we have the right tools in an identified box! =) It is great. Yesterday we had to go and paint and replace the things we had talked about with the old house owner. Everything turned out fine we just have to give the keys back now. There were a few minor bumps and wrenches in all of our plans for the week but everything turned out great. We got back fairly late every day like 10:00 so we didn’t ever have the chance to go to our sector... =( but tonight I will be doing divisions with Elder J in Recreo! He wants me to be his tour guide there since I was there for 6+ months. =) ha-ha it will be fun! =)  Today we cut our grass, made hotdogs and French fries, cut Elder P’s hair, organized, cleaned the house, and now I am here. It has been a good day. I got a little bit of sun too. We cut our neighbors grass and he came over a little while later and was very grateful. That was a good uplifting experience. I also finished reading The Miracle of Forgiveness. That book has changed my life and my outlook on life. I am thankful for President Kimball and that he took the time to write it and be so inspired. =) 

2. Some things I wish I had brought with me are hair clippers but I bought those, maybe some more t-shirts and a couple pairs of jeans instead of one pair, mtn dew... ;) ha-ha but no for the most part I am content with what I brought. I would have brought a light jacket as well as a heavy coat, a jacket like the North Face one I have at home, some rain boots, but I bought some good ones here...that is it. What is the missionary’s name? I can give him a special welcome when he comes to the mission =)  

3. It was about 60 dollars or 27,000 Chilean pesos to send your package.

4. Fast food is a lot more expensive here. It hurts me on the inside to buy food at McDonald’s but it is good. I wish that they had Wendy’s! In Santiago they have KFC, Taco Bell, Subway, and other restaurants I think so that is cool! 

Well you know that I never gave you permission to read my journal! I just sent it home so it didn’t take up space ;) No, just kidding, that is fine that you read it. Oh I am glad that you guys liked that book The Gringo's Guide to Chile. I found it in a house that we cleaned out and it looked like a pretty good book.

That is weird that I have to start thinking about college now... hahah I will pray about it this week but I am pretty sure that I want to go to USU, like 98 and 4/7% sure. ;) But mom, thank you so much for taking care of me and my future by doing those things. I love and appreciate you so much! =) Thinking about college now doesn’t stress me out. I have been able to develop a better stress management level here in the mission. 

I love you mom! Miss you a bunch too but every day that goes by means that there is one less until the time I am able to see you guys and give you a big hug and a kiss =) You can send me pictures of an thing that has changed around the house, also if you see any deer, This is about the deer time of the year, and just a random pic that you take during the week. =) I love you guys and I am so grateful for what you do for me =) Have a wonderful week and I will talk to you the next one. God speed the right!!! =) 

Love always, 

Elder Teg Hall