Monday, December 17, 2012 - Transfers!

Hola Mi Familia! Well, another week has gone by and I know you all are just hanging on pins and needles waiting to know where I am-- if I stayed in Nacozari or left. We will get to that in a bit.... Sounds like Sunday was quite a busy day with talks and home teaching and firesides and choir practices. Good Heavens, the day of rest is not much of a day of rest is it? Haha! Well, this week, I can barely remember what happened. Energy and all that was down for all the mission this being the last week of transfers and all. Everyone seems to kind of shut down week 6 with not know what will happen the coming weekend with transfers and all. And as always, thanks mom for the Christmas goodies! Elder Alvarado and I immediately decorated the Christmas tree and really enjoyed having decorations to make us feel more like it was Christmas. He was really jealous of the gifts and stocking that you sent for my comp at Christmas and he hoped that we would not be changed so that he could have it. This week we did happen to have a few Christmas parties. The elders from Esqueda invited us to go with them to their Christmas party and so we went with them Friday night and stayed the night with them. Their party wasn't really that exciting. They just had food and then after set up the Xbox kincect and had everyone play Dance Central. It made me really jealous to see them playing and I wanted so bad to get up and show them all up, but that would not have been very missionary like. The next day, Saturday, we had our Christmas Party and we invited the elders from Esqueda to come with us and so they did. Earlier that day we went with Hermana Parada, the branch president's wife/my Mexican mom, and we helped her make food for the party that night and she taught us how to make Frijoles Puercos--which are a really special way of making refried beans and they are so good-- and we also made atole, which is a hot drink here, like hot chocolate, but they us cookies, cinnamon, cocoa, and clove to make it and it is quite delicious. It all turned out quite fantastic and delicious! This woman is absolutely amazing with cooking and just everything she does! She reminds me too much of my own mother! :) Home away from home! After making that stuff, we returned home and I made the cookies that Grandma and Grandad had sent me for to take to the Christmas party. They turned out quite lovely and I think everyone like them. Our Christmas party was way better than Esqueda. We actually had a spiritual message with it. Ha! We also ate and the kids had a piñata. It was quite a fun night. Well, yesterday morning we received the phone call with transfers. Unfortunately, the mission decided to close Nacozari to missionaries for a time. This was really sad. I didn't want to leave! The thing that gets me the most is that they closed Nacozari, but they didn't close Esqueda. Esqueda still has missionaries and it is much smaller and has less work. That is what I don't understand. The whole time at church was quite sad. Everyone didn't want us to leave. We had the primary program which was really neat and was very spiritual. After church we had a luncheon and ate left overs from the Christmas party the night before and spent time saying our goodbyes. The hardest goodbye was the branch president and his wife who really became my Mexican parents. It was so hard to leave them and there were tears between the both of us. They gave me some very nice complements and gave me words of encouragement as I moved on. We then went home and spent the afternoon packing and left that night for Agua Prieta. Now the moment you all have been waiting for. This morning I woke up and got on the bus and headed for Hermosillo! Yup, that's right! I'm here in Hermosillo and I have been promoted to District Leader. The area is called Nuevo Hermosillo and it is the like the very south bit of Hermosillo. Kind of in the ghetto/boonies or Hermosillo if you asked me. I am currently in a Trio with Elder Searle and Elder Medina, but in 10 days Elder Searle will have completed his mission and will head home and it will just me Elder Medina and I. It has been kind of a rough and long day today 5 hours on the bus and getting used to the fact that I won't be going back to Nacozari. I am excited, though, to finally be in a city and have a ward to work with! I am hoping I will adjust quickly and that things will be okay. I always hate changes and don't do well with change. It always is hard and takes me a while to adjust and get to know people. But here we are and so that is what is up. So I'm sorry if this was short this week or scattered, but it is because of all the changes. Just think, ONE WEEK from TOMORROW, we will get to talk on the phone! How fantastic is that!?! I am super pumped. Well, I hope you all are well and survive this last week before vacations. Good luck with examines and all! I love and miss you all tons! ¡Yo sé que vive mi Señor! Con Mucho Amor, Elder Joyner