Fire and Rain - Week 87

The Evans boys back home "adventuresome lads," entered into my thoughts several times this week. I better think twice next time.
        Elder Aldas from Ecuador completed a year in the mission so as tradition he decided to burn a shirt. We needed to use alcohol, and I told them that they could light their hands on fire if they wanted.  They wanted to see an example first so I covered my hand with alcohol, rubbing alcohol , and did just as Matt Evans taught me, but maybe not in the lighting of the alcohol.  I shook my hand to take out the fire, however, it didn't come off, I shook more anxiously and it still didn't come off, I frantically went down to the grass and put out the fire, only suffering a few blisters on my poor hand.  Well, I know it was foolish, but what do you expect from a bunch of 20 year old boys....ahaha
         Also we were in Los Polinesias and had taken the bikes on Monday to do a split to cover more ground.  We reached a grass hill to go down and my wiser companion got off his bike and walked down to the muddy ground below.  I, in turn, had a spirit like Brett Evans and said lets go.  Little did I know that there was a gutter like hole at the bottom that when I hit it and hit the front brake my bike, like a bucking horse or bull, threw me from the saddle and I came down on my hands and shoulder.  I cut up my hands a bit and only dirtied my shirt...then laughed as I looked at Mangum and said it cant get any worse. Well on the way back it did get worse as the rains came down.  I followed Mangum down the steep muddy hills traveling slower because I only had the front brake.  We made it to the main road and I looked down and then looked up and Elder Mangum was down!!  MANGUM I yelled.  He had hit a big hole full of water and fallen inside of the hole...hahahah we both returned home wet and hurt that day but kept working with all our hearts for the rest of the week!!

We are starting a plan here in Las Sierras called always wet,
because of the rain and because of the people that have
desires to follow God and be baptized. 

Gabriel was baptized this week and as I entered
into the cold water, cold below and warm above, I felt so happy
to be apart of the Lords work.

So had I remembered back at the neighborhood camp
that things didn't turn out so well for Brett,
I  might have saved myself from the same outcome...

Live and Learn