Dallan's Letter 11-30-10

The part he wanted me to translate is on the bottom, but for you who read Spanish, here's a little taste of how Dallan's Spanish is going! The second part describes a Zone Activity that he told me in a separate letter he felt inspired to organize for his zone (he is senior Zone Leader now). He kept thinking about it all week and then went with his prompting. Enjoy. Kelly

Hey everybody!
Sorry that this week I don`t have much time to write. We just got back from our Zone Activity, we went to a catholic orphanage and we did a service. What I`m going to do though is send the letter I sent to my mission president and I`m going to ask my mom or dad to translate it for you guys. Love you all hope you enjoy it!

Esta semana fuimos con Eledin, la fecha que tuvimos por este sábado. Nos había comentado que ya no quería bautizarse. Para mí eso no fue algo que no me sorprendió. Hay muchos investigadores que sienten temor, especialmente antes de su bautismo. Cuando entramos su casa nos sentamos con él y, con amor, empezamos a preguntar porque ya no quería bautizarse. Nos dijo que no sintió preparado para su bautismo. Ya le habíamos enseñado todo, le habíamos dado una bendición. Él nos empezó a contar porque no, pero con El Libro de Mormon sacamos su duda. Leímos con él Alma 32:16. A pesar que era un joven que no sabe mucho, entendió perfectamente el mensaje. Le preguntamos lo que él había aprendido ese día, y me enseñó algo que no creo que pueda olvidar nunca. El nos dijo, “No tiene que saber todo aquí”, señalando a su cabeza, “solo necesitamos saberlo aquí”, señalando a su corazón. Por alguna razón aprendí una lección que nunca había reconocido. Tal vez yo no sé todo, pero sé todo lo que necesito saber. Le invitamos al bautismo y tuvimos un servicio hermoso.

Fuimos con la zona para hacer la actividad de Zona en un lugar se llama la “Ciudad de los Niños”. Prestamos servicio cortando leña, y recogiendo hierbas malas. Recibimos ampollas, el sol nos quemó un pocito, pero salimos felices. Las hermanas estaban llenas de gratitud por el servicio que les prestamos. Para mí, fue una de las mejores actividades que he hecho. Al principio tenía el temor que los elderes se iban a quejar pero mostraron mucha madurez y lo hicieron con tanto amor. Les amo mucho y sé que están aquí en la misión por la razón correcta. Pues le envié fotos de la actividad. Espero que le gusten. Nos veremos mañana.

Con Amor, Elder Valle I sent some photos as well. I got super sweaty. Gross! but work is work! hahaha.

Translation of letter to his president:

This week we went with Eledin, the date that we had for this Saturday. He had commented to us that he didn't want to get baptized anymore. For me, this was not something that surprised me. There are many investigators that feel afraid, especially before their baptism. When we entered his house we sat down with him, and, with much love, we started to ask him why he no longer wanted to be baptized. He told us that he didn't feel prepared for his baptism. We had already taught him everything, already given him a blessing. He began to tell us why not, but with the Book of Mormon, we resolved his doubt. We read Alma 32:16 with him. Despite the fact that he is a young man that doesn’t know much, he understood the message perfectly. We asked him what he had learned that day, and he taught me something that I don't believe I can ever forget. He told us "You don't have to know everything here," pointing to his head, "we only need to know it here", pointing to his heart. For some reason I learned a lesson I had never recognized. Perhaps I don't know everything, but I know all I need to know. We invited him to the baptism and we had a beautiful service.

We went with the zone to do a Zone Activity at a place called "City of Children". We gave service cutting firewood, and picking weeds. We got blisters and got a little sunburned, but we came out happy. The sisters were full of gratitude for the service we gave. For me, it was one of the best activities I've done. At first, I was afraid the elders would complain, but they showed much maturity and did it with so much love. I love them and I know they are here in the mission for the right reason. Well, I'm sending photos of the activity. I hope you like them. We'll see you tomorrow. With Love, Elder Valle