So, everything went well as far as receiving and training the 16 new Elders and sisters that came into our mission this week and the transfers meeting (of which I was in charge of arranging the bus transportation for the whole mission). It has been a weeeeeeeeeeek! We haven’t had a lack of rain either! Actually, the highway and streets have flooded almost every day and has caused so much TRAFFIC!!!! The other day I was driving in traffic and we found out it was caused by protesters in the street (protesting for water). Pretty ironic since it was raining. So anyway, because of that we got home that night at 12:15 am. :/

Well, here is the email I sent to President Bulloch last week. I also wanted you to read it.

What a week! As you know we’ve been all over the mission: opening houses, arranging the buses, going to the airport… While driving, I had a whole lot of excess time to think and reflect. While doing so, I remembered earlier in my youth how I almost constantly felt lost spiritually and emotionally. I didn’t understand so many of the questions that many youth seem to have and remember feeling so much confusion and bitterness towards life. I also remember when the desire began to want to make a positive difference, but not knowing how, which in turn created feelings of helplessness and discouragement. None of those feelings exist anymore and I know when the turning point happened, a little before my 22 birthday when I started reading The Book of Mormon for the first time. I remember after reading for the first time a strong doubt, could this be true? Reading once lead me to read again, which lead me to pray (for the first time in my adolescent life). A little time after and I began attending church, every Sunday. I began attending institute, where we were studying The Book of Mormon. The more I studied that book the more I began to comprehend and consequently my life began to change and fall in harmony. I began to create a relationship With my Father in Heaven and Savior. All of those feelings and doubts began to fade from my life.

When my mother and brother asked me what made me come back to the church, I couldn’t explain, I just told them I knew it was right. Now I know it was a result of reading The Book of Mormon, feeling the spirit and the love of God contained within, finding the answers I longed for. That’s what made me come unto Christ; that’s what began and continues the change in my life. The fruit of the word of God. That book is a miracle and I have lived many miracles because of that book. It is because of The Book of Mormon that I know to what source I may look for a remission of my sins. And nothing brings greater peace and joy than that.

I love every one of you and all of you individually are in my prayers. I know that God also loves you and through the Book of Mormon he will bless each of your lives in profound ways. It was written for each one of us and our individual needs. STUDY it prayerfully every day!

Love -Elder Bryce S. Packer

Buenas tardes. ¿como estan? [Good afternoon. How are you?]

All is well here. We got moved in okay, although there is still some organizing to do. It rains and is cloudy some of the time, but the majority of the day is super hot and it drains so much energy. Our apartment is nice, it’s a little smaller that the last but thats okay. Its above little store that our landlord owns which sells medicinal herbs, so sometimes it smells funny, but the nice part is he keeps lots of plants so the common areas are really beautiful. I’m sorry I have no idea what to write, my brain is kind of shot at the moment.

I love you all.

Bryce

¡Feliz cumpleaños! Dad. [Happy birthday] I hope you are having a great time! …And happy anniversary dad and mom! That’s awesome, 33 1/3 years! How many amazing things have you two accomplished together in all that time?

It just started raining, which is really good because it has been super hot today… partially because we left the house early this morning to climb a hill in our area called “Chimalhuachi”. It took us an hour from our house to the top, however it was awesome. We could see the Federal District (México City) and a bunch of other neat stuff.

Afterwards we packed and moved our apartments AGAIN… I don’t know if I told you but one of the landlord’s relatives are coming from the US, and he asked us the favor of trying to find a new place to rent, so yea. But that’s okay, with almost 6 months here a change is nice. I think we’ve talked at least twice with everyone that lives somewhat close to us. So it will also give us more work! Plus its much cheeper where we changed to.

Anyways with all of the days activities I am quite tired and would love a nice long nap … yea right. I’ve been thinking that if the day of rest is very seven days, 1/7 of 2 years is 4 months, so I can hibernate when I get back. Kidding.

I just read that last little bit of your letter mom, when I was printing it out and it’s funny what you wrote… “The summer is flying by but it hasn’t been as bad going to school and working as I thought it would been. I guess leisure time is overrated. One gets much more satisfaction from accomplishments with small amounts of leisure.” …Because about three weeks ago I wrote in one of my journals something similar about relaxation. More or less that true relaxation doesn’t come from being idle (or doing “nothing”) but from changing from one activity (work) to another, however idleness conduces sin. I guess great minds do think alike, and at the same time!

Well, we better get back to unpacking and settling in.

I love you all! Have a great week!

-Elder Packer

Hey Kerry, ¡porque no me escibes en español? ¡pudia ser MAS chido mi cuate! te amo! … y no pongas pretextos de no escribir me!

Hey everyone,

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying life! I hope everyone took some time to reflect on and give thanks for the amazing and wonderful country we live in. … I do every day.

Things in Mexico are well, we cleaned the house for the first time in over a month. I think and it needed it! Several frogs have gotten into our house and we don’t know how…. there are lots of frogs now with all the rain we’ve been having.

Yesterday we had a nice baptism; her name is Fatima Zepeda. She’s been coming to church for a while because her older sister, Rosa, is a member, who found the church in Chili while she was living there for a year.

Yesterday were the political elections here and I am so happy they are over!!! They are nuts; they pay people for 2 months to drive around with banners on their cars and megaphones strapped to the top playing the jingles of all the political candidates… that’s not to mention there are at least 8 major political parties here. They also paint their signs on the walls of the houses and buildings along most of the streets and post banners and stickers and give dispenses of food, clothing, hats, bags and any other thing you can think of. One of them in particular is Jesus Tolentino representing the “PRI” party, and I always have his song stuck in my head… “…Mas calles pavimentadas, agua potable, drenages tambien. Chimalhuacan votara para ti Tolentino…” [More paved roads, potable water, drainage, too. Chimalhuacan voted for you Tolentino.] I guess where ever you go politicians are the same.

I really like it here, mainly because of the people (because it’s not a very pretty place). However, I feel like I’ve worked about everywhere possible, and next cycle a change would be nice, however we’ll see what happens.

I love you all! Have a great week!

-Bryce

[Editorial by Shayne. We got to talk to Bryce for an hour today. I called the number Bryce had sent at the planned time, and I conferenced the call to my iPhone. Then I added each of the family using the iPhone's easy-to-use conference feature.

Here are some notes from the phone call.

Bryce and his companion baptized a couple more family members of Axel Martinez Sanchez's family. His father's baptism is scheduled for 11th of January.

They baptized a man from Lima, Peru on Dec 23rd.

On Dec. 17th, the missionaries went with the Mission President to the Mexico City Temple. They had steak dinner afterwards — although it was thin and overcooked — still, it was steak.

The weather is 85 degrees in the daytime, and a cold 25 night.

The Wal-Mart store is expensive and nice; not the cheapest place in town.

Bryce expects to be transfered on 30th.]

[Tanda] I had written and asked Bryce a bunch of questions (in italics). His answers follow.

First question, who is your companion and where is he from?
Elder Cardenas de San Louis, from Mexico.

Bryce lives with just one companion. Elder Cardenas de San Louis.  They live in a house.
My house is nice, its small, big for two people in Mexico though and in a gated community called Pitahays we rent it from members that live in northern Mexico.

Bryce wishes he was sleeping in a hammock.  He sleeps in a bed that feels like a floor, but by it’s time for sleep he LOVES IT! They do not have a maid, cook or anyone to wash their laundry and shop for food.  In other words…
We have to do it all ourselves.  Its nice though we have a washing machine …kind of (I’ll send a picture sometime) and we eat with the members for lunch around 2-3ish and they don’t really have dinner in Mexico.  The clothes are line dried of coarse.

I looked up Panchuca it said that it is 8,500 – 9,000 ft high have you had any problems with the altitude?
Nope  but I live in the lower part of Pachuca… it was originally a mining town for 500 years.

I don’t drink the water,  but I’ve accidentally used it a couple of times… I’m fine and the natives don’t even drink the water!

It also says that Panchuca means “windy beauty” and that their is a constant wind out of the northeast and that it is one of the coldest places in Mexico.
Yep it really windy here and it rains ALOT!

I asked Bryce if he needed a coat, or long sleeve shirts.  He said that some sweaters might be nice every once in a while.
I am nice and warm.  I’m ok almost all of the time, the natives think I’m crazy when they all have scarfs and coats on when its cold.

Who are your investigators?
Agostin Piña who is 20 really neat person and has a baptismal date but we are having challenges actually getting him to the church… he came to the Temple Visitors center with us a few weeks back.

We are in a  ward. It is a new ward formed from splitting a larger ward and its very small. We have a new chapel which is very nice.

Do you walk?
WE WALK ALOT! and bus a lot too and vans and taxis also.

How much computer time you get each week?
I have one hour of computer time. However I have to write the Mission Pres. and secretaries in this time too and I type and read in Spanish really slow. How ever last week I got you DearElder.com [letter] from the 17th of Aug. and Kristi’s from who knows when and the end of your DearElder was cut off too.

Oh, please tell Kristi congratulations for me, I’m going to be an uncle! [for the ninth time]

What is your mailing address to your apartment, in case we want to mail letters, photos, etc.?
ONLY mail letters to the mission address.  You can mail anything there, but only single sheets through pouch, everything else through normal mail.

[The address of the mission home is on the Current Address page.]

Thanks for your letter mom! It really made my day! I think about you all and pray for you a lot… were going to have to make up for lots of time when I get back.

Last Lunes [Monday] I went to Mexico [City] to immigrations for the last of my visa stuff. I got to ride the metro there; it is insane! I’m sure people die. And I got to see Elder Covington (my old companion) and Elder King my old roommate in the MTC. that was very nice. And today the whole zone went up into the mountains to a campground kind of thing and played soccer and cooked food. It was awesome. Well I’ve got to go. I wish I could say more.  I Love you mom, and all of you.

Bryce

[Here's a short note to Shayne]

Hey Dad,

I read your letters last week and this week. It sounds like things are going well. You are an awesome dad and a great grandpa. you can help me out to when I have kids.

love, bye, Bryce