Jacoby's 2nd email

Hello everyone!

So there's been quite a few changes here for me. On Monday we were studying Spanish in my intermediate level class and then one of the Spanish mtc workers came in to see if any of us needed any help. I started just chatting with him in Spanish about how his day was and what not and then after a few minutes of talking he just gave me a funny look and said "Elder we need to get you out of this class you already know all this stuff!" I was a little surprised but said ok sounds good to me so then he took me to the head language department and they gave me a little test there to see if I was ready to be in the advanced class (where native speakers go for only three weeks) after chatting for a few minutes they all agreed that I should go to an advanced class. So thank you thank you again to my Spanish teachers and above all thanks to the Lord :) cause now I've been in the advanced class all this week and I'll get to be out in the mission field in Ecuador in less than a week! My flight is next Monday May the 21st and I'll be in Ecuador Guayaquil preaching the gospel for real! I'm thrilled!

Elder Remington & Elder Jarquin

I really liked my other district and zone and companion so at first when I was switching it was kind of a bitter sweet moment but I said a little prayer in my heart when they asked me if I wanted to move up to the advanced class or not and I definitely feel that this is what's right for me and it's what the Lord needs me to do. My learning rate has greatly accelerated in the advanced class and I've been able to fit right in. I love every member of our district, especially my companion. His name is Elder Jarquin and he is hilarious! He is also very good about helping me with any Spanish words that I don't know. He is very patient and he´s fluent in Spanish but doesn't quite know the lessons or the gospel material as well so we complement each other and make a great team because he helps me with Spanish and I can help him with how to teach gospel concepts and what not. It's great! Then there's Elder Zamudio and Elder Zepeda, they are in my district as well and they're both super funny and very passionate about the gospel. The other members of the district are Elder Clark, Elder Meriles, Hermana Garcia, and Hermana Johnson The great thing about our district is that everyone knows how to have a good time and we all get along well and more importantly we all have strong testimonies and we all work hard :) it's awesome!

In conclusion, there have been lots of changes but all good changes and although it's been rather tough at times to keep up with all these native speakers I've been putting my trust in the Lord and working my hardest and the Lord has truly blessed me. I'm able to understand about 90% of everything they say and I can almost always communicate whatever I want to say. That's in large part because I've learned how to get around not knowing words. For example, if I don't know how to say the word bridge then I'll just say the clothes you sleep in (ropa de dormir). Stuff like that has helped me out a ton and what's great is then they'll tell me what the actual word is after I explain it so I learn more while still getting across the point. I don't know if that made sense to everyone but I'm guessing those who have learned another language know what I mean. lol. like I'm sure Uncle Ron knows exactly what I'm talking about. Anyway if you are learning a language its a technique I would recommend using and also just remember that usually you know a lot more than you think you do so just don't be scared to try and be brave about it!

Oh and last thing I wanted to share was a cool experience with one of our practice investigators. She told us how she was struggling with a bunch of little things in her life and we shared Alma 37:6-7 and you could tell she was really touched by it she said that was exactly what she needed to hear at that point. And I just want to testify to all of you reading this that you should read that scripture and apply it to your life because it truly is the little things like prayer, scripture reading, and acts of service that make a huge difference in our lives!

God bless you all!

Love,
Elder Remington