A Wet Week!

Hola family!

So this has been a really wet week! It was pouring rain from Tuesday until Saturday. We had Zone Conference on Tuesday and that was so awesome! I've been looking forward to this one for a while, since my old zone came!! We met at my church!  That was so great to be able to see them! Almost the whole zone is the same, so I was able to talk to my old district and Elder Sheen! Haha he's a funny guy, but he's doing well! He's about to go home, just a couple months left, that's crazy. Elder Luna was still there and we were able to catch up, he goes home in a few weeks. He and two other elders who are about to go home were invited to stand up and bear their testimonies. Boy that was so powerful, I was crying the whole time. All three of these elders had been Zone leaders and one was an AP. They just had a great appreciation for their missions and the experiences they had, and they had a great love for the time they had here. My favorite talk given was by President Giuliani. He talked about change. He addressed how we're struggling as a mission and what we need to do to be successful, and what we need to change. He spoke on faith and revelation, personal as well as for our investigators. How we are in the last days and the importance of this work for God's children. He said a lot of things I don't remember right now, haha but that I have written down.Before he started he said he had been studying and praying and fasting for this talk, which he hasn't written. And he said he was going to let the Spirit guide his words, and it was powerful listening to him! He taught with the Spirit and I feel like he addressed a lot of needs, and something everyone can do to be better. It was awesome!

So like I said it was raining all week. I don't know if I mentioned this yet, but the family Chaparro moved even further, and now live in the middle of a big field, in a one-room house made of tin walls and roof. I have never seen such a big number of people live in such humble circumstances. The parents live there, with 6 kids, the oldest daughter and her boyfriend and daughter live somewhere else. And because they live in a field, they were surrounded by a pond and mud, so they didn't leave their house this week. But we stopped by every day to visit them, and to help them in any way that we could. On Thursday, during my personal study, I read a scripture from Alma, that said something (a small verse to end a chapter) like how the people were lawyers and only focused on their money and looked forward to that. And that made me think of the scripture in Mosiah, how the people of God faced their tents toward the temple and were facing it. I didn't really think much of that connection, but it hit me that we could share that with the family, when we were with them. So I talked about the riches, and mainly on the temple, how the greatest blessings are found in the temple, and that families could be together forever. I talked about Deklan and how I had the opportunity to see him be sealed to our family. The Chaparro family talked about how they are really so greatly blessed because they have each other and they have the gospel, and they are going to go to the temple together and be sealed, in the coming weeks. I'm so excited for them :) I'm grateful for their examples, which remind me of my own parents' examples, in the midst of great sacrifice and fear when we didn't know where we were going to live. I love you guys :)

It's a battle to get to the Chaparro's house, haha. With the rain and everything we walked through inch deep mud for a while to have to get there, and on the way we always see frogs! So Saturday, when it stopped raining, I brought my camera with me! And it was so pretty :) we saw a beautiful rainbow that was so close! I could almost see that pot of gold there haha. And I also got a picture of a frog. Saturday was Elder Petersen's birthday, and for his birthday he wanted to do something loco. So he caught the frog in his bag, took it home, and boiled it and then ate a little bit. I had a little bit too (just to say I did it) and it wasn't good, haha. It makes a good story at least! The funniest part about that experience, we took a video of him putting it in the pot and it starts freaking out and trying to jump out and on the video we're just screaming and the camera is going crazy and we're freaking out haha. Maybe Elder Petersen can post the video somewhere so you can see it :)

I've had some silly experiences and some spiritual ones, as well as some incredible trials, in this short week. I want you to know that I love you so much :) All of you, and I really hope we recognize all of our many blessings. Which a great blessing undoubtedly is our family, with the eternal promise from God that we could be together forever. I hope you feel God's presence every day, which I know brings great comfort and peace.

Los amo mucho!

 Elder Alek Clubb

Blessed!

Hello family!!

I love the times where I get to write you and hear about each of you. I hope and pray you are all kicking butt and doing awesome :)

So we've been blessed a lot this week! I feel like a lot of really cool things happened, We're still teaching, Lucia, who we've been teaching with Hermano Jorge from our ward. She's progressing a lot! She just forgets a lot of things that we teach, but she has a lot of questions and reads the Book of Mormon every day with the Jorge family :) I'm so grateful for the scriptures. The study of the scriptures everu day helps me to have God's Spirit to be with me each day. It helps me learn more of His divine nature, and understand His will. I'm so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father, who has placed special people in my life to help me along the difficult paths of life. I have a love for the scriptures, because sometimes those are my only companions, and the Spirit is someone who I know will always be there to help me. Thank you fam, for your examples to me, and I hope you all recognize the great blessings God gives us, each day :)

Ok so on Wednesday I had a pretty rough day. Idk what happened exactly, but I had developed this pain inside, just above my left hip. It had been bothering me for a couple weeks but on Wednesday it got a lot worse. It got so bad I couldn't walk and I was up all night, unable to bear it. So the next day I talked to the area doctor. Which was actually pretty funny haha, I didn't even know we had an area doctor! I answered the phone 'Hola!' and he started talking to me in English, it was a huge shock! He said it's probably some intestinal stuff and said to take Pepto Bismal. Hey thanks for the Pepto Bismal, Mom! I'm so grateful for that little fishing bag with all of my medicinal stuff, haha. I took it for a few days, and it has almost completely gone away! I feel a lot better! It sometimes feels a little uncomfortable but it isn't bad anymore :)

On Thursday, it was getting late and my companion and I were in the pench, when we got a text from one of our investigators (who isn't progressing at all), asking if we could stop by. We went to Paola's house and she was there with her mom and her kids, and we were able to talk to her for a long time. Her youngest son has been having some problems in the brain lately and she's scared for him. She asked us a lot 'why isn't God here for me, why is He ignoring me'. She has been smoking and drinking and doesn't go to church, and tells us she isn't going to change because she is happy, her life is good! So we taught her that God is always here for us. God is a loving Father, who watches over us. That He has provided ways for us to be blessed and receive help and strength in our burdens. But we also need to remember to respect Him and to show our love for Him always, by keeping His commandments. We talked to her about a lot of things like that, and the Spirit was so strong. I hope she grows in her desire to follow God and to love Him. We gave her and her mom priesthood blessings of comfort, and it was clear that the Spirit of God was in her house that day and that they felt His great love for  them.

I heard USA just threw Argentina down in basketball! Twice! Go USA! haha, the people here just couldn't take it. They like to make excuses ;)

We went on divisions with the Zone Leaders, which was pretty neat. I got to work with Elder Welsh this time! He is an awesome elder, and we got a lot done together! There is a less active family I haven't seen in forever, but as we were walking I recognized them outside of their house, and we went in and taught them! The whole family! The oldest daughters husband was there, and he isn't a member. He was really open and we gave him a Book of Mormon. We invited them to come to church and they came yesterday! It is always so great to see someone make the effort to come to church in the morning :) especially someone who has been without the spirit in their lives, and recognizes that in church we can remember covenants we've made, as well as feel God's presence, and feel His mercy. ´That was pretty neat :) seeing a less active come back to church is as rewarding as a baptism!

Nora, who has been an investigator for a long time went to the temple on Saturday! The ward took a trip down to see the Open House thingy, and she absolutely loved it! She just shot up and is progressing a lot more now. She had trouble reading the Book of Mormon and praying, but she's been doing both of those things now and is more determined to receive an answer from God about the church. The temple is blessing the lives of the members, the menos activos as well as the non members in all of Argentina. It has been really neat to see God's hand in every person's life help them to be able to go to the temple :)

This has been a pretty exciting week :) I have a testimony of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ, that this is His church, and it really contains all of His doctrine and ordinances that we need for salvation. I know there is a life after death, and I know I can be with my family forever :) because it really wouldn't be heaven without you. I know these things with all my heart :)

Los Amo!

Elder Clubb

Rodents!

Hey family!

Haha we have been having a lot of problems with mice in our pench. 'Im pretty sure it's plural, I think there are multiple. But we've been seeing a mouse around all over the place. I was the first one to see it, like a month ago, and ever since then it's been showing up. I guess it's been pooping in all of our drawers in the kitchen and running around all crazy and running around our food. But just the other day we saw it running all over our stuff and all four of us were screaming so loud and freaking out. It was so funny! Something about mice just scares us haha. We've laid out some rat poison, and we've looked for it everywhere, but we haven't found it. I hope it leaves haha!

Well something I really wanted to talk about in this letter was the temple. The Buenos Aires Temple is going to reopen soon! It's a huge event! This temple has been reconstructing for a few years, and it's the only temple in Argentina, so everyone here is really excited! Because I am in the Buenos Aires Province (I'm in the furthest south part of the mission haha), the kids here were invited to do the cultural dance! It's so neat to see everyone get so excited for this reopening. The Chaparro kids, Macarena, Olga, and Miguel have been saving all the money they earn by selling empanadas or tortas, to be able to pay to go practice dancing, and are also saving to go to the temple. I love the stories I hear of people sacrificing everything to go to the temple.

I have been personally reflecting on the temple, and I have a deep regret for not having gone as much as I could have. I wish I went more before the mission. I have felt the presence of God in His house, and I know that is where heaven touches earth. Unfortunately, my mission can't go to the temple. Even when we finish our missions and drive through Buenos Aires. It is difficult to be so far away from a temple! But I have a greater desire when I get back, to go as much as I can. I hope you can all take time to go to the temple. Listen to the kid that blew it, haha. I only desire the greatest blessings for you, and I know that great blessings are in the temple and in attendance to the temple. Yesterday during testimony meeting I was thinking about temples, since that was the focus that Sunday. It was reaffirmed to me by the Spirit of God that temples are the House of the Lord, and that families are eternal. I thought of Deklan and that opportunity we had to witness him being sealed to our family. I know we are an eternal family, and I am so grateful for each one of you. For your examples and your love. I am so grateful for the sealing ordinance and that this sacred power is on the earth. I can't think of any other greater blessing than to know I can be with my family forever. And I feel great joy when I see the people I know and love, sacrifice to go to the temple, and recognize those great blessings.

Thank you for all of your words of support and aid. I love you all so much! Please let me know if there is anything I can do for you, to lighten a burden, in any way. I really cant describe how much I care about you.

Cuidense, y espero que todos Uds disfruten el fin de su verano ;) Los amo,