Fwd: Family and Friends,

I don´t have much to report this week. The roads I walk are still hot and dusty. The paint is still peeling on the walls of homes. The sugar cain houses are still an every day teaching setting. The river and fields are my constant friends. In the heat of the day I listen to the silence (when buses are not passing from Guayaquil) of the flies and the dogs. The language is still alien... but I am the alien here. I am a normal human encharged with the salvation of the souls who know not the truth. I love it. The trails, the lessons, the ups and the downs, the heat, the noise, the smells, the culture, the language, the other missionaries, the wards and branches, the leaders, and prayers, the fasts, the studies, the animals, the cement houses, the brick houses, the tin roofs, the ancient people, the younger generations, the converts, and the investigators are all part of the mission. This great cycle that begins and ends every two years: is my life. The committees, the reunions, the youth, the meetings, and the activities... everything. I love it. My charge gives me energy to find and teach every single day. The weird looks I get when people recognize me as an outsider are the norm. The streams, the fields, and the falling ash are my silent companions. And yet these people... so lowly and humble living in their shanty huts... often accept the Restored Gospel. The roads will get longer, hotter, and dustier. As such, I don´t have much to report.

You keep me going,

--
Elder Robinson