Howdy!

On August 29, 2011 Elder Johnson wrote:

Friends and Family:

Well, this week was really wonderful, as a matter of fact it was a good week, not because we had much success, but because my companion and I have been teaching really well. We have the spirit as our third companion! Woot woot! We are currently teaching a man named Geronimo and his mom, Consuelo. They are really wonderful, but unfortunately did not come to church. I hope they progress! We have a girl in our ward who is trying to help one of her friends Ivon come to church and be baptized. As it turns out, Ivon and her family are all interested and have accepted our visits to their house. We have our first appointment today. We are also teaching another Consuelo who has three kids and lives with a member. We are helping her to come to church and him to come back to church. He is kind of stubborn, but I think he will come back, eventually.

We have to work with the members a lot here. They are our way to find new people to baptize. We do a lot of service and a lot of helping people. The other day we helped a lady in our ward move a big pile of dirt from one end of her yard to the other. It was good service. We have also washed a lot of dishes and helped clean houses and yards. We are starting to get some references and it should be really good.

One of the members in our ward invited us to a barbacoa, which is when they kill a lamb and cook it in the ground and then invite all the neighborhood over to eat it. We did it differently. They cooked their three turkeys that they had, which was really yummy. They killed them right there (we weren't there for that...) and put them in the pit. We helped gather firewood with the member's non-member boyfriend. There are some rumors going around that he's going to pop the question soon, so we have to work fast and help him get baptized so they can be sealed in the temple at some point.

Today we went hiking in the Mexican Jungle. It was cool and we had a lot of fun. We saw some streams that were clean water (I haven't seen clean water flowing for so long!) and some cool rocks and stuff. It was great to be outdoors and to get to see a different part of Mexico.

I love you all!

Elder Iver Johnson

Howdy!

On August 22, 2011 Elder Johnson wrote:

Well, this week was good. We were able to get someone new to church. Her name is Miriam and she is from Texas, but she moved here until her husband can go back legal. She is happy here, but very alone. She speaks both languages and was happy at the church, because now she has some friends. I hope you will keep her in your prayers.

My companion got transferred today, and now I am with my new companion, Elder Hille, who is from Utah. He has just one transfer less than me. We are going to tear it up!

I ran out of time...sorry.

I hope you are all well!

I love you!

Elder Johnson

Picture: Elder Gray (transferred companion) and I.

Howdy!

On August 15, 2011 Elder Johnson wrote:

Well...That sucks that Grandpa O. cut off his thumb. It looks like that probably hurt a little bit. Make sure he is good and tell Grandma to give him a hug for me.

Happy Birthday to Shakira! Woot woot!

I don't have much to type today. It's kind of all the same here. We had a miracle of getting three news to church Sunday. Martha and her son Luis. Also a kid named Giovanni came with his aunt. We have not been able to teach a lesson with them this week, so keep them in your prayers. We cover a ward and a branch. The ward is called Guerrero II and the branch is called San Juan. It is a good branch and I enjoy working there. The members really like to help out, which really is good for us.

I have attached a picture of me by a cactus, also a picture of a dog that lives next door who likes to spend more time with us than his owners. He has a weird name, so we just call him Buddy. He's not very old, and almost died last week because he was very, very sick. He's a lot better now.

This week we helped our ward mission leader cut down some of his trees. It is hard work, especially with a machete. It does not go fast. They look good, and he is pleased. Mission accomplished.

I love you all!

Elder Johnson

Howdy!

On August 8, 2011 Elder Johnson wrote:

Friends and Family:

Contrary to popular belief, I was not climbing any mountains last p-day. I was emergency transferred to Hidalgo. I left Mexico state at 10:00 a.m. and did not get into my area until 8:00 p.m. I had the opportunity to be in three different states last Monday on my way to the middle of nowhere. Now I am here, and boy is it different.

My companion, Elder Gray, and I cover about eight pueblos. About 80% are members in the pueblo we live in. It's quiet and dark at night and we get to wake up to roosters crowing at about 6:00 a.m. We spend a lot of time walking and waiting for buses. Rumor has it that president wants to keep some missionaries in their areas for up to 9 months. I might die in this area (for those of you who are unfamiliar with the missionary lingo, that means "finish his mission"). I have never thought of that until now...Well...also we eat a lot of cactus here, all different parts. That is because there are more cacti than people and animals combined here.

My companion, Elder Gray is great. He is in my 'generation" which means we started and will finish our mission at the same time. It's good to be with him. He is a district leader with aspirations to be a zone leader. He works really hard. We get along well. We helped a lady in our ward this week weed and mulch her cactus garden. It was fun, and I got cactus spines stuck in me. I asked her why she had a cactus garden and she said that the prophet has asked us to have food storage...It's good to see the members honoring and following our dear beloved prophet!

Elder Iver Johnson

And now, a special guest writer:

Hey Johnson family! Elder Gray here, companion of Elder Johnson. I just wanted to let you all know that Elder Johnson is a slammin' Elder and he's really easy to work with. He's not afraid of hard work, and he keeps things interesting. Yesterday he decided to start a collection of pictures of himself next to various types of cacti.

The mission is definitely better off because of your son. Thank you for raising such a brilliant young buck. He's certainly doing you proud!

Elder Gray