Sophistication: as long as you have a nice white shirt and tie, no one is ever going to suspect that you eat your vegetables out of a can.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Sophistication
Sophistication: as long as you have a nice white shirt and tie, no one is ever going to suspect that you eat your vegetables out of a can.
Picture of Baptism
OK. so first picture, is Herminia at the baptism :D from left to right: Me, Herminia, Wilber (Omayras son (Herminias daughter)) otherwise known as Wilbito (ja ja ja! cause If you add -ito on to a word, it makes it small! HA HA!) and then Elder Maldonado.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Excerpt from Grandma Nita's Letter
Dated 9/16/09
..~..~...
-Elder Brandon Bryan, your favorite missionary.
Oh my GOODNESS! I can't believe I forgot to put this in my e-mail and in your letter! I got a baptism! Dah! I feel so ridiculous for not remembering that! I got to baptize her and everything! I have pictures, but I have pictures sent them yet and I can't I forgot! duh! OK. I'm going to start have to start making a list of things that I need to remember to write about in my e-mail and letters, 'cause by the time I get to Wednesday I'm so pooped out. but I'm aiming to be more productive.=D
Anyways, her name is Herminia. She's an older lady, and she's actually the mother of Elder Maldonado's converts from I think about three or two month's ago. But he's been working on her to help her get prepared for baptism, and all she really had left was to kick her coffee habit and she did!=D So Elder Maldonado, since I helped teach her a little bit while I was here(a little TeeNIE bit, ha, ha!) he said I could baptize her! WOW! a week and a half into my mission and I'm already baptizing people!? alright! ha ha!
So yea. please if you get the chance, share that with everybody, 'cause I wasn't able to include that in my e-mail.
Anyways, I need to go do personal study now, since I'm using that time to write this! ha ha!
Love you!
Elder Brandon Bryan
..~..~...
-Elder Brandon Bryan, your favorite missionary.
Oh my GOODNESS! I can't believe I forgot to put this in my e-mail and in your letter! I got a baptism! Dah! I feel so ridiculous for not remembering that! I got to baptize her and everything! I have pictures, but I have pictures sent them yet and I can't I forgot! duh! OK. I'm going to start have to start making a list of things that I need to remember to write about in my e-mail and letters, 'cause by the time I get to Wednesday I'm so pooped out. but I'm aiming to be more productive.=D
Anyways, her name is Herminia. She's an older lady, and she's actually the mother of Elder Maldonado's converts from I think about three or two month's ago. But he's been working on her to help her get prepared for baptism, and all she really had left was to kick her coffee habit and she did!=D So Elder Maldonado, since I helped teach her a little bit while I was here(a little TeeNIE bit, ha, ha!) he said I could baptize her! WOW! a week and a half into my mission and I'm already baptizing people!? alright! ha ha!
So yea. please if you get the chance, share that with everybody, 'cause I wasn't able to include that in my e-mail.
Anyways, I need to go do personal study now, since I'm using that time to write this! ha ha!
Love you!
Elder Brandon Bryan
Saturday, September 19, 2009
yay! one night early! :D ha! not that it really makes any difference, right? xD but thank you for your effort! :D
ok. So. if they change in July... then President Dewsnup should have already changed out then, right? or do they stay in for two years? cause President Dewsnup has been in for... like, from what he said, since they mission opened here... which I think was back in 2004? no sé. so I would imagine that he should be released soon... right? I dunno. but he's got a sense of humer, I just gotta find where he hides it! ha ha ha!
as for the perky, I'm doing FANTASTIK! :D I've discovered that, hey, I'm gonna learn Spanish eventually, right? right. yeah. but also, I've noticed that every day as I sit down during my personal study and during my language study, with a book of Mormon in one hand and El Libro de Mormón in the other and just read it verse by verse, it's totally a booster to my Spanish. huh. interesting how that works, right? yeppers. so every day that I do that, I notice that my Spanish gets better by like... a MILLION times. I can say complete sentences! I can read things! (in spanish. :P cause I'm pretty sure I could read things before I came here, right?) and I remember small obscure dusty verbs that I studied like ten weeks ago. woot! and no. people don't laugh at me, thank you! :P I've noticed that they always sit there and focus on what I'm saying though, so that makes me feel nice. it's always nice to be listened to every once in a while, right? xD :D and thank you. even with my haircut you still think I'm cute. ;) speaking of which, I cut my own hair last week. :-O I know, right?! yeah, it was with a... the... the thingie... OH YEAH! the buzz clippers. there we go. wow! that was weird. OK. so our zone leaders had us get our haircut because we had a general authority come for a conference, and then he came and get our ZONE conference, too! so we got to see him twice. but the second time was more directed to us, because,well... it was a zone conference for missionaries. it was Gary J. Coleman, and I'm not sure if I told you this or not... but back in the CCM, I joined another district to sing for a meeting, and then (because we had this awesome accapella arrangement of how great thou art (gran eres tu in Spanish)) they had us sing to him when he was visiting to talk to the Guyanans that were staying there. so I got to see him three times! :D :D :D he's an area 70 for the Carribian I believe. but he is a really neat guy. really cool to talk to.
[Jennifer - I think I told you last week that Lisa and David had their baby. He finally has a name......Carter Lee. a lot better than Vern! We stopped by on our way to Gma & Gpa's on Sunday. He is so cute! Not bad for 4 weeks early. He will fill out soon enough. The Carlsen's had theirs and named him Emmitt. Franzens are next!]
aw, carter Lee is a cute name. :D whats their last name again? I can't remember... :)
OK. so I hope that I can fill out the email a bit more. I spent like fifteen minutes trying to load up some pictures (and a pretty awesome video, if I do say so myself, of my apartment) but it was taking forever, and I wanted to be able to at least get the chance to email something this weeks, so I'll see if I can email the memory card home soon, cause I've got some good stuff on there. or at least try to get stuff sent next week. :D
oh my goodness. the weather?! it's fantastic here almost all the time! :D it's like 95 degrees out on average, and yesterday was super hot, like 100 I think. but it's just so great. and we have a car here too! :D yes! so I get off pretty easy here. but something I think is really hilerious, is that one of my good buddies from the CCM is on Vieques (the island right off the eastern coast of PR) and he doesn't have a car, so he's walking all day, but I'm like, way tan now. don't even know how, cause I'm riding in the car all the time, but I am. and he's still pretty white. hmm. good stuff. :D
also, thank you for sending that message to Steph. I sent her a letter last week, but it was to her house, cause I don't have her school address yet, so it has to get to her via her home address first, which is gonna be like another week and a half? I dunno. but I love how that was a super awesome run on sentence. LOVE IT! also, what could you possible say that would embarrass ME? :P
that's so weird that Donny's having trouble getting up... has he tried some tums in the morning? I think that might help. :) SPEAKING OF DONNY: he BETTER not be using my backpack! that's my BABY! so you better correct that problem. xD I've had her since 7th grade, and I wanna keep using it! ALSO speaking of which, I STILL have yet to find a backpack... :-/ so I'm looking still.
DAH! Donny? my little Donzer?! no! he CANT be turning 16. that's just ridiculous. but speaking of which, I need to toss him an email next week for that.
well that's good to know that Tawny is still stopping by for haircuts even after I'm gone! ha ha ha! I kinda figured that she like me, ya know? I dunno. kinda obvious to me the way she was acting around me, ha ha!
also, the tie? which Tie was it? I can't remember... but I've gotten a few new free ones around from transfers. I got some pretty awesome ones that were just sitting around. I showed 'em in the video, but I don't know when I'll be able to send it! :'( I'll try, I will!
no.. I haven't gotten my suit dry cleaned yet... I want to though! :'( I just have to find a place that can do it around here. :)
so I'm in Rio Grande. and guess what?! we have the Yunque here! :D :D ha ha! what luck.ours is the only area that has it,so one of these days we are gonna head out and chill there in one of our p days for a little bit. My companion is Elder Maldonado, he's a native, from right here in Puerto Rico. he's from Utuado, pronounced oo-too-ah-doe ;), that last one is a long o, like row. :) ooo! and using the word of wisdom is PERFECT! excellent thinking. but I'm building him up to eating more. also, I'm introducing him to a thing called... *announcer voice* NUTRITION! :D it's this little thing that good for your body so you can eats lots of it, and STILL NOT GET FAT! ha ha ha! thats actually what he's been worrying about, even though he's as skinny as me. RIDICULOUS! so I'm helping him discover salad this week. I finally convinced him to let us buy some.
dah! out of time! ok. I'll have pictures next week, and finish up detailing about the area.
I'll TRY and send some snail mail, eh? hows that? :P we have to get the oil/ filter changed and a few other things, so that's gonna take about two hours apparently, so I've got some time.
OF COURSE I'll make the most of this! :P who do you think I am, a log? gosh. :P
LOVE YOU MORE THAN EVER! :D
~Elder Brandon Bryan.
also, if you really can convince the young women to send me some letters... that would be cool with me, I guess. xD
LOVE YOU!
ok. So. if they change in July... then President Dewsnup should have already changed out then, right? or do they stay in for two years? cause President Dewsnup has been in for... like, from what he said, since they mission opened here... which I think was back in 2004? no sé. so I would imagine that he should be released soon... right? I dunno. but he's got a sense of humer, I just gotta find where he hides it! ha ha ha!
as for the perky, I'm doing FANTASTIK! :D I've discovered that, hey, I'm gonna learn Spanish eventually, right? right. yeah. but also, I've noticed that every day as I sit down during my personal study and during my language study, with a book of Mormon in one hand and El Libro de Mormón in the other and just read it verse by verse, it's totally a booster to my Spanish. huh. interesting how that works, right? yeppers. so every day that I do that, I notice that my Spanish gets better by like... a MILLION times. I can say complete sentences! I can read things! (in spanish. :P cause I'm pretty sure I could read things before I came here, right?) and I remember small obscure dusty verbs that I studied like ten weeks ago. woot! and no. people don't laugh at me, thank you! :P I've noticed that they always sit there and focus on what I'm saying though, so that makes me feel nice. it's always nice to be listened to every once in a while, right? xD :D and thank you. even with my haircut you still think I'm cute. ;) speaking of which, I cut my own hair last week. :-O I know, right?! yeah, it was with a... the... the thingie... OH YEAH! the buzz clippers. there we go. wow! that was weird. OK. so our zone leaders had us get our haircut because we had a general authority come for a conference, and then he came and get our ZONE conference, too! so we got to see him twice. but the second time was more directed to us, because,well... it was a zone conference for missionaries. it was Gary J. Coleman, and I'm not sure if I told you this or not... but back in the CCM, I joined another district to sing for a meeting, and then (because we had this awesome accapella arrangement of how great thou art (gran eres tu in Spanish)) they had us sing to him when he was visiting to talk to the Guyanans that were staying there. so I got to see him three times! :D :D :D he's an area 70 for the Carribian I believe. but he is a really neat guy. really cool to talk to.
[Jennifer - I think I told you last week that Lisa and David had their baby. He finally has a name......Carter Lee. a lot better than Vern! We stopped by on our way to Gma & Gpa's on Sunday. He is so cute! Not bad for 4 weeks early. He will fill out soon enough. The Carlsen's had theirs and named him Emmitt. Franzens are next!]
aw, carter Lee is a cute name. :D whats their last name again? I can't remember... :)
OK. so I hope that I can fill out the email a bit more. I spent like fifteen minutes trying to load up some pictures (and a pretty awesome video, if I do say so myself, of my apartment) but it was taking forever, and I wanted to be able to at least get the chance to email something this weeks, so I'll see if I can email the memory card home soon, cause I've got some good stuff on there. or at least try to get stuff sent next week. :D
oh my goodness. the weather?! it's fantastic here almost all the time! :D it's like 95 degrees out on average, and yesterday was super hot, like 100 I think. but it's just so great. and we have a car here too! :D yes! so I get off pretty easy here. but something I think is really hilerious, is that one of my good buddies from the CCM is on Vieques (the island right off the eastern coast of PR) and he doesn't have a car, so he's walking all day, but I'm like, way tan now. don't even know how, cause I'm riding in the car all the time, but I am. and he's still pretty white. hmm. good stuff. :D
also, thank you for sending that message to Steph. I sent her a letter last week, but it was to her house, cause I don't have her school address yet, so it has to get to her via her home address first, which is gonna be like another week and a half? I dunno. but I love how that was a super awesome run on sentence. LOVE IT! also, what could you possible say that would embarrass ME? :P
that's so weird that Donny's having trouble getting up... has he tried some tums in the morning? I think that might help. :) SPEAKING OF DONNY: he BETTER not be using my backpack! that's my BABY! so you better correct that problem. xD I've had her since 7th grade, and I wanna keep using it! ALSO speaking of which, I STILL have yet to find a backpack... :-/ so I'm looking still.
DAH! Donny? my little Donzer?! no! he CANT be turning 16. that's just ridiculous. but speaking of which, I need to toss him an email next week for that.
well that's good to know that Tawny is still stopping by for haircuts even after I'm gone! ha ha ha! I kinda figured that she like me, ya know? I dunno. kinda obvious to me the way she was acting around me, ha ha!
also, the tie? which Tie was it? I can't remember... but I've gotten a few new free ones around from transfers. I got some pretty awesome ones that were just sitting around. I showed 'em in the video, but I don't know when I'll be able to send it! :'( I'll try, I will!
no.. I haven't gotten my suit dry cleaned yet... I want to though! :'( I just have to find a place that can do it around here. :)
so I'm in Rio Grande. and guess what?! we have the Yunque here! :D :D ha ha! what luck.ours is the only area that has it,so one of these days we are gonna head out and chill there in one of our p days for a little bit. My companion is Elder Maldonado, he's a native, from right here in Puerto Rico. he's from Utuado, pronounced oo-too-ah-doe ;), that last one is a long o, like row. :) ooo! and using the word of wisdom is PERFECT! excellent thinking. but I'm building him up to eating more. also, I'm introducing him to a thing called... *announcer voice* NUTRITION! :D it's this little thing that good for your body so you can eats lots of it, and STILL NOT GET FAT! ha ha ha! thats actually what he's been worrying about, even though he's as skinny as me. RIDICULOUS! so I'm helping him discover salad this week. I finally convinced him to let us buy some.
dah! out of time! ok. I'll have pictures next week, and finish up detailing about the area.
I'll TRY and send some snail mail, eh? hows that? :P we have to get the oil/ filter changed and a few other things, so that's gonna take about two hours apparently, so I've got some time.
OF COURSE I'll make the most of this! :P who do you think I am, a log? gosh. :P
LOVE YOU MORE THAN EVER! :D
~Elder Brandon Bryan.
also, if you really can convince the young women to send me some letters... that would be cool with me, I guess. xD
LOVE YOU!
Thursday, September 10, 2009
I'M Puerto Rico! WOOT!
HA! the reason it seems so long is because it IS!!! HOLY COW, it's been two weeks since I've had my last P day and it's just made me feel so disconnected. wow, it was horrid. but anyways, I'm HERE! I'M Puerto Rico! WOOT! ok. so my first area is... wait for it, wait for it... RIO GRANDE! :D YAY! :D ok. so my companions name is Elder Maldonado. he is a native Puerto Rican, he only speaks about as much English as I do Spanish. ha! naw, he speaks more than that, but sometimes it's really difficult, ESPECIALLY since I can't even speak barely any Spanish. but I can handle it. I just think it's so funny though. I torture him all the time. there's just some words that he really has to concentrate on saying, like bathroom. Ha HA HA! he always says barroom instead, so I just torture him on that. but he sucks it up, cause I can't speak ANY Spanish, so he can make fun of me so easily. :'( but it's whatever. I think it's hi-lerious. (yes, it was spelled that way on purpose. that's how I say it. :P )
but yeah, I DID send a snail mail letter, but I have no idea if you've gotten it or not, but I DID get your package and grandma Jans package, and a letter from Grandma, AND TWO letters from STEPHANIE! YES! I feel so much better now. I'm guessing what happened was that she sent the on back from the MTC to there, but I had already gone to Dom Rep, so what happened was they sent them directly to the mission office. Which is horrid, because I didn't get them for six more weeks, which absolutely felt like a lifetime! GOSH! But I have them. one was from back when I was in my first week in the Dom Rep, and another was from August 9th asking about me not replying yet, so she still wants me to reply, which is a seriously good bonus booster. Makes me feel warm inside. Which is especially important, ‘cause it's just so hard to stay positive all the time. But I DO know that it's important to be positive and I, for serial, try my absolute hardest every day to be happy. And it's getting easier every day. I'm not sure why, but I got out here and like... I dun no, it was the weirdest thing, and I was just instantly... depressed? maybe that's not the right word... I dun no, I just felt... hard pressed to feel happy. it was the hardest thing. but don't think I’m all depressed or anything. :P gosh, IM NOT, ok? :P ha ha ha, no, I was just feeling a little down, but I find new joy every day when me and Elder Maldonado make fun of each other. also, I enjoy preaching the gospel when I don't know what anyone else is saying. very nice indeed. but one thing I've noticed about here is that everyone is seriously way more willing to listen, even if they aren’t interested. that’s seriously VERY encouraging, cause I don't know if my tender little sensitive heart would be able to handle having the door slammed in my face every day. HA HA HA! woot. but really though, it's very nice to not have that happen.
as for the transfer meetings... no, unfortunately... President Dewsnup is a VERY by the book person, and at the beginning of the transfer, when everyone was like hugging each other and everything cause they were so excited to see each other, he started the meeting early and told us he was very disappointed that we could not control ourselves. LAME! but don't get me wrong, from what I've seen, he seems like a pretty cool, nice guy. he just takes his missionary work serious to the extreme. even if it isn't a super serious meeting, like transfer meetings. which I kinda get, but it's nice to sit back just a LITTLE bit sometimes, right?! tell me if I'm in the wrong here. NO sé.
but no, seriously, those snacks have kept me ALIVE! my companion eats NOTHING! one bowl of cereal in the morning, one sandwich or something small for lunch, and no dinner. he waits all the way till nine to eat when we get back to the apartment. ha ha ha! and then he eats like seven cookies and calls it good. ridiculous. gah! he says eating dinner a waste of time. ?! what? since when is eating a waste of time. this guy's crazy. but I'm ironing that out of him. xD ha ha ha!
but heres about what’s goin' on here. the first night I got here? a LESSON! WHAT?! yeah, serious. ha ha! and it was in Spanish. guess what. I'm fresh out of the CCM, I can't understand a LICK of normal person Spanish. so, fortunately, Elder Maldonado still had Elder Teuch (pronounced - tiech. it's a German thing.) so they taught the lesson, and I bore my testimony of how the word of wisdom has blessed me in my life. yup. good thing I kicked that nasty drinkin’ habit before I got out here.
and for the past few other days, I've been building my Spanish. I've noticed that every day, I get a LITTLE tiny bit closer to understanding what people are saying. its nice. now I can pick out like a word every three sentences. I feel so grand.
also, President Dewsnup has set a rule that email is only for Family and fellow missionaries. solo familia y misioneros... *sigh* which is kinda difficult cause I have a few friends emailing me that I would really love to talk to on a weekly basis. BUT, he did say we can receive them. just not REPLY to them. so they can send me stuff. :D but,if you would be so kind, I wish to include a list of those friends' emails so that you could send them a nice little... actually no. I'm going to write something up by next week that I can send you guys as well as the email list so that you could possibly distribute those. but now... I'm out of time. we get an hour out here, but I can never seem to be able to type fast enough... I'm sorry I couldn't get more out... :-/
also, give my thanks to grandma Jan and grandma Nita for their letters and package.
and thank you guys for loving me. that’s just so nice to know that I have he support of all of you at home. I love you guys SO much. it really means a lot. I can't express it fully, but thank you.
it's difficult out here. I can see why Ehren was having such a difficult time. but we have to make the best of what we have, even if we can't enjoy it all fully. but I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be out here.
and now, I am out of time, and I don't even get the chance to reply to much else of your email... I always just have way more that I want to say than I can put. I hate that, don't you?
so I close my email with love. especially now that Elder Maldonado is getting on my back.
I love you all!
~Elder Brandon Bryan
but yeah, I DID send a snail mail letter, but I have no idea if you've gotten it or not, but I DID get your package and grandma Jans package, and a letter from Grandma, AND TWO letters from STEPHANIE! YES! I feel so much better now. I'm guessing what happened was that she sent the on back from the MTC to there, but I had already gone to Dom Rep, so what happened was they sent them directly to the mission office. Which is horrid, because I didn't get them for six more weeks, which absolutely felt like a lifetime! GOSH! But I have them. one was from back when I was in my first week in the Dom Rep, and another was from August 9th asking about me not replying yet, so she still wants me to reply, which is a seriously good bonus booster. Makes me feel warm inside. Which is especially important, ‘cause it's just so hard to stay positive all the time. But I DO know that it's important to be positive and I, for serial, try my absolute hardest every day to be happy. And it's getting easier every day. I'm not sure why, but I got out here and like... I dun no, it was the weirdest thing, and I was just instantly... depressed? maybe that's not the right word... I dun no, I just felt... hard pressed to feel happy. it was the hardest thing. but don't think I’m all depressed or anything. :P gosh, IM NOT, ok? :P ha ha ha, no, I was just feeling a little down, but I find new joy every day when me and Elder Maldonado make fun of each other. also, I enjoy preaching the gospel when I don't know what anyone else is saying. very nice indeed. but one thing I've noticed about here is that everyone is seriously way more willing to listen, even if they aren’t interested. that’s seriously VERY encouraging, cause I don't know if my tender little sensitive heart would be able to handle having the door slammed in my face every day. HA HA HA! woot. but really though, it's very nice to not have that happen.
as for the transfer meetings... no, unfortunately... President Dewsnup is a VERY by the book person, and at the beginning of the transfer, when everyone was like hugging each other and everything cause they were so excited to see each other, he started the meeting early and told us he was very disappointed that we could not control ourselves. LAME! but don't get me wrong, from what I've seen, he seems like a pretty cool, nice guy. he just takes his missionary work serious to the extreme. even if it isn't a super serious meeting, like transfer meetings. which I kinda get, but it's nice to sit back just a LITTLE bit sometimes, right?! tell me if I'm in the wrong here. NO sé.
but no, seriously, those snacks have kept me ALIVE! my companion eats NOTHING! one bowl of cereal in the morning, one sandwich or something small for lunch, and no dinner. he waits all the way till nine to eat when we get back to the apartment. ha ha ha! and then he eats like seven cookies and calls it good. ridiculous. gah! he says eating dinner a waste of time. ?! what? since when is eating a waste of time. this guy's crazy. but I'm ironing that out of him. xD ha ha ha!
but heres about what’s goin' on here. the first night I got here? a LESSON! WHAT?! yeah, serious. ha ha! and it was in Spanish. guess what. I'm fresh out of the CCM, I can't understand a LICK of normal person Spanish. so, fortunately, Elder Maldonado still had Elder Teuch (pronounced - tiech. it's a German thing.) so they taught the lesson, and I bore my testimony of how the word of wisdom has blessed me in my life. yup. good thing I kicked that nasty drinkin’ habit before I got out here.
and for the past few other days, I've been building my Spanish. I've noticed that every day, I get a LITTLE tiny bit closer to understanding what people are saying. its nice. now I can pick out like a word every three sentences. I feel so grand.
also, President Dewsnup has set a rule that email is only for Family and fellow missionaries. solo familia y misioneros... *sigh* which is kinda difficult cause I have a few friends emailing me that I would really love to talk to on a weekly basis. BUT, he did say we can receive them. just not REPLY to them. so they can send me stuff. :D but,if you would be so kind, I wish to include a list of those friends' emails so that you could send them a nice little... actually no. I'm going to write something up by next week that I can send you guys as well as the email list so that you could possibly distribute those. but now... I'm out of time. we get an hour out here, but I can never seem to be able to type fast enough... I'm sorry I couldn't get more out... :-/
also, give my thanks to grandma Jan and grandma Nita for their letters and package.
and thank you guys for loving me. that’s just so nice to know that I have he support of all of you at home. I love you guys SO much. it really means a lot. I can't express it fully, but thank you.
it's difficult out here. I can see why Ehren was having such a difficult time. but we have to make the best of what we have, even if we can't enjoy it all fully. but I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be out here.
and now, I am out of time, and I don't even get the chance to reply to much else of your email... I always just have way more that I want to say than I can put. I hate that, don't you?
so I close my email with love. especially now that Elder Maldonado is getting on my back.
I love you all!
~Elder Brandon Bryan
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Letter about Packages
THE CHURCH OF
JESUS CHRIST
OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
PUERTO RICO SAN JUAN EAST MISSION
Urb. Jardines de Caparra
500 Calle Marginal Norte
Bayamon, PR 00959
Tel.: (787) 786-2224
Fax: (787) 786-2579
Parents of Missionaries of the Puerto Rico San Juan East Mission:
In the past some of you have sent packages to the Mission Office address for your son or daughter. When the missionary is working on an island other than Puerto Rico, the packages may sit in the Mission Office for many weeks before we can take the packages to them.
We have made a great effort to take the packages to the islands when we travel there by unwrapping them, placing them in sealed plastic bags, labeling them and placing them in our suitcases with our own clothes. We have always asked the missionary for permission to open the package before we opened it. We were very happy to do it.
Due to the increased charge for extra suitcases we will no longer be able to carry the gifts and necessities sent by you and your extended families and friends to the missionaries. The airlines are now charging for the extra suitcases and the costs are prohibitive.
May we suggest that unless you can send the packages directly to your son or daughter on the Islands of Barbados, St. Kitts, Nevis, Dominica, Antigua, St. Thomas, Tortola, Virgin Gorda or St. Croix, that you send them money instead. Again, by the time the missionaries pay duty and you pay the postage the costs can be very high. The other option is if you do send packages to your son or daughter to the Mission Office, they may not receive them until they return to the Island of Puerto Rico.
Please know that we make this request with much regret but we must be prudent with the Lord's resources.
Sincerely,
Ralph L. Dewsnup
Mission President
1st Letter from Puerto Rico
Elder Bryan
My trainer and new address:
Elder Maldonado
Alturas de Rio Grande
Calle 1 A36 Apt. #4
Rio Grande, PR 00745
Elder Bryan's Side Note:-> Elder Maldonado told me that mail sent to this address doesn't get there super often. So if you send stuff to the mission office I'll be able to get all of those wonderful Packages you send all the time once a week. =D
Ah! first letter from the mission field! Whoa!
Woot woot! So here I am sitting in the chapel in Puerto Rico. I'm finally here and safe as evidenced by my photo. Oh, and look at that, you get to see my nice short hair before I send you a picture.
It just feels .... so weird to be here. Actually out here, doing everything that I've been taught to do. It almost feels surreal.:-o But I am really glad to be here, and I'm especially glad to have learn everything I have at the MTC and the CCM.
Ok. So about my first night a little bit. :D yay! first night! OK ... So my trainers name is Elder Maldonado, just like it says up at the top. =) I got to meat his last companion, Elder Teuch (Toich is how it's pronounced. Crazy German words xD) and this is the end of his first 6 weeks here. Guess where he's being transferred now? Barbados! :-o Lucky! alright! and my new area is Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. Que Bueno, no? =D I like to think so. It's so cool here. Hills covered in Jungle trees all over the place, and at night time? Oh my goodness, I swear that the movies got their jungle sounds from here.. it is just incredible! also, it's a bit ... better than the Dom Rep. here the water is clean, and the traffic is slightly more organized.
Dah! almost out of time. OK, so we have a hurricane heading our way, we might just get rain and crazy wind, though it all depends where it goes through. but I have to stay inside until that time! (obviously, ha ha!) So I might have more time ... ha, like right now. But yeah Sister Dewsnup is warning us about the things we need to do to prepare, like water and food.
Doh, outta time now, but yeah, I will try the best I can to write soon.
I love you guys so much. I really do. Thank you guys for everything.
Elder Brandon Bryan
My trainer and new address:
Elder Maldonado
Alturas de Rio Grande
Calle 1 A36 Apt. #4
Rio Grande, PR 00745
Elder Bryan's Side Note:-> Elder Maldonado told me that mail sent to this address doesn't get there super often. So if you send stuff to the mission office I'll be able to get all of those wonderful Packages you send all the time once a week. =D
Ah! first letter from the mission field! Whoa!
Woot woot! So here I am sitting in the chapel in Puerto Rico. I'm finally here and safe as evidenced by my photo. Oh, and look at that, you get to see my nice short hair before I send you a picture.
It just feels .... so weird to be here. Actually out here, doing everything that I've been taught to do. It almost feels surreal.:-o But I am really glad to be here, and I'm especially glad to have learn everything I have at the MTC and the CCM.
Ok. So about my first night a little bit. :D yay! first night! OK ... So my trainers name is Elder Maldonado, just like it says up at the top. =) I got to meat his last companion, Elder Teuch (Toich is how it's pronounced. Crazy German words xD) and this is the end of his first 6 weeks here. Guess where he's being transferred now? Barbados! :-o Lucky! alright! and my new area is Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. Que Bueno, no? =D I like to think so. It's so cool here. Hills covered in Jungle trees all over the place, and at night time? Oh my goodness, I swear that the movies got their jungle sounds from here.. it is just incredible! also, it's a bit ... better than the Dom Rep. here the water is clean, and the traffic is slightly more organized.
Dah! almost out of time. OK, so we have a hurricane heading our way, we might just get rain and crazy wind, though it all depends where it goes through. but I have to stay inside until that time! (obviously, ha ha!) So I might have more time ... ha, like right now. But yeah Sister Dewsnup is warning us about the things we need to do to prepare, like water and food.
Doh, outta time now, but yeah, I will try the best I can to write soon.
I love you guys so much. I really do. Thank you guys for everything.
Elder Brandon Bryan
First Picture from PR
Elder Bryan's arrival in Puerto Rico:
We find him sandwiched between
Sister and President Dewsnup
We find him sandwiched between
Sister and President Dewsnup
Letter from Mission President
THE CHURCH OF
JESUS CHRIST
OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS
PUERTO RICO SAN JUAN EAST MISSION
Urb. Jardines de Caparra
500 Calle Marginal Norte
Bayamon, PR 00959
Tel.: (787) 786-2224
Fax: (787) 786-2579
September 1, 2009
Brother and Sister Jerry L. Bryan
8714 196th St. Ct. E.
Spanaway, WA 98387
Dear Brother and Sister Bryan,
I am pleased to report that Sister Dewsnup and I were able to greet your son, Elder Brandon Harley Bryan as he arrived in Puerto Rico. He has been assigned to a companion and they have already begun to work together. Enclosed with this letter is a note from your son telling of his new assignment and relating other news that he may have wanted to convey.
Your son's first companion has been prayerfully selected. As two young missionaries labor together in this great work they bless each others' lives. They both grow as a result of their strengths and their differences. We hope that friendships are kindled that last a lifetime.
As you know, missionary work is intense. It can be both physically demanding and emotionally strenuous. Your son will participate in miracles in the lives of the people that he finds and teaches. He will come to love the work and the people and will grow in ways that he cannot imagine. We love seeing that development take place and recognize that it occurs over the entire length of one's mission.
Missionaries love to receive mail. Please write to your son often. Your letters can be a source of great motivation and encouragement for him. We have also asked him to write home every week. His correspondence with you and others of his immediate family can be via email, if that is your desire. However, his access to computers is limited so he will have to correspond with friends and more distant relatives via regular mail.
We are very glad to have your son in our mission. We recognize the sacrifice that you are making to support him and want you to know how grateful we are that you sent him to us. If you have any questions or concerns, you can call us.
Sincerely,
Ralph L. Dewsnup
Mission President
8714 196th St. Ct. E.
Spanaway, WA 98387
Dear Brother and Sister Bryan,
I am pleased to report that Sister Dewsnup and I were able to greet your son, Elder Brandon Harley Bryan as he arrived in Puerto Rico. He has been assigned to a companion and they have already begun to work together. Enclosed with this letter is a note from your son telling of his new assignment and relating other news that he may have wanted to convey.
Your son's first companion has been prayerfully selected. As two young missionaries labor together in this great work they bless each others' lives. They both grow as a result of their strengths and their differences. We hope that friendships are kindled that last a lifetime.
As you know, missionary work is intense. It can be both physically demanding and emotionally strenuous. Your son will participate in miracles in the lives of the people that he finds and teaches. He will come to love the work and the people and will grow in ways that he cannot imagine. We love seeing that development take place and recognize that it occurs over the entire length of one's mission.
Missionaries love to receive mail. Please write to your son often. Your letters can be a source of great motivation and encouragement for him. We have also asked him to write home every week. His correspondence with you and others of his immediate family can be via email, if that is your desire. However, his access to computers is limited so he will have to correspond with friends and more distant relatives via regular mail.
We are very glad to have your son in our mission. We recognize the sacrifice that you are making to support him and want you to know how grateful we are that you sent him to us. If you have any questions or concerns, you can call us.
Sincerely,
Ralph L. Dewsnup
Mission President
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