Date: Mon, Dec 30, 2013 at 5:34 PM
Feliz Natal!!
Well Christmas went very well. It was so great talking to you guys and seeing everyone. I really missed Mel and Jake and Paigers and Daphne and Henry though. Tell them I miss them and love them! You guys all look great! Everyone looks happy and Mom and Dad and Grandma look younger! Maybe its just skype or maybe mom's new hair doo but everyone looks great. I probably look older because I am getting balder I think but whatevs!
This year was very special for me. Last year I think i was so shocked about how different Christmas was here that I didn't really enjoy Christmas fully but this year I already knew what to expect so I really was able to get in the christmas spirit and i got a new look on what christmas is all about.
Two things that happened this week that helped me learn a few lessons.
One was with a lady in our ward who is pretty well off financially. She is a lawyer and has a nice apartment and lots of nice things. She invited us over one christmas eve to have dinner with her and she invited some of her family members who aren't members of the church. What I thought was incredible was how much time and thought she put into the dinner. It was very nice and I felt like she did that because she wanted to give the best she could to her family and to us as missionaries. She even gave us some presents to open and I really felt the love she had for us as missionaries. She treated us like true representatives of Jesus Christ.
The other story was with a family who is alot more needy in our ward. They don't have hardly anything. There house is very small and the live a very simple life. The dad is a fisherman and he has a samll fishing boat that the made himself to catch food for his family. In his prayers he asks God to help the other fisherman that live close to him catch food so that they can feed their families. His children also work trying to catch crabs in little homemade crab traps along the riverside where they live. Well this last week, they caught quite a few crabs and sold them on saturday. That same day after getting money, this man tried to give my companion and i 20 reaias (10 dollars) to eat a nice dinner at night. I almost cried when he offered it to me. He told me "I usually don't have money but when i do have it I like to give it to others". I couldn't accept it and i told him i would much rather have dinner with him and his family at their house one night. After trying to give it to me again he accepted and said,"okay, we'll eat some fish one night with you guys". I was happy and very touched. Even though the amount he was willing to give was a lot less than the other lady in our ward, he was willing to give what he could. He treated us like true representatives of Jesus Christ.
Well I love you all so much. After skyping you all, i remembered how grateful I am for having such an amazing family. I really don't know what i did in the pre-existence to deserve two parents who truly love me and what me to do my best and support me in all that I do. A grandma who is sweeter than skittles. Four sisters who are super cool and love me too. Two brother in laws to keep an eye on me and mess around with and who show me an example of the kind of guy I need to be when I am older. And 5 nieces and nephews who are awesome and make me smile and laugh really hard!
I love you all. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Love,
Elder Smith
P.S. Sorry this email was a little cheesy but like a wiseman (Bryce) once said, every cracker needs a little cheese!
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