First Week!

Hello everybody!

My first assignment is in an area called Chillogallo, which is just south of Quito.  Big city.  My companion is Elder Fuentes from Chile.  He's our district leader, and doesn't speak a single word of English.  Kind of makes it a bit tougher when you can only understand about a third of what your companion is saying.  I'm practicing though.  Haven't had a single conversation in English since last Wednesday!  That probably isn't going to change, so I'd better work hard on my Spanish!  The members are really nice though.  I met the bishop a couple nights ago, he's a great guy with some mad guitar skills!  His kids are pretty wild, but they help me learn Spanish words.  Repeating the words I don't know usually works pretty well.  It only backfired once when the ward mission leader's 3 year-old taught me a swear word!  Little punk.  Everyone down here thinks that English is really cool, and the kids always demand that I "¡habla en ingles!"  I'm slowly understanding more and more though. 

We spend a lot of time visiting recent converts and investigators.  We actually did a baptismal challenge the other day (probably the only part where I could tell what was going on), which was pretty cool.  I'm grateful for the Spirit when we teach because I'm sure that nobody could understand me otherwise!  Church was good yesterday.  Before we left the MTC, our branch president said we would be really good daydreamers during the meetings until we understood what was going on.  He was right!  Ha! 

Since I don't have my other memory card back yet (hint, hint), I will not be sending any pictures back.  I don't have many yet anyway.  However, I will describe some of the things that I have seen here.

A couple hundred angry dogs (luckily their owners keep them locked up!)
A hundred more half-dead dogs wandering the streets
3 all-the-way dead dogs
1 or 2 normal, tame, not-dead dogs
A bunch of cows eating out of the garbage
A little boy walking six goats down the street

I'm getting the hang of things around here though.  Even the buses!  They have 'bus stops' here, but you really just have to jump on and off when they slow down for you.  I think I would like the traffic rules around here.  You drive as fast as you can without rear-ending anybody, and that's the speed limit.  And everything is legal as long as you don't kill, injure, maim, or otherwise dismember somebody in any way.  We haven't had too strange of food yet, mostly soup, rice, and beans.  I can now say that I have accomplished the feat of eating a giant plate of rice piled about six inches high.  I felt kind of like a bean bag after that.  I'm kind of bummed about not being able to try cuy (guinea pig) yet, but that day will come! 

Sounds like a good time in Roosevelt!  I hope Aaron had a good time with prom!  Sorry to hear about the difficulties in the ward though.  When dad mentioned something about 'addictions' and 'WOW issues', I thought he was talking about 'World of Warcraft'.  Haha!  That definitely is an addiction issue though.  I've learned from MTC experience that World of Warcraft players make REALLY lousy missionaries.  So maybe keep people away from that.  ha.  Oh, also, somebody wish both Ryan and Jake a happy birthday for me?  Thanks!  Say hello to everybody in Roosevelt for me!

Well I think that's all for now!  Talk to you next week! 

Love,
Spencer

Where In Ecuador Is Elder Wallace?

Letter From The Pres.

April 20^th 2010

Dear Family Wallace,

Sister Sloan and I are pleased to tell you that your son has arrived safely and has begun his missionary labors.  We spent some time becoming acquainted with him and want to compliment you on raising a worthy missionary.  We also thank you for your willingness to sacrifice so that he can serve the Lord during this time in his life.  Rest assured that we will treat him as we would our own sons.

You may be wondering how you can best support your missionary while he serves.  We suggest that you write a letter at least weekly.  Express your love for him.  Tell him about the positive things that are happening at home.  Encourage him to work hard and to be obedient.  Ask him to devote all of his time and attention to his mission.  

Prayer is a powerful means of support.  Please pray for your missionary every day, for his success as a teacher, for his protection, for his health and well-being.  Ask Heavenly Father to help him live worthily so he can find, teach and baptize Heavenly Father’s children.  

Participate in your son’s mission by looking for your own missionary experiences.  Pray that you will be able to find friends, relatives and acquaintances with whom to share the gospel.  Invite your own local missionaries to teach them in your home.  Share your missionary experiences with your son in your weekly letters.  You will strengthen eternal family bonds as you engage in Heavenly Father´s work.

Again, thank you for sharing your son with us.  Together, let us make this experience one that will bless and strengthen him and your family for the rest of your lives.

Sincerely,

Presidente Timothy Q. Sloan

Misión Ecuador Quito

Timothy Quinn Sloan, 49, (Ecuador Quito Mission); Cedar Hollow 6th Ward, Lehi Utah North Stake; former highcouncilor, bishop and counselor, ward Young Men president, seminary teacher, elders quorum president, and missionary in the Bolivia Santa Cruz Mission.  Director of LDS Employment Resource Services and member of the PEF Executive Committee.  Born in Banning, California, to Max Kearl and Virginia Rosalie Parkhurst Sloan.  Married Cynthia Sanders, five children.  Sister Sloan is a former ward Relief Society president, counselor in a ward Relief Society presidency, ward enrichment leader, and stake music chair.  Born in Lompoc, CA, to John Parry and Geraldine Smith Sanders.

We're Leaving Monday!

We're leaving monday!  I would send you some pictures but I didn't get my other memory card back yet so I'm holding on to the one I have.  We leave the MTC at 4 am on monday, fly from Salt Lake to Chicago, Chicago to Miami, then Miami to Quito.  We should get there sometime in the evening.  It's pretty hectic but with all my MTC classes I'm used to sitting around for long periods of time.  I'll be traveling with Elder Hendrickson and Hermana Cooper, so it will be good to have a couple of familiar faces on the way. 

We did our last session in the Provo temple today, probably the last for a couple of years.  It was a great experience though.  the weather is super weird over here.  We keep getting really hot days, then it snows.  Beats me.  Sounds all the hype in Roosevelt is centered around soccer games and temple visits.  Hopefully the nice man with the matches will come to his senses!  I'd like somewhere to go home to once I finish serving! 

Random story of the day.  The cafeteria has big cereal dispensers filled during every meal.  At lunch yesterday our zone decided we would empty the marshmallow mateys, so we all ate several bowls each, and we did it!  Completely emptied it out!  It added up to about 50 bowls of cereal within our zone!  Just an idea of the cheap entertainment we manage to find each day!

We had to have a health meeting the other day.  Interesting stuff.  We talked a bit about water chlorination, and one sister goes, "how big is a drop??"  So this doctor is trying to explain to her that it's just "a drop" and really not that hard to understand, but she still managed to go on for about ten minutes!  At the end, the doctor goes, "you know what, sister?  Just BOIL your water!"  We also learned about rabies, how we'll die if we get it, and about actually cleaning the fridge out once in a while. 

We had Elder Pace of the Seventy come and talk to us last night.  Pretty awesome experience.  A lot about the Spirit world and our potential as children of God.  Shared some pretty deep experiences of his.  In fact, he requested that his talk not be recorded.  A great testimony builder though.

We also did our last teaching practice yesterday.  We taught about tithing, and I've learned a lot about how it's based on faith.  We also had a scenario where we had to explain that our mission leader couldn't be there because he was sick.  I told the man we taught that the leader was out running, got bit by a dog with rabies, and was in the hospital getting an injection every day for ten days.  He sure got a kick out of that!  My spanish must be better because I managed to say it all pretty clearly!

I think that should do it for now!  Just make sure you don't try to send me anything that won't get here before the 19th!  I might send back a box of things in order to save on space and weight.  I've gained several pounds worth of books, so that could be a problem.  Anyway, everbody take care and I will try to email again sometime after I get to Ecuador!  If I take a long time, don't get offended!  :)

Love, Spencer

Hi!

Elder Tyler Rasmussen (from Roosevelt) and Elder Wallace

It's getting pretty exciting lately because our travel plans will be here any day now!  Pretty awesome!  I really hope that we don't have to leave at 3 in the morning, because the last district that left had to leave then and it was really annoying, especially when the intercom guy kept paging our dorms!  It keeps snowing here.  I'm tired of snow.  But soon I won't have to put up with any snow!  YEAH! 

April Fool's day wasn't really an issue.  I don't think anyone bothered to do anything, so not much happened.  Conference was great!  It had a lot about families I noticed.  And President Monson sure was on a roll Saturday morning!  It's nice to have a good laugh!  Oh by the way dad, one of our teachers showed us a poem about Christ's hands and that talk that President Uchtdorf gave.  I'll send it to you sometime because it's really good and really makes you think!  So Jay and family are moving?  That will be weird having them gone.  I guess a little less weird for me since I won't be seeing anybody for two years!  I saw your family pictures.  I always get confused about our many step-cousins/friends of cousins/random people who just come.  Glad to see everyone is doing well though.  Of course uncle John is the most sure of his pictures!  haha.  He sure gets enthusiastic about his activities!  And tell Grandpa that I met a Brother Wallace in the Provo Temple who knows him.  Just an interesting coincidence.  Do they have my email address?

I got the photo book a few weeks ago, so thank you.  Also, don't send me too much black walnut or I won't be able to fit anything in my suitcase!  Tell your friend thank you for the message and for their support.  Would they want me to call?  Would they have questions?  I'm not quite sure how the referral center works, but I'm sure I could figure it out.  And I suppose I'll find out how it felt to be the only gringo once I leave!

So Aaron, how did you ask?  When are you going?  Do you have your license yet?  Who's in your group?  What are you doing?  Is that enough questions?  Just curious.  Also, the spanish lessons are going pretty great!  I hardly have to even think about what to say now because it all goes pretty smoothly as long as I know enough vocabulary!  Pretty great. Also, advice for when you are in the MTC - don't eat the beef casserole!  'Nuff said!

I'll probably think of something I wanted to say once my time runs out, but oh well.  I can always write something when I send back my memory card!  And I will also be sending a small gift for the sibs sometime in the next couple of weeks!  We will have to see.  I'm excited to leave though.  A lot less sitting that I'll have to do!

Hope you are all having great lives and doing good things!  The Church is true, see you in two!  (give or take!)

Love, Spencer