Elder HJones: Bendicido

Okay... I got my first haircut last Wednesday. It is no bueno. I miss Mom's haircuts. They cut all my hair off. I seriously can't wait until it kinda grows back! So sibs...be grateful for the haircuts Mom gives you!

It rains a ton here. Right now we are in the rainy season on Mexico. [So] it normally rains every day.

I don't have any Chilean culture or language classes. All the Mexican teachers say that Chileans practically speak a different language, because it's so fast and slangy. I guess I'll see when I get there.
I leave for Chile on September 26: 3 weeks from yesterday! So I'm exactly halfway done at the MTC.

The language is kinda picking up. I don't give myself enough credit for how much I really do know. It is honestly so hard learning Spanish, but it is a blessing. Yesterday, we tried to learn the difference between PARA and POR. . . and my brain just about blew up!! Ha ha.

I have started reading the Book of Mormon in Spanish. I acually understand a lot of it, and I learn so many new words! The Book of Mormon is such a great book. I have really learned to love it!

Today is my first "official" P-day. The other P-days we went to the temple, so they days weren't that long. But today I have the whole day.

It's so weird how a mission changes you. I feel like the worldly things that go on don't matter as much to me. Of course songs still get stuck in my head and I miss being with friends and family. But a mission is so much more important than the things of this world. I thought I would miss my phone and social media, but I'm glad they're gone. They are a distraction and there are so much more important things in this world!

The mission is such a blessing. I´m so grateful for the opportunity I have to serve my Heavenly Father.

I am exactly halfway done in the MTC. It has been a long 3 weeks, and I still have 3 to go. But I'm so excited to leave to Chile and teach. Labor Day meant nothing to the country of Mexico, of course. And to be honest, I completely forgot about it. But Independence Day is September 16 for Mexico and I can't imagine how crazy it will be! I already hear fireworks and police sirens all night. I can't imagine how loud it will be.

This week I really learned about the Atonement of Christ and the importance of it. Jesus Christ loves us so much that He suffered ALL. He felt our individual pains, sins, afflictions, and sorrows. Through the Atonement we can be clean. Through the Atonement we also can become. The Atonement isn't just for the bad things that happen in our lives, it applies to everything. The Atonement wasn't just the suffering in the garden and the death of Christ, it also included the Resurrection. I always looked at the Atonement as a trial for Christ, and it was, but it also was wonderful. Through Jesus Christ and His Atonement we can live again. We can become the best people we can be and we can live with our Father in Heaven again.

The gospel is a wonderful thing and I'm SO BLESSED to be a part of it!

Love, Elder Jones

Sorry for the lack of great pics, we only can take pictures on our P-day.