Dear Mom,
Thank you so much for the letter! I loved it! It just made my day! I've been waiting to hear from you guys all week! My p-day this week is today, Monday! But I think it might change to Tuesday, we are not sure, they hardly tell us anything ha ha! But man, one week! That's how long I've been gone! But seriously, this past week felt like two weeks. I feel like I've already been here for so long. They sure do work you from sun up to sun down, it's crazy but awesome ha ha! This week was pretty challenging getting used to the schedule and everything and with missing you guys. I will be honest, you were probably right, Mom, I probably have gotten the most home sick, but it's not terrible or anything so you don't have to worry! I love it here! I just realized how much you and Dad do for me! I got a little teary eyed in your letter because I know you have done so much for me! You are amazing! And I love you so much! All of you! A concept that has really been in my head this past week is eternal families. I know we have the blessing to be together for eternity and that is the best! I wouldn't want to be with anyone else than you guys! Oh, and Mom and Blake I can't remember if I told you in my first letter but thank you so much for your little letters that you hid everywhere! It seriously makes my day when I find one, I actually have one in my back pocket and one in my shirt pocket!
Well onto to my long week! I will try to fit everything in but I'm on a time limit! As I said before, I am not staying at the MTC or which they call it here the CCM in Spanish. I stay at Alcantara which is like a big mansion almost and super nice big house. The assistant to the MTC president lives there and is in charge there. His name is Elder Gilbert, who is from Washington. He is a pretty quiet guy but loves everybody and is really funny! He actually reminds me a lot of Grandpa. He was a farmer and he just has the presence of grandpa so it's always a good feeling when I see him. My flights went all well and same with customs. So I broke the curse! The only problem kinda was when I had to pay the 160 dollars to enter Chile and my debit card wouldn't work, so I just paid in the $200 you guys gave me so it all worked out. Is there something I have to do with the debit card? Anyway, I am in district two and I love my district. We get a long so well! My companion is Elder Peel from Utah and he is a great guy. He is a very easy going person and kinda a little quiet. He actually has an identical twin; it's awesome! But my district is Elders: Horne, White, Peel, Amorin and Souas (from Brazil they are hilarious), and Elder Cummings, who I have gotten super close to! He seriously is just like Doug Macdonald! Really! It's so awesome and he is the district leader and deserves it because he is just a stud in the gospel. He and I laugh all the time it's awesome! And GUESS WHAT? I felt my very first earthquake here in Chile! It's okay, Mom, I'm alive no need to worry. It was really tiny but one morning my bunk bed was shaking and it freaked me out! Ha ha The earthquake happened right when we were supposed to get up so everything was moving and alarms were going off and it was pretty awesome!
The schedule here goes like this. I wake up at 7 and go downstairs for personal and companion study and then we have breakfast and exercise, which they don't play frisbee at Alcantara but they do at the MTC :( ha ha it's alright then we hurry and get ready and go to the MTC at 10 and have classes with my AWESOME teachers Hermano Traverso, Hermana Cabrera, and Hermano Inostroza who I love so much! The hermanos are probably the funniest people I know. And then we have Spanish study, lunch, class, dinner and then go home basically. And I already know how to say a prayer, bear my testimony, say the missionary purpose, the First Vision, and greet someone in Spanish! Well, I already knew before how to greet someone before but I'm learning Spanish fast. It is awesome! I love it! Other than the Brazilian companions in our district, I know the most Spanish out of everyone else. It's pretty cool! My companion doesn't know any at all!!! But its alright it will get better, it's just hard to teach with him since he can't. We actually learn Spanish everyday and whatever we learn we go out to the temple grounds and teach people we can find in Spanish! It's so fun! I look forward to it everyday! And the people here are so nice and they say my Spanish actually sounds really good, and then they always make fun of my companion. ha ha!
Here at the MTC they make all the missionaries carry a water bottle around so Mom you don't have to worry about me blacking out anymore! I drink so much everyday, we get a ten minute break every hour and I always go to the bathroom. Let's see what else, Sundays are probably my favorite days because we just watch videos, feel the spirit, and have refreshments ha ha! I love it! And I weighed myself today and I lost two pounds. I thought I gained 'cause I feel fat! ha ha Here at the MTC they have rice, mashed potatoes, chicken, and pasta everyday so nothing really healthy! It's good but I still miss your meals, Momma!
We got to go to the temple on Saturday and it was the old video for the endowment but I was so tired from working so much that I kinda fell asleep at the beginning and when I woke up I realized it was the old video and so I started to look for you, Mom, and for Blake and then I started to panic 'cause I didn't know where you guys were and then it hit me that I'm in Chile. That was pretty hard for me and I got pretty homesick for the rest of the temple. So I guess that kinda was my awakening moment! Ha ha! Every night right when I say my prayers, I'm out of it! I'm exhausted everyday! But yet it is a great feeling, I wanna feel exhausted at the end of the day. This week prayer has been huge to me, I have never prayed so much before in my life. Prayer is awesome! Heavenly Father truly does love us and wants to talk with us. Whenever I started to feel homesick, I would pray for comfort and something would always happen right after that would make me happy. Like at the airport when I had my 5 hour lay over I started to have some fear but I prayed and immediately after I was done, 14 other missionaries arrived at the gate and we were all so excited. Or another time I was missing you guys I prayed for comfort and then reached in my pocket and read your note, Mom. I immediately started to cry and realized why I'm out here. We all have a work to do and I know I can do hard things! I am a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ, how awesome is that! I am so excited to serve and I Believe in Christ. The Lord trusts me to do his work and I feel so blessed that I can be the way that people can see Christ through me and go onto him, it's not about me at all. It's all about the Savior! I receive so much joy from this gospel and I love it! You guys are the best family ever! I pray for you guys everyday! Hope you guys are doing great and thank you for all the letters! Keep them coming! They make my day!
So se que El Libro de Mormon is the palabra de Dios y es verdadero y otro testamento de Jesucristo. Yo se que lasfamilias son eternos. Yo se que Dios dio a su hijo para salvernos y podemos volver a su prescencia. Yo se que Jose Smith restauro el Evangelio y fue in profeta! Me amo es Evangelio! Y amo ustedes! Chao!
Love,
Elder Cowan
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