Believe Because You Want To

The past two weeks have been incredible. I have seen so much. Last Monday we went to a pueblo and walked over two hours to get to some caves. We knew we were almost there but had to go up a steep road. We started it with not very much enthusiasm. We had stuck out our thumb already from the beginning. Then a car stopped and said they could only take two of us. I automatically thought, "well if we all four can't go then none of us." and before I knew it, the other two elders were half way into the car! ha ha. We had hope that another car would see us going up the mountain and feel pity. We didn't walk much till we heard the next car. He stopped and we told him where we were going. He gave us a lift all the way to the caves. Then to my amazement, as he dropped us off he drove off and kept going till I couldn't see him. I then realized that he went out of his way to take us. Even as I write this I feel so grateful for him again. The Caves of Valporquero was magnificent. It was huge inside and water running through most of the cave and even waterfall! Sunday was just ever so wonderful. It snowed and didn't stop. I have seen lots of snow before in my life but never have I seen perfectly empty snow covered streets become snow covered streets in a matter of hours. My companion and I could have easily said we should probably go home and maybe do something productive since it was snowing good. We ended up deciding that people probably wouldn't stop but we needed to give it a try. You wouldn't believe how many people we ended up talking to! We ended up contacting a lot of people and it was random but miraculous. We ended up stopping a few times and then a person would come and stop next to us and we would just start talking to them and then the next thing we knew we had set up a visit with that person. One of the times was a young Spanish guy that would have never listened to us if it had not been just the right moment like that. On our way home we walked a lot of the way only seeing so far ahead of us because of all the snow in our face. We walked through a park and it was the most beautiful thing I have seen in a long time. The park was quiet and just covered in a white blanket of fresh snow . . . the images of it all are all still very clear in my mind. That might be because that it kept snowing today. We didn't stay in León for it either. We ended up taking a train to a pueblo where it was snowing harder! I fell asleep to only wake up in a small town because the train couldn't go on. The train was full of passengers and we all waited for an hour or more. It has been so much fun seeing how the snow brings out the child in so many. I had a good show while I waited as adults played in the snow wrestling and all. We made it to our destination. Then my friend, the priest, couldn't make it to us. We all had to wait till the snow plows cleared the way. We got a call met him. We went to his residency and it was so deep in snow that I was waist deep in it!! I loved every bit of it. He made us a soup typical of León, chorizo, Spanish bread, French fries, corn on the cob, arroz con leche, turon, and my favorite part was the meat . . . I got to eat BULL for the first time!!! I was the only one that had been there before and the other three got to learn about his thirty-nine years living in the United States. I learned something new as well of his time in Salt Lake. He said he was able to give tours on Temple Square! I love that place! Oh I forgot to mention some thing about Sunday. I get to do a lot in the branch and help out. It has been a great experience because I have learned so much. One part that has really changed my Church experience is Sacrament meeting. I am the one who assigns the members to talk and what they will talk about. As I sat in Sacrament I seemed to hear the speakers and their talks in a very different way. I seemed to appreciate the word of God I was hearing because of the time the members took to prepare their talks. My days in the house of the Lord have since become more spiritual in many ways. I love the teachings of the Savior and I cherish the things my God wants me to know. I keep trying to do my best. I owe everything to my Heavenly Father. Thank you all for reading the things I prompted to write. I want to say I appreciate the time you take and mean it. I have seen the power of God work for the benefit of all and what a sight it has been. I thought you might want to know that your prayers were answered. Last night, at a certain time, I received the strength I was in need of. I knew I couldn't have done it with out you all. I love you all so much . . . Elder Rodriguez