Week #3!

Hola everyone,

Time is passing more quickly the longer I'm here. Next week I'll be about halfway done! It's weird sometimes to think that my actual mission hasn't even started. I'm hardly getting the tiniest taste of what my life will really be like for the next two years. I'm still loving this experience though, and know that I'll love that field infinitely more. I'm jealous that you guys got to see Wicked, and in the front row!!! I can't believe that someone in our family actually won a contest, and I also can't believe you happened to sit in front of people from Orem. I'm glad you guys had fun in New York and were safe (especially flying back on 9/11), and I'm so glad that Dad's kidney stones subsided while you were there! I hope you're able to run the marathon tomorrow. Good luck! Let me know how it goes.

I don't think I remembered in my reply to thank Addy for the candy bar that came with her letter! It was delicious, as are the peanut butter and oreos. Thanks so much for all the stuff you've all sent me! My mail traffic from friends has slowed down, and actually almost stopped. I would love to hear from my friends. All of you reading this, please write me! If you don't want to handwrite a letter, use DearElder.com. It's super easy! Tan, Keili, Jared... still waiting on all of you!

Our roommates left for the Guatemala MTC on Tuesday! It was really sad. We'd bonded a ton over the short three weeks. So now our district is down to 9. I don't think we'll gain or lose again during our time here. I think and hope that we'll get nubes (that means clouds in spanish, but we use it to mean newbies/n00bz) next week, but I don't think they'll be in our district. Are Grandma and Grandpa coming on Monday? Even though they'll only be here for a week, I think I'll definitely see them if they're here at the same time as me. I see so many senior missionaries all the time everywhere. I really hope they come next week. I will be so thrilled to see them. We've been teaching another "investigator," and it's been way more difficult than our other one. I like it though. It's a challenge, and I think he's a lot more realistic to how many people will be in the field. He's actually the guy that's been our teacher since we got here, but he's an amazing actor because I don't see him as our teacher at all when we're giving him lessons.

Music is still causing me to suffer some days, but not as much as it did at first. When I went to the post office today, "Kill the Messenger" by Jack's Mannequin was playing quietly. I was so satisfied. It was so weird and amazing to hear that kind of music again, even if I really haven't been here that long. Music! I keep forgetting to tell you guys. I meant to pack the album "Songs for Christmas" by Sufjan Stevens, because I hear most mission presidents allow it. Can you guys get it to me in some form? It's two discs... I think you should be able to find it in the bin of stuff that I packed and left by the treadmill. There's a HUGE bag of CD's in there, and I think it's in there somewhere. They're burned CD's that probably just say "Songs for Christmas," but not Sufjan Stevens on it anywhere. Let me know if you can't find it and we'll figure it out. Also, in one of the first devotionals I went to here, these Elders sang a song that I think was called "My Kindness Shall Not Depart From Thee." It might have been my favorite church song I've ever heard. I don't know if you guys can find a version of that song you think I would like and somehow get it to me, even if it's a CD with just that song, or like an MP3 player with Sufjan and that. Either way, I won't be able to use it till the field.

Anyway, I'm learning so much here every day about being a missionary, an effective church member, a disciple of Christ, and so much more. I love it. This is such a huge, important experience for me to have, and I'm so grateful for this opportunity. Thank you guys for all your love and support and postage! Love you all, miss you and think of you often. Adios!

-- Elder Hampton