April 12, 2022

 Hello again!

I'm running out of ways to open emails. :P I guess I'm just not as funny as I used to be. Makes sense. I've been on a mission for nearly 14 months now. ;) 

Anyway, bit of a change this week, I got transferred! So I'm in a new area, in an old zone, with a new companion. I was actually just in this Zone, about six months ago or so. It was kind of funny driving out here and recognizing different places. Doesn't happen too often, that. I will let you all know what my new area is like... just as soon as I know myself. :P

Other news... Beats me. The transfers are kind of the biggest news I've got. Leaving my last area wasn't fun, I'd been there for quite a while, long enough to really get attached to the people there. It was nice, to be honest. But definitely a bit sad to have to leave. :/ Still, new beginnings are a staple of missionary life, so I suppose I can't pretend I didn't see this one coming. ;) 

Hope you all are doing well! Sorry for no pictures this week, but we don't have our own phones, so... I had to leave my pictures behind. See you next week!

- Elder Blankenbiller

April 5, 2022

 Hey everybody! 

Gonna be a bit of a quick one this week, I've got a lot to say, and not a lot of time to say it. We took a trip to the city center again (the last time I went was in November, which I'm realizing was a long time ago. :P). Anyway. The trip was pretty fun, definitely the most touristy thing I've done in quite a while. And it was nice to be in a real city again. The rest of our mission is, well... not quite as nice. :P

Other things: As of Wednesday, I'm a legal resident of Mexico (again). I had to go back to the immigration offices to get my green card renewed. And go eat at Costco with the Secretaries of the Mission. Always a fun time. We also had Zone Conference, followed by General Conference. Now that I think about it, I've kind of just been on vacation for a week now. ;) Not actually, of course. But definitely not your average week.

I hope you all had a good time watching Conference! If you didn't watch it... I mean really, what are you doing? Conference is awesome. And you need to go back and watch it. I promise they said something that you, personally, needed to hear. Anyway. Enough out of me. Go have a great week! 

- Elder Blankenbiller 

Photos:

- Sushi!

- The district at the Sushi place 

- Outside the Palace of Beautiful art

- Aztek Death God statue 

- Big Aztek dude on the floor 

- Proof that Moroni knew how to make a concrete box 

- Everything changed when the fire nation attacked

- A wall of skulls

- Some dead guy? I guess they think he's a relic or something

- The Pyramid at the center of the city. Pretty cool stuff 

March 29, 2022

Hi everybody! I've survived another week in Mexico! And with that week, I've made it to one whole year out here. Talk about milestones. :P

To commemorate my year mark, they're sending me to the immigration offices again, because they only got me a visa for one year last time. Later tonight, I've got to go to the mission offices, and then tomorrow, venture to the other side of the city to get permission to stay here. That, or just wait around until they get wise and deport me. That could also happen. So... pray it doesn't, I guess?

Other things, we went to the Visitor's Center with Isaac on Saturday, that was a blast as usual. Going to the temple is definitely a perk in this mission. And we definitely abuse that perk as often as possible. 10/10, recommend going to whatever temple is closest to you as often as you can. Nothing better, really. 

We're having Zone Conference this Thursday, so I'll be sure to report on how that goes.

Oh, and one of the people we're teaching, Liliana, is moving stateside for a bit, until she has her baby. So we'll have to figure out how that's all going to go down, since she's supposed to get baptized in a few weeks. :P All part of God's plan, even if it makes our plans go sideways I guess. 

I think that about wraps it up for this week, hope you all enjoy yours! 

- Elder Blankenbiller 

Photos:

- Members are still the best

- Obligatory Temple picture

- I think I'm getting taller :P

March 22, 2022

First and foremost, Guadalupe got baptized this week! Super exciting stuff, we're hoping to get her to the temple to do proxy baptisms this coming week, so wish us luck getting all that figured out. The baptism itself was pretty awesome, a whole bunch of members showed up because the bishop sent out a statement that the limit on gathering sizes had been removed by the stake president (who happens to be in our ward... hmm). So yeah. Just a really cool experience. :)

Other things: We had companion exchanges this week, the district leader came and payed me a visit, and we invited the family of Oscar (Which is eight people in total!) to be baptized. And they said they would love that! So we've got a couple more baptismal dates to work with now. 

We've also been teaching a family from Chiapas (Southern end of Mexico), and while the dad speaks spanish, the mom only speaks a dialect of Maya called Tzeltal. Yeah. So we were scratching our heads trying to figure out how to help her, when the stake president (Love that guy) came to the rescue. He just called the mission president down there, and got us the number of a lady who speaks Tzeltal and Spanish. So hopefully that should help. And it's also just really cool. Connections, man.

Anyway, to avoid going too long, I think I'll leave it here for now. Hope you all are having a great week! Go share the Gospel, time's running out! (Only kind of kidding)

- Elder Blankenbiller

Photos:

- Missionary work with members is honestly the best

- 50 cents for diabetes 

- Companion Exchanges 

- Baptism Photos! 

March 15, 2022

Helllllo everybody, how's it going? 

This week has been a bit of a ride, we've got lots of people in the teaching pool, but it means we have to do a lot of swimming, so to speak. We're definitely not not busy, that's for sure. Anyway. On to the week!

This week, we've got preparations for a baptism! Hermana Guadalupe is going to be baptized this Friday! We're super excited for her, and we're actually going to have her interview later today, so keep her in your prayers! 

Other things, we've been working on getting the members more involved, and it's going really well! We probably had members come with us in about 85% of the lessons we have. Very cool. Member testimonies are just so powerful, especially for the people we're teaching. There's only so much two young guys can say, after all. 

And that leads me right into my invitation for you: Don't be afraid to share your testimony with people! It may not come super naturally, but it will mean a lot to the people who need to hear it. (And the missionaries could really use your help, trust me!) So yeah. Do that. 

Anyway! Good to talk to you all, I've got to dash, I'll be here again next week!

- Elder Blankenbiller 

Photos:

 - 3 Dudes who made a video

- Dragons on sofas 

- God's house 

March 8, 2022

So. Today is my birthday. I'm 20. No longer a teenager. But still not old enough to drink. (Except here. I could do it here.) But that's besides the point. My next birthday, I'll be home. So you're you're invited to my party. (Details pending)

Anyway. First full week of the new cycle. We're doing pretty good, still carrying all the momentum from last cycle, with lots of people to teach, two people progressing towards their baptisms, and plenty of other people to call, visit, and drag to sacrament meeting on Sunday. (And I do mean that semi-literally. We have a recent convert who got baptized five months ago, and didn't come to sacrament meeting for a single Sunday until this last one.)

So, busy all the time, and just trying our best to cover all our bases every day. But it's good. I'm really enjoying working in this area, with these people. And honestly, having hit the year, had my birthday, etc, it's really made me reflect on how little time I've got left here. I don't want to waste it. So. I'm gonna go get to work! See you all next week! 

- Elder Blankenbiller 

craig.blankenbiller@missionary.org

Photos: (As it happens, if my companion doesn't take many photos, neither do I)

- Birthday Breakfast 

- Just me :)

- The best burritos I've had so far 

March 1, 2022

 Hellllllllllllllloooooooo ladies and gentlemen, and welcome back to the strange life of a missionary serving in Mexico!

On this week's episode, dogs that should be used as mops, Investigators raining from the sky, and more miracles than you can hold in a tiny backpack like the ones we have! So sit right back, and prepare yourself for another strange tale from the life of Elder Blankenbiller!

So this week, we saw a veritable boatload of miracles. We found a family of eight to teach (which is very uncommon here, for some reason), and they were all able to come to church on Sunday! Over zoom, sure, but we're still excited. We also have our two star baptismal candidates, Guadalupe and Carlos, who are making great progress! They'll be ready to take a dip in the next few weeks here, and again, we're very excited for them. 

We also have had a lot of success with the members of the ward! This week, we had over a hundred members come in person! Very exciting, especially given that six weeks ago, at the start of last cycle, we had all of fifteen members show up. :P Definitely making progress. We've still got a good couple hundred less actives to track down, so wish us luck! 

Last but not least, I thought I'd just share a quick thought, since I've gotten out of the habit. This week, I've been studying in Alma, because Alma is very wise. Specifically, I was studying the chapters where he chews out and/or instructs his various sons who are serving missions too. And honestly, those are probably among my favorite chapters. There's advice for everyone in there. Which leads me to my point: The Book of Mormon was written for us. Not just for our day, and some people in that day, but us, indiviually, and specifically. To paraphrase Elder Oaks (who was quoting President Kimball, if I recall): "If you feel that the Book of Mormon has failed you, then you have failed to read it correctly." Or something like that. Long story short, read the Book of Mormon! It's not just the most correct book on earth, it's also the most correct book of advice ever written with you in mind! So take advantage of it! That is all!

- Elder Blankenbiller

Photos:

- A collection of mops that are missing handles

- A bear, disguised as a dog

- Carnitas. If you know, you know

- Some fantastic street art of what Ezekiel saw in his visions

- A dinosaur that one of the members owns

- Mexico? No, you must be mistaken. These are crepes, therefore, we are in France

- The new squad, after transfers yesterday