Hola,
To start off this week I just want to get the big news out.
So first off, President Herrera has asked that I stay here in Cusco till
Thursday this week to help with the changes and a few other things before I
head off to my new area. Now for the big news! I have been assigned to open up
a Brand New Sector that has never had missionaries before in area of Puno
called Manco Capac in the Zone of Bellavista. My new Companion is Elder Vargas
from Bolivia who will finish his mission with me this coming June. He is an ex Zone
Leader as well so I am really excited to have him as a Companion and to go back
down to Puno to work as hard as I can in this new area. Like I stated, this
area is brand new which means that I am literally going to be carrying the area
book in my bag with me for when I get to my area. It is pretty much like we are
starting out at Zero and getting the work moving along. There is currently not
a place for us to live, furniture to use, or even a Penchanista to feed us. So
before I head down to Puno, we are going to go furniture shopping for
everything and then when we get there we are going to head out to search for a
place to live and someone who can feed us (the pension). So that is so far all
I know as far as changes go, but I am really excited for this new adventure to
be doing something that I never thought I would do!
As far as this past week in Cusco, it was super busy! I was
crazy busy trying to finish the training of Elder Larsen and trying to help get
him as ready and as independent as possible for when I leave. Also I spent a
good chunk of the week going and visiting members, investigators, and converts
that I have had during my time here. But perhaps one of the coolest things that
happened was talking to Julio, one of the converts I have had here. Julio has
struggled a lot during these past few months as a member. He has had a lot of
trials but has strived each day to do the best he can. Perhaps the greatest
blessing for me is to see someone who started out with such little knowledge,
grow to gain a testimony of this Gospel and of its reality!
This week was also Thanksgiving and we were able to have a
great big Thanksgiving dinner with President Herrera and his family as well as some
of the other missionaries here in Cusco. There is an awesome senior couple in
our mission who got a package of some stuffing mixes and pumpkin in cans so
they prepared us a few things from the States and it was really awesome! Sadly,
I just want all of you to know that the food back home is VERY SWEET!!! My
taste buds have become accustomed to eat food with less sugar and after eating
some food for Thanksgiving it was almost like I couldn’t handle all of the
flavor. It was delicious though and was a good experience to be able to
experience Thanksgiving in Perú since it doesn’t really exist here.
Also this week we had our P-Day on Saturday, so we decided
to visit the last set of ruins before I leave Cusco. This time we went and
visited the city of Pisaq which was a city full of temples, agriculture,
warfare and many other things. It was a huge city and it was incredible to go
and see the last big set of ruins that I haven’t seen during my time in Cusco.
It has been such a blessing to be able to go out and see so many ruins of
cities that were constructed and inhabited by the descendants of Lehi.
In closing this week I just want to share a quick story that
occurred while teaching a lesson to a new investigator this week. We were asked
a really tough question that I honestly not have the answer too. The
investigator looked at us waiting for the response and I sat there trying to
think of how to respond. It then just came to my mind that I should just tell
him that I didn’t have the answer and that, that answer would be good enough.
Thinking twice about how to answer, I decided that I would try to answer the
question to the best of my ability. As I began to answer the question I
immediately realized that I should have listened to the prompting that I got
from the Spirit to answer the question with a simple “I don’t know the answer”.
After the visit, I was really upset with myself for missing the prompting of
the Spirit that would have helped the investigator understand a little bit than
he did when we left. It made me ask myself the question “How many times a day
am I missing the simple promptings”. Throughout this past week I have realized
that there are so many times where a prompting will come, but I will just
dismiss it. In life, we are all given the gift of the Holy Ghost when we are
baptized and all have the right to receive the promptings of the Spirit.
Sometimes I think that it is so easy to just dismiss the promptings of the Spirit
when we are going through our days and miss out on opportunities. Something
that I am trying to work on currently is to recognize more the little
promptings. God loves us and he will use us to bless the lives of others, we
only need to be willing to listen to recognize the promptings. I love you all,
have a great week!
Love,
Elder Fawcett
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| Thanksgiving in Cusco |
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| Office Elders with President Herrera's Family |
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My Cusco District
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One of My Favorite Peruvian Dishes
Lomo Saltado |
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City of Pisaq
Pisac is a village in southern Peru’s Sacred Valley region. It's known for its lively handicrafts market in the main square. A path winds from the square past agricultural terraces up to Pisac Archaeological Park, a hilltop Incan citadel with ancient temples, plazas and the Intihuatana, a stone structure thought to have been a sundial. Views from the top stretch across the Quitamayo gorge and surrounding valley.
