With Change Comes Traveling

[Email dated 1.6.14]

Hey!
This week I finally got another change.  After almost 14 months, I am only in my 3rd area with my 6th companion.  There are some missionaries that have that in like 6 months.  I've loved my areas, so I'm cool with it.  I am now in Pucallpa in the Zone Yarinacocha and I'm a Zone Leader [areas are organized into districts, which are organized into zones, which are interested into missions.  Each level has leadership responsibilities culled from the missionary pool].  My companion is Elder Burleson who is actually from my group, meaning we started together and it's great.  We look fairly similar and we both are somewhat similar people, so it's actually really cool and it's going to be awesome being with him. 

On Monday we received the changes and I went around to say goodbye  to people in my area and converts and then the next day I traveled, a lot.  I had a total of 3 hours in a car and then 2 flights to get to Pucallpa (with a connection in Lima) and we got here at night really late just in time for the new year.  The next day we got to travel again to Iquitos for a Conference for Leaders of the Mission (ZLs and some Sister leaders) and then we were there all day on Thursday and back to Pucallpa on Friday.  It was basically 4 days of travelling—which is just a lot.  It was actually really cool to be in the conference.

So Pucallpa is hot.  Right now it's nice, everyone is just telling me that it's a fluke and it'll be getting hot again in a couple of days and then I'm just going to die.  It's also a lot bigger than Nueva Cajamarca.  I was used to this little place with one branch [small congregation] out in the middle of nowhere and now I'm in a city with a stake [a stake is a regional organization of wards, or congregations] and 2 zones...it's a much different atmosphere for sure.  It should be really cool and I'm excited to be here.

Love you guys!!!
Elder Peacock

PS So, your packages you sent are in Iquitos and I should get them in like 3 weeks when the assistants come out here to Pucallpa and at the latest I’ll get them at the beginning of next month when I go to Iquitos.  Since I'm a ZL now, we go to Iquitos for a council so I'll get to go there a lot more often now.  [Well, at least we know the CHRISTMAS packages arrived.  And just in time for Valentine’s Day…]