Changes

[Email dated Saturday, 7/26/14]

With Elder Romero at the airport

Hey, just so you all know, I’m not being a "chambon" (or, for those of you who don’t know Spanish jungle slang, a disobedient person).  My P-day (personal day) has now changed and my emails may be a little more sporadic in the future.  Let me explain:

So as you all know by now, last week I had my interview with President and he asked me to extend.  What he really did was ask me if I was willing to extend and if there was anything essential that I would have to do in that time.  He asked me to think about it and said that he would also think about it.  So, I figured that there was something that he needed or wanted me to do with that extra time, but I figured that he would want to have me train another new missionary or he would want me to go to another zone as a Zone Leader and needed that extra change for timing. But, I must confess, I didn’t really think too much about it.  

On Monday, everything was going as normal, email in the morning and P-day in the afternoon, etc.  At about 6, we were in the clinic with a sister who had some weird health stuff going on and we were in the waiting room when we got a call from President Gomez.  I left the room for a second and he started out by asking me how my P-day was and then he asked me to be the new assistant [one of two missionaries that serve in the office with the Mission President and help him oversee the mission at large, often referred to as an “AP” or Assistant to the President].  He told me that I would be leaving the next day to go to Iquitos and that was about it for the call.

So yeah, now I'm here in Iquitos in the offices and I will basically always write you now on Saturdays, unless I’m travelling, which will be about half of the time.  So, I can’t really predict what days or what time I’ll always be able to write.  Just assume that it’ll be on Saturdays in the morningish....

I left on Tuesday.  I was leaving at 12ish, so I was in the district meeting for a little bit and when we left I just told everyone that I was going to go and do some marriage paper stuff in the municipality for the wedding that should be starting in about an hour.  I left instructions with my companion to just tell everyone this week that I am in Campo Verde with a member because I wasn’t supposed to really tell anyone out there that I was leaving.  I have called him since and supposedly everyone bought it, which is pretty funny.  One of the missionaries who is finishing their mission actually got to the mission offices yesterday and they didn’t know that I was here.  It was kinda funny.  

With my new companion, Elder Anderson, in the mission office

Since I got here I have been with President every day.  He's been doing interviews and I have been talking to a lot of missionaries and kinda getting to know them because I haven’t been in Iquitos for over a year.  I know like 10% of them, so its a big task because I have to get to know all of them.  So that’s my story.  I’m here in the offices and I will be here for the next 4.5 months until I end in December, which is why President asked me to extend.  My companion is Elder Anderson and I am replacing Elder Thompson, who I had also replaced in Nueva Cajamarca.  There are 3 Secretaries here: Elder Scott, Elder Medina and Elder Zamalloa.  I’m just glad that I wont really be in the offices for that long because I will usually be travelling or doing other things...lots of travelling actually.  After these 2 weeks, I should be travelling for the next 2 or 3 weeks depending on the planning that we will have a little later today. 

While I was here yesterday, Elder Villar and Elder Lee were both here so I got a picture with both of the missionaries that I trained.  I didn’t even know if i was going to get to see Elder Villar again, so that was good.

I love you guys and I won’t really get to see your emails for another week....that’s just what happens when I get an emergency change and my P-day gets changed.  Have a great week!!!

Elder Peacock

PS.  Take a note of the fine selection of ties Elder Peacock is sporting in each of the pictures above.  Each one a candidate in its own right for HAIR TIE.