Elder Simon Taylor's Best Two Years

¡Buenos Días!-- for those of you who are getting this in the morning ¡Buenos Tardes!-- for those of you are reading this in the afternoon ¡Buenos Noches!-- for those of you who are reading this at night  WOW what a crazy week (or two)!! First things first, I´m sorry I didn´t send pictures last week. We went to the temple, so I´ll get some out ASAP!  Last time I emailed about learning to love others that you don´t feel like need love. I hope you all were able to feel that that is a very important skill to have in order to become more like our Heavenly Father. This week is gonna be a bit different. The last couple weeks have been pretty rough. It´s been difficult learning Spanish, obviously, but I feel now like I have hit a wall. I can´t understand the difference between Preterit sentences and Imperfect sentences. (If anyone has tips or tricks, I´m more than willing to listen!) However, going to the temple helped me get a different perspective on things. ¨Mediant...

Hi everyone! Just got into week four here at the CCM and it´s a blast! Still can´t understand how to work the Spanish computer, so bear with me. You´re probably wondering why my title is cookies. Well... my companion really loves cookies! I have learned over the past week how to love those I am serving with. Elder Turner and I get along really well, but I recognized that I can always love a little more. It´s been a struggle recently because I´m a really organized person and it´s hard living with people who are not that way, AND also haven´t ever done their own laundry in their entire lives (as of yet)! I learned that I can love and serve others more than I am now. I did Elder Atkin´s laundry for him (he´s one of my roomies). He has been sick the ENTIRE four weeks we´ve been here and it´s just one thing to the next. I´ve talked with people in my district about how to deal with girl problems! You know when you have the spirit with you when you have no idea how to deal with those. L...

Here are the pictures we got from Simon's first visit to the Mexico City Temple!

Posting extra pictures so they can be in one place! These are from other elders in his district. It is fun to get more pictures, no matter who they are from! Simon's friend from high school, Matt Boggess, arrived at the MTC this week and Simon's companion took a picture. So great to see familiar faces! The others are pictures of volleyball and scenery at the CCM:

Buenos Dias todos personas!  Wow what a crazy week... it's been good, but hard at the same time. It's a hassle to be able to keep a house clean, let alone my own room. But that's just great! Isn't it?  This week we had a devotional with Elder Valenzuela of the Seventy (I think, I can't remember though) and he talked about the earthquake. Here are some facts... 1) 2.6 million people were injured/affected by the earthquake 2) only three people died in the earthquake 3) EVERY missionary in that earthquake was perfectly fine. No injuries whatsoever.  These are really important to recognize in our lives, and I would like to do a weekly challenge for everyone.  This week's challenge is to recognize the Lord's protecting hand in your life. The Lord protected these missionaries just like he did Shadrack, Mishak, and Abednigo (I know I butchered those names). I know without a doubt that God is protecting all of us here at the CCM. It rains like 80% ...

Hi everyone! Wow what a crazy first week! First off, don't live in Mexico. The drivers can be a little crazy. Second, it is amazing here at the CCM (Mexico MTC) and I have made so many friends and learned more Spanish in two weeks  than I did in 3 years in high school . Other than that I really don´t know what to talk about, cause... this is my first email.  For the first week I immediately had stomach problems, but it´s okay; Elder Atkin gave me some Doterra stomach pill thing and I started to feel better. It´s rough here, but I love it at the same time. The Spanish is difficult, but it´s alright, I´m doing something great.  Well, I only have so much time today cause I´ve been trying to figure out this Spanish keyboard, but I´ll get it eventually. Love you all and thank you for your support!! Some pictures from the week: Mexico!  Picture taken at the airport. Elders: Atkin, Cebollero, and Turner CCM exterior Me ...