Christmas night... and week 3 in La Piedad...

Hi mom! can i just start off by saying im sorry for being the punk teenage kid that i was growing up? always secluding myself and never really wanting to talk to anyone, wow do i wish i could go back and give myself a kick in the rear right now haha. its funny because all i wish i could do now is call you everyday and tell you how my day went and what happened and whats stressing me and just everything like that, something i really wish now i wouldve taken advantage of while i was home. too bad i had to go 2000 miles away to learn just how much i love my parents and how grateful i am for everything they did for me growing up, and everything they gave me and supported me in. it really means the world to me at this point in my life right now. and also thank you and tell everyone that i said thank you for praying for me every night and always keeping me in your hearts and prayers, i can definitely feel it helping me out, like theres something else that is just pushing me to keep going, and i know its my family at home, so thank you all so much. well now ill tell you about the past few days! so starting off after we talked and while we were on the bus to the investigators house i just smiled and decided i was going to be happy about everything because that would help time go by faster and make things better for me! well that lasted about a whole 10  minutes haha. we got to the investigators house and they werent home! and we tried calling them and they didnt answer! and these are the investigators that live very far away and its christmas night at about 730 so there are no buses and hardly any taxis, so instead of getting a good christmas dinner we got a christmas workout! we got to walk home for an hour to our casa, by which point my feet were absolutely killing me, and i was trying to have a good attitude about it but that didnt last long. so that was fun. thenay we probably walked the most we have in a day while on this mission so by the end of it i had a rash like none other which i still kinda have and i have 2 blisters on the right foot and a blister on the left so thats fun! but hey on the bright side my shin splints went away! and me and my companion also got to be the people who watch the baptism and make sure its done right for the other companionship in la piedad. then yesterday was just an average  day. and im not gonna lie it was really hard  i was really homesick, i could still see you guys waving goodbye to me and i had alot of time for my mind to wander during studyand church so it was kinda hard, but im better now! it really helps that im emailing right now that makes me feel alot better! so a few other things can i wash my church pants? i kindof already did haha, all the guys in the mtc did so i figured its ok to do the pants but not the coat, oh and also i dont think me or you realised it but all the book of mormons you gave me are in english... and everyone here speaks spanish haha. its ok though maybe ill find someone eventually over these 2 years who speaks english. oh and also when we checked the place where we email on saturday they said they hadnt found a cord so i just bought another for like 55 pesos which wasnt bad at all, but then coming in to email today they found it! so i have two cords now so no worries there! oh i think youll also be proud of me because me and my companion cleaned our casa this morning for an hour and a half! so its pretty clean now and i like it that way. well yeah thats kinda it haha. im doing good though now dont worry. i just miss you guys alot and love you all and hope your all doing well!

 i know that this mission is definetely going to prepare me for life and i keep telling myself that if theres one thing that this mission will teach me its patience haha! especially with my companion, another example of how my patience for him is that our church starts at 8 in the morning and he told me the first week that he likes to be a half hour early, well last week we barely made it and this week we were 5 minutes late, i got up at 630 when my alarm went off and was ready at 720 to go, but he sets his alarm for 550, doesnt get up until 630, then isnt ready till 745 and then the whole way to church he walks way fast and way far in front of me like its my fault were late! so yeah its teaching me patience thats for sure. but its ok ill get through it! i sure hope you guys get through it at home because its true theres all this stuff for missionaries to help them deal with homesickness, i guess thats where the holy ghost and jesus christ come in right? love you all hope your all doing well! i love you so much and ill keep smiling dont worry! i hope you all have a great week as well and have a great fun and safe new years! tell everyone i miss them and love them! Love Elder Griffin

Kaden said that milk comes in pouches, and he is getting a better immune system by the foods he's eating in Mexico!  

These are the different areas in his mission.  It looks to be a large mission!

Christmas Skype time...

Kaden is doing great in La Piedad, Mexico.  He has a smile that still lights up the room! So proud of our Missionary and his choice to serve our Heavenly Father and to bring others the joy and happiness that we have, knowing we are an Eternal Family!

I told Kaden to go to Walmart and buy a Christmas presents for his and his companion, and to get his stockings that I sent with him out and hang them up.  Hence, the Walmart picture and the stockings on the wall.  Wonderful Missionaries!

Elder Griffin's apartment in La Piedad Mexico is the pink colored home with the white doors and with what Kari says looks like bullet holes riddled above the door. Although Kaden is doing great there and feels its a safe area. We love you bud:)

Hey everyone! so wow this first week in the mission field sure has been something else! first off i just wanna say i cant wait to facetime home! i think its funny and a few other guys have joked that right as were getting homesick we get to see our families to make us even more homesick haha! no but i am so excited! well my spanish is coming, slowly though haha, and talking to others it might be 6 months before i can talk well but it will eventually come. weve been walking alot and i do mean alot. my feet are often killing and i have bad shin splints but hey im not gonna let that get me down. the food down here so far hasnt been terrible. we eat with a member everyday down here and they always make sure you leave before you go so thats nice i havent had to buy alot of food yet. also you all dont need to worry about what i do for water because they gave us a filtered water bottle in the mtc that i use all the time! as far as me and my companion go we get along fine, he usually just teaches most of the lesson then i share a quick thought or scripture so it works out haha. oh and we just had a zone conference so for two nights we had to stay in another elders apartment. the first night it was 6 elders and two beds, the second night it was 8 elders to two beds haha. i ended up sleeping on a table that was about 4 feet long and maybe two feet wide, with my feet resting on an ironing board. just one of the first of many funny stories ill have to tell on this mission! well love you and hope you all have a great week! FELIZ NAVIDAD! Love Elder Griffin.

Hey everyone! so wow i think that mexico is about as different from america as can get! so to start off i left the mtc in mexico city by a bus that left at 330 in the morning, i left their with my companion,Elder Emery, and three other guys who were going to guadalajara as well, Elder Hermann and Elder Smith who were in my district and Elder Horne who was in a different district. our flight left there at about 8 but it was scheduled to leave at 7, we didnt even star loading until 715! so yeah then i got to the mission and was greeted by the mission president and two of his assistants! oh and i should say i only slept about 30 maybe 60 minutes during the night because i was packing and then the whole hour long flight, so the whole day is running off of two hours of sleep! but we got to the mission home dropped off our stuff and drove to a chapel like place close by for lunch and we stayed there all day for meetings and orientation and interviews and stuff like that! we ate dinner at about 6 then took a public bus back to the mission home. by this point i got my companion who ill tell you about now. his name is Elder Richart and hes a very nice guy and when we got put together he was happy and hugging me and had a big smile on his face so i like him alot and we are getting along really well, hes been here 3 months and since he is a native and speaks little english we can hardly understand each other but we make it work. but i ended up staying the night in the apartment of some other elders that night and i wrote in my journal once i got there and passed out at about 930 on the floor. oh did i mention the place was filthy? thats coming from me. so i survived got up at 630 and had to catch a bus at 8, which we barely made it to, for about two hours to the next bus depot. from there we went to a district meeting sort of, and then companion study/planning. then we took another hour and a half bus ride to our mission home, i had to pull all my luggage up a really steep rocky road until finally we called a cab to take us to our front door, i only had time to change my shirts, throw on deodorant and cologne, unpack my side bag a bit because it was packed to the brim, and then we were off! we walked probably 15 minutes to the house of a members who fed us beans chicken tortillas and something really good that was two tortillas with mayo tomato and cheese in the middle! we shared a quick lesson and then were off to the next house. we stopped at a house and this door was so tiny i had to take by bag off of my back and go in sideways, trust me i tried going in straight on, it didnt work haha. so we were there so my companion could get some christmas movies put on a flashdrive to share with another family. after that we took a bus to a members house, we were there for probably 60 minutes, tried to get the movies to work for 20, ended up just sharing a quick scripture, and i only talked for maybe 5 minutes. that member then took us home in the most beatun up car i had ever seen. we then walked up a mountain basically to quickly visit the ward mission leader.when we got home i was able to take a warm shower but hardly any water was coming out so that was fun. oh i should also mention that each person had me pray in their house we went to to see how good my spanish was. i did ok, i hope haha. then last night after making my bed and showering i went to sleep, and i slept like a baby. this morning it was freezing cold when we got up, but we got up i shaved got ready for the day then did an hour of personal study, an hour of companion study, and an hour of language study. we then went and got our money from the atm that we get for food and things like that. we ended up walking about an hour from our casa to get here to email. so this is my first few days in mexico! wish me luck because im gonna need it haha. im really missing you all at this time and sure am missing home. Love you all. Love Elder Griffin.

Temple square

Enjoying family time at temple square. We're missing our Kaden though. Although it was a great day.

More pictures from Week 5... Mexico MTC Christmas Lights...

Hey everyone! so this week is my final week in the mtc! which means that the next time i email i will be in Guadalajara! i dont know when i will be able to email though so you'll all just have to watch for my emails. These last few days have been the same as all the others! not a whole lot going on except that this Sunday before we leave we get to participate in the Tijuana temple dedication! so that ll be fun and exciting and so im pumped for that! i leave the mtc on Monday morning at 330 and so im assuming my flight will leave at 6 or 7 in the morning. im so excited to get out of here and be outside these walls! if i haven't told you before ill say it now, we call this place spirit prison because by the time you leave here anyplace seems like heaven haha. also they have a water treatment plant next to the mtc so it often smells really bad here, and thats coming from a guy who grew up next a dairy! but im surviving. im in the home stretch now! i really am so excited to leave though and get to Guadalajara and meet my new companion and see where ill be staying and where ill be working and teaching for the next 2 years! oh also i got a haircut just barely! at first i thought the lady was gonna bald me! but i dont think it looks too bad now and ill send some pictures of it after this email. love and miss you all! Ill cya all next week in Guadalajara! Love Elder Griffin.

Before

 Messing with Elder Herrmman while he's sleeping in class!!

 After...

Kadens email to Kari.
Sounds like alot of fun! makell sent me the picture she took of her and ali and lindsey together. and my hand is doing ok my finger still tightens up every day but i just work it out its fine though. sorry i wasn't able to write at all! i was mad too when they told us that they changed our p day again. i sure wish they would figure out what they're doing haha. i miss you all too so much and i pray about you every day! how is everything going at home? anything going on or is it just same old same old? i got 5 handwritten letters so far from you. one from you one from makell one from kylee and two from lindsey. tell lindsey that im doing really good here and that i have made alot of friends here as well and that im happy she lost her tooth! hopefully she got some money from the tooth fairy. i cant wait to get to the mission field and see the packages you sent me! hopefully ill get them both. I should if you put a sticker on it of jesus because everyone says thats what you have to do. Tell everyone i love them all so much and miss them all!

Hey everyone! sorry i emailed on Thursday this week! they switched our p day up again because we had to go to immigration today to figure out our visas and get it all finalized. This week has basically just been like any other though! thanksgiving here was actually alot better than i thought it would be! they gave us a great thanksgiving lunch! we got turkey and mashed potatoes and pumpkin and apple pie! it was easily the best meal ive had since ive been here and i definetly filled myself up that meal. we had a great devotional by dallin h oaks that day as well with some great musical numbers! and sunday we watched meet the mormons for our sunday movie. for those that havent seen it i highly recommend it its a great movie! it tells the story of 6 different mormons and its just a great testimony builder and i especially liked the last person they did it on. i dont want to spoil it but it just really touched home and it makes me want to go out and serve others and hopefully change their lives! i leave the ccm/mtc on December 14th and fly to guadalajara! im very excited to get outside these walls here. everyone has started calling it spirit prison haha. But at the same time i am very nervous to go out and actually teach real people. it will be an adventure thats for sure. Ive only gotten to be outside these walls twice. once when i went to the temple and today when we went to immigration. this is nothing like the US. They drive crazy down here! and theirs advertisements left and right! and im sure ill have alot more to learn about mexico once i get to the field!. Well i love you all and i hope youre all doing good! oh i also found out that ill probably be coming home either october 8th or 9th 2017! we figured out the transfer dates on our calendar haha. so that just means one month down only 22 to go! Miss you all and ill write you next week! Love Elder Griffin

hey everyone! so the reason i am writing on tuesday today instead of on thursday is because everyone who was in our old zone left so we got switched to a new zone yesterday, so instead of being district 4a we are now district 7c. so we got a new classroom and a new schedule and everything so yeah thats about the most exciting thing that has happened. besides that its been a pretty boring week not a whole lot going on. just learning more and more spanish every day and studying the scriptures. we watched the movie the restoration sunday night and its about joseph smiths trials and all the first members trials that were persecuted and some even killed because of their beliefs. crazy to think about. It made me think that im pretty grateful that i can do what im doing and not have to fear for my life. Also makes me think that two years of my life given to this true church is nothing in comparison. everything is going good down here! really missing everyone! weve started singing more and more christmas songs here and that doesnt really help with the homesickness but oh well haha. its pretty crazy to think that im halfway through my time here at the mtc. i leave december 14th and i cant decide if im excited for it or not haha. guess i will find out! also ive been talking with alot of guys here about hunting and what we would hunt and where wed go before we left so thats been on my mind too alot lately. I sure hope they do something for us on thursday though but i guess we will see! but yeah im doing good not much else to say. Hope everything at home is going well and everyone is doing good! i still dont think ive realized yet though that im here for two years. pretty sure my mind and body still think im supposed to go home in a few weeks. maybe once i get to the mission field itll kick in haha. love you all sending my love and prayers! Love Elder Griffin

Hey mom! so yeah suprise im actually writing today! since everyone else in our zone of 4a left we got switched to zone 7c and that changed our schedule so my p day will now be on tuedsay for the next few weeks. Thanks for all the pictures i loved them all! it made me happy to see all my friends and family. Kylee sure did look cute for her dance! im glad she had lots of fun and was being safe! tell her that i always had as much fun as possible but i was always home by 12 or 1 if i text you! i also love what you did to the living room! it sure looks alot different than i left it! makes me really miss home seeing all the stockings up, including mine. but glad to see everything at home is going well! so yes i did get the krispy kremes on friday! thank you so much! it was awesome and all the guys in the district loved them! as far as the pouch mail no i have not gotten anything! like i said everyone here has told me it takes 6 weeks for just a letter to get here so i dont know that those letters will get here before i leave. but yeah im doing good ill send pictures in a bit and the weekly email. Love Elder Griffin

Second Week Letter...

Hey! so wow this is now my second p day so i guess i only have 98 more to go! haha everything here is going great im eating plenty even though sometimes its not the best food in the world but ill survive. Sure miss some home cooking and fast food restaurants haha. This last week has been pretty okay just same old schedule of classes and excercize and stuff like that. We had our first trc last night and i dont know what it stands for but it was just teaching investigators so me and my companion prepared a lesson for  a lady and it went good and was awesome she was already gonna get baptized in 15 days anyways so we just answered questions but yeah that was good, what was scary is we all got done at the same time and my teacher said ok good switch companionships and go again! so me and isaac went and taught another lady having about 10 seconds of prep time but it all went well the next lady had been a member for 10 years so we werent worried when we found that out we just talked after that. Oh also my investigator earlier who i said was a good actor, yeah he was real good because he is now our night teacher haha. Oh well it was cool to get to teach someone. Ive gotten back into lifting here again which is great since the  last time i lifted was football season a year ago haha. oh and we went to the mexico city temple this morning!! it was so cool and so spiritual. the temple was beautiful and the celestial room was magnificent. ill send you the pictures i took in a little bit. But besides that it was a pretty normal week! nothing really is different since im a district leader except we interview everyone once a week just to make sure their ok and yeah thats basically it. im glad kylee gets to be the taxi now haha! now she might know what its like to get to be the family taxi. but good for her glad shes doing good just make sure shes safe.  And yes mom we have an awesome relationship as companions. we all basically bully each other but we couldnt be closer. Hows everyone doing and whats everyone up to this week? hows the weather and hows the pheasant hunting too? i miss home and i miss you all so much hope all is going well there because im fine down here. Love you guys have a great week! Love Elder Griffin