August 8th, 2011

La Familia!
first off, WOW Brianne Stokes is going on a mission! that is so crazy, but so AWESOME!!!!

well i am doing fantastic!!! everything is going great here. well i am so so sorry that my email last week was so so short. well i really dont like transfers that much now. yes i am back in Delicias but a different ward. i was in Barrio Juarez but now i am in Barrio panamericano. my area is big and yes we have bikes. my companion now is Elder Carrillo. he is a big guy but very funny. he has a lot of animo when he talks with people. he is a great guy. he is also helping me with my spanish because it isnt the greatest. well my feet are doing great. they have healed and i did take a picture. its got a lot of pics and i have a ton of other SD cards. so i will try to send it home soon.
oh by the way, i forgot to get a letter for jeff sent this week, so i will try to send next week. i feel so so so bad about how terrible i have been with writing letters. i have been so so busy. i dont see how derek was so good at that. it is something really hard to do!!!! so congrats to him!!!!

oh in my next package (when you send one) could you send the conference ensign and maybe some more sunscreen? and more candy of course

well being back in Delicias has been great so far. my area needs a lot of work, but our church is being remodeled so we are in the same building as my last area. our sacrament service is at 8 in the morning, so this will be harder to get investigators in church. but the two wards overlap and i got to see my old barrio. it was GREAT. i saw some of my old investigators and members. its was great because when i left, that week i was going to have 3 people baptized but i was transfered. well Fabiola was one of them and she is married to an inactive member and she was baptized and now they are REALLY strong in the church. she has a really strong testimony. i also got to see the other little girl that i was going to baptize (Vanessa). she and i were both happy to see each other. she is a little shy though.
but ya it has been great to be back.

oh my area is almost the same as the other one here, but there are more poor people. like the houses are the same but there are more poor people hanging around here. a lot of them are Chileros. people that pick chile all day. i have taught this one outstanding family and they are really poor. they live in this place that is kind of like a hotel but they live there. its like off of the movie THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS. two of the kids were baptized but the parents werent. the parents have STRONG testimonies but they cant be baptized because they arent married. the husband is from some other country and doesnt have his papers. its so sad that they have such strong testimonies but cant be baptized. but i have seen some weird stuff with these poor people like some sleeping on the side walk and another bathing in the canal. that would be nasty!!!! i would understand more if it was like the canals in boise but here they are disgusting!!!
well i better go. i love you all and miss you tons¡!!!!
Elder Barnes
thanks for everything