Update

So I have updated my missionaries letters so please read from June 30 till this weeks. Sorry I am such a slacker.  Also please give extra prayers for Elder Franks, I think he is struggling just a little bit.  Thanks

Week of July 28, 2014

well family. this week was super difficult but i learned alot about patience. like you guys no I'm without a companion. and that means that i didn't work hardly at all in my area. but that's not the end of life, just have to keep going ha. so that sister said hi again and this week i will take a picture with the family so you know who they are. 

so as far as people, i really don't have anyone to write about either. but something that i was thinking about and actually I've been thinking about lots lately is well really you guys. i don't know today i just am full of emotion. and its not really trunky emotion because if i wanted that i would justy talk to elder palmer haha (the other greengo that is living with me). no but more of just who i was and who i am. actually elder palmer and i have kind of an inside joke thing. Elder Holland gave a talk once about the conversion of Peter. and in the talk and actually in the scriptures it says that we need to leave behind our nets like the first apostles had to do. and we've talked alot about how we have to leave behind our "nets" in life. and I've thought about that alot. when it gets to the point of me coming home there are several things that im going to want to make better in our family. "nets" that not only we might leave behind but nets that we should leave behind. I've learned that lesson pretty well and i have lots of net that I'm going to leave. the thing is is that we are all called to be missionaries whether we have a plack or not but how willing we are to actually do what god wants us to do. to put aside are wants to do what god wants. that's something i want to help change when i get back. 

i want you guys to know that i love you and i mean it. that i am so happy to be here even though its super hard when you don't have a companion, when you don't have water, when you feel down alot of times because you don't have people who are progressing. and many more things. I'm so grateful for the Gospel in my life and the chance that god gives me and everyone of his children to change and be better. 

so anyway i hope that everyone has a good week.

with lots of love,

from Colombia,

Elder Franks

Week 12, (July 28, 2014)

How is everyone? How was camping? 

I'm doing good. Working hard and loving life. 

Today was transfers and Hna. Francis went home. And Hna Rawlinson and Hna Brown leave the end of this month. Hermana Rawlinsons new companion is from Mexico. 

Yesterday we sang in sang in church and last night we had Family home evening with some members from our ward. There is one chico named Sergio who is waiting for his mission call. He submitted his papers and now is just waiting. 

It has been really cold this week.  And our apartment is like an ice cube. I am working really hard on my Spanish. It´s so hard but I love it. It´s funny because the more Spanish I understand the more i have to say. But sometimes i accidentally say things in English because i understand what they are saying and i forget that i dont always know how to answer in Spanish:) 

How was the family reunion? Tell me everything! How is everyone? I miss my family lots. I think about you alot. And i pray for you everyday. Me and my companion still have a few difficulties every know and again and i don't always understand why she does things but I love her. And we have good goals for this month so i have high hopes. 

Well I hope you are all good. And remember that I love you!

Much love, de Argentina,

Love hermana Franks

P.s. I was going to send pictures but I don't have the plug for the computer. We left our phone here earlier and so we were in a rush to get back to see if it was here. And it was so all is good:)

Week of July 21, 2014

hey my Family,

so right now I'm writing you guys from the mission offices. well to not explain too much, my companion is going home ha. this is like the fourth one that I've sent home:( its just that when there are disobedient missionary its better to send them to their sweet home. i feel bad because he was a good companion. um anyway we had a good week just teaching alot of people. we are teaching a couple, i think i have mentioned them before but we have been teaching Feddy and Smith. they are a couple. and they need to be married and then they can get baptised. she wants to get baptised but he doesn't want to get married right now. but I'm going to talk alot about that so that he changes his mind. but they are great. and ya. oh we still are having problems with the water in Santa Marta. and that's not very fun. but that's life.

um things are really good with the language. i speak basically perfect Spanish which is awesome. i love it, love English more, but love Spanish. i cant wait to be able to go to a Spanish restaurant and order in this language haha. anyway that's me this week. love you all and talk to ya next week.

with lots of love,

Elder Franks

P.S. i just saw my travel plans 

Week 11 (July 21, 2014)

Hola mi familia!! 

Wow how are things? I am doing so good. I can´t believe that I've already been here a whole month! Es muy loco!

Today we played fútbol with members and the elders from our district came to Palpalá to play with us also. It was so fun! Its very hot here. The weather is loco. Una día es muy color y the next day its very cold. It just cant make up its mind. If it´s already hot now i cant even imagine what it will be like in the summer....i might die!!!!

We are teaching a girl named Darling. I think i told you about her. She is supposed to get baptized this Saturday but she didn't come to church yesterday so we hope she will come so she can get baptized on the 2nd of august.

I am learning more and more Spanish every day. It´s definitely not easy and some days i really struggle but i have to remind my self that all things happen in the lord´s time. and that i need to have faith. I'm getting along with my companion OK. Sometimes its a little hard but I'm trying to have patience. Its hard for a couple of reasons. One her and the other hermanas are really close. Hermana Francis is her cousin and hermana Rawlinson was her companion before. And so they are are really close and they all speak Spanish.... Another reason is that hermana Francis goes home next week and both hermana brown and hermana rawlinson go home the next transfer.. which is in 6 or 7 weeks so they all have alot in common. Also hna. brown does listen to me alot of the time. But i still love her. She is a god companion and a really good missionary. I learn alot from her everyday. I also learn alot of things about myself. I´m really happy here in Argentina! 

The ward is great. And the food is great:) I have learned so much about the people and i just love it here.

Oh there is a family here in the ward, its a husband and wife. They both served missions and for some reason they have liked me since my first week here. The feed me aand hna brown lunch every week. They told the other hermanas that they only what to feed us. And not them....ya and they live on the other hermanas side of palpalá. 

Zone conference was really fun. President Chaparro is really great and his family is great also. He only has half a middle finger on his left hand. I don't know what happened though. Salt was really fun as well. OH its so beautiful. I love salta so much. I went with Hna Pérez. She is in our Zone. She is from chile and i love her so much. We really hit it off good. She is trying to learn English so she trys to talk to me in English and i talk to her in Spanish. Its great fun. 

SO how is Marisa? are her teeth ok? and how was youth conference for Mel? 

Oh how i miss my family. But i love Argentina! Latinos are sooo funny sometimes. Oh when we are walking down the street. Chicos always whistle and sometimes it creepy but for the most part its just funny. Oh the other night we were walking back to our apartment and we were talking about our lesson that we had with one of our investigators José. And hermana brown tripped and biffed it hard core. She just all of a sudden fell then just jumped right up.I was not sure how it happened, We laughed so hard. And there was a group of guys accross the street. And right after we ran into one of the members form our ward. Oh man it was a much needed laugh. She is fine. Nothing but her pride got hurt. 

Well i love you so much. And i hope you are all enjoying life. I know not nearly as much as me though:)

Mucho amor de Argentina!

Love, Hermana Franks

Week of July 14, 2014

hey hey whats up??? ???? so I'm doing really good with everything. my companion is good. he struggles alittle because he doesn't have very long in the church and his girlfriend left him last week. but ya we are good.

So I'm doing really good. my companion and i are good. we get along great. we also had a pretty good week. not anyone close to being baptised yet but we are working on it. so the picture of the food i am sending is the best thing that the have to eat here. its so so so good. i will explain more when I'm there but ya its good. what else oh ya one of the sisters in the branch says hi. she is a recent convert and she always asks about our families. before the last transfers i gave her a picture of all of us so that she would always remember us haha. um but ya. so as far as my feelings are going. i am starting to have flash backs and I'm starting to remember things i did before the mission and that part is hard but i love being here and i know that it is going to be super but super hard to leave. its definitely grown on me. (hahaha i don't remember how to write that last word ) but um ya that's me. 

as always i love you all and thank you for your prayers. tell the people that too.

Love from Colombia,

Elder Franks

Elder Franks favorite thing to eat in Colombia (head and all)

Always thinking of his sister

Week 10 (July 14, 2014)

Yes its true Argentina did not win. Today we played soccer with some meimbros. It was so fun! Oh dad yesterday i made us all some mountain man breakfast. Minus the meat because we don't have any but it had potatoes and eggs and onions and red bell pepper. It was so good! 

Things here are going really good. I am loving life. Tomorrow I have to go to Salta, I'm not really sure why. it has something to do with my papers to live here. But we will see. I am going with a different Hermana. Hermana Perez.i have met here before she is in my zone and she has been on divisiones with hermana Rawlinson before. She is super nice and it will  be great. I leave tomorrow at 9ish and we are staying the night in Salta and coming back on Thursday. We have a zone conference on Friday and my and hermana brown and the other 2 hermanas that live with us (hermana rawlinson and hermana Francis) are singing at the zone conference. Oh ya guess what! So every Sunday in church I have to lead the music in sacrament meeting. Hermana Brown and Hermana Rawlinson play the piano. one does the top hand and the other does the bottom hand. Its really fun.

Oh the other day we had locro for lunch. It has intestine and beans and stuff in it... Not my favorite let me just tell you. 

Here they eat alot of pasta and rice. Its not like mexican food though. I really like gizo. Its meats and pasta and vegetables. I don't know but its really yummy. The people are really great. I am understanding more and more each day. Oh the other day when we got home there was a party going on across the street. Like karaoke or something and it was super loud. It lasted till 5:00 int the morning and then after there were a whole bunch of dogs barking. We did not get a whole lot of sleep . Well i think i got more than the other Hermanas. But still it was rough. But I loved it. All part of the Adventure. I am so Happy! and I love it here. Oh mom we got propane and we had to buy a new oven but our new oven is not hooked up yet so we still don't have hot water but we boil water to shower with so not cold water but we still have to shower with a bucket. 

Much love from Argentina! Aka the best country in South America;)

Love hermana franks

Week of July 7, 2014

So once again we had transfers. and as far as those went i am in.........Santa Marta. haha cool I'm happy and things are good. we only have one more transfer left before i leave so I'm pretty sure that i will be staying here until i leave which will be fine with me really. um my new companion however, (ya my "son" left) is from Ecuador (did you guys know that that means equator in English?) and hes been in the mission for a year. hes good but i feel like we might have some bumps in the road but its all good as of now. I'm really feeling excited to get out and work. its crazy to think that i have only 11 weeks which really doesn't sound like a whole lot but then again it is 3 months. um oh ya Happy fourth of July i hope everyone had a great time. and i would love to see more pictures of the fam haha. um ya thats me, oh my health is alot better, i don't have the parasite but from that moment i haven't eaten a whole lot. i just don't get really hungry and when we eat i don't eat a whole lot because i get full really fast. i think its really just I'm super tired of eating the same five things everyday. but ya all is good. so like porky the pig says.... tha tha tha tha thats all folks hahahahahahah

i love you guys :)

from the first best country in south America

Elder Franks

New Companion

Me as Joseph Smith

Hello from Santa Marta

Week 9 (July 7, 2014)

Hola mi familia!!! How is everything in los Estados Unidos?

I am assuming you are doing well with your new PUPPIES!!! are you kidding me!!!??? this was your plan all along... wait till I'm miles away and then get puppies!!!!!! AHHH that is not very nice!!!!!

How was your 4th of July? We had a zone conference in Jujuy on the 4th but nothing special. 

We didn't have a baptism but hopefully we will have one soon. 

I'm doing good. Life is good here in Argentina. Oh Argentina won their soccer game the other day and everyone started cheering and honking their horns and then they formed a parade of cars and drove through the streets honking their horns and setting off fireworks. it lasted at least an hour. Then a couple days later it happened again:)  It fue muy loco. 

How was your 4th of July?

Well lots of love!! From the best country in south America:)

 Love, Hermana Franks

Hermana's in my Zone

See Cheese

Some of the Zone 1st time meeting my new mission president and SisterChaparro

My Zone

Week 8 (June 30, 2014)

How is everybody doing? This week was definitely easier. I am still struggling with the Language but I´m learning more and more each day. 

So we contact people mostly by references. There is such a need for missionary work here but it´s hard to teach. We find people and they let us in and we teach them a lesson, We set up a next appointment, then go back for the appointment and they are either not there or the a super busy. But we are planting seeds:)

We had a Baptism scheduled for this Saturday but I don´t know if its going to happen...he doesn't believe in Joseph Smith:(

Here milk comes in a bag or a carton...The milk in a carton is super gross!

And yogurt comes in a bag and is super thin. We are teaching this lady named Darling and the other day we were teaching her and she brought us yogurt to drink.....weird huh

Oh so last week we ran out of propane for our oven and didn´t get more for 3 days so we had to take freezing cold showers! But we got propane and so we are able to heat up water for showers. We still have to shower with a bucket because we still don´t have gas for our water heater yet. It has to have natural gas. 

The Bread here is sooo good and i love dulce de leche!!! 

Here they play music all the time and it´s usually American music... sometimes we have to start singing hymns so that we don´t sing the other songs..

The kids love the stickers!

Marisa would love it here there are horses that just roam all over. 

Everyone here rides motorcycles and sometimes we see 4 or 5 people on one motorcycle..plus their dog.

We live by the hospital.. our street name is Pilcomayo.

Here the barrios(neighborhoods) are called weird names like 25 DE Mayo (or the 25 of may... )

Mom-Mosiah 24:13-14,Jacob 3:1, D&C 58:2-4

Dad: Jeremiah 16:16

Brennan. D&C 105 (missionary work)

I love you guys sooo much!! Hope you have a good week and a great 4th of July! I can´t tell you how much I miss you all. But I am where I need to be and i am doing what i need to be doing! And i am happy!

Oh today we went to JuJuy to go shopping! Lots of fun!

Love-Hermana Franks