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| Farewell BBQ |
2 John 1:12 -- "Having many things to write unto you, I would not write with paper and ink: but I trust to come unto you, and speak face to face, that our joy may be full."
-Elder Crotzer
Saturday, August 1, 2015
Farewell BBQ and Last E-mail
2 John 1:12 -- "Having many things to write unto you, I would not write with paper and ink: but I trust to come unto you, and speak face to face, that our joy may be full."
-Elder Crotzer
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Getting "Trunky"
This week, we went to Coyhaique for the zone conference. We had the opportunity to work with some great missionaries, Elder Ryan, Elder Christiansen, Elder Peterson, and Elder Bustamante. The conference went great, and the intercambios were productive as well.
This coming week, we'll be doing the Puerto Montt zone conference, and planning cambios. I want to write a little guide to doing cambios as assistant, but we'll see if there's time.
Sister Obeso is doing everything she can to make me "trunky." (That's what it's called when you start thinking about going home, and life after the mission.) On the trip down to Coyhaique, the whole way she talked to me about choosing a good wife, and raising a family, etc. Since we were on a trunky subject, President Obeso and I had a good chat about his experience starting a business straight out of college. In Coyhaique, I dreamed that I was back home about to go back to school, but I hadn't paid any bills or registered for any classes, and I woke up in a cold sweat.
In spite of all that, I am still working hard. See y'all in two weeks.
-Elder Crotzer
This coming week, we'll be doing the Puerto Montt zone conference, and planning cambios. I want to write a little guide to doing cambios as assistant, but we'll see if there's time.
Sister Obeso is doing everything she can to make me "trunky." (That's what it's called when you start thinking about going home, and life after the mission.) On the trip down to Coyhaique, the whole way she talked to me about choosing a good wife, and raising a family, etc. Since we were on a trunky subject, President Obeso and I had a good chat about his experience starting a business straight out of college. In Coyhaique, I dreamed that I was back home about to go back to school, but I hadn't paid any bills or registered for any classes, and I woke up in a cold sweat.
In spite of all that, I am still working hard. See y'all in two weeks.
-Elder Crotzer
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Working with Elder Root
This week was pretty good. We did two more zone conferences, one in Osorno and one in Chiloe.
On Wednesday, we traveled to Chiloe and had the opportunity to work with the Elders in Ancud. I got to work with Elder Root.
Elder Root is very cool. It is hard for me to explain what Elder Root is like, but suffice it to say that he is very spiritual, and I love working with him.
I want to share a short excerpt from my journal from the day.
"Today we did intercambios with Ancud 2, and I went with Elder Root. It was awesome, I love Elder Root. We did a short practice and lesson plan in the house, and then we went to the appointment. We brought a member, Juan Carlos, to the lesson. Another member, Valeska, had invited her cousin to take the missionary lessons: Pati."
"The lesson went really well. Pati has sincere desire and Valeska and Juan Carlos bore testimony and shared great experiences. The practice and the lesson plan really helped Elder Root and I be more organized and unified."
There was a moment in the lesson when we explained about how one could come to know that these things were true, by the feelings in your heart. We explained to Pati the role of the Holy Ghost, and how she could pray to know that the Church and the Book of Mormon were true. She agreed to do so, and to accompany Valeska to church on Sunday. We could all feel the Spirit testify of the truthfulness of the Gospel.
I'm glad that I could work with Elder Root, and I'm glad that we were able to help Pati understand more about the Holy Ghost, and how she could come to a knowledge for herself.
-Elder Crotzer
On Wednesday, we traveled to Chiloe and had the opportunity to work with the Elders in Ancud. I got to work with Elder Root.
Elder Root is very cool. It is hard for me to explain what Elder Root is like, but suffice it to say that he is very spiritual, and I love working with him.
I want to share a short excerpt from my journal from the day.
"Today we did intercambios with Ancud 2, and I went with Elder Root. It was awesome, I love Elder Root. We did a short practice and lesson plan in the house, and then we went to the appointment. We brought a member, Juan Carlos, to the lesson. Another member, Valeska, had invited her cousin to take the missionary lessons: Pati."
"The lesson went really well. Pati has sincere desire and Valeska and Juan Carlos bore testimony and shared great experiences. The practice and the lesson plan really helped Elder Root and I be more organized and unified."
There was a moment in the lesson when we explained about how one could come to know that these things were true, by the feelings in your heart. We explained to Pati the role of the Holy Ghost, and how she could pray to know that the Church and the Book of Mormon were true. She agreed to do so, and to accompany Valeska to church on Sunday. We could all feel the Spirit testify of the truthfulness of the Gospel.
I'm glad that I could work with Elder Root, and I'm glad that we were able to help Pati understand more about the Holy Ghost, and how she could come to a knowledge for herself.
-Elder Crotzer
Saturday, July 11, 2015
Last Cambio
Last week, all of the new missionaries arrived and the old missionaries left. There was a short farewell for the leaving missionaries, and a few dear members friends from Rio Bueno came to say goodbye to Elder Dower and Hermana Ball. It was really good to see these special friends from Rio Bueno again, and we all took a Rio Bueno picture together.
The next day we went to the airport, and saw the old missionaries off as they boarded their flight. Right before they left, we sang two hymns in the airport lobby. There was a special spirit. We are really going to miss them.
And that's about it. We are doing zone conferences again.
The next day we went to the airport, and saw the old missionaries off as they boarded their flight. Right before they left, we sang two hymns in the airport lobby. There was a special spirit. We are really going to miss them.
And that's about it. We are doing zone conferences again.
Saturday, June 27, 2015
Flu Vaccines and Glacier
This week, Elder Medel and I went to Punta Arenas, where we finished off the lesson plan presentations. It was cool to see how the presentation has improved over the last five weeks, and it's hard to believe that we gave it for the last time.
On Thursday, we had the chance to work with Elder Hardy and Elder Salgado. It was good to have a full day to proselyte without any presentations or traveling.
On the way down to Punta Arenas, Elder Medel and I had to bring the flu vaccines to the missionaries, and the vaccines had to be kept in a certain cold temperature range. So we took them in a cooler with ice packs. We had to get the vaccines checked by the airline security (because they are needles). The airline security people wrapped the cooler in this super official-looking tape. When we got on board the plane, the lady sitting next to us saw the cooler, and then got up and found a different seat. I suppose it must have looked like we were transporting a heart or liver, or something like that.
Sometimes people see our name tags, and they ask if we are police. Maybe we are too serious? I think we need to smile more... just kidding.
On the way back from Punta Arenas, the skies were clear, and we saw a GLACIER. It was pretty cool.
So now Elder Medel and I are preparing to rinse and repeat [coordinate all the missionary transfers and assignments to new locations], one more time. I am really impressed with Elder Medel. He has some great ideas to revolutionize some leadership aspects of the mission. We are working really hard this week to prepare everything for Leadership Council next Friday, and then the next cycle of Zone Conferences.
Editor's note: To those who have been reading this blog, Thomas is down to his last "transfer period" or final six weeks in Chile. He will be returning home in early August.
On Thursday, we had the chance to work with Elder Hardy and Elder Salgado. It was good to have a full day to proselyte without any presentations or traveling.
On the way down to Punta Arenas, Elder Medel and I had to bring the flu vaccines to the missionaries, and the vaccines had to be kept in a certain cold temperature range. So we took them in a cooler with ice packs. We had to get the vaccines checked by the airline security (because they are needles). The airline security people wrapped the cooler in this super official-looking tape. When we got on board the plane, the lady sitting next to us saw the cooler, and then got up and found a different seat. I suppose it must have looked like we were transporting a heart or liver, or something like that.
Sometimes people see our name tags, and they ask if we are police. Maybe we are too serious? I think we need to smile more... just kidding.
On the way back from Punta Arenas, the skies were clear, and we saw a GLACIER. It was pretty cool.
So now Elder Medel and I are preparing to rinse and repeat [coordinate all the missionary transfers and assignments to new locations], one more time. I am really impressed with Elder Medel. He has some great ideas to revolutionize some leadership aspects of the mission. We are working really hard this week to prepare everything for Leadership Council next Friday, and then the next cycle of Zone Conferences.
Editor's note: To those who have been reading this blog, Thomas is down to his last "transfer period" or final six weeks in Chile. He will be returning home in early August.
Saturday, June 20, 2015
Week 5 - Coyhaique
Today Elder Medel and I got back from Coyhaique.
Coyhaique is a pretty isolated place, and I was surprised at how united the missionaries were in the zone. They all live about 2 hours apart from each other, but they seemed to be the best of friends and really close. Good job, Coyhaique! They're achieving great things.
This week Elder Medel and I helped President make the leadership and sector assignments for the coming transfer cycle. It looks like I'll be finishing my mission as assistant. It would have been cool to be a normal missionary for my last six weeks, but I'm content with my assignment. It will be good to keep learning more about leadership, and there are a lot of things that I would still like to do as assistant that I haven't had the time for... yet.
Elder Medel and I will be together for 3 cambios, and it's going to be great. We have the drill down, and we're starting to plan the zone conferences and zone leader council of the coming cambio. It's going to be sweet!
-Elder Crotzer
Coyhaique is a pretty isolated place, and I was surprised at how united the missionaries were in the zone. They all live about 2 hours apart from each other, but they seemed to be the best of friends and really close. Good job, Coyhaique! They're achieving great things.
This week Elder Medel and I helped President make the leadership and sector assignments for the coming transfer cycle. It looks like I'll be finishing my mission as assistant. It would have been cool to be a normal missionary for my last six weeks, but I'm content with my assignment. It will be good to keep learning more about leadership, and there are a lot of things that I would still like to do as assistant that I haven't had the time for... yet.
Elder Medel and I will be together for 3 cambios, and it's going to be great. We have the drill down, and we're starting to plan the zone conferences and zone leader council of the coming cambio. It's going to be sweet!
-Elder Crotzer
Saturday, June 6, 2015
How Lessons Plans Help Teaching
Elder Medel and I finished the second week of presentations on making good lesson plans. We are just enjoying P-day and not having to speak to a group of people right now. In the last 4 days, we spent a total of 16 hours presenting, so we are glad to not return to that routine until Tuesday.
As Elder Medel and I made the presentation, we both did some pretty profound studying on lesson plans, and their impact on the quality of teaching. Personally, I did some profound thinking about why and what we teach as missionaries, the goal of teaching in general, and how lessons plans help us achieve that goal.
My goal as a teacher is to correct misconceptions and change perspectives. The result is a change in attitude and behavior.
I teach the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ to help others prepare to be baptized.
Lesson plans help me organize my ideas, so that I can present them in an understandable manner to other people.
In the presentation, we talk about why lesson plans help us teach, what they consist of, and how we make them. After the presentation, we talk one-on-one with each companionship about their current lesson plans, and we encourage them to improve based on what they learned. Then we show them an example lesson plan, and analyze how the lesson plan enhances the quality of the teaching.
There are many ways to create a lesson plan, and all the missionaries should find a way that works for them. My example lesson plan is a detailed analysis of two verses of scripture. It is a series of 9 questions that guide the student through a process of
1. Focusing on a sentence or phrase of the verse,
2. Analyzing how that phrase or sentence teaches a doctrine or principle,
3. Applying the doctrine or principle to life,
4. Committing him to make the change to his everyday behavior based on the now-correct understanding of the doctrine.
Amid the questions and verses, I have sprinkled some analogies and examples, as well as a few definitions of difficult-to-understand words or phrases. It's not a comprehensive example that includes everything a lesson plan might consist of, but the missionaries generally seem to like it, and it gets their ideas flowing on how they would like to modify their lesson plans. One sister missionary told me that I should be a schoolteacher... or a salesperson. We'll see, Hermana.
I'm glad for the opportunity to be able to learn so much about teaching and learning.
-Elder Crotzer
As Elder Medel and I made the presentation, we both did some pretty profound studying on lesson plans, and their impact on the quality of teaching. Personally, I did some profound thinking about why and what we teach as missionaries, the goal of teaching in general, and how lessons plans help us achieve that goal.
My goal as a teacher is to correct misconceptions and change perspectives. The result is a change in attitude and behavior.
I teach the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ to help others prepare to be baptized.
Lesson plans help me organize my ideas, so that I can present them in an understandable manner to other people.
In the presentation, we talk about why lesson plans help us teach, what they consist of, and how we make them. After the presentation, we talk one-on-one with each companionship about their current lesson plans, and we encourage them to improve based on what they learned. Then we show them an example lesson plan, and analyze how the lesson plan enhances the quality of the teaching.
There are many ways to create a lesson plan, and all the missionaries should find a way that works for them. My example lesson plan is a detailed analysis of two verses of scripture. It is a series of 9 questions that guide the student through a process of
1. Focusing on a sentence or phrase of the verse,
2. Analyzing how that phrase or sentence teaches a doctrine or principle,
3. Applying the doctrine or principle to life,
4. Committing him to make the change to his everyday behavior based on the now-correct understanding of the doctrine.
Amid the questions and verses, I have sprinkled some analogies and examples, as well as a few definitions of difficult-to-understand words or phrases. It's not a comprehensive example that includes everything a lesson plan might consist of, but the missionaries generally seem to like it, and it gets their ideas flowing on how they would like to modify their lesson plans. One sister missionary told me that I should be a schoolteacher... or a salesperson. We'll see, Hermana.
I'm glad for the opportunity to be able to learn so much about teaching and learning.
-Elder Crotzer