July 18th

So that marble platter is pretty impressive but it would be nice to see it for real. I am sure that it is going to be a great addition  to what is going to be an incredible house. I am really happy to know that you are enjoying all the movies that are coming out. The members here always like to talk to me about movies because they know that I was a movie fanatic before the mission so they like sharing their opinions with me about such-and-such movie. A lot of members here have been talking about the new transformers, Harry Potter, and the new XMen movie. I want to one of them to see Cars 2 and fill me in on how it is. If there is one movie I want on the top of my movie list, it is Cars 2.
Wow, so it is nice to hear that you got such a flattering letter from President Humphrey. I am just trying to do what I was called to do but if people see that I have talents and abilities that I don't know about, I will happily keep trying to use them as best as I can. I feel that I really am uncovering and unlocking a lot of abilities I never really knew I had but I am far from a perfect missionary but I am doing my best.
So this week was really interesting. Chile was playing the La Copa America and was doing really well which was really exciting because the chileans were getting really into the games. When Chile scored, you could hear EVERYONE yelling while we were walking in the streets. Unfortunately it made it a lot harder to work on game days. Last night Chile lost to Venezuela which was disappointing but it is at least going to make it easier to work.
It has also been a lot colder recently which means that people are staying inside more and it has been a lot easier to do contacts BUT our house is really cold at night. We have an electric heater that we turn on every morning as we wake up and at night was we get home to warm up our bedroom. Sadly, the rain and cold keep even the most active of members from coming to church so this Sunday, our ward which normal has an attendance of 120+ only had 90. That was sad but winter only lasts so long and hopefully things will warm up here soon.
Random story. So there is a member of our ward who served his mission in the states and speaks English pretty well. He is a really great guy and he was hired to help a hotel make some official announcements about the hotel's reopening in English and Spanish. Well, they needed a recording in English to put on their website and on their phone lines to announce the reopening. Well, the member asked me to read something in English, heard my voice and said "I NEED YOUR VOICE!"  (Chileans find my voice fascinating for some reason. They ask me to speak in English so they can listen to the tone of my voice. Apparently that is just another one of those random talents that you stumble upon while on your mission.) He asked me help write and then record the announcement. He was really excited to have me help him out and we had a little bit of a bonding moment. As missionaries, we look for service opportunities on every street corner, but who would have thought that all I would have to do was talk.
So, it is sad hearing that your parents are slowing down but they're still kicking so I'm not going to complain. Good luck with your meetings Dad. I know that you are going to be stressed and probably even a little upset this week but it wont last forever.
Love,
Elder McNeil