Merry Christmas

We were able to Skype with Dallin this morning! It was so great to see him and hear how he's doing. Today the missionaries were Skype-ing with their families and then they were going to teach later. All the missionaries were able to have a Christmas dinner at their Mission President's house and he said it was delicious! Dallin said he was interested to see what Christmas would be like in the mission field and he said of course it's different but in a good way. He said he's been studying a lot about the Atonement lately and encouraged us to study more on the Atonement as well. His testimony is growing and it's great to see that. He wishes everyone a Merry Christmas!

Temple Visit

First off, I apologize for not sending an email last week or updating the blog...Dallin's email last week was so brief and about 4 sentences long, he didn't have new things to say. This week's email isn't much different. We will have to discuss this issue more when we talk to him next week for Christmas :)
Dallin was able to go to the El Salvador temple for the first time and really loved it. It is such a gorgeous temple. Also a couple scary moment this week, he was in his first earthquake! I'm guessing it wasn't a very large earthquake, thank goodness. One day when they were on the bus, 3 men got on the bus with guns!!! Dallin didn't realize what was happening and their stop was coming up so he just said to one of the gunman "excuse me, I need to get off here." In the meantime, his companion jumped off the bus while it was still moving! Glad to hear they're both ok.
They are having success with baptisms and said they baptized a man named Paolo and they also have a few more baptisms this week.
Enjoy the pictures...

 

 

                                At Paolo's baptism

                                The mini Christmas tree we sent him!

 





Cold Front in El Salvador

Dallin says a "cold front" hit...to him, it's still just perfect weather but the folks of El Salvador think its freezing. As he put it, "everyone is acting like the sky just dumped 10 feet of snow, everyone is freezing and has snow gear on. Im just walking like normal." They love the heat!
Elder Hazelgren gave the noche de hogar (family night) lesson to his ward. He said it went very well! He also taught the English class for the week.
With Dallin becoming a trainer last week, he got his first "greenie." He is from El Salvador and has been called to serve in Peru. His companion is waiting for his visa so in the mean time, Dallin is training him.
We hope we get to hear about some great Christmas experiences he might have this month!

Trainer

Well Elder Hazelgren has been made a trainer! He is very excited about that but also a little nervous since he just finished his own training. He will be a great trainer. They had another baptism this week. Dallin has asked us to pray for his recent converts because several of them are having a hard time staying active in the LDS church and want to go back to their previous religion if they had one. Also, the new rule of only having 30 min to write emails is actually from the Area Seventy over Latin America. We are pretty disappointed we get short emails from him and we understand that now most of you won't be getting the weekly email from him. He does receive letters in about two weeks and it takes about that long to get letters from him, so writing him might be a good way to hear from him individually if you'd like. His address is on the right hand side. He included lots of pictures this week!

                                 Classic Dallin face...the guy on the left is the recent convert

                                       Karate!

                                        Seaside Mariachi Band

Interesting Week

Dallin had several interesting things happen this week. The first one being helping a couple whose marriage was suffering. He said the husband is younger than he is and they have one child. He said they were able to help this couple and hopefully they can strengthen their marriage. He said they were able to go to a lake in El Salvador, he took pictures but wasn't able to send them due to lack of time. (Hopefully we get them soon!) They met the founder of Karate! He is from El Salvador and speaks English. It sounds like they were able to give him a missionary lesson and Dallin was able to teach it in English. On Sunday they had two baptisms so they had to start filling the font on Saturday night. They began filling it at 6:30 and went back at 9:00 to check it and the whole church was flooded!! Dallin knelt down in the only dry spot in the church and prayed for a miracle. He said when they came back the next morning at about 5:00 am, the water problem was resolved. A tender mercy of the Lord. The two baptisms were teenage boys who are dying to serve missions! They use Dallin's missionary badge and reverse roles a little and pretend Dallin is the investigator :) It is so fun hearing about all these great experiences.

Investigators

Dallin said they get new investigators often but have trouble keeping some of the new investigators to keep lesson times. Also, a few of their recent converts are struggling to stay active in the church. Dallin said three of their new investigators are teenage boys who want the priesthood so bad!
He said they've started contacting more people just on the streets so they can get more people to hear their message.
Elder Gallegos and Elder Hazelgren were able to help an investigator re-do his flooring. Most people in El Salvador have just dirt floors, but Dallin said they put concrete in this man's house.
Dallin is doing great and is such a good example. He is very excited about sharing the gospel and its great to hear that excitement in his emails each week.

Great Enthusiasm

Due to the time constraints for emails now, Dallin just wrote a quick email to our family and sent some pictures. He is doing great and sounds really happy. He's very enthusiastic about spreading the gospel which is a great example for all of us. He said he practically makes his companion run to every appointment! Dallin was able to make his first pupusa this week. He said his first convert is who taught him how to make pupusas and she couldn't stop laughing at him because "gringos" aren't very good at making pupusas :)

 

 

                                          How Dallin spent his Halloween...

                                          Eating with members in his area



Pupusa Loca!

Another baptism :) Jennifer was baptized by Dallin this past Saturday. She is 14 and a great girl. There was a family who was supposed to bring her to her confirmation on Sunday but forgot so she will be confirmed soon.
So there is a new rule for missionaries in Dallin's area. They only get 30 min to email now. We're guessing there were some missionaries who were exceeding their time limit and now the Mission President has shortened everyone's time. So Dallin apologizes if he's unable to respond to everyone's emails now.
Dallin's mission president said if he doesn't return home exhausted each night then he's not doing his job as a missionary. Dallin said he's exhausted every night so the Lord is happy :)
He's turning into a money hoarder! Which can be a good thing. The exchange rate makes things super cheap in El Salvador. He's able to buy quite a bit with just 10 cents. Dallin said he tried the "pupusa loca" and it was HUGE! Most pupusas are 2-3 inches in size and he said this one was 11-12 inches! He's practically living off of pupusas and said he's going to get fat ;)
Elder Hazelgren and Elder Gallegos have several more families they are helping and are hoping to teach the gospel to. It's so great to see Dallin's enthusiasm towards teaching the gospel to everyone.
Dallin and Jennifer...

Moustache Monday

It's good to see the elders and their sense of humor!
Dallin got a new companion this week, Elder Gallegos. He is from Peru and speaks NO English. Luckily Dallin is so fluent in Spanish now, they are able to communicate ;) His companion is the senior companion but Dallin is the leader of the area which he said has been hard because his previous companion "ran" the area. We know those missionaries will be blessed for their hard work.
It sounds like Elder Hazelgren is eating quite well in El Salvador. Dallin's zone is the most successful zone thus far and they had dinner at President Glazier's home on p-day. He ate tons of food there and even more at appointments throughout the day. He felt like vomiting from being over-stuffed. Good to know our Elder isn't going hungry!
He has some more baptisms coming up this week. Two of the baptisms are from a family of four. It sounds like the other two of that family will be baptized later.
Elder Hazelgren has a new nickname..."Amazelgren." Apparently he's a really good tree chopper! He is learning the definition of hard work through all his service and missionary work.
This last Friday, our family all received individual letters from Dallin. He also wrote a family letter and at the end of it he bore his testimony in Spanish. It was so neat to read that and see how far he has come already in learning the language. Some of us speak a little Spanish so we were able to understand and translate for the others.
Elder Haze in action....

                                     First baptismal font

 

Three Baptisms

Elder Hazelgren and Elder Vasquez had three baptisms on Saturday! Dallin was very excited to share this news. He shared about Hermana Garcia (hermana is sister in Spanish) and said she has had the missionaries visiting her for four years now and always turned them down and refused to change. Dallin said he and his companion even invited her to be baptized several times and she said no. After General Conference, the Elders shared their thoughts with her and she asked "When is my baptism date?" She had a mighty change of heart. She even asked Dallin to baptize her. Hermana Garcia was very emotional the day of her baptism and Dallin said it was the most spiritual experience of his life. Hermana Garcia said "I don't know how to describe it, but this is the best day of my life."
Elder Hazelgren was asked by another sister to baptize her as well (he didn't mention her name). He said all three of the baptisms were miracles. Hermana Garcia is helping Dallin with his Spanish and he said they are developing a good friendship.
I shared a quote with Dallin from President Lorenzo Snow on missionary work. "There is a way to reach every human heart, and it is your business to find the way to the hearts of those to whom you are called." I thought that quote was very fitting and I'm glad Dallin appreciated it as much as I did.
In April of this year, I was able to go to El Salvador on a dental humanitarian trip. Dallin said that the church building we had our clinic in is where he attends church and plays basketball every week. It was cool to hear that.
Ally and Emmy asked Dallin how the showering conditions were there and he said he showers by dumping buckets of ice cold water on himself daily :/ Yikes!
We are proud of Dallin and loving hearing about the great experiences he is having. It was great to hear about his baptisms and pray daily that he and his companion will find those people who are searching for the gospel in their lives.
Here are some pictures from the baptisms...

                                            Hermana Garcia (Bety Garcia)

               Elders with the 3 ladies who were baptized (Left to Right: Delmy, Milagros, Bety)

                                           Elder Hazelgren, Milagros, Elder Vasquez

Positive Attitude

Dallin was sick this past week but despite that, he still has a positive attitude. He said it was a great week! We were wondering if he'd be able to watch General Conference and if it'd be in English or not. He said all the "gringos" were able to watch it in their own room and it was in English. He really enjoyed the talks on Saturday.
The investigators that watched Conference are already changing for the better. He said several of them have set baptismal dates and he is very excited about that! One of his investigators, Eliseo, was very emotional sharing his experience of learning of Christ and said he wants to get baptized. It's great to see Elder Hazelgren's excitement about this work.
Dallin challenged us all to pick one talk from Conference and apply it in our lives. "Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith."

Workin Hard

The newest commandment according to Elder Hazelgren: Work with urgency. The missionaries have been told to do so and I think it applies to everyone. A great little thought from our missionary. Dallin is also learning how to teach with power and boldness. They've had some investigators that aren't keeping their end of the bargain and Elder Hazelgren said he's had to be bold with them especially since in the Book of Mormon, the prophets taught the people that way.
He loves the climate in El Salvador! He loves the jungle and would probably stay in Central America if he could.
The staple food of El Salvador is called a papusa. Dallin has now figured out that yes, that is the only thing he will eat for two years :) Thank goodness for all the walking they do so he doesn't gain weight!
Elder Hazelgren is learning the power of patience. He's definitely the type who's a "go-getter" and lately his companion hasn't been as focused as he should be which has been frustrating. This last week was a good week he said, very humbling.
Since getting to El Salvador he hasn't had as much time to email so we don't always get elaborations on everything he says. He did say this week that the reason he's so pressed for time is because all the missionaries meet at the Stake Center to email home and they all have to take their turns and they only have an hour to do it all.
Dallin went on splits with his zone leader and was very confident in doing things like where to go, who to call. His zone leader said he's doing a great job.
Here are the two pictures we've received since his arrival in El Salvador...

                                        Elders...(his companion is on the far left)

                                        "Service projects are no laughing matter"

Life in El Salvador

First off, sorry there was no post last week. Dallin didn't send a generic email & we just got a little busy. He tells us in his family emails that his time is limited but he will try to send more emails so everyone can hear from him.
He is doing good, still having culture shock. He said he's struggling with the language but he's very hard on himself so I'm sure he's doing great. The weather is very rainy so he's loving that. His companion and he are getting more investigators; he said there was 8 at church on Sunday.
Elder Hazelgren said last week that El Salvador is very dirty with tons of pollution but he looks out in the distance and it's like paradise. It's really green down there from all the rain. He said he works in the jungle a lot because most of the investigators live so far from civilization.
Dallin also said he's having a hard time sending pictures because they take so long to download but when I get some, I'll post them immediately :)
Also, Dallin celebrated his 19th birthday last Monday, he said it was different than any other birthday but in a good way.

First week in El Salvador

Dallin is definitely having a culture shock. I don't think he knew what to expect and its way different than what he did picture. The filth will take some overlooking. His living situation is very dirty and there are bugs everywhere in his apartment. Apparently his apartment is called "The Palace" and it sounds nothing like a palace. On a scale from 1-5, he rates it at a -3....
He is loving his companion which is an answer to prayer. He really wanted a good first companion so he's very grateful he got one. His companion, Elder Vazquez is from Honduras and he is the best trainer.
They've had several lessons already and each time Dallin is improving with his Spanish. They don't go tracting at all, it's a mission rule. They work off member referrals only. He said he is in the most baptizing mission area but as of his first week, he doesn't see how that's true. He has a good attitude and said they will work super hard.
In El Salvador, they have two seasons; the dry season and the wet season. It's the wet (rainy) season now which makes the humidity worse. Dallin said as soon as he stepped off the plane in El Salvador, he got hit with the hottest, most humid weather he's ever felt. Welcome to Central America :)
The staple food of El Salvador is called a papusa. It's basically a very small tortilla filled with beans, meat and cheese. They are delicious! He said he's probably going to gain a few pounds because that's all they eat!
We were so excited to hear about his first week there and know there will be plenty more crazy stories to hear.
Here are the only pictures we received. He said he had tons to send but apparently he has a lot less time to email now and wasn't able to send pictures home. The pictures we received were from the mission home.

                                          President and Sister Glazier

                             Group photo

**As a side note, I've (Lindsay) been to El Salvador on a dental humanitarian trip just this past April and was able to meet President and Sister Glazier. They are the nicest people I've met and were so excited to meet Dallin. The people of El Salvador & Central America are great people; I'm so excited for Dallin to come to love them as I have. I've also seen the filth and sadness of being in a third world country and its very heartbreaking. It'll be an eye-opener for Dallin to experience that. It sure made me more grateful for where I live and made me realize how much I take for granted.

In El Salvador

Well Elder Hazelgren is in El Salvador! He said he's excited to be a "real" missionary now :) He got there Monday night. We heard from him that morning, but haven't heard from him since. He was going to try and call from the airport but we didn't hear anything. He only sent us a very short email but did say he has lots of pictures to email home. I wish we had more of an update this week, but we're looking forward to hearing from him soon.

5 Weeks in the MTC

The weather in Mexico sounds pretty amazing right now for us Arizonians! We could use a little break from the heat. Dallin has said several times that when it rains, it pours...literally. He said its like a hurricane; tons of lightning, torrential downpours and very windy. They had a volleyball game out in this weather and poor Dallin was freezing :) He also said they have lots of earthquakes in Mexico!! A little nerve-wracking to hear but it sounds like they aren't major earthquakes. Each time they have an earthquake, they all have to go to "earthquake circles." The sounds of sirens are becoming very familiar to Elder Hazelgren.
The Spanish is getting easier and easier. One night, his companion, Elder Shipman, heard him talking in his sleep and apparently Elder Hazelgren was giving a lesson in Spanish!! One day this past week, he even got scored on his Spanish speaking skills...9 out of 10!
Dallin was pretty stoked he got to play some soccer this week. He LOVES soccer. When he got his mission call, that was one of the first things he said about going to El Salvador.."I get to play futbol with natives!" (Futbol is soccer is Spanish) He said they played on concrete, which is definitely different from grass. Let's hope no one gets seriously injured :/ The concrete they play on is called "the cage" and this is where the all-stars come to play soccer.
Another little eye-opener for Elder Hazelgren besides sirens 24/7 is how these Latinos party! They are a culture that loves dancing and music and when they have a party of some sort, it goes on and on and on till the wee hours of the morning. One night, they didn't get a lot of sleep from loud music all night long. 
Nothing says welcome to Central America like a cockroach in your food!! One Elder this week found one in his beans. Now none of the missionaries eat the beans.
A humbling experience was when Dallin noticed one Elder not eating his food and Dallin was just saying "you need to eat!" when this Elder told him his mom had just been diagnosed with cancer so he was fasting for her. Dallin felt terrible but said he is going to fast with this Elder.
Elder Hazelgren has one week left in the MTC. He leaves next Tuesday for El Salvador! We are so excited for him!
Enjoy some pictures from this past week...A lot of missionaries left this week for their area of service, so he sent home lots of pics with other Elders. (Dallin is quite the poser!!)

                                               Elder Gee

                                               Elders Hatchett & Hazelgren

                                               Elder Hall

                                                       Elder Ashby

What's English

Dallin is learning the language much better and has said they try to speak Spanish as much as possible. Speaking the language is easier when he speaks about the gospel, but regular conversation needs some improvement still :) We are proud that he is a leader and really pushes everyone to speak only Spanish. He said he told everyone to carry their Spanish dictionaries around to help them. Dallin is learning that obedience can bring about the miracles they need, especially with learning a new language. Quote from Elder Hazelgren: "Obedience brings blessings, but exact obedience brings miracles." What a great quote to remember and try to live by! He also said he has put post it notes throughout their house with motivational sayings on them. He loves getting people pumped up and excited about things! Especially when it comes to serving the Lord.
Dallin got a small eye infection this week. I'm sure this is the first of several infections he'll probably get over the next two years :( He had his eye checked at the clinic & was told to put warm water on his eye and his eye is fine now.
Unfortunately he only sent one picture home this week, he said he was having computer troubles. Its a picture of his scriptures in Spanish and if you look closely you can see words he's highlighted and have an English word above them.

I think I might be a native Latino..

Dallin was able to go to the Mexico Temple this week. From the pictures, it looks like a pretty awesome temple.

 

He said they got 290 new elders at the MTC and now the food is scarce! There is a link on www.lds.org that shows a little bit about the Mexico MTC - http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/video-first-missionaries-complete-training-new-mexico-training-center?cid=HP080213064 . Dallin is really loving being in Mexico and said he is feeling the Spirit more and more each day.
He said they get tons of rain and hail and that it really isn't that humid there.

Dallin said his companion and he made a goal to speak only Spanish whenever they are in buildings which he said is about 8 hours a day!
He was able to go on exchanges this week and teach their "fake" investigator.
Dallin met up with some friends from Basha & rec soccer.

                                                Elder Hatchet from Basha

                                               Elder Ashby (middle) from rec soccer

It's always great to hear from Elder Hazelgren and how he is loving being a missionary and learning more about the gospel.

Two weeks down

Elder Hazelgren is starting to feel like a veteran now that there are new missionaries who have arrived at the MTC! They do "fake" missionary lessons where they teach someone who is a member of the church but pretend they are not. He said those lessons are going well and he and his companion (Elder Shipman) have been able to teach by the spirit alone, no notes.
He is learning the language much better now and that is coming out more in the emails :) To all the elders it sounds like the Hispanic people are speaking a totally different language because they speak so fast! All the missionaries got to bear their testimonies and do it only in Spanish! Elder Hazelgren said he did fine especially since all the missionaries still don't understand it very well yet!
Dallin is very grateful when he gets to eat ice cream or other treats. They truly are a special "treat" down there considering the main dishes aren't so good.
Spiritual thought for the week..."I studied a lot about the Atonement today, I thought I knew the story, but I had no idea. If you think you know the story, look up every scripture about the atonement, then come talk to me. Its crazy to think how Christ would want to suffer for people that did such terrible things to him. I grew to love the Savior a lot more today."

Enjoy some pictures from week 2....

                                                Laundry Time...

                                               Just outside the walls of the MTC
                                       

                                                Class time