September 28 update

We learned a little more about Elder Kenison's new assignment in Maipú today, but didn't get any new photos; the computers he has used the past two weeks seem to have some issues, and he hopes to try a different one next week.

However, I was able to find this photo of his current missionary residence, with the help of Google Satellite View — right in the middle of a dense urban area:


And here's the "big picture" showing Maipú on the southwest outskirts of Santiago, and the towering southern Andes to the east:


Matt's companion, Elder Urbieta, is a district leader. They had "divisions" with the zone leaders this week, and Matt enjoyed working with Elder Simmons from Bountiful for two days — "he's a really cool elder." If that weren't enough:

then on Sunday we had special divisions (there was some problem in our ward) so i was with him yet again. it was pretty cool. he taught me a lot of spanish. and "leading the sector", as they call it, helped me learn more about our sector. haha I know one of the Main streets is 4 poniente and another is Renee Olivares and I can get home if I'm on 4 poniente haha a lot better than it was. now i'm trying to pay more attention so that I can learn all of the other streets. haha

Then this important experience from today's p-day activity (very typical of Matt):

Also (a cool story and along with a favor), the story is that elder Urbieta and I help the Zone Leaders a lot. and we helped them today with an activity. we made pancakes for our entire zone. haha it was awesome. LUCKILY (and this is where the favor comes in) I had a recipe for pancakes haha so that's my favor can you tell Ale THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!!!! :D

In his efforts to improve his Spanish, Elder Kenison learned this very important word:

("Permiso" is an ingenious word that doesn't exist in english. if you're ever unsure about something you just say "permiso" and you do it. and whoever you said permiso to watches you to make sure it's ok. we say it everytime we go into houses and really whenever we do anything. it's like saying "excuse me". haha)

The work in the "4 Poniento"ward is a little slow right now. Elder Kenison and his companion(s) did a lot of contacting and have many follow-ups for the coming week. We'll hope and pray for some good results!

September 22 update (a day late)

We were SOOO eager to get Elder Kenison's weekly update on Monday, so we could find out about his new area and companion! We waited ALL DAY for it to come; as the afternoon wore on and we passed the normal P-day hour, we were very disappointed. Something must have happened to prevent him from sending an email! We tried to imagine what that was, but nothing made us feel better. We assumed we were destined to wait another week to find details! (We realize are terribly spoiled by this instant communication nowadays.)

Then suddenly, late on Tuesday (a day late), the emails started to arrive! We were thrilled to get some news. Apparently his companion had talked with the "computer place" (was assume that means Internet Cafe) in the area (owned by a Church member) and found their computers were having issues on Monday, so they were able to postpone that part of their P-day until Tuesday.

So here's the news! Elder Kenison is now serving in Maipú, a suburb of Santiago at the southwest corner of the metro area (click on the map at the right to see more details of location). Matt's comment on the name of the city, in typical missionary humor:

(pronounced... "my poo" some great jokes from the name haha)

The urban setting is quite a contrast from his last area, which was out on the coast:

it's way different its more of a city than Cartagena. LOTS of busses and taxis haha it's been crazy trying to find my way around. my companions been helping though haha luckily. :D

About his new companion:

he's from Argentina. a latin haha Elder Urbieta. he's really cool. he's been out for 10 months. he's the district leader. he's a really... tranquilo (chill) individuale. he's really good at 'bebe' too haha

I'm guessing "bebe" might be a nickname for "basketball"? He mentioned the term once before, saying they were going to the Church on p-day to play bebe with some of the young men. [UPDATE: I have been informed by Spencer Mecham, Matt's first companion, that "bebe is actually a soccer game that is only different because the ball is heavier. Thus it can't be hit high easily and most of the game is played on the ground level."]

Part of the complication of the week included the Chilean Independence Day celebrations (Sept 18), and getting settled into the new apartment. It's smaller than his last place, with not much shelf or storage space for food and supplies. Matt mentioned that he brought his flour and sugar and everything to make brownies from the old apartment — some of the essential supplies! We're not sure how he fit all of that into his suitcases...

There were 66 people attending the ward on Sunday in Maipú — quite a bit fewer than in Cartagena. He said there was a recent baptism in the area, so we hope there is some good enthusiasm!

We were sad to not receive photos again, but we're at least thrilled to know "all is well" and Elder Kenison continues to love his mission!

September 14 update: Transfer!

Has Elder Kenison gone to the dogs??? These photos might make you wonder; he said there are LOTS of stray dogs around, and most of them are quite friendly to the missionaries. He labeled the one on the left "haha-a-local-dog-who-greets-us-every-morning-haha.jpg" and the one on the right "Beethoven!!! haha our friend down the street haha he loves the missionaries.jpg":

Actually, we don't think he has "gone to the dogs," but we're not sure WHERE he has gone. We learned Monday morning that he is being transferred!

As we understand it, the process for "changes" (they don't use the word "transfer") in his mission is this: Matt will pack up and say goodbye today. Early Tuesday morning he'll get on a bus and head in to the mission office:

We take a bus to Santiago then we wait with all the missionaries that are being changed. (while some elders put up the papers of the changes) and then when President Jones finishes talking to us real quick everyone runs over to the paper. then i'll (depending on where my next sector is) take a micro (bus) or collectivo (taxi). they actually have a bus called a Pullman Bus here that's like a five star bus for long distances. it's really the only option to get from here to Santiago. haha pretty cool

Since this occurs on the day AFTER p-day, we won't know where Matt is until we hear from him next Monday. We'll just hope and pray for the best! Matt was apprehensive last week about this coming:

it's going to be hard if i leave Cartagena. i love the people here so much. haha :D

Today he wrote:

i'm a little nervous but excited! haha

The change will be good for him. We'll hope and pray his new companion is a blessing to him, like his first two have been!

One of the challenges of a transfer is leaving behind the people you've been working with — entrusting them to the care of other missionaries. Matt has several people close to baptism right now. He wrote this about the Familia Godoy and others he cares about:

they're doing good though. they're attending church every week (more then the rest of their family who actually are all members.) they're doing great though. apparently there are divorce paper issues. the dad was married before. we have a lot of those. Marcela's boyfriend. Carla and Mauricio. Famila Godoy. so many people! i want to become a lawyer here just so I can help some people who want to fix their lives! haha crazy

Well, we hope this week goes by quickly so we can get an update next week!

September 7 update

As of this coming Friday, Elder Kenison will have completed a fourth of his mission — six months down, eighteen to go! Time seems to be going by quickly for us. We think it is for Matt too.

Apparently it's been a wet week in Chile. Matt's gotten over his bronchitis, but his companion, Elder Mejia, has been sick this week. And the extra rains brought their own challenges:

my week..... haha well this week has really been interesting. it's been hard because it's been raining a lot. i mean. A LOT. and so there has also been lots of mud. haha and added on that we have one of the hilliest (that is so a word. along with Frailed haha) we just have a very hilly area. so it's been a fun challenge trying to walk up all these "dirt" hills. haha.

We were pleased to hear there has been some more progress with investigators:

Natalia and Olga are progressing. Natalia said that she wants to be baptized haha she hasn't even attended church haha. Marcela is... well being stubborn. haha i mean she knows just as much as a member of the church (except for what it feels like to be baptized. haha) and she just doesn't want to stop seeing her boyfriend. which is a problem because he's married. haha kinda crazy

on another note Familia Godoy is progressing great. they should be getting married soon and then afterwards baptized i hope it all works out. haha

This was a cute story about a Sunday testimony meeting:

oh sunday was cool. all of us missionaries bore our testimony. haha it was funny, everyone stared at me when i got up. haha "he barely knows spanish" haha i made everyone laugh though because i kept messing up it was funny. luckily my companion went afterwards to bring the spirit back haha. also one of the investigators of Elder Rawlins and Elder Romero bore his testimony. i got a little of what he said but not a lot. haha

more.... haha i don't know. it's been fun. it's going to be hard if i leave Cartagena. i love the people here so much. haha :D

The photos of the day came from a zone activity on the beach. We're not sure where this took place (near his area, or somewhere up north??), but it looks like they had a great time, as always. In the first, Matt is with Elder Somoza, a missionary he seems to really enjoy being with:

This one was labeled "The missionaries of the coast!"

Finally, this little extra note and photo that went just to Mom. They had the desired result of choking her up big time:

so everyone was doing this with their girlfriends name haha well I don't have a girlfriend but i do have someone waiting for me. haha My mom (aka you) so I decided to do the same but with someone more important :D thanks for everything mom you're the greatest. :D

August 31 update

Elder Kenison didn't have a lot to say this week, but he sent some great photos! This was his explanation:

well i had the debate today... long explainations or pictures... i picked pictures this time. haha sorry.

He's getting along great with Elder Mejia, his companion from Honduras. Here are some photos (click to view larger):



It sounds like they are making good progress with some of their investigators, and we're hoping for an announcement soon. One couple they are teaching need to get married before the family can be baptized; that's often an issue in Latin countries due to complications and restrictions on divorce and remarriage.

Here's another nice shot of the four missionaries living in Cartagena, in front of a blustery-looking beach: Elder Romero (from Chile), Elder Rawlins (from Texas), Elder Mejia (from Honduras), and Elder Kenison:


They are approaching the end of winter. He commented that it seemed quite a bit warmer this week; that should help him get over his cough (still lingering from the bronchitis). People seem to be returning from their winter vacations; Matt commented:

umm something cool we had 106 people attend church this last sunday. the most since i've been here

Having the ward grow in strength and attendance will help the missionary work!

I wrote Matt a note this week telling him to be on the watch for a "distant relative" who recently arrived in his mission. Elder DeLong is the nephew of my sister on her husband's side, from Minnesota. We had learned that Elder DeLong's first companion was Elder McKay, who was living in the same house where Matt is for the first 6 weeks he was in Chile. Matt wrote:

also elder delong. haha we had a zone meeting and i saw elder Mckay. then i saw his companion. and i thought... 'humm what if?' then he said 'hey you're elder kenison! we're related!!! haha' pretty cool. i included a picture.

We are looking forward to another encounter in the future when one of Matt's friends, a neighbor of ours, Sam Poulsen, arrives in the Santiago West mission!

Here's one final photo for this week of our favorite missionary, engaged in two of his favorite activities: eating and writing in his journal:


Oh, and then this cute note to end on. Apparently someone was playing some music in the Internet Cafe where they were typing their emails:

GOSH I JUST GOT SO TRUNKY!!!! so people here like music in english too haha and right now Dust In The Wind is playing... :( I LOVE YOU MOM!!!!!!!!!!

(Mom has been known to crank up the volume when listening to that song at home...)

August 24 update

We had a wonderful letter from Elder Kenison this week; it made up for last week's brief note when he was sick. He is doing much better with the bronchitis. The "mission doctor" in Santiago told him what antibiotics to take, and it's helped a lot, though he's still coughing. It's been cooler and rainier in Cartagena the past week or two, which probably has aggravated his condition.

Things seem to going great with the four elders living together. Having a Honduran and a Chilean in their apartment is making a difference; he said that living with them is

pretty cool haha we enjoy it. i'm starting to understand a lot more spanish so it's gotten more fun haha

When we asked about his companion, Elder Mejia, he said,

he's hilarious haha we're always laughing going from place to place haha but it's so fun

Here is a photo of the four elders enjoying a nice "Chilean" meal together (notice who has the biggest piece):

He also sent this photo of a "completo" (I guess a hot dog with "everything") that he said he really enjoys. The Chilean restaurant in Provo advertises this, so now I have to go try one!


And while we're on the food theme, here are a couple of photos that he sent without explanation. Note the height on that second throw!!

In our last package to Matt, we included some brown sugar which he was not able to find in Chile, so he could make his favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. This was his comment:

haha i laughed so hard when i saw the brown sugar haha we made cookies the other day and baked them last night. haha Elder Romero wants to say something...

I like de cookies!!! i'm a chilean missionary and i liked the reseta (recipe) that you send for your son. send more!!!!

haha he's a funny guy. he pretty much loves anything with chocolate. haha actually the first couple times I made brownies he ate most of them haha then for two days he had Diarriah (whatever) haha so yeah he only eats a couple when i make them haha :D

For a P-day service project, the four elders traveled to a nearby city (El Quisco) and helped dig a hole for an outhouse. It's amazing how much fun you can have doing unusual things when you're doing them for a good reason! Check out this wonderful photo of Elder Kenison (as always, click on the photo for more detail):

Here's another fun photo, which came without explanation — just the title of the photo, which was "Practicing lesson 1. with bob esponga.jpg"


We did hear some more serious and inspiring things today too.

elder mejia and I worked hard this week haha one investigator told us not to pass by anymore. elder Mejia bore his testimony. it was AMAZING the spirit was so strong. but they still asked us not to come back. it's sad how some people aren't willing to listen. i KNOW they felt something but they just decided to ignore it.

on a happy note for us elder's we had 10 investigators come to church. elder mejia and i had 5. elder Rawlins and Elder Romero actually had an investigator who is a priest from a Evangelical church come. i was with elder rawlins when we first met him. we were just going to pass by. and not say a word (i don't know why) but he said "hello, how are you?" i flipped around "you know english?" he said "no" haha we laughed and started talking to him. he said that it would be ok if the missionaries came by. haha so elder rawlins and elder marquez passed by and now elder rawlins with elder romero have passed by. haha he, ismael, told elder rawlins that he has a problem. elder rawlins asked why. haha and Ismael said "Yo se que el Libro de mormon es verdadero" (i know the book of mormon is true) haha so he's moving along nice. haha for us we had a family come. the parents of the family, Juan and Marisol. want to get married so they can get baptized so we're pretty excited :D

Finally, those who know Matt are aware that he can never pass up taking photos of waterfalls and sunsets. So far, we haven't seen any waterfalls from Chile; but here's the latest sunset:

August 17 update

Elder Kenison wrote a short email this week, telling us he has been struggling with a case of bronchitis. We were somewhat comforted that he knew it was bronchitis and knew how to spell "bronchitis"; that probably means he's getting some kind of medical attention!

We learned a little more about his new companion, Elder Mejia, but still no photos. He's been serving about 8 months. His mother and sisters are LDS but his brothers aren't (no mention of a dad). Matt enjoys speaking "a lot more spanish. and we walk a lot more. haha"

He'll be in our prayers, and we'll hope for more news next week!