The Trap

Hey everyone! This has been a pretty interesting week. It's been frustrating, exciting, and just straight weird all at the same time. Today marks 17 months in the mission. Can barely believe it. Anyway, I'll start with the slightly less interesting stuff.

So the latest on Krissia is that she's actually not going to move to Toledo until the end of the year, so we'll continue to teach her. We're at a bit of a stand still with the people we're working with. In fact, pretty much everyone this week has taken a step back. We've got a focus on finding new people now. Wish I had more positive things to report regarding the work, but things have been average at best regarding investigators. The hermanas have a baptism scheduled for this Saturday. I'll be interviewing their investigator after P-day ends. Things are awesome here like always.

Ok so I chose the song "The Trap" by Satellite Stories this week. One of my favorite ways to get people to stop on the street is by asking who has the better tie, me or my companion. This week someone called me out on it. They were like "wait that was a trick wasn't it??" Super funny. I also saw (for the SECOND time in my mission) a lady walking with a little pig on a leash. This time I managed to get a picture. Today we went to Sol (Madrid center) and wandered around in the rain. Twas pretty aight.

Hasta luego,

Dr. Penner 🇪🇸

Fotos:

1. LEGENDARY PIG ON A LEASH

2. Great find

3. Sol metro stop today (S/O to Donald Glover)

4. Comp ft. graffiti that looks like Elder Burt

5. More graffiti fun

Fumes

It's Monday as heck. To be honest, this has been kind of a slow week. My comp, Elder Sorenson, and I have been sick like all week, but we've been working anyway. Much of this week has been spent "running on fumes" (by EDEN). We still got a lot of work done this week nonetheless and I'm feeling much better. Elder Sorenson and I already get along super well. I'm looking forward to the rest of this transfer.

A couple things with investigators:

After teaching him for like 2 months, (not sure how it didn't come up before lol) we found out that Jorge Luis doesn't even live in our area. We'll probably be passing him over to the B5 elders this week. A little sad since he's got great desire, but he'll continue to progress with them. This week we also found out that our investigator Krissia, is super down to join the church, but her husband has holding her back. The bad news is that she dropped a bomb and told us that she's going to Valencia for a week and after she's planning on moving to a pueblo outside of Toledo. 

Other than that, it's been another week of hiding potatoes in other people's stuff in piso and doing missionary work and stuff. Oh I also went on an intercambio with Elder Merrill that was pretty ok. We got failed a lot, but had a cool lesson with a Dominican guy at the end of the day. Bueno, nada.

Hasta luego,

Elder Penner 🇪🇸

Blindside

Didn't expect that one. Today is transfer day and I'm staying here in B1! I was pretty sure that I would be leaving today last week, but transfer notifications hit me from my Blindside (by Hunter Hunted) on Saturday. I'll be honest I was really hoping I could stay longer. I love this area and we've got some great stuff going on. My hijo (trainee) is headed off to Fuenlabrada which is south of Madrid. He's gonna do big things over yonder. Elder Sorenson came in from Leganes to be my new comp. He's from California and we are already getting along really well. It's gonna be an awesome next 6 weeks.

Yesterday I got to talk to my family for Mother's Day! They're some pretty neat people, I miss those guys. Shout out to them for being rad and giving me motivation for these last 7 months that I'm out here.

On Tuesday I went on an intercambio with Elder Burt. The kid is so fun. We had a blast. That day, I had a Big Mac for the first time in my life (not sure how I went 20 years without one) and also tried Dunkin' Donuts (which is called Dunkin' Coffee here for some reason) for the first time. Apparently Dunkin Donuts is huge in Massachusetts, where Elder Burt is from, and no where else. It was aight tbh. Krispy Kreme is better but that hasn't made it over here yet. Still counting on that and a Panda Express before I leave.

Other than that, it's been a pretty normal week without much new. We just keep grinding here. Pues os deseo una buena semana.

Hasta luego,

Elder Penner 🇪🇸

Fotos:

1. Transfer day meal at a member's house

2. Skype call home

Swim

"Life is a funny thing. It takes you where you least expect, and throws you out to sea."

Whether we sink or swim is our choice as Cape Cub says. Lucky for me, I've had some swim lessons (s/o to Kirsten & Todd Penner). Really though, the choice is always ours. This week has been great. It hasn't been long since the last time I wrote, so we'll see if I have anything to report. When i write these updates I always have no plan whatsoever. I just go for it. So that might explain the disjointed nature of these dads.

Anyway, we saw a cool miracle this week. So, my first week here in this areas 4 months ago, we talked to this guy named Luis from Tenerife in the Canary Islands. He told us he wanted us to teach his kids, but we were never able to set a time to go to his house, so we stopped trying to contact him. Last week, we taught a lesson to a girl named Loraine on the street and set up a time to come over and teach the rest of her family. We went to her house a couple days ago and LUIS answers the door. Turns out that he's Loraine's dad. We taught an awesome lesson and are going back tomorrow.

On a slightly sadder note, two of our investigators, Jorge Luis and Rosa, might have to leave the country. Rosa will go to England to work if her contract isn't renewed, and Jorge Luis might get deported... 🙃 We're praying that they'll be able to stay.

This might be my last week in this area, we'll have to see what happens for transfers next week. Keep on grinding fam.

Hasta luego,

Elder Penner 🇪🇸

Fotos:

1. Dad tie day

2. Trying to give a pavo real a Book of Mormon today

Fake You Out

Hey everyone! No weekly update yet. The song, "Fake You Out," by Twenty One Pilots puts that well. My preparation day got changed to Wednesday since we're going to the temple. I'll talk to you all then!

Elder Penner

Ok, for real this time. This week was legit. I already explained the song title a couple days ago, and I wasn't about to come up with a new one.

I can't think of anything that was super lit this week. We're just continuing to find lots of new people without seeing a lot of progress. It's a cycle that we seen to be stuck in at the moment, but it should end soon. We've got a few investigators that have been progressing slowly and steadily.

Today we went to the temple and then went on a hike as a zone to el Valle de los Caídos - a memorial from the Spanish Civil War which has supposedly the biggest cross in the world. It's also where Francisco Franco was hurried. Really neat place. I'll send pictures.

That's all for now lads. Buena semana a todos!

Hasta luego,

Elder Penner 🇪🇸

Fotos:

1. Biggest cross dad in the world

2. Julio - dope Dominican guy we found this week

3. My sword made it home for all of you that were wondering what the heck it looks like

Are We Ready? (Wreck)

This week has been legit as heck not gonna lie. Still exhausting as always. A few investigators, zone conference and piso update coming up in this update. Didn't have too much of a reason for the song (by Two Door Cinema Club) this week tbh. Just like the song and couldn't think of anything to apply to the week. I guess it's a question that we should ask ourselves regularly. And if the answer is no, think about what we can do to prepare ourselves. Interpret that as you will. Not sure how much sense that made.

We officially dropped Ana along with a few other investigators. Just wasn't quite their time. It gives us more time to focus on other people and finding new people though, so I'm chillin. I did a baptismal interview with Ayman on Tuesday. He passed and got baptized on Saturday. Super awesome guy. It still is amazing to see how the gospel changes people. I realized in the interview that he looked so much happier and brighter than when I met him. On Friday we had zone conference with all the other missionaries in Madrid, so I got to see a lot of friends. It was lit.

Well, I am running out of motivation quick, heck me to the moon. I can't think of anything else that happened either so I guess it's ok. Mission is still sick just so you all know. 10/10. Anyway peace.

Hasta luego,

Elder Penner 🇪🇸

Fotos:

1. Zone Conference yeet

2. Ayman post-baptism

3. BACKPACK PINS - From left to right: Toledo, Atletico de Madrid, Tenerife, Valladolid; top: Madrid

Back to the Ordinary

Well, for some reason my weekly update didn't send last week, but that's fine because it means I don't have to think of a new song for the subject 👌 The last couple of weeks things have gotten about as normal as you can get in the mission. "Back to the Ordinary," by Kid Astray was the result of these past few weeks.

With investigators, it's a lot of mixed news. One of our friends, Jorge Luis has been up North in Galicia the last couple of weeks, so we've been having lessons over Skype. He's been progressing a lot more than before. In other news, last week Ana, who has a date for May 5 told us she wants to serve a mission, but this week we haven't heard much from her since she got a job. She later said she didn't feel prepared for the 5th. She recently talked to her parents about getting baptized, and they didn't react very well... We're still not entirely sure where we're at with her, so we'll have to figure it out. Either way, we're trying to find new people that can progress.

I went on an intercambio with Elder Merrill this week and it was a blast. We taught a guy named Ayman, who Elder Parkinson and I found and passed to them to teach. He's from Egypt and has a Muslim background. We teach him in English. He should be getting baptized this weekend if all goes well. Really cool guy.

Currently we live in the same piso as Elder Burt who entered the mission with me. Earlier this week we were talking a bit about how far we've come. We both decided that we just recently figured out what it really was that we're doing here and it kinda sucks that we only have 8 more months. Crazy to think. I'll probably only be in the area for one more month and I feel like I literally just got here. I've said that before, but this time I really mean it. Anyway, this has just kinda been my thoughts wandering so good luck with trying to figure all this out. I don't really proofread these or review them hahaha. I'm out. Until next week...

Hasta luego,

Elder Penner 

Fotos:

1. S/O to Jordan

2. The lads

3. Btw went to Toledo again