Elder Derek Keele- Dec. 10, 2012

Dear Mom,

Um, no word on the package yet. Haha I guess I just have bad luck. I am sure it will make it though.

The shoes are amazing! It is so true about all of the other missionaries. My companion just passed 6 months in the mission and he really needs a new pair now. But both of my pairs look like when I started the mission. They are amazing! And they are comfortable too. Go missionaryshoe!

That is really cool about the TRC! That was always so much fun, and I was always humbled by the amazing people who would volunteer weekly. Doing it over skype will be very convenient! And even though it may not seem like the spirit could teach as well, the MTC is the Lord´s and so He knows what he is doing.

We are 78 people away from our goal, and have 71 right now that have a baptismal date. We are going to do it!

Last week I felt like I lacked teaching with power and the spirit well. So I studied on Saturday morning in chapter 10 of Preach my Gospel. It helped so much! I felt so much more excitement to teach and the lessons went twice as well. I love Preach My Gospel!

Elder Richards is a really good guy! He is always happy and has a good attitude. And he is 6 foot 7. It feels so different to walk next to sometime so much taller than me! Most people in Chile are pretty short haha.

Well, time to go :D  I am so excited to see you all in a couple weeks! I will schedule it so I call in the morning then if that is best for you. Thank you for everything! I hope the Christmas shopping is going well!

Love,

Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele- Dec. 3, 2013

Dear Mom,

That is so cool that Dad was able to go to the meeting with Elder Oaks! If you could ask an apostle of the Lord any question, what would it be?... Haha that is so neat! And it sounds like you had an amazing weekend. That is so good for Sister McQuarrie! She deserves so much! She is such an amazing lady! 

I am staying in Tocopilla! Elder Garcia is off to his 3rd sector of the mission already, and he only has 5 months haha. I am about to hit a year and I am still in my 2nd sector only :D Elder Richards is my new companion. He is from Salt Lake. He is a big guy and is super friendly. I am really excited! :D 

Last week María Anch´s two granddaughters were baptized, Krissna and Estefani. They are both so awesome and love going to church with their grandma. They have three members of the church in their house now! Only two more to go! (The two daughters of María) It was really neat though, because on Thursday the Zone Leaders came down to do the interview with Krissna. Estefani we thought would be another couple of weeks. So Elder Garcia went with the Zone Leader to talk to Krissna, but Estefani was there too. Elder Garcia just straight up asked her if she would be baptized too and at first she was shy about it, but then she accepted! So they did both interviews, and they were set! 

I also had the privilege last week to do the interviews of 3 other sisters that got baptized last week. A mom, sister Ines, and her two teenage daughters Mersi and Brigitte. I talked to Brigitte, who is 12, first. She was so innocent and seemed so converted to living the gospel. Same with Mersi, who is really smart and realizes that ¨Ser Mormon es ser feliz¨ (To be Mormon is to be happy). They both wanted to follow Christ and help out their mom. And the mom was amazing. She is so sweet and wants the gospel so much for her two daughters. And all three of them told me of the special spirit that they have felt while attending church. It was such a neat experience. I really felt the spirit strongly with all three of them :D 

I just heard from Tyler, my old manager from Arby´s! I wrote him last week and told him thank you again so much for hiring me so fast when I needed it and for allowing me not to work on Sundays. Remember I tried 17 places during the summer before he hired me right when college started? This is what he wrote me:

I never told you this because it's inappropriate to talk about it in a business setting, but Derek I hired you so quickly during your interview because I felt inspired to. The spirit let me know I needed to hire you for whatever reason, and as usual, the spirit did not lead me astray.

He was such a good guy and I loved working there. 

Well, our mission has a goal of baptizing 1000 people this year, and we are only 86 away! We are going to do it! 

I can´t wait to skype home in a few weeks! Christmas is the best!

Go Nathan! He sounds busy this year. I bet ballroom is really fun! Is Erika in ballroom? :) 

Happy birthday Taylor Ball this week! He sounds like he is doing awesome in Argentina! 

Take care,

Love,

Elder Keele

Maria's baptism

Beautiful Chilean sunset

Elder Derek Keele- Nov. 26, 2012

Dear family,

It sounds like a lot of fun stuff is happening at home. Jessica is already buying things for her first Christmas with her husband, car breaking down, Jordan is already engaged, haha I love this hour of time where I get to pretend I am there with you all haha. :D I´m glad that everyone seems to be doing so well and that the Christmas joy seems to be getting into everyone :) Oh and the Thanksgiving leftovers... maybe you can throw some of that into the freezer and send it in a cooler. I miss one of my favorite holidays! We did have a good lunch that day with mashed potatoes though, and we played soccer on Friday, so I had a little celebrating here haha.

So more exciting news... María Anch got baptized last Saturday! She did it! We weren´t sure what was going to happen, and we were even thinking of dropping her for now because she seemed to stop progressing. But we went to her on Thursday, and after a little scripture sharing and talking, she said she was excited to go to church on Sunday. So I thought, okay, one more week and then she´ll be ready, and I was about to say the closing prayer. But Elder Garcia just went for it and reminded her that last time she was going to get baptized, she told us in 2 more weeks she would. And then she said, okay, I will. This Saturday then. Just like that! Elder Garcia had had a pretty bad day with back pains and being really tired, but he just perked up all of a sudden and asked, and she accepted! The service was very good. Her two granddaughters were able to come too. She is so great and strong! It is hard for her to get around, and it was pretty hard for her to quit smoking, but she has conquered, just like you said how the Christ helps us to where we need to be! One of her granddaughters is really excited now to be baptized this Saturday, and we´ll keep working with María's two daughters too. 

I´m not sure if I have already talked about this before, but I was thinking about it this week and wanted to share. It is a lesson from 1 Samuel 15:22. Saul offered sacrifices unto the Lord trying to make up for disobedience. But the Lord tells him "to obey is better than sacrifice". A lot of people here seem to struggle with the law of tithing and keeping the sabbath day holy. They seem to think that as long as they go to church, it is okay to work on Sundays. They say that they need to work, or have their home business open or go sell bread, to provide for their family. And for the same reason they can´t pay tithing. But with a little of faith, the answer is obvious. The Lord will help us when we obey him. Maybe they say they need to work on Sundays so that they can pay tithing. But like Saul, the Lord doesn´t need tithes or offerings, He needs our obedience. The Lord does not need money. He needs us to be obedient. Tithing is 10%, no more no less. His commandments are set and they apply to everyone so that we can learn to be like Him. That is one reason He gives us commandments, because to be a God like Him some day, we will have to do everything He does. He keeps all of His commandments, and we need to too. 

I hope it doesn´t sound harsh or ignorant. As a missionary I am here to testify to everyone that the gospel is true, and that we will be blessed when we live it. It is hard for many people to always keep these commitments, but if it were easy, it wouldn´t be a test of faith would it? 

Well this is week 18 in Tocopilla. It is so awesome here! The people and branch are amazing and there are cool places to go on P-days haha. We will see what happens this week in transfers. I think and hope I stay here though. There is so much to do! And we have heard that in the next few months because of all the new missionaries there will be 6 or 8 missionaries in Tocopilla rather than just the 4. 

How are sports going Nathan? Did you/are you playing football or rugby? 

Is there a lot of snow this year? I don´t even think I remember what cold feels like haha. I don´t even sleep with a sheet anymore here. It is too hot at night!

Have a great week!

Love,

Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele- Nov. 19, 2012

Dear family,
This week has been a fun week. Well, actually not too fun. Elder Garcia has had a really tough week with family problems, not sleeping well, and his whole body aching. He is hanging in there though and we were still able to work a lot. Once he gets out and works he just seems to forget about everyone else and focuses on the people. That is amazing.
Maria Anch is still being stubborn. We´ll see what will happen with her. But whether she comes through or not, everything is in the Lord´s time.
But because of the cemetery thing we did on the day of the dead, we found a new family of 6! They are all really good and listen when we teach. We have seen many fruits from that activity. The only lame thing is the man in our branch whose idea it was is still not active again. He is a returned missionary, but has only been to church once since I´ve been in Tocopilla. There are a lot of returned missionaries that are inactive here actually. I´m sure there are many factors that are involved in this rather than in Utah, but it is still sad to see. I feel so grateful for the support that we have in Orem from all of the members. Being here where the church is much smaller must be a lot more difficult. But salvation is not free! We must obey!
Tell Jamie that that I approve of her and Travis moving to Orem [They are thinking about moving closer]. That seems like it would be such a big blessing to have us all close. Nothing replaces being with family.
And Nathan! That is awesome! Go carriage-man! I bet that was a lot of fun to be in the play. I loved the choir concert I was in.
Go Stephanie! Go all the way! I´m so glad you will still be in high school when I get back so I can come to your games!
Thanksgiving is going to be so much fun! I will miss the football, basketball, board games, and of course, food. My companion and I actually found some turkeys the other day. They were in someone´s backyard. We´ll see what we can do about the Thanksgiving feast :) haha jk
Well, I guess I should say a few things that I am grateful for :D I am grateful for a mom and dad who have raised me in the light and truth. Parents could raise their children giving them nice things like PlayStation and cars, but the greatest gift I think is to give them a good foundation in the gospel. I am so grateful for your constant examples of serving the Lord and putting Him first. I am grateful for my 7 brothers and sisters for putting up with me and spending time with me. You all rock! :) And also for the 2 other brothers I have now that take care of my older sisters. Thank you both so much!
Thank you everybody for the support and help and love that you have always given me. Thank you grandma, all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins, all of my friends, including all of our ward members. I feel so blessed where I have been put in this time and place. And I am so grateful now that the Lord trusts me to be here serving His children in Chile.
Have a great week with family everybody!

With love and gratitude,

Elder Keele

Elder Keele- Nov. 19, 2012

Dear family,
This week has been a fun week. Well, actually not too fun. Elder Garcia has had a really tough week with family problems, not sleeping well, and his whole body aching. He is hanging in there though and we were still able to work a lot. Once he gets out and works he just seems to forget about everyone else and focuses on the people. That is amazing.
Maria Anch is still being stubborn. We´ll see what will happen with her. But whether she comes through or not, everything is in the Lord´s time.
But because of the cemetary thing we did on the day of the dead, we found a new family of 6! They are all really good and listen when we teach. We have seen many fruits from that activity. The only lame thing is the man in our branch whose idea it was is still not active again. He is a returned missionary, but has only been to church once since I´ve been in Tocopilla. There are a lot of returned missionaries that are inactive here actually. I´m sure there are many factors that are involved in this rather than in Utah, but it is still sad to see. I feel so grateful for the support that we have in Orem from all of the members. Being here where the church is much smaller must be a lot more difficult. But salvation is not free! We must obey!
Tell Jamie that that I approve of her and Travis moving to Orem [They are thinking about moving closer]. That seems like it would be such a big blessing to have us all close. Nothing replaces being with family.
And Nathan! That is awesome! Go carriage-man! I bet that was a lot of fun to be in the play. I loved the choir concert I was in.
Go Stephanie! Go all the way! I´m so glad you will still be in high school when I get back so I can come to your games!
Thanksgiving is going to be so much fun! I will miss the football, basketball, board games, and of course, food. My companion and I actually found some turkeys the other day. They were in someone´s backyard. We´ll see what we can do about the Thanksgiving feast :) haha jk
Well, I guess I should say a few things that I am grateful for :D I am grateful for a mom and dad who have raised me in the light and truth. Parents could raise their children giving them nice things like playstations and cars, but the greatest gift I think is to give them a good foundation in the gospel. I am so grateful for your constant examples of serving the Lord and putting Him first. I am grateful for my 7 brothers and sisters for putting up with me and spending time with me. You all rock! :) And also for the 2 other brothers I have now that take care of my older sisters. Thank you both so much!
Thank you everybody for the support and help and love that you have always given me. Thank you grandma, all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins, all of my friends, including all of our ward members. I feel so blessed where I have been put in this time and place. And I am so grateful now that the Lord trusts me to be here serving His children in Chile.
Have a great week with family everybody!

With love and gratitude,

Elder Keele

Elder Keele- Nov. 12, 2012

Dear Mom,

I am so glad to hear that the wedding went well. Alex sounds so great.
They both are going to be so happy together! Pictures of the wedding
would be awesome to see. I bet Jessica was so beautiful!
Last week was an interesting week. On Friday we had a Zone Conference
that was very helpful. I really felt the Spirit helping me learn
things I needed to teach better. Sadly on Saturday though, after 2
hours with María Anch, she decided to wait a couple more weeks to get
baptized. Elder Garcia and I prepared, prayed, and fasted very much
for her, and there we really thought she was going to do it, but she
was very stubborn. Whatever her true reasons for waiting, I just pray
that she continues towards baptism. She didn´t come to church either
so we are fearing a little. But we will continue in prayers and
fasting for her.
But in good news, many less-active and inactive members came to
church yesterday. We had 102 people in church! The most we have had
since I´ve been here in Tocopilla was about 85, but on average 70. So
it seems to be growing! A large part of it I think is because of our
newly called Ward Missionaries. There are 4 youth, 2 young women and 2
young men. All youth that just seem to be such studs in their high
schools. They have been bringing many friends to church and many
members that haven´t come in a while. They are great strengths in this
branch of Tocopilla because of their desire to serve and for just
being such friendly and like-able people. They are all perfect for the
job.
I love being here in Tocopilla! I think I will be here for a while
more, probably a couple more months. That would make another 6 months!
I am almost a year into my mission, and am still only in my 2nd
sector! Crazy, but I wouldn´t have it any other way. I have loved both
of them.
Well, have a good rest this week mom! I hope you recover quickly and
get a lot of rest now that the wedding is all over. Congratulations on
two children married in the temple! :) I am so blessed to be in our
family where I have so many amazing examples.

Love,

Elder Keele

Elder Keele-- Oct. 29, 2012

Dear family,

I actually met Pres. Bruce's son too. He came to this mission for a week after finishing his in Buenos Aires North and before going back to the states. Cool!

I still haven´t got the package haha. The Zone Leader now told me it is not in Calama. But another Elder just got a package this week that was sent September 21st. So hopefully when my companion goes to Antofagasta tomorrow, it will be there and he will bring it back. So just wait a little longer on the card.

Something I would love is money to order church books. Once I get my card, I don´t know how much would be okay. $20 would be amazing though. The only way that people here can get copies of the Book of Mormon or Bible is by ordering online because the nearest place to buy things is in Santiago.

Oh and garments :D I´ll get the sizes and things to you next week. Thank you!

Last week María wasn´t quite ready for baptism, so we had to postpone it a couple weeks. But nonetheless, we are working a lot with her family now. Her two daughters, two granddaughters, and a daughter-in-law. We hope to bring them all into the church this month :D I learned a lot about faith and obedience. I know she will be even more converted.

So my new companion is Elder Garcia. He is from Washington, but his dad is Mexican. He was baptized in April 2011 and went into the MTC July 2012. He has such a strong testimony and has greatly changed his life. We get a long very well. I am learning more and more to communicate. I sure that is probably something very important in companionships and marriages. That way we follow the spirit better and make sure we are both happy with decisions made.

Sorry for not writing much.

Got to go!

Love,

Elder Derek Keele- Oct. 15, 2012

Dear family

That is awesome to hear about Jordan! Use those contacting skills! 

I remember doing fast offerings and passing by Bob Lucas´s house. He had a little pug dog I think. He was always such a nice and charitable guy. 

I remember one of my favorite things that was said about Grandpa at his funeral was that he would always quietly walk out of the room if anybody was talking bad of somebody else. That is so true about dad too.

I still haven´t gotten the package yet for some reason. My Zone leader forgot to bring it last week. But we might go to Calama tomorrow and then I would get it. Elder Dixon, another missionary here in Tocopilla, got a package last week, but it was missing a few things. So hopefully mine is all still there :D

I didn´t think about the Peru Temple. I know there is one in Bolivia that is closer to us than Santiago, but we are still in the Santiago District. I´ll have to ask about that.

What a stud Nathan. 19 young men! What an army preparing! And what great examples!

Speaking of writing, I haven´t written all of you for a while, but I have a bunch of letters written. I was planning on sending them in a package, and hopefully I can do that soon. 

I heard from Nathan Gunnell! He sounds like he is doing well in Madagascar, even though he had gotten the ¨sickest he had been his whole life¨. Nathan, ask Justin how Nathan is doing these days. I think the letter I got was from a couple months ago.

María Anch went to church yesterday! She is an investigator we definitely found with the Lord´s help about two months ago. We had talked to a lot of people one day and not had any success at all. But as we were on our way to walk out to the North part of Tocopilla, we saw a lady sitting outside talking to her friend. I don´t know why, but when I saw her I just went directly for her nearly getting hit by a taxi while crossing the street too. We just talked with her for about 30 minutes, and it was mostly her telling us experiences of how the Lord has helped her. And that she had never gotten baptized in her life because she never found a church she liked, and she couldn´t stop smoking. She has progressed well and has a lot of faith in the Lord, and has lowered the amount of smoking a lot. And now she will have extra strength from the Lord because she made it to church! She also brought her two granddaughters and her daughter-in-law. They all seemed to enjoy church, especially because it was testimony meeting. Best meeting of the month! 

Transfers are next week, and we think Elder Díaz is leaving because he has been here over 4 months. He is such a genius and a really good friend. So I will be sad if we get changed. 

Last week I had a question about a scripture, Daniel 2:45. ¨A stone cut out of the mountain without hands¨. I thought, what in the world does that mean? I started off the day with reading a random chapter in the Book of Mormon, and turned to  2 Nephi 27. In verses 20 and 21 the Lord says ¨He is able to do His own work.¨ I am pretty sure that is what was meant by the stone cut without hands that would destroy the kingdoms of the world. The church is not a man´s church, it came about by the power of the Lord, and is so perfect that it really does astound the other churches. I love being able to talk to so many people of different ideas and religions, and see how the Lord has the answer to everything in His church. 

Something I found out and am not sure why or how they explain it, but in the Jehova´s Witnesses scriptures, they leave out verses. There is just a dash every once in a while. One very significant verse is Acts 8:37, which says that we only need faith to be baptized. The Jehova´s Witnesses always talk to us about how you need to study a lot before joining their church and being ready for baptism. Maybe because verses like these are taken out of their scriptures they don't understand how faith plays a role in it!

Well, I know the church is true because the Spirit confirms that to me. :) I love being able to share that every day with everyone. 

Have a great week!

Elder Keele 

Elder Derek Keele- Oct. 8, 2012

Finally I am here to write!

Just to start, are you ready Nathan? That is so cool! I couldn`t get the age change out of my head for the longest time! 8 months!? That is a whole lot sooner than what you were expecting. So neat! The blessings of preparing early Nathan. You and all your friends are all studs! Some of the first boys to be ready for the mission field at 18!

Chile I think is actually part of that test the prophet talked about. I`m not sure for how many years now they have had them leave at 18. Largely because of the way college works here. If they start college it can't be put on hold, so they leave at 18. I really hope the change means there will be many more missionaries coming in to our mission. 

I did get the giant letter from the Young Women. Tell them thank you so much for their nice and funny notes. I really did appreciate it. My zone leaders said that they have a package for me. They will be here on Wednesday. Assuming it is the right one, I should have my card then.

Conference was amazing. The Spirit testified to me strongly that President Monson is the prophet, and that the apostles are definitely His apostles. We loved Elder Nelson`s talk! The other missionaries and I had been saying Friday night that a lot of people might be listening to see who the Mormons are because of Mitt Romney`s popularity. Elder Nelson shared the 1st lesson in his talk! We were able to help one investigator go to a session. He is a friend of Alice`s. He said he enjoyed it so we will see this week about him. 

Last Friday we had a talent show in the branch! It was really good, and we had some investigators and less active members attend. So it was good for many people. I played Fur Elise because all those years of playing that song over and over has engrained it into my fingers. And it is the tune of a Chilean drama, so I think people liked it. 

Overall though, last week wasn`t a very good week. We are STILL trying to meet with Esteban, and he almost came to the Sunday morning session of conference, but we couldn`t get a hold of him.

I had many questions answered in conference, many hard questions that recent converts have asked us. One of which is why it has to be so hard? Why do we have to continually be tempted even though we feel converted and passed the test on the earth. Elder Holland answered that very strongly reminding us that we promised we would serve him FOREVER. Also Elder Neal L. Andersen shared Isaiah 55:8-9, that the Lord`s ways are higher than our ways. No matter how hard it seems at times and we don`t see the value of the blessings, the Lord`s blessings are so much greater than what the world can give. We just have to keep going and progressing. And Elder Bednar said that conversion never ends. We are never done being converted.

Enjoy studying the conference talks! I really want to hear Brother Osguthorpe`s again on teaching. 

Take care everybody! 

Love, 

Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele- Sept 25, 2012

Dear Mom,

Yesterday we weren´t able to get to the cyber to write.
It sounds like you all had such a fun week! Bowling together and then the temple dedication. That is so neat about President Packer. What a special gift from the Lord to be able to dedicate His temple!
No, I have been fine with money. Elder Díaz is a loving companion. But I got my new mission card last week so I was able to pay him back and have my own money again. I just don´t get full very often. I can eat a lot haha.
Sadly we STILL weren´t able to meet with Esteban. His work has been crazy. Apparently somebody is working hard to keep him from getting baptized. But the harder it is the better. We are going to help him get there!
Tomorrow we have a Zone Conference in Antofagasta! My trainer Elder Hertler will be there! I haven´t seen him since he left Alto Hospicio. Also, my son, Elder Santos, and Elder Howard! And of course, it is a conference with President Bruce so I am super excited for that.
This Sunday we had such a good Sunday School class. We learned about the atonement and how Christ is. Imagining Him as the most perfect person we know, but then Christ is absolutely perfect. Seeing what He did for us because of how much He loves us makes me want to be so much better to really show Him how grateful I am. I feel so bad that I can´t be perfect. I wish I could. But of course, it is part of the plan. But divine discontent is good. I am so grateful that the Lord has given me this blessing to be here. And yes, even here in Antofagasta, Chile haha. It is starting to get hot now. I got pretty burnt yesterday. Time to put on the sunscreen. Even though it didn´t feel too hot yesterday because of the wind, probably like 75 or 80, the sun just penetrates. Through the clouds even.
Have a great week everyone! Less than two weeks until conference!
Love,
Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, Sept. 17, 2012

Dear family,
Yes. I am staying in Tocopilla! I love it here and am so glad I get to
keep serving the people here. They are all amazing! We will be meeting
with Esteban this week. We haven't talked to him, yet but I'm sure he
still feels the same way about the gospel. There are two more
Sepulvedas that we are working with now. Juana`s two sons are here for
a few weeks for the holidays, and one of them is already interested.
Tomorrow is the Chilean Independence Day! The 18th of September! Elder
Días was telling me that he is missing all of the celebrations that
his family and friends are having right now. He said it started last
Friday and ends this Thursday. Six days of partying! He said there are
carnivals everywhere in Santiago and all the food and games and stuff
are pretty cheap. And, of course, a lot of asado (BBQ). Tons of meat!
We already had a food celebration last Saturday. We ate lunch at a
members house (like always) but she gave us so much food! Mainly
french fries. It was the first time I got full since I left Alto
Hospicio. It was so much! And so good!
We were talking with Roberto last night and he was telling us about
all of the other religions. He told us that there is no doubt in his
mind that this is the true church. Something I remembered that an
apostle (or maybe President Wilson haha) said, is that the phrase "Ask
and ye shall receive" appears the most in the scriptures than anything
else. Thinking about that and how it may be confusing for people to
find the right church, but that is exactly how you find it! By praying and
asking! Many other churches just use reason or tradition or worldly
desires to attract people to their churches. But the true church of
Jesus Christ is found by those who sincerely ask and seek.
Thank you so much for sharing your feelings about the apostles. Elder
Días and I have discussed a lot about the current-day prophets and
apostles the last few weeks. They are truly amazing people that know
Christ and have no desire to do evil. I really can´t express how
excited I am for conference, largely because most of the converts are
planning on going, and I know they are going to love it. Roberto
continues to keep reading the Liahona and other talks given by
prophets; this will be the first time he will get to hear them speak
live :D
Thank you for sending me that package and for telling me about Jamie,
Jessica, and Jordan. I can´t wait to read everyone´s letters!
The church is true.
And I am so blessed to be where I am.
Love,
Elder Keele

Oh ya, and exciting news! A girl in the branch got her mission call to
Salt Lake Central South Mission, the one that is in Sandy and Murray
area. She is so excited!

Elder Derek Keele, Sept. 10, 2012

Dear family,

I sent one letter to Michael in the MTC, but never heard anything back. Another letter would not hurt though. I hope he is doing all right. 

The package sounds perfect :D Thank you!

I am so excited for Conference! I hope we can help all of the converts here to go to as many sessions as possible. I think they will though. Roberto continues to have good questions and even answers his family when they have questions. I just can´t get the idea of him being a bishop off of my mind. He is going to love conference. He already loves reading the Liahona. 

This week I have come to realize even more how different the church is here than it is in the states. In our branch of 70, only about 10 men hold the priesthood. There just aren´t very many choices for leadership. Luckily our branch president is really good. But if it weren´t him, I don´t know who else in the ward it could be without the branch falling apart. We are so blessed in Utah especially to have so many great leaders and members. Everybody needs to help out and be apart of the ward to help the church be the sacred place it needs to be for people to find God´s path. I found a statistic here the last week. At the end of April 2012, there were 1,250 members in the branch here in Tocopilla, but only 64 were active (5.1%). And talking to many of these inactive people, the biggest and most common reason they don´t go to church is because they got offended by someone in the branch. Just that! Imagine how it would be on judgement day and having to tell God that you didn´t follow His gospel and endure to the end because somebody else made you upset one day! It is so sad! They just don´t see or understand the importance of the covenants they made. I know that God is just and everything will be fair in the last day, and I don´t think that is a good enough excuse not to follow Him. 

Thankfully at home we have such good people that help the ward work how it should. The leaders have always seemed like the best examples to me. 

Now on the other side, there is an amazing lady that moved in to our branch. She just got here a month ago, but problems have happened to make many members be very against her. Someone even asked that she be excommunicated from the church. For now, the branch president suspended her from the church so that all those members don´t get upset. So she can´t have a calling, give the prayer in sacrament meeting, or even take the sacrament. What has been done to her is not right and came from rumors and judging. But she is still doing everything that she is allowed to do. She is visiting less active members, is always willing to use her house to invite non members, and set up a service project for the youth. She will not give up on doing what is right because of rumors of other people. She is amazing and, as soon as things get straightened out, will be such a strength to the branch. She is so strong, and all of this while raising 4 little kids. She is such an example to me of how Christ responded to Pharisees when they tried to punish him for healing on the Sabbath. 

Christ is our perfect example, and I am so grateful for the gift of repentance and that we can progress week by week. 

I love the mission. Being a missionary is such a blessing, and I can´t believe how fast it is going.

I hope everything gets settled down for the wedding! That is so crazy that Jessica is getting married! Haha

Love,

Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, Sept. 3, 2012

Dear family,

This week was really good! Roberto and Yordan both were baptized and confirmed. They both are going to be great strengths to the people in this branch. We think Roberto is going to be a bishop someday. I hope so. He studies so well and always has good questions, which make me realize how much I need to study and learn too.

At the end of the Sunday School class, Roberto bore his testimony to everybody. He told us that before he ever accepted to be baptized, he had been putting off praying sincerely. But one Sunday at the end of Sunday School, Fernanda, the teacher who is 21 and waiting for her mission call, randomly told him to pray. He said that had been on his mind all morning and hearing her encourage him helped him decide to do it. Then he told us at his baptism a couple days ago, Fernanda gave him a Liahona as a gift. The first article he turned to answered a question he had had directly. He said that things like this that have been happening for the two months that he has been investigating make him sure that this really is the true church. Fernanda told us later how before leaving her house that night she had had an impression to give him that Liahona. Roberto and Yordan are both so great!

So now La Mami, the grandma of Alice (who was the first to get baptized in all her family), now has 12 people in her family that have come into the church and all in the past 4 or 5 months! La Mami is such a strong leader of her family! In fact this morning we went to the beach with her family.

That is crazy to hear about Travis! I´m glad he is okay. But a new car will be nice. :D

Send me pictures, Steph!

Thank you so much for the package! I think that is perfect. Thank you! Well, have a great week!

Love,

Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, August 27, 2012

Dear family, 

E. is still awesome and preparing. Sadly he had to go to Santiago to testify in a court case, so he will be back in a couple weeks. But he had already started to stop smoking so I have faith that he will stay strong and make it. But Jordan, the son who has completely changed the last couple of weeks, and Roberto, and dad who`s wife and kids are already baptized, are both ready for this Saturday.

That is so neat about the conferences. Thank you for sharing that about President Eyring. I can`t wait for Conference! Only about 5 weeks away!

We are really excited for Jordan and Roberto`s baptisms this Saturday! They are both studs and will really be strengths to the branch. 

Yesterday we visited with a member that just moved here from Santiago because she is engaged to a man in our branch. She has 4 kids, but she divorced her old husband 5 years ago. She served a mission in Santiago South and the man she is going to marry served in Uruguay. So I am very happy for them both. 

She told us an amazing story though, of a few years ago. She was super poor, and trying to take care of her 4 kids. One night a lady knocked on her door asking if she could give her any food. She sadly said no and that she didn`t even have anything to give her 4 children that night. About an hour later the same lady came back and gave her a small package of noodles and a little can of sauce that she seemed to have got asking others for food. She gratefully started preparing this package of noodles for dinner for her kids, when the missionaries knocked on the door. They said they hadn`t eaten all day because the member who was going to give them lunch wasn`t there. So she invited them to eat dinner with them. Miraculously, there was enough for everyone to have a plate of noodles, the two missionaries, her four kids, and herself. And then more miraculously seconds for everyone. And then there somehow was still a lot left in the pot. All from a little package of noodles. This story reminded me of Elija and the poor woman. This member told us that she has lived by the grace of the Lord for the past 5 hard years. And she knows that the Lord answers prayers. 

Love,

Elder Keele

Dear family,

Thank you so much for being inspired! Elder Diaz and I were just discussing how important following the Spirit is as a missionary; it may be the most important trait we can acquire. So thank you so much for sharing tips on how to do that!

I am so glad that you both enjoyed education week! I can´t imagine how much you both probably learned. I think going every year is a great goal.

We had such an amazing week starting with Tuesday! We found a 21 year-old guy, E. Well, really he found us. He came up to us as we were walking to a cita and asked what times our meetings started. He also invited us to his house later that night. When we went over, he told us of his life. He grew up a really bad kid, with bad friends, doing bad things. One day he jumped a missionary and stole his backpack. Going through his things, like a story in the Ensign, he found a Book of Mormon and decided to read it. He told us he sat on a corner reading while his friends were behind him smoking and fighting and things. He read for hours. He said a verse he remembers that really hit him was Alma 37:7, "by small and simple means are great things brought to pass". The missionary found him that night and saw him reading. He walked up to him and asked him what he was doing with his life. He told him with Christ, he could change. The interest that this missionary seemed to have in him, being a kid that had stole his backpack a few hours before, really struck E. And he started changing.This all happened in Santiago. He told us of other members of the church that have been examples to him, starting with his best friend that was a parole officer with him in Santiago. But there was a breakout in the jail and his friend was murdered and for his safety, E., got sent up here. He had seen missionaries a few times before in the last few months here, but last Tuesday night he felt some giant force that told him he needed to talk to us this time. By the end of the night, he accepted to be baptized on September 1st. He came to church yesterday and later went to a family night with us with other young single adults of the branch.

We also found the son of a recent convert who has been through a VERY rough couple of weeks, to the point that he attempted suicide. But because of the example of his mom, and now with the gospel in his life, he has completely changed in just 7 days.

Last night also, Roberto FINALLY possibly committed to being baptized on the first of September. He has been actively going to church with his family for 2 months now. His wife and two kids are already members, but he has had a hard time deciding if he is ready. We know he is. He has been for a while, but he has a fear that he will be baptized and he will not stay active. But we know things will only get better spiritually for him. I´m pretty sure bad things will happen in the next couple weeks now, but he will be all the more converted.

Last Friday we had a zone conference with President Bruce. It was amazing. He teaches us so much and all by example. He also has a new goal for us that came from the Area Presidency to have 1,300+ converts as a mission this year. Last year the mission had 1,016. But he wants us to improve. The church is really growing so fast here, and  if we do everything right, truly convert them and make sure the branch gives them plenty of support as a new convert, it will continue to do so. I love this town of Tocopilla. There is so much loving support in this branch and especially this Sepulvera family, the family of Alice, is so strong together. They make up about 20 of the 80 people that attend each week.

Have fun in school everyone! Thank you so much for everything.

Love, 

Elder Keele

p.s. A white tie for baptisms would be great because I don´t have my one I came with anymore. Other than that... I really don´t need much.

Derek, Matías, Benjamin, and Milisa

Derek and Juana

Dear Mom,
What a week!
This last week was so neat! We started out by taking a 3-hour bus trip to Calama to have a zone meeting. Our zone leaders were so pumped to work! They are great examples of what they want us to be like, so they really help. They gave us goals for the week, and we got to work. We had 4 baptisms last Saturday! A mom, Milisa, and her two sons, and an aunt of Alice named Juana. Juana is one of the last in their extended family to be baptized, but we are so happy that she went through with it! We went to her house about 3 hours before the baptism, and she told us she wasn´t ready and just wanted more time. She said she knew it was true, but wasn´t ready. She told us why, and it made me realize even more that we really are in a battle like Elder Holland always says.
We had a church activity the night before, and hardly anyone showed up. The only ones were Juana and some of her family, and a member family who invited a friend. We had gone to this member family on Wednesday and asked for references, like missionaries do. She led us to a friend that lives by her, and we all invited her to the activity on Friday. That night Elder Christensen was jealous because he said he has been asking this member for 3 months for a reference and she never gave them one. This friend of the member happens to be a lady that Juana knows well. She actually did some terrible things to Juana in the past where they worked. She called Juana a bad name in front of all of their coworkers.
So just because this lady happened to be at the activity the night before Juana´s baptism, Juana said she didn´t want to join the church. What are the odds! Bad things always come up right before someone gets baptized.
After discussing with Juana God´s perspective and how we really are in a war with Satan, and with a lot of help from her mom, she decided to go through with the baptism.
I hope this story made some sense because I can´t tell you how happy I was when she decided to go through and get baptized. We really are in a battle. The way things turn out sometimes is crazy, but Juana chose to win by choosing the right.
We ended up confirming 6 people in church, our four baptisms and two converts who were baptized the week before I got here. It was a great day in church. And I was super tired last night and very happy to finish a crazy week.
I love hearing about how everyone is doing! Thank you for writing every week! Thank you for everything mom! I love you!
Love,
Elder Keele

Elders Santos and Keele with Laura

Elders Keele and Diaz with Javiera

Elder Derek Keele- August 6, 2012

Dear family,

I´m so glad that the weekend all worked out. The Lord always seems to bless our family so much! I bet it was great to relax with the family for a few days. And dutch oven! That sounds so delicious! Go Jordan! I bet he will love being a teacher! Wow, the TRC is amazing. There is definitely heavenly help in all we do.

Tocopilla is beautiful! Sadly, I bet my idea of beauty has decayed a little in my time in the dessert haha, but I really love it here. You can see the ocean from everywhere in the town! There is still no green. We are surrounded by giant piles of brown dirt, but the ocean is wonderful. And the town is really `linda`. The sunsets are amazing! :D I´ll be sure to take more pictures this week.

Elder Diaz is from Santiago. He is an amazing teacher, and I can tell he truly loves the people here.

I just read that Jessica is engaged!!!! :D :D :D That is so exciting! When is the wedding? I feel weird and nervous that I haven´t met him. But everything I have heard tells me he is awesome. So I´m happy for you both! :D

Yesterday church was super good. I love testimony meeting! And then for Sunday school the class was really good. We talked about the roles of each person in the family. It amazes me how members of the church are able to have such big families. People here have two kids and seem to have the hardest time. But in the church, like our family, 8 kids! The gospel is amazing and truly our loving Heavenly Father knows exactly how to help us keep our big families together and happy.

We had a zone conference last Friday. We are doing another competition in the mission like the March madness things, but with the Olymipics. We spent about 30 minutes of everyone just asking what counts and doesn´t count, number wise. But at one point President Bruce got up in the back of the room and shared 1 Corinthians about 10:19, or something close to that, that says ´when I was a child I spoke as a child and thought as a child. But when I became a man I put away childish things.´ He said we all know what we should be doing as missionaries. We all know what really helps people and what doesn´t. We should not focus on little things and opinions so much that it takes our focus away from what is truly important. With this little competition, it is just to help us work even harder and smarter. We are here in the mission to help people. To save souls. To bring happiness into their lives.

I love this mission, and I love the people. All of Alice´s family is just amazing. The grandma especially. She can barely see or move, but she goes to church every Sunday and loves the gospel already. She is probably the most awesome lady. Her daughter Juana is going to be baptized this Saturday. She has been waiting a couple months, but finally decided that she really does know the church is true. They all tell me that their whole extended family has been so much happier the last few months!

Alice is such an amazing missionary. She comes with us to many lessons, not just with her family. And she just always seems to know what to say. She follows the Spirit. Something the teacher in Sunday school said is that generally men are harder and don´t express themselves, but women are very good at just saying what they feel. I can´t imagine how good sister missionaries must all be.

Thank you for your prayers! I definitely feel them! I have been so blessed and love helping others every day.

Love,
Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, July 30, 2012

Josh still hasn't written haha. Maybe he did Dear Elder so it will take longer. Atlanta, Georgia! Cool! I am so glad he is going!
Nathan = Super Stud
Derek Bradshaw = Also a Stud. That is so good for their family!

I am at last leaving Alto Hospicio. It was a hard Sunday, but I am excited for change. I'm going to Tocopilla, just a little more south. There are only 4 missionaries there, one branch I think. And a famous soccer player's mom, Alexis Sanchez (Chilean but plays for Barcelona), lives there. Not a member, but we'll see ;) haha
My companion is Elder Diaz. I think he is from Chile, and this is his 2nd transfer. I've heard the air is pretty polluted there, so we'll see how that goes. I'm still pretty fat so hopefully the pollution and my new companion won't keep me from running in the mornings haha
I am still going to be in the same zone as Elder Howard! He is going to Calama, so I will probably only see him once a week, if that, but still! We're still together!
Elder Hertler is staying in Arica still.

This last week here was pretty neat. We found a lady one morning that invited us in. We shared the first message and asked her to end us with the prayer. In the prayer she thanked God for sending messengers at this time because the night before she had had a strange dream. When she finished praying, Elder Santos asked if she would like to share her dream. She told us she was with her family and she was being followed by a lot of people. She was really scared and panicking, when somebody handed her a cross. All of the fear went away, and then she woke up.
Can you imagine hearing this! We could barely hold our excitement! Hopefully Elder Santos (who is staying here in Alto Hospicio) will be able to keep me updated on her progress.
Then on Saturday our branch had a couple baptisms. The father of a family and his daughter. The mother was the only member, but the whole time I have been here she has been fully active and always happy. I know because of her example the father decided to listen to the missionaries. And now they are together as a family! I can't imagine how hard that would be to be the only one and always have a positive, energetic attitude. What an amazing lady :D There are many people like this, not only in this branch but in the world, and I have the utmost respect for them. I have been so blessed, and staying strong in the gospel hasn't cost nearly as much on my part. What can I do to show God I have the same strong testimony as these people? I'm not sure I can, other than fulfilling my calling every day the best I can. I love being a missionary and am so grateful for these two years.
The mission goes by so fast! I nearly have 8 months! And I am just now leaving my first sector haha.
I am very excited to work with a new branch, and I know I will miss everyone here so much. The branch of Tarapacá is the best!

Enjoy the family vacation! Love all of the time you get to spend together! ....sob, sob... haha just kidding, I'm not crying. But I do miss all of you very much!

Be safe!

Love,
Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, July 23, 2012

Go Josh!!! He hasn't written me yet, but hearing that he got his call makes me so happy! :D And Derek Bradshaw too! Where is he going? He is a man. And I am so thankful for all of the years that he has always been my friend. He would always treat me with respect, even when others in school or on sports teams didn't. Derek is a man. He is going to be such a great missionary!

Last Monday night, we had a meeting with an investigator, Gido Ruiz. His wife and son got baptized two years ago, but for some reason he left them soon after. After he left, Edith, his wife, thought that that was a sign that she made a wrong decision, so she never went to church again. But now we found her, and found Gido one day while he was visiting them. He really wants to change all of the mistakes he has made, and wants to get closer to the Lord.

So last week they went to church as a family. Monday night we met with them and I was so overjoyed to hear what he said. He said that those few hours in the church, he felt such a peace and calm. But when the meetings were over and they left the church, it went away. He asked how he can  feel those same feelings of peace and comfort the rest of the week, as we return to our lives? I was so excited to hear that! Any missionary would be! I said Yes, Gido! That is exactly what the gospel is for! We can receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, and he can always be our companion. I challenged him to be baptized, but he said he is not ready.

So last week we had our interviews with President Bruce on Thursday. I told him about Gido and he told me what we needed to do. (And in fact, the assistants asked if there was any way we could have a family night with Gido that night and invite President Bruce because they were going to be there all day, but Gido had to work so he told us we couldn't. We almost had a family night with our mission president! Maybe next time. :/)
They didn't go to church this week so we felt pretty bad because if they tell us they don't want to get baptized and then they don't go to church either, that usually means we have to drop them and focus on those who are ready. But we "just happened" to be doing contacts next to their house yesterday after church, and they "just happened" to be outside. They insisted that we stop in for a little bit. We even tried to say no, but they insisted.
So we were there and we realized we had never even taught him the 1st lesson, the restoration. We asked him if he had known anything and he said he hadn't. (Obviously we missed something very important!) The lesson was so good. We all felt the Spirit so strong! And luckily it happened so I got to be the one to recite Joseph Smith's words of the First Vision. It was my favorite time that I had ever done it! :D We will keep praying that he recognizes what he has already felt, and that he sincerely desires to find the truth and change. He is so ready! And this will bless his whole family! He hasn't moved back in with his wife yet, but is at their house almost every night now. I love the gospel!

In my interview last week, President Bruce told me that it is probably time for me to go now. I have been in this same sector for 6 months, a fourth of my mission, and from the beginning of my mission haha. I think he is right. But I learned from Jessica experience. I am not going to go around and tell everyone I'm leaving until I am sure I know. haha

Thank you for everything! Especially your example! I love you all! Take care and enjoy every day! :D

Love,

Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, July 16, 2012

We had a Zone Conference last Friday! President Bruce is so good at teaching and really does receive revelation. I learned A LOT of how important it is for us to act and do things. We cannot just pray for things to happen if we do not do everything we can. As missionaries, he told us a lot of us pray that our investigators will go to church, that they will change and see the blessings and decide to go. But we can teach people many times, very strongly too, but because of the culture in Chile, they just decide to stay home. (No joke, they have a holiday every other week, and at least once a month, they have Mondays where almost nobody works.) So as missionaries, we really just need to do all that we can. We can go pick them up, have their day all planned out for them so they are set, go help them clean or cook food Saturday, just everything. Then once they get to church a few times, they will grow that desire to be there more and more. But we can`t just pray that they will have that desire right off the bat. We have to help them.

In Alma 31:35, the sons of Mosiah pray to have the power and wisdom to help the people. They do not just pray that they will all change. They know that we must do all we can.

´Faith without works is dead´ We must have faith, do all we can, and the Lord will help everything work out. And then we gain testimony after. But we must have faith first. 

Last Saturday the two other Elders in our branch had 5 baptisms! A family and two other cousins of members. It was a lot of work for everything to work out. But it did! I felt like I was working at the Shell again, running every where and organizing people.

Playing piano has helped so much. It turns out I am the only missionary in our Zone that can play. Learn piano Nathan! And especially, hymns! I wish I would have practiced more. There aren`t that many that I am really confident with yet, and there is almost no time to practice. 

Well I have to go now, sorry I couldn't´t get your email, Mom. We just had to write earlier today.

Love, 

Elder Keele 

Elder Derek Keele, July 9, 2012

That is so crazy to hear about all of the fires. I can´t imagine how the whole state probably looks right now.

We had a hard week but keep working hard and had an amazing weekend. Only missing one thing, people at church. How right Jordan was in his talk when he was amazed that everyone he invited went to church the day he spoke after he got home. We seemed to invite everyone last week, and not one investigator made it :( But that just gives Elder Santos and me reason to work hard and stay focused. Never get discouraged!

Sorry for being so short. But I love this work, the gospel, our Savior, and all of you at home.

Keep strong in the faith! It WILL be worth it.

Love, Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, July 2, 2012

YES! We had a great week!
As a mission we all tried to finish the Book of Mormon, so that was kind of crazy. But our whole zone did it with a lot of help from our awesome Zone Leader, Elder Kennedy, waking some of us up at 5 to help us finish in time. And we also had big goals for the week  to get 6 baptisms in our zone on Saturday. What a week! But in the end, everything turned out so beautifully. Elder Santos baptized Laura Ruiz, and I got to confirm her in church yesterday. She is a mother of two little kids, and all of her brothers and sisters are members. She actually found the missionaries because of the examples of her family, and she wants the same for her children. The husband is a little difficult, but he went to her baptism. So hopefully he will recognize the Spirit and decide to join his wife in the gospel.

Yes, I am training Elder Santos. But really I feel like I get in the way. I need to just step back more and let him teach. This is starting his 3rd week in Chile, but he is already such a good missionary. He is teaching me. We get along really well though and he really knows how to bring the Spirit in.
His family decided to move to Utah because they were in a bad neighborhood in LA. They moved close to his aunt who is a member. But they really didn`t know much about the church before they moved. His younger sister started going to church with her cousin, and she came back every day so happy. So the rest of the family wanted to go find out why, and they were baptized not very long after. And now he has been a member for about a year and 4 months and is such a good example. He is a stud!

I sadly don`t remember the book Brenton brought... but it sounds amazing. Haha Most definitely help the young women with it if you feel you should. I can wait :D
Poor Tammie :( I hope you feel better tomorrow. Happy Birthday! I love you Tammie!
Oi, I will pray for dad. He is such a great example.
Wow, that is crazy to hear about all of the fires. They are terrible.

The Voelkels moved?:( Where did they go? They are such a good family. I bet he finished school and can move on to a happier job. I remember Brother Voelkel used to work as a lawyer for divorces or something. Please wish them the best for me if you are still in contact with them. I loved being their home teacher.

I will have to take some pictures next week of the ocean. I`ll see if I can convince my companions to climb our hill of dirt and take pictures from there haha. I miss Utah`s mountains- white snow, green trees, silver rocks... Here, there are some mountainish things, but really they are just big hills of dirt. Pure brown. haha In fact, all of the members always tell us how ugly it is here. But yes, looking down to Iquique and the ocean is beautiful.
I am so excited for Brenton! He starts the experience of his life on Thursday!
Have a great week everyone! Thank you for keeping me updated!
Love, Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, June 25, 2012

Haha Jordan is already back at the Shell. I knew Linda would get her way ;) Oh how much I loved working there. Yes, remembering those memories brings back good feelings. We were all so blessed that we were able to do that.

My companion and I were talking about that same scripture yesterday (Helaman 10:4-5)! I know it is true! If we try to have those traits that Nephi had, the Lord will bless us and trust us more in His work. And, of course, that means we will be able to help more people. Thank you, Mom!

Go Brenton! I really miss Brenton and Josh a ton now. Way to be Brenton! Josh, keep working hard. I´ll try to write them soon.

That is so fun Dallin! I bet Jordan will love scout camp too. Good memories :D And dad may not love it so much, but it will be good to be with Dallin and the boys.

My companion is Elder Santos! He is from LA California, but moved to Utah about a year before he left. Fun fact, he got baptized when he moved to Utah, in February 2010! He is so awesome for coming on the mission, and he was prepared from day 1 in Chile. His parents are Guatemalen so he knows Spanish. And he already teaches and talks  to people so well. He is a stud!

Also, Elder Eggleston moved in to our apartment. He is from Idaho. He is hilarious and a great missionary. He reminds me a lot of Tyler Russon.

How are the Russons doing by the way? Tyler, Nichole, Tanner. Is Tanner preparing for his mission? I forgot when his birthday is but he goes out soonish right?

Well, I love the mission still. Everyday I learn more and feel the Lord´s hand in everything :) We had a talent show Saturday night and we sang.

I am still preparing that package I wanted to send months ago.

Have a great week everyone!

Love, Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, June 18, 2012

I´m staying here! I am so happy because I love this Branch and am excited to work another transfer or two with the members. I don´t know who my new companion is yet, but I am excited to meet him! Elder Morales taught me a ton, and he gets home to his home in Bountiful tomorrow afternoon!

Hermano Dias didn´t make it :(

Our daily routine... Let´s see,  we get up and exercise, either by playing soccer with the four of us at a court nearby or just by using our pullup bar and my suitcase stuffed with magazines (for weight). For breakfast it is whatever we can find. Sometimes I attempt pancakes but they usually burn haha. I´m working on that. Also sopaipilla, hot chocolate, juice, just whatever there is haha. Then we study for a couple hours, go work, and then go to lunch at 1:30 at a member´s home. We eat with the family of President Valdez, the branch president of a different branch here in Alto Hospicio. She is so good! She gives us so much and it is always delicious! Empanadas, swordfish, soups,  spaghetti, and of course rice and chicken. Much of that haha.

Then we go back to our pension for an hour to study language or whatever you want (President Bruce wants all the Latinos to learn English). And then we go work again until about 10:30. Because of the culture here in Chile, our whole schedule is a half hour later than most missionaries. (We wake up at 7 and go to bed at 11) And during the four months of summer, another half hour later (7:30 to 11:30).

As for dinner, we just eat if members give us food or when we get back to our pension.  (We usually just buy a bunch of spaghetti and sauce because it is easy to make and is cheap and  filling)

Hermana Alexia Alvarez does our laundry every week. She has a washer but then has to hang the clothes on lines to dry them, and then she irons them too. It amazes me how she does it all week after week. The mission pays our food mamita and clothes mamita, but not very much. They do a lot of service for us. They are both amazing!

We mainly walk, but there is a part of our sector that we usually take  a bus to just to save time. There are taxis everywhere here, probably at least one-fourth of the cars  in the road, but we don´t use them very often because they cost much {Derek is using Spanish grammar with this sentence].

TREK! That is so good to hear all of that! What a fun week! And the experiences everyone had must have been very special. Way to sing Nathan! (I can´t believe you are 17. The oldest of the youth!)

I remember the part where the men leave the women. That was hard to see them do that. It really helps us see a little of what the pioneers went through. I´m sure every youth that went on trek was so glad that they chose to go. Thank you for all the work of the leaders who planned it all! Thank you, Mom, for your dedication to your calling!

Of course, happy birthday and Father´s Day Dad! I hope it was a great day! Especially right after trek. Resting must have been nice :D

And happy birthday on Friday Dallin! :D

Yesterday we had one of the neatest experiences of my mission so far  :)

I´m not sure if I told you about Hermano Domingo Paredes. He is an elderly man we found a couple weeks ago just by doing contacts. We knocked on his door and told him we wanted to share a prayer with him to invite God into his home and bless him. He thought for a second and then asked, What does a prayer do? He invited us in and we explained the importance of praying and how our Heavenly Father wants to hear from us and will  bless us with whatever we need. Hermano Domingo told us that he really needed to pray then because he had just had heart surgery 22 days before. He even showed us his stitches on his chest (sorry Mom). He said most definitely, he needed help from God to recuperate. So we ended with a prayer to bless him and his family, and he invited us to come back in a few days.

When we went back, he invited us in energetically. We sat down and he told us that the last time when we prayed, he had felt such a peace in his home ever since and  was feeling a lot better :) 

We shared the first lesson, and at the end he told us that he now sees the importance of baptism, and told us he really wanted to go to church on Sunday. Sadly when Sunday came he didn´t make it. Later we found out because he was waiting for his son to come home to take him in his car. So for the next week we said we would pick him up with a member.

So now yesterday came. We were running late to church so we took a taxi (I hope that is not breaking the sabbath, because not many people have cars here. A lot take taxis to get to church). On our way we were coming up to a street that is ALWAYS packed, especially at that time. I prayed so hard that it would be clear so we could get Domingo to church on time. And miraculously, there was nobody :) We got to the church  and asked the member to take us and made it on time with Domingo.

We had a really good Sunday school class on faith. And at the end of the lesson, Domingo asked the teacher if he could get a blessing from anyone in the church to help him heal his heart. I don´t know how he knew to ask or how he had the courage or faith to ask, but he did. And immediately after we had the opportunity to give him a priesthood blessing. 

He had a great time in church and learned a lot. He is such a humble man, and has tremendous faith. I know the Lord is in His work. He is helping everyone come unto Him if they just accept His invitation :) 

So yesterday, was a great day :)

Have a great week everyone! Birthdays, holidays, summer, etc. I hope everyone is having a great summer! :D

I love you all! 

Elder Derek Keele

Elder Derek Keele, June 11, 2012

I´m great! My companion is starting to get anxious to go home! Only
one more week! He is really good though and has taught me a lot,
especially about finishing strong! He´ll have to meet up with Jamie
and Travis when he goes back to his home in Bountiful  :D
Our investigators are doing well. Most are progressing :)
That is so great to hear about Jordan. What an exciting weekend! haha
that makes me excited already :D
I hope I stay here! This branch is amazing! Our branch president,
President Quiroga, has the vision of where the church is going here in
Alto Hospicio. He is so dedicated and always working to help the
branch with the guidance of the Spirit. I will find out on Sunday
morning where I go next, but yes I think I get to stay here :D
Thank you for the recipes! Hermano Fuenteable has taught me how to
make sopaipillas, bread, and cake. Sopaipilla is delicious! It is kind
of like a tortilla mixed with homemade donuts. It rocks!
Yesterday in church we ran around 3rd hour talking to the Relief
Society, Elders quorum, and Priests quorum. We are trying to get
everyone more involved in the work. And it really helps the members
strengthen their testimonies too!
I really hope I have at least one more transfer here, two would be
nice. But I am ready for whatever!
Thank you for sending me Rachel´s letter. It is so good to hear
testimonies from family!
Happy birthday two days ago, Jamie!!! I sang happy birthday to myself
for you that day.
And happy Father´s Day on Sunday Dad! Enjoy the Krispy Kreme Donuts!
(You could probably use one of Jordan´s ties because I´m sure he has a
bunch haha)
Elder Hertler´s mom is active in the church again!!!! :D He even
called her and she talked to him! She said she wasn´t sure why, but
she suddenly had the desire to go back to church again. I am so happy
for her and Elder Herlter!
Thank you for everything! Enjoy the trek! And be safe!
Love,
Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, June 4, 2012

Whoa. That is so cool. Those sound like amazing missionaries. What a
sweet experience :D It is times like that when it is just impossible
to doubt that the Lord knows us and loves us.
And with Jordan coming home when he is. That is such a blessing! Holy
cow! I didn´t realize that he is coming this Saturday! How exciting!
Enjoy this next week! :)
My companion only has a couple weeks left and he is starting to get
excited. But luckily for me he is choosing to finish strong and not
let off on the throttle. I have already learned a lot from him and
will continue learning.
Oh boy! Yes Jessica, please write me before you get married! (Jessica is not even engaged!)
Way to go Nathan! Jamba Juice! I hope you don´t turn crazy from all
the sugar! That sounds like it will be a really fun place to work. I
knew a lot of friends during high school that went there all the time.
Do your best every day to be the best! :D And enjoy it!
This week was pretty good. We still need to do better of course, like
always, but I was so happy to see all the people in church! A guy came
that hasn`t been in a long while, but our branch president told us
that that guy used to be the most dedicated guy he has ever seen. It
will be so good for this branch when he gets going again!
His testimony is super strong; he said that he has never ever denied
that the gospel is true. He just made some mistake years ago and said
he hasn´t deserved to be back in the church. But we shared 2 Nephi
28:32 with him. The Lord`s arms are always open, just waiting for us to
come back to him. And now Hermano Días plans on being fully active in
the church again, because he has missed it a lot.
Yesterday the electricity was out for most of the day. We heard from
about 4 in the morning to 2 in the afternoon, and then it went out
again from about 6 to 10 at night. We heard it was just a maintenance
thing. This is very different from Orem. I do´n`t remember this ever
happening and if it did it was for about an hour at the most.
But luckily, most of our branch still went to church. And it turned
out to be the most favorite fast and testimony meeting I have ever been in!
Hearing certain people get up in the meeting was so cool to see!
People I love so much, people we have worked with, and members that I
didn`t think would ever do that. I loved hearing all of the
testimonies, and that meeting was such a strength to me. :D I love this
branch!
President Bruce challenged us this month to finish the Book of Mormon.
As a mission we were in Mosiah 6. Now he challenged everyone to
finish by the end of this month. I love it! I love reading the Book of
Mormon many pages at a time. It gives you a bigger perspective on how
and when things happen, and it really seems to boost my testimony of
it. I know it is true.
Well have a great week prepping for Jordan! I hope his adjustment will
be easier than it seemed for Jessica. And now you will have two recent
RMs in the home.
I love you all! Have a great week! And have a great summer kids!

Elder Derek Keele, May 28, 2012

Haha Vicky Stuardo wrote you on facebook. She is awesome! She is the girl form of stud. We
baptized her dad Victor a couple months ago, and she played a big
part in his progression. Her mom is also a member but was inactive
for a while. And Vicky got baptized in November, so yes, pretty
recent. Their whole family is really awesome.
Congratulations to Bert! That is awesome! He is a great example to everyone!
Is Jessica official now!? Alex sounds like a great guy that has a
plan. If she gets married while I´m here that is going to be super
weird:P
Thank you for sharing that Mom. I´ll read the Living Christ again this
week. I love experiences like that where the Spirit testifies so
strongly that something is true!
Just last night we talked to a lady in the street. She used to
investigate the church, but stopped because of all the rules,
commandments, callings, and other things that come with the Church. I
felt to testify to her that that is exactly true. There are a lot of
things that come with being faithful in the Church. And that is why we
need to pray and ask Heavenly Father if those things are from the men
in the chapel or are really from Him. I felt so strong after that
came out, that the commandments ARE from God. And her face changed to a
face like ¨That´s true¨.  I know the Spirit testified to both of us. I
pray that she will remember that  and act on it when we go to her
house to teach her.
Congrats, NATHAN! STUD! I bet it is going to be really hard doing all
that, but you will enjoy it all. I´ve heard ballroom is really fun.
You and Samuel are going to have such a fun senior year! Good luck
with Jamba Juice!
Sister Huffaker! She and Brother Huffaker sent me a package in the MTC
for Valentines day. Tell them thank you so much and that the candies
were delicious! And I will write them.
This week was really good and then sad. We had specific goals for our
zone this week that were fun to work towards. We worked hard and got
everything until it came to church time. None of the people we are
teaching came :( People in our branch had even brought some of their
friends to church, so they brought more than we did. (Which
shows you how awesome our branch is. All of our members rock) But that
made me and my companion feel really bad as missionaries. We´ll just
have to work harder, smarter, and listen to the Spirit this week
better so that we can help more people. Other than church, it was a
really good week. We found a lot of new people to teach.
Hermana Alexia, the member at whose house we Skyped, wants a good
cookie recipe. Just old fashioned Chocolate Chips :D And also the
really good no-bake recipe that says  ¨Snappy Eating¨ would be really
nice :)
Last week I found out I could put conference talks on my flash drive
and use my companion´s speakers to listen to them. I love listening
to Conference! Some talks have already helped me by advising what our
people need to hear. I know that the Apostles are inspired and are
all called of God.
Well, it is great to hear that Dad and the brothers were able to go
camping. I always loved the Father´s and Son´s camp outs.
Thank you for everything family! I can´t believe I have nearly been
out 6 months! Time is flying here. I don´t know how I have deserved to
be able to be where I am. It is amazing, and I love every day. :D Keep
staying strong as a family, and in the gospel always!
Love, Elder Derek Keele

Mother's Day program

Elder Derek Keele, May 21, 2012

Dear loving family,

This last week has been really good. The thing we need to improve at
though is helping people see the importance of going to church. I
don´t know what it was about yesterday, but the attendance yesterday
was really low.
Haha President Bruce told me that Elder Morales should not be able to
walk by the end of this transfer when he goes home. He is doing really good though. He
is still working hard and helping and teaching me a lot. We found a
lot of new people to teach last week so I am very excited for this
week.
One family we met even asked us to bless the house because the mom has
always had a bad feeling about the house. We taught a lesson and we
ended by blessing the house. Their mood seemed to change from the
beginning of the lesson to after the prayer. And I have faith that
when we go back this week they will have recognized the Spirit and the
Lord in their home. Because when we ask the Lord, He WILL answer us.
Yesterday we talked to a member whose testimony was such a strength to
me. HE studies and studies gospel books and talks and has such a
strong testimony. HE even shared a little bit with us of an amazing
talk that he said is only for those who already have firm testimonies.
It was the talk on  the Atonement by Brother Skousen, the one Jordan
suggested we listen to about a year ago. The member said that the talk
has taught him so much and that it made him realize how much we really
don´t know. That talk was amazing! I am going to try and find it so my
companion can read it too.
It has been getting cold! I´m guessing about 50 degrees, and I have
been freezing! I always wear a jacket in our pension now haha. I am
going to freeze when I get back to Utah again.

The pictures are of the Mother´s Day activity in the Church. We sang a hymn.
And Hermana Alexia, Hermano Eduardo, Josue, Elder Hertler, and me.
Elder Garrido, Elder Ramos, me, Elder Morales.

Elder Ramos is from Ecuador, has a twin, and has 7 kids in his family,
all members :)
Elder Morales is from Bountiful, is really smart, and can do cool
tricks on a skateboard.

Kids, enjoy summer! And everyone else I guess haha. Keep reading and
praying always! Thank you mom for writing me every week about how
everything is at home. I love you!
Elder Derek Keele

Elder Derek Keele, May 14, 2012

I loved talking to everybody yesterday! I even had a dream last night with everyone in it :D haha.

That is a really cool analogy. Thank you for sharing it. Brad Wilcox is also Nathan Gunnell`s uncle or something like that, and he shared many talks with John Bytheway when I went to education week at BYU. He is a great speaker.

Yay Grandma! That is such a blessing to have everyone meet there with her.

I am so excited for tomorrow! We get to hear from President Bruce and get more direction for our mission. I will let you know how that goes.

Well, since we just talked a lot yesterday I don`t know much what else to say. This week should be an exciting and good week. I hope we can find and teach many this week. 

Jordan sounds like he is doing really well. It might be a little hard to focus for him because he is going home so soon, but I know he`ll finish strong. 

Thank you family! I love you all! Have a great week!

Love, Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, May 7, 2012

Transfers were today, and Elder Hertler got sent to Arica to be a Zone Leader! He was really nervous, but there is no one more fit for the job! He will help tons up there! I am staying here in Alto Hospicio and am finishing off a missionary. My new companion will be Elder Morales from Salt Lake, who is Mexican. For some reason, President Bruce made a bunch of us new guys senior companions. Elder Howard, who was in the MTC with me, is also going to be companions with a last transfer missionary and is going to be the senior companion. I`m guessing just because we know this sector, and possibly to train in the near future. President Bruce told me in my interview that we are consistently having 20 or so new missionaries come in every transfer, and only about 6 leaving each time. So he is opening more sectors and putting 2 companionships in the same branch. I am really excited about this because it is like all of Antofogasta is getting a boost. (Perhaps preparing for a temple ;D) So I am nervous because I`m going to be in charge of an experienced missionary that may want to take it easy for his last 6 weeks here. But I`m not going to let him ;) We`re going to get to work!

President Bruce is awesome! He gave me good counsel in my interview and is just a great leader for all of the missionaries. I am so grateful to be here in this mission and to have such great leaders.

That is so exciting to hear about Steph! Way to go sister! Yes, I got letters from Rilee and Janelle. :D Tell them they rock and sorry that it takes so long to respond. I`m a slacker sometimes.

Last week for P-Day we played soccer in a stadium with about 25 missionaries! It was sweet, and we were super sore afterwards, but it was worth the pain. I even scored once! Haha and Elder Hertler scored about 12 times.

Love, Elder Derek Keele

Elder Derek Keele, Apr. 23, 2012

This week has been really good! Elder Hertler found out he has tendonitis in his left knee, so we had a lot of resting time. But he is an animal and still worked every day.
  Alejandro got baptized last week by his son, Victor. Their family continues to be happier and I know it is because of the gospel. Yesterday after church Elder Hertler challenged one of our investigators to be baptized this Saturday and he accepted! He is a 17 year old boy and really mature for his age. His girlfriend is a less active member so this will really help both of them out. We have our interviews with President Bruce tomorrow! This will be my first one! And I will definitely ask him about Mrs. Brereton.
  I have been reading ´Our Heritage´ this week and it is amazing to learn about the history of the church and all of the Prophets. We met a couple this week that hasn´t been to church in a while. They are both 80 years old. We talked with them and they told us a couple of miracles that happened to them. They have been members for 30 years and back then the members, about 20, used to meet in their house. Their testimonies are still as strong as ever, but they just haven´t been coming to church because they´ve been sick. I don´t know what it is, but I feel like they are the first people like them that I have met here in Chile. They reminded me of the pioneers, that were few but who had complete testimonies and knew that this gospel is true. After reading about the pioneers and then meeting them here in Antofagasta Chile, I just know that the gospel is the same all over the world. It was good to meet people so strong in the gospel.
 Well now that my companion has a knee brace, we are allowed to work harder. And I´m sure he will heal fast. We only have two more weeks in this transfer! I hope I stay here in Alto Hospicio. I will send that package soon I hope haha. Its hard to find time to do it haha. I love you all! Read and pray always! Love, Elder Derek Keele

Elder Derek Keele, April 16, 2011

Thank you for the Priesthood Line Dad! That is amazing to me. 11 steps away from Christ!
And thank you, Mom, for the special experiences. I love reading them. The trek is going to be great, and those must have been amazing missionaries. And it is good to hear from Marcos as well!
And thank you, Tammie, for writing me! I loved your letter so much that I printed it out :D
The pictures:
Look at that! Rain! It sprinkled for a couple hours last Thursday! That is a car below our pension.
Picture 2, Andrea and Alejandro´s wedding! It was so great! They both seem so much happier and hearing their testimonies later that day in the church reminded me of Jamie and Travis´s wedding.
Picture 3, I met a guy from another branch that lived in Provo for about 15 years! And worked washing dishes in Los Hermanos, and also at Meadow Gold by Grandma´s house! It was really neat to talk to someone that knows the states, Orem, and even State Street!

Happy Birthday on Thursday Stephanie!!! 15. You are one year away from driving and dating. Whoa man! I remember 15 as the age where you can almost do a bunch of things, but not quite. haha. But it has remained my favorite number. So congrats! I hope you have a wonderful day!

Can I ask a favor of everyone in the family? The next time you have a chance to write during family night, could you write my companion, Elder Hertler? He is low on letters. He is from Buenos Aires, Argentina, and he is a stud if I´ve ever met one. He is surely the best missionary in our mission. But he needs letters to keep his spirits up because his family doesn´t take the time right now. I pray that they will, but until then, I´m sure getting a few letters from people in the states would be neat. Tell him about life in the states and share your testimony. It will mean a lot to him :D

Thank you for all your support! I had some really neat experiences last week, and I will have to put them in letters because I never have enough time here!
I love you all and will write more next week!
Especially an email to Tammie, I´m so sorry for not doing so this week!
Love, Elder Keele

Elder Derek Keele, April 9, 2011

I was not able to read the email last week until just now, but that is
totally okay. I am super blessed to have a mom that writes every week.
My companion still doesn´t get emails from his family. Only about once
a month from his brother that is also serving a mission. If there is
anyone that needs to feel more love from his family, it is my companion. I have
been overly blessed. :) Don´t worry about me being homesick. I do miss
everyone very much, but I´m here to work :D And I still love every
minute.
My Spanish is coming. A lot of the other missionaries tell me that it
is good, but when we teach and are actually with people, I still can´t
always understand or say everything to help the conversation. But I´m
getting there.
Haha David Archuletta. That is so cool that you saw him at the MTC! A couple
weeks before I left the MTC there were rumors that he was going to
serve in Santiago Chile. And I´m guessing those are true now. It
would´ve been way cool to talk to him in the MTC. I agree, he is
probably so much happier now away from the world. I´m sure he is a
great missionary and very humble.
Alejandro and Andrea are excited for this week! Thursday they will
get married civilly and he will be baptized the 21st. We can already
see that their family has changed. They are much happier, and my
companion actually told Andre the same thing! Alejandro will
change as he lives the gospel and they will both be much better and
happier! :D
I am sure that I will have no problem finding a family to help me
Skype :D That has come by so fast! By that time I will have been out
about 6 months!
Thank you, Mom, for giving me the love for many foods. The olives here
are very different (they are like the green ones but not as good) but
I still like them a lot. And they are everywhere! Pizza, desserts,
snacks, etc. Many missionaries don´t like them at all. And I still
haven´t had something I didn´t like and I haven´t gotten sick. I am
super blessed food wise. The only problem is it makes me fat haha. I
got to check my weight in my zone leaders pension the other day
and.... drum role... after all the sweating here the first 2 months in
Chile, I have gained another 4 pounds haha. That is about 23 total now
including the MTC. But I feel healthy. Hopefully a little of that is
muscle haha.
I haven´t figured out why yet, but our Elder´s quorum president is so
dedicated and converted to the gospel. And he and his wife are
converts of about only 5 years! But he and our branch president have
got to be the most dedicated people I´ve met in this first area. We
just had a baptism last Saturday, Victor Stuardo, and he is a father
whose wife and daughter are members. I´m so glad for the great
leaders we have in this branch that help everyone participate and
hopefully become as converted as they are. I know I am going to miss
this sector the day I leave.
Yesterday we had the most people attend church yet! 100! I think it
being Easter helped. It was a great day yesterday. I even got to
listen to the great talk President Monson gave a couple years ago ¨He
is Risen¨. It was really great to hear it and remember the Savior
more.
Thank you for everything! I am been exceedingly blessed (;) ) here and am
loving helping everyone. The gospel is amazing.
Love, Elder Derek Keele