October 13 - I'M A DISTRICT LEADER AND PEACIN OUT!!

First of all, my birthday was good.  We ate with members and some members from San Pedro sent me a watch that is super nice.   But ya it was good, but honestly I dont like having birthdays in the mission I was super homesick that day and as soon as I just forgot about it being the 12th  I was happier... Hahaha!!   It was weird.   The best park of the day was when I was in a lesson with an investigator.  I did have a good day.  We ate with 2 members that day too and after went to Burger King.   It's ok we might go eat somewhere nice after the district meeting tonight.  One meal was with the bishop and his wife made spaghetti.  It was awesome, she is soooo nice, I love her.

But guess what?   I am peacin out to another area called Acoxpa as the District Leader.  I am super stressed out.  I don't know what I am gonna do, I hope my new companion isn't lazy, we are gonna work no matter what!!  I am super ticked about leaving Elder Clark but Elder Carrigan is coming here to finish training him.  He is one of the elders who is in the Beatles pic...so it will be good.

The changes are tomorrow so I get to see everyone like Elder W. and Elder Y.!!  Elder W. is also gonna be a district leader in Iztapalpa...Hahaha!!  I am stoked that we are both gonna be doing the same thing, it makes me feel way better.

But we taught a man named Jorge, he is awesome too.   We just need to interview him.   But Hermana K. made me a cake yesterday and I cried saying goodbye to her . That's the first time I have cried in front of someone in the mission.   I don't know why but I just love her family so much and I want to baptize her so bad but we can't until the Pres says so.  Ya, it's super hard, that's like one of the things I hate most in the mission, leaving an area is soooo hard and super frustrating.  But I know it's what the Lord wants.  The good news is that district leaders stay in areas for long periods of time.  Usually like 3 or 4 changes, so I hope this new area is awesome.

Acoxpa is actually not that far from Estrella.  It's the next zone over and it's 25 minutes away in car.

Yesterday I bore my testimony in sacrament in front of a member of the seventy... Hahaha!! It was sick!!

As for my butt, it is good.  It still hurts sometimes when I sit down but I am way better.   I think the Pres is gonna set up another appointment with the doctor to see if everything healed alright.

I will talk to you next week just make sure to keep me in your prayers cuz I am gonna need it big time this week.  Thanks for everything and try to get that package sent through...do you think I will get it soon?  I would like to get it, so try as hard as you can to get it through.
 Love you tons,  Momma!   Tell the family that I say hi and that I love them tons.   Pray for me and my companion and my new area... Please aka POR FAVOR!!  Adios!

 

Me and Elder A. in Hermana K.'s house. 
It's a birthday cake she made for us.

My birthday dinner at the Bishop's house

  



Me, Elder Clark and the bishop and his wife.

My roommates

Me and Elder Clark!!

 

October 7, 2013 - BACK TO ESTRELLA!

Here's the deal with this week ... so we got back to our area on Wednesday and started working like 4 hours a day (like 2 or 3 appointments) thats about it.   It was good.  I was so stressed cuz its like we are working with no one right now.   We didn't have any progressing investigators and I felt like I was opening up an area again.  Anyways, I have been praying so hard for some of the investigators we have here.   One in particular, her name is K. and she has 3 kids and is fetchin awesome!!  I have known her the whole time I have been here.  She has seen the elders for 2 years now.  I feel like she is my mom out here.   She is like 30 years old and just awesome,  but she lives with her boyfriend and long story short she cant get married cuz her boyfriend hasn't divorced his last wife completely. It's pretty messed up, he is a returned missionary.  Anyway, we went with her like 5 days ago and I said to Elder C. if she 't progressing when we teach her today or something good happens we might have to stop teaching her.  We are wasting our time. Anyways, we go to her house and we get there and she just looked super happy.   She then ended up telling us that she talked to her boyfriend and told him that she wants to get baptized and knows that she can't while he is living there with her.   So she said to him that God and her kids are more important so she kicked him out Hahaha!!  I was stoked.  Its awesome she just never wanted to change or tell her boyfriend to move out until now. She ended up telling us and crying a lot that she wants to do the right thing.  It was so spiritual and awesome.  I felt so good after and I knew the Lord helped us out with her cuz we didn't have anyone when I got back to the area.  But we are setting up appointments with the President and Stake President because she has to talk to them before she gets baptized.  Not sure exaclty why but I just hope she passes.   She has a ton of faith for doing what she did.  She came to conference yesterday and cried during it and said it was awesome.   Also, we have another investigator named Hermano V. His wife is a member and we are working with him and gonna put a date with him this week.
I feel better every day, the only thing that bugs me is sometimes it hurts to sit down cuz its still not all the way healed but other than that, its good.  I don't have to go to the doctor's anymore.  I am all goooooood right now.
I watched conference at the stake center...it was sick.  The talks yesterday and Saturday were awesome.   I watched in English with like 10 other elders.  It was sweet and the talks were awesome.
My Spanish is good.   It's just the fine tuning I'm trying to work on right now.  For the most part I really get the language but I just have to correct little things and make my sentences flow more easily.  But I read the other day that Satan tries to attack those who have the gift on tongues by making them feel bad or like they don't understand when they really do.  So I just got to stay more positive.   Elder C. and I are working hard on the language.  I need to help him more with that for sure.  It's hard cuz it's mostly me in the lessons.  I talk the whole time, but the Lord is helping me to be better for sure.
For my birthday, I think there are some members that are gonna cook for me and Elder A. because it's his b-day on the 14th.  So it should be awesome.  If not, we will probably hit up Burger King or something...just the four of us...should be super fun!
O.K.  Momma,  I got to go.  Don't worry, I will take tons of pics on my bday.
Keep praying for our investigators.
Adios!

I was wanted to make sure Josh could go out for a good meal on his big day...

MOM:  
Dad and I are going to put an extra $50 in your account...we want you  to take your roommates out to celebrate!!  Is there  somewhere nicer than Burger King?

JOSH: 
Ya, actually there is a place that looks like a ghetto cheesecake factory in our area, so that would be so sick to go to.   I think that's where we will go...Hahaha!!

(I just don't think he will find anything close to Linda's Fudge Cake!!)

October 1, 2013 - RECOVERING IN THE MISSION HOME

Hey Momma,
I am in the yellow house living with the assistants and secretaries.  I am working in the offices right now.  Elder C. and I have been here since Wednesday night and get to go home tonight. 
The President wanted me up here because the doctor told me last week that I couldn't leave the house.  I think he was worried about Elder C.  Last week the doctor told me that I can't walk for maybe two more weeks, so the Pres told me that I could just work from here for a week and return hopefull to Estrella.   It's a nice house, it has a ton of rooms and bathrooms.  It's a place where I stayed the first night in the mission.
So today, the doctor just told me that I can start to work this Monday... Ya Buddy!!   I am doing good, for real.   I feel really good it's just annoying that I feel good but cant walk or sit.   It's weird Hahaha!! But I am not in that much pain, sometimes when I sit down it hurts but other than that I am good.

I am talking to the President right now and he just told me that we can go back to our area and work a little bit but I am not sure cuz the doctor told me to be patient and go back to work on Monday.  I will pray for sure about it.
I did a whole lot of nothing while staying in the yellow house.   But I got to go on splits with Elder B.,  he is an assistant and goes home in 2 weeks.   He is awesome learned a ton from him.  He just told me tons about how President puts me with the hard missionaries cuz he thinks I can motivate them.  And he told me he had a ton of crappy missionaries too when he was starting off the mission. I was pretty happy to hear that.  But we got to go work with the assistants a lot and that was really cool.  I  got to study the language a ton this week and all day yesterday so hopefully it pays off.  But I am just pumped to go back to Estrella and work,  I am a little nervous cuz its like we are starting all over in Estrella again.  We have no progressing investigators and its gonna be so tough.  I am stressing but its gonna be all good.   The Lord always puts people in front of us who are ready to change and stuff... but keep me for sure in your prayers this week.

K,  I love you tons and keep me in your prayers but just know that everything is gonna be fine.

 

P.S.  - that picture you sent me of Kyle and his whole group in our house (for Homecoming) one of his friends is wearing my beanie!!   The one Grandma Gee made for me.   What a little rat!! Hahaha!

 

I got to go peace out ... talk to you next week!

 

While Josh was on the internet, Syd came home and wrote a little bit to him.

 

SYD:    HAY JOSH THIS IS SYD YOUR SISTER

 

JOSH:  HEY SYDANATOR!!

 

SYD:   HOW'S YOUR BUTT?

 

JOSH:   ITS A LITTLE STINKY BUT IT IS GETTING BETTTTAAAA!!     

Joshua Gee	ITS A LITTLE STINKY BUT IT IS GETTING BETTTTAAAA HOW ARE YOU SISTA HOW IS SCH...	3:13 PM (19 hours ago)
ITS A LITTLE STINKY BUT IT IS GETTING BETTTTAAAA HOW ARE YOU SISTA HOW IS SCH...

Joshua Gee	3:13 PM (19 hours ago)
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Sept 23, 2013 - A LITTLE INFECTION ..."BUTT" it's no big deal!

Hey Momma, so here is the deal.  I  went to the doctor and everything.  Found out a nurse forgot to take some gauze out after my surgery, so my cut got a little infected.  That's why it was spewing out puss before.    But the doctor looked at it and cleaned it up real good.  It felt weird while he was playing with my butt... Hahaha!  But he said that everything is super clean and good right now.  We didnt loose any ground but that nurse totally forgot to check my cut after my surgery.   The doctor said that I have to wait 2 weeks before walking and working, but President Valadez wants me to have another appointment this week to check up to see if i can work sooner.
So this week was super boring cuz the doctor said I absolutely couldn't walk or work in the street, so I have been couped up in the house and stuff.  I actually everyday I feel better and can pretty much sit normal.  I have studied a ton this week and read a butt load.  I finished 1 Nephi in Spanish right now and I'm just trying to read the rest of the Book of Mormon in Spanish.   I actually have learned a lot just because I have been studying so much here and don't have anything else to do.  I know that its all good cuz I can just study all day and learn stuff in the Book of Mormon.  It's gonna be fine.

I can walk to the internet café (because it's not far from our house) and it's fine, I just can't walk long distances.  Sometimes the members bring food to the house because they know I had surgery.  My next doctor's appointment is hopefully on Wednesday.   The bishop's wife has been driving us to the doctor's so we don't have to pay a taxi.  She is super cool.
Elder C. and I are good.   I feel bad for him though cuz he sometimes has to stay in the house with me and do nothing, but we have exchanges every other day.   He can leave the house with Elder A. and teach our investigators.  They are teaching just 2 people that we are trying to baptize.  But they have problems because one isn't married and one doesn't have permission from his parents.  So right now we don't have really good investigators.
I got to peace out.  Tell Syd I love her and give her a big ole fat kiss for me!

All is good here Mom, don't worry it will be alright.  Love you tons and keep my in your prayers and I will do the same for you all. 

Les amo mucho (Love you all)

Hasta Luego!

 

Love you tons Mom...adios!!

Sept. 16, 2013 - I HAD SURGERY...what a BUMMER!!

INCERPT FROM JENNIFER (Josh's mom)

 

Wednesday afternoon I received a phone call from the Mexico City South mission home.  They said that Josh had just gone to see a doctor about a sore tail bone and they found a cyst that needed to be removed.  They were calling for permission to perform surgery the following day.  I agreed and then asked if Josh was there and if I could talk to him.  They said, "Elder Gee sends his love."  So, basically I got denied and had to wait until the next day to see how it all went.  

I received another call on Thursday saying he had just come out of surgery and the cyst was a little bigger than they thought but they got it all.  They mentioned he hadn't been released from the hospital yet.  But everything went well.

By the way...his out patient surgery took place in an American hospital in the city, so we didn't need to worry, too much!

 

OK,  so that surgery was so sucky and my butt hurts super bad right now.   I am just on tons of pain killers and can barely walk... Hahaha!!   But I am all good.   I feel bad cuz we can't really work that hard here cuz I cant leave the house.   But tomorrow I am going to have a check up with a doctor and stuff, hopefully everything is ok.  

They put me under ... Hahaha !!  It was so messed up waking up to people talking to me in Spanish but the surgery was like an hour long and I went home the same day.   It was a really nice hospital, not gonna lie.  It was all good though I got some free food and some pj's .... Hahaha!!  Just like at Primary Children's Hospital.  Elder C. ate at the cafeteria.  He was a good sport.  We then stayed in the house with all the assistants for awhile then we came home in a taxi.  The cyst is on the top of my tailbone from walking so much.  I don't know how big the incision is but there is a small bandage over it and I don't dare rip it off yet.  I am fine from the meds and stuff and really I am good.  

But actually Mom,  I was there when they called you.   They wouldn't let me talk to you ... but  I was there the whole time listening when Elder W. called you the first time about me going to the hospital.

Me and my comp are good...it sucks cuz we can't work super hard...but we study everyday in the house.  To keep busy I am playing the guitar, sleeping, reading and watching doctrine and covenants videos.  It's pretty boring.  I can sit down but it hurts and  I have to sleep on my side or my stomach.

But the members are taking care of us right now though, its all good.

Good news...I baptized A., the day after surgery.  She is awesome.   I  had to baptize her 4 times cuz she wouldn't go under, her foot kept coming up. I had a good poker face there at the baptism,  you should have seen me walking around...Hahaha!

I think we are gonna peace out here pretty soon but we can't really do much today, so I think we will just go back to the house and chill.  We don't have a lunch appointment cuz I can't walk very far so we are gonna make something or eat street tacos...ya boiyaaa!! 

I got to go Momma,  love you tons I will talk to you next week.  Hasta Luego, keep me in your prayers but everything is going to be awesome!!!  Pray for new investigators for us.



Me ballin it up in the hospital before my surgery.

Ya, I am disgusting...thats' me after the operation.

The baptism the day after surgery.
me, A. and Elder C.

 

Sept 9, 2013 - MY NEW COMP IS SICK (literally!!)

OK Momma, so here's the deal with me and my new companion...we are pretty tight,  he is from Draper and went to Alta High.  His name is Elder C....we get along great.  He is super nice and always wants to work so its not hard training him.  He is tall and has blond hair,  I will send you a pic of him.   Also Elder A. is trainng someone and his name is Elder C. and he is also super cool.   So right now our house is bumbin... Hahaha!!
Last night was one of the worst nights of my life ... me and my companion both got sooooo sick and stayed in bed all day.   I honestly haven't felt that sick in a long time ... I wanted to die.   I puked 2 times yesterday and had the worst diarrhea ever. I actually missed the toilet when I was puking cuz the power was out so I had not idea where the toilet was...Hahaha!!  It was super funny.   When we are sick we have to call Hermana Valdez and while I was on the phone with her I started puking... Hahaha!!  She thought it was super funny.   I am on some serious medication...I am feeling pretty good right now.  I have to eat Gerber baby food because that is what Hermana Valdez told me to do.
But this week has been crazy cuz I have had to talk the whole time in our lessons but I have been doing a good job I think.   We have had some good lessons for sure.   I am super pumped about our lessons... like not because our Spanish is good but because we are obedient.  Just goes to show that it doesn't matter how good your lesson or language is, what matters is if you have the spirit in your lessons.  I am not gonna lie, I feel way better about my Spanish.  We are working super hard in this area and we are going to have a babtism this Friday with the mom of Oscar.  Other than that we are just trying to work really hard right now.  You would  be proud.
I think I have gained close to 20 pounds out here from all the tacos, but I am sure I lost it all last night and I am back to normal...Hahaha!!
I love you tons Momma, I am doing good here...just make sure you keep me in your prayers.
Les amo mucho...aka I love you all!!


Burger King!

My roommates

What?  You don't like??






 

September 2, 2013 - ESTRELLA

I got called ..............................to.......................TRAIN!!  Hahaha!  I am training a kid from the states named Elder Clark.  He is brand new and I have to go pick him up tomorrow. Hahaha!  I will pick him up with all the other new guys at transfers.  I get to see Elder W.  and Elder Y.,  and by the way Elder W.  is going to Rosal (aka the ward next to San Pedro).   Elder W. and Elder Y. are in the same district and Elder Y. got called to be district leader there. 
It took a while for me to get on the internet today because we had to hand wash our clothes so we could have them ready for Elder C. tomorrow when he leaves.   So Elder C is peacin out and me and Elder A. (actually he is really cool,  I love him tons) are going to train here in Estrella, 2 new missionaries.   It will be awesome . 
Oh ya,  also Elder G. went home 2 days early because of visa problems, so for the last 2 days and until tomorrow we are a threesome.
I know I am gonna work super hard with this new Elder Clark.   I just hope he is a good elder... if not I will make him one!!  I am just kinda nervous cuz  I only got 4 weeks in this area and don't know it very well.   So I am kinda nervous... keep me in your prayers big time this week.
The other day I had a cool experience. I was sitting in church feeling way bad for myself,  just kinda complaining about my Spanish and stuff and like I just had a cool feeling like the Lord telling me that I am way to hard on myself.   That I know Spanish and I just have to talk or I am never gonna learn... ever since that I have felt way better out here.  It was way cool.
We were suppose to have 2 baptisms this week and we only had 1.   I baptized Oscar, it was sooooo sick,  his mom didn't pass her interview but she will this week, so we should baptize her on Friday or Saturday.  We also baptized  a little boy named Carlos who just turned 8.  I don't know if that counts as a baptism but ya that's what happened.   But Oscar's baptism was a super big testimony builder for me.   It was the first time I have been in the water. It was just super cool I cant really explain it.
We are teaching some other people right now.  One of them is David, and he is 17 and a freakin gangsta and loves me...Hahaha!!  I gave him a gangsta tie the other day and he wore it to church.  His mom is a member but his dad isn't, but he goes to church every week with his cousins cuz they are active.  He can't get baptized cuz he doesn't have permission from his dad yet, but we are going to talk to him about that this week hopefully.
I weighed myself the other day for the first time ... I have gained 20 pounds..... no joke,  I am fat,  I weigh like 156,  no joke..... unless the scale is broke....just face it man.. you have a fat son!!
Don't worry,  I can still take Kyle don't worry... and I am  gonna try to be the best trainer I can don't worry!!

Hasta Luego,
Love you all tons!!

Today was Labor Day and Josh's cousins Hayden and Ethan were at our house when Josh's email came through.  Here are some of the questions they asked him.

ETHAN:
"How many beans and street tacos do you eat in a day?"

JOSH:
"Ethan,  I eat abut 8000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 beans everyday ..... that's a lot hahaha!!!"

ETHAN:
"Do you get really gassy?"

JOSH:
"I did at first, but I am Mexican now, so it doesn't phase me...Hahaha!!"

HAYDEN:
"I have Coach Smith for health this year."

JOSH:
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Rick Smith is soooo sick Hayd!   Tell him that your me and Kyle's cousin and he will give you an automatic A!!  Hahaha!!"

ETHAN:
"P.S. this is Ethan still and I love you"

JOSH:
"Love you too, E!!"

This is Kyle, Ethan and Hayden emailing Josh on Labor Day...
drinking a coke in honor of him!!

We sent him this picture of the boys while they were emailing back and forth.  This was Josh's comment, 
"Holy Sick,  tell them ... provecho!!  (enjoy in Spanish)   Hahaha!!  I am so jealous,  I  wish I could have one (Coca-Cola) of those right now.  Hahaha!! tell them I  love them all so much!!

  

We went to the Temple again because Elder C. was sick and
there is a doctor there for the missionaries.

My roommates!!