Postal letter received 9/14/09, written 8/24/09

I am writing this letter on the 24th - 25th of August. I'm not sure when you will receive it but my guess is in about 2-3 weeks. Things are going fine for me here in Comayagua, my first area. My companion, Elder Cobo, is the District Leader, and has been here for almost 18 months. He is a great trainer and I am in good hands here.

The work is moving along very slowly here, but we are working hard. I have to work hard because Latino people can be pretty stubborn and set on their opinions. All Latinos here think that gringo's do not know how to work, and they are very surprised to still see me out working in the hot sun every day. I learned that work ethic from you, Dad.

Dad, here are some of the Spanish slang words that every Catracho uses. First is Cheque, it's kind of like "check" or "okay" or "gotcha" in English. Another is ¡Vaya Pues! which is similar to Cheque but it means kinda more of an "I understand" or "sounds good." Another phrase is Que le Vaya Bien, when you pass someone on the street or are saying good-bye to someone, they will always use this phrase. It means pretty much "travel well" or "have a good day" (I'm sure you understand, Dad but this is for the benefit of others). I saved the best for last. It is Masizo, which means "awesome" or "sweet!" or "cool." I use that word all the time because it is ¡Masizo!

I haven't had any real problems with crazy animals in my apartment yet, but the only problem is the ants. There are always tons and tons of ants that you just can't get rid of, and that one experience with that giant sapo (frog) in our bathroom! But there are plenty of dogs, horses, mules, bulls and donkeys roaming around the streets, along with the occasional pig.

Things around here are pretty cheap compared to the United States. The currency here is the Lempira. It is not worth much. One U.S. Dollar is worth about 20 Lempiras. A lot of things are extremely cheap, and others no. For example, to get a haircut is only 30 Lemps which is about $1.50 for one haircut. But if you want Pizza Hut, one large pizza is around 200 Lemps, $10. Places like Pizza Hut, Wendy's, McDonald's are some of the nicest places here. They have security guards, waitresses, air conditioning, all the works. It's quite the hilarious site to see. I have included one Lempira in this letter, it's worth about 5 cents in U.S. currency, so spend it wisely!


Dallin and Megan, make sure you listen to Mom and Dad, and your life will be so much easier. It's so easy to not follow the rules here because I'm 2 hours away from my Mission President and 45 minutes away from the Zone Leaders. But thanks to Mom and Dad I don't have any problems with obedience! And you shouldn't either!

I love you all and I thank you for your prayers. God be with you till we meet again! By the time you get this I'm already 3 months out!

Vaya Pues!
Elder Tinkham