Elder Jordan Nelson Resistencia Argentina

LAST PHOTO WITH PRESIDENT and SISTER DEL CASTILLA

2011-07-20T20:19:00.000-07:00

President del Castilla and his wife were released from their mission in July. This the last photo of Jordan with them and the last photo I will be publishing in this blog. Jordan will be returning home at the end of July. Jordan has expressed in his most recent emails that it will be very hard to leave the people and the country of Argentina. He has made many friends and had many wonderful experiences that will last him a lifetime. The best way I know to end this blog would be to have Jordan write something. So when he gets home I will have him do that. Stay tuned.

A CHANGE IN COMPANIONS

2011-07-20T20:14:00.000-07:00

In June Jordan and Elder Moore found out they were both getting new companions. They would each be training a new Elder. As happens sometimes with the South American countries, the American Elders were delayed because of Visas, but the Elders from South America and Mexico would be coming as scheduled. Jordan's new companion is Elder Ruiz from Mexico. He is only 18 and received permission to start his mission early.

HOW MANY PEOPLE CAN WE FIT IN A TRUCK

2011-07-20T20:07:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken outside the church. A member had a truck and Jordan and Elder Moore asked him if he could take some people home. Jordan is on the left and Elder Moore is on the bottom right.

DON'T SHOOT A SLINGSHOT IN THE HOUSE!

2011-07-20T19:52:00.000-07:00

In May Elder Posadas was transferred and Jordan's new companion was his neighbor Elder Moore, from South Carolina. They get along great and are having much success in teaching and serving the people of Corrientes. They are also having some fun times. One of which is making slingshots with one of the members. The super powerful kind. Well, one day Jordan and Elder Moore were in their apartment and one of them, (any quesses as to who?), says, "Check this out." and he shot the plastic bottle which threw it out of the way and then it keep right on going and took out the window in the oven. Fortunately, it was not the good oven, they have two. The good oven is attached to the propane tank!!!! What were they thinking---"Well, I guess we know its powerful." quote, Elder Moore.

Jordan, President del Castilla and Elder Posadas

2011-07-20T19:44:00.000-07:00

A New Companion

2011-04-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

In March Jordan greeted another new missionary. Elder Posadas from El Salvador. Jordan says it has been quite different training an Elder who already knows Spanish from training one that is struggling with the language. He did say that Elder Kennedy was coming along well with the language and adapting to Argentina.
Preparations have started for Jordan's returning home. We are not sure what day he will be arriving, but he has notified the school that he would be returning and has permission to register for classes.
His primary focus, however, is his calling as a missionary and helping his District meet their goals.

On Top of The Church

2011-04-17T13:21:00.001-07:00

Jordan with the missionaries in his District. Elder Kennedy, his companion, is on the far right. They are on top of a Catholic church which is dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

OUR NEW CONVERT

2011-04-17T13:15:00.001-07:00

FROM MARCH

2011-04-17T13:06:00.000-07:00

A Chance to Serve-(In Jordan's words) We were walking and I saw an old lady, which looked to me well over 80, it could just be that she aged really fast but she was super old and she was hoeing out grass to make dirt beds around new trees her family and her had planted. There were already 2 finished. I asked her if I could help. She was hard to understand at first, she spoke really soft and had few teeth. But she finally gave me the hoe and I finished the last one for her, then someone brought out a bucket of water for me to wash my hands and then we left.

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

2011-04-17T12:50:00.001-07:00

Well, I know I am once more late in adding to this Blog. I better bring it up to date before Jordan gets home. Which by the way should be in 4 months or less. This post goes back to news from January so bare with me. In January Jordan was asked by his mission president to write, in Spanish, a history of the mission for 2010. Jordan had been keeping notes on things that had been happening, in Resistencia, where he served. He felt it an honor that he was asked.
During the week of January 17th Jordan was made District Leader again as well as a Trainer. I explained what a District Leader was in a previous posting but for those of you who do not want to go back, Jordan basically is over a group of missionaries in a specific area. He makes sure everyone is working together and making goals that they can work to achieve. As a trainer, Jordan is companions with a brand new missionary. One that has just arrived in Argentina. Jordan is their first companion and he helps them get acclimated to the work and country. The new missionary companion is Elder Kennedy from Southern California.

2011-04-17T12:40:00.000-07:00

This fish is called a SURUBI. People in Argentina want to catch them as they are very big and have very few bones. This one in the picture is about 4 feet long. When you cut into them it is pure meat which they fry up to eat. Quoting Jordan, "It is sooooo good!"

2011-04-17T12:38:00.001-07:00

Brother Leyes and Jordan with the finished clay oven. (see slide show)

TRANSFERRED

2011-01-04T05:32:00.000-08:00

SAYING GOOD BYE TO RESISTENCIA
Well, I no sooner get the blog up to date and Jordan informs us that he was transferred on Dec. 29th. He was hoping to stay one more transfer in Resistencia but it was not to be. As you can read on the left sidebar he is now across the Parana River in Corrientes.
Jordan said that , Gauchito Gil (see sidebar), is lengendary there, and was made a saint by the Catholic church. There is a celebration in honor of him every Jan. 8th (the date of his death)and along the roadsides you can find small shrines created in his honor. If you want more info on Gauchito Gil just Google him. Jordan also mentioned that the Virgin Mary has a visible presence and is highly worshiped, the area being predominately Catholic. From the info the mission sent out, there are many cathedrals in the area as well as many universities, and specialty schools.
Jordan sent us a couple of interesting pictures and as soon as his Dad gets them in the computer folder I will post them. One is of the clay oven, finished, that Jordan and Brother Leyes were working on, as seen in the slideshow. And another is of a very large fish. It almost looks like a catfish. I will ask Jordan what it is before I post it.

MORE PICTURES FROM JORDAN

2011-01-02T18:36:00.000-08:00

Pictures are of:
-Jordan with children at church
-Jordan with the group of missionaries he met in the Mission Training Center and who all came to Argentina at the same time.
-Standing near a clay oven. They put a pig in the inner circle and build a fire underneath. They do not turn the meat at all and it cooks evenly.
-The owner of the clay oven, Brother Leyes, and Jordan. He asked Jordan to help him get it ready to roast the Christmas pig.
-A repeat of Jordan, dogs and fabric store
-A picture of a humble home.
-Repeat of Jordan with monkey
-Getting smoke in the eyes
-What's for dinner?

A Jordan Update

2011-01-02T16:27:00.000-08:00

Well as promised last summer here are some more pictures of Jordan. If some are a repeat I apologize. I really need to take a computer class! It took me 2 hours to figure out how to get the slide show up and running. But enough of that. Jordan, as of this writing, is still in Northern Resistencia. He really enjoys the area and the people. We had a nice chat with him on Christmas day and he said the weather has been hot. We asked him how cold it gets in the winter and he said it can get pretty cold. I don't think as cold as the Northeast but once your body adjusts to over 100 degree summers anything below 40 could be cold!!
One of the things he treated himself too was a pair of custom made leather shoes! There are a lot of leather goods in Argentina due to all the cattle that are raised there. When Jordan's brother heard this he requested a pair too!
If you have been wondering about the worth of a peso to the dollar. Jordan said that 40 pesos is equal to $10.00 US dollars. Another words 1 peso = 1 quarter.

El Mono

2010-10-17T14:24:00.001-07:00

Hi Everyone,
Well, I am over a month behind with this post. I apologize but time got away from me. Time is flying for Jordan too. He can't believe he has less than a year to go! Jordan is doing well and as of this writing is still in Resistencia. The weather is heating up as it will soon be summer. Winter wasn't too bad. Jordan said there were times that it was chilly and he was glad he listen to me and packed an all-weather coat w/lining. ( Mom's do know best!)
As promised here is the picture of the monkey that Jordan made friends with. As you can see there is a chain leash attached. It is someone's pet. Maybe Jordan needs to rethink his major from Music to Animal Science. Just a thought.

A recent experience that Jordan had was one of the missionaries in his Zone was playing soccer on their day off. He injured his back and he had to be moved into Jordan's apartment. Jordan then had to communicate with the doctor, who was in Buenos Aires, which was OK as the doctor spoke English. But then he had to translate what the doctor said back into Spanish so that he could tell the Mission President, who doesn't speak English. Jordan said that he ended up spelling a lot of the medications and procedures because those technical terms were not part of his vocabulary. Everything worked out OK and the missionary was sent home so that he could get the proper medical care.
In his emails to us Jordan has expressed how much he has grown as a person through the experiences he's had on his mission and how he has grown to love the people he has met. As his brother (who served in Ecuador) expressed,"Studying a semester abroad doesn't even come close to what one experiences on a mission."

HUMP DAY! or HAPPY ONE-YEAR MARK!!

2010-09-02T17:51:00.000-07:00

It was a year ago today that Jordan entered the Mission Training Center in Provo, Utah. To those who know the lingo of missionaries, this day is known as "Hump Day". Time is flying by and before you know it Jordan will be back at home. One year to go!
In our last email from Jordan he indicated that he made friends with another exotic creature. This time a monkey! And yes we have pictures. At present we are unable to download them so I will post them next week.
Jordan is doing well and busy with his responsibilities as Zone Leader. He did say that he was able to play basketball on a real court on his last preparation day. That made his day!!
Stay tuned for new photos in the coming week.

Writing Jordan

2010-08-03T08:48:00.000-07:00

I received a note regarding sending letters to Jordan. If you don't want to use the address posted above his name (snail mail) you can go to the website----dearelder.com---Just follow the instructions. His mission is Argentina Resistencia. This website lets you send a letter for free and Jordan gets it in a timely manner.

This and That

2010-07-26T18:40:00.000-07:00

Just some other tidbits that Jordan shared with us. It is currently Winter in Argentina. He said that the days are pretty nice but the mornings and evenings are a bit cold (in the thirties). Now being from upstate New York you would think he would be use to the cold, but as his sister learned, being in a warm climate for a long time can "thin the blood" and so you get cold a bit quicker.

He can get pretty much any kind of fruit. He hasn't seen a banana tree yet, but hopes to in his travels. And speaking of food--Jordan was ill, first time since he left, a couple of weeks ago. Seems he ate some bad Empanadas and was sick for 3 days, 1 day spent in bed. Bad case of food poisoning. Quote, "I ate them...they were good...they almost killed me!"

Another story, "At a lunch appointment one day there was a discussion about the tooth fairy and sharing stories about when we were kids. In Argentina instead of a tooth fairy they have a Raton de dientes (tooth rat). It is a Mickey Mouse type rat not a sewer rat haha."

He is now serving as Zone leader. Which means he is over two districts. (He was previously a District Leader). Each district has a District Leader with Elders under each of them. So Jordan has more responsibility, does more traveling and has the job of making sure all is well. His new companion is Elder Castro from Argentina and he is serving on the other side of Resistencia.

World Cup

2010-07-26T18:21:00.001-07:00

As you all know, Argentina is a very big soccer country. The picture at the right is a professional soccer arena. On his day off Jordan was able to play soccer here. Jordan is pictured here with his companion Elder Campos (right) and another missionary standing in the arena field. Jordan wrote this about what he observed in his area during the World Cup, "Here is another story about the World Cup (el mundial). When Argentina plays in the World Cup it basically turns into a national holiday. If you go to school you watch it there. And if you choose to stay home and watch it with your family...you do not need a note from home saying what you are doing..nope, most teachers just say if you don't come tomorrow I won't mark you absent. And very few people work. The buses still run but that is about it." Jordan also said that when Argentina scored or won there was much shouting in the streets.

Things You Shouldn't Tell Your Mother

2010-07-26T18:10:00.000-07:00

We received this little gem of a story a few weeks ago. "I don't know if I told you when I was electrocuted. But anyway a few weeks ago I fixed our shower which is heated by electricity. Don't worry I didn't get electrocuted in the shower, but I was looking at where the wires had separated that I had fixed earlier. I was like, 'No wonder it broke last time there is a lot of power that goes through this' I was touching both of the wires. As you know you are fine with electricity until you touch the ground, but lucky for me all the wires here are just open haha. Then right when I was saying 'No wonder this happened' I touched the ground too...and it was the strongest shock I think I ever had!! It knocked me down. Luckily it was strong enough that I lost control and gravity pulled me away from the wires haha. My companion saw the whole thing."

Man's Best Friend

2010-07-26T17:56:00.001-07:00

In the last batch of pictures we received from Jordan we find him once again making friends with the local animal population. Here he is with two dogs in front of a fabric store. This is what he had to say about the dogs he meets: "I make friends with lots of dogs, there are many to befriend. But you have to be careful because lots are diseased and stuff. I make friends with the well kept ones. There are lots of puppies because very few dogs are fixed."

DOING WELL

2010-05-01T16:27:00.000-07:00

Jordan is doing well and enjoying his mission. He has been made senior companion and District Leader. This means that he is training someone who is relatively new in the mission and is also responsible for other missionaries in a small geographical location. He has a new companion, Elder Blacker from Idaho.
Jordan asked me to let you all know that if you have any questions about Argentina, such as the language, customs, food etc. you can ask them via the blog, through the comment section. I, his mom, will send Jordan the questions and he will answer them. I will then post them on this Blog.
Hope you enjoy the new pictures.

Cookin' On The Grill

2010-05-01T16:12:00.000-07:00

What would Jordan do without a grill to cook on? Here he is on his day off or as it is called Pday (Preparation Day), which are on Mondays. He is cooking hamburgers with some other missionaries looking on. When asked if there is a difference in the taste of beef, Jordan answered, "No, but the way the Argentines put a hamburger together is different from Americans." He goes on to say that in America we put lettuce, tomato, cheese and bacon. In Argentina they put cheese, ham and a fried egg! To quote Jordan, "THEY ARE MAD GOOD!!".

BEING OF SERVICE

2010-05-01T16:11:00.001-07:00

Jordan has had many opportunities to help others. Here is a picture of him helping a family lay the foundation for an addition to their home.

2010-05-01T16:04:00.000-07:00

In a previous post I mentioned a Toucan. Well, here he, she or it is! Do you believe someone has this bird as a pet? Wonder what they eat?

SLIDE SHOW AND UPDATES

2010-02-15T17:27:00.000-08:00

15 February 2010

FINALLY we have the slide show up. If you scroll down and look at the left hand side you will find it. There are pictures of the dark cloud, the great flood and Jordan's apartment from Goya. ENJOY!
Jordan is still serving in Resistencia and says that he is sweating bullets in the summer weather. He has reached a milestone with the Spanish language. One of the other missionaries wanted to talk to Jordan in English and Jordan kept mixing in Spanish words.
On his birthday, Jan.20th, Jordan and the other missionaries played basketball. There wasn't a net so he and another Elder made one out of rags. It sounded like they had a good time.
I asked Jordan about doing laundry and he said that they have members of the church do it. It gives the members some income. When Jordan's brother served in Ecuador he paid about $0.50 a load.
We are awaiting more pictures and will post them as soon as they get here.

NEW ADDRESS

2010-01-22T04:25:00.000-08:00

ATTENTION-Jordan has a new mailing address. I have replaced the old one with the new. Please take note.

I know we promised more pictures. We do have them but due to our lack of computer skills we are having a hard time bringing them in as a slide show. We will try again this weekend.
As for an update. Jordan is doing very well. Busy working with the people in Resistencia. He continues to meet the exotic animal life in Argentina. His latest was a Toucan.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

2009-12-27T15:30:00.000-08:00

28Dec2009

On Christmas Day we were able to talk to Jordan for about an hour and a half. It was great to hear his voice and ask him questions about his experience. We thought we would share some of the things we talked about with you.
A TYPICAL DAILY ROUTINE
7am-get dressed, eat etc.
8:30am-Study
9:30am-Work
12:30-Lunch
1-3:30pm-Study,rest,dinner (they stay inside their apartment during this time of day because the temperature usually hits over 100 and most people take their siesta during these hours.
3:30-10:00pm-work, back to the apartment by 10pm
11:00pm-bed

Jordan also told us that Christmas Eve is the big holiday there. Fireworks are legal and are sold along the streets all day long. At Midnight everyone shoots off their fireworks. Some as big as a 1/4 stick of dynamite!!!! (Not what a mother needs to hear!!) Jordan said that it was sooooo loud and sounded like a war was going on.
We want to wish you all a very HAPPY Holiday season and a WONDERFUL NEW YEAR.

Transferred to Southern Resistencia

2009-12-27T14:30:00.000-08:00

22Dec2009

I was transferred this week to Southern Resistencia. My new companion is Elder Campos, also from Chili, he told me that I speak better Spanish than his last companion, who has a year or so more in the field, and people understand me a ton better just in this last week. Sometimes I need to say things a few times still but at the same time it is a relief to know that maybe I am doing OK. It is way harder to understand my companion now than my last, he speaks less clear and faster and he does not ennunciate as much. I am also understanding more, sometimes I just make a well educated guess at what they meant and continue if I don’t know for sure, sometimes it works sometimes no. But none the less, the language is coming, and I know with time I will be able to be just fine but I just have to study.
This week aside from the transfer, which was rough because I left a lot of good friends and stuff, Sister Mortensen and Elder Schneider, well all the Elders it was a good time with the members and I had finally gotten more settled in. But I am going to have a better opportunity to grow with the language here and leadership because I will probably be teaching English and have to speak a ton more in lessons and contacts and everything.
Jordan

ARMADILLO ANYONE?

2009-12-27T13:59:00.000-08:00

15Dec2009

Here is a picture of an armadillo that a member family ate. We stopped by their house to wish the sister a Happy Birthday and she was about to cook it so we took pictures. I included one so you could see. Also quick before I go; another funny story the kids here and even the other missionaries that I know of listen to this rapper from Puerto Rico named Daddy Yankee and they all say I look like him. Yesterday a kid was like Daddy Yankee?! So look him up and tell me what you think.

Keeping Busy

2009-12-16T19:05:00.000-08:00

30 Nov 2009
Ok, I can´t decide whether this week went by fast or slow because a ton of things happened. First, Monday we had the flood (pictures are on their way), and Tuesday was zone conference so I traveled 3 hours to Chaco and three hours back the time in the middle was zone conference. Wednesday was normal (what’s normal?) and then Thursday I traveled 2 hours one way to Esquina, the southern part of the mission, because there are not any missionaries there but there are a couple of members and a house for a chapel I think. So we travel there every once in a while. I did that for the first time this week and we delivered some church materials to the members. And then we traveled 2 hours back.
Then Friday was not normal at all. Our district leader had to have his
gallbladder out. And because my companion is Zone leader the mission president wanted him there for it. So the whole morning we were running around trying to link up paper work and what the computer said at the post office to allow a money transfer to pay for the surgery 2700 pesos...which is only 700 bucks and this is at the PRIVATE clinic apparently the public is 10 times worse according to another gringo. Saturday in the morning we helped him get checked out of the clinic and get him and his companion in a taxi back to their apartment. NOTE: Jordan goes into detail in his letter about the surgery, especially the pain that followed, which I have omitted here.
So anyway I´m glad you guys had a good Thanksgiving, I did alright ,surprisingly,
as it was my first major holiday away from home, since Halloween I don't think
counts haha, my first major holiday that is family centered. In the morning on
Thursday I went off into a room in my apartment and shut the door and looked at my family picture and the pictures I have of both sets of grandparents and the poem that grandpa sent me in his first letter to me. I love that poem ( I always look for centavos), my companion found a 50 cent coin once and I laughed and translated the poem for him or tried he tossed the coin to a little kid that was sitting on the ground nearby.
As far as the language goes I have made a lot of progress this week it seems, I understand more, and I can say more. I understand everything sometimes or most everything or at least the big picture but there are still some people, usually the people that are more ¨hick¨ like, that I have a really hard time understanding.

Jordan

Getting My Feet Wet...

2009-12-16T18:44:00.000-08:00

23 Nov 09
The food is great, I have had a couple things that I´ve been like umm ok a little bit sketchy but its still all good. I am loving everything except for the language barrier and a little homesick.
My story for this week happened today, basically every night this week we’ve had a thunderstorm or at least a lot of them. and last night too, this morning it looked a bit gloomy and my companion opened the window and stuck his head out and looked out and he goes, “Have you seen Independence Day?” I was like yea and he says, “Look.” and I stuck my head out and it looked like there was a pitch black cloud in the distance with a clear line between the regular summer day and the cloud and rather quickly the cloud was overhead and then eventually the cloud was all we could see and then....it was a cloud burst like I have never seen, and when we finally ventured out of the apartment to see if the church had power or somewhere had power, we walked out of the apartment and at the bottom of the stairs there was about 2 or 3 inches of rain water on the walkway and I was laughing and then we opened the door in from of our apartment and look out and the entire city was covered in water like a foot deep (pictures coming soon). I was like if I am going to be here I might as well experience stuff like this cause it was nuts so we basically swam to the church and then to the sisters apartment because their apartment flooded and worked on clearing the drains in the apartment. They were filled with bugs (cockroaches to be specific). And then after we played in the water.

Jordan