{I feLT so MuCH loVE foR HiM}

Hola!

Esta es mi ultimo P-Day! It's crazy that we're leaving in a week. Dad I really enjoyed your talk...I wish I could have been there to hear it but I know you did great! Christmas season is going really well here. Our Christmas tree dominates all the others...it looks good. I'm excited for all the sweet gifts so thank you so much...but I'm even more excited to celebrate the true spirit of Christmas here at the MTC. The Spirit has been amazing here.

So...it turns out the gum surgery wasn't very successful by the look of things right now. After Dr. Bailey took the stitches out the graft slipped down a ways. We went the next day to get it checked out and he said that was about as good as it would get. But over the next couple of days it gradually just fell away and now it looks about the same as it does before I had the surgery. But i'm going in tomorrow to get it checked out. Oh and i'm going to need a tooth implant when I get home because he said i've had pretty much 100% bone loss. I'm doing all I can to take care of it though.

Anyway, last night in the RC one of the Elders in our district called someone who didn't really speak english and he couldn't understand him. So he asked me if I wanted to try to talk to him and we talked for about forty minutes. ps nobody was answering phone calls for me for about the first forty minutes or they would just hang up. So this man's name is Martin. He had been going through some really tough times. He's been a member of the church for nine years...but he has been having problems with his girlfriend right now. She's not a member and her parents are really hardcore presbyterian. Anyway he told me she's pregnant and they want to move in together.

I talked to him for a while about the law of chastity and about trying to make it to church when possible (he lives thirty minutes away and doesn't have a car). He used to be an alcoholic too. He was so grateful for our talk and after about half an hour he asked me to pray for him. It was a really powerful experience for me. I sent him and his girlfriend copies of the book of mormon in spanish...and I'm praying that he will have a good christmas. His girlfriend hasn't talked to him for a while and he just kept telling me how hard things were going right now. I felt so much love for him. it was hard to get off the phone.

That was pretty much the best experience of the week. So...flight plans. We leave here at like four in the maldruga next tuesday (way early). We fly to Georgia at seven and then have a five hour layover in the Atlanta airport. Then we head to Panama and get there around 9:40 pm! I can't wait! I'm so excited to meet the Panamanios!

Oh and remember that I'm not calling on Christmas...but I'll have some time to write you (which is way better!). And i'm writing each of you letters today so I hope they get to you by Christmas! I love you all! Seriously thank you so much for all the love and prayers. Tell people if I don't write them back that I'm really sorry...but tell the Putnams thanks for the cookies they're way better than the galletas here at the MTC.

I don't know if i'll have time to write our grandparents today which makes me really sad so tell them THANK YOU for all the delicious sweets. And tell grammy i am indeed brushing my teeth.

I hope all is well with the Henrie's...know that I took mom's advice and I'm not "wasting time being homesick"...but that doesn't mean I don't love you. I pray for you daily. Have the best Christmas ever because I know I will! Feliz Navidad! Para siempre Dios esté con vos!

Con mucho amor,
Elder Tanner

PS give tuck a hug for me...and abbster too. hasta luego!