Update on Elder Ward

Hey everyone! So, tomorrow is transfers day, which means that leadership calls went out last night. I assumed that I wasn't going to get another one and just stay here in Clearfield being a District Leader. In all honesty I wanted to. When I got here 6 weeks ago there wasn't a single person to teach and now we have a pretty large teaching pool and we have a lot of people that are working towards set baptismal dates (6). They are all going to be baptized in February. So, last night it was like 9:45 and I hadn't heard anything, so I just put the phone on loud and went to bed. Well, at 10:05 I hear the phone ring and President Hiers asks for me. He tells me that I am going to be a Zone Leader back up in Ogden in the Jefferson 2nd Ward. There are only 2 Spanish Zone Leader companionships in the whole mission and now I am in one of them. President asked me how I felt and I told him, "surprised and unprepared". He gave me some good council though and said, "Elder Ward the Lord thinks that you are ready. You have His trust and your Mission President's trust. Now go to bed and get some sleep." It was crazy! My trainer had just been a Zone Leader in this area for 6 months. When he left me, he went to this area in Ogden and I will be replacing him tomorrow. My companion will be Elder Nielson. He is from Chihuahua, Mexico and he called me last night and started speaking straight Mexican slang to me as a joke. It should be interesting, I am going to be fluent Mexican after this transfer! The area is kinda dead up there, so I guess it is time to go and revive it like I had to do here in Clearfield. Elder Wright and I really wanted to stay together....we have baptisms planned for every Saturday in February. The weather out here as been crazy! We have about a foot of snow sitting everywhere right now and then where the plows have been ran it goes up to 5 or 6 feet! We were shoveling snow all Sunday night in a terrible snowstorm! We didn't have any lessons, so we went to all the old people in the Ward and shoveled their driveways. A bunch a members from the Ward came to every house to do it, but we had already done it! They were so confused as how the missionaries got there so fast! Elder Wright and I had baptism this past weekend, his name is Alberto Diaz. I'll attach a photo. My face is kinda chubby, but my new area has a gym and I should be there for at least 4.5 months! The rumor is that the English Missionary that is Assistant right now is going to be my next companion next transfer and I am supposed to team him Spanish.....we'll see what happens there. Ha. The miracle baptism that was supposed to happen last weekend is actually going to happen this weekend, but I am going to miss it! Her name is Erika Figueroa. There was some legal issues, but we got permission from up top to baptize her! This week is going to be crazy! We gained a lot of member trust really quickly in this Ward by being outside and tracting and knocking doors in the snow for hours on end.....sounds like I need to go it again! Oh boy. Should be fun! Until next week! Love, Elder Ward (Your son and friend in the ghettos of Ogden!)