Ok, so I don´t know what to write about. All our investigators dropped us. We have no investigators right now. We eat lunch around 12 everyday, and we don´t eat again until 9:30. Imagine how hard that is for me especially...We don´t have money right now, and so most nights I just go to bed without eating again, or sometimes I´ll eat a raw tomato. (which also shows how hungry I am)

Yesterday after church I got up and threw up. I can hardly eat or drink and I am pretty sick. All last night I spent in the bathroom with the runs and upchucking.

Ah, well I can testify to you that this last week was actually 1 year disguised as a week. I don´t think time has ever gone by so ridiculously slow in my entire life.

To answer some of your questions, yes we wash our own clothes in a bucket. We also take showers with a bucket. Chickens are everywhere. They are in people´s homes, just everywhere. Also, yes it does rain a lot. It is extremely humid always and always about 95 degrees and this is invierno (meaning winter). Its definitely a little warm here. Even when there are no clouds, somehow it rains. It´s just that humid. If you look at the picture I sent you, that is the entrance to the town. That is how it looks here. There are dirt paths and random houses built in the trees. Also, the only reason we don´t get lost sometimes is because of the compass flashlight thing that rachel gave me. It is wonderful.
I have not the slightest clue why San Martin was white washed. They didn´t tell us. But, there aren´t very many people ready to listen here either so that may have something to do with it. But I will definitely finish my training here at the mininum. (9 more weeks)

Well, I´m not going to be writing anyone else back today. I´m just not feeling up to it. I almost didn´t write one home this week. I will try to get dad, rachel and jared. But that´s it for this week. Please keep me in your prayers. I just need to make it a little longer. Maybe something good will happen soon too

Love
Elder Benson

Oh, ps, thanks for the pictures. They made me feel a lot better. I´m glad Jared likes his hat too. It made me really happy to hear.

Hey Guys!

Well I honestly don´t have a ton to talk about this week...It´s been
rough for sure. I honestly have to say this has been this hardest time
ever for me to stay sane. I can´t talk to anybody and everything here
is so different. Ha, as I walk down the street, I hear people call me
(in a nicely translated version) ¨there goes the crap of America¨ haha.
Ha, it´s very very frustrating right now.

Ummm..so we have a couple of investigators right now, one Macarayna.
Who just dropped us yesterday and was supposed to be baptized on
Saturday. She is a 17 year old girl who definitely needed some Christ
in her life. So we are sad about that.

Next, is a 31 year old man who we asked for directions to someone
else´s house. He has a problem smoking, and we told him we could help.
His mom and him came to church yesterday and accepted baptismal dates
for the 11th of May. SO, that´s exciting!

Umm, also, I was studying in the scriptures this week for overcoming
challenges and how I can receive the help of God. I feel like everyone
always says that Christ will help you if you ask, and I betting I´m
not the first to ask why don´t I feel his help immediately when I am
trying so hard to follow every commandment and do according to His
will. I won´t bore you with the process, but basically I came to the
conclusion that you need to do your part first. After you´ve done
everything that you possibly can, he´ll be there to give you strength
that you didn´t have. It´s interesting, because your physical body can
only go so far. And, I´ve definitely hit the wall for that, but
somehow I keep putting one foot in front of the other and I keep
moving on. Sometimes I wake up and literally feel that I can´t do it,
but I knew that if I just did it, somehow I would have energy to do
what I needed to. Ha, it´s hard, and it has to be, but you´ll always
be able to do what the Lord commands. There is always a way, even if
you feel like stopping. So, that´s my little spiritual message for the
week.

When you said that Cody Ridd is leaving, I thought that was insane. It
doesn´t seem like it should be time for that yet. Tell him good luck
and I´m proud of what he´s doing. It´s not easy to give up everything.

Also, did Jared get his birthday present?? My 100 day mark is on the
25th so keep that in mind as you are eating cake and ice cream....that
I´m in the middle of no where sweating, and eating  raw food...ha

Oh, which reminds me. We have a little step-o-meter thing, that tells
us how many kilometers we walk. Guess how many we walked in the last
week??? nope, i bet you were wrong. 174 kilometers in one week. Yes,
that is ridiculous! My feet are blistered from every toe to my ankles.
Ha, it´s terrible. My back hurts and now my hips hurt like crazy too!
It´s wonderful...haha, anyway. That´s it for now!
Love ya
Elder Benson

Hey everyone!

Ok, so I am in San Martin, and it is very very very tiny. There is a lot good and bad here. So let me start with the good:

First, my companion is Elder Solis. He is from El Salvador and speaks absolutely no English whatsoever. This is helping my Spanish a lot, because I can´t speak anything else. But, it also made me realize how much I dont know as well. I still have a lot of improvement I need to make.

Ok, next, the food here is awesome. Everything is completely fresh and farmland out here. They kill the cows and chickens right in front of you. The vegetables are picked right out of the ground and it´s great. They also have amazing bread, which is ground out and cooked right in front of you. Also, the food is cheap. Today I bought a kilo of chicken breast for only about 3 US dollars. It´s pretty cool.

Also, another thing that was cool, is we were ¨white washed¨ in this area. So it is new for both of us. So we are learning things together. On Wednesday night we had lesson with girl named Graciela and committed her for baptism that Saturday. She asked for me to baptize her and I did. I´m trying to send a picture of her and her husband. We also have committed another girl to baptism for this Saturday, but it might get pushed off for the following week.

Umm, haha one thing that is kind of funny is the Branch President of the Branch, is a 21 year old kid who got back from his mission 2 months ago. President Sanduval. He is a really good guy and he knows a couple of English Phrases that he likes to use with me. He really likes to talk to me.

So about San Martin. There are about 3 paved roads for the main part of the town. This is where the main stores are. There´s a supermercado that is about the size of our kitchen that sells some things, but to buy food you don´t use that. People set up little things in the street that sell vegetables or fruit. The next sells eggs and milk and so on. It´s pretty cool. THen you bargain with them for a fair price. Also, there are very few autos here. The richer people (which are still extremely poor) buy old dirt bikes and ride those but most people walk around in bare feet or on a horse. It´s so cool! Basically how ever you are imagining it is how it is. There are tons and tons and tons of trees that people build their houses into with bricks or wood and there is just dirt floors. Honestly, if someone was walking around in a loin cloth and a spear in their hand it would be completely normal. Also, tons and tons of walking. Everyone houses (huts more like) are miles and miles apart. So, we don´t have time for dinner ever and I can feel myself dropping like a fly.

Ok, now for the bad. So, it happens to be that in San Martin the people absolutely hate people from the United States. Like, a lot. They won´t sell me anything, they won´t talk to me or anything. My companion has to take my money and buy things for me because they refuse. They are honestly as racist as you can possibly imagine. Graciela got harassed for letting me baptize her and was so embarrassed that she didn´t even come to church the next day. I was talking to the Branch President and they said that the people here think I am here to steal from them. He also said that if I wasn´t as big as I was (the people here are small) I would´ve been robbed and mugged by now.

We went to a lesson with a girl named Macarayna and she only agreed to let us talk to her if I would promise not to say anything. And in other lessons the people just laugh hysterically when I try to speak. They really don´t like me here...it´s really really discouraging. I feel like I´m messing it up more than I am helping. Well, for now, that is really all I have to say. Hopefully they´ll start to warm up to me a little more, but for now, it´s honestly a living nightmare of a mission area. Haha...anyway. I hope you all are doing well. I´ll talk to you soon!

Elder Benson

                                   The temple in Buenos Aires

                              Elder Benson,  Elder Barker and Elder Howell in Houston, TX

                                 Elder Solis, Graciela and her husband with Elder Benson

Elder Benson with his new companion Elder Solis and Pres. and Sis. Heyman

Dear Benson Family,

Sister Heyman and I are pleased to inform you that Elder Benson arrived in La Gran Misión Argentina Resistencia this evening.  We welcomed him to the mission, ate a small dinner and let them rest.  The next day we had a small briefing of the fun facts and necessary information about the mission.  After that he met his new companion, Elder Solis and they headed off for their area called San Martín in the province of Chaco.

A mission is a wonderful experience filled with challenge and success that strengthens the testimony of each missionary.  A great support that you as a family can give your son during his mission is uplifting letters.  In addition to using email, you can send packages and letters to our address:

(Missionary´s Name)

Misión Argentina Resistenica

Entre Ríos 435

Resistencia Chaco CP 3500

Argentina

 You may also send letters (and only letters taped shut; no envelopes) via the ¨pouch¨

                                              

                                                              (Missionary’s Name)

                                                               Misión Argentina Resistencia

                                                               POB 30150

                                                               Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0150

We encourage each of our missionaries to email their parents each week. Please let me know if a reminder to him is needed. You may contact me at:  rheyman@ldschurch.org

It will be our privilege to work closely with Elder Benson here in Argentina.  We are blessed to have him join us in this mission to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Thank you for sharing your son with us. 

Sincerely,

President Raymond S. Heyman

Misión Argentina Resistencia

 I didn't get your package, (it comes straight to my apartment if it's the 6666 Chetwood, but if you sent it to the mission office in Sugarland then i won't see it till today) and there is bad news. We are moving today. We got called on Saturday and they told us that we are switching apartments and we don't even know where we are going. All we know is that we are leaving at 1 o'clock today. But, I'm sure we will be able to figure out how to get the package still so don't worry about that. We have no idea why or where, so I'll have to keep you posted on that. But, do NOT send anything else to 6666 Chetwood

 So, to be honest there isn't a ton to talk about this week. Easter was kind of lame, it was the exact same as every other day. Elsa is still pumped to be baptized and is set for the 13th still. Sonia, and her family aren't going to be able to make that date though...which is sad.

Oh that reminds me, we call every two weeks and ask about our Visas, and this week they wouldn't tell any of us. The other missionaries say that they do that when they come in because if they told us that we got them, they think some missionaries would become trunky and stay up late the night before. So I don't know, we could be leaving soon, but I really don't have too much of an idea right now.

Ha, oh yeah, on Thursday night I went on an exchange and I went into a new area for a day. We were planning to bike the whole day because we had a lot of area to cover. We woke up the next morning and my bike tire was flat, so we ended up having to walk from 12 to 4 to make our first appointment. Then walk back. We taught 1 lesson and walked 26 miles. Haha it was pretty good preparation for Argentina.

There also was a member that just moved into the ward, and she is from Formosa, Argentina. I told her that I was going to Resistencia in a couple weeks, and that Formosa was in my mission and she got so excited! She is having us over for lunch next Sunday for Conference. So, that should be really fun! I'm really excited to hear what she says about it! She doesn't speak any English, and her accent was hard to understand but it's good prep!

And about Helaman 5:12, I didn't even have to look it up because I've read it about 6,000 times in the last 2 and a half months. I couldn't agree more. I think that you should have the whole family memorize it. That is really great.

Also, I'm glad to hear that Jared, Jackson, and BJ will be ok with having a sleepover when I get back. I was worried that we maybe wouldn't be as close when I came back.

I was reading in Jesus the Christ the other day, (thank you Jim!) and I came across something that was really interesting to me. A lot of the times, when we receive a blessing, and it doesn't work miracles, it's not because of the person giving the blessing (it definitely can be) but it usually is the person's faith receiving the blessing. I think this applies to much more than that too. When you pray for something, or even in the this temporal world, we can only receive what our mind believes that it can. So, if you don't think that you have the energy to go to work, or go to school, you won't. If you don't think that you'll receive anything from prayer you won't. It's all concerning your own faith and belief. Anyway, that was really interesting to me. I feel as I get to know Christ better through studying his life and praying about him, my testimony in everything else got so much stronger.

I think that's it for now. Thanks for everything! I hope I get that package soon so I can send you some pictures!

Love ya bunches, try not to forget about me:)