I live!

 September 8, 2025

Bon tardi atrobe! I am back from the dead! It's been a few weeks, so here's what I've got! Elder Winfield and I are still training Elder Sialaoa, and it's a blast!

     Elder Sialaoa did not know how to ride a bike before the mission, so these last few weeks we have been teaching him when we pop into biking areas. He now knows how to ride a bike and takes every opportunity to do so! As well, coming back from exchanges in Aruba, we found a really cool person at the airport. Elder Winfield and I both felt very strongly that there was someone there we needed to find, and we found someone reading a book about growing a relationship with Jesus. Perfect. We started chatting with them, and they talked about how they have been growing a relationship with Christ outside of religion, but recently they had been praying for his holy messengers. Then they met us, and they were so excited! And so were we! They came to church and loved it! It was a pretty cool miracle

Overall, it's been a blast! Missionary work is always an adventure! Go read Hebrews 10:39, it's a pretty great one. Love you guys!

-Elder Aldrich

I'm a dad again?

August 11, 2025 

Wus poppin, everybody! It's me again, back from the dead. I'm still here, still kicking, and still loving the island life in Curacao. The last few weeks have been crazy! And the adventure is far from over. For the last 6 weeks, I have been paired with a beast of an elder, and we have been living it up and working as hard as we can, running as fast as our little legs can carry us. And now, we will be training a brand new Missionary together! The world (Curaçao) is not ready for this powerhouse of a trio. There will be much Missionary work done, many places explored, and a lot of food to eat. Story time: meet Antonio

     Real quick story. Antonio is a good friend of ours. He was found over a year ago by the Elders, long before us, and he works security here at the Curaçao mall. He's an incredible man and has always had an incredible testimony. He came to church as often as he could, but that was not too frequently, as work often got in the way. But time passed, and up came a 3-week "staycation," meaning that he would be able to come and be baptized. And it happened! There were so many miracles that happened, and I have never seen so many members come to support. So many members have gotten to know him, and many missionaries have had the pleasure of teaching and learning from him. I'm so glad I was able to witness the smile on his face as he stood up after being confirmed on Sunday. It was an unforgettable day

     That's what I've got for y'all this week! Stay tuned for the next time Elder Aldrich finds the time and motivation to send out a "weekly" email. Ether 12 is always a good one, but specifically verse 27. I will leave you with the honor of reading it, but it teaches us about the ability that we have to grow when we put God first. Weak things become strong because of him. I love you all, have a great week. Remember to smile more this week, it's contagious

Elder Aldrich

Antonio's baptism

Catholic Church

Transfers (finding out about training)

Yes I'm still alive

 August 4, 2025

    Hey guys, I'm still here! I'm alive and living my best life! I know some of you were worried... So don't be. I don't have enough time to give you a detailed rundown of my week, so here are some pictures! I love you all! Read your scriptures

Whiplash

 July 14, 2025

    Good morning, beautiful people! It's definitely been a little while. Few things to cover in today's episode of: "Where the heck have you been?!" It's been a very fun past few weeks. For those of you who had no idea, which would be all of you, I was transferred a couple of weeks back, and I'm back on the island of my youth, the beautiful island of Curaçao. And I have a new companion, Elder Winfield, who's perhaps the coolest Missionary ever, so it's been pretty fun!

     Getting used to the island life again was a little Strange. There's less traffic, no cows, and you drive on the correct side of the road again. But not to fear, I was back in Guyana again this week! Every 6 months or so our mission president likes to bring us to Guyana for a leadership conference, and this week was the week. So, after about 7 days back on the island, I packed up and headed to Guyana with a couple of other missionaries. What an adventure it was! We flew from Curaçao to Panama, hung out in Panama for a few hours, almost went to see the Panama Canal, then flew into Guyana at about 3 am. Once off the plane, we began the next adventure of getting to the senior couple to get some sleep before our meetings in 4 hours. Quick reminder that Guyana drivers are absolutely crazy all day every day, but most of them are probably also drunk at 3 am. Armed with that knowledge, we hopped on a bus with a good friend of ours and headed into the unknown. The unknown lasted about 45 minutes, not a whole lot of unknown.

     Three hours later, we were up, kicking, and ready to spend a few hours learning from Elder Zabellos! It was a great conference, and we learned a lot about how we can become better and stronger leaders. From there, it was off to the senior couple to sleep, then back to Curaçao! About 48 hours of travel with about 5 hours of sleep. 10/10, definitely worth all the lost sleep!

     Man, it's good to be back in Curacao! Guyana was a blast. Truthfully, I loved every second. But I needed more adventures so it was time to go. Really fast, I just want to leave you all with a few scriptures:  Alma 5 45-47

   45 And this is not all. Do ye not suppose that I know of these things myself? Behold, I testify unto you that I do know that these things whereof I have spoken are true. And how do ye suppose that I know of their surety? 

   46 Behold, I say unto you they are made known unto me by the Holy Spirit of God. Behold, I have fasted and prayed many days that I might know these things of myself. And now I do know of myself that they are true; for the Lord God hath made them manifest unto me by his Holy Spirit; and this is the spirit of revelation which is in me. 

   47 And moreover, I say unto you that it has thus been revealed unto me, that the words which have been spoken by our fathers are true, even so according to the spirit of prophecy which is in me, which is also by the manifestation of the Spirit of God.

     Sometimes it's hard to learn and understand new gospel concepts. It can feel a little overwhelming, confusing, and strange. But there's a sure-fire way to become strong and faithful. That's through effort. Fasting, prayer, and studying scriptures are all a part of putting forth our best effort, and God loves effort. He will help us along the way. I love you. God loves you. Have a beautiful and blessed week. Ayó

Elder Aldrich

I would caption these, but honestly, I don't feel like I need to 

One year older... And wiser too?

 June 16, 2025

    Wagwannn everybody! Nope, it's not my real birthday, but it is my mission birthday! I officially hit my year mark of serving the Lord. I don't even know what is going on. I went to bed one night in the MTC and woke up here... In Guyana... A year into my mission. I have learned so many lessons in the last year, so I want to share a few:

            God's timing is perfect

     God has perfect timing, who'd have guessed right? But seriously, it's crazy how his plan is for the whole world, but somehow so individual. As many of you know, a mission was not in the cards for me. I wanted nothing to do with it until I received a very strong impression telling me otherwise. 4 months later, I was a missionary. And the people I have met, the friendships I have made, the experiences I have had have changed me forever. Missions are fun. The mission has been an absolute blast. You learn how to love the hard work and love the people.

     I didn't send an email last week, but not too much happened. This week we had zone conference, and it was great. We talked lots about the need for members to do Missionary work with us, because it's the only way for new members to feel like they truly have a home. I learned a lot, and it's going to be fun to implement it more.

     Something that was interesting was the death day for cows. You all remember, here in Guyana there are cows everywhere. Literally everywhere. But last week, they had a special holiday that was all about friendship. Very fun. This friendship holiday involves killing a cow and sharing it with your neighbors. All of a sudden... No cows. Nowhere. You couldn't find one if you tried. I thought I was free, but yesterday they returned, so Guyana still has a cow infestation. 

     3 Nephi 5:13 Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his word among his people, that they might have everlasting life.

     I love this scripture because it applies to each and every one of us. We have all been called to declare the good word of the restored gospel. And that doesn't mean quietly and to a few people, but that means shouting it from the rooftops, and that sounds great to me. It's a good reminder of our purpose as missionaries and our purpose as the Lord's disciples. Thanks for coming on my adventure through my first year of mission life. Let's see what year two has to bring! I love you all! 

Elder Aldrich

Elder Blake wore a baby tie

Parrots on the church

 Lunch with CHAITRAM for his birthday

The monkey won't bite... but the dog might

  June 2, 2025 

    Good morning everyone! I understand that it's the evening for most people, but that's not important right now! This was a wonderful week! And I'm excited to tell you about it!

     This week was crazy with all of the exchanges! We started with an exchange on Wednesday. I don't think it stopped downpouring the whole day, and we did not care. We rode around on the bikes in the rain happily for hours. We topped it off with some food truck Guyanese barbecue. From there, we moved to the music night for the district. All of the sisters from the mission were in Guyana (that's not normal) for a sisters' conference, and they stayed for the night of music. It was super cool to see a bunch of missionaries from the islands!  We Elders performed "Ye Elders of Israel," and it was a lot of fun! We also ran back "This little light of mine" from when I was in the islands as well!

        Turns out... The dog does bite 

      On my Saturday exchange, after being stuck in traffic for a considerable time, we visited a member who has a dog that is notorious for trying to bite people. It had yet to be successful with the missionaries. I am always prepared with that thing... Till this time. When we showed up, the dog was totally chill, and I figured I had just made good friends with the dog now and we were chill. We go to say hi to the monkey (who doesn't want to say hi to a monkey) and while we are standing there, without a sound, the dog just clamps its fat mouth just above my knee. Unfortunately for that dog, it got a foot to the side, let go without a sound, and walked away. All was well, no blood was drawn, but trust was broken, and bruises were made (it was a big dog).

     I'm sure there's more that I'll remember once I hit send, but for now, enjoy the pictures and the scripture:

Mathew 4:19-20 

"19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.

20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him."

Sometimes the Lord asks us to sacrifice EVERYTHING in the service of him. We must give up our old life to accept the new one that God gives us. He wants to give us all that he has, so let him. I love you all, have a good week, and as always, be you.

Elder Aldrich

(I don't know how to caption these, but these are some incredible people) 

Cows

Adventures of Big Bird and Whitebai Inbox

  May 26, 2025

    Good Afternoon, and welcome to another episode of storytime by yours truly.  This week was a good one!  It was also transferred, meaning that the power couple of Elder Big Bird and Elder Whitebai has now been split up.  It had a good run, but now it's time for Elder Big Bird and Elder TALL to have some adventures!  I'll be staying here in Guyana for another transfer, and I could not be more excited!  I love it here, and my adventures are not yet done.

     This week, I have another story about some of our friends that were baptized this last weekend.  They are an incredible couple that came from Cuba to Guyana about 3 years ago.  They came here looking for a better life and found themselves struggling to feel the Lord's hand in their lives.  They began attending several churches and joined a few.  But with time, things stopped feeling right, and they left those churches, leaving behind many hopes of the Gospel.  

     Fast forward a year or so, and a certain Elder Big Bird and Elder Whitebai were frustrated, not sure where to go, and chose to stop by a Facebook referral down the street.  Opening the door was Dalay and Guillermo, who opened the door and invited us straight into the house.  After about 5 minutes of speaking with them, they looked at us and said, "We feel something special. Where is your church?"  And they showed up to church, felt the spirit, and asked us how they could join the church.  With a baptismal date set for May, they progressed quickly and took every invitation given.  At one point, Guillermo fell 4 stories out of a building during work at a construction site, and came to church 2 days after his surgery.  They were baptized this past weekend.

     I have never seen such strong faith before.  Dalay and Guillermo felt the spirit, and they followed it through everything.  Faith is such a powerful concept.  Faith literally can move mountains, and if we allow it to, it will change our lives forever.

     A few things before I go.  I learned how to drive in Guyana this week.  Let me tell you, it is a new level of fun.  We drive on the left side of the road here, and you have to watch out for a few things:

   1. mini buses:  the drivers are drunk, and the racing stripes mean business

   2. The pot holes: not the kind of pot you want to smoke at 60mph

   3. The cows man.  They are everywhere.

     I love you all! I hope you have a wonderful week!  Keep the faith, keep the love, and keep serving the Lord and others in all that you do!

- Elder Aldrich

1and2. Dalay and Guillermo

3-end. I love my zone