So I’m sure everyone is full of questions so get those coming and ill see what I can do to answer all of them but just to give a basic summary of what an executive secretary does... I may still be trying to figure everything out seeing as it has been a week since I’ve been here....but I am like the presidents go-to man. As of right now, there are three executive secretaries, one that is going home in a couple weeks that is training me and then another that is being trained for the Santos mission but like I said, essentially if the Pres ever needs ANYTHING, that immediately becomes first priority but I still have a comp and all that good stuff. My comps name is Elder _____ and I really like him! But I stay here in the mission office with five other secretaries but don’t worry there usually aren’t that many but because of the division in the mission, three are gonna go down to the Baixada Santos mission, one is going home and then that will leave me with one other here in the office and this next week for the transfer the President will call a new secretary because it’s usually just three or four in the office. But I take care of anything and everything the Pres could need or want, I take care of visas of everyone, renewing and that whole fun process, whenever new missionaries show up new in the mission or when oldies leave which means call all their Stake Pres and parents to make sure everyone knows about their flight and all that super trunky stuff, any mission meetings that there is I mark everything, I mark medical appointments for the missionaries in the whole mission, I take care of phone problems and well I’m sure there is plenty more but for right now that is the only stuff I know how to do. It’s just that essentially being executive sec is the most stressful thing in the world because then at night after six we leave the office and have to take care of our investigators and our ward so yeah.....just a little taste of my life right now. Really I do miss my old area kind of ALOT! We found out that I was gonna leave on Monday night so I didn’t have time to say goodbye to like anyone in the ward and our credits ran out so I could only call two families. I didn’t even get to say bye to all of our recent converts so that kind really bummed me out! We went to a FHE at _____ and _____ house and then said goodbye to a member family that I LOVED and well to make a long super sad story short many tears were shed and get this a girl told us that she officially wanted to get baptized and that she wanted me to baptize her and well that was when I told everyone that I was leaving so that didn’t go down too well.....UGH. I’m gonna to miss Santo André but well this ward seems super great too and well out bishop right now is a CHAMP!!! Everyone is super pumped for the work and since we only have three hours per day to actually teach people the ward helps a TON with division and references. We had some sick divisions this last week but well I don’t really know anything in the area yet and my comp, Elder _____ is leaving for the Baixada in a week so I’m just gonna have to figure out this area and this whole secretary thing riding solo... but well I know that this is a reason that I am here. There is a purpose in everything in life and especially the mission. To be completely honest I never wanted to ever be a secretary because we stay up late and get up earlier than everyone else and frankly I love teaching people and I was really getting my teaching down pretty dang good if I do say myself but well I think the hardest thing to adapt to is the fact that we only get three hours to proselyte...BUMMER. Something that is just known throughout the whole mission is that once someone leaves the office your kind forget how to teach.... so I sure hope I can keep my techniques going and I don’t become too awkward of a teacher but on the plus side of things, I’m gonna get super close to Pres and Sister Tanner since I’m gonna be calling him like every day, we have a weekly meeting with him and everyone in the office every Monday, we have unlimited credits, I call the states all the time to talk to people Stake Presidents and well ill probably have to do the same thing for myself seeing as I will probably die here in the office (you usually stay here for at least six months but I’ll do what you want me to do dear Lord). There is a reason I’m here, whether I like it or not and there are people that have been waiting for me in the area for quite some time now. Oh and more good news, we have a baptism this week of a 20 year old girl named _____. She is super shy and well I have only taught her twice so this baptism is 100% thanks to Elder _____ the missionary that was with Elder _____ here in the area but hey I left three baptisms for him this week back in Santo André and two families that are gonna get married and baptized in a month so I think he got the better end of the deal. But well I’ve got tons of stuff to do so that is a rundown of my life recently. Hope you all enjoyed! I appreciate all the prayers I can get, and even though I don’t really have any time at all to write letters, they are still fun to get :)
Read your scriptures + say your prayers + and share your testimonies = recipe for happiness :)
I love you all more than anything!
Elder Gubler
Missão Brasil São Paulo Sul
Secretario da Missão
