24 Months

 December 12, 2016

Your letters this week seriously helped me. It’s nice to hear that you guys are doing so well. (Obviously nobody is at 100%, but it seems as if we are all doing better.) For me I will say, that things have been getting a little bit harder... It is not easy to be away from you guys... Sometimes I dream about being able to receive a letter from the prophet that says I’m allowed to go home, but I quickly remind myself that the last letter I got from the prophet said I was supposed to be here, and I am supposed to be here for 24 months. I will also say that my mission president and companion are great people. Obviously there is a limit to the support they can lend, President Msane is often times very busy, but I can tell that he has still made an effort to check in on me. And my companion has gone through tragedy as well, being from Rwanda, his family was involved in some of the conflicts over there. That is something to talk more on when we are all at home though. Sometimes I feel as if I am meant to experience these pains on my own and the thought weighs heavily on my soul. But I know that although I am alone here (besides the great people that I have gotten to know over the past two months) I am never actually alone. My greatest source of comfort has come from the scriptures. I have been enlightened time and time again with the teachings that come from it. But along with the scriptures, I have been putting a butt load of time into reading Jesus the Christ. That book it literally the best book on earth.. And I love the messages that you guys sent me, Dad, especially the one about Alma 32, and Mom, that quote was seriously great. It was so nice to be able to be informed on all the happenings at home, I will continue to pray for our family! ALSO I AM SO FLIPPIN' JEALOUS OF YOU GUYS GETTING TO MEET UCHTDORF! That is so cool! He seems taller than I thought he would be? ...

Habare Mzungu

December 5, 2016

Hello family, hello friends. The past couple of weeks have been pretty hard, and as you may already be able to tell, the pain that I am, and we, as a family, are experiencing, is going to be here for a while.

But I’m a glass half full kinda guy, so I’m going to try to write a positive letter of some of the good things that happened this week, to try to experience that good ol’ fashioned joy again.

One amazing thing that has happened in my life these past couple of weeks is the crazy amount of comforting emails I have received. Every email has really meant a lot and has done much to lighten this load and lift my spirits.

The mission has been going well. We have been hard at work visiting people and teaching them about this wonderful gospel. Unfortunately because of the rainy season, people are kinda getting to busy to talk to us... But we have been doing some great work in the fields (literally cultivating big fields...) and in the church!

We have had a couple of firesides and we have had a lot of people who attended. We watched 17 Miracles and told them about the message of that film. It really is a great movie.

I got to slackline! And, might I say, I still got it...

And we had district conference, which was great. President Msane is such a powerful man. If he’s not an apostle one day, then I will be danged... The topic was on establishing eternal families and the message really spoke to me. Half way through the meeting I was disappointed to find that my hopes and dreams of living the single life, on the road and exploring America for a little while after the mish’ were crushed by a desire to find a nice girl and make it to the temple ASAP... LOL! The Holy Ghost does some WEIRD things... Just glad I don’t need to worry about that for another two years.

Another thing that stuck out was a great appreciation that our family has been sealed for time and all eternity. We can all live together for ETERNITY. What a blessing. I love you all, I miss you all, and I love my mission.

 Elder Fraga

A for Awesome

November 28, 2016

Thank you for your letter. I loved it, and I also really liked Elder Wirthlin’s talk “Come What May and Love It” that you sent to me, it really is a great lesson the we should love whatever comes our way. I’m glad to hear that the funeral went well. I will continue to pray for you guys. I love you guys.

I don’t have a lot of time, but just a few things that have happened this week are,

·      some really good lessons

·      a fireside that I planned that also went really well

·      we found a scorpion, centipede, and a BIG A (a for awesome) tarantula in our apartment! it was freakin’ scary, but they aren't common and we aren’t in any danger from them, don’t worry.

we have been working in the shamba a lot recently as well. Cafe Rio is a Kenyan restaurant... the only thing Mexican about that restaurant is the name and the Horchata...

Also, I have been making cleanliness my top priority, and I have "be bold" written on the first page of my scriptures. I also have thought back to your famous words of "if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right" countless times! I love you! Thank you for all of the support!

There is one thing that I need though... I’m starting to pick up a spare tire... The problem is that we kinda have to eat a lot of carbs, and I can’t have a nice healthy salad, because the lettuce can kill you unless you either soak it in bleach or cook it... Can you council with Greg and put together a brief "missionaries bulletproof" diet for me? I think that the council from you and Greg could save me... also, another problem is that when we go to restaurants, the only safe thing to drink is the soda, because the water isn’t filtered... SOS please help!

But again, I love you, and tell the family I love them too! Sorry I didn't write a big email for everyone this week, not a lot of time, I will send a good one next week, but it’s okay because we got to stay in contact throughout that week... how is Diesel? I haven't heard any news on him yet.

I'll talk to you guys next week! 

Bye!

Talk for the funeral of Ethan Mitchell Fraga

November 26, 2016

My heart is broken. The amount of sorrow that I have experienced this week is far greater than any other time in my life, and it only makes it harder having to bear it on the other side of the world. I wish with all my heart that I could be with my family, but I know that I am, as Ethan is, where God needs me right now.

I have found so much comfort in the countless emails I have gotten, the phone calls I have received from family, the astonishing amount of love and support that has been manifested to my family through various news sources and forms of social media, but most importantly, through God. The passages that I have read and pondered in scripture and other words of ancient and modern day prophets, coupled with the prayers which have been spoken in our behalf have done wonders to soften my heart and lift my spirit, and I have since gained a greater appreciation for the knowledge of the Plan of Salvation than I knew possible. I KNOW that Ethan is in a better place, and I KNOW that I will one day see him again.

Now, none of us can make the assumption that Ethan wanted to pass on. Nobody in their right mind desires death. Ethan wanted to live his life, and if you knew him, you also know that he did just that. He lived life to the fullest and always stood up for what he believed in. If there was something he wanted to do or get there was no stopping him, he would always find a way. He knew his goals and he knew how to reach them. Along with being one of the most determined people around, he was also one of the most selfless, he always looked for ways to pick others up if they were feeling down, and bring someone in if they were feeling left out. But one of the best things about him, is that he could always put a smile on your face, even if he was being a complete and utter turd.

And he was always willing to help, always willing to serve. I felt very privileged anytime I got the opportunity to work shoulder to shoulder with my younger brother. I gained a sense of responsibility to watch over him, and teach him what I knew, but often times I found myself learning from him, the teacher would become the student.

 But Ethan was more than just someone I felt a need to look out for, he was my best friend. My first memory, the earliest event that I can think back to, is eating a strawberry that the nurses had given my mom in the hospital, the day he was born. Needless to say, it was not my love for the fruit that caused that experience to be imprinted on my heart forever, it was the excitement of receiving a baby brother and another addition to our family.

Now, I can't tell you what life was like for my family before Ethan came into this world, because frankly, I just don't remember, but anyways, I'm sure it was good. I CAN tell you that growing up with Ethan, made life GREAT. The countless adventures exploring the nature park behind our house, or building forts out of left over 2X4's in our unfinished basement, are the type of memories that will live on forever.

 I recall one experience of becoming preoccupied, as all young boys do, with digging a hole to China on the east end of our backyard. We grabbed the shovels, and started our journey, determined to come out victorious on the other side of earth. We dreamed of the treasures we would find along the way, and the Chinese emperors that would greet us on the other side. Unfortunately, a few feet down, reality set in... we never reached that foreign land, but we felt a sense of accomplishment when we reached the sprinkler pipe, that we agreed was most likely made in China... so we declared victory, and got distracted with some other boyish task.

From a young age you could tell that Ethan's actions were going to have a lasting affect, not just physically, (though you can still see an imprint on the spot where we decided to dig the hole) but also mentally and spiritually. The example that he set through his work ethic and through his interactions with others defined him as a young man and set him up as a source of light to everyone around him.

One of the finest examples of this was in his service. When we were younger, our scout group, like many others, would put American flags up around the neighborhood on national holidays, and it was not always easy... It's hard, especially at a younger age to sacrifice your sleep and go pound re-bar into the ground early in the morning! But regardless of the day or time, if the flags were supposed to be up, you could count on him hard at the work, bright and early. Whether we were putting flags up, or taking them down, he would never utter a word of complaint.

But along with being a hard worker and a selfless servant, he was also a little bit of a rebel... it would be wrong of me to write of Ethan and not mention how free-spirited he was... he was always pushing the status quo... and I loved that about him-whether it was him refusing to buy new shoes, because his beat up vans weren't merely a fashion statement, but a way of life; or not cutting his hair because of some reason unbeknownst to me... He always found a way to be his own man. He even pushed the status quo of his choice of diet by making the choice to become vegan, then again pushed the status quo of being vegan, by disregarding all requirements necessary to call himself one.

 Ethan had a fire, a desire, inside himself, to live life to his own terms, the way HE wanted to live, and by doing so, was an example to the rest of us.  I was so proud to hear of his plans for an Eagle Scout project, and I got so excited when I learned that he had chosen to work at marking climbing routes in various climbing areas up Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons.

Climbing is very dear to our hearts, it was one of the best ways in which we found time to bond. We always knew that time on the wall, would be time well spent. It gave us time to talk about life and school and work and girls. I'm really grateful for all the times we got to climb together, and I'll never forget the early mornings, hot afternoons, and late nights spent at Red Rocks, Ferguson, or other places up LCC. We had some really great times together, I loved being able to spend a few hours at the crag with him, being able to work out the moves on a specific climb, and I especially loved hearing his stories of all the climbing routes he had accomplished that gradually got harder and harder. It really is a testament to his perseverance.

Ethan taught us a great deal of things and stood as a role model in many different aspects of life. But I believe that the area that he was the greatest role model was in his aptitude and energy in fulfilling his priesthood duty. Whether it be attending young men's activities, participating in Sunday lessons, or coming to church early to help prepare, and be ready to bless the sacrament. Ethan had a remarkable way of bearing his testimony through his actions. Ethan was an amazing friend, an awesome brother, and a strong member of the church.

 I love and miss him so, so much, but I can’t help but feel grateful at this time. Grateful for the wonderful 16 years that God was willing to give us together. Grateful for all the many memories that I was able to share with him, and I am especially grateful that God blessed me with a late mission call, so I could spend the whole summer with him and my family.

I am going to miss the family trips and vacations to various places in Utah and other areas around the world. We could always count on a good time in Lake Powell, or Moab, and I will never forget getting to wander around Central Park in New York, or getting to run up and down Cannon Beach in Portland, meandering through the Sacred Grove in Palmyra, or spending hours upon hours at all the different museums and monuments around Washington D.C. There was even one time that we set up our slack line in a park near Niagara Falls in Canada, and made five whole dollars!

We shared many great experiences as a family with him. But it's not just the big adventures that I am going to miss. I LOVED being able to drive to school together, and see each other in the halls, and going out to lunch together and always getting back to class late, and most of all just having a chill out session where we would crank the tunes, and break out the art supplies.

It’s not going to be easy to get over this loss. This is definitely the hardest thing that I have ever gone through. But Ethan would not let tragedy get him down, and I do not believe that he would want it affecting us in a bad way either. My very favorite poem is about trials, and at times like these I have found reassurance that everything will turn out fine. Its title is "Good Timber", and it goes as follows,

The tree that never had to fight

For sun and sky and air and light,

But stood out in the open plain

And always got its share of rain,

Never became a forest king

But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil

To get to heaven from common soil,

Who never had to win his share

Of sun and sky and light and air,

Never became a manly man

But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:

The stronger wind, the stronger trees;

The further sky, the greater length;

The more the storm, the more the strength.

By sun and cold, by rain and snow,

In trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,

We find the patriarchs of both.

And they hold counsel with the stars

Whose broken branches show the scars

Of many winds and much of strife.

This is the common law of life.

Yes, this is the hardest trial yet, and the only way that this wound can heal is with time, lots and lots of time. But we can find comfort in knowing that God is our loving Heavenly Father, and that he truly does know, and love each of us more than we can even begin to comprehend.

He wants us to be happy. HE WANTS US TO BE FOREST KINGS, and if that includes having to endure a few broken branches, and having to fight for that sun and sky and air and light, then so be it.

WE DID NOT CHOOSE GOD’S PLAN BECAUSE IT IS EASY, WE CHOSE GOD’S PLAN BECAUSE IT IS WORTH IT. I KNOW HE HAS A PLAN FOR EACH AND EVERYONE OF US, AS HARD AS IT MAY NOW BE, THIS IS HIS PLAN FOR ETHAN. I KNOW ETHAN IS IN A BETTER PLACE NOW, AND THAT HE IS CONTINUING GOD’S WORK WHERE HE NEEDS HIM. WE MISS HIM. WE LOVE HIM. BUT GOD LOVES US AND GOD LOVES HIM MORE. Knowing this, allows us to ask the two questions in 1 Corinthians 15:55, which states, "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?"

I am so extremely grateful that God was willing to send his son Jesus Christ, to die for us, that there is no sting in that, and so that the grave hath no victory. I KNOW that this separation is only temporary, and I KNOW that I will see him again. Once again, I love my family with all my heart, and I love this gospel with all my heart, and I seal my message and testimony in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.