Christmas BBQ, answers to prayers, PICTURES!!

Pictures from Herman Bohning's camera that she emailed with this little note:

Hi sister dunford´s mom!!!!!!

This is sister Bohning. Your daughter is doing great and wanted to send you some pictures, but we only thought to bring my camera this week and not hers. I hope your family is doing well and enjoys seeing Carmen (and me..haha).
Thanks for the toffee recipe. And for sending me such a great companion!
Hasta luego!

Hermana Dunford and Hermana Bohning

Baptism

Delicious Argentina Barbeque on Christmas Day.
Wed Dec 30, 2009 email:

Hello and happy new year!!
I seriously cant believe that another year has passed already! its crazy. and that transfers are next week too...its nuts. I really hope I stay in this area with my same comp. I dont know if i should say that but, oh well. I think its good that every time I have thought that- at least it means I love my comp and my area!
ok a little funny thought for the day- on my phone call I said that everyone just tells me i´m fat to my face? [actually more like they allude to it, ie "here, have more to eat, obviously you like to eat!"] well luckily it hasn´t happened for a while. Anyway that's besides the point except now its going the other way. For example this man (super creeper as my comp called him) walked by so we started talking to him and talking about the gospel. I started feeling really uncomfortable because he was just STARING in my eyes. it was so weird. Anyway like always i asked if we could pass by in some other moment for his house [is this her spanish structure creeping in?] to share a message about a living prophet and the true restored church of Jesus Christ. He then said, i would only like to steal you away for five minutes so I could just keep looking at you, but nothing more. I was like uhhh,.... ok thanks here´s a folleto chau! haha it was pretty uncomfortable.
So lately it has been crazy rain season here. The other day we shared a message with some people on their porch and I began with a prayer. It was super sunny and hot. when I opened my eyes the sky was way darker and the wind had picked up immensely. It was crazy! Then it started raining. It is seriously like some scene from a movie. Like you just watch these dark clouds move SO fast and they cover the whole sky and then there is a terrible rainstorm. We have learned to always bring our umbrellas now even if its super hot sunny and cloudless in the morning.
So Christmas was super great, we had a huge asado. we borrowed this parilla, like metal grate thing, and then una chapa, like a chunk of an aluminum roof from Jesus Chiapello, the Elder´s quorum president in our ward, to have this huge outdoor bbq. It was so delicious. I have never seen so much meat for a bbq! and like good real meat too and chorizo, not burgers or anything. There is this Elder from Colombia- Elder Cristancho, the one that talked to you guys in english, that had this specialty colombian meat sauce he made that was so good, and he is going to give me the recipe. And we played soccer and some basketball, it was really fun. But I dont think i have ever been so hot or sweaty in my life. and it was so weird to have that on Christmas day.
So the other day we were feeling a little not so great, and we were about to teach a lesson with a member, and we were picking him up in his apartment, and i was like ok, I have got to pray or something to get the fire back. so we offered a prayer together and we went a taught this AWESOME Lesson. It really testified to me the strength of prayer and how quickly the Spirit can help us change the environment so that we can teach with power.

The thing also was that was had contacted a Romina and she was like yeah come back, and when we went back a different day the member that was with us, Pablo Martinez, this awesome super little guy that loves to teach and speak english, was like hey I think she is a member! anyway she wasn´t home. But we were in the same area with Pablo again when we prayed to get the Spirit and I was like hey lets go for Romina again, and we went, she wasnt there but her sister Rocio and her brother Dario were and they were both baptized, there whole family was but they hadn't gone forever because their mom stopped going and so Rocio hadn´t gone in like10 years since she had been baptized when she was 8. so we shared the story of Joseph Smith and the true chruch in the earth again today, and I could tell it was something they had been waiting to hear. Although they have been baptized, they now need the opportunity to grow their testimonies. They are going to pray and read and ask God about Joseph Smith. It was really neat too to share about how we can ask speciifc questions in our prayers to receive specific answers. Rocio was like wait what!? I want to receive answers from God. And we were like you can! and she was like I never knew that. I think everyone would be a lot happier if they could know about personal revelation and that God loves us and wants to help us. Rad. Also it was neat to see how well my compainon and I are teaching. there has been a great improvement in our unity of teaching and i feel like we are really directed by the spirit in what we share with the people. Unfortunately most of the people we teach dont want to get baptized or go to church o que sea. But we are finding new people constantly, or trying anyway, but its just a little frustrating to see this constant rotation or cycle I guess. we just keep getting newbies and then having to drop them becuase they arent progressing.
I also have been reading in the war chapters in alma agian but this time in Spanish. I really hope someday in Heaven we can watch all of these things on screen as they happened. Haha i just love these chapters they have all the good elements of an AMAZING movie, but with the awesome spiritual aspects that can change our lives! I also read in 3 nephi in the chpt about the war against the gadianton robbers. That is just powerful stuff!
I know this is the true chruch of God on the earth today. That the preisthood power is real. That the power of prayer is real. That we can be happy. That to have joy is God´s plan for us. I love this gospel and the peace, love, and blessings that I receive everyday from my Heavnely Father and form my Savior Jesus Christ.
I love you all so much and hope you have a rockin new year! do something so fun! like play beatle rock band all night! haha ok I am a little jealous of that....

pre-baptism rainstorm from Hades

Wed Dec 23, 2009

Hello. Well I really can´t believe that it is Christmas in two days. I´m accustomed to the way Christmas is in Los Estados. Entonces, Im just like yeah whatev right now. I think its pretty cool, because really the only thing here is that I can focus entirely on the reason we celebrate Christmas anyway. Like how they celebrate christmas here is a huge dance party christmas eve with drinks and fireworks. Im thinking I like the way i'm used to it better.....And they dont really say navidad either, they say ¨Va a quedar aca por las fiestas?¨ Its just a party here. Kind of sad. But its just presents in America right? But wow, to focus on the greatest present we could ever have makes me so happy, and humble. Once again I think of the song He sent His Son. The line, He sent His Son to die for us. Really, Christ was sent willingly to come and die for us. In Alma 38 14 it says (sorry i only have my spanish book of mormon) Si, reconoce tu indignidad ante Dios en todo tiempo. We have to always remember we are nothing without Our God, and we are nothing without the mercy of the everlasting Atonement. And because we are human, we are always unworthy. But we can change! We can become better everyday! That is the great Christmas message, the great gift we receive.
Well we had our ward activity on Friday and my companion and I were so preoccupied for the presentation we were assigned and the cakes we would take. So I went with the old chocolate dulce de leche and coconut flakes route. And we spent our stinking studies cooking three cakes! (We know that its difficult for many people to afford to bring food to a cena canasta y queriamos que hubiera suficiente) And we finally figured out what to do for the presentation. mom i had those awesome ornaments [paper nativity ornaments to color I sent in her package] and so we colored those, made a star, a manger, a sheep, and a donkey and found scriptures to explain that since His birth Christ has always been teaching us what we need to do to return to our Heavenly Father. I thought it was a rocking idea, my companion felt it a little juvenile, like for primary or something. igual we did it. So friday night we are working at like 6 and it starts raining nutso hard. but then stops at seven so we go home to get all the cakes and stuff and call the bishop (it starts at 730) and he says I dont know for the storm it might be cancelled, And I was like are you kidding me? Sorry but the rain here serioulsy stops life! its a little frustrating. But, he said no its ok its still on, and Carlos Atausupa, the first counselor in the bishopric said yes its still on we´ll see you there really soon. Ok so we show up at like 7:40. NO ONE ELSE SHOWS UP UNTIL 8:30. but they just went inside to practice a song for sacrament. so finally at 915 like 10 more families come. and I was like ok im sorry we have to go...It was a little frustrating. But Im glad that igual people went and could enjoy each others' company as a ward.
OK and the next night totally made up for it. It was the baptism of Nora and ANGELA!!!!! it was so amazing. WE went to get them at 5:15 to travel by bus to the stake center (it was supposed to be a white christmas baptism, but only one other set of mishes had a baptism, but oh well at least a lot of the elders were there so that we could have witnesses) Anyway so the rainstorm from Hades decided to happen in this moment. And it was raining SO HARD. when it rains here the taxis dont go, like they dont answer their phones you have to hope to reach one in the streets. Anyway so we walked to the bus stop like 6 blocks away, with an 7 month pregnant woman and a really heavy 4 year old that can't really walk and rivers, literally rivers, in the streets that we had to trudge through. I was laughing so hard. I was using like a plastic sheet to cover my head, while carrying Ulysses. I got soaking wet. But we arrived. And the baptism was Fantastic. IT was so spiritual. After the baptism Angela and Nora both bore their testimonies. and they were so strong. Angela was just like im so happy! i feel light and i know i made the right choice. Then Nora at first didnt want to get up and bear her testimony but then she was like elder is it ok if i say something from here? and he was like yes of course. Anyway she said, I had a dream that i was supposed to get baptized and i didnt know what it meant, but now I know. I know this is the right path for me. And she was crying and i was crying. It was so powerful. And then what an adventure to get home! my comp and i waited like 25 minutes before we realized a bus wasn't coming, and then the lady that was waiting with us was super nice and we luckily found a taxi and went together and I taught her the restoration! haha it was awesome. She doesnt live in our area though. but we definitely already passed on her information. It is so cool to see the little things that happen and how it turns out to be an awesome opportunity to share the gospel. Also this guy that we invited to church randomly in the park came! it was so cool. My comp felt that we needed to contact him so we did but he was really weird and like it didnt seem like was going to fruit anything. But he came to church for all three hours and had like a million questions! it was awesome. he tampoco is in nuestro area. bueno i have to go now. But i CANT WAIT TO TALK TO YOU ON FRIDAY! woohoo! Ok and now i think it might be at like 11 or 12 your time. We are having a bbq on the beach as missionaries in the morning. im sorry i really hope thats ok! ok love you all. merry christmas!!!

Love the Christmas package!

Wed Dec 16, 2009

oh my gosh mom, the package was so amazing!! thank you thank you thank you!! the clothes are so perfect, everything. you know me so well. and yes of course i already opened it all!! and my companion wants a toffee recipe. so yeah could you please send that for next week?
So sweet. This week we have a baptism! a beautiful young mom angela who just got married (its so crazy cuz she is only 22, has two kids 4 and 2 and is about to have her third and the four year old has epilepsy, we are just in such different places her and i). anyway and her mom too! we are going to start working with the husband, norberto. Anyway they are super strong and fieles. I am so excited for them, they had their interviews today and passed!
It is so crazy to be working in a ward now, we had ward council and I was just like agh crap I dont know what to do, i dont know how to work with a ward?! Anyway. We have a christmas dinner this friday and my comp and i are trying to cook up something good to show the ward a good time. its tough sometimes they are always talking about the old missionaries and how funny or nice or animated they were. which im like, hey im pretty darn animated. its cool though, i feel like I already have a lot of good friends here in this place. i love all the people i meet. missionaries, investigators, ward members. it's so neat.
yesterday we shared a message with someone who hasn't been to church in a really long time because she cant stop smoking and can't take the sacrament. anyway we promised the Lord will help her and we started reading in 3 ne 18 about the importance of the sacrament and anyway i kept reading and i was like oh the next verses are so good its talking about how if Christ is our rock we can overcome the gates of hell. yeah totally misunderstood but realsized a litte too late., anyway so i had her read them, she was like wow son fuertes. I was like oh my gosh I dont want to tell people they are going to hell!! haha anyway so I turned to helaman 5 12 to see the blessings of having Christ as our rock. it turned out well. but it was like a terrible feeling to share something asi and then realize it was the exact opposite of what i wanted to share just because i skimmed the verse and didnt understnad the spanish well.
Anyway my companinon and i received some extra strength to start fresh and be hard working. and its much better now. I love my companion a lot, I think because i understand her so well, i was just in her shoes of wanting to go home.... Anyway But it was funny a member of the ward who served a mission como hace 3 anos found out that we both have such little time [as missionaries so far] and he was like man if the mission pres wasn't a member i would have said he was drinking to have made a decision asi. I was like haha yah thats what i thought when i found out. but then he said no it really must mean you were just really prepared well. I guess so... i still dont feel like it, but i know with the help of the Lord and the power of my calling I can be a powerful teacher of the word of God. what a blessing. I love testifying to all the people that I know this is the true church on the earth today- that the same church that Christ established was restored by a prophet of God!
ok i love you so much and i am going to call on christmas day como a las 10 en la manana your time. great. I will write again next wednesday. love you so much! chau

Hurray for fumigation.

Wed Dec 9, 2009

OK this is going to be a super short letter.
Alright this week was pretty uneventful. But a huge miracle hapened. I complained a little to my mish president about the bugs in my house and he hired someone to come and fumigate it! and so now there are just dead bugs! it is much much better. I really felt the love of the Lord and of the Mission President in this moment.
Mom thanks for the letter and dad too. Tell curtis good job and that i need to join him in his diet. [he is working to get down to 189 for wrestling] Tell mary to keep up the institute! Good job with the race dad and lauren! [They ran the 'Colder Boulder' 5k together] I'm super proud of you guys! good job with the christmas house mom! i really really really wish i could be there to see it. its like my favorite thing ever. Also, we have to go to bed at normal time on christmas, and here they celebrate it at like one in the morning. so we won't be doing anything with members. Sorry! im trying to ask people what their traditions are....but they say they eat and dance in the middle of the night with fireworks.
Also i should be getting my pakage friday at zone conference. thanks mom!!!
I love you all. One thing that has been really helping me. is the book of mormon. With real study in it every day I am realizing the importance of daily study, righteousness and the atonement and the spreading of the gospel. I compel all of you to read it as well.
Sorry this letter isn´t very good.
I love you all
hermana Dunford

Santa Fe, New Companion, BUGS!!!, summary of lost email.

Wednesday December 2, 2009

Hermana Dunford and her new companion, Hermana Bohn...?

This is me and my new comp. and ok it took me forever to up load it!

Ok so I just wrote this awesome good email that was really spiritual and good and i was so excited to send it and my session timed out or something and it deleted everything. im angry now
Heres a summary: there are a million cockroaches in my apartment, and a billion spiders EVERYWHERE. they are all really big. I am scared constantly
Im really inadequate as a missionary. we dont have investigators. we live next to a beautiful river. we have a chapel and the ward is nice. I can know what i need to do because of the spirit, thanks to 2 ne 32: 1 through 5. my companion is good, we both dont really understand spanish very well. People cried when i left my last area.
I feelweak and dont know how to do anything but i am just trying to be worhty of the spirit through obedience.
I love you all.
Hermana Dunford
I know that this church is true.

[here is a an additional bit about why the bug issue is so bad for her -this was in her note to me]: AGH!! and serioulsy mom the bugs are really an issue. now 5 times in the mish i have had nightmares where I wake up screaming about like a spider in my hair or somthing. last night i fell out of my bed. (im in a bunk) it's so embarrassing. but it was so real my dream. I just sat there and cried, luckily my comp was super nice. I dont know. I dont know what to do. I know there are bugs everywhere but it is seriously bad here.

Senior Companion - AUGH!

Tuesday November 24, 2009

OH MY GOSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am going to be senior comp. I cannot believe it. I am going to be in my third transfer nothing more! AGH!!!! I am so scared.
haha ok I had to get that out.
OK but seriously. I am wondering what I have to learn. Like why am I going to be senior comp already? I´ve got a lot of growing to do i guess....I am going to Santa Fe, and I am pretty sure that my companion I know from the MTC and she is super nice. and already knows spanish thank heavens because she worked in a law firm in guatemala for a year or somthing. But yeah cuz i still dont understnad spanish very well. For example we were teaching yesterday and the lady was like yeah i have a terrible sin after we explained that baptism is for the perdon of sins. Anyway she went on to explain what it is and I was like ok whatever i dont understnad. After the lesson my comp told me that she killed her husband!! agh. But whatever I guess if the Lord trusts me to do it, I can do it.
Ok this week was really different. But also very good because I feel like I learned a lot. We had a district activity and it was so good. the elders in my district are so awesome. I am really going to miss them. There is a program here in Argentina called Casi Angeles (almost angels) and so we did a skit called casi Elderes. It was so funny. we incorporated a lot of things from the culture. Like the elders went to the boliche on saturday night, and then said they couldnt go to church in the morning because it was raining. and then one elder was drinking mate during his talk. It was hilarious. For my talent with my comp we did Hakuna Matata. NO one really thought it was funny. but oh well. Hahah anyway, after the elders did somthing else too. they lip synched to a song by Il Divo. it was so hilarious. Regres a mi. Return to me. I laughed SO HARD. Also the grandson of my branch president danced to billy jean exactly like michael jackson. it was hilarious.
Ok so sunday, we went to a baptism and it was so good. Haha i made brownies with dulce de leche and coco again and everone scarfed them! haha everyone told me that i had to make a double batch the next time, and then another lady told me that i am going to be able get married after the mission. thats good to know. haha. The man that got baptized bore his testimony and it was so strong. He said that he wasnt sure if he had a testimony of the prophet. but right before his baptsim he watched a question and answer session in argentina with Elder Bednar. I got to watch a little part of it too. it was so good. Anway this guy said he know that Heavenly Father answers prayers because he received a testimony right before his baptism that he was an apostle of the Lord.
I know too that Heavenly Father answers our prayers. Elder Bednar answered a question about how it is to be an apostle of the Lord and he said he felt completley adequate. Exactly the words I want to use to describe how I feel as a missionary. But he said that no matter what happens the Lord will help us do anything, if we put our trust in him. It hit me so strong. I too know that Elder Bednar is an apostle of the Lord and that the preisthood of God is back on the earth again today.
We were listening to my ipod and the song how could the father show the world played. I really ask all of you to listen to it or read the lyrics. They are so simple and so powerful. I felt the spirit so strong. Right now its my comp and my theme song. she is trying to learn it in english.
Another thing that happened is that i was reading in Helaman and read three verses that really made me feel the comfort from God that He loves me and wants me to be happy. It was so cool!! Because I had just prayed specifically justo antes that i could find scriptures to help me feel better. I know that if we can pray for specific blessings we will receive them.
I know that this work is of the Lord, and because it is His work He will help us. I know now more than ever that the Book of Mormon is true. I know it was written specifically for me. I love to know that and feel that comfort in my life. I know obedience is the key to feel happy in this life.
I love you all. Happy Thanksgiving! Its this week right?
haha i cant believe that christmas is in a month cuz it is still SO HOT HERE. :) and so humid. everything is wet. all the time. haha ok. this isn´t a complaint, its just factual information.
My comp served in santa her first area. she told me it has a heat that is unbearable. welp i guess we´ll see! haha ok love youall.

HUGE cucarachas and the lady with eighteen dogs. Yikes! But YAY for a BAPTISM.

Wednesday November 18, 2009

So Last Friday we had a baptism! Everything went well and it was a real spiritual treat. I am so glad that Cynthia realized the blessings she can receive from being a member in the true Church of Jesus Christ.
My companion and I made a cake for the baptism. and a miracle happened. haha we made the cake and it was super dry, and we couldnt get it out of the pan. but with the cake fell in two pieces bottom and top, and then we scraped the bottom out, so to put it back together we used dulce de leche but it looked really shady. haha. and then we put a bunch of dulce de leche on top and used coconut on top. the coconut here is so little it looks like parmesan cheese. but since it was SO HOT, the duluce de leche started to melt and we had to put it in the fridge. Ok so i was really sad thinking that the cake was a disaster and that it was going to be really embarassing. but we went and after the baptism everyone started eating and everyone asked who made the cake? it is so good!! somehow it was super moist and really really delicious. en serio, un milagro. something really little but it meant so much to me, that it turned out. Cuz yes i was praying.
Cynthia´s dad made it just in time to after work (he works for an ambulance) to baptize her, and he had to do the ordinance three times! luckily she was super good mannered about it all. Her dad said, she had too many sins, i had to do it three times! it was a good laugh.
The weather here affects EVERYTHING THE PEOPLE DO. its kind of frustrating acutally, if there is rain, nobody does anything. So yeah friday night right before the baptism it rained un monton! so nobody came except the families, but it truly was really beautiful, I am so grateful that everything turned out well, cuz i had no idea what i was doing!
So there is a woman we are teaching and she has 18 dogs. its nuts! I dont know if i already talked about her. But she knows each one of them by name. Everytime we pass by the dogs go nuts and are everywhere. My worst nightmare basically... haha not really, but yeah. Its crazy that the mission so far has taught me to be more tranquil, like whatever happens happens. I am still trying to get used to being soaking wet with sweat however.
For lunch we eat meat and pasta or salad. The salads here are shredded carrots, tomatoes, salt, hardboiled eggs, and oil. or some sort of mixture of those kinds of things. very different! But usually pretty good. and they put bread in the middle and everyone just pulls off a chunk and use the bread like a shovel. entonces, i am eating way too much bread ;).
There are bugs. HUGE cucarachas. Fortunately not any in my apt todavia pero en la calle siempre. La otra dia habia una araña grande en las espalda de un contacto. My companion just like went over to her knocked it down and stomped. But yeah i am trying to get used to seeing bugs all the time.
We were returning to the apartment (pensh) and i looked down and there was a huge cockroach on my shirt. it scared the crap out of me! so i screamed and hit it off and we were in the middle of the street. I really need to learn how to control my fear of bugs.........my companion got a kick out of it though! everyday many things happen that just make us laugh alot. it is usually my naivete with the culture and the language. The spanish is still a huge struggle. But whatever, I can teach, so thats what I focus on. But sometimes i speak in spanish and throw in english words. right now its my focus to not say 'like' anymore during lessons. Already there has been a huge improvement!
haha. its fun to to help my companion with english, there is a program that the latin missionaries have to do, so i get to be an english teacher. I never knew how difficult it is to explain some things, like phrases that we say all the time but really cant translate. that is how things are in spanish too but luckily Im getting the hang of it better.

Also WE ALMOST GOT THE STANDARDS THIS WEEK!!!!! agh we lacked ONE person in the church. and we seriously did todo posible para tener cinco en la capilla. it was super frustrating again. But oh well.
I know that Joseph Smith is the prophet of the restauration and that the same church that Jesus Christ Established is back on the earth!
What a great blessing. Almost everytime we teach the first lesson, I can feel again the Spirit testify to me of these things.
I hope that we always strive to build our testimonies and feel the Spirit everyday. It's important to know these things are true so we can know that the priesthood is on the earth and we can be sealed with our families for eternity! And always live in a state of happiness (mos 2:41)
Its also important so that we know the choices we make now affect our eternity. we need to remember the duration of eternity. (Enos 1:23)
Ok i love you all!
Until next week!

Put on a Happy Face!!

Wednesday November 11, 2009

This week we received the best news ever! Cynthia changed her mind, after we found some powerful scriptures according to the spirit and luckily the Spirit led us in our lesson and she agreed to get baptized!! I dont think i have ever felt so happy. The baptism is this friday. Its also with Angel the son of the Peralta family, and they all came to church again! Agh its so good.
But its also so frustrating the mission. Its tough to keep up a happy face. but I have found that I always have to smile.
I also learned that as members of the church we have to be kind to everyone, we are disciples of Christ. And Because everyone is invited to hear the gospel of Christ by Him, we have to invite everyone too. We need to invite those less active. Treat them As our good friends. 2 Nefi 26:33.
It is so important to be an example.
I know the gospel is true. I know that The book of Mormon was written for us and that we can find what we need in our lives, the answers, with prayerful reading. I love you all!!

Almost the Estandartes, lots of SWEAT!

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

So this last week was really interesting. Good and bad! Its true what I heard about the mission before, that your range of emotions stretches immensely. you feel happier and way sadder than you felt before.
Anyway the sad things. Cinthia, daughter of Mari and Juan Diaz accepted a baptismal date, but then Monday we went to help prepare her more and stuff but she told us she changed her mind. I was really sad. I am really sad. We told her to pray and see what the answer she got, because we cant deny answers from God. I hope she can see the reality of the necesity of baptism and the gospel in our lives.
Also Elsa and Raul are so good, but Elsa went to the tribunales and cant get divorced until april in order to get married to Raul unless she pays an insane amount right now. Aggh! They need to get baptized right now! but they are so nice, They feed us lunch once a week and do our laundry! And they truly have strong testimonies- its so good to see that.
My companion hurt her foot really badly last week, and got sick somehow from some food or water so we weren´t able to walk very fast and then with the stomach we had to stay inside a couple times. She is getting better though and so thats really good!
Last week we had some really good success with our dats! For the mission there are goals for the key indicators, for example, investigators in the church, how many lessons taught with a member present, how many people contacted, etc. and the goals the mission set are called the Estandartes. Well my companion and I were stoked because we had everything saturday night, and we still had sunday to get more things, all we needed were five investigators in the church sunday morning. We talked to 6 people that told us they were going to come for sure. Its a pretty big thing (ok, really big thing) to accomplish the estandartes and so we were stoked!! However, only two investigators ended up coming. It was kind of depressing. But! two really good things happened anyway- one of the invetigators that came, Maximiliano, hes 14, told us he wants to get baptized! yay! and then the familia peralta came to church tambien. Hna Barriga and I visited them last wednesday to talk to them and try to excite them to come to church, and while we were there the son that had just turned 8 the day before, Angel, went to Mariana, the mom, and said im 8 now and im ready to get baptized. And she looked at us and said wow the spirit was just really strong, and agh!! it was the coolest thing ever. a month or so Earlier we learned that the dad, Osir, wasn´t ever going to come back cuz he had an accident where he lost his job and a lot of bad things happened, but the whole family came on sunday! i felt so happy when i saw them walk through the door. They are the cutest family ever, and now Angel is going to get baptized next friday. I just hope they continue to come and receive the blessings from being active members in the church.
Also its sad when people are like dont come back here is your book, i dont need religion, but then its so great to see the little blessings as well. For example right after that happened two times in a row, we were walking to another place and saw this lady that we had taught earlier but for some reason we didnt know where she lived and she was so glad to see us and we set another appointment!
I just know that everytime someone chooses not to accept the gospel I have to stay motivated and happy in order to find the people that are going to accept the gospel.
I know that the gospel is true and that Jesus Christ is our Saviour. I know that the scriptures contain the answers to our questions, and that through them we can receive revelation. I love the Book of Mormon so much! I never appreciated it so much before in my life. It was truly written for us in this time.
I am so grateful for my companion and the good times we have had thus far! we laugh a lot.
Oh yeah!! haha i forget to tell you about the death heat wave that we experienced. I HAVE NEVER SWEAT SO MUCH IN MY LIFE. haha. Not today, but for four days in a row it was so nutty hot, I thought i was going to die. we were sitting, ok sitting, in a lesson, and i looked down at my arms and they were soaking wet. SOAKING WET. like my forearms!! ahh! the lady left to find her book of mormon and my companion and i started laughing so hard. I really hope we dont lose investigators cuz i sweat so much. And smell so bad. i have to buy perfume today. In order to be able to sleep we get t shirts and soak them all the way through and then put them on. then during the night we resoak them. Yesterday there was a ton of wind, and it cooled down immensely. I was never so grateful!
But we´ve gotten a lot of laughs through the heat. One time I was trying to clean my face for a lesson with a paper towel and it got so wet that little chunks of paper towel stuck to my face. so yeah i had them during the lesson. I am already like 20 shades darker in my skin tone. Its great :)
But yeah my companion is so great, i am laughing a lot more than i did before, we are having a great time. It is so cool to be with someone all the time that is from a different country. And my Spanish is improving and its great.
Also, we have nicknames for each other, she is Menchaca and I am Suipacha. They are streets here in Juan de Garay. Oh and for those that were wondering she is the green fiona, or the true fiona.
And hopefully i can send pics soon, to be honest I didn´t take any really in my first transfer but my trainer has a lot and said she is going to make a cd for me. I hope so!
Ok bye the gospel is true! I love you all!

[[[ I had asked her: "Do you do daylight savings time down there? Did you have Halloween? -not you personally of course, but I guess I'm asking if they celebrate it down there, and how?"] [She had a follow-up email just to answer these questions, which she had forgotten in her main email: "PS there is no daylights savings here and i think there were like 10 kids outside asking for candy. But yeah halloween like isn´t a thing here".]]]

Primary presentation and Hermana Fiona

Wednesday Oct 28, 2009

So it is getting really roasty down here. And its so weird so think thats it´s snowing there! And that it is only spring too. Summer will kill me :)
So this week we have been working super hard to try and accomplish the MIssion Standards- Every week we only lack in a couple things, like lessons with a member present and such, but when we work really hard, it is cool to see what it does. I know that the goals we have to accomplish, well the Standards, are set by the Lord, and that we can accomplish them if we have the desires. And oh boy I have the desires.
The primary presentaction was on Sunday and it was so good to see! About 8 kids were there and that is a lot more than usual, so it was great to see. Also it was so different, everyone participated in the program, even our investigator that was there, Ladis!
She is the sweetest lady. She is progresing well and I cant wait to see her get baptized. I just pray that her husband will come to Church as well, so that they can get baptized together and then prepare for the temple! They are so nice.
The other day we went to a lady´s house because she was a contact. I guess months before she had received lessons from the missionaries and she believes it and wants to get baptized! It was so cool to see the people that the Lord prepares, we just have to go and find them. She is moving this saturday, but to the area of the elders in our district so luckily she won't get lost in the move, if that makes sense. it will be easier to pass along her info.
WE got to play futbol for pday and it was so fun!
My companion is from Santiago Chile, and she is a convert of 7 years. she is 22 and is super funny and great. I laugh a lot with her. We have a good time contacting, which is good cuz i was worried i might never like it. haha. Her nickname in the mission is Fiona because she is similar to fiona in the shrek films i guess [Ogre version - we found out upon further questioning]. Also her name Is Hermana Barriga which means belly here. haha. She is great.
I know the church is true and Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer. I know that the Book of Mormon is true. I love teaching the Restoration and feeling the Spirit every time, especially with the First vision. I know that God loves us so much he has given us a prophet to lead us and guide us.
I love you!

New Chilean companion, 5 investigators at church!

Monday, Oct 19, 2009

This week has been crazy. I don´t even know! Oh my goodness. We had transfers on Wednesday. I now have a Latina Companion, and she is the Senior companion for the first time. So that means, that I am the senior companion. [Because Carmen is the one who has been in the area]. haha not really. But I can´t believe it, this is the hardest thing! But its crazy Cuz I hardly know the area at all.
Anyway we had 5 investigators in church and 22 people, the most by far! it was so good. And I had to give a talk too. But before with my trainer i often didnt talk. Now, however, I am stretching myself in ways I didnt think possible. Its crazy. I just talk now and hope people understand me, and if not I hope they understand the spirit.
I'm sad though because Ana was supposed to get baptized this Saturday but she didnt come to her interview or to church. I dont know what to do for her. Its hard to tell whether she wanted to get baptized because she liked Hermana Burns so much. Anyway,
The mission is good. I love the gospel, I have never prayed so much in my life. heavenly Father listens always. Until next week.