3 More Weeks to work and serve in Guatemala

There isn't a whole lot to report on this week, just a lot of missionarying. I did divisiones with some of the girls, so that was fun. My comp is doing a lot better! Our investigator Diana is doing great, she comes to church by herself and we had a great lesson with her the other day about the plan of salvation, and I felt like I should explain baptisms for the dead, which I don't normally do because some people think that's strange, but she started crying and said that really touched her heart and she  always felt like her sister who died a few years ago lacks things to get to God, so that was awesome! I also started teaching FHE to families in our barrio and they one woman thanked us, saying that it was truly inspired, It is nice that the Lord can work through me to help other people!

There were 12 dogs about when I was running today and I will say it made me a bit nervous. If, they ask me to speak when I get home I am going to do it in Spanish! ha!

January 20, Exactly 1 month left as a Full Time Missionary

So we are doing a stake activity where member write their testimonies in a Book of Mormon and we took pics of them and we are going to put their photos in the books and do an activity and give them the books back so they can give one to a friend. We explained this to them yesterday and asked who wanted a book to write their testimony, like 2 hands went up. I reminded them of the verse in D&C that says if you bear your testimony your sins are forgiven...more were willing to participate after that! 

Sorry, I know I told you I'd be writing Tuesday but of course they changed things last minute, so its regular pday! I hope you are having a good week. I had a good one. I shall give you a quick run down! I threw a work out class for the Hermanas in my zone, it was a good time! We had the conference with Elder Soares from the 70, he speaks like 4 languages! It is super impressive, and before president gave me a translating test, English to Spanish! wth! There were some words I was like I'm not even sure what that is in English!

 We had a baptism of a super cool kid! His testimony was awesome! Hearing that they ¨felt it¨and a
newbie´s testimony is like the best thing of the mission! I taught my Relief Society how the church wants Visiting Teaching to be done and that has been organized, they are excited and so am I to see how things improve! I played some futbol with our converts and the Elders! It was fun, I suck. But I don't really like playing with Elders because I'm scared to give it my all because I might touch them if I charge them! I touched my ZL while playing and immediately I felt as if I should fall to my knees and repent! It was an accident!
My Ward Mission leader is insane, we had correlation and it is us, him and the Elders, and he asked the elders to step out to talk to us, the Elders were well hesitant and I was like kid, you're so weird. My ZL was like ¨ if you need us to charge in, yell whisky!¨ He just wanted to ask us the same question he had just asked us while the Elders had been there. he is crazy!

my bautismo

my zone

Mainly I have to say 38 days remaining! But whose counting?

I'm glad you feed the missionaries....they can't eat together? It is a blessing for me to eat with the elders, for example this week we had a lunch together, the elders arrived first and we sat down but the hermana was still cooking in the kitchen, Elder Angulo whispers to me that on the menu is fish soup (he knows I hate the fish)! I made sure he would be sitting near to sneak him my food (we have our routine) he of course was game! We entered the kitchen the hermana set 3 bowls of fish soup in front of my comp and the elders and then in front of me a plate of chicken and veggies! I was so pleased!!! I asked Angulo if he had said something to her, he just smiled! He is my new best friend! 

I just want to play upon my return! That's cool about your new calling, but I have no advice except do lots of fun things like you did with us and idk give two pillows to fight to the death if you can't handle them anymore...that seems to work.

Brooke and Chad are wonderful! Tell them thank you!

It's been a good week, there were changes, but not for me...4 changes with my comp.

I fine right now, sometimes I feel nervous, sad, but usually content and happy. I've worked hard here and I know I've done my best.  Things are good and thanks to an elder in my zone, everyday he tells me how many days we have left...38! (He leaves the same day) Love you

1st Monday of 2014

Happy New Year! We had dinner with a family here in our ward and then we went up to the roof and watched the fireworks! I found Welch's sparkling grape juice here! I was thrilled out of my mind! It was a miracle to find it! Everyone was well happy to have it!  And the elder from Peru in my ward had never even heard of such a thing...now I am afraid he is addicted! haha . This week our ward started meeting at 8am, I was very worried that no one would come but by some miracle 5 investigators came! woohoo! Right now we are teaching a girl who has had some traumatic stuff happen to her and now I am like her shrink. She called me the other night real upset, I wasn't sure what to say to her but we went to her house and the spirit helped and then the next day she was in church. So lesson learned, the spirit is always helpful . But this week has been good, there are changes in 2 days and then I just have one change left, sometimes that makes me want to cry and sometimes makes me want to dance and run around laughing at all the missionaries who have a lot more time left
Downton Abbey! I thought of the randomly yesterday, of course I'll be watching it and Once upon a time! I don't even remember what technology looks like!  Yeah I hope I'm not super out of it when I get back, I'm afraid I'll be a awkward return missionary....I hope not! I hope I can find a job relatively quickly to start earning money for school! There are things I'd like to do  like go to Spain, or the spa. That was nice of Pres. Marsh to ask about me, make sure he is available to set me apart upon my return!
 But anyway, I love you! Be good and thanks for keeping some of Christmas up!

Christmas Week and Happy New Year!

Christmas was great! It was so great to see all of you! This week was fun! We had the mission Christmas activity and we did secret Santa in the zone. I got I giant flounder fish from The Little Mermaid and I had asked for typical things from Guatemala....so they gave me tortillas, and other stuff but I thought it was rather creative! We had 4 or 5 Christmas dinners, I cant remember, I just remember lots of tamales! The rest of the week we practiced for the mission Christmas activity we had. We had a talent show, they gave us a quiz on Preach my Gospel, and we ate lunch and watched a movie! It was fun. For our talent we first did an act to a song, I did a cartwheel and then we made a movie. So when you get trained they have these movies you have to watch called The District...in these movies everything is perfect...I imagine how Rach´s mission is, haha but anyway we did our own district but Guatemalan style, it was fun.I hope you all are doing well! Happy New Year!

Did I tell you this experience that I had that Rach will probably not have the opportunity to have?  It is about the drunk on the street, he asked if I was from the states, I said no I was from Africa, he asked me why I was white, I told him because Africa has white people and asked him if he wanted to hear the African language, he did, so I did some tongue clicking, he thought I was amazing!

That's about all that's going on here. Our ward starts meeting at 8 A.M. next week so that's a bummer but yeah other than that things are good and normal! I love you!

Celebrate Christmas Guatemalan Style

Me and Flounder for Christmas

Mostly pictures. 16 down and 2 to go!

Look at this PIG!

My generation! My kids, grand kid and great grand kid
Hermana Hurtado,ME, Hermana Peguero, then my grandkid, Hermana Goddard and my ggk is Hermana Page 

 The only way the celebrate anything here!

We did some painting!

Feliz Navidad!

Big tree!

 I ate pig this week, did divisiones and went to a party while there and got a present! I had a meeting for Hermana Líderes, we had a big stake choir performance and a baptism! She is so cute our convert! And we sang at the hospital!

December 16

Nothing much exciting this week, except I painted a house, did divisions and went to the temple!

Question and answer period!

1.So have you started doing your 12 days of Christmas? Are you reading the scripture and trying to figure the gift out before opening them? How are your guesses? 

Yes I started the 12 days of Christmas and thus far I'm a pretty good guesser except this morning I got tripped up but that wasn't my fault, I read the scripture in Spanish and the word is different but good thing I know the scriptures in Spanish and English!

2. What is your favorite food there?

 absolutely love fried plantains with this special cheese they have or cream and beans. I also like carne asada.  and hot chocolate and sweet bread that they have that doesn't exist in the states, but I'm talking to a member here who is going to teach me how to do it!

3. Any idea of when you will get to Sykpe? And where will you do it from?

I will Skype Christmas day from the computer of my ward mission leader, just tell me what time and the name I should call!

4. How is your BEST friend doing since her Baptism?

She is great! We went to the temple this week with her, I did a session and she did baptisms and she told me once she stepped into the temple all her pains just went away! It was awesome!

5. Do you have any desire to go back after you come home? I guess some Hermana that recently came home is there right now with her Mother.

Yeah I would like to come back and visit one day, especially for a couple families here in this area and to visit the ruins, since I wont have a chance right now.