The Field is White: Week 62 - The House Repairs are Done!

1. Are the repairs on your house finally finished?

YES! Well, no. He did fix the bathroom and now we have a functioning shower and everything, lol, but they are going to change a few of the ceiling tiles because there is mold and fungus on them. So when it stops raining they are going to send somebody to fix those. But the house is all good now.

2. What kind of shampoo did Erin send to you? Have you used up all of your bar shampoo and conditioner? Do you still like those?

I only used up 1 shampoo and 2 conditioner shampoo bars. I don't like the conditioners as much so I still have one but I don't use it. And the shampoo I really do like. When all my hair started falling out I bought one for hair loss and have been using it ever since until just now when I got these ones from Erin. I don't know what brand they are... one is purple and the other one looks like a salon bottle and is white. I don't know. But they smell really, really good.

3. Did the second box of gifts for Fam Melendez Castro arrive yet?

It didn't get here yet... maybe tomorrow... I don't know . But I sent them a few of the toys and things that Andrea sent me.

4. I'm sure I know the answer to this, but have you heard from Josselyn yet from the MTC?

Nope... I was going to email her this week but I forgot her email at the house so I am going to email her next week and see who she is doing.

5. How are D and her family doing? Did they go to church yesterday?

They didn't come to church... We actually had stake conference and it started at 2 pm. The stake is a little spread out and they don't have a stake center yet so we don't all fit into the same building. So they divided conference into 2 sections. One at 9 am for Choloma and the other at 2 pm for us in Puerto. The same conference just done 2 times. And we thought it was weird that they didn't come and so we stopped by afterwards and there must have been some family issues or something. Hno F didn't come out to talk to us but we did visit with D.

6. Did you end up dropping O?

Yup.

7. How is P doing?

Well, she got a job which is great and not so great. So the two citas that we had with her this week fell through. But she came to the English classes this week which was good. She still doesn't know about baptism. We want it to be something she wants to do because she feels the desire to get baptized. She hasn't been home for the citas. Darn work! But we will see what we can do this week and if we can meet with her.

8. What did you do for P-Day this week?

We cleaned and I tried to melt the ice thats frozen in our freezer... washed clothes. We tried to take some pictures but I don't know if you will like any of them for the Christmas card. My camera isn't the best, lol, and we went to eat at Wendy's as a zone and now we are here writing. Hna A bought Crocs. I saw a new style that I liked a lot! Maybe to wear to work when I get home. They were like ballet flats without holes and had like a little bit of fur on the inside. I really liked them.

9. What miracles and tender mercies have you seen this week? Answers to your prayers?

So we have visited an Hermana S and her "husband" this week. They are so sweet. They are really, really humble. We first met her selling shoes in the street and she was crying to us. We have seen her like 5 times since then and we took it as a sign to go visit her. So we started to visit her and her husband and they have so many good questions. They have gone to so many churches and just haven't found what they are looking for. But they are very humble. And they have been giving us everything they have. They crocheted a cover for Coke bottles to sell and gave us one each. They made lunch for us, a little soup of rice and cabbage with tortillas, she gave us shirts from the ropa that she sells. They are just so kind to us and truly give us of everything that they have. I don't know if it's a miracle or a tender mercy, but I feel truly humbled and blessed to have found them and I feel that they are like the parable of the man who gave all he had to buy the pearl of great price. They are truly giving us all that they have, sharing with us because they recognize that what we share with them is from God.

10. Does M have e-mail?

Well, I imagine that she does now to communicate with Josselyn, but I don't know what it is. They might just be using one that her son has. She doesn't have Facebook or email.

11. How has someone else blessed your life this week?

People have been giving us a ton of stuff this week. We got eggs, soda, shirts, food, etc., a bunch of stuff and it's been really nice. People don't let us come back to visit them but at least they send us off well.

12. How have you served someone else this week?

I have to play the piano for the ward choir now... yea me. And, well, I don't know if this counts as service (lol) but the goodie bags that you sent for the district all broke in the package. They are ripped open and not pretty anymore and to buy bags here is expensive and so I decided to make bags... so I worked on making decorative bags this week. And a family let us help them cook so we made tortillas this week!

13. Have you been able to talk to more people this week?

Yeah, we have actually. It has been rainy and everything but we have been able to talk to more people which is good... and our dats (statistics) for this week don't even show that we talked to anyone which kind of upset me but we know that we were talking to people so whatever. People seem to listen to us but we just can't get news... it's like it's fine if we talk but to come back and visit NO. So that's a hard thing about Puerto. But we are working in pretty much one little colonia because the people are more open... TriH se llama. And it's where Paola lives. Most of the people have seen us there but it's in a mountain and it's a 20 minute walk there (minimum). But it's a lot like Copan so we like it up there, haha.

14. What was the best thing that happened this week?

There was a lot going on in the church this week! On Friday there was a stake choir who came and did a program about Christ with just hymns (and a little bit of dialogue in between). It was just so nice to hear people sing in 4 parts and with a piano player. And on Saturday we had Stake Conference. And Sunday we had the other part of Stake Conference and the Christmas Devotional. It was sad because no investigators came to anything but for us it was nice. I really enjoy church meetings.

15. What was the funniest/funnest thing that happened this week?

Last P-Day there was a guy who got on the bus to sing and collect money and I was sitting in the very front seat and he saw that I was a missionary and proceeded to dance right in front of me... good times. But one of the elers was telling jokes yesterday but they were in Spanish so i don't think they would be funny in English... OH... and there is a recent convert of the elders who has a huge crush on me and he told an old lady in the ward this week that he really likes me and that he thinks he could marry me. It was hilarious... we were cracking up.

16. What was the spiritual highlight of your week?

I don't know... I really liked stake conference. Getting to hear President Dester speak is like the best. I liked how he talked about one of the priviliges he has as a mission president is to see the change and transformation in each of his missionaries. And it's true.. we reakky do leave as different people.

17. What did you learn from your personal study this week?

I'm reading Jesus the Christ and it's just sooo dang good! I never know what to share though en serio. It's just too good. It's just amazing to me how they rejected the Savior. How He could live among them and just be hated by them and yet still love each one.

18. Do you know that I love you and I miss you?

Always

19. What was the best thing and the worst thing you ate this week?

A family that gives us lunch every Saturday made the best taco things! They were a normal tortilla of flour and they put shredded chicken sauteed with carrots, onion and green pepper inside with like mozzarella cheese and folded it like a burrito and then fried the outside of it. To serve they put sauce on top and cheese and shredded cabbage and it was delicious. The worst thing... I don't really know. The food wasn't too bad this week. Hna A got a cockroach in her food this week.

20. What was the most beautiful thing you saw this week?

People are putting up more Christmas lights!

21. How are the English classes going that you teach?

They are going well! With the rain there are few devoted students, but it's going really well. The teacher doesn't even come so I pretty much I just teach but they all say that they like me as the teacher anyways.

22. Have you heard anything from Pres Dester lately? I'm thinking I'd like to send them a Christmas card...what do you think?

I think that you should send them a card. He doesn't write to us individually anymore but as a whole. Everything he says is so spiritual. He was at stake conference yesterday and the day before and Sister Dester gave us chocolate. it was so American! But we have a multizona on wednesday so I am really really excited for that!

23. Looking back on your mission, what has been the highlight for you so far?

I don't really know.. I think that it is my time with Hna V and that we were able to find and teach Hermano Jorge. Wow. That was such a great 2 changes. We worked so hard and were able to see miracles. I always think back on how awesome Jorge is. But I don't know... a highlight I guess is just being able to change. I realize that I really am not the same person anymore.

24. Did they get the problem with your mission money card straightened out?

Yeah, my card works again!!!! yay!

I got letters from Donna Friar and the Opotowskys. Thank you so much! I love getting mail!

I hope you all have a good week!

Love you!

(I asked Alyssa to send some pictures we could use in our Christmas card, so that's what most of this week's pictures are)