Monday, October 17, 2011

Transfered to the end of the earth. Literally!!

We had a great week. Things are starting to pick up. To be honest, I have been a bit bummed that we haven´t had a baptism in a whole transfer, especially since I came out with a goal to baptize EVERY week... but we have been working hard and things are starting to come together with the whole white wash thing. We are seeing the fruits now and all will be well. Still, the most difficult part of a mission is watching people choose not to accept, choose not to keep commitments, and eventually have to be dropped... I don´t like dropping people, because I want so badly for them to start progressing and be able to be baptized. But really, dropping people can be an act of love, I suppose. I am not good at it, but we have to do it some times.


Our deep desire is to have more member present lessons. When the members are involved, the work is SSSSSOOOOOOOOOO much better! Because then, investigators have friends at church, there are people who can call and remind them to come, and they have an instant support system. It´s really the best way to do things! We have some AMAZING members! Hermana Díaz is basically a ROCKSTAR! She is always willing to come with us and she is giving us a whole heap of references, which is absolutely amazing. She came with us to a lesson of a little boy who wants dearly to be baptized, but his parents won´t give permission yet... he is amazing and can basically teach US the lessons! Pray for his parents to be open and accepting. Anyways... Hermana Díaz came and bore such a great testimony and the Spirit was just super strong. She´s great. Also, I´ve mentioned about Hermano Alfredo before,  but seriously, he is just GREAT! He is so busy, but ALWAYS puts the Lord first. A great example to us all! Then there is Familia Valle (Bishop) who are amazing. Their little kids are so great. We had a lunch appointment with them this week and Saríah, who is 10 was telling us about every talk from General Conference and which speaker said what and how she felt about it and how she would apply it... W.O.W! The whole family is amazing. And then again, Familia Pinto. It was Hermano Pinto´s birthday yesterday, so we made him brownies, but then they ended up not even being in church... Bu-Mer! Well... Hermana Pinto, if you are reading the blog, tell Hermano Pinto that his brownies were DELISH! Ha ha! Oh darn... we just HAD to eat them :)


Our investigators are coming along great! We are going with Rudecinda on Tuesday to get her appointment to be married! And we found out that if you tell them that it is for religious purposes that they will get the appointment sooner! She has a baptismal date for the 23rd and we are praying that the marriage appointment will be before then so that we don´t have to push it back. I really am just totally selfish and want a baptism for my BIRTHDAY!!! (Can´t believe I´m so close to 22)! Secretly, I want the wedding to be on the 21st. tee-hee.  I told you about Julio. What an amazing 10 year old. Pray for him and his family! Then there is Sandra. She is awesome, and also just waiting on marriage stuff. She bought me a really pretty purple skirt for the Birthday! So sweet! I wore it yesterday, but forgot to take a picture. Bummer. Javier is a great man with the biggest heart ever. He has a baptismal date for the 30th. Pray that he stops smoking. Jimmy´s dad told him that he can officially meet with us!!! I am SSSOOO happy! We have a lesson with him tonight with a great member family and it will be awesome. David is a man from Africa who is so animated. He is just a lot of fun. He has been reading and is coming along. We need to get him to church. There are others, but like I said, not a ton of time today!


We have seen so many miracles this week. I have learned that we are ALWAYS in a place for a reason. When we go somewhere and our appointment or plan falls through, there is always someone put in our path to hear the gospel. Like when we were stopped by a police officer who wanted to know what we teach and was totally receptive and accepted a Book of Mormon and committed to read and accepted a return visit. Or the time that we didn´t find Sandra at home, but there was a man waiting outside that knows about the church and wants to learn more. Or when we went to a Kiosko and found a man who has attended church for 2 months in Brazil and is now here and ready to come back. Or when we see a man we don´t know walk in to church and find out that he was just passing by when someone invited him in and he felt that he should come. Wow.

 
Our companionship is doing great! We have figured out how to be a trio. Some things are still rough like trying to get 3 girls in and out of the bathroom in an hour, but you know. We adjust. I have embraced my most natural hair... and we all know how scary that can be! ha. But really, Hermanas Gonzalez and Dunn are great and we have really become close in the past week. We don´t know what is going to happen this week. Transfers are on Monday SOOOO much we want to see just in case one of us leaves the area. The new program is a 12 week training program with the same trainer in the same area, but since we are a trio, we don´t know what is going to happen... I REALLY want to stay, but I also know that whatever happens is what the Lord wants.
 
So mail here is really funny. I apologize to all my friends who served foreign missions and I scoffed when they said they didn´t know how to mail things... it really IS tricky... I haven´t mailed anything since I have been here because we don´t actually know what we are doing. 

Wow... I totally just lost my train of thought... President just called and told me that I am being transferred TOMORROW... I am going south... to Ushuaia... I don´t even know how to spell that... wow... I don´t know if I can even write anything more. I am shaking really bad. I´m ok... I kind of had a feeling that it would be me leaving, but I just didn´t want to think about it. All the people I love. All of the seeds that are finally baring fruit. Everything. Wow. I don´t even know what I´m thinking. I just realized that I stopped mid sentence. It is just about summer here, but I think I will still need some sort of coat. I don´t know. And to think about leaving Hermana Gonzalez is really hard. But it´s ok. I know that it´s where the Lord wants me. President has been talking to Hermana Gonzalez and now he just talked to me and told me that even though it´s summer, it often snows all the way to December. I am definitely going to go buy a big coat... and maybe some boots. I think I have enough money, but could you maybe call right now and transfer some money for me... I will wait a few hours to buy them and put a big note down that Dad needs to read this on his phone. Wow. Tierra de Fuego. WOW. I don´t know if it´s actually hit me yet... Wow. I don´t even know where I am going with this email any more. Wow. How many times can I say wow in one sentence. Wow. I feel better now. I just needed to get it all out. Something you should know about the south... sometimes the Internet is down and we can´t email. If you don´t get an email every week, please don´t freak out. I am fine. You know, just dancing with the penguins. And Hermana Gonzalez just told me that Ushuaia is the farthestsouth area in our mission. Wow. And that it´s the farthest south mission area in the WORLD. Woah

I love you all. I am about to head out to literally take the gospel to the END OF THE EARTH!!! That is pretty cool when you think about it. I hear that they are baptizing up a storm down there. Even though it is still freezing, at least it is freezing coming into summer... right??? haha. I will be fine. Pray for me as I always pray for you

Love you all,
Hermana Shelley


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