So surprise surprise! I already got my
package! The senior sister that does all the paper work for the mission
called me on Tuesday to ask for Dad´s cell number so that she could ask
him for some information. She also told me that the package had arrived
and when she asked for something to tell you guys so that you would
trust that she is the person she says she is, I told her to tell you
that the Schade package arrived. The other Hermanas here in Junin had to
travel to the offices on Thursday (super lucky because no one EVER
travels to the offices from campo) and they brought it to me. Tell the
Schades thanks a million! We have a rule in the mission that we can only
open packages and letters on P-days and it was the longest wait! The
night before was like worse than Christmas. I even had a nightmare that
when I opened the package is was only full of math textbooks and spanish
textbooks that I already had. Hahahaha. Good thing it was just a dream!
So I have the camera and all the other stuff is just perfect! We ate
some of the hot tamales this morning and we were sweating a little bit
because we have gone so much time without eating anything remotely spicy
that it was a little hard to handle. So funny! I also had to laugh a
little bit because the Dr. Hatch Piano book you sent me is the same one
you sent me for Christmas. Oops! But that's ok. When I find someone here
that can play the piano and would appreciate it, it will make a good
gift.
A little business, I will be calling at two o clock
my time, eleven am your time on Sunday. I didn`t realize that it was
this Sunday until I opened my email today, but I am super excited!
Mothers day is in October here. Weird. Also, Spence, I want to hear your
missionary story when you get back from Florida. Congrats on your choir
song Alex! You got really tall really fast. And Jake, I am buying your
Messi Jersey today.... I found one for a good price.
Anyway, this week was much better! We decided to go
through our list of investigators and think about each one of them and
how they are progressing and make the decision to leave them or not. We
left a lot of people that we have been hanging on to for a while, but
who really don't want to change and aren't going to progress. That is
the sad part of the mission. You meet people who are really great, but
just don't want to act on the things they learn because they are
comfortable where they are and it takes a little sacrifice and effort to
be a member of the church. BUT it was amazing to see that as we left
these people behind, the Lord led us to SO many new people this week
that are really ready and waiting. They are out there! You just have to
go find them.
I thought I would tell you an interesting experience
that I had this week. So, my convert, Sandra and her family (Evelyn and
Nacho) live about an hours walk from the church and they don`t have any
other means of transportation. When they were waiting to be baptized,
they attended faithfully every week, but as we know, after baptism,
Satan gets working on people pretty hard. For three weeks Sandra came up
with excuses for why she couldn`t be in the church those days. They
were pretty good reasons, but excuses nonetheless. I was getting really
worried for her. One thing I have seen a lot in the mission is people
who get baptized, and then never go back to church. I made a little
promise to myself that I was going to do everything possible to make
sure that my converts didn`t end up like that. Worthy converts are what
we are working for! As I was thinking and praying to know what to do, I
thought another pioneer story would do her some good. On the Doctrine
and Covenants dvd that I have, it has a twenty minute short video called
only a stonecutter that shows the story of the man who walked from
Alpine to Salt Lake and back every week for twenty years in snow, rain,
sun, whatever the conditions to work on the temple. Then he had an
accident and had his leg amputated. As soon as he could, he made a
wooden leg and then kept making the walk in order to fulfill his
calling. My favorite part of the video is when his wife tells him that
he shouldn`t do it because he is only a stonecutter and there are others
who can do his work for him because of his condition. He tells her, "
but it`s MY calling, and callings are hardly ever convenient." We
decided to show her the video in the house of the Uruguayan family in
the ward because Sandra doesn't have a tv either. When the movie
finished, everyone was crying and gung ho to go to church to fulfill
their callings the next week. In church Sunday, I was super happy when
Sandra and her family showed up bright and early! The best part was that
as we were heading home, we saw the family from Uruguay walking home
too. Their car had broken down that day, and although they could have
given the excuse that they didn't have transportation and the church was
very far from their house, because they had seen the video, they too
decided they could make the walk. Its funny to see how the little things
we do can affect other people in ways that we didn`t know!
I also thought you would like to know, that our
branch as started a big push with family history work to help the recent
converts learn about the temple and the members get more excited about
the temple. I am the only one in the entire branch who knows how to do
it and so I am going to be giving classes and doing trainings with the
branch leaders to getting everything going! Super excited! I am sooo
happy that I learned how to do that and that I have the opportunity to
use my talents here in Junin! The sister missionaries also teach the
gospel principles class (the sunday school class for recent converts and
investigators) during the sunday school hour and it is my favorite thing
in the world! Its awesome to get to teach the gospel in such simple
ways and see how it changes peoples lives. I also get to see my converts
give their first prayers in public and start learning the hymns and
participating in classes for the first time. Its the best thing ever!
Well I love you all. See you on Sunday!
Hermana Millett
Picture: Only one this week. Still stealing photos from my companions camera.
This
is my zone! We are tiny, but its fun because we know everyone really
well. There aren't alot of transfers in campo either so we have a lot of
time together. The four missionaries on the chalk board are in General
Villegas. Its the farthest area in the mission (10hrs from the mission
office, five from Junin). They are technically in our zone but I have
never actually seen them.
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