Monday, August 11, 2014

Survival Cookies and STLs

Hi Everybody!

I don't know about you, but Hermana Garcia´s feeling 22. It´s her birthday today! We're gonna go out to a buffet with Abi a little later to celebrate.

So the pictures from last week and the baking. Hermana Cuquis has been called as the new Relief Society president. I`m not sure if I've said that already or not. But she wants to help the Hermanas with their 72 hour kits. She asked us hermanas to help her out in teaching the hermanas of Relief Society how to make emergency survival cookies...so that's what it is. They´re a no bake kind...but they were still super fun to make. Two different days this past week we had a activities in how to make them and other emergency preparedness stuff.

We had our last zone class of the transfer on Tuesday. Last zone of the mission for Elder Boyd, Elder Rodriguez, and another Elder in our zone. Tuesday there was a lot of rain and we were NOT prepared. We were on the bus to visit the H family (the recent converts I always talk about). So when we got off we were just running for cover, getting soaking wet on the way. And I'm just like ... ¨All I need is my shampoo".  We ran to this little shop to buy some garbage bags for our backpacks and then off to visit the H's. The past week, the mother of Hermano Lucio H has been in the hospital, so it was just Lucio and Rebeca. Hermana Rebeca lent us her sweaters as we were soaked. With that visit, we went to buy some ingredients for hot chocolate and Hermana Rebeca made us this yummy soup with fried up tortillas and frijolis, and the hot chocolate. She told us that visit  ¨If you two need anything, a bite to eat or whatever...con confianza (I´m not really sure what we would use in English with this phrase), come!¨ It just really goes to show that we really have her trust. They're also not afraid to ask questions in which they still have a few confusions in the church. 

On Thursday we went to visit a member and her less active daughter. She cuts hair, so when we went to go visit her she was cutting hair of.... and old investigator of mine and Hermana Orduña. V. And I just felt bad because he was from the beginning of my time here and I couldn´t recognize him without his hat. And at the time... I barely understood Spanish. So I knew about him and what he's living with, but the details not so much. And Hermana Garcia's trying to get to know him a little better. And he keeps referring back to Hermana Orduña and how he found she was really good. And Hermana Garcia´s just like ¨I know, Hermana Orduña and I are different. She loves to talk, me not so much. But however we are, we as missionaries have the same prupose.¨ I just felt so bad for her, not to mention the aniversary of her dad´s death was this past week. So she's been through a lot this past week.

We ordered a pizza this week to celebrate our 5 and 11 months. I can´t believe it´s been 5 months already.

Friday I was companions with Hermana Kind for the day.  We were off to Veracruz to update our visas so we can legally stay in the country. So it was fun to get to know her a little better and talk about our lives.  She told me some pretty places in Georgia to visit. I want to travel to southern United States one day...so Georgia will be one of my stops.  In Veracruz, we were doing the visa thing with other hermanas. Most of them came within the past one or two transfers. One of them was Hermana Atkin. She's the one my companions and I met while we were in the MTC and she already had her call. I had been thinking about her and wondering when she´d be coming. She was in the MTC when the mission presidents were getting trained, so she told us that she got to meet Presidente Cordova while she was there. And they had this special devotional where 6 General Authorities were present.

I also met an hermana from El Salvador. Like me, she is pioneer... in which she is the only one from El Salvador in the mission. Another hermana from Honduras. They both told me that even though they´re native spanish speakers, they´ve had to learn new words.  Some words they use at home have a different significance here and vice versa. 

Also there ... Hermana Arandia. She was a sister training leader in charge of my area for my first transfer. I saw her probably only twice in that transfer. But she was SO excited to see me! She came and gave me this big hug and asking how I´m doing and all.  She´s an STL in Veracruz with Hermana Fletcher's trainer.  Hermana Kind was talking to her while we were in the consulate while I was talking with some of the other hermanas. Hermana Arandia was in Escamela for one of her areas. Hermana Kind has been a little discouraged as well. Something Hermana Arandia told her is she didn´t even have baptisms in her areas for her first 5 months. She has one more transfer left and she's not entirely sure what to do after. But she's not too worried, she knows that if she trusts in the Lord, everything will work out how it should.

I´m out of time, but there´s one thing I want to say before I sign off. With these examples I´ve had of sister training leaders. I want those qualities. Through my experiences in the mission, I want to live the mission so that if I ever get the oppurtunity to be one... that I´ll feel ready and that I can really help the hermanas that would be under my care.

Take Care Everyone!

Les Quiero
Hermana Tessa Marie Jones





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