It is HOT here!!!!

So let's discuss the heat. Do you know what it feels like to think your skin is...crisping? Because...yeah.

I'mmmm dreaaminnngg of a Christmasss...where my skinnn doesn't melt off my boooones...

So! Things to say. Firstly, I guess I can now say that I've had the Chilean experience...the other night, O'Higgins soccer team won some game that I guess was a big deal. (Sorry, wish I could tell you what it was, but remember that I'm literally living "in the world but not of it" right now.) All I know is that we had planned to meet up with los Elderes outside the church to divide the list of conversos recientes at 9pm, and that's exactly when the game ended...and people were pretty dang psyched.

 

Hermanas Thomas and Kenney

  Cars were passing us with people hanging out the windows without shirts waving giant flags, shouting and cars constantly honking...eventually the traffic got pretty clogged up, and it was just a gigantic mass of cars honking and people shouting and blowing whistles...and here are these five little Mormon missionaries outside their cute little church dividing their cute little list of cute little conversos recientes...it was pretty funny. Some people would walk past us and shout stuff like "DO YOU GUYS HAVE JOSEPH SMITH?" and then snicker at their friends like that was some really witty comment, and I replied, "Nope! He actually just left!" My favorite moment was when a car sped past us with a bunch of people going crazy, and someone shouted out the window "LOS MORMONES!!!!!!!" I don't know, it was pretty funny to me.

Scratch that. My favorite moment was while we were walking home...amidst all the chaos, this car being driven by a guy in his nineties slowly lumbers past us, and his wife, equally as ancient, is blowing on a little plastic horn as hard as her ninety-year-old lungs can muster. Literally...everyone is a fan here.

Neat and tidy! Their study area:-)

HerMama's note: Someone asked me what I packed for McKenna that was overkill--the first thing I thought of was the down comforter with a duvet cover. I didn't want her to be cold because she sleeps best in 90 degree heat and even here in the U.S. with central heat, she gets cold. If I had it to do again, I would be a bit more practical.

 My least favorite moment of the event happened at 2 in the morning, when I was still lying wide awake in my bed due to the not-even-close-to-ending fiesta that was going on in the plaza next to us. The cars hadn't even stopped honking. 

The other day, we were walking through the plaza, and this big ol' fat guy shouted at me, "HELLO, BARBIE!"....alright, sir, if we're going to refer to each other by the toys we resemble, then nice to meet you, Mr. Potato Head. 

Also, it was Friday the Thirteenth the other day...NO ONE DIED. (Just kidding. I'm not superstitious like that.) But, hey...it was Friday the Thirteenth in the year 2013, and we live on the 13th floor of our building, in the month of December, which is the twelfth month of the year, which is almost thirteen.........................Hermana Neira was predicting that at 13:13 hours, we'd experience some awful catastrophe. AND AT THAT VERY MOMENT OF THE DAY, I ate a cookie. So. 

Hermana Kenney and I were the victims of some serious bug bites this week...hers were way worse than mine, but I like to think we suffered together. 

I'm so psyched to be working with Hermana Kenney for the rest of the transfer! Hermana Neira leaves for her home on Wednesday night, so it will be the four gringos of Cachapoal rockin' it! (The Elders are also both gringos.) But I'm so excited! Hermana Kenney always has some awesome ideas to work more effectively and to have success in every lesson. I've been learning so much from this experience.

 

Right now we have two investigators con fechas! (With a baptismal date!) Both of them are for the eleventh of January. One of our investigators in particular is just the darn cutest person in the world. Her name is Maria, and she was so excited to hear that she could be baptized. She said that before we extended the invitation, she had been hoping that we would offer it. She can't read small letters, and a cute member bought her a HUGE Libro de Mormón, and she's been reading it without us assigning things to read. She's been praying, too. She went to church with us the other day, and I was a little nervous because of my last experience with an investigator in Sacrament Meeting (the investigator that dropped us right after it ended...she didn't like all the noise of the kids...remember?) Anyway, afterwards, I went up to Maria and asked what she thought, and I was surprised to see tears in her eyes. She started speaking really fast and quietly, but from what I could understand, she absolutely loved it, and she was saying how grateful she was that we had found her. She told another member that day that she'd been talking to everyone she knows, saying how these "three little missionaries" are changing her life. I just absolutely love her. She's the darn cutest lady ever.

Tomorrow is exactly five months in the mission for me! Five months ago today, I boarded the plane and took off for the Mexico MTC! Honestly, I can't believe how much my life has changed compared to a year ago, or two years ago, or really...two months ago! I'm here trying to change people's lives, but in reality, the mission is changing mine. I can't even begin to describe how thankful I am for this time I have to learn and to grow directly under the guidance of our Heavenly Father. 

I know the gospel is true with all my heart! I really do. I see a miracle every day, even though they are usually small! We had a few less-than-great lessons this week, but every good lesson makes up for fifty "bad" ones! And it's because the spirit is so strong! I can feel it in my chest...my heart beats a little faster, and it's like my body has more blood in it all the sudden, and I just want to sit there and feel this feeling for a few more hours! And it's not a coincidence that every time I hear/share the first vision, I feel this feeling. This is the truth. We've got it, right here in our hands. Go share it!

I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH. I PRAY FOR YOU ALL THE TIME. MERRY CHRISTMAS MERRY CHRISTMAS MERRY CHRISTMAS A THOUSAND TIMES OVER. And enjoy the cold for me. (I never thought I'd say that in my life.)

LOOOOOOOOOOOVE, Hermana Thomas

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY DADDY TOMORROW!

How the turn tables.......:-)

MERRY CHRISTMAS! IT'S CHRISTMAS! YAY.

First of all, I got a TON of DearElders the other day! That was so fun! But they're from September/October...most were from my mom and dad, but huge shout out to Sister Holman and my lovely Auntie Erin (HerMama Thomas' note: THANK YOU!)! I just got your letters, and I was so excited to read them!! Thank you so much!!

And that's the most exciting thing that happened to me this week.

JUST KIDDING. So many things happened this week. It is unbelievable.

I had to go to Santiago again this week! I think it was Tuesday. The days are getting so blurred together, it's ridiculous. Anyway, we had to go to Santiago for a BLOOD TEST. No joke, when the secretaries called and broke the news, I cried. I don't think they could tell, but I was crying. (In case you're just tuning in to my emails...NEEDLES AND EVERYTHING TO DO WITH A DOCTOR ARE THE CLOSEST THING TO TORTURE FOR ME.) 

But guess what? This challenge came coupled with a HUGE blessing--I got to spend the whole night before/all day in Santiago with my lovely friend, Hermana Pineda! Oh, wow. That was so awesome. I got to hear all about our family of investigators, and everyone else, and I got to laugh and talk with someone I now consider to be one of my dearest friends. (Side-note: our family of investigators is doing great! Aw man, I miss them.)

Kenna's very dear first companion whom she connected with while both were being tested in Santiago.

 I got called into a room by myself in the hospital. The nurse had to leave and get something, so I was left to sit and wait for my inevitable death on my own. The door was open, and across the hall, a little girl (probably a year and a half old) was screaming her head off. Her mom was trying to calm her down, to no avail. Then the doctor walked into their room, and what little success the mother had in calming her baby went through the window--this kid was not gonna have it! She did NOT want that doctor touching her! I had this weird, out-of-body moment, when I could almost see myself at one and a half years old, my mom trying to calm me down, the doctor not sure what to do...it was like watching a clip from my past. But you know what? That doctor probably deserved it. So.

For your information, I didn't cry. #ThereCanBeMiraclesWhenYouBelieve

It's nice to see that Kenna is still lounging in her favorite PJ bottoms. I think it a fitting statement after all of the needle sticks she has had.

 Hermana Neira is our Sister Coordinator in the zone, and on Thursday she worked with my companion in splits, so I worked with Hermana Kenney all day! It was the first time I've worked with a gringo, so it was a new experience! I loved it. She's so awesome. We laughed the whole time, and we had some pretty good lessons together! 

Then, near the end of one of our visits, President Warne tried to call us. Hermana Kenney had a heart attack. What with the Tuberculosis thing, I've grown pretty accustomed to seeing his name in our Caller ID, but I'm coming to realize that this is not a normal occurrence--the President doesn't just call missionaries normally. So after the lesson ended, we walked out, and immediately called him back. Hermana Kenney had the phone, but it turned out that he needed to talk with me. Still calm, I assumed that it would just be a follow-up on how things went with my blood test in Santiago. 

CAMBIOS. What?? Yep. Cambios. Unfortunately, one of the sister missionaries in San Fernando decided she wanted to go home, which shook up a few of the others of us in the mission. And one of those companionships was MINE. President Warne informed me that Hermana Castañeda was going to be moved to San Fernando the next day to be companions with the companion of the hermana heading home, and that Hermana Kenney, Neira and I would be working in a trio. Hermana Kenney was so excited!! Wow! I couldn't believe it. It was such a weird moment. I had the oddest feeling...Hermana Castañeda and I have had our differences, but I never expected to feel sad to see her go. While Hermana Kenney was celebrating that we'd be companions, the weirdest feeling of disappointment hit me. (Not that I didn't want to be companions with the Hermanas--they are TOTALLY awesome!!) But...I was sad to think that Hermana Castañeda would not be my companion anymore.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the amazing power of trying to apply the attributes of Christ to your own lives. If you had asked me on day two of our companionship if I wanted to switch, I might have said yes. But after learning to genuinely love her, asking her about herself, attempting to understand her like the Savior does, my heart was sad to say goodbye. 

Anyway, the next morning we drove her to San Fernando, and we both cried when we hugged goodbye. I know that she is needed to help people there, and that the Lord has things for her to do that only she could accomplish to His satisfaction. It was a really bitter-sweet moment. I know we only had less than three weeks together, but I feel like I learned so much from her, and that there was definitely a purpose to our time as companions in Cachapoal. 

Yep! I'm in a trio now. I was expecting it to be a little difficult to adjust to, but we're actually doing really awesome! I love these girls to death. Hermana Kenney is from Orem, she has three sisters, and the older two have both served missions! Her little sister is Erin's age. But we laugh all the time! Hermana Neira is the one from Columbia. She's a crack up. She speaks a lot of English...and, like with Hermana Pineda, sometimes I wonder who the heck taught her these things. Her mission ends on the 19th this month (a little weird, since it's in the middle of the cambio,) so we've only got about a week and a half left with the three of us! Afterwards, Hermana Kenney and I will finish out the cambio together...we think we might be together next cambio, too...but who knows? So far, I've been really awful at guessing what will happen in the next cambio.

This is my first gringo companion! She speaks Spanish super well, so I hope I can keep progressing in my language skills! 

I know the Lord has a hand in everything! Did you guys know that? There's a purpose in everything, and as long as we're doing what we know to do, he's going to guide us to the place we need to be. He's going to protect us. He is going to help us. He is going to support us as we undergo these trials that bring about such amazing changes in ourselves. I'm seeing this changes in myself a little every day. I am so grateful.

GET IN THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT, FAMILY. I am so disappointed. What date was the tree up this year?? YESTERDAY?? THAT'S TWO MONTHS TOO LATE.

In her family letter, she was excited to inform us that she "was followed to Chile" by a childhood nemesis of hers. For years we had a little dancing tree whose name was, "Douglas Fir." He opened and shut his beady eyes while singing an obnoxious jingle. Kenna was scared of him her whole childhood. She sent this picture with the caption, "Look who followed me to Chile....Douglas luciFUR!" She is facing all of her fears courageously while in Chile--needles and singing trees.

I LOVE YOU GUYS LOTS AND LOTS. KEEP WRITING ME AND MAN ALIVE ARE YOU GUYS READING THE BOOK OF MORMON??? I'm not just writing this question! I'm expecting an answer!!!!!

I love you all. Help the missionaries! I'm prayin' for ya.

LOVE, Hermana Thomas

Chile is Chile...so....

HerMama Thomas' note:  Kenna asked me to mention how much she appreciates and LOVES hearing from you.  She is behind on email responses but thanks ALL of her friends and family members who take the time to write her!!!  SO thank you from her!!!!

So let's get started.

First of all, and I feel like I can't stress this enough, I'M NOT GOING TO SPEAK ENGLISH WHEN I GET HOME. DO YOU ALL UNDERSTAND THIS. Okay, good. I just don't want anyone to be surprised. Every night, Hermana Casteñeda and I say our prayers for our planning session in English. MY ENGLISH IS NOT MUCH BETTER THAN HERS. And I'm doing that weird thing that Taylor did with his voice. (Sorry, Taylor. It wasn't too bad.) 

(Actually, the first sign of my absolutely failing English was the other day, when I spent a good five minutes kicking myself because I LITERALLY could NOT remember what those weird little plant things are called in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. It wasn't until I was reading the Bible the next day that I read the word MANDRAKE and remembered.) (So if anyone was wondering, the scriptures literally have the answers to everything.)

Sister Kenney made a Thanksgiving dinner!

In Santiago to finalize visa...with her MTC pals!!!

Secondly, it's December! MERRY. CHRISTMAS. I love you all. The Christmas spirit is a-ringin here in Cachapoal! There may not be a chance of snow, but it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. I love it. Everyone is pulling out their Christmas lights and dancing-santas and the works. (They really like those dancing-santas. I've nearly screamed in fright like three times when several of them have surprised me by going off.) December 17th will also mark five months in the mission! That. Is insane. But it's awesome because I've never had a reason to celebrate the seventeenth of December before, so here's a reason. 

Chile continues to be the greatest country in the world ever. Let's talk about some of the many reasons why: the bread. Stop thinking your bread tastes good because Chilean bread is AWESOME. (Okay, yeah, they've got their wonder-bread brands...but I'm talking about the rolls. They eat this with every single meal, and it's TO DIE FOR it's so good. And that's store-bought.) Also, (pay attention, Mom) the mustard. What's up with the mustard? I don't have a way to describe it adequately enough. So that's all I'm going to say. ALSO THE ICE CREAM. Every kind of ice cream. Mom, Dad, Erin, Ireland....I've had my fair share of pineapple-flavored ice cream. And it's super good. And I still hold my ground that pineapple is revolting, but this is the magic of Chilean ice cream.

So basically I just listed a bunch of food.

One thing about Rancagua that gets me every time...we live in el centro, so we've got a huge public plaza right outside our apartment building. I kid you not, every single day we have some kind of protest. It usually involves everyone in the protest having whistles and drums and noise-makers and just banging things around for six hours with a big sign that says, "FEED AFRICA." We've had every protest you can think of, many of which have involved children's rights. (This was a little ironic, because these adults always dress their kids up in wacky costumes and they parade them around in circles in this plaza, and most of the kids are complaining and whining because they don't want to do this anymore, they're bored, they're hungry, but the parents keep making them be in this parade.)

The other day, all the girls in my apartment were sharing pictures. I brought that one of Jordan and I at prom, the one that looks like a flipping magazine cover, ya know? Anyway, Hermana Neida was shocked to find out that it was me in the picture. When Hermana Castañeda said that it really was me, she goes, "but this person is like...PRETTY!" Thanks, why don't you high-five my face with that sledge-hammer again? Okay, it was actually really funny, I was laughing pretty hard. I love her.

My companion and I have been working really hard on unity in our lessons. We're getting along pretty well and all! I've really loved asking her questions to get to know her better so that I can develop a deeper love for her. While our personalities don't always fit perfectly, I can say that I've enjoyed working with her this week. She's great. And I'm so grateful for this opportunity I have to learn so much. This is the opportunity to change that I've been praying for.

We had a lot of lessons and a lot of new investigators. Yesterday, a lady let us into her house to sing a hymn and leave her with a prayer. It was her birthday, so we wanted to be fairly quick. We sang one verse of "Families Can Be Together Forever," and afterwards, we were shocked to find that her eyes were filled with tears. We asked her how she felt about the hymn, and she told us that she lost a 25 year old son a few years ago. We were so excited to testify to her that her son is not lost--that there's a plan for all of us here in the earth, and while part of this plan involves a physical death, we can all have hope of one day living with our families for eternity. She said that she felt something in her heart telling her that what we were saying was true. We have a return visit planned for tomorrow, where we're going to explain in more detail the Plan of Salvation! The spirit was really beautiful in that lesson.

YOU GUYS. THE GOSPEL IS TRUE. DID YOU KNOW THAT? For my nonmember friends, take me up on this. Get your hands on a Book of Mormon and JUST READ A LITTLE BIT OF IT. Then pray to know if it's true. It's the promise of the Book of Mormon--it's the guarantee--that if anyone wants to know if it's true, all they have to do is read, ponder, and pray about it. Ask sincerely if it's true to God. I promise you will feel the power of the Spirit testifying to you that this is the gospel of Jesus Christ. I can feel it every day.

I am so grateful for your prayers on my behalf, and on behalf of all the missionaries out there! We're all working towards one goal! If you're thinking about serving a mission, or you're on the fence about it, DO IT. You'll never regret it. You're changing lives, including your own.

I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH HOLY COW MY LOVE IS GOING TO EXPLODE THAT'S HOW MUCH LOVE I HAVE.

LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE, Hermana Thomas!!!!!!!!!!!

PS--for those of you who don't know, my daddy turns.........23...........on December 17th! wahoo.

First week in Rancagua!!!

FAMILY HELLO DID YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU HELLO FRIENDS I LOVE YOU ALSO ALRIGHT HERE GOES.

Sorry, I just have a lot of love and not a long of time to express it.

SO. Rancagua. Cachopoal. Wow. Super different from La Florida! Yeah, there's a lot more people here...it makes contacting a bit harder in the streets, because people are seriously from everywhere in Chile! We contacted someone who lives in Antofagasta! They didn't want to talk much, but if they had, we couldn't have taught them anyway...maybe I could have passed it along to Kristen... :)

It's really awesome here. I'm living with my companion, Hermana Castañeda, and two other hermanas: Hermana Kenny, who is a gringa with 8 months in the mission....she's my inspiration right now, she speaks spanish super well! Her companion is Hermana Neida from Columbia. (I'm getting the parrot thing.) She's so sweet! She's super little, but she's a fireball! Why are all little people fireballs? Anyway, it's her last cambio in the mission, so she's working super hard to make it count!

We are super close to the oficinas, so yes, mom, I will be able to get my Christmas package as soon as it arrives in Rancagua! Wahoo!! Stoked about that.

We live in an apartment that is pretty nice...IT HAS A WASHER. WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO WASH OUR OWN CLOTHES IN OUR OWN CASA. It's the little things, guys.

Something that is different between Talca and Rancagua...in Talca, we contacted a lot, but almost every house had someone at the door to talk to. Here...I think we've contacted most of the week, and I could probably count on a hand and a half how many people have opened their doors. So...if we can't contact on the street, and people won't open their doors...hmm. Whatever...I'm just starting to get worried about your salvation and stuff.

The people of Chile REALLY LOVE to give us things! The other day, one of the people we contacted let us into her house, and in the middle of us talking, she just got up and left the room. We were a little nervous as we waited for her to return from her super abrupt departure, but she came back a minute later with a beautiful bracelet for each of us and cookies! I tried to say that we couldn't just take her bracelet, but she seemed a little offended by this, so I took it. It's really pretty. Also, the cookies are super delicious with Nutella. Another menos activo gave me some really beautiful earrings! This is something really characteristic of the people here. They really love to give things.

I've been getting used the people we're working with, including los menos activos! The other day, we had a lesson with a sister menos activo. She's 48 years old, and she has the energy of a five year old. At first it was really shocking, because...I can't even describe this to you. She was sitting then standing then jumping then walking on stilts then writing on the walls and talk talk talking and by the way I'm not kidding about the stilts or the writing on the walls thing. And she kept calling her dog "My Little Dog Child." I almost just started laughing hysterically, because I literally didn't have another reaction to this scene. Luckily, I mustured up some self-control and kept my silence.

We also met an 87 year old woman named Sarah. She let us sit with her on her front porch, and we listened to her talk for a while. She was being taught by the missionaries ten years ago with her husband, but after a few lessons, he decided he didn't want the elders to visit any more. Well, he passed away five years ago, and she was more than happy to listen again. She told us a lot about her life, like how she met her husband, and how one day she just announced to her family that she was getting married in a month, even though none of them had the slightest idea that she had been dating anyone at all. She also told us that literally everyone in her life, other than her children and a few cousins, had passed away, and she was just waiting for her turn. Obviously, we turned to the Plan of Salvation. We told her that she's going to see all these people again, and they're going to be waiting for her on the other side of the veil. When we said that, I saw her eyes light up. "Miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiire," she said. "Nunca he sabido. Miiiiiiire." She said she'd like to be with her husband again. It was really a beautiful moment. It was the first time that I've told someone that they can see their family after this life and they've been surprised by the news. Usually people say, "yeah, I know." NO, you don't. FAMILIES ARE ETERNAL. Even I can't wrap my head around that sometimes.

I don't know what will happen with her, though. My companion isn't all that jazzed about visiting her again, not really sure why...

I'm going to learn a LOT THIS CAMBIO. I've decided that I'm just not going to be negative about it. Nope. I'm going to make this a learning experience. I'm going to have an attitude like Ammon...when adversity came, instead of feeling like it was an impossible task, he saw it as an opportunity to prove his faith. 

But just so everyone knows...if you ask God with all your heart to help you change yourself, you've literally asked for it.

EVERYONE. I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH. PLEASE keep praying and reading the book of mormon and watching messages from the prophet and living the way you should and writing me letters because I absolutely love hearing from you all.

HERE GOES WEEK TWO IN RANCAGUA! WAHOO!!

Love, Hermana Thomas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, hey there folks.....

So nothing happened this week.

Love, Hermana Thomas.

GOTCHA. This week was crazy! I think. (Sometimes I start these letters off, and I start saying "oh, wow, this week was so crazy!" and then I get into my letter and I realize that I don't really have anything to say, so I end up talking about playing with kittens...?) (Sometimes that happens.)

First piece of business: We're living in the casa of La Florida again! We moved in last Monday night, and I disinfected LIKE CUH-RAY-ZEE. Crazy. It was also a great opportunity for me to teach the girls I'm living with how to disinfect. They were appalled that I was using hot, soapy water. They said the hot water would only spread the germs...but this is also coming from three girls who have been using disinfectant spray like febreeze in the bathroom...I love them. 

This week has been HOT. HOT. HOT. HOT. HOT. HOT. HOT. WHY DOESN'T THIS FONT GET BIGGER. HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT. I thought my skin was melting at one point. I considered the idea of dying slowly in the shade, curled up with the one thousand dogs that I might as well call my companions since they are always following us everywhere...it sounded really nice compared to walking more in the heat. But guess what? Suffering the heat of the sun is just part of the mission. (This might be my most-used phrase here. "Es parte de la misiòn." I think Hermana Pineda wants to kill me every time I say it.) (Just kidding. We love each other.)

A funny moment with the language...we were walking back from an appointment with a family of menos activos. We were talking about how awesome they are, especially the husband, because he is ALWAYS smiling....ALWAYS. Anyway, I said, "Yo quiero abracerle!" ("I just wanna hug him!") But Hermana Pineda heard "yo quiero embarazarme" so you guys can just look that one up for yourselves. 

We visited a menos activo this week whose husband had a heart attack a few days ago. During this visit, she told us that she was not going to share any spiritual experiences with us because it would be like...oh, man, I can't remember the exact wording of this scripture..."throwing pearls at the feet of dogs"? She then went on to relate four very very VERY personal and spiritual moments in her life to us. So....

Anyway, I had a lot of moments this week that really made impressions on me. There are some really stalwart members that impress me so much with their faithfulness. One day, we visited a member whose entire family is baptized, but she's the only one who goes to church. I'd guess she's about 60 years old. The rest of her family wants nothing to do with the church. We decided to teach her a little more about the restoration. About a minute into it, though, her husband stormed into the room, raging about false prophets and the Mormon church of the devil. It was a little nerve-wracking in the moment, but he left peacefully enough, and we were able to finish our lesson without another interruption. The hermana apologized, and then tearfully told us how much she wishes that her family would re-accept the gospel. I can't believe that she can still be so faithful in coming to church, despite the heavy disapproval of her own husband. 

Another hermana has a situation similar...all the members of her family are members, but she's the only one who attends church. She was a reactivation. Her husband drinks really heavily, and expects her to do everything in the house and have a full-time job. He doesn't like when we visit, so we have to be really careful about the time we choose to go to her house. She is one of the sweetest people I've ever known, and she radiates a spirit that is so strong.

 

Anyway.........GUESS WHAT. CAMBIOS.

CAMBIOS CAMBIOS CAMBIOS.

Saturday night, our leaders were supposed to call us to tell us if we were being changed. WE HAD TO WAIT UNTIL 10:30 PM. It was absolutely excruciating to wait. We practically knew for sure that Hermana Pineda was going to have a cambio, since she's been here for five months in the same place. I was probably going to stay, and so were the other two.

WELL, LESSON LEARNED. Never assume you know anything, because guess what.....

I'm going to Rancagua!!!!!!!!! I was the only person in the casa with a cambio. What?! We were all shocked. I still don't feel like it's real...? It was just really unexpected. Hermana Pineda is going to be here for another transfer, with "Hermana Perry." (I don't know her, but I'm assuming she's another gringa.)

My area is Cachapoal, and my companion is Hermana Castañeda de Mexico! Wahoo!

Yesterday and today have been a little hard, because I've just cried saying goodbye to all these people I've grown to love so much. The kids of the Bishop here were so cute, they didn't want me to leave! At one point, I had all three of them hugging me! It was so precious. I said goodbye to our family of investigators yesterday, too...oh man. That was hard. They were so cute, they gave me a pair of shoes because they said that they are always looking at our feet and the awful condition of our zapatos! (They gave shoes to Hermana Pineda also.) Their daughter gave me two bracelets and the sweetest note, some hair pins...oh my gosh. I tried to not cry, but I love this family so much. I left them with my testimony, and both the mother and father cried as they thanked us for helping them bring the gospel of Jesus Christ into their homes.

Have I said that being a missionary is THE GREATEST JOB EVER?? 

I am so humbled by the opportunity I have now to go serve in Cachapoal. Obviously I have something to learn there! I'm sad to leave my lovely companion, but I know that the Lord has a plan, and this is part of it! 

So next week, I'll be writing from Rancagua! Crazy!

I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH. SO MUCH. Keep writing me, and keep reading your scriptures and praying.

I LOVE YOU GUYS MORE THAN YOU COULD EVER KNOW SERIOUSLY.

Looooooooooooooooooooooooooove, Hermana Thomas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey guys!!!

¡HOLA! Una otra semana màs. ¡Que traumante! (<--this is a phrase that Hermana Pineda uses very often. It's from her country. Every country has their own words like this...I really want to use all of them eventually, because they are all funny to me...for example...here in Chile, "bakan" means "cool." Like..."¡Que Bakan!" Right now, I'm living with two Mexicanas, and they both say, "¡oh, chispas!" when something goes wrong. Pronounced "chees-pahs."...I always laugh, because it sounds like they are saying "oh, cheese balls." Anyway.)

This week was really good! We taught a lot of lessons with members, which is always more effective than just teaching alone. (MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH: HELP THE MISSIONARIES PLEASE.) 

Dad, you'll be more than excited to hear that I sang for our Zone meeting this week..."Señor, te necisito" ("I Need Thee Every Hour.") It was really awesome to sing! Hymns are so beautiful in Spanish.

Speaking of differences between English and Spanish...the other day, we had a lesson with a menos activo. In the end, we asked who she wanted to say the closing prayer...and she said, "Oh, la Hermana Thomas, porque me gusta como ella habla como una wawa." (She said she likes how I talk like a baby.) I laughed, and said the prayer, assuming that she was referring to the fact that sometimes my grammer is wrong, and sometimes I don't know the words...like a baby. Well, later I came to realize that she was actually referring to my tone of voice. Yep! I guess I sound like a baby when I speak Spanish. I was on splits with Hermana Bravo the other day (I LOVE Hermana Bravo. She's the mexicana,) and when I said "¡alo!" at the first house, she smiled and said, "Me gusta su 'alo', porque es como una niña." (I like you're 'alo' because it's like a little girl.) So...I don't have much more to say about that.

Actually, I do. It's true! My voice goes up a little higher when I speak Spanish...I don't know why! Maybe it's because I have to think a little harder so it's stressful, or maybe it's because I'm usually talking about the gospel and happy things, so I'm a little cheerier, I don't know! But can I just say that when Hermana Pineda speaks English, her voice drops and octave. I love it. She goes from cute little Hermana Pineda to the worlds greatest base. It's awesome. (Don't worry, I haven't said anything about it to her. When she talks about my change of voice, I just smile to myself, and hear her voice speaking English in my head. That's enough for me.)

Still on the topic of languages, I just want everyone to understand very clearly right now that I am going to be one of those people who comes off their mission and doesn't remember how to speak English. Prepare accordingly.

But seriously, 8 times during this letter already I've started accidentally typing in Spanish. Also, when I speak English with the other Hermanas, I always accidentally revert to Spanish. I laugh when I remember my cousin, Isaac Holiday...the last thing he said to me before I left was: "don't come back with an accent.".......sorry, kid.

BREAKING NEWS: I get the thing with cats. All my life, I've wondered...what the heck? What's so great about cats? Literally, why would anyone ever prefer a cat over a dog. It blew my mind. WELL. The other day, I had the privilege of playing with a kitten for the first time in my life. (Yes, Chloe Davis, and everyone else reading this with their jaws dropped. You read that right. My first time playing with a kitten in my entire life. I venture to say that I have never touched a kitten before this time. Cats, yes. A kitten? No.) While I still firmly hold my ground that I am a dog person through and through, I can now say that I understand the appeal of cats. The kitten-stage is probably worth it. Oh my gosh! Kittens love to play with anything!! I played with this little kitten in my lap almost the whole lesson. It was awful, because it was super distracting, but oh my gosh it was a kitten!!!!

I think I'm just having an any-animal-but-a-dog withdrawal. Have I mentioned that they have DOGS IN CHILE?

During this lesson, a spider the size of Mount Everest crawled its way up the wall opposite me. That's almost not an exaggeration. I am prepared to say to you that this spider was probably the size of my palm. I have never seen a spider of this enormity. If you could die from looking at something...

(Side-note: Hermana Pineda sitting next to me, practically beside herself. Her hamster died this week, I guess...and her family sent her PICTURES OF THE DEAD HAMSTER. I'm laughing so hard right now. She is laughing, too, but...¡que traumante! ¡Enserio! Her hamster's name was "cosita"..."little thing." Hermana Pineda calls EVERYTHING a "cosa" or "cosita." Dogs, babies, hair pins...)

In other news, I have read three scriptures this week that have given me full permission to get SUPER FAT, so...message received. You all can look forward to rolling me off the plane in a year and two months. (The only scripture I can remember is Proverbs 28:25.) 

Also, I keep forgetting to tell you guys that I have felt four mini earthquakes while here! Super small. Like...you hear a really big noise, and then the chair under you shifts on its own, and you hear the house creak a little, then it's done. 

Another thing: the houses for missionaries are littered with old things of missionaries-past. I usually avoid these things, though, because whenever I accidentally use something around the house, then find the name "Hermana So-and-so, 2006-2007," I feel like I've found bones in a graveyard. It's super creepy for some reason.

In terms of investigators...still loving all of them so much! Sometimes it's hard to keep them progressing, though. Our family of investigators is struggling a little...because they aren't keeping their commitments. They aren't reading the Book of Mormon for themselves...some of them read when we give them specific things to read, but...I told them the other day, we aren't here to bring the spirit into their house for an hour. We're here to bring the spirit into their lives for forever. If people don't follow through with their commitments, how can they integrate the gospel into their lives? Sometimes it's frustrating. But I love this family so much. It was so sweet, the other day the mother gave Hermana Pineda and I each "pansitas"...it's a little container with quotes from the bible...specifically things that the Savior has said. While I understand that this is probably more common to have for people of other religions, I dang love it. It was so sweet of her! I love them.

We also have an investigator of GOLD. GOLD, I TELL YOU. GOLD. She has been searching for a church that she feels at home in. She came across the webpage of the church online one day, and requested a Book of Mormon and a visit from the missionaries...three times! So we hurried over there, and started talking with her. Guess what? She asked us if we pay tithing. We said....yeah...and she was so excited about it! Then she asked if there are ways to participate in the church other than just sitting and listening to preachers. We told her about callings, and she was thrilled. She said, "do you drink Coca cola? Because I'm an addict, but if I have to give it up, I will." BOOM. Word of Wisdom. And she's married. Legally. I just don't know how to react to this. She also said that she wants to be baptized the way the Savior was...full immersion. She doesn't totally understand the part about having authority from God, but we can get to that next lesson. Basically, this woman is so prepared for the gospel.

The only thing is...she went to church yesterday with us. Everything was going great. Two members asked if they could sit with her, and everything was falling perfectly into place. Then....we had the absolute worst sacrament meeting of my life. Kids were running around screaming. Not your usual chaos...I'm talking SCREAMING. So much that we literally couldn't hear the speakers more than half the time. On top of that...the talks were about "how to spend your money wisely." Yes. Mmm-hmm. I don't think a single scripture was shared. Also, we only had two talks, and we went super over time.

She stayed for the rest of church, and she seemed to like the other classes, but she didn't seem super excited about having another lesson super soon. Still, we have a lesson scheduled on Friday with her. We're going to have to bring the spirit into this one...a lot.

Really, it was a huge test of my patience. This whole week was so great, things were going perfectly, and then we had that one experience, and it killed my attitude for a little bit. I was so disappointed. 

This is when I need to remember to put my faith in the power of the spirit. I know that despite the catastrophic events of Sacrament Meeting, if we can be worthy of the companionship of the spirit during our next lesson with her, she can gain a testimony that this church contains the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and it's the truth that she's been looking for for so long!

Everyone, I love you so much! Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your letters. Sometimes it's difficult to respond to all of them, but I print them all out every time to read! I LOVE YOU GUYS. SO MUCH. Keep reading the Book of Mormon. Keep praying. Keep emailing me. And if one of your kids is making a bit of a fuss in church...maybe take them outside! ;) 

Just so everyone is clear, I love the kids/families in our ward SO MUCH. This week was just...out of control. The weird thing is, almost every ward in our Zone had the same problem with kids screaming during Sacrament Meeting. Maybe we all needed to learn a little patience. 

I LOVE YOU. WOW I LOVE YOU. I THINK ABOUT YOU EVERY DAY. MERRY CHRISTMAS.

Love, Hermana Thomas

¡MERRY CHRISTMAS! HOLY COW IT'S CHRISTMAS.

HerMama Thomas' note (again): We have been in contact with President Warne today and have learned that McKenna's chest x-ray results were negative for ACTIVE TB. This is great news!! She will begin a 9-month antibiotic treatment immediately which drastically reduces the chances of her becoming 'active' in her lifetime. They will continue to monitor her with monthly chest x-rays until she is 'out of the woods.'

Dear Family and friends!

(For those unaware, my Christmas begins on November 1st and endsNEVERDEALWITHIT.)

My companion is learning this the hard way. I decided I'd be her personal alarm clock on the first of November, and I started singing "Joy to the World" in her ear...in Spanish! 

High-five for Christmas. High-five for singing a song in Spanish. High-five for being a human alarm clock.

This week was a little off for us! Not gonna lie! Hermana Pineda was sick for two days of it...poor thing. She woke up at 5 am to vomit one day...needless to say, we stayed inside. I spent six hours organizing my scriptures in Spanish. Wahoo! It wasn't too bad. Plus, it was raining a storm outside, so I was almost grateful that I didn't have to run around in that...

Can we talk about the weather, here? Talk about bipolarity. We'll leave the casa at twelve, and it's absolutely freezing. Then we get walking and in a half hour we're melting. So we take off our jackets and suddenly we're in the deeper stages of hypothermia. 

Anyway, I'm going to have to keep myself super busy during these few months...because I can feel the nostalgia for lounging around in my smoking jacket and setting up the tree and all that stuff! 

Other than the christmas-songs-thing, Hermana Pineda and I are doing just great! I can't believe I only have two weeks (for sure) left to work with her! I really love this girl to death. It makes me so sad to think that we might (probably) get changed. She's had a lot of time here in this area (5 months,) so we've got a feeling that she's out of here. 

The other day, out of nowhere, she asked me what "what the heck" means. I promise that I'm not saying it...okay. Maybe I've said it once. But really, she didn't learn it from me. So I tried to explain that, in English, sometimes we take swears and turn them into a different word...and, magically, this word somehow isn't as bad. (Which, now that I think about it, is a little bit ridiculous...I mean...they're both words, right?) Anyway, she wanted to know what the real word was for "heck," so I spelled it out for her. Then, somehow there was some confusion somewhere, and she kind of screamed "WHAT THE ----!" (Like...she got confused what the "bad" word was, and said the wrong one.) Anyway, it took me completely off-guard, and I think I laughed for five minutes straight. 

Oh, man...languages. Idiomas. Enserio. What. is. up. One problem I've encountered is that every country has their own words for everything. I asked Hermana Pineda how to say "plates/cups/things in the kitchen," and she told me that she didn't know..."What?! How can you not know the word for these things?" I said. She then went on to explain that in Guatemala, they use one general word for all these things in the kitchen..."trastas?" "Drastas?" I don't remember how to say the word. BUT...in Chile, this word is a really bad word to say. Like...it's the word...donkey. What? How can one word for something so simple be so different in two countries that speak the same language? Whenever I ask the natives which country has the most correct Spanish, they always say their own. So I guess I just have to be really careful about what words I learn from the hermanas from different countries, and learn to speak...Chilean!

Well, sorry that this letter so far is about swear-words. That was not my intention. Let's get to the uplifting things:

We kind-of sort-of have a baptismal date with our family of investigators, which is kind-of sort-of SUPER exciting! We just have to work really hard to keep them progressing. We have a lot of faith with this!

Also...okay. There are a few families in the ward here who are always volunteering to feed us during the week. As missionaries, we are SO grateful for these families, because it's not easy to prepare food for four missionaries plus your family! Yesterday we ate with one family in particular who we've eaten with many times. The food is always soooo good when we go to their house...I always get excited to see their name on the list! The food is prepared by the husband (which is pretty darn uncommon here,) and it's always kind of a lot to eat, but I always down it, because I don't want to get hungry while we work for another seven hours without food! 

Anyway, their food was super delicious yesterday. When we finished, the husband told us that he had been asked to prepare food for Elder Holland a few years ago when he visited Chile, and said that he'd prepared the same meal that he'd just served us for the apostle. He then explained that cooking is one of this talents/hobbies, and that, whenever possible, he wanted to use this skill to edify the kingdom of God. He said that serving his food to the servants and representatives of Jesus Christ is a way that he can show his love to God and his appreciation for the servants of the Lord. He said that he gave us the same meal as the apostle, because it didn't matter that we don't speak in General Conference, or tour the world giving huge discourses--we, too, are representatives of Christ, and he was more than willing to give his best for us. My eyes were a little wet with tears by the end of his story, because this was a huge example to me of the fact that we all can serve our Heavenly Father in different ways, the best we know how. Sometimes it's a huge sacrifice, like accepting a calling as bishop or relief society president, or serving a mission. Other times, it's small, like helping someone in need, being a friend to those who have none, or providing food for the missionaries. 

Maybe you can all think about the talents you have, and find a way to use these things to serve the people around you. Because you definitely have more than one talent that can be used to do so...who would have thought that cooking could help edify the kingdom of God on the earth? But this member found a way, and he finds a lot of joy from doing it.

I love you guys so much. Thanks for all your emails! I print them out and read all of them. Like, each one fifty times. I understand now why missionaries get SUPER EXCITED when they have mail!! I miss all of you so much! I'm so proud of my friends serving missions. And those who aren't, too! I'm grateful for all of their examples to me. I'm so grateful to have this gospel in my life, and now I have the opportunity to bring this joy into the lives of others. I get to help families be together forever! I think I win the title of best job ever!!

I LOVE YOU GUYS A LOT AND I THINK ABOUT YOU LOTS. 

If anyone is interested, the running score for number of times my companion and I have TOTALLY ATE IT on the sidewalks is now: me-32, Hermana Pineda-43. So you can all take back your "McKenna is the clumsiest person in the world"s now. 

LOOOOOOVE YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUU.

¡yo les amo!

Love, Hermana Thomas

ps: if anyone at all wants to send me a really simple recipe for absolutely anything other than eggs and PB&J, the offer is still open.

¿Hola?

Note from HerMama Thomas: We are still waiting for test results for McKenna. In the meantime, we hope you enjoy her letters as much as we do. I am thankful for her positive, can-do attitude!

¡NachOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Anyways.

I'm slowly running out of creative ways to begin my emails. So let's just jump right in, shall we?

First thing's first: Dad. No, I haven't had a concert for all of Chile yet. Hahaha yes, some people know that I sing, but I don't want to run around with a big sign saying "PICK ME PICK ME I'M SUPER GOOD" because...because no. :) But President Warne knows that I sing, and so do his Assistants, so if they want me to sing at a conference, I'll gladly do it. I do sing in lessons, though! Sometimes. Every once in a while Hermana Pineda surprises me by telling the person we're teaching that I've prepared a hymn to sing to them. That's when I smile like we planned this, and frantically thumb through the pages until I find a song I know that I know...but the spirit is always there! 

I don't remember if I've already shared this, so here goes: during one of our first lessons with our family of investigators, the mother said that one thing she likes more in her church than ours is the hymns. She said that she doesn't feel anything during our songs. Then her husband told me to sing a hymn in English...I don't know why, because they had no idea that I sing! I was pretty nervous, but I made it through "Savoir, Redeemer of my Soul" with only two voice cracks. (Ugh.) But that didn't matter, because in the end, the mother was crying. Not because I can sing, and not because she could understand the words (because she couldn't,) but because the spirit was there. It was really awesome. She hasn't said much more about our hymns since... :)

So...spanish. I only have two things to say about Spanish this week. One, it's a suuuuper beautiful language...BUT. There is one word that is so ugly to me. I hate this one word. It's the word "nosotros." For those of you who don't speak spanish, let me tell you, it's unfortunate that I really don't like this word, because it's used in every other sentence. It's translation is "we" or "us." I really don't know why I don't like this word. Maybe it's because half the people say "nos-oh-ch-ros." No sè.

Second...I've learned that it's easier to just speak spanish and not try to translate what you want to say into english first...also, I was not surprised to find that it is not offensive to talk about how fat someone is getting/already is in this culture. (Don't worry, these two points relate.) Sometimes I don't remember someone by their name, and I ask Hermana Pineda, "wait, who is that again?" Almost every time, she responds with "el gordito." (or "la gordita" if it's a woman.) (Also, I might not have spelled that right.) Well, "el/la" translates to "the," and "gordo/gorda" translates to "fat," and "-ito/-ita" signifies that something/someone is little. So..."Who is this person, Hermana Pineda?" "el gordito"...the little fat?!?! Great. So...everyone in Chile? Bueno. Vamos.

This week, I met someone who believes full-heartedly in Thor. Yep, Thor. Like the guy who runs around with a hammer in a cape and tights (and works it.) (Am I allowed to say that on my mission.) She's a less-active, and when we asked her if she still had a testimony of the gospel, she said, "yeah, but my husband and I just made a small change of religion. It's pretty much the same thing." 

Also, we had a taxi driver trying to convince us that legal use of marijuanna is a gift from the heavens for people in the world today, and we need to take advantage of it, because it's part of righteous living.

In an attempt to strengthen the unity of our ward, my companion and I worked with the ward mission leader to plan a Noche De Hogar (Family Home Evening) for the ward on Friday! We had about 30 people show up, which isn't too shabby, considering the fact that we have an average asistencia of 60 people at church every Sunday...we had a spiritual lesson, and I introduced all of them to the game "20 Seconds..." They all called it a "juego-gringo." But they liked it! Our family of investigators were there, too! Hopefully we can have more people attend next time! 

Another thing: everyone here is totally into music in english. (Not a surprise.) But honestly, I never listened to music in Spanish before my mission. I can't lie and say that I did. But I like to know what I'm listening to, and to sing along...so why would I have listened to music in Spanish? Anyway, it gets a little awkward when people realize that I never listened to music in Spanish before...they're like..."why not. We listen to music in English. Why don't you like our music." So...I guess I'm in for that awkwardness for the rest of my mission. (Chloe Davis, if you're reading this right now...I already know. I already. Know.)

Also, I love when Hermana Pineda sings a song that's in English. The other day, she was singing under her breath "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars...and let me tell you...I'm pretty sure none of the words she said were in English...she just sings the sounds she hears! Maybe one day I'll correct her. Or pretend she said a really bad word in English or something. (Just kidding.) (Seriously I'm just kidding.)

You guys! I love you all. This mission is definitely the hardest thing I've ever done. But I think about all the people supporting me, and all the people who are such huge examples to me, and I find the strength to keep going! 

I've been reading "Jesus the Christ" these past few weeks...it's kind of a huge book, but I'm about half-way through, and the spirit is really strong when I read. My love for the Savior has grown even more...and I didn't think it was possible! I know, without a doubt, that he is the Son of God, my older brother, and that through Him, I can return to live with my Father in Heaven, with my family forever. I am so grateful. 

Sorry for the lack of information about my investigators, but this week was kind of...I don't know! We had a lot of lessons with a lot of new people, but nothing spectacular. It was a little difficult to contact our progressing investigators, but it was a good week!

Thanks for you love and prayers. KEEP PRAYING AND READING THE BOOK OF MORMON. I'M SERIOUS.

I love you guys!!!

Love, Hermana Thomas

Lovin the TB...wish you were here!

HerMama Thomas' note: Thanks for your prayers for McKenna and the other sisters who've tested positive for TB. It is humbling to sense that her faith is undeterred. It's amazing--the strength of her generation. The MOST disturbing part of this email is that Kenna is ASKING for recipes????? This makes me wonder if she is really very ill--I don't know anyone who hates cooking more than she does.

¡Hola mi familia!

I looooove you! LOOOOVE YOU. Thanks for your letters...I flipping love to read your emails. I think about you guys every other thought! ¡Enserio!

Everything is great here! This week was a little rough...we had a lot of moving around, doctor's appointments and whatnot, and I'm a little tired! But that's what P-day is for, right? Wrong. Missionaries don't sleep. Ever. 

Just kidding. We do.

By the way, it's getting difficult to write in English...I keep accidentally switching to Spanish subconsciously...#mishlyfe2013

SO. This week. Story time.

On Tuesday, we had a lesson with a woman named "MaQuena." Yep! Ma-Kena. ¡Que extraño! I didn't think it would be possible to find someone with my name...but there you have it. Anyway, she invited us into her casa, and we just talked about what she believed and our purpose, and the usual first-lesson stuff. Near the end, Hermana Pineda asked if she would like to say the closing prayer. To our surprise, she said yes! (We had explained how to pray just before...but people usually don't want to pray with us...and definitely not with this much enthusiasm.) Anyway, we all bowed our heads, and we waited for her to begin praying. After about ten seconds of silence, we looked up...to find that she was praying to herself, her lips moving super rapidly and making weird whispering noises. We looked at each other, and tried not to laugh...we watched her, watched her, watched her...waiting for her to finish...well, three minutes of this passed (three minutes. I looked at my watch,) and finally Hermana Pineda said really loudly, "...AAAY-men." MaQuena jumped, probably a little startled, and mumbled an amen, too. No sè...fue chistoso. 

(By the way, you Spanish-speakers...if I make a mistake in these emails...just try to remember your first three months in the field. Ha.)

Here's a classic: so, I'm a gringo, right? Surprise. Anyway, I'm used to people staring. I honestly don't remember what it feels like to walk down a street without making awkward eye contact with literally every single person you see. Well, the other day we were contacting, and we came across a fourteen year old girl who is Adventista. She let us into her house, and we talked with her mom for a bit. They were both...a little different...but anyway, we were talking, and the daughter was sitting at the table with her camera phone...trying to discreetly take a picture of me. Unbeknownst to her, however, was that her phone had the flash feature turned on. You wanna know how many pictures she took of me? Sixteen. Sixteen pictures of me. It was hilarious how careful she was trying to be, not wanting me to notice. I was fine with it until I saw on our way out that her instagram account was open as well. So hollaback, I'm an instagram celebrity on some random girl's account. (Dad, I can't remember if you said this to me or if it was my own brain, but I've been trying to come up with a title for myself here in Talca, and the best I have right now is "The Grin-kshow." Ideas?)

Also, yesterday I found a slumbering bee on my shirt. I think it was there for at least five minutes of tracting. It was curled up, sleeping. Taking a little bee-nap. 

Hey, if anyone of you want to send me really simple recipes, I'm down for it. I'm getting a little tired of the food I've been preparing for two months! 

Probably the crowning moment of the week was a lesson we had with a new investigator. This investigator has had contact with missionaries before--in fact, seven lessons of contact--but when it came to baptism, he didn't want anything to do with it. We found him tracting one night, and he said we could teach him, but that it would be impossible for him to change. From our two lessons with him, I believe that he received his answer way back with those missionaries before...and now, he's doing everything he can to justify himself. He's full of contradictions. This lesson, we taught him the story of Joseph Smith. When we asked him how he felt about it, he said that he couldn't believe it because he didn't believe in God...we talked about this for a little while longer, and at one point he said "if all the world lived the word of God, the world would be a better place." ¿What? The whole lesson was full of these contradictions. It started becoming frustrating...but one Christ-like attribute I've been studying this week is "patience," and so I just kept breathing and listening. At one point, I was trying to explain the Book of Mormon. He asked why it was important to read it, and I said that it was the evidence that there is a God, and this is his church. I then proceeded to begin to promise that if he read this book, pondered and prayed about it, that he could recieve and answer. But as soon as I said, "Yo prometo," he started saying "no, no, no, usted no puede prometer..." I tried a little more firmly, but he replied a little stronger, "¡No prometa! ¡No puede prometer!" ("Don't promise! You can't promise!") Suddenly, I felt confidence fill me up, and I cut him off, and said, "NOPE. Yo. Puedo. Porque soy un representante de Jesucristo, y cuando yo digo que este libro puede ayudarle saber que Dios existe, es un promesa." Then I bore my testimony of the truthfulness and blessings that will come from reading the Book of Mormon, and he didn't even try to argue. We left him a copy, and while I'm not entirely sure that he's going to take me up on this promise, I felt really awesome afterwards. Sometimes you just have to be super duper direct! 

I know that this is the church of Jesus Christ on the earth, and I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior, Redeemer, Older Brother, Defender and Friend. I wouldn't want to do anything else than help other people come to this knowledge, too. Guys...share the gospel! I'm serious! Be grateful that you have the ability to do so in your own language, because that means that nothing can possibly hold you back but yourself! Have confidence in Christ, if you don't have confidence in yourself, and I promise you can do it.

Read the Book of Mormon. Again and again and again. And keep praying. I promise that someone is listening!

I LOVE YOU GUYS. TO DEATH ENSERIO.

Looooooove, Hermana TBhomas

Hola...from SANTIAGO??!?!?!

NOTE from HERmama Thomas: We are, of course, worried about the health of McKenna and the other missionaries who've been exposed to tuberculosis! Your prayers are appreciated. We have faith that she is being watched carefully---oh, and I have a call into the Mission President:-).

Yep! I'm in Santiago right now. ¿Por què? Porque.

Let me tell you about my week.

Monday night, we had to make a super unexpected move from La Florida to Jardìn de Valle (the sector next to us.) It was only Hermana Pineda and I, and it's because Presidente Warne doesn't want us to be exposed to the sickness in our casa during the period of time that it's considered to be contagious...so, this week, and I believe the next, we are living in a different casa. We had to pack up all of our things and move out. We're still working in La Florida, but we just have a little longer walk!

On Saturday, I got a phone call from Hermana Jett (the couple misionera in charge of the health of the missionaries) in which she said that we (Hermana Pineda and I...along with seven other missionaries from all over the mission) needed to travel to Rancagua on Sunday night, because we had an appointment at the hospital in Santiago on Monday morning. All 9 of us had been around Hermana Rodriguez (who is very sick) in the last few months, and so we needed to go get some tests done.

Needless to say, I literally saw my life flash before my eyes at this news. (For those of you who do not know, I actually have a severe allergic reaction to pain, needles, blood, etc.) (That was a lie.) (But I might as well have this problem.) (Back-track. When confronted with a needle...or a doctor's office in general...I might as well mentally and emotionally regress to the maturity of a fetus.) (I have a problem.)

Anyway, I almost started crying right there on the phone. But, somehow, I got through it. 

Sunday night came, and we had to pack our things for the night in one of my big suitcases (because I left my little suitcase in the old casa...and we didn't have any other options for an over-night pack!) So we've got this giant, bulky suitcase with both our things in it, along with our backpacks, and off we go to find a bus to Rancagua. We were with Hermana Berbert, who works in Jardìn de Valle. (She's awesome.) 

Anyway, there was a lot of moving around...and a little chaos for the three of us. First, we traveled all the way to the bus station, then we found out that there were absolutely no buses leaving for Rancagua that night. Then we ran to the train station, and we received the same news. Then we almost got back to the bus station when Hermana Berbert realized that she left her bag in the train station, so we went back and forth, and then in the bus station we found out that no one was going straight to Santiago, either. So then we called the Assistants to the President, and they told us to buy tickets to Rancagua for tomorrow morning...so we did. Then we were walking back to the casa when they called again and told us to try to get refunds, because they were actually sending someone to pick us up NOW. So we had to walk back to the terminal, get refunds, and walk all the way to the McDonald's that they told us to meet them at. 

NEEDLESS TO SAY I'm a little bit EXHAUSTED. BUT THAT'S OKAY BECAUSE guess what? It's the life of a missionary! And that's how I got to Santiago.

I was praying so hard in the doctor's office that I wouldn't bawl my eyes out when they needed to give me a shot. I came so close to loosing it a couple times, but I kept praying, praying, praying...and then a miracle happened.

Mom. I didn't cry.

I DIDN'T. CRY.

THEY STUCK A NEEDLE INTO MY ARM AND INJECTED FOREIGN FLUIDS INTO MY CUERPO AND I DIDN'T NEED TO BE HELD DOWN OR ANYTHING. (The fact that I'm sharing this proves that I have no shame. Yep...I've had to be held down before.)

Anyway, if anyone needed to know that there's a God, there's your proof.

ALSO. An important life lesson: thinking about super-gluing your fingers together? Not as fun as it sounds. 

Yeah, that happened this week. I was trying to help Hermana Pineda mend her suitcase, and before I knew it, my entire right hand was burning...for a few seconds, I didn't understand why, but then I saw the clear liquid hardening on my fingers, and I screamed...mostly because my first thought was that my hand was melting...anyway, I had the good sense to keep my fingers separated, so can I get some points for that?

This week, I have understood a ton more that people have said to me! It was kind of a dramatic increase. So I'm super pumped about that! Honestly, I think it's because I've been living with so many different countries. (In Jardìn de Valle, I've got two Hermanas from Mexico, too!) This is really awesome, because I've felt more confident in contributing in the lessons. 

Our investigators this week...hmm. This week was rough. I'm not sure why. I could blame it on the craziness of having to move and having different conferences, etc...but really, we just needed to do something different. It was really hard to find people to teach this week. Our investigators weren't answering their phones, and if we had an appointment, they usually called and asked if we could do a different day...for the most part, I think they sincerely want to keep learning and are just busy...but then that begs the question, how serious are they about learning more?

BUT my faith is still solid. I have faith that we can find a family to teach this week, who has been searching for something that we have to offer! 

All of your letters are a strength to me every week! I dang love you guys. Enserio. I know that this is the gospel of Jesus Christ, restored upon the earth through the prophet Joseph Smith, with all the keys and authority of the priesthood. Every day, my testimony deepens a little more, and so does my enthusiasm to help those I serve to grow in the gospel!

I LOVE YOU GUYS. A TON. I TALK ABOUT YOU ALL THE TIME TO EVERYONE. SERIOUSLY. 

ALSO I'M SUPER PROUD of mah fam for the Book of Mormon read-a-thon! I wish I could do that right now!! Seriously. We never have the amount of time I want to study. It's because we're so busy! I love it!

CAN'T SAY THIS ENOUGH--I LOVE YOU GUYS. 

You should purchase a copy of Preach My Gospel and study it together as a family. This isn't just me saying it. I've read a lot of talks about people's lives changing by studying PMG as a family, personally, before the mission, as well as after...DO IT!

LoooooooOOOOOOooove,

Hermana Thomas

ooxxOXx

Happy Birthday Hermana Pineda!!!!

My family, mi familia, my friends, mis amigos, y everyone else...I LOVE YOU.

This week, I practically ate a butterfly. It flew in my face, but luckily, my mouth was closed.  #blessings2013

Things are super darn good here! I love Chile! A lot! And I guess being a missionary is alright...or SUPER AWESOME. But I miss you all every single day! I can't wait to see you all again!

Today is Hermana Pineda's birthday, so we are going to have a ¡fiesta!...missionary style. That means that we get to clean our casa and eat cake!...and write cutesy notes to each other. Oh, Hermana Pineda...I love her.

I think I've said this before, but the more I learn Spanish, the more I realize that English is super hard to learn! I know I've already talked about the phrases Hermana Pineda knows in English (and they are hilarious,) but here are a few more: whenever she needs something, she says "I need you, ____." Por ejemplo, when she needs to use the bathroom, she says, "I need you, bathroom!" Or "I need you, food!" Or "I need you, my companion!" (This is another phrase: "my companion." Like..."I love you, my companion." Or "Come on, my companion." I love her english.) 

The other day, I was using my hair drier...after I was done, Hermana Pineda walked in and asked if she could use it, too. Sarcastically, I said "no." (Don't worry, she understands sarcasm. She's pretty much the only person here.) Anyway, she squinted her eyes disapprovingly at me, and said very boldly, "ay hay-ch j-yew." And then she stormed out of the room. I promise, I have never said the words "I hate you" here in Chile, so I didn't teach her that. But she said it with such conviction and with such careful and purposeful pronunciation...I about died, I was laughing so hard. 

La idioma is so much better! Well...my comprehension, at least. This week, I could understand almost everything that was said to me! I realized that last night, after a moment when I felt super discouraged with Spanish...I know that the Lord is helping me, still! I'm so grateful for this opportunity I have to learn this language. I always wanted to be bilingual! And I know that it will help me so much in the future.

This weekend was jam-packed with awesomeness...General Conference! (For those reading this letter who are not Mormon, General Conference is a conference of the church held twice a year, in which our prophet, his apostles, and other authorities and leaders of the church gather together and speak to us. They recieve revelation from God for things we need to do now, in our day, to protect our families and ourselves spiritually. This is not just for members of our church! The prophet of God is the prophet for THE WHOLE WORLD, and has recieved revelation for YOU. If you want to watch the sessions, it's on www.lds.org.)

That kind of felt like a commercial while I was writing it, but I seriously want the world to experience conference! Here, the people who want to hear the voice of the prophet have to gather in one of our stake centers, where it's projected live. 

A lot of people attended, but only five of them were from our ward. This made me really sad. I was reminded of the story as follows: A man in our church was discussing his beliefs with a friend of another faith. When the man began to discuss the prophet, his friend became excited by the idea. His friend asked what the prophet of God had said last to the people of the world--what counsel had he given? Taken off-guard by the show of interest, the man tried to recall the last talk he'd really listened to by the prophet, but struggled to remember his words. Disappointed, his friend said, "you mean that you claim to have a prophet of God speaking to you today, and you don't even know what he's saying?"

We know that Thomas S. Monson is a prophet of God, and that the Lord speaks through him to convey what we need to know for our day. If you didn't have the opportunity to view conference this week...DO IT! :) If you did, go back to previous conferences and hear the counsel of the prophet before, because it's still relevant! Because the prophet and his apostles speak the words of God, we consider their past words as modern-day scripture. Go read them!!

This conference had definite themes: women taking advantage of priesthood blessings, parents assisting and learning to continue to love wayward children, and emphasis on "every member a missionary" were only a few! Here are some quotes I really loved:

"It's not where we've been, or what we've done, bu where we're willing to go." 

"If a hypocrite is a person who does not perfectly live up to what he or she believes, then we are all hypocrites."

"Doubt your doubts before you doubt your faith in Christ."

"If the bitter cup does not pass...drink it."

About a child who has strayed: "I gave him to you because I knew you could and would love him, no matter what he did."

"Don't forget to look up."

"Exclamation point!!!!" (This guy was animated. Anyone else think of a pixar character during his whole talk? I loved it...)

"Never too young to learn, never too old to change."

"Shall I falter, or shall I finish?"

So many other things during conference inspired me...UGH I LOVED CONFERENCE. (Yes, I got to watch it in English...there was a room upstairs for "those missionaries"...of which I'm proud to say that I am one...) Did anyone else get chills when Elder Bednar called the world to repentance?? Did you notice that three different apostles said that soon, we will not be so kindly accepted in the world? Now is the time, more than ever, that we need the strength that comes from hearing the voices of the men here on the earth called of God...without it, we don't have a chance.

WOW THAT WAS A LOT OF SPIRITUAL STUFF THERE. But, hey, I'm a missionary. What of it.

If anyone is interested, the running score for times that Hermana Pineda and I have tripped is--Me: 20, Her: 29. Take that, every person who has called me a klutz. There's someone in this world who falls more than I do.

This week, we had a conference with Presidente Warne for all the people endinging their first transfer in the mission, and it was SO AWESOME to see my old friends from the CCM! They are like my family here. I hope some of them get transferred to Talca!

I love you all. Keep praying and reading. 

OH ONE MORE THING: Parents with missionaries in the field: I have two scriptures for you. The first is Mosiah 28:7, and the other is Alma 19:23, both from the Book of Mormon. Read these, and rest assured that the Lord is aware of your sacrifice by letting your children serve the Lord for a time away from home, and that he will BLESS you and PROTECT them! 

I LOVE YOU GUYS so much! Thank you for your support and love always. KEEP READING AND PRAYING AND WRITING ME ESPECIALLY BECAUSE I LOVE LETTERS.

Love, Hermana Thomas

Holy Cow..........(this one has HerMama Thomas in fits!!)

SO MANY LETTERS THIS WEEK ITS SO EXCITING AHHH

You guys! Dang! I love you guys! Have I said that enough? Well, get used to it. Dang it.

This week has been CUH-RAY-ZAY. Enserio. You don't even understand. You don't. Nope, you don't.

I don't even know where to begin...Ok. Hermana Bokovoy was transferred. Sad! I love that girl a ton! Plus, she was the only person in the casa that spoke a lick of English...it was nice to have a moment in the day where I didn't have to think so hard, and I could just say exactly what I wanted to say to someone who understood and could respond! BUT. It's okay, because I have a firm testimony that God has a hand in EVERYTHING to do with missionary work.

She was switched with Hermana Rodriguez, from Peru! She is really great, and it's a blessing for me, because now I live with 3 different countries! (Hermana Rodriguez: Peru, Hermana Pineda: Guatamala, Hermana Contreras: Argentina.) So I guess you could say that I have a chance at learning spanish.

Hermana Rodriguez has been very sick for the past two months, though...I think it's been a pretty awful pnemonia. (Actually, a ton of missionaries right now are pretty sick...Hermana Pineda has a really wicked...something? It's definitely more than a cold, but she doesn't have a fever...and Hermana Contreras has been off and on sick the whole time I've been here.) Anyway, our casa is really close to a hospital, so this is good for Hermana Rodriguez.

Meanwhile, we've been working really closely with our family of investigators! Oh, man, I seriously love them so much. They are progressing so well. Hermana Pineda and I have been fasting and praying a lot for this family...there are five of them, and four of them are over 8, and all of them are just...wow! Super awesome! They all have Books of Mormon, and are eager to learn. They all attended sacrament meeting yesterday. Last night, we had a particularly powerful lesson with them, in which I got to bear my testimony of the Book of Mormon, and even share a few verses that have really spoken to me personally. The spirit was so strong!

During sacrament meeting, we were sitting with the family, and I started getting really nervous for them. I didn't know what they were thinking of it all. We don't have a lot of members in the ward that are active, and it seemed like everyone was staring at this family anxiously the whole time...especially the speakers! I just got really nervous for a second. Then, I had the quiet reassurance that...guess what? The members aren't the gospel. I'm not the teacher. These people are not in my hands. It's the Lord. It's the Holy Ghost. If this family is going to be converted, it's going to be because the spirit testified to them that this is the truth, and it's not going to matter how weird the members might have been, or if I stumbled over a sentence in Spanish, or whatever. The spirit is so powerful, and it can change beliefs, lifestyles, and especially hearts.

We also have an investigator with a baptismal date! My first one! I'm pretty stoked. Her name is Claudia, and she is really receptive. We've also been teaching her mother, but the day we extended a baptismal invitation, her mother was really sick, and wasn't with us in the lesson...hopefully she accepts, too! Claudia is great. She has a lot of things that are difficult in her life...she has a tumor in her head, and is constantly getting scans. We taught her the plan of Salvation, and it really seemed to ring with her. (In "Preach My Gospel," there's a quote that says that, because everyone lived with Heavenly Father before this life, the gospel will have a "familiar ring" to them, in their hearts. I really like this quote.)

On Friday, we had a mini-cambio, which meant that I had to go to leave my sector (La Florida) and spend a day in San Clemente (a different sector.) My companion for the day was Hermana Dana, from Argentina...but she's of Italian decent, so she pretty much looks like a gringo, too! But she doesn't speak any English. I also got to see Hermana Wilson again, and that was awesome! I totally miss that girl.

Anyway, I learned a lot that day. First of all, I am so grateful for my casa in La Florida....the shower in San Clemente is a tube coming out of the wall that either freezes you to death or bathes you in fire. It is conveniently located next to a giant hole in the wall, for those days when you just crave the feeling of having spiders crawling up your legs.

The people there have very little. (At least in the parts we worked in that day.) One woman in particular has a lot of problems in her life. Her mother was molested, and she is the child. Her father would hit her in the eyes when she was young, so she can only see shapes of things in front of her. She has two children with one man, and another man on the side (which the children do not know, but their father does, and he's totally fine with it...?) My heart absolutely breaks for her. Absolutely. Hermana Dana told me that she believes everything they have taught her, but she refuses to pray to know if Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. They have asked her many times to do this, and she flat out refuses. She can't read, but she really likes when they read the Book of Mormon to her. When we visited her, we asked her to say the closing prayer. She didn't want to. I reminded her that she is a child of God, and because of this, it doesn't matter if her prayer is perfect, because God only wants to hear from her. Then Hermana Dana shared a really great scripture...I'm awful, because I don't remember what it was...I don't speak Spanish, okay?...but the spirit was strong, and this seemed to change her attitude a bit. She prayed. It was simple, but it was sincere. Ugh...my heart was broken when we left.

(Side note: As we were leaving, she said that I was really skinny. I was feeling pretty good as we walked away, and then I remembered that she's almost blind...) (But serioiusly, Hermana Pineda and Hermana Contreras always tell me I'm getting fat. It's not an insult, it's just a fact here.) (By the way, I am not getting fat.)

Oh! Another thing! Yeah, people are super weird about compliments here. All the time, I tell people "oh wow, thanks so much for this food, it's so good! It's delicious!" and all they say is "que bueno." (how good.) They never say thank you. Actually, usually they don't even say anything! So weird! BUT THEN they have absolutely NO problem ASKING for compliments! They'll say, "is the food I made good?" or "do I look good today?" The other day, Hermana Bokovoy, Pineda, Contreras and I sang together during our Zone Conference...and afterwards, Hermanas Pineda and Contreras were asking every single person if they liked our song! Super weird. Hmm.

Anyway, after my mini-cambio, I returned to La Florida...to find that our study room had been converted into a room of quarintine for Hermana Rodriguez...because she developed tuberculosis. Yikes!! All of our things had to be moved out while I was gone, and she is not allowed to leave that room except to use the bathroom...for three weeks! I feel so awful for her. But I'm disinfecting like nobodies business. (Mom, you would be proud.)

AND THE WORST PART IS THAT ALL THREE OF US LIVING WITH HER NEED TO BE TESTED AND YEAH THAT MEANS THAT I NEED TO GET MY BLOOD DRAWN AND IM NOT EVEN A LITTLE BIT EXCITED ABOUT THAT RIGHT NOW HOLY COW IM ACTUALLY FREAKING OUT LIKE I MIGHT BE A LITTLE UNBALANCED MENTALLY WHEN I THINK ABOUT THIS so thats the worst news ever.

BUT this means that none of us are leaving next transfer! Wahoo! I'm so happy, because I feel like I have so much left to do here, and so much left to learn from Hermana Pineda! We'll have to do a lot of switching around, because Hermana Rodriguez can't be left alone in the casa, but the three of us are pretty much a companionship of three right now.

But let's look at the miracle here. Our casa is definitely one of the bigger/nicer casas in the mission. It is also next to a hospital. If Hermana Bokovoy hadn't needed to be switched with Hermana Rodriguez, Hermana Rodriguez wouldn't have come here. But because we have this casa, we had space enough to house someone who needed to be quarantined. And we have that hospital so close!

You guys...God is real. I know it. I know he's involved in EVERYTHING...in everyone's lives. Not just us. I know that he has a hand in everything we do. How can you not believe in a god? How can you believe that everything is a coincidence? How can you hold a newborn baby in your arms and not have the feeling that they came from somewhere, and from someone? I know that God exists. I know that Jesus Christ is his son, and that He loves all of us so much, regardless of the paths we choose or what we believe. That's His unconditional love.

I love you guys! Dang I love you guys! Don't forget to pray every day, and read the Book of Mormon! Enserio!

Love, Hermana Thomas.

PS: as for my animal story of the week...I first-hand witnessed a two-year-old kid scissor-kick a kitten in the face yesterday. Enjoy.