...not anymore. I like them.
Anyways.
Yeah. Stepped on a
snail. But Hermana Pineda has stepped on three so far, so once again, I
am counting my blessings. (I keep track of things like that. So far,
she has tripped 20 times. I've only tripped 6 times. Raise the roof.)
Hermana Pineda continues to crack me up. I have
taught her a few phrases in English, one of which is "I know where you
live." The other day, the power went out, and while I was trying to get
the lights back on, Hermana Pineda crept up behind me with a
flashlight on her face and said, "you know where you live!!" I laughed
for a pretty long time, but she didn't know that she'd made an error for
another ten minutes. Then we laughed again. I love her!!
Erinnn guess whatttt you're never going to believe
this. No one has told you this before. This is the very first time you
are hearing this...everyone here knows our songs! Your song is actually
on our phones. So did you know that you're famous?
Well, for those of you unfamiliar with the Chilean
customs, the 18th of September is their independence day. And it is kind
of a big deal. It's really hard to make appointments, because people
keep saying, "well, this week is pretty hard."
You mean there's not ONE hour you have in SEVEN days that MIGHT be available?
Sounds
crazy? Well, it's life. Because it's TRUE--these guys party it up down
here! On the calender, there are three days reserved for celebrating
independence day. And people eat food and dance and I don't even know
what else...but I'm excited to find out! Members keep asking us what our
plans are for these days as missionaries. We always say, "to work!" And
then the members laugh in our faces and tell us that literally no one
in Chile is going to listen to us for this entire week. Encouraging.
But! I have faith that this week is going to be
great for working! Woohoo! (Oh, also, I can't tell if people are messing
with me or what...maybe Taylor can help me out with this one. Is is
actually true that if you don't have a Chilean flag outside your house
for these next few days, you get fined?? We have one, and it's out, but I
couldn't tell if it was a joke or not. I've been told that sarcasm
doesn't really exsist in Spanish, but this can't be true.)
Every day, my love for these people in Chile grows.
They really are a very friendly people. They all greet each other with
kisses on the cheek, and hug and hold hands and laugh, and I really just
love them. Don't know what they're saying half the time, but I love
'em.
Some of these people...are a little odd, though.
There's this one church...dah, I don't remember what they are called.
But there are quite a few of them in Talca, and you always know when
you're talking to one of them, because they'll say something super,
super, super odd. One guy asked us, in a very chipper and flamboyant
way, what the vision was of our church. We were a little confused by
this question, but tried to explain the purpose of the gospel of Jesus
Christ. He cut us off, and said, "si, si, si...pero...¿què es la VISIÒN
de su iglesia?" We asked if he was talking about the first vision...?
Then he politely handed us back our pamphlet and said something I didn't
understand, and with a smile, closed his door. Even Hermana Pineda
didn't understand much of what he said.
The other day, we met another woman from this church
on the street. We were trapped for nearly a half an hour listening to
her tell us our spiritual gifts. She said that she could sense that
Hermana Pineda and I complemented each other as companions, because
Hermana Pineda was the seer, and I was the prophetess. Then she
demonstrated for us a scenario we might face, where the two of us are
walking down the street, and all of the sudden, Hermana Pineda freezes
and says, "oh...I sense something." (Mind you, this is all being acted
out right in front of us by this lady. Very dramatically.) Then we
follow Hermana Pineda's spiritual sense to a person on the street, and I
bend down and speak super biblical...I don't even know. I don't know.
I could hardly understand anything. At one point, this lady asked me
for a scripture from the Bible. I was really confused, but I gave her 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, and she just stared at me and said, "wow. You just
had a revelation for me." It was just super super weird.
And people think Mormons are odd??
BUT it was really funny, and in summary, I love the people here! Weird or not weird!
The
weather here has been absolutely freezing for the most part, but every
day it is getting warmer...I think...maybe it's just wishful thinking.
It probably feels worse than it is because we don't have indoor heating!
("Tengo frio" is one of my most used phrases...it means "I have cold," I
think. Kind of weird to translate, but in spanish, a lot of things are
like that...like, you're not "hungry," it's "I have hunger" (tengo
hambre.) It's something I've had to get used to.)
We have three new investigators! They are great.
I've learned that when you really try to talk with EVERYONE you meet
about the gospel, the Lord begins to trust you more, and puts people in
your path that are prepared to hear! But when you're nervous about
sharing the gospel, it seems like everyone you speak with doesn't have
time, or doesn't want to listen, etc. It's easy for me to feel nervous,
because I don't speak the language very well!
But always always ALWAYS trust in the Lord! That's a
huge lesson that everyone needs to learn. If you believe in a God, why
not trust in him? If you believe he's great, why not trust in him? If
you believe he is loving, why not trust in him? He can do anything! And
we can do anything through him. I don't have my scriptures right now,
but in Alma...maybe chapter 23?...anyway, it's that great scripture
where Ammon declares that he will boast of his God, because he can do
all things through him! It's becoming a theme for me right now in my
life, because...hello?! It's only logical that if I have this incredibly
firm belief that God is there, he's my father in Heaven, he loves me
and knows what's best for me, and I'm doing his will...why am I nervous
at all? It doesn't matter that I don't speak the language! This gospel
isn't a language, it's a feeling. It's peace and love and a relationship
with the Lord. I don't have to speak the same language to teach this
gospel.
I love you guys so much. I can't believe I've been
here as long as I have! I can't wait to keep growing. I feel your
prayers for me, strengthening me every day!
Keep praying, keep reading, keep going to church! Share the gospel a little more for me!
I LOVE YOU LOVE YOU LOVE YOU,
Hermana Thomas
She sounds so... "Kenna" - happy, positive, and strong:) She sound great!
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