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
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