How I've missed you all this week.
I can't believe that's one Christmas down...and maybe only one more to
go! (Who knows when I'll be home...) It was a little sad to think that
the family was at home in a temperature other than scorching, with a big
ol' tree and a reason to drink hot chocolate...but then again...I'M IN
CHILE. And when I remembered that, everything was good again.
Really, this Christmas was one to remember. We
didn't really do much...first of all, we really did have a Christmas
miracle. Hermana Kenney and I woke up to a "white" Christmas--every day
up until the 25th had been absolutely smoldering with heat in the
mornings, but that morning the entire sky was white with cloud-cover,
and it was nice and cool outside! No one was in the streets. Everything
was quiet. We baked cupcakes for the people we'd visit that day, then we
decorated them, had a little devotional as a zone, went and ate some
delicious food...then I talked with my FAMILY! THAT WAS AWESOME. Hey I
miss you guys! That might have been the shortest hour of my life. But it
was so fun to see you! And I agree, my mission-timing is perfect...I'll
get to talk to you again at about my year-mark, and by next Christmas,
I'll practically be home! That is so weird to think about. I don't want
to think about that.
This week was really, really awesome. Hermana Kenney
and I worked so hard, and it really paid off. I know the Lord had a
huge hand in our work! Tuesday was probably my favorite day. We went out
to this little campo-part of our sector, Olivar. (I think I've talked
about this place before. It's pretty golden with people wanting to
listen to and learn about the gospel.) Anyway, we decided to try a
specific prayer that day. We decided that we wanted to find a family of
five who where waiting for the gospel and that they'd have a way to get
to church. (Olivar is super far from our chapel.) Anyway, we promised
that we'd contact two streets, and literally talk to EVERYONE we saw,
and invite all of them to church and ask if they'd ever heard of or seen
a Book of Mormon (something practically unheard of in this town.) If
they said they owned a Book of Mormon, that would be the way we'd
recognize that this was the family we'd prayed for.
Things got crazy pretty fast. Before we prayed our
specific prayer, there was hardly anyone in this street...but as soon as
we said amen, people flooded it! I swear, it was like people started
just dropping out of the sky! But we'd made a promise to contact
EVERYONE we saw......! So....we did! There were times when two or more
people were walking in different directions, and without seeming too
desparate, we basically had to chase after them individually to contact
them. There was one point when I thought Hermana Kenney was going to eat
it running after this guy on a bike. Anyway, we contacted, contacted,
contacted, taught a few lessons...but no one had ever seen un Libro de
Mormòn! But we kept going, going, going...and then we contacted this
lady with her kid, and they seemed a little...grumpy...but we asked her
if she'd ever seen a Book of Mormon, and she said, "¡si! ¡tengo uno en
mi casa!" Well, we were pretty shocked. But she told us we should visit
her another day because she was leaving, so she asked for our number
(yes, she asked for OUR number first,) and then we got her number...and
we're going to visit her the next time we go up!
That was really cool, because we really felt like
instruments in the Lord's hands. Maybe she might not be the exact answer
to our prayers, but we have seen the Lord's blessings poured upon us
every day since then. First of all, it really changed the way we contact
with people--we've been a lot more creative and sincere when we talk to
people in the streets every day after that. We also proved to ourselves
that we can work really hard and not burn out, and that at the end of
the day, we feel SO GOOD. Being a missionary is great.
We're going to keep it up this next week! I know we just need to keep depending on the Lord and working our hardest.
WHICH
REMINDS ME...YAY! I GET TO STAY WITH HERMANA KENNEY! We are so psyched,
because we both had a feeling that we were going to get switched...I
don't know why. But I am so excited, because Hermana Kenney is such a
hard worker, and we laugh together and work together really great. We
also got two more sisters to come live with us...Hermana Gonzales and
Hermana Villareal, both Latinos! So I'm hoping my spanish wont suffer
too much...
Side-note: this morning, Hermana Kenney said that
when she doesn't brush her teeth soon enough in the morning, her teeth
feel like they have "little sweaters on them." So...this is my
companion. I laughed for a good five minutes.
All our investigators are progressing well! We had
all three of our people with fechas in church this week, which was a
miracle! Maria Elizabeth is still good for the eleventh of January!
(HOLY COW. JANUARY?!? How is it almost January?!?!?)
You guys! I love being a missionary! I really do.
Although I still think of home and how fun it will be to see everyone
again, every day I feel that feeling a little more...that feeling that
missionaries always talk about, how they don't want to go home by the
end? That feeling. It just keeps growing.
I love you all with all my heart. Keep reading and
praying and writing me because i LOVE GETTING YOUR LETTERS so much.
Also, of course Taylor won that Ticket to Ride tournament. Come on,
guys. We had a good to years prep for that. What happened.
I LOVE YOU.
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR. I'M SERIOUS.
Love, Hermana Thomas!
