Week 13

Hola Amigos

Wow time just flies, I cannot believe I have already completed my first transfer in the mission field! Only like...10 more of these and I will be coming home! I cannot even imagine what that will be like! My official go home date is the 18 of May 2011, which sounds soooo far away, but when I think of it in transfers it seems like no time at all because this transfer went by so fast, and apparently they keep going faster! We really got the work going in our area and finally have some solid investigators, 3 baptismal dates for this month, woot woot, and I just love being in this area. Transfer calls came on saturday, and the whole week everyone has been trying to guess who will get transferred and where everyone is going, it was really fun to witness. I had no clue where people are going since I am still a greenie and don't know anyone or the areas or nada. Everyone in my district said that I would be getting transferred because I don't need my trainer anymore...psh who knows where they got that idea, I still have a long way to go in the language! BUT, thank goodness, I get to stay! Hermana Blanco and I both are staying in the Fairbanks area, and since she only has two transfers left in the mission, it has been speculated that we will both stay here the next two transfers and I will be her last companion (in the mission the term is that I am going to "kill" her, since I will be her last companion in the mission). There is lots of funny terminology in the mission, for example, your trainer is called your "mom", so for funsies I always call Hermana Blanco "mom", the Elders think it's pretty funny. I am really hoping that I will get to "kill" Hermana Blanco and then stay in Fairbanks and train. I am pretty sure my spanish will be good enough by then, and the other stuff is easy-peasy, so hopefully I will get an "hija" (daughter) after I "kill" Hermana Blanco, haha.

I am still adjusting to the hispanic food. This week we ate at a members house and they served us "mole" (it is pronounced mo-lay). Hermana Blanco said it is chicken covered in a spicy chocolate sauce and when I heard that I imagined eating a chicken drumstick that was dipped in chocolate, yuck. But, once they brought it out it looked like normal chicken and it actually wasn't bad at all! I won't say I would choose to eat it again but it didn't really taste chocolatey and wasn't too bad. It was much better than the pupusas we had the other week, blah. I am starting to really enjoy tamales, weird haha.

This saturday we worked the Pulga again, but this time I loved it! I got to speak so much spanish and talk to people all day long! After being there for about 4 hours, we were able to get 37 referrals! Meaning, we were able to talk to 37 people who wanted to learn more and wrote down their addresses and phone numbers so that the missionaries could come teach them. It was awesome. The first person I talked to yelled at me and said some bad stuf about Joseph Smith so I just said..."um...tenga un buen dia!" haha. Angry people don't really bother me, if there wasn't any opposition to our message I would be more concerned. In the Bible it says a lot about the members of the true church being persecuted, so when it happens to me I just smile and am grateful to be in the true church haha. I had a really great experience at the Pulga! I was at the table helping someone fill our their information when this older man came up the me and said, "hay una luz en sus ojos," there is a light in my eyes, and he said he needed to know what it is we are selling. I told him what we offer is free and explained to him about the restoration of the true church through a prophet and he got so excited! He said that sounded beautiful and then I wrote down his info so the missionaries could go teach him. He thanked me several times and said he was excited to learn more about this beautiful message. I really had to hold back the tears at this point, I felt so touched to have met someone so prepared to learn and accept the gospel! I also felt so grateful that I all the work I am putting in to be a faithful servant of the Lord is paying off. It says in the Book of Mormon that we should have the light of the Savior in our countenance, and I am so grateful that that light is shining in my eyes as I share the exciting news of the restoration of Christ's church.

Spanish is going good, most of the time. I have been analyzing lately and have come to realize that my spanish is really good when I am talking to investigators or people on the street or whatever, but when I try to speak spanish with other missionaries or the members, I sound pretty stupid and it's as if a spanish switch has been flipped and I no longer have the ability to speak. When I was set apart as a missionary I was blessed with the gift of tongues in my ability to speak and understand the spanish language. I am starting to think that the gift of tongues only applies when it is absolutely necessary that I speak, like when I am teaching. I have been frustrated with this "spanish switch" but now I realize I should be so grateful that I have been blessed so much with the ability to speak spanish when it is necessary and when it is the Lord's will. I love spanish and am pretty sure that once I am fluent I will just never speak english again haha, ingles es muy feo!

Jaime is doing really well in preparing for his baptism. We wanted to do it this upcoming sunday BUT he needs to get married first to the woman he lives with and has two children with, in order to be keeping the law of chastity. He said that they would get married, but he has to get a divorce from his previous spouse first. This is the hard part because he doesn't know where she is exactly, so we are going to try and find some help for him, the houston temple president is a lawyer so we are going to call him and see what we should do. Jaime is so excited to be baptized, he loved church yesterday and asks questions and makes comments in all of the classes. We go to his house and teach him every night at 8 and I feel like he teaches the lessons more than we do! He knows so much! He loves to read and study, so he reads a lot in the Book of Mormon everyday and then all sorts of others books. I really want to be able to give him some more materials to study, but I am poor haha. This is where y'all come in. I am requesting that all who read my e-mails, if you ever come across a Jesus the Christ, Mormon Doctrine, or Triple combination with the Pearl of Great Price and Doctrine and Covenants, IN SPANISH, please send it to me and I will pay you back. I can't afford a bunch of new books so don't go to Deseret and buy new books, BUT if you are at DI or come across some used church books in spanish it would be greatly greatly appreciated! Jaime will love you forever and so will I, haha.

Well, gotta run! I love you all and am so grateful for all your love and support!

Hermana Taets