Hey Mom and Dad,
Thanks for forwarding Matt's little message. He's an Elder! Boys write funny letters home. Maybe mine are too long? My health is great, even though Hermana Bartholomew has been battling a cold all weekend. I have been taking my vitamins, so I don't think I'll catch whatever she has. I went to the mission office just after doing internet last week and got the best surprise ever! Thank you for the cookie package. There have never been cookies that tasted so good. And thank you for your notes and the pumpkin pictures and the pictures of the goings-on.
I still haven't heard how we are supposed to do the phone call home for Christmas. I imagine it is just when we decide to call. I don't know if it is possible to talk with Matto at the same time, or if you want to do that, because of time constraints? Hermana Bartholomew said that last year they just bought phone cards and went to a members house. I don't really know anything, let's be honest.
But, we are doing good, just pulling for some baptisms and new people to teach.
This week flew by and I've been trying to think of something interesting to share, but it just blew past me and I don't know what's cool. Except for that I'm writing from an Internet cafe and peluqueria shop. That's cool. Here're some thoughts:
1. I get to have springtime and you have to have winter.
2. Transfers are next week, but Hermana Bartholomew and I are pretty positive we will stick together for the holidays. We even have a Christmas tree.
3. The room dedicated to the area book went through a dramatic cleansing as we put each teaching record in its color coordinated section of the binder. It's well organized AND we can see the floor of the room.
4. The floor of the room was covered in black hair. I vacuumed twice. Two times.
5. I finally talked Hermana Bartholomew into liking arroz con leche. Very important for Friday morning planning sessions.
6. After reactivating our ward leader mission leader, he asked to be released and we got a new one (an active one)! Hermano Muñoz. His son Alejandro just went to the MTC in Santiago, so he is full of the missionary spirit. We know that this is an answer to many prayers.
7. It is really great to be working with the inactive members, but sometimes, like this week, we spent a lot of time trying to find their addresses and not very much time teaching. Those we have been teaching continue to not show up for Sacrament Meeting.
8. Something cool about Machali is that the farmers have horses and carts that they drive around on the streets sometimes. But the carts are cool looking. They are all wood with HUGE rubber tires. I'll have to take a picture.
9. I have tried to attach photos every week for four weeks, but the computers are not as friendly as you might think and I can never do it. Maybe next week.
10. Things with Rodrigo and Isabel are incredible. They came to church again this week and Loved it (capital L for enthusiasm). They feel good about their baptism next week and know that it is a commitment for their lives. Really, golden.
After the gospel principles class yesterday Isabel started to cry a little bit because her back has been bugging her and the walk to the chapel didn't help too much (30 minutes). We talked about going to the medical center or taking some medicine, but because of their healthcare system it is impossible to get immediate, not really expensive, care. We explained the possibility of a priesthood blessing and she said she wanted one. Our mission leader stepped right up and helped us. It was a new experience and after a little rest and an after church visit she was feeling a little bit better.
The blessings of the gospel are incredible.
Also, she and Rodrigo are incredible. They really don't have very much- at all. But they gave us a little bag full of farm-fresh eggs from their chickens before we left. They are incredible. Rodrigo is by far the most responsible, mature 15 year old I have ever, ever met. It's just he and his mom and he just helps take care of the house and gets his homeworks done.
Thank you for your prayers and support and letters and love. Remember to study and take 10 minutes to listen to the promptings of the Spirit in your life. Every Good thing we do (capital G like the 13th article of Faith) (Thanks Emily Cutler) leads us closer to the Savior.
Emily Cutler, I loved your talk. I read it twice and a half. I like how you explained leaning on our own understanding versus asking help from someone who knows much better. And how even though we make mistakes we can learn from them, fix some of them, and avoid making the same mistakes again. As soon as you can, let me or my mom know your mission home address. Mine is
German Riesko 230 Ste 703
Classificador 2 C Rancagua
Chile
And, Pouch doesn't exist in my mission anymore. I don't know about the rest of the world, but we have to buy stamps. Love you Em, you'll do SO great. But, write me next week too, before you ship off.
Camille,
That is the mission office address for your use as well. I'm so glad to hear about your thoughts on Faith Hope and Charity. There are so many simple things that we should focus on like hope and faith that often, we set aside to look for deeper complexities, but in general, I don't think we understand the basics. Kierkegaard says that only Abraham had Faith, no one else in history has had Faith. I don't know if I'd go that extreme, but it's interesting. Plus, I know how you like philosophy . . . couldn't help it. The pictures are fantastic! haha. What are you going to do with all your free time now? Love you. For realsies.
BenGaines,
Something exciting and scary! That's awesome! And congrats on finishing your semester! Wow, that went by pretty fast, didn't it. Really fast. And now you have all the time you need to chill out with the family (and read PMG) I'm currently studying Chapter 5. I like the study boxes that say what does the Bible say about the Book of Mormon and viceversa.
I haven't heard too much about the Perpetual Education Fund. I know it exists here, but I haven't met anyone who has talked much about it. Just one member, but he didn't use it, he was talking about someone else. But I don't remember. I'll keep my ear open.
Toni,
I would like two blow up book shelves please. No, really, I don't need anything. I want to see video of the kids and maybe a new CD of churchy-type music or something. Bubble Spinner !>!> That's awesome. And also, I love your emails. Tell Lizzie to not break her knee. It's not going to help her in any manner. Did she have surgery? Ugh . . . it gives me the cold willy chills.
Jan,
HOORAY! I'm so happy for you. Not to make you feel bad or anything, but your email was the most interesting, scattered thing I have ever read. I could almost feel your stress, I think. Ben has to stay in Texas? Lame. I want Pumpkin creamy cake thing. . . and camping. It's good camping weather here. Come on down! Please take lots of pictures and video while you are all together. I love you, and good luck with the travels.
Jethro,
How are your classes and your life and your house and your wife? Good luck with the mudanza! Sorry I can't be there to help you.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Monday, November 2, 2009
'allo
Did you just say Hello?
No, I said 'allo, but that's close enough.
Greetings gouls and goblins! Man, is it weird to try and teach the gospel door to door on Halloween. Between us and the princesses, cavemen and Jehovah's Witnesses the neighborhood was chuck full of people Saturday. Here's the low-down:
1. We have come up with a system to register every house we knock so that we can, eventually, contact everyone in the neighborhoods close to the church where we are working.
2. This means that we often go back to the same dozen or so streets for return appointments and to re-knock the doors where no one answered.
3. This also means that a lot of people see us over and over again everyday.
4. Because of this, sometimes they stop us to talk to us about what we are doing, or why we are always around.
5. Two of these people, we met in different circumstances. The mom, Isabel, we met two or three times in the street and her son, Rodrigo, is friends with Leo, the son of Paolo y Evalyn and was in a lesson with us one time.
6. After an awkward encounter in the entrance to their street they invited us in (as Hermana Bartholomew and I racked our brains trying to remember who they are and why we recognized them)
7. They are INCREDIBLE. Absolutely incredible. in 2007 the husband ditched out and took EVERYTHING, leaving Isabel with the house (it is hers, she bought it) and the youngest child of three. Rodrigo is 15, but the youngest. She has been working like crazy to rebuild her home and provide for Rodrigo for the past 2.5ish years and is amazing. I just love her.
8. The thing that really makes me impressed about them is that the father still comes to visit once in a while, and she lets him come into the house and she serves him dinner/once as Rodrigo and he talk about soccer. She serves him once! She is a much better person than I.
9. They LOVE learning about the gospel and having us teach things. They went to church yesterday and LOVED it. They sat with Paolo, Leo, Evalyn and Ignacio, everyone in the ward greeted them very warmly and they felt so welcomed. Miracles. They are, as missionaries say, golden.
10. More to come about this family next week.
Sometimes, in Chile, children go trick or treating on Halloween, but instead of saying trick or treat they say candy or garbage. A lot of eggs were thrown Saturday night. All in good fun.
We had a great Halloween activity with the ward and a family of our investigators came (after we left for the house) and had a great ol'time with the members. (About 8 people in the ward dressed as cavemen.)
What else is cool? No more fleas! Also, I took Bret's advice and went on a spider killing safari in our house. We have so many spiders. Ugh. I almost throw up when I see them. So we bought some spider spray and tracked them down. Suckers.
Oh! We finished our project of putting all of the ward member list into sectors. When we gave it to the bishop he was really surprised and super happy that we put it together. He said he always wanted to do it, but never had the time. Hopefully he will be able to put families that live close together in teams or something so that they can have family home evenings etc together. And so they can take better care of all their inactive neighbors.
The work goes forth. Thank you for all of your prayers and support and for everything that you are doing that is good. Remember to not do bad things and that when you do, you can change.
Love love
Hermana Gillespie
Camille, sorry I didn't answer your question last week. Sundays are like this: Wake up, get ready, study, go look for the investigators who said they would come to church with you this week, show up to church just before the meetings begin empty-handed, enjoy sacrament meeting (if they don't make you play the piano), go to Principles of the Gospel with your investigators or recent converts and try to answer questions and help the teacher, go to relief society and relax a bit. Then, after church, there are so many people you need to talk to, but you can't ever talk to them all because you have to make sure you always say hello to everyone (because it's offensive if you don't) and try to have a meeting with the mission leader and the bishop and make sure we have lunch everyday and someone to wash our clothes. AND make it to lunch on time (because it's offensive if you don't). Then, at 3;30 maybe you have appointments, but maybe not, so you make contacts and tract and try to reach all of the people who didn't show up for church and all the less-active families that have goals to return to the church. Then, try to complete all the weekly goals at the last minute (mostly contacting new people) And then at 9:30 you go home and plan P-DAY! Sundays are long days. More stressful than normal life Sundays.
Congrats on the California shows and for turning in your application on time!!! When will you hear back from them? Keep me posted. Love you so much. And, I'm definitely in for Sunday's activity. Also, let me know when Sam gets his call!
Bengaines,
That's super exciting that you are done (basically) with classes and everything. The next time you write me you will have ZERO studying to do (except in Preach my Gospel). Hoorays!
And you basically have an office. You are shimmying right up that executive pole. Good work. Are you still working with some of your Omniture buddies, or is it really different now? Do you have to wear red ties? Bow ties?
As far as carepackage type things go . . . I really, honestly, don't need anything. I would LOVE to see pictures or videos of you guys and Anna's tricks. Can you send me a DVD of awesome footage? That's what I want for Christmas.
Jethro,
YOU ALMOST HAVE A HOUSE! That's super weird. I'm very happy for you and for the blessings you have been receiving. Very happy. Are you going to make the basement an art studio? With a potter's wheel and color wheel . . . Robyn says I can live with you. Hope that's okay.
Jan,
YOU HAVE A DOG?! That's so cool! Jessie is a good name. I'm glad you didn't dress her up for Halloween, dog clothes are awkward. Is she a puppy, then, if she is just as tall as Eva? Keep her away from fleas. That's the worst. Love you.
No, I said 'allo, but that's close enough.
Greetings gouls and goblins! Man, is it weird to try and teach the gospel door to door on Halloween. Between us and the princesses, cavemen and Jehovah's Witnesses the neighborhood was chuck full of people Saturday. Here's the low-down:
1. We have come up with a system to register every house we knock so that we can, eventually, contact everyone in the neighborhoods close to the church where we are working.
2. This means that we often go back to the same dozen or so streets for return appointments and to re-knock the doors where no one answered.
3. This also means that a lot of people see us over and over again everyday.
4. Because of this, sometimes they stop us to talk to us about what we are doing, or why we are always around.
5. Two of these people, we met in different circumstances. The mom, Isabel, we met two or three times in the street and her son, Rodrigo, is friends with Leo, the son of Paolo y Evalyn and was in a lesson with us one time.
6. After an awkward encounter in the entrance to their street they invited us in (as Hermana Bartholomew and I racked our brains trying to remember who they are and why we recognized them)
7. They are INCREDIBLE. Absolutely incredible. in 2007 the husband ditched out and took EVERYTHING, leaving Isabel with the house (it is hers, she bought it) and the youngest child of three. Rodrigo is 15, but the youngest. She has been working like crazy to rebuild her home and provide for Rodrigo for the past 2.5ish years and is amazing. I just love her.
8. The thing that really makes me impressed about them is that the father still comes to visit once in a while, and she lets him come into the house and she serves him dinner/once as Rodrigo and he talk about soccer. She serves him once! She is a much better person than I.
9. They LOVE learning about the gospel and having us teach things. They went to church yesterday and LOVED it. They sat with Paolo, Leo, Evalyn and Ignacio, everyone in the ward greeted them very warmly and they felt so welcomed. Miracles. They are, as missionaries say, golden.
10. More to come about this family next week.
Sometimes, in Chile, children go trick or treating on Halloween, but instead of saying trick or treat they say candy or garbage. A lot of eggs were thrown Saturday night. All in good fun.
We had a great Halloween activity with the ward and a family of our investigators came (after we left for the house) and had a great ol'time with the members. (About 8 people in the ward dressed as cavemen.)
What else is cool? No more fleas! Also, I took Bret's advice and went on a spider killing safari in our house. We have so many spiders. Ugh. I almost throw up when I see them. So we bought some spider spray and tracked them down. Suckers.
Oh! We finished our project of putting all of the ward member list into sectors. When we gave it to the bishop he was really surprised and super happy that we put it together. He said he always wanted to do it, but never had the time. Hopefully he will be able to put families that live close together in teams or something so that they can have family home evenings etc together. And so they can take better care of all their inactive neighbors.
The work goes forth. Thank you for all of your prayers and support and for everything that you are doing that is good. Remember to not do bad things and that when you do, you can change.
Love love
Hermana Gillespie
Camille, sorry I didn't answer your question last week. Sundays are like this: Wake up, get ready, study, go look for the investigators who said they would come to church with you this week, show up to church just before the meetings begin empty-handed, enjoy sacrament meeting (if they don't make you play the piano), go to Principles of the Gospel with your investigators or recent converts and try to answer questions and help the teacher, go to relief society and relax a bit. Then, after church, there are so many people you need to talk to, but you can't ever talk to them all because you have to make sure you always say hello to everyone (because it's offensive if you don't) and try to have a meeting with the mission leader and the bishop and make sure we have lunch everyday and someone to wash our clothes. AND make it to lunch on time (because it's offensive if you don't). Then, at 3;30 maybe you have appointments, but maybe not, so you make contacts and tract and try to reach all of the people who didn't show up for church and all the less-active families that have goals to return to the church. Then, try to complete all the weekly goals at the last minute (mostly contacting new people) And then at 9:30 you go home and plan P-DAY! Sundays are long days. More stressful than normal life Sundays.
Congrats on the California shows and for turning in your application on time!!! When will you hear back from them? Keep me posted. Love you so much. And, I'm definitely in for Sunday's activity. Also, let me know when Sam gets his call!
Bengaines,
That's super exciting that you are done (basically) with classes and everything. The next time you write me you will have ZERO studying to do (except in Preach my Gospel). Hoorays!
And you basically have an office. You are shimmying right up that executive pole. Good work. Are you still working with some of your Omniture buddies, or is it really different now? Do you have to wear red ties? Bow ties?
As far as carepackage type things go . . . I really, honestly, don't need anything. I would LOVE to see pictures or videos of you guys and Anna's tricks. Can you send me a DVD of awesome footage? That's what I want for Christmas.
Jethro,
YOU ALMOST HAVE A HOUSE! That's super weird. I'm very happy for you and for the blessings you have been receiving. Very happy. Are you going to make the basement an art studio? With a potter's wheel and color wheel . . . Robyn says I can live with you. Hope that's okay.
Jan,
YOU HAVE A DOG?! That's so cool! Jessie is a good name. I'm glad you didn't dress her up for Halloween, dog clothes are awkward. Is she a puppy, then, if she is just as tall as Eva? Keep her away from fleas. That's the worst. Love you.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Pulgas
A Dònde lo he visto po loco!?
Howdy there folks, I hope all is well on your side of the equator and that everyone is having a great time with mid-terms and finals. . . ha!
1. Villa Teniente was far more dangerous than Machali, but we have had many more experiences with drunkards here than in the city.
2. One guy passed us yesterday with a big bottle of beer in his hand and yelled "it's not a sin!" to us.
3. Drunk people breath is the worst. The. Worst.
4. We had an unusual lesson with a lady who told us that Christ couldn't have received an infant baptism because John the Baptist was his same age and he couldn't have performed the ordinance as an infant himself. Sad that people are so convinced of their confused doctrines.
5. Our work with the list of members is continuing on slowly. We are still finding new people, but no one knows a lot of the members we have recorded.
6. In talking with Hermana Miranda and Hermana Leon (long time members of Machali) we are learning about how the missionaries worked before. Their directions from the area presidency was to baptize anyone who wanted to be baptized.
7. This resulted in a lot of youth who were friends with the missionaries to get baptized without the support of their parents. Even thought the wards tried to fellowship them all, there are many, many, many who went to church a few times and then never went back.
8. I'm so grateful for all the standards we have as a mission. Each of the people we teach must understand the basics of the gospel, attend church meetings three weeks and live the word of wisdom and law of chastity for at least 2 weeks before their baptism. It makes for stronger, more faithful, better informed converts.
9. We had a sister's conference today. It is so fun to be around the other hermanas. We are 22 in total. I like that. Except more girls should serve missions so we can open more areas here.
10. Paolo and Ignacio got baptized yesterday!!!
It was the least I have had to do for a baptism service so far. The ward here is incredible and took care of everything, we just had to hand of the white clothes. AND something cool, a tender mercy of sorts, is that Paolo's wife is Marianela's (from Villa Teniente) sister! So Marianela and Coni and Catalina came for the service! Oh, it was SO GOOD to see them. And it sounds like they are doing really well in the branch and continue to be very active and amazing. I love that. And now they have more support with Evalyn and Paolo in the church too. Hooray!
The Hermana's conference was really great. We each had a "question of the soul" from Preach My Gospel and had to come up with a short lesson plan to answer the doubt. It was really interesting and we all gained a lot of ideas as we discussed. Preach My Gospel is really incredible. It should be used in FHE. Also, Hermana Resek (mission president's wife) gave a short lesson on the importance of women in the church with understanding and testimony of the gospel. That we need both and that we have both the capability and the capacity to become much stronger and much more prepared than we currently are.
On a slightly less awesome note, Hermana Bartholomew has pulgas (fleas?) so that's lame and hopefully they will stay away from me. I share my diotenacious earth, mom, don't worry. Thanks for helping me avoid icky bugs and for helping my companion be ¨flea-free 2009¨ (our current motto though it doesn't rhyme. I'm very proud of myself for knowing how to spell rhyme after all of this time not speaking English)
I love you all and hope you are keeping up with your home and visiting teaching and your 10 minutes of reflexioning time.
Thad, you should do what Jethro did and start working at the temple. It's not exactly the place to meet girls, but you might find some more inspiration there. After you graduate you should find an awesome job that pays you a lot of money until I get home and then we can go on a trip! I tried to attach a photo for your contest, but the computer doesn't recognize my camera and it makes me really frustrated. Because I took a doosey of an almond flower.
Robyn, I love the pictures and how you described Linc filling Soph in on his day. That's the sweetest. And rolling! We should all take a good roll every now and then. Maybe not down the stairs. . . but. . . whatever floats your boat. The house looks fantastic! I can't believe they did all of that in like 2 weeks! It's incredible. You will be house owners! I hope there is room for a garden :)
Jethro, there is a giant picture of my face in the house? That's awkward. Maybe you could buy some candles and incense and a little table to put in front of it? Grow your beard!!! How are your classes? Do you get to take philosophy classes too, or just teaching classes? I guess they're similar. Send me a good thought you are working on.
Mille, I'm so, so happy for you. Sounds like you are a real grown-up mediating and working and going to school and preparing for GRAD SCHOOL? Weird. Super, super weird. Does your mom have visiting teachers? They are the people who should do the work of the Lord in visiting and taking care of His children. Maybe you can keep in contact with them even if you can't always be running back and forth from the house. Really, the organization of the church is perfect. It's just up to our diligence to keep up with our responsibilities. Any news from Greg? . . . haha :)
BenGaines,
So many buttons!!! What are you going to do with them all? You could hook them to a pumpkin (painted red) and put it on your desk at work! Sort of a meshing of traditions. Please tell me you went to the Grand America in a green bathing suit and flip flops. Please.
Your story of the Area Book gave me the push I need to get on top of this project. We are just finishing the project of putting the members in order of sectors instead of alphabetical, so I can focus my (minimal) energy in that direction in case we get whitewashed or something. Feliz Fin de School!!! You are almost there!!! Tell me about this possible job promo? I'm very sorry about your gummy bears.
Toni,
Your letter is my favorite of the week (don't tell anyone) because of your references to gummy bears and shoes and Anna (the photo is fantastic). And I'm so happy to hear that you two can go on dates and be in the cool kids club at church. They need the young blood. Sewing projects? Softball games?
Aunt Dorothy and Uncle John,
Thank you so much for your letter! Sounds like the Gillespie's continue to be super busy. Crazy that you have kids all over the states now, but still one who is losing his baby teeth. How dynamic! How is your law-job and Uncle John's back? Congrats on another marathon. . . that means that I don't have to do one. haha.
Rylee Sue!
Thank you so much for your letter and the pictures! Oh man, I opened the envelope with all the hermanas there at the conference and we laughed and laughed at Blake with his leopard hat and unicorn necklace! And everyone was impressed at our bull riding abilities! Girl, I love you.
James Brown,
I hope you are feeling a lot better. I'm so sorry about your accident, but Ry says you have a great attitude and are taking every obstacle like a champ. Your in my prayers.
Howdy there folks, I hope all is well on your side of the equator and that everyone is having a great time with mid-terms and finals. . . ha!
1. Villa Teniente was far more dangerous than Machali, but we have had many more experiences with drunkards here than in the city.
2. One guy passed us yesterday with a big bottle of beer in his hand and yelled "it's not a sin!" to us.
3. Drunk people breath is the worst. The. Worst.
4. We had an unusual lesson with a lady who told us that Christ couldn't have received an infant baptism because John the Baptist was his same age and he couldn't have performed the ordinance as an infant himself. Sad that people are so convinced of their confused doctrines.
5. Our work with the list of members is continuing on slowly. We are still finding new people, but no one knows a lot of the members we have recorded.
6. In talking with Hermana Miranda and Hermana Leon (long time members of Machali) we are learning about how the missionaries worked before. Their directions from the area presidency was to baptize anyone who wanted to be baptized.
7. This resulted in a lot of youth who were friends with the missionaries to get baptized without the support of their parents. Even thought the wards tried to fellowship them all, there are many, many, many who went to church a few times and then never went back.
8. I'm so grateful for all the standards we have as a mission. Each of the people we teach must understand the basics of the gospel, attend church meetings three weeks and live the word of wisdom and law of chastity for at least 2 weeks before their baptism. It makes for stronger, more faithful, better informed converts.
9. We had a sister's conference today. It is so fun to be around the other hermanas. We are 22 in total. I like that. Except more girls should serve missions so we can open more areas here.
10. Paolo and Ignacio got baptized yesterday!!!
It was the least I have had to do for a baptism service so far. The ward here is incredible and took care of everything, we just had to hand of the white clothes. AND something cool, a tender mercy of sorts, is that Paolo's wife is Marianela's (from Villa Teniente) sister! So Marianela and Coni and Catalina came for the service! Oh, it was SO GOOD to see them. And it sounds like they are doing really well in the branch and continue to be very active and amazing. I love that. And now they have more support with Evalyn and Paolo in the church too. Hooray!
The Hermana's conference was really great. We each had a "question of the soul" from Preach My Gospel and had to come up with a short lesson plan to answer the doubt. It was really interesting and we all gained a lot of ideas as we discussed. Preach My Gospel is really incredible. It should be used in FHE. Also, Hermana Resek (mission president's wife) gave a short lesson on the importance of women in the church with understanding and testimony of the gospel. That we need both and that we have both the capability and the capacity to become much stronger and much more prepared than we currently are.
On a slightly less awesome note, Hermana Bartholomew has pulgas (fleas?) so that's lame and hopefully they will stay away from me. I share my diotenacious earth, mom, don't worry. Thanks for helping me avoid icky bugs and for helping my companion be ¨flea-free 2009¨ (our current motto though it doesn't rhyme. I'm very proud of myself for knowing how to spell rhyme after all of this time not speaking English)
I love you all and hope you are keeping up with your home and visiting teaching and your 10 minutes of reflexioning time.
Thad, you should do what Jethro did and start working at the temple. It's not exactly the place to meet girls, but you might find some more inspiration there. After you graduate you should find an awesome job that pays you a lot of money until I get home and then we can go on a trip! I tried to attach a photo for your contest, but the computer doesn't recognize my camera and it makes me really frustrated. Because I took a doosey of an almond flower.
Robyn, I love the pictures and how you described Linc filling Soph in on his day. That's the sweetest. And rolling! We should all take a good roll every now and then. Maybe not down the stairs. . . but. . . whatever floats your boat. The house looks fantastic! I can't believe they did all of that in like 2 weeks! It's incredible. You will be house owners! I hope there is room for a garden :)
Jethro, there is a giant picture of my face in the house? That's awkward. Maybe you could buy some candles and incense and a little table to put in front of it? Grow your beard!!! How are your classes? Do you get to take philosophy classes too, or just teaching classes? I guess they're similar. Send me a good thought you are working on.
Mille, I'm so, so happy for you. Sounds like you are a real grown-up mediating and working and going to school and preparing for GRAD SCHOOL? Weird. Super, super weird. Does your mom have visiting teachers? They are the people who should do the work of the Lord in visiting and taking care of His children. Maybe you can keep in contact with them even if you can't always be running back and forth from the house. Really, the organization of the church is perfect. It's just up to our diligence to keep up with our responsibilities. Any news from Greg? . . . haha :)
BenGaines,
So many buttons!!! What are you going to do with them all? You could hook them to a pumpkin (painted red) and put it on your desk at work! Sort of a meshing of traditions. Please tell me you went to the Grand America in a green bathing suit and flip flops. Please.
Your story of the Area Book gave me the push I need to get on top of this project. We are just finishing the project of putting the members in order of sectors instead of alphabetical, so I can focus my (minimal) energy in that direction in case we get whitewashed or something. Feliz Fin de School!!! You are almost there!!! Tell me about this possible job promo? I'm very sorry about your gummy bears.
Toni,
Your letter is my favorite of the week (don't tell anyone) because of your references to gummy bears and shoes and Anna (the photo is fantastic). And I'm so happy to hear that you two can go on dates and be in the cool kids club at church. They need the young blood. Sewing projects? Softball games?
Aunt Dorothy and Uncle John,
Thank you so much for your letter! Sounds like the Gillespie's continue to be super busy. Crazy that you have kids all over the states now, but still one who is losing his baby teeth. How dynamic! How is your law-job and Uncle John's back? Congrats on another marathon. . . that means that I don't have to do one. haha.
Rylee Sue!
Thank you so much for your letter and the pictures! Oh man, I opened the envelope with all the hermanas there at the conference and we laughed and laughed at Blake with his leopard hat and unicorn necklace! And everyone was impressed at our bull riding abilities! Girl, I love you.
James Brown,
I hope you are feeling a lot better. I'm so sorry about your accident, but Ry says you have a great attitude and are taking every obstacle like a champ. Your in my prayers.
Monday, October 19, 2009
S ame old spacebar
You wouldn't believe this spacebar if you saw it. Uggh.
Dear friends and fans and fa mily members,
This week's top ten will be more concise so a s to not confuse and bore the pe oples.
1. I went to Santiago twi ce this week ( t wo times ) to get my id entification card. They fingerprinted me and I had to give them a f ake address (to the mission head q uarters ) and a fake name (th e assistant to the President) to that they could pick it up for me. I felt like I was in a Bourne movie e xc ept I didn't ever find a gun in a secret s uitcase in a bank vault and I didn't have to scale the side of the Extranjeria.
2. We had Zone conference with my old zone and my new zon e. It was a good time. We learned how to trea t basi c illnesses and how to clean the house. Sometimes I forget that the elders are 19 .
3. Hermana Bartholomew (like all of my companions) felt pretty sick this week, I guess I just have that effect on people. We couldn 't work one day thi s week , so it was pretty lame.
4. We just had an awesome two zone activity, with my old zone and current zone. We played ultimate frisbee and soccer and football. All the elders were very impressed that I could throw a football (thanks Jeth ro and dad)
5. I didn't bring sunblo ck . I am currently very uncomfortable in my skin .
6. I had to give my te stimony in church yesterday. It went 100 tim es better than t he talk I had to give in the MTC . I t hin k the members trust us and they are willing to work with us. Thumbs UP !
7. The anniversary of our pobla cion came and went, but we still have heaps of dead gr ass in our patio . Oops, sorry neighbors.
8. I have som e new clothes! My mom loves me and sent me a package. Also included with the pa ckage were notes from KT glade and Nat Meibos . Thanks Girls !
9. Country folk talk different than city folk. I have to readjust everythin g I've learned in the past 4 months . It's agood time. I really, really ,really like my sector.
10. Poalo e Ignacio van a baut izarse !!! Next week. This is a little premat ure, but I know it will happen .
Poalo is married to a recently rea ctiv ated member. She (Evalyn) and her son Leo were baptized some years ago , but now Poalo and their other son Ignacio have a ba ptism on their minds. The family did a fast together last week to help the m be more united and to help them stop smoking. He hasn't smo ked in a full week now, he just has to keep it up . . . for the rest of his life. Ignacio is 1 2, so he doesn't have quite the difficulties of his parents (Evalyn also smokes a nd Leo is going to be a fath er (he's 16 )) But, we a re keeping track of them and are working with some of their neighbors who are active members to do things like family nigh tand visit and su ch .
HOpefully next week we will have seen amiracle. T he mis sionaries in Machali haven't been able to have a ba ptism here for some tim e . Pray that we break the t rend.
This spacebar is r idiculous.
Okay, Bengaines asked about the hous e : We have a ga te, a patio, se ver al heaps of dead pla nts, then you enter a large door with two deadbolts. Everything inside is ceramic tile on the floors and everything in the bathroom is tile. We have a spa ce in the front ( be cause we don't have any furniture) and then a ha lf wall where the kit c hen lives on the other side. We have an oven, fridge, table an d two folding chairs. Also, plates and such. On the left hand side ( when you enter the house) there is a long hallwa y . At the very end is the bathroom (it always smells like sulfur and I gag every morning) a roo m dedicated solely to the area book because it is in a disastrous disorder . then, our room, bunk be ds, t wo desks, a closet and carpet. Yes, that's right, carp et. And then anot her room that has an ironing board and a vacuum. There used to be two companionships that lived here, but now we don't have enough hermanas in the mission , so they closed one of the sectors and now we have twice the area to cover. It's abig hous e.
What else is cool? Did I tell you that I schooled the elders in frisbee? Man, I love th at. It's that, my last zone a ctivity was HORRIBLE, so I feel reall y, really, really, good about today and I'm just so da rn happy to be a missionar y! And to be here in Chile is the best thing ever.
The church is restored (I don't like to say that the chur ch is true, it's so cliche) and it is in it's perfect, original organization. I know President Monson is a prophet and I know that this is the work of the Lord.
Oh, I have been thinking a lot lately about how the gospel helps us to be happy and I read Moses 1 : 39 again . It says that God's work and glory is to bring to pass the immortalit y and eternal life of man . Immortality because of the ressurection of Chri st (we all will re ceive a body again = Happiness ) and eternal life with our families in the presence of God ( When we complete the commandments a nd ordinances = joy ) I like that.
We have that to look forward to.
That's all for this week, but thank you so much for your letters and support. I love you all muchisimo.
Hermana Gisper
Jethro, HAPPY BIRTHDAY ! Sorry I didn't mention it last week. But I still thought about you on your big day. Thank you for your letter. Hermana Bartholomew says that she does indeed kn ow Joe and that they are in the same war d. Good times as a mormon in Utah.
Bengaines, ONLY TWO MORE WEEKS! Do you realize ho w qui ckly this semester has flown by? ! It's extra ñoif I do say so myself. I might have accidently seen a video of ANna and some goats. She is a qui ck little runner! S he just scoots around the big people. The elders all had agood laugh at the thought of the balloon boy. Poor attention deprived family. . . t wo times. H appy pumpkin day soon!
Mille, I'm s o excited to hear the A F results. Honestl y, it's been such a l ong wait for me, I don't know how you have been able to wait so patiently. My call came a lot faster than your results . . . sucker. How is your family, t he ban d, the DF and the DL on the LD tothe wi cki wicki? And keep sending me updates of this Greg chara cter. . . :)
A nd now anyone who reads this blog can ask you about who is this Greg character ! haha. Love you girl ,more th an you know. Send m y love to the Honors office.
Thad, HAPPY 2 6th year of life! Sorry, It's just that once you hit 25 y ou are 25 until you are 30 --like Jethro . And then you are 30 until you turn 35. It's just the way the c ookie cru mbles. I am glad to hear of your dating spree, but don't be in too much of a hurry because me and Matt are far away . and who will decorate your car during the reception if it isn't me and Matto? Keep me updated. Because if you don't, Harrison will.
Harrison, please keep me updated on Thad's personal life. Thank you so muc h for your letter! I never thought that letters would bring so much happiness to my life . But they do. For that I am grateful. Are you a fried chicken master? Also, I prolly loved what you wrote, I'm going to copy it so e veryone will know how clever you are: ¨H ow's the scenery ? does CHile beat Utah with the view? On ascale of 1 to 10 ( 1 being butt-ugly ) name Chile and Utah for beauty¨ Chile in general I would s ay (from what I've heard) is a 9 in the south, but a 1 in the north, I live in the middle, so I'll give Rancagua a 4 and Ma chali a 7. 5. Utah on the other hand is beautiful from north to south, but not so much in the West, so I'll give P-town a 7 Northern Utah an 8 and St. George a 7.8. I don't think but t-ugly exists in Utah, but ma ybe I'm just biased. I don't love deserts , but I also don't love the beach , so Machali is perfect and the opposite of butt-ugly .
How is the hibachi table coming along? Keep me updated, sì?
Bret, I loved your ideas for a good P-day. Especially givin g hard servi ce projects to the elders and cocroach hunting. So far I haven't seen any roaches , but our house is a spider magnet. Ick. And some of them are pretty dangerous, or so I've heard. Also I've heard about ROUSes that live here . That is, enormous rats. We'll have to wait and see. But, from the descriptions the members have given me, I am not a fan of them.
KIRA! Girl, I love your letters. You just make me love m y life. You liv e in Virginia ! That was unex pected. I was thinking of Hawaii, but whatever floats your boat. haha. Do you still keep in touch with Hamis or the rest of our friends ?If you ever write to Irene give her a huge oliotia from me.
Leslie, Elder CAnaan ( John bob) and I are a killer frisbee team . He told me to tell you.
Dear friends and fans and fa mily members,
This week's top ten will be more concise so a s to not confuse and bore the pe oples.
1. I went to Santiago twi ce this week ( t wo times ) to get my id entification card. They fingerprinted me and I had to give them a f ake address (to the mission head q uarters ) and a fake name (th e assistant to the President) to that they could pick it up for me. I felt like I was in a Bourne movie e xc ept I didn't ever find a gun in a secret s uitcase in a bank vault and I didn't have to scale the side of the Extranjeria.
2. We had Zone conference with my old zone and my new zon e. It was a good time. We learned how to trea t basi c illnesses and how to clean the house. Sometimes I forget that the elders are 19 .
3. Hermana Bartholomew (like all of my companions) felt pretty sick this week, I guess I just have that effect on people. We couldn 't work one day thi s week , so it was pretty lame.
4. We just had an awesome two zone activity, with my old zone and current zone. We played ultimate frisbee and soccer and football. All the elders were very impressed that I could throw a football (thanks Jeth ro and dad)
5. I didn't bring sunblo ck . I am currently very uncomfortable in my skin .
6. I had to give my te stimony in church yesterday. It went 100 tim es better than t he talk I had to give in the MTC . I t hin k the members trust us and they are willing to work with us. Thumbs UP !
7. The anniversary of our pobla cion came and went, but we still have heaps of dead gr ass in our patio . Oops, sorry neighbors.
8. I have som e new clothes! My mom loves me and sent me a package. Also included with the pa ckage were notes from KT glade and Nat Meibos . Thanks Girls !
9. Country folk talk different than city folk. I have to readjust everythin g I've learned in the past 4 months . It's agood time. I really, really ,really like my sector.
10. Poalo e Ignacio van a baut izarse !!! Next week. This is a little premat ure, but I know it will happen .
Poalo is married to a recently rea ctiv ated member. She (Evalyn) and her son Leo were baptized some years ago , but now Poalo and their other son Ignacio have a ba ptism on their minds. The family did a fast together last week to help the m be more united and to help them stop smoking. He hasn't smo ked in a full week now, he just has to keep it up . . . for the rest of his life. Ignacio is 1 2, so he doesn't have quite the difficulties of his parents (Evalyn also smokes a nd Leo is going to be a fath er (he's 16 )) But, we a re keeping track of them and are working with some of their neighbors who are active members to do things like family nigh tand visit and su ch .
HOpefully next week we will have seen amiracle. T he mis sionaries in Machali haven't been able to have a ba ptism here for some tim e . Pray that we break the t rend.
This spacebar is r idiculous.
Okay, Bengaines asked about the hous e : We have a ga te, a patio, se ver al heaps of dead pla nts, then you enter a large door with two deadbolts. Everything inside is ceramic tile on the floors and everything in the bathroom is tile. We have a spa ce in the front ( be cause we don't have any furniture) and then a ha lf wall where the kit c hen lives on the other side. We have an oven, fridge, table an d two folding chairs. Also, plates and such. On the left hand side ( when you enter the house) there is a long hallwa y . At the very end is the bathroom (it always smells like sulfur and I gag every morning) a roo m dedicated solely to the area book because it is in a disastrous disorder . then, our room, bunk be ds, t wo desks, a closet and carpet. Yes, that's right, carp et. And then anot her room that has an ironing board and a vacuum. There used to be two companionships that lived here, but now we don't have enough hermanas in the mission , so they closed one of the sectors and now we have twice the area to cover. It's abig hous e.
What else is cool? Did I tell you that I schooled the elders in frisbee? Man, I love th at. It's that, my last zone a ctivity was HORRIBLE, so I feel reall y, really, really, good about today and I'm just so da rn happy to be a missionar y! And to be here in Chile is the best thing ever.
The church is restored (I don't like to say that the chur ch is true, it's so cliche) and it is in it's perfect, original organization. I know President Monson is a prophet and I know that this is the work of the Lord.
Oh, I have been thinking a lot lately about how the gospel helps us to be happy and I read Moses 1 : 39 again . It says that God's work and glory is to bring to pass the immortalit y and eternal life of man . Immortality because of the ressurection of Chri st (we all will re ceive a body again = Happiness ) and eternal life with our families in the presence of God ( When we complete the commandments a nd ordinances = joy ) I like that.
We have that to look forward to.
That's all for this week, but thank you so much for your letters and support. I love you all muchisimo.
Hermana Gisper
Jethro, HAPPY BIRTHDAY ! Sorry I didn't mention it last week. But I still thought about you on your big day. Thank you for your letter. Hermana Bartholomew says that she does indeed kn ow Joe and that they are in the same war d. Good times as a mormon in Utah.
Bengaines, ONLY TWO MORE WEEKS! Do you realize ho w qui ckly this semester has flown by? ! It's extra ñoif I do say so myself. I might have accidently seen a video of ANna and some goats. She is a qui ck little runner! S he just scoots around the big people. The elders all had agood laugh at the thought of the balloon boy. Poor attention deprived family. . . t wo times. H appy pumpkin day soon!
Mille, I'm s o excited to hear the A F results. Honestl y, it's been such a l ong wait for me, I don't know how you have been able to wait so patiently. My call came a lot faster than your results . . . sucker. How is your family, t he ban d, the DF and the DL on the LD tothe wi cki wicki? And keep sending me updates of this Greg chara cter. . . :)
A nd now anyone who reads this blog can ask you about who is this Greg character ! haha. Love you girl ,more th an you know. Send m y love to the Honors office.
Thad, HAPPY 2 6th year of life! Sorry, It's just that once you hit 25 y ou are 25 until you are 30 --like Jethro . And then you are 30 until you turn 35. It's just the way the c ookie cru mbles. I am glad to hear of your dating spree, but don't be in too much of a hurry because me and Matt are far away . and who will decorate your car during the reception if it isn't me and Matto? Keep me updated. Because if you don't, Harrison will.
Harrison, please keep me updated on Thad's personal life. Thank you so muc h for your letter! I never thought that letters would bring so much happiness to my life . But they do. For that I am grateful. Are you a fried chicken master? Also, I prolly loved what you wrote, I'm going to copy it so e veryone will know how clever you are: ¨H ow's the scenery ? does CHile beat Utah with the view? On ascale of 1 to 10 ( 1 being butt-ugly ) name Chile and Utah for beauty¨ Chile in general I would s ay (from what I've heard) is a 9 in the south, but a 1 in the north, I live in the middle, so I'll give Rancagua a 4 and Ma chali a 7. 5. Utah on the other hand is beautiful from north to south, but not so much in the West, so I'll give P-town a 7 Northern Utah an 8 and St. George a 7.8. I don't think but t-ugly exists in Utah, but ma ybe I'm just biased. I don't love deserts , but I also don't love the beach , so Machali is perfect and the opposite of butt-ugly .
How is the hibachi table coming along? Keep me updated, sì?
Bret, I loved your ideas for a good P-day. Especially givin g hard servi ce projects to the elders and cocroach hunting. So far I haven't seen any roaches , but our house is a spider magnet. Ick. And some of them are pretty dangerous, or so I've heard. Also I've heard about ROUSes that live here . That is, enormous rats. We'll have to wait and see. But, from the descriptions the members have given me, I am not a fan of them.
KIRA! Girl, I love your letters. You just make me love m y life. You liv e in Virginia ! That was unex pected. I was thinking of Hawaii, but whatever floats your boat. haha. Do you still keep in touch with Hamis or the rest of our friends ?If you ever write to Irene give her a huge oliotia from me.
Leslie, Elder CAnaan ( John bob) and I are a killer frisbee team . He told me to tell you.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Weed-wacking holiday
Howdy Cowpeople!
Machali is incredible. It's what I hoped all of Rancagua would be. Remember when we looked on Google Earth and saw that it was snuggled there in between the two mountain ranges with rivers and green? It's Machali. These are ten first impressions of my new sector:
1. The house is enormous. Even in America (I think) for two sisters. We even have a patio.
2. Our neighbors are great. They always offer to help us clean up our patio. This week is the anniversary of our poblacion (neighborhood?) and each street has a competition of cleanliness or something. I think our patio-jungle is a black mark on our street, so we spent a few hours this morning pulling everything out.
3. I love rivers. More than any other bodies of water. And we have rivers! Unfortunately, there is no swimming.
4. Everyone knows where we live. This makes me a little nervous, but it's nice when the bus drivers take us to our stop for free.
5. It is super calm here. Compared to Villa Teniente it's incredible. We are up in the hills, so there aren't roads for fast driving and the horses and horsemen make me feel like we are in a movie.
6. We are in a ward, not a branch. There are a lot of long-time members and (as usual) a lot of inactive members that we have been visiting. They are mostly country folk and a lot of them don't have teeth, but we get along amazingly well.
7. My companion, Hermana Bartholomew is great. She is from Spring City (near Manti) and will complete one year in the mission in a couple of days. She basically taught herself Spanish from the grammar book they gave us in the MTC. It's hard though, because I've been around Spanish more than she has I don't have quite the hard gringo accent. Neither of us like it when the members say, "Wow! You speak better than her!" It just doesn't sit right.
8. Being in a new sector with a new companion makes a person feel a little bit lost. I'm slowly gaining my footing, but this sector is about four times bigger than Villa Teniente and we haven't visited all of it still.
9. We are working really carefully with the list of members that we have in the area book. Permanaced doesn't really exist here, so we are making it up. Also, there weren't really any appointments fixed when I got here, so we've been able to find quite a few of these people this week. We had a LOT of time to look for them. But we are finding them. It's encouraging.
10. It's starting to get hot. This is alarming because it's only October and apparently summer lasts until May. I'm going to fry. We are already using sunblock everyday. The most uncomfortable sweat is either wrist sweat or ankle sweat. Ick.
Wow, that is a lot for a top ten list. I'm still not sure of a lot of things here, the streets are in loopies and not in squares. There are only 4 apartment buildings here. It's different. Hermana Bartholomew always has her map handy, but usually we are lost. She has only been here one transfer, so we are learning together.
One thing I never mentioned before is how interesting it was to listen to the Chileans talk with Hermana Burgos or Hermana Alvarenga about the problems that they are having in Honduras. It's an interesting time lapse to listen to the adults here talk about how hard it was during Pinochet when the same thing is happening in Honduras. That has nothing to do with anything, but I've been thinking about it a little bit this week.
I'm not exactly sure of the numbers we are up against in this ward, but I think it's something like 800 members and about 100 active in the church. Because it is a country-type environment, a lot of them know each other or are family, so we are having better success in finding out if they live here or where we can find them. Still, a lot don't want anything to do with the church because of little, simple things. Members who have offended them, or that the members didn't visit them when they needed help and support (please do your visiting teaching and home teaching). Prolly the saddest thing anyone can witness is their family denying or rejecting the gospel. Almost all of the members we talk with have a brother or sister or son or daughter who was baptized with them and then decided to leave it all behind. We all want to be together forever with our families. It's just hard to keep everyone with the same vision when things get difficult. We found a man, about 30 years old, who was a faithful, faithful member for a lot of years, he was in seminary and everything, who gave up on the gospel because the members were rude. Now he lives with his partner, knowing that he is breaking the commandments and unwilling to change. It breaks my heart thinking that he knows.
We have two people getting ready for baptism here in Machali. It is the husband and son of a newly reactivated member. He quit smoking this week and is getting excited to take this step. We had a family fast with them on Friday and it was really neat to hear their experiences. It was their first time doing a fast. The wife almost cried thinking about how peaceful and confident she felt. It was precious, she said.
Prolly my favorite thing is seeing a family unite in the gospel. Seeing the small changes in habit that bring HUGE changes in spiritual matters. Listening to people pray for the first time out loud is remarkable. Seeing them after a week of having daily family prayers is incredible. I love seeing people understand that Heavenly Father is listening and that He is ready to help us as soon as we ask. There is so much power in the Spirit. I hope everyone has been taking 10 minutes to listen to the Spirit this week.
I love you mucho. Caletas, even.
LESSIE! I'm incredibly happy for you. Your brother is in the MTC with MY brother!!! Don't get carried away with all of this eternity talk. . . haha. Remember that in your quest to move forward that it is the smallest things that make the biggest difference. Keep it up with the 10 minutes. I'm glad you took the challenge! haha. Take care of my Africa friends, sì?
Mille, After next week you will know about the AIR FORCE! Fuerza Aire. I'm so sorry to hear about American Fork. That's hard. Ugh. Let me know about the BYU show and how the tribute goes. I know you care about those students an awful lot. You're a good role model and a good influence in their lives. Keep it up. You're doing great things. Did you send me that letter? I want it. I don't know what my address is. Can you ask my mom?
BenGaines, Thank you for the update and the Holland talk. It's full of things I want to do with Hermana Bartholomew (which is great because it's in English). Hooray for only 3 more weeks of school! That's awesome. You guys should sculpt a Chilean Rodeo scene in the snow this year. Send me pics :)
Machali is incredible. It's what I hoped all of Rancagua would be. Remember when we looked on Google Earth and saw that it was snuggled there in between the two mountain ranges with rivers and green? It's Machali. These are ten first impressions of my new sector:
1. The house is enormous. Even in America (I think) for two sisters. We even have a patio.
2. Our neighbors are great. They always offer to help us clean up our patio. This week is the anniversary of our poblacion (neighborhood?) and each street has a competition of cleanliness or something. I think our patio-jungle is a black mark on our street, so we spent a few hours this morning pulling everything out.
3. I love rivers. More than any other bodies of water. And we have rivers! Unfortunately, there is no swimming.
4. Everyone knows where we live. This makes me a little nervous, but it's nice when the bus drivers take us to our stop for free.
5. It is super calm here. Compared to Villa Teniente it's incredible. We are up in the hills, so there aren't roads for fast driving and the horses and horsemen make me feel like we are in a movie.
6. We are in a ward, not a branch. There are a lot of long-time members and (as usual) a lot of inactive members that we have been visiting. They are mostly country folk and a lot of them don't have teeth, but we get along amazingly well.
7. My companion, Hermana Bartholomew is great. She is from Spring City (near Manti) and will complete one year in the mission in a couple of days. She basically taught herself Spanish from the grammar book they gave us in the MTC. It's hard though, because I've been around Spanish more than she has I don't have quite the hard gringo accent. Neither of us like it when the members say, "Wow! You speak better than her!" It just doesn't sit right.
8. Being in a new sector with a new companion makes a person feel a little bit lost. I'm slowly gaining my footing, but this sector is about four times bigger than Villa Teniente and we haven't visited all of it still.
9. We are working really carefully with the list of members that we have in the area book. Permanaced doesn't really exist here, so we are making it up. Also, there weren't really any appointments fixed when I got here, so we've been able to find quite a few of these people this week. We had a LOT of time to look for them. But we are finding them. It's encouraging.
10. It's starting to get hot. This is alarming because it's only October and apparently summer lasts until May. I'm going to fry. We are already using sunblock everyday. The most uncomfortable sweat is either wrist sweat or ankle sweat. Ick.
Wow, that is a lot for a top ten list. I'm still not sure of a lot of things here, the streets are in loopies and not in squares. There are only 4 apartment buildings here. It's different. Hermana Bartholomew always has her map handy, but usually we are lost. She has only been here one transfer, so we are learning together.
One thing I never mentioned before is how interesting it was to listen to the Chileans talk with Hermana Burgos or Hermana Alvarenga about the problems that they are having in Honduras. It's an interesting time lapse to listen to the adults here talk about how hard it was during Pinochet when the same thing is happening in Honduras. That has nothing to do with anything, but I've been thinking about it a little bit this week.
I'm not exactly sure of the numbers we are up against in this ward, but I think it's something like 800 members and about 100 active in the church. Because it is a country-type environment, a lot of them know each other or are family, so we are having better success in finding out if they live here or where we can find them. Still, a lot don't want anything to do with the church because of little, simple things. Members who have offended them, or that the members didn't visit them when they needed help and support (please do your visiting teaching and home teaching). Prolly the saddest thing anyone can witness is their family denying or rejecting the gospel. Almost all of the members we talk with have a brother or sister or son or daughter who was baptized with them and then decided to leave it all behind. We all want to be together forever with our families. It's just hard to keep everyone with the same vision when things get difficult. We found a man, about 30 years old, who was a faithful, faithful member for a lot of years, he was in seminary and everything, who gave up on the gospel because the members were rude. Now he lives with his partner, knowing that he is breaking the commandments and unwilling to change. It breaks my heart thinking that he knows.
We have two people getting ready for baptism here in Machali. It is the husband and son of a newly reactivated member. He quit smoking this week and is getting excited to take this step. We had a family fast with them on Friday and it was really neat to hear their experiences. It was their first time doing a fast. The wife almost cried thinking about how peaceful and confident she felt. It was precious, she said.
Prolly my favorite thing is seeing a family unite in the gospel. Seeing the small changes in habit that bring HUGE changes in spiritual matters. Listening to people pray for the first time out loud is remarkable. Seeing them after a week of having daily family prayers is incredible. I love seeing people understand that Heavenly Father is listening and that He is ready to help us as soon as we ask. There is so much power in the Spirit. I hope everyone has been taking 10 minutes to listen to the Spirit this week.
I love you mucho. Caletas, even.
LESSIE! I'm incredibly happy for you. Your brother is in the MTC with MY brother!!! Don't get carried away with all of this eternity talk. . . haha. Remember that in your quest to move forward that it is the smallest things that make the biggest difference. Keep it up with the 10 minutes. I'm glad you took the challenge! haha. Take care of my Africa friends, sì?
Mille, After next week you will know about the AIR FORCE! Fuerza Aire. I'm so sorry to hear about American Fork. That's hard. Ugh. Let me know about the BYU show and how the tribute goes. I know you care about those students an awful lot. You're a good role model and a good influence in their lives. Keep it up. You're doing great things. Did you send me that letter? I want it. I don't know what my address is. Can you ask my mom?
BenGaines, Thank you for the update and the Holland talk. It's full of things I want to do with Hermana Bartholomew (which is great because it's in English). Hooray for only 3 more weeks of school! That's awesome. You guys should sculpt a Chilean Rodeo scene in the snow this year. Send me pics :)
Monday, October 5, 2009
President Monson is the Prophet 100%
Hola Locos!
Now that we are in October and spring is in the air, it only seems right that I would leave the cold and dreary projects of Villa Teniente to live in the rolling, green hills of beautiful Machali!
This weeks top ten will be dedicated to things I learned or achievements I had in Villa Teniente in the first 4 months of my mission:
1. How to speak Spanish.
2. The difference between cigarette smoke and marijuana smell.
3. That we best take advantage of every day because a second chance is not guaranteed.
4. How to not be afraid of awkward contacting situations.
5. That I can walk to anywhere in the world. (That's for you Mom.)
6. That the Book of Mormon is the word and work of God. (Thank you Elder Holland.)
7. That I love speaking English and being with Americans. (Interesting, eh?)
8. That service is simple and we need to be careful with the distractions in our lives that keep us in the [thick of thin things] (thank you living prophet).
9. Arroz con leche is still the best breakfast that has ever existed.
10. I'm lactose intolerant, should avoid fried foods and crying gives me a headache.
My last week in Villa Teniente was not what I had planned. Between Hermana Alvarenga's back problems, the General Conference and news that I would be leaving the sector, we didn't find a lot of new people. It wasn't how I wanted to leave my homebase, but now I live in another city and can't go back and fix or change anything. I am pleased that on Monday night both Marisol and Alejandra and Marianela with her two daughters had their own Family Home Evenings with other members of the branch. I know that they are in good hands and I feel like I did all I could to help them be fellowshipped.
Now I'm in Machali! Hermana Alvarenga was in Machali for 6 months earlier in the year and she said it was super hard and they never have baptisms. I'm super excited! We are going to change things here. Hermana Bartholomew and I have already gone out on division before and we get along really well. We are ready to work and to love these people and teach them about all the blessings that are waiting for them in the gospel. Oh the joy of families!
This conference was incredible. I feel like there was a lot of emphasis on receiving personal revelation and the importance of love in the home. There are a lot of distractions in our lives and now, as a missionary, I feel like I understand just how tricky Satan can be. Everything we do either brings us closer to the Spirit or drives him away. I want to invite you all to accept a commitment to take 10 minutes everyday and not listen to music or have your phone in your hand or your laptop open in front of you. 10 minutes to do one of the following: Say a prayer, read a chapter or verse in the scriptures, visit someone (in person) who might need to talk or prepare your lesson in next Sunday's class. Just 10 minutes to listen to the promptings of the Spirit. I think it gets easier to follow the more available we are to listen. If we show Heavenly Father that we want to receive revelation/answers to our questions we should give Him time to respond and be consistent so He knows we are serious.
The Holy Ghost is the most precious gift we have. I know that Heavenly Father wants to bless us and protect us from the confusion of the world. He didn't leave us here alone.
I love you all very much and I hope you are all having a great time with your midterms.
Con mucho cariño,
Hermana Gillespie
Mom, thanks for your letter, I love hearing about the kids and what is going on in the house and everything. I haven't found any packages so far, but I'm still close to the office, so I'll check next week too. Mom and Dad, Thank you for teaching me correct principles and for being consistent in scripture study and family prayer, even when I wasn't very excited about it.
Camille, wow! I never expected you to write to him. It seems like so long ago that all of that happened and so silly that I was so stubborn and dumb. Thank you for your example and for keeping me updated with everything that's going on. Keep an eye out for the Moon parents, they should be coming home soon.
Robyn and Jethro, YOU HAVE A HOLE! I'm so proud. And it's nothing new to have an unfinished basement. With all of Jethro's summer training, he can fix it up in an afternoon or two. Happy baby teeth and living in the blue room! I anxiously await your photo letter!
BenGaines, your dreams. . . I can't even describe how much I love hearing about your dreams. I want the talk that Elder Holland gave. AND I asked permision to listen to Matto's talk and it was soooo goood (teen girl squad, please). Thank you so much for recording it and thinking of me and everything. I'm not sure about Christmas still, I'll have to talk to the President to see how it all works and if cameras are allowed. If not, I hope to see lots of photos and even DVDs of you guys and those kids squealing and laughing and jumping high.
Matto, I loved your talk and that you focused on Faith and Hope being an anchor and not something flighty. You are going to learn and lot and hopefully, at the end of our time on our missions we can come home and be missionaries. Don't fret, just have faith. Everyone starts at the beginning.
Now that we are in October and spring is in the air, it only seems right that I would leave the cold and dreary projects of Villa Teniente to live in the rolling, green hills of beautiful Machali!
This weeks top ten will be dedicated to things I learned or achievements I had in Villa Teniente in the first 4 months of my mission:
1. How to speak Spanish.2. The difference between cigarette smoke and marijuana smell.
3. That we best take advantage of every day because a second chance is not guaranteed.
4. How to not be afraid of awkward contacting situations.
5. That I can walk to anywhere in the world. (That's for you Mom.)
6. That the Book of Mormon is the word and work of God. (Thank you Elder Holland.)
7. That I love speaking English and being with Americans. (Interesting, eh?)
8. That service is simple and we need to be careful with the distractions in our lives that keep us in the [thick of thin things] (thank you living prophet).
9. Arroz con leche is still the best breakfast that has ever existed.
10. I'm lactose intolerant, should avoid fried foods and crying gives me a headache.
My last week in Villa Teniente was not what I had planned. Between Hermana Alvarenga's back problems, the General Conference and news that I would be leaving the sector, we didn't find a lot of new people. It wasn't how I wanted to leave my homebase, but now I live in another city and can't go back and fix or change anything. I am pleased that on Monday night both Marisol and Alejandra and Marianela with her two daughters had their own Family Home Evenings with other members of the branch. I know that they are in good hands and I feel like I did all I could to help them be fellowshipped.
Now I'm in Machali! Hermana Alvarenga was in Machali for 6 months earlier in the year and she said it was super hard and they never have baptisms. I'm super excited! We are going to change things here. Hermana Bartholomew and I have already gone out on division before and we get along really well. We are ready to work and to love these people and teach them about all the blessings that are waiting for them in the gospel. Oh the joy of families!
This conference was incredible. I feel like there was a lot of emphasis on receiving personal revelation and the importance of love in the home. There are a lot of distractions in our lives and now, as a missionary, I feel like I understand just how tricky Satan can be. Everything we do either brings us closer to the Spirit or drives him away. I want to invite you all to accept a commitment to take 10 minutes everyday and not listen to music or have your phone in your hand or your laptop open in front of you. 10 minutes to do one of the following: Say a prayer, read a chapter or verse in the scriptures, visit someone (in person) who might need to talk or prepare your lesson in next Sunday's class. Just 10 minutes to listen to the promptings of the Spirit. I think it gets easier to follow the more available we are to listen. If we show Heavenly Father that we want to receive revelation/answers to our questions we should give Him time to respond and be consistent so He knows we are serious.
The Holy Ghost is the most precious gift we have. I know that Heavenly Father wants to bless us and protect us from the confusion of the world. He didn't leave us here alone.
I love you all very much and I hope you are all having a great time with your midterms.
Con mucho cariño,
Hermana Gillespie
Mom, thanks for your letter, I love hearing about the kids and what is going on in the house and everything. I haven't found any packages so far, but I'm still close to the office, so I'll check next week too. Mom and Dad, Thank you for teaching me correct principles and for being consistent in scripture study and family prayer, even when I wasn't very excited about it.
Camille, wow! I never expected you to write to him. It seems like so long ago that all of that happened and so silly that I was so stubborn and dumb. Thank you for your example and for keeping me updated with everything that's going on. Keep an eye out for the Moon parents, they should be coming home soon.
Robyn and Jethro, YOU HAVE A HOLE! I'm so proud. And it's nothing new to have an unfinished basement. With all of Jethro's summer training, he can fix it up in an afternoon or two. Happy baby teeth and living in the blue room! I anxiously await your photo letter!
BenGaines, your dreams. . . I can't even describe how much I love hearing about your dreams. I want the talk that Elder Holland gave. AND I asked permision to listen to Matto's talk and it was soooo goood (teen girl squad, please). Thank you so much for recording it and thinking of me and everything. I'm not sure about Christmas still, I'll have to talk to the President to see how it all works and if cameras are allowed. If not, I hope to see lots of photos and even DVDs of you guys and those kids squealing and laughing and jumping high.
Matto, I loved your talk and that you focused on Faith and Hope being an anchor and not something flighty. You are going to learn and lot and hopefully, at the end of our time on our missions we can come home and be missionaries. Don't fret, just have faith. Everyone starts at the beginning.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Villa Teniente
Hey there Mom and Dad,
A lot of cool things have happened this week:
1. We befriended a hermit and she (finally) let us visit her inside her house (after four days of visits). She is literally lost in the world of her adolescence and hates the real world. Just goes to show that we need each other and we need trials in order to progress.
2. The Permaneced Document "program" is basically a list of ten names and address that we have to search for. We don't know if they a) live there anymore b) like us or c) are still alive. It's a bit of a puzzle.
3. This week, in searching for four people at the same address I talked with a girl (Alejandra) who told me that two of the people on my list have moved to the other side of Rancagua and that the two other people live across the street.
4. We went across the street to talk to Ruben and Marcos, but when we talked to the man in the house he said that Ruben had died and that Marcos lives down the street.
5. We went down the street where the man said only to be rejected by an old man who "was very busy." So, we asked his neighbor if he knew anyone on my list.
6. He had seen a lot of our visiting and told me that Alejandra was the daughter of the person I was looking for in the first house and that her mom lives there too, but is working, that the man who rejected us is the father of Marcos and that the man who told us that Ruben had died was in fact, Ruben.
7. So, they all live there, but my naivete shows on my progress report. I believed all of the people. . . and I had to rewrite everything I found out.
8. Piano class is a great success. I love these girls that come week after week to play simplified hymns. Normally we have Alejandra, Coni, Cata and their friend Valentina every week.
9. Valentina and her family have invited us to teach them.
10. We met a lady who was a member 15 years ago who told us that she doesn't believe in God anymore because the church is "so restrictive." She told us that her father drinks coffee every day and is 86 and in perfect health. I didn't know what to say to her in the moment, but when we related the story to the branch president he laughed and said, he won't be in perfect health in the Spirit World. Interesting, I thought I'd share.
I had a great experience fasting this last weekend. There is something that we eat everyday that makes my life a little unhappy, but I'm not sure what it is. Prolly oil. I have been altering my diet as is possible and praying for some consistency, but when I fasted I was blessed with exactly what I needed. I feel fantastic today! I know that there are temporal commandments that give us temporal blessings, but also spiritual commandments that give us the fortification that we need spiritually. Not only did I relearn that fasting helps our bodies, but that I recieved the spiritual answer I needed.
We are teaching a LOT, but we aren't finding people who are progressing. This is the last week of this transfer and I really, really want to have people progressing here when a) I leave or b) I stay.
OH! Thanks to Permaneced we found a family to complete and reactivate. We were really excited and invited them to church and passed by their house Sunday morning and everything, but they didn't answer. We went by the next day and there was all sorts of yelling coming from inside. We found the mother the next day walking down the street and she told us all sorts of things about her husband's drinking problem. Then later, Saturday, we went by and he was outside of his apartment yelling a lot of words I don't know. (That's a good thing) We talked to him for a good 45 minutes, but he didn't understand/remember much of what we said. Totally drunk. Drunk people stand a little bit too close to sober people and their breath makes me cringe. I don't know how so many women here live like this. They've been together 22 years. All I can say is that I'm learning exactly how my life will NOT be.
The gospel blesses families. A home that is based on the teachings of Christ is a strong, united home. And when the storms come, it won't fall. The same storm wipes out other people who don't have the foundation they need.
Thanks Mom and Dad.
BenGaines and Toni, I prolly laugh REALLY hard when I read about your dreams. Poor Anna and her newspaper career. . . I hope you are having a great Boston day and that you eat a giant bavarian cream pie for me. Oh, it's Boston in the FALL!!! I'm in the Springtime. But I already got a good sunburn. . . stupid hole in the Ozone. And also, Ben, can you put my mission address somewhere on my blog? I'm not sure what it is, but I sent it once. Also my email is emily.gillespie@myldsmail.net
Camille, I want this letter that you speak of. And also, I reread your letter about Betos and laughed just as hard as the first time. My companion was a little cornfused. I always want to ask you about AF, but you always respond before I can ask, so I never do. But I want you to let me know ASAYFO (As soon as you find out) so write me! You are doing great things. Give Mike Shaw a noogie for me.
Emily, HOORAY for WISDOM teeth. I love your letter and I love that you are getting yourself prepared so early! I may or may not have gone to the sister missionary mall with my mom 2 hours before entering the MTC. Oops. You can buy anything you forget in Europe. No prob. You will get tons of French in the MTC, almost pure French. That's important, but not as important as the French you'll get in Switzy because the people there might be drunk or not have teeth.
Scott! I thought you died. Last I heard you had lost 30 pounds and had a tapeworm from Morocco! I'm expecting a much better email this week.
Robyn, thank you for the update. I was thoroughly confused. How fun! I want to live with you guys! I'm glad things are coming together and I know you'll be exactly in the ward where you need to be. You guys are fantastic.28As soon as you find out) so write me! You are doing great things. Give Mike Shaw a noogie for me.
A lot of cool things have happened this week:
1. We befriended a hermit and she (finally) let us visit her inside her house (after four days of visits). She is literally lost in the world of her adolescence and hates the real world. Just goes to show that we need each other and we need trials in order to progress.
2. The Permaneced Document "program" is basically a list of ten names and address that we have to search for. We don't know if they a) live there anymore b) like us or c) are still alive. It's a bit of a puzzle.
3. This week, in searching for four people at the same address I talked with a girl (Alejandra) who told me that two of the people on my list have moved to the other side of Rancagua and that the two other people live across the street.
4. We went across the street to talk to Ruben and Marcos, but when we talked to the man in the house he said that Ruben had died and that Marcos lives down the street.
5. We went down the street where the man said only to be rejected by an old man who "was very busy." So, we asked his neighbor if he knew anyone on my list.
6. He had seen a lot of our visiting and told me that Alejandra was the daughter of the person I was looking for in the first house and that her mom lives there too, but is working, that the man who rejected us is the father of Marcos and that the man who told us that Ruben had died was in fact, Ruben.
7. So, they all live there, but my naivete shows on my progress report. I believed all of the people. . . and I had to rewrite everything I found out.
8. Piano class is a great success. I love these girls that come week after week to play simplified hymns. Normally we have Alejandra, Coni, Cata and their friend Valentina every week.
9. Valentina and her family have invited us to teach them.
10. We met a lady who was a member 15 years ago who told us that she doesn't believe in God anymore because the church is "so restrictive." She told us that her father drinks coffee every day and is 86 and in perfect health. I didn't know what to say to her in the moment, but when we related the story to the branch president he laughed and said, he won't be in perfect health in the Spirit World. Interesting, I thought I'd share.
I had a great experience fasting this last weekend. There is something that we eat everyday that makes my life a little unhappy, but I'm not sure what it is. Prolly oil. I have been altering my diet as is possible and praying for some consistency, but when I fasted I was blessed with exactly what I needed. I feel fantastic today! I know that there are temporal commandments that give us temporal blessings, but also spiritual commandments that give us the fortification that we need spiritually. Not only did I relearn that fasting helps our bodies, but that I recieved the spiritual answer I needed.
We are teaching a LOT, but we aren't finding people who are progressing. This is the last week of this transfer and I really, really want to have people progressing here when a) I leave or b) I stay.
OH! Thanks to Permaneced we found a family to complete and reactivate. We were really excited and invited them to church and passed by their house Sunday morning and everything, but they didn't answer. We went by the next day and there was all sorts of yelling coming from inside. We found the mother the next day walking down the street and she told us all sorts of things about her husband's drinking problem. Then later, Saturday, we went by and he was outside of his apartment yelling a lot of words I don't know. (That's a good thing) We talked to him for a good 45 minutes, but he didn't understand/remember much of what we said. Totally drunk. Drunk people stand a little bit too close to sober people and their breath makes me cringe. I don't know how so many women here live like this. They've been together 22 years. All I can say is that I'm learning exactly how my life will NOT be.
The gospel blesses families. A home that is based on the teachings of Christ is a strong, united home. And when the storms come, it won't fall. The same storm wipes out other people who don't have the foundation they need.
Thanks Mom and Dad.
BenGaines and Toni, I prolly laugh REALLY hard when I read about your dreams. Poor Anna and her newspaper career. . . I hope you are having a great Boston day and that you eat a giant bavarian cream pie for me. Oh, it's Boston in the FALL!!! I'm in the Springtime. But I already got a good sunburn. . . stupid hole in the Ozone. And also, Ben, can you put my mission address somewhere on my blog? I'm not sure what it is, but I sent it once. Also my email is emily.gillespie@myldsmail.net
Camille, I want this letter that you speak of. And also, I reread your letter about Betos and laughed just as hard as the first time. My companion was a little cornfused. I always want to ask you about AF, but you always respond before I can ask, so I never do. But I want you to let me know ASAYFO (As soon as you find out) so write me! You are doing great things. Give Mike Shaw a noogie for me.
Emily, HOORAY for WISDOM teeth. I love your letter and I love that you are getting yourself prepared so early! I may or may not have gone to the sister missionary mall with my mom 2 hours before entering the MTC. Oops. You can buy anything you forget in Europe. No prob. You will get tons of French in the MTC, almost pure French. That's important, but not as important as the French you'll get in Switzy because the people there might be drunk or not have teeth.
Scott! I thought you died. Last I heard you had lost 30 pounds and had a tapeworm from Morocco! I'm expecting a much better email this week.
Robyn, thank you for the update. I was thoroughly confused. How fun! I want to live with you guys! I'm glad things are coming together and I know you'll be exactly in the ward where you need to be. You guys are fantastic.28As soon as you find out) so write me! You are doing great things. Give Mike Shaw a noogie for me.
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