I want to be a missionary now!!!: July 14, 2014

Dear familia,

I hope that everyone is doing great there in the heat in the united states. How hot is it? What fun things are yall doing?

Well, one thing that i am learning in the mission is to expect the unexpected. Today i got transferred to the other end of the mission in a ward called Apoquindo, where i should finish my mission. I am in the rich part of the mission now (I basically went from the poorest ward with sisters to one of the richest) and it is really different. It is also the ward where our mission president lives, so we have lunch with him every wednesday. I am pretty excited, but definitely was not expecting this.

This week was kind of action packed. We visited lots of less actives, some progressing and others not. Wednesday we had exchanges and I spent the day with Hermana Berthelson from Louisiana. We were in the same zone for 8 months so it was really fun to be with her again. We saw lots of miracles with her, mainly because the people we contacted that day actually listened to us. That is not too normal in Sótero del Río. That night she helped me finish the plans for my companion, Hermana Bohman´s birthday.

We switched back Thursday and visited lots of people. It is amazing how the Lord always helps us make all of the appointments we have. Thursday, a part member family called us with an emergency. All day we had appointments, but somehow it all worked. Some people were not there, and an appointment that we had at 7:30, we went by at 9:00 and of course she had just gotten home so it worked out great. That night we visited with a college student named Araceli that we contacted in the street on Monday. She listened to our message and let us come right in. Her dad was watching tv in the same room and he turned it off just to listen to us too. We have lots of hope for them!

Friday was my companion´s birthday. She turned 20. In the night I put up the letters Feliz Cumpleaños (it is tradition in our family). We started off by doing our deep cleaning that we do every week. I started cleaning the fridge and there was a HUGE block of ice on the top of the fridge (connected to the bottom of the freezer). I spent an hour hacking away at it. pouring hot water on it, and doing the best i could. We got about two thirds of it out before we gave up to clean the rest of the house. An exciting start to a birthday right? The family that was going to give us lunch got sick so they gave us the food and we ate in the house. They also made Hermana Bohman a cake and gave it to her. They are so sweet. We went to a less active family´s house and made rice crispie treats in a family home evening with them. Then we visited the Ravello family. The hermano a week and a half ago fell in the bus and got pretty beat up. They were thinking that he might have cancer and he could hardly move because of the pain. We went by to visit them (a cute old couple) and the hermano walked out of his room without a problem!!! It really is a miracle that the most recent tests said that there was nothing of cancer, that he was doing fantastic just a little bruised thats it. Miracles happen.

At night we celebrated Hermana Bohman´s birthday with the other hermanas and sang her Feliz Cumpleaños. When she was ready to blow ou the candle she said, "what should i wish for?" I suggested that she wish that we do not have changes and that she would be my last companion. She said no and made another wish. About 30 seconds later President Wright called Hermana Bohman to sing to her, and then asked us if we wanted to know about changes. Well, hermana Bohman has a new companion and I was told that I would be coming here to apoquindo. We had just done a white wash 6 weeks ago and I only have 6 weeks in the mission but it appears that the Lord needs me here in Apoquindo (or Hermana Bohman just did not take advantage of the wish she had) haha.

Saturday we did a CVC or open chapel in a ghetto part of our mission. It was pretty fun, but not many people came. One person from the street came and took the tour and she said that she wanted to be baptized and stayed for the whole activity. We went outside for a little while to street contact and there was no one, just drunk people. Sister missionaries definitely do not serve in that part of the mission, but it was fun to be at the church there for a few hours.

Sunday i said bye to all the people here, and we visited with the Quezada family. they went inactive about 2 years ago or more, and the mom died 3 months ago of a sudden heart attack. One son just got off of his mission 1 year or two ago, but struggles to come to church sometimes too. We have never really figured out how to help them, but yesterday we hit an iceberg. Everyone has a reason for the way they act, but many times it is an iceberg and there is more than meets the eye. yesterday they talked to us about how hard it is to have lost their mom, or basically the glue to their family. They know the Plan of Salvation and believe, but it is still hard. Hermana bohman shared a friend´s experience that lost a loved one and received a blessing afterwards. In the blessing it said that she would be able to miss her family member without the pain, and it actually happened. This was what the family needed to hear. Probably, they will miss their mom maybe always, but that with the Lord´s help it will not hurt so much. I thought that was a great promised and a great power from the Atonement.

Now, i am here in Apoquindo and it is different but i like it. Weird thing is that we came here last week to say goodbye to Hermana´s bohman´s old companion, Hermana Resendiz. I never thought that i would come back to this place haha. I am here with Hermana Ekins from Missouri and we are going to work super hard these last 6 weeks!!!

I love yall a ton and hope that yall have a great week!

con amor,

Hermana Taylor