Mom: Kayla's message to all in last week's letter after she was able to read everything we all sent: "I'm out of time, sorry, I Love you". The slow connection didn't allow for any of her 'letter' pictures to be sent...but luckily, we get an abundance this week. I decided to transcribe rather than post her pics for you to try to decipher. Enjoy!
Kayla:
Sorry, now you all are getting 2 weeks of updates! Feel free to not read if you're bored. Really, it's okay! Spend your time doing fun activities of some sort. But if you're still reading, cool!
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| PAPA, Te AMO! |
Tues Jan 26--Something Hna Jesus said yesterday really stuck with me and (at least for today) has totally changed how I see the mission. Her advice was to see the mission as something more comfortable...like home. That all the people of this country are your friends, your companion is literally your sister, your president is your 'Daddy' and his wife is 'Mom' and to work is your life and passion. And this has totally helped change almost everything! Less disconnect between here and my real home makes this place not so foreign and a lot more enjoyable. Plus we're seeing so many more miracles in our path as we're consecrating our mind, hearts, might, and strength to the work of Salvation! It's great, so great! :D
Thurs Jan 28--I love that we started CONTACT BINGO this week haha! A little silly, I know, but we've really seen some miracles as we've looked for and found people with these random descriptions and those who we've found just because of our excitement to contact! 'Open your mouth, and it shall be filled." Not just my mouth, but my heart if full with the good happening here in Quillicura. Looking for a 15 year old for our contact bingo, we found Boris (14yr-old...close enough!) who was so awesome on the spot! So mature and open to learning, we're excited for him! For Paulina and her serious excitement of reading her scriptures, listening to hymns and primary songs in her home (the spirit is so much stronger there now). Miriam, who just a few minutes ago we met with and she's just golden. And Sofia who we found in the street today and accepted to attend church Sunday HA! Not
to mention Hermana Jesus and I are really working on charity for everyone and each other and I'm just happy to see the fruits of those labors too. Trust, appreciation, and respect is whatcha need.
Friday Jan 29--Hermana Jesus was sick this morning, so I really enjoyed watching "The District" (my training videos):) I want to be like these missionaries! But comparison is dangerous, so I'm working on just trying my best to be better every day.
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| Getting in some studies while Hma Jesus recuperates |
Saturday Jan 30--Something about the wonderful people of Chile is that they LOVE to TALK! Which, if we weren't trying to help as many souls as possible every day, it wouldn't be a problem, but our job needs to include LOVE, yet efficiency. I'm really trying to figure out how to master this!
Sunday Jan 31-- think there's an appointed time of each day where Heavenly Father's like, 'Hermana Moon really needs her sanity checked right about now," and gives me the greatest headache and least amount of motivation ever ;}. It's been super hard this week with my body hating me because of its complete exhaustion. But I know that during these times, Heavenly Father is just begging for more from us--more faith that we can keep going, and the test of whether we're going to rely on Him in this trial or not. So, although it's been rough, I know and I've felt the Savior and Father in Heaven closer, guiding and lifting my every step. I'm glad I get to experience this more closely now that I'm a missionary...testifying of all these things I've learned before my mission and throughout my life, but it's nearer to my heart now that I'm feeling it every day. I guess Heavenly Father is kinda smart to let it work that way :) (Yeah, I hope this all make sense too). On a different note, we just taught our first Jehovah's Witness together? LOL She let us in, super nice and we testify that we can receive answers from God when we put trust in Him and pray sincerely, ha and all of a sudden she's thinking we don't believe in the scriptures which is the furthest thing from the truth. Ahh! And she just wanted to be taught through verses and doesn't really believe we can find answers through prayer. So we pulled out our Bibles to explain the apostasy briefly before we had to go, but man, we left thinking...what in the WORLD? We'll just have to pray she'll understand how Heavenly Father works, which is through knowing Him through having a 2-way communication with Him.
Monday Feb 1--Anyways, happy February and happy 6th week here to me! Transfers are coming up and we're pretty confident we're both staying here because I'm being trained, but we'll see! Today we get to do a 'cleaning check' type of thing like up at BYU where we just scrub every inch of the apartment, but we're only accountable to the Lord to check it! :D Oh yea, and according to one of our less-actives Romina, there's a fly carrying a deadly virus around America, so if I'm dead by next P-day (which will change to Tuesdays after this week), please sing "Savior, Redeemer of My Soul' at my funeral :D!! Herman Moon
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| our new board |
Wed. 3 Feb 2016-- Something sweet has happened to me this week-it's not night & day difference, but maybe like night & afternoon...where I'm just more motivated, filled w/ the guide of the spirit. My headaches from last week for the most part have gone, and more importantly, I'm happier! It all started one morning I woke up w/ that quote from E. Holland in my mind: "Don't live less than your privileges allow,' and I thought of it in a more personal aspect instead of living the gospel type of thing. I realized that I am so dang blessed...with individual traits, experiences, opportunities, and life in me that I just flat out take for granted, forgetting most of the time these things that help me live grateful and positive. So...remembering who I am and to whom I belong has been this great change of this week, and I hope and pray to have for the rest of my mission and life. This is why people around thanksgiving are so happy! It's simply gratitude, and understanding God's expectation that you take advantage of what you have and share with others.
Thurs 4 Feb--Dad and Mom, in other news:
1. I gave my first district meeting lesson today! I didn't realize how much leaders do to prepare for these meetings to motivate and help us grow each week! But it was good and fun :D That's all I feel like saying for that :).
2. Our hot water heater doesn't work this week so it's not fun showering ;)
3. We still don't have $ for the new month so pardon my expenses on the credit cards.
4. Last weekend, this drunk of the Pucura (sketchy apartment complex where Camila and Paulina and Pablo live) was yelling at and following us but it's okay because we've had Paulina and Pablo (big people!) and a member with us.
5. I'm sore from jump-jacking to Primary Colors "Give said the Little Stream"
6. My hair is getting...not sure...darker? But then Hna Jesus says I'll return home blond because of the sun...so... lighter?
7. Hma Jesus doesn't like when I say "salud, dinero, amor, muerte' for her sneezes, so I've stopped.
8. Our Family History is So COOOL!!!! I get to add it to my 'Mi Familia' pamphlet that's required we complete.
9. Dad--has that woman found her missionaries yet? I love the story!
10. Things I'm concerned about:
--how to have more powerful lessons,
--respond to people who are fine living 'their way', believing in their own manner,
--all of the Haitian less-actives--SO MANY! Things could drastically change for the Haitians if there was a branch for them and we're going to talk to Bishop about it to see if we can mention it to the presidency
--one of my toes always cracks every step I walk...prob not good
--headaches--agua and meds every day
--saying too much in my letters? So you all choose what is worth sharing! Don't want it to be too much.
Fri Feb 5, 2016--Hna Jesus and I (more her) have been feeling sick in the digestion part of us, so our energy a little lower and the lack of people in the street and appointments failing hasn't helped either :[ but what has helped is to help ourselves! We completed our goal of 18 contacts (and actually got 20 :D!) so we can finally reach 70 for the week. We also continued with our get-to-know-you questions which REALLY has helped us grow to be friends, and we're really just supporting each other more through these more 'ehh' days to make them memorable and opportunities to grow. But I'm so glad things are looking up between us! It's like we're mastering how to live with each other and develop Christlike attributes together, it's good! I'm thinking of the future less and focusing more on the here and now. And this morning, ya know, I looked at myself in the mirror and realized I'm becoming who I've always wanted to be. LOL, it's silly, but I thought of it physically first, because I had a flashback of one time mom and I were in the car and I was begging to have 'streaks' in my hair (highlights) and she said, 'when you're 18 you can do whatever you want with your hair' and waddya know, I got highlights when I was 18. I now have the long hair I've always wanted. But MOST importantly, I'm learning much more than I even recognize in this moment and have had such an amazing life and it's all surpassed me! But it's kinda really cool to realize it all more deeply now. That my greatest accomplishment (I was answering from our ?'s today) has been the life I've been able to live; correct decisions, strong relationships, letting the influence of good things guide me always, achieving my dreams...it's cool stuff. Cool. Stuff!
(Mom: I think she left out a picture here for me to transcribe)
faith now like i've had this week. But my 'thankful' for the day is the meal and laughs we had with the Arraya family. Two sons in their 20's talked about mission stories that were hilarious and the parents are super awesome. They made ribs! And yummy cake that had way too much sugar and now I'm crashing, crazy sleepy! We're fasting for Miriam and Joaquin to answer their door and have that excitement they had earlier this week and that they can get baptized this month. PLZ, plz, plz. Hna Jesus had revelation about them, that they're 'chosen' but to not be prideful but humble about this. Interesting. And I believe it. Just need some more faith. Hopefully they open their door tonight! (Later) Miriam (with a towel on to go take a shower) opened up! And we feel so much better. Stuff happened yesterday and she's been reading her LDM and has questions and says we could come by every day in the week if we wanted, AH! Excited for her and her family's potential!! Also, we finally visited with Camila and we taught to her necessity (needs...mom: Ah! Kayla's Spanish just overtook her!) and just laid down the law, that she's GOT to give her all to Christ's church to know it's true, work on her own conversion vs Mitchell's, and understand how the spirit speaks to us, and ya know, I've been a bit strong in my, idk, making commitments/testifying, but I think it was needed and good because when I said the closing prayer and asked specifically for her to gain a testimony of certain things and gave thanks to have her back and she looked up from that prayer smiling as tears dropped...aww! I told her that's the Spirit...all she's got to do is recognize it!!
Mon Feb 8, 2016--not p-day, but it was a great day. Found a new investigator as we were looking for his mom who's on vacation like everyone else! But his name is Rafael and he has hair, I mean black, shinyer/longer-than-mine hair, ha! and was great and listened with interest. Lunch in sector 1 (far) stopped by the Arraya's because I had to use the facilities, and we ended up bringing the 13 yr-old Rosio along for 2 lessons with us. Isabel-mom, 2 kids, in a family of 12 kids, moved in last week with husband... potential! Then for the awaited lesson w Miriam! She had lots of questions about the Book of Mormon and since she's well-versed in the Bible, she was wondering where in the Bible it talks about the BOM, and luckily Hermana Jesus and I have been memorizing scripture references, and we remembered these ones :D! What stuck out to me, or when I felt the spirit stronger was when I remembered and bore testimony that every verse, word, chapter is inspired and is for every individual. When I was struggling, upset, or angry, Mom would counsel me to 'read your scriptures!' and whether I liked that answer or not, every time, I found light in the Book of Mormon. We invited her to baptism and she immediately said no LOL because she needs to study and understand and be 'ready'. But we're confident she will be eventually, if not with us! Finally, to talk about the pic with the family attached--
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| Romina and her family |
Last night, she was especially sad/overwhelmed with money/supporting her family by herself, and we'd prepared to simply watch the talk from Elder Uchtdorf 'A summer with Great Aunt Rose' and it was exactly what she'd needed. She poured out her heart that she didn't have hope that she can be 'truly happy', and the concept of eternity for her has plummeted after her failed temple marriage and poor luck with men, and at this point she cried, and her girl Emily asked 'why is mommy sad?', she responded, 'because I have pain ' :(. And not a second later, Emily responded, "do you know Jesus?' AWWW! That was sweet. But what was super special was me feeling such empathy for her and at one moment I told her I felt like I could promise her that she WILL have a HAPPY, ETERNAL family if she continues to strive to be worthy. Sounds less cool than it was, but I felt the spirit say I needed to tell her that, and it was double-cool when Hma Jesus promised that her kids will grow up faithful in the church if she does her part now (Hma Jesus' mom had a super rough life like Romina and with miracles. She and her sister and their mom are the only active members of their family). But yep, I just love them, and the work, and am falling in love with this life!!
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