Well, I'm a little shaken up... Don't really know what to write, to be honest. I'll start with your questions. :)

Hermana Merejildo talks JUST like Tiffany. She loves iCarly (I know that Tiff doesn't anymore, but it just throws me back), Victorious, and all of those Disney shows... She tells stories in the exact same way... She's a hard worker, but is happy and is always laughing just like Tiffy. When you're walking with Tiffany and she's wearing a backpack, she does this little hop thing to adjust the backpack... Hermana Merejildo does the same thing. It's weird. It doesn't make me homesick at all, it makes me feel more at home. It makes me feel like I'm hanging out with Tiffany.

It's supposed to be warming up, but it's just... Not... Warming up. Sometimes cold fronts come from Argentina and they call it "el sur" here. But the weather is supposedly changing a lot here. Global climate change. ;) Doesn't help that we don't have hot water.

Conference was great! Probably my favorite conference from my mission. My favorite talks were by President Uchtdorf, Elder Hales, President Nelson... there were SO many good ones. 

"Sometimes boys dig holes."

I'm so excited that you're going to ponderize! I'm ponderizing Alma 5:16 this week. We should ponderize together! 

The thing that hit me the most was "Straighten up and fly right." Sometimes we overcomplicate things so much (including missionarywork). The most important thing is to just do the things you know are right. We're the pilots, and we're in charge.

Also, I got transferred. Last night after the conference, the assistants called us and told us that we're having an emergency transfer. Hermana Merejildo and I are going to Abundancia. We're opening an area there. We're going to keep living in San Pedro until they find us a house out there. It's kind of in the boonies, as far as I understand. I was actually really enjoying paved streets, but I can't complain. The Lord is in charge of this mission.

I love you guys to death! I hope you have a great week! 

-Hermana Hall

Can you believe that on Saturday three new apostles will be called?? I'm so excited for Conference... It's going to be a GREAT one. :)

San Pedro is a pretty great ward, as it turns out. A TON of sister missionaries finish their missions here. The members keep telling me "you're going to be the next to die (a.k.a. go home) here." It makes me miss the good old days when they told me "whew, you still have a tonnnn to go."

The bishop is Bishop Takei, who is from Japan, but married someone from here and had basically grew up here. He's traveled ALL over the world. He also speaks Spanish with a Japanese accent, which is awesome. 

San Pedro is SO different from la Cañada. It's on the other side of Santa Cruz, and while la Cañada was a poorer area, San Pedro is a bit more well-off. You should see the houses, they are BEAUTIFUL. 

Hermana Merejildo is amazing too. She's from Ecuador, and she turned 20 like ten days after I did. It's like finishing training the latina version of Tiffany. She is SO MUCH like Tiff it freaks me out. She's a great, sweet, driven, hardworking missionary, and we actually have a lot of fun too. I love her already.

 I can't believe how fast time goes. I love being a missionary. With all of my heart, I love being a missionary. I even love being with a companion all of the time, haha. I feel as though I just got here and every time someone tells me how little time I have left, it sinks in a bit more that I'm going home one day. I have no idea what I'm going to do when I can't be a missionary anymore. I love this work, and I love Bolivia. 

 

 Kaitee and her companion, Hermana Limo on Kaitee's birthday

 They have a tradition that the one celebrating their birthday has to bite the cake...

and here's Kaitee being a lady and covering her mouth after biting the cake,  Notice the teeth marks

Hey Mom! Yeah, the mission office changed... and I have no clue WHAT the new address is. I'll try to get it figured out though....

I'm in Santa Cruz... I've been here for like 3 hours... Transfers are crazy. We got Celi's parents' permission... I'm bummed I won't be there for her baptism. She's awesome though. Vivian is GREAT. That was a rough goodbye.

I'm in a ward called San Pedro, we're four sister missionaries, which means for the first time in my mission I'm not living alone!! I'm living with a gringa! :) My companion's name is Hermana Merejildo from Ecuador. I'll be finishing training her because her trainer finished her mission. She seems really cute!

I'll try to get my camara replaced next Monday if we don't have an activity... if not, it'll have to be the NEXT Monday. 

I'm sorry, short letter two weeks running.... I'll have more details next week about the ward and about how everything is running here. :) But I love you, and I miss ya and you guys are the best! 

 

We're running into some problems with Celibelsa's baptism, because she
has to get permission from her parents, but the bishop is going to go
talk to her parents this week... And.... this week Jefferson and Carla
told us that they want to get separated... They both want to get
baptized, but there are some big lack-of-support problems with
Jefferson's family.... They don't want him to get baptized. We're
doing everything in our power with them. We appreciate your prayers a
whole lot. :)

I'm keeping it short this week because there's not that much stuff
going on.... But I love you guys and I feel your prayers... :) I know
I'm never alone, no matter how far I am from home. :)

LOVE YA! :)
-Hermana Hall

 

 

                                                       photos of Kaitee's birthday

 

 

*in order to understand some of this message, you need to be aware that Kaitee's father and brothers are growing their hair and beards (in some cases) until Kaitee comes home... *

It's good to hear you guys are all doing so well! :) I love hearing how you guys are doing. It's funny, because sometimes my companions or other missionaries have problems back home and it gives them cause to worry... I feel so blessed because you seem to be doing so well (all of you!). I mean, I don't know if bad stuff happens and you just don't want to worry me... Or if you are just all doing so awesome... But I'm just grateful anyway. :)

Hey, I got my package! My card got here safe and sound!! :) The earrings and watch are SO CUTE and they got here right in time for conferences, interviews, and on Saturday we have Elder Uceda from the 70 coming. I have no clue how you found that watch. It's perfect! I always tell my companions that you have a 6th sense for what to send in packages... Also, the face wipes, American Mascara, and candy were perfect. That's not even mentioning the Birthday Cake Oreos. Made it a very happy birthday. :) Thank you! 

Mom. Send me a picture of my dad and brothers. I laughed out loud about JD looking like short Jesus, or like Teen Wolf. I seriously want to see them. I WANT THEM TO MAKE IT. THEY HAVE TO MAKE IT. 

I was talking to my companion about the whole hair thing... and she says that they should let me cut their hair when I get home... I've gotta say, I like the idea! :) I'll chop JD's Jesus beard right off!

 

OKAY. MIRACLE TIME. On Friday we had intercambios (I don't know what that's called in English, but the point is that I wasn't in my area) and Hermana Limo went to visit Jefferson and Carla with a couple that got married so that the husband could get baptized (LOVE that family, by the way) and they had a powerful, POWERFUL lesson, in which Carla said that she'd "get baptized right now if she could, but she couldn't do it alone." Gerardo Martinez told Jefferson like "Don't you want to be with your wife and daughter forever?" and then talked about how big of a blessing it's been for him. The point is... WE HAVE A WEDDING. September 25th they're going to get married, and on the 26th we have a baptism.

OTHER MIRACLE. Celibelsa came to church this week... Took me by the arm and said "can you come with me to talk to my parents? I've made my decision. I want to get baptized." 

Me: "Now??"
Her: *nods*

Her parents don't live in our area, so we can't come with her... But she LOVED young women's... It was exactly what she needed. We have a lesson with her today, we're gonna set an exact date. :)

Welp! :) That was my week! I love you guys too darn much... Can't believe I hit a year on Wednesday... Trying to ignore that, haha. 

Love you to the moon and back! :)

*that's what her watch says... she ends every letter home this way!*

-Hermana Hall

 

Kaitee's PS to her father and brothers... 

I have to authorize all hair/beard/mustache changes.

To authorize a change in hair/beard/mustache appearance, the following must be provided:

• Photos of the article of hair appearance of which the change has been requested. (Profile and Direct view)
• An appeal as to why the change has been requested.
• An explanation of the change that will be realized.
• 200 US Dollars.

We appreciate your compliance.

 

So, I'm going to keep this short.... A lot of people wrote me for my birthday and I want to thank them for the birthday wishes. :)

 

My birthday was great. My cute companion put together a little bag of goodies for me: a little stuffed animal that said "Happy Birthday" on it, a Dr. Pepper (I told her I love Dr. Pepper... You can buy them in cans at the grocery store here) and an Almond Snickers. I love me some American Candy... With a homemade card that she put a lot of time into. She's kind of a beast, that companion of mine. :)

I ATE SO MUCH CAKE. Here, well.... In Latin America, it's tradition that "if you don't bite the cake, your wish doesn't come true." I don't know if that was a thing in Dustin's mission or not, but I bit two cakes. Those are the pictures of me covering my mouth, for the record. Normally they shove your face in the cake, but I'm too sly for them, and they didn't get me (even though they tried) ;) May be a tradition I try to continue when I get home, because it's pretty fun. 

My backpack was on the verge of death, and the cute Barrientos family bought me a little side bag. :) I don't even know if they had the money to do it, but Rosa doesn't even let me buy food when I eat at her restaurant (she just gives it to us, haha) so she's kind of the best. She is seriously one of my favorite people I have met on my whole mission... I love her to death. :) 

Our priorities are a couple, Jefferson and Carla, and a 14 year old girl Celibelsa. Jefferson and Carla are GOLDEN.... except they're not married. They don't believe in infant baptism, and they get mad at how people treat the pope like more than a man. They're SO prepared... We taught them the Plan of Salvation and they LOVED it.... The problem is, they're not married, and they don't want to get married until next year. We're going to visit them with the ward mission leader tonight though. Pray for them. :)

 

We also have Celibelsa, who is the sister in law of a less-active named Vanesa. Vanesa has a restaurant, and Celibelsa works there, and she practically lives with her brother and with Vanesa. She says that she "loves Vanesa like a mom." The last time we had talked to her, she hadn't seen her parents in two weeks. They and her sisters had practically kicked her out of her house. She's suffered a lot. But she reads the scriptures we assign, and she loves the idea of baptism. She says she doesn't want to get baptized until she's 18 because she's "confused about a lot of things." We asked her if she had any questions or anything she'd like to learn more about, and she asked us what she has to do to go on a mission... that "she feels good when we come." I asked how long she's been thinking about a mission and she said "since you guys started coming." She had been really shy before that visit, and she basically didn't talk... But she really opened up to us on Thursday, and she kind of stole my heart... Pray for her, because she's going through a rough time.

Hahaha, this was going to be short... Now it's not haha... Welp...

 

I love you guys a lot! :) I hope you have a good week!

Gonna keep it short this week, probably.

I turn 20 tomorrow!!! Can you believe it? There is no better way to spend my birthday than in the service of the Lord. :)

Haircuts.... *sigh.* I'm doing all in my power to make my hair grow faster. I'm even taking Biotin, haha... I think it's helping. My hair, ever since I cut it short, practically doesn't grow... It's also been falling out a lot.... My hair has gotten a lot thinner since I got here, haha.....BUT.... I'm going to take good care of it... And have long hair again someday.... Hopefully.

It's starting to heat up a bit here in Bolivia. It's still cold in the morning and at night, but during the day it is SUNNNYYY.... Been getting my tan on... It was crazy how much of my tan I had lost over the winter. My companion saw the tan lines from my shoes and said "I thought you were white, but you used to be even MORE white."

Yep. Pretty much.

Speaking of my companion, she is a POWERHOUSE. We have seen more miracles over the last week. This week we were in a lesson with Jefferson and Carla (These names seem so white, but they pronounce them differently, hahaha) and we talked about how the spirit will answer their prayers to know if the church is true... My companion described how the spirit feels, and then I asked "when have you felt like that before?" Jefferson said "I felt it right now, when she was talking." They don't believe in infant baptism and they are PURE GOLD. The only problem is that they aren't married... We're going to talk to them about it today though, and hopefully bring another awesome couple (the husband is a recent convert and they had to get married for him to get baptized). Pray for this awesome couple! :)

Also: Yisela and Victor

Elizabet and Israel

Felix

That's it from me this week! :) Love ya!! :)

                                                  photos from Vivian's baptism


 My companion is Hermana Limo from Chiclayo Peru. She's 26,
got baptized at 11 and has been dying to serve a mission ever since.
While we were walking around on
the first day she kept saying "I can't believe I'm on my mission!" and
"I can't believe I'm with my trainer!" I feel a little bit of pressure
to show her the very best of mission life.... but she's SO prepared to
be here. She keeps talking about how much baptisms we're going to have
though... Which is a little intimidating for me. I hope I can live up
to her expectations, haha...

I'm healthy as can be. My clothes are... Hanging in there. There are
always those little markets here where you can buy American clothes
here, so I've been able to buy what I need. You have no idea how many
times I've been asked by my companions (in all seriousness) "Do
Americans only wear their clothes once and then donate them?" There's
also a rumor that we don't shower....? I don't even know.

This week we've found a couple of couples! Jefferson and Carla, and
Yisela and Victor. They're both AWESOME, SUPER prepared, and both were
blown away by the thought of eternal families. Carla asked "how can I
know that that's true?" My companion is a POWERHOUSE of a missionary,
and she has so much faith.

We're also working with someone named Felix, who is the husband of a
member. He has gone to church practically every week for 7 years with
his wife, and leads family home evenings with his family. The problem
is that he has a couple of doubts that hold him back. But his wife,
Yuli, went to the temple to figure out the whole thing with him not
being a member. We taught him for the first time on Tuesday, and we
felt the spirit SO strongly. After we left, his wife chased us out,
and told us that their 10 year old son had dreamt the night before that an
angel was baptizing his dad... And
that two nights before he had dreamt "this. What's going on in the
front room right now." He had dreamt that me and another missionary
(I wasn't even with Hermana Limo yet) and Hermana Isabel, a member,
were teaching his dad in the front room.... Please pray for him,
because he's just a step away. We're seeing miracles with him.

You guys really are the best. My companions talk about their families,
but I just know that I have the very best one. :) I love you guys to
the moon and back, and I hope you have a great week. :) Keep us and
our investigators in your prayers!

So, transfers on Sunday nights wasn't just a one time thing, it turns
out. Now they'll let us know of the transfers on Sunday nights, and
we'll change on Mondays...It's kind of a crazy change, because there's
not much time to clean or wash clothes or anything.

Well... Last night while we were waiting for the call, and we were
speculating. Our prediction was that I was going to leave the area...

But they called us and told us that I was staying... And that I'm
training. Hermana Kofoed, even though she's only been here a transfer,
is leaving for Santa Cruz again. Poor thing was in Santa Cruz, came
out here to Tarija for only one transfer, and then left again...for
Santa Cruz.

I'm really sad to say goodbye to Hermana Kofoed... We have had the
funniest transfer ever, and I'm going to miss her a lot. She is a
MACHINE of a missionary...But she's going to kill it wherever she is.

I'm going to be with another sister from our zone for two days and
then on Wednesday morning we go to Santa Cruz to pick up our new
companions.

Okay. So getting to this week. The 6th of August is Bolivia's
Independence (sorry if I spelled that wrong... no spell check) Day.
The stake (ALL of Tarija...A giant stake of 10 wards) had a huge
activity where each ward was assigned a department (kind of like a
state) of Bolivia. Then it was their job to prepare a lunch of food
that's traditional to that department, and organize a dance that's
traditional too. We got to go for a couple hours because our
pensionistas were there and if we didn't go we... like....wouldn't've
been able to eat. It was AMAZING. Every ward had a stand, and there
were people in traditional clothes EVERYWHERE... It was amazing. So
fun.

That's pretty much all that happened with us this week. We've been
finding some AMAZING new investigators... But I think I'll have more
on that next week. :)

I love you guys! I love missionary work! I love Bolivia! :) I hope you
have a great week! Love ya!

This week was... interesting. Well, mostly this weekend.

So, on the weekends, we eat lunch with the members and the relief society gets who we're going to eat with all figured out.

Well, Aeropuerto, as a ward is HUGE. It doesn't have a limit until it hits Bermejo, which is a city south of here, right on the border of Argentina. Our relief society president lives like 20 minutes out of the city in car, like a block away from her first counselor.

This week, we were going to eat with a member, supposedly, that lives a good ten minutes out of the city.... But once we got there, they told us that she was going to give us lunch NEXT Saturday, and that the 1st counselor in the relief society had to give us lunch that day.

So we were just like... Stranded in the middle of nowhere for a good hour because none of the little bus/car things that haul people out there would stop for us and we had to go FARTHER into the middle of nowhere. Finally, by some miracle, the relief society president passed by with her family in their car and hauled us out there...

Then, yesterday, we had a couple of free hours and there's a part of the area that had been closed (that's ours now) that we hadn't had time to go into yet.. So we went out there yesterday and it is straight up farmland. Like pigs, and goats, and chickens and cows.... Pigs just walk around up there like they own the place, and I didn't even know it was part of our area. Hermana Kofoed and I took a picture out there in the boonies (both times...) but it's been a pretty adventurous week.

We contacted this lady and she had a pig and I asked her what his name is and she said Pancho. Pig in Spanish is "chancho," so her pig is literally named "Pancho el Chancho."

That's pretty much what I've got to report this week.

You should see the computer I'm using... It is STRAIGHT out of the
'90s. I don't have too much news this week either, so don't expect the
longest email.

It's FINALLY starting to warm up. It has been COLD this month.... Today it's really nice
though. Not too hot, not too cold.

Really, this week not a lot happened. The coolest thing though was
that we met a 19-year-old girl (one of our investigator's sisters) who
was visiting from way far. In Bolivia, there are a lot of "pueblos" or
people who basically just live far from the city in smaller groups...
And she's from one of them. The church isn't out there yet, but we met
her when we came to pick up her older sister to see if she wanted to
go to an activity, and she answered the door. We were like "uhh.. We
came to see if your sister wanted to come to an activity..." She was
like "oh, she's not home." We were like "Do YOU want to go?" and she
DID. And she LOVED IT. We wound up giving her a Book of Mormon, a For
the Strength of Youth pamphlet, and the Restoration, Plan of
Salvation, and Gospel of Jesus Christ pamphlets. She really ate up
what we talked about and me and Hermana Kofoed kept talking about how
she's "just going to go start the Church out there in that pueblo she
lives in."

But. Yeah. That's it from me. I sure love you guys, and thanks for
being so awesome. :) Have a great week! :)

I don't know if you heard this or not, but on Saturday, the mission kind of took a hit. A returned Elder Merkley (from West Jordan) passed away in a camping accident. He served in this mission, finished the very transfer that I entered the field. He finished his mission in the very ward I am serving in, and everyone here remembers him very fondly. President Willard came to our sacrament meeting yesterday and spoke a lot about him. Send your prayers for him and for his family. 

It's a tradition in the mission that in your last conference of your mission, you bear your "last testimony." On Friday, I heard Hermana Mejia give her "last testimony." ALL of the missionaries that she had trained or started to train, were there to hear her bear her testimony for the "last time" as a missionary. It was a really cool thing to see for me. I love her a lot.

Gordon Rogers is bishop! I don't know how I didn't call that! That sounds like a stellar bishopric. West Jordan 28th Ward is the best ward... Except for maybe Aeropuerto. ;)

Not the most eventful week. One thing was pretty cool though.

We're teaching a lady who listened to missionaries with her family when she was just a little girl. I think it impacted her a lot, because even though she was just a little girl, she still remembers about Joseph Smith, and how happy she was to watch the Restoration movie with her siblings. 

Now she's older, with two children. One is an 11 year old son with special needs. 

 

She is SO loving and patient with her son, which is AMAZING. But it weighs on her a lot. She started to cry and tell us about what she's going through, and we could just see how much love she has for her son. Then I watched my companion with SO much power, testify to her that "her son is an angel." It was a really powerful lesson, and we could feel how much she needed to hear that what she was doing was right, even though it was not recognized by the world. It was the best lesson me and Hermana Kofoed have taught together this far.

 

I guess that's it from me this time...But I love you guys! Keep working hard and being awesome... And I love you to the moon and back!

 

-Hermana Hall

 

 

Okay, I cannot believe it's been a year since I got my mission call. I just remember seeing Bolivia and having no idea where that was or what to expect. And then I thought I was going to a land filled with llamas and devoid of hot showers... Then I got here and I remember that the first time I saw a car I was like... Am I in the right place? 

I love Bolivia. Even though I eat rice, potatoes and chicken every day, I LOVE this place. Especially Tarija. The day I leave Tarija (and Aeropuerto) will be SO hard. I have never loved a group of people so much in my life. They are SO humble, so devoted to the gospel, and so willing to serve those around them. There are so many people that I just love.

I was talking to the Barrientos Family yesterday (the family that the Elders got married and baptized but now they live in our area :D) and I just was so taken aback by how much I love them. They're not even my baptism, but they are such true disciples of Christ. Hermano Rafael (the dad)'s favorite scripture is Alma 48:11, which talks about Captain Moroni and what a good man he was... A man who doesn't delight in bloodshed. His HERO is Captain Moroni. If there's anything about him in the scriptures, Hermano Rafael eats it up. And you can see it in the way he lives, that he is following Moroni's example. 

And then there's his wife, Hermana Rosa, who I will probably miss more than anyone else in this area. She is ALWAYS taking care of us. She's got a soft spot in my heart, that's for sure.

Hermana Kofoed is my FAVORITE PERSON. She is the youngest of five, three girls, two boys. She's from Spanish Fork, and she is so darn funny. She is the hardest worker ever, EXACTLY obedient. She makes me be the best I can be, but she does it lovingly. I have learned so much from her. The language is harder for her, but that does NOT stop her from opening her mouth. While I try to use persuasion to get in doors, and in contacts in the streets, she uses pure boldness, like a true disciple of Christ. 

We've had a rough week with Vivian's family. Her dad is drinking a TON. Vivian's kind of just used to it. It'll still be a while I think.

Gloria is moving to Argentina in like a week and a half and we have completely lost contact with her. That's been kind of rough too.

Jenny has been traveling. A lot. We need to have a good, direct lesson with her. We feel like she hasn't been progressing.

This week we met someone named Aide. She's a 25 year old single mom who lives with her sister. She's a referral from a member who is her friend and felt the prompting to talk to her about the gospel, and families. She is SO interested and she came to church yesterday. We have a lesson with her tonight. :)

 

We came back from the leadership conference on Tuesday, and we didn't eat lunch until Wednesday... So on Wednesday we saw Vivian's dad and he had been drinking again. Apparently he had been drinking all week. But he came to church yesterday and so did Vivian's mom which was a huge miracle. I can't believe she went from not signing the papers to going to church with her family. I just really hope Vivian's example keeps touching her family.

Hermana Mejia is still in the zone, she's just training. Again. A bunch of sisters came in this transfer. Me and Hermana Kofoed (spelled her name wrong last week, that's embarrassing) are in charge of the sisters in the zone, but half of our zone are sisters. We're a huge zone of 24 people, 12 sisters. We have to do exchanges with all of them, inspections, etc. Plus if some of them are sick, have trouble getting along with their comps, etc., we also have to help them out with that stuff. We are a very new zone 4 of the 6 companionships are training. Plus, neither of us really have that much time in the mission. I'm really lucky that Hermana Kofoed is a GREAT missionary.

This morning, me and Hermana Kofoed made french toast... Having a gringa companion is pretty great. :)

 

It's been a pretty funny week. Being two gringas walking around Tarija makes for some pretty funny situations. :) I'm pretty excited to be Hermana Kofoed's comp. She's SUCH a hard worker, and such an obedient missionary. I've learned a lot from her already. 

 

I love you guys, and thank you so much for your support. I hope you have a great week. :)

 

Love you to the moon and back!

-Hermana Hall

Hi. So, first things first, Vivian got baptized this week. It was so awesome, Mom. She cried and cried and cried and was so happy... And half of the people that were there cried when she bore her testimony afterwards. It was so sweet. And at the end of the baptism we sang "Nearer My God to Thee," and I got pretty emotional thinking about how me and Vivian are just doing the same thing... Trying to get nearer to the same God.

Okay... Now for the crazy part.

Transfers were supposed to be on Wednesday, right? But last night our ZLs called us, and said "Hermanas we have your transfers!" and we were SO confused because... It was Sunday night. But, they told us that I had to be in the airport at 7:30 this morning, because I had to be in Santa Cruz for a leadership conference with my new companion, Hermana Kopoed (I'm not even sure that's how you spell it). I'm going to be a sister leader this transfer. 

So I'm writing you from Santa Cruz, that's why everything is so weird and why I'm writing in the afternoon. Tomorrow in the afternoon I'm going back to Tarija with my companion.

Hermana Kopoed is awesome. She's from Spanish Fork and has been in the mission for almost 6 months. She's a powerhouse though, and I'm really excited to get to know her better.

Hermana Nahuel is in Santa Cruz with a sister that's going to finish her mission super soon.

What an awesome family we have.... I sure am grateful for you guys... :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMOTHER GREAT. She really is so awesome. Such a good example of class and quiet dignity. :)

Well... I don't have a lot more to talk about. But I sure love you guys, and I love the gospel. I love my Savior and I love being a missionary. :) 

Your favorite, ;)

Hermana Hall

 

This week was crazy and I don't have a lot of time. The internet is HORRIBLE this week. So we'll see how much I can sum up.

This week, on Friday, my poor comp had some trouble with her stomach. Her stomach hurt so badly that she could hardly walk. We took her to the bishops house (which was close) and after calling the mission president's wife, she got a health blessing... Then we went to the clinic. Turns out she has gastrites.... So this week we're pretty much eating boiled chicken and white rice. 

I'm going to get skinnier.

BUT. NOW THE IMPORTANT THING. THIS WEEK I SAW THE BIGGEST MIRACLE I'VE SEEN IN MY WHOLE MISSION. I'm going to take a chunk out of the letter I wrote President. 

"We have an investigator whose name is Vivian. She's 16 and has been investigating the church for a long time... The problem is, her dad has Word of Wisdom troubles, and her mom didn't want to give her permission to get baptized. But Vivian goes to church, prays, reads her scriptures, and goes to seminary. She participates actively in YW, and when she bears her testimony, the spirit fills the room.

And lately, her dad has been coming to church. The ward jumped into fellowshipping him, mostly because of how much they all care about Vivian. She's praying with her dad, reading the BoM with him, and watching church movies. We're starting to see the difference in him too, and that has been a huge miracle in and of itself.

On Saturday, without telling us, she started fasting. She talked to her parents that night about how badly she wants to get baptized... She told us that she was crying, talking to her parents... And her mom told her again to wait until she's 18, and then she can make the decision.

But at 4 in the morning on Sunday, her parents got up to make food for the day (they have a restaurant thing), and her mom told her dad (who told us at church that day) that she's going to give Vivian permission to get baptized.

Then her dad told us "I hope that this will start that the whole family can get baptized."

All four of us missionaries were in the room, and we stood there with our mouths open. We did not even know how to respond. Vivian has been working so hard and so patiently for this for years... And now it's finally happened for her.

We're going to try to get everything in order to get her baptized this week. :)"

 

About my new little golden family... Hermana Gloria started working
this week... She has to travel really far, every day. And I don't
really know how that's going to go over. We've been calling and
calling... And she either doesn't answer, or her daughter answers, but
her mom isn't there. Keep them in your prayers this week.

Also keep Jenny and her family in your prayers. She travels EVERY
WEEKEND for her work, and it has been impossible for her to come to
church. I'm really worried about them, and I'm afraid that they're
going to struggle in receiving their testimony if they can't make it
to church. BUT this week we had a lesson with them, the bishop, his
wife, and the relief society president. It was a miracle because she
has been so busy that it has been impossible to get a lesson with
her.The bishop and the dad (Jose Luis) had met before and had hit it
off, and this lesson made it even better. I'm really hoping that the
Lord helps them to recognize the answers to their prayers that I am
certain that they are receiving.

I sent you like 10 pictures a couple weeks back and then recently I
checked, and they TOTALLY DIDN'T SEND. So I'll try to send them again
next week, if not today. The internet is pretty slow today, so we'll
have to see.

To wrap it up... We saw a pretty huge miracle this week. We have an
investigator named Vivian. She's a 16 year old girl whose dad has some
Word of Wisdom issues and her parents won't give her permission to get
baptized. She lives in the same little house thing (Here in Bolivia,
most of the houses are pretty much just a square of rooms that all
open up into the same open/outside area in center. Your family will
live in a couple of rooms, and share a bathroom and sometimes a
kitchen with the other families you live with.) as our pensionista, so
we see her family pretty often, in passing. They sell food at
lunchtime (also called a pension) and there is always loud music, and
people yelling.... It's just not the best enviornment for their
family. Vivian goes to church every week, participates actively in YW,
and goes to seminary. Half the time, I forget she's an investigator,
because she acts just like a member. But her family doesn't want her
to get baptized until she's 18. She gets along GREAT with Hermana
Silvia (our pensionista) and is always asking her for advice, and asks
her questions when she doesn't understand things at church and all...
But this week we had a POWERFUL lesson with her.... Mostly just
because she is so faithful. And we felt a portion of the love her
Heavenly Father has for her... And I talked about that framed poem
thing you have that talks about how in our hard times we think we walk
alone, but really Christ is carrying us, and I got pretty emotional.

BUT. Her Dad ran into some missionaries in Bermejo (I think he went
there for something work-related) and something they said must have
hit him pretty hard, because he talked to Vivian and said that he
wanted to go to church. I think she was the only person more shocked
by it than we were, haha.... But he kept his word, and came to church
on Sunday. It was a MIRACLE. He told a member "Well, my daughter sure
likes it, so I figured I may as well try it out too." It was so sweet
to see Vivian with her head on her dad's shoulder in Gospel
Principles. Pray for them too... Vivian has been waiting for this to
happen for ages.

The internet is slow this week, so don't expect too long of an email.

This week was pretty good! :) The zone had interviews with President
Willard. President Willard is awesome. In my interview I quoted
somebody (I don't know if it was a general authority or another
missionary) that sometimes we believe that miracles happen to other
missionaries, but not to us personally.

He assured me that the Lord is "so pleased with me," and that I'm "as
good as they come, Elder or Sister, and I'm not just telling you that
to send you out on the street willing to work, I'm telling you that as
a mission president that cannot lie."

He also told me to "stay broken," and explained that being "broken"
doesn't mean being "useless" or "unable," but it means being willing
to do the will of the Lord.

I don't know why I haven't had a lot of outward success with my
mission.... I think learning humility may have been a big part of it.
But I do know that the Lord knows me, knows my individual struggles,
and is proud of me, and is proud of the mission that I have served. He
just wants me to keep going, and believe in the miracles that are yet
to happen, remembering the ones that already have.

ALSO.... Last transfer, when we were 6 missionaries in the ward, we
street contacted a lady and her daughter that were GOLDEN. But, they
lived in the Elders' area, so we had to pass the referral.

But now, with our area being bigger, WE GET TO TEACH HER.

We had a lesson with her on Thursday where we talked about faith, and
afflictions, and I teared up, and my companion teared up... And the
spirit was so strong. I feel so blessed that the Lord has trusted us
to teach her.... I hope that her faith continues to grow. :)

I can't believe tomorrow I hit my halfway mark. During my training,
everyone always told me that "the time goes SO fast," and I just did
not believe them at all. But after my training, like a week went by,
and here I am. I still feel so new, I still don't know anything, I
still haven't done anything! I can't believe I'm saying this, but I
don't want to go home!

But I sure do love you guys! I'm so grateful for all the support I
feel from all of you back home! :')

Love, your missionary
-Hermana Hall :)

 

This week was a rougher one. Me and my companion are really struggling to find people to teach.... Jenny was traveling all week so we didn't have the chance teach their family at all.... I've kind of felt like my whole mission I've been running and running and I haven't gotten anywhere. So I push myself even harder, and still... not really anything. I absolutely love the mission, I love the work. I LOVE Bolivia and I love the people. I know that the Lord wants me here... I'm pretty sure He's trying to get something through that hard head of mine. Some weeks are like this in the field... You win some, and you lose some... And it's not about the numbers and it's not about the baptisms... But numbers and baptisms would sure be a nice bonus, haha.

Okay, I'll stop being a giant bummer now.

This week I had a pretty cool spiritual experience while teaching a woman here named Teodovina. She's awesome, in her fifties-ish, and she uses traditional Bolivian dress. She ALWAYS has a smile on her face.

Now, a problem for the missionaries here in Tarija is teaching investigators that don't know how to read. We currently have 3 people that we're teaching that don't know how to read, Teodovina being one of them.

We taught her on Friday, but we were kind of in a hurry, so we just shared a scripture with her. I shared a scripture from John 10:14-15 which talks about Christ as the good shepherd and us as His sheep. I read it and she was just... Blown away by it. She explained that because she can't read, she doesn't always get to hear things like that. She said that with the world the way it is "no one is just going to walk up to you on the street and share things like that.

Then she kept asking me "and what else does it say?"

"And what else?"

"And read me another one."

It was so humbling to me to see what I had taken for granted my whole life. I have had the scriptures in front of me my whole life and I took them for granted, if I didn't take them as an inconvenience. I haven't learned how to value the scriptures until I began to use them as a missionary.... I am so grateful for Hermana Teodovina and her example to me.

On a less spiritual note...

About a year ago, there was a companionship of sister missionaries in my area that gave food to stray dogs. They were followed around by a GIANT group of stray dogs wherever they went.

To this day, there are two dogs (named Pepe and Richard by previous missionaries) that if they see us, they will follow us the entire day until we get home in the nighttime.... If we go to a lesson, they will wait for us outside, and then when we come out, they will continue following us.

All of that sounds real cute, but the other stray dogs do not like Pepe and Richard... They attack Pepe and Richard... And Pepe and Richard don't do anything... And so we can't really go anywhere without stray dogs attacking us.

So on Saturday, we had Pepe and Richard following us... and we had to go to a lesson, so we HAD to get them to stop following us... Or else other dogs would have probably killed them.... And bitten us too... Me and Hermana Nahuel started throwing towards them to scare them into leaving....

And I totally hit Pepe in the face with a rock. A big rock. And it was the funniest and saddest thing that has ever happened to me....

But don't worry though, Pepe forgave me pretty much immediately after. He still followed us home.

*SIGH* Pepe and Richard.

I stayed here with Hermana Nahuel. :) But, the ward did change a lot. Now we're just four missionaries in the ward, two sisters and two elders. It's kind of a bummer, it's a lot quieter... And plus we have to re-divide the ward in two instead of three... Our area is going to be huge.

 

Hermana Mejia came here to Tarija! :) Aaaand (drumroll)..... She's my sister leader! Chances are we'll go on splits, and I'll be her companion for a day again, haha! She finishes her mission in August... So she'll probably stay here until the end of her mission! How crazy!

 

Hermana Llerena is also here in Tarija! I didn't know she was coming, but I was there in the airport because we had to wait with another Hermana while she waited for her companion to come in from Santa Cruz. So I just see her get off of the plane.. And I just had to give her a hug. It was SO good to see her. She's had a rough couple of transfers, and she just really needs a friend.

 

Dr. S. is so dang funny.... I'm glad that you work with people that are so good to you! ... even if they make you x-ray 800 humerous bones... I'm sure you don't think that's very humorous. (I am so sorry, that was the dumbest joke ever. )

 

Oh, Mr. Bones that's terrible. (Okay, I really am done now.)

 

Pray for our golden family. This week is kind of make it or break it with them. We had a good talk with her yesterday, and she's looking into another church too. She needs your prayers. Hermana Nahuel and I trust that God will answer her prayers, but we need her to recognize her answer and not listen to outside sources and take that as an answer.

 

I think that's it from me this week... I'm going to keep it short... But I sure love you! :) Have a great week!