Week 20: "...but God has time for me, so I have time for Him."

Lunes, 18 de Agosto de 2014
     This morning, we cleaned up and organized the carpeta (binder/folder)!  During cleaning/organizing cosas (things), Hna Kingsford pushed the sink plug closed and then it wouldn't open again, so we had to get the owners to come and fix it....haha.  While they fixed it, we went to lunch at a restaurant down the road.  The owner's son, Leonardo (5 yrs) started talking to me.  I asked him if he could run fast, so he showed us over and over again how fast he was.  It was so cute.  Once we were done eating, I had a push-up contest with him, and then we played futbol with a bouncy ball.  It was so much fun.  When it was time to go, he ran up to us yelling, "Chow Gringas!" and gave us high fives and told us to come back!
     Then we went to internet!  It was so rapido here!!  Yay!!  After internet, we went to the playa (beach/dock/pier).  While we were on the dock, I was trying to take a cute photo and my plaque fell into the ocean!  haha  Que feo.  We just laughed and continued taking photos.  We had a lot of people laughing with us because of our jokes and actions.  It was fun!
     While we were walking back to the beach, a man stopped us to show us a really ugly fish and he scared me with it and he thought it was the funniest thing.  Once we made it back to the beach, we walked along the water and took photos by the strange and cool boats that they use.  Then we walked the street right above the beach to look at all the little tiendas (stores).  While we were looking around, we met some ladies from Argentina and they thought that us serving a mission was the coolest thing since sliced bread.  They were so cute.
     Then we went home, cleaned up from the sand and headed out teaching.  We went to teach a little girl named Youleidy and her abuelos.  We taught them about Jose Smith and they really enjoyed it.  We ended by singing "Soy un hijo de Dios".  They loved it!
     After that, we went to dinner and headed home to plan.  First we called the Pres. of the Rama (Pres. Arroyo) because it is his birthday today, so we sang to him and he invited us to his house manana to have cake!  Yay!
     Today, I got an email from the Stake and little quote that says, "The children of God come into this world, pass through a veil of forgetfulness, or spiritual amnesia.  They forget who they were, what they did, and why they came to earth.  All of us who have received the gospel have the sacred responsibility to help them to remember God's glorious Plan of Salvation."
     Also, Hna Kingsford and I were talking about prayer and how we need to pray specifically and be honest, because like when you are asked, "How are you?" and you answer, "Good." and it's not good, no one is going to know how to help unless you say and ask.  Same with God.  You need to tell Him and ask Him specifically and be honest and open with Him.  That is when He can help you and bless you.  That is when you can see and feel miracles.
     On the way home, we saw a woman who fed us the cow stomach yesterday, and she said, "I was praying yesterday that I would find help" and she said we were her "angels" and that the rest of the day after we set up her work that she had lots of customers.  She said, "I know God answers prayers because he sent you two and blessed me with a lot of business."  How beautiful is that?  When people can feel and see the simple blessings from God.  I love this gospel.  I know that it is true and that it can bless all with so much guidance and peace!!

Martes, 19 de Agosto de 2014
     We had a district meeting this morning in Monsefu, Peru. (15 minutes from Pimentel).  I love my district!  It is all Latinos (2 hermanas and 2 elders).  One of the hermanas is from the USA but she is a Latina.  Our district lider named our district "Pimsefu" which is Pimentel + Monsefu put together.  Later in the day, we taught Pilar (17 yrs).  She is really sweet and is super adorable!  During her lesson, I felt the gift of tongues. The entire lesson I understood everything and said everything that I wanted to without questioning or having a hard time pronouncing!  It was awesome!!
     After  her lesson, we stopped by the house of President Arroyo and his wife invited us to 2 different kinds of cake and juice!  It was bien rico!  After that, on our way to our Noche de Hogar (FHE) with our Pensionista and all those who live with her, we got stopped by a man with a cart of fruit who was handing me all sorts of fruits.  We started contacting him and in the end, he wanted to know if I was married and when I told him I wasn't, he asked for my number.  I didn't give it to him...don't worry!!  Anyways, we finally made it to our pensionista's house (Ida luz -Lucy)  We taught her daughters Lucia y Mayra and her sister Channy, and her daughters Juanita and Nikol and also the boyfriend of Nikol, Jerson, and also the ex husband of Channy.  It was a very successful lesson.  We taught the 10 commandments and they were loving everything about it.  We did a fun activity to remember all the commandments.
     After the lesson, we all ate arroz con something (haha) with coconut in it.  It was really good. During that time, we sang some Disney songs and they loved it, and Jerson was making fun of us, but I know he loved it too!
     Then we ate dinner. (oatmeal drink called avena and tamales)  All during dinner, we were all laughing and joking around!  I love how close I am with this pensionista and her family.  We eat lunch together everyday and they always hang out with us at dinner time!  I love it here in Pimentel.  I love the people and the love I feel from everyone!!  I feel like I really fit in here.  People here understand my personality and I love that!  It was a good day!  I am still struggling with Spanish, but I feel myself progressing a lot more here in Pimentel than I did in Motupe.  I am loving it!!!

Miercoles, 20 de Agosto de 2014   [HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM Y DAD!]
     Well today was a good day!  We were walking to a cita and we saw a crazy grandma in leggings, high tops, an oversized t shirt and a hat that was on backwards.  I love it here!  Our first cita of the day was with a recent convert named Karla.  We were talking with her about Jose Smith and she ended up relating a lot to the story and shared some really personal experiences from her conversion.  It was beautiful. I love when people remember the reason why they chose the church!
     After that, we headed to our pension for lunch and right before we sat down to eat, our hermana liders showed up to do a visit of planning with us, so we brought our lunch with us to our cuarto to eat and plan. We planned with them for a couple of hours, about how to improve our area and use our time wisely, so we can visit all the people we need to in such a large area.
     Then we headed out teaching and visited a woman named Liliana (mama de Youleidy) and it turns out that her aunt and uncle died juntos esta semana (together this week)...so we talked about the Plan of Salvacion  and I shared my experiences of losing friends and how Christ helped me feel peace and know that all is alright, and even though I still have a hole in my heart, I feel better about where they are.  Then I told her that it is good to cry and to let it out, and that we were her support, and she began to cry.  I held her hand and let her cry.  Then Hna Kingsford and I sang "Where Can I Turn for Peace?"  It was beautiful.  We left her with a prayer and before we left, she gave us a huge hug and told us that she loved us.
     Then we taught Giannina and Danitza.  Giannina is a recent convert and I was talking with her a bit and when I told her I had 4 meses in the mission she said, "I thought you had a lot more time, because your Spanish is good." I love when people think my Spanish is good!  For our lesson, we taught the Atonement and then she told us we strengthened her testimonio and she feels that she understands things a lot better now!
     While we were walking to our last cita, Hna Kingsford complimented  me and told me the sincere love and compassion that I radiate for the people here is amazing, and that is why in every lesson the people "listen very intently to you."  And then she continued to say she wants that gift!  It was much needed for me to hear that she sees the actual love I have for these people!
     Our last cita fell through, so we tried 3 other houses and no hay nadie.  So we headed to the parque to contact people and I saw a man sitting alone and I turned to Hna Kingsford and said, "Him.  He needs to talk."  So we walked over to him and  introduced ourselves and we all started talking and he told us about his life, family, work, etc.  Then we shared the same things back and then we shared the basics of the gospel. We invited him to church, and he said, "I'll be there, I  promise."  He really wants to learn more and grow closer to Christ.  Then the most beautiful thing happened.  Right before we left, he told us that he usually goes to the beach and then right home, but today, for some strange reason, he stopped to sit in the parque, and then he proceeded to say, "If I had known I would be receiving all this love and joy, I would have come here sooner."  How amazing is that?!  He recognized what we have.  I really hope all works out with him and that we can baptize him, and get him making covenants with God and his familia.  Oh, his name is Jimmy and his 2nd name was Carter, but he changed it to Jonathan.  He said his dad was obsessed with the Presidents of the States and named him after Jimmy Carter!
     We went to dinner and we talked and laughed with Lucy y Channy forever.  We were all choking on our drinks and food!  Today was a good day, full of lots of fun, laughs, cries and the Spirit!  Good day!!

Jueves, 21 de Agosto de 2014
     All morning we had no success.  All our citas fell through.  We knocked doors and every door got shut in our faces.  I was worried that the rest of the day was going to be like that, but it wasn't!  After lunch, we went to Omar, who is a young man (17 yrs) and his mama, Maria. (the woman who fed us cow stomach/ panchita)  Well when we entered the house, we sat on the couch and were waiting for him to come and join us, when I saw  BEAUTIFUL art on the wall, so I got up to look at it, and Aaron (23 yrs), the brother of Omar, came out and asked me if I liked his art.  I told him that I did, and that I love to paint too, and so he invited me to come by on Monday to paint!  At this point, we had hit if off great so when Omar came out, I invited Aaron to join us too, and Hna Kingsford said that he has never wanted to join, but he joined us today!  We had a great lesson about baptism and Aaron asked  how and what he needs to do to become a member.  We told him that he needs to pray to know for himself that this is the path, and then to be baptized. He said that he was going to pray!  We sang a himno, "Soy un Hijo de Dios", and they loved it.  Then we prayed and we asked when we could come back and Omar said, "Next week on Martes", and then Aaron said, "No, tomorrow!"  But we had a full day tomorrow, so we couldn't but I was really excited that Aaron really likes our message.  Before we left, Aaron was looking at my photos, and asked if he could take one and draw it for me!  I gave him a picture of me.  I hope he actually draws it!!
     We headed to Fonavi and taught Marlo.  The last time we were there, we challenged him to watch/read talks from General Conference, and he did and he told us all about what he learned.  It was awesome!  He is so cool! His sister, Clara Leyton is so funny!  She and I have very similar personalities and we get along so well.  I love the relationships I am gaining here.
     Then we headed back to Pimentel.  We went to visit a woman named Maria, but instead we found her daughter, who we haven't taught before, name Crucita.  Turns out that she had received all the lessons a year ago but the elders just stopped visiting her, but today she told us she wants the lessons again and that at the end of Septiembre she wants to be baptized!  How beautiful is that?!  She said that she has missed the church and really wants to go and learn everything again.  She is 16 yrs old and she is such a down to earth girl.  Her personality reminds me a lot of Danielle, not as funny -obviously :) but she loves music and is just super chill and smart!  (like my sissy!)
     After her lesson, we went to dinner and talked with Lucy. :)  I love her.  She is totally my mommy here. She is so much like my mommy at home.  She is hilarious and cooks well and gives us good advice and love! I love her!  For dinner we had broccoli, carrots, sweet potatoes and avena (oatmeal) with hot chocolate in it! That is rico!! :)
     Then we headed home and planned and talked about how beautiful today was even though we didn't have as much success as we wanted (numbers wise), but we had amazing lessons and amazing miracles happen of finding people!!  I know we are being blessed because of our obedience and our humble desire to love and help these children of God come to the knowledge of what they had known in the life before!!  La obra misonal es bien bonito y tambien es un inspiracion!  I love being a missionary!!! I love Peru!!

Viernes, 22 de Agosto de 2014
     "The word hope is sometimes misunderstood in our everyday language.  The word often has a hint of uncertainty.  For example, we may say that we hope for a change in the weather or a visit from a friend.  In the language of the gospel, however, the word hope is SURE, UNWAVERING, and ACTIVE."  True to the Faith (Ether 12:4)  
     All day today, no one was home.  It was completely draining to not have lessons....but we laughed a lot as we walked everywhere.  The best part was when we were with Daniel (our mission lider) and Hna Kingsford took a sip of her water bottle and turns to me and says, "My water tastes like toilet water."  I busted up laughing and Daniel kept saying over and over in his cute little accent, "Gross!"  It was perfect!
     Before dinner, we were looking for new investigadores when a woman from the Netherlands comes up to us and starts talking to us in English.  Her name is Anna and she is here for an internship.  She speaks Dutch, German, English and Spanish.  She is really cool.  She  invited us to eat carrot cake with her one day when she makes it.  She has no interest in hearing our message, but she is really an interesting person.
     Then we headed to dinner. (eggs, hashbrowns, broccoli, carrots y avena with apples cut up in it).  After we ate, we went home, planned and got ready for bed.  It was a draining day.  It was mentally and spiritually exhausting when you only have 2 lessons. :(  Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Sabado, 23 de Agosto de 2014  [Feliz Cumpleanos Danielly!]
     This morning no one was home, so we went to the park and contacted all morning.  And we had a lot of success!!  We had people flocking to us!  Not even joking!  During our time contacting, we had a man come up to us and start selling us some scissors.  We said no.  So he pulled out the next best thing....books to learn English.  Once again, we turned him down and told him that we already speak English! :)  Another man chased us down for a Libro de Mormon, but we didn't have any on us, but he asked us what Bible we use so Hna Kingsford pulls out her Bible and shows him, and he ripped it from her hands and we both thought that he was going to run off with it.  She almost got her Bible stolen!!!  Then we contacted a man named Miguel.  He wants us to teach him!
     Then we went to lunch at a member's house. (Familia Paz)  It was bien rico!  I love the food here.  We had potatoes con spicy sauce y arroz con fried chicken.  After lunch, we went to Fonavi.  No one was home again, so we contacted a few people and stopped at a house of a member.  Their son drew me as an Angry Bird!!  He is 5 yrs old!  It was so good!  haha  He even drew my plaque on it- on my face! :)
     Then we went to the house of Daniel (ward mission lider).  His mom Ede served us warm apple pie with apple cider!  It was the best apple pie EVER!!  Then we went with Daniel to teach a lesson to his neighbor and buddy, se llama Lucido. He is 17 years old and such a good kid.  We taught him about Jose Smith, prophets and the Book of Mormon.  He loved it!  The lesson was awesome, especially with Daniel.  He is a great teacher!
     We hurried to meet Jimmy Jonathan in the parque to teach him.  He had bought us water and crackers because he knew that we had walked all day and were tired and hungry.  The only sad thing was, that the entire lesson, he was distracted because he had a soccer game he had to get to...but he did listen and promised that he wants to talk more tomorrow at church!!  How exciting!!
     Tonight at dinner, I drank a really nasty drink mix from Hna Kingsford, because she said that it helps you not get sick, and I could feel myself getting sick, so I drank it.  It was bein feo!!!  After laughing with Lucy, we went home and planned and got ready for bed!!

Domingo, 24 de Agosto de 2014
     When we walked into church, Lucido was sitting with Daniel.  He was clean shaven and cut hair. (He had long hair and a mustache yesterday).  He was as adorable as ever when he was "showing me his cut hair"..haha.
     I went to a meeting (ward council) and then went to lunch with a family of members.  After lunch, we went out teaching, and at the house of an investigador, we found his little sister and we asked if we could teach her and she said, "Yes, but I have a lot of homework.... but God has time for me, so I have time for Him."  She is only 12 years old!!  I wish I would have been that faithful when I was that old.  We had an amazing "sweet spirit" lesson.
     We went to our next cita, and on our way, we got stopped by a drunk man.  He kissed my hand and then asked me what color of skin Jesus had- and then compared my skin to his.  He made us stack our hands, so I made a "cheer" and waved my hands, and he started laughing.
     Tonight, we taught the familia Fernandez (Fernando, Alicia, Lis y Ismael).  We were teaching them about the Plan of Salvacion and about how we are children of God.  After an hour and a half, we were talking about deep stuff and we invited them to baptism.  They said they would when they know it is true!
     We had dinner and on our way back to our cuarto, we passed by a house of members.  So we stopped by to say hello and to introduce myself.  Their names are James (dad), Maricanela (mom), Diana (17 yrs), Jesus (13 yrs)- we have the same birthday, and Victor (10 yrs).  They are a beautiful family with a sweet spirit about them.  I hope to spend more time with them!
     We headed home and planned and got ready for bed.  It was a long day....good, but long.

With the boy from the restaurant
Hna Kingsford, Leonardo, Me

"I was trying to take a cute photo and
my plaque fell into the ocean!"
"Que feo"

"We just laughed and kept taking more photos!"

Halt!
Stop!
No passing!
Danger!

Hna Dodson living on the edge of danger!

Live crab that we thought was dead!

Men crab hunting

Me with the cabaillitos de totora-
 the boats they use here.

cabaillitos de totora
(boats)

I love Pimentel and you...show your love by
keeping the beach clean.

"Their son drew me as an Angry Bird.
He even drew my plaque on it- on my face!"

   
   

Week 19: On the Beach! Pimentel, Peru

Lunes, 11 de Agosto de 2014
     We went to Chiclayo this p-day to get haircuts and buy needs for cambios.  We went to the post office first and while we were inside, a huge commotion happened outside and tons of people started running and ran into stores and shut the doors and blocked things off.  Turns out, the police were trying to "keep the peace" in the the town, so they came riding through the city on horse back, threatening people.  We were completely confused.
     We went and got "haircuts", which consisted of spraying our hair with water, combing it out and just cutting it!  It  was the scariest thing of my life!  My hair looks so short....it feels good, but too short! :(  Then we went to Brothers for lunch.  Michael is so funny!  Then we emailed home on really fast internet!  Gotta love that!  After emailing, we headed back to Motupe and went out visiting and saying final good-byes.
     We visited Nicol and Jovanna, then Geraldine y Tana and the new baby.  While heading there, we ran into the Elders saying their goodbyes, too.  It is so sad.  It is hard to change, but it will be a good change. Gonzalo wasn't home, so we went and visited Clarita and Pascuala.  Then I ate my last dinner in Motupe (fried potatoes and cheese and big glass of milk).  We went home and I finished packing and we made recuardas.

Martes, 12 de Agosto de 2014
     Well we got up like normal and got ready.  During study, I finished packing up the last of my stuff.  At 8:45am, the Elders came to our cuarto and helped us with my luggage.  We then headed to Chiclayo by combi and well the bench we were all sitting on, was definitely not big enough for 4 people, but they made us sit on it anyway...let's just say we all grew a lot closer this final combi ride all together! :)
     Once we got to Chiclayo, it was time to find out our cambios (transfers).  I was one of the last to find out where I was going.  My new area is Pimentel...the beach!!! My companion is Hna Kingsford.  She is from Orem, Utah.  Well as I was leaving with her, Elder Chavez (buddy from the doctor's office) stopped me and turns out he is my new zone leader! I am super pumped about that!!
     We left and got to Pimentel.  I went to drop my things at the cuarto (it's huge) and then we went to lunch at our pension.  Lucy, my new pensionista is so amazing!  She made me feel right at home!  After lunch, we went out teaching.  We taught Lis (28 yrs) and her mom.  They thought I had more time then Hna Kingsford because my Spanish is so good!  That made me feel pretty good.  Then we taught Danitza (12 yrs) and she is so cute! At first she was hesitant with me, but by the end, she loved me!  Then we went and taught Oscar (92 yrs). He is so funny.  He doesn't want religion in his life because he only needs God and nothing else, but he continues to say there is something special about the LDS Church.  I really hope he can find the truth of what we teach him.  During our lesson, he cut off Hna Kingsford and said, "It would be so much easier to understand each other if we spoke the same language."  hahahaha Then he offered a closing prayer which was so spiritual!
     Then we went and taught 3 little boys named Victor, Emerson y Johao (Je-ow).  They are so cute.  They are super loving and they ended up loving me.  It was fun!! After we ended the lesson with 3 sweet little prayers from all 3 of them (blessing me by name), we went to dinner.  Lucy told me my Spanish is really good and that my accent is great and clear.  Yay!  Then we went home and planned and got ready for bed. It was a long day...fulfilling, but long.
     P.S. I found out that we have a maid!  How crazy is that?!  I am loving Pimentel!

Miercoles, 13 de Agosto de 2014
     Well our neighbors have a farm of roosters...so it was loud from 3:00am-until I "woke" up at 6:30am. We walked to the beach (5 min from our cuarto) to do our exercises and walking.  It is so beautiful here.  This place is amazing!  I have a feeling I'm going to be here for a long time.
     For breakfast I had yogurt de coconut with cereal and rolls with cheese.  Que rico!! (Delicious!)
     We went out teaching after studies.  We first went to Victoria.  She is a less active and her daughter Cecilia has cancer and is always at the doctor, so we stopped by and taught them about faith and how its important to strengthen our faith everyday.  Then we went and taught Emparatrise.  We were teaching her about the apostasy, when I had a feeling to ask her if she understood the purpose of prophets and who prophets are.  She didn't know, so I explained about prophets, and then I explained about the foundation of the Church.  I saw a light bulb in her spark.  She understood.  I am very excited to keep seeing light bulbs turn on in people's minds.
     Right now in Pimentel, with no fault to anyone in particular, the mission is not running very smoothly and the people are not completely understanding all that is being taught to them, so I have been doing some cleaning up and trying to reteach and reexplain everything so they can progress and see/feel growth in knowledge and testimony.
     For lunch, we had chicken, rice, y peas and apple juice.  Dessert was bananas sliced with condensed milk on top!!  We then went out teaching, and a lot of the people we were trying to visit weren't home, so we just started knocking doors and came upon one house and the woman (Leni) let us in to talk.  She had an accident and broke her hip, but can't get it fixed because they don't have the money, so she works through the pain and uncomfortableness.  I feel like a baby now with my tendinitis.  She is a really cool woman and wants to progress but she is living with her "esposo", but they aren't married.  She can't get baptized until she either moves out or marries him.
     We also met a man named Jorge.  He and I really hit it off.  I am super excited to continue to teach him. At 6 pm, we had clase de Ingles.  The only students were Victor, Emerson and Johao.  We helped them with their English homework.  At 7 pm, we had consejo.  I am super excited about this Rama because they are really dedicated and we just got a ward mision lider (Daniel-25 yrs).  He is so cool and super dedicated to la obra misional.  I see a good future for the work that is going to be happening.
     After the meeting, we hurried to the pension to eat dinner (some hot dog stuff, cooked broccoli and bread).  Then we went to our cuarto, planned and got ready for bed.
     P.S.  All day today, I was freezing.  It's windy here and we live by the beach, and it's winter here...yeah, it's only 73*, but it's FREEZING!

Jueves, 14 de Agosto de 2014
     Today, we had a zone meeting.  After the meeting, Elder Chavez came up to me and said, "I need a favor."  and then asked me if I would design the t-shirt that they are making for our zona.  I said I would help him design it, but I was nervous to actually have my art on the shirt.  Elder Chavez is great, and I really enjoyed being at the zone meeting because he and all the other misioneros made me feel very welcome.
     We went to lunch (chupe-soup, rice, and baked bananas) and then we went to an activity at the church for all the women in the ward.  We learned how to make tortas-cake and helados-ice cream.
     Then we went out teaching.  We were waiting for a bus to take us to Fonavi (little pueblo outside Pimentel- 5 min drive), but there just wasn't anyone coming, so we decided to go walk to another road to teach another woman.  While we were looking for her, a woman (Carmen) called us over to her and she was with an older woman (Celeste Consuelo) and she was crying.  So Carmen said, "You both teach the words of God, right? Give this lady consuelo (comfort), so we offered a prayer and taught a small lesson.  I know we didn't catch a combi because we needed to comfort her.  Right after talking to her, we caught a combi!
    We headed to Fonavi and taught a familia of recent converts- Marco (17 yrs) y Clara (25 yrs).  They are a beautiful family.  We talked and shared about prophets and they were really interested.  We also just chatted for a bit about life and Marco is such a good kid.  He has good intentions!  I learned from him that Robin Williams died....:( que triste.
     After that, we went and waited for a combi again, and the one that ended up picking us up didn't charge us to go with them!  It was really nice.  Then we went to a few other people, but they were busy with things, so we rescheduled and then went to dinner. (cooked broccoli y carrots y bread)  Then we went to our cuarto and planned and got ready for a good night's rest.
     One really exciting thing that happened today...we got cell phones!!  It makes the work a lot easier that way.  I can't wait until I have a better knowledge of where things are and who the million and a half investigators are!  With time, I will know this area perfectly and also speak Spanish a lot better.  Tonight, when we were calling members to help us for tomorrow, one woman told me that my Spanish is really clear...it made me happy to hear her think I have good Spanish. :)

Viernes, 15 de Agosto de 2014
     We went to the beach again this morning for stretching and "running".  haha  Then we headed to Chiclayo (15 min away) for my training exam.  At that meeting, I met a Hermana that knows the Santa Cruz familia. Small world!  We left and had lunch (rice, meat, potatoes y avocados) and then we went out teaching.
     We went to Fonavi again to pick up Daniel  (ward mision lider) and Estrellita (13 yrs) to help us teach people.  Daniel took pointer at the first 2 lessons because he said he wants to get back his misionero experiences.  Well, his lessons were amazing!  He first taught Faith in Alma 32 and made an analogy of holding an object in the air and saying "I have faith that it won't fall when I let go, but it will always fall because of the law of gravity.  But when we use actions and exercise our faith to hold the phone in the air, we are breaking the law of gravity and are doing the task wanted.  We must use our actions and works to receive the miracles we want."  Then he taught from 3 Nephi 11: 14-15, about Christ and how he let many people come and touch him and how much love He has for us.
     At 5 pm, the Presidente of the Rama met us at a member's house and we went out teaching.  At the end of the night, we taught Gabi (member) y Ivan (investigator) about the Atonement.  We shared wonderful scriptures that show the mercy of Christ.  2 Nephi 28:32, 2 Nephi 9:10, Alma 34: 14-15.  The spirit was so strong the entire time.  Ivan has so much faith and desire to be a better person and change his life.
     At the end of the lesson, Ivan ran to the kitchen and brought out huge marshmallows that tasted like strawberry banana.  And then he came out with swiss cheese and manjar blanco (caramel).  It was bien rico! After that, we got dropped off at our pension by Presidente de la Rama.  We ate dinner and went to our cuarto and planned.
     All day today, Hna Kingsford and I were laughing so hard.  We giggle all the time together!  I love her. She is very bright and is very deep with her thoughts.  I've learned a lot of study skills from her.

Sabado, 16 de Agosto de 2014
     We taught Hna Celeste Consuelo and the entire lesson, she was grabbing me and holding and kissing my face.  She is so stinkin' cute.  She said good bye to us by telling her family that her friends from God were leaving.  How cute :)
     Then we headed to Fonavi, and we ran into Daniel and his family and they were celebrating a birthday, so they invited us to have peach and nut cake!  After that, we taught a woman named Dely.  She has so much desire to learn as much as possible.  She had a lot of good questions and surprisingly with much help from God, we were able to answer her questions.  Then we started walking back to Pimentel (30 min walk) and a member from Fonavi (Alejandro) stopped and picked us up and had us ride in the back of his trailer.
      After that we went to Lis, Alicia y Fernando.  We taught the first couple principles of the Plan of Salvacion and they ate that right up, but their Grandma didn't.  The entire time, she kept asking Hna Kingsford what her name was and kept inviting me to a party in Polmaica where they dance and drink...she is 93 yrs old, and after inviting me, she then says, "If you can't leave, stay the night and then go home in the morning after you rest."  haha  She kept doing that over and over and over again....she has memory loss. The saddest part was when we were explaining prayer and how it should not be vain repetitions...I gave an analogy of talking with a friend and how we wouldn't want to have the same conversation every single time we talked with them, and Lis then points at her grandma and says, "like her?"  Everyone laughed, but it was so sad to me.  We tried to leave at 7:15 pm, but Alicia brought out masamora and so we answered questions from Fernando while we ate.  It was very spiritual and successful.  Hopefully more will come of this family!!
     We left and laughed forever as we walked to our pension.  We ate sweet potatoes and broccoli and toasted bread for dinner.  Then we went home and planned and got ready for bed.  While we were getting ready, the woman who owns the downstairs of our cuarto came up,  and since we have a huge apartment, they have a room they let families stay in within out cuarto, so we had a woman walk right into our cuarto and go into the room by the living room.  It was kinda really weird....

     P.S. Saturdays and Sundays we eat with members for lunch, and well today, the member literally gave me half a pan of rice on my plate...after I ate, I felt so sick...I couldn't eat that much at home...nor here...I'm going to die!

Domingo, 17 de Agosto de 2014
     To celebrate my first Sunday in Pimentel, I spoke in church about the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the importance of using our agency to choose good.  After church, we went and ate lunch at a member's home-Shanina and her family.  They served us rice and chicken and during our waiting period to eat, I played with the 4 yr old twins, Bryan y Adriano.  They love me a lot!  They were laughing a lot!
     After lunch, we went to Fonavi to start teaching.  We picked up Daniel and Estrellita to come with us. We taught a menos activo named Norma.  She is so cute.  She gave us oranges and then complimented my Spanish.  She said the way I speak is clear and delicate "like a song".  haha  She says that my words "sing" :) and that when I speak, it makes people happy and want to smile.
    We then taught a woman named Carla.  She has a lot of questions and desire to learn!  I hope all goes well with her.  When we left Fonavi, we went and taught and helped Mana (an investigator) set up her store out front.  She served us cow stomach....how disgusting...yeah I know.  It's sooo chewy, but the flavor is good. While we were slowly gagging it down, a drunk man name Edwin came over to us and started telling me that I was a "dream queen" and that I was exactly what he imagined his queen looking like.  And then he talked about my eyelashes forever, and how he wanted to have a queen with eyes like mine.  hahaha  During this time, I talked with him and he asked me how he could change his life...so I told him that he needs to have faith and repent.  He then asked me to date his friend...and that's when we left.
     We went to dinner and when we got there, the house was decorated because it's the birthday of their dog, Tyra.  They had a huge party with lots of treats and cake and they invited a lot of people over for the party.  The best part was that they had a plate of dog treats on the table and as a joke, one of the teenagers took the plate around the room to "let people have some".  I started joking about how I love eating dog treats and that in the States, we always eat them.  Well they looked at me with fear in their eyes...it was funny.  Their humor is so much different than in the States!  We sang and ate cake. Then we headed home and planned and got ready for bed.
     This week was really hectic and confusing but I loved every minute of it!
     P.S. There is a North American here.  She lives here and her name is Jenna.  She went on her mission to Chile and has lived here in Pimentel for 4 months.  I met her at church today.  She is really cool and really smart!

Last good byes in Motupe
Clarita, Hna Reid, Pascuala, Me

In Motupe
Me and a dog (don't know his name)
Lucero with Choco

Hermanas Felizes!
(Happy Sisters!)

In Motupe
With the family of the Elder's Pensionista 

In Motupe
Me, Nicol, Hna Reid, y Jovanna

   

My new cuarto!  I'm on the bottom bunk!

The other part of our cuarto

Picture of my pensionista's house.
It's the three story house.
"Lucy is so awesome!"

On the beach.  It's only 5 minutes from our cuarto!

"We go to the beach to do our exercises, stretches and walking."

   



   

Week 18: Saying Goodbye to Motupe

 Lunes, 4 de Agosto de 2014 
     Well I was supposed to go the doctor today, but the doctor wasn't in, so we stayed in Motupe.  And since Motupe is in the middle of celebrating the Cross of Motupe for the entire month of Agosto, we decided to check it out.  So we went to the parque of the Catholic Church and looked at and bought some fun souvenirs.  We also bought yummy food.  We ate cotton candy!  After that, we went to lunch (soup and juice boxes), and then to our cuarto and organized and threw away things we no longer needed.  Then we went for internet and then went back to our cuarto and rested, sang and cried a bit.  It's been pretty emotional here in Motupe because of my health status, and I am personally exhausted of being crippled and sick.
     We got ready and went out teaching.  When we tried to find a moto taxi, the one we were going to take had a drunk man stumble out of it and he wouldn't leave us alone.  So a young woman came over and tried to get him to leave us alone, and when he didn't, she called over a guy, and that finally scared him away. They helped us with the moto and they were really nice and helpful.
     We went to several houses but no one was home because of the festival...but a little 5 yr old girl came over to me and grabbed my hand and said, "My name is Kati and that is my daddy Jose "(pointing to a man fixing a motorcycle)  So we went over and contacted him and his wife.  It was so cute that Kati wanted us to talk with her daddy.
     After that, we went to Nicol (menos activo) and taught her about Jose Smith.  Then we went to dinner (soup y milk).  After dinner, we both felt really sick so we hurried and planned and got ready to stay the night in Chiclayo in the morning because I have a doctor's appt.  Today was a good day.  It was long, and I am tired, but it was good!  I love the mission.

Martes, 5 de Agosto de 2014
     Hna Reid had a leadership meeting in Chiclayo but instead of going all the way to Chiclayo, I stayed in Jayanca (30 min from Motupe) with Hna Bean while our companions went to the meeting in Chiclayo.  We studied all morning and then went out and taught.  We taught Sobina (the woman with cancer in her stomach, who didn't like me at first).  She was happy to see me this time.  This time, her grand daughter was there. Her name is Ingri and she is 10 yrs old.  She would not stop touching my hair and taking things out of my hands (like my pictures from my scriptures, etc.)  She is super cute though!  They begged me to come back soon.  I would love to, but I can't promise I will or can. :(
     After lunch, we headed to Chiclayo to get our companions, because I had to go to the doctor.  Well, once we got to Chiclayo, we had to get a taxi to take us to the mission office.  Well our taxi driver got lost, so we drove around forever.  Once we finally got to the officina, Hna Reid, Hna Williams and I headed to the doctor.  Remember that in Peru, time doesn't matter...so if you have an appt at 5:30...oh well, we won't let you in until 8 pm!  Basically that is how it always goes.  So during our waiting time and while we were talking, two elders showed up.  Elder Sanchez (Lima) and Elder Smith (Lehi, UT).  We talked with them for a bit and I got talking with Elder Sanchez.  He would speak English to me and I would speak Spanish to him. It was fun!  He kept telling me I had good Spanish and that I understand a lot!  Yay!  Well, while we were talking, we both realized that we both like art.  I showed him some of the stuff I've drawn and that's when he started drawing me.  He is so cool!  He also writes music and songs on the guitar!!  Well, I finally got called into the doctor's office and he checks out my foot and joints and his conclusion was, "Lose weight (I've gained 5 lbs) and don't walk a  lot."  Makes sense, right?!  Lose weight but don't move!  Not only do I hate not being able to do things, I have some fat doctor telling me to lose weight!  haha  Life is good.
     After, we went to the mission home with Hna Williams to stay the night and to have dinner.  She made us real salad, Raman noodles and  mac n cheese!  It was so good!  And then we made chocolate chip cookies! It was so nice to eat a bunch of American food!
     We finally said goodnight to them at 10:30 pm and got ready for bed.

Miercoles, 6 de Agosto de 2014
     Well we woke up and did our daily exercises and got ready.  We went to the kitchen and Hna Williams was in there making pancakes (panqueques) for us.  It was so yummy.  Then during eating, Pres. Williams was telling me that with my foot, I just need to rest it for a good couple days and then work a lot, and if it acts up again, just continue to rest a couple days and then work again.  He then told us that he has had shoulder problems since he married his wife and found out just recently what was causing it, and he said that it is his "cuddling technique!"  So he told me to change my "walking" techinique and that should help my situation. :)
     We left Chiclayo and hurried home to Motupe as quickly as possible because we had a district meeting. We showed up a little late, but when we got there, Hna Tomlinson y Hna Lima weren't there either.  Turns out Hna Lima went home because of her back problems.  So it was just us and 4 elders (Coons, Thompson, Oswald and Cruz)  After our meeting, we celebrated Elder Cruz's birthday by getting ice cream!  It was a lot of fun.
     Then we went back to our cuarto and studied and tried to figure out what we need to do about moving cuartos, especially because I'm getting changed at this cambio (transfer)- I don't know where yet, but President told me I am being moved. :(  It's okay, because change is good.  Anyhow, we need to find out when and where we are moving our cuarto so Hna Reid and her new companion won't have to deal with that at cambios.
     Then I got dropped off at the pension to start my rest....:(  Later, Hna Reid came and got me and we went to the church to give the elders our money papers for the mission and when we got there, there was a plate with chocolate cake crumbs on it, and they said, "You took too long, so we ate your cake...sorry." haha Then we laughed and joked around.  Elder Coons was super energetic tonight.  It was weird, but fun to be around. Elder Thompson was also on a roll tonight with his jokes.  I started crying because I was laughing so hard!  I am really going to miss working with the 4 of us gringos.  Turns out they really had cake for us! Motupe has the best Elders!! :)
     We went to dinner (hamburger bun with jam on it and bitter hot chocolate) and then we went home and ate our chocolate cake, planned and got ready for bed.

Jueves, 7 de Agosto de 2014
     We taught Cristian Dioses this morning and he is such a good kid.  He really is such a strong member and a strong example.  Then we taught Clarita.  She still wants to get baptized, but won't pick a date...our lesson was very spiritual.  We talked about temples and the beautiful and sacred ordinances that occur inside them. We talked and promised her that her antipasados (ancestors) and future children were there in heaven cheering for her, and wanting her to be baptized, so she can go and do her ancestor's work in the temple.  I could feel the desire and see the light in her eyes of how badly she wants to do that.
     We went back to our cuarto and studied and then went to lunch. (cucumbers, tomatoes and beets) Then we went back to the cuarto and did my training and language study.  We headed to the pension to meet Miriam (member) to go out teaching with Hna Reid while I rested at the pension.  While I rested, I made little lesson games to teach children so that they can understand better.  They turned out really cute!
     Then Hna Reid showed up and we ate dinner (fruit and yogurt) and went home and planned.

Viernes, 8 de Agosto de 2014 (4 month mark)
     We went to Mochumi, Peru this morning to do a visit of studies and weekly planning with Hna Haro y Hna Montalvan.  I love them so much!  Both hermanas told me that they look up to me and that I am stronger than I think.  They bore their love and testimonies to me.  It was after that, that I realized that I really needed that boost...I have been kinda weighed down lately feeling like a burden to everyone because I can't go out and do the work that I want to, because of my foot.  But their words cheered me up.  I know God knows our needs and wants us to see and feel His love, and sometimes to show us that he works through other people to bless us.  The hermanas today do not know or understand all that has/is happening with me, but I know they followed a prompting to share God's love for me.  So when you get a prompting to tell someone something, or feel you need to do something...do it, because God is trying to work through you.
     Once we got back to Motupe at 3 pm, we ate lunch (cucumbers, broccoli, and chicken) and then went out teaching for a little bit before we could pick up the member to help Hna Reid while I rested my foot.  At 6 pm, we picked up Nicol (16 yr old menos activo) and I got dropped off at the pension to rest.  When Hna Reid came back to the pension, she told me about one of our new investiagtors named Yamilet, and that when Hna Reid told her I was going to be switched to a different area, Yamilet got mad at Hna Reid for sending me away.  It was really funny.  haha
     We ate dinner (fruit y tea) and went home and planned.

Sabado, 9 de Agosto de 2014
     This morning for study, I was reading in Preach My Gospel in Chapter 6 about "Christlike Attributes". As I was studying all of the attributes, I noticed that they all work together.  In order to have one, you have to have another.  We need to strive to become more like Christ every day, and as we do, we will see many blessings and a stronger love for our Savior.
     This morning we taught Nohely, Moroni, Ivet and their aunt Jhanina, uncle Andres and their cousin Cerela.  We taught them about the Plan of Salvacion.  At the end of the lesson, their extended family wanted to learn more, but they live in Lima, so we told them to keep their eyes open for missionaries down there. They were really excited about that, and before we left, they asked us for our emails so they could email us! They were really cool and I really hope whoever teaches them in Lima will take care of them!!
     We went back to our cuarto to study, and then we went to lunch (chicken soup).  After that, we went to this apartment building to see if we could look at some rooms there, but she told us to stop by tomorrow. Hopefully we can find a new place.  We then studied language and then I got dropped off at the pension...I get so bored, but I have been making fun activities to teach children!
     At 7:30 pm, Hna Reid came and picked me up to go to Ashlye's house to get her baptism permiso papers signed.  I am so sad that I won't be there for her baptism.  I'm very grateful that I was able to help her grow and prepare for her baptism before I leave.  We talked with her parents for a bit and they are really great people and I can only pray all goes well and that Ashlye will get baptized next week. (Domingo)
     We left and went to dinner (scrambled eggs with rice and potatoes) and then went home and planned.

Domingo, 10 de Agosto de 2014
     We went to church and since it was my last Sunday here in Motupe, I took pictures with a lot of people. During church, 3 of our investigators showed up! (Mana del Carmen-10 yrs, Yamilet-13 yrs and Rodrigo-10 yrs)  After church, we went to lunch,  looked at some cuartos and then had study time.  After study, I packed and then we went and taught Ashlye, so I could say my final goodbye.  They are the cutest kids! I am going to miss them very much.
     After that, we headed out to Salitral, Peru to say goodbye to Jhanina, Julio and Enrique (less actives).  We were sharing our message with them when Julio's friends, Daniel y Junior walked in.  We took photos and gave our goodbyes.  We then stopped by Maruja's house to say goodbye, and the Elders showed up. We all talked with her for a bit.  Maruja gave us juice and egg and ham sandwiches on Barbie napkins!!
     Then we went to teach Yamilet.  We listened to her 13 year old drama and shared anything to do with the gospel while she finally took a breath.  When we left, she was super sad that I wasn't going to be coming back to teach her. :(
      We met up with the Elders at the pension to report and eat dinner. (potatoes and cheese) Then we went home and planned and waited for the Elders to call and tell us who is leaving Motupe with me...they called and let us know that Elder Thompson is leaving with me!!  Elder Coons will now have 6 cambios here in Motupe!! Crazy!!  I wish that was me, because I love Motupe.
     After receiving the news, I packed and packed!!

Festival!

Llama at the Festival!

Back at the Mission Home with
Hna y Presidente Williams

Peruana twinkies!

Relief Society
Hna Maruja is standing behind me

Nohely, Me, Nohely and Ivet's sister, Rodrigo y Ivet

Grandpa Carlos, Hna Reid, Kiara, Ashlye and Kiara's aunt, Ashlye and me

Kiara, Me, Ashlye and their aunt

Jhanina and her little ones!
"Those kids are the best!"

In Salitral
Me, Junior, Enrique and Jhanina
and the kiddos!

Saying good bye to Salitral, Peru

Luna, Hna Reid, Nicol, Camila, and me

Me y Luna (5 years old)

Me y Camila

At the pension with my pensionista
Ana, Me, Crisalina y Fransico (esposo)

Week 17: "We caught it, we killed it, we ate it!"

Lunes, 28 de Julio de 2014

     Well we got invited to do P-Day with the Elders...and we were told to wear jeans and a t-shirt, so we did and met up with them at their pension.  We ended up going to a "farm" and ran around and caught our "lunch" (a rooster), then we killed it, plucked it and cooked it up as BBQ chicken and potatoes!  Elder Thompson pulled out his guitar and played for us a bunch.  He is super good!  Lots of talent!!
     After lunch, we made s'mores using Peruvian marshmallows, trangula chocolate and tentacion cookies.  It was to die for!
     Then we left and found this place with really fast internet.  I always love when that happens! After e-mailing, we bought a ton of Peruvian candy because today is their Independence Day, so they had a million and a half stands of foods!
     Then we went home and recorded ourselves in the bathroom singing!  haha  It was so fun.  Then we went out teaching.  We stopped by and talked to Clarita for a minute and she said that she wants to get baptized on the 9th of Agosto.  After we visited with Clarita, we went and visited with Jesus Ramiro and he wants to be baptized on the 10th of Agosto.  Ramiro is so cool.  He really wants the priesthood and to serve a mission when he turns of age.
     Then we went to look at this new cuarto, but no one was home in the building, so we headed to the pension and ate dinner. (bowl of fruit with Peruana corn puffs with strawberry yogurt on top)  When we were heading home, a band for a pase calle (parade) was getting ready to perform.  A couple of them stopped us and asked us about ourselves and our religion.  They were pretty cool.  haha
     Then we made it home, planned, cleaned our cuarto and got ready for bed.  Today was a FUN day!!

Martes, 29 de Julio de 2014

     This morning we headed to Chiclayo for interviews with the Williams.  We got there at 10:00 am.  In both interviews with Hna Williams and Pres. Williams, they both talked about Brother Shanks and how he met my parents at my sister's girl's camp.  It was cool, because I had just received a package of CD's and a letter from my mom talking about how they had met Brother Shanks at girl's camp and that he knew my mission president!
     After that, we left and ate lunch. (beet salad: meaning red pee and purple poop! :)  Then we headed out teaching and we ended up finding the father of Brigitte and we really talked a lot about her baptism and by the end, he was totally fine with it and we had a kneeling prayer and Gilmer (Brigette's dad) offered it.  The spirit was really strong.
     Then we went and taught Ashlye and Kiara and they stuck stickers all over our faces and braided our hair.  They are so cute!  After that, we went to English class, but no one showed up, so the Elders bought us this carbonated "health drink".  It was so gross, and right after drinking it, I felt super sick!  :(
     At 8:45 pm, people started showing up to English class.  I helped a menos activo named Franklin translate English songs into Spanish.  It was hard because some English phrases really don't translate over well.  But he and his buddy and Elder Coons were singing and then I joined in!  It was cool!
     At 9:00 pm, we left to go to dinner (soup, popcorn, peach juice box), and then went home and planned. After planning, Hna Reid and I decided to do a little prank photo for the Elders for making us drink that nasty drink.  So we put pillows up our shirts to represent that our tummies were "gassy" and we put soap foam by our mouths and said that we "ate tums" and had a reaction to the carbonation.  We think we are so hilarious.  Hopefully the Elders understand our joke.  haha

Miercoles, 30 de Julio de 2014

     Well, we had to get to Lambayeque for meetings (zona y districto), but since my foot started hurting again, AND I have a nasty rash in my arm pit, we called Elder Brunis to have him set up a doctor appt. for me, and we thought it was going to be later at night, but we ended up going to the foot doctor at 11:00 am, so we had to leave the meetings early.
     We got to the doctor and it turns out to be a different doctor than we had been seeing.  He looked like he knows what he is doing.  He asked a lot of health questions and actually looked at my foot.  He has a guess of what it is, but wanted to back it up with a new x-ray and a blood test.  So I went and got another x-ray done and got my blood drawn.  Unfortunately, the lady doing my blood draw really screwed up with the needle, so I got light-headed and really nauseous.  They didn't have anywhere for me to lay down, so they sent me to the other side of the Clinica where the emergencies are treated, and the doctor there told me to lay down.  As I was laying there, another doctor came in and took my blood pressure and was going to "diagnose" my problem.  We told him that I was just there to lay down and rest, but he kept trying to do tests on me...so we just left and tried to find out when I could see the foot doctor again, and they said between 5-8 pm and that I was going to see a dermatologist about my rash at 4:30 pm.
     So we left and went and bought lunch at Norky's (fried chicken) which is inside the Tottus.  After that, we bought bembos ice cream (to eat away our stress) haha.  Then we went to internet to print off another receipt for the doctor, but is wasn't in our emails, so we had to hang out at the internet building for 40 minutes!  We already had headaches at this point, and received worse ones because they have gambling games in the internet building and the noises were so annoying!
     Finally we printed off the receipt and headed back to the doctor.  We waited until 7 pm for the dermatologist to show up.  He looked at my rash, gave me some pills and sent me on my way.  Then the foot doctor showed up at 7:30 pm and looked at my results and x-ray and said, "There is not a stress fracture, and I don't think there ever was.  I think you have Tendonitis in your foot."  Then I got completely depressed because there was another hermana here in the mission who got sent home because of Tendonitis in her feet.
     We left the doctor with many pills and I have to return and see the doctor soon.  We went to the mission office and we were told by Elder Bruins to wait for some hermanas to come and pick us up for dinner and sleeping. Hna Acosta y Hna Yuagi came and got us at 9:30 pm for dinner (bread) and then we headed to their cuarto and went to bed.

Jueves, 31 de Julio de 2014

     Well I woke up having a hard day.  So when we arrived back in Motupe, we planned out our day and then spent the rest of the morning sitting on the ground crying and hugging.  At 1:00 pm, we went to lunch and tried to find the Elders, because we both needed blessings of comfort and I needed one for my health. When we found the Elders, we asked them to meet us at our pension, and they, being great human beings brought us BBQ chicken pizza and breadsticks that they had made themselves!  It was really good!
     They gave us blessings, which were much appreciated.  I love the Elders so much.  They are always willing to help us hermanas!
     Then we went to visit Julio y Jhanina.  Apparently Julio is studying to become a doctor, so he wanted to look at my foot and rub this natural herb stuff on it.  It felt great!  Before we left, they asked Hna Reid and I to sing for them, so we did.
     Then we went to Gonzalo and Ghordhano (aka Jordano- we finally found out how to spell his name. haha)  Well Gonzalo was outside waiting for us and when we got there, his wife Maria Olga and himself let us in, and we taught about faith and repentance.  During the lesson, Gonzalo started crying.  It was beautiful. The spirit was so strong and he could feel how true everything we shared was.  I promised him that anytime he would turn to God for forgiveness, that He will always forgive him as long as it is with real intent.  And he felt that truth.
     Then we went and looked at a cuarto we found, and it is so cool!  Then we went to the church to help the less actives that we were teaching to get interviews.  When we showed up, there was a bunch of guys there. Once we got them into their interviews, we went outside to find a moto...and Gonzalo came speeding up to us on his moto!  He took us home and wouldn't let us pay him, so we just put the money on the seat and walked away.  :)
     Oh, crazy thing happened during our lesson with Gonzalo y Ghordhano.  Ghordhano got sick and threw up in his shoe right in the middle of our lesson.  It was super sad.  :(
     We got home, planned and went to bed.

Viernes, 1 de Agosto de 2014

     On the way to lunch today after weekly planning, we saw Gonzalo on his moto, so he pulled up next to us and talked with us as we walked. (I crutched) and I decided to try and race him.  He started laughing really hard and told me to go faster...haha...then he drove away.
     For lunch, we had beets and chicken.  After that, we went and bought new shoes for me, so that my foot could have more room to be swollen in. (best decision!)  After that, we visited Rosa (less activo) and she invited us in and made Peruana slushies and blueberries! She gets them special from Trujillo!  She is such a cool woman.  She isn't married and is super beautiful and is 35 years old.  I feel like we could be best friends!
     Then we went to teach Brigitte and we invited her sister Ingri to join us.  Ingri totally did and wanted to! She is super cool and she is so ready to accept the gospel.  We had given her parents a For Strength of Youth pamphlet to read, to help them know the changes that will take place in Brigitte, and well Ingri told us that she read it all and when we asked her, "When you know that our message is true, will you follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized?"  She said "Yes!"  But now Brigitte is questioning baptism because she read in the For Strength Of Youth about Modesty and at her young 9 yrs of age, she doesn't want to have to "cover up" her body....so unfortunately, we probably aren't going to baptize her because we feel she isn't ready for that serious of a covenant any more.
     After we taught them, we went to teach Erika (sister of Clarita).  She has a lot of faith and a lot of potential.  We had taught her once before a while ago, but she lived in Lima, so it didn't work out for us to teach her full time, but then she moved back home to Motupe, so now we can teach her and answer all her questions!
     After that, we left and headed to Fiorella's house.  On our way, we saw this guy selling cupcakes and cookies, so we stopped to buy some, and because we were taking too long to choose, he gave us 2 cupcakes for free and said, "You are taking too long to decide, and you two are always out walking.  You walk more than me, so here you go."  :)
     At 8:00 pm, we went to teach Nicol, Jovanna and Ricardo.  When we got there, Nicol was outside with this boy and when she saw us, she told him goodbye and came in without us even asking her to join us! When we got to the table, their copies of the Book of Mormon were set out nicely on the table.  I love when I see growth in people here.  Nicol and her siblings have grown so much and I love it!
     P.S.  Everyday we listen to Matt's CDs and Hna Reid loves every single song on them, and well her birthday is coming up, so if you want to do something for her, she would love it.  (even just a card and a flat balloon would be great!)
   
Sabado, 2 de Agosto de 2014

     Read at your own risk, but all morning today I was having to got the bathroom every 15 minutes.  It was bad.  And during all of that, I had to go to internet to send pictures of my rash to the North American doctor at the CCM in Lima, so he could try and see what is wrong.  We did that and talked with him on the phone forever about all my health issues, and he gave me a very specific diet and rest plan to follow.  After talking to him, we went to lunch and then out to buy all the things the doctor said to get.
     Once we got back, the senora de la casa called us over to her room to show us the cuartos she has available.  She has better rooms for us to move into that are more private and they are beautiful!  I really hope we can talk the Lideres (leaders) to let us have one of them!
     Then we went to the pension for me to rest while Hna Reid went out working.  I waited for them to return so I could go out and teach later.  She came and got me at 4:50 pm and we hurried to Gonzalo, but when we got there, they were leaving to perform a dance for the festival of the Cross.  Since we couldn't teach them, we went and taught a couple lessons in Los Cocos (one of the scarier pueblos).  Tonight we taught a family that we found one night at the park.  The mom's name is Carina and her daughters are Emily (10 yrs) and Ariana (8 yrs).  The lesson we gave  was literally just answering every question she had.  She has so much faith but the only thing missing was the guidance and knowledge of what to do with her faith.  She also told us that every year, they always go on vacation at this time, but this year her husband got really busy with work, and they had to stay in Motupe.... and that we found them at the perfect time!
     After our lesson, we stopped by Gonzalo's again and he still wasn't home. :(  So we went to the pension so I could eat dinner, because I cannot fast with all the medicines I'm taking.  I got a hamburger bun and put jelly on it and drank some tea.  Then we went home, planned and got ready for bed.

Domingo, 3 de Agosto de 2014

     We left after taking the Sacrament to pick up Ashlye y Kiara and tambien Brigitte y Ingri.  We ended up only returning to church with Ashlye y Kiara because Brigitte didn't want to come and Ingri didn't want to come without Brigitte.  After church, we did our studies and had lunch (french fries y chicken) and then we went out teaching.  We taught some really cool jovens (young people) and at 4 pm we met the zone leaders at the paradero (bus drop off) because they were coming to approve of the cuarto we want to move into. Turns out, we can't move into the beautiful one because it is too expensive.  So the zone leaders went out searching for other cuartos for us while I rested my foot.  Hna Reid went out with Ana.  They all returned to the pension at 7:15 pm and the zone leaders told us about a few cuartos they found.
     We walked the zone leaders to the paradero and then we headed to the house of Rosa.  We chatted and shared a message with her.  We also talked about the differences in price for stuff aqui in Peru and things in the U.S.  Then we went and taught Ashlye.  She is so cute and so ready for baptism.  After we finished her lesson, we headed to the pension and on the way there the entire city of Motupe lost power.  It was so dark!!  We ate soup and hot chocolate by candlelight .  We went home and on our way, the power came back on.  We called a lot of people tonight to figure out doctor's appts for tomorrow.  Then we put dirty rice water on our acne covered faces and went to bed. :)

Quote:  "One day each of us will give an account to the Lord.  This awareness was evident in a serious conversation I had years ago with a dear friend facing the end of his mortal life.  I asked him if he was ready to die.  I'll never forget his answer.  With courage and conviction he said, "My life is ready for inspection."

Elder Russell M Nelson
Ensign, November 2003

P-Day!
"We ran around....

and caught our "lunch"....

which was a...

 rooster....

....then we killed it, plucked it.....

and cooked it up as BBQ chicken.....

Then we made s'mores....

using Peruvian marshmallows....

trangula chocolate and tentacion cookies.
It was to die for!"

Our prank picture to the Elders...
pretending to be sick after drinking "healthy drink"

In the doctor's office trying to recover from the nausea
I was having after my blood was drawn.
"I was supposed to be laying down and resting, when
another doctor came in and started taking my blood
pressure and was going to "diagnose" my problem.  I
told him I was there just to lay down and rest, but he
kept trying to do tests on me....so we just left."

In the doctor's office again....
"I found out that I probably never had a stress fracture...
and that I may have Tendonitis in my foot instead."

"The Elders, being great human beings, brought us
BBQ chicken pizza and bread sticks that they
made themselves!"

"It was so good!  I love the Elders so much!"

Me hanging out with the bathroom... 

Festival de la Cruz de Motupe
(Festival of the Cross in Motupe)
"It goes on for the entire month of Agosto!"

on the streets in Motupe....

covered in food and games!