Mission time

July 21, 2014

 

Hello all!

So, I'm pretty sure I was just here writing you, except not because I did a lot this week, except yes, because this week went super-fast. Maybe I am finally starting to feel "missionary time" where the days are long but the weeks and months are short. We'll see.

 

Highlights:

-We asked a less-active member, "What's your favorite hymn? We'll sing it for you" "Well, I like lots of hymns." "What's one of your favorites to listen to?" "Well, I love the song from Titanic." It was a joke. Thank Heavens.

-Baby chihuahuas are super-cute!

-It's really freaky to find out that your investigator has an identical twin … not because your investigator told you but because you go to her house and start talking to the twin. And she has no idea who you are.

-Basketball courts seem to be universal at Mormon churches; they have them here too (but outside, cement ones). But basketball is not universal. There was a group of guys playing soccer on the court this week. Hey, I'm in Mexico, what can I say?

-The people here are super-honest. Especially the old ladies. When Hna Martinez was making plans with one of our investigators to come do service for her, the investigator said "No, don't worry about it, because she (gesturing to me) isn't used to working." What the rude! Not all Americans are lazy! Ugh. Just be Christ-like, swallow your pride, and smile.

-We had more clouds and rain this week. One word: Heaven. They were actually conditions that people could live in! But it was a trick. The heat is back, and seems to be making up for lost time …sigh.

- At the end of our Zone Conference, Presidente asked me whether I've gained or lost weight. I said I’ve gained and he said "What! You look smaller!" So no one, including me, has a clue what's going on with my weight. I promise I won't bring it up again ... for a few months.

-Something hard about being the only gringo in your ward: When someone mentions chimichangas at lunch and you can't laugh with anyone about the part in Napoleon Dynamite when Summer Wheatly says “chiminy-chanagas”.

-Apparently I look French. One investigator is never home, so we have to teach her in her store, and sometimes customers come in. More than one guy has come in and asked me in French, "Do you speak French?"

 

Transfers! I am in the same area, but with a new companion. We've only been together for a few hours, so I don't know much about her, but everyone says she's awesome. She was half of the companionship that had the most baptisms last month, so I believe them. She's also really nice, and said she's excited to work with me. Fortunately my stressed-out self from last week has chilled out and I have managed to be normal so far. Yay, me! Next week I should have a picture to send.

Something interesting that will probably start rumors but I'm going to tell you all anyway: My District Leader, Elder Estrada, told me that Hermana Mendez, my new companion, is a Sister Training Leader. Well, we have this thing here where the STLs are paired with other STLs, unless they are training new sisters. Well, I'm "done" with my training (gulp! Now I have to be a big girl missionary and work 10-9, instead of 11-9!), so the second scenario doesn't apply. So … I don't know if I'm an STL and just don't know it, or if we're an exception to the rule or what. Maybe Elder Estrada is just crazy. That's a very real possibility.

 

I can't help but feel that this transfer is going to be so great! It'll be in August, so I might die of heat (or just want to) but I feel like it's going to be super-awesome and super-important for me. I guess we'll see!

 

Con mucho amor,

 

Hermana Anderson

 

Sweet and Sour

July 14, 2014

 

This week ... how do I begin to describe this week…? Sweet and sour. Also I am trying to make you hungry for Chinese food. Did it work?

 

We had exchanges this week and for the first time I had to stay in my area and lead around the Sister-Training Leader to our appointments and whatnot. I was so stressed. I still feel like I don't know my area very well and that I don't remember all the people and things I need to and a gajillion other worries. On the morning of exchanges my stomach was hurting-from pure stress. But, as all good mission stories go, I was blessed and I did better than I thought. Tuesday night I didn't get lost once! But we were lost all of Wednesday morning and we walked nearly our whole area and almost nobody was home. But the STL I was with, Hna Perez, was super-sweet and understanding and made me feel okay with not being perfect and gave me great advice about lots and lots of things.

 

Another sweet thing: We had an Area Seventy visit! It was ¡Bien Padre! (That means super-awesome.) there was such an incredible spirit, and there were times where I thought, "Well I dunno what the rest of the missionaries are doing here, because that was for me."

 

Highlights:

-Another person told me I'm getting fatter. Can you tell that this bugs me?

-A recent convert, who was baptized about a week before I came to the area and has a super-big love for missionaries and missionary work, told me to stay in the house after 10 in the morning and to not leave until after four ... so all day. I told him to not worry; we have the Lord's blessings.

-An investigator said "muchas thank yous." I had to stop, process what she's said, then not laugh. It just sounds hilarious to me – muchas thank yous.

-Mom, thank you for making me eat things I don't like. I had to do that this week, and I honestly thought to myself, "just three more bites and you can be done." Now I need to learn how to eat icky things without looking like a martyr…

-I think being more Christ-like means it's harder to kill bugs. Except for cockroaches; I kill those with no mercy and lots of RAID.

-People here do lots of interesting things for money. Like get on public buses and sing really, really loudly.

-One of our investigators has a cauldren (that's not how you spell it, but I don’t know how anymore, and the Mexican computer tells me that everything I write is spelled wrong)! Straight up! How cool is that!??

-A little boy asked me if I was from the United Nations.

 

It’s the last week before transfers! We're going to work really hard this week to do everything the Lord needs of us! Also, it's the last week of my training. I'll be a "real missionary" next week. Eeep!! 

 

Love you all!

Hermana Anderson

 

 

 

 

PS. Here I am with my "mom" and my "step-mom." They're so great! And this is at the conference with the Seventy, so I'm WEARING MAKEUP!!! I never do that anymore.

I Wanna Know ... Have You Ever Seen the Rain ...?

July 7, 2014

 

Yes, those are Creedence Clearwater Revival lyrics. My comp is a huge fan, and, well, it rained this week so we kept singing that line to each other. Then we started singing I am a Child of God. More on the rain in a minute.  

Happy July! I'm happy it's July, because that means it's almost August! I'm ready for August to be over so I don't have to hear anyone else tell me how hot it will be, and how it's so much hotter in August than it is now.  

Happy 4th of July!! Belated, I know. To celebrate, I made a very special breakfast.

 

 

 

And I went to Zone Conference, and got to talk to other Americans! Whoo! And of course I wore red white and blue! And so did these lovelies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These gals are seriously some of my all-time favorite people on the planet and I don't know what I'd do without them. Fun fact: the blonde with the red-and-white shirt is from Castle Rock! We speak of Colorado fondly. 

 

Highlights:

-Someone made salad sandwiches. Take anything you'd put on a salad except the lettuce and put it between two pieces of bread. Delish.

-New home decor idea: Turtles in the shower! Live ones! In a baby bath! This is so happening.

-Some people here are under the impression that California is the entire US. "Where are you from?" "Colorado. "Oh, in California?" or "Where are you from?" "The United States" "Los Angeles!!"

-While looking at the images in the front of the proselyting Book of Mormon, one of our investigators commented on how handsome Joseph Smith is.

-A member so lovingly told me that I've gained weight since I first came to the area. A month ago. Thank you, dear sister, for those kind words.

-My district leader randomly asked me after Gospel Principles, "Sister Anderson, why are you so white?"

-My companion had to go to the hospital this week for a mysterious illness. It's a sinus infection, and – never fear – we have meds. But it looked like one of those scary movies in the hospitals. If the lights had been all flickery. Uh-uh.

-There are some great things about serving in Mexico, and there are some not-great things. One not-great thing is that sometimes you find a baby cockroach in your bed ten minutes before lights-out. The mother is yet to be found.

-I'm pretty sure Reese's products don't exist here. My heart is broken.

-Even on my mission I still have girls telling me that Calvin is really cute. I showed a pair of sisters my family picture and they both pointed to him and said "This brother is really handsome."

 

Ok … desert rain! Remember a few weeks ago when I said it didn't rain very much here? Mexico tricked me. When it rains here it is no-nonsense downpour. I was positively giddy. But after the second day the outdoors felt – and to be honest, smelled – like Tropical Discovery at the zoo, minus the Komodo dragons and the cool fish. There aren't drains in the streets here, so the streets were flooded. I felt like I got reassigned to the Venice mission, haha. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Les quiero mucho!!

Hermana Anderson