Cass in Costa Rica: Semana Once: From Trio to Duo

Wahoooooo one change down!! Que Chiva!

I have become very accustomed to the smell of marijuana. Everyone and their dog smokes it.

Everyone says fetch (all the missionaries) just like in the Best Two Years! I am really trying not to pick that one up...

My garments stink so bad because of how long they sat in the bucket of water. No time to clean them. Oh well. :)

They always know I´m from the USA because of how hard I shut the car door! I never knew it was hard!!!! Do we shut doors hard??

I swear I have a letter just waiting to be sent. We never have time. I am MAKING time today.

When you say "Buenas! Como esta!" They always say "Bien bien gracias a Dios!" and forever I thought they were saying "Good thanks goodbye!" And so I´d be like oooookay.... I´ll stop talking to you. But really they are saying "Good thanks to God!" Ha. woops.

Okay in my scripture reading this week I read 1 Nephi chapter 6. Go read it yall! In it, Nephi says that he ONLY writes the things that are pleasing unto God and he gives a commandment to his posterity to ONLY write things that are of worth unto the children of men. You know what that means?? EVERY SINGLE THING in the Book of Mormon is pleasing unto God and of worth unto us!! So in your scripture study this week... find the worth of every verse!!!! I was thinking about the famous "my father dwelt in a tent" verse. You know what I realized?? Nephi and his family were rich.. they had lots of gold and silver and fine things. THey gave it ALL up to follow the commandments of the Lord. It must have been a pretty big deal to Nephi that his dad dwelt in a tent. Like the true demonstration of his faith. Food for thought! :)

Wow zero time! Ok super fast overview of the week:

Tuesday

Today we had a multi-zone conference with President. Hermana Bratt was there and when we got there we talked forever about all the things that we didn´t agree with that our trainers did. Then everything Presidente talked about was talking bad about our leaders. I was VERY humbled and realized that every assignment in the mission is directly from the Lord. OF COURSE my comps aren´t perfect!!! We all have much to improve! But they are great missionaries and when I changed my thinking from "What are they doing wrong" to "what can I learn from them" The whole week changed! We worked in greater unity then ever before and I truly feel love for these two girls! Also at the conference I met LEMUEL who is the son of LEMUEL the Cancun tour guide!!!!!!!! he said he´d seen me in a picture his dad has ha! He´s an elder in our mission!

WEDNESDAY

We have tons of Hmnas staying at our house so things are a little crazy but it´s all good! I´m meeting lots of sisters! Today we had an LPE (includes three things: Sharing a spiritual message of the restored gospel, extending a commitment such as visit mormon.org, and asking for references) with a 16 year old mom who ten minutes later called us saying she was hungry.... we bought her and her baby some bananas and crackers and juice. It is so hard here because so many people want money from us. We want to help everyone but we just can´t!

Guess what?? The food is good now!! Which is good! But also bad. Because I´m gaining weight. Yikes.

We have an investigator... Marlene... who was baptized a few weeks ago. Well she never showed up the next Sunday for her confirmation and has been running from us when we see her. She´s the mom of Jesus. Both have decided not to come to church anymroe and Hmna Marlene tried to give us back her Book of Mormon and all the folletos :( My comps were crying and I realized another thing I need to improve on. I felt sad... but I didn´t feel... ok like that scripture that says the missionaries in the BOM would quake at the thought of one soul being lost? I am noooot there yet. I think I need to work on Charity. I need to truly love these people and desire their Salvation more than anything else!!

THURSDAY

I truly feel closer to my comps than ever and feel so bad for the pride I´ve had and the way I´ve judged! We have lots to improve but I am learning to see it in a different way! As President says... Always happy NEVER satisfied!

Today we had lunch with Grama Manning. It was delicious of course!! We were late so she lectured us good and hard. Also she gave us like FIVE bowls of ice cream...!!!!

Also today we had a celebration at the church for El Dia de Madre!!!! There was lots of cultural dancing!! And lots of foood... but we had to leave before that part :( (I swear there is at least one fiesta of some sort every week!)

We had a lesson with an investigator named Paola. She is incredible!! She lives with Hermana Julia and is from Honduras. She left her four kids to come here to work so she can have enough money just to buy her fmaily a house with more than one room! She was SO excited and grateful to live somewhere so clean that she made us come see her room! It is just a plain room with cinderblock walls and a bed... completely empty otherwise. She was SO grateful and proud of that room! I am so humbled. The area I live in the houses are NICE! I am grateful for this opportunity to realize how truly blessed I am! I am so blessed to wake up every morming and preach the gospel in COSTA RICA!

FRIDAY

El Dia de MAdre!!!! Missionary Handbook says that holidays are the best because everyone is home with their families... which was true... but NO ONE would receive us because they were all home with their families!!! All six of our planned lessons fell and all six of our plan b´s fell too.. IT was awful! Finally we had a lesson with a young man and his mom and afterwards they had us do karaoke while they made us food.. it was so spicy I almost died. But delicious! The karaoke was Goodbye Earl... ha... memories... I finally suggested they put on the Christmas cd because I didn´t know how missionary appropriate killing Earl was...

SATURDAY

Lesson at 730 AM with Paola... seven lessons fell...ended up with six though!! Twas good.

SUNDAY

Woke up with a huge zit on my lip... so I had a fat lip. At church the kids said "que paso hermana cooook?????!?!?!" and I just laughed and said "Que feo, verdad????" Ha.

Today I participated equally in every lesson!! Well except for one with Fernando. Every time I was about to say something he would change the theme to something completely different and it took me a while to catch on! For example.. Hmna Pizza said something about the Book of Mormon and then he looked right at me and said "How many siblings do you have? Does your family support you serving a mission? Where do you live? Can I visit you?" for the rest of the night he was google DraperUtah.... youtubing alta high school... and google mapping my house. It was so weird. Also though they did find my house and I was so embarrassed because It shows the big excursion and our yard and a big house and a boat and a tramp.... It´s not even that big! But I felt so spoiled. Family- be grateful for what we have. We are truly blessed!!!

Also today... we got a call from the Zone leaders... CAMBIOS!!! (aka Transfers). Hermana Pizza is going to be a SPECIALISTA in another area and Hermana Betancourt is going to finish my training! Which means now for reals my comp knows ZERO English. Except for the tongue twisters I am teaching her. So now I will really learn spanish and HAVE to participate more!! It is so sad that finally when we get along so well, Hermana Pizza is leaving! I LOVE her!! We cried all morning ha. I feel a LOT of pressure now... like the whole area is going to crash because I have to do more without her! But she told me that she feels the same way with her new area but that President trusts us and the Lord trusts us. So we just have to trust Him! We are MISSIONARIES and can do anything He asks us to. So here we go!! A new week that is going to be VERY different!! But great!! I am a missionary and I can do anything the Lord asks me to do!!

Seriously thank you for all the love and support. So sorry I can never reply to all the emails but I LOVE YOU ALL!!! Keep being amazing missionaries at home too! The church is true!

Love Hermana Cook