Hola familia!!! Can I just say how much I love you and pray for you aaaalways!!!??? I hope you are all well. I am so grateful to hear from you all everyweek and for all the love and prayers I can feel all the way in Costa Rica!!! I hope you all have the best week ever.
TUESDAY
BEST NEWS EVER!! Last night I talked in my sleep!!! Teaching a lesson!! IN SPANISH!! Wow. Isn´t that seriously that greatest??? I am so happy. Really though yáll I finally realized my progress this week. I CAN UNDERSTAND PEOPLE!! And I can talk to them and have a conversation!!! I still don´t understand EVERYTHING and I´m still missing lots of vocab but man. I am so grateful.
We got Insanity from one of the elders and do it for exercise every morning. I´m really sore...
Today we had ZERO lessons. No one was home or they just didn´t want anything. We used "Simi" which is a list of all the members in the church and called every one that had a number. It was tricky becaue we dont´know who is Menos Activo and who is actually a member. But we are trying to get to know all the members and president says the best way to work is through the Recent Conversos and MEnos activos. Por fin we found a menos activo that lived where we were so we visited them. On the way... we bought ice cream... then in the lesson I had some sort of allergic reaction... :) my lips swelled up and I couldn´t feel them and my whole face was itchy and swollen. Haha it was hilarious. So we ran to Gravilias to the farmacia and I took a pill and I´m all better. I don´t have allergies so I don´t know what´s up.
WEDNESDAY
Today for once we had all our appointments confirmed and set in stone! First we taught Mario, a menos activo... and recen converso... in the street in POURING RAIN! Ha it was fun.
Then we taught Ana Munoz.... she has potential... but I can´t tell if she is really interested. That´s how it is here. Everyone loves to listen to "la palabra" but not a ton are actually interested in the gospel.
Then we went to visit a referencia named Menor who recently lost his father. But he wasn´t there so we visited with his drunk brother and his sister was was sobbing the whole time.... during the lesson.. the rest of the family came home and said that the mom past away too.... it was SO sad. They were all sobbing and yelling and we knew we couldn´t stay. We left them with a pamphlet of the plan of salvation and promised to come back when things calmed down. It was truly sad. I am SO grateful to have the knoweldge we had of this great and glorious Plan of Salvation! That we can all see our loved ones again!
Then we taught Christian y Sharon... the son and girlfriend of the son of Hermana Julia. He is 19 and she is 16 and they have a baby and won´t get married until she is 18 because of the pension she is getting from her dad :( He is really interested in the gospel... but she isn´t. It´s a trick sitcheeayshun.
Then we visited a familia that is a referencia from the elders. They came with us and we just visited with the family to get to know them and answered all their questions and doubts they already had. They are GREAT! There´s like 5 total that want to listen and they seem really interested! ... awkward moment was when the mom started breast-feeding her baby (that is AT LEAST one... walks and talks a little...) right out in the open right next the the elders. That was nice!! :)
Then we visited a Menos Activo familia that lives in these nice condos in dos cercas that´s like... Pepperword. because it has a gate with security guards and all. It is actually SO NICE!! Kinda like home!!!! It was awesome. I wish we lived there.
Then we taught Fernando. He had read the WHOLE pamphlet and was studying the references in the back! we answered all his questions and all was great until Pamela (pamela and fernando live together and fernando is the father of her children but now they don´t have any relations of any kind) who is a recen converso started telling all these things she found in the internet and Fernando got all caught up about the planet kolob... so... Anyway there´s some doubts that need to be cleared up and also Pamela needs to learn not to search the internet!
THURSDAY
Today we had Zone Conference and PRESIDENT came! Oosh. We reported our numbers of baptisms we expect to have this month and ours are the lowest :( As in zero :( It´s sad. But it´s not too late!!! We are going to keep working! We just have to improve our planning and our studying and our teaching and use our time more wisely.. :) We can do it!
Then we had divisions. It was great! I learned a lot from Hermana Roundy- specialista/Sister Training Leader. It was fun to visit another area for a day!
FRIDAY
Today we finished up divisions and when we were in the park.. Hermana Garner who is the nurse and served in our area like a month before I got there and who was on divisions with Hermana Betancourt... anyways this woman came running up to us and said "Hermana Garner I remember your name and your face and I need your help" and she started crying! Hermana Garner didn´t recognize her at all, but turns out she lives in our area in Dos Cercas! We set an appointment to visit her today!
Then we had a great comp inventory and went to work! First we taught Hermana Julia because she is now our cocinera!! (probably just for the month because it´s really tricky with her living so far when sometimes we need to come back to other areas!)
Then we taught a young lad who was playing with the son of Pamela- named Aaron.
Then we went to teach this woman from the park- Gabriella. She is having many trials right now and says she knows the only way she can have peace is through God! It is amazing how the Lord prepares people and puts us in their path! She said she was about to get on the bus but sprinted across the street in the park to talk to Hermana Garner! We set a baptismal date and all is well!
Then we visited this familia.. the breast feeding one. Their names are Rebecca (Mom) with children Daniel (16) and another child that we didn´t teach and the baby... and then her sister Dayana and her children Joselin (11) and John... I donl´t know how old he is. 9 10 or 11. He is adopted. But wow they are great! We taught all of lesson one and they got it all and we set FIVE baptismal dates for THIS MONTH!! Wahoooo!!!!
Later we taught David por telefono because the capilla is ocupied- some general authority is coming!
Later that night we called Gabriella and also the Rebecca fam to see how it´s going with their reading and the familia was gathered together studying the pamphlets together!!! Aaaaah so great. I pray that they will come to church and be able to be baptized on the 27 of Septiembre!
SATURDAY
We did service for a member in the ward this morning. Then we taught Christian, Gabriella, and Melani. Remember Melani?? The little girl with the parents who are having difficulties with their matrimonio?? Well the mom still won´t talk to us but she let us teach her daughter!! She is so cute and learns so fast!! She wants to be baptized so badly and if she comes to church tomorrow she can be baptized next saturday!! We dropped of some chocolates and a note to her mom and we praaaay that she will let us teach her again! She changed sooo much when she started the lessons. Melani says she is back to her old ways and it´s really sad :(
After that we visited a menos activo that lives right next to Hermana Julia. Turns out they stopped coming to church because their missionaries went home and they LOOOOOOVED their missionaries. The missionaries were two gringos entonces ustedes tienen tarea!!!!! Talk to the brother that lives in our ward and also in the stake and see if any of them served in Dos Cercas and taught slash baptized an Isabel Jimenez and Raul! And I think one of their children! She seriously loved them and how great would it be if they could contact them!
SUNDAY
We worked HARD to get our investigtors at church today. Woke up at 5:30 and were in Dos Cercas by 7! We hupe buenased practically every door to wake everyone up and then stopped by again to offer to walk with them to the church! There were about 16 investigators that we talked to in the morming. Familia de Rebecca came! They walked with us! But we were missing two- Dayana and John- which means those two can´t be baptized on the 27th of September because they need three times at least in the capilla :( But Rebecca and Daniel and Joselin and the baby Raquel came!!! Daniel and Joselin made us gifts and they are just the sweetest. We ended up with 9 investigators in the Capilla! Big improvement from last week! It was actually a great fast and testimony meeting and I think they had a great spiritual experience! ... Rebecca breast fed her baby throughout ALL of principios del evangelio and ALL of relief society... this time she had a little burp rag to cover up :) Haha but it was a great day! I am so grateful for the success we are having and know it is all in the hands of the Lord!!!
Everyone keep doing all you can to be closer to the Lord! I read this this morning- Alma 17:2-3 and would LOVE to see this when I come home to my brothers and sister and mom and dad! :) I love you all more than words and like I say every week I am SO grateful for the love and prayers! Can you believe how fast time is a flyin??? I love you and pray for yáll everyday!!!
Love Always,
Hermana Cook
