Dear Mom and Dad!
I will do my best to answer all of your questions. I got the phone call while I was at a members home on Friday. I was told that I would be leaving to San Antonio Oeste, and that Hermana Salas would be my companion. I really wanted to talk to Elder Garcia about that in English, so I asked if I could call back when we were done with lunch with the Familia Martinez. He said yes, and I did my best not to cry my way through the end of lunch. Later he told me again that I was leaving, I was kind of hoping it was a joke, and that I would be opening the area for Hermanas with the Hermana Salas. Apparently everyone wants to go to Rio Negro, the province that I am now in, and I was supposed to be really excited. I really really love Punta Alta, and I was very very sad to be leaving.
Hermana Durham and I left Punta Alta Sunday evening, and we spent the night at Pres´s house. I got up very, very early (around 4:45) and it was off to the terminal by 5:30. Then it was an anxious hour of waiting to see if Hermana Salas´s bus was going to make it on time. It was really funny, most of the missionaries at the terminal were Americans and we are supposed to speak in Spanish all the time, and some of them were speaking English to me because they could tell that I was very, very nervous, and I was too nervous to talk back to them in English, probably for the better. Hermana Salas´s bus made it just in time. We ran from her bus to ours and as soon as we were loaded up, we took off! We had a 5 ish hour ride and then we made it to SAO!
And when we got here, no one was here. I thought I was going to cry. But we called the Branch President and he came right over and helped us out. And I think I told you this last week, but we had 3 hermanas from RS cleaning our apartment. And I think I have told you about the rest of that day.
So this week. Wow. What a week. We have a lot of work cut out for us that is for sure. I am pretty sure that we have identified the members that are used to having missionaries as their best friends, and we have made it very clear (but in a very nice, polite way), that we are here to work. So far they seem pretty supportive of our decision. Surprised, but supportive. It also seems as if there were some members who were getting frustrated with the Elders, and they are very excited to have the Hermanas here! I am hoping that as we meet the rest of the members that this trend continues.
We have also learned that there are some people who have some problems with the Church because of the former elders actions. So my plea to you, especially those who are preparing to serve missions is to think about your actions at all times. People are always watching, and what you are doing may change the way they will think about the church. Someone elses salvation may change because of what you are doing. Please be careful! Follow the rules! They are there for a reason!
Okay. That being said, we really did have a great week. Hermana Salas is awesome! She is a native Argentine, and she is from Salta. We are the same age, she will turn 23 December 23. She has 16 months on the mission, and chances are that I will ¨kill¨ her too. But she is anything but trunky. I am learning so much! We are going to have an amazing transfer. I am feeling a little more confidant with my Spanish and teaching abilities, so that is great. This week, was a week of finding. When we got here we had 0 investigators. (Is that how you spell investigators in English? Some words in English are hard!) But we now have 20. Most of whom have a baptismal date. Obviously some of them are not going to happen, that is just how it goes, but we have high hopes for a few of them. I am not sure what the elders before us were doing, but we certainly have a lot of hope for our area.
Next week I will send pictures. Our church building has been converted from a house! It is so teeny tiny! And super cute. We had 20 people at church on yesterday. I think we have about 80 on our records. We have a lot of work to do! Church was good. Hermana Salas and I had to speak, and good news! I didn´t spend the whole time reading from my paper!!! Improvement!!! Can you believe it?! I might actually be able to speak Spanish by the end of my mission!! Its a good thing I have another year to go, because I am going to need the time!
I am glad to hear that things are going well. Oh, Kami asked which pair of shoes are falling apart and I forgot to tell her. One of my black pairs. I am only using one at a time in hopes that I can make them last a little longer. We´ll see. I might be asking for another pair of shoes for Christmas....
SAO is sort of surrounded by sea, but its the little baby kind that doesn't actually count as ocean.
Also, I was going to ask that you bring up Pedro Ortega, and Christy Powell at the next ward council. I am worried about them. Are they coming to church? If not, does someone know why? Do they have good visiting and home teaches that always do their visits? Do they have callings? Do they have friends? I don´t know how things work in Utah with recent converts, but now the ward has the responsibility to make sure that they are being fellow shipped. So many times recent converts get forgotten and right now they are so vulnerable.
How is your medicine treating you? Are you doing alright? How is Dad? I hope that you are all doing great! I am praying for you all the time! And guess what, tomorrow marks five months in the mission, can you believe that that much time has passed?!?!?! Sometimes it feels like forever, but other times it really does feel like I have only just gotten to Argentina!!!
I love you!
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