May 15, 2012

Transfers and I Almost Got Eaten By A Dog!

Hola Todos!

Well, my first transfer in the field is now over. It went SO FAST! What in the world? I will be staying here in Pringles. In fact, all of my district will be staying, so we're happy about that! We've got some promising investigators and we are ready to work hard to get baptisms this transfer.

- Belén- This girl is the DIEZ!(10) She's the girlfriend of a menos activo and we found her last Sunday. We've already taught her the first 3 lessons! She's 17, and OH MY GOSH! She is the best!! She reads everything we give her, highlights passages in the Book of Mormon, AND does the additional studies in the back of the folletos (pamphlets) that we leave her! She remembers what she's read and everything! Sometimes Hermana Israelsen and I are like...Is this girl for REAL?! Get this, I asked her if she knew Jose Smith was a prophet. AND YOU KNOW WHAT SHE SAID? Well, yeah. There?s no way he could have written this book without the help of God. He's like Moses, right? AHHHH! Pray hard for her!! I really want to see her baptized!
- We are concentrating more on the menos activos in the branch than before. We really need strong members who can have callings and help us with our investigators. Presidente Wilt told us yesterday he really wants us to work with the menos activos, so he can lift the load of teaching all of the classes off our shoulders. We are really trying to strengthen these menos activos and get them back to church. There are SO MANY that have great potential.
- I ate cornmeal mush/crap again this week. I need to teach them how to make cornbread.
- Ok, so I read another talk by Elder Christoffersen this week. I LOVE THIS MAN! It?s called "As Many as I Love, I Rebuke and Chasten". SO AMAZING. Here's what I learned: We will be judged for our works on this earth, but what we've DONE isn't as important as what we've BECOME.  We should willingly accept and even seek for corrections. Just think: God considers us worth the time and trouble to correct. Divine chastening has 3 purposes 1) to persuade us to repent 2) Define and sanctify us- to prepare us for greater spiritual privileges and 3) at times to redirect our course in life to what God knows is a better path. He then shared a story about the Currant bush. GO READ IT. May we always say "Thank you Mr. Gardener, for loving me enough to cut me down".
- So, I almost got eaten by 3 dogs. I thought this only happened to Elders, but I WAS WRONG. So we were looking for a menos activo family and were clapping at this gate (we clap here, we don't knock if there's a gate) and these 3 HUGE dogs come running out from behind the house. Usually, dogs just bark at us and leave us alone. But they came up and were jumping on us and one was tugging at my skirt with his teeth! I have 2 huge tears now! At least it wasn't my flesh...Well, we started running, but Hna Israelsen turned around and swung her Book of Mormon like a bat and knocked one over the head. They ran away after that! It's a good thing she had her LDM (Libro de Mormon) in a hard case! It would have been death by dog for the both of us! We were pretty shaky after that. Dumb dogs.
-We are actually on a shortage of LDM in the mission. They are on back order! It's hard to have someone pray about the LDM if they don't have one, haha. Pray that we get some Libros de Mormón, soon!
- We had a lesson with Enrique and Julieta and they asked me to pray in English. I COULDN'T DO IT! I haven't prayed in English in 3 months! It was like trying to speak a new language all over again. "les bendigas... erm please bless" haha, so embarrassing.
- Earlier this week, it was raining SO HARD! We seriously looked like we decided to shower in our clothes. So we came to a curb and there was practically a river running next to it, so I was doing this awkward shuffle, trying to figure out the best way to jump across (who knows why, I was soaked anyway), when I stepped on something and almost fell. I looked down, and what was it? A diaper? No. A DEAD, BLOODY, DECAPITATED PIGEON. A PIGEON!  I started yelling PIGEON! I STEPPED ON A PIGEON! Like some weirdo and ran off the sidewalk. Couldn't stop laughing after that.
Shoutouts: HADDY MAE JARVIS- you are a DANG BABE in your engagement pictures. I love you. I read your letter and I laughed so hard about the Ryan Reynold's picture (I'M BUSY!). Happy Bday on the 20th! I miss you and a letter is on the way!! Congratulations to Sean Johnson on getting set apart as an Elder! Proud of you, buddy. Dave and Anna- BABY BUMP! Oh my gosh! I can't wait to see pictures of baby girl Dunn! Got any names picked out? Hey mamas! I hope you all had a fabulous Mother's Day :)

I'm so dang happy here in Argentina. THESE ARE MY PEOPLE! I LOVE THEM! Sometimes I want to bop them on the head for saying they'll come to church, then they don't, but I STILL LOVE THEM! Being a missionary is the best thing that could have ever happened to me. THE BEST, I TELL YA! I hope all of you are well and enjoying spring. I love ya!

Hermana Squire

Padres,
LOVED TALKING TO YOU YESTERDAY! AHHH best ever. I had a perma-smile for the rest of the night. So: we walked 280 miles this transfer. WOW!!! My shoes are holding up. Dirty, but still working.  LOVE YA!

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