Well, I have calluses on my calluses, a mosquito decided to feast ON MY FACE last night, I hang my clothes on a line to dry, I wear flip-flops and wool socks in my house because it´s so cold, it was wet and chilly this week, I feel gipped because I left the states at the beginning of spring and now it´s the end of fall... BUT I AM HAPPY AS A DANG CLAM! Seriously! I love Pringles, I love sharing the gospel, I love speaking Spanish, I LOVE IT ALL!! "I JUST DON´T UNDERSTAND!" Ha ha, missionary work is the best.
- Investigators: The fecha(date) for Analia and Rodrigo has been moved. They didn't come to church :( Analia is having trouble getting married because the family of her pareja(partner) doesn't want to sign (marriage/divorce is way complicated here). So we´re praying for a miracle. Filipe, her brother, is not a member!! Ah! So he still needs to get divorced and married to his senora. They live in a TEENY house... seriously it is as big as my class at the MTC, with 4 kids! We went over there this week and he´s like, "I have the desires to stop smoking, I know I need to get baptized." So I said, "do you have any cigarettes here?" And he said "yup", then I said, "well, you can give them to me and I´ll take care of them." And he gave them to me!! WHAT! Since when am I the cigarette police! My name tag (plaque) sure gives you that extra authority! I felt super weird carrying those around the rest of the day!
-We found 3 nuevos(new) this week, Rosio (12), Florencia (14), and Carina. They are so sweet! Florencia has a learning disability, but Rosio said she would read the LDM(Libro de Mormon) to her. I'm excited about these girls. Carina is their mom, and she's a single mother of 8! I just love them! Now the challenge is GETTING THEM TO CHURCH! I swear, that´s where Satan does his work. He keeps people from coming to church. SO FRUSTRATING! I hope I´m still around for their baptisms.
- So Filipe"s señora was praying, and she´s evangelico, and they say Señor Jesus after every sentence. I SWEAR she said "amen"...so I said "amen"... but she was NOT finished. Embarrassing!
- This week we had interviews with Presidente. He brought us all in the capilla(chapel) and we could ask him any doctrinal question we wanted... or anything about our investigators. He is so insightful and smart! I love him! I´m sad he´ll be leaving in 2 months. Interviews were great. We missed our collectivo(bus) back to Pringles... and the next one didn't leave until 9 pm, so we had our district meeting then worked in our Elders' area. They have a wealthier area and man, I admire them because a lot of people were very rude and had hard hearts. It made me grateful for my little Pringles!
- So NOBODY has callings in the rama (branch). We are working on that. We need teachers! The missionaries can´t teach every class! We have qualified members who could easily teach... and our recent converts need callings to stay active! Only 5 people in the rama(branch) have callings. I think that if more recent converts got callings, they would stay active. There are 400 members in Pringles... about 350 are inactive... Yup, that's gotta change. Hna Israelsen and I are visiting a lot of menos activos (less actives? is that what it is in English? Ha, I can´t remember). The Familia Bailone has SO MUCH POTENTIAL. But Hno Bailone is angry at God for taking his father and angry at the rama(branch) because he had a lot of callings. BUT HE KNOWS that the church is true! A lot of praying is going to go into this family, that is for sure.
- I read a talk by Elder Christoffersen this week: The divine gift of repentance. I would encourage ALL of you to read it. I learned that without repentance, there is no progress or improvement in life. And that the invitation to repent is an expression of love. That is what we are asking investigators to do. Repent, and feel the joy that comes from forgiveness. The pain from the process of repentance is forgotten when one feels the inexplicable joy that comes from forgiveness. Also- when we repent, we strive to change. It may require repeated attempts but there is something refining and holy in this striving. WOW WOW WOW! I love being a missionary and receiving this sort of inspiration and personal revelation. I feel like I am growing and changing so much. I need to change, I have a lot to work on, that's for sure. But through the atonement, I CAN change. What a miracle.
-Shoutouts: Kelsey: Congrats on your teaching job! I want a picture of you in your teacher clothes. And HILLARY NORTON IS ON A MISSION! What in the world? why did I not know this? Kels, could you send her a dearelder for me? Tell her I love her and I want her address. SO COOL! Ecuador is getting one fine lady. Taylor: YOU ARE GRADUATED, YOU OLD LADY! Pics please. Kristen and Haddy: you better send me engagement pics and an invitation, or I´ll stop praying for you. Haha, jk, I WILL ALWAYS PRAY FOR YOU! Hno Larsen, 3 months is right! Tomorrow, woo hoo! Corbett family: loved your email! And loved your scripture study insights. ALWAYS great to get spiritually uplifting letters. Adriana Molina: Gracias por la carta! Besos y abrazos! Paige- Waiting on the Lord: Thy will be done. Read it. Write back your thoughts. Love you. EVERYONE! I love you all! More than I love it when Hermana Linco says: 'I am a loser' when she forgets something! More than dulce de leche...and that´s a lot! Have a great week!
Besos y Abrazos,
Hermana Squire, Skeeray, y Hermana.... "No sé" (Alexis, the son of Presidente, is 8 and doesn't know how to say my name. He says Hermana...Sk... Hermana.... "No sé" *don't know)
- Investigators: The fecha(date) for Analia and Rodrigo has been moved. They didn't come to church :( Analia is having trouble getting married because the family of her pareja(partner) doesn't want to sign (marriage/divorce is way complicated here). So we´re praying for a miracle. Filipe, her brother, is not a member!! Ah! So he still needs to get divorced and married to his senora. They live in a TEENY house... seriously it is as big as my class at the MTC, with 4 kids! We went over there this week and he´s like, "I have the desires to stop smoking, I know I need to get baptized." So I said, "do you have any cigarettes here?" And he said "yup", then I said, "well, you can give them to me and I´ll take care of them." And he gave them to me!! WHAT! Since when am I the cigarette police! My name tag (plaque) sure gives you that extra authority! I felt super weird carrying those around the rest of the day!
-We found 3 nuevos(new) this week, Rosio (12), Florencia (14), and Carina. They are so sweet! Florencia has a learning disability, but Rosio said she would read the LDM(Libro de Mormon) to her. I'm excited about these girls. Carina is their mom, and she's a single mother of 8! I just love them! Now the challenge is GETTING THEM TO CHURCH! I swear, that´s where Satan does his work. He keeps people from coming to church. SO FRUSTRATING! I hope I´m still around for their baptisms.
- So Filipe"s señora was praying, and she´s evangelico, and they say Señor Jesus after every sentence. I SWEAR she said "amen"...so I said "amen"... but she was NOT finished. Embarrassing!
- This week we had interviews with Presidente. He brought us all in the capilla(chapel) and we could ask him any doctrinal question we wanted... or anything about our investigators. He is so insightful and smart! I love him! I´m sad he´ll be leaving in 2 months. Interviews were great. We missed our collectivo(bus) back to Pringles... and the next one didn't leave until 9 pm, so we had our district meeting then worked in our Elders' area. They have a wealthier area and man, I admire them because a lot of people were very rude and had hard hearts. It made me grateful for my little Pringles!
- So NOBODY has callings in the rama (branch). We are working on that. We need teachers! The missionaries can´t teach every class! We have qualified members who could easily teach... and our recent converts need callings to stay active! Only 5 people in the rama(branch) have callings. I think that if more recent converts got callings, they would stay active. There are 400 members in Pringles... about 350 are inactive... Yup, that's gotta change. Hna Israelsen and I are visiting a lot of menos activos (less actives? is that what it is in English? Ha, I can´t remember). The Familia Bailone has SO MUCH POTENTIAL. But Hno Bailone is angry at God for taking his father and angry at the rama(branch) because he had a lot of callings. BUT HE KNOWS that the church is true! A lot of praying is going to go into this family, that is for sure.
- I read a talk by Elder Christoffersen this week: The divine gift of repentance. I would encourage ALL of you to read it. I learned that without repentance, there is no progress or improvement in life. And that the invitation to repent is an expression of love. That is what we are asking investigators to do. Repent, and feel the joy that comes from forgiveness. The pain from the process of repentance is forgotten when one feels the inexplicable joy that comes from forgiveness. Also- when we repent, we strive to change. It may require repeated attempts but there is something refining and holy in this striving. WOW WOW WOW! I love being a missionary and receiving this sort of inspiration and personal revelation. I feel like I am growing and changing so much. I need to change, I have a lot to work on, that's for sure. But through the atonement, I CAN change. What a miracle.
-Shoutouts: Kelsey: Congrats on your teaching job! I want a picture of you in your teacher clothes. And HILLARY NORTON IS ON A MISSION! What in the world? why did I not know this? Kels, could you send her a dearelder for me? Tell her I love her and I want her address. SO COOL! Ecuador is getting one fine lady. Taylor: YOU ARE GRADUATED, YOU OLD LADY! Pics please. Kristen and Haddy: you better send me engagement pics and an invitation, or I´ll stop praying for you. Haha, jk, I WILL ALWAYS PRAY FOR YOU! Hno Larsen, 3 months is right! Tomorrow, woo hoo! Corbett family: loved your email! And loved your scripture study insights. ALWAYS great to get spiritually uplifting letters. Adriana Molina: Gracias por la carta! Besos y abrazos! Paige- Waiting on the Lord: Thy will be done. Read it. Write back your thoughts. Love you. EVERYONE! I love you all! More than I love it when Hermana Linco says: 'I am a loser' when she forgets something! More than dulce de leche...and that´s a lot! Have a great week!
Besos y Abrazos,
Hermana Squire, Skeeray, y Hermana.... "No sé" (Alexis, the son of Presidente, is 8 and doesn't know how to say my name. He says Hermana...Sk... Hermana.... "No sé" *don't know)
cydnee.squire@myldsmail.net
Parents:
Parents:
I GOT THE PACKAGE! And letters 1 and 2 from dad! WOOOHOOO!! PEANUT BUTTER!!! I almost cried! I'm so serious. Yes, it's chilly. It will get worse. My foot is fine. When I stretch it, it feels like a creaky door but it´s not bothering me anymore. Oatmeal is so great! We don´t have a microwave so it takes longer to boil water, but so delish! Thank you! Please send Burt's Bees chapstick, if possible, the April conference edition when it comes. Can you have it bound? Sorry to ask for so much!!! I LOVE YOU BOTH! THANK YOU FOR THE PACKAGE AND PRAYERS!
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