2-14-2012

Fan Accident, my companion ran into our fan!

All stitched up

Playing Nurse

New Fan!

Zone conference, Friends from the MTC

¡Feliz dia de los enamorados!

First-everyone needs to watch this video ---> http://www.lds.org/pages/expressions?lang=eng

and second-everyone needs to read this talk ---> http://www.lds.org/new-era/2003/10/how-do-i-love-thee?lang=eng&query=charity+(name:"Jeffrey+R.+Holland")

AWKWARDS INCOMODOS Y CHISTOSOS

• this week was quite the adventure. My companion ran into a fan and got stitches. Hahah.  The fan didn´t have the cover because it was bent and didn´t work with the cover. So it was on, but without the cover. My companion ran into it.  A good 3 chunks of her arm got taken out (see pictures).  So we went to the hospital and got stitches!  It´s a good thing I´m first-aid certified and had my handy little first aid book with me that told us that it was a laceration and basically that we needed to go to the hospital, haha.  All week I have been playing nurse and have been cleaning her wounds each day... so fun!
• so we went to buy a new fan.  We´re on the bus taking it home and I´m carrying it.  We go to get off the bus in the front since we had the fan and people are waiting for us to get off, when I totally trip and fall.  My companion looks back and I pretty much landed so I was just sitting there on the bus step, holding the fan, hahaha. It was a hilarious image to see, and all the people waiting for the bus got to see it too. So awesome...

AWESOMES

• We had zone conference yesterday and it was awesome!  I love President Heyman and his wife
• well... something awesome about today is I FINALLY heard from Hna. Payne (ehh hmmmmm! haha jk) and also got an email from Hna. Harper´s mom. So good to hear from both of them!!
• Best news of the week (and the year!)... this week, Ramona and Lucas are FOR REAL getting married, and Ramona FOR REAL is getting baptized!!! We have everything planned and ready, and they did all of their blood work and got all of their photocopies and everything, and basically we just have to go sign up for a time in the registro! I can´t believe this time has actually come! And even better, Lucas is seriously going to be baptized, and pretty soon.  He has almost completely left drinking and is coming to church every week now.  His testimony is growing so much and he is changing SO much.  Finally, things are going well for their family!  Lorena still needs to come around... but I know that will happen with time!

Bueno... not much more to say!  Transfers are in a week.  I can´t believe how dang fast they come up.  But all is well!!  Life is great in the mission.  A little thought... I have been reading the talk ´Choose Eternal Life´ from this past general conference and it´s really good.  It goes along with the scripture in Helaman 14:30-31 that talks about how we really actually CHOOSE whether or not we go to the celestial kingdom.  It´s not just that we try and do our best here and then we´ll see... but in every decision we make here, we are either carrying ourselves closer to Christ or away from Him.  We know we are not perfect and can not be in this life, but for that we have Christ to help us improve.  The more we try to follow his teachings and be like Him, and use his atonement and his help to help us correct our mistakes and improve, the more agency we gain and the closer we come to eternal life and eternal happiness, with our families forever.  

Hope you all have a fabulous week!  Thanks so much for all your support.  I miss and love you all but am SO happy to be here doing what I´m doing! Please continue to keep my Grandma in your prayers.  LES AMO! BESITOS!

--Hermanita Hunt

2-06-2012

Flagging the bus

Tati's Baptism

Poor Shoes!

Making Pastelitos, a pastry with a sweet potatoe filling

Finished Product

Meditating in the Ruins of San Ignacio

Buenas!

How is everyone? Well.. it´s been an emotional couple of weeks! But all is well.  I´m especially happy to hear today that Grandma Meyer is still with us and has improved at least a little bit.  I have been fasting and praying a lot for her.  It´s really hard being here and not being able to be there with her and the family right now, and also not knowing any updates besides once a week.  But I know there really isn´t anything else I can do so I´m trying to keep my mind on the work and just work hard.  Anyway... after a rough week, we had a really good weekend!  I haven´t done my little list in awhile so I thought I might as well catch you up on the happenings here in good old Argentina! :)

AWKWARDS INCOMODOS Y CHISTOSOS

• we´re teaching this guy named Mario who is either just really weird or has some mental problems.  He is really sweet and interested in religion, and really awkward.  The other day we were teaching him and he told us he wanted to hear a silent prayer... so we all just kinda sat there, and then he was like ´no I want to hear your voice´ so I gave the prayer.  Then he told us he wanted a bracelet from our church, haha so I pulled out one of the last ctr rings I had and said well hey we have these rings and you can have one!  He then stuck out his hand and said I want you to put it on me..... so, I put the ring on his hand, very awkwardly, haha, and then he kept asking us ´is it blessed? is the ring blessed?´ we didn´t want to tell him no so we just kept responding with ´it´s to help you remember to follow Christ and do what´s right´. Ohh goodness, it was such a great lesson. Haha
• it´s always awkward when you meet someone new who´s not accustomed to missionaries and they go in to give you besos and you stick your hand out to shake it.  This happened twice with this guy who we happen to see everywhere.  He speaks a little bit of english and we can never seem to understand him.  We had a great awkward conversation with him, complete with an awkward beso/handshake goodbye
• the other day we made french toast with Mirta and Miguel´s family.  Mirta made us lunch as well so we were eating that first and they started eating the french toast.  We tried to explain that we eat it on a plate with forks, but I don´t think they really understood.. they just grabbed the piece of bread, put butter on it and sprinkled syrup on it and then folded it and ate it like a sandwich hahaha. It was so hard for them to understand that you actually cut the bread into pieces and eat it with a fork until they actually saw us eat it. It was great
• I have been staying after church for an extra 30 minutes to teach people how to lead music.  I thought it would be pretty simple.. I mean, leading music isn´t that hard right? Well... all I gotta say is that I LOVE argentina and I LOVE the people here, but I´m not going to lie and say that the musical talent is just flowing here like it is in the states.  Because it really doesn´t exist here... hahah. We spent a whole 45 minutes the first time just trying to get everyone to stay on beat with the song. So awesome. :)

AWESOMES

• we had a baptism this week!! Her name is Tatiana and it was seriously the easiest baptism ever!  She worked with the missionaries for 3 months in Paraguay and then came back to Argentina and showed up at church one day and basically told us she was ready to be baptized, haha.  So we worked with her for a few weeks first and then she got baptized.  She is 14 and is the only daughter of an inactive.  Now we are working on helping her mom reactivate.  They are both super awesome!
• One of the best feelings in the world is showing up at a family´s house Sunday morning and seeing that they are all dressed and ready to go to church.  We are working with this family Rosana and Enzo and their 4 kids and they are so awesome!  Rosana told us the other day before even going to church that she just felt sure.. she doesn´t know why but she just felt sure.  They are really smart and really interested in learning, and they are very good people... very honest and funny and sincere.  They came to church for the first time this week and it was really great!
• ok.... we had a miracle this week. Best. Miracle. Ever.  Lucas, the marido of Ramona.... he came to church this week. HE CAME TO CHURCH!!! After 4 months of working with their family, he finally came to church! All on his own free will too, without any pressure.  We didn´t go and pick him and Ramona didn´t pressure him, he just woke up and said ´let´s go!´.  It was seriously a miracle.  He really liked it too.. he told us that he didn´t just feel good, but he felt something really special.  There was a time that he felt chills up and down his arms like someone was touching his arms.  He is gaining a testimony and is changing so much.. he doesn´t drink anymore and is progressing super well.  Also turns out that Rosana is his cousin. Haha!  AND, the bishop works with him! Small world!
• today for p-day we went to the Ruins of San Ignacio! It was super awesome!  San Ignacio was such a cute little town and we really liked it there, and the ruins were awesome! I´ll send some pictures

Bueno, sorry for the super long email!  But I hope you all have a fabulous week!  If you still haven´t had a chance to do the gratitude activity, it´s not too late!! Do it and send it to me when you have time! :) Please keep my grandma in your prayers.

Thanks so much for all your support! LES AMO! Besitos!!

--Hermanita Hunt

1-30-2012

Critter of the Week!

Very Loud Crickets

¡Buen dia!

Well... there´s not a whole much to talk about this week except Bryan did get baptized and comfirmed, which was awesome!! Also, Lucas was able to make it to the baptism which was also awesome.  Even though Lorena is still living with her aunt, we are seeing big changes in their family.  When she´s not there, they are happy and really act like a family.  Then all the drama comes when she shows up, haha.  She just needs a little growing up to do I think.  But all is well!  

This week, Hermana Heyman (our president´s wife) sent us a little gratitude exercise to do. Sooooo, I have a little assignment for all of you! :) If you are reading this right now, you now have the duty to take a couple minutes and make this list.  I promise it will be worth it!  Here it is... (I have a changed a couple of them but it´s even better now!)

GRATITUDE--100 things

1) Write 10 things of NATURE for which you are grateful

2) Write 10 MATERIAL things for which you are grateful

3) Write 10 THINGS ABOUT TODAY for which you are grateful

4) Write the names of 10 DECEASED PEOPLE for which you are grateful

5) Write 10 PHYSICAL ABILITIES that you have for which you are grateful

6) Write 10 FOODS OR DRINKS for which you are grateful

7) Write 19 PLACES for which you are grateful

8) Write 10 POSITIVE EXPERIENCES for which you are grateful

9) Write 10 DIFFICULT EXPERIENCES for which you are grateful

19) Write 10 THINGS OF THE GOSPEL for which you are grateful

Ok... now the real test.  You have to email me your list!  I want to read them all!  Send it to Linsey.Hunt@myldsmail.net .  After making this list, my companion and I shared ours with each other and talked about how it is so easy to forgot how much we have to be grateful for.  It has motivated me to now write 10 things everyday for the rest of my mission... things that I´m grateful for.  Seriously... take a couple minutes to do it, and send me your lists.  :)  

We have SO many things to be grateful for.  Life is absolutely incredible.  The gospel offers SO MUCH for everyone.  I am so grateful for this opportunity to serve and be a representative of Jesus Christ.  This week I was reading in Mosiah 5 which is one of my favorite chapters in the Book of Mormon.  If you have a minute you should read it, it´s only 15 verses.  But it talks about entering into the covenant and taking Christ´s name upon us... just like we all did in our baptism and we all do each week when we take the sacrament.  And it talks about being his children.  Because we take his name upon us, we become his children, and his name is like our last name.  On our name tags as missionaries we carry our family name and the name of Christ.  Each one of us carries the name of Christ on us... we are his disciples, his followers, his ´children´, his representatives.  Later on in the chapter it talks about the name being removed by transgression.  Lets make sure in every decision we make, we are honoring his name, and not causing ourselves to lose his name.  

Thank you all so much for your support! For real... I will be waiting your gratitude lists next week. :) I promise you it will be worth the couple minutes it takes to do it... our Father in Heaven has given us so much and we need to take the time to recognize all that we have and thank Him for it.  Love you all!  Have a fabulous week!

--Hermanita Hunt