Hola familia,
It has been pouring rain here the last couple of days, and it
started pouring like 10 minutes before it was time to walk up to the computer
lab. The lab isn’t in the CCM, it’s across from the temple, so I’m soaked, but
I am so happy to be writing you guys. My teacher is from Guatemala and he was laughing
his face off at us. He thought us running through the rain was the funniest
thing he ever did see.
So I told you guys about Candy our investigator. It turns
out she was a fake investigator and is actually our night teacher. It was pretty earth
shattering considering we all thought she was going to get baptized at the end
of this month. Turns out she isn’t after all. It’s ok though because I love her
as my teacher and she rocks. We are still teaching Candy though and now we have
to pretend it’s real too, which is kind of difficult.
Our day teacher, Hermano Valdez, is acting as an
investigator as well and he is tough. He acts all bored and he asks us a ton of
questions that we don’t know how to respond to in Spanish yet. He also gets up
in the middle of a lesson and gets coffee, so figuring him out will be a fun
one. He is definitely a learning experience.
Things are getting better with my companion every day and I
love her more and more. I decided we need to have companionship inventory, and
that helped us out a lot because I also learned what I needed to do better. I
got a blessing from the elders in my district because my stomach was so upset
and now I feel awesome. Go priesthood power!
I love my district, but sometimes we get a little too sidetracked,
which is kind of frustrating when you want to study. The elders down here
really like singing Christmas songs, but thankfully they’re in Spanish so it doesn’t
get stuck in my head. A lot of sisters and elders are leaving this week and we
get a whole new batch on Wednesday, so that’s why I’m emailing you today. So if
you want me to email you back, email me by Sunday night because I never know
what my schedule will be like.
P-days are my favorite days and I call them b-days for
blessed-day. We just chill and play sports and all that other good stuff. We
went to the temple on P-day and the temple here is so pretty, but sooo tiny. We
had a session in English that was very good. There was a couple in our session
group and the guy had crazy claw hands! It was freaky and we all couldn't help
but stare, but the spirit was so strong there nonetheless. And it was so great
knowing all about the endowment before leaving, so thanks mom!
After we left the temple, we were outside waiting for
everyone when all of a sudden a bunch of little kids and their moms came out of
nowhere. The moms told the little kids to go shake our hands. It was the sweetest, most special moment here. I got down to their level and asked them all their
names and it was the cutest thing on this planet. All the sisters including
myself were about to cry because it was so cute!
Later that night was our last lesson with Candy before we
knew that it was Candy. Hermana Lisonbee and I weren’t all that prepared for it,
so we just bore our testimony in English and it was so amazing. That day made
me so incredibly happy; it’s crazy how missionary work can make you incredibly
happy one moment, then totally frustrated and discouraged the next moment. It’s
an emotional roller coaster.
We are going to Wal-Mart tomorrow and I’m getting supplies
to help me study better like flash cards, so I’m excited about that. Pray for
me to have patience. I thought I was patient before my mission, but apparently
Heavenly Father doesn’t agree haha. I have discovered that I’m not patient with
myself and it’s getting in the way of me studying, so I definitely neeed to
work on that. Pray for me that Spanish will come more easily and that I can
teach with the spirit and that the words that are needed will come. It would be
much appreciated. I need all the help I can get.
All of my roommates are leaving tomorrow, which I am super
bummed about because I love my roommates so much! They are so fun. There are
two Spanish sister missionaries that I always talk to. They teach me Spanish
and I teach them English. It’s so fun and we are always laughing at my Spanish.
I’m going to miss them so much, but I’m excited for the new people because that
means I’m no longer the newbie and that I am the "wise one". Some
weird reason the people that have been here longer seem so much older than me
when they aren’t.
Sunday was a great day. I like Sundays because they are way
more chill than every other day here. For Sunday school we have to prepare a 10
minute lesson with our companion and then you are randomly called on. Our theme
was questions of the soul in Preach My Gospel. Hermana Lisonbee and I felt like
we needed to focus on one question and apply it to us instead of an investigator.
Turns out after we prepared a lesson we got randomly called
on and had to give it. It went really well. The question we studied and talked
about was, “how do we know that Heavenly Father knows us and loves us?” I
shared an experience I had when I found out mom had cancer and the spirit was
so strong and it made a few people cry. This missionary stuff would be much
much much much easier if I could speak English. I can’t wait until I’m fluent
in Spanish. Nothing is more frustrating than not knowing how to say the words
you know you need to say.
Anyway, we had a meeting with Hermana Nicholysen, the
mission president’s wife, and it was about getting along with your companion. The
spirit was so strong and helped me a lot. Sorry my letter is all over the place
I’m just writing stuff that is coming to my mind. We had exchanges on Sunday
for a short period of time, and me and Hermana Lisonbee got Spanish companions
and mine was so cute. I was talking to her about her life and where she was
from. Before the Quetzaltenango temple, she had to travel 6 hours to get to the
Guatemala City temple, which made me realize how blessed and lucky we are! We
live 15 minutes away from Timpanogos temple and like 20 minutes away from Provo,
yet it’s so hard to get to the temple. When I get back I have to go to the
temple every week. Now that the Quetzaltenango temple is there, it takes her 3
hours to get there instead, which is a shorter time, but that still stinks. She
also told me that hopefully after her mission she and her parents will get
sealed in the temple. They are LDS, they just haven’t been sealed yet, which
also makes me so happy we are sealed together. I can’t even imagine what it
would be like if we weren’t.
Relief Society (RS) was sooooo boring. There is a doctor
here now and his wife is super uptight and bossy. She talked to us about the
priesthood in RS and I wanted to die I was so bored. I have also realized that
I really miss my Sunday naps and power naps. Everyone back at home, don’t ever
take your naps for granted because they are tender mercies haha. We also have a
guy teacher at night as well as our teacher Candy. The guy teacher just got off
his mission like 14 days ago. He is hilarious and we all want him and Candy to
date.
Mom I’m glad you are taking care of Mi-mi baby (our dog Mira). She
cracks me up and I miss her, but I am so glad I am here and wouldn’t want to be
anywhere else. It feels so right to be here on a mission and I am so grateful
for it.
Next week I will try and be more organized and make of list
of what I want to say. I love you guys so much! Thanks for your prayers and
support! Love you much!
Hermana Lindsie
Foto de Grupo
 Sisters at the Guatemala MTC 5-29-13 |
 Elders at the Guatemala MTC 5-29-13 |
These are group photos of everyone here at the CCM. I’m not next to my comp; we did it by height. There is also a picture of all the elders. It’s a very small group down here, but I love knowing everyone. It’s hard to think that we will all be going to different missions. It makes me sad, but everyone in my district besides 3 people is going to Xela*, which makes me happy. Anyways enjoy!
Love,
Hermana Lindsie
P.S. By the way, it’s the weirdest thing ever to think I
have a first name.**
* Xela is another name for the city of Quetzaltenango; it’s pronounced as Shayla)
**Lindsie usually signs her letters with
Hermana + her last name instead of her first, but I change it here to protect
her privacy)
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