August 26, 2013

Dear loved ones!, 

IM A SENIOR COMPANION! Well... for this next week at least. ha. I dont know if they do this in the states or in other missions but boys and girls of ages 16-17 are allowed to go on "mini missions" they are usually when the mission has an odd number of missionaries for a transfer and a youth comes out for six weeks and serves a mini mission with a missionary. But this time the Barcelona Stake wanted to do it as an activity so there was supposed to be like 40 mini missionaries coming out but actually only like 14 came out to do it. But the activity is only for 10 days so we received our minis Saturday morning and they are staying with us till next Monday. They are both 17 years old and very short. The members on Sunday thought they were like 13 yrs old. ha. I feel very privelaged, grateful and humbled that out of all the missionaries my companion and i were one of the ones chosen to have the minis. We are both still working our area but now its like we can go double time because we split up, each with a mini, and do twice the contacting, lessons etc. Its awesome!  it has been so fun working with them! I must admit I was a bit nervous with the thought of having all the responsibility on me and being basically the senior companion, it was a tender moment when Hermana Blanco and I departed and each went our seperate ways with the mini missionaries. However, I have loved the experience and continue to enjoy it. I've realized how much you really rely on your companion in a lesson and the importance of having your companion at least testify and bare their testimony of what you were teaching. I also love how the mini missionary is watching your every move , it really makes me want to be the best example for them. I feel very humbled and grateful for this opportunity of being able to be with a mini missionary. We still have this whole week left with them but I can already tell it will be a good one. Although, thier feet are already hurting and one of them even had their heel start bleeding very bad, but we took care of it and their feet are feeling better today, at least that is what they have told us :) 

The lesson I have learned this week is that you really only see miracles when you rely on the spirit.  A very small miracle happened yesterday when I was with my mini. One of our lessons fired and our back up plan was to go to this nearby park and contact families, (families are always in the park sunday afternoons). However when the mini asked me where we were going I had the impression that we should go see if this family was home- a family that we have been trying to get a lesson with but never can - right as we turned the corner i saw the whole family, mom, dad and four kids sitting outside their building. We walked up to them , started chatting then asked if we could share a message. They are a very nice family and while I was teaching I could just picture them all in white. I hope that one day they will all be in white and enter the water of baptism. I have faith they will. 

Other little things that happened this week

1. While contacting a Romanion Lady and her daughter, the lady basically told us her whole life story and before I knew it I was giving her the biggest hug I have ever given a stranger I just met while she wiped away tears. I bore my testimony of the gospel and how it can bless us in every aspect of our lives and She then said she wanted to be my friend and asked if i could take down her number. . easiest contact of my life so far! 

2. We (H. Blanco and I with our minis) walked by this park where there are always a bunch of Romanion kids around. They always say Hi to us so we have this small relationship with them. They all of sudden rushed to Hermana Blanco´s and my side and hugged us and asked if they could take pictures with us.... ummm okay . haha. So we did. 

3. My mini and I contacted a family from India and they started saying how they always see me walking around with a different companion and how they are always commenting to eachother that i look just like this Indian actress... yeah surprised me too. haha. They even gave me the name of the actress, Ravina Tondon (not sure if thats how its spelled.) Look her up and tell me if its true, Do i look like im from India? haha 

Well, this Saturday we find out who gets transfered next week and who stays. So my next mondays email should hold some exciting news. 

Love you all and keep growing in the gospel and stregnthening your testimony. Best way to help your testimony grow is to share it!! 

con mucho amor, 

Hermana Hair

***Here is a picture of Raveena Tandon*** 

August 19, 2013

Okay, this might be a very short letter... Well this past week was ... hmm..  a bit tough. Our baptisms didn't fall through because they went with their birth dad to Barcelona, and we aren't really sure what is going on but we want to talk to them and find out once they get back. The Elders had their baptisms and it was actually a very nice baptisimal service. 

I have learned this week that when things get tough you just have to keep going. Things aren't going to get better if you don't do anything about it. I know  that its discouraging when you dont see the results of your work but honestly , I feel like a missionary is happy when they are working. Even on discouraging days, as long as you feel like you gave your best you are somehow filled with a sense of peace. Maybe not at that excat moment but you are later reassured that you have done all you can do and that you are going to do it all over again the next day. 

I really am loving the mission though, and the work and how it brings out the best and worst of you! haha I was talking to my companion today and she said that its like with every transfer that goes by something that you dont like about yourself surfaces, usuaslly your weaknesses, and you have to work with it, fix it and mold it into a stregnth. 

I know that we, full-time missionaries, are set apart to be disciples and representatives of Christ. We have the power and authority to teach, preach and help guide God's children onto the right path. I am so grateful that I have a loving heavenly father who loves me and is with me 100% of the time. The atonement is real. Its there for us. Not just for forgiveness but for stregnth and comfort. Lets use it, all the time. 

I love you all, 

Hermana Hair

August 12, 2013

Hello family and people who basically are my family, 

Here in Lleida the work is still going and I feel like we had a good week. The most exciting thing that happened is that we set two fechas with Deivid and Luigi!!! They are the two boys from that family that has been seeing missionaries since January. Their mom, Danny is living with Jose Maria which is why they cant be baptized as a family. At first we were trying to animar them to get married so they could all get baptized but then the truth came out and Danny told us that she wasnt sure if she wanted to marry him. They are a very cute family and we were sad and surprised to hear that she felt that way so we just talked to her abour prayer and revelation and asked the boys if they wanted to be baptized because we dont want them to be missing out on the blessings. Deivid is the 12 year old and he is very excited to get baptized, he placed his conversion calander on the fridge and everything. He even wants to serve a mission when he is of age! Luigi on the other hand, knows everything is the truth , he believes but he is unsure about baptism. he said he has been praying but hasnt received an answer yet. I feel like he does know that the B.O.M. is true but he hasnt really prayed about it to receive that confirmation. This week i feel like we need to start from the base and help him feel and recognize the spirit and the promptings that he feels. I am a bit scared that Danny, being a very emotional and sensitive lady, is feeling kind of left out. She would love to be baptized with her boys and she is letting them choose and make the decision but i also feel like we are walking on eggshells with her. I just think that there is a lot going on at home with her and her family so im praying that we can show her our love, and that she can support her boys in this decision and know that she can follow their example one day. I love this family so much and i wish the best for them. I hope that one day i can see them all get baptized and better yet sealed in the temple. If everything works out how we are praying it will, then every companionship here in lleida will be having a baptism this weekend!!! That is four people getting baptized the same day! its going to be a white saturday for sure! I am so terribly happy and excited because this will be my first baptism on the feild from investigators that we have been teaching. I can only imagine the happiness the Lord feels when he sees his children enter into the waters of baptism. 

Well as usual, I am short on time But i hope everyone is doing great. I received Jessica's, Joy's and Ben's letters! It makes me so happy to hear from you all and hear how you are doing and what is new in your life. Thanks for the letters and love. I love you all with all my heart! 

Con muchisimo cariño, 

Hermana Hair

p.s. here is my 3 month picture!! 

August 5, 2013

Not gunna lie, I think there has been a couple days this week where I feel like I have felt the most heat I have ever felt. It's like you can feel the heat being produced from inside of you and coming out... I dont know if that made sense ha but its all good, Im glad I mastered the putting up my hair with a pencil technique before the mission. if anything , I´m perfecting it here. :) Well the miracle of this week was a phone call. We received a phone call during our last cita of the day from a number we didn't know, We silenced the phone and kept going with the lesson. Forgetting that we had received that phone call, we went home after the lesson, planned, and went to bed. The next day during the evening we received a call again from an unfamiliar number so I answered the phone and on the other line was a lady named Lucia, she asked if we were with the church and if we taught about Jesus Christ. She claimed that we had contacted her on the street but she was busy so we gave her a pass along a card and that she wants us to come over and teach her. She gave us her address and told us to visit her Monday. My companion and I were surprised, People usually dont call us especially when thy seem uninterested in the contact. I do not remember the woman but I am excited to meet her. I Know that something must have impacted her during the probably short two minute conversation on the street. Its just a testimony builder that We are always representing christ and that we need to do our best to give the best impression even if we only have two minutes and to always speak with the Love of Christ and even if we dont see the miracles on the spot, they will come with time. 

Oh right now I am actaully in Barcelona!! I am staying the night here with Hermana Melchin- she was in the mtc with me- because we are going to pick up our residency cards tomorrow morning! I will finally be legal here in Spain. yay. So my companera is in zaragosa with hna melchins comp.Its weird being out of your area but kind of like an adventure. Today was supposed to be Pday but my zone had a special training meeting so we are having pday tomorrow but since hna melchin and i are not getting pdays tomorrow (basically) because we will be doing our residency stuff , we are emailing this afternoon. If we get done and the other sisters we are staying with arent back from their cita yet then we are just going to contact people around here because there is really nothing else we can do because we arent in either of our areas. But talking to random strangers is very fun actually. The other night when leaving a members home their teenage daughter was being goofy and was like, now walk safe, dont take candy from anyone, and dont talk to strangers. then we laughed because we were like, we talk to strangers every day and she laughed too because she realized it was true. anyways, i would like to copy something that i sent in the letter to the president today, 

"Today during the special training I didnt get a chance to bare my testimony but I do want to share a bit of what i wanted to say. I really have a strong testimony of the plan of salvation , when we read helaman 5:12 i noticed it started with remember, remember, and that is really what we as missionaries are here to do . all of us here on earth lived with christ and our heavenly father. We chose to follow him. and the things we teach are not new things . they are things that everyone has already heard and known . We are just called to bring to rememberance these things to the people. that is why the spirit can testisty of the truth to someones heart, because they can feel that it is true because they can feel that they already knew this once. I love the quote that is common for missionaries "return with honor" I want to return home with honor.. but most importantly , i want to return home to my fathers presence in heaven with honor. I know that this church is true, I know that we have been set apart to help Him in this wonderful work and I know that we can do it with His help. He lives, and this work is His. This living work continues and I am so grateful to be a part of it, especially here in the Barcelona Mission."

 

Well that was my testimony to you all as well. Remember that we all need to return with honor to our heavenly home and our blessings will be grand , not only at the end when we reach our destination but even throughout the journey the Lord will always bless and help us with each footstep that we take forward. 

Love you all sooooooooooooooooooo much!!!! 

love Hermana Hair