Stories and Thoughts: February 2015

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Baking in San Miguel

Time in San Miguel: 3 months
There’s something special about San Miguel. Hna Ortega said it reminded her of her home. It reminded me of Apopa. We found many prepared people. All San Migueleños in general were kind and welcoming, even when they weren't interested in hearing us. I loved it there. I even liked the heat (it was the hottest area for sister missionaries in the whole mission).
Companions: Hna Fuentes (1½ months), Hna Ortega (1½ months)

A few stories...

Meeting Joving, and the "Share the Gift" temple activity

"(Last night,) as we walked toward El Tesoro via Colonia San Pablo, I was feeling bad because we had had almost no street contacts still. I saw a young man a little ways in front of us and determined to speak with him.

"This decision was inspired, because the man- his name is Joving (pronounced JO-bing)- es super great. We talked and walked with him for only about five minutes, and in those five minutes he committed to go to the temple with us today.

"Fast-forward to today in the early morning- exactly 5:45 am. Joving arrived by himself at the taxi stop and accompanied us to the temple! He was very interested in everything and asked me before the activity started things like, 'Why can't I enter the temple?' During the classes and virtual tour, he must have been paying close attention, because at the end when we were all getting back on the bus to return to San Miguel, he asked me:

"'So anyone who's been recently baptized has to wait one year to be able to enter the temple? What do I have to do to get baptized? How lucky that I haven't been baptized by any other church, still. How can I become a missionary? Could I be a missionary?'

"WOW. This youth (he's 20) is a MIRACLE. And after all that, he also committed to attend sacrament meeting not only tomorrow, but EVERY Sunday he has off work. (It'll be every other Sunday.)" (Journal 3, 6 December 2014, self-translated)

Every bus is in a hurry in El Salvador...
"I jumped out of a bus last Monday because Hna Ortega had already gotten off but the bus started to leave again without giving me the opportunity to get off. It didn't stop for me, so I jumped." (It wasn't going very fast, maybe two miles per hour.) (Journal 3, 30 December 2014, self-translated)

El volcán Chaparrastique

8 Nov 2014--me, Hna Fuentes, Saraí and Saraí's member boyfriend at her baptism

Oriente super P-day with Presidente! All the zones in the oriente got together for a sports day

Hna Fuentes, Perlita, Hna Lovo, me

Hna Fuentes, Hna Lovo, me, Hazel

There was a bee flying around getting in everyone's hair. Hazel's creativity saved her.

5 Dec 2014--Hno Victor's baptism! He asked E. Acosta to baptize him.
E. Acosta, Hno Victor, and Hno Edgar (ward mission leader)

"Como dos hermanos," Victor said about his pose with E. Acosta :)

13 Dec 2014--A family that came to the "Share the Gift" temple activity

14 Dec 2014--E. Acosta, E. Belk, Kevin, Hna Fuentes, me

Hna Fuentes and I got along really well. I love her!

14 Dec 2014--With the Garcia family: Kevin, Adán, Jose, Flor

Cooking sausages at the Garcia home

15 Dec 2014--Me, Hna Fuentes, Hna Lea, Hna Yancy
Noche de hogar/farewell party for Hna Fuentes

Hna Fuentes with Yancy's cute kids, Jefferson and Joselin

Navidad 2014: To be a missionary is the best gift anyone could ask for

My parents sent me this Christmas tree

Hna Ortega had terrible luck with the mirror at our house. She accidentally broke it over and over again, until we were left with only this small piece. haha

I love Hna Ortega!

Dia de Navidad con Presidente--Hna Hall, me, Hna Ortega, Hna Sagapolu

For the Missionary Talent Show, one zone did a live nativity with a little help from Presidente, his wife, and one of their grandsons

La zona San Miguel with President's family

Group shot at the día de Navidad 2015

24 Dec 2014--Returning from another intercambio with Hna Huamani

Hermana y Hermano Brito invited us to eat panes con pollo for Christmas

By the river in Canton Miraflores (aka "el mongollano")

Hna Alcantara and her daughter

Hna Ortega made baleadas for a noche de hogar.
Hna Ortega con Hna Sonia

Hna Norberta taught us to make budin! A current investigator, Laura, came too :)

17 Jan 2015--One last miracle baptism: Joving!
Hno Edgar, E. Belk, E. Perez, Joving, me, Hna Ortega, Hno Darwin

With my volcano

Last cita with familia Lovo

Saying goodbye to Hna Adela

20 Jan 2015--Hno Edgar organized a surprise farewell party for me, Hna Ortega and Elder Perez

E. Perez, E. Belk, Hno Darwin, Hna Jackelin, Hno Edgar, Hna Ortega, me

The elderes and us both visited the familia Ayala

Joving somehow escaped work and came to our farewell party for a bit!

Con Maria and Kristina

Laura came to our house on our last night to say goodbye

21 Jan 2015--With the "hermano taxista," a recent convert from a different ward who was ON FIRE

(and a friend of ours)

Hna Sagapolu gave Hna Ortega and I each a Samoan lava-lava

Hna Cano and Hna Huamani grabbed us for one last picture

Hna Cano, me, Hna Huamani, Hna Ortega, Hna Herrera

Hna Guerrero and a brand new missionary took over the area when Hna O and I left.

14 Feb 2015--Kevin got baptized on his birthday! (and Valentine's Day)

(In the picture, his member girlfriend Soraya and Soraya's father, who apparently baptized him)

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Cojutepeque: City in the Clouds

Time in Cojute: 4½ months
The sisters' area in Cojutepeque was pure city. It was more difficult to proselyte there than any other area I worked in because of the number of different churches and the locations of the gang boundaries, but it was also beautiful and we received a lot of support from the branch members.
Companions: Hna Abadillo (1½ months), Hna Merrell (3 months)

A couple stories...

Memories of Hna Abadillo
Although I didn't record many experiences doing missionary work with Hna Abadillo, she was one of my most influential companions. Hna Abadillo and I were only together one cambio (six weeks), but she helped me a lot to trust more in the Lord and the Atonement, and to carry on even when I was tired or discouraged. Her personality reminded me a lot of Hna Gonzalez, which I LOVED. We cooked a lot of Rice Krispie treats together (she had quite the sweet tooth) and had some AWESOME lessons. She was ill off and on throughout the cambio, but we worked through it. She's a trooper.

Coackroach contact
"Today we did one of the funniest contacts of my mission. We were knocking on Hno Mauricio's door (he wasn't home) when we saw an older woman carrying two planks of wood on her head. We could see that she wanted to get them down to rest a moment but was having difficulty.

"Hna Merrell went to help her lower the planks, with me following behind a minute later. As I neared, she said urgently, 'Ayúdeme! Estos bolados pesan con TODO!'

"I set down my scriptures to help and found that she was right. Those pieces of wood were a LOT heavier than they looked. We managed to get them off the woman's head and put them on the ground. Then we tried to talk with her, but she was mute and could only communicate with hand signals. We never guessed her address because suddenly a bunch of coackroaches came out from underneath the wooden planks and distracted us. The woman and Hna Merrell both screamed. Hna Merrell began trembling, imagining what would have happened if a coackroach had fallen on her while she was getting the wood down.

"She told me just now: 'I thought those planks were going to crush me like a pancake!'

"I can only imagine the damage that could have happened if a coackroach had fallen and startled Hna Merrell.

"Al final, we left the mute woman shooing coackroaches into the street. It was an interesting day." (Journal 2, 7 August 2014, self-translated)