All my sweet drawings, all my notes from studying the last two weeks, and yup everything I was gonna write today....great huh...luckily I got little pieces and dried them so I have SOMETHING but the rest I’m gonna have to remember hah. I’m suuuuuper bummed though cause it had allllll my notes in it :\ This week was awesome though, especially today. We went to San Martin. It’s where they have the largest market in Mexico on Tuesdays. It’s about 7 football fields just filled with stuff, so sick. But today they sell ropa americanoooo so we went to check it out with Elder Tivorcio. The market is on Tuesday but there are TONS of people there usually and our p-day is today hah so we can’t go, BUT they sell the clothes today too, they just get these packages from the US and sell everything for like 20-80 pesos, like GOOD stuff. I only found 1 GEM though in the 2 hours we spent looking around. I saw sevens for 30 pesos, like less than three bucks and they have THOUSANDS of clothes in piles. It’s totally legit. I found this crazy awesome jacket that I got for 100 knocked down from 120, it is suuuuper sweet. After that, Tivorcio wanted to go look around at the other stores in Huejo so we did that but I didn’t find anything else...just one thing...the last time I was at that place the guy said 150 pesos and this time he said 80 pshhhh cause I was with Tivorcio prob, then he wouldn’t go lower but then I got it for 60 hah but he totally tried to rip me off the other time, super lame, and I EVEN told him I was from Australia! This guy in the market today complemented me on my Spanish too :) made me feel good :) Then we went back and I washed my clothes that had my agenda in them...great...wonderful........
This week went by super slow, like I feel like it was a month long, but it was super good!!! On Tuesday I cut down this 30 foot tree with a machete...took me an hour...and I got this FAT blood blister on my hand then while I was like 30 minutes into it, it exploded and got all over my hand and the machete...it was sick, then I just kept wackin away for another 30 until it FINALLY fell down. I didn’t think I was actually going to be able to do it, but... -- I endured to the end, EVEN THOUGH it was hard and painful, TOOOOOOOOOTALLY WORTH IT!!! hahah it was so awesome :P
The Centro de Visitantes came from Mexico, the church visitor center from there, and they did an activity from 11-4---greatest thing EVER!!! Right when it started, we went and knocked like all the doors in this loop kinda thing that took us back to the church and told EVERYONE about the activity, it was GREAT!!! I feel super confident talking to people now in Spanish too :) So we invited tons of people, and really I didn’t think anyone was going to show up because it was a Saturday and everyone is in Huejo, but...it was the best activity ever and we got over 150 REFERALS!!! So we should be getting them tomorrow and then WORK, WORK, WORK AND BAPTIZE. I think we're going to get some baptisms before this change is over, I’m SO excited! The visitors center set up in the barrio arriba and brought touch screen TVs and poster board things and a replica of the white marble Jesus. Then the people passed through everything and 4 sister missionaries were there from Mexico to do the touring, AHH it was awesome!! I’m so excited for these next couple weeks!! It’s going to be SWEEEEEEEEEEET!!!
We also knocked a ton of doors in Dom Arenas this week, but nobody wanted to listen, this one guy made some huge deal about why the continents were made and the earth split from one connected piece...it was so random and had absolutely NOTHING to do with what we were talking about hahah. He drew the earth on the ground for us and everything too. It was so weird. I learned this week there are only 3,000 people in Atexcac!! That’s like nothing right? There were 7,000 in 2003 but a ton went to the US and now it’s just 3000. Crazy huh!! I feel like I’ve met everyone here, it’s been so much fun lately talking with everyone and joking with people and everything, I love it :P
We watched "the other side of heaven" the other night with the young men and their friends. That movie is SO good. I haven’t seen it in super long. The end is great. Love it.
Pedro told us he didn’t want to listen to us anymore when we talked to him this week and then we talked for 30 more minutes just bearing testimony. It was so powerful and good and the spirit was so strong there. We totally changed his mind. He still needs to think about it, but he came to the event and after he told us he'd start talking to us again. SO sweet though!!! We just testified so strongly and it totally changed him, I cant even explain it, it was crazy. It’s hard to remember all the cool moments during lessons and all the spiritual ones and stuff cause the Lord totally speaks through us and when I testify, sometimes I don’t even remember what I say after I say it, and I’ve learned that that one verse in D&C is totally right. I don’t know exactly where it is, but I remember it says something about how we shouldn’t think before we speak, just ponder the words of life in our minds always and when we need the words they will come to us...totally true. I never think about how I’m going to say something in Spanish now, and just speak when I testify and it just COMES!!! I wouldn’t be able to put together the words I’m going to say if I tried to think about them before, but, when I’m teaching and testifying, they just come to me!!! It’s the craziest thing and I LOVE it. I’ve had so many great experiences this week. I’m LOOOVING the mish right now, its such a blast, I love the "quest" I’m on to find people and it’s so fun knocking doors and talking to randoms and just being super happy alllll the time. I just walk around smiling and everyone smiles back when you smile :) That’s the trick :)
Oh mom, you told me to read Our Search for Happiness so I started it on Thursday and finished it Saturday morning before the visitor’s center thing. Great book :) My favorite part was when he talked about giving the priesthood blessing to that lady. I had the chills when I was reading that. I think it'll help a lot in teaching :) there are so many really good parts in that book, and I wrote a couple in my agenda----so I guess I’ll have to read it again and take more notes. I highlighted in it too so DON’T WORRY :)
I was also reading my mini scriptures during church, which are my favorite lil things ever and I bring them everywhere with me, and I was reading in Alma, like 31 - 33 or something, and I seriously spent like an hour marking it up. 32 is when Alma is teaching the poor people and compares the word of God to a seed, and I’ve obviously read that before, but this time when I read it I found it so much more meaningful and it looks SUPER cool with all the marking colors too. I love the WHOLE chapter. I can’t just pick one thing to talk about, but it’s super good and everyone should read it!!! I love 31:38 --- it’s like a bomb missionary scripture and I love at the end where it says that it happened because he prayed in FAITH.... Alma 32 is just awesome, and we can learn so much from it about how we need to have faith, diligence, patience and look forward in all things. In 32: 13 I liked and learned how we need to humble ourselves NOW before we are forced to humble ourselves for some reason, there is so much to learn. in Alma 32:23, I thought it was really cool when it says "he imparteth his word by angels unto men......and then it goes on at the end and says how "little children do have words given unto them many times, which confound the wise and the learned" which I thought was super interesting. It’s like when little kids say things sometimes that make people think, or when they bear their testimonies in church and stuff, I dunno, there’s a lot to think about on that one, but I was reading that verse in sacrament meeting, and one of the young men got up and bore the GREATEST testimony ever, it was so awesome, then after him another young man followed, the other priest (there are only 2) and then after 2 teachers got up and bore testimony, and I was like shocked really, it was amazing, cause we've been working with some of them for the past 3.5 months and when I got here they were kinda going the wrong way and we had all those activities with them and a couple lessons and I’ve gotten to see this change in all of them!!! It’s the best thing in the world!!! They bore the best simplest and amazing testimonies ever and it made me so happy, it was the BEST testimony meeting I’ve ever been in. The bishops GRANDPA---just figured that out today, bore his testimony, he’s 93!!! He’s this little old man and is kinda out of it most of the time and his testimony was so sweet and ya...amazing day, I loved every part of that meeting. Read Alma 32, plant seed: nourish it: read, pray, bear testimony, be obedient, root ourselves in the gospel --- I learned so much from this chapter!!
We ate with a menos activo the day before, and we both didn’t have scriptures cause we came from the activity and it was super close. I shared my faith-obedience-testimony-blessing cycle thing with her, and totally spoke by the spirit cause it was super clear… miracle...and she really was super interested and just calm during the whole thing and she bore her testimony and apologized to her little sons, and just bore this amazing testimony and how she was going to change and everything....shhhhhhwwweeeeeettt...
I drew some ccccccccrazy sketches in my sketchbook yesterday, the sketchbook that CHANDA gave me -- thank you Chanda :) Grandma Nancy, I got your ridiculously awesome valentines day package. I listen to the dancing monkey EVERY night and it’s the funniest thing in the world. Thanks for the dearelder and alllll those cookies too, SOOO good!!! And thanks mom for the dear elders too!!! Those Grannyb cookies, I think they are called, are SOOOO good, I ate 3 yesterday :) and of course I share with my companion :) thanks for the dearelder Wendy!!! You and Steve will probably be the first people I see when I get back---on my way up to Laguna to get some toe rings!!! :P I’m glad you loved the origami and I can make boats now so I’ll make you some so you can try em out in the waves! :) They are waterproof! Thanks so much Grandpa for your dearelder with the notes and everything. I’m saving them in my "folder of things to save" and I wrote some of it in my agenda---which is ruined---so I’ll read them again, thanks so much though!!! and Grammary thanks for your letter :) and yup dad I love all the random things and pictures you send me. They are awesome... OH and one more thing---weirdest thing ever mom.... so today after San Martin we were in Dom Arenas and Elder Tivorcio called his girl friend?? who he is gonna marry soon, but I didn’t know that at the time, and so I got out of the car and got some tacos off the side of the street---SO GOOD!! I ended up going back 3 more times for more, but Tivorcio called me over to the phone and I didn’t know who was on it but he said to just say hello so I did....AND I THOUGHT IT WAS YOU!!!!! She had the SAME laugh kinda thing as you, and for about 15 seconds I thought you were doing your surprised/laughing/crying kinda thing, I don’t know how to describe it --- but it was YOU totally!!! And I was like WHAAAAAAAAT!!!! Like shaking cause I was like what the heck, how did he get her number and all that!! And did someone die is that why you’re calling me!? So for like 15, or more like 20 seconds I totally thought it was you, and her voice is like yours too. Ahhhhh, it was the worst best thing ever and I was like freakin out inside cause I thought it was you. So weird, gosh it was hilarious though. I talked to her for like 2 minutes then gave it back to him, but wow, it was the weirdest thing ever haha!! After I went back and got more tacos :)
My week was great, I’m so excited to receive our 150 o massss references for us to go teeeeeeach!!! SO EXCITED!!! We have 3 dates already set for the 19th!! yeee I’m so amped. The church is so true, I love it, the spirit is always with us when we teach and I know that we receive personal revelation cause there were some crazy things that happened this week because of it. I know we have a prophet on the earth today who guides us though these crazy times, siempre necesitamos aplicar y leer sus palabros para que mejoremos, yo se si nosotros siempro tratamos a seguir el ejemplo de nuestro senor, vamos a ser bendicidos en todas las cosas, yo se que el libro de mormon es verdadero y contiene las palabras de dios. yo se todo de esto con todo me corazon y estoy muy agradecido de estar en esta iglesia.... thanks for all the mail and letters and everything, you all are awesome. i love my mission so much. I’m learning so much, and I’m having tons of fun :)
Love,
Elder Bertha
PS. I stomped this fat 360 off the roof of one of our investigators houses onto a pile of dirt...it was epic. I got a picture of the 180, but it’s on my comps camera so I’ll get it later :)
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| another BERTHA!!! |
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| The blister on my hand from chopping down the tree |
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| the tree |
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| this is the only dog i love here!!! |
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| Alex outside his ward building |
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| The MX City church visitor center set up at Alex's ward for others to learn of our faith |
