Week 4

Shalommm!! I mean hola.

How is everyone?? It sounds like you all had a wonderfully fun weekend!! I was thinking about the big family shin-dig last night (in a very non-trunky, focused kind of way) and I'm glad to hear it went well!! I'm glad to hear that baby Drew did well. Dang we are just such a blessed family!! Those grandbabies could NOT be cuter!! I am also glad to hear Shawn made it back safe and sound from Peru! What a great week!

My week was less eventful; it was kind of a rough one. We are having a hard time finding people who are ready for us. We have a lot of faith that they are out there though and we just need to be more diligent and find them!

I still do not speak Spanish. I have been able to understand a lot more though, that is of course until they talk to me and then I'm pretty sure they switch to Chinese because I don't understand a thing. :) I will get it though. un dia.

Yesterday was quite the "special" day. Some of the elders in my district had a baptism, which is soo great! They asked Hna Clayton and I, just a couple hours before if we would sing a duet....HAHAHAHA oh wait really? and then give a talk. Ha well, as ya'll know I do not sing. I also do not yet speak Spanish so I was just a bit stressing about this whole situation. We got up to sing and thank goodness Hna Clayton can sing because well I did not do super great. I can't tell you the number of times I just think to myself "I wish my sisters were here to see this" I know ya'll would be laughing right with me afterwards. We also gave our little sphill and I forgot how to say most things in Spanish and I just did a bit and Hna Clayton brought it home thankfully.

However during all this stress Hna Clayton and I were able to help the mother and daughter of the family that were being baptized to the font and out of it. We were with them as they watched the father get baptized first and then it was their turn. I could just feel so much love in the font area! The love the family has for each other, the love we the missionaries and the ward members felt for them and the love that our Father in Heaven has for them. 

The love that Father has for each of us is so real. He knows each of us and wants nothing more than for His children to return to Him. I love that I have a knowledge of that truth. God really is a Loving Heavenly Father.

We also had a great experience this week with our new good friend Eva. She is a bit older and is from Peru. She is just so great I love her so much! She is trying to learn English so she can take her citizen's test. We met her while visiting a sister in our ward. Eva came over to get help from that sister. Hna Flores was trying to teach her basic phrases but bless her little heart she was telling Eva all wrong. Ha we offered to go over and help Eva with English and she was so excited. We have been back a couple of times, once by appointment and the other time we just decided to drop in and see how she was. She is always so excited to see us! The last time we went over we asked if it would be ok to start the language study with a prayer. She was very excited by this idea and she asked how we pray so I taught her how we get to just have a conversation with God and tell Him the things of our heart. She really liked this and when we were ready for a closing prayer she was excited to try it. She gave such a great sincere, sweet prayer and when she was done she looked up and said how was that? We told her it was perfect and she bowed her head and started to cry. She said she felt something different. The spirit was so strong in the room! We gave her a big hug and kiss on the cheek (I'm worried when I get home I will just be kissing everybody's cheeks because its so normal here) and set up a time to come back. We are going back tomorrow and I and just praying SO hard that she can remember the spirit she felt after she prayed. I love her so much! She is just the sweetest most sincere person I have ever met.

Other than that family it has been a pretty typical week. I am PUMPED for General Conference this weekend! There is nothing like hearing the words of our Prophet and Apostles! Also I get to watch it in English so I am just smiling real big!! I love you all and hope you have just the grandest week!!!

Hermonica Hansen