{Week 18} Aculco - April 14, 2014

I love you all so much! Thanks for the letters everyone. And Dad thanks too. I love hearing from you and I felt the Spirit and your love when I read your letter. (yeah, I cried)

  

So tomorrow is transfers, but my comp and I don't have cambios. We'll be together for another 6 weeks! I've decided I'm happy for that. We have another 6 weeks to learn to talk to each other and get along better. She was sick this week (doesn't that sound familiar?) and on Thursday we went to the temple to see the doctor, who ordered her to bed rest for all of Thursday. It's the favorite joke of my district and my ward that I 'kill' all my comps. It's pretty funny. Everyone is always telling Hna Cruz to be careful with me.



Me at the Mexico City Temple

The temple was so beautiful. I love going there. The feeling is great. And we took a taxi to get there, and ended up having a great talk with the driver about the gospel.

(Unfortunately, she probably won't be able to go in this temple. 
 It closed for renovations in January and isn't expected to reopen until late 2015.)

On Friday I went on splits for the first time! Hna Mendoza - the sister training leader for our zone who only has 6 weeks left - came to our area with Hna Cruz, and I went to her area with Hna Williams (who has 6 more weeks than me)!  So there were two tall blond white girls together in an area where the guys just looove to catcall. So that was fun. We taught some lessons and contacted and chatted! It was really nice to be with her and I learned some stuff from her in the one day we were together. She's super sweet, but has cambios. Tomorrow she'll no longer be in my district.

My district. Left to Right - Arcia, Sibrian, Cruz, Me, Nance, Mendoza, Williams, Cardenas, Bennett, Mercedes, with Hunsaker in the back and the DL Elder Perrea in the front.

And on Tuesday we had to go to the immigration offices to finish visa stuff. So we had to be at the mission offices by 7:30 am, so we had to leave at 6! Then all the Americans, one elder from the Dominican Republic, and one Canadian (me!) all said adios to our comps, who hung out in the offices all day while we all went to immigration! That was fun - a herd of white people. There were about 18 of us. And Elder Hixen was there! I was so happy to see him again. He's a great elder, and has baptized almost every week. In case you don't remember, he was in my district in the MTC and was one of my zone leaders there. So it was Bennett, Lopez, Hixen and me - half our MTC district. Hna Gurley was scheduled to go the next day so wasn't with us. And then when we went to the temple, Elder Hixen was there too! I got to see him 2 days in a row!

Something that made me pretty sad this week was our investigator Armando. He's about 38 and a sweet guy. We've been teaching him for a while, and he was supposed to get baptized yesterday. He passed his baptismal interview, he was excited, and then Saturday night he told us he wasn't sure. Sunday we went to get him to bring him to church, and he wouldn't open the door. That was pretty sad. The church is true, and it's so sad to see people who know it's true, not want to change their lives. And then our other 2 investigators didn't come either. And another just left on vacation until May. So that's been kind of depressing. But somehow, I now have a renewed determination to work harder than ever. Hopefully I'll be able to communicate it to my comp, and we'll work harder than ever!

And Mom, about the shoes - I would love another pair of the Kadee crocs in black. They're the comfiest shoes - the clarks rub the side of my foot funny, and aren't great for all day walking.

Have I told you about Hno F? He's the old bishop, and is now the first counselor. He's one of the 4 men in my ward that have served missions, and he's awesome! He's funny and really smart, and he helps us out a lot. He was the one that was going to feed us tacos de tripe on Thursday, but my comp was sick so we missed out. Rayos. (that means 'lightning', but they use it like 'dang it' here)

But things are looking up! Obviously there is something that we can still do in this area to help the people, or we wouldn't still be here. There was a rumor going around for awhile that they were going to close our area because there hadn't been baptisms in so long. But we're still here, and I'm determined to work harder than ever. We taught some members about patience the other day, and I'm doing my best to have patience and faith in the Lord's timing, and until then just keep working as hard as I can. We've had some amazing experiences here, and I know that God is on our side. Did I ever tell you that I read Jesus the Christ about a month ago? That was amazing. I highly recommend it - but if you don't have time, just read the beginning, the end, and the part about the sermon on the mount - particularly the Lord's prayer. Seriously amazing.

Me at the Visitors' Center

I love you all!

Be good, say your prayers, and have patience in all things! Mom if you're still reading Preach My Gospel, the part in the attributes of Christ about patience is pretty awesome. I recommend it!

Love you!

-Hermana Taylor



And now for some more pictures . . .

My kitchen. We have a blender, a fridge, and a stove.

The other side of my kitchen. Food!

Hna E - a less active convert of 4 years, who is the sweetest old lady you'll ever meet. She has cancer :(

THis area is called Aguamiel, and is pretty typical of my area. Big edificios and large plazas

  

The view from the top of one edificio - the green tents are the tiangis - the outdoor markets that are there everyday.

 The tiangis again.

  



This little girl is my favorite! Pretty sure she's the Mexican version of Katia. Her name is Sophia.

We were in an investigators house and she had a coconut monkey! I had to take a picture. Were your coconut monkeys like this mom? and yes I did get your FB letters from Hawaii and the mission experiences. Thanks!

 

It's hailed twice.

Daniela,Hna Cruz, Andrea, and me! I love this family - the V's. They are amazing and their kids are all really sweet. I sent this because we fit 5-6 people in the back of a car on a regular basis. Seatbelts don't exist here.

 Love you all!

{Week 17} Aculco - April 7, 2014

Hi Family. And everyone else. How's it going?

I received a letter from Brent and Janice, and Denyse. Thanks so much! It was fun to see what's going on in your lives :) AND I got one from Jennafer! Penny! Thanks so much! I'm so happy to hear from you and I'm glad basketball is going well! I can't picture you with holes in your ears and gunk on your face, but whatever. I'm sure you look beautiful.

The scariest thing that has happened was... I can't think of anything. My area is pretty tame. Apparently I'm in the safest zone and one of the safest areas. The most I get is everyone calling me guerra or guerrita (White girl) and some guys will say things like 'oh look at the precious guerrita. Que bonita guerrita.' It's more funny than anything.

I haven't eaten anything really strange yet, but I have an appointment this Thursday to eat tacos de tripe - intestines (I'm not sure of which animal). Apparently it's really good... I have my doubts.

I haven't been sick at all, but I have been pretty tired lately...

And Hermana Cruz.... She's been having a tough time because she misses her old area where she was for 7 months, and because she feels like we can't talk, and apparently she's used to joking and laughing with her comps. Unfortunately I barely understand Gospel Spanish let alone jokes, so she feels pretty alone, which has made it difficult for her to focus on those we teach and feel the Spirit. She told me that I'm her toughest comp so far. And I don't know... we just don't click. She won't give me any advice for weeks, even when I ask for it, and then she dumps all the things I need to do better on my head all in one evening, which makes me feel overwhelmed and sad... It's all good advice, but all at once it's pretty overwhelming. And basically we just don't talk. We walk in silence.... everywhere. So obviously, it's difficult at times to have unity in lessons when we're both mad at each other. But the other night we had a huge talk, and things have been better since then. She's really good, she's just having trouble with focusing on the work, and my lack of Spanish doesn't make things any better.

But on a happier note, wasn't conference amazing? The English speaking Missionaries all went in a side room to watch on our own TV... but when it started it was in Spanish! but we figured out how to change it. But then, after Elder Holland's talk, our TV cut off, as well as the feed to the chapel. They were able to get the Spanish going again, but not ours. But ironically, we were rescued by a disobedient missionary who had an Iphone... he tuned into the internet, we plugged into a speaker, and then listened to the first session in English. The second session went without a hitch. Sunday morning, we didn't get a TV and all crowded around a computer in the family history center... but the internet was too slow, so we just listened again, and the same for the Sunday afternoon session. But the internet died with about 30min left in the session, so we missed the last speakers. But other than the technical difficulties, wasn't it awesome! I especially liked Holland, Uchtdorf, Bednar, and Pres Monson's remarks in the Sunday morning session. I was so sad when conference was over. I loved it. I was so happy to get to hear it in English - and I can scarcely wait for the Liahona to come out so I can study the talks. We get Liahonas every month which is nice. And 2 of my investigators came to the Sunday morning session! I was pretty ecstatic about that. Although apparently they almost fell asleep... yikes.

The language is coming along... I can say pretty much everything I need to in lessons, but apparently my accent is pretty bad and people have trouble understanding me sometimes...I'm working on that. And I'm still pretty lost in everyday talk. I can do the basics... but I think that's going to take some time.

And the other day we were walking, and Elder Sibrian nudged my foot funny so I stumbled and my shoe fell off. So I promptly grabbed my other shoe and chucked it at his head. (Don't worry people - they're croc flats so they are super light. It didn't hurt him. much.) It was pretty funny. Maybe not exactly appropriate but... yeah.

I love it here. This last week has been pretty hard with my comp... but we have 3 investigators who are progressing, and it looks like one will be baptized this Sunday!

My comp was super excited to see the Stutznegger's photo, and so was I. She thinks he looks Mexican. (this was a picture of their future mission president and his wife by the map at the MTC) 

And the house looks so good! You're awesome Dad! Nice job!

Mom, thanks so much for your letters. I love reading them every Monday.

Richelle and Logan, love you both! be good parents for my niece-nephew (why isn't there one English word for your nieces and nephews? Like grandchildren... that's not gender specific. niece and nephew... it's a mouthful)

Jordy and Smalls, be awesome. That is all.

Penny, I haven't forgotten about our movie night!

Katia and Mackenzie. I wanted to tell you both how much I love you and I hope you're having a ton of fun back home. Do something awesome for me and send me a picture!

And Dad. How was your mission? How many baptisms did you have? What was it like living in a different country so far away from home? How was the language for you? Did you have some difficult comps? What helped you? I want to know EVERYTHING! Thank you so much for your example to me. It's because of the stories that you've told us that I've always wanted to serve a mission. With time, my reasons for wanting to be here have changed, but your stories are what planted the desire. I love you!

I don't know what else to write... Things are good. I'm trying to work hard and study hard. I think conference inspired my comp to want to work again, and I know it helped me a ton. I finish my training this week. I've been learning a lot about faith in the Lord's timing, and not our own. D&C 63:9-13 and D&C 24 have been really inspiring for me lately. I love the work and the people, and I love you all! I look forward to talking on Mother's day - how are we going to do that? do we still have skype? and Saturday or Sunday? And Richelle, you need to have your baby before or after Mother's day. I'd prefer before, but you're not allowed to be stuck in the hospital when I call home, ¿Sale? (ok)

But honestly things are good. Like Uchtdorf said, be grateful. I have a comfy bed, my Spanish is slowly getting better, the food is good, we got to listen to conference, I'm getting a tan, I feel the Spirit tons, I'm learning a lot, and we have hot water again! (we've been showering in cold water for the last 3 weeks). Tons to be grateful for :)

I love you all. I love Mexico, and I love my companion.

Be good, say your prayers, and love everyone. And Jenna get another 3 pointer for me!

Until next Lunes,

-Hermana Taylor

{Week 16} Aculco - March 31, 2014

Hi  :)

So, I didn't get to see the broadcast. For some reason we weren't allowed... But this weekend we will get to watch all sessions of conference, and I'll get to watch in English, which I am very excited for.



Me :) I don't know if this pic will work for my missionary plaque,

but I always forget to take others. If you wait, eventually I'll send a better one.



I got the pouch letters from Carlee and Denyse. Thanks! And Smalls, that letter made my day. Seriously hilarious. I laughed so hard, and tried to translate for my comp, but she didn't get it. Yeah, you can wear my clothes. I honestly don't remember what I have there. Only you can't wear my tear away sweats and provincial basketball shirt. And anything else you wear please put back!

So I just found out that my area is right at the end of our mission. Two sides of it are the South Mission. And I live in  ---, Iztacalco, Distrito Federal.

Today we went shopping! But I didn't buy anything... I looked but the only dress that I liked my comp snatched up first. We have this ginormous amazing mall about 10min bus ride from my area, and we go there a lot on Pday to bowl, eat in the food court, shop... It's kind of funny because on Pday we always stay together as a district or zone, but we still seem to split into two groups - Americans and Latinos. So being Canadian I don't fit in anywhere! Just kidding. I usually hang with the Latinos - it's good Spanish practice to hang with them.

And now for some miracles!!

Last week I forgot to say this. There was a lady in our ward who was ancient and the sweetest old lady - Hna Marina. Well anyway, she died, so we went to the funeral Saturday morning. And while there, waiting for it to start, this lady called to us from the gate (there are big walls and gates around all the church buildings) because she needed to use the bathroom! So we let her in, showed her to the bathroom, then waited, and when she came out we ambushed her - we took her to a room and started to teach her the first lesson. It turned into a super spiritual lesson where we were able to help her feel more peaceful about all the problems in her life. Turns out she lives in a different mission though, so we passed on her reference and they're teaching her now. But she came to our English class later and told us that she is taking the lessons! We ended up missing the funeral, but whatever - we were able to help this lady.

And there is this guy - Rafael - that sells pan (bread) on a street corner close to our house. This pan is more like donut, croissant type things - big and sweet and delicious. We pass him every night on our way to our house. A couple nights ago we started to chat more with him, but he works all day, everyday so we never could make an appointment. The other night we stopped to chat with him, and he told us about the troubles of the day, and how he still had like 70 pieces of pan, and was going to lose it all because it was so late and he still had so much, and he can't sell day old pan... anyway we felt bad, so I suggested to my comp that we buy some pan. It's not much, but it was the best we could do to help him right then. As soon as the pan was in our hands, and before we had a chance to pay, a flood of people descended and practically cleaned out his pan. Afterwards he wouldn't accept our payment, and instead thanked us. He said he didn't know what it was, but we bring a type of peace with us. And then he agreed to give us a proper appointment, where we can actually talk with him about the gospel rather than just 5 minutes every night. It was amazing. And then when we got to the house, Hna San was on her way to buy some pan from him too. It was great.

So Armando didn't come to church. But we taught him after, and I think he really wants to change his life. He's been having a lot of difficulties with the Word of Wisdom (Palabra de Sabiduria) but he is doing great otherwise. But because he missed church, we can't baptize him this Saturday. But possible the next one...the 12 of April. We have another investigator - Julia - and she's getting baptized that day too. She came to church yesterday and loved it. And Rosa and Paulino... turns out she is already married, and Paulino is just her boyfriend... they didn't come to church and we're not really sure what's going to happen with them... but we have an appointment with Rosa's daughter tomorrow, so maybe that will turn out to be something... I dunno!

One day we were at the church for a lesson with Julia, the day we invited her to be baptized on the 12th, and she brought her 2 year old daughter. To keep her daughter occupied, Hna Cruz gave her her name tag, because she has fun stickers on the back. We were having the lesson in the room with the baptismal font, and we had opened it so Julia could see it, and for some reason there was water in the font, and then Julia's daughter threw Hna Cruz's name tag in the font! So after the lesson I volunteered to fish it out. I hiked up my skirt and went swimming!! Sort of... the closest I'll get to swimming here. I tried to pick it up with my toes, but it was too flat so, I ended up having to reach in with my arm. I got my shirt wet so I was soaking for the rest of the day. But it was fun! and cold! what an adventure! lol

But anyway, stuff here is going great. I'm a bit depressed we haven't had a baptism yet... this mission is very much about the numbers. They're constantly stressing the need to have 55 lessons and 1 baptism every week, and if you don't you're being disobedient and get planched by the DL, ZL, AP, or Pres. ('Planchar' is a Spanish verb that means 'to straighten' - like your hair, or ironing, but we apply it to being 'straightened out' too, although that's not actually correct. The English speakers have taken it a step farther and say 'planched' for 'scolded'...) but anyway, it's a bit discouraging.

But we're working hard and I'm praying that Armando and Julia can be ready to be baptized the 12th! The 15th is cambios (transfers), and the end of my 12weeks of training.



It's great here. It's hot here. And it's been raining and hailing a lot lately... my comp is amazed by the hail. Apparently doesn't exist in Veracruz...

Hermana Cruz and hail.

Be good, say your prayers, and... and seriously. Say your prayers. Prayer is amazing. I've never prayed so much in my life.

Love you all!

-Hermana Taylor

{Week 15} Aculco - March 24, 2014

First of all... Happy Birthday Richelle and Katia! I was thinking of you both on your special day and told lots of people it was my sister's cumpleanos. I cut the picture of our family out from the front of our calender. It's small so fits in my scriptures, and I love showing people my family!

To answer your questions mom, we lost Ana when we were in the hospital. She also got a new job and now works over an hour away until late at night. We phoned her a lot and set all sorts of appointments, but she never showed except once. She told us that she loves this church and thinks it is true, but doesn't have time right now to deal with it. It was really sad. We still text her every now and then, and keep trying to book citas, but she's so busy she still never shows :( I hope that one day she is able to learn more and be baptized, but I don't think it will be while I'm here.

I haven't seen the puppies in a while, but their mom is stinkin ugly, so I don't think they have much hope of being cuter. And we haven't been chased, but there are dogs everywhere. They all just kind of hang out on the street close to their respective houses. We've gotten to know a couple of the dogs because there are a few that are always in exactly the same spot. And the other day I saw my first dead dog here! It looked like it was walking and just fell down dead. The dogs here are actually really cool. There are a lot of fancy breeds like poodles and German shepherds and Afghanistan somethings. And about a billion chihuahuas. And tons of the dogs wear those little doggy outfits. The owners say it's cuz the dogs are cold, but personally I think they're going to die from heatstroke.

And it's never cold here anymore. It the morning I might wear a light sweater while studying, but that's the only time I need one. It has started to rain though. Random showers that come down hard. It's fun! We were in a lesson during one of them, and had both forgotten umbrellas or jackets, so the sister gave us each a huge plastic bag which we wore tent style over our heads and bags, and we went out like that. It was pretty ridiculous, and then we tried to contact a guy but he just laughed at us. It was pretty funny looking! At the next house the lady gave us each an umbrella. We get a ton of gifts here. People just randomly give us stuff. I've gotten an umbrella, a really ugly ring and necklace, a headband, perfume, random little trinkets... People are nice!

  

My favorite things about Mexico... Honestly I don't know! The food is good, the weather is nice, my ward is good, my district is great... I love it here!

Elders, Jesus and us.

And Jesus is amazing. He gave us a reference for a common law couple, Rosa and Paulino, and 5 minutes into our first lesson, they asked us when they could be baptized. They're getting married soon, and they have a baptismal date for April 6th, along with one of our other investigators, Armando. They're all wonderful and all came to church for the first time on Sunday. We currently have about 5 other investigators too, but they aren't really progressing. But seriously, the people here are great!

Our investigators and Jesus.

And the food... I like it. Every Sunday we eat with our landlady with the Elders too, and we all help to prepare the food. It's always a ton of fun and is probably my favorite food.

 The Elders, Hma Cruz, and Hna San all cooking in Hna Sans kitchen.

Our ward hasn't been giving us much support lately. They always cancel or forget our appointments, and nobody (except Jesus) has references for us. So we've been working with our obispo (bishop) and lider missional a lot lately, and things are starting to look up! We had 42 lessons last week - the mission goal is 55 every week. This was the most I've ever taught, so that was pretty awesome!!

And last Pday we went with our zone to this outdoor exercise place that had exercise equipment, tennis courts, soccer fields, a pool, and...Basketball courts! So I got to play basketball for the first time which was a ton of fun. But no one had told my comp and I what the activity was, just to wear normal clothes, so we were in jeans while everyone else was in shorts. Basketball in jeans in the boiling sun wasn't great... but it was fun to play! And I got sunburned! Personally I don't understand how since I'm in the sun for hours everyday, but got sunburned after only 2 hours. Either way, it was a good time.

And Spanish... is coming along. I understand a bit more everyday, but sometimes I feel like I should understand way more than I do. But I keep working and studying hard. My goal is to be able to understand and communicate almost everything by the time our new pres comes. And for General conference, all the Americans (and Canadians) get to watch in English - easier to receive revelation in your own language. But I don't know about the Women's conference... Anyways, I love it here and love you all.

Be good, say your prayers, and eat some lasagna for me! I miss pasta!

Love you,

-Hermana Taylor


We all decorate the covers of our agendas using pictures from the Liahona.

She sent us a picture of her ward boundaries, which I'm not including, (I couldn't read it anyway - all Spanish or something!) but this was her caption:
My ward. The pen separates the Elders area and ours. We have the fat side. I live where the orange peel is.


{Week 14} Aculco - March 17, 2014

I got more letters from you all!!  Mom your talk at DOTS (Depend on the Savior - New Beginnings) was very nice.  I appreciated hearing all the missionary stories.  I also got letters from Grandma and Grandpa and Auntie Kathryn!  And please tell them thanks for me - especially Auntie Kathryn. Her letter came just when I needed it most, with some advice about the language.  I've been getting really frustrated with the language.  I just want to be able to speak and understand everyone right now!  And then her letter came when I was feeling super down.  It was pretty simple advice but it was an answer to prayer.

My first English class went well!  It was fun to be 'the expert' for once, because here I generally have no idea what is going on.  We didn't have a lot of people because of another conflicting activity, but we've adjusted the times so it should be better now. And my landlady has started teaching me Spanish for half an hour every night, which is really nice.

And Dad!!  Thanks for the email.  I love hearing from all of you.  I love you all and although the mission is super hard and filled with disappointments because none of our investigators came to church this week which means we won't be baptizing anyone in March (they have to have 3 consecutive Sundays first) there are a lot of blessings and miracles too.  I've already learned a ton, and I look forward to learning more for the rest of the time!

And the house looks great!!  I showed my comp and she was amazed, although disappointed that there wasn't any snow.  People keep asking me if they can come visit me in Canada so they can see the snow.  They're always dumbstruck when I tell them it gets to minus 40 sometimes.

We have a new investigator!  His name is Gael, and he's 9.  He's in a less active family, so we teach him and his older brother Andres all the time.  Andres has told us he wants to serve a mission, so we're helping to reactivate him.  The problem is that their family always goes to the coast on the weekend so they never come to church...

And Jesus is awesome.  He has a ton of references for us, and last week we had a Noche de Hogar ('Night of Home'... but it means FHE) in his house with 2 of our investigators, the elders, and one of their investigators.  It was really good.  We watched finding faith in Christ and played some games and had some treats!  It was a good time!  And Jesus has a keyboard, so I plunked out some tunes which was fun.  He and I taught Hna Cruz the basics for piano because she has no background at all in music.  And did you know that in Spanish, the notes are 'do, re, mi' not 'a, b, c'!!  So that was a little confusing for me.

But I'm having a really good time here.  The weather is beautiful, and I'm definitely getting a tan.  The crocs are my favorite. They're so soft and light. I wear the brown ones pretty much everyday.

And funny story!  We had a contact, who after the first lesson asked my comp to marry him.  She said no.  We're letting the elders teach him now.

And when you send me my ipod, could you put the songs from my Young Women's CD on it please.  Thank you!

My comp is great, and we're working hard, but still not much success.  Half of our appointments call to cancel each day, and the other half usually just forget and aren't there when we arrive.  And when we ask if people have references, almost everyone says no.  Help the missionaries!  Everyone knows someone that could be blessed by having the gospel in their life.  We're all a little scared or whatever to share the gospel, but please, give the missionaries a hand and help share the gospel.

I love you all!!

Be good, say your prayers, and spread the gospel!!

Hermana Taylor

This is us at the civil wedding of Miguel and Gabriella.  I don't know if you remember but Miguel was the investigator and Gabriella his less active member wife.  Their baby is Abril. This was during the time Hna Gutierrez was in the hospital and I was on splits with Hna Aguilar and Hna Bennett.

{Week 13} Aculco - March 10, 2014

It's been crazy!  And I need to catch you up two weeks!!  Ahh!

Us at the zoo!

The zoo was lots of fun.  It was Hna Aguilar, Hna Gutierrez and me, and a member family that came with us and drove us.  It was a good time!  Then Hna G left the next day - I was sad to see her go, but I know it's for the best. 

Goodbye to Hna G in our landlady's house. We live above here.

Hna Aguilar and I worked the rest of the week and found some new investigators... not sure how interested they are though.  We also went on splits twice with a lady in our ward and her daughter.  The daughter Daniela (17) and I went and searched out a whole bunch of less actives and contacted a bazillion people while Hna A and Claudia (the mom) took care of our appointments.  That was a lot of fun.  One contact we had is named Angelica, and she was super interested in The Book of Mormon.  We've been teaching her, but we think she's more interested in just learning, not changing.  But she is reading the BoM and has finally started to pray with us... she wouldn't do that for a long time.

Tuesday was cambios (transfers - new comps and all that) but on Monday we got a call that the pres wanted to do cambios that night to make things easier for sending Hna A home... so Monday I got my new comp, Hna Cruz.  She's great.  I love her!  She's 21, and is from Veracruz, so is Mexican . She likes to work hard and likes things neat and tidy... pretty much my dream comp!  We get along pretty great, and have a lot of laughs during the week.  A couple times we had some confusion with the language barrier, but we're working those out as I learn Spanish!  And I'm learning tons... but I still have trouble understanding sometimes, and some people can't understand me.  Apparently my accent is bad... but I can't really tell the difference.  We're working on that.

Hermana Cruz!

So on Monday we went Bowling, and Hna Aguilar's friends all came because it was her last Monday.  Hna Ingram's comp is one of her friends, that's why she was there.  And Elder Torres came...Elder Torres and Hna Aguilar met on the mission, had an attraction, told President Morales, and were sent to different areas for safety.  Basically they're going to get married some day, and they were being super careful not to mess up on the mission.  But he came to the party which was sweet.  His comp Elder Uresti was there too (of course) and had fun mocking my Spanish lol.

All of us bowling - you can figure out who is who!

We've been working super hard this week.  But even with working hard, we're not having much success, and frankly we were starting to get depressed.  We're exhausted by the end of each day because we've walked so much, but our numbers aren't showing how hard we're working because appointments keep falling through and members keep cancelling on us.  Saturday was really hard.  We had 10 appointments, but only 2 of them actually happened, and everyone that we searched out was busy, didn't want to listen... stuff like that.  We had started to fast Sat for success, and we've been praying really hard, but nothing was happening.  Here, you eat at 2, then fast until the next day at 2.  So Saturday night we were starving and depressed.  Then on Sunday, about an hour before we ended our fast, we received a reference for someone who is apparently escogido (literally means 'chosen', translates like 'golden investigator'), then the Elders had a baptism, so that lifted our spirits, then we were happy because 6 of our less actives came to church, and one of them suddenly has a billion references for us!  We contacted a whole bunch of them, and a lot of them seem really interested!  Basically, I've gained a huge testimony of fasting and prayer.  It works!  Our mission scripture is Alma 17:2-3 and talks about fasting and prayer.

Freddy's baptism. Hna Burgoa, Elder Arcia, Freddy, Elder Sibrian, Hna San (the lady
we live with), Hna Cruz, me, and Valerie and Andrea.

The less active that provided the references is named Jesus (hey-sus) and is hilarious.  We've been working with him a lot lately.  He's 55ish, and really smart.  I was so happy when he came to church.  He's been introducing us to all his friends, which is awesome!!

Me with a puppy! One of Jesus friends had puppies! Elder Arcia in the back.

And I'm going to have an English class with Elder Arcia!  He's from Utah and is Elder Sibrian's new comp - Elder Zapeda had cambios.  They're in my ward and are great.

Elders Sibrian and Zapeda.

I love it here.  The people are amazing, the weather is beautiful, and my Spanish gets better every day.  I know the church is true and this is where I need to be.  I love you all so much!

Be good, say your prayers, and give the birthday girls a hug for me!

Love you all,

Hermana Taylor

And now for some more pictures . . .



There is grafiti everywhere here. This is my favorite! It's close to my house.



Us on Monday at the food court. There's a mall close by where we hang out on Pday to bowl, shop, eat, stuff like that -Elders Perrea, Torres, Uresti, Hnas Ingram, me, Mendoza, Aguilar, Ingrams comp (don't remember her name), Mendoza and Mercedes.

A bunch of the hermanas in my district - all the Latino ones.

Hnas Mendoza, Mercedes, Aguilar, me, Cardenaz. And Elder Perrea, the DL

Zone leaders, Meyers and Ranghold (or something like that) and us. And Elder Ramos is the one lying down.

And some pictures from the zoo . . .





There was a place filled with butterflies . Hna G LOVES mariposas (butterflys).



Camels!! There weren't any moose but this is second best.



Lemurs!

Emu!  I love emus.



A type of cactus called nopales. We eat these a lot. They're good!

The hippo was awesome!

That's all folks!  Love you all!!!

{Week 12} Aculco - March 3, 2014

It's been an awesome week and a super busy P-day.  I have pretty much no time right now.  Sorry for the lame letter but I love you all!  I may or may not have time to write later tonight.  If not, you'll get a super long letter next week.  I love you all and thanks Chelle for finally sending pics!!  My new comp is named Hermana Cruz. That's all I know. We're going to do cambios pretty much right now. But I love you all and I finally got your hearts today which I loved. (I mailed that Jan. 17 - over 6 weeks for her to get a regular letter.)  And I got a letter from Danielle Jacklin!  Tell her thanks for me.  It's been a crazy week though... goodbyes to Hna G, we went to chapultapec (the zoo), went bowling, went on splits with a lady in our ward and her daughter twice, taught a bunch and contacted even more.  I've learned tons from Hna Aguilar and I'm sad to see her go.  I love you all!!!  The mission rocks!

Be good, say your prayers, and stuff!

Hermana Taylor

PS - Jordy and Jenna!!!! Happy Birthday!!! I love you both so much and tell everyone about you all.

PPS - I'd like my ipod shuffle back and speakers . . . It's the only thing I regeret sending home.

And more contacts would be amazing. I've started wearing them again and I didn't realize how much I love them and miss them.

And letters!!! I love letters and would love some more please if possible!!!

Bowling!!!  (thanks Hna Ingram for the photo!)

{Week 11} Aculco - February 24, 2014

Hola mi familia!!

I have loved this past week. Hna Aguilar is wonderful! I've learned so much from her, and she helps me a lot. She finishes her mission on March 4, and then heads home! She is 23 and from El Salvador, and loves pink things... She's really spunky and sweet. I love her and am glad I get to be with her for 2 weeks.

Hermana Aguilar and I

But in other news... on Friday we went to the doc for a checkup for Hna G, but first we stopped at the mission office so she could talk to Pres Morales. When she came out, she was crying and told us that she was headed home to Chile the next Wednesday (26th). The decision had come from Salt Lake that because her condition was serious, they were sending her home. She was sad, but at the same time feels peace. I think we all know it's for the best. D&C 126 was a big comfort for her...

Our hospital room the day we left, so she looked tons better!

I'm sad that both my awesome comps will be gone in a week!! And I really want to know what will happen to me, and who my next comp will be. I love Hna G and A, but it's also been a little difficult, because they both want to say goodbye to all their old member friends. Pretty much all Sunday was spent eating and visiting with their friends, and while it was fun, it was not productive. And then today, P-day, Hna G had another checkup at the doctors. Hna A opted for splits so she didn't have to spend her last P-day traveling across the city, so Hna G and I set out. She didn't know where she was going so I navigated (I now know the metro really well, certain buses, and downtown where the hospital is, not to mention I know my area almost perfectly!! I can navigate my way around one of the biggest cities in the world!). It was fun... not really. I haven't actually really had a P-day yet, because we go to the doctor's every P-day, and that's 1.5 hours each way, and then 1 or 2 hours in the doctor's office. It kind of stinks... especially because each P-day the district or zone gets together and has a lesson then an activity, like basketball or soccer, and people wear JEANS. We usually have time to go to the lesson, but always have to leave before the activity. I really want to play a sport and wear jeans!! But esta bien... next Monday.

My trio!!

On Saturday, we went to our last cita, and no one answered!! But we knew that some of the family lived on the 3rd floor, so we thought we'd go up there and see if we could find them. We got up there, and found the entire family and a bunch of other people having a fiesta!! They ushered us into the room, sat us in the middle, gave us a whole bunch of food, and continued the party!

Hna Aguilar and I at the fiesta.

There was mariachi music and dancing, and absolutely everyone can jive really well. It was really tempting to join them... Then they brought out the cake, and it was then we realized the whole party was a kid's 5 year old birthday party! It was hilarious!! But a lot of fun!

The birthday cake at the fiesta.

Then when we got home, we realized our neighbours had decided to have a fiesta too...until 4 in the morning they were blaring music. And the funny thing here is that a lot of people play American music, and sing along knowing all the words, but no idea what they mean. It's kind of hilarious. Gangnum style was a favorite for the fiesta next door. They probably played it 10 times. Needless to say, we were pretty tired the next morning due to lack of sleep.

Spanish is hard. I still have trouble understanding, but I do understand a lot more. It's even more difficult to speak!! But I'll get there... eventually...

Our capilla (chapel) and the RS pres daughter, the security guard (because there's a
fence around everything here and a guard at all the chapels), and my comps.

My awesome comps!

Mom you keep asking and I keep forgetting to answer, but we write in an Internet cafe down the street. And the keyboard is Spanish, so similar but a few small differences that make it tricky to type, so if there are mistakes, that's why! Plus I'm in a rush, plus the computer is in Spanish so every word I write in English has that little red line under that means it's spelt wrong because these words don't exist in Spanish.

All three of us sleep in the same apartment - bunk beds!! I get the top... yay. Now I'm closer to the spiders. I cleaned out all the cobwebs I could reach but... The hardest part is the morning, because our shower has only 10-ish minutes of hot water, so we all have to go super fast or the last person gets a cold shower. And right now it's still a little chilly in the morning, so a cold shower isn't great!

Our newly arranged house. Hna A has a TON of stuff...

I love it here. And I'm learning tons. I hope you all have fun in the cold in Canada! I love telling people how cold it is there and about the snow.

I love you all!! Be good, say your prayers, and have a lovely evening.

-Hermana Taylor

A whole bunch of us at a members house for supper -

Left to right - Dana (members daughter), Hna J (Dana's mom) Hna G, Hna Bennett from the MTC, me.

 Front: Hna Mercedes from the Dominican Republic, Hna A, and Hna J's sister (don't remember her name).

This is Hna J's house, and is where I slept all day that one day...

{Week 10} Aculco - February 17, 2014

Hi Family.

This week has been really hard. Hna G and I got out of the hospital at 6, and got home at 7 pm. It was a crazy day, and we're exhausted!

On Monday night when I went back to the hospital, she looked a lot better. she was up and dressed and I was thinking we might get to leave earlier than a week. But then Tuesday night around 6, she told me her pulse was low, so I went and took it. It was at 35... it's supposed to be 70ish. We called a nurse who took her pulse, then brought in another nurse who also took her pulse, and then the two of them brought in a third nurse who also took it. They all looked at each other for a moment, then got to work. Her IV dosage - which was really low at the time - was increased dramatically as they pumped stuff into her, they did some electro analysis thingy that I couldn't understand the Spanish word for that involved a lot of wires and things hooked up to her, and they gave her a bunch more medicine. We suddenly had doctors and nurses pouring in and out of our room. Around 9 they gave her some more medicine, but it caused her to have major pain in her head. She was crying and screaming because of the pain for about an hour, and all I could do was kneel beside her and hold her hand. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I don't think I've cried that much or prayed that hard in a while... which is saying a lot because we're constantly praying here. They gave her something for the pain, but it took a little while for it to take effect. Basically I kneeled beside her bed till around midnight, then dozed a little in the hard chair by her bed for the rest of the night. We constantly had people coming in and turning on the light, so it was really hard to sleep, and I was so worried about her. They hooked her up to one of those machines that tells your pulse and blood pressure and respiration and that was beeping all night because her pulse was so low. It was one of the most difficult nights of my life.

The next morning, I didn't want to leave, but by order of Pres. Morales, we switched again, and I was taken to a members house where they let me sleep practically all day. It was wonderful, and helped to refresh me both physically and spiritually. Then the next day I worked with Hna Aguilar and Hna Bennett in there area. It was difficult to be in a trio... but it was nice to do missionary work again! The next morning, we went to a wedding! They had a baptism on Sunday, but first their investigator, Miguel, had to marry his wife, Gabriela. They're a really sweet couple and she is 5 months pregnant and is less active they have a 1 and a 1/2 year old named Abril (April in Spanish, pronounced Avreel) who is the cutest thing you'll ever see. I'm convinced that the children here are the cutest in the world. But anyway, we took them to the courthouse where they got married. It was really different, but really sweet because Miguel cried through the whole thing. He is a really humble guy, and they're a great family. They're super poor, and it costs a lot to get married here, so the missionaries paid for it. And then he got baptized on Sunday, but I was back in the hospital so I didn't see it. After the wedding, we went back to the hospital and switched again, and this time Hna Aguilar stayed there and Hna Mercedes came with Hna Bennett and me. We worked all Friday and Saturday, and then Sunday morning before church we switched again and I was back in the hospital. And Hna G was so much better! Her pulse was back up, and she was had a lot more energy, and she was no longer connected to an IV!!!!

Then today, Monday, we were supposed to leave the hospital around 11:00, but due to some miscommunication and confusion with the insurance company, they didn't let us leave until 4:30. Our wonderful landlady, Hna San was there at 11:00 to drive us home, and stuck around till they let us go. But when she left to get her car to come pick us up, it had been impounded or something due to a parking infraction, so she had to pay to retrieve it and the whole thing took forever, so basically Hna G sat in a wheelchair and I stood in the lobby until 6ish when she came and got us. Then it took an hour to drive home! None of us had eaten since breakfast, and were all super starving, so as soon as we got back she made us food.

Hna G has to stay in the casa for one week by doctor's orders, so Hna Aguilar is being switched to our area for the next two weeks, and will be working in our area with me while Hna G rests. Hna A has been here for 17months and 2weeks, so basically her last two weeks in the mission will be with me. And she's nice... but it'll be interesting! I'll let you know how it goes. She arrives in the morning.

The past 11 days (and the next 2 weeks!) have been a huge exercise in both patience and faith for me. My lack of Spanish is really starting to frustrate me, and I've been trying really hard to have faith that this is what's supposed to happen. I've been studying faith a lot recently in my personal study, and I highly recommend Ether 12 to anyone who wants to read it. It's been difficult and I've cried a lot or been close to tears a lot this last week. Hna Mercedes and Aguilar were both really nice, but kind of condescending, and kept butting in when I was trying to teach my part of the lesson - probably because it was taking me forever with my lack of Spanish. But they said really good things both times. Maybe the Spirit was directing them... I don't know. It's been hard. I feel like it's the first couple days all over again. But I'm praying a lot and I believe it will all work out. ''I give unto men weaknesses that they may be made strong''. I believe that's true, and I'm trying really hard to live according to it.

Story time!! One day for lunch the lady fed us fish! as in she plopped an entire fried fish in front of me! head and all!! And boy was it good!

And in the hospital, there was this one doctor who every time he came in he asked us a different question about the gospel. He was super catholic and was just curious, but his questions were interesting! for example, ''can a Mormon and a catholic get married?'' I was like ''uh... yeah... not in the temple but they can get married....'' He was shocked that it was possible. I'm not sure why... He also told us he didn't like tithing, and then launched into a huge explanation why that had something to do with China... I didn't understand. Hna G explained a bit though.

And my area must be really tame or something, or maybe it's just cuz it was Valentine's day, but I got whistled at a lot in the other Hna's area! And several guys offered me chocolate! I didn't take it though... it was kind of sketchy.

All in all it's been a crazy week. And it will be interesting to just be with Hna A. Hna Bennett has been a huge help this last week. I was so happy I got to be with her for awhile.

I love the mission. It's stinking hard.

Be good, say your prayers, and have fun in Hawaii mom and dad!!

Love you all,

Hermana Taylor

 

The mission conference on Saturday that I wasn't at! :)

{Week 9} Aculco - February 10, 2014

Hola Familia!!!!!

My area is called ---, and my ward is ---.  I live on a tiny street that I don't know the name of, but the main street it's right beside is ---. --- is another major street in my area. I go to --- a lot because that's where my stake building is and we meet our zone and district there. I'm about an hour by metro away from an area that is actually like city... sky scrapers and all that, but my area is pretty much all residential. I have our area pretty much memorized, which is good because my comp is always lost! Good thing we have maps! And most areas are a lot of regular block streets, but our area is filled with alleys and apartment buildings, and plazas. Lots of winding streets!!
(Note:  for missionary and investigator safety, I'll not be posting any locations besides the mission home address on the blog.  I won't post full names either.  Let me know if you want to know what goes in the blanks!!!)

As for Spanish... yeah. I can mostly understand what people are saying regarding churchy stuff, as in I can pick out enough to understand what they're talking about, but anything else I'm lost. My comp and I speak a mixture of Spanglish, but mostly Spanish, so I can understand her pretty well, but when necessary I just hand her my dictionary and she helps me out. It's fun though! I learn more everyday and people say I'm learning fast... It feels like forever to me, but whatever!

My companion has been getting worse. I'm worried about her. On Wednesday she woke up with an upset stomach, and had diarrhea and was vomiting all day. As a result, her body didn't absorb any of the hormone supplements she takes, she had really low blood pressure, was dizzy all the time, and basically just wasn't well. We taught in the morning, but then spent the afternoon at a medical clinic. To pass time we contacted everyone in the clinic. No one was interested, but a few were bored enough they were reading the pamphlets! The next day, Thursday, was weekly planning in the stake center with the district, so we went there in the morning, got back to our area in time to eat, then went and taught a contact we had met on the street. His name is Marcelo and I love him! He's 71 and is one of the sweetest old men. Anyway, my comp taught really well despite her pain. Immediately after, we returned to the medical clinic, then went home a couple hours early. She went to sleep and I studied. The next morning, she was doing really bad. We had to call the doctor, but didn't have any more money on our cell, so I helped her to cross a super busy street to a store where you can buy more minutes. She was literally leaning on me (side note - I was whistled at 3 times and smooched at while we waited to cross the street). There are two doctors. One is the church's general practitioner, and one is a hormone specialist. The specialist said to come to the hospital, but we had to wait for permission from the other doctor and then Pres Morales. While we waited, Hermana Sam, our landlady, and her friend were kind enough to drive us to the pharmacy for some medicine that was supposed to help, and along the way we taught the first lesson to her friend and she agreed to come to church Sunday!! On the way we got permission to go to the hospital, so Hna Sam drove us there, but first we stopped at the house to get clothes to last us for the day or two we'd be there. Then we went to the hospital!! Hna G was admitted, I signed a whole bunch of papers as her 'familiar responsible', and they showed us to a room and plugged an IV in her!! Then they told us she'd be there for a week!!!!!!! So from Friday afternoon to Sunday evening, I sat in the hospital room with her. The first night I wouldn't leave her - because we're not supposed to leave our comps! so I only ate breakfast on Friday and she gave me a piece of bread from her supper. I wouldn't take more because she's sick and needed the food! The next morning I was starving though, so she taught me how to say 'where is the cafeteria' and 'where is room 607' - pretty easy but we practiced any way. Then I ran off to get food!! We expected me to be gone for about 10 min, but the cafeteria wouldn't let me take food back, so I ate there as fast as I could and then ran back. It had been about 30 min, and she was kind of freaking out. It was an adventure!! This is Saturday morning - the morning of the mission conference with a general authority that Hna G's choir has been practicing for. She was so sad she had to miss that. And we heard a rumor that the general authority was going to be Elder Oaks, so we were both really sad to miss that!! But then at 2, Pres Morales, Sis Morales and the Assistants came to the hospital, and we found out it was Elder Christianson of the 70, not Elder Oaks, so we were still sad we missed it but not as sad... and they showed us a recording of the choir - they were a bit off tune but it was pretty!! The EFY medley. They needed Hna G because she's a super strong soprano and has a great voice. Then Pres Morales gave me 500 pesos and sent me and sister Morales off to eat. That was actually the first question he asked when they got there ' Sister Taylor. Have you eaten?' He's great. He's really good about making sure we're ok, and speaks a little English - enough so that we can communicate. I got to chat with Hna Morales during our meal. She's really nice too. I love them both! Then they gave Hna G a blessing and left! Hermana G and I basically just studied and chatted and sang and slept in the hospital. And the mish pres gave me permission to leave the room to get food. But that night when I headed to the cafeteria, it was closed!! I guess I waited to long. And the next morning was Sunday, and we were told I'd leave with other sisters at 1:00 while a different sister took a turn with Hna G, so I didn't buy breakfast, figuring I could wait...They didn't get there till 6:00, so I was kind of starving! Hna Mercedez stayed with Hna G, while I left with Hermana Aguilara and Hermana Bennett!! Hermana Bennett is in a trio. We went to their area, where we ate tortillas with a member, then spent the night. And now it's PDay!! I spent the morning helping them wash their clothes and clean their house, then we finally went to my house to get clean clothes!!!! I needed them badly.... But we accidentally locked ourselves on the roof and had to hang out for 30 minutes until the landlady came home. And now we're writing! This evening I'll go back to the hospital, but this time I'm prepared with clean clothes! and I have extras for Hna G too. They had a really uncomfortable couch in her room that I was sleeping on - the first night I only had sweaters for blanket and pillow, but the second night they brought me bedding!! Yay!!

It's been a crazy week. We have 3 new investigators, but found out that none of them went to church on Sunday :( Hna G and I had some nice comp bonding time as she cried. She hates being unwell and really wants to be out doing the mission work. The rumor is that if she doesn't improve she'll be sent home. I think she probably will be headed home soon. I'm super sad about this, because I love her so much, but I have faith that everything happens for a reason, and it'll all be all right in the end. 'Have faith in good things to come' - Jeffery R. Holland. I love the mission. It's been a difficult week, and it's so hard to not be there to help our investigators, but I know we were companions for a reason. I love it here. The people are amazing and I've learned a lot. It's hard but it's good.

The kitchen looks great! And I got your letters that you sent on the 20th. And thank the Gates, the Quists, and G&G for the cards. I loved them all!!

The church is true!! I'm where I'm supposed to be.

I love you all! Be good, say your prayers, and have fun in Hawaii!!

-Hermana Taylor