Week 6 in Palermo

Talk about a full week! Here I am, writing the fam and friends in the internet cafe in San Fernando where I always used to write before;) Waiting to receive the fourth hija! We know that of the 6 new missionaries coming in that 2 are from the states, 2 from Argentina, 1 from Mexico, and 1 from Spain. We'll have to wait and see who the Lord has in mind! 

 

I will miss this girl (Hermana Muro), the people of Parque Patricios (my first area) will love her!

Here she is with a peanut butter sandwich I made :).

 

On to this last week shall we?;)

On Monday for Pday we went roller skating! I have to say, I thought I kind of knew what I was doing, but I quickly learned that skating isn't as easy as it looks! It didn't help that my rollerblades were a little messed up. However, I enjoyed myself anyway! It was humbling, as a lot of people skated past me like it was nothing. It reminded me of all of the progress I'd achieved in the mission. Looking back on how I was when I arrived in the MTC to now I'm a different person completely. Things that I thought I would never be able to do or enjoy I do without giving it a second thought now. It's amazing how the Lord molds us. 

After Pday off we went to pick up Karina for the Family Home Evening with Hermana Kathy and her two children:) They shared a beautiful mini lesson on trials and on enduring to the end. We ended the evening with a lemon game that I wasn't very good at and dessert! 

On Tuesday Elder Merma, our district leader, led his last district meeting before ending his mission! We learned about 3 things that missionaries needed to be successful. He mentioned 1. animo (excitement) 2. oracion (prayer) and 3. deseo (desire). It was profound, that in 2 years the key to success were 3 such small and simple things. My companion and I did a practice with the district afterwards. I pretended to be an old lady with a bag of fruit. As I hobbled towards Hermana Muro I dropped my bag dramatically, to which she rushed to my side and started to "help" me. She then proceeded to teach me;) It was a great example of finding on our own initiative:) 

Interviews with the AP

 

That night we also went to visit with Karina. We taught her the law of chastity and went over the baptism questions. Everything was going well:) However, when we got back to the apartment that night we learned that we didn't have any water! A bit of an inconvenience, but that's ok...

The water returned on Wednesday! We also faced quite a few challenges. We had been teaching Daiana's sister, Luciana, and she wanted to be baptized. Everything was going well until we talked with her mom, who told us that she didn't have a problem but that she wanted Luciana to hit 12 or 13 before making such a decision. A little disappointing, but the real hit was when Karina canceled our appointment for that night and told us that she didn't want to be baptized at this time. Usually I take things pretty well and calmly, but I felt absolutely devastated for some reason. It was hard for me to hold back the tears, and right after planning I went straight to my journal to write out the swirl of emotions. I was reminded of Mario from the MTC and Emanuel. I felt like Karina was so close, and that she was now abandoning us. It was extremely difficult for me. 

On Thursday we had arroz con pollo with the Sandon family, Peruvian food! After lunch we went to meet up with Victor who was going to accompany us. As we approached him we saw that some random guy with a cello was talking to him, trashing his religion and the things WE believe. My companion and I weren't going to settle for such, and came up behind Victor, greeting the cellist with smiles but with a serious stare that dared him to continue attacking Victor. He was instantly submissive, and after sharing a little bit about the church he left. From there we visited Kevin, who offered the closing prayer! It was truly a spiritual experience:) 

On Friday we didn't have lunch, so I made PB&J and took it with me;) I felt like I was in middle school as I ate my sandwich with a little juice box. But that's ok, because it was delicious;) After lunch off we went to visit the Herrera family, Veronica, as well as Daiana and her sister! The two of them were reading the book of mormon, and Daiana was already near the end of 2nd Nephi! Talk about mind blown! I also got to pull a joke with the members we visited, as to take anything out of my bag I had to pull out the spaghetti sauce I'd bought. I got more than a few weird stares;)

The Herrera Family

On Saturday I felt like I was fighting my way along all day! During lunch the husband of the sister we were visiting with started attacking the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith, etc... Interesting, given that he's a member! I did my best to be patient and loving, and stand up for what I believe in. Later, while visiting a less active member the same thing occured... A day to be strong, that's all. While visiting with Anderson later that day I made a comparision between food and spiritual hunger. I had first asked Anderson if he was reading his scriptures. He told me he was, but in an on and off fashion. That didn't fly with me, so I decided to pull an example. I asked him if he ate food every day. He said that he did (obviously). I then asked him why. He said because it was necessary to survive and to have the energy needed to go through the day. I then asked him why he was starving himself spiritually by not reading every day. The example was a little strong, but he felt the spirit, and told us that he would do his best to read daily from then on. We finished up the night with Carlitos! Always so nice to see him! 

On Sunday we watched "Lift" with Ayelen:) The spirit was strong, and I was reminded of the power of service. Highly recommended for those of you who didn't do your homework when I asked you to watch it last time;)

And finally yesterday! My last day with Hermana Muro... Sad! We tried to go to lunch, but the subte was closed, so we ran around trying to find a colectivo! We finally made it, albeit late. From there it was run from one house to another! We shared "Lift" once more and ended with a family home evening with Hermana Kathy and Daiana. We watched a video on Christ's ministry, which really helped bring the focus on Christ and reminded me of just how powerful the atonement is. It was a day to strengthen my own testimony of the Savior and what he did for each of us, for Me. 

Love you all! The time is ticking by FAST!  

Hermana Dickson