October 8, 2012
Hola Familia!!
I hope everyone enjoyed conference! I loved it! It really
does take on a whole new meaning when you are a missionary. I am excited for
the age change but I think about how I totally would not have thought to go on
a mission at 19. It is crazy the changes that can happen in just two short
years. We got the opportunity to watch conference in English. I loved Elder
Hollands talk and I loved Elder Bednars as well. It was all just Awesome!
So tomorrow at 4 in the morning I will say goodbye to
Hermana Tourtillott and I will wait with a member until my new companion comes.
SHE IS LATINA!!!!
I don´t know how to spell her name but it sounds like Aww Cheww, like when you
sneeze.:) Elder Silva says she is really cool and if she is the one that I met
a while back at a conference she is the twin of Callie. No joke, I had to do a
double take because I seriously thought it was Callie. I am super excited but
really nervous. I don´t know how in the world we are going to be able to
communicate. Oh well, vamos a ver.
So this week has been quite busy and really strange.
Everyday is strange in Paraná but this week was something else. Lets just say
it started out with us ending up in a home that has no roof and no doors and
eating facturas with a man who was drugged up to wahzoo and his mother. Do you
remember me talking about crazy man, yep the same guy. He was fine but
completely drugged and really loopy. Interesting situation.
It hailed really bad one night and the next day as we were
walking we saw 16 dead birds that had died because of the hail. There are
places that are called villas and they are basically neighborhoods that consist
of really poor people who make homes out of anything they can find and usually
they only have thin tin or something for a roof and dirt floors, so I
can´t imagine how horrible the storm sounded for them.
So this week our ZLs called us up and asked us to give a
workshop at the zone meeting. It was quite nerve racking but we did it and we
made the Elders cookies so they really enjoyed it.:)
Also on Friday
the stake had a dance for spring and it was quite something. But like the
dances in the US,
everyone just hugged the corners and not really anyone danced. So I had major
flash backs. Everyone here dances with someone all of the time. We didn´t see
anyone dancing by themselves. My comp got asked by a guy to dance with her, and
he got really sad when she told him she couldn´t.
So Bauti got baptized on Saturday!!!!!! He was super excited
and he really enjoyed it. The only problem was is that an hour before the
baptism we checked the font and it had only filled about a foot and so we spent
the next hour filling buckets and dumping them into the font. I have now had a
traditional baptism! But in the end it was great and my comp and I even sang a
song for the baptism. We sung I am a Child of God in English and Spanish. It
was fun!
Well I hope I can answer a few questions for you Mom. So I
don´t know anything more about the packages but you can wrap them if you want.
I was also wondering if you could send my Hymn book in English and also the
book that Derek gave me, Here We Stand, I want to read it and I can just as
long as it isn´t during studies. So I guess you don´t need pictures or anything
on the boxes either. Sorry I don´t know more.
I am so glad that everyone is doing great and that things
are moving along. I only have a year left in the mission and I know that it
will fly by but I also know that there is so much that I need to do while I am
here. I love everyday and I can´t imagine doing anything else. I love you all
so much and I hope that you all have a great week and take time for the most
important things!!!!
Lots of Love,
Alayna
October 16, 2012
Hey Fam!!!!!!!!!!!!
It was great to get your e-mail Mom! I am glad that you have
been able to get some things done during fall break. I am glad that Madelynn
and Dylan are both okay. I knew one day that big tv would fall on someone. Its
never been put in a place really stable. I hope that Madelynn feels better soon
and that things settle down for them. I am glad that Derek and Kimberly had a
good anniversary and that they were able to go to a Sister Hazel concert. And
say Happy Birthday to Levi for me! I can´t believe he is 1! and when I get back
he will be 2!!! That is crazy!
Well tranfers went okay. Maria
de los Angeles
had to stay at our pench on Tuesday night
because we had to drop hna tourtillott off at the terminal at 4 in the morning
and then I had to wait with Maria for my new comp to come. Her name is Hna, Acho
and she is from Bolivia
and she is super sweet. She is the one who looks exactly like Callie! It is
really weird! She has been out 7 months and so this is her first time being
senior comp. She does things way differently than Hna T but I am learning a ton.
Latinas have no fear of asking really personal questions and at times I have
found myself praying to have her stop asking probing questions. It has made
some people really kind of mad at us. I like to talk to people like they are
just friends and she is super serious. But she is a sweety and she has a really
strong testimony and she really wants to learn English and she loves having
me tell her about everything in the states because her dream is to come to
to Utah and go to BYU. I am in a Spanish bubble right now and so its hard for
me to type in English. I have learned a ton in this past week with her.
Our area is doing good but we don´t have a lot of
investigators right now and so we are doing a lot of contacting.
So to answer your questions , yes we ate facturas(pasteries)
with crazy man and his mom IN the house he burned! I don´t need a flashlight or
anything but thank you and Monica and Yamina are doing good but Monica´s dad is
in the hospital right now and so we can´t meet with them right now. The weather
is really wack here one day it is really hot and then in a matter of minutes it
is pour rain. I like it though, it is always an adventure.
I am so glad to still be here in Paraná. The people here are
awesome. The ward is great and I really enjoy teaching the people here. It is
amazing that a place I didn’t even knew existed 3 months ago is my home and I
don´t want to leave. I am glad I still have 5 weeks here at least. There is a
lot of work to do here and we have some amazing people that we are working
with. So if you guys would, please pray for our investigators, Maria Caminos,
Monica, Noelia, Yamina, and Carlos and Marta.
I am sorry I don´t have anything else to say. It has been a
really fast week and I have been able to see a lot of little miracles. I am so
grateful for this opportunity that I have to be here and to be helping these
people come unto Christ. I love this gospel and the peace and joy that I have
found because of it.
I hope that you all have an Amazing week and that everything
goes great! I love you all so much and I am so thankful for your love and
support!
Lots of Love,
Alayna
October 22, 2012
Hey Family!!!!!!!
It was great to get all of your e-amils. Thank you! They really mean a
lot to me! I am glad that Levi´s birthday went great and that things
are going good.
I am sorry you didn´t like the empañadas Mom, I will have to be the
judge when I get back home. They can be a hit and miss. There are some
really good ones and others that are just weird. The ones that I like
are done with beef and have egg and pepper in them. But there are some
chicken ones that are really good to. But I am glad that you enjoyed
that facturas. You will have to find out if they have pan común, I am
sort of addicted to it. I buy a medio kilo at least twice a week. On
the plane ride home, I am going to have a bag of these cereals that
they have here and also a huge bag of pan!
My comp is always talking about food. She loves macaroni and cheese
and she wants me to make it for her. But I don´t know how so maybe in
one of my packages you could put a box of mac and cheese for her. Also
her trainer would always make banana bread and so she wants me to make
that too. So if you could send me the recipe for banana bread, my comp
would love you forever.:)
Anyway enough about food, this week has been really strange. Our area
is huge and to walk to some of our appoinments it takes and hour and a
half. So this week I decided to try and take the bus because my
comp(bless her heart) gets over heated easily. But that was a big
mistake, the bus ride took us basically two hours so that was a huge
waste of time for us. We also had our interviews with President
Giuliani this week. They were really good, I love talking with him and
he always knows exactly what to say. Also with a new comp some of our
investigators aren´t progressing anymore. Its hard because you develop
relationships with people and then when changes happen sometimes it is
hard for them to accept someone new. So right now we are trying to do
a lot of finding and working with the members. I enjoy the finding
part but here a lot of our members are a bit loco and so its hard to
work with them. I have quite a few stories about lessons with some of
our members. I am so glad that Florida
has Derek and Kimberly(normal
people) to help the work. I love the members in our ward but the
things that come out of their mouthes sometimes are so strange!:)
We found out this week that the couple that we have been working with,
Carlos and Marta, aren´t married and so they can´t be baptized until
the get married or one of them moves out. But they have been together
for 24 years and they have no intention of getting married. So please
pray for them so that they can realize the importance of this gospel
and the blessings that come from it.
We talked with a JW(testigo de Jeovah) last night. He was so closed to
everything that we tried to share with him. He wouldn´t even accept a
little pass along card. It was quite interesting. I am so grateful for
the testimony that I have of this gospel and for the truthfullness
that we have. The people that we meet who are open to listen always
tell us how that can sense a difference with us. That we radiate
feelings of peace. I know that this is the Holy Ghost testifying to
those people. I love the Holy Ghost and how it works in conversion and
I love that people are able to recognize that. I am so grateful to be
apart of this wonderful work!
Well I hope that everyone has a great week and that everything goes
well. I pray for you all everynight! Thank you all for everything that
you do and for your examples! I love you all sooo very much!
Lots of Love,
Alayna
