30 de abril, 2012
Well here’s the news...Yes, I am training!!! And I am whitewashing!! For those of you who don’t know missionary lingo, that means I am going to an area where neither I nor my companion know anything about. And my, oh, my, is my area beautiful!! Let me tell you a little bit about it. Well, I thought for sure I would be staying in Villa Hayes to train but that is not the case. I am whitewashing an area called Piribebuy, which is Guaraní; it is near Caacupe and Ypacurai. We took the scenic drive from Asuncion to Luque to Aregua, which is an artsy town where they make all kinds of statues and then drove and saw the lake of Ypacurai. It was sprinkling/raining the whole time and everything was wet and green and all I could think of was, “lindo Paraguay.” I wish I could take each of you on a drive through the Paraguayan country. It’s so beautiful here. We took a detour and went on a tour of the Catholic Church of Caacupe, where they have a Virgin de Caacupe shrine. It was very interesting and educational. Tradition has it, that the Virgin of Caacupe has been blessing the lives of Paraguayans for years now. Every year on December 12, hundreds of people take colectivos/busses or walk to the church to make a pledge to the virgin in return for certain blessings. As you can guess, there is a very heavy Catholic influence here. My area is beautiful, very clean, well-kept and wealthy, so unlike the Paraguay I know!! The people in our little branch are very “chuchi” and it’s like a different world to me. There are huge green trees everywhere and a stream and we spend the early mornings exploring our area while running.
My daughter (mission lingo for the hermana I am training) is
Hermana Greer from Maryland.
She spent two changes in the Colorado Denver South mission before coming to Paraguay so she
already has a little bit of experience. It’s interesting to hear what the work
is like in the states. Her Spanish is really good for being brand new, as she
had spent a month in Bolivia
with her sister-in-law. She is a real trooper- she got sick her second day here
but soon recovered. Her luggage didn’t arrive til Saturday and she got here on
Tuesday. Plus the home we were supposed to move into was a disgusting disaster,
thanks to the Elders who lived there last. We were appalled at the condition it
was left in. Shame on those Elders, if their mothers only knew...
The good news is that the Elders left us quite a few investigators. We had 4 investigators at church on Sunday! A lady named Beatriz, a young couple, Ruben and Lela, and Lujan, 13, who will be getting baptized in 2 weeks. I am so excited to be working in this area! The members have been great and very helpful and the mission leader is always willing to accompany us on visits. On Saturday, there were two baptisms of children and Sunday we had 3 confirmations- one was a convert of the elders. The Spirit was so strong and when the Branch President asked me to bear my testimony, I did, and expressed the love that I have for the people of Paraguay. They are like my family.
Hermana Greer said one of the differences between Paraguay and the U.S is that when you ask members for references/people that you can go visit, the people in the U.S say, “Well, I don’t know, no one is going to let you in,” and here they say, “just go clap some houses, everybody will let you in!”
This Wednesday we have zone conference and we are going to the temple. The only downside is that we have to leave at 5 AM! But it will be worth it.
Funny moment: a dog was walking around in the chapel during Sacrament Meeting. It kept walking around until it found a sunny spot under the window to sleep in. Nobody said anything!
Oh and also, Hermana Greer doesn’t have a good sense of direction- which makes two of us! But I am really developing this skill, because if I didn’t, we would be toast.
Sara Crase, Happy Birthday!! Thanks for the dearelder and update on your life! Glad to know things are going well!
I love you all! Thanks for the great packages, love and support!
The good news is that the Elders left us quite a few investigators. We had 4 investigators at church on Sunday! A lady named Beatriz, a young couple, Ruben and Lela, and Lujan, 13, who will be getting baptized in 2 weeks. I am so excited to be working in this area! The members have been great and very helpful and the mission leader is always willing to accompany us on visits. On Saturday, there were two baptisms of children and Sunday we had 3 confirmations- one was a convert of the elders. The Spirit was so strong and when the Branch President asked me to bear my testimony, I did, and expressed the love that I have for the people of Paraguay. They are like my family.
Hermana Greer said one of the differences between Paraguay and the U.S is that when you ask members for references/people that you can go visit, the people in the U.S say, “Well, I don’t know, no one is going to let you in,” and here they say, “just go clap some houses, everybody will let you in!”
This Wednesday we have zone conference and we are going to the temple. The only downside is that we have to leave at 5 AM! But it will be worth it.
Funny moment: a dog was walking around in the chapel during Sacrament Meeting. It kept walking around until it found a sunny spot under the window to sleep in. Nobody said anything!
Oh and also, Hermana Greer doesn’t have a good sense of direction- which makes two of us! But I am really developing this skill, because if I didn’t, we would be toast.
Sara Crase, Happy Birthday!! Thanks for the dearelder and update on your life! Glad to know things are going well!
I love you all! Thanks for the great packages, love and support!
Hermana Brittner
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