Beautiful Week - June 6, 2011

Wow this week was a blessing from heaven really! I have such a great new companion that is just as crazy and fun as me so there is never a dull moment. Hna Wilde is such a great teacher too so I am taking lots of notes. She has been here 10months so is pretty experienced but I feel we both tons of new things every day. He have found amazing people this week and hopefully they will follow up on their baptism commitments. We walked 40 minutes one way to pick up a family for church and they weren't there which was sad yesterday but we haven't given up hope on them. But there are tons more we are working for and praying for daily!

Let me explain the million pictures which will basically explain this week.

This week was a hard week for my new close friend Hna Zepeda from Honduras. This is her second week here on the mission and we have been close since she got here and is a sweetheart and recent convert to the church three years ago! Well, on Tuesday she got the worst call you could get as a missionary or even in your life. Her dad had cancer that was in remission when she left but within a span of 3 days they found more in his stomach. They operated on Sunday and he passed away Tuesday. It was terrible to hear here wail and cry when President called her. I felt heartbroken for her and didn't know exactly what to do (especially since expressing being sorry and emotions in Spanish is kind of hard still). I sat there and scratched her back and cried with her but I felt such a strong comfort and calm in the room and I said words to comfort her that I am not sure where they came from. It was a miracle for me. We called her family and Stake President back home in Honduras and they were all so strong and told to to stay here and all would be ok. From that moment she never questioned why things happened or talked about going home, but only moved forward knowing Christ would heal her and she had a work to do. I have never seen such strength before! Some days I see her cry and we talk and then she gets back to work. Hna Zepeda has amazing faith I have never seen before, especially for a new member of the church. If you haven´t read President Monson´s  talk from April 2009 ¨He Is Risen¨ lately you should. It is amazing and I cannot believe how beautifully it fits into her situation. The zone leaders are amazing and gave her a blessing and we all read it. I really have been touched and changed from the experience this week.

I thought we should do something fun in the pension to make us laugh since the weather has been yucky. So Hna Wilde and I had a fun version of ¨Come Come Ye Saints¨ on her ipod and we dressed up and danced for them and then they joined in. It was all to have fun and make everyone laugh and feel better! Basically hilarious! Laughter helps everything feel better! We all have laughed and cried together this week. The joys of a mission are amazing, and I am lucky to have such great missionaries around me to learn from everyday!

2) Best Pday so far!! VALLE GRANDE!! We went to this huge lake 30 minutes from here with the other hermanas and the Elders from our district! It was so fun, freezing but fun. We hiked and played and it felt like I was a normal person for a day haha! Very relaxing! I guess it is a huge summer spot for rafting and all sorts of fun things but since it is winter here, it was empty and we had it all to ourselves. The only funny thing is that the bus dropped us off at 800am and it only comes every 8 hrs to return which we didnt know so we were stuck there wandering around for quite some time! All in good fun though! I love every adventure here!


Well, almost been out for 4 months! Weird!! Love every second! Thanks for the prayers and til next time!


Hermana Emily Thatcher