Week 7 December 26, 2011

FELIZ NAVIDAD Y PROSPERO AÑO NUEVO!!

I am going to keep this letter a bit shorter than normal because I just got to call home yesterday.  But I am sending a lot of pictures.

Otherwise, things have been good here.  I am still learning a lot, and I'm definitely understanding a lot more Chilean Spanish than I did before.  I have to clarify, because when people speak normal Spanish I can understand; however, when they talk Chilean, that's a different thing altogether.

But we are still teaching the same people.  They all have their own individual challenges, which in some ways is really neat because you learn to recognize that you really are teaching people to help them improve their lives.

I really love this work.  Even in the days when things are hard and you have to go walk around in the streets for hours when it is over 90 degrees, you realize that it is all worth it as you see the Spirit personally touch the lives of people that you teach.  I have already seen people's lives change because of this gospel.  There is a very real power in learning truth and allowing it to change your life.  I know more than anything that this message is true.  As I get the opportunity to bear my testimony to the people that I teach, to be able to sincerely tell them what I know to be true, the Spirit bears witness to me again that these things are really true.  I just wish everyone could see that in their lives because everything really is easier with the Gospel.

One of the weird things is that I'm getting so used to hearing Spanish now, that I don't always recognize what language people are speaking to me in, especially after the fact.  The only problem with that, is that I occasionally answer now in the wrong language.  For instance, I was talking with a member the other day in Spanish, but for some reason I started talking in English.  Needless to say he was very confused and had no clue what I was saying.

The missionaries that we were living with got transfered today, so we now have a pretty big apartment to ourselves.  I'm sure it will take a bit of an adjustment to get used to everything without them around.  The biggest adjustment will probably be having to cover two sectors now.  It will be difficult having to go on exchanges with ward members from time to time so that we can be in both places at the same time.  For instance, on Sundays, we will probably need to do that from time to time so that we can be at both chapels.