Come What May, and Love It

Hi Everyone!

We had a good week, except that my companion had to go to the hospital because she picked up a stomach bug in her area before she got here. But she is all better now! Her name is Sister Vidal and she is from Argentina. She is really great, and motivated to work hard! It was funny, because when we picked her up, the other sisters told her "good luck with Sister Vance, she likes to run". I was thinking, yes, I like to run in the mornings. She told me that’s not what the other sisters meant. They told her that I run when I walk, and that I walk way too fast when we are out working! Then the member that was with us said that they were right … “good luck, I have seen her and Sister Bagatoli and how fast they move”. I was a bit shocked because I feel so tired every day and don’t have energy. But people have been telling her that I am never calm and that I am “electric”! Haha, I guess the prayers I say, asking for energy, have been paying off a little. But I also believe that if anyone was here they should want to be running from house to house, especially when you are able to see how much need there is here.

A couple things about life here. I am obsessed with acai ... it is the best thing in the world. The natural juice here is amazing, and the mangos that you can eat off the tree do not even compare to the mangos in the US. Also, the men here are so funny, and it is always the old men that say stuff! If you are white and have lighter hair, they just about fall off there chair when they see you, and yell "ohhhhhpa!" Haha, a man passed us on a moto (scooter) and almost got into a car accident as he was staring at us and saying "marvillos”! Haha, if anyone needs a quick confidence boost, just come here and walk in the roads for a while. It is so funny, and I am glad sometimes that I can’t understand them!

Mira, one of our less active members that we found, has been such a dear friend and is always so happy and dancing … I just love her. This week was tough for her. Her father died and her house was falling apart because we had a lot of rain. She has a large infection in her foot and she can’t work, so therefore she didn’t have food. Everything collapsed on her this week with all this adversity; sometimes when it rains it POURS. I have never seen her so sad, and so far away from that quick smile she always has on her face. We cried with her, and tried to do everything that we physically could do to help her … hugs and helping her fix her house. But when I couldn’t do anything more physically, we turned her to the one and only person who could truly help her; Jesus Christ. As she prayed to Heavenly Father in His name, we prayed with her, and brought a worthy priesthood holder over to give her a blessing. I know that when all else fails, we still have Him. We can find hope through the Master Healer. It is true and it is real … I continue to search for the words to describe His power, and express the experiences I have here.

This week we decided that we wanted to fulfill our calling to really teach about repentance … that repentance is a change in our hearts, minds, and our actions. Repentance is central to God’s plan, and is a gift that we can freely use. It has already been paid for by Christ. When we decide to repent, we open up the Savior’s Atonement to mold and shape us into something better each and every day. We can show our faith and our humility through repentance. We taught the Gospel Principles class at church and covered the life of our Savior. When I testified at the end, I was just overcome with gratitude for my Savior Jesus Christ, and for all that He has taught me through His teachings and example. I have such a strong desire to be more like my Savior. I need the Atonement every day, and I will be working on using it every single day. My new quote in life right now is, "come what may, and LOVE it". Sometimes life is really hard, and I know some of you are having a hard time because you write me about it, but I am praying for you. Turn the switch in your head, turn to your Father and endure the trial with hope and strength, and lean on your Savior! He has already paid for it all!

“And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.” D&C 122:7

Love you all so much!

Sister Vance