Happy Birthday Everyone! Christmas wish list - a washer and dryer, fasting is real, attitude is everything, and faster eaters - no way?

It's not all sunshine.

Oh my gosh, I just don’t even know where to begin for this week, it’s been an awesome ride so far. I love every second, but I am also realizing that it is not all sunshine and butterflies all of the time, (however there are a lot of butterflies and I try to catch them every time and it’s quite delightful.)

So I am learning the importance of exact obedience. I was re-reading my index cards the other day and one from Joslyn really struck me, because it was something I struggle with a lot here. She said that obedience brings blessings, but exact obedience brings miracles. Boy, oh boy, do I need to learn obedience. Ok. Let me clarify. I really do keep the rules. Don’t worry I don’t sneak out at night and do crazy stuff. No. But I can’t help it when we hear the lovely music of Mexico while we are walking down the street, I can’t help but dance. Sorry, this is one rule I just refuse to keep. And I sing Jimmy Buffet and occasionally some Shakira and it simply makes me happy. But this rule I am finding is totally true and I’m going to work a little harder on it because it’s real - fasting. I really worked hard with my comp to fast for our investigators this past Saturday and Sunday. It was so stinking hard to fast. Yeah - a whole 24 hours without food! Ugh! But I kept thinking about seeing all our investigators in white and it made it all ok. My tummy just grumbled a little bit in agreement :) Haha, but we prayed and fasted and kept all the rules and guess what... WE HAVE A BAPTISM THIS SATURDAY!!! Awww yeah, I am so stinking excited for it! We jumped up and down, and cried, and laughed, and I just am so happy. Truly happy. So that’s the absolute most exciting thing as of right now. Awww yeah, baptism, here it comes. I’ll send pics. (The pics I sent are of a different family that the other sisters worked with in our district, but the family and I are close.)

Along with my struggle with obedience, my other issue comes from wanting to know why there are these rules. I have so many questions like, why we can’t call up the president, but need to go through a district leader? Why are district leaders guys? Why can’t I baptize our own investigators? Haha, just kidding on that last one. But my comp is very good in this aspect and... follows blindly, but hey, maybe that’s to teach me a lesson. 

I love the people here. I have lots of families that I know I could go to if I needed anything and I feel super comfortable with them. They are so cute to me and I can totes be myself here because I’m a weird guera anyway, so why not be even wierder?

People call me hermanita. No, they don’t call anyone else that, just me. But hey, I love it. Also an occasional missionarita. Solely because NO ONE, including my comp, can pronounce my last name. I’m going to see if the church will change is to Maria or something cool like that. :) Haha jk, but not really.

It is a very touchy culture. My comp sits very close during lessons and I feel slightly uncomfortable with it. Also when we leave from somewhere she puts her hand on my back and it takes all I have not to swat her. Haha, but really, it’s just the culture.

Kids and dogs love me. Don’t know why, but they do. In church the kids come up and draw with me. (Pictures of mountains and backpacking and kayaking of course:)) OH MY, we went to eat dinner and there was the biggest dog I have ever seen there. Dad, you would’ve gone nuts, because I sure did. It had the biggest head. It went up to my torso and I could’ve ridden it all around to our investigator’s houses and converted the masses. Haha, but seriously. I want to say it was a rottweiler and then they also had a boxer. Five and two years old. Oh I was in heaven. Tell buddy I love him very much and push him around for me, would ya? Haha, oh I miss you all so much. 

Oh and if you think I eat fast... you have no idea. I seriously can’t even keep up. It’s impressive.

Jess will survive!

There are specific difficulties here in the mish with people being baptized. For example, there are 3 specific ones here - smoking, working on Sundays, and living together, but not being married. It’s really hard because it’s always one of these 3 issues. Bummer, but hey, after our fast we also found out that there’s potential for a couple to be married, so maybe another baptism this month! Yeah! Celestial families for the win! And speaking of smoking.. oh my gosh, we taught a lesson to my dear friend Maria De La Luz and she insisted on smoking during our lesson and we were inside and the whole house was full of smoke. She’s a super heavy smoker, and seriously, I now know what asphyxiation is like. I started sneezing uncontrollably and she asked if I had gripe (the flu). Haha, I just replied in between sneezes that it must be allergy season. Ever since then I’ve been sneezing quite a bit. I don’t think we’re going to go back there, and if we do, it will be a nice lesson outside. Yay for vitamin d.

I officially saw my first I-phone here on Thursday. It was crazy. Like… what?

Jessica's street.

My comp walks very, very slow. Along with obedience, I need to work on patience. Yeah.. not a virtue I have. I just want to walk everywhere quickly and get in more lessons and talk to more people, but she’s very content to... meander. But hey, I have time to think about what I’m going to write so that’s good. :)  Even now this keyboard is super sticky and I can’t write very fast ,so sorry that my type sucks. (I’m blaming my poor lack of spelling and grammar on that... not the fact that I can’t remember... awk.)

In the mornings, while I’m studying, I put my hair up like mom, with two pencils and it makes me smile every time. 

Oh! There is a guy in our ward that is THE EXACT VERSION (Mexican style) of the super awkward guy in “The Middle” that sells cars with the mom. Oh my gosh, it’s so funny. I laugh every time I see him. And I miss tv. 

The lingo here is super great. They use ¨que padre¨ and ¨que chido¨ whenever something is like.. "oh how great." Rather than “que bueno.” Haha, I love it. I’m officially Mexican. HEY! I got super burned on my nose and my feet are tan, so basically I’m no longer a guera. Haha, I’m working on it. 

I walk down the streets, and seriously, all I want is to smell normal food. Yes, their panaderias are magnificent, but their tortillas and shops where they chop off the heads of chickens are not exactly what I want as a perfume. But it’s ok, it’s either that, or smoke, or alcohol. Haha, I’ll bet our investigators think we’re heavy duty smokers.

I’m learning how it’s super important to just “fake it til ya make it”. Seriously. I just speak with tons of confidence and make a fool of myself, but I am getting better. Yesterday people asked me how long I have been in the mission and I said a whole 12 days and they were dumbfounded.

I sang for a baptism yesterday. Oh man. People think that because I’m white I can sing, and I am working on that, but it’s rough. Oh and I’m performing in church on Sunday on the piano. Holla for bringing church music. But yeah, singing is not my forte, nor Spanish. So pretty sure these people don’t think I can do anything well except laugh at myself constantly - which I do.

Washing clothes in a bucket.

For Christmas I want a washing machine, because we wash by hand and we flooded the apartment because everything needs to drip dry. Haha the struggle is real. And don’t worry about sending a washing machine. I’m pretty sure that would be expensive. Maybe just a dryer. :)

Two more things that I am learning here; one is the power of a book. We went to teach a girl and her family, if they so desired, and her father came out holding the Book of Mormon. Yes! Awesome. They have one and obviously know right where it is and are reading it! Well that’s what we thought, until we saw the look on his face... uh oh. He promptly told us (much nicer than I anticipated) that they did not want to read this evil, wrong book and that we could have it back. We promptly replied that out of the kindness of our hearts we would let them keep it. Haha, we’re so good, but this experience made me think about how all throughout history books have been incredibly powerful and people have always been afraid of them. The Nazis come to mind, as well as, the Afgani girl who wanted to read. It’s amazing how afraid people are to simply open a book and learn and take whatever it says with a grain of salt. But people refuse to open, not only the book, but also their minds. It makes me sad, because being one who loves to read and one who is very open to different ways of life, it’s hard when they refuse to do either of these things. What a powerful blessing we have. The Book of Mormon is real. I know it is true, because scripture study lately has been so dope. I am learning so much and seeing how the Bible and Book of Mormon go hand in hand. It’s incredible. 

Another thing I’ve learned is attitude is absolutely everything. No one wants to talk to two girls walking down the street that look angry and constipated. (Of which, we are neither... don’t worry). If we leave the house and are timid, or whatever, we will not teach lessons and have success nor have the spirit with us. But when we leave with a desire to teach and a happy disposition, and hope, we have incredible days. We have had both kinds of days and I am so grateful to normally be super duper happy and smiley. Haha, sorry to all those people at home, and here, where it’s annoying... I know that it’s rough sometimes, but it sure gets me through the day. 

The tree Jess helped paint.

Ok. I think that’s all. I hope you know I love you all more than words can describe and I look forward to hearing from you every week. Thanks for the updates, they make me super happy to get a glimpse of what home is like. 

I love you so so so so so so so so so so much. I pray for you every day and hope you are happy. Please wish people happy birthday for me too. I don’t know why I just said that, but still, I wish I could say happy birthday to so many people, but I just can’t. Wah. But know I think of you all the time and am loving my life. Thanks for being the best examples and parents ever. Mwah, mwah, mwah.

HERMANA ANSTEE!