In my Spanish class
sophomore year at Lehi High, I had Senor Ted Taylor. He is a great
teacher! I did very well in the class, and scored 99% on the final exam.
The only thing I missed? I wrote "la camisa es viernes" instead of "la
camisa es verde." The shirt is friday. That day, 4 years ago, I NEVER would have guessed that I would serve a mission, let alone Spanish speaking.
This past week I had the most miraculous experience!
We had exchanges again with the Stafford Hermanas. I know more Spanish
than the Hermana I was with, so I felt as if I wasn't going to have a
safety net in case I got confused. I was really nervous! However, things
went perfectly! It was as if Heavenly Father flipped the switch and I
could speak perfectly! We had three lessons and a dinner and we were
able to accomplish all that we needed to! I understood everything that
was told me and I was able to say everything that I wanted to. I even
helped Absalon and Natalia with a renewal for their apartment contract! I
feel very blessed to be here, to speak Spanish, to be a missionary,
etc. :) My Spanish has improved A LOT from what it was 4 years ago;)
On the exchange, we also got to help Hermana Amanda (member) again with genealogy at the library! The Branch had a temple trip Saturday
night to do baptisms. We were able to prepare about 10 names! There is a
mountain load of temple work to be done in the Branch! Most members are
converts, and have never done their family history before. Many of them
have committed to call back home (Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, etc.)
to get dates and names before their parents die. This is so exciting!
On Monday,
Hermana Agurcia and I borrowed bikes (and helmets) from the Elders.
Hermana Agurcia took some pictures, but forgot her camera cord. I'll
send them next week:) It was her first time on a bike, and she did
great:) Unfortunately, it made my back hurt:( We didn't have time to see
the doctor this morning, but maybe tomorrow.
We had an amazing lesson with Concepcion about the
priesthood! After the lesson, we gave her a picture of the Savior. She
showed it to her 7-year-old son. She asked him if he knew who the man
was in the picture. The son answered, "Yes, He was just barely here with
me." How cool is that?! The Savior has promised us that whenever two or
more people meet in His name, He will be there. Concepcion is praying
about a baptismal date in June!
On Saturday, I was lamenting to Hermana Agurcia about how much food the members give us. Sometimes it makes me sick. I was sick Thursday and Friday! On Sunday,
Hermana Martinez made us some soup. She got a small bowl and put it in
front of me. She said that if I liked it, I could have more. Then she
proceeded to get a huge bowl for Hermana Agurcia! I was very confused.
It tasted great and I finished it, but the small bowl was the perfect
portion for me. When we left the house, I asked Hermana Agurcia if she
had told the member that I don't like eating too much food. She said no.
This is how it happened:
-"Why did she give me less food? Is it because I'm gringa? Or skinny?"
-"She was worried you wouldn't like it. Sometimes it's difficult for Americans to adjust to the food."
-"But she gave me a TON of food last time. Did you say something to her?"
-"Do you have any idea what you just ate?"
-"What?!"
Querida Familia, I ate COW INTESTINE. COW INTESTINE.
Remember the story Grandpa Kelsey used to tell about the gas station
and the 7-up? There was an extra water bottle in the car and I'm pretty
sure I downed it faster than he downed the haunted 7-up. The worst part
is that I LIKED the soup. I thought the floating chunks were carne of
some type. It's called "mondongo" and it's the most famous dish from
Honduras. Yay. I just want to make sure you all know that I ate cow
intestine.
Later that night (which was last night), we stopped
by Absalon and Natalia's home. I told Absalon about the experience and
told him I wanted to eat something sweet. So we had bread and this yummy
caramel syrup stuff! Absalon and Natalia are super prepared for their
baptism! The RS is pitching in for food, decorations, and so much food.
Hermana Agurcia and I are hoping to pick up matching skirts or shirts or
something! We are going to be the witnesses for the marriage:)
We have a new investigator! Her name is Diana and
she is the daughter of the woman for whom we raked leaves for five
hours. (And her younger sister is the one that had the One Direction
birthday party!) They have opposite work schedules, so we are teaching
them separately. Diana is super prepared and started asking questions
about the temple, what she needs to do to enter the temple, how long she
should wait before baptism, etc. AND she gave us a referral! Hopefully
more exciting news will come forth concerning this family... :)
Here are my notes about Diligence! My Christlike
attribute for the month:) Sorry they're coming at you at the end of the
month...I can't believe how fast April was!
"I
have often said one of the greatest secrets of missionary work is work!
If a missionary works, he will get the spirit; if he gets the spirit, he
will teach by the spirit; and if he teaches by the spirit, he will
touch the hearts of the people and he will be happy. There will be no
homesickness, no worrying about families, for all time and talents and
interests are centered on the work of the ministry. Work, work,
work--there is no satisfactory substitute, especially in missionary
work."
- President Benson
I love this quote and I think it applies to all that we do! There is no satisfactory substitute for working hard:)
-Diligence is steady, consistent, earnest, energetic, and persistent.
-It is an expression of our love for God! In return, we find joy and satisfaction.
-Joseph Fielding Smith said: "People die in beds. And so does ambition." One of the secrets of success is to get up early!
-Distractions keeps us from working diligently.
-If we truly are diligent, we don't need supervision.
-Diligence is more than just hard working--it is working effectively!
-Set yearly, monthly, and daily goals! Plan well to achieve goals!
-D&C 58 - be anxiously engaged in a good cause.
-Lift where you stand!
-Grandma Crandall always tells me that I know how to eat an elephant:) and sometimes Dad says that too.
-Why
does the Lord expect me to be diligent? Because He was. He knew what
His purpose was, and He fulfilled it perfectly. Even more than that, He
didn't keep any of the glory--He passed it on to the Father.
-"Let us realize that the PRIVILEGE to work is a gift, that the power to work is a blessing, that the love of work is success." President McKay
One
thing I did this month to help me be more diligent, is that I planned
my person studies at the beginning of the month. I'm in the middle of
both the OT and Jesus the Christ, so I planned which days I would read
which book. I also assigned myself a chapter from PMG each day. I want
to be a PMG Missionary, so I need to study it often! Having planned
studies really helped me to stay focused!:)
I've gotta go, BUT I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH:) Love, Hermana Crandall
*PS - In case you forgot, I ate cow intestine last night ;)
*PPS - Just a prompting I received to share this: The YW's Theme is very important. When was the last time you recited it? We are daughters of our Heavenly Father... There's someone I'm specifically thinking of who I
hope sees this. I love you and I hope you're doing those things that
will bring you true happiness!:)
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