Finally we got a nice long email from Sam - no illness - no email eating computer - it was nice
Sorry about last week. Technology and I don´t get along very well... But I have a funny picture in my head of Mom trying to type with her fingers all bandaged. :) (I have trigger fingers from too much typing on computer) And Mom, I´m glad you can find a use for the weird things I say. I appreciate that you are continually trying to find the good in weird things that I say.You found the earrings?!? Por fin! This is just like me giving you a mother´s day present early, right?
I would love some music in Spanish. I have a hymnal en español so that is not suo important but I would appreciate some other music in Spanish. That is sad about my music though....(it is packed away & we are not sure we can locate it easily) Oh well. I will just appreciate it more when I have it.
And with regards to chocolate: anything I can have except white chocolate which is not actually chocolate and is gross because it hurts my cavities. I love peanut butter. A small jar of peanut butter here is somewhere around $6 US. A little expensive... Here they eat manjar like we eat peanut butter. Manjar is basically sweetened condensed milk with some sort of flavor, I´m not sure exactly. It´s good but not the same as my beloved peanut butter. Oh, and chocolate chips! They don´t have them here at all that I can find. :(
Your idea of a voice recorder sounds fine to me. I still don´t understand how to use the hard drive thing you spent so long putting together but I think I might be able to figure it out next Monday with a little more time.. I would like to listen to music but it doesn't really matter if it is on a CD player or a mp3 player. Hermana Grahn has a CD player but I don´t know how long we will be companions.
I would have to learn a Chilean folk song before I could play it for you. I will try. It´s hard to find time on P-day to do everything. I can always get the stuff done that I need to but I don´t always have time for extras. But I have been listening to guitar playing here. It is more strumming a few basic chords with all the melody in the voice. I haven´t heard that much finger-picking.
We had a talent show in the ward and I sang a Beatles song because it was the only thing Hermana Grahn had that wasn't a hymn. It was so gross because I sang it like a man. Now no one will want to give references to Hermana Grahn and her man-companion.
My house is normal. It is not as cold now that summer is starting. Apparently it´s going to get really hot. More around 100 degrees F. Ouch.
Elder Jaar told me you commented on his blog.(He was on Sami's famous waterfall trip & had pictures)
Tallia and Jon´s baby is really cute.
Sounds like you all had fun for Halloween. They celebrate it here but it is a little different. The kids ask for candy at houses and at the neighborhood stores too. And they go out by themselves really young, around Suzanne´s age (8) . But I also think they stop a lot younger here too. Maybe around 10 or so.
The rules for music is it has to be uplifting and not distracting. I think you can probably figure that out. I would like some classical (instrumental and choral, maybe vocal solo too). And also some MoTab. Christmas would be welcome as well. I trust your judgement in all things. Do whatever will be easiest and cheapest for you.
I want to tell you a little about our investigators.
Family of Segundo
Segundo was a reference from one of our other investigators and we still haven´t really taught him but we have been teaching his family. He has 6 kids and they are all more or less young (20s). Only one of them actively practices a religion (Evangelical). Here in San Carlos it seems like most people are either Catolico or Evangelico. They kind of remind me of our family. They are fun and loud and talk at the same time so I still have trouble understanding them some of the time. I´m excited to teach them about the Plan of Salvation. I think they will really appreciate the fact that we can live with our families forever through the plan Heavenly Father has prepared for us.
Alejandra
She is trying to give up smoking which is why she started coming to church in the first place. She wants to get baptized but I´m not sure if she understands the importance of the baptisimal covenant yet. It´s hard to help people understand when so many other churches don´t have lasting commitments like this. You can pick up and leave if you want to but in the Lord´s church you are making covenants with Him so they last a lot longer than pretty much everything else.
Umersinda and Marita
They are Catolicas but Marita (about 9 years old) has read in the Book of Mormon and prayed about it. She says she knows it is the word of God but she and Umersinda don´t want to change.
That is the hardest part. I feel the Spirit really strongly in the lessons so I know they felt it too. But then they don´t do anything about it. We are teaching a lot of people but none of them are progressing because they won´t come to church. I know if they came they would feel the Spirit there. We always need to demonstrate our faith before Heavenly Father will give us our answer. Maybe we should make sure they all understand that. In the MTC when Elder Holland came he said salvation never was free. And who would want it to be free? Jesus Christ sacrificed everything for us. We can´t understand the Atonement or expect to receive all the blessings of the Atonement without sacrificing something on our part.
Well, food for thought.
I love you and I will write again next week.
And I sent out some letters today so they should get there in 2 weeks ish.
Love,
Hermana Smith
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