Week 46! "Our Golden (Latino) Family"

From 12/8/14

There is one super special thing that happened this weekend. The family that Hna Q and I met in the street was baptized.  Remember them?  The family that we had the special impression to go back and speak with, even though we had already passed by them in the street:

I remember very clearly walking past them, they both were walking slowly down the street.

 

"Buenas noches!" we said, smiling at them as we walked swiftly by.

 

I remember making a slightly prolonged eye contact with them as they looked back. As we walked on, that unusual eye contact we made was bugging me.

 

I thought, "Ugh, it was a family! We should have contacted them..."

 

And feeling upset with myself for being too shy to speak with them that first time. But, I committed to myself that I would try harder to contact more families....

 

As we walked and contacted that night, trying to occupy our time before going home, we approached this family AGAIN...from behind...AGAIN.

 

"There they are..." I thought. As an almost sign-of-apology type thing, I looked up at them and committed right then and there I wasn`t going to let the opportunity to speak with them pass again.

 

I`m sure the Spirit had a hand in these personal impressions.

 

I spoke up to Hna Q, "Let`s go contact them!"

 

"Okay," she answered.

 

It was a normal contact, only, they were super humble and meek. And they gave us a direct house address....unusual. jaja

 

Only one problem, they are Latino, not indigenous. :( wah. So, we did a follow-up visit that week, but also pre-warned them that other missionaries would be the ones to continue visiting them. And we passed on the reference.

 

The hermanas who followed-up with them did SUCH A DEDICATED JOB. And for that, I feel so grateful! They visited this family consistently after that and involved many of their ward`s members in noches de hogar (FHE) and other activities. This family progressed so quickly.

 

Saturday night, they were baptized - the mom and dad and one son (they also have two other little girls who are not yet of baptism age).

 

The morning of their baptism, we sent a little text message, showing our excitement and love for them. E, the mom, responded:

 

"Buen dia hermanas, gracias por sus palabras, todo lo que ha pasado ha sido gracias a uds - nunca olvidaremos el dia que las conocimos. Les queremos muchisimo y nos vemos hoy en la noche."

 

["Good morning sisters, thanks for your kind words, everything that has happened has been thanks to the both of you - we will never forget the day that we met you.  We love you a lot and will see you tonight.]

 

I was touched. We wouldn`t miss this baptism for the world.

 

That night was one of the most memorable nights of my mission. A family, dressed in white, prepared to enter the waters of baptism.

 

They shared their testimonies at the end, starting with the father, D. It was heartfelt and emotional. I can`t describe how the reverent warmth of the Spirit filled the atmosphere. Seeing a family come together and prepare to eventually make sacred covenants in the temple...this is what the Gospel is all about.

 

D said, "The four hermanas that are very special to us are all here. Hermana Fernelius and Hna Q were the first sent by the hand of God to find us. Then came Hna N and Hna S..."

 

My heart swelled again. I cried a couple different times the course of that night. I felt very humbled. The Lord`s hand was apparent throughout the process of their conversion...starting from the beginning.

 

After, E also bore her testimony, saying something so short and sweet. And powerful. She cried as she said, " I thank the Lord for sending us angels."

 

What a special night it was.

 

We were supposed to go over to their house today to bake lasagna, but I have to travel to Quito soon  :( But they are so good. They had participated in sincere personal conversion. And I feel so blessed to have been a small, but special, part of it.

 

I am so happy to be here. I am so imperfect, but I feel so blessed. I feel that, in being honest with the Lord in my efforts, He has and will continue to fill our lives with miracles.

 

Have a great week!!!

 

Ñañagu Fernelius

 

"We had an investigator come hurriedly to church, but, because she missed the first hour, the asistencia is incomplete. But, we are so glad she came. O A is 21 and preparing to be baptized. The desafio with her is that she`s traveling to Colombia for the holidays.

 

Last week we worked a ton with members. And it paid off! In consejo de barrio, the members are much more concerned about the people on the informes de progresso, because they are now more than just names. They even took the initiative last week to visit one partial member, less active family and follow up with taking out another NDH [FHE] cita for this week. Another less active family they visited with us last week came to church. The entire family!!! This is the first time for them in years. Yet, they didn`t stay the 3 hours. But, it`s a big step in the right direction.

 

Involving the members is becoming a larger theme in our ward, and our bishop is encouraging it. It makes such a difference involving the members, not just to help with our people, but also to strengthen the members themselves.

 

I am doing well. I feel the momentum rising in the progress of the work in this ward, which is also exciting for me and motivates me to keep it going.

 

My companion is struggling a lot with her health. She`s tough and sticks it out, but I know some days it just really discourages her. We are taking the advice of our district leader and trying to work more 'intelligently' versus with our feet. O sea, we are trying to plan visits with more members, members with cars, references, and even with the thought of doing more divisions with the members to make it to more citas. In working intelligently, we hope to keep the work going, while lessening the physical burden for my compa.

 

It`s such a blessing to be here! Have a great week!"

 

So, as you can see from my letter to Pres, my compa could benefit from your prayers currently :)

 

I love you family!!! Take care :)

 

[P.S. From Tiffany's dad]:

 

"Yesterday near the end of testimony meeting I had the thought to review some comments Tiffany made in a recent email.  It was cold and most of the citas had apparently been falling through that evening, and she decided that a warm beverage would be nice.  She was unexpectedly provided a cup of hot cinnamon water a little later on, and she shared some thoughts in that email that I decided would be good to share during testimony meeting.  The problem is that by the time I was prepared to say something, the time was up.  So I sat in my spot, waiting for the meeting to close.  After 30 seconds or so, I quickly got up, thinking that if I didn't, someone else would.  I even mentioned in the beginning that time was up, but no one seemed in a hurry to close the meeting, so HERE I AM!

"So....Tiffany bore her testimony to our ward yesterday.  Then I sat down.  I was very pleased with the way the thoughts came out, and I didn't leave Ashley out either - I just didn't have anything specific at my fingertips to share."

 

[Tiffany's email response to this news]:

 

"jaja I`m glad I bore my testimony in the ward...because it`s actually a sort of 'commandment' for missionaries to bear their testimonies EVERY fast and testimony Sunday but I couldn`t here because there was tooo many people and too little time. So, I didn`t miss a Sunday after all.....jaja"

Yes, even a missionary's dad can be inspired...
 

This is a photo taken by a friend of Tiffany's in the mission field and posted on her Facebook page.  Taken on or before December 2, 2014.

"The family of gold"

This is catso...or cacso...I`m not sure which is correct. It`s a little but super strong beetle that they catch and fry. We helped pluck off the wings of these little guys in the store of my ward mission leader, then his wife fried it and we ate it with tea for breakfast....jaja yummm

Beetles and tea for breakfast...

Oops!  Looks like one might get away!

The little Christmas tree we turn on every night in our bedroom. Love it :)

I don`t think Dad would approve of this light structure....But hey. It works! Super common architecture here... :P

These little kids are of a less active family. As I helped the mom plow on the side of the mountain, Hna Q was with the kids, holding the flowers as the little boy ran around collecting all the assortment of flowers of every color that he could find... jaja. These kids are so crazy :)

 

Week 45! "Pies Everywhere!"

From 12/1/14

I exercised today!! Yaaaay me! :P jajaja The diet must commence once again because I splurged quite a bit last week. Hna Q and I found a store on the street we live that sells legit PIE. They spell it "pay" here because that`s how the pronunciation equals ours. jaja We ate chocolate cream pie, apple pecan, lemon y piña pie, and one more I`m forgetting. It`s just.....you know....pie practically doesn`t exist in Ecuador and I just happened to be "lucky" enough to live in a sector that actually makes and sells slices of pie for 70 cents....And it was Thanksgiving. It seemed like a good enough reason to me.  Now the homemade cookies and tortas de argentina we also made with a side of manicho chocolate ice cream....I gues you could say we did overdo it just a sliver... :P jejeje. BUT. The diet begins today...You betcha! I`m determined!!!! ,`:) That is, until Christmas comes of course... :)

 

Today I turn 11 months old on the mission. I don`t even know how to respond to that bit of news. I love being here! I love how inspired to changes are both in the mission and in our lives.

 

Yesterday was time for cambios once again, and I get to stay here with Hna Q! There was a possibility that she would be changed out, but all I wanted (and prayed for) was to be able to "finish what we started" here. I feel that we`ve gained some momentum in a variety of aspects...and cambios now would disrupt it in a way. To my relief, the Lord knows how important this is to me, and allowed us to be here together for a little longer. Now we can finish our "diet" plan, see our investigators through to the end (you get what I mean here), and continue the momentum of energy we`ve been able to gain in the ward with our ward mission leader and the other elder companionship. And I am truly relieved to still be here.

 

Yesterday something super cool happened in our Sunday meetings. Well, at least I thought it was cool, I`ll let you be the judges jaja.

 

So, Hna Q and I were making our way up the stairs to the Gospel Principles class, when suddenly an Hermana peeked out her classroom door and pounced us as we walked by. She seemed anxious. She asked us, "Hermanas, are you on your way to teach a class right now??"

 

"No," we responded, "We`re teaching in the next class after this."

 

"Oh!" she said, "Because the teacher never showed up to teach the JAS (i.e. YSA) class today and now I have to improvise! Could it be that the two of you can share something on friendship and fellowshipping?"

 

On any normal day before, this would also put me in a panic, "No way Josè" attitude. But, "Okay!" we immediately replied. Ideas came quickly to mind....I have a video clip which would be perfect, and happened to bring my Preach my Gospel book for the capacitacion we were to give next hour, and I`m sure there`s a super good scripture that will come to mind....LET`S DO IT.

 

We told her to go ahead and get everyone (about 20 people) to introduce themselves first while we marched over to roll the television into the room. When we arrived, we also introduced ourselves. The little lesson lasted about 25 minutes. We watched a video, shared a quote from Preach My Gospel, and ended with a scripture. The class participated. And the Spirit was super strong. It almost seemed as though Hna Q and I had planned that lesson beforehand....but, not so my friends. The group of young single adults, a little of every personality, were attentive and aware of the truthfulness of fellowship in sharing the gospel.

 

One thing that came out of my mouth without me ever meditating upon it before was something like, "Yeah we are tying Friendship to missionary work because, well, we are missionaries. But, if you really think about it, every little thing we do is missionary work because we are either bringing people closer to Christ or further away from Him in everything that we do." It was kind of an "ah-ha" moment for us all....even me as I said it. My reaction was the same as everyone else`s as they listened and nodded in unspoken agreement.

 

It was so interesting to see the Spirit work in that lesson. The YSA are really a special group of people to have the Spirit care so much for an improvised lesson to turn out so well. I feel blessed to be able to prepare daily to be an instrument in the Lord`s hands for whichever moment He sees fit that we should open our mouths to testify and speak. I know as we do, He fills our countenance, thoughts, and words with His words of life.

 

And I know that this can happen to any prepared member of the Gospel at any time. The work of the Lord is expanding - Can`t you feel it? One reason, we discovered yesterday, that my ward doesn`t share the Gospel with their peers or family members is because they don`t know what to say.

 

That`s how I felt before the mission more often than not. But, if we don`t feel prepared, the Lord expects us to prepare. What better gift to give Him this season...as December begins...than to PREPARE. Prepare our testimonies and fill them with words of Life so that we can share and testify.

 

I, like Mom, have the goal of memorizing El Cristo Viviente -- The Living Christ. More than thinking of Christmas this season, I want to think of Christ.

 

I know He lives. This is His work. Because of Him, we have the Truth restored.

 

I love you all and hope you have a great week!!

 

Love,

 

Ñañagu Fernelius :)

 

"I am so happy to continue here! I am set on being here until we finish what we have started! jeje Yesterday for quinto domingo the elders and we were able to spend some time speaking with the members of the ward. Hna Q and I spoke on personal conversion in order to increase our desires to share the gospel. The elders spoke about what it means to have the pure love of Christ. Then our mission leader spoke. We handed out slits of paper to get an idea from the members what their biggest challenges are in sharing the Gospel. We were greatly surprised by the responses they wrote!

 

Many feel scared because they don`t feel they have a good understanding of the doctrine or what to say. Others plainly stated that they don`t have support from their own family. Other said they are so drowned in work that they simply cannot share as they`d like. With these responses, we plan to have a mission activity to help the ward overcome these challenges and help them feel more prepared.

 

Our ward mission leader is working more with us now than in the past. We feel a great momentum rising in the ward missionary work, and we have several ideas planned to be able to verify and keep the momentum going in the future.

 

We recently discovered that the ward mission boundaries span WAY further out than we knew, and we will really need the ward`s help to no longer neglect the sectors of the campo that are actually part of our ward boundaries.

 

I am so happy to be with Hna Q! She is absolutely awesome and I love her very much. I am learning great things and have felt great spiritual changes within me this last transfer. I feel like I`m truly learning to confide in the Spirit....and the attribute of ESPERANZA has led me to feel true peace in the little daily efforts we make in our sector and ward. And for that, I am very grateful.

 

I know my Savior lives, and that He is Jesus Christ. I know this church is true, because it is restored by God who has a living prophet called by Him. And I am so grateful to be called by God to this work. :)"

 

Mom, this is the kitchen of the Relief Society President. Wouldn`t you just love to have a pot that big?? jaja

And more goodies for Thanksgiving week :P jejeje

Notes I took....uhm, with more drawings than notes. Gosh...I had to entertain the little buddies that were sitting next to me, pues. :)

Cookies in a pan....because we don`t have a stove. This is the recipe Mom sent me :)

The little girl came with us and her older sister to a cita. This was her "culebra", or snake. She dragged it with her the entire way. When we came to a muddy puddle, it was my job to quickly lift it up to "fly" over the puddles jaja. On the way back, the snake broke, but we quickly tied the two halves back together and she kept walking. :)

A piece of my sector in the campo :) Isn`t it pretty?

Me and....pie.

Me and....cookies and torta argentina...ahem....yeah. Diet begins again today :P no worries :) jejeje

 

Week 44! "Another Family of Gold"

From 11/24/14

This week was great....

[NOTE: Be sure to read past the first wave of photos or you'll miss the best part of this week's email].

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! And, even though it`s inevitable I`ll be a liiiittle trunky this week, there`s no where else I`d rather be :) So eat LOTS for my part.

 

Sorry Mom for what I said last week about witchcraft. It`s really not so scary. It was just a "theme" that came up last week, but I really shouldn`t have made a big deal about it.

 

I had divisions [splits] with Hna M last Friday...remember her? She`s la churrona? I love her to death. She`s my hermana leader here. She has been with me since my VERY FIRST day in the mission...and we`ve gone from one area to another together since. Well, she has one cambio left.

 

This really causes a person to reflect. I feel experienced in the mission, true, but there is so much left to learn and do. One thing that`s new for me is a feeling of calm.. An overwhelming peace that I am going at the Lord`s pace for me. And I am truly enjoying the mission in all that it entails. I wrote in my agenda the other day, "God calls the weak." So, I`m glad that I am weak. That`s why I was called...and I am convinced that God makes up for the rest :)

 

Also, Elder Fernelius is still mentioned a lot to me here. Apparently he served just down the road in the Latino ward. Cool.

 

I have no idea how many structures stand here. I have come to the conclusion that most of them still stand based solely off of faith.

 

I can kind of present myself in Quichua.....ahem.

"Ñuca shuti mikan Ñañagu Fernelius. De Jesucristopaj Iglesia Santocunapaj Punllucunati .... something"

 

I don`t remember the rest. But it`s really fun to say.

 

One day a couple weeks ago, a group of children flocked around us and began to teach us all the Quichua they knew. "What do you know in Quichua?" They asked. Honestly, not much. Then they spatted out as many random Quichua words and their translations....I whipped out my agenda as fast as I could and wrote down quite a few jaja. Quichua is great.....until you come across a contact that pretends to know only Quichua and not Spanish -_- jaja

 

I love you all!! I`ve gotta go. Thanks for your wonderfullness and, well, for being mine. Have a great thanksgiving and remember to thank our Savior. I`m starting the Book of Mormon again. My thanks for Him is where it never was before.

 

Have a great week!

 

Ñañagu Fernelius

 

At the waterfalls (from last week)

Stake president's awesome trenza (braid)

More from last week...

And a lady we contacted hard at work...as usual. The women here work hard always.

This family [see photo above] was a contact of Hna Q and me in the street. That night a couple weeks ago it was dark and we were looking diligently for people to contact near our home. We passed this family once, but walked on thinking, "We can`t contact them...they're Latino!"...and walked on. In the back of my mind it was tugging at me: "But they`re a FAMILY. You should have contacted them!"

 

We had another chance as we made our way up the street yet again, still looking for people to contact. I remember the look on their faces....almost like lost puppies. The parents were walking and the children at their side, with their littlest one in a stroller. They walked slowly.

 

I turned to Hna Q, "Let`s contact them!" I said as we approached the second time. I was determined to followed the impression of the Spirit. We did, they accepted another visit. Not a bad contact, but nothing unusual.

 

We passed by the day we set the next cita, just to hold to our word, though we knew we would be passing on the reference to the other missionaries of the Latino ward.

 

This family was super good from the beginning as far as being receptive and humble. We told the other missionaries that as they received the information from us to follow-up with them.

 

Now this family has a baptismal date. They are progressing and fulfilling every commitment the missionaries leave them....de ORO [gold].

 

The special part was seeing them at stake conference yesterday. The father approached me and Hna Q. He shook our hands, looked us in the eyes, and commented quietly to us, "When people ask us how we came to know about the church, we tell them it was the two of you who found us. For that, my wife and I will always be grateful. Years ago I found God, but then I left it and didn`t know where to go. Today (in the conference) I felt a peace that I hadn`t felt in years. Thank you hermanas for finding us."

 

I can guarantee that Hna Q and my eyes were filled with tears. I don`t have the opportunity to teach them, but how grateful I feel to be the reason...the instrument the Lord used...for them to be found.

 

Hna and President Richardson were also at the conference. We took tons of pictures with them in the authentic clothes we borrowed jejeje. At one point, Hna Richardson gave me and Hna Q a GIANT hug and said, "I met the family who came today. Although the other hermanas are teaching them, they wouldn`t be teaching them if they hadn`t have been found..."

 

I am grateful the Lord has blessed me and Hna Q with such a beautiful experience.

P.S. Sorry my hair is a mess. I`m not the most photogenic cream of the crop around here. I was just happy we even GOT a picture of it :)

I fulfilled a goal on my life bucket-list: I CAUGHT A FIREFLY WITH MY BARE HANDS!!!!!! [See photo above]. 

 

Hna Q was so good....she didn`t ask any questions. She just stood there as I carefully made my way quietly to a little firefly I saw lighting up and flying close to us. I swooped my hand and caught it. It walked around a bit and, as soon as Hna Q took the picture, it flew away again!

 

...it`s the little things. I was so ecstatic :)

Week 43! "Out in the Boonies"

From 11/17/14

Well, thanks everyone for the wonderful letters!!! I don`t have much to say this week....or, at least, the details don`t want to come out of my head in a very interesting way this week.

 

Wednesday night we did go to a birthday party in the campo....way out in the boonies. The bishopric was going to come, but ended up getting there way later than originally planned. So pretty much, Hna Q and I were trapped in the family`s house and didn`t get home until past 10:30 at night!!!! ...the time we should be sleeping already! jaja. We didn`t have ANY signal to call our leaders and let them know we were still alive. But, our district leader didn`t seemed too worried, just glad we were still alive by the time we had enough signal to send him a message. The bishopric did end up taking us home in their car, but the zone leaders warned us to make a back-up plan in case something like that were to happen again....je je.

 

The A-T family is the family that lives waaaayyyy up there. They are the blessing family the Lord wanted us to find. The big challenge is that there are only two buses that we can take to get there and out again: one that passes around noon, and the last bus there and back that passes at 6ish. It`s super rough because it`s a lot of lost time trying to get to them and it`s a challenge to plan our citas around it. It`s a lot of walking time, and the last thing is that a couple of the people we need to teach are only home about 7:30pm and on....aaaaaaahhh. By 7:30p it`s SO dark there that we can`t even see the stone path beneath our own feet. So we try to avoid it at night....but there aren`t a ton of other options unless we want to spend 5 dollars on taxi every time we need to make our way in or out!!!!..... So, basically, we`re trying to receive revelation. Last week, the members were good enough to come with us to a couple citas. But, at the same time, there`s literally only a handful of members that can actually help us out with a car.....my lanza. How are we going to handle this??...Anyways, that`s pretty much where it`s at right now :P jeje

 

Side note: A lot more people are involved in witchcraft up in these areas. We haven`t come across it necessarily, but we`ve heard the rumor and at times it`s distantly apparent in the feel of the atmosphere around us....but only very rarely has that thought actually crossed my mind --- that something strange was going on in the country around us. No worries, though, the Lord has always guided and protected us. There was only one night that I felt like a couple people laid their arms on my back from behind as I knelt at home to say my nightly prayer. I quickly shrugged it off and prayed even more to make it go away. I felt a little impatient and upset that night for no reason at all. But quickly spoke with my compa about it, because our cita with a young gentleman was a little weird as far as the way we both felt uncomfortable and filled with a little fear....we know that wasn`t a good thing....and we don`t plan on going back. Now I`m good, but maaaaaann. Sometimes it takes a couple days to shake things like that off.

 

The Lord has blessed us with a lot of adventure and great/amazing/fun experiences this week. One night, it was going a little rough. No one was home, it was cold outside, and our citas were all falling through. I don`t think we stepped a foot inside a house all day after our district meeting, that just HAPPENED to talk about how to look for the hidden miracle that`s waiting when the citas fall through. So, we were looking all day for that miracle in wait. Towards 7pm at night, I finally just thought to myself, "It sure would be nice to have a cup of aguita aromatica"...a hot cup of herbal tea or something to warm us up. But, there was no place that sold that tea anywhere near us that we knew of....so we kept trudging onward, not exactly knowing what would come of the day. As we made our way up the inclining slope, we saw the elders making their way down in our direction. The father of one family we visit of recent converts passed away, and they mentioned to us that it would be nice for us to stop by their house to support them, as they had the viewing there that night. So, we did.

 

We stepped in and immediately warmed up as the smoke of a giant pot of boiling water filled the air over a pit of fire. In sat on some chairs in a nearby room where many sat and viewed the coffin, laden with warm candles and beautiful flowers. We sat for a bit and, just before deciding it was time to leave, three ladies walked in. Two passed out little pieces of bread and one passed out hot cups of....agua aromatica!!! It was hot canela (cinnamon) water. It not only filled my belly and warmed my hands and body, but also warmed my spirit. It was such a small thing, but a sure sign that the Lord was mindful of my little desire to have a cup of hot aguita.

 

We finished that night with one more visit before going home.

 

I know that the Lord is mindful of me. He is mindful of all of you. And, although sometimes in the smallest ways, He always shows His love for us. I am very grateful that He is a God of miracles and a God who looks after each minor, but important need. And, when we feel comforted and good again, He once again opens our minds to see the greater power of His word and promises, which will all be fulfilled in His own due time.

 

I am grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. I am grateful that the Book of Mormon proves His power and mercy, which is extended out for all to be a part of.

 

I have so much left to learn and know. But, I have confidence that it will all come in due time :)

 

Love you all!!! Take care and have a great week!!! :)

 

Hna Fernelius

 

My poooor camera....:( It got so wet it gave up the ghost. I hope it`s just temporary, but this was the last "working" picture before the screen went white. Maybe when it dries a little more it`ll be okay again. I have a back-up camera just in case....

...the must-do of washing our feet in our hippie bathroom after a day in the mud and rain :P

Part of our bishopric.

Our shoes after a day in the raining campo (country).

Gotta reel in them ovejas [sheep]....ya know, just doing the work of the Lord...

The market every Saturday outside our house.

This man wasn`t even posing....can you believe it? It was great! :)

I have not been doing very good with the diet....THREE parties this week we were invited to...two of them we couldn`t decline....uhhhh we are trying to eat smaller portions but....it`s so hard to eat diet-y on the mission!! ,`:O

Also, we HAVE been exercising every day though...so that`s good. Our legs were SO SORE going up and down these mountainous paths....it's an adventure. We`re doing the best we can with this diet...but...AROUND THE HOLIDAYS??? Aaaahhhhhh :) We`ll stick to it though! :)

This great food we ate yesterday was at the farewell lunch of the Stake President's son who leaves for his mission tomorrow. Good food, good food. :)