Week 2

Hey hey hey!!!!

I’m still alive! So that’s good. This place is just more and more amazing everyday! They’re adding new things every day, like water dispensers, and hot water in the sinks in our home. A couple days ago there was a camera crew and so we had table cloths on our tables for dinner, and it was much more organized. We think that they were filming for the World Report in between sessions of conference, maybe for October! So make sure to watch if I’m in it! But that day I wasn’t feeling very good, I think I have some kind of pollution sickness. My head was killing me, and I felt like I was going to cough up my lungs. I’m feeling much better now, and when I was teaching lessons I didn’t notice as much, so that helped! 

We get about 100 new people a week from los Estados Unidos, and maybe about that many Latinos every 2 weeks. It’s getting harder to know everyone, but I’m glad I can say I was here early enough to be able to know most of the people at the CCM.

When we got here, each of us got a debit card, and we get 120 pesos every Monday (the Elders only get 100, hehe!) There’s a little tienda on campus where we can buy soap stuff, and also book stuff. I bought the 4 missionary books in Spanish! (True to the Faith, Our Search for Happiness, Our Heritage, and Jesus the Christ). There’s lots of other stuff that I want, so I’m trying to save up so that I can get what I want before I leave. It’s so cheap here! Those books were about $145, which is like $14 in US dollars? I don’t remember the conversion, but I know it’s a good deal!

The food is awesome!!! They mostly do Mexican foods like empañadas, tortillas with everything, and tamales. All of the desserts are made from gelatin, which is much cheaper than jello, and tastes healthier. Whenever they have chocolate or ice cream, it’s a good day! We even had Costco pizza the other day, I think because all the Latinos left that day for their missions, so they could give the Americanos their real food.

BUGS HERE ARE WEIRD!!!!! We just call them Mexican bugs. The crickets are scary! They kinda look like silverfish, and they can jump like 2 feet. There was one in our room one night and me and Hma. Marley freaked out. Hma. Newbill was in the shower and she came out because she thought we were dying! But we didn’t. I smashed it with a shoe, and Hma. Marley got TP to put it in the trash.  

IF YOU WANT TO SEND ME MAIL!!!!! It’s best to use the pouch from Salt Lake. It usually gets here in about a week. If you need to send me something in a package, use DHL, and not the USPS, it gets here faster. Also! If you send something to the pouch, it leaves Salt Lake early Monday morning, so try to get it there by then, or else I won’t get it for another week.

It’s funny how people are learning Spanish here, some kids are starting to forget words in English!  I don’t think I’m quite there yet, but hopefully soon! We just got new Latinas in our house, and we decided to start having Casa Oraciòn (house prayer). It’s fun to get to know them a little better, and speak Spanish with them. I definitely understand it better!

I really learned this week how important the First Vision is. That is what sets this church apart from all the others. Because Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ almost 200 years ago, we have the fullness of Christ’s Gospel on the earth again! That is why we teach that in the first lesson, because if people believe that that happened, then everything else in this church is TRUE!!! Yo se que Josè Smith veò Padre Celestial y Jesucristo. Yo se que el Libro de Mormon es la verdadera. Yo se que tenemos una profeta hoy, y su nombre es Thomas S. Monson. Yo se que el Señor guia este iglesia hoy, por medio de su profeta. Este es mi testimonio, y es muy importante para mi. (Hopefully that makes a little bit of sense...)

We watch a devotional on Sunday from Elder Holland. It was given back on February 28, 2012. If you need something to do, and want to know why I’m serving and what I’m doing, WATCH THAT DEVOTIONAL. Or just watch it anyway. Ese hombre es una apostla de Dios. Me amo èl con toda de mi corizon. 

Here’s a fun fact: Pres. Pratt, the CCM president, is the Great-Great Grandson of Parley P. Pratt!!!

One last thing: Charity is a verb! That is what missionaries are, CHARITY! Put your name into Moroni 7:43-48 instead of the word charity, and you will know how to live life!!!

I love you all a lot, and I’m very grateful for your prayers. Thanks for your support, I don’t know if I could do this without you!! Please keep me updated on your lives, I love hearing about everything. 

urrah for Israel, Brothers and Sisters. Don’t ever forget who you are, where you came from, and where we are going.

Hermana Despain

P.S. This place is nothing like Provo from what I’ve heard. I’ve heard Provo feels like a prison, from the food and from not being outside much. That is not the case here!! We study outside, our classrooms are normal high school classroom size, and the food is great!!! I’m a little worried about gaining weight... But we also have a great gym with good equipment and lots of activities for a good workout.

Until next week!!

Hermana Despain

 This is an emergency meeting point. They`re all over campus, and we saw a couple in the city too. I think it`s a Mexican thing...

This is my cuarto!!! (room) My bed is on the bottom far side. We have closets to the right and a bathroom that you can`t see.

Pictures of campus. It`s so beautiful here!

This is how we do laundry here! We have washers and dryers, but they`re a little bit sketch. I wash some things in the sink, and we hang most things up to dry. It`s fun!!!!