Letters from Danie-Feb 3^rd

Hey Dad,
 

Tell Sister West thank you for me.  It means so much to me that the ward is still thinking about me :) I feel their prayers on my behalf :)

I think it is probably a good thing that you don´t watch the Super Bowl. I have kind of just felt like there are better things one can do on a Sunday.  I remember having the opportunity to watch it with friends my freshman year and I opted out because it just felt better not to go.  One can read their scriptures, visit the sick or the poor, spend time together as a family learning to cook something or work on family history.  I don’t know :) 

We had three people come to church this week.  It was a little miracle of ours let me tell you.  We had 8 people committed to go and my companion and I thought...this has to be the week to have people in church finally. Well we did everything possible including going on divisions in order to be able to stop by everyone’s houses. Not everyone came, but three of them did!!!!  And one of them was someone we had just found two days before :)  Even though we have not had any time to work in our area, we have focused a lot on making every little moment count to show the Lord that we are giving it 100%.  Well He helped us a lot and blessed us with an incredible miracle :)

I love being a missionary!!! I would love to write more but today is a crazy p-day and I wanted to write to Aunt Shelly a little bit so I will talk to you next week :)  I love you so much :)  I hope you have a good week. A little warmer at least haha :D  By the way elder Boone was in my zone last transfer before I got here, but he just barely left so I didn't actually see him in person but I have seen pictures.  If I find him at our next mission conference I´ll be sure to say hello :)  Elder Ballard and Elder Cook are coming!!!  Wahoo!!! and I am in charge of the choir :)  We are going to sing This is the Christ and the EFY medley :)  Okay, really I have to go.  Love you!!!

Love always,

Danie

Feb 10^th-

I had no idea the Olympics were going on.  I don´t think anyone is really watching them here.  Well I am sure the people with televisions are, but the majority of the people that I know, don´t own televisions...  but that is super cool!  I completely forgot about the Olympics to be honest.  I think I have kind of forgotten about everything.  I am just doing my best to work, work, work.  It is super crazy here right now. I don´t know if I told you guys but I am practically living in the church right now with my companion.  We go home at night to sleep of course and shower too, but we study in the church, we cook in the church. They recently changed our schedule so we get a 30 minute siesta, so I sleep in the church as well.  Our apartment is just too far away from our area to go back and forth.  We have been waiting and waiting to hear if there is any way to get an apartment in our area but president just keeps saying, "you fix it" it is his favorite phrase and he says it to just about everything.  He is super great, but I am kind of starting to feel a little neglected.  My companion and I are trying to figure out what position we should take with the whole situation.  We are bending over backwards to make sure the other sisters are comfortable in the apartment because it was nice of them to let us live there in the first place, but our schedule is currently so messed up right now it takes everything in us to stay focused.  I never realized how important the mission schedule was. It really does help one so much to do the work the way we are expected to.  I am however learning to trust the Lord even more, because it is so out of our control right now.  He blessed us by helping two people come to church yesterday :)  It is honestly a miracle because one of them has come to church two weeks in a row without any teachings from us.  We honestly haven’t had anytime to teach him. Yikes!  But he is progressing well and learning a lot in church. The other kid that came is thirteen years old and he arrived all by himself. We just found out yesterday that his father is beating his mom and won´t even let her leave the house to go to church. It is the saddest situation, especially because there is nothing we can do about it. :(  The mom is from Bolivia so she has no friends or family here to help her out and the police aren´t doing much to help her either.  It breaks my heart thinking about it. :(  We are working as best as we can though. 
I am reading the bible a little more right now because so many people have so many questions, and they are genuine.  Also I feel like if I am going to say that we read both the bible and the book of Mormon I have to be reading them both as well...haha :D  

The week went by really quickly for me as well. I can´t believe that we are so close to ending this transfer.  It just is flying by. I am hoping that we will be able to meet our goals and do the Lord´s will :)  That is about all I've got this week, but I hope all is well at home :)  I love you so much :)  

Love always

Danie

Feb 17^th-

Okay I must ask that you forgive me because I am not going to be able to write a whole lot anymore but I will do my very best.  We got our transfer calls early this transfer and I was sent off to another area yet again haha :D  I can´t believe it happened so fast.  Well anyway, they have called me to be a new Sister Training leader. It is kind of like half zone leader half assistant, but as a sister missionary.  I will now be traveling every week to help all of the sisters, yay!!! but it means my p-day is going to be a lot different now...I don´t know how much time I will have to write...  booo!!  Anyway, things are going great!  I am so excited to just work :)   For now I have to keep this short though.  Sorry :/ I hope you got the pictures from my last companion :)  We didn't take a lot because we hardly had any time together but I sent what I could :)  I know more than ever that I needed my mission.  I know that this church is true and the atonement is real.  The Lord is changing me day after day through each of my experiences and He knows exactly what I need.   What I do understand is who I am and who my Savior is, and I am here as a missionary looking for my brothers and sisters to make sure we all make it back :)  It is a beautiful work.  I hope you have a spectacular week!!!  I love you so much!!!  Thanks for telling me everything :)  Talk to you soon :)

Love always,

Danie

Feb 24^th-

That is crazy that you are already headed to North Carolina again...I feel like you just went yesterday...  I would be surprised if my elementary school even remembered me.  It would be kind of fun to see North Carolina again though.  If you want company next year I’ll go with you :)

The weather is crazy everywhere I tell you.  Right now in Cordoba it is pretty chilly even though it is the middle of summer...pretty crazy right?  Okay my area is called Parque Capital.  I am currently living en El Centro, Nueva Cordoba, but I work in barrio Parque Capital.  The name elder Boone sounds so familiar.  I will keep an eye out for him that is for sure :)

It makes me so happy to hear that Spencer is finding so much joy in being a member missionary!  I hope he will keep working the way he is now. Keep motivating him and keep looking for people that you can help too :)  I don’t know how the ward is doing there, but make sure the missionaries are working for you and not the other way around.  Our zone leaders always ask us "if there weren’t full time missionaries in this ward, would they keep baptizing on their own?"  I still have yet to say yes in any of my areas but I want to encourage you guys to do it there in our ward at home :) "Catch the wave ;) be anxiously engaged"  haha :D  No really it brings so much joy and so many blessings :)  I don’t know if I already shared this with you but I like to look at the story of Abinadi as an example.  He traveled the city of Alma to preach the gospel there.  He was an extraordinary prophet that shared the gospel of Jesus Christ, and even showed the people a miracle when they were unable to touch him until he finished his message. Yet still they killed him and he had only one convert in the end. However, this convert shared the same message with his village and 204 people were baptized.  Alma shared the same message as Abinadi but was able to touch the hearts of so many people.  I don’t know for sure why that is but it makes sense in my head that part of the reason is that, Alma already knew the people in his village. He was not a stranger...They already trusted him and so they were more willing to listen and the spirit more easily touched them because they were not on the defense.  The missionaries can’t do it without you guys, without the members that already know the people that live around them.  Look for references to give to the missionaries, invite people into our home so they can feel the love and the spirit that dwells there :)    

You guys are so great.  I know God loves you.  I know He is looking out for you Dad.  For each and every one of us, and especially with a man as great as you, He will be able to look out for someone else’s Spencer and someone else’s Danie or Lezlie too :)  I hope you have a safe happy trip :) Take advantage of the flight to share the gospel :)  I love you!!!

Love always,

Danie