The Arajuo Family

Happy turkey day! November 25, 2013

Hola hola hola kiddos! 

I sure hope everybody`s week was swell, because mine was! 

So after last P Day, which was Tuesday, was Wednesday. Obviously. I`m starting to sound like Rebecca Black. Anywho, so Wednesday we did Divisions. But like for real for real divisions this time, not just the mini divisions we did the week before. Hermana Olson and Hermana Goode went together in our area, and me and Hermana Ramirez went together in our area as well. So you know what that meant? Yep, that meant I had to lead our area for a day. To someone who speaks next to no English. Gah scary! 

But guess what? It was AWEEEEEEESOME. 

So we had a few lessons with menos activos, (which I had to lead). It was the first time I`ve been the one to make all the small talk and ask about people`s families and start the lesson and everything. And I understood e v e r y t h i n g. En serio. And Hermana Ramirez and I were able to communicate pretty well too, while we were walking in the street and everything. So on that end of things, it was an amazing day! It gave me the confidence that I will actually survive when I get a Latina companion (which I pray I get right after I`m done training. You pick up Spanish in a heartbeat with a Latino companion.) Also, we did a lot of contacting, and we came to this house with this AWESOME awesome awesome woman named Natalia. We actually found her talking to her son, who is friends with Nicolas. He and Nicolas were out on the street and we asked if his parents were home. So anywho, he said yes and that we could go chat with her. We taught the first lesson to her, and she was SO receptive! One part of the first lesson (which in our mission is centered only on prayer), is we invite them to pray right then. She was really timid to, so we told her we could all kneel and she could say a silent prayer and when she aid "en el nombre de Jesucristo, Amen", we knew she`d be finished. She actually said a really long prayer and teared up a little bit, and then told us she felt so much peace! She is a capa and I`m so excited to teach her more! 

Hermana Ramirez is s e n s a t i o n a l. She dies in March, so she`s got a lot of experience. And when she`s not her perky, princess, high-pitched voice self, she has this voice that can bring a Spirit like no other! 

The Lord definitely gave me a lot of confidence on Wednesday through those divisions! 

We met the new peeps in our zone on Thursday, and this change it`s a BUNCH of Americans! Our District now only has 3 Latinos. It`s gonna be SAWEET. We also got a new kid in the mish in Rivera. He lives across the street from us, and his dad is Elder Rodriguez. Not gonna lie, it is so nice knowing more than at least one person instead of being the one that`s totally lost haha. I know, sad, but don`t worry, I`m helping him out as much as I can! He`s still got that bambi look on his face, which is embarrassing because I looked at him and though "yep. I must have looked like that." 

I know, look at me, I`m all growed up (almost.) 

The best part of the week was Saturday. B A P T I S M! 

I don`t know if I`ve written yet about the Araujo family. If not, that`s ridiculous, because they`re one of our favorite families. They`re a less active family. The mom, Ana, is 32. She got married when she was only 15, and had two kids with her first husband: Cristian (16) and Niki (14). Then she got divorced, remarried again, and had Cecilia (8). Then got married again, and had Vitoria (2.) Her and her last husband Pedro got baptized together, a little while after Niki and Cristian got baptized. But right now they`re separated (although a prob in Uruguay is that everyone lives right next store to their family. So Pedro is living with his mom, who is just three houses down. I know, awk.) Anywho, they`re having a lot of challenges, so we visit them a LOT. Ana is the sassiest Uruguayan I have ever met. Ceci is the one who got baptized. So technically it wasn`t a missionary baptism, but we still count her as ours because the family was almost inactive before we started teaching her. Cristian baptized her, and it was so sweet how nervous he looked and how she started crying. Poor girl`s been waiting for months, but because of a lot of logistical stuff just barely got to. So she was SO excited! It was the sweetest thing, and reminded me of when my brother baptized me. Great memory. I love the Araujo family. Cristian and Niki are super sassy like their mom (and make fun of my gringa accent, but in a super funny way.) Ceci is the SWEETEST 8 year old in this whole darn world, and Vitoria is just a cute albeit crazy wild child who is most definitely the epitome of the terrible twos. Love them. 

Anywho, just a really great week! Carol`s been out of town, but we have a lesson with her tonight. Hopefully it all goes well! 

Just a couple quick facts right before I go a spiritual on you guys. 

I think the thing I miss most about when I speak Spanish is the English slang. Like the word "swell." I forget that even the Latinos who know English, don`t know a word like swell. The other day, I told Elder Torres, the ZL who is from Ecuador, that he`s really swell. And he got a super confused look on his face and started looking around to see what part of his body had swollen. Hahaha bless his heart. 

I really really miss the following things: 

peanut butter

syrup 

spicy food 

zip up hoodies (they sell American brands here for literally $90-$100

wearing sweats on rainy days

and then, naturally, every single one of you. 

Also, my least favorite question en el mundo right now: 

"do you have a boyfriend?" 

Double worse that they always ask Hermana Goode first, and her answer is yes. So then they give me a look of pity when I say now. 

But then I remember I have a line of suitors at home, and I feel way better. (hang in there guys. just 15 months.) 

Okay, spirit time:

I was reading in Alma the other day, and I read one of my favorite scriptures, Alma 26:12, which says:

 12 Yea, I know that I am ^anothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will ^bnot boast of myself, but I will ^cboast of my God, for in his ^dstrength I can do all ^ethings; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.

ometimes, in life, and most DEFINITELY as a missionary, I wonder if I`m capable of doing great things. As a missionary, if I will really learn Spanish. If I will really bring somebody to the waters of baptism. But I love this scripture for two reasons: 

1. It reminds us that MANY MIGHTY m i r a c l e s CAN be worked, through the Lord. In His strength, we can do all things. 

2. It`s not about us! It is all about HIM. We are simply instruments in His hands. His timing. His methods. He will work miracles through us, if we put our trust in HIm. He`s already given us that promise, as with Alma. 

Ask the Lord, and He will strenghten you. Then, praise His name forever. 

Remember, WE CAN DO HARD THINGS! 

That`s all in this week in Uruguay. It`s Thanksgiving this week, which they don`t celebrate here obviously. But I just want to take a minute as time is short to say I am so thankful for this Gospel. I am thankful for my Savior, Jesus Christ, and for a loving Father in Heaven. I`m thankful for the strength i have in Them. I`m thankful families are forever. I`m thankful for Uruguay, and I`m thankful I get to be a missionary. I`m thankful for all of the examples in my life and for who I am because of them. And I`m just so thankful for the hope of this Gospel. And of course, I`m thankful for every single one of you, and your support and kindness.

I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU! 

H A P P Y T H A N K S G I V I N G. 

Hermana Dolan 

Rivera Zone November 19, 2013

   me and Erico, a cortoplaza who goes home today to Montevideo. (cortoplazas serve in a   different part of the country for a few months before they leave on their own missions.)    he leaves for Chile in March. He`s kind of adorbs, but then again so are all the Latinos when they try to speak English. 

           also, the t shirts are our zone t shirts we just got today. HOLLA. Rivera es siòn! 

  me and Elder Childers and Nelson. Childers is dying. Cry.

Dying means he is going home...... 

                                            Like I said, SO MANY BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE. 

                                            Representin`the lord ladies and gents! 

  

                                         

22! 22! We Love You, 22! November 19, 2013

Hey hey hey my loyal readers! 

How was everyone's week? I hope it all went well for all of you. Beeteedubs, if you don`t know what that subject line means, please go and watch A League of Their Own. Right. Now. Honestly the subject has no significance to the week, other than in the Free Shops here they make you put your stuff in a locker before you go shop so that you don't steal anything. My locker number was 22, and it was kind of sad that I had no one to laugh at my fantastic quote. So, please go watch it. (shout out to my Poulsen peeps. I love you guys!) 

Alrighty so this week had a lot of special little moments as always, and then one really big one! 

First of all, remember Nicolas, the adorable ten year old who last week stopped us? Whose little friend Luis told us "God bless you?" Well, we were walking past his house again last week, and saw him, so we went up to go talk to him. And he goes "I`m sorry I didn`t go to church on Sunday, but it was raining way too hard." And we`re both sitting there thinking "first of all, he was going to go to church?" (no one invited him, he was just going to go.) And second of all, "what ten year old apologizes for not going?" Gaaah why is he so perfect? We met his little brother Juan last week who is 9 and we`ll be going to meet his mom hopefully tonight. Fingers crossed (people work super weird hours here.) Gah he is perfect. I want to adopt him and take him home with me. 

On Wednesday, we did mini divisions with Hermana Olson and Hermana Ramirez. I went with Hna Olson to their area for a few hours and Hna Ramirez went with Hna Goode to ours. It was awesome! Hermana Olson is a complete rockstar! We contacted quite a bit and it was so empowering! We talked to one guy who was standing outside his house with tattoos and a cigarette, who only spoke Portugese. But we actually understood quite a bit of what he was saying, and he told us his parents both died when he was little and for that he doesn't believe in a God. But you know what? He believes. You could see it in his eyes. He`s just angry. We stood there and told him about how we are all children of a God who loves us and we can be with our families again. He talked to us for quite awhile, and you could tell he was starting to feel something. Unfortunately, right when you could tell he was, that's when he just got scared and told us he had to go. But what was amazing to see the change in his countenance. The Spirit really is sensational. And, it just gets more and more special to see the way my heart breaks for people who feel that sort of sorrow and anger. I challenge all of you to pray for charity and the pure love of Christ, because I know firsthand that the Lord will answer. That`s what he`s been doing for me. 

On Thursdays we have our activities with the youth. Nicolas came, and a ten year old girl named Yesica that we`re teaching too! I love love LOVE the youth activities, because they talk to me a lot in spite of my limited Spanish knowledge. Plus, they think I`m funny. Proof that the youth know what`s up, because let`s face it, I`m HILARIOUS. They also like watching me tell stories to Elder Lufi in English, because I get really excited and animated. I LOVE THE YOUTH. 

ATTENTION TO EVERYONE EVERYONE EVERYONE. You know how they say that when it comes to the gospel, you should never give up on people? We have FIRSTHAND PROOF OF THIS, which is the absolute best thing that happened this week. Remember Sol, the little girl who got baptized a few weeks ago? Remember her mom, who has been an eternal investigator for, like, five years? Well, we`ve been talking to her more about baptism, and she`s been saying that she wants to be more sure, more excited like Sol was, before she gets baptized. Hna Ramirez and Hna Goode went and talked to her on Wednesday about Moroni`s promise at the end of the book of Mormon, and challenged her to really pray, because they knew she`d get the answer. And then she started crying, and said "I know I need to be baptized. I want to be a part of what my daughters have." Now I speak to anyone serving a mission, is going to serve, or has served and isn't sure they were successful. Carol has been meeting with the missionaries for FIVE YEARS. I bet at least some of those missionaries thought they failed with her, but now she is getting baptized! (we`re still figuring out which day in the next couple weeks.) NEVER GIVE UP ON ANYBODY. Every single one of those missionaries was a part of Carol`s conversion process, and now she is just steps away from the waters of baptism! I am so thankful for the Lord and the miracles he works in the hearts of the children of men. Some may take a day, some may take a lifetime, but those who he has prepared, will come in their own time unto their Savior Jesus Christ. 

Just a couple fun facts:

In Sunday School this last Sunday, I was trying to talk about the story of Peter and Jesus Christ and "do you love me? Feed my ship." Well I was talking about fishing, but I made the most derp obvious mistake you can make in Spanish. So there is "pescar", which is to fish, and "pecar", which is to sin. Well, I said Peter was "pecando" and then everyone looked at me really confused until Hermana Goode tapped me and was like "pescando, pescando!" Hahaha pray for me. 

One of our semi activos, Carlos, a couple weeks ago started to tell a joke every time we visited him, because we started to ask if he had one. Well, a little over a week ago, he asked me if I had any, to which I replied "I have a bunch in English, but none in Spanish." And he said "tell one in English. I understand everything." (he understands nada in English, we just always jokingly tell him he does.) So now, every time we visit him, he asks for a joke in English. He just waits until I give the cue of going "HA!" And then, this fifty something year old man does the funniest laugh attach I have every seen en mi video. He stomps his feet, rubs his hands together, and has the general appearance of a laughing chimp. Hahaha it`s the best parts of my week when we go and teach Carlos. By the time I`m done in Rivera, I am going to try and have all those jokes translated so he can understand them. Because honestly, they really are funny. 

Speaking of staying in Rivera, I`m staying in Rivera! Haha I think I confused some of you. Training lasts 12 weeks, so I`ll be here at least until January 1, but most likely Hermana Goode will be the one to leave. Which means I`ll probably be here until February. But changes are today, which means we had to say goodbye to the Elders that are dying tomorrow and to the other missionaries that are getting transferred. But luckily, Elder Rodriguez, who lives across the street from us, will be training a North American! Which means there`s going to be someone across the street who knows even less Spanish than I do! Boy oh boy, I am SO OLD you guys. 

I FINISHED THE BOOK OF MORMON THIS WEEK! That was the first time I have ever paid so much attention to what I`ve been reading, the WHOLE time I`ve been reading it. I cried when I finished, which hasn`t happened before. I know the book is true. It has ALL the answers. It soothes the soul. It contains words directly from our Father in Heaven, and He preserved it for OUR time because He knew the kind of world we would live in and the hope we can only get through it. Read it! Read it now! Don`t even finish reading this, just go pick up a Book of Mormon and read it! 

We went to Coisa Nossa today, which is basically Tucano`s but for half the price. Yeah, I know, I`m in the best place in the world. 

Guys. Another miracle happened this week. MEGAN. GAYLE. DOLAN. Ate a pancho. No, that`s not something that guards you from the rain. It`s a Uruguayan hot dog. And I ate one, and LOVED it. And then ate another a couple days later. They have powdered cheese on them and papafritas and hot sauce. Mmmmmmm. (the hot sauce is just an option, but the pancho man always gives us a weird look when we ask for it. haha they don`t do spicy here.) Miracles happen, folks! 

Anywho, that`s all for this week, folks. Tune in next week for another exciting edition of the day in the life of Hermana Dolan! I hope you all have the best week ever, and I hope it includes starting to read the Book of Mormon, and watching A League of Their Own! Seriously, I can`t watch it, so it`s your obligation to watch and enjoy on my behalf. 

Remember, the sun insists on rising, so make yourself stand! I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan

eating with the Brazilian missionaries! they're the ones in the back.

el Señor siempre està November 11, 2013

Hey kiddos! How the heck are all of ya? Good? Good. I hope good. If not good, then....well, be good. 

This week was...phew, just a whole lot of lots! I don`t even know where to start. So, sorry if this seems all over the place. 

First off, changes are next week. So that means P Day is on Tuesday. So I`ll be emailing on Tuesday. It also means that Zone and District Meeting will be on Thursday, which gaves you two extra days to send me a letter by emailing the mission email. Don`t let me down! 

Alrighty so I`ll start on Tuesday. It was actually a pretty grand day for the most part. Zone and District meeting which is always good. We had some lessons with menos activos. And then that night, we went over to the church because Hermana Goode needed to practice a musical number an older man in the ward wanted to do with her. Then Hermana Olson and Ramirez came over too because Hna Olson was going to do it with her. Well, that`s when my pride set in and I got to thinking about how I can`t sing very well and I don`t play the piano and wahhh wahhh wahhh.....folks, pride`s a vicious cycle. Then that turned into I have nothing to contribute and I will never learn spanish and none of the people here care and wahhhh wahhhh wahhhh. Well a couple of tears squeezed out and I pulled my classic "pretend to yawn so people think that`s where the tears are from" trick. The trick that NEVER works. So Hna Ramirez notices, and takes me into the bathroom and we talk it out in Spanish. Anywho, Hna Ramirez is well, as I`ve said, a princess, and a motherly one at that, so I felt a lot better after my chat with her. 

BUT THEN.....so we`re walking home from the ward and I feel better but not as god as I could, when this little boy stops us and says "Are you the Mormons who invited us to the Halloween activitiy?" (we weren`t, it was Hna Olson and Ramirez.) But he INSISTED it was us and not them, and told us his name is Nicolas and he`s ten. And he says "I like you Mormons. Especially you girl Mormons." So we say we`d love to come back and talk to him and his family, and he gets SUPER excited and says yes. So then we keep walking home, because we`re almost late. 

But THEN.....so his little friend Luis who was also there, runs after us and yells "wait! Wait!" And we turn around and he says "Que Dios les bendiga!" Which means "God bless you!" Now, let`s talk about the fact that Luis is literally six years old. What six year old runs down the street after two Mormons to say "God bless you" and give us a beso? N O O N E. My heart pretty much melted.

 BUT THEN. We turn around to keep walking, and what do I see, but a f a l l i n g s t a r. Now, those who know me well know what a nut I am about astronomy and how excited I must have been. I became immediately aware that the Lord is aware of me and Luis and the falling star were his simple, yet powerful way, of reminding me. 

Alrighty so then a blur of a couple days and then....ZONE CONFERENCE! 

We went to the lovely Artigas! We had to leave at 3:30 in the morn for a three and a half hour bus ride. Let`s just talk about how funny a bunch of missionaries, who are already tired all the time, are at 3:30. It. Is. Nuts. 

Soooo yep. We met up with Zona Artigas and Zona Tacuarembo. President Smith was there (obvi) and the assistants. I had to bear my testimony since all the Oros had to. And I started it out with going "phew....bueno...mmmm bueno. bueno. ok. ok here i go." Haha embarrassing. But everyone laughed. We`ll just pretend they thought I was joking. But I got through it, so it`s all good! 

We learned a plethora of things at Zone Conference that I could never even begin to explain, but I`ll just tell you that it was AMAZING and President Smith is AMAZING. En serio. He is SO inspired. And I loved the testimonies from the fieles (the missionaries who will be dying (dying as in finishing their missions)). They all looked so torn at leaving. It gave me even more motivation to live up every moment and make them count, because in so very short a time that will be me. I mean, I am almost done with my first change in the mission field. You know how many I have left? Ten. Only. TEN. I cannot believe it. Time is going so fast. Already Christmas seems like next week, and when that rolls around I`ll have one week left of training! Ahhhhh! 

We also found some BOSS people while out contacting. There was this really cute little blue house that we walked past, and I just kept thinking "we have to go there. we have to go there." So finally I asked Hna Goode if we could go back. And, okay, so we have this thing we do sometimes. When the person comes to the door we say we`re looking for somebody (we just say a random name), and then the person usually comes out and gets confused and says there`s no one here by that name. So then we go "Huh. Welllllll....what`s your name?" And that`s how it starts. So the name Hna Goode says this time is "Lucia." Well, the cute little lady at the cute little blue house tells us Lucia actually lives two houses down! Hahahaha. So first she invites us in for cake (which tasted like banana bread. mmmmm and her house smelled like it too) and we talk to her for a bit. THEN she takes us over to meet this mysterious Lucia! And that turns out to also be a cute little old lady! And they both said we could come back and we will be seeing them this week. Haha but just out of all the random names, she turns out to be right there! We have a good feeling about both of them. It`s just like Pres. Smith tells us, "no one does nice things for you if they`re not prepared to hear from you." So we will definitely be going back to them, and to Nicolas and his family, and to some others that we found that i don`t have time to write about! 

Yesterday we had THE BIGGEST STORM EVER AND IT WAS SO AWESOME. En serio, I have never en mi vida heard thunder like that before. The only bummer thing about it is people in South America have some sort of fear of rain. That`s a problem, since it tends to rain here. Soooo we had literally 25 people at church, and that`s including us. Speaking of church, i gave my first talk! Yikes. It was a little rough with the spanish at times, but it turned out really great and the Lord F O R S U R E helped me out! Good thing 25 people heard it....bummer. People, just C O M E T O C H U R C H. 

Anywho kiddos, that`s all for this week en la vida de Hermana Dolan. All I can say is I have never had anything so hard, but I have also never felt so much joy. This week, I have become even closer to my Savior as He has helped me overcome my challenges and strengthen my weaknesses. It is His promise to Us that if we come unto Him, He will strengthen us. We just have to let Him. As I have let Him take my hand, I have never felt so strong. The Atonement is R E A L. The Book of Mormon is T R U E. The Gospel is H A P P I N E S S. Christ is the L I G H T. 

The true light is always there. The sun always shines, even if you can`t see it. When you think you`re living in darkness, remember you probably just need to open your eyes! 

Remember, it`s simple: learn of Christ, listen to Christ, then W A L K like Christ. The Lord will take care of the rest. 

You can do hard things! 

I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan 

HAPPY HALLOWEEEEEEEEEEEN....................November 4, 2013

Hey hey hey! How the heck is errbody? I hope good. I hope you all had a good week! 

So first off, HAPPY HALLOWEEN THIS PAST WEEK! Not gonna lie, I kind of missed all of the decorations and the kids trick  or treating (and when I say kids, I mean me) and the haunted houses. They don't do really anything for Halloween here. Even a lot of the members and stuff say they wished they did it here like we do there, because the way the states do it is pretty sweet. 

Also also also, two very special people had birthdays this week, so 

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ANNIE AKA SISTER RECKSIEK, AND MY SUPES COOL BRO IN LAW JARED! I hope your birthdays were as swell as you are! 

This week honestly, was not a super eventful week. I'll give you a couple more fun facts real quick though:

1. Everyone and their dog here rides motos (motorcycles.) It's more economical because they're cheaper. And when I say dogs, I mean they will ride with their dogs. And their nine month old babies. All you mothers in the world would have a heart attack. 

2. Everyone and their dog is ALSO named Carlos. For realsies. We have THREE menos activos named Carlos, and one investigator. So. It gets pretty confusing. 

3. Just an example of how Spanish ruins your English: Hermana Goode went to kill a spider, and meant to say "hand me your flip flop" but instead she said "hand me your football." Okay, let me just hand you that football I brought with me. It's a struggle my friends #spanishmissionaryprobs (she also said conestutter the other day instead of stonecutter) 

4. It's not quite super hot here, but I'm just bracing myself for December. Apparently in the summertime the missionaries will just jump in a cold shower with their garments on right before they go to bed, and then go to bed. And they're still hot. Yikes yikes yikes. 

5. We're going to ZONE CONFERENCE on Friday! We're going to be meeting up with the zones from Artigas and Tacuarembo, and we're going to Artigas! It`s going to be sweet.....other than the fact that all of the Greenies have to bear their testimonies. So I have to do that in Spanish, in front of 90 something missionaries. I'll probably just say "Yo sè que Jesucristo vive." and call it good. (i kid, i kid. you know me; even in Spanish I could never speak ONLY one sentence. baha.) 

6. This week, we've mostly been working with menos activos. Our investigators were all gone last week, but they'll all be back this week, plus we've gotten a ton of references that we're really excited to contact! 

7. On Halloween, we did a Halloween activity with the other 6 missionaries (combining the two wards) We had bobbing for apples, Halloween music, candy, the game NINJA, and a game that would so NOT be funny in English called "Le vendo un pato." (translated means "I sell you a duck." told you it`s not funny.) Anywho, it was a REALLY great turnout! I actually did try bobbing for apples, and you know how I found a hidden talent for ultimate frisbee?....yeah I don't have that for bobbing for apples. I kind of failed. And got very wet. But hey, whatevs. They all knew I was awkward anyway. They know that from the first time they heard me speak Spanish. Let's be honest. 

                                   Halloween Party, Megan attempted to bob for apples

No one tells you how hard the first few months in the field are. It. Is. Rough. Satan has been working really hard. But guess what? He aint winning! This week, moreso than the Spanish, he's just been making me question myself in general and the intentions of my heart in being here. But then I remember that I KNOW why I'm here, and far more important than that, the Lord knows my heart. Even better than I do. Even though there aren't very many people here in Rivera who really even know my name other than "the new hermana", the Lord knows my name. And whether those people know doesn't matter, because I'm just an instrument in His hands. I am learning more and more everyday; more Spanish, more of the Gospel, more of how to be a good missionary, and most importantly, I'm slowly learning more and more about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I am understanding it as  I try to apply it, and as I try to take His pure love and show it for others. I read something in True to the Faith this past week about the Atonement and how it helps us through trials "while He may not relieve you of your challenges and trials immediately, He will gave you the comfort and understanding to give you the strength to carry your burdens." It's so true. So don't sit there waiting for things to get better. Embrace them, take them with you, and let them help you understand your Savior. That's what I'm learning, and I'm so glad to be learning it. 

Also, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be good member missionaries! Offer to go to lessons with the missionaries, reach out to their investigators and less actives, anything. You have no idea what a difference it makes. The members in our ward are a little difficult right now to get lessons with and we're trying to strengthen our relationship with them, but it has given me motivation to be the best member missionary when I'm home. Every one of you! Go to just ONE lesson with the missionaries! Or at least offer! Okay, I'm off my soapbox. 

Sorry this one's kind of short. It was a rather uneventful week. But the Atonement is real, Uruguay is AMAZING (as is its milanesa and alfajores), and the Gospel is true! It is the light that can vanquish all darkness. I know this because it...and HE...is what saves me from my shadows. You just need to remember to look towards the light! 

I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan 

how hard is it to count to one, it`s right after ZERO...........October 28, 2013

hey hey hey cool cats! 

first of all, making the keyboard do capital letters is super weird here in the cybers and takes way too long, so for the sake of saving time, i`mma go ahead and not write in capital letters anymore. please send my regards to my debate coach. hey, bliss, i`m sorry. just know it kills me about as much as it kills you. but it must be done. it takes too long. 

second of all, the subject line of this email is from the best two years, and it is talking about BAPTISMS!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

WHICH WE HAD THIS LAST WEEK! 

Except we had TWO NOT ONE! HOLLA! 

But i`ll get to that last, just to build up the suspense. 

so first off, i had my second breakdown of the mish. but, no importa. i only bring it up because you all need to know that i thank the lord every day for a. HIM, B. the scriptures, and C. the three wonderful wonderful wonderful hermanas that i have the pleasure of living with, including my companion. hermana olson knows exactly how i feel because she knew next to no spanish like me before she came out, plus she`s just 24 and sings angelically and i love her. hermana ramirez, as i have previously said, is a peruvian princess. if she ever farted, which she never would, because she`s a princess, i think she would fart rainbows. (mom and dad, i`m sure you`d be giving me the "look" right now, and i apologize.) and there`s hermana goode, who is the most patient human being ever with my sucky spanish, spazzy behavior, and general awkwardness. okay, yeah, they`re all just capas and i`m obsessed with them. i basically have three moms, right in my house. que suerte yo tengo! 

second of all, some random pieces of info, because other than the baptisms, not a whole lot happened. 

1. while tracting, we came to the house of this lady who i believe was evangelica (she was speaking portugese so we only picked up bits and pieces.) she told all these crazy stories about getting rid of bad spirits and helping people find jesus. she was talking to us through her gate, and then she just reaches through the gate and puts each of her hands on our heads and in some freaky shaky voice, starts yelling out a prayer, and gives us a blessing! Those Evangelicas....bless their hearts. 

2. i experienced my first awful bug in the house, when we came home to a spider the size of my hand in our kitchen. it was a fast little sucker, too. it took us forever to kill it with the broom. and when i say us, i mean me. and when i say me, let`s get real here, i really mean hermana olson. ha, you thought i killed a spider the size of my hand? silly. just silly. but we have lots more spiders that just happily chill in corners of our house. we leave them alone, and they leave us alone....i think. 

3. President Smith is just the bombdiggity. We had Zone Meeting again this week and the ZLs told us all these new things Pres. Smith wants us to do now, and they are so inspired! Our mission is on fire right now, and it`s all because of him! 

4. I forgot to mention this before, but because we`re so close to Brazil, we meet a lot of people who only speak Portugese. So, lucky me, I`m learning Portugese while learning Spanish. Most people here speak Portuñal, which is a mix. It`s a super blast. Sometimes I panic while we`re talking to someone because I will understand absolutely NOTHING and I worry it`s Spanish and i have suddenly forgotton everything i`ve learned. Then we walk away and I ask Hermana Goode "please tell me that was Portugese." And then she tells me yes, and I feel a lot better. Facepalm. But Portugese is a really beautiful language. I want to learn it when I get home. 

5. Speaking of the Spanish, let me just give you Megan`s...i mean...Hermana Dolan`s....embarrassing Spanish story of the week. (at least the main one. i have many.) Some members outside our area came yesterday to fix our leaky bathroom, and the husband shook my hand and said his name was Hermano Son. Well, I understand Spanish pretty well, as i`ve said, until they turn and talk to me. So I suddenly think he asked us "De donde son?" So i answer, "Utah." So literally, in English, this is how that sounded:

Him: "Hi, nice to meet you, I`m Brother Son."

Me: "Utah." 

Aye aye aye. Good thing I can laugh at myself. Then I told them I have three weeks here and they told me I speak Spanish really well for three weeks, to which I responded (jokingly) "You don`t need to lie. I just told you Utah after you told me you`re name." And then they laughed. That`s a plus side of people here, they think I`m funny. Mostly because I make fun of myself 90% of the time and they laugh in agreement, because let`s face it, everything I`m saying is la verdad. How I get let out of the house is beyond me. Even more beyond me is how I`m even alive with my overwhelming amount of awkward. 

6. It is two months TODAY since I left home! And two months TOMORROW since I arrived at the CCM. One ninth of my mission! WHHATTTTTTTTTT. 

7. People don`t knock or ring doorbells here. They clap. It`s a super blast. So we clap all the day. I`ll be super good at clapping by the time I`m home, and I will also hopefully be able to roll my R`s and do the Uruguayan salute, which I can`t really explain. 

8. I can`t even explain how much food we get fed here with members. And some of them just stare at you to make sure you finish, even if you`ve already had two helpings. Never en mi vida did I think eating would seem like a punishment, but sometimes I have to pray for help to finish. Yikes. (not that I need help finishing when it`s milanesa. I could eat ten milanesas. mmmm.) 

Okay, so, BAPTISMS!!!!!! 

It was literally a fiesta de bautismos! Between four pairs of missionaries, we had twelve! Hna Goode and I had two (not that I can take credit for either, but I`m excited that I get to teach the CROMA lessons, or lessons afer abaptism, with them), one of the pairs of Elders had two, the other hermanas had one, and the other pair of elders had a whole family get baptized, so they had seven! And they`ll still be here when the family gets sealed, which I just think is the coolest thing. So yep, you counted correctly, TWELVE PEOPLE GOT BAPTIZED ON SATURDAY! 

It was Saturday that I realized how little it mattered that i can`t speak Spanish yet, because THIS is what it`s all about. Yenny, the woman whose husband passed away, just cried and cried and talked about him and kept thanking us. Hermana Goode tells me that when they found her, she was just so sad all the time. And now, she is just always smiling, and even tells us how her friends tell her all the time how different she looks and how she looks so happy. And she does. She is always smiling and just glows. And Sole, awww Sole! the 9 year old whose sister is a member, and my best friend. Her eyes just shine with the joy of the Gospel. Hopefully I`ll be able to send pics today, because i want to send the one of her right after she came out of the water. The smile on her face is SO what it`s all about! I am in love with my little Sole. Now, we just need to really work with her mom, Carol, my Uruguayan mom. And after her, her husband. But the family who was baptized gets to be an eternal family in no time! And Ruben, who the Hermanas baptized and is a total capo, he hugged his bishop who baptized him, and just had tears in his eyes. He`s one of my favorite people here. And Gladys, who the other Elders baptized, is fifteen and has the smile of Rachel McAdams. She is always so excited to see us Hermanas and will just hug us in the middle of conversation with her. She got baptized! All of these wonderful wonderful AMAZING people, who are now on the path to exaltation. You could see the joy in their eyes, in that moment that they caught their very first glimpse of Heaven`s light. What a blessing we have!    

                     
                                 Megan, Yenny, and Hermana Goode

   
                                        Megan and Sole

                                         Sole after Baptism, Pure Joy!                                          
                                       

I won`t lie, the mission is hard. It`s also the most bipolar experience I`ve ever had, because one moment can be pure joy, and the next is either tears for someone saying no or frustrastion with the language. But it is so worth it, and i know it`s just going to get better and better and fly right by. The people here are PHENOMENAL. So warm, and friendly, and loving. I am so going to miss giving a beso to every woman and child that I meet. I may even miss awkward encounters with men who try to give me one too. And don`t worry everybody, I`m slowly teaching all of the Elders in my zone how to give a firm handshake, because all of their handshakes were travesties when I got here. But we`re working on it! Now they all compete for who has the strongest handshake with me. Word. But back to the people, I love them. And you know, sometimes I miss the beauty of Salt Lake. I miss the colors of October, my favorite month of the year, and the crisp breeze. The mountains stretching out before me. But then, I stand at the topmost part of Rivera and look at our neighborhood. I look at the kids who are perpetually playing fùtbol. I look at the sky, which is somehow different here,literally a painter`s dream, with clouds and colors and a vision that i can`t even describe. And I remember that Heavenly Father created all of it. And I remember that He has given me the amazing privilege of being here. And He trusts me enough to put the lives of some of His most choice children, in my hands. And you know, that`s something pretty special. 

Okay, now stop crying, you big boobs (cough Dad cough)! And excuse me for any misspelling that may have occurred. Spanish ruins your English, and English ruins your Spanish. It`s just fact. 

I still don`t speak Spanish, but you know, it`s all good. Because I watched some people I`ve come to love in so short a time enter the waters of baptism, and that`s a language everybody can understand. It`s the language of the Gospel, and it`s the most beautiful language there is. 

The church is true, and I love you! I mean...I love you, I love you, I love you! Have a great week! Thank you all so much for the support! 

Always remember to turn,

Hermana Dolan 

one more thing

I forgot to tell you all that we went to Brazil today. Like, Brazil Brazil. Like, 30 blocks past the border. We went there to go to a store that is basically Walmart. I felt like I was in the states. We mostly went for peanut butter, but sadly it was ALL out. (they don`t have peanut butter in Uruguay.) But it`s okay, because I got a Hershey`s bar, Snickers, and peanut m & ms. And that`s perty swell. 

Yeah, best area in the best mission area, where we can just go on over to Brasìl like it`s no big thang! 

ok that`s all, peace out loves!

Miracles.....and some pee October 21, 2013

What up homies!?

I know I know....weird subject line. 

stay with me. I promise I`ll explain. 

Okay so first off, not a whole ton happened this week. Tuesday was super rough and was the first time I came home and just cried. We had gone to our investigator Yenny`s house and her daughter and daughter`s boyfriend were there and we were talking about Yenny`s fear of baptism. Okay...THEY all talked about it while I sat and got a headache from trying to understand it all. Grrr it is so frustrating! And so doesn`t help when at the end they tell you you need to pray because you`re a missionary and should be talking more. I would talk if I knew what you were saying!

But, the rest of the week was pretty good. Lots of lessons fell through, but even with that we had a lot. I`ll just talk about the one that really counts. 

So on Tuesday, we were eating with the other missionaries after zone meetng in Centro. This lady walks by and asks who of us is over the area Misiones, which is me and my companion. Well, she has a friend there named Marta whose husband passed away seven months ago. He was a taxi driver and he was killed by some men. so anyway, she told us her address and asked that we call her. so we did and set up a lesson with her on Wednesday. We decided to teach her the verses in Alma 40 that talk about where we go after we die and how it`s a state of happiness, free of pain and sorrow. We asked her to read the verse, and she coud only get halfway throughit before she just started to sob. She asked Hna Goode to finish reading it, then kept saying "my husband`s okay. my husband`s okay." We testified to her that he is, and that Christ is always there for us, guiding us, finding us, helping us. It was amazing to watch the Spirit change her. What`s crazy is she told us before her husband died the missionaries had tried to contact them before but they never let them in. As tragic a way for it to happen, her husband`s passing softened her heart and prepared her to hear the glad message of the Gospel, and I have no doubt that her husband is accepting it on the other side. It`s just amazing to witness the Spirit change somebody, to watch the change happen in their eyes, right in front of you. We haven`t been able to see Marta again yet, but we`ll be seeing her today or tomorrow. And I am so excited!It truly is a miracle. 

Also on Sunday, 109 people were at sacrament meeting! Apparently the most our ward has ever had is 86, so that`s pretty awesome! What`s even more awesome is 6 of our menos activos and 2 of our investigators were there! Wooot! Also I had to introduce myself and bear my testimony during fast and testimony meeting....yikes. But somehow I got through it. 

My companion is the cat`s. pajamas. And also she for some reason hates that phrase, so I make sure I let her know she is the cat`s. pajamas. All the time. She really is great. We quote She`s the Man and Pitch Perfect a good ninety percent of the time when we are in our house. We have a lot of fun and she`s probs figured out how awko taco I am. I mean, I`m awkward enough in English, folks. Let`s try watching me in a lunch appointment where I have to try to understand and speak spanish. Also, I have greenie syndrome, which is where you can understand everything....until someone asks you a question. Then suddenly it`s like they`re speaking Russian in Uruguay. Someone asked me the other day how many siblings I had, super easy question, and I answered "Si." Facepalm. Also, somehow I got super clumsy when I got here. I blame the Spanish.

As for the other half of the subject line, last night we were at the house of a menos activo family we`ve been working with. They have a 2 year old girl named Victoria and she and I were sharing a seat....when suddenly I feel a rush of warm liquid. I jump up, praying to the high heavens that she spilled some juice...but I look around and no juice is to be seen. Hna Goode is like "Hermana, it`s all good, it`s just juice." But then goes to wipe it up and figures out it`s pee (kind of like i had already figured out). Then Victoria starts screaming because she peed her pants and I have pee down the whole back of my dress and Hna Goode is laughing her skirt off (see what I did there?) and one of victoria`s brothers is wiping up the pee and cleaning her up while the other is on the phone with their mom saying "Mom. Victoria peed on one of the Hermanas. Come home now! No, you need to come home now." So, there you have it folks. First time in my mission and en mi vida that I have ever gotten peed on. Missionary work holla! 

Fun facts about Uruguay

1. It`s Springtime here, but it`s starting to get super duper hot. Excuse me if I don`t send pictures home for the month of December. It`s just because I`ll be dripping with sweat in all of them. 

2. the food here is delicious! Milanesa.....mmmmm. Except, we decided to cut back on how many days we let the members feed us because they make you eat SO much. Like, you can feel yourself gaining weight. Rivera is nuts. 

3. Crosswalks aren`t a thing here. You just have to be quick. (sorry if that freaks you out Dad.)

4. The little store in our area plays American music ALL THE TIME. Trunky trunky trunky. 

5. We ate at a Greek place today with the Americans in our zone. Yeah, I got a gyro! My stomach is doing cartwheels right now. NO. joke. Also, another reason why my mission and area are the best in the world? That Greek restaurant is technically in Brasìl, so else do we see come in to eat, than 4 Elders serving in Brasìl! Yeah, pretty shiz. They`re going to come play volleyball with us next week two. 

6. Rivera has this most delicious drink ever called Guaranà, and it`s from a Brazilian fruit. I`m so spoiled to be born here. Leaving will be rough. 

7. Being a missionary is really hard, but it`s also the best thing in the world. A lot of the people here are helping me out a lot with the Spanish and everyone is so loving. Plus....I just need to know the Spirit. So that`s what I`m working on. The ZL in Montevideo said to me before I got on the bus to Rivera "You don`t need to know Spanish right now. Spanish isn`t what baptizes people. Spanish isn`t what changes people. The spirit is. So just know the Spirit, and you can do anything." And I`ve reminded myself of that everyday. 

Anywho, it`s supes hot here, I`m always tired, and always have a sweaty back from my backpack. But you know what? It feels like work, and it`s the best work there is. 

Try not to get peed on this week! And seriously, WRITE ME! You have no clue how much it helps! I love you, I love you, I love you you little turds!

Hermana Dolan 

How lucky I am to live in a world of Octobers" ...............October 14, 2013 First area; Rivera!

Yo yo yo!

I mean....Hola hola hola! 

Okay, quick business:

If you want to send me a letter or package, just send it to the mission home. That will be my address the whole mission! And they just put them altogether in a bossa (a bag) and they get handed to us every week at District meetings. 

You should totes send me an email TODAY. Like RIGHT now, because then they`ll print it out and send it in the bossa and I`ll get it tomorrow! 

I think the mission home address is on my Facebook. I love handwritten letters too! 

First off, if you can name where that quote is from, you`re about as great as an Alfajore. And alfajores....they are the best thing to ever happen to this world, ever. Well i mean besides the gospel and maybe some other things. 

Second off, WELCOME HOME KENZIE!!!!!!!!!!! You look so good in all those pics and looks like you had a good turnout! I heard about your homecoming and it sounds like it was beautiful and you and Jen did a great job. I`m a proud sister! And not gonna lie, I mostly was super jealous when I saw the picture of you holding our nephews. gah. I miss them. 

So let`s talk about leaving the CCM first, mmk? I know, you`re going to have to wait a little longer to hear about Uruguay. mwahaha. 

So we had general conference my last weekend here, and it was absolutely the most perfect way to end my time in the CCM. conference was AMAZING! And I can`t believe we have 80,333 missionaries now! And I`m one of them! Wow. The Lord really is hastening His work and I am so blessed to be a part of it. 

Monday night I cried harder than I did when I left home. We had a testimony meeting and afterwards, was time to say goodbye to the Elders going to Paraguay since our flights were so early in the morning. what really put me over the edge was a poem Elder Teloma wrote me. He wrote a different one for me and my comps. Luckily he`s in Uruguay also, but it still got me. It says:

Your smile brings joy

And honor to Thee

You`re an Hermana to others, 

But a sister to me. 

GAAAAAAAH. elder teloma has made it his special job to really look out for me from the very beginning. We`ve had a special brother sister relationship. So that got me. But THEN I had to say goodbye to my true brotha from anotha motha Elder Worsham, and he was tearing up too. And then all the rest of the Elders. And then I knew the Hermanas were leaving me in the morning. Talk about emotional. I was totes crying all over the place. Ridic. 

And awww, my companions. The hardest goodbye of all. Those girls are my sisters. But 17 months will not bring that sisterhood! What we had was so special and something I will never forget. The CCM will always have a special little place in my heart.  

But, what all of us together in the CCM are going to do is SO much bigger and so much better and so much more than ourselves, so it`s worth it! And I know I will see them again! 

So tuesday after a super early flight, I was already excited to be in Uruguay, but when I saw actual missionaries of Uruguay there to pick us up at the airport, THAT is when I was like "let`s do this!" So we went back and got an AMERICAN breakfast made by a senior couple. Mmmm. Then we had a few classes with the APs and a couple with President Smith. President Smith is AWESOME!!!! Everyone tells me the mission has totally changed since he got here! He`s changed the way we do lessons one and two, and it is so much more effective. Plus, it amazes me that he was baptized when he was 21 and then went on a mission. He`s just an amazing man. Unfortunately Hermana Smith was sick so I haven`t met her yet, but I`m excited to! And I got to meet his 11 year old daughter Starla. Funniest girl little girl I have ever met en mi vida. President Smith also wants to work a lot on activating all the less actives. uruguay, Brazil and Argentina, have baptized 5,000 people in the last year. But, 4,000 of them are inactive. How sad is that? So that`s a huge focus. We have three goals in our mission:

double sacrament attendance

100 baptisms a month as a mission

And 100% retention. 

And our mission slogan is HOY ES EL DIA! O, TODAY IS THE DAY! Because Today is the day that things will change! So inspired. We yell it all the time. HOY ES EL DIA1 

K so none of the rest of the day or Wednesday morning was super important. We just had to all go get mini physicals Wednesday morning to make sure we`re still healthy, but THEN! We got to meet our TRAINERS! 

So they lined us all up in front of the temple and told us to look down. Then our trainers came up behind us and sang the first verse of "Called to Serve" (in Spanish, of course.) Then, I turned around and met my trainer, or "Mom", who is (drumroll please)........

                                            Megan, Hermana Goode, and President Smith

THE GOODEST MOM IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD! No, really, her name is Hermana Goode! She is from Texas and she is awesome! She`s only been out four months, but she already knew Spanish so she was only in the MTC for 12 days. She only trained for 10 weeks, then finished training another girl so that girl is her stepdaughter. But I am her very first real hija! She`s 20 and she went to BYU for a year and a half. I LOVE her! Besides the fact that her Spanish is awesome, she is fantastic teacher in lessons. And she is SO patient with me and always encouraging me. Plus, she`s pretty cheeky and I like that. She is a gifted teacher and we already get along so well. I think this is going to be a really great companionship! (shout out to Hermana Hunt and Hermana Buss though. No one will ever be as psycho as you two.) 

Right after we met our trainers, we got to do a session with them in the Montevideo temple! which is a lot smaller than Buenos Aires, but it is so beautiful. 

We all went to the bus terminal after lunch and buying some stuff to go to our separate areas. It was good though because it gave me and my group a couple more hours together. Even though I came with all Elders, I was sad to say goodbye for even a little while. don`t worry that I was the only American Hermana who traveled here in my group. Those Elders took good care of me! 

Okay so as for my area: 

I`M IN RIVERA! 

Rivera is the northern most part of Uruguay, right on the edge of Brazil. I mean like, RIGHT on the edge. No, like there`s a street we walk down to get to the stake center where one side of it is Brazil and the other is Uruguay. And there`s a big plaza with shops and stuff with the Uruguay flag on one side marking where Uruguay is and the other side with a Brazilian flag. So, I get to say I`ve been to Brazil now! We walk through Brazil a couple times a week. Rivera is also going to get SUPER hot because it`s so far northwest, but that`s okay! Everyone tells me I`m super lucky to be born into this area, because it`s super super cheap here, and we get a lot of the Brazilian food and fruits, and it`s just so chill here. Everybody is so friendly and open and pretty much everybody will hear what we have to say. I`m being born into the best area ever! Our house is super nice too. It`s one of the nicer ones in the mission. We live with another companionship, Hermana Olson and Hermana Ramirez. They`re awesome! Hermana Ramirez speaks no English except for the slang the Latinos hear us Americans say, like "I love you" and "dang it" and stuff, but she is so cute! she is like this little Peruvian princess. We got to our area around 12:30 in the morning, but the busses we do changes on are super duper nice, like first class on an airplane, so I slept well. 

Okay so for the sake of time I`ll just tell you about a few of the investigators and menos activos (less actives) that we`re teaching. 

Yenny (o Jenny): she is a lady in her seventies who they were teaching before I got there. They had taught her a couple of times and then she went to general conference with them. President Monson`s talk was perfect for her because her husband died around the same time his wife did, and to hear a prophet of God has problems too really hit home for her. That night, the hermanas gave her fecha (baptismal date) and she accepted! so she`s getting baptized on the 26th. I know, already I get to go to a baptism! Anyway, her daughter`s boyfriend is a member and so she was a reference. She was just so prepared. And she is so so so sweet! 

Andryws (pronounced Andrews): Andryws is 14 and his grandma is a menos activo. He is super funny, oh my gosh. He is so funny with his little sister Carolina, because he just has no patience. Haha. We`re still working with him on baptism. You can tell that he knows it`s true, but there are just some things about baptism he`s a little confused about, so we`ll be teaching him and working with him this week. He just teases me about my gringa accent and how I don`t know what he`s saying sometimes, but he does it in a funny way. And he loves to say  "so cute!" And "the americans say I`m so cute! My fans, my fans!" Funny, funny kid. 

Sol y Carol: 

Sol is a little nine-year-old girl whose sister Erica who is 12 is a member. Their mom Carol has been seeing the missionaries for the past 3 years, so she`s basically an eternal investigator. BUT Sol is also getting baptized on the 26th and she told us that Carol had told her she might get baptized with her! So we will be talking to them about that tonight. Carol`s husband just works all week except for weekends and doesn`t want her to be at church instead of spending time with him, so that`s what`s been holding her back lately. But she knows the Gospel so well from being taught so long, and it`s so obvious that she knows what she needs to do. So we`ll just keep praying for her! I know I shouldn`t have favorites, but these guys are hands down my favorites. Sol is so, so, SO special. Such a sweet little girl. And I love being with them because they actually talk to me instead of brushing me off since I don`t know Spanish, and they help me with words and don`t make me feel dumb when I`m talking to them. They all three love talking to us about American musica too, it`s so funny. But I love being with them because I feel more myself with them than I do anybody else. They are the angels the Lord has given me when I feel discouraged. And I am so excited for Sol to be baptized, and hopefully Carol too! 

Cecilia: Cecilia`s parents we just barely reactivated, and she`s 9. We are working hard for them to go to the temple to be sealed, but her parents are having a lot of marital problems right now. I love her family though. Her two older brothers, Christian and Nikki, are 16 and 14 and they are such good kids! They watch Cecilia and her little sister Victoria who is 2 and is the CUTEST LITTLE GIRL IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD all day while their mom works. They`re basically the moms during the day. Such good kids. We really hope Ana and Pedro can work out their problems, because we really want them to be able to be an eternal family. 

There are some others that we teach, but those are the main ones. I`ll talk about more when I have more time! But they are supes awesome. 

Sunday was stake conference, and the stuff I could understand was really great!....too bad that wasn`t much. But President Smith came to speak so it was good to see him again and he gave a really powerful talk that I mostly understood. Afterwards, we went to lunch at the bishop of the other ward`s house. He. Is. AWESOME! I feel super comfortable with him and his wife. I gave the spiritual thought and I managed to say everything I wanted to say! And he reminded me that I need to remember how much Spanish I can speak for how little time I`ve been here. I know I need to do that. It`s just so frustrating to not be able to express myself the way I want to. I understand most things I hear, but not a ton. Plus, for some reason when people turn the attention to me and ask me a question, I suddenly don`t understand and just get this doe eyed look on my face. Gah. I do not love how people talk to Hermana Goode about me while I`m standing right there because they think I don`t understand, then they go "and she doesn`t even understand any of this, does she?" And I go "No, I understand." And then they still just look at me like I`m dumb. But there are two things I hate most about not being able to speak:

I can`t be myself.One of our menos activos made the comment to Hermana Goode that I`m so serious and boring all the time, and she assured him that I`m not, I`m just trying to learn. I hate that I can`t be goofy and witty and outgoing, because I don`t know what`s going on and I don`t know what to say. 

I hate hate HATE that I can`t help people, including my companion. I don`t want to be a burden on her and sometimes I feel like I am, and when other people, like Ana, are having a hard time, I want to be able to help them and encourage them, but I can`t because I don`t know how to say it. 

But we`re supposed to focus on our strengths, so here`s my strenght: all the gringo Elders in my zone, as well as Hermana Goode, say they were terrified to speak when they first got here. They say it took them a few months before they weren`t scared. But I`m not scared to speak. I open my mouth and sometimes....okay, ALL the time, sound super dumb, but it`s just not something that scares me. I just get SO frustrated with myself, especially when we`re sitting there with people and Hermana Goode is such good friends with them and is laughing with them and I can`t. Some moments are really hard, but, esta bien, porque yo se que voy a apprender espanñol, y voy a poder hablar y ensenñar todas las personas que conocer. Yo se que Dios va darme el don de linguas. Me ayuda cada dia. Él y Jesucristo estan siempre con mí. 

Oh anywho, so my zone is awesome too! There are about 36 of us, which is really big for a zone. Since we are all so close together, we meet every week instead of just as Districts. About half are american. Today we played volleyball and went and ate a a Brazilian buffet. A BUFFET, for $7 American dollars. Yeah, I know. I figured out real fast why people have warned me to be careful not to gain weight here. They feed us SO much and give us SO many sweets1 And, get this: Megan Gayle Dolan, the bottomless pit, has been teased by people here that I barely eat anything! And I still eat just as much as I did before. Sooo, yeah. It`s pretty crazy. 

Anywho, I really love it here. I love Uruguay. I love the people. They all amaze me. I see their houses and they are nothing compared to the states, but the people are SO happy and vivacious and extravagant and bright and loving and wonderful. I love Rivera, I love my companion, I love the Gospel, and when I can really speak it, I know I will love Spanish too. 

I hope all is well for everybody! Send me letters, send me letters, send me letters! 

I love you, I love you, I love you! 

Hermana Dolan