Gauchos is basically an Uruguayan cowboy....except they`re cooler than the Americans (I know, I`m sorry.) And they`re ALL in Tacuarembò!
I am officially one of two of the "oldest" hermanas in the mission.....frightening.
So, here I am in my new digs in TBO, where I have been wanting to come my whole mission! It is so great! A LOT of campo (field...but that doesnt explain it very well in english.) And a LOT of cows! Haha it`s great. I`m in a ward again, so there`s about 100 people in church normally here. It`s definitely a big jump from a little branch, but I love places with a lot of people!
So let me tell you guys about my companion because she is amazing....her name is Hermana Gruden and she is from Illinois. She just finished her training. Last week, she completed 2 years as a member! And do you want to know how it all started? Because her best friend invited her to church in the 7th grade. So...invite your friends to church. Anyway, she is incredible! She is so positive and happy all the time and super funny. And I can`t believe how much she knows for having just left her training. She is a great missionary and I am super stoked for her to be my "assassin"! I have seriously been so blessed in the companion department. They are my angels!
Also....the night before I left Colonia, the ZLs there called to tell me that in TBO I will be the Hermana Leader Trainer. Which is the leader over the hermanas here, so i`m in charge of any issue, i do divisions with them, all that jazz. I don`t really know what President Smith is thinking haha, but I`m excited!
We`ve had a good week! We`re all still getting used to the new changes in the mission, but it`s going to be awesome once we can really get into things. The ward members are really awesome and willing to help, and we get lunch every day again! Yussssss. The recent converts are so amazing. Let me tell you, one of my biggest pleasures in the mission and some of my dearest friends have been recently baptized when I got to the area. They have such a fire and love for the Gospel. Like this sweet old man named Humberto. He is working towards getting sealed to his wife who passed away once he completes a year as a member in August. And he LOVES the sister missionaries! He has a place for each of them in his "family." So, I am officially his great-great granddaughter. He is adorable.
Speaking of, BIG NEWS! The familia Valentti from Rivera got SEALED last week! (they`re my Uruguayan parents.) My ward in Rivera made a pit stop in Tacuarembo on the way to the temple so I got to see them! My Mamà y Papà Uruguayos, Belèn, and like half the ward. Oh man, it was so great! And now they are an eternal family! And here attached is a picture of some of my amazing jovenes from that ward in front of the temple that they sent me. Families are forever!!!!
We have this investigator who has been taught by the missionaries for awhile but has a drinking problem. Her name is Gabriela, and she really does have the desire to change, it`s just such a huge addiction for her. But we`re going to fight alongside her to get it out the window, because she is so ready! Please pray for Gabriela!
I`ve been thinking a lot about the Lord`s promises lately. A lot of times, we
fail to trust in those promises and their fulfillment according to our obedience. Sometimes, I forget too. We sometimes completely forget about Nephi. We forget that all commandments are possible to fulfill unto the Lord, and many times, like Laman and Lemuel, we forget the promises that can come after completing our part with the Lord. That`s why I really love these verses in Alma 37:
7 For he will fulfill all his promises which he shall make unto you, for he has fulfilled his promises which he has made unto our fathers.
18 For he promised unto them that he would preserve these things for a wise purpose in him, that he might show forth hispower unto future generations.
19 And now behold, one purpose hath he fulfilled, even to therestoration of many thousands of the Lamanites to the knowledgeof the truth; and he hath shown forth his power in them, and hewill also still show forth his power in them unto future generations;therefore they shall be preserved.
SO many promises of the Lord to our fathers are being fulfilled, and generations had to pass to receive them! Maybe it will take centuries, maybe weeks, maybe days, but it`s just as Jeffrey R. Holland says "some blessings come now, some come late, and some don`t come until heaven. But for those who follow the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they come." I believe in that promise. Sometimes I forget it momentarily, but the Lord always kindly reminds me to T R U S T in His guiding hand. So, keep going always and don`t stop, because the good will come, as long as you are faithful, it will A L W A Y S come. It also makes me think about how, just like we are the answered prayers of our fathers, we can be the answers to anyones prayer. May we always look for the heads who need a shoulder to lean on!
Well, I sure do love all of you. Thank you for all of your support and your prayers. I am already learning so much here in Tacuarembo and a LOT from my companion, and I know I still have more to learn, and I`m excited to do it and to see what promises of the Lord will be fulfilled!
I love you, I love you, I love you!
Hermana Dolan
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