Here's an email!
How about we start off this week with a little thing my family
likes to call, HIGHS AND LOWS! Why in all caps you say? Dunno, but I
guess I'm excited to bring back an old tradición*, ¿me entienden?
Alright, so let's start with lows, so that we can get that big old list out of the way:
Low number 1: Well, I can't really think of any. I guess it'd be
that our member landlords have stopped going to church recently and
nobody knows why, so that's sad, but we'll be seeing what's up with it
because they feed us every Thursday.
Number 2: Well, I guess one would be that some really promising
investigators we have weren't able to go to church this last Sunday, but
they have good reasons and will be all going this next Sunday.
And that's it really, I had to stretch for those lows!
Highs:
1. Baptism of Sonya, an investigator I'll talk more about in this email.
2. Confirmation of Sonya.
3. We've been getting a lot of references from excited investigators and converts this week.
And last but not least...
4. The transfer results are in and... Elder Lyons and I will be
together for another change. It's pretty rare because he'll now have 6
months in this area and we'll have 4 and a half months together as
companions, and everyone thought he'd be going, but we get along really
well and are starting to see a lot of success in the ward,
investigators, and other aspects, so we're happy and excited. We'll be
together until a few days after Christmas.
Alright, so now let's go into the baptism of Sonya a little more. I
don't know that I've mentioned her in emails yet, but everything
happened so fast that I really must of forgotten and then the baptism
snuck up on us!
The first time we taught her was I think October 29th or 30th, and
exactly 2 weeks later was her baptism. She is 18 years old and a single
mother, she has a boyfriend but he lives in Mexico City. She was someone
we had contacted in the street and received a strange address from, but
we somehow found her house and knocked it. Nobody answered, and as we
were leaving the closed off neighborhood thingy or 'vecindad', if I'm
spelling that right, she came in. We set up an appointment for the
aforementioned day, and came back and taught her. She had a crazy dog
that had pooped and thrown up all over the house, and a really
tremendous little baby that wouldn't stop crying, and 1 chair.
In those conditions we taught her somehow, and were able to set up
another appointment to come back. Through many quick mini lessons and a
few long and crazy lessons (what with the baby running everywhere and
getting into literally EVERYTHING), we were able to somehow set up a
goal for baptism. We taught her the commandments and were surprised when
she immediately accepted every last one. Before we knew it, the day of
her interview with our district leader was upon us, she got interviewed
and she passed.
The next day we held the baptismal service, with a few curious
investigators there to see, and it went great. Elder Lyons and I sung Be
Still My Soul, because even though it's in English (so glad I brought
my english hymn book by the way), it's really spiritual and awesome.
Aaaand, she got baptized!
The next day she went to church and got confirmed, and has already
started inviting friends to listen in and go to church. My companion and
I are really happy to see people make such an awesome step to baptism,
especially in such a short amount of time. She's an example to us of
just following what she knows is right, without hesitating.
Also, our other convert, Ivonne, had her birthday yesterday and it
happened to be her turn to feed us, so we had Pozole (Elder Burton, if
it isn't up north, ask your comp. about it) which is really good, and
then of course she had a party and we left when people started getting
there. But not before seeing a familiar face walk in, of someone who
works in Chedraui, which is this big store we always go to. Apparently
her and Ivonne are friends, and Ivonne called us later to inform us that
her friend asked about us, because she sees us a lot, and Ivonne
replied with a brief explanation, testimony, and invitation to hear us
and go to church, she accepted with interest and we'll be seeing about
that this week.
So, in short, things are looking good! Lot's of good experiences
and fun times. I guess that'll be all for now, but I want you all to
know that I love you and I know this church is true, and that the work
we're doing is important.
Elder DeFreese
*See how I did that? I threw in a word that is called a cognate of the same English word, para que aprendan!
1. Elder Havili (tongan and hilarious) and I eating Pozole the last P-Day at a member's house. The whole district was there.
2. Tremendous little child of Sonya, his name is Jorge.
3. The baptism!
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