The Courage of Barbie in Peru

Week Thirty-eight!

First, I would like to inform my Mom that I completely understand her distaste for the nickname Barbie but I feel a lot more annoyed with it when my name isn’t even Barbara but they say it all the time just because I am white.

But today I would like to talk a bit about Courage.  This email is a little late because yesterday we had a normal work day and interviews with the President of the Mission.  This interview was because I am about to hit the halfway mark of my mission.  Talking with him I found a word that has been kind of following me my whole time here.  People have used it to describe me.  That word is Courage.  The past month or so I really hated that word, because people always pinned it on me, like "Hermana Peters You have so much courage being out here" is something that my companions, the president and his wife and other people have said since I have been here.  I was mostly annoyed because I felt like everyone could see my struggles while I was out here.  I was embarrassed and frustrated and really hated the word.  Having Hermana Salinas as my companion she helped me learn that maybe that was why I am here, to be stronger in that aspect.  The time since she has been my companion feels like it has been so long but really it was a month ago.  That is what really stands out.  Before I had my two weeks alone, I was living off of my senior companion and hiding behind that word "courage" which is kind of ironic, but it makes sense.  Then I was alone and I couldn’t just hide behind it, I had to be it, and have it, and show it.  And now I am training, and I have to know everything, and have the courage to be the example.

you always get the most snacks
when you are fasting

It really stood out especially because it was something that was said in my setting apart blessing also, that I will have the courage necessary to do this work.  So it was something I talked with President a bit about during our interview, I asked what caused him to say that word specifically, and he basically confirmed my thoughts.  Like that the word came from the fact that he could see that maybe it was harder for me to be here than others, talking to the world, learning the language, and all of the fun stuff.  But that he has really seen that now I have a different kind of courage that I can really do it without the fear.  The next nine months I am really going to progress more than this first nine for that.

Other than that I have been pretty okay. I think I had food poisoning, but that I have had it so many times that it’s just annoying more than anything.

I love you

The New Life of Training

Week Thirty-seven!

Hermana Pfister

Well, I finally have a new companion, and by new, I mean really new, I’m officially a trainer.  It officially freaks me out because I literally have no idea what I am doing and I’m supposed to show someone else how to do it, what?  But she’s pretty cool.  Her name is Hna Pfister (The P is silent), she’s from Redlands, California.  Her mom was born in Guatemala, and her dad was born in Norway.  I don’t really know what else to say about her.  She’s really great, sometimes a little stubborn, but really I just have to explain that it’s the rules of the mission and she gets over it. 

This week we finally got to see General Conference, it was really fun running in between the English room and the Spanish room when people were speaking in their native languages.  I loved President Eyring’s talk, as always, and I loved that there was a focus on prophets and I feel like a lot of the talks about prophets can help the people that we are teaching and help all of the investigators around the world.

I don’t know if I have mentioned but there has been a big focus on working with less active members and we had a really powerful lesson with some less actives this week it was the Family Torres.  We have been teaching their son Estefano ever since I have gotten here but he hasn’t really been progressing because he doesn’t go to church because his family is less active.  So we finally got an appointment with his family except his dad "Jesus Torres, Ex Bishop" was out of town.  But I felt it was really powerful because we spoke with them and usually from ward gossip we find out really fast why someone doesn’t go to church. But with them the only thing we heard was "Jesus Torres is the best bishop this ward has ever seen" and I was really frustrated because I didn’t know how to help them.  So we sat down and told them that the church needed them, and exactly what we have heard, that the ward misses them and wants them back and while they were talking it just seems like they lost their faith internally they didn’t fight with anyone they didn’t get offended they just little by little stopped going to church and forgot the blessings in their life and so now we are working with their family to try and get them activated and I told them that we aren’t going to baptize Estefano until his dad can baptize him and they seemed really okay with it.  I really want to help them more than anything.

The Other Longest Week

Week Thirty-six!

This week was also hard.  This work is something hard to do alone and these two weeks have been an experience for me to grow a lot more.  I have gained a lot of respect for the rule to never be alone.  Sometimes it is hard to be around a person for 24/7 but they become your rock and it is a great blessing to learn to deal with different people.  I have a lot more love for the leaders I have been given in the mission every single one has been put in their position for me in this time and I know that having them as my leaders is the representation of God’s love for me.

And this week I was thinking a lot about loneliness because I was reading a lot from my setting a part blessing and it says that there while be times when I feel alone.  I was thinking before like maybe when I have a companion that I don’t get along with perfectly, or my first Latina companion is when that will come.  But I have had those both and it wasn't until I was physically alone that that feeling came.  But I pushed through and the companion of Hermana Salinas is ending her mission and she has been called back to be with me for these last days just until the real cambio but I am so grateful.

Other than that not a lot happened this week. Yes it was voting, so Conference was still postponed, thank you for the spoilers.  We will be watching conference this next weekend that is coming I don’t know yet if I will have it in English or not but I’m not too worried about it.

We will know who my permanent companion is tomorrow, I’m a little nervous because everyone has told me I’m going to train, which I’m okay with I guess, I really just want a companion.

(The Scriptures that have become my favorites in these last 8 Months)

D&C 58:2-4 

D&C 39:7-9

D&C 112:10

D&C 122:7

D&C 60:13

D&C 39:13-17 (We all know it actually says Peru)

Love

Hermana Peters

P.S.

There is a lady here and she can literally knit anything into a hat she makes animal hats she made a Shrek hat.  Naturto, she is the best knitter in the world.