Hi everyone!
It has been a crazy week with so much change, but it has also been a great week.
I left the CCM on Tuesday and stayed overnight in Asuncion that first day. On Wednesday we had a little training and then I was assigned my compañera, we dropped my stuff off at the house and then we got to work that evening!
My compañera is Hna. Getz, and she is awesome. In the mission they call our trainers "mamas" and the nueva misioneras are "hijas".. entonces ¡soy una hija! haha
I have been "born" (this is my first area) into the area Juan de Salazar and I love these people!!! Paraguay is awesome. Super different, but awesome. There is a ton of fried foods - each meal with members is very filling. I feel like the theme of Paraguay is "Use it up, wear it out, make do or do without". They do not have much, but they use what they have and I love that!
The work is pretty tiring-we walk a TON- but it is so satisfying. I am out the second my head hits the pillow every night and I feel tired a lot but somehow I have enough energy to keep up with mi compañera.
This week we had the baptism of Karen Dominguez. I just walked into this baptism, so I have not worked much with Karen or her family, but we have hopes that her mom, dad and brothers will follow her example and know the truth of the gospel for themselves!
We have a TON of future investigators, one upcoming baptism, three progressing investigators and then we work a lot with the less active members and recent converts. There is a lot of work to be done here, the field is truly "white and ready to harvest" (D&C 4). The people here are also super friendly, so that makes it easy to contact with my broken Spanish hehe There are many differences between here, the States and even just Argentina, but the Spirit in member's homes and during sacrament meeting is the same.
Yesterday was a national holiday- "El dia de los niños". I do not know exactly when, but once upon a time there was a war in Paraguay and all of the men were injured or killed, so the young men (about ages 14-16) took up arms and fought for their country. August 16 is the day they celebrate these young men's sacrifice/valor and it is like their Christmas - in the sense that all of the kids get presents and there is a lot of fiestas. This event reminds me of the Stripling Warriors in the Book of Mormon and how they too took up arms when their fathers were not able to. I love the verse in Alma 56:47 "they had been taught by their mothers that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them". Even though they never had fought, they were laying down their lives and they probably had a lot of fear, they knew they were on the Lord's side and that they would be alright. I gain a lot of strength from their examples of faith.
I hope all is well with everyone, my pdays are now Mondays!
¡Estoy aquì porque yo amo a toda la gente de Paraguay!
Hermana Carr