August 11, 2014: First week in Mexico

Well I'm here!! And holy crap it is nuts!! Hahaha I love it. Okay so we land in Mexico after a super smooth day of flying and everything is good! Looks a lot like it was in Quito, not too shabby really pretty nice! Stayed the night at the mission home, got assigned to our new companions the next day and my companion is from Puebla and she is seriously perfect for me. I had been praying super hard for someone who #1. wasn't awful and #2. helped me out. and she is obviously a native speaker, but she speaks some English so we made a deal that at night time we speak English and she said this is good because then I can tell her how my day actually was. its super good. I love her and she has been way patient with me, because it ca be really hard to contact people or teach in a lesson because uhh half the time i actually don't even know what is being said. but wow I have learned so much in one week! So my area is called Tapachula and barrio Cardova! Yep right next to Guatemala, and lets just say it is not as nice as Tuxtla. like I thought I knew 3rd world from my trip to Guayaquil... nope. Ill send pics sometime, but hollly canolie. teaching in apartments with dirt floors and there are no screens on the doors or windows so guess what that means! BUGS! yep, gigantic cockroach in the bathroom the other day and ants and lizards all over the house and one morning i woke up to a huuuge spider in the kitchen and i was like Hermana!! and she just walked on over and squished it as it was literally hopping LIKE A FROG! mom, you would die. And the stuff i have eaten. I should go on fear factor. like this morning we had nothing for breakfast except some cracker things that were infested with some ants. and i ate them cuz i was hungry. yep. hahah but that makes it seem a lot worse than it really is. its not bad and the ward is super good about preparing meals that are good for north Americans as they say. we eat everyday with members and the lunch is big enough that i don{t feel hungry until breakfast the next morning. so we don't really have to cook. but I'm taking good care of myself and making sure I'm healthy so don't worry! 

Also I'm my companion's 3rd trainee but first gringa. She says she is super grateful I'm learing fast and that I can understand a lot of what is being said so that she doesn't have to do everything alone, but I still feel like she has to do everything alone.. haha it'll get better, I'm just trying to be super patient with myself. 

On Friday we had a ward activity put on by us the missionaries. It was a talent show and 9 new references showed up! and we had 7 new investigators at church. this ward is supper excited about missionary work. Its such a blessing. and we are crazy busy. Im way glad this is my first area for that reason. 

In sacrament meeting i play the piano because no one here knows how. 

But there are really good investigators here. Most of them are super patient with the fact that I talk like suppper slow. And oh man it is hilarious when we contact! We switch of who contacts me and my other companion, and we have to get 20 contacts a day. and when she starts she always says hello we would just like to stop you for a minute and give you an English test. and because the  only other white people here are missionaries they think its weird and funny and laugh and then totally listen to us. yay for being a gringa. the other day we were contacting on a colectivo and i started talking to this girl and then the lady next to us was like we cant understand what you are saying at all hahaha oh man my accent is super bad but my companion is helping me muchissimo and she says its getting lots better. I'm just trying to not be scared to speak! I know that God blesses us when we try and when we do what he wants. Today the leaders of the zone (who are super nice, the missionaries in the zone are seriously great) gave us a blessing and said that if I was super obediant I would have the language down in 6 months! Man, I really hope so. My companion had to learn a native language here for a different area they only send native mexicans, and she learned the language in 1 month. I can understand best what is being said during lessons with investigators. I seriously have a testimony of the reality of the gift of tongues! Heavenly father called me to this area now at this time. My companion was explaining to me how he needs me now, not later. Whoo. I love this. Its hard, and sweaty and the culture.. i don{t totally get it yet. but Its coming! The ward is awesome, the kids especially because they are super patient and pretty much get what im saying. Its good. And an investigator who speaks some English is either getting baptized this saturday or next! Wow first baptism! So exciting. The gospel flipped his life around. Hes like 20 years old and kind of lived the party life style, but now he is like our #1 member missionary and wants everyone to feel how awesome this work is! 

Have a great week everyone! Love you!