13 PaGeS LoNg

WhErE tHe PaGeS oF tHiS bOoK nEvEr EnD



Wednesday, September 4, 2013

I got mail for the first time!!!!

Hola mi familia! Què pasa?
The weeks are starting to run together and fly by and through and up and down and sideways, so this email will have no real order to it because I am going to type it as the stuff comes to my memory. Entonces, lo siento ahora.
I`m going to start by explaining this week`s email subject name and the purpose thereof. As I have said in a past email, it rains a lot aquì in Mexico City. However, this past week, the heavens must have been having a pool party with a slip`n slide or something cause it has been pouring buckets down on us. (And it always seems to be at dinner time, when we actually have to be outside). Anywho, speaking of slip `n slides, that brings me smoothly into my story believe it or not. On Friday, we had just finished eating dinner and it was pouring outside, and while mis hermanas were huddling under umbrellas howling about their hair, I did the most logical thing and grabbed off my shoes and made a run for it back to our classroom building. As I begin running I think "hmm, wow this sidewalk is slippery, I better stop running til I get to the street" so I tiptoe fast walk to the asphalt and then make a break for it across the road. Little did I know that in Mexico, the paint on the roads is SUPER slippery (especially when wet) So I go "slip, catch, slide, slip, catch, SLIPSLIDE SPPPLLAAASSSHHH" right into the river (road gutter thing) of water. I quite literally slip `n slided across the street. I was soaked from head to toe, and I cut up and busted open my knees and my elbows and my ankle. But there I lay, in the running river, laughing my head off cause I for some reason thought it was so funny. I ended up having to go to la clinica, but I couldn`t walk there so my compañera gave me a pigggyback ride across campus. She`s a champ. The doctor cleaned me all up with iodine and the such and bandaged me up quite nicely. Now I have some pretty narly scabs (ew, sorry scab is a gross word), and I`ll most likely have a scar of some sort on one of my knees. But I`m alright, and it makes for a pretty exciting story, right? I thought so too.
Also on Friday..I GOT MAIL FOR THE FIRST TIME!! It was so wonderful! I`m the mail lady for our district so I go and check the post office every day and it felt sooo great to finally have my name on something instead of one of the stinkin elders` name with heart and stuff (bleh). Momma, the galletas (cookies) were still sooo good, and everyone in my district loved them. It just tasted so good to have something homemade, ya know? Hearing from you guys was so wonderful! Thank you for letters!
One of the most spiritual experiences this week was when we had TRC on Wednesday. Hermana Avery and I ended up having to teach one of our teachers. We were teaching him as himself, which was a bit weird cause we always teach people as pretend investigators. Anyways, we started in Spanish and then he switched the conversation to english so we taught in english pretty much the whole time. To get to use english in teaching for the first time was such a wonderful experience! There was no language barrier, so the spirit could prompt us to say anything! The spirit was so strong, and Hermana Avery and I were crying as we bore testimony. Goodness, I can`t even accurately describe to y`all how wonder of an experience it was. We really helped a real person with real problems they were facing in life. I felt like a real missionary and representative of our Lord and Savior :) I can`t wait to be able to do that for real for a year and I half of my life! What a great blessing!
Soo, guess who I see around all the time since last Tuesday...JOSEPH NANTO!! When I ran into him on Tuesday, and yelped for joy and I almost tackled him in excitement...I probably looked like such a spaz haha. It`s so different seeing him with a missionarytag on. But he seems to be doing great and his companion seemed pretty nice and cool, so that`s good. Goodness, I love having Joey here. It`s so nice seeing a bit of home every once in a while. And let`s be honest, he`s a hoot! Nothing phases that kid :)
Also, there was a live MTC devotional broadcast last week with Neil Anderson. It was pretty good. And I saw KAITLIN BAKER in the Provo MTC chior! The camera loved her cause I saw her about 9 times. Such a ham ;) When I saw her, I accidentally said really loud, "HOLY COW THAT`S MY ROOMIE!" I scared a few elders that were sitting next to us.. uhhh lo siento fellows.
Què màs.....
We teach A LOT here. The other day, we taught about 6 lessons in a day. I was soo tired by the end of it, but it was a good kind of tired (kind of a `joseph after the first vision` kind of thing).
My companion Hermana Avery is really good at Spanish. She understood it before she came here so that helps a lot in lessons. At first, she used to have to help me with about every other word, BUT the other day during a lesson, I had to help HER with lots of palabras! It made me feel so good! Even though I know I`ve made lots of progress, it`s hard sometimes to see it from the inside looking out, ya know? It`s easy to get discouraged. But when I got to help my "spanish-smart" companion, I realized in that moment "wow, I`ve made LOTS of progress!" I even can understand the jist of what people say a little bit better without having to make them slow down to kindergarden level. Whooop whoop! Confidence boost: check. Paso a paso, my friends.
I got a letter from dad yesterday..Thanks Dad! It completely made my day :) I love the little funny smiley faces you draw on the envelopes. The talk by Elder Bednar you sent me about grace and the atonement was wonderful! That is a principle of the gospel I have be studying up on and trying to get better at exercising in my life, so it was perfect! Also, on Sunday multiple talks and classes and devotionals were on grace and the atonement, so it was doublely perfect! It`s in moments like that when I know Dad`s an inspired guy :)
Random comments and thoughts that don`t fit in anywhere else:
-I organized a game of trashketball as a review game to study spanish during on of our study times on sunday. It was pretty fun, and it made the boys way happy, so score 1 para me.
-During gym time, I have been playing lots of basketball lately. $teah, you`d be proud! I can make so `nothin but net` free throws. And a few of the elders in my district that played basketball are teaching me how to shoot 3-pointers. I`ll be an all-star at the rate I`m going in no time! I`ll be able to hussle Daddio by the time I get home!
-One of the only fruits they have here that aren`t sketchy is cantalope. I honestly eat it with every meal. I think by the time I get home, I will no longer enjoy cantalope.
-I am already sad about the day I will have to go home and go back into the "real" world of craziness. I love the spirit that constantly abides with me as a missionary. AHH, I don`t even know how to explain it...It`s just one of the best feelings in the world.

I would just like to end this little dohicky by saying I love you guys so much. Thank you so much for all your support and prayers. I`ve come to feel so close to the spirit, the Lord, and my Heavenly Father over the past few weeks. I love them, and I love this work. I feel so honored and blessed to be a part of this work while the Lord is hastening his work. I know that the Lord will and does support us through anything in our lives (good and bad). I know we are his children, and I know he will never EVER in a million trillion years leave us helpless. We are the ones that forget he is there, not the other way around. Seriously you guys, turn to Him. Look to Him always. Follow in His footsteps as closely as you possibly can. I know he can change hearts. I`ve seen it in myself and in many others. Always trust, never doubt. Our God is a God of miracles, but miracles require work and lots and LOTS of faith.

God be with you til we meet oltra vez.
Love always and always,
Hermana Abigail Page


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