I´ll be in Bolivia for Christmas

LES AMO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! GRACIAS POR TODO!!!!!!!!   se que no soy perfecto pero siempre voy estar carda uno de ustedes cualquier coas que necesita :):) en verdad Les Quiero!!! 

I´m sooooo sure you are all busy with your christmas plans with our family from Thailand in Hawaii. It makes me so happy that you all get to be together and to enjoy the holiday seasons. Enjoy it!!!! :) 

Something that I loved about the Christmas Conference with Presidente Hansen was a quote said by Elder Bednar. "Permiten que su absencia de su familia en casa sea un testigo de su amor por su Redentor". Allow that your absence from your family at home be a witness of your love for your redeemer. It helped me a lot to be able to keep my thoughts on the work and be motivated to share the message of Jesus Christ with others. Last night we had a Christmas Conference with President. It was beautiful. He showed us the video of the Piano Guys with David Archuleta singing the song....what´s it called? But all I know is that it says, Glooooooriaaaa....hark the angels herald sing...there it is...that´s the name haha. I loved the part when all the angels are watching the little boy Jesus in the arms of Mary. I loved hearing testimonies of how we knew that we were there in the pre-mortal life rejoicing about the birth of Christ.....its such a joy really.

I am so excited to skype with you guys this week. Just to give you a heads up...just like last time when we skyped, if I am late to log in its because there are a few complications with internet.....or finding a place to skype.....I´m in Bolivia...and its a struggle to find a place.... :( but hopefully things goes well in Bishop´s house. Fingers crossed..and lots of prayers. I wish I could talk with you guys for more than 40 minutes...but I must be obedient and make use of those 40 minutes wisely. I warn you that my english terrible. I´m better at typing than speaking. I can´t even teach formal english to my companions anymore because I don´t know what is right..haha. 

So I am with Hermana Muralles from Guatemala. She is a good missionary. There is no such thing as a bad missionary. They had closed one of the areas in our ward..so there were a few changes of boundaries of every area. Our area is bigger...and I have so much to learn and to get to know. It so happens though that every missionary in our ward practically has to open an area...and so we are all going to be getting to know our area and the members. We are praying so hard that we will be guided to do so. But ever since I got here, I find joy in learning my way around and getting lost here and there just to become an expert of the names of the streets and who lives where and what is there....its the first time..well I only had two areas..but its the first time that I have to get to know an area by the names of the street. Because my first area was according to stores..bus stops..and what nots...I got so used to that, that learning an area for its street, it takes getting used to. Being the one who is supposed to know the area when it comes to me and my companion, pushes me a whole lot to work and to look for people to teach. Now that its the week of the holidays and Christmas....no one is home....or they are home but they don´t want us to let us in their homes...or they´re traveling....or they don´t believe in Jesus. Its been a rough week and we are hoping to not let those little things keep us from keep trying. To be honest I do miss Hermana Callata. I was able to see her last night at the conference. I miss all of my old companions. But I do enjoy meeting new sisters and being able to learn more from each and every one of them. 

With Hermana Muralles, we laugh all day in the street. She is a funny girl, but to be honest I can´t always understand what she says.......I´m still getting used to her accent.....lol Its been really cold with rain for two days and after that its been hot.......oh the weather in Bolivia. 

I am so blessed to be with an amazing Pensionista who loves missionaries and wants to make sure that we are able to have a wonderful Christmas. She will be doing a special dinner for us on Christmas eve. I love her so much...she is always worried about our well-being. 

We have a progressing investigator and she happily received an answer to her prayers to know if the church is true, if Joseph Smith was a prophet, and the BOM, too..she accepted the baptismal date and she is progressing sooooo much...I feel tremendously blessed to be able to watch them grow closer to our Heavenly Father. 

Giovanna got her temple recommend. Our recent convert. We will be going to the temple with her the following week. 

To think about how the following week will be 2015.......wwwwwwoooooowwwww...oh how the year went by so fast. How is it that everything happens so quickly? 

I love you all so much....and I can´t wait to see you this thursday. One of the things I also loved last night from the conference was that President said that one of the recent returned missionaries from Bolivia said, "I love my family and I love my country, but my heart is still in Bolivia." I love being a missionary and I love that I get to serve the Lord during the holidays. Sure I do miss you all...but like it says at the beginning of this letter....my absence is a witness of my testimony of my Redeemer Jesus Christ. He lives. He loves us. And what a joy to know these things to be true. I´ll see you in a few! 

Hna Santeco

PS: The photos are from last night. Its the first time our group is together in Cochabamba. Hna Wingate, Hna Hansen, Hna Hullinger, and I. Whooo-hoo!!! 10 months out! And I also got to see Hna Donoso (my first companion in the field :)) Then also a foto with my new companion-hna Muralles. 

PPS: Presidente made it clear that I can only speak with family on skype and that friends should not be invited to be in our house while I speak with you..lol but its all good with me. I want to see your faces!!! not your faces being fed with ono food from the islands though..yeah??? haha...

here is a story by the way of one of the days i had this week...

i was walking in the street and one ant bite my foot.......and i was like...well its like my childhood when ants bite me...i havent gotten bitten by one for ages...then...we walk across the street...full of cars and in the midway...of going we have to stop to wait for cars to pass and my companion tells me that there are ANTS on the ground. i was looking at the other side of the ants crawling...then my feet (BOTH OF THEM) starts to hurt.......i look at my feet and there is like 20 of them on my foot biting me!!! i freaked out and wiped them off of me......ahhhhh!!! i hate ants.....it was terrible.