leadership training conference lunch
it was the last time i got to see hna rumualdo, my last companion. she is going home this transfer
with hna Hansen
one the plane with the others sister training leaders to get back to sucre and potosi
after 7 months, i finally got brian wheeler´s letter from Japan.
i love letters!
How lucky is my mom to have her birthday and mother´s day combined in one month. I love the card that dad made for you mom. Its true really. You are special to us everyday and we do really love you and appreciate you for all that you do. I am so grateful for mothers and the wonderful women in my life who I have as my examples. Just yesterday as the nursery leaders brought all the loud noisy kids to the relief society room when we were still in the middle of the lesson, I observed each of the children run searching for their mothers. Many of them ran up to their mothers hugging them and kissing them. Inspite of the noise and the chaos and the poor relief society president trying to speak over the noise of the kids screaming and crying (which was funny), I could feel the joy of being a daughter of a wonderful mother, and the future of being one, one day. I have my moments in the mission where I rethink and say, "How am I going to be a mother if this kids drive me nuts?!" But then again...I could see the beautiful moments that a mother could have with her children. I yearn for that and that really also makes me excited for Marvelyn to be having her son very soon.
This week was a week full of traveling, learning, and taking care of my companion. My companion has gotten a little sick from traveling and the both of us had felt a little overwhelmed from all the things we are expected to do as sister training leaders in Potosi....1. Its really cold....2. we have two little heaters (portable) and five blankets, and fuzzy socks. 3. We had to go through Godly sorrow with our investigators, 4. Companion exchanges..we still got to do them still. 5. and many other factors.....but we had the wonderful priviledge to fast and pray to find a way to get through this little mountain in our journey together in Potosi. The Lord shown His hand...and touched our hearts to show that there is still good when it seems there is only bad.
We traveled to Cochabamba this past tuesday night. Just as last time, we traveled the night before in a taxi, a three hour car ride to Sucre, stayed the night there and traveled through plane to Cochabamba the following morning. Traveling is not fun. I would love traveling if I were with Gabe, Jess, and Marvy. Like those fun times on the plane rides to Thailand. But I do my best now to take advantage of the time to sleep...but its kind of hard to sleep in small cars and short plane rides...and when the elders want to talk the whole way......but the conference, the leader trainingship conference was awesome. Loved it! We also ate good food for lunch. It was almost like a loaf of bread filled up with pizza stuff, almost like a hot pocket, but not. But it was huge!!!!! The funny thing was that out of the 10 sister training leaders in the mission, I was the only sister that could finish it. Bahahaha....oh do I know how to eat! We stayed at President´s house that night and when I told him and Hermana Hansen, his wife that I ate it all, you should have seen their faces. They were shocked and said, "You ate that whole thing?!" hahahaha....I love eating so much. After that conference, my companion and I went out and shop a bit for a few things from the supermarket for things we can´t find in Potosi. For example, Doritos and pasta. hahaha and pancake mix. I am cooking like crazy now. I even bought a hairdryer because its hard to leave my hair wet here now in Potosi...its cold. We ate dinner, ate some good chicken and went to the mission house. Hermana Hansen was there home alone while president was at a meeting. We talked to her as we were just settling down. She gave us some clothes to bring to Potosi so we would be warm. (Thank goodness) and then we started to talk to her like just girl talk. She told us how she meet president, how she knew she was to marry him, and how he proposed and how she responded. It was so funny and so fun to talk to her like that. She made me realize how the mission is really preparing me for marriage...(I am not trunky, I am just being real now haha). But really. I can see it and I am really grateful.
Being in their house was really nice. President Hansen got home and joined the conversation and that is when I told them about how I finished my lunch at conference. Hahaha. Then when we just finished the conversation and about to leave to the room, President asked if we could do a family prayer. It was so tender. He said the family prayer and literally accepted us along with his wife as if we were their daughters.
But I am not going to lie. It was HOT in Cochabamba to sleep there. I do not know how I am going to adjust to the Hawaiian weather. I am so used to the dry and cold climate now.
That next morning they made us french toast and sent us off to the airport in a taxi. I felt like I was literally with a family of my own who loved me. President Hansen and Hermana Hansen are amazing.
We got to our area after the long traveling and went straight back to work. We did not eat lunch that day because we felt sick from the traveling, but eventually I literally went crazy for food...mostly chicken because I didn´t eat any meat that day. But we kept working.
I had seen so many funny things here. Its sooooo funny. Usually how you can see on google that the people here carry things and somethings their babies in ayuayo (the colorful fabric) on their backs. That day I say a lady carry her son on her back who was probably like 5 years old, just strapped awkwardly on her back. Just like a strap. Just like he was duct taped to her back with his legs dangling. Its was hilarious!
We are traveling to a farther place for zone conference this month, to a place called Quiriza. Its an hour away from Tupiza. It is where the church started in Tupiza. Its a beautiful place and I´ll make sure to tell you guys more about it as soon as I know for myself for sure.
We were lucky to find a member to have us come to use their computers to skype you guys. We are so excited!
I got Brian´s letter after 7 months. I loved his letter!
I got your package! I loved that too thank you so much!
The miracles this week...with the Vara Family, it has been hard not with them, but everyone in our area. Sometimes we feel that this area is just really one of the hardest ones in the mission. People progress really slow here. But we went back to this family to teach them and show them the Restoration Video of Joseph Smith. After thinking that because her kids are noisy and won´t let her listern or pay attention...we could see that the spirit was working in her. She told us that she felt something different, from that movie, and even when she reads the pamphlets. We gave her the Book of Mormon...we are so happy. We left that appointment happy. It was the same day while we were fasting. My soul was filled with so much light and I was content and grateful.
Finding people here also is hard. Finding people to teach. They just....disappear sometimes and get lost. We go to this place, sabores urbanos where they make DELICIOUS food. I go there a lot to eat salchi papas, lomito, hamburgers. We always wanted to contact the owners of that place. We finally did yesterday in the street. Did you know how hard it is to find people who live together and are married and dont work on sundays? They happened to live together, to be married, and to not work on sundays. Thank you Heavenly Father for that miracle.
I am grateful. Just so grateful for the things that I am learning here and the opportunity to grow and to serve the savior. The time is going by so fast. 4 months to go...one week to go to see your beautiful faces. The mission is the best and I´m loving the time I have here...to see the progress...of others and ourselves.
I look forward to see you all soon.
Have a wonderful week. Love you,
Hermana Santeco
How lucky is my mom to have her birthday and mother´s day combined in one month. I love the card that dad made for you mom. Its true really. You are special to us everyday and we do really love you and appreciate you for all that you do. I am so grateful for mothers and the wonderful women in my life who I have as my examples. Just yesterday as the nursery leaders brought all the loud noisy kids to the relief society room when we were still in the middle of the lesson, I observed each of the children run searching for their mothers. Many of them ran up to their mothers hugging them and kissing them. Inspite of the noise and the chaos and the poor relief society president trying to speak over the noise of the kids screaming and crying (which was funny), I could feel the joy of being a daughter of a wonderful mother, and the future of being one, one day. I have my moments in the mission where I rethink and say, "How am I going to be a mother if this kids drive me nuts?!" But then again...I could see the beautiful moments that a mother could have with her children. I yearn for that and that really also makes me excited for Marvelyn to be having her son very soon. 
Being in their house was really nice. President Hansen got home and joined the conversation and that is when I told them about how I finished my lunch at conference. Hahaha. Then when we just finished the conversation and about to leave to the room, President asked if we could do a family prayer. It was so tender. He said the family prayer and literally accepted us along with his wife as if we were their daughters. 
I had seen so many funny things here. Its sooooo funny. Usually how you can see on google that the people here carry things and somethings their babies in ayuayo (the colorful fabric) on their backs. That day I say a lady carry her son on her back who was probably like 5 years old, just strapped awkwardly on her back. Just like a strap. Just like he was duct taped to her back with his legs dangling. Its was hilarious! 
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