After Mother's Day

hello hello and hello!

how fun was it to talk yesterday! One hour goes by so very fast. i really enjoyed talking to you guys though, keep being amazing! 

The photos today are one of me, hermana morris, and hermana armas. The other one is of me with this thing hermana morris and i bought because we were hungry one night. Its chicken and fries, with a drink as the part you hold! It’s like the ultimate fast food. You could just walk and eat, or put it in your car and it’s like the easiest thing ever! We thought we were all about fast in america, but the Cambas (people from Santa Cruz) sometimes beat us on making life easy. hahaha. 

Anyways... so monday playing wallyball was fun again. but hermana morris and i were kind of walking around with a little black rain cloud over our heads because rumors were going around that the reason why we were together was because we couldn’t handle being trainers and other rumors about how we´ve been flirting with elders and things like that. So we were feeling blackcloudish with all these rumors, and it’s hard to have the spirit when you feel blackcloudish. So, we decided to call President. Well he was like No! Everything is fine! You girls are doing great! PLEASE don’t feel bad! And he told us that he´d call us into his office soon to explain what’s going on. So that really helped us feel a lot better. i really needed to hear that. So then we went on working like usual.

The rest of the week went well. We didn’t have quite as many lessons as we were hoping for, but being who we are we still walked and didn’t ever stop! I couldn’t be more grateful for the ability of Hermana Morris to always keep going and never be lazy. EVER. She´s amazing and incredible and basically i know how to be a missionary thanks to her.

Anyways we had an awesome lesson with the Fernandez family this week. (the family of little Gabriela). We did the lesson family home evening style. We thought that like all their kids were going to come but it ended up being only the mom, dad, and the two youngest kids. well i felt like we should pull out my tree lesson. It went over incredibly. The dad just started bawling and said that he really wants to go back to church, he´s just so embarrassed by what he´s been doing with his life. He said he wants to start over like an investigator though, and take all the lessons with his daughter now. We are so excited for this family to come back! We are going to move her baptism date until june though, so we can really get this family going strong first and so that she wont just get baptized and go inactive. But anyways the tree lesson is like my favorite thing ever. I definitely can tell that i have more and more creativity in my mission, and i know it’s because I’m listening more and more to the spirit and learning more and more how the spirit talks to me. It’s so great.

Well we were really sad about the family Vasconcelos this week, the Brazilian family. We had a lesson on wednesday and the mom didn’t even come down to talk to us. The dad said something along the lines of "we don’t go to church so we just like that you guys come to bless our house". We really pushed prayer and going to church and did our best, but we felt a little sad leaving, and that maybe we would move our focus to other people this week. BUT! The dad and two of his kids with two of their cousins came to church! ah! we are so happy! Also, right next to this internet cafe, there’s a photo shoot place, and who should be taking their pictures this morning, but the family Vasconcelos! So we have an appointment with them tonight, and we are praying so hard for them. I just know they are going to make it. Maybe not in my time frame, but i am going to do what i can to help them understand how happy they can be!!

And of course my biggest news of the week is that Hermana Morris and I are the first Hermana Zone leaders in the mission! So that’s the real reason we are together again. It’s amazing to see how I’ve been prepared for this calling. All this week ivé been reading in Alma 48-50ish and learning so much about how to be a leader like God wants, and the differences between good and bad leaders. Like all of this has just been jumping off the page of the book of mormon at me and it’s been a confirmation to me that God has called me to this position. so pray for me! ;)

anyways it’s been a great week. I am loving the mission. Thanks monica also for the birthday package! The sweater is beautiful! Thanks family and friends for so much support, for your letters and packages. I do try to write back to everyone that writes me- i hope you get my letters! if not, please know i think about you all and pray for you all!

with lots of love,

hermana black