Week 41 - Trevelin

What is going on with your health, Sari?

I'm good! I have a med for acid (basically like the omeprozole, but prescription strength).

What is a specific prayer for the work that each of you want?

Pamela needs her husband to listen to us. She doesnt want to progress in the gospel and leave him behind. If you could pray for her and pray that we can find people who are willing to go to church or that we can find the way to get them to church? People keep all the commitments, know its all true and DONT go to church. ugh.

 

What's a specific prayer for YOU personally that each of you want?

I want to be confident. I am happy and I'm doing good and I trust the Lord, but I lose trust in myself, like always, sometimes. 

Are you each liking your area?

I LOVE my area. 

This Monday  we had a zone-p-day. All the missionaries from Esquel came over and we ate lunch (chips and chili) at the Clarks house (the married missionaries here in Trevelin. Then, we all walked to a lake, but not to the lake because Pres said we cant get near the water. The Clarks walked on to the lake while we walked around it and up a little mountain. Hermana Brown and I had a blast and took jumping pics and braided daisies in our hair and ran and jumped and sang, while everyone else was normal and gloomy and walked. It was a good time! We TRIED to include other people in our fun shenanigans. I promise! Then we went back to the Clarks for cake (SO YUMMY). 

The 18 miracles: 

we found an awesome investigator-brenda, 

we found and investigator that we could never find at her house on the bus after having a failed attempt to find her house (in which failed attempt we found branda),

 we found 2 girls that were in the open house of the church and could find out where they live (because the ELDERS lost the lsit of people and addresses that went to the open house), 

we found a family in the street and they want us to visit them, 

The doctors appointments went well, 

we could get our full time of writing in the morning,

we could talk to ana at exaclty the moment when she was home(we always tried to talk to her and she was never home), 

We also, could make it to the bank and to the doctors all in time to catch the bus to go back to trevelin

We had money for the bus

We had money enought o get to and back from bariloche without straving

a member from esquel was working as a police officer and he saw us in the street teaching a woman who was super closed and stopped behind us and said, these girl have a valuable mesage and its true and walked away-sghe opened right up after that experiece,

 we could get a ride from tghe clarks to go visit brenda and ana carmen in aldea, 

we thought that we had lost the bus to get back from aldea but it came and took us home, 

we got back from esquel just in time to let the alarm guys in to install an alarm, 

we had a great lesson with a less active-the silva family, 

we found our r3ecent convert in the street in esquel even though she is ALWAYS working, 

ETC. those are just a few from that day. (tuesday) No, i did not count them haha 

We also had exchanges in Batriloche with our old companions. Hna J is with Hna V now. We did not feel welcomed AT ALL. V did not look me in the eye that whole time, the did not tell us anything about the plans, they were jsut rude and it was weird. I think that maybe they arent very good friends because usually when theres a wall between us and other sisters its because theres a wall between them. Anyways. It was great because I got to see hna BANUERA! she's still fabulous and cute! 

We also had the world broadcast for missionaries where they announced the new schedule! We are using the north america schedule because the sun goes down earlier than it does in northern southern america. 

This week was great! God loves u! And our investigators are good! 

Thats all Ive got time for :) 

Oh yeah! While we were in exchanges, we both bought 2 snickers, one for ourselves and the other for the other:) We came back to pensiona nd said we had a surprise for the other and it was the same thing! UNITY

Week 40 - Trevelin

Worry not, but I did go to the doc this week. The presidents wife had me do it. DO NOT WRITE PREs. none of the missionaries tell their parents when they go to the doc because the parents freak out. Im fine!!!! Also, we had the open house at chuirch! it was GREAT! ill write more tomorrow.

More news from Hermana Brown than Sari this week:
WELL I PROMISED YOU A STORY.

AND YOU ALL SHALL GET A STORY.

Hello. Love from the Southern Hemisphere.

Fun thought. I am still closer to Antarctica than I am to all of you.

Carry on.

WELL HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO you wonderful people :) I would like to share some good times :)

MARTES, my 5 month mark in the mission (Wow. Holy crap. I am not okay with this..... hmmmmm...)

Life was REALLY good to me:)

The day started with the us trying to write to you all and my family since last monday was... less time.

The computer didn´t work.

Lord says no.

Then, after being a bit down in spirits, we took to the street.... where we were talking to a lovely lady in the street, and a member from another city POPPED INTO THE LESSON and testified that what we were saying was true... She began to smile and then really listen. We testified of the blessings that the gospel of Jesus Christ has for her and her family. It was incredible. Never never never underestimate the power that you can have on someone, even if it was really short. A 2 second smile, a wave in the street, and small compliment. PLEASE know how much your actions can help someone else :)

Annnnnd that was the same feeling we got when we shared a picture of Christ with a cute little family who thanked us over and over for their first picture of Jesus they can put in their home :) It was really sweet.

Also.

We have been going to the doctor for my lovely companion since other country food messes with the Americans. (Except for mine. I am fine. I believe I have a stomach made from steel???? I need to talk to my parents and figure it out....) Anyhow, the medical staff was really quick, really eager to help, and even offered to talk in English for us to be mroe comfortable :) THAT WAS KIND!

Annnnd then I bought Hermana Sant some Grido´s, popular ice cream here and... it was a miracle that the men working there didn´t kick me out the door after I asked for the wrong ice cream.

I said I would like dirty chocolate, instead of I would like swiss chocolate..

Sucio=dirty, Suizo=swiss.... yes.. That is DEFINTELY what a missionary, trying to represent Jesus Christ should say. 

Aha.

Ahem. Yes... Duly noted and I will never return to that place ;) 

Kidding... I need more ice cream in my life... 

Then, we were able to make it to our apartment EXACTLY when the mission office was calling us to inform us they needed us to be in our apartment to put in the alarm. :)

Then, the senior couple gave us a ride to the little town next to us since there are only like, 2 buses. One at 9 am and one at 6pm. And, to try to find our friend Ana who we could not find, but had begged us to come visit her...we were upset we couldn´t find her...

THEN, we were able to be in the right place at the right time to help a friend of ours try to learn how to study the scriptures :)

THENNNNNNNNNN

We caught the bus, in the nick of time, to come back to town. WHERE WE FOUND ANA!!!!!!!!!! She just about suffocated us hugging us so hard, and now we know where we can find her. All cause, again. The Lord put us in the right place in the right time.

THEN we tried to write again.

Computer still didn´t have internet..

BACK TO THE STREETS.

Sad we couldn´t write our families and I couldn´t write you all... We headed to some friends that asked us to share the Book of Mormon with them...

Who we couldn´t find in their house.... so we came back to the middle of town, unsure what to do. Started walking to the church...

AND FOUND SOME FRIENDS THAT WE HAD LOST CONTACT WITH FROM THE OPEN HOUSE, OPEN CHURCH THING WE HAD THE OTHER WEEK!!! GAHHHHHHH!

We wrote down how we could contact them and just about squeezed their eyeballs out we were so happy :) 

THEN.

COMPUTER WORKED. I COULD SEND EVERYONE A QUICK EMAIL.

AND NEARLY DIED OF HOW MANY BLESSINGS I COULD FIND IN JUST ONE DAY.

My lovely friends.

Here is my message.

Our loving Heavenly Father puts us in places, where we may not want to be, where we may think that our plan is a good one but...

He puts us in the place we need to be, when we need to be there. Our plan for ourselves may be good, but His is better :)

Trust in this :)

This was one day, and not even all the miracles :)

Take note of what happens in the day, even when you least expect it, and you will find SO many blessings that our Heavenly Father has in store for you :)

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY.

Also.

Big things :)

Had the missionary, world wide broadcast...

AND THERE HAVE BEEN CHANGES.

We still wake up at 6:30 EVERY morning :) Tis a good time.

BUT NOW?!

WE CAN GO TO BED BETWEEN 9:30 and 10:30. LIKE: IT USED TO BE AT 10:30.

ANYYYYYYYYYYONE who knows me and my love of sleep will know, this is monumental.

You better bet your bottom dollar I am loving this.

ALSO.

BEST NEWS.

CHASE GOT INTO BYU-IDAHO!!!!!!!!!

CASEY GOT INTO ASU!!!!!!!!!!!!

WHITNEY IS HEADING BACK OUT WE BELIEVE IN MID FEB!!!!!!!

MY FAMILY IS THE BEST AND I AM SO HAPPY TO SEE THEM HAPPY IN ALL THESE THINGS!

Shout out to them for best the best family ever. Sorry, not sorry....Love you all but... yes. 

HAVE A PHENOMALLY BLESSED WEEK!

Blessed to have you all :)

Love you,

Hermana Kylie Brown

Ah. Yes. Enjoy this picture of me casually sitting on a wall in Bariloche. Tis a BEAUTIFUL place where I spent a day this past week. Was WAY fun to be in a city again :)

Week 39 - Trevelin

So, what's new? 

We reorganized the apartment! 

Last week, we cut grass for a member! It was my first time using a machine to cut the grass! Because I never got to at home! But the people here cut their grass with weed wackers not lawn mowers, so we weedwacked the entire lawn! It was a good time! 

Oh AND three people asked me if Im from mexico this week! My spansih is getting better! they didnt askfrom the states, but a latina country!!!!!yay!!!!! 

How the weather?

Today its cloudy and a little cold! Its not been really miserably hot down here yet... but summers not over yet! 

Still summer?

It should be

Still hot?

It should be. Sometimes it is! 

Do you take your sleeping bag with you when you transfer or does it stay with the apartment?

I have to take it with me and thats the hardest part. I ended up taking a different, cheap, bad one with me this transfer cause I didnt have space haha 

How's the companionship?

Really really really good. 

The investigators?

Pamela is doing really well! The others have fallen through the cracks this week because they dont want to progress in the gospel, they just like having 2 gringas in their house 

Tell me what you say when you clap at someone's house. 

We say hi, we´d like to share about Christ with you. Its a message very important. or we give them a card and explain it and we end by asking for friends and neighbors. Its hard to trasnlate it haha 

Do the branch members feed you? 

3 out of 7 days of the week pretty consistently and 4-5 times if we are lucky! 

When do you have district meeting?

It depends on when the matrimony couple can do it. We didnt have one last week. 

Happy?

LIFE

Sad?

When people dont want the gospel

Funny?

The sick stories! 

Pamels´s husband said, Hey we have a surprise in the backyard! Last time, it was a sheep they were going to kill to eat for new years. this time! It was a hiorse!!! they are NOt going to eat it, but they spent time letting their two year old ride it... unassisted! So cool! I love this place.

Challenging?

Being sick and traveling literally all week. 

Friends?

Thats what the investigators want us to be more than anything else. But Hna Brown and I are besties. 

Well, we had zone conference on monday after pday so that day we werent in our area. then we got a call from the office to go to Neuquen the next day. So we left at 7 in the morning to go to neuquén and got there at 11:30pm because the government cut off the highways and we had to travels for some dirt roads and buses were delayed and everything but we did eat WAFFLES from the one gringo in bolson in our stop there, and the yummiest hamburgers in barilooche, churros froma a sketchy chilean man that were REALLY good, and bus food! 

Then, When we were coming back, Hna brown got a bad fever. She was sick in bed the whole next day and I had so much energy and reorganized the apartment, cleaned the oven, made layered jello, soup, etc. and cleaned and cleaned and cleaned. 

I got sick the next day. That was rough. then it was sunday and we had the lesson  in relief society so we prayed really hard and went and then we tried to visit every single investigator we have. Only 2 of them responded. But it was all things considered a really good week!

Week 38 - Trevelin

Who are your investigators?

We have Nona, who gave us lunch this week and is awesome and says that her arraignment was falling apart before we came, but things fell together since we've been visiting her! 

Pamela. Shes fabulous. Her and her 7 year old daughter are reading the Book of Mormon and LOVE it. Can't put it down. Also, they just bought a horse. 

Marta and literally ALL of her family. We met this old lady and one by one we found a TON of her other family members all separate. And then  found out they're all part of the same family! MIRACLES! 

What miracles have happened this week? 

So many! I love this branch! We had some members accompany us to some appointments and one of the members (Hermana Niclischit... I say nickback, micklson, nickoftime, its our little joke with them) has a bone disease and she felt 100% fine during our visit and the walk, but felt bad the rest of the week. God helped her to help us help someone else! MIRACLE! 

 How is the language coming? 

Good! I still struggle with when to use era or fue. Ugg. 

 What is new/different in your new area?

I don't know that there is anything new or different. We found this little girl named Alma. She is 6 and is SO sweet. She loves us! We talked to her and like 10 of her friends on Thursday (they ALLLL wanted pamphlets and for us to sing etc.) then we walked by her house yesterday and she RAN out to great us and talked to us for like 20 minutes. She would stop every little bit, step forward and give me a hug and continue on about all of her pets and that god loves them too, etc. Its was super sweet. Then she made us pinky promise to come back. I LOVE her! 

What so your roads look like?

They're either dirt or brick! 

  What does the store you shop in look like? 

It looks like a little Walmart. 

 What does the town center look like? 

Its a round park. Its pretty! There aren't as many hippies here, but there are a few. 

We found a flat cat in the street. 

Also, bought a new toilet seat. This was the only way we knew how. Note: that oil stain is not from us.

Week 37 - Trevelin

So we found out about transfers on Tuesday night! But first, on Monday, we watched 17 Miracles in the church with Norma and Evelin and the Elders. Norma was crying. She loved it! Then we went to have ice cream! 

I GOT YOUR PACKAGE MOM! I love every bit of it! I LOVE LOVE LOVE every dress. I took a picture of me in each thing every day that I wore it. Also, I just loved all of it. Thank you SO SO SO much! I want like 10 million of these dresses for every day when I get home haha How did I not wear the stuff you made more when I was home? I was crazy! 

Okay, so on Tuesday Norma and Evelin wanted to do splits in case of one of us being trasnfered so we did splits for a few hours. Norma was so excited and talking to everyone on the street and giving out cards to every single person. Evelin helped me buy a few things from the hippies (telling me what is typical of Bolson and everything) during our time together in splits. I LOVE these girls! 

Then, that night, did I mention we didn't have water in our apartment starting Sunday night? We did not have running water. Showering... didn't happen. Until we had a bucket of water on Tuesday night, and cleaning was REALLY hard. 

Okay, so we got a call from the zone leaders and it was our transfers. They took me and Hna Banuera out of Bolson! And put in two elders! I am so glad we did splits one last time with Norma and Evelin. I feel like  I still have SO much more to do there! Hermana Banuera went to Bariloche and I came to Trevelin... more south!!! This city is a super small town that was settled by welsh people. The original word was trefelin meaning mill in welsh, but it sounded like Trevelin so it stuck! We have the zone leaders, Elder Conceicao (remember him?) and Elder Johnson here and we have a matrimony couple, the Clarks. We´re about 30 minutes from Esquel. And I LOVE it here. there is so much work to do. the branch is awesome and super willing to help in the work. 

My companion is Hermana Kylie Brown. Remember her? Friend of Daniel Hale that we had exchanges with one time? She's so cool. I love her. (You can read about her here: http://hermanasarisant.blogspot.com/2016/11/week-29-el-bolson.html.

And that's pretty much it! 

Does your apartment have AC? Fans? Anything to help with the heat?

We have one fan.

Do you open your windows at night? Cause that's dangerous you know. 

We open them anyways. We´re on the second story in a really small town with a shop downstairs. I think they'd rob the store before us. 

Does your freezer make ice? 

Yes. 

Do you have a freezer? 

Yes. 

Do you carry with you a water bottle?

Yes. 

Are you journaling? Do.

I am. A lot. I ran out of journals! 

Any more earthquakes?

Nope! 

I can't send pictures this week.  I will try to fix it for next week.

Love, Hermana Sari Sant

From Tif:

TREVELIN, ARGENTINA! 

 They have a coat of arms, being a Welsh city and all.

This map shows where in Argentina she is.

 

This map shows how far from her mission home she is.

 The mill that the town is built around and named after.

And some google images:

From Wikipedia:

Trevelin (Spanish pronunciation: [tɾeˈβelin]; Welsh: Trefelin) is a town in the Patagonian Argentine province of Chubut. The town lies on the eastern banks of the Rio Percy/Río Percey. It is located in the department of Futaleufú, 22 kilometres south of Esquel, and had 6,395 inhabitants at the time of the 2001 census [INDEC] and 7,908 inhabitants in the 2010 census [INDEC]. The town was important in the Welsh settlement of Chubut. It was named Trevelin (from Trefelin, the Welsh for "mill town") after the first flour mill, known as "Los Andes", was established there by John Daniel Evans (es) in 1891.^[1] Evans had previously become well known for leading expeditions into the Pampas in search of new lands and mineral reserves, which had earned him the nickname 'El Baqueano' (meaning guide or scout).

The weather looks delightful!  I know where I want to live for forever!

Sari's new companion also sent us her weekly letter!  It was super fun to read! Here it is for you:

"Well hello there blessed blessed family of mine :)
(And Mama Sant, because I would like to thank you personally for your daughter. Hello :) Hope you have a great day, and enjoy this email. :) )

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!! :D :D :D :D 

THANK you for your sweet emails :)

DAD THANK YOU FOR THE PICTURES :)

Ya´ll look good :) And I know I am getting fat :)

Seeing you all makes me think that :)

Selfish :)

BUT YOU ALL LOOK GOOD! 

Now.

WE HAD TRANSFERS!

GUESS WHAT?!

GOT MYSELF A GRINGA!!!!!

Hermana Sant! Sari Sant... the one that was SUPER sweet when we did exchanges in Bolson. And she is friends with some old FHE brother of mine in BYU I. We´re already having a BLAST. Good heavens. Like. This is great.

She is phenomenal. We got STRAIGHT to work when she got here, she respects all my decisons and thoughts, we are working hard to have the spirit and we have the same goals. And she is a PERFECT guide for me in Spanish. Now I can clarify like. Everything I thought I have learned.

To be honest, there is not much this week since its just been sending Ventura to Bariloche, as an Hermana Leader. Worked in Esquel again for a few days. And we have done a LOT of contacting this week. Like. 3 days of it. At least. And how many have we found? Maybe 2. So that is good :)

BUT ALSO!?!?!?! PATRICIA GOT CONFIRMED ON SUNDAY! SO THAT WOULD ACTUALLY BE THE HIGHLIGHT OF EVERYTHING! 

The spirit was THERE. She was BEAMING. And everyone thought she had been a member for 70 years by the power of her testimony through her prayers. :) I am just SO blessed to be a part of her journey in the gospel :) :)

And some mystery chocolate pancake ish thing we made last night... Picture is attatched for your pleasure and disgust. Sorry. 

Mom and Whit? No cramps :) Except I thought we were poisoned from something the Clarks made in their apartment.... NOT investigators that are trying to kill us, its our fellow American missionaries... so that was good.

Hermana Sant and I walked home from the lunch, then laid on our floor for a good 25minutes or so... Proselyting was impossible... but after we were resurrected, we worked hard and the Lord blessed us to be able to keep walking and not die anymore :)

DAD. I was wondering if you could make me a Skype name using my Gmail? Since I am... an idiot and have no idea what I didn´t do right last time.... gracias. 

And... there is that loan thing that is in my folder of a mess of things I left with you all? I believe they will start charging me next month if that is not taken care of.... and... that would be a bad time....

Annnnnnnd...

I will be more organized this week to have actual stories next week.

This week was nuts with transfers, organizing lives, organzing an more effective way to be missionaries, and I AM JUST BEYOND THRILLED FOR THESE NEXT 6 WEEKS! 

THERE WILL BE BOUNDLESS MIRACLES.

I also would like to invite you all to read a life changing talk (WHITNEY. ESPECIALLY READ THIS. I FEEL LIKE THIS WILL CHANGE EVERYTHING.) 

¨The Donaldson Papers¨by Elder Dowdle...I hope you can find it on Google. Cause.... after reading it with Hermana Sant.... I felt empowered and ready for ABSOLUTELY anything. 

You will understand this next part ONLY (okay, maybe not, that´s dramatic but...) if you read the talk you´ll get it and how I feel more...homework from your Argentina missionary :)

I feel crummy as a missionary. And that is perfect. Reading this talk changed my life and changed my mission. I know it has and we only finished reading it this morning. There is a reason I´m here and why I am blessed enough to have Hermana Sant and that she has shared this with me. I only have 4 months in the mission, and I have SO much to learn and that I want to do... its incredible that God trusts us, the 18-20 year olds with souls. And there is a reason for it. Cause we can be molded into what he wants us to be. And I am BEYOND thrilled to see what He has in store for me. :) And Hermana Sant this transfer.

Cause.

We´re gonna open the gates to salvation my friends.

I sure do love ya :)

THANKS FOR BEING MY AMAZING FAMILY!

And Sister Sant, thanks for your daughter. She´s ALREADY a blessing, and we´ve only been serving together for 5 days. So. this is gonna be reeeeeal good :)

ALL MY LOVE!

Hermana Kylie Brown"

How adorable is that? I'm so excited for these two Gringas!