It´s like the county fair...but with churros!

It´s like the county fair...but with churros!

In Limache there´s a huuuuuge catholic church, se llama "40 horas", and it turns out that this week is the celebration of "the virgin of 40 horas"...it´s like the saint/virgen specifically for this church. So this week there going to be parties and mass and (most important) una FERIA!!! Whoooohoooo! And even better...it was today (on monday too)! Double whooohoooowowoooopp! To explain my excited hollars...the feria es like a fair....uhh or a market or something like that. It´s a maze of tents set up and people sell whatever thing you can think of inside...for example, authentic chilean ponchos and hats and pants and trinkets, kitchen ware, indian clothes, donkeys, soccer jerseys, wind chimes, turtles and hamsters, CHURROS. Everything. It´s like a ghetto form of disney world, cause it´s a place where dreams come true. And usually the ferias are only on Sundays..or something random like Thursday..so we can never go :( BUT! this feria is for the whooole week! So we went today and I went a like loco and bought lots of stuff for you guys! Whoowooop for presents! But I didn´t have enough money to buy everyone stuff, so I think I´ll send this stuff home in the next few weeks and then continue my search for everyone over the course of my mission until everyone has atleast something chilean :)
Ps. I had my first churro at the feria today...CHECK off the bucketlist.
This week has been one of the most successful weeks of my mission! I really feel like we worked really good and hard, and our numbers showed it for once so our district and zone leaders were happy haha.
One miracle from this week, there is a little old grandpa in our ward that has been going to church for the past 30-somethin years. This whole time, I thought he was a member cause he´s always at church and all of his family are members...but it turns out he isn´t a member. But how I found that is is that on Thursday night, he ran into us at church and said, "Yo quiero ser bautizado." And there aren´t sweet words in the world to a missionary, so naturally we put a cita for the next day (friday). In Friday we were teaching him and we invited him to be baptized on the 8th..in 2 weeks. And you know what? He said no. He said "NO, No no no. I wanna be baptized. And I don´t wanna wait. This Saturday. The 1st. I wanna be baptized in el 1 de Marzo." After going in and out of shock, we assured him that that was completely fine and so that´s his fecha! So in 5 days we are teaching him all the lessons, setting his interview, and planning his bautismo! Talk about miracle, no?! And he is such a cool grandpa...his name is Rosendo and he likes to do magic tricks and arm wrestle. And let me tell ya, he´s a strong little fellow! I mean he is 85 and he is doing the clapping pushups for fun!
But yep, so we are busy with him this week. But the Lord always provides when we try our best and are obedient.
But that´s all the time I´ve got. I hope you all are seeing the miracles that the Lord is giving y´all cada día. He wants to bless us... so earn his blessings!
I love you all so much :) Make good decisions. AND DO YOUR HOME/VISITING TEACHING. Please. That is the missionary work without the nametag.
Thank you for your prayers and everything always. Y´all are in my prayers everyday.
Love always and always,
Hermana Abigail Page

Home, home on the range...

Thank you all for your counsel and prayers and thoughts and everything.
So NOW in Limache there is just me and Hermana Beu (una otra gringa) for aaallllllllllllllllll of Limache. So we are busy busy busy! Walking and teaching and putting fechas and walking and finding and doin all the jazz. But even though we are so busy now, I like always having something to do. A full agenda makes one haaappy misionera! We have a lot of people that are really progressing and who want to hear and learn more. I love the work here :) Also, Hermana Beu is getting close to the end of her mission, so she really knows how to get the work done, so I am learning lots from her.

Funny story of the week:
-We were walking to a cita across town and it was really windy this day, so I had been keeping an eye in my skirt to make sure I wouldn´t pull a Marylin Monroe or something. So we were walking and walking, and then suddenly I thought to myself..."why can I feel a breeze when there isn´t a breeze? Uhhhhhaahh pucha." I felt around and then suddenly realized that my backpack had eaten my skirt and I was flashin the dark side of the moon. Bahahaha, ohhh que fomé la vida. But luckly there weren´t many witnesses...or so I hope not.


I know that life is hard. I know that there are moments when we feel like we are past the point of return and there´s nothing we can do to change things. I know there are days when we can´t see la luz. But I also know that we are never alone. Never ever. And I know that God hears AND answers our prayers. I know that faith isn´t always to walk in the darkness while seeing a bright light on the other side....nope aveces faith is walking in the darkness trusting that there´s a light. I know that Christ is that light. I know that there is light and a reason to smile in every single day. I know people can change. I know that hope is never lost. Just keep trusting, just keep walking, and just keep swimming, and I know that everything will be worth it.

I love you all. More than I can accurately say en spanish or en english...especially when I´m in this awkward limbo of not knowing how to talk in either right now.
Keep on keeping on. And don´t forget to smile at strangers.

Love always and always,
Su hermanita preferida,
Hermana Abigail Page

Goats have creepy pupils...

I have edited Abigail's letter this week because of personal information that concerns others. She is doing well, just remember her and her companion in the coming days ahead, they need strength that comes from prayer and our savior. Trials come to every missionary in different forms, but the Lord puts us in situations where we are able to bless others, which in return helps us to grow and be blessed as well. Thank you for all of the many prayers that are sent on her behalf, they are being felt.
No on to the rest of her email.

The other day in a leadership training meeting, Presidente told the leaders that he knows that in the past couple of months, he can see that Satan has been walking in the mission. WOOOOAH. Que loco, cierto? But it´s true. Satan is trying so hard to sack all the good, and knock down all the people that are going to do good the the mission. Hermana is one of this people I think. He´s got a pretty firm grip on her right now, and we are trying to help her hold on to the little seeds of faith that she still has.
Stinkin Satan.
This whole thing is effecting me in many ways as well. I´m a lot more tired always haha. But more than that, I really can feel the presence of God helping and guiding and teaching us. I know He never leaves us hopeless, he never leaves us alone, and He never leaves us without a path to follow. He is always here, waiting patiently for us to follow faithfully, ready to lift us and take us by the hand.

But that´s all the time I´ve got.
Beware of Satan, He exists, and he´s a sneaky fellow. Fill your cracks and trust in God, and I KNOW that everything is possible. Just keep an eternal perspective.
Talk to you all sooner than soon.
Take the advice of Mufasa: Reeeemeeemmmmber whooo yooou arreee.
Love always and always,
Hermana Abigail Page

Oops, I did it again...

 

Cambios: I´m in Limache again!! Whoop whooop. I really felt like I was leaving, but I guess the Lord´s got one more transfer for me here. But cambios were crazy this time, but to explain, y´all need a little backstory. Sooo Limache A is the name is my area really, cause there is a Limache B. Pero both Limache A and Limache B are for our ward (cause theres only one ward). But Limache in general is a loooooott of area. It´s like country and fields and neighborhood type areas...but a lot of them...en serio. But what happened is that one of the Hermanas en Limache B got transfered, then they closed the area Limache B to new missionaries for this cambio cause there aren´t enough in the mission for this transfer, then the hermana that got left in Limache B sola, esta en Limache A now, we are in a trio, I´m still traning Hermana Perez, and we have alllllllllllllll of Limache now...and President told us that we can´t use the bikes that are in our house. So this cambio, yo creo, is going to be LOCO. LOTS of walkin (and maybe even some running), but an adventure nevertheless haha. But yep, that´s what happened in cambios this go around! Never a dull moment in the mission, cierto? ;)

Flashback: In sunday school, our teacher was talking about agency and how we should be careful of the decisions we make and all that jazz. Now she said that she had a video that we wanted to share with us about what we were learning. and whadayaknow, she whips out THE PUMP!! I almost died I was so happy. Turns out that this video in spanish is just as funny. But the part when they were saying "cebe la bomba" en slow motion, I was saying priiiiiiiiimmmmmeeee ttthhhhheee pppuuummmmpppppp in my mind. Needless to say, that was my favorite day in sunday school en my life I think. 

Birthdays: HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDIO (aka $teah Money) Y DALLIN THIS WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love you two so much :) I hope it´s really awesome, and y´all get lots of lovin...and cake.

But I think that´s my life this week. Loco with cambios, but super great eitherway with citas and teachin and the such. 

Sorry for the spanglish...I just skimmed the email over again I realized it happened a lot....sorry haha. 

Mom, you asked me what I need so this is what I´ve been thinkin: 

-tabs to mark my scriptures..and lots of em...ya know, like the little skinny flouricent see-throughish ones...ya know what I´m talking about? they don´t have those here and I´m runnin looow

-my recipe cards/book thing...and other recipes that are simple like no bake cookies ooor brownies ooorr stuff like that we we can do in noches de hogar

-ideas for cool FHE´s 

-I never found my "have no fear" bracelet... :(

.....I was thinkin about this earlier and I had a list in my head, but I forgot it now. Pucha. Ehh, it´s all good. Surprise me I guess! If I remember something later, I can ask for it for my birthday, right? OH! maybe something for Hna. Perez. She doesn´t have hardly anything, and her family doesn´t really have the money to support her. She likes the dulces. No sé.....just a little love for my latina too :)

ps. Am I ever gonna get my christmas package from Matthewcito?

pss. if we do the 40 day fast, let me know what my days are, porfis.

I love you all sooooooo much, and I gotta get headin. Hope you all have a fantastic week! And when there are tough moments, don´t forget to pray!! Prayer is my life source in the mission. I love it so much, and it is such a blessing that I feel like we forget about sometimes cause it´s so simple. Try it out, and watch the help, peace, and miracles come flowin´ in! 

Thank you all for everything. Everyday I am more and more grateful for you all. 

Til next time. 

Love always and always, 

Hermana Abigail Page

I'm starting with the man in the mirror...

 

 

I can not believe that my little stud of a brother is going to be a missionary in the blink of an eye. It´s so crazy and I keep thinking "he´s not old enough!"...but then again, neither am I! I still feel like the missionaries are all holy and older and wiser too. But then I think..pucha, now I´m one of the missionaries that are "old" and all that jazz. Que loco. But I can also totally picture Tory with a placa! He is gonna be a great missionary, changin lives and what-not :)

This week, I have felt a change in me that I can´t really explain. No sé.. It´s like, por fin, I´m converted to the work I guess I could say. It hit me, Hey..I really love being a missionary. I love the work; I love inviting people to make changes in their lives; I love mi placa; I love being here; I love the Lord. No sé. I can´t explain it really well, but my mindset and my heart finally feel truly converted to the mission...without doubts or "I could be doing this" or "I don´t feel like it today". It only took my about 6 months pero por fin he llegado (but finally, I´ve arrived)! I feel happier without doubts and what-if´s. The only thing I need to do right now is serve the Lord with all my heart and might. Punto fin. Y me encanta! 

On Wednesday is cambios..no sé que va a pasar. Maybe I´ll go, maybe I´m here another cambio. I guess we´ll see, now won´t we! 

I´ve really enjoyed the opportunity to train Hermana Perez. I know I lack a lot knowledge and I need to be a better example for her in a lot of things, but I feel like I´ve been retrained in some ways during this past cambio con ella. I´ve become a real missionary, not just a companion of a missionary. I´ve become so close with my Savior, and I have been strengthened by His grace and love time and time again. I have learned to teach the gospel and really invite people to change...long story short. I´ve changed. For the better....Oh great, now the song from Wicked is stuck in my head.

One more thing rapidito. The gospel is tan simple. And perfect. It blows my mind! Other gospels or doctrine are great and have truths, but the truth is that there are holes. In the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, there aren´t holes. There aren´t doubts. But if there are, the answer isn´t  "ooh, here´s the answer right here and you need to believe because I told you"...nope nope nope. The answer that we recieve for the gospel for when we have doubts is simply, "ask God". Because He´s gonna tell ya the truth. He is gonna lead you to where you need to go. He is gonna cast out your doubts. Our whole church is based off of the doctrine of action, of asking God. We have the gospel because a boy had doubts and asked God. I´m here in my mission now, asking people to do the same. Simplemente, ask God. How awesome and simple is that? Que perfecto. 

So I guess this is my invitacion for you guys this week. Ask God. Ask Him cualquier cosa, and I promise you He´ll answer. Por que no?

I gots to go now though, but know I love y´all con todo todo todo de mi corazón! Choose the right this week, stand strong in the face in trials, and don´t eat yellow snow.

Love you all, and see you when I see you, and gracias por TODO siempre. 

Love always and always, 

Hermana Abigail Page