At least that is what we pretend it says. We don't actually study all day
everyday, just most of the time. But I have yet to dream in Spanish. I have
heard that is a big milestone.
This week had been significantly faster and easier than
last week. We have a pretty much unchanging routine, which gets boring sometimes
but is mostly good. Our district has recently added a new element to our days.
After lunch, we go to la tienda, buy Chokis (like packages of Chips Ahoy
cookies, but better), and stand around outside of the post office eating and
waiting for letters. Then we all pretend (well, kind of pretend) to get annoyed
with Elder Larsen because he gets a letter every day from his girlfriend and he
acts super smug about it. Then we take our Chokis back into the classroom and
study Spanish for a few more hours. We have eaten so many of the
things.
Some more about this week: there has been a lot of rain
the last few days. It makes the power go out in our classroom, but I love the
thunder and lightening.
Two days ago (I think) we woke up to the smoke alarm
going off in our casa. It actually just had a low battery. We didn't have any
way to fix it, so we just left it outside of our front door and went to
breakfast. It wasn't there when we got back. Problem solved, sort
of.
We have been playing Foursquare during Gym time. It is
funny to see everyone's mean, competitive side come out during an innocent
playground game. I love my district.
We decided to make Monday a "Speak only Spanish" day.
That lasted up until lunch. It was fun though. We definitely need the
practice.
We are teaching two new "investigators" now: Karen and
Edgar. When they aren't acting as investigators, they are actually our teachers.
The only difficulty with this is they know all the stuff we should be studying,
so it actually feels a bit like a test. Hermana Merrell and I are getting pretty
good at teaching certain parts of the lessons. The main thing we are working on
now is how to make it flow nicely. I am beginning to accept the fact that I
might never be able to have a conversation in Spanish that isn't gospel-related.
We just don't have that vocabulary. Pero esta
bien.
Today we went to the Mexico City Temple visitors center. It was so cool!
That was the first time we have been able to go outside of the CCM since we got
here. We all just stared out the windows for the half hour or so bus ride. This
is the most colorful city I have ever been in. It kind of reminds me of LA, but
dirtier and all the streets are wet. Even if it hasn't rained that day, the
gutters are still flooded. Also, there appears to be a moat around the CCM. I
will try to send a picture sometime. The CCM is probably the most organized
thing in this entire city. The streets are so crazy here! The actual visitor's
center is neat. We watched a short little video about families that made me tear
up a bit. Honestly, when you are this far away, it is easier to just push
thoughts of home to the back of your mind. But really, that is part of the
reason why we are all out here. We are spreading the message that families can
truly be together forever. It may sound crazy, and there are some days when it
may not even sound like a good idea (we all have those days). But I am so
grateful to know that this message is true. I know that God loves us and is
always ready to help us. We just need to reach out and let Him into our lives.
That's what gets us through the day sometimes. None of us can do it
alone.
I love you. I have a great
week!
Hermana Sarah
Pace