HOLD TO THE ROD

July 22, 2013

Hello Mom and Family, 

First thing first, there is a new mission blog at californialosangelesmission.blogspot.com  

Other news: I cannot believe its already another P-Day. This week FLEW by, which was weird because we hardly had any lessons. A lot of our investigators dropped us at the beginning of the transfer and I was worried we wouldn't have much to do besides tract and the week would pass very slowly. I was so wrong.

Tuesday we rode our bikes for the first time. We are given an allotted amount of miles each month. With transfers and some other meetings (and I'll admit we weren't super responsible with the miles at the beginning the month) we scraped by. So to save miles we rode our bikes. Talk about an adventure. We had an appointment at 2pm and left about 1:15pm. (We don't live in our area so it takes awhile just to drive.) About half way to the appointment, I realize that my handlebars are loose, which made riding a bit of a struggle. Let’s just saying I have a complete new understanding for "hold to the rod." 

Thursday was the day of miracles. There were tons of tender mercies and we had a few referrals that we need to contact. One of the many miracles came from one of the referrals. It didn't even have an address for the woman. A sister in our ward had talked with an employee at Ralph's (a grocery store) a few times and thought she would be interested in hearing the gospel. So our referral was to go to Ralph's. We had no idea how this was going to work, but after a sincere prayer we made our way into the store. We found Francis!! She is the florist, and she is super nice. We haven't met with her yet, but I'll be sure to keep you updated when we do. 

Friday I attended my first tea party. Sister M., the Bishop's wife, likes to throw a tea party every summer for the moms and their daughters in the ward, and decided to invite the missionaries this summer. Now let me explain something, the M.'s know how to throw a party. Their barbecues are legendary and every thing Sister M. cooks is AMAZING. She's from Argentina, and has cooked us some delicious foods. So I was excited for this tea party.

We arrived early to help prepare and ended up setting the table outside. Sister M. is a woman of man talents and her backyard looks like an image from the Garden of Eden. There are fruit trees everywhere, flowers, and a garden. It’s gorgeous. Then we set the table wit the prettiest china I had ever seen. Sister M. made little fabric hearts for the mothers and the cutest bows for the girls. (We got one of each.)  Once everyone arrived we had at least six different types of sandwiches to choose from and I lost count of all the different types of teas there were to try. Basically, all of them were good. The whole experience was so much fun! I'm in love with tea parties now.

Saturday One of our recent converts invited us to his cousin's baby shower and to meet some of his family. It was my first Latino baby shower. And I'm finding a common theme. The Latinos know how to throw a party. We played all these games (my companion and I were both awful at them.) But it was so fun. And we were able to talk to some of the people there and leave pass along cards. 

Sunday We had a baptism!! Our Bishop's granddaughter was baptized. We absolutely loved teaching her and the baptism was just great. I have pictures that I hope to send soon. Afterwards, the Elders were passing around a bag of chapulines. They had told me they would bring them to church and made them sound really good. I was stoked. Well, guess what chapulines are... crickets covered in a chili sauce. So I had the lovely opportunity to try cricket last night. Conclusion: Its gross. Don't ever try it. 

This week in training we talked about the Introduction to the Book of Mormon and the importance of reading it. Before I came on my mission I would forget sometimes why it’s important to read everyday. We always tell our investigators to read everyday but why? Well, in the last paragraph of the intro we are promised 3 blessings that we receive by reading the book. I encourage you all to reread the intro and find what those promises are. 

Love you all and miss you so much!!! Thanks for all the support and love. 

Hermana Mik Pillar