Feb 28, 2011

Zone 8 at Zone Conference.  Can you find Hermana Plummer and Lozano?

hola familia! mom before I forget, can you get on facebook and find kate´s address? she sent me a letter but it came from the mtc and I know she isn´t in the mtc anymore, so I need her address in VA. that would be so awesome. and you asked if I listen to my ipod. YES. everyday. whenever we are in the pension, we are listening to it. it is my saving grace. I don´t know what I would do without it. I put on a lot of music from the house that dad would always play on sunday mornings growing up through the intercom. I hear them and feel at home. I hope this old Ipod lasts through the mission. cross your fingers.
well, this week we had zone conference. one zone has to travel to ciudad del este to join up with the 2 zones there. apparently not very many hermanas get to visit ciudad del este because all the others are in asuncion. we were the only females besides hermana callan. we are always quite the minority. so we got up at 2 in the morning to catch the collectivo and ride there. it is about 3 hours. thankgoodness I slept pretty much the whole way. being short i can just curl up in the chair. they are big coach buses with chairs that ricline and all that. the zone conference was so great. I learned so much that helped me out. we really have been praying to be able to dig up some more faith. pres callan shared a quote from joseph smith that basically says if we want more faith, we need to sacrifice more. i was like. dang it all. no jk. so I guess I need to make some changes. I realize that i need to consecrate my time more and not let my mind wander. also, I really got a confirmation that it is ok if I am doing everything i can and dont´have baptisms. I think i got really bogged down about that. every night when the distric leader would call to ask for our key indicators, i felt ashamed, but I feel ok about it now. hermana lozano and i both feel the spirit more and feel like we are improving in a lot of ways. we have a lot of obstacles to overcome in this area. we are living out the consequences of things other people have done here in this rama, but I keep thinking back to a quote i heard in the mtc that says, are you going to tell God how big your problems are or are you going to tell your problems how great is God? A lot of the time i feel inadequate to handle everything. i don´t have any experience, don´t really know the language, can´t do it kind of thing. But one thing we learned about the atonement at the zone conference is that after all we can do with our ability, the Savior fills in the rest. I realized that no, i can´t do it based on my experience and ability, but with my Savior, i can. I have to put behind me my doubts in myself. That is where my problem is. I am learning to rely on the Lord in a way that i have never ventured to try out before, but I know it will be ok. Thanks mom for the words of wisdom and also the ideas! they will be so great and helpful. ok speaking of ideas. i have been meaning to share an idea with you forever. I am so happy right now that I finally remembered. you have to try this drink. blend oranges with carrots. if you have already tried it then you know it is good, but i had it at a member´s house and it is so good. anyways, I am glad to hear that i am not the only sister missionary that started out rough. I felt so guilty with thougts that i really didn´t want to be here. when I saw hermana lavaka, she was saying how much fun she is having, and I was like. I felt really guilty. I think this is the first p day I haven´t cried. yay. I am really trying to take what I have and be happy no matter what and be thankful. we were really excited yesterday because a bunch of inactives came to church. we had the highest asistencia in a while. a member who we have been visiting finally came and a few others. oh and our relief society president finally came after 5 weeks. this member though we have been visiting is so great, he has just gotten really bogged down with problems in his family and needed a boost of energy. he is the only member in his family. his 2 children join for the lessons but his señora is a catolico fanatico as they say. she won´t listen. anyways, we were really excited about that. now we just need them to come consistently.
we played tennis again today! it was so great. I do what I can in the pension to exercise, but isn´t much. so it is such a relief to be able to run around and play TENNIS! well, I have to go. any news on Tiny? how are you amy? can´t wait to hear when my new nephew is here safe and sound. love you all so much. I think of you and pray for you everyday. Like mom said in her email to me, I am away from my family for 18 months so other families can be together forever. I guess it isn´t too much of a sacrifice for such a reward. mom, I hope you are continuing to get better. We are going to play so much tennis when I get back. love you all so so much.
love,
hermana plummer