Monday, December 16, 2013

Earthquakes, Transfers, bus wrecks and all that jazz

FELIZ CASI NAVIDAD!!
Except it doesnt feel anything like Christmas here. Our days are filled with endless sun, HEAT and BBQ`s. 

I have been thinking about a Christmas present you can all get me (because I know you all want to give me a Christmas present). Anyways, I thought of a real good one. 

I want ALL OF YOU to do something nice and thoughtful for someone else and then WRITE me about it! Snail mail or email...nothing would make me HAPPIER! Cant wait to hear about all of your great acts of LOVE and service! :) 

Its kind of hard to write this today. My head is in a fog. I think I have the flu. And they just announced tranfers. All I have to say is "Bye Mother!". My dear madre and trandadora is leaving me. I feel abandoned. Luckily I get to stay in Chillancito for another 6 weeks and welcome in my new latina companion. I think she is from Guatemala. Now is probably the time I should learn spanish. And Hermana Lee`s is staying too!!! YAYYY!!!! That made me so happy!! There will still be many tears though I am sure. 

So I had the wonderful opportunity of experiencing my first earthquake!! We were at an FHE singing christmas songs when everything just went crazy. It was super fun not gonna lie...I was sad when it was over and hoped for another!! Everything here is just like being on one crazy ride. The busses her are better than any roller coaster. They go like 80 over these hills with 100 people stuffed inside. We always have to stand...but we arent really standing because most of the time we are airborne! Its an adventure I cherish everyday. And one day our bus crashed into another while it was trying to pass another bus on a one way street. The drivers here are crazy. I love it. 

Last P-day me and my companion got on the wrong bus home and ended up going on a nice 2 hour tour of Chile. It was great because we had all our groceries with us (just cookies) and had a little fiesta! 

Remember that time we ate a cow in a sauna? 
I had my first chilean BBQ on saturday! Not sure what to say about it. Except that I dont really like meat as much as I thought I did....I mean eating 3 or 4 hunks of steak and sausage is fine...but after 7 or 8...it just doesnt taste as good. BBQ`s here are different. Well more of how they should be. You just eat meat. And nothing else. And a lot of it. It was also really hot and with the heat of the fire and sight of blood and endless meat everywhere..we were all feeling a bit faint towards the end. 
Your carnivore daughter might just be coming home a vegetarian. 
Yes you did read that correctly. 
I dont want to eat steak..or pig...or any other animal ever again. 
We think Americans eat a lot of meat...uhh well I think Chile has us beat by..well a lot. 

Last night we got to thinking about tranfers and how not fun it would be having to lug around our presents. So we just had an early Christmas! It was great! We sat on the floor underneath our huge paper Christmas tree and ate chips and salsa and opened presents.

I dont think I have mentioned dear Maria before. But she is getting baptized next week! We were gonna do it on Christmas but we decided that would be too mean to the leaders. Anyways, she is awesome! We are also teaching her whole family now so hopefully they can join her in a few weeks! She owns the best bakery in Chillancito. Basically lessons with her are the best! Except I dont really understand the whole hot drinks on super hot days thing..
Even though in none of the pictures she is smiling..she is a very happy person and one of the sweetest ladies on the planet! She is always a little nervous about church and will hold my hand very, very tightly for the three hours. She also keeps talking about her 40 year old son she wants me to marry. hmmmm maybe one day. Änyways, pray for HER! I love her to death and am super happy I get to stay for her baptism! 

One day after a lesson with Maria we were carrying around an extra cake (Maria always gives us cake). And we came across a homeless man. He was just sitting in his usual place on an abandoned buildings doorstep. Normally we dont go up to homeless men because they just flash us. But today I felt like we should just give him the cake. So we did. And as we walked away he said "Thanks..its my birthday today". And I just thought...isnt it so great that we have a God that cares about each person so much? I certainly didnt know it was his birthday. But God did. And he cares about him. And through us...we can remind others that God loves and cares about them too! God´s little tender mercies are everywhere. I hope we are always looking for them and trying to be the answer to somone else´s prayer. We dont know everyone and what a person needs at a specific point in time. But God does. And our job is simply to follow His leading one step at a time. 

I hope everyone has a wonderful week before Christmas! Dont forget to write me about your service act! 
Love and miss you all! 

Hermana Orchard





Hermana:'))  aquí están las fotos:), lo siento por enviarlas un poco tarde.
le quiero mucho:') cuidese^^


me in front of our new apartment complex! (those objects you see in the grass are wild horses!!) 




all that meat was split between 6 people



us at the BBQ


A good peach cake


YW´s in excellence





Me and Maria


ME. MY COMPANION and maria



Another good cake

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