Week 27

Valentino was baptized on Saturday!  The most exciting thing was that
his mom and little sister were able to attend and we didn't think that
anyone from his family would attend.  Of course his in-laws were all
able to come, but this was extra-special.  His little sister is the
cutest little girl ever!  I want to teach his family SO badly!

This week was SO hard!  Probably the hardest yet of my entire mission.
 They have some different holidays here.  Thursday was All Saints Day
and then Friday was All Souls Day.  They are kind of like our memorial
day.  Everyone gathers and has get-togethers and eats sticky rice...
Thursday, almost every house we went to fed us sticky rice.  Sticky
rice is pretty cool.  Esmunro Bermejo showed us his "magic trick."  He
plopped a big serving of rice on his plate and then held the plate
upside down and the rice didn't budge. haha.  They also visit the
cemeteries and their loved ones who have passed away.  At first I
thought it was like their Halloween, because some people dressed up in
costumes and in the stores, it looked like they celebrated Halloween
here, but they don't really.  From what I understand... All Saints Day
is more like celebrating life and is a more positive holiday and then
All Souls Day is more for mourning the loss of their loved ones...
even now I'm not exactly sure.  But because of these holidays... we
were punted from almost every lesson.  No one was home!!! And those
who were just fed us sticky rice as they were running out the door.
It was exhausting.  So from Wednesday until Saturday, we didn't get
very many lessons completed at all.

Now that Valentino has been
baptized and confirmed, we don't really have any progressing
investigators.  We have two with a baptismal date, but they haven't
been coming to church and we have been having a hard time getting a
hold of them, so we aren't sure how prepared or interested they are
after all. Hopefully this next week will be much better. :-)

So, why have I never really known much about the Liahona Magazine?
That's all we get here and I love it!  We have been teaching a lot of
lessons lately about the Liahona from Alma 37 and how we can compare
the Book of Mormon and other scriptures to the Liahona.  Our
scriptures really are a guide, a compass for us in this life, and if
we follow the guidance it gives us, it will help us to overcome our
trials and sorrows and obtain happiness and a greater "land of
promise."  I know this is true.  I love the scriptures so much,
especially the Book of Mormon. I know it is the word of God and was
written, "prepared by the Lord" for us, in this day and age.  :D

Love you all,
Sister McClellan