Well first of all I just want to stop and take some time
to just talk about what I love about being here. I feel like every day I
just try so hard to be better and sometimes quite frankly I do
terrible, but I´m constantly finding ways to improve. Agh but I find
that when I´m trying to improve I focus too much on my negative aspects
or what is wrong or hard, etc. So yeah I just want to talk about what
is great about being here. First, I LOOOVVEE my companion. She is such
a great trainer. She is so patient and caring and has a sense of
humor, and agh she is just great. I´m soooo grateful that she is my
comp. Literally I am never frustrated with her, or with the spanish
when I´m with her, we can just talk and talk and talk in spanish and she
is so good at helping me to learn. Heavenly Father knew just what I
needed in a companion, I am so blessed. Second, I am SOOOO happy that I
am a missionary by the temple, I can see it out of my apartment and I
LOVE giving recorridos (tours) they are the most spiritual part of my
week and I love seeing so many people preparing to be baptized or enter
the temple. I also love seeing the success and hard work of other
missionaries and how in tune they are with the spirit and how close they
are with these investigators that they bring for recorridos. I am
soooo glad that I have a north american friend in my apartment, Hermana
Mckinley. She is from Orem and its so great because when I just want to
tell a story or talk in English we can just talk and let it all out,
its fun because our comps can understand english too so we have
spanglish conversations because we are all very fluent in spanglish. I
love my zone. They are sooo fun! conference with them was a blast and I
love making tons of new friends! I also love that they language is
coming so easily. Like I know I can´t understand everything. But when I
am in spanish mode I converse and laugh and have fun with the people I
am talking with. Haha I even half understood a conversation with 3
chilenos speaking at the same time a million miles per hour about
dialysis, kidney transplants, and medications! MIRACLES. I am literally
so shocked that I am doing as well as I am and I am SO GRATEFUL. My
first day here I wrote in my journal that it would be a miracle if I
could leave the CCM and understand a north american speaking only gospel
terms. Yet time and time again I see how much the Lord is blessing me
as he helps me to understand what I need and helps me to feel
comfortable with my speaking and understanding. Agh so crazy. Haha I
also love the people here. Most of the buildings in my area are big
apartment buildings with conserjes.... I think its Concierge in English?
Its fun because we have began teaching some of the conserjes in our
building, and several times we have gone to teach a family in another
building only to find that the real reason we needed to be there was to
bear our testimonies to the conserje. Haha one of the conserjes in our
building is an Evangelical preacher, he calls us the reverendas haha I
love feeling like there are familiar faces and people I love here
already. I also LOVE my ward, they are soooo great its almost like
being home. Man, I really love it here and I am sooooo greatful for the
opportunity I have to be a missionary here in Chile!
Well, I hope you are all enjoying Fall, its HOT
here!! Its super wierd to see halloween candy in the stores (not NEARLY
as much as in Utah haha) but its green and sunny as ever outside. With
palm trees, wierd.
I also wanted to talk for a minute about member and
missionary work. I hope you all noticed that almost every single talk
in conference was about that, it is SOOO IMPORTANT. WE had an awesome
lesson this week with Ruben, an uncle of a recent convert and his wife
who are in our ward, he got a new kidney a week or two ago and is stayin
with his Nephew for the next month. It was our second lesson with him
and the spirit was SOOO STRONG, and it was all because of the members,
they told their stories and shared their feelings and you just see it in
the example of their lives that they know this is true, the effect of
members in missionary work is HUGE. I hope you all are really taking
Elder Ballards challenge to heart (I think it was elder Ballard?) To
prayerfully search for someone for the missionaries to teach. Elder
Ballard promised that EVERY MEMBER that prayerfully searched would find
someone by Christmas. Not every ward, not every family, EVERY MEMBER.
So I expect you guys to go do just that, find someone for the
missionaries to teach BEFORE CHRISTMAS. That doesn´t mean simply refer a
name of someone who isn´t a member to the missionaries and you are
done. It means help them, become their friend, work with them, invite
them, teach by example, BE A PART OF SOMEONES CONVERSION. Out here I
get fed a lot of food by the members, its great. But I think many
members miss the point. WE MISSIONARIES WOULD RATHER GO HUNGRY AND HAVE
PEOPLE TO TEACH THAN BE FED EVERY MEAL EVERY DAY BUT SPEND THE REST OF
THE DAY KNOCKING DOORS. If you can only do one thing to help the
missionaries, help them teach and help them find. We love a good meal,
but we love a good lesson better. I can´t tell you how good it feels to
teach people the gospel, I´m not gonna lie sometimes I get really
homesick and its hard being in a foreign country, but after I spend an
hour or so sharing the gospel with someone, and after I can watch the
spirit touch someones heart, I could care less about home! I LOVE being a
missionary. and I LOVE sharing the gospel, please please please help
the missionaries to love their missions too, help them change peoples
lives!! There is a great talk about member missionary work that I´m sure
you can find on the internet, its by Clayton Christensen, and I can´t
remember the exact title but its like 7 principles of sharing the gospel
or something like that, look it up, its great!
Well, gotta go! Love you all!!
Hermana Kyrstin Millett
PS
mom and dad you would be sooooo proud! Haha like every single desert
that we have is canned peaches..... and you know how much I hate canned
peaches, but I eat it anyway, and I pretend like its the best thing I´ve
ever eaten in my life. Literally they apologize when the only dessert
they have is icecream but they brag about what a wonderful surprise they
have for dessert and come out with a giant bowl of canned peaches. Oh
joy. We also have all sorts of food that to me is far worse than
broccoli haha but I choke it down with a smile. Haha just thought I
should let you know that I am eating my food even when I don´t want to
hahaha
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