16 de Abril

Hi Family!

So it is Monday, and I am emailing you... we didn´t have interviews this week as planned, so they might be next week. (I am sorry I haven´t really known exactly, things have gotten switched around here. I think in part because our mission president just got called to be an Area Seventy. But he will be our mission president until July.) I am pretty sure our interviews will be on this island, because I heard the zone conference was on the other one last transfer, so I might be able to email on the normal Monday, but it might be Tuesday. Sorry I know so little. Ha.

So the most important thing, CONGRATULATIONS SARAH! I am so excited to hear about my nephew, and I absolutely love the name Parker Rowe. You all are in my prayers. That is fun that you all went down and put the nursery together. If you have pictures, email them! I want to see! And when the baby is born, you better email lots and lots of pictures every day! I am glad to hear that you all got home safe and the cats are well. I worry that they won´t remember me when I come back. There are loads of white cats here, way more than I ever saw in the US.

Time is going fast, it is crazy! We´re already halfway done with this transfer. I am hoping I get to stay here for a little while longer. I heard that in the islands, missionaries usually stay for several transfers, but really, you never know.

We´ve seen a couple cruise ships passing by, it´s pretty exciting. There aren´t any tourists in our part of the island, nor is there really anything to tour, so it´s kind of strange, but kind of awesome to think I live somewhere that people take cruises to. Someday I´ll come back and visit the part where people vacation! Irmã Suzarte said that last transfer, they saw a Disney Cruise ship. It is kind of odd to think about all those kids on that ship and how very different their lives are, compared to the kids on this island.

I am glad to hear about Andrew´s show, that is really exciting! Maybe I can go see it if there is a show nearby when I get home. If it is in Cleveland I will take a detour to get some Graeter´s ice cream.

I am trying to think of what all I should say. This week was a little frustrating, all but two of our appointments with investigators fell through. For the entire week, we only had two appointments. And we always make back-up plans, but those fell through too. We had a handful of appointments with recent converts and less-actives, but besides that, that meant A LOT of unscheduled time. So we did lots of contacting. And we met lots interesting people, a few of whom seem like they really do want to talk to us, so that is good. Sometimes it is hard to know, because the people here are super nice, and almost anyone will say ´sure come on over´ but then they aren´t home for the appointment or they don´t actually want to talk to us. But it´s okay, that´s just how some weeks go, I think. It is unfortunate when people we´ve met while tracting don´t want to talk to us, but it is harder when our investigators who we have taught for a long time stop talking to us. You can´t help but love these people, it is the strangest thing because they´re people I don´t really know and can´t really even communicate with, but I feel so much love for them. And then when they stop wanting to talk to us, it is the saddest thing because I know they are giving up the best blessing they could possibly have. There was one investigator, the very first one I met, who told us ´I know that The Book of Mormon is true, and that the things you are teaching me are true. Thanks for teaching me to read the Book of Mormon and to pray. But I can´t keep doing this, I needed to choose to follow the world or to follow God, and I chose to follow the world.´ It was the saddest conversation, and probably also the strangest. Of course that´s why anyone loses interest in the Gospel, because it´s much easier to follow the ways of the world, but I have never heard anyone say that, just like that. But at the same time, I am pretty sure that these people, who progress so much and then loose interest, are the ones who will one day decide to come back and learn again and be baptized. Maybe it will be a few months, maybe many many years, but I have no doubt that this guy will get baptized one day.

So that is all for now. I hope you all are doing well! I love you all. Have a good week!

 

Julia