PAYSANDU!

September 2, 2014
Hola familia!  
Man oh man has this week been interesting!  But
interesting in a really great way...don´t worry!  So Presidente Smith
really likes putting on these things called Charla Fogeneras aka
firesides...I´ve mentioned a little bit about practicing for our
Charla Fogenera in Mercedes in some of my recent emails.  Anyway, this
zone had a Charla Fogenera this past Sunday and needed some more
singers, so I had the opportunity to go to PAYSANDU!  It´s a cute
little place about two hours from Mercedes.  I went there to practice on
Wednesday and Thursday, and then went back for the actual event on
Saturday and Sunday.  Along with practicing for our Charla Fogenera, I
barely did any work in my area so it felt so weird, but I was grateful
for the opportunity I had to participate in such a cool thing!  I got
to meet a lot of cool Hermanas and Elders who are serving in Paysandu,
this sweet lady in the ward I attended gave me a bookmark for my
scriptures because I told her I liked it, and the Charla itself was
incredible!  Lots of beautiful hymns, wonderful videos (my fave was
"Gracias a El," the Easter video the Church did this past year), and
awesome testimonies!!!  It was one of those moments that made all the
hard things about being a missionary worth it!  And guess what...we´ve
got three Charlas coming up in my zone!  It´ll be another crazy week full
of practicing, but I`m excited to look out in the audience and see
people I actually know!  Also, can I just put in a little insert about
how awesome Hermana McMurray is_ )Sorry the parentheses and question mark
keys don´t work).  She stayed in our area while I was gone and worked
like a champ!  I missed her a lot, so it´s fun to be back together and
we both cannot believe we´ve only got a little bit left together.
Time really does fly when you think about it.  OKAY and last but not
least, this past week, I learned TONS from Presidente.  He was in
Paysandu for the Charla and then we had a zone conference in Mercedes
the next morning, so I got to ride in his car with three other Hermanas!
I was starstruck a bit but he is honestly so nice!  He gave us little
apple sauces and banana muffins (my fave) and told us about a lot of
cool experiences he´s had in Uruguay.  His dedication to the gospel is
incredible, and when I was around him, it was really evident how
many sacrifices he´s making to be a mission president right now.  He
has three grandkids who have been born while he´s been in Uruguay, he´s
away from his wife and children a lot to help us out, and he´s
honestly driving around to all the zones all the time.  But you know
what...I never heard him complain!  What a great example.  During our
zone conference we talked a lot about learning the doctrine of
Christ...aka Christ´s own words.  I am looking forward to reading my
scriptures and marking spots where I find the doctrine of
Christ...after all, when it all comes down to it, the gospel is all
about doing your best to become a bit more like Him every day.  I love
you all and I hope all is swell in sweet Colorado!  I can´t believe it
is fall...eat some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies for me!
Hermana Dixon