Well, That's a Pig's Hoof

Ahhhhh I JUST HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS ABOUT ALL OF THE THINGS THAT MY FAMILY IS DOING THIS WEEK HOLY CANNOLI

I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER THE THINGS THAT I DID THIS WEEK I HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS

I THINK I WAS SICK AT SOME POINT

MAYBE

LOL

WHO KNOWS

THERE ARE SO MANY GOOD THINGS HAPPENING

[We went to Salt Lake City, traded vehicles with Andrew, met his sweet girlfriend Sarah, and sent Hermana Schomburg some photos of our adventure.]

But uh, okay, let me get control of myself because I think there are actually things that happened this week that are notable that I need to tell you all. 

Okay, so, this week I was sick. That happened. It was very much not good and it reminded me that I need to tell you all that it is getting QUITE COLD and for some reason, the chapels are ALWAYS the coldest places in the entire world. Just... so cold.

OH BUT I FORGOT TO TELL YOU ALL SOMETHING LAST WEEK THAT HAS TO DO WITH SUNDAYS

LAST WEEK WE WERE IN SACRAMENT MEETING AND THE BISHOP WAS TALKING

AND THEN

SUDDENLY

THE BURGLAR ALARM STARTED GOING OFF REALLY REALLY LOUD

AND THE BISHOP ACTED LIKE IT WASN'T EVEN HAPPENING

HE JUST KEPT TALKING

AND NOBODY WAS PAYING ATTENTION AND IT WAS ALL JUST SO WEIRDLY FUNNY AND ALSO JUST 

WHAT

and so anyway, we were sitting there kind of trying not to laugh because the bishop was speaking, but the alarm was going off and NOBODY WAS DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT. And then it stopped.

And then it kept going, but it was in short bursts.

And so I jokingly made a hand phone and pretended like I was calling Hermana Rhoads and it was so funny but there is also an inside joke with Elder Herrera about hand phones and Hermana Rhoads always calls him on her hand phone, and he and a couple other elders were sitting up on the stand because there wasn't room for them in the congregation and so when the Bishop was done, we started hand phoning the elders and it was just so funny and we laughed reverently for some time. 

But anyway, that reminds me of all the things that I did Sunday, because they were numerous!

Well, you see, I spoke in sacrament meeting this Sunday! It was mission work Sunday, so one of the APs [Assistants to the Mission President] introduced himself (because he's moving to our ward because a whole bunch of office elders are leaving after this transfer) and then I spoke and I started with a joke and everything and it was so great and I was so grateful to Heavenly Father because there is no other way I would have made it all the way through that, especially for all the things I said that I didn't have written down already. 

But anyway, so I spoke on how members can be better missionaries and that they can and should work with the full time missionaries. The gospel is supposed to be preached two by two, which can mean two full time missionaries, or the full time missionaries and the members. 

And then after that, Hna Rhoads and I sang 'Brillan Rayos de Clemencia' which is, in English, 'Brightly Beams Our Father's Mercy' :) it was super cool and also just SO MANY THINGS HAPPENED

We have a less active who we're working with and she is amazing and she's a return missionary but some things happened BUT, yesterday she came to church, finally! WORDS CANNOT EXPRESS MY JOY FOR HER

Also, the recent convert that we have... well, the thing is, she doesn't want to go to church because of some problems that she has but, she called us yesterday and asked us why we didn't visit this week and we just kind of said, 'well.... it may have something to do with the fact that you said you didn't want to have anything to do with the church and that you're never coming back...' and we still are trying to figure out what we're going to do. We've been working with her for a LONG time. We'll visit her, but we definitely have some tough decision making to do with her. 

The woman that we're teaching English forgot that we had an appointment with her this week so we're hoping to set a date on Friday :)

We also talked with one of our other recent converts about going to the temple to do baptisms and she was very excited about it! She has had a problem getting to church since her baptism... But we were very excited and optimistic that she would come to church Sunday because we resolved all of her problems with going to church (including finding her skirts and dresses and also making a skirt) but... she didn't show. 

She said, "We went to the office for something and long story short, we left with a sewing machine -
and we may or may not have made skirts for ourselves and our recent convert."
Side note: Hermana Schomburg doesn't actually sew :)

BUT I JUST KEEP THINKING ABOUT OUR LESS ACTIVE SISTER THAT'S A RETURN MISSIONARY AND HOW SHE CAME TO CHURCH SUNDAY AND IT MAKES EVERYTHING BETTER 

What else did I do this week? 

Hmm... 

Well, we were walking down the street the other day and I glanced down and there was a severed pig's hoof there and so I said, 'Well, that's a pig's hoof' to Hna Rhoads and it is now an exclamation. You can use it for anything, good or bad. My friend is getting married? Well that's a pig's hoof! I was sick earlier this week? Well, that's a pig's hoof. 

Is it even hoof for pigs?

No

it's feet isn't it

oh no

oh no

I've made a mistake

oh no

Oh well, we'll pretend like pigs have hooves. 

ALSO, yesterday we went to contact a reference and we were talking with her in Spanish and all and then she was like, 'I speak English if you would like to speak that instead,' and we were really confused because 1) she said English words 2) SHE SAID THEM WITH A BRITISH ACCENT

AND SO WE KEPT TALKING

AND SHE IS ENGLISH

SHE IS FROM BRITAIN

SHE WAS LIKE 'would you like something to drink? Do you need to use the toilet?' AND THEN LATER 'alrighty, just give me a buzz before you come' AND IT JUST WAS SO MANY THINGS FOR MY BRAIN TO HANDLE

I'M TEACHING BRITISH PEOPLE IN CHILE

WHAT EVEN IS HAPPENING

Also, yesterday we had almuerzo [lunch] with a Peruvian family and they made this cool pomegranate juice (THEY JUST BLENDED UP A WHOLE POMEGRANATE) and then I was eating and there was a heck of a lot of food (a heck of a lot) and then I was like (in my head) 'Phew, this is hot, I need a drink, I am not going to be able to eat all of this holy cannoli' and then they came out with the pomegranate stuff and I was so excited and they put it down in front of me and the glass was sweating and I was like 'YAASSSS' and then I grabbed the glass and it was warm to the touch and I thought maybe they had just washed the glass and so then I brought it to my mouth

and then I realized

and I drank it

AND IT WAS HOT

IT WAS A HOT DRINK

HOT POMEGRANATE JUICE

IT WAS HOT

I WAS BETRAYED

THE POMEGRANATES BETRAYED ME IT WAS HOT

IT

WAS

HOT

so that happened. 

And that was my entire week. 

That I can remember right now.

So anyway, I love you all very much and I hope you all have a wonderful week and do wonderful things and just, I hope it's all WONDERFUL.

CCCCCIIIIIIIIIIIAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

-Hermana Schomburg

This is the medicine Hermana Schomburg took while she was sick -
they had it at the office with her name on it which was a mystery to her
because when she called, they had it ready for her very quickly
and she didn't know why

And apparently this is how she felt while she was sick. :) haha

Robbed by Gypsies!: Intercambio Edition

Secret picture taken inside an Ekono -
like Walgreens but not
 (because they are silly)

hahaha

so that happened

AGAIN

yeah still fine don't worry :)

[See the bottom of the post for more information about Chilean gypsies.]

Let me tell you about the WHOLE week though, because a lot more happens around here than just getting robbed by gypsies, promise! 

Okay, so, this last week we had a wonderful little thing called Zone Conference! And it was sooo cool and so amazing and just all of the yes in the entire world. I learned a whole lot of awesome stuff and I was reminded of our purpose as missionaries: to bring people unto Christ. One of the most essential steps of coming unto Christ is through baptism and it is important that people know that when we first start to teach them. If we don't have a purpose in teaching and talking to people, then what is the point? Our purpose is to bring people unto Christ, so we need to make that clear from the first visit!

A story to go along with that, after zone conference and the focus of baptism, Hermana Rhoads and I invited a woman that we are teaching English (using the Book of Mormon and pamphlets) to be baptized, and she accepted right away! We asked and she said, 'Well, of course,' as if she had been waiting for us to ask the entire time! WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO 

However, on the other hand, we've been working with a recent convert for some time who has had trouble going to church after being baptized and we visit her a lot and she loves having us over but then last night, out of the blue, she called us and said that she's NEVER coming back to church EVER and is changing her number so that NOBODY in the church can call her ever again and she doesn't want to be bothered about it and she doesn't want ANYLTHING to do with the church... but we can still come over and visit her if we like, she loves having us over.

So.

That. 

Uhh... yeah, we're not exactly sure... what... we're gonna do about that... 

But anyway, other things, we went to the temple this week!

AND GUESS WHAT MOMMA GUESS WHAT

GUESS

WHAT

I

DID

HERMANA RHOADS AND I WERE GOING TO USE HEADPHONES BECAUSE OF THE WHOLE YEAH WITH LANGUAGES BUT THEN THEY DIDN'T OFFER THEM TO US AND WE BOTH KIND OF FORGOT UNTIL WE WERE IN THE SESSION ALREADY SO

WE DID IT IN SPANISH

THE ENTIRE THING

AND I UNDERSTOOD IT ALL

I DID AN ENTIRE TEMPLE SESSION IN SPANISH ALL OF IT THE WHOLE BOOP

I DID IT

IT WAS SO NEAT

But also, before we went to the temple, we had to ride the metro to get there. (if you can find a metro station map, I will be explaining the changes and such as we go along and you can follow my journey :P) SO, Hermana Rhoads and I live closest to Cementerios, so we got on there very early in the morning and it wasn't too crowded, but we went from there to Los Héroes where it began to be more crowded, because it was right at the time when everybody was going to work. So, we met up with our zone in Los Héroes and transferred over so that we could go to Pedro de Valdivia, BUT LET ME TELL YOU THAT THE TRAINS

WERE

SO

PACKED

I

DON'T

THINK

I

CAN

EXPLAIN

WELL

ENOUGH

HOW

PACKED

THE

TRAINS

WERE

WE GOT ON AND NOT EVEN ALL OF US MADE IT ON THE TRAIN AND i WAS PRACTICALLY SITTING ON THE PEOPLE THAT WERE SITTING DOWN AND I WASN'T HOLDING ON TO ANYTHING AND THEN MORE PEOPLE GOT ON AND THERE WAS YELLING AND SHOUTING AND ALL THIS STUFF AND THEN

WHEN WE TRIED TO GET OFF

WE ALMOST ALL DIDN'T GET OFF THAT'S HOW CROWDED IT WAS

THE BEEPY BEEP STARTED AND BASICALLY THE ELDERS IN THE BACK OF OUR GROUP JUST SHOVED ALL OF US OFF THE TRAIN AND JUST

WHEN THEY SAY SARDINES IT IS NOT A JOKE

IT

IS

NOT

A

JOKE

And on the way back, I sneezed in the train.

I sneezed on the subway.

I am the reason people don't like public transport.

IT'S MY FAULT

I CONTRIBUTED TO THE ATMOSPHERE

AND I AM ASHAMED

Metro Station Map
follow along if you dare!

But anyway, so that happened.

And now for the really fun story.

So, we had intercambios [exchanges - when the missionaries trade companions for the day and work with the Sister Training Leaders which helps them learn things they are doing well and things they can improve upon] this week with Hermana G and Hermana N and this time I stayed in our sector and led Hermana N around and such (which was terrifying because I am still in training and all of that stuff) and so, we had a lesson in the morning and it was all good, and then we had a lesson in the afternoon and then we were going to try to track down a couple of references we had received and I knew that the quickest way was through la Vega and it was still daytime, so it was still safe (la Vega is a place where they sell a lot of stuff... like a farmer's market... but it's open all day every day and it also is a very dangerous place at night, but, it wasn't night time, so...) so we were walking, Hermana N and I, and we walked through la Vega without any problems and we were walking up La Paz and I was talking about how I really hated birds and I don't ever want to be pooped on by a bird and then suddenly, all of this gross black grease stuff splattered all over the backs of us and Hermana N thought it was bird poop and I did too for a second, but then this guy came up to us and was trying to help us clean it off (kind of) and he tried to take Hna N's backpack off but I told him "No" and started walking away again with Hna N because something was becoming fishy, and then this woman came up with tissues and she was trying to 'help' too and she tried to take Hna N's backpack off and then Hna N took her own backpack off and she tried to take mine and I said "No" and then suddenly there were like six of them all around and they were wiping at the black stuff and one of them came around the back of me and tried to take my backpack off of me but I wouldn't let him and then they all started pointing at the sky and stuff as if to explain where the black stuff came from, but they weren't speaking Spanish and they weren't really speaking any language, I don't think, and then just that quick, the lady gave us all her tissues and the people scattered and left and Hna N looked down and was like, 'They just stole my backpack' but there wasn't anybody nearby anymore and we didn't see anybody with the backpack and just it was crazy, but they replaced her backpack with a different backpack that was brand new and she was excited about that.

Black stuff on the backpack

But anyway, we got somewhere safe and did all the safe things and because it was intercambios, Hna N actually didn't have too much stuff in her backpack. She didn't have any money on her or her cards or anything at all, so we didn't have to worry about that type of stuff. And so yeah... that happened... It was the first time in her mission that Hna N has been robbed and she's been here for 15 months, so I'm starting to think that I just have a curse that all the people around me get robbed. So yeah.

I called everybody in the office after that because Hna N was kind of freaking out a little bit but NOBODY picked up and then Elder Ellis (one of the asistentes) picked up and I was trying to explain to him what happened but I couldn't do it all in Spanish so I told him I was going to give the phone to Hna N so she could explain but she was kind of freaking out and then Elder Ellis was like, 'Wait, Hermana, just explain it to me in English then' and then I remembered that Elder Ellis is from Utah. #ohyeah

So that. 

When we went to the office to get some stuff figured out after that, all the elders kept cheering every time we told them something that wasn't bad about it. Hna N explained that she didn't have her cards or any money and then Elder Jaegar started clapping and cheering and then all the office did and it was all just actually pretty funny.

And also, on the slip of paper that had everything that she lost written on it, she accidentally wrote 'quinientos mil pesos' instead of 'quinientos pesos' which, for those who don't know, is the difference between 500,000 pesos and 500 pesos, so that was pretty hilarious. 

And uh...

Well, I´m sick right now so that's really cool. I can't hear anything and I can't breathe through my nose, but it's all good. I will live. 

Mint herbal tea with milk and sugar -
to prove that she is sick, she said. 

But anyway, I think that's all I have for today! And it's all my time as well. I love you all, cuídense!

CCCIIIIIIAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Hermana Schomburg after dancing and jumping about
the apartment while trying to get a spider out of her skirt.

Two very happy hermanas received a bag of brown sugar
from one of the Elders
Brown sugar is not available in Chile so it was a real treat

Then they made cookies!!

 

** My research into the Chilean gypsies has shown that there are approximately 15,000-20,000 gypsies currently living in Chile with approximately 8,000 of them in/around the Santiago Metro area.  They are quite poor and usually live in encampments on the outskirts of town, however some do have "houses" in the local area.  While they are prone to pick-pocketing and theft, they are not typically violent in nature.  The language they speak is Romani, that is why it is unfamiliar to Hermana Schomburg - they are known as Romani people and have passed down their traditions, culture, language, and religious beliefs for generations.  Oftentimes they are beggars, however they prefer to "work" or "trade" for the things they want (i.e. reading your palm, telling your fortune, helping you get black stuff off of your backpacks, etc) and that is most likely why they left a "new" (probably stolen) backpack behind.  Most often, the women do the "work" while the men actually have a trade of some sort, but that is obviously not always the case.  They do not allow their children to attend local school after the age of 10 because the do not want their culture to be diluted by local society.  No matter where in the world they live, they do not assimilate in any way and they continue to be outsiders - by their own choice.  Hermana Schomburg's Mission President was born and raised in Santiago and I have full faith that he is aware of the gypsy issue and that the Hermanas in the area are well trained in safety precautions and procedures. She did exactly the right thing by telling them, "No" firmly as that is what every blog, article, and travel advice column I read said to do. Hermana Schomburg is a target because she is tall and blonde and the locals refer to her as "princesa."  As of right now however, the gypsies have not gotten anything from her.  I think they will grow tired of trying to rob her once they realize that she is not a tourist and she is not giving them anything.   While every situation is different, I will reiterate that gypsies are not violent in nature and their cultural and religious traditions and values do not allow for certain things to take place.  A man who even touches the skirt or shoe of a woman (Romani or otherwise) will be expelled from the group and that is the greatest dishonor that can occur to him and his family.  And that's all I have to say about that. 

Please simply continue to keep the missionaries in your thoughts and prayers and know that she IS being watched over and protected by our loving Heavenly Father.  I know that to be true and I testify that angels are round about her and her companion at all times.  Thank you for your continued support!

We're in the Club

This is a poor quality photo from our Skype session
with Hermana Schomburg on Mother's Day
She is showing us her bip (beep) card
which she uses throughout Santiago for public transportation

ACTUALLY I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF TIME TO WRITE BUT I WOULD LIKE TO PUT THE FOLLOWING OUT INTO THE WORLD

Our stake conference this last week was a lot about strengthening the family, and even moreso that the best thing you can do to strengthen your family at this time with all the things that are happening in the world is to keep the Sabbath day holy. It is SO important that we go to church every Sunday and focus that day on worshipping the Lord and also on resting ourselves physically and mentally so that we can better combat the evil forces of the world during the week. Families that attend together stay together! And families that keep the Sabbath holy together stay together happily! One of the things that I have to do as a missionary that is a bit hard and overwhelming is to tell people to keep this commandment (because it is a commandment, the fourth to be exact). It involves, in some cases, telling people to put their jobs second and here in Chile, work is most all that the people have. But the reason missionaries do this is because it is SO IMPORTANT. We wouldn´t tell people to put their careers, sports, hobbies, whatever else in second place if it wasn´t vitally important. When we don´t keep the Sabbath holy, we are denying ourselves blessings, that is the simple and pure truth of it. When we neglect any of God´s commandments, we are denying ourselves blessings. The reason that we are on this earth is to have joy and to learn and progress: Heavenly Father wants and promises to bless us, but we must hold up our end of the bargain. 

So my challenge this week is for everybody to remember to keep the Sabbath holy, no matter what. Decide beforeSunday comes what you are and are not going to do; use the scriptures as a guide (Mosiah 13:16-19, Exodus 20:8-11). When we are obedient, Heavenly Father can and must by way of promise, bless us. So, keep the commandments! Don´t deny yourself blessings! DO THE THINGS, GET THE STUFF. In this day and age, the family is under attack. There are countless forces in the world that want to destroy the family, but I can promise that if we keep the Sabbath day holy, we will have the power to overcome those forces and keep our families, the very fundamentals of society, safe from the adversary's grasp. I know this to be true and testify of it in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Sorry to go on that little rant spurt thing, but it needed to be done. 

Also, I´m supposed to explain how church works in Chile! So, in our ward at least (because we have another ward in our building temporarily) we have Relief Society and Priesthood, and then Sunday School, and then sacrament meeting. And... well I dunno... we still open with a hymn and prayer... it´s all normal in that sense... the gospel is still true down here... and still the same... and uh... I dunno :) our ward is a little unique in that we do have ALL THE ELDERS FROM THE OFFICE (except the APs I think) in our ward so every sacrament meeting is made up half by missionaries, but it´s all good. 

I guess it's a little different because it's all in Spanish haha, that makes a difference... but... I think it's all the same :) 

Also, I highly recommend reading the scriptures in Spanish sometime because Spanish has a lot less words than English, so some things are just brutally honest. For example, when Laman and Lemuel say that Nephi is a fool for thinking he can build a boat just because the Lord commanded him to (which is silly because ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE LORD DON´T YOU KNOW THAT LAMAN AND LEMUEL PLEASE GET YOUR ACTS TOGETHER), it says simply, 'Nuestro hermano está loco' [Our brother is a fool] and later (this is paraphrased and also in English) 'If God can do so many other miracles, what makes you think He can´t help me build a boat?' Preach it Nephi. Preach. [See 1 Nephi 17 for the story to which Hermana Schomburg is referring.]

But anyway, this week was super dooper slow and nearly every single one of our appointments cancelled. And by cancelled, I mean that we showed up and there was nobody home. Haha. Wow. Yeah, I have been learning patience and Christlike love this week. I LOVE PEOPLE. LOVE EM. ALL OF EM. 

Okay, gotta go now, I love you all, sorry for the lack of pictures, I didn´t have time to upload many, but this is of a sunset and also Hna Rhoads and I since we´re in the club now. 

I love love love love love love love you all! :)

*yelled* 

CCCIIIIIAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

-Hermana Schomburg

Hermana Schomburg has expressed her desire to receive mail 

while in the mission field. 

Thus far she has only received snail-mail from two folks. 

Please see the side margin above for her mailing address. ----->>>

A Global Forever stamp costs $1.15 and a note from home would make our missionary very happy.
THANK YOU for your support! 

Robbed by Gypsies!!

So

haha

that happened.

DON´T WORRY THOUGH WE´RE FINE IT WAS IN THE STREET IT WASN´T EVEN AT OUR APARTMENT THEY DON´T KNOW WHERE WE LIVE IT´S FINE but yes we definitely were robbed by gypsies this week on Bellavista.

SO, let me tell you the story. 

Okay, so, what happened is, we were walking along, trying to find an address of a referencia that didn´t actually exist (super sad face) and then we saw these two ladies walking up in front of us and as soon as I saw them I was kinda like, ´Whoa they look sorta like gypsies lol´ in my mind.  We were going to walk past them but they stopped in front of us so we stopped and were like, ´Well hello there´ and they introduced themselves immediately as gypsies and we were like, ´Well okay then´ and then they started trying to like prophesy about us and stuff that we were preaching the gospel and we basically were just like, 'Yes that is true' and then this other gypsy lady came up from behind them and there were three and at that point I was kinda like 'Now wait a second' (more than I had been a second before) and they started asking us if they could read our palms and stuff so I was like 'Nah I'm good gracias' but they wouldn't leave us alone and then the one that had come last grabbed Hermana Rhoads' hand and I had a little mini panic attack and then she pulled Hermana Rhoads over into the bushes and so I went over there by her and the two original ones were trying to talk to me while the last one was doing all this stuff trying to read Hermana Rhoads' hand and stuff and then the two that were talking to me started asking me about how to get a visa to go to the US and all this stuff and she was like 'If you marry a Chilean man, can he go back to the US with you?' and I was like

'I have literally no idea' 

And then they kept talking to me about visas and India and I kept inching closer to Hermana Rhoads and then she started asking me about where we lived and so obviamente I didn't tell her anything and then she was trying to get in my bag and asked me if we were the type of missionaries that gave out gifts and stuff so I was like, 

'As a matter of fact, we are!' and then she was like 'I believe in God very much he is all he is everything' and stuff and I was like, 'Well we believe in God too!' and then she was like 'What church are you from, Catholic or Evangelical' and I was like, 'The Mormon Church actually' and so then she was like pointing at my tag and stuff and all that and was very close to me and I was like, 'Hey remember how we give gifts,' and I usually keep my pamphlets and Book of Mormons in my outside pocket and my precious things in my inside pocket so I opened the outside pocket and took out a Restoration pamphlet and gave it to her and she was like, 'How much is this worth?' and I was like (this is how my bad Spanish translated) 'Well we give them away for free but the message is your salvation' and then I stowed that in a different part of my mind to laugh at later because it was dang funny BUT ANYWAY then she was going on about how she loved to read things to become closer to God and stuff and then I glanced over to make sure Hermana Rhoads was okay and she was stepping away from the lady that had been talking to her and the lady had like leaves and water and weird stuff in her hands and Hermana Rhoads said, 'Vamos' quite firmly and then we pushed through them and left very quickly and then Hermana Rhoads told me that she had stolen her ring and so that was a not cool and we were not a happy couple and we were also afraid a bit so we called our District Leader and asked him if we could fight them and he said, "No," and then we asked if he could fight them and he said, "No," and then we asked why and he said because "We're representatives of Christ," and then I said (a bit later) 'Even Jesus flipped tables in the temple' and yeah so

THAT WAS SUCH AN EXPERIENCE THO

I TOTALLY SHARED THE GOSPEL WITH SOME GYPSIES THAT ROBBED US and it was totally neat.

But this does bring up the stuff that has been happening nearby, what with the flooding in Antofagasta and the volcano in the south and also the dealings with missionaries and after our run in with the gypsies, we took a special route to the office and talked with Elder Bishoff (secretario) and he helped us program all the special numbers into our phone (gotcha covered Momma) and Elder Jaeger (pensionista) informed us that they are currently doing safety checks on all the apartments and houses in our sector. Plus, I don`t remember if I mentioned this before, all the elders live in the same building as us, and there's a gate and security cameras and all many types of protection. Hermana Rhoads and I are being very safe and very careful and we actually have been given the go ahead to head back to our home a bit early in the evening, so we're being safe and we're well taken care of. On gypsy day though, literally every person we had talked to, members and nonmembers alike, had warned us to stay safe and had told us about what happened in Concepción. And we're following all the rules in the Missionary Handbook... which brings me to another point

I need scripture cases! And I would sort of like to get at least one of the cool leather kind that everybody brings back from their missions but the thing is that they are slightly pricey, but they`re also in the handbook, so if it`s okay, I would like to get definitely one for my LDM and possibly one for my Biblia, and that`s all I have to say about that. 

Oh boy, what else; I feel like I have a ton more to say! 

OH YES

We had intercambios this week and I went with Hermana Gaona (Hermana líder 1) to Independencia and we taught an eternal investigator se llama Juan Carlos. 

Oh boy.

That also was an experience.

So, there are a lot of places here on corners and such that just look like they`re junk lots but they actually are where people live. So, Hermana Gaona and I showed up at one of these and she goes over to the corner, away from the actual door, and grabs a rock out of a little niche in the brick, and hits the rock 10 or so times on the wall in a certain space. And then this little tiny door opened up and this little tiny man invited us in and we kept the door open and he set up a little stool for us with some newspaper on it and there was one single lightbulb hanging from the 'ceiling' (it was a tarp and it hardly covered anything) and then he came over to us and handed us a bottle of Visine and told us that we needed to put the drops in his eyes because he couldn't do it and he needed help (and, perhaps I didn't mention this, he's a very loud little man. He's not just a little soft spoken man, he's a little slightly crazy man) and so we put the drops in his eyes and then we verified his progress and just

I dunno man

that was an experience

He has had all of the lessons a billion times and he goes to church every Sunday but he won`t get baptized because he won`t quit smoking and he doesn`t want to. His registro in the carpeta is literally 20 pages long. One day... 

But anyway. 

Also yesterday we took two of our investigators to a baptismal service for a boy in Recoleta Ward and they asked a lot of good questions and we gave a lot of answers and it was really good and we are trying quite hard to get them to do the baptism but they live together, entonces, no pueden. But we are still trying. Much try. Very faith. Wow.

What else can I even say? Maybe something spiritual? 

Well, we went to a FHE for a less active member whose family are not members but when we got there, we found out her family didn't want to participate so we ate pie with her and talked about our feelings and even though that sounds silly, it was really spiritual. I was able to tell her about my experience coming back to church and Hermana Rhoads and I were able to help her feel more hope for her future with her family and guess what

She came to church yesterday! 

CHI CHI CHI 

LE LE LE 

VIVA CHILE

And that`s basically how we felt. Also, a less active that we had stopped by to see but who hadn't been at home showed up at church on Sunday (WHAT???) and also one of the investigators that we took to the baptismal service! And also like four other people that we're working with and just

wHOA

It was really neat. All of everything is just really neat. Every single day I have the amazing opportunity to step outside of my comfort zone and share with people the things that I know to be true and the things that have changed my life and every day, even if there are slow days, and even if we get robbed by gypsies, every day I know that I am doing the Lord's work and there is no place I would rather be than here. 

ALSO IF THERE IS A PACKAGE GOING TO COME ANYTIME SOON

I NEED

FOUNDATION (it's not urgent I'm just using caps because)

BECAUSE

THEY DON`T SELL FOUNDATION HERE THAT IS LIGHT ENOUGH FOR MY SKIN LOL

They just don`t 

It's not a thing

ALSO QUICK I FORGOT TO LAST WEEK SAY BREAK A LEG AND BUENA SUERTE TO THE DRAMA CLUB WITH THEIR SHOW I AM SURE THAT IT WAS SO WONDERFUL WONDERFUL JOB TO ALL OF YOU SENDING YOU LOVES FROM CHILE

Also I forgot to mention that in my area there is a place called

**+/PATRONATO/+** 

it is like

I can`t

I can't go there (I mean I can but I can't you know)

it's

so many clothes

I

I can't

THEY SELL EVERYTHING IN THE WORLD AND SO MANY CLOTHES AND I JUST

I WANT TO SELL ALL MY CLOTHES AND BUY ALL OF THE CLOTHES HERE

I WANT THEM ALL

HOLY CANNOLI

also let me see if there are any questions you asked that I am forgetting

Also the water is safe! so I drink a lot of water and a lot of juice

I have had more juice here than I ever knew existed

but the milk

the milk is weird

I miss normal milk

Also  my feet are gr9! [That means great in Elizabethan] I had a small trouble with almost getting blisters but I slapped moleskin on there and now my shoes are formed enough to my feet that I don`t need the moleskin anymore and I am getting nice tan lines and callouses but anyway 

Also, we sing every day! I forgot if I mentioned that Hermana Rhoads is an AMAZING singer so we sing all the time and sometimes for language study we just sit around and sing hymns in Spanish for an hour and it`s really great and we always start lessons with hymns and we just sing a whole lot of hymns and it`s really good I love the singy sing

ALSO ANDREW AND JEFFREY AND ROBBY OH MY

I JUST

WHOA

FEELS [She misses her brothers]

ALSO CONNER I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW HE PUT HIS PAPERS IN [Her friend Connor got his mission call to Rio de Janeiro Brazil]

Literally everybody still struggles with my name. I`ve started introducing myself as 'Hermana Chomburr' because that's how they say it anyway. 

ALSO HERMANA RHOADS IS PART OF THE FAMILY NOW SHE CAN HAND FART

oh yes

by the way

I have been teaching all the missionaries how to hand fart and do the whistle thing

hehe

yeah

I'm pretty popular tbh

Holy cannoli this thing is long

Okay

gotta go now

Momma I love you so much and I love everybody in the family and everybody and everybody and I just love you a whole lot and I will talk to you on

on

ON SUNDAY [Missionaries get to call/Skype home twice per year - Mother's Day and Christmas. This will be Hermana Schomburg's first call home! Yay!]

HAHAHAHAHA

Okay yeah so that`ll happen

OH WAIT I FORGOT TO SAY

I`m very sorry to disappoint Chandler, but I can't do mate. I just can't. IT'S SO STRONG. Maybe one day, but not today.

Also they make everything with cilantro here!

I don't like cilantro.

Love you all! Ciao for now :)

Until we meet again, 

Hermana Schomburg