Week 10

Hola!!  This week has definitely had its ups and downs!  Mostly ups though so that's good(:  We had intercambios this week!!  I was actually super surprised at how well I was able to lead us around the sector!  I've learned a lot more than I sometimes think I do!!  But the biggest thing I think I've learned this week is that bad days end!  Sometimes days drag on or it doesn't seem like things are going to get better, but they always do!  And once the bad days end, we only remember what we learned from them, not the pain.  I can't speak the language super well right now, but in about three more months, I will be able to speak for the rest of my life (hopefully, haha).  But just hold on and bad days end!  On Friday we celebrated Christmas just because! (It was a rough week haha we needed something fun!)  But it was super fun!!  And it totally feels like Christmas here!  There is cold, snow, and I don't know why but everybody here has their Christmas decorations still up!  But it was so fun!!  And it was a great way to re-focus our lives more on the Savior!  Something else really cool that I realized is that its more about who I am than what I can say!  We had lunch with a member this week and he invited his siblings over!  Afterward, they were telling him how they felt something different with us!  They felt really happy while we were there and really peaceful!  That was cool because they weren't talking about what we said or anything but rather, about how they felt with us there.  I realized that I'm being more of a missionary than I sometimes think I am!!  Just because I am living a worthy life and trying to keep the Spirit with me, I can bring that into the homes and lives of other people when I am around them!  It doesn't matter that I cant speak!  That will come in time, but right now I'm still a missionary!!  Today we went to the Magallanes reserve (this mountain/hill that looks out over Punta Arenas).  We played soccer (my team was all Latinos so we obviously won hahah jk), walked around, saw incredible views, and ate lunch together!  It was super fun and another great reminder of how incredibly blessed I am to be able to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ in such a beautiful place!!  I still love being a missionary despite hard days!!  Its the best thing I have ever done!!  I love you all and I hope you have an amazing week!!  And Happy First Day of School on Tuesday (or for Kyle today)!!  I love you all have an incredible week!!
--Hermana West