CCM Hermanas

CCM Hermanas

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Baptisms, Pictures and Socks

Hello Friends! I'm afraid that I took all of Teigen's time this week and her email to us all was woefully short. If you are like me...those emails fuel me through the following week. Of course, she didn't communicate so frequently when she was at college. Hmmm.

At the end of her email...I will post the Q&A. Without further ado..

Happy New Year!
sorry, no time to write! spent it all answering questions that should appear on the blog and sending pictures that should also appear on the blog.
 
Good week! We spent christmas eve with a member family and ate really well! then watched fireworks and went back to our house. christmas was pday and we slept. and wrote letters and ate. it was AWESOME.
 
we should have a baptism soon! this week we're planning a wedding and a baptism and possiblyt a dia blanco! pray for us so that that can happen!
 
thats all the share with the time i have! love you lots and have a happy new year!

Love, Hermana Weatherford

Biana again. I have been asking and asking and asking for pictures of where Teigen is at. In our brief Christmas phone conversation she mentioned that it's completely against the rules for her to take her camera out. The reason is safety...it's a major attraction to thieves and of course, they don't want the sisters in jeopardy. I asked if it was possible to go out on her p-day with a larger group for security and she laughed. She then told me it was against the rule. Well, okay then...don't break rules. However, she was able to get a handful from the area where she is currently serving.

The first is the street where she is living. She says they spend a lot of time in this neighborhood. The following is a path that they take to get to a nearby pueblo. And the third is that pueblo. On the phone she told me about the metal walls.

 
Of course she can send picture of the members. It's great to see her working with people of all ages, and it's comforting to know that folks are taking care of her. The first is the family that she and her companion had lunch with on Christmas day. Please note that Guatemalans traditionally celebrate Christmas Eve with fireworks and parades and other excitment. Christmas day was pretty much a normal working day.
 
The next is a baptism!!


 


And finally...the Wall of Frogs! I'm sure there is a story behind all this, but I've yet to hear it!
 


I find that I want more information from Teigen about where she is and what she's doing and who she sees. I'm always asking questions but her responses are ...effecient, shall we say. So I sent her the list below and made the questions as detailed as possible. She gave me answers in a different color...and I think I can hear her eye rolling in here too!

i don't know if i'll be able to respond to all of your questions, but i'll try! some of them you already know the answers to. ugh. shame on you.

You said you were going to walk like 10 miles a day…how is it really? Did you get blisters? Are your feet always dusty? Do you walk on paved roads or dirt paths? How are your shoes/socks/feet? Are your legs totally buffed out now?
Yes, my legs are totally buff. it's kinda weird, but good i guess. No, i don't get blisters any more, i have calouses in all of the places that were once blisters. Paved roads all the time, only dirt roads to get to the one part of my area. my shoes are showing wear and tear, my socks are holding up alright (but more would be nice!) and my feet are beaten up. poor things. we do walk a ton. our area is REALLY small, so we don't walk as much as others, but i'd say we walk about 7ish miles a day.
Do you still have two companions? What kind of gifts did they get from home? Do you find a big difference between your Latina companion and your American companion…correspondence wise? Do they get lots of mail?
No, I only have one comp. Shes going home in January and so her family didn't send her anything. They're going to see her in 3 weeks anyways. She does get lots of emails, but no paper letters as i've ever seen.
When you got your holiday packages from home, did all the missionaries open their together or did you take yours home to open it privately? What do you wish you had gotten? What do you want more of?
We opened them privately in our houses at night when we got back from working. I would like more socks, hair ties and bobby pins. And chocolate. :)
What are the big differences in food? Does milk taste the same? Do you drink gallons like before? What about cheese and meat and broccoli? Do you have the same veggies?
The cheese is like mexican cheese. Not like cheddar or anything. Yes, the milk tastes the same, the only difference is the packaging. it's in a carton and you can keep it out of the fridge until you open it. No, i don't drink as much, i drink water now. yuck. meat, we can only eat chicken, turkey and beef. veggies are hard to get because they are really dirty here and so we have to go through a bunch of stuff to clean it. fruit too, so we dont usually eat too much of that.
What does you apartment look like? Do you share with another pair of missionaries? Is it like the flat in “Best 2 Years” or like the fake missionaries in “Suits on the Loose”? Do you have downstairs neighbors who come kill your giant spiders?
I dunno. It's pretty small. But it's only my comp and I. We do have downstairs neighbors, but i have the role of killing all the bugs. (my comp is super afraid of cucas) not too many spiders, but ants, holy cow, yes. tons. and cucas. but not too many of those. waaaaaay less than amatitlan.
What about shopping…is it like hitting Safeway? I know you have a Walmart, but do you go elsewhere for other things?
no, we don't have a walmart. we go to the despensa. yes, it's like a supermarket, but with nothing american. unless you go to a big one and we can only do that every once in awhile.
Tell me about mail call. You mentioned that you only get stuff on transfer days…what’s that like? How many letters are waiting for you? What’s it feel like? Do you look for dates or names or special sized envelopes? Who writes to you?
Oh my gosh, these questions are ridiculous. But yes, only transfers and zone training. I usually get about 4 or 5. or sometimes less. it varies. it's Dear Elders and handwritten letters. After the excitement of cambios (transfers), it's really not the most exciting thing, but a good note to end on. and then later in the night i can read them, and that's the best part :)
What clothes ended up working out well? Should I be preparing to send you more of that item or will you be able to find something locally? Have you taken up any local practices?
Local practices? like what? i'm the type of sister who just likes t shirts. blouses are too hot and restricting, so i don't wear them often and then a nice formalish skirt makes me look like i'm formal or whatever.
What is the local church like? How many members? In your area, how many wards? How far from the temple are you located? When will you get to go next? What’s different about your temple and the Portland temple?
My area, one ward. I'm not sure the number of members, but about 150 attendance every week. The temple is in Guate, which isn't in our mission. we only go on special occasions. the next time i'll get to go is when a convert family of mine or my comps gets sealed. so.... who knows. it's possible not before next christmas. the temple here is about a tenth or twentieth of the size of the portland temple. it's TINY.
Finally….are the members taking care of you? Do you get many dinner appointments? Do they help in other ways? (Yes, I did get an email from one of the members!) Is there a family that reminds you of someone back home? Anyone really special yet?
We don't eat with the members. And we don't eat dinner. We pay for a member to make us lunch every day. Only every once in awhile we eat with other members. But only really trusted ones, because we have lots of food rules. The family Delcompare is my favorite :) if a woman named Elsa tries to friend you on facebook or email you, accept her. she's the bomb. she also has pictures.

No comments:

Post a Comment