22 July 2013 - Second week in Nica - Area: Miraflores

Buenas Tardes from Nicaragua! 

This week went by so fast...it feels like I just emailed yesterday. If this is how it goes for the next 16 months, I'll be home in 2.5 months...at least for me...haha. But this week was good. Some ups and downs, but that's to be expected. But things are improving! I am understanding more Spanish! Yay! Nicaraguans seriously talk so fast! Even when they think they're slowing down for my sake! But the Bishop's family (las E) are still easily the hardest to understand. But their 19 yr old daughter, P, is pretty good at realizing when I'm lost and will give me a breakdown of what's happening. One part of Nica culture I have yet to adjust to is that all the women kiss each others cheeks when they greet each other. What can I say, I'm not a very kissy person. And I have to bend down a lot to do so...haha oh well. I'll probably come home and be really confused s to why people shake my hand instead of kissing my cheeks. Haha 

 I didn't eat anything too crazy this week. Lots of beans and rice. Gallo Pinto is seriously their favorite food...and it's just beans and rice. But I like it too...just not more than pizza or chocolate. I'm so gringo...haha. But I did have soup one day...a HUGE bowl that I was obligated to eat. The interesting part was that the entire carcass was still in the soup. and huge slices of veggies. That was fun/awkward to eat. But yesterday we had torta de leche...so good! and hot chocolate, but it was even more bitter than the Mexican hot chocolate we had at home. They call it cafe de los Mormones...haha. But they have lots of amazing fruits...calala is my favorite. And it's so cheap! Gotta love Nicaragua! 

After I emailed yesterday, I learned how to be a little more Nica...by hand washing my clothes...fun stuff. It wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be. There's a large outdoor sink on our patio, so that helps. So Mom, you know how you never really trusted me with knives because you just knew I'd cut a finger off one day? Well Nicaragua has more trust in me. I learned how to cut a mango with a huge knife that looked more like a butcher's knife. Hna E handed me a mango and a knife and told me to start cutting...it was more like peeling a potato. They all were laughing at the gringa. But then the next day, Nicaragua trusted me even more! We went to a service activity on Saturday in the cemetery.. where we did lots of yardwork. All the graves here are above ground, so the work is much more difficult than just mowing the lawn. We raked a ton, but also had to cut the grass. But lawn mowers don't exist. Instead...machetes!!! I learned how to cut grass with a machete...I'm going to be so useful when I get home! But it was awesome to do something slightly familiar...aka yardwork...and wear pants. That's always a perk. Later that day, we went to a cultural celebration in honor of the stake's 15 yr anniversary of existence! The Managua Stake was the first stake in Nicaragua. Pretty crazy. It was awesome though! Way cooler than Utah culture...not gonna lie. 

This week, we did a LOT of contacting. One day, we spent a few hours in another area "ataque el area" i think in english they call it blitzing. I think we had more success in that area that we do in our own. Bummer! But it's all the same if the person ends up joining the church! I'm starting to get the hang of contacting. Calling 'Buenas'! through the door is normal now...the talking in spanish after the initial "Hola, somos misioneras de la iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Ultimos Dias, yo soy hna MacKay y ella es mi companera, Hna R" part is more difficult. When the people actually want to talk to us, they pull out plastic lawn chairs and we talk about the Restored Gospel! One investigator pulled out these TINY chairs that were meant for toddlers. That was a fun hour of my life. But pretty funny! We've contacted a lot and have had a pretty good amount of appointments, but they usually fall through. We show up at their house and they either ignore us or aren't there. So that's discouraging, but we've had a few positive people! We had one potential investigator go to part of church with us, so that was exciting! His name is R and wants to do everything possible to set a good example for his daughter...which easily would be to learn the gospel, so we'll see where that goes! We also found a woman named M, who was almost baptized 12 yrs ago, but then she moved and the missionaries never found her until now! I'm excited to meet with her again!  

Hermana R is awesome! I feel bad because I'm still not super chatty, especially in espanol, so she keeps asking why I'm so quiet. One day, we will have a constant flowing conversation with jokes and my actual personality. I haven't had a real conversation in English for 2 weeks. Pretty strange! But Hermana R is a great missionary, especially since she's pulling the weight for two of us half the time. I really just want to pull out my notebook and take notes during lessons. Haha. Sometimes I get a little trunky (I know, that shouldn't even be possible since I'm so new) because she only has almost 3 months left. But that's alright! She's a hardworker! She always asks me if I want to do something (like contact someone, start a conversation, etc) and I hate saying no, so I end up doing it. I think she's figured out that I never say no to her...she says it's super pilas (cool) though because I'm ready to learn! I'll take her word for it.  

It takes 15 min to walk to my stake center, about the same to walk to my ward building, and I have no idea how big my area/district/zone is. I'll let you know when I understand where I'm walking every day. Here, they don't have house addresses. It's just, 1 cuardo aajo, 2 oeste, the red house with that one dog that just left the porch. Haha pretty difficult to get around. It was so hard to cross streets a few days ago! There was a crazy political rally a few blocks away from our house...the sandinista party! People came to Managua from all over Nica. Literally at least 50 buses completely crowded. People were sitting on the rooftops of the buses! The Sandinistas are know to be slightly crazy and some are anti north american. We had to be really careful about where we went because I kind of draw a lot of attention. I got whistled at soooo many times by busloads of people. It would be flattering if not...well actually I'm not sure if it'd ever be that flattering. Haha.  

Well, I am still a complete gringa here, but I'm loving it! When I get discouraged, I think of how lucky I am to be a representative of Jesus Christ in Nicaragua! I get to help people learn about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and how it can change their lives. I know that Joseph Smith really did see Christ and Heavenly Father, and because of that, we have the fullness of the Gospel. It's such a blessing in my life and I love having the opportunity to bless others lives! 

I love you all and I hope everything is going well!

Love,

Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)

29 May 2013 - First day at Guatemala CCM

15 July 2013 - First email from Nica!

I'M IN NICARAGUA!!! 

This is kind of insane. I still have random realizations that 1. I'm in Nica and 2. I'm a missionary...in Nicaragua. Haha but it's awesome. The last Sunday before I left, the elders in my district gave us blessings. It was so awesome! That helped my nerves a lot. My last day in the CCM was really boring. All we did was sit through 8 hours of workshops. But for dinner, there was a chocolate fountain...you better believe that was my first stop...haha Anyway, to the more interesting part...We left the CCM at about 3 30 am and flew out of the airport at 7...and arrived in Nica 1.5 hrs later! Woo! We made it through customs and baggage, and then my Mission President was there to greet us! The Russells are great. Sis. Russell reminds me a lot of you, Mom. So once we arrived at the mission home, we started workshops. Yay...but we went to a Nicaraguan restaurant for lunch! We slept over that night, then the next morning...Cambios! Exchanges!  

All the newbies had to bear their testimonies...that was nervewracking. But I made it through. My trainer is Hermana R from El Salvador. She doesn't know any English, so I am in full immersion here. She's great though...very patient. She only has 4 months left until she goes home, so I'll probably be in my area for a while. I'm in here in Managua! Miraflores District! Our area is bigger than I expected for a city. But it's actually a lot like Provo...Nicaraguanized...haha. Our house...for lack of a better work...is one room with a kitchenette, desks, and beds. The bathroom is kind of like an outhouse...fun stuff. I'm always terrified there will be a huge spider to greet me in the morning. No such luck yet...I'm sure it'll happen one of these days.  

So I thought I knew Spanish pretty well...FALSE. I can understand my companion without straining myself too much, but for everyone else, I have to concentrate really hard. Guatemalan spanish was way easier to understand than Nica spanish. My first day, we visited a lot of investigators...had no idea what they were saying, but I was there! One couple really liked me...I think it was because I was just smiling the whole time even though I had no idea what was going on. Oh what fun. One of the first things I wrote in my journal my first night was 'HORMIGAS (ants) ARE NOT MY FRIENDS. In the US, most of the time they're just annoying. Here, they all attack you. My legs are a testimony to that. Mosquitos also happen to love my chelita skin. The intense bug spray we got is failing me. Yaaaaay. Here, everyone calls me Chelita...it means little white girl. It's somewhat endearing, until men call it out in the street. Then you walk away as fast as possible.  

I am a GIANT here. I knew I'd be tall, and usually I don't even feel that tall here, but in a picture that we took on Thursday, I am waaaaay taller than everyone. I also am the only one who ever has to duck when walking on the sidewalk. Sometimes, I forget...stupid trees get in the way. I also scare small children with my blue eyes and abnormal height. Haha. But Welcome to Nicaragua!  

So another Welcome to Nicaragua moment...I had my first baptism on Friday!!! I don't really think I can claim it as mine, since I didn't even meet Jose until the day of, but still. First, J and his (now) wife got married, then afterwards, he was baptized! It was awesome, even if I didn't understand much. I got roped into singing a musical number at the baptism...fun stuff...haha. I sang a primary song about baptism in spanish. 

I didn't even start tracting until Saturday because we were so busy visiting investigators and less actives. Tracting/contacting is so nerve wracking! I know I'll get used to it, but oh man. So scary. Here, there arent normal doors/doorbells. There are wire gates surrounding the house. So you call through the gate, "buenas" and usually someone comes to talk to you.  

I had a cool experience a few days ago. We were visiting a less active family, who was actually attending a Catholic church...they didn't really want to listen to us, but let us in anyway. We started teaching about prayer/their concerns and when I was bearing my testimony (one of the few things I can actually do in lessons) the Hna. started to cry. I was a little concerned that I'd said something wrong, but then she said I reminded her of Hna C, who was the one who found them. Tall, blue eyes, brown hair. Just by being there, I helped her remember her baptismal covenants/why she initially joined the church. So was so sweet! She also invited me to her 8 yr old's birthday party...I think I have a new friend! haha 

So for food, we pay a family to feed us lunch. I think we're going to start having the make dinner for us too. The bishop's family (familia E) does it. They have 2 girls my age, so that's fun. It's sooo hard to understand Bishop E though. My goal is to understand him soon. The daughters are my "aunts" and now I have another set of abuelos...and Hna R is my mama. The food is great! Not at all like the food we tried to make when I got my call. I think my favorite part is the drinks. So good! I had the drink we attempted to make...we didn't make it right. It was amazing. I love Nica food! I might change my mind after a year of it, but we'll see how it goes. 

Church was interesting. We have a pretty big membership...too bad there were only 28 people there! Yeah, I counted. So crazy! Retention is definitely an issue here. It's because so many people can't afford to not work on Sundays. So sad. But I am the only piano player in the ward...too bad I hadn't played for amost 2 months. Karen...think about how "well" my accompaniment went in YW in VA...yup, it was that bad. Oh well, I don't think it made much of a difference to the congregation!   

Sometimes I feel like I'm in an old Western movie, but with colorful homes built with scrap metal. Occasionally there's even a horse pulling a cart...not even kidding! But then someone pulls out an iPhone and ruins that vision. It is SOOO hot here though...I haven't even tried to wear my hair down because it's so hot and muggy. We affectionately call our house the horno...which means oven. It gets so hot during the day. But I love it here. I feel safe. I'm happy. I'm serving the Lord to the best of my ability. It's great. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints really is the restored gospel. Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon trhough revelation/inspiration from God. And it changes lives. Prayer makes such a difference in daily life. I feel so close to Heavenly Father.  

Well, I hope all is well at home...and CONGRATULATIONS MARK AND JILL!!! Can't wait to come home to a new sister! Yaaaay! So awesome. Oh and I did see Trent Colton at the CCM, he's doing well!  

Love, 

Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by Lisa's Mom)

3 July - Last Email from Guatemala CCM!

Hey!

This is my last email from the CCM! This time next week, I-ll be in NICARAGUA! So excited! You probably won-t hear from my next week, since I won-t have a pday. But I-ll leave super early on tuesday morning! I only have 3 more days of normal CCM life! Sunday will be normal, but it-ll be full of Church activities, no classes. Then on monday, we only have talleres *workshops( Sorry if there are tons of typos...this keyboard is funky. But yeah, then I-ll get 4 or so hrs of sleep. then I-ll head to the airport! there is still only one other norte going to my mission with me, but there are about 3 latinas who arrived last week who will go with me. One of them is from Nica North and told me all about it. She loves Nica. She said it-s HOT, of course, but also that the beaches are awesome,,,if only that meant anything to me...and also that it is so safe. It-s way safer than the other Central American countries. And she-s even from the city. So that was cool. She is hilarious. I hope we-ll be comps eventually.  

So the mercado was awesome! It wasn-t quite as cool as the one we went to in Panajachel with my seminary class, since this one was underground indoors. But it was great. I got some fabric to cut up to sew onto my backpack to cover the Jansport logo *just a precaution* and some headbands. I love Central America! I think I-m changing my mind about Europe. Because Guatemala City has the same gorgeous buildings with way more culture than London...no offense to Erica-s mission...haha. We got our cameras back for a few hours,, so that was nice! I took about 50 pics...so you-ll see those in a few weeks! Oh! We also went to guatemala relief map. It was pretty cool. You should google it, since I have no idea how to explain it...it-s a huge map of guatemala.  

So we got a new classroom...again...this time in the Casa de los Huespedes...aka the temple housing by the temple. It-s so nice! It-s a little hacienda. Our classroom is actually the family history center lab. Last weekend, there were over 300 endowments received in only half a day. SO crazy! The temple is now closed for cleaning, so last week was my last time for 17 months. That-ll probably be one of the first things I want to do when I get back. But because there were so many endowments, there were a ton of people in temple housing. I made friends with 2 cute little girls, Jemela y Dulce. They were sooo cute! Jemela came up to Hna Snelson and I when we were practicing teaching each other and started talking to us about all the animals she has learned about from Animal Planet. She knows a lot! She reminds me of Rachel. She and Dulce later joined in on a lesson hna Edwards and I were teaching to our teacher. So cute! Jemela read a scripture for us and prayed at the end. I can-t wait to have little friends like that in the mission field!  

So on Sunday, we sang a musical number! And by we I mean my district. We sang Joseph-s first vision to the tune of In Humility Our Savior. I got the idea from Insideout. It turned out really well! We made Pres. Diaz cry! He actually recorded it. Don-t know how kosher that was, but oh well! I survived the sacrament meeting hunger games! I never was called up to give a talk, although I totally could-ve. I wrote some pretty good talks...haha I-ll probably go up to bear my testimony though. We-ve made friends with some of the senior missionaries because we study on the landing that leads to the 3rd floor. We call one of them Hermana Grandma because she acts like our grandma. She took some pictures that she said she-d sent to us. I-ll try to forward them. 

Did you hear that they changed policy about the missionary nametags_  We heard from Salt Lake this week and the first presidency said they want us to wear them on our right side now! It feels tpretty weird. the elders keep the pocket one on their left pockets, but have to clip the other kind on the right. The reason was something about when you shake hands with someone, they will be able to see your name more easily.  

So behind the CCM is a Catholic School...or something. there are nuns everywhere! One of the senior couples said that they can see the nuns playing basketball from their upstairs window...there are some baller nuns, apparently...haha. well, The CCM has been an awesome experience. I-ve learned a lot about the Gospel and myself. I am more confident in my skills to share the gospel. I-ve made some awesome friendships too! It-s going to be hard to leave my district. At least i have Hna Butler! In a devotional last night, Sister Wendy Nelson said something really cool. She said that I should pray to be able to find the people whose ancestors are paraying for you. Which makes sense, because the ancestors want me to find their posterity so that they can do the work for their ancestors! so interesting, but it totally makes sense! Well, I know that I am here to serve the Lord, and I can-t wait to do so in Nicaragua. The Chruch of Jesus christ of Latterday Saints is God-s true church on this earth! It is such a blessing in my life and I can-t wait to bless others lives with it. 

I love you all! I hope all is well at home! Congrats to Rachel on her job! that-ll be great for her! I loved all the pictures!  

Love,

Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by Lisa's Mom)

24 June Email from Guatemala CCM

Hola!  

Well, it was another good week! But not much happened. It went by so quickly! I guess this is how it's gonna be for the rest of the CCM experience! We're getting ready for the new bunch of missionaries! The oldtimers leave reaaally early on Tuesday morning. The church sure does love to plan those redeye flights! That'll be me in 2 weeks! So excited!  

So I forgot to tell you last week, but when the new group came, we were booted from our classroom in the CCM. Now we have to walk to the capilla, which is right by the temple. So we get nice daily strolls through the gas station. Good stuff. A few days ago, there was a wedding going on in the chapel, so we weren't allowed to leave our classroom for a few hrs. Apparently, in Guatemala the state doesn't recognize temple marriages, or maybe the temple workers just aren't authorized, so first, couples have to be married civily, then sealed in the temple afterwards.  

We have CRE every Friday. 2 weeks ago, it went better than the first time, but the person we taught forgot to pretend to be a less active member, so we just talked about the church and how she goes every week...haha. This past Friday, we taught a 15 yr old girl. Her english is amazing, but we spoke in all Spanish. She was so cute. She asked why she had to go to church every Sunday and we talked about the Sacrament, as well as the Spirit that you feel there. It went really well. Hna Edwards and I are getting really good at impromptu lessons. I think we might be better at those than the planned lessons. This week, we're adding a new 'investigator' to teach. We're paired up´with another missionary. Each person chooses a profile and acts like that person every time. It'll be interesting!  

So Hno Lopez comes back soon, but he probably won't be our teacher. Oh well. But all the maestros speak to us in Spanish. I'm getting pretty good at understanding Spanish when they speak fast...I still struggle sometimes, though. It's funny because I'm the walking dictionary of the district. If someone doesn't know what a word is, they automatically ask me. Except now, they're reading the Book of Mormon in Spanish, and I don't know a lot of those words...gotta step it up! haha But whenever the maestros are speaking in Spanish, but the class doesn't understand, the maestros look at me and ask me to translate. Haha.  

Hermana Edwards is improving a lot! Last week was pretty rough because she was feeling self conscious about her spanish, so I had to lead the discussions in our lessons, but we've been getting better. It helps a lot to answer people's questions. I definitely still have a lot to learn, but thanks to Senorita Taylor, I'm better off that I could've been. Oh! One of the elders here from Highland was in my spanish class! Pretty funny.  

Hey, Mark, was that Kix cereal stuff you mentioned liquid or solid? Because for breakfast here, there's always aveno, or hot arroz con leche...both are sooooo good! And kind of taste like liquid kix. Love it.  

The weather here is perfect. It rains once a day, usually not too bad. It feels like the Spring that Utah never gets. Nice and cool, but still warm. It's going to be a shock when I get to Nicaragua. I've started to get mosquito bites,since we're outside more at night. I definitely didn't miss that part of VA when we lived in UT! they have lots of strange fruit here. You should look up the liche fruit...it's round and very spiky. But it's pretty good! and I actually eat the pineapple here! It's so fresh! Gotta love Central America! 

We watched the Leadership broadcast last night! So good! And it was fun to see the Marriott Center! I miss that place! Yeah, I kept straining to see people I knew when they showed the choir on the screen. I saw a girl from Lone Peak (Chloe Jacklin) and possible Chase from BYU...I couldn't decide. I didn't see Melissa, though, unless she was wearing a green sweater...haha.  

Has Angel gotten her call yet? She better let me know ASAP. I got Karen's letter on Friday, so it only took 8 days! pretty crazy! I'll off a letter on Pday tomorrow! So how did Sherry do after dropping Sister Andelin? I wrote Mel a letter...and sent it to her mission home. So crazy that she's only there for such a short time! Will you send some pictures from theweek before I left? How was trek? 

Well, I can't think of anything else that happened. I started making my own index of gospel topics in one of my notebooks. I've realized that the concept of light is fascinating to me. God is light. He will always be there for us, to guide us out of the darkness. And we are all individual lights. Right now, I'm trying to grow my light, so that I can shine it on all the people I'll be teaching. The Lord is my light, so why should I fear? I love the Gospel and am learning so much every day! 

I love you all! Hope all is well!

Love,

Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by Lisa's Mom)

18 June Email from Guatemala CCM

Hola! 

Well, it has been another great week! It seems like the work is getting easier and the days are going faster, so that's good! Today is my halfway mark in the CCM! I leave on July 9, so 3 more weeks! Sometimes, it still randomly hits me that I'm a missionary. I think about how I felt when Scott and Mark were on missions...I definitely prefer the experience I'm having on my end. Missionary work is great! Even when I'm just learning how to be a missionary.  

Walmart was so fun! It was awesome getting out into the real world for a few hours. Most people wore jeans, but I didn't bring any, so I had to wear a skirt. But I didn't mind. Everything there was so cheap! I bought a little crossbody leather purse for about 8 dollars! It was fun seeing everything familiar in a different setting. They even had Milka chocolate! So good! We had about 45 minutes in Walmart, then walked to a mall to eat at the food court. I really wanted to explore, but we weren't allowed. So instead, I got to eat more American food at McDonalds! Yaaaay! haha When we got back, we went to the temple, and then Pday ended. But the new group came the next day! There are now 3 people here from Highland and 1 (me) from Alpine...but not for long, since Trent will be coming next transfer, right? Oh, I saw/met Sister Harris this week! The hermanas are a lot more concerned with their appearance than my group is. Maybe because they've only been here for a week. When you realize that there won't be any pictures taken, your motivation to look super cute dies down pretty fast. We all act like their big sisters, even though they're all my age or older. Anyway, My new roommates are Hermanas Butler and Snelson, who are both in my district. We have good district bonding time at night...haha. I have been labeled the passive-aggressive one because I keep accidentally throwing things off my bed...and bumping into people. Gotta love my clumsiness!  

So you should be proud...I'm not the picky eater here! I eat everything they give me, even if it's a little scary looking. I'm slowly getting used to eating beans for breakfast. A few times, I had straight up chili with my eggs...oh man. I also had to perform surgery on my finger when I got a splinter from our metal bathroom door. Apparently I looked like I was about to pass out...haha. There's a crazy virus going around the CCM right now...it just infiltrated my district, through my companion. Poor Hna Edwards! But she's a trooper. It's her birthday, today, too. Whenever something undesireable happens, our district's motto is, But the church is still true!...and that it is!  

Spanish is progressing! I can tell how much I am improving each Sunday by how much I understand. Sacrament meeting is the only meeting that is in Spanish. The branch president calls up people randomly to give talks on the assigned subject. It's a lot like Hunger Games, actually. haha. My first Sunday, I barely understood anything. But since then, each week has gotten easier. I just have to really pay attention. Now I just have to be able to understand my Branch President...he talks sooo fast! My branch is about half latino and half norte, so we get a pretty even mix of who speaks. We had exchanges again. This time, there was one latina to every norte companionship, since there are a lot less latinas this transfer. We had Hermana Castro. She is so cute! She is from Guayaquil, Ecuador and is going to Panama. She told us all about the mosquitos in Central America. Oh joy. 

We watched a lot of old devotionals from the Provo MTC this week. My favorite was from Elder Bednar in June 2009. If you can, try to track it down! It's about how the Spirit speaks to us and gives us answers, and it was exactly what I needed. I've also been reading the Ensign from May with all the General Conference talks. I know that the prophet and apostles are inspired from God. Those talks are amazing! If anyone hasn't, go back and reread them! You'll find something new in every talk. I really feel like this week I have become more like a missionary. I recognize the peace and joy that just reading the Book of Mormon brings. I love it! My personal study has become more meaningful. My first week, I usually ended up falling asleep during it, but now, I treasure every minute.  

So it sounds like all is going well at home! That's exciting that Mel reports tomorrow! Wish her luck for me! She'll be great! At stake conference, did they announce how many missionaries are serving from our stake? HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, Dad! Sorry I didn't get a letter out. Everyone here was convinced it was next week. But I hope it was great! I wish I could've been there to make molasses softies for you! haha Well, I can't think of anything else to write. I love this Gospel! My testimony grows every day! I've been teaching a lot about the Plan of Salvation to our 'investigators' and it really is the plan of happiness! Oh! I committed our teacher to baptism! that was pretty exciting...because it was in Spanish and we hadn't been planning to yet. But yeah, God knows each of us and he knows exactly what we need. He knows that I need to be on a mission right now. Why else would I be in Guatemala, learning to do all the things I hated doing (talking to strangers, teaching lessons, etc) at home? It's crazy, but exciting! I love you all and hope you have a great week! 

Love, Hna MacKay 

PS letters are appreciated...hint hint

 

(Posted by Lisa's Mom)

10 June Email from Guatemala CCM

Hola! 

So I'm emailing today because tomorrow is transfers and all the people staying get to go on a field trip to avoid extra confusion...so we're going to Walmart! Or Gualmart as they prounounce it. So that'll be fun. My roommates are leaving for their mission fields, so who knows what the new roommates will be like...maybe they'll be hispanas. The Guatemala temple is so cool! It's tiny though. The day before, Pres. Martino from the area seventy gave a devotional, then at the Temple, he was in our session. That was cool! I did it in English.I didn't see the harris's though. I wrote you a letter on Wednesday, so you should get that...eventually. It only takes me about a week to get letters from the states, though! Melissa and Jenny (from BYU) wrote me and the postmark was May 29 and I got it 8 days later! Not too shabby!  

This week was good. We've been working a lot on how to teach, which has been really helpful, since teaching Alejandro the week before was so stressful since we weren't getting a ton of guidance! But now he has been passed on to the real missionaries, so that's cool! Now we're teaching Marisol, but she's just our daytime teacher, Hna Reyes. Hno Lopez is on a 2 week vacation, so now we have Hna Reyes. Our PM (4 to 9) teacher is Hno Gomez! He's way cool,and only talks to us in Spanish, which is awesome, but frustrating when I don't know how to respond. But my spanish is coming along well! I try to speak as much as I can, but it's difficult when my comp's spanish is limited, though she is definitely improving! On Sunday, we had splits for few hours! That was cool! My companera was Hna Ochoa from Guatemala! She didn't speak any English,so that was the ultimate test of my spanish! She said she was surprised that I've only been in the CCM for 2 weeks! So that was a confidence booster!  

This week flew by. I've having a hard time even remembering what happened! One day, we had a lesson on stress, so Hno Lopez took us outside and had us play Pacman on the basketball court lines...so fun! On our way back to the classroom, he asked some of the hermanas if they were tired, and they said no, so he decided to make us run up and down the stairs that lead to our classroom 5 times! And our classroom is on the 3rd floor...oh man that was tiring. And we had already done deportes that day.So for deportes (sports), I usually play basketball or use the elliptical. The gym is pretty pathetic. There are about 10 different machines, then outside, there's a concrete basketball court and volleyball court. Not many options compared to the Provo MTC, but it works. Everyone complains about not being allowed to play futbol here...but since we don't have a field, I can see how it would be dangerous.  

The water here is decently clean. I think the girl who said the water was super dirty must have been staying in the temple housing. The president's wife said this is probably the cleanest water we'll get while we're on ourmissions, but it still isn't clean enough to drink. So we have 3 gallon water dispensers in our hallway. I'm starting to really miss American food. Every once in a while, the cooks will make pizza or hamburgers and all the nortes get really excited. And we always get evening snacks...whenever there are American candy bars, it's a free for all. They never have anything minty though...so sad...haha oh well! I'm slowly learning to like platanos, but everything else is easy to like. 

 

It's been super rainy here lately...One day, it was pouring during deportes so everyone was playing volleyball in the rain. I would've, but I wasn't feeling so good, so I didn't want to risk getting worse. Then, on Sunday, during Sacrament meeting, it was seriously POURING! It was awesome! They had to shuttle us back to the CCM fromthe chapel. The chapel is right by the temple, but still a 5 min walk from the CCM. If you google earth the Guatemala temple or CCM, you can probably see the gas station we have to walk through to get to the chapel or computer lab. Oh! On friday, someone came up to our aula and said that we needed to go to CRE (in same area as the lab), so we went, but no one expained what we were supposed to do. So before we knew what was going on, Edwards and I were sitting in front of a cute little Guatemalan lady. We got to know her a little bit and then were just like...uhhh...do you know what we're supposed to do? but she didn't, so we just asked her what she wanted to learn about, and she said families, so we improved a nice little lesson in spanish...it was pretty funny. Apparently CRE is like the Provo MTC's TRC,where members come and act like investigators or less actives. Whoops. At least we'll know what to do next week!  

We've been having a lot of fun with our district! Almost everyone has nicknames...I'm MacKay--bay or MacKayK...not to creative, but itworks! One of the hermanas always complains that the cafeteria doesn't have butter for the amazing rolls they make, so we call her Hna Mantequilla, which is butter in spanish. I got my first mosquito bite yesterday! Lucky me...It'll be way worse when I get to Nicaragua though...a lot of people end up getting mosquito nets, depending on the area.

Well,I might write a little in a few minutes, once I feel like I have time to look through my journal and see what I missed! I love the work I'm doing here! As long as I have things to do and focus on, I'm great! P-day was a little rough, just because I didn't have anything to do. That was the first time I felt homesick. But it's all good! I love you! I know that the work I'm doing is important, and I love that I'm learning so much about the gospel each day. It's awesome! Yo se que Jesucristo es mi salvador y que la iglesia de jesucristo de los santos de los ultimos dias es verdadero! Lo amo muchisimo!

Con amor,

Hermana MacKay

(Posted by Lisa's Mom)