16 Dec 2013 - Another Cambio bites the dust

Hey! How's it going? I'm doing great! This week has been pretty good...we gave this week all the energy we had! And because of that, I am exhausted. But it's a good type of tired...it's satisfying...if that even makes sense.  

Well, Surprise (not really)! I'm still in El Rosario with Hermana R! We'll be here together at least until the next cambio on February 5th. More time to work hard and learn from one another! Our companionship has improved a ton over the past almost 3 months. It's pretty weird not having a church chapel though! They have taken out the outdoor basketball court and are working with the land right now, but soon they'll start demolishing parts of the building. For baptisms, we'll have to go to the stake center in Jinotepe. But P has bragging rights...she was the last baptism in the church before reconstruction! 

I am so glad that I am in El Rosario for the summer (well, Nicaraguan summer) because even though it's supposed to be dry and warm, Rosario is super windy and cool. Cool is a relative term...the Nicaraguans say they're freezing and wear sweaters, but for me, it's comfortable...haha. Supposedly it was supposed to stop raining when November started, but it has been raining on and off this month. Proof that humans are not very good at predicting the weather...haha 

Something else that happens in December is that everyone and their dog paints their house. Seriously, every day, the houses change colors. And of course, the house colors aren't plain. They're all vibrant and fun. I think that Aunt Jennie would go crazy taking pictures here! I have to admit, El Rosario is way more picturesque than Managua. I love both my areas...but they are very different! 

Well, this week has been pretty uneventful. The work continues on! T is doing well! All the neighborhood kids are already calling her ''la mormona'' to make fun of her, but she doesn't listen to them. She resists peer pressure really well. J came to church on Sunday! A lot of the young men from the ward already knew him from school, so he has a nice group of friends, which will help a lot. When we were contacting the other day, we met a man who is half gringo and half Nica. It was really interesting to talk to him. He was very...animated. He reminded me of Steve Martin...haha. But he told us that his house has a name--Idaho! Apparently there's another Quinta in Jinotepe called Pennsylvania! Pretty funny! So Idaho is part of my area! 

My district changed a little because of cambios. All the hermanas are the same, but we have a new ZL from Sandy, UT and the comp of the DL changed too. The district has a different dynamic now, but I'm sure it'll be great once we get to know each other...I actually have to teach district class for the first time in 2 weeks (it was going to be this Fri, but I was saved by zone conference...haha) So that'll be interesting... 

This week, we decided to really focus on the people when we taught. We always try to, but it's really easy to fall into a routine. But because every person is different, every lesson will be a little different. And as we concentrated on the people we taught this week, I could feel the Spirit more and also felt my testimony grow. It's amazing how sharing your testimony can help others, but also yourself. When I share my testimony, I feel like I'm sharing a part of me with the people I teach. I love it!  

I hope that all the Christmas preparations are going well! It's coming up so soon! In Central America, they actually celebrate Christmas on the 24th...I don't really know why. But basically the entire month of December is a party here, so I guess the exact date doesn't really matter. But I did get a package this week! All accounted for! A Christmas miracle! Even though I'm missing the corny Christmas movies and music, I am glad that I am here. It'll be a Christmas to remember, that's for sure! 

I hope all is going well! Love you! 

Love, Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)

9 Dec 2013 - Week 2 of Christmas preparations

Hey! Happy...December! 

Well, this week was great...went by super fast as always! I'm pretty sure i'm living life in fast forward...just a theory...haha. But cambios are this week! So crazy! It's a 4 wk cambio so that the missionaries going home can go home before Christmas. The next cambio will be 8 wks long. I don't think anything will change. I don't want to leave Rosario, so I'm fine with that. My guess is that Hna R will have cambios next time...in Feb.  

This week was a bit of a struggle. A mix of trunkiness, sickness (Hna R once again), and who knows what else. But we still were able to see the blessings that came. T is still doing really well. She feels ready to be baptized in 2 wks, so it's just up to whether her grandma will give her permission. T even fasted with us on Sunday...she's pretty pilas. We started teaching a new investigator, J, who is another 16 yr old! He's really receptive...but likes to sleep in on Sundays. So we'll work on that...haha. 

P was confirmed on Sunday! She's officially a member! She didn't tell many people about her baptism to keep the news from reaching her anti-mormon sister, so when she was confirmed in church, there were lots of surprised looks. It was pretty funny. 

So Rosario has progressed a lot over the years. The ward started out about 25ish years ago in the home of a member. Then they moved into a little house...then finally they built a chapel. And now, we barely fit, so they're going to enlarge the chapel! The construction is going to take 8 months...which means we'll be meeting in a house once again. But at least this time the house is bigger. It's still a bit squishy, but at least we don't have to go all the way to Jinotepe each Sunday. That would've been difficult.  

This weekend was...interesting. Part of Nicaraguan Catholic culture during the holiday season happens on December 7th...La Purisima! Which is basically Halloween, but the kids go around singing to altars with statues of the Virgin Mary. They sing songs about Maria and receive candy like trick-or-treating. It was pretty weird. There were also lots of fireworks involved...until very late at night. Teaching was really difficult because no one was in their house. We actually had to return to our house early because things got a little too crazy. Apparently it was even worse in Managua. But the members told me it gets even worse in January, when they celebrate the patron saint of el Rosario...basically it'll be like alpine days, but with lots of alcohol and crazier people. Yikes.

Did you watch the Christmas devotional? We watched it in the Bishop's house. It was so awesome! It made me feel a bit trunky, especially when the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sang, but I loved the messages! Especially the one from President Monson. I've heard messages similar over the years, but this time, when he talked about how we need to give ourselves to the Savior, it really struck home. I'm trying my best to do just that. We all need to focus ourselves on dedicating ourselves to the Lord and serving His children. It is so important! I love this Christmas season because of the unity that people feel, but most importantly because it's a time to refocus on what's most important. I know that Christ is our Savior. He came to this earth to teach us and give us the perfect example. He died so that we can live with Him and Heavenly Father one day. I am so grateful for His life and example! 

It sounds like all is going well at home! I hope Karen recovers quickly! I can't wait to see what the house is like! I should be calling on the 25th...still not sure if it'll be skype or just a phone call. Pres. Russell has been going crazy changing all sorts of rules in the mission. But either way, it'll be awesome! Have an awesome week!  

Love, 

Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)

 

 

2 Dec 2013 - Happy December!

Hey there! I can't believe December has already reached us! Where did November go off to? My week went by super fast! 

So P wasn't baptized on Wednesday...when Bishop told us that, we were super sad, until he told us that she would be baptized the day before! Yay! Everything went really well on Tuesday. P has a sister that literally hates Mormons and has a heart condition, so P was worried that is the sister found out, she'd have a heart attack...so her baptism was a secret. Just a few of her family members who are members of the church. She was so happy when she was baptized! I can't even imagine how her daughter will react when she finds out! She'll be so happy! I have come to love P so much! She is such a sweet lady.  

The rest of the week went by like a blur. Partially because I was sick. I've had a nasty cold since last Monday, but it got worse (and turned into a flu) over the week. But no worries, I'm almost better now. Just normal cold symptoms once again. Hna R and I are so united that when one person gets sick, so does the other. Although in this case, she sprained her ankle. So that makes walking difficult now, although it's starting to get a little better.  

Thanksgiving was...good...haha. Our zone had plans to pay someone to make a real Thanksgiving meal for us, but it fell through. So instead, we went to Terry's Diner...an American food restaurant that sells hamburgers and sandwiches. The sad part is that I was the sickest on Thursday. But I didn't want to miss out...and would've felt bad if I made Hna R stay with me in the house. So we went! I was feeling a little better, so I at half a turkey sandwich...but then I didn't feel so great. Afterwards, I went home and slept almost all day. But at least I can say I ate turkey! Haha. Thursday was the only day that I didn't leave the house to work. I am VERY thankful that I normally have good health.  

On Fri., we had zone conference. It went well. One of our ZLs is going home next week (Cambios are Dec 11th...this is only a 4 wk cambio), so that was kind of sad. We now hve to wear our nametags on the right side. They told us to do it in the CCM, but when I got here, no one else was wearing it on the right, but now it's official. It feels really weird...but I do what they tell me! 

They've been decorating the park in front of my house this week...every night more lights appear. It seriously looks like Las Vegas! It's crazy. But it's very...festive. I maintain my opinion that white lights are better. The Catholic church in front of my house has been going crazy with the bombs and blasting music. The members here tell me it doesn't stop until January. I don't think I'll get much sleep this month...haha. 

This week, I've had a lot of good experiences while teaching. On Saturday, we were on a roll as far as teaching with the Spirit goes. We taught a less active family and felt the spirit so strong, and then the rest of the day, we were able to keep that feeling with us. It was awesome! We really have to focus on finding new investigators...I know that with time and hard work, the Spirit will help us out there as well.  

We had stake conference on Sunday. Pres. and Sis. Russell came and spoke. It was fun to see them. They both gave great talks about how the gospel is light and we need to share it. I felt kind of bad for my investigators that came with us, because they were pretty bored, since it was 2 hrs of just sitting down, but I think overall they had good experiences.  

I love this Gospel so much. I really do. It has brought so much light into my life. And I'm working hard so that I can be a source of light for other people. I know I can do it with the help of the Holy Ghost. I have one more year to be a floodlight for all the people around me. I've just gotta fuel it up with scripture study, faith, prayer, and hard work.  

I love you all and hope you have an awesome week! 

Love,

Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)

25 Nov 2013 - Thanksgiving Miracles... a little early

Buenas tardes!  

I hope you had a wonderful week! I know I sure did! It was full of little miracles! Starting with Tuesday...when we had divisions within our district...and I finally left Rosario and worked with Hermana C in Jinotepe! So that was a nice little miracle...haha. It was awesome to work with Hna C. She has 10 months in the mission and is from Solola, which is where I went when we went to Guatemala with my seminary class! She's right by Lake Atitlan and when she showed my pics, I recognized it all. It was awesome. And of course, she's an awesome missionary. We has some interesting experiences explaining that polygamy is not legal and the church does not support it...that was a strange lesson. 

Another miracle is that we passed the crazy turkey that always chases us...and I remained unscathed. Success! but the animals are still out to get me. Every night at about 3 am, a ton of roosters get into an argument and crow their little hearts out...and the the dogs join in. And I can't forget the bats. They're talkative little creatures too. Actually, I think the bats are especially out to get me. 2 nights in a row, there were murders in our house. I have learned how to kill bats, though I don't think I'll ever have the courage to do it. But both times, the bat flew straight towards me. It's my gringa charm...sometimes I forget to tone it down...haha. But the miracle is that I don't have rabies, so that's good. Any tips on how to get rid of bats? 

Another (early Chrismas) miracle...I recieved 2 packages! Way faster than before...I don't know whymy bday one took so long. So thank you! Our little Christmas tree looks so cute now. It sounds like your Christmas plans are coming along! There will be quite the crowd in Utah this Dec.! Oh! So although my upcoming Nicaragua Christmas doesn't look anything like Utah, there are these really cool Poinsetta trees! They're so pretty! Just a random fact about Nica foliage...moving on. 

So my clothes are holding up pretty well. My shoes are starting to die though...my Keens have a hole in the mesh that is expanding, but I'm trynig to figure out where to go to get it fixed. But to soles of my skechers are running thin...and I think my Crocs are starting to go downhill as well. But for the time being, I'm not worried. I still have plenty of contact solution, as I barely wear contacts here in Rosario. I also haven't used KT tape yet! That's pretty surprising, I know. My little knees are still going strong! 

T is doing great! Before, she had hesitations about being baptized but now she wants to be baptized! She shared her testimony of the Book of Mormon with us yesterday. She is so awesome!! She reads everyday and always tells us what she learned. The not-so-awesome part is that her abuela is going to make things difficult. We met her last night and she said she supports T, but first she has to see a definite change in her granddaughter...which would be fine, but her requirements are that she practically becomes a nun...so we'll work with both of them...haha. 

But the GREATEST miracle of the week occurred yesterday. I seriously almost cried, which coming from me is saying a lot! I don't think I've ever mentioned one of our investigators, P. She's a 40-something year old single mom of 4 grown up kids. Her daughter joined the church about 4 yrs ago, but no one else in their family ever wanted anything to do with the church. Right now, her daughter is serving a mission in Rosario, Argentina (isn't there someone from our ward in that mission right now?). Hna R actually reported to the CCM the same day as me! And I've been teaching P ever since I arrived here in Rosario. She has received missionaries in her home in the past, but never progressed. But when M left for Argentina, P started going to church! But never accepted an invitation to be baptized. Actually, in my first lesson with her in October, I invited her to be baptized and she just laughed at me and said that she had already explained to all the other missionaries that she had already been baptized in a different church and had faith in her pastor. But little by little she has been progressing. And yesterday, she told us she was ready to be baptized! When we asked her when, she just told us, ''oh, you'll find out.'' I got a little scared because I thought she was playing some weird game with us and she expected us to guess...but when we ate dinner at the Bishop's house, he told us that P wants to be baptized this Wednesday! We totally freaked out and are soooo happy! I love P so much and am so excited that she has finally made this great step in her life.  

I love being able to help people make these life-changing decisions. I've been able to see that what seems like a simple action of being baptized changes a person's outlook on life. Of course there weill always be challenges, but that's why the Gift of the Holy ghost is so important! If we always do our best to endure to the end, we will be happy not only for the time being, but FOREVER!  

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! There is a good chance that I will be there with you next year! So hard to believe! I'm almost a third of the way through my mission. Wow. Have an awesome week!  

Love, Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)

18 Nov 2013 - Another Week Bites the Dust

Hey! How's it going? Life is great, though I don't have a specific reason as to why it is so wonderful.

This week flew by. I'm not even sure what to tell you. I read through my journal to see what happened, but as I forgot to write in my journal...hmm. But first of all, I'm still here in Rosario! With Hermana R! But the other hnas in Rosario changed. Hermana G is now training Hna V from Guatemala. It's weird being the only gringa in Rosario now that Hermana E is in Managua. that means the drunks only have one gringa to fall in love with. How sad for them. Anyway...haha. My district changed a little. A ton of missionaries went home this cambio, and only 20 of the 30 who were supposed to come came. So Pres. had to close a lot of areas because of lack of missionaries. So Hna Peña and Hna Bliss both left and their area is closed, which is really sad. And the Zone Leaders are training...so they're in a trio! I don't really understand how that works, but apparently President has been making a ton of changes in the mission.  

So on Wednesday, we went to the other hermanas' house to plan a ward missionary activity that is going on this Saturday. When we were leaving, I randomly burst into James Bond spy mode and started crouching around and doing other dorky spy type things...singing the James Bond theme song under my breath of course. Everyone was laughing at me...especially when I reached the gate...because the dueña's dog thought I was a thief and almost attacked me. It was pretty hilarious,,,after the fact. Proof that dogs now hate me. Especially when I sneak around life a spy. Who'd have thought? Just thought I'd share that experience to let you know I still do dumb things and make people laugh at me...haha. 

After district meeting on Friday, the Sister Training Leaders called us and said that we should meet them in the park in Jinotepe (where we have district meetings). We were freaking out because we thought that 1. something happened in one of our families or 2. Hna R was going to be called as a second mission nurse (she studied medicine) or 3. we did something wrong. But when they found us, Hna F was holding a travel bag and said, ''ready to go''? It turns out that we had divisions with the STLs...they sent us a text to tell us, but as our phone doesnt receive text messages....haha. And once again, I stayed in my area. But it was an awesome day! Hna F actually served in Rosario for 7 months, so she was really helpful. The funniest thing that happened was that we started teaching an investigator, but a ton of people entered the house carrying a statue of virgin Mary...the investigator said, ''oh! they want to do a Rosary with me...you can join us if you want...'' haha. Sometimes people invite us to be Catholic.  

T is doing great! She still says she needs to receive an answer, so we're helping her learn how to listen to the Spirit. But she told us she wishes we could teach her every day! So that's a good sign! We also invited an investigator to be baptized. We've been working with him for a while, but he's an alcoholic, so it's difficult. We're helping him to set goals to change and he has been doing really well...the only bummer is that we received a list of members yesterday...and his name was on it. We asked his parents, who are less actives and they say he hasn't been baptized...but we asked him and he said yes. But we'll still work with him, but it'll be a little different now. Little surprises everyday...haha. 

Well the house looks awesome! I don't think I'll recognize it when I get home! It sounds like the holiday plans will be full of family! That's awesome! So Scott and Stacy will be home for Christmas? Pretty hard to believe that it's only a little over a month away! The post office closed early last week, but I have a little package to send...who knows when it'll get there though! Maybe it'll be more of a happy Valentine's day box...haha. My zone is going to have some sort of Thanksgiving lunch...who knows how it'll turn out, but hey, maybe we'll eat Tom the Turkey that chased me last week. That's awesome that Courtney is home! And she met Mitch? Wow small world. 

Well, I know that the Church is true. I don't have any dramatically spiritual experiences to share, but I do know that through constant scripture study and prayer, we receive strength. The Lord is on our side and He will always be there to help us. I'm so grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I have seen how it can affect the lives of everyone. It makes me sad when people reject it! But I'm here to help them understand why it's so important.  

I love you all and hope you have an awesome week! Next week will be a month until Christmas, when I talk to you on Skype! Yay! 

Love, Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)

11 Nov 2013 - Buenas!

Hola! Como estan todos? Espero que esten super bien. Esta semana fue tuanis! 

So the Nica words are finally starting to stick. At least the expressions that I usually didn't use because Hna R didn't use them. I now say the word tuanis all the time. It's pronounced too--ah---knee--s. It's a fun little word that looks funny spelled out. But it means cool or awesome. Anyway... 

This week was a whirlwind. I feel like I say time flies every week, but wow. There are cambios this week! So hard to believe. I am 99% sure I will stay here. Hermana G is going to train, so most likely Hna E will go to a new area. So sad...maybe she'll go to Miraflores with Hna V, since Hna R goes home this week! I don't like cambios week...it stresses me out because even though I'm used to constant changes now, it's still sad. But I know that it's all in the Lord's hands.  

So I don't have too much to report from this week...partly because I didn't do much. Hermana R is still sick, though she's starting to get better. On Tuesday, she was so sick that she couldn't work. Each morning, we tried to go to our citas because she's stubborn and hates staying in bed...but by midday every day, we had to go back to the house because she was about to faint. The policy on sick companions is that the healthy companion can go on splits if there are willing members to stay with Hna R and someone to work with me. But the majority of women in our ward are nurses that work, or go to school in the day. So I spent a lot of time reading scriptures and watching Doctrine and Covenants videos. At least I learned a lot! But in the hours that we were able to work, we were able to help a good amount of people!  

This week, I realized how important it is to trust the Spirit and not the doubts of other people. Maybe that doesn't make sense, but we've been trying really hard to find new investigators, but every time we asked members for references, they say that there isn't anyone in their neighborhood who would receive the Gospel. We could've trusted their doubts, but we aren't here to prejudge people. I'm here to share the Gospel with EVERYONE! We've been working hard in a neighborhood called LV, where everyone says that we won't have success and that it's full of ruffians. Yet almost all of our investigators that are progressing live there. Lots of times I have doubts about my area and think that there aren't more people to find, but that's never true. As the scripture in Doctrine and Covenants goes...doubt not, fear not. And I have no fears that the Lord is on my side. 

We are still teaching T, who is doing AMAZING! She is super pilas. After we teach a lesson with her, she always summarizes what she learned and asks us to leave a reading assignment with her. And when we come back, her scriptures are marked up and she has questions ready for us. She has a baptismal date for December 7, so hopefully all goes well with her!  

This Sunday was pretty crazy. We had to have divisions with members so that we could bring our investigators to church. I went with a future missionary named K (yep, I like her name...haha) to meet up with an investigator in an area really far away. Guisquiliapa is about 30 min from church and F lives 30 min away from Guisquiliapa...so we decided to meet her halfway in the park. But she arrived really late...which meant we arrived 30 min late. But hey, she came to church! And so did T and her sister! It's the best feeling to help people come to church, especially when they have good experiences and finally understand why we'd been nagging them to come before. T left church with a Gospel Principles book, For the Strength of Youth, and a printout of the YW theme. She was pretty happy. It was awesome! 

Later that day, a member took us to his cousin's home. They're Catholics...that aren't a huge fan of Mormons. The only reason the let us in was because 1. C L didn't give them a choice and 2. out of respect for C L. But it was pretty sad. They flat out denied everything we shared, which made me feel sick...not because they hurt my feelings, but because I felt bad for them. They don't understand what they're missing! But I sneakily slid a folleto that talked about the Gospel of Jesus Christ under where I was sitting. Who knows...maybe someone will find it one day...haha. 

So I'm convinced that animals here hate us. Seriously though. I've been chased by horses...cows...dogs...mosquitos...and most recently...a turkey! It was a huge turkey like the ones in Thanksgiving images. It was super creepy...and pretty funny, not gonna lie. I don't understand why animals here have the desire to chase us constantly. Maybe they just want to learn more about the Restored Gospel...who knows? haha.  

The weather here has been cooling off a little...at least in the nights. I may have to actually buy a blanket. So far I've just been using my sheets. It's still hot during the day, but nothing like Managua, or even how it was when I first got here. It's awesome. Y'all had daylight savings already, right? Here, it doesn't exist! Which means we're in different time zones now! That's crazy about the Phillipines! I have a ton of friends serving over there. I'm sure they're all safe, but so sad about the typhoon! Has is snowed anymore in Utah? People here get a kick out of hearing about snow. It sounds like the house is progressing! And yall got to have a nice little sleepover! haha. What are your plans for Thanksgiving? and Christmas, for that matter! I'm planning on sending a little package today for Christmas, although who knows when it'll get there. I'll send letters separately! Have you started the Christmas letter yet? 

Well, I hope you have a wonderful week! The Church is true! Never doubt it! I know it, I live it, and I LOVE it! 

Love,

Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)

4 Nov 2013 - My week of Halloween shenanigans

Happy Monday! I hope that everyone is doing well! Once again, this week escaped from me super fast. It's crazy that it's already November 4th! I can't believe it snowed in Utah! Especially since it's still pretty much the same weather here. Although it did rain a ton. And it was rather toasty. Good stuff.  

This week was crazy! On Tuesday, we had divisions once again, but this time with Zona Carazo. And once again, I stayed in my area. One of these days, I'll actually get the chance to see what other areas look like...but for now I'll just have to enjoy the responsability. This time, I was with Hermana E. She's actually still in my zone, but Rivas is really far away. She is awesome. She teaches like she has been in the mission forever...yet she has 5 months in the mission just like me! But she left the CCM the day that I arrived, so I never overlapped. We had a pretty successful day full of contacting and teaching. We're teaching a 16 year old named T. who is pretty positive! It's weird teaching her, because I realized it's like teaching Karen. Weird. But she said she wanted to be baptized, so that's awesome! I learned a ton from Hna E about how I should open up more with potential investigators. It has helped a lot since then.  

On Wednesday, we decided to set aside a day of only contacting all day, because of our lack of investigators. Our ward leader worked with us all day. ...Scott--I hope that you help your missionaries in your ward as much as possible! But anyway, we got stuck in a torrential rain storm. I was the only one with an umbrella, as always...I tried to be charitable and share it with R and Hna R but...we all ended up getting soaked to the bone. It was pretty funny. We looked like pathetic wet puppies.  

Here in Nicaragua, they don't celebrate Halloween. But I still had plenty of Halloween surprises. For instance, the night leading to the 31st, Hna R woke me up with a scream in the middle of the night. She told me to turn on the light because she thought there was a mouse in her bed. Well, she was right...there was something in her bed, but it wasn't a mouse. When I turned the light on, a BAT flew right towards me. So I ran and hid in my mosquito net. It was super freaky. We're not really sure how it got inside Hna R's mosquito net...but yeah, I can say my companion slept with Dracula...haha 

Then on Halloween, we went to our lunch cita like usual. The hna that feeds us has a big fence surrounding her house and 2 huge dogs. I don't know what got into them, but when we opened the gate, the biggest dog, Azlan, pushed Hna R out of the way and he and Bella darted out. Therefore, we had the responsibilty to hunt them down. But those dogs run FAST! So just imagine 2 Mormon missionaries chasing after two crazy dogs...for over 20 minutes! We seriously ran all through the town of Rosario. Azlan decided to enter a cow pen and started fighting with a bull. I was convinced he was going to die. But luckily we caught them and someone gave us leashes to lead them back to the house. It was exhausting...and embarrassing. Happy Halloween to us! 

On Friday, I received my birthday package! I also received 3 birthday cards. Happy Birthday to me! Thank you so much! It was perfect! I love the music and the clothes work well, too! I'm wearing one of the skirts right now. And I absolutely love the letters that Grandpa Mackay sent to dad when he was on his mission. So many words of advice that I needed to hear. And I know that Dad was saying them to me, even though Grandpa wrote them. So thank you!! Luckily I received the package in the morning, because if not, I think my enthusiasm for the day would've been a little low. I managed to slip of loose dirt and fall...but that's not the worst part. I also managed to land in a cow pie. As in my arm, shirt and skirt suffered the effects of said cow pie. It was lovely...haha. But as usual, I just laughed at myself. Gotta enjoy every minute, right? 

On Saturday, I had divisions again, but they were unofficial. I joined up with Hnas E and G for the day because Hermana R was really sick. But she's at least a little better now! I felt bad for her because all she wanted to do was get out of the house, but she couldn't. That's how missionary work goes. There are times when you just want to stay in the house and sleep, but when the opportunity arises, all you want to do is go work with the people! 

I've really tried to focus on the people this week. One of the quotes from a letter from Grandpa helped me a ton. He said ''You must never judge people on the mundane experience of what your mind th8inks is the answer...for the mind is very finite and very limited...and that's why we need to work closely with the Spirit'' Amen! It's so true! You never know who needs your help until you meet them and talk to them. So that's my new motto for contacting. Who knows who is ready. I just need to give them the chance to find the truth! I know that this church is 100% true. It makes me sad that so many people don't know what they're missing out on. I know that the Priesthood is the authority to act in the name of God given to worthy men in the church. That, along with the Book of Mormon, set the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints apart from the rest. It's amazing.

 

I hope all is going well with remodeling the house, school, work, life in general. I love where I am, but it makes it easier to be away from home when I hear what's going on. I love you all! 

Love, Hermana MacKay

 

(Posted by her Mom)