Week 71 Vallenar: The Beginning of the End

Well here we are! Now I can give more details of everything that has happened in the last week. It

has been a crazy roller-coaster of changes. Not  bad changes, but changes none the less.

First of all, I love Vallenar. This is a sector where there are a ton of miracles. We have had amazing experiences in just these few short days together. 

My companion is Hna Quintero. She is 21 years old and from Colombia (Bogota). She is going to complete a year in the mission on Friday, the day after I complete 17 months. And we get along really well, which I am happy about. It would not be so fun to end with a sour companion. But we get along really great and she is fun to be around and likes to work hard. 

Vallenar has many hills and it is getting really really hot here during the day and cold at night. There is no ocean because we are more for the mountains, so the wind is usually hot. I'm glad that I wont be here for the dead of summer. It would be a repeat of El Salvador. Its been a week and I'm about 2 shades of gold darker because of the sun. 

We had a lesson with an investigator named M. She had an amazing experience with the Book of Mormon answering a much needed prayer. And she told us with tears in her eyes that she knows that the Book is true and therefore that the church is also true. We were all very emotional, and she told us that she wants to be baptized. Her two sons were also there, and they both expressed the same desire to be baptized. It was so spiritual. I love the mission and the gospel. The light that it brings into our lives is really something that all of us should have. It really makes a difference in the lives of the people.

Anyways, I think that it about does it for this week. I have a billion things to do today. And a gazillion more to do during the next 5 weeks! I love you all, have a fabulous day, and an even better week!

LOVE YOU!

Hermana Randall

Week 70 LAST TRANSFER. DEEP BREATHING. NEW SECTOR. AAAAHHHHH!!!!

Okay this email has to be quick. As you can tell by the lack of email yesterday and the title today, I have received a transfer for my last 6 weeks, and I am writing from lovely....... Vallenar!!!!

It is a smaller city than Antofagasta, but a little bigger than Tocopilla. There are hills, and no ocean, and IT IS REALLY HOT. I stepped outside today and the sun was as if Superman was using his laser beam eyes and burning away my hair. But it is a great city, and I am excited to be here. I am super sad that I left Cerro Moreno. To be completely honest it is my favorite sector with the best people. When I was packing my suitcase I felt the same way I did when I left behind my family in the United States. But I always knew that I would be able to see them again. But with these amazing people I'm not sure. We`ll see what happens though. They really are my family now. 

But things in the sector ended on a high note, we had a ton of lessons with members, 8 investigators in the church on Sunday, and a billion hugs and kisses from everyone, except my male converts and leaders. Which sucks a little. But rules are rules. 

Other than that I can't really think of much to say. I am going to work harder than I have in my entire mission and we are going to see ALL of the miracles that God has prepared for us! I hope all of you are doing well. I'm not going to be able to answer all of your emails today, because I have just enough time to write a basic email and my Mission President. So I love you all, and I will be sending more details in the coming week! I LOVE YOU ALL! SERIOUSLY!

Hna Randall

Week 69 P-Day Already?

Hello all!

This week was pretty great. We were able to find a ton of new investigators and help other people who are already investigating the church to progress even more. 

Also. I received my flight itinerary today...... It actually made me a little sick to my stomach to see it. All innocently dressed up as an email, but in reality a death sentence. So that happened.

But it was a really great week. We have an investigator that is just in a really bad situation in her house. She is mentally and physically abused by her boyfriend. But she cant leave because she doesn't have anywhere to go. It is really sad actually. But something happened that just goes to show that God knows everything and really is planning everything. We had an appointment with her and we felt that we really needed someone to come with us to the appointment. So we called our Ward mission leader and he said that he would find someone. He found a sister from the other ward and it all worked out. And then while we were in the lesson, our investigator began to tell us about the situation in more detail and with more emotion than usual. And then from nowhere our member says that she is a Social Worker for Antofagasta (we did not know that, nor did our ward mission leader) and that she (our investigator) is a victim of mental and physical abuse. And now she is working hard to help her to leave this situation. It is something so special to know that God knows these people. And he will place them in the situations that they need to know that God loves them. :)

It seriously was a great week. It went by even quicker than the last week, which I didn't think was possible. Something tells me that these last 6 weeks are going to go by even faster than I can possibly imagine. And we are going to use all of the time to the best of our advantage to do the work of the Lord!

My cousin Lynette wrote me something really beautiful this week. She said that she felt the impression to tell her Relief Society sisters that each of them should make more of an effort to follow Jesus Christ and KNOW HIM PERSONALLY. So I feel prompted to give the same invitation. I invite you all to really look at the relationship that you have with the Savior. Who is he to you? Because here in the mission he has stopped being someone in some unreachable heaven above the Earth. Now I sometimes feel him so close that I feel as if I could reach out and touch him. I know that he lives. And I know that he loves us and he loves each one of you individually. Love you all! Have a fabulous week! 

Hermana Randall

Week 68 Time Travel

Hello all. I somehow seem to be speaking to you from the future, or twice in the same week or something, because one week could not possibly have passed by so very quickly.

But aside from jokes, it is really true. I thought that the last transfer went by quickly and now we are beginning Week 5 of this transfer. I found myself looking for the pictures that I am going to put on my last Missionary Agenda yesterday while waiting for my companion.......

But other that the fact that the time went by so very quickly, we had a really great week. A very busy week. But a very great week. :) In fact I am very happy right now. I love just everything. 

We taught a ton of lessons, but few with members so we are going to be working on that. But we sent up a couple baptismal dates that look very promising. The work continues to move forward here in Antofagasta! 

I feel bad saying that there really isn't a ton to write. Because I feel like there really isn't much. Because honestly I'm not sure if I already told everyone because I'm thinking about last week instead of this week. They are all just the same LONG week now. 

One thing that was fun and funny at the same time, Saturday we got a call from Sister Marquez the coordinator of the Open Chapels (who just so happens to be in our ward as well) asking if we could go and do the Open Chapel that they had THAT afternoon in the other Stake. It requires 4 sister missionaries to do an Open Chapel, and the other Stake has 6..... But 4 suddenly couldn't do it..... So we got the call as the sisters with the most experience in the whole mission to come to the rescue. We had to cancel a couple things. But we went to the other stake and had a great time teaching the gospel and helping out with everything. There is a sister in the other zone that is from Finland, she speaks pretty good English, but she is still learning Spanish. She only got here about 4 weeks ago. It was rather beautiful to hear her try to communicate. Because although she want speaking a lot of Spanish, the spirit was there as she struggled to share her testimony. 

Also, there is a new hashtag for Christmas approaching! It looks like it is going to be a really good new initiative. So be on the look out for it. (Christmas seems a lot closer here in Chile because there really aren't two holidays in between. Halloween doesn't really exist all that much here. And Thanksgiving not at all.) 

So I hope that you all have a great week and that you are able to accomplish  many things and show your family that you live them a little more everyday. 

I LOVE YOU ALL!

Hermana Randall

Week 67 General Responsibility, General Conference

Hello everyone! Can I just start out by telling you all that I love you so much!? I am just filled to brimming with the amazing happiness that the mission brings. :) I know that sometimes I am so tired that it is hard to get up in the morning (even harder now that the light bulb burned out and we need to get up in the dark), but EVERY SINGLE DAY is worth it. I LOVE the mission.

This week was a hard one in the way of finding new people to teach, but we are making progress with some of our investigators and we think that there will be a baptism headed this way soon. He is a great kid. Very sincere, and very honest. The story of Joseph Smith has him fascinated. And he came to ALL FOUR sessions of General Conference this weekend. How cool is that?! 

General Conference was super amazing as well! We were spiritually edified and enjoyed every moment of it. :) I watched the first session in Spanish because we got there late, and I didn't know that they had a separate room for the Gringos to watch in English. But I got to watch the last 3 sessions in English. I can understand in Spanish, but all of the talks hit more close to home when i hear them in English. Plus when I listen in Spanish I cant watch the people talking or trying to read their lips throws me off. So I have to look down and take a tone of notes or draw pictures so that I don't loose track of what they are saying. But I love being able to understand Spanish. :) I had the realization this week that I am now bi-lingual and I felt really cool. :)

The Gringo Elders were Fun/Annoying to watch conference with. We the sisters were reverent and took notes quietly and had our little snack on the side. But a couple Elders literally brought bags of chips and a liter of soda or so. It was crazy. They cleaned it all up okay. But it was certainly interesting. (At least they shared a little.) And every so often one Elder would shout out, ¨Ya! Preach it Elder!¨ Or something else like, ¨That´s a quote! Write it! Write it!¨ And then they all realized that I write quickly, so when they weren't able to copy down a name or a quote they all asked me what it was. So there were a couple things we missed as sisters because of obnoxious Elders. But then you have to have a little mercy on them because they haven't been to a sports game in like 2 years, and these are like their favorite church stars throwing out their two pointers or a field goal to win the game (you go BYU). So I get it . :)

But that brings us to today. There weren't many things utterly exciting this week. There were always moments to remember and my journal has the details. But I get here and start writing and everything just gets so difficult to write about. So all that I can say is that I love the church. I love Christ. I love being a missionary. I know that I cam called of God to be here and this moment and in this country. And this city. There are people that we are called to find here in the world. People that we talked to before this life began. And we promised that we would find them here. We would share the gospel with them here on Earth. I am always looking for them. Just like conference said, ¨This is the truth, and I feel like I knew it before.¨ The seed of light inside of all of us begins to grow, because these are just truths that we have forgotten. They are not new. They are just forgotten. We need to remember them we need to remember that we are children of a Heavenly Father and Mother, and that we are loved every one.

I love you all! Hope to hear from you all next week! The gospel is TRUE!

Hermana Randall

PS. Played soccer today! And taught a group of Young Women this week :)