13 Meses

Mexican Independence day!

Hola Todos!!

Miracle of the week:

Before church this week we decided we were going to walk pretty much our whole area to invite the people we are teaching to come to church with us. As we were walking to the church, a member stopped to ask us if we wanted a ride. We declined because he was alone in his car (we can´t be in a car alone with a man). There was another man who saw the situation and approached us and told us he admired us for not accepting the ride. We started talking and it turns out he was a Jehova´s Witness who hadn´t been able to go to church in 8 years. 

We started explaining that we´re missionaries and as missionaries we share a message of Jesus Christ and invite people to come unto Him. He asked us where we were going and we told him to church and he asked us if he could come with. We walked to church and in Sacrament meeting he cried twice and again in the gospel doctrine class when He was handed the scriptures. He was overwhelmed by the spirit and excitedly told us he was going to go every single week. He does not live in our area, but we are excited to see his progress as our companions visit and teach him. 

Burritos Shaggy (we thought it was funny)

The gospel is true. I believe it. I know it. I feel it in every fiber of my being. I love my Savior and am so incredibly grateful for the time I have had here in Juarez and would not trade it for anything.

Love you all and hope you have a fantastic week!

Hermana Naatjes

I'm old.

Birthday presents from home.

 Hola Todos!

Yes, you`ve all heard it, I am now 21. Ate some cake, and some peanut butter capt crunch. It was a happy day haha.

Sorry its been so long since I`ve written, but here in Nogales we are very busy! There are people in the street, we teach lessons and talk to random people all day every day. It's fantastic! 

My finger is fine, healing up well (hoping it`ll at least leave a little scar). My companion is great, we are working hard and learning a lot together!

same picture as last week, but with Hermana Marques' full head

Love you all and hope you have a great week!

Hermana Naatjes

Busy. Happy. Healing.

gross picture one week post accident

Bailey didn't have time to write again but she sent pictures, mostly of her finger...

Bailey is very happy.  Her new companion, Hermana Marques, is from Brazil, but speaks Spanish and English as well as Portuguese, so they can communicate in multiple languages. Hermana Marques is 23 years old, sings opera, and is a History major (and is willing to run with Bailey in the mornings).

Hermana Marques and their "home-cooked" meal of spicy ramen, leftover pizza, and I don't know what else

Nogales is a nice area of Juarez just south of Frontera.  It is also busy.  Bailey said she thinks she has talked to more people in the last 5 days than she did in the 6 months she was in the colony.   

I found her apartment on Google Earth.  She lives in one of the white ones. 

Her finger is healing and she is hoping for a cool scar.  She even spoke of exposing it to sunlight to ensure a scar remains. Kids.  

gross pic #2

gross pic #3

Bailey is busy and happy and healing.

 tower made with pass along cards?

Stronger than metal

A pre-mission pic because she didn't send pictures...

No letter from Bailey today.  Just the following cryptic text, and a short explanatory phone call on her way to catch the bus to Juarez.

the text I received

Becoming a "mom":  Bailey is being transferred back to Ciudad Juarez.  She will be in an area called Nogales, which is just south of Frontera where she served her first 6 months.  She will be a "mom"-- which in missionary speak, means she will be training a new missionary.  Her new companion is from Brazil, and speaks Portuguese, which will make things interesting and fun.  

The accident:  There were a couple of missionaries going home this week, so they celebrated with a pinata.  They were using a metal broomstick, and when Bailey hit the pinata, the broomstick broke in her hands (she's still strong!) and sliced her finger open.  She was taken to the doctor in Casas Grandes, who glued her finger with Crazy Glue.    

She wanted me to let everyone know that she is doing great!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Shoes burn for a long time...

Hola  Todos!!!!

So yeah, guess what, I´VE BEEN ON MY MISSION A YEAR!!!!

It's strange to think that a year ago I was just barely starting my time in the CCM in Mexico City. I spoke no Spanish, I had no idea how to teach someone the gospel, I was 19 years old...etc.

Now I live in Mexico. I speak more Spanish than English (I don´t know if you can tell in my letters but I don´t remember grammar or vocabulary or how to English...), I now hardly know how to talk about things that aren´t gospel related, and I am almost 21... life passes fast. 

Happy new year should be celebrated with donuts and fire

This week was good, we played some sports, had a zone conference, taught some lessons, walked a lot (like 10k a day I think, but we don't have a way to measure it), burned the shoes that I wore out (it´s tradition to burn something when you hit the year mark), and continued trying to work harder and be better.

Marking one year, missionary style

This week a sister gave a talk in sacrament meeting talking about spiritual alarms. She invited us all to ponder what we do when our spiritual alarm goes off.  Do we act immediately, or do we hit snooze, and tell ourselves that we need a little bit more time. I invite you all to reflect on that same question. All too often we waste our lives away hitting snooze. We know what we have to do, but we say we´ll do it later, saying "some day I´ll..." which I feel we´ve all come to learn that day will never arrive. If there is something you need to do, do it. If you´re not the person you want to be, change. If you feel lost or without direction, pray. We are here to learn, to change, and to become. We have very little time in this life. There is no time to waste. Get up, get going, and get to work.

Conferencia de Zona #1 con Presidente Henke

Love you all and hope you have a great week!

Hermana Naatjes

pics 1-3) Happy new year should be celebrated with donuts and fire

6 months to go...

Hola todos!!! 

This week Rey Artalejo got baptized!!!! He is now the only member in his family, but is excited to continue. After his baptism his mom openly told us that whenever we pass by her house she hides from us...but we have plans to stop by this week to see if she´ll keep hiding from us. We offered to help her make tortillas and she opened up a bit more, so we´re hopeful! 

Also it rained this week...a lot. So here is a picture of me and my companion soaking wet (even though we had been using rain ponchos and coats). We also saw lightning strike in the orchard right next to where we were running so that was pretty neat! The flashlight I was carrying lit up automatically when it struck as well so that was a fun experience! 

Each day out here in the mission is a new experience and opportunity to learn. We have the opportunity to meet new people, have crazy experiences, and create friendships, that despite the difference in language, culture, and the distance that we will find between us, are lifelong. BUT all this only happens IF we learn to be humble enough to learn, change, and grow.

Love you all and hope you have a fantastic week!

Hermana Naatjes

peaches.

just some of the peaches/apples they are given each week

Hola Todos!!!

This week was a good one! We taught a lot of lessons, had a few people come to church, and we´re going to have a baptism this Friday! His name is Rey Artalejo, he is 20 years old, his whole family is very Catholic, and he likes to lasso in rodeos!

Rey

Also, I ate a lot of peaches. I eat an average of 3 peaches a day. 

more peaches

Sorry didn´t have a ton of time this week, but love you all and hope you have a great week! 

Hermana Naatjes

Hermana San Martin and apples