Well sorry all of you! The group email from last week was supposed to have sent but I guess it ended up getting deleted and not sent. So I guess my whole email got erased but now I have time to re-write it. As I'm drafting this, it's Tuesday August 2nd and I'm on an 8 hour bus ride to Málaga to pick up my Spanish ID card.
Last Monday (July 25th) Elder Pesce, Elder Stark, Hermana DeBoard, a few people from the ward and I went ice skating! We picked a good day for it because it was 95 degrees outside! It was a lot of fun and we were the only people in there for most of the time. It was my first time skating with hockey skates so that was interesting but good.
On Monday night we got a call from the sister leaders in Alicante telling us they I'm wanted to do exchanges with us on Tuesday. I had a slight heart attack when they told us that I would be staying in Elche with Hermana Peters and Hermana DeBoard would be going to Alicante with Hermana Hauber. Hermana Peters had never been to Elche so that meant that I would be the one leading the area and getting us places. It was a little scary at first but it was a good wake up call because in three weeks I'll be done with training (I'll be a normal missionary!) and Hermana DeBoard will most likely get transferred. When that happens, I'll have to do to teach my new companion the area and about the people we teach! So exchanges was good practice for me.
Tuesday morning before the hermanas came from Alicante we had our district meeting. Elder Fumero and Elder Hammond both had tallers (workshops) and they only spoke for 15 minutes combined. Their tallers were announced as tallercitos (little baby tallers) and when they called me up they said, "and now Hermana Moore has a TALLERRRRR GRANDE for us." I was prepared and felt really comfortable and I actually followed my outline I had made. I talked about inspired questions and how as we teach as missionaries we need to listen to the investigators and teach with the Spirit. My drop the mic last comments were: "If we are not willing to put in the effort and teach as Christ would, then HOW are we worthy to wear a name tag with HIS name on it?" And: "if we leave our apartments without the Spirit, we mind as well take off our name tags because we will be of no use to the Lord." I also led a practice where I acted as an investigator and all the missionaries had to teach me the lesson together by the spirit. It was entertaining be used I just pointed to random people and cut people off. All I'm Spanish of course ;) My taller went a lot better than my talk in church the other week. I'm getting to feel a lot more comfortable with Spanish and it gets easier every week. I love teaching and leading workshops. :)
Exchanges with Hermana Peters was fun and we got some good missionary work done and I felt really productive.
On Thursday morning Marina called us and asked us to help her carry water from the store. Here people buy big jugs of water from the store instead of drinking tap water. We are blessed enough to get free water from a sweet member who stops by every week with 4 huge bags full of water from his well out in the country. We went and helped Marina and Hermana DeBoard and I each carried 16 liters of water for almost a mile. It's not even that it was that heavy, but the little handles gave us blisters. It was nice to show Marina how much we love her and that we are here to serve her as well as teach her about Christ's gospel. :)
Fast forwarding a few days to Sunday...
Sunday was a super long day but a good one! On Sunday's we usually get to sleep in until 8 but we got up at 6:15 since we had to be at the church for a leadership meeting at 8. The training lasted from 8-9:30 and then regular meetings from 10:30-1:30. After church Marina and Nicol had their baptism interviews and then we ate lunch together. By the time that was all over it was 5:30 and we only had an hour until choir started so we just stayed at the church. Choir practices are always long and we finally left the church building at 8 o'clock. 12 HOURS LATER. But it was a good day and it was nice to be inside in the air conditioning since it was 105 degrees outside. Summer has arrived. GOOD NEWS!! Marina and Nicol are going to be baptized and become members of The Church of Jesus Chrisf of Latter-day Saints on August 13th!!!
Last Monday (July 25th) Elder Pesce, Elder Stark, Hermana DeBoard, a few people from the ward and I went ice skating! We picked a good day for it because it was 95 degrees outside! It was a lot of fun and we were the only people in there for most of the time. It was my first time skating with hockey skates so that was interesting but good.
On Monday night we got a call from the sister leaders in Alicante telling us they I'm wanted to do exchanges with us on Tuesday. I had a slight heart attack when they told us that I would be staying in Elche with Hermana Peters and Hermana DeBoard would be going to Alicante with Hermana Hauber. Hermana Peters had never been to Elche so that meant that I would be the one leading the area and getting us places. It was a little scary at first but it was a good wake up call because in three weeks I'll be done with training (I'll be a normal missionary!) and Hermana DeBoard will most likely get transferred. When that happens, I'll have to do to teach my new companion the area and about the people we teach! So exchanges was good practice for me.
Tuesday morning before the hermanas came from Alicante we had our district meeting. Elder Fumero and Elder Hammond both had tallers (workshops) and they only spoke for 15 minutes combined. Their tallers were announced as tallercitos (little baby tallers) and when they called me up they said, "and now Hermana Moore has a TALLERRRRR GRANDE for us." I was prepared and felt really comfortable and I actually followed my outline I had made. I talked about inspired questions and how as we teach as missionaries we need to listen to the investigators and teach with the Spirit. My drop the mic last comments were: "If we are not willing to put in the effort and teach as Christ would, then HOW are we worthy to wear a name tag with HIS name on it?" And: "if we leave our apartments without the Spirit, we mind as well take off our name tags because we will be of no use to the Lord." I also led a practice where I acted as an investigator and all the missionaries had to teach me the lesson together by the spirit. It was entertaining be used I just pointed to random people and cut people off. All I'm Spanish of course ;) My taller went a lot better than my talk in church the other week. I'm getting to feel a lot more comfortable with Spanish and it gets easier every week. I love teaching and leading workshops. :)
Exchanges with Hermana Peters was fun and we got some good missionary work done and I felt really productive.
On Thursday morning Marina called us and asked us to help her carry water from the store. Here people buy big jugs of water from the store instead of drinking tap water. We are blessed enough to get free water from a sweet member who stops by every week with 4 huge bags full of water from his well out in the country. We went and helped Marina and Hermana DeBoard and I each carried 16 liters of water for almost a mile. It's not even that it was that heavy, but the little handles gave us blisters. It was nice to show Marina how much we love her and that we are here to serve her as well as teach her about Christ's gospel. :)
Fast forwarding a few days to Sunday...
Sunday was a super long day but a good one! On Sunday's we usually get to sleep in until 8 but we got up at 6:15 since we had to be at the church for a leadership meeting at 8. The training lasted from 8-9:30 and then regular meetings from 10:30-1:30. After church Marina and Nicol had their baptism interviews and then we ate lunch together. By the time that was all over it was 5:30 and we only had an hour until choir started so we just stayed at the church. Choir practices are always long and we finally left the church building at 8 o'clock. 12 HOURS LATER. But it was a good day and it was nice to be inside in the air conditioning since it was 105 degrees outside. Summer has arrived. GOOD NEWS!! Marina and Nicol are going to be baptized and become members of The Church of Jesus Chrisf of Latter-day Saints on August 13th!!!
I wanted to share something we talked about during church. I love to share with you what I am learning about myself, my Savior, and my calling as a missionary. The class was based off of a conference talk by Elder Holland called The First Great Commandment. After Christ is resurrected, He comes to find His apostles once again returned to their old profession as fisherman He paraphrases a conversation that must've taken place between Peter and Christ.
"Peter, why are you here? Why are we back on this same shore, by these same nets, having this same conversation? Wasn’t it obvious then and isn’t it obvious now that if I want fish, I can get fish? What I need, Peter, are disciples--and I need them forever. I need someone to feed my sheep and save my lambs. I need someone to preach my gospel and defend my faith. I need someone who loves me, truly, truly loves me, and loves what our Father in Heaven has commissioned me to do. Ours is not a feeble message. It is not a fleeting task. It is not hapless; it is not hopeless; it is not to be consigned to the ash heap of history. It is the work of Almighty God, and it is to change the world. So, Peter, for the second and presumably the last time, I am asking you to leave all this and to go teach and testify, labor and serve loyally until the day in which they will do to you exactly what they did to me.”
I loved this so much! Coming on a mission, I have abandoned my nets. My nets are my family, playing tennis with Katie every day during summer, studying to get a college degree. My nets are my hobbies, my phone, going on dates. But I'm here on a much more important mission. I am here to bring the happiness and peace that the gospel brings to people who are yearning for it. :)
Monday (August 1st) was such a fun preparation day! As a district, we went to Alicante to see the castle there. El Castillo de Santa Barbara. I'm pretty sure Mom has pictures from there too. So those are the pictures I sent home last week.
Some pictures:
Elder Stark, Elder Pesce, Hermana DeBoard
My trainer and I :)
Spaniards are REALLLYY good parallel parkers
Hermana Peters and I on exchanges. 
Two of Marina's kids, Nicol and Johan
Just keeping things fun on the streets of Elche. 
He's a golden investigator.
Have a great week! Love you all!
Love, Hermana Moore
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