Come What May and Love It

Dear Family,

So I have been talking to other missionaries and they say that they don't have to pay to receive letters so send lots and lots of letters in the mail!

Thank you for fasting for me. I need all the help I can get. Lets just say that when people said the mission is hard, they were not kidding. I hate mornings because I am so sad in the mornings. So every morning I am so homesick.  I am sad in the morning and if I pray for strength then I go throughout the day and I love it! Whenever I don't think about home or what I miss then I love love love what I am doing. So i just need to focus on why I am here. It is just hard because in the lessons I have to focus really really hard to have a small idea of what is going on. And doing that all day is very draining. By night time I am pretty happy but mornings are so hard for me.  The language is discouraging and hard but the hardest thing is homesickness.

I understand most of what my companion says but with other people it is still a struggle. It is starting to sound more familiar which is good because when I first got here I had no idea what language the people were speaking. 

We had our first zone conference and I had my interview with President and I saw Hermana Parris my old companion, (because she is in my zone).  Did you get to see pictures from the zone conference? I am not going to send pictures today. Sorry I am almost out of time and I haven't even told you everything I want to.

President was really nice and he told me that I don't have to feel alone. Grandma was right. I feel so alone mainly because I can't talk to anyone. Hahaha but President said I can call his wife whenever I want! So shoot, I think I will whenever I am sad. 

But on a positive note... so whenever I bear my testimony in the lessons I usually talk really fast and try to get it over with really fast. My companion told me to take my time, listen to the Spirit and look in the investigator's eyes. It was crazy. So I did that. We were in a lesson with a less active member. I didn't really know exactly what the lesson was on but I felt the Spirit way strong. It came time for me to bear my testimony. The member said, "This girl can't speak Spanish" and I said, "Well I will try my best". I just simply spoke what the Spirit told me and the words just seemed to flow. And he started to cry. This 30 year old man started to cry. He shook my hand and said thank you and something else, but I don't know what. And then I cried a little-it was so cool. I now know what it is like to be a literal instrument in the Lord's hands. 

Answers to Mom’s Questions:

Tell about your Companion:

My companion is 22.  She has been out 1 year. She has a boyfriend in Mexico and is very excited to get married. hahaha

Is it just you and your companion in your apartment?  How close are other missionaries?  Do you see them?  Yep It is just me and my companion in our apt.  My area is a city so the other missionaries are all pretty close. We see them a lot. When we are walking we will see them. We see them on P day and also for classes or meetings in the week.

What is your bed like?  Your shower? Can you send pictures of your apartment? My bed is just like the ones in America.  haha It is so hot at night I just sleep on top of the sleeping bag.

My shower...Wellll hahaha it is a shower but nothing like America. Oh and my bed here is better than the one in the MTC.  I will send pictures later if that is okay. I am almost out of time and sending them is super complicated. Sorry. Oh we don't have any carpet.

Do you cook at home?  What do you cook and eat?  We eat lunch in the members homes. In Argentina lunch is the big meal and then for breakfast I eat cereal and bananas and for dinner my companion and I make pasta or eggs.  She loves spicy food so our food is very hot. 

How was travelling with your luggage?  How long did it take?  Did you fly or bus to Neuquen?  We flew to Neuquen from Buenos Aires.  It wasn't that bad but it was something I wouldn't want to do again. We were so tired and stinky. My little suitcase handle broke. That was sad but good thing it was only the little suitcase.

Is it hot?  

It is hot. They say in January it gets even hotter!  

How do your clothes compare? My clothes are great. Sometimes I feel a little over dressed but that is because people have nothing. But we did fine. Don't worry about my clothes.

Describe the cat calls -Ugh- Everywhere I go it is another cat call.  They make a kissing sound and say something in Spanish and my companion was like "Oh my Heck! That was bad!"  But I have no idea what they are saying! I hate it!!!

How are your feet?  

My feet are great. My shoes are awesome- no blisters. 

Where do you find a computer?  For computers we go to this place 5 min from our house and there are a bunch of computers and we just pay some money and that is it. 

I am out of time. Sorry I will answer more of your questions later. I love you lots. Thanks for your prayers.  Don't worry about me- just pray. hahaha I am definitely living an adventure so it is exactly what I wanted. And plus- hey only 16 more fast sundays.  Love you all. Tell the family I said hi and love them.

Love Hermana Bailey