A Slice of Pizza...

Hello everyone!

Well this week has been a good one.. i have been an absolute wreck... we had zone conference from 9-5 tuesday-friday and every morning i would go out to the car to be alone and put on my makeup.. just to cry it all off and have to put it on again. it finally hit me that this was it. this is the last month of my mission and after this it is over. I've just been super refelective of my past 17 months, the people that i have met, the families i have baptized, the companions i served with, the members that i became so close to... then i started thinking about the person that i have become and what my mission has made me... i will never be the same. my mission has meant EVERYTHING to me. I never thought before that i could have gone on a mission.. i don't have the sister missionary personality... but i know that the lord needed my happy personality at this time for these people. He needed me to come here and be real with them and show them how they could be happy for themselves. And i have never been happier on my life than on my mission!

Mom and dad.. thanks so much for bringing my name to the temple on friday.. honestly.. that was the hardest day.. i was a wreck... normally i just cried in the morning then no one saw it.. but at conference on friday i was wishing that i could go on a mommy/daughter drive and stick my head out the window to dry up my tears:) i had to give my departing testimony... uhhh.... i hope that people understood what i was saying... but pretty much the jist of it is that i am the biggest convert of my mission and through all of the obstacles and trials in my life it has only allowed me to excercise faith in the Lord and come to know my Savior. I have felt his love for these people and for me... i hope that i am becoming more of the person He wants me to become. Sister villa and i have had so many spiritual experiences together.. it is so fun.. i am ending and she is just beginning. friday since we were a wreck we went and got some pizza.. as we were driving home there was a homeless man asking for help. (in mexico you just dont open the windows to people cuz its too dangerous) but i told her to roll down the window and ask him if he wanted a slice of pizza.. she did and he was sooo grateful. as we were driving away she just started bawling... saying how she had never done something like that and how she knew she needed to change. it was such a sweet experience. who would have ever thought that a slice of pizza could help us soften our hearts... she is such an amazing person and so it really made me look at my own life and decide who i was going to be after my mission. I think that is the biggest thing my mission has done for me.. now i know exactly what i want in my life.. before i was just having a blast being spontaneous and having a lot of fun.

I was in another 3some this past week... yep i think i have had 4 of them.. haha. but it was really not a big deal since we had conference everyday... at night i just went on splits with a member. We had a lesson with claudia.. and i have been thinking about her so much. Pretty much we went in and started teaching and the spirit smacked her upside the head.. it was great. i had her read alma7:14-15 and then invited her to kneel down right there and pray and ask to know from God if she should be baptized on the 21st with her son Luis... she read.. she prayed.. and she committed to work towards that date. the spirit was so strong in that room and i know she felt it and that she knew it was right. the next night sister trayner (mission president's wife) was my companion and i took her to meet claudia and we had an awesome lesson together. they got along great cuz they are both super outgoing and happy ladies. it was wonderful.

But the highlight ofmy week was a lesson that we had with a lady named Jessica. We had contacted her about a month ago... she had talked with missionaries before. When we tracted into Jessica, she was on her lunch break and didnt have time to talk and didn't want to set a return appointment so i gave her our number and told her to call us when she had time. so she did and she met me and sister trayner at the church after conference one day. i also had another member named alicia there. we started our lesson by singing and praying and then i taught her about the holy ghost.. how it testifies of truth through the feelings we have and i told her to pay attention to her feelings as we talked. then i talked to her about the book of mormon and had sister trayer and alicia bear their testimonies of the book of mormon... the spirit was so strong. Jessica started opening up about her life and said that a couple years ago she was praying and asking for help and then the sister missionaries showed up at her door the next day... but after awhile she turned them away. then she said that last month she was praying again asking for help... and we showed up at her door. she said she knew it wasn't a coincidence and she needed to trust in god. Its hard for me to describe the spirit that was in that room... it was probably one of the most powerful lessons i have had my entire mission. All four of us were in tears... and i know that jessica could feel the spirit. she is great. how cool would that be to start my mission by baptizing a jessica and end my mission by baptizing another jessica!

Channing came to church on sunday.. she is so adorable... hopefully she can really put forth the effort to get an answer and to know for herself that the church is true.. we are going by this week and so it will be good.. hopefully her husband can be there too.
Cynthia (laliela's mom) came to church again as well and she is awesome. she has been reading and praying and is really excited about everything that she is learning. hopefully she will be able to set a date to prepare to be baptized soon.

So yes.. that is the update from laredo.. we have been teaching some really neat people and i can't wait to see what happens with them and how they progress.

I love you all! thanks for all your emails! i really am so blessed to have such a wonderful family and such great friends! i am so excited that liss didn't get transfered and i can't wait to see her again.. it has been way too long without my other half and there is no way i would have been able to wait 2 years without seeing her! it really is perfect timing and i think it is a tender mercy. can we stalk her that weekend? haha ok i am going to stop rambling now... i love you all! have a great week!

love... ME