August 25, 2013

goin' NORTH!!

Ma chere famille,

This week was soooo good. SO GOOD. I kinda needed to have this week. Cause I've been feeling a little bit blah because of auto ecole and only working part time and such. But!! yah. Great week. I'm so happppyyy!! I wanna be a missionary and stay here foreverrrr!! 

Anyways, Soeur Kailiponi and also Elder Decaires, I hope that you're both reading this... causeeeee....

I'M GOING TO BOURAILLLL!!!

this time it's only for this weekend... Hopefully next time will be the real deal. But I am SOOO STOKED. I can't even explain. It's kinda been my dream for awhile now, and its happening!! But yah, we're gonna drive up there Friday night, stay the night in Bourail and then go to Houailou all day Saturday, cause I guess theres a family in the branch that has lots of amis that they need to be taught. STOKED. And then we're staying the night in Bourail again Saturday night and then going to the branch of Bourail on Sunday. I am SO STOKED. I cannot exacly put into words how excited I am. But it'll be good.

Anyways, that's for next week. And I'll tell you all about it then. This week!

First of all, we had 3 lessons with a member this week!! And I LOVE them. Guys, lessons with a member, as a general rule, ALWAYS go better than lessons without. I am seriously a believer now. J'aime biennn! Literally I like! So go flying football tackle your nearest missionaries and ask when you can go out with them, for lessons or whatever. It's AMAZING. I love working with members.

Also this week, it was Soeur Lamb's birthday. And I did the 12 days of Christmas but with her birthday! So that was fun. haha. I gave her a little something every day of the week and Fridaywas the grand finale! We had pizza for lunch and I bought her 22 petit pots. (there like these little half cup servings of ice cream that she loves.) And I wrote 22 reasons I love her! haha. Soeur Beagles and Soeur Tupai set it up for me at Dumbea when we were driving home from auto ecole.I haven't done something that creative since I asked someone to a high school dance. hah. but it was fun. And she loved it! which was the goal... Cause usually she hates her birthday.

We also got to do some port a port this week, which was actually quite exciting. Cause I haven't done that in quite some time what with auto ecole and such. And I've finally found the secret to finding people like that. You just keep them talking. Because when you approach them, 95% of the time, they're already shaking their head no, but then you just keep them talking! And all the sudden, you have a return appointment. haha. it still doesn't work all the time, but it's nice! I love finding and talking to people!! It's exciting. 

Other than that, I'm doing great! Auto ecole is soooo close to being done, I can taste it!! I'm taking my test next Tuesday. Bah. Pray for me please!!

And happy birthday Maello!! I LOVE YOUUU! Have a good birthday!!

And welcome HOME Elizabeth Tingey!!! I love youuuu!!! I need your address! (if you're reading this.) Know that you are in my prayers!!

I love you family!! Thanks for your love and support! You are the best!! A la prochaine!! Literally "the next!"

L'evangile est vraie!!

Love, Soeur Santos

August 18, 2013

"jolie, ça!" It's Pretty!

Ma chère famille,

Ay Bonjour. Des for not sending any pics this week, I oublied forgot my cord... So yah. La semaine prochaine! Next week! 

Anyways, this week was exciting. Not as exciting as Pups-- I stayed on my little island. But! Soeur Lamb and I only had auto ecole school Wednesday!! And it was THE BEST. I have never been so happy in my life. hah. Mostly just to have the occasion to do mish work again for almost the entire week. It was very exciting! 

But yah, the subject line comes from Thursday, cause there was a sports/temple fundraiser thing for the pieu stake in Magenta, so we spent most of the day in the sun, running around like crazies! I got recruited for a soccer team, with Soeur Lamb, and Soeur Beagles and I created a volleyball team. It was fun! But yah, this is what people say here during sports when you do something good. hah. It was funny. Every time I passed the ball during soccer, "ay jolie ca!" It was funny. But yah, that was fun. I had a goal and an assist during soccer. And a pretty cool block in volleyball! Chyeah. Felt like the glory days, I'm just a lot more outta shape now, hah. 

And! we had lots of good lessons this week. One of the most exciting though was actually with an inactive member. He's been inactive for quite some time. And we've been reteaching him the lessons. So, we got to lesson 4 this week, les commandements, and we know he has a problem with la parole de sagesse the word of wisdom. 

So that's what we decided to start with. It's just the fact that he drinks coffee, every morning. And he's diminued now, but he still drinks it. But we talked about it with him and got to testify that this commandment is important and that God knows better than us, and he said that he's gonna live it again!! He's just gonna finish his boite box and after that, plus de café! This means more coffee but I assume she meant no more coffee. I'm stoked. It's exciting whenever anyone says that they're gonna live the word of wisdom!!

And, Soeur Lamb and I finally got our test date for le code!! It's the 3rd of September. So yah, lots of prayers please. Maybs even some fasting if you feel so inclined. And I'm gonna do the same. I just wanna be done. And be in my sector all the time!! With Soeur Beagles. But! I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, so it's exciting.

Well family, that's about it for this week! I love this work and I am sooo happy to be here, serving these people. I love them so much! And I don't know how to explain it, but this work is real. And it's sooo important. the longer that I'm here, the more I think I realize how real and how important it is. Like when we testify and the Spirit is there to bear witness to our amis, the words we're saying might as well be written in a history book-- cause they're TRUE!! And I will NEVER be able to deny that. I love you family! Read the Book of Mormon every day and you will want to do missionary work, and if you do that, and you will be happy. Happiness that cannot be put into words. I love you! Thanks for your constant letters and prayers and support. Sometimes I wonder how I'm not just unconcious from how tired I am, but then I remember that you all, and every church member and investigator in the world are praying for me, and then it makes sense. Love you!

L'evangile est vraie!!

Love, Soeur Santos

August 11, 2013

the flirt skirt!!

Ma chere famille,

Ay bonjour. The subject line's cause Soeur Kailiponi left me her flirt skirt and I LOVE it. I sadly, do not have a picture of it, maybs next week. But I wore it yesterday to church and I LOVE it.

So, this pic is my fro, it's still happy and a little too healthy, if you were wondering. hah. But it's alive and kicking, in case you were wondering.

This week. it was sad. but good. I cried like a CRAZY person during our little zone meeting cause Soeur Kailiponi got up and bore her goodye testimony. And then I kinda cried on and off from then, all the way home. Poor Soeur Beagles didn't exactly know what to do with me. hah. She didn't know me pre mish.

But yah, this week was good, for drivers ed. Soeur Lamb and I did pretty good Thursday, we only missed 5 out of like 330. And Friday wasn't too bad either. It's cause we decided that we're team testing it until we take the real deal, that way we can discuss and explain stuff to each other, cause there are some things that she gets that I don't get and vise versa. But yah, it was better, the lady liked us this week, so we may get a test date soon. I'm hoping for only 3 more weeks of this madness before I finally getta stay home in Paita and work all day and finish Soeur Beagles training.

This week, we did a little better on lessons, we still only had one with a member, but! We set the goal for 3 this week, so hopefully that'll happen. This work advances so much more when members are involved. I am determined to be a mish for the rest of my life, cause if nothing else, being here has helped me see how important I am as a member in inviting people to come unto Christ!

Also, Soeur Beagles gave her first talk this Sunday in sacrament meeting. And her French is getting sooo good! It's super exciting. As her obnoxious anglophone trainer who only speaks french with her. haha.

But yah, this week, we're gonna work on finding, cause we need more amis! We have a healthy list of converti recents recent converts, and now it's time to find like crazies. I'm excited for it. 

Also, this last week, I went to my first bapteme baptism which was done in a river! Which was super cool. It was exciting. 

Well, for this week, Becs, happy late birthday!! I love you! Ange, Happy Birthday tomorrow! I can't believe you're 14 and can go to stake dances. And Soeur Kailiponi, I love you and miss you!! Hope you're doing well. 

Well family, I gotta go, but thank you for your prayers! I need them! You are in mine as well!! Love you! Bonne semaine!! Good week!!

L'evangile est vraie!!

Love, Soeur Santos

August 5, 2013

"You're speaking in French..."

Ma chere famille,

haha. The subject line is a quote from last night when Soeur Beagles and I were doing le planif hebdo weekly planning. I told her we'd continue to do those in english for a couple more weeks, but the rest of the time, french. I'm a crazy person, I know, but her French has gotten much better in the last week, cause I told her no more english. Anyways, apparently I'm to the point where I'm going in and out of French and not really realizing it, cause I started speaking last night, and I was for a couple mins, and Soeur Beagles said that to me, cause I guess I was speaking french instead of english. hah. Qu'est-ce que j'aime cette langue I love this language!! Its the best.

This week was a little tough. Mostly because Thursday night, I found out that Soeur Kailiponi's going home. I was starting to think that she was gonna make it, but she's pretty sick, so she's going home. Next week. And I'm super sad about it. And I had this weird little pre meltdown Thursday afternoon before I found out, cause I kinda knew it was coming. But yah. She's flying home this weekend, I think. And I'm really sad about it. Cause she's my hero!! And my mom. And She's suuuuch a good missionary. She's touched SO MANY lives in this year that she's been here, And Elle va me manquer. BEAUCOUP And they will miss her. So much. More than I can say. So yah, I felt pretty drained all week. 

And drivers ed is a little hard. So pray for me specifically for that if you can. I'm not worried about once I hit the driving part, but le code is hard. But! I know that its possible with Heavenly Father, so it'll come. 

Other than that, we had a GREAT lesson with a member this Tuesday night!! We were stoked about it, cause we've been trying to really work with them more. Cause they are key. Really, family. Track down your local missionaries and see when they can take you to a lesson with them. And if they don't have lessons fixeed, have a FHE and invite friends over. This work is incredible.

Ok, I gotta bounce, But! I love you all!! I am sooo happy to be a missionary, despite the hard times. Don't worry, I'm picking myself up and dusting myself off. But I love you all. And this work is worth it. Every hard time, every heartache. I love it. I love you!! You are in my prayers!!

L'evangile est vraie!!

Love, Soeur Santos

the first one's at a service proj we had this weekend.

the second's from a couple weeks ago, when Soeur Tere and I went to pick them up from the airport. That's me and my baby!! Soeur Beagles.

The last one's me and my bffs at service. Soeur Lamb and Soeur Kailiponi.

the first one.s us in our Merica outfits at conference de zone. That was fun.

And the second one's Soeur Lamb and I eating mint chocolate chip ice cream at 8 in the morning to celebrate our first day of school!

The last one's ar Tipa's baptism last month. Her, me, and Soeur Tere!!

July 29, 2013

la code.

Ma chère famille,

I have some time to write this week! So here goes.

This week Soeur Lamb and I started french drivers ed or "la code." This consists of sitting in a room and watching a dvd of practice test questions 40 at a time and answering A, B, C, and D, or some combination of the two. The bad news? It's every Wednesday, Thursday. and Friday, from 9-11:30 and then 2:30 to 6. But, the truth still stands, that taking drivers ed with your best friend makes it a thousand times more bearable than having to take it alone. The first time around was with Jdawg and now it's with Soeur Lamb. So it's good. Soeur Lamb and I bring some light into the room :] And! The good news is, I think I only have 3 more weeks. J’espère I hope... I gotta get good fast. But yah. It's going well so far, but pray for me please, and also, our ZL's who are taking the test tomorrow and need to pass so that they can start driving again. 

The fun part about this all is that I'm "training." haha. But really, I'm sharing the baby with Soeur Tupai, which is weird. But, Soeur Tupai is incredible, she's a better missionary than I am, so I have no problem leaving Soeur Beagles with her 3 days a week, because I know that she is learning lots and being obedient and working hard when I am gone. It was a little scary though, I left her in the sector for the first time this last Friday, only a week after she got here! But she found everything alright, so it was all good, I was just stressing a little bit. 

This weekend was fun! We had a mariage this Friday and a baptism on Saturday!! Tauhia! She's from the Marquese Islands. I think that's around Tahiti. And she married Pierre, who is also a converti recent. It was beautiful! And I love seeing the gospel change people's lives. It's incredible. 

We also got to do some port a port this week and we found a Catholic family that we're going to go see tomorrow! I'm stoked. We're trying to work more with the members too, cause they are what makes this work roll forward! 

Oh! And, as a mission we are reading the Book of Mormon in 60 days, which is fun. I started a couple weeks ago and I'm almost to Alma. It's fun, and I just hopped ship. Cause I started it in english, but Soeur Kailiponi and Soeur Lamb are reading it in French, and I decided I wanted to too. But oh man. This book is incredible! Read it everyday and your desire to share this gospel will grow. It's incredible!! 

Other than that, happy one year this week Elise!! It's crazy. Mele just said it in an email, but it was about a year ago when Pup and I went through the temple for the first time and when I had my last recital. Time flies when you're having fun... It's crazy.

Other than that, lifes good. Soeur Beagles french has already gotten lots better, which I attribute to the Spirit and also my obnoxiousness and only speaking french to her. haha. But she knows I love her :]

Anyways! I love you family!! Thanks for your love and support!! You are constantly in my prayers!! Share the gospel with those around you! It really does just become natural after the first couple times! It's the center of our lives! I love you! And I love this work. It brings me JOY!!

L'evangile est vraie!

Love, Soeur Santos