My Last Week with Hermana Dodds - P-Day at the Sculpture Park

15 September 2014

 Tuesday we showed up at our investigator's house and he told us he had decided to stick with the Catholic faith because it doesn't demand so much of him. I think before my mission I would have imagined us being saddened by this. Of course we were a little sad but at the same time we thought, "We know what one of his doubts is! Hooray! Now let's go teach a lesson catered to his doubt!" We taught about the gospel of Christ and how faith, repentance, baptism, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end lead us to eternal life. We tore up a pass along card with a picture of Jesus and talked about how during the apostasy the gospel was distorted. Other churches were formed with the pieces of the gospel they still had. It's true that other churches don't demand as much sometimes. Some teach that we can be saved by faith alone. We had him put the pieces back together, but the picture still wasn't perfect, obviously. We talked about how the Book of Mormon fills the gaps and gave him a new card to represent the Restoration. We talked about the fullness of the gospel. We invited him to pray right then and there. He felt the Holy Ghost and told us he knows Joseph Smith is a prophet, something he doubted before. He's still not sure about Thomas S. Monson, so we are hoping to teach about modern prophets next. He didn't come to church this Sunday though.

We also taught a real lesson with the little girl we have been teaching! Her awful brother wasn't there and she acted completely different toward us. She listened, she answered questions, and she actually talked to us. We taught the Plan of Salvation with printables from lds.org for her to color. 

Wednesday we had a Zone Conference with President Videla. I was preparing a talk for Sunday in our ward and I prayed to receive inspiration during the conference. President Videla made a comment about how there isn't a lot of leadership in Chile. I talked yesterday in church about the gathering of Israel and our responsibility as members to be leaders. We know that missionary work will continue in the millennium, but our job now is to put leadership in place. This is something Brother Wilcox taught in his mission prep and I felt like I needed to share it with my ward.

This week is my last week with Hermana Dodds before she goes home. Next time I write you I will have a new companion. That's weird.

Also, this week we have the fiestas patrias. The 18th is the official holiday, but people apparently party all weekend. It will probably be hard to teach this week because everyone is celebrating with their families. This past week was already hard because people are getting ready. This holiday is HUGE here. On Friday this week we got in four doors without teaching a lesson in any of them. Everyone is so busy. Several families let us in but then were too distracted to listen. One lady said, "Just a minute," and left the living room. We thought she was coming right back but she went and took a shower and left us sitting on her couch. We helped her daughter with her English homework and when she was done showering she started cooking lunch so we set an appointment for next week and left. In another two houses the mom was doing her daughter's hair for a dance performance for the holiday at school. In the fourth house the tiny son wanted to show us a recording of his dance performance. It was a hard day for teaching. 

We didn't teach a lesson all day Saturday because we were so busy with the ward. First thing in the morning we went to an orphanage for girls in Los Andes. We painted three classrooms. It took more time than anyone expected because we had to move everything out of the rooms, tape, and paint the ceilings and then two layers on the walls. Then we had to move everything back in. All of the classrooms are around a plaza which is uncovered and it was pouring rain all day. Halfway through we had to get a colectivo back to Calle Larga because a member had scheduled lunch with us. They gave us a ride back and we continued the service project. 

In the evening the stake had a party for the Fiestas Patrias, the 18 of September next week. Hermana Pulgar had asked the missionaries in our ward, Hermana Dodds and I and a trio of sisters, to sing with her. I played the guitar and we sang a traditional song.

After the service project's duration we were running late for this stake activity. We ran home, changed into the dress that Hermana Pulgar had lent me, and had to use an umbrella to shield the guitar her husband lent us because it didn't have a case and it was still pouring. The bus driver seemed to drive so slowly, but we finally arrived at the stake center in San Felipe and went right on stage to sing, still a little bit wet from the rain.

Talk to you next week, when I have a new companion :(

I bet I will stay in my sector, though :)

Hermana Eva VanCott

Painting at the orphanage in Los Andes

For our P day we went to an "outdoor museum" in Putaendo. It was several acres of wilderness and we didn't see another person the whole time. Spread all over this hill were modern art sculptures, huge creations of metal, wood, old bikes. Adria would have loved climbing on things and creating her own art there. It was the weirdest place I have ever been. We would see a sculpture on a hill and think it was the last one, but when we climbed to it we could see something else in the distance. It was sooo weird.

A Swing!

Hermana Dodds said, "We're going to take a picture of you there for your dad. It almost looks like the statues on Easter Island."

My Favorite

Our Hike Today