El Tio

FAMILIA! How are you all??????????

I had a great week. I hope you all did, too! This week, we have been working a lot with families. We met a sweet girl named Ruth. She is amazing. Truly amazing. We have been teaching her every day this week, and her faith is truly amazing. She told us how she had been praying for a change in her life, and when we showed up at her house, she knew that we were there to help her change. She is 18 and is married and expecting a baby. I love her so much. She came to church, too! Her baptism is for the 15th of AGO. But she already has the strongest testimony that I have ever seen.

We have also been working with a less active family in our ward. The familia Rojas. The parents are great and strong in the church, but their daughters have had some problems in the past with other members, so they stopped going. When we first met them, they barely said two words to us. But we have been reading the Book of Mormon every day with them as a family. Over the past month, I have seen such a change in them. It is amazing. We had set a date for them to come back to church. That date was this past Sunday. AND THEY CAME! It brought such great joy to my heart to see their whole family sitting in church together. That is really why I am here. To help families be together forever. The only way we can be together forever as a family is through this church.

So I learned from this experience the great power that the Book of Mormon has, especially when you read it with your family. I hope you are all still reading together and praying together. I know that the Book of Mormon can change live.

Anyways, today was also a great day. We toured the MINE! It was incredible, and the coolest thing ever. I HAD the coolest pictures, but this stupid computer deleted them all..... I am going to try and get that member to recuperate them again. It was a sad moment. I wanted you guys to see The Tio!

So the mine is crazy. I SAW THE TIO. They worship this devil statue whom they call Tio (uncle in Spanish), and it is so crazy. There is probably a picture of it on the internet. They bring him alcohol and cigarettes so that he will bless them with luck in the mine. Eventhough they worship the devil, I have such respect for these men. We met a 75-year-old man in there who has been working for 25 years in the mine. It would be the worst job ever. You work all alone. It is so dark and smells so bad. You work for 13 or more hours a day. And it is so tiny in there. I had to crouch down the entire time. And you have to walk in water the whole time. Nasty. The old man was just working away in this little cave. It was incredible. So sad. The mine is crazy. Hopefully next Monday I will be able to send you photos!

What else???

- Oh! It is getting warmer here! I am way way happy about that.

- I HAD A DREAM THAT RHIANNON WAS PREGNANT! Is it true??????

- Mom. My hands are fine. I sleep with one of those hot water bottles at night, and a couple times I spilled hot water on my hands. It´s all good. I just have some burn marks.

 

- This Sunday is cambios. I honestly don´t know where I will be next time I write you. I could stay here for another transfer, I could leave. I could have a new companion. I could be a trainer! Oh gosh..... I am SO NOT READY TO TRAIN. I am still a noob! But I finish my training this week, and you can train right after your own training.... oh my lanta....... We shall see. I don´t want a new companion yet, and I don´t want to leave Potosi yet. I LOVE my ward and I LOVE my companion! Yikes... we´ll find out Sunday night.....

- We have been going to seminary a couple times a week bc investigators sometimes come. One of our investigators went this past Friday! Her name is Miriam, and she is so cool. Can you actually believe that I miss seminary when I go? Crazy...

Yeah... so other than losing all my pictures, life is way good. I am definitely getting more comfortable with mission life. I absolutely love my ward.

My companion and I have been practicing the lessons more. She swears on her life that I am going to train someone this next transfer.... holy... I am so not ready......

I´ll let you guys know this next Monday!

How are you all? Is summer over yet? When does school start?

I´m going to send this one off, and read your letters. I LOVE YOU!

Hna Routsong