I Can Do Hard Things

Aquì estoy!! Feliz dia de los presidentes, “Amur-ika!”

Wow, what a WEEK of happiness!!! I am STILL here and, boy, am I sooo happy I am here! We have THREE baptismal dates:

                Giselle - March 1st

                Martin- March 22nd

                Miguel- March 22nd

They are SOOOOOO ready for ALL of the blessings of this gospel. Please pray that they will have a desire to attend church because, really, that's all they need to do to qualify to be baptized. PLEASE pray harder than EVER!!!

Ate the mac and cheese and, WOW, I miss mac and cheese like CRAZY!

A daughter of a member (Araceli) MADE these for our district, cookie nametags!!

Last Monday, I hiked a MINE after having influenza/discouragement for 5 days. And wow, I remember when Dad and I hiked Flat Iron (which is STILL 1,980 times harder than the mine) where the theme of that experience was, "I can do hard things." (See previous post for mine hike photos.)

1.      

   I still can do hard things! This mission IS a "hard thing" and, sure as HECK, I am going to finish this hard thing. haha! (View of Fresnillo after our hike of the mine.)

We had an amazing experience with Martin (before we asked "the question"). We taught the last half of “The Restoration” and about The Book of Mormon. And he basically told us "The Book of Mormon MAKES SENSE." He told us that he believed it and he reads it with The Bible. My jaw DROPPED as he told us EVERYTHING and a voice told me, "What are you doing, Aubri?! THE BAPTISMAL QUESTION, HE IS READY!" Boom.

"Martin, will you read more of The Book of Mormon and personally ask our loving Heavenly Father if it is true?"

"Well of course!"

"Martin, when you have found the answer and you feel The Book of Mormon is the word of God, will you follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized by someone holding the power and authority of God?"

"When I have found an answer, yes."

He will prepare to be baptized March 22nd! We have exchanges soon, and I will either be here to be a TRAINER or I will leave. OHHH I hope I stay!!!!!

I had my interview with Presidente Villarreal and, Mom, I was honest! And I had NO fear because, well, all I could see in my President's eyes was LOVE. He said all he could really see in me was happiness, love for everyone – I was encouraged. And then he said this, "Hermana Winsor, all I can see in you is...LIMPIA (clean)." The Spirit HIT me like a ton of bricks (happy bricks). "Hermana Winsor, you have NEVER failed. There isn't failure in the Atonement of Jesus Christ. You have NO need to worry!" I am so glad I told him everything and I am SO grateful for the love and support of him and his wife. I am SO blessed to be here - I NEED to be here!! And Mom, the President said he will email you but I don't know when... he is a busy man!! But he said he will :)

Oh and MOM AND DAD!!! Listen UP! I asked my President if you two can come see my mission before I finish, AND HE SAID YES!!!!!!! Start planning for Abril de 2015...vamos a ver mi mision!!! :) :) I am starting a list of places and people to see! :) 

Oh also, TODAY I sent letters to Mom, Dad, Brittany, Danny and Melanie AND Sister Lunt!

We also had a Zone Conference this week. It was Elder Cuayahuitl's 20th birthday, so Hma. Moreno and I bought decorations and a cake for him. We decorated a class room in the Stake Center and told everyone (including the wife of the president; the president was in interviews with other missionaries) to go in the classroom after the conference, and the companion of Elder Cuayahuitl would go to the bathroom and boom, SURPRISE!!!! We sang songs, and as Elder Cuayahuitl leaned forward to take a bite of the cake, Elder Rios smashed his face INTO the cake. It was great! I love my zone, and I especially LOVE my district! When I told the elders, "No voy a regresar," they all cheered and smiled and shook my hand REALLY hard, hahaha! I love the elders. They are truly like my brothers.

La fiesta! (Hma. Villarreal, la esposa de mi presidente de mision, esta en la media.)

We had Stake Conference this week with my President and his wife AND Elder Villalobos from the Seventy!!!! Wow, how I LOVE to hear the words of a servant of God. The experiences with the Apostoles en la CCM and then here with a member of the Seventy, it was powerful!!!! He talked about the call from President Monson, "NOW is the time where members and missionaries become ONE." He said that we ALL need to participate in this historical moment in the church. If we don't follow this call, ARE WE TRULY CONVERTED? Are we truly being obedient? Well, no. This is the moment where we HELP the missionaries. We help by giving references and sharing our testimonies. We need to STOP having fear and START having faith because Jesus Christ is coming soon, and we need to bring the wounded souls, the lost souls to the loving arms of our Lord. Please, help the missionaries and SHARE YOUR TESTIMONY!!! Please, the Lord has prepared EVERY heart to hear YOUR testimony, specifically YOURS!!! Please, the Lord said he would hasten the work in HIS time. Well, that time is NOW - the Lord needs YOU!

Stake Conference with Karla and Monica, members of the stake.

 We gave gifts for Valentine's Day! Hermana Eliason (la otra Americana) gave me a necklace of an elephant, and dulces, and I gave her a stuffed elephant!! :)

TODAY, Hermana Moreno and I played SOCCER with the Elders!! And wow, the stereotype about Mexicans being awesome at soccer is TRUE! Oh, how I loved playing with them. Always encouraging and always helping me improve! It was exhausting, but I LOVED IT! I am going to be a professional soccer player before I get back to Arizona, hahaha! 

After playing FUTBOL today with the Elders - great exercise and, man, I love playing soccer!!!!!)

 The Mexican elders said I was practically "Mexicana" because I wore a Mexican shirt, 

I am getting ridiculously tan, AND I played soccer.

Dad, I am going to be honest, I was a little angry with your bluntness - because I am stubborn :) hahaha. But thank you, I need bluntness. And I know you love me. After I cooled down, I thought "Man, I have THE best parents. I am going to make them proud." And Mom, thank you for your bluntness as well, haha! (I have blunt parents....and it is GREAT.) Thank you for your constant love and support and words of wisdom. Every time I think of you, I am reminded of how stinkin' blessed I am. 

I love you ALL SOOOO much! Remember, YOU CAN DO HARD THINGS!!!! Nothing is impossible!! NOTHING! Yeah, sometimes life stinks.... but what are you going to do? COME WHAT MAY AND LOVE IT! VENGA LO QUE VENGA, DISFRUTALO!

I love you all, and know that time is FLYING by!!! My third exchange is in 15 days and I am going to be training most likely. We're going to blink and mom and dad are going to be HERE to pick me up! Oh and mom and dad, could you bring someone who speaks Spanish to come with you in the airport. I get kind of scared when I think of my gringo parents in La Ciudad de Mexico airport, haha! Or START PRACTICING YOUR SPANISH! :)

Love you all!

Con amor,

Hermana WINSOR

Araceli, Axel and little Dana (a little fireball)....LOVE THIS FAMILY!!

Hermana Araceli Alatorre, menos activa - I seriously love her so much.
She has become like my second mom and, man, she cooks food SO well!!!

We entered in the house of the family Alatorre and ALL the kids were on the couch with their phones and tablets. So I came over with my Book of Mormon and said to my companion "take a picture" and we gave Dana (the smallest one) our phone....and, well, we made THIS masterpiece.

1.       Bufalos!!!! When we were hiking down the mountain on a bridge, we just walked up and Elder Cather dijo "Wow, they are like hippos....but like, with horns" bahaha! And there was a chain link fence between us and the bufalo!

Entering the ZOO!!!!!! We hiked down the mountain on a BRIDGE and part of the zoo is on the way down the mountain. There is practically NO protection from the animals....it is AWESOME, hahaha!!!

1st animal we saw at the zoo, an AVESTRUZ! (ostrich)

And also with EL TIGRE! We walked up and there was two parts, one part with a REALLY high chain link fence and the other an observation window. We waited and waited. Then a small door opens and in comes RUNNING a TIGER!!!! I yelled, "NO WAY!!!!!" It ran around, walked up to the chain link fence. I literally was like 2 feet away from a TIGER - it was awesome! I officially declare the zoo in Mexico 12 times better than the Phoenix Zoo. It is SUPER small.... but awesome :) And not every single animal is SLEEPING!