Ecua-fact: Many houses still are made out of adobe which is unusual because of the Earthquakes and volcanos. Almost all have a tile cross affixed on the pitch.
The best news this week is that the Family Borja was baptized:
Octavio Rigoberto Borja Chavez
Trinidad Veronica Martinez Zapata
Alisson Lisbeth Borja Martinez
& Nicole Melani Borja Martinez
I really just wanted to put all of their names!
The bad news is that I can´t post pictures because Alisson broke my camera...I´ve no idea how she did it. My camera cards are all okay I think so I´m going to try to get the pictures copied this week to a cd and post them next week. It was a bit stressful but when Octavio was baptized I realized that it didn´t matter that my camera was broken or that President Villena´s kids were running around screaming. It was peaceful, and I was so grateful to be a part of it. They really are such a special family and already have such strong testimonies. Veronica even did splits with me yesterday!
Other bad news is that Walter and Paul didn´t get baptized, I´m not really sure what happened but still holding out hope that they will get baptized in August.
I´m still loving Riobamba, it´s beautiful and has warmed up a bit! So I´m not dying of the cold anymore. Hermana Castillo is still great and I´m learning a lot. She has so much love for each one of our investigators, it really is admirable, I´m working on it though. Sometimes people are just hard though!!!
We also had zone conference this past week. As always, it was so much fun to hear from President Sloan, he´s is such a good teacher and genuinely loves each one of us. I learned a whole lot about the Book of Mormon, and how it really was written for us in this time period. Maybe I´ll send my notes home, it really was a great conference.
Hermana Mérida bore her testimony because she is going home this transfer, she apoligized to all of her companions (3 of us that were there) for being mean. I thought it was pretty funny!
Love,
Hermana Whitney Tanner
Monday, July 27, 2009
Monday, July 20, 2009
Week 32
My companion, Hermana Castillo, and I!
View of Chimborazo from my apartment!
Everybody,
Looks like we will only be having six baptisms this week, but that is still pretty exciting!
I´m loving my new companion, Hermana Castillo, she works hard and she works fast! I´m really grateful that I get the chance to learn from her. She really loves our investigators, and takes sincere interest in every one of them. She´s basically the best missionary in the Mission. She gives a talk every zone conference, and President Sloan has a lot of faith in her. I really have learned so much from her in the short time we have been together! I´m really lucky. She´s from Guatemala and also has a brother in the Mission. He´s in Ecuador also but in the Guayaquil mission!
The Family Borja (Voar-ha) is still doing great! I can´t believe how lucky I am to be a part of their lives. Sounds cheesy I know but I really, really am so lucky. They are great! Octavio has quite smoking and drinking. We gave him a carton of candy cigarrillos this week and everytime he wants to smoke he has to read a scripture! We had a fast with him last week and he said he can really feel the difference, he said he knows he has had help quitting! His family is also doing great. Nicol his 8 year old daughter asked me to baptize her! I was flattered of course, but explained that only Priesthood holders could baptize. She´s a doll though, I can hardly wait until Saturday!
Walter is also scheduled for this Saturday but he didn´t show up to his baptismal interview so I´m not 100% that his baptism is going to happen. Cristian Calderón also came to church this Sunday, I´m still holding out hope that his dad will give him permission to be baptized!
Sorry I´m short again, but I never seem to have much time to write!
Love you all,
Whitney
Monday, July 13, 2009
Week 31
EVERYBODY!
Ecuafact: The University San Fransisco is the only University whose credits transfer to the United States.
Hola! I´m in Sunny Riobamba, oh wait, not sunny freezing! That´s why it has the nickname Friobamba, I´ve been wearing basketball shorts underneath my skirts and up to 5 layers everyday! Today there is sun, it´s a glorious feeling!
I really am liking Riobamba though! It´s pretty and I have an amazing view of Chimborazo from my apartment. Chimborazo is a massive snow topped volcano. It hasn´t been active in about 500 years but don´t worry there is another one just East that is stilling blowing and spewing!
Riobamba is pretty interesting. The Catholic grip of death isn´t so strong here and we find more Evangelistas, Cristianas, and Testigos de Jéhova. Jehova´s Witnesses come out every Saturday here. We always have to explain that we are not Jehova´s Witnesses, it´s actually pretty funny. Occasionally when we go to contact and give pamphlets we end up with Awake! or Watchtower, which are Magazines from the Jehovah´s Witnesses. It´s a refreshing change, but The JW´s are harder than then the Catholics, mostly because they are all active. I´m very glad I didn´t go with any floral print anything because on Saturdays you can´t escape it.
We have 7 baptisms scheduled for this month. The Borja (Vor-ha) family of 4 is this Saturday or the next. They are great, we just finished a fast for Octavio, who is having some trouble quitting smoking. They are great and are already preparing to go to the Temple one year from their baptisms. Octavio also fasted with us and he made it all the way through 24 hours on his first try. It was pretty amazing, he really does have a testimony.
We also have Cristian and Marco, they are the kids of members but aren´t active in the church. I really love Cristian, and he pretty much loves me! He hugs me the entire way through our lessons and what´s shocking is that I let him. His dad is witholding permission for his baptism though, it´s unusual becuase usually even the inactive members want their children to be baptized too!
We had a family home evening yesterday with a Gringo family who lives here and attends our ward. It was really weird to hear words like mom and dad, kind of tripped me out. Of course we would be fasting when somebody offers us real american chocolate chip cookies! It was fun though.
I´m really liking Hermana Castillo, she´s pretty famous in the mission because she baptizes double what the other missionaries do in a month. Always. I can see why, she always shows real love for our investigators and teaches really clearly. I´m really enjoying being her companion. Although...she´s really, really touchy feely and I think we all know I´m not. I´m getting used to it though...sorta.
Chao!
Ecuafact: The University San Fransisco is the only University whose credits transfer to the United States.
Hola! I´m in Sunny Riobamba, oh wait, not sunny freezing! That´s why it has the nickname Friobamba, I´ve been wearing basketball shorts underneath my skirts and up to 5 layers everyday! Today there is sun, it´s a glorious feeling!
I really am liking Riobamba though! It´s pretty and I have an amazing view of Chimborazo from my apartment. Chimborazo is a massive snow topped volcano. It hasn´t been active in about 500 years but don´t worry there is another one just East that is stilling blowing and spewing!
Riobamba is pretty interesting. The Catholic grip of death isn´t so strong here and we find more Evangelistas, Cristianas, and Testigos de Jéhova. Jehova´s Witnesses come out every Saturday here. We always have to explain that we are not Jehova´s Witnesses, it´s actually pretty funny. Occasionally when we go to contact and give pamphlets we end up with Awake! or Watchtower, which are Magazines from the Jehovah´s Witnesses. It´s a refreshing change, but The JW´s are harder than then the Catholics, mostly because they are all active. I´m very glad I didn´t go with any floral print anything because on Saturdays you can´t escape it.
We have 7 baptisms scheduled for this month. The Borja (Vor-ha) family of 4 is this Saturday or the next. They are great, we just finished a fast for Octavio, who is having some trouble quitting smoking. They are great and are already preparing to go to the Temple one year from their baptisms. Octavio also fasted with us and he made it all the way through 24 hours on his first try. It was pretty amazing, he really does have a testimony.
We also have Cristian and Marco, they are the kids of members but aren´t active in the church. I really love Cristian, and he pretty much loves me! He hugs me the entire way through our lessons and what´s shocking is that I let him. His dad is witholding permission for his baptism though, it´s unusual becuase usually even the inactive members want their children to be baptized too!
We had a family home evening yesterday with a Gringo family who lives here and attends our ward. It was really weird to hear words like mom and dad, kind of tripped me out. Of course we would be fasting when somebody offers us real american chocolate chip cookies! It was fun though.
I´m really liking Hermana Castillo, she´s pretty famous in the mission because she baptizes double what the other missionaries do in a month. Always. I can see why, she always shows real love for our investigators and teaches really clearly. I´m really enjoying being her companion. Although...she´s really, really touchy feely and I think we all know I´m not. I´m getting used to it though...sorta.
Chao!
Monday, July 6, 2009
Week 31
Everybody-
Ecua-fact: There aren´t any building codes. Which means that almost every set of stairs is a huge danger. They are almost always really uneven. The floors aren´t even either, I have to be vigilant with every step.
Well, I never cease to be surprised, I´ve been transferred. I´m off to Riobamba and my new companion is Hermana Castillo also from Guatemala. I really am tired of being changed but I´m excited to be companions with Hermana Castillo, her nickname is "the machine". She leads the mission in numbers and baptisms every month. So I´m going to learn all I can from her. I´m excited. I feel like my baptismal number is a bit low. Although I have found some really great people and have been able to be a part of their baptisms. Wish me luck!
To my great surprise I´m going to miss Hermana Mérida. I know, right? It really is amazing what the mission does to you! She has taught me a lot and I am truly grateful for that. I also thought I would be "killing her". A little mission slang, don´t worry, it means I would be her last companion.
Ahh, Ambato, we had a really great week. A best for both of us! We were able to find some really great new investigators, who both came to church! Husbands and children in tow. It was an amazing feeling to have 2 complete families at church! They also do all the reading and have questions. It´s going to be hard because we just found them.
Maria Llango still isn´t married because she had to have a document made up by a lawyer and she couldn´t afford the cost. The cost: $20 Maria is currently working construction to pay the bills. I can´t even begin to tell you how heartbreaking it is to see a woman working in hard labor, brick-laying. I think it´s one of the most humbling things I´ve ever seen. My companion and I put up the money for her to get her document ready. I wish I was going to be here to see her get married and baptized! I just really couldn´t believe it. A mere 20 dollars. I have such admiration for all the women here, they do so much. A comfortable life just doesn´t exist here. I´m even more aware of how completely spoiled I am.
By the way! Thank you all for telling me that Michael Jackson died. I kinda figured though, I haven´t had to listen to much latin music lately. It´s been a nice change to hear Thriller and I´m bad everywhere I go. Still going strong, there are pirated Michael Jackson cd´s and dvd´s everywhere!
Ecua-fact: There aren´t any building codes. Which means that almost every set of stairs is a huge danger. They are almost always really uneven. The floors aren´t even either, I have to be vigilant with every step.
Well, I never cease to be surprised, I´ve been transferred. I´m off to Riobamba and my new companion is Hermana Castillo also from Guatemala. I really am tired of being changed but I´m excited to be companions with Hermana Castillo, her nickname is "the machine". She leads the mission in numbers and baptisms every month. So I´m going to learn all I can from her. I´m excited. I feel like my baptismal number is a bit low. Although I have found some really great people and have been able to be a part of their baptisms. Wish me luck!
To my great surprise I´m going to miss Hermana Mérida. I know, right? It really is amazing what the mission does to you! She has taught me a lot and I am truly grateful for that. I also thought I would be "killing her". A little mission slang, don´t worry, it means I would be her last companion.
Ahh, Ambato, we had a really great week. A best for both of us! We were able to find some really great new investigators, who both came to church! Husbands and children in tow. It was an amazing feeling to have 2 complete families at church! They also do all the reading and have questions. It´s going to be hard because we just found them.
Maria Llango still isn´t married because she had to have a document made up by a lawyer and she couldn´t afford the cost. The cost: $20 Maria is currently working construction to pay the bills. I can´t even begin to tell you how heartbreaking it is to see a woman working in hard labor, brick-laying. I think it´s one of the most humbling things I´ve ever seen. My companion and I put up the money for her to get her document ready. I wish I was going to be here to see her get married and baptized! I just really couldn´t believe it. A mere 20 dollars. I have such admiration for all the women here, they do so much. A comfortable life just doesn´t exist here. I´m even more aware of how completely spoiled I am.
By the way! Thank you all for telling me that Michael Jackson died. I kinda figured though, I haven´t had to listen to much latin music lately. It´s been a nice change to hear Thriller and I´m bad everywhere I go. Still going strong, there are pirated Michael Jackson cd´s and dvd´s everywhere!
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