Mis Queridos-
First thing, the church has finally updated it´s emailing system, it´s gmail...yes! wtanner@myldsmail.net if you still would like to keep in contact with me.
We had a great week and 10 of our investigators came to church this week. We are mostly excited about Wilmer Rizzo and Yadira Andrande. They are married!!! Which means so much more than you can all imagine. They came to church after only one week of knowing us and they really seem to be happy, it is such a rarity. Wilmer only wanted to know if we were allowed to play sports in this religion, he seems up for pretty much anything else. Yadira is a bit tougher, she has been attending a Evangelical church. She seemed to really enjoy it though and we will definitely be focusing in them this week!
Jorgeluis Chica is another new investigator, he told me pretty clearly that he only wants to learn more about the Word of God and he´s not interested in getting baptized. I think he will come around though. He had an accident a few months back and has about 6 nails in his leg, he can´t bend his knee at all. He is at home all day long and has all the time in the world to listen to us. He´s a good kid and he seems to really want to change his life (did I mention that he was drunk when he messed up his leg?).
Gabriela Loor is still coming to church every week but still isn´t married and so cannot be baptized. She is pretty intense, I think Juan would come around if she would calm down a little bit...jiji.
My companion and I are doing really well and busy looking for new investigators. Thank you for your prayers and letters!
Hermana Whitney Tanner
Ps. I´ve noticed that nobody comments unless I have pictures...not cool people.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Week 62
Mis Queridos-
I know I´m a day late but this week our Preparation day was moved until Tuesday because this week is Carnaval. I was here last year for Carnaval but it is about a million times worse in the Coast. It´s basically 4 days of people throwing water, flour, eggs, and other things at people. The kids have no mercy. I can imagine that as a normal person it´s actually a fun holiday, however, as a missionary it means trying to avoid getting soaked for the entire day long...sometimes with fishy water. Ewwwwwwwww.
This week was pretty great, we always have some setbacks but that is life. President Sloan has asked us to step-up with our contacting efforts and I´ve really been trying to work on that. It´s not something that I particularly enjoy doing because after a couple of scary experiences one loses her nerve (think creepy old guys asking me to marry them). This week though I really tried to go out and get to know people. Sunday we found a whole trove of new investigators who really look promising. Many of which are families. I´m so excited to work with them all. I remember knocking a few doors and having people hide. I said a quick prayer, something like this: "Heavenly Father, thou knowest that I´m just no good at this...please help us find somebody." Needless to say that my prayers were answered and I´m very, very grateful.
I was also feeling that I wasn´t making a great difference here in Ecuador and that my efforts to teach the gospel were only benefitting me. Nobody seemed to be progressing. I had to teach The Holy Ghost in Gospel Principles this week and I really tried to stress that the Godhead was one in proposito but were 3 separate persons. Yesterday a less active member told me that she was able to teach some of her neighbors of a different faith what she had learned and that they understood and seemed interested. It made me feel so much better that I was able to help somebody.
Rosy Parraga is also getting baptized. She was always an investigator that we kept on the back burner but now has a baptismal date for March. My companion and I realized that she didn´t really know anything about the gospel and so we had started everything over again. She has changed so much and I´m grateful that yet again I get to see how 5 simple lessons change peoples lifes. The gospel really does work miracles.
So that was my week in a nutshell, I´m very happy inspite of passing a few days without being dry...what with Carnaval and the rain. Torrential downpours, I love rain so much!!!
Hermana Whitney Tanner
I know I´m a day late but this week our Preparation day was moved until Tuesday because this week is Carnaval. I was here last year for Carnaval but it is about a million times worse in the Coast. It´s basically 4 days of people throwing water, flour, eggs, and other things at people. The kids have no mercy. I can imagine that as a normal person it´s actually a fun holiday, however, as a missionary it means trying to avoid getting soaked for the entire day long...sometimes with fishy water. Ewwwwwwwww.
This week was pretty great, we always have some setbacks but that is life. President Sloan has asked us to step-up with our contacting efforts and I´ve really been trying to work on that. It´s not something that I particularly enjoy doing because after a couple of scary experiences one loses her nerve (think creepy old guys asking me to marry them). This week though I really tried to go out and get to know people. Sunday we found a whole trove of new investigators who really look promising. Many of which are families. I´m so excited to work with them all. I remember knocking a few doors and having people hide. I said a quick prayer, something like this: "Heavenly Father, thou knowest that I´m just no good at this...please help us find somebody." Needless to say that my prayers were answered and I´m very, very grateful.
I was also feeling that I wasn´t making a great difference here in Ecuador and that my efforts to teach the gospel were only benefitting me. Nobody seemed to be progressing. I had to teach The Holy Ghost in Gospel Principles this week and I really tried to stress that the Godhead was one in proposito but were 3 separate persons. Yesterday a less active member told me that she was able to teach some of her neighbors of a different faith what she had learned and that they understood and seemed interested. It made me feel so much better that I was able to help somebody.
Rosy Parraga is also getting baptized. She was always an investigator that we kept on the back burner but now has a baptismal date for March. My companion and I realized that she didn´t really know anything about the gospel and so we had started everything over again. She has changed so much and I´m grateful that yet again I get to see how 5 simple lessons change peoples lifes. The gospel really does work miracles.
So that was my week in a nutshell, I´m very happy inspite of passing a few days without being dry...what with Carnaval and the rain. Torrential downpours, I love rain so much!!!
Hermana Whitney Tanner
Monday, February 8, 2010
Week 61
Friends and Family-
Thanks for all of your Birthday Wishes! I think more of you remembered than ever before. Le me tell you that I had a killer birthday, hands down best ever! It started out with my ward throwing me a surprise party! Yeah, who knew. It was pretty much the nicest thing anybody has ever done for me. All of my favorite members where there and I had 2 types of cake (chocolate and tres leche), bolitas de yuca and deditos con queso (can´t really explain what they are but they are really good). It was an all out party latin style and I wouldn´t have it any other way. I was serenaded all night and they stuffed my head into the cake.
I can´t believe that in a few months I´m going to have to say goodbye to all these wonderful people that I love so much, I won´t lie it´s starting to sink in and it hurts.
So in other cool things that I didn´t think would happen on my mission. We had a contacting activity in which we needed permission from the mayor of the city to use the local park. I got to contact the mayor. I have to say that in an unstable 3rd world country I thought the idea was pretty excited. Hugo Cruz Andrande was pretty intimidating but he gave us permission for Saturday! Unfortunately we got rained out hard-core and ended up having the activity in the church and only one person showed up. I can´t really blame the people though, it was pretty much a monsoon. I felt bad that all 22 Elders from Santo Domingo showed up just to help us out here in El Carmen!
Rocio Mero is still doing well, it looks like separation instead of a wedding in her case though. She didn´t really luck out with Clever (husband´s name) and I feel bad but she really wants to be baptized and it´s really time. She is also our new mamaita for Friday´s, she makes some really decent chicken and rice! They love the missionaries.
We are doing well and my companion is great, she is talking now which is a big relief for me and it turns out that she is a pretty great companion. I know that we are going to have a lot of success and fun together.
I love you all and have you in my prayers!
Hermana Whitney Tanner
ps. Apparently my camara has a virus and I can´t load pictures. Still working though I just don´t know how to get them on the web...
Thanks for all of your Birthday Wishes! I think more of you remembered than ever before. Le me tell you that I had a killer birthday, hands down best ever! It started out with my ward throwing me a surprise party! Yeah, who knew. It was pretty much the nicest thing anybody has ever done for me. All of my favorite members where there and I had 2 types of cake (chocolate and tres leche), bolitas de yuca and deditos con queso (can´t really explain what they are but they are really good). It was an all out party latin style and I wouldn´t have it any other way. I was serenaded all night and they stuffed my head into the cake.
I can´t believe that in a few months I´m going to have to say goodbye to all these wonderful people that I love so much, I won´t lie it´s starting to sink in and it hurts.
So in other cool things that I didn´t think would happen on my mission. We had a contacting activity in which we needed permission from the mayor of the city to use the local park. I got to contact the mayor. I have to say that in an unstable 3rd world country I thought the idea was pretty excited. Hugo Cruz Andrande was pretty intimidating but he gave us permission for Saturday! Unfortunately we got rained out hard-core and ended up having the activity in the church and only one person showed up. I can´t really blame the people though, it was pretty much a monsoon. I felt bad that all 22 Elders from Santo Domingo showed up just to help us out here in El Carmen!
Rocio Mero is still doing well, it looks like separation instead of a wedding in her case though. She didn´t really luck out with Clever (husband´s name) and I feel bad but she really wants to be baptized and it´s really time. She is also our new mamaita for Friday´s, she makes some really decent chicken and rice! They love the missionaries.
We are doing well and my companion is great, she is talking now which is a big relief for me and it turns out that she is a pretty great companion. I know that we are going to have a lot of success and fun together.
I love you all and have you in my prayers!
Hermana Whitney Tanner
ps. Apparently my camara has a virus and I can´t load pictures. Still working though I just don´t know how to get them on the web...
Monday, February 1, 2010
Week 60
Friends and Family-
I have to say that I am impressed! I have 23 emails this week from all of you wishing me a happy birthday! I just wanted to tell you all that I love you and am grateful that you all remembered. Sorry if I can´t respond to all of you but know that I´m thinking of you and will try to get back to you all a little later! I also completed 16 months in the mission today, it´s weirding me out, I got my trunky papers this week!
My companion and I are doing well. I think I´ve broken the ice a little bit. I think my being a gringa freaked her out a little bit, it does most people. She´s still what you call painfully shy, but at least she´s talking to me more. I´m working on eye-contact this week. We are doing really well together though, and she pretty much gives me free reign, I would like a little more imput from her she has some good ideas. It´s stange to have a companion who isn´t from Guatemala, she simply doesn´t understand my hatred for rice.
We have a great program going and so hopefully a lot of weddings for the month of February. Rosio Mero is one of our newest investigators, her sister and daughter are members and she was close to being baptized as well but her daughter doesn´t like her boyfriend so she didn´t get married. We will be talking to Alejandra (daughter) to get that all worked out. Lilian Mero is another sister who didn´t get married because she isn´t married. Also Vanessa who is the daughter-in-law of Maribel, who is a member, and has a lot of interest in the church. She also has to get married. I´m not joking when I say that nobody gets married here!
We are also teaching the Zambrano-Whitong family, Galo, Karina, Tais, and Adrianna. They are former investigators who left the font full. We formally asked them for the chance to prepare them for baptism again and they said yes. I´m not really sure what happened the first time. I asked Karina and she just told me it was Satan. Galo and Karina even got married to be baptized so I really don´t understand. I have a good feeling about them though.
We also knocked some doors this week and found Araseli Santana and Betty Leones, both accepted us into their homes and seem to be interested in our message. It was an answer to prayer that day because NOBODY wanted us! The Lord really does work in mysterious ways sometimes, I think it´s probably good to get rejected a few thousand times.
All my love from Ecuador,
Hermana Whitney Tanner
I have to say that I am impressed! I have 23 emails this week from all of you wishing me a happy birthday! I just wanted to tell you all that I love you and am grateful that you all remembered. Sorry if I can´t respond to all of you but know that I´m thinking of you and will try to get back to you all a little later! I also completed 16 months in the mission today, it´s weirding me out, I got my trunky papers this week!
My companion and I are doing well. I think I´ve broken the ice a little bit. I think my being a gringa freaked her out a little bit, it does most people. She´s still what you call painfully shy, but at least she´s talking to me more. I´m working on eye-contact this week. We are doing really well together though, and she pretty much gives me free reign, I would like a little more imput from her she has some good ideas. It´s stange to have a companion who isn´t from Guatemala, she simply doesn´t understand my hatred for rice.
We have a great program going and so hopefully a lot of weddings for the month of February. Rosio Mero is one of our newest investigators, her sister and daughter are members and she was close to being baptized as well but her daughter doesn´t like her boyfriend so she didn´t get married. We will be talking to Alejandra (daughter) to get that all worked out. Lilian Mero is another sister who didn´t get married because she isn´t married. Also Vanessa who is the daughter-in-law of Maribel, who is a member, and has a lot of interest in the church. She also has to get married. I´m not joking when I say that nobody gets married here!
We are also teaching the Zambrano-Whitong family, Galo, Karina, Tais, and Adrianna. They are former investigators who left the font full. We formally asked them for the chance to prepare them for baptism again and they said yes. I´m not really sure what happened the first time. I asked Karina and she just told me it was Satan. Galo and Karina even got married to be baptized so I really don´t understand. I have a good feeling about them though.
We also knocked some doors this week and found Araseli Santana and Betty Leones, both accepted us into their homes and seem to be interested in our message. It was an answer to prayer that day because NOBODY wanted us! The Lord really does work in mysterious ways sometimes, I think it´s probably good to get rejected a few thousand times.
All my love from Ecuador,
Hermana Whitney Tanner
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