People and the Primary

Happy two month mark to me!

Okay, here we go!

Here are some of the people we are teaching right now:

Marta - She is an elderly lady that is a recent convert.  She is such a sweetheart and I love her to pieces!  She lives with two of her grandsons.  She has a strong testimony and is always so excited to see us!  We talked to the ward council about her needing more friends/visits from people in the ward since she can't get out much and misses some Sundays due to her health.  Well, one Tuesday, we came over and she told us that 4 people had come to visit her one Sunday!  We were incredibly excited and I almost cried.  It is so wonderful to know people are watching over her!

Alejandra y Abigail - Abigail is pronounced Abby-guy-eel.  Alejandra is a recent convert and Abigail is her younger sister who wants to get baptized.  They are both so awesome and have expressed a desire to serve missions!  SWEET!  Ale is 22 and Abi is 18.

Jorge and Anna - Jorge is Anna's Dad.  They are both recent converts and we go to teach more about the gospel and help them stay dedicated.  Anna is 16.

Georgina y Miguel - Georgina is a member, Miguel is not.  Georgina feeds us lunch on Saturdays, and she is an AWESOME cook.  We are trying to strengthen their family. 

Jose - The son of Hna Marina, a recent convert along with her daughter Paola.  Jose is not a member, but he has a testimony.  We are working with him to help him act on his testimony. He reminds me of you, Nicholas!

Allan y Brigham - Two sons of an awesome member, Hna. Delmy.  Allan is 17 and is an inactive member, and we are encouraging him to come back to church.  Brigham is 15 and is not a member, and he doesn't really have a desire to be.  He doesn't want to read the Book of Mormon, nor come to church.  It is sad and hard because Hna. Delmy is such a strong member and she wants her children to take part in the goodness this gospel has to offer.

There are more, but I will just mention these people today :)

Last Monday, Hna Vasquez and I went to teach a lesson to Allan and Brigham, but they weren't there.  Entonces, we taught Hermana Delmy.  After singing a hymn and the opening prayer, Hna. Vasquez turned to me to teach the lesson.  We hadn't discussed before hand what we were going to teach, so I was a bit nervous.  After a moment, I reached in my bag and pulled out mi himnario again.  We had sung "How Great Thou Art".  I reopened to that hymn and bore my testimony about it.  Hna. Vasquez then took a verse from which it was written and we continued to teach,  During the lesson, Allan came in sat down to listen.  It has been one of my favorite lessons we have taught because I felt completely led by the Spirit.  I truly hope Allan could feel that and will be able to remember his testimony.

On a lighter note, I love the outdoor basketball courts at the chapels because they are not just for basketball.  They are also built so you can play soccer!  At the base of the hoop, it turns into a soccer goal.  So fun!

Also, most of the streets we walk on are not paved, so we have to be careful when there is water because it will pool or turn the street to mud.  One day, I went to throw something in a trashcan, and I almost fell on my face.  I caught myself, tried to move forward, and nearly got covered in mud again!  It was quite the experience, haha!

I love reading your emails, but I am not sure how the other hermanas feel because I am constantly gasping or laughing out loud or making some kind of exclamation!

In case the basketball/soccer courts didn't tip you off, soccer is HUGE here.  When Honduras is playing, it is quite difficult to teach because everyone is watching the game!  The other night was the last game of the season or something before the world cup ( I think) and it was crazy.  We didn't need to watch the game because everytime Honduras scored a goal, the entire city ERUPTED with cheers and fireworks (not in the sky, just in the streets) and all kinds of noises.  It was like New Year's Eve at Midnight.  Oh, and apparently the U.S. is number one in soccer right now... 'Murica.

Yesterday was the Primary Program for our branch.  It was so inspiring and wonderful.  I thought it might be hard for me not to cry because music touches my soul, but I was not expecting what happened.  The program began, and all the children sang the first verse of "Soy un Hijo de Dios" (I Am a Child of God in Spanish).  Then, one girl stood up with a microphone and sang the first verse in English.  Right then, I lost it.  Plus, Hno. Jared turned around and said "This is for you" (also in English :) )  I could not stop crying.  Almost all the songs were ones that are on my list of top 20 Primary songs (I know, big list, but I really love music, haha).  The congregation sang one song with them, "Joseph Smith's First Prayer, and I could hardly get out the words.  I was a bit nervous because Hna. Vasquez and I were to sing with the children for one song, and I kept thinking "I gotta stop crying!  I don't want to go up there and not be able to sing!"  One song they sang was "Army of Helaman", and Hna. Vasquez and I sang the second verse. I think the verse is the same in English, but in case it is different, here it is in Spanish:

Para este tiempo nos reservo

fielmente su reino a edificar

nuestro profeta asi nos hablo

Los dignos vayan a predicar

Como el ejercito de Helaman

debemos obedecer

seremos missionaros del Señor llavanto 

al Mundo Su verdad

It was incredible.  I love this gospel so much, and I am incredibly grateful for the Primary Program!

I love you all bunches and bunches and bunches, and I pray for you every day.  

Love,

Hermana Grondel :)

Here is a portion of the letter I wrote to my mission president that I failed to mention in my other letter!

A lot of our appointments fell through this week and people we planned to visit were not around, so Hermana Vasquez and I have been having many opportunities to try and contact this week.  Talk about being stretched!  Both of us have a bit of fear of approaching random people, mine partially because of spanish, but it has taught us a lot.  One is that references from members are a lot easier to follow up on than going up to random people.  But we have also found what I think are some of the people the Lord has been preparing for us.  One woman we met at her house.  We were just walking by, said buenas tardes, and kept walking.  Then Hna. Vasquez stopped, turned around, and we began chatting with her.  Her name is Bernada, and she has known a lot of sadness in her life,  but she has an incredible faith in Jesus Christ.  We listened to her and bore our testimonies, and we hope to return tomorrow (tuesday).  I really feel like she is ready to accept this gospel.

Love you all!  :)

Hna Vasquez, Abigail, and I eating Baleadas at Hna Dilcia's house.  Jared is in the background