Hermana Jensen: Mission Updates: Apr 21, 2009

April 21, 2009

What a week. What a day, I am literally exhausted. We had a zone activity playing ultimate Frisbee, soccer and eating lunch and I am beat.

First of all... I tried to use Strawberries Romanoff as a tactic to get the teenage Lotierzo boys to stick around a sec for FHE last night. It didn´t work too well, but just a 'little part' of a maybe they´ll start giving us the time of day. It´s a drag to have to think of how you can bribe someone into listening to you....but it's part of the job. By the way, everyone loved the strawberries... it was a big hit in Argentina!

I´m super sad to see the mini go. She was a dream companion and I learned so much from her. Not only in Castellano and culture about Argentina, but we clicked so well. We have laughed so hard we cried. One such story represents just what happens to the mind when one thinks, breathes, eats, and sleeps missionary work:

The other day we were walking down the street and there was this way jungle-like tree with a bunch of vines and branches and stuff. She turned to me and asked "is this the kind of tree that Tarzan swung by?" And I said "no, I think they were softer." And then we looked at each other and burst out laughing because of the conversation we had just had! It was hilarious...maybe you just had to be there!

Then the other day I was helping her put a band-aid on her neck and I jokingly said "it doesn´t stick" and she said " you have to take the little papers off." and I said "no.... really?" It was so funny we laughed until we cried. We were pretty tired too.

Another thing she does that makes me laugh is ask me if certain things exist in the states. But they are always things that ARE FROM the states. For example, "Do you have McDonald´s in the states?" or "do you have Snickers in the states?" I always respond proud fully-- declaring that all of those things in fact come from the states.

News:

Dengue Fever is here... and in the very area where I am serving. I am being extra cautious with mosquitoes these days. I have no idea what the symptoms of Dengue are, but I can´t imagine that it would be any fun to get it.

I have had 2 dreams now that the President has sent me to some new and mysterious area in some “uncharted by Hermanas” territory. We´ll see what happens. After this next transfer... I´m outta here for sure!

Nata Jasa,
There was this little boy the other day in church that is about the same age and size as I imagine Davy is now and I almost cried as I watched him take the sacrament and manage his little cup of water with his little hands. I thought about how much I miss Davy and how it makes me sad to think that I am missing this stage of discovery and accomplishment in his little world. But, alas, this is where I need to be, and where I want to be.

Do you realize just how blessed we are to have the topical guide and bible dictionary at our disposal? Those don´t exist in any other language yet. They are just about to finish (in September) a new version of the Bible in Castellano with the chapter headings and foot notes and everything. It will be so cool for all the Spanish-speaking saints and missionaries. I can´t wait. Too bad I´ll get my hands on one just as I´m finishing the mission, but still. Anyways... the next time you are trying to find a scripture that says something about that one subject... and you look up the key word in the topical guide and find the reference in 24 seconds... think about just how great it is to have those amazingly helpful tools. Thank heavens I brought my English quad because I use the topical guide a ton.

We stopped by the chapel the other night when it was dark, cold, and no one wanted to let us in and we did service hours cleaning our church building. Let me just say that there was something in the bottom cupboard of the kitchen that smelled WORSE than the dead dogs here. We were both almost sick as we got it out and threw it away. It continued to reek for the next hour that we were there. You would have died if you had smelled it. I almost did.

Mom- could you put some money on my debit card for me? Thanks. It just so happens that I finally found an awesome store with a bunch of souvenirs and did a good part of my shopping last p-day. I will be communicating with the family going to the states soon and we´ll see if this suitcase thing is going to work out. I hope so, but if not, life goes on.

I shouldn´t have told you that my eye psoriasis went away because that very day it came back. It´s not nearly as bad as before because I keep using the cream, but it´s not completely cured yet. Í bought a multi-vitamin per instruction of Hermana Benton and she says that it is a deficiency of something. She is investigating what so that I can add it to my diet, but let me just say it.... what are the odds?

Random things that you see here that you would never see in the states:

A young teen-aged couple where the boy is riding a bike and his poor girlfriend is sitting on the handlebar reclining and resting her head against his body and her legs and feet are flying in the air in front of them. It´s ridiculous looking and I am always certain that she is going to fall and

break her head open.

Also - you can fit a family of 4 on a moped... did you know?

One more... the stray dogs love to chase motorcycles, bikes, cars, and trains. They usually don´t mess with colectivos, but they sure love to bite at the tires of all the moving vehicles. I am always waiting to see one get run over, but so far it hasn´t happened. What really gets me is when they chase a train on the platform... like do they really think they are going to win against a train?

Speaking of trains... Hermana Barrera told me a true story the other day that has made me develop a fear of trains. Last year in Ramos Mejia (where we go every Monday for district meeting) she was on the platform of the train and like 30 meters away a woman was crossing the street (and the train tracks) and wasn´t paying attention. She was reading or something and must have been wearing headphones because she was hit by the speeding train headed her way and her body was suctioned up to her waist into the bottom part of the train. It dragged her along for the length of 2 or 3 train cars until it came to a stop. Hermana Barrera said she didn´t get a good look at her but said that it was incredibly horrible. I didn´t know trains could pull you down like the Titanic did. I would have thought it would have hit her and sent her flying in the opposite direction to land 20 yards away. So now every time a train comes I stand even further behind the yellow line. Don´t let that story scare you... I am way too paranoid to get hit by a train. And besides, we never wear headphones.... haha!

Story about the mini:
Her name is Barbara (Barbie) and since my name is Stacey we dressed up two of Yamila´s Barbies (like we would dress) and took pictures of the Barbie missionaries. We are the companionship of Barbies! It´s funny to us….so some day when I send home pictures of Barbies... you´ll understand why!

Mom and Nata - do "banana" hair clips exist in the states. They are plastic and you put your hair in there and close the tail part and it stays all nice and crimp free but out of your face-- and isn´t so tight that you get a headache either. You´ve got to give them a try. If they don´t exist tell me, and I´ll buy you a bunch and send them home. I´m totally hooked on them. That is another one of the wonderful things the mini taught me!

It´s cold enough again that I sleep in my sleeping bag every night with blankets on top. It´s like going camping in your own house. It´s nice because making your bed in the morning consists of straightening the sleeping bag and folding the loose blankets on top. You can´t go wrong. I am fond of it.

I am re-exploring the possibility that I just might, might have a parasite because I am eternally hungry and that is one of the things parasites do... they eat your food before your body can so you are starving again. Example. Yesterday we ate a very satisfying lunch at 1:30 pm. Then in the FHE at 7:45 pm I ate 3 pieces of pizza and a ton of strawberries Romanoff. At 2:30 am I woke up in utter pain - starving. I ate crackers and went back to bed. At 6:30 when the alarm went off... I was again... DYING of hunger pains. I couldn´t eat enough fast enough. What do you think?

I am super tired... I´m always like this the last week of the transfer. It´s truly a mystery that when you finish one you somehow find this new source of energy to start another one. It is astounding to me that I can crash onto the mattress one Sunday night and hop out of it Monday morning to find out who my next companion is and where I'm headed.

For the first time in over a month we finally found someone to teach. She is married and her husband is a member but inactive. She wants to be baptized, but not without his support and he doesn't want her to be. We are also teaching an agnostic man and I hope that he gets an answer soon that God exists and that this is His church. He has come to Sacrament Meeting for the last 2 Sundays and we are going to try and commit him to accept a baptismal date tonight... pray for us!

Another man we are teaching has read every strong and powerful chapter in the BOM about baptism but says that he just doesn´t feel that it is his destiny to become a member of the Church. He is a lot like the other guy we were teaching in October and November and December who was never baptized-- even though he had received a confirmation that the Church is true a bajillion times. The thing is he says that he´d have too many family problems if he joined the church. His wife is Catholic. We are working so hard with him hand in hand with the members and he always feels the spirit so strong and believes the BOM and Joseph Smith and everything but just doesn´t get how it all works together. He just needs to see for himself. I really have a feeling that he is close to getting there... he just needs to take a leap of faith. It´s just something that only he can do.

I miss you a bunch... I´m not too trunky, but every once in a while I think about how cool it would be to be able to take a nap and not think about how many contacts we have to do in the evening of p-day. And it would be cool to be able to go exploring in a mountain and dip my feet in some stream. I miss mountains.

I´m super happy and anxious to see what the next transfer holds. I am holding out my hopes that my next companion will be Hermana Pruner - because 2 days in the MTC just wasn´t enough. We want to be companions so much! I just hope I don´t train again (at least not for this coming transfer... I need a break) It´s demanding and it takes the energy right out of ya! But it is a great experience and a privilege to serve.

Daddy,
Who won March Madness? I think you told me who was in the final two... but who took it?

I love you tons and hope that you are super, super happy. Please keep our investigators in your prayers...

Love ya more than Abachoc ice cream!