Five days in Urubumba

Hola familia!

It has been five whole days but it feels like 5 months!  I have begun teaching my first investigators.  We have one with a baptismal date for next week which is exciting.  His name is Hernan.  So much has happened I just don´t know what to start telling you!

Mom I still haven´t received my package so I don´t know if I will...but it is not so bad here. It is really hot in the day and really cold at night.  My rain coat is sufficient but I think I might buy something a little more. 

So the city I am in is called Urubumba.  Fun to say, no? I have fun saying it.  The people here are really humble.  I am seeing true poverty for the first time and it really hurts my heart.  Yesterday we went to visit someone who was a member but hadn´t been contacted in a very long time.  They weren´t there but their daughter was and she was all alone, probably about 8 years old.  She told us she didn´t know when her parents were coming back, and she had a couple of dishes and some blankets on the ground.  I had to try my hardest to bite back the tears because she was so sad and there was really nothing we could do.  Nevertheless we prayed with her and then left.  That was probably the hardest moment of the week.

My companion is super awesome.  She is really strong and knows a lot about how to work with the Latino people. She is from Peru, but a different part.  We are working well together.  It is interesting being an American in Peru, and for that I am really glad I have a Latin companion.  A couple of days ago a man came up to me and started bowing to me because I was white and I am absolutely certain  he was drunk cause he kept saying "yeah, yeah" and my companion gently pushed him away and said "se bautizara?" Will you be baptized? and he kept saying "yeah yeah" so she was like "excelente hermano felicitaciones" and then we left.  It freaked me out but she was so smooth it was awesome.  Teaching lessons is awesome right now.   I don´t talk a whole lot but my companion always gives me a couple of chances to teach or bear my testimony.  Spanish will come poco a poco. Line upon line.

Hmm what else to say...I really hate dogs.  They hate missionaries and EVERYONE has like four dogs here.  Also, I hate spiders.  We usually find a couple in our apartment each night and my companion says I am the first companion she has had that has been afraid of spiders.  Yep thats me. Our apartment is really nice though. 

So P days are every Monday for me for the rest of the mission, and I get to go to Machu Picchu once on my mission!!! I am excited for that.  Thanks Mom for all your emails!  Now in verdad, in truth, I have really really struggled this week.  What the heck am I doing here in Peru where I know nobody and I have no idea what people are saying....but every time I bear my testimony in a lesson I know that I am here for some purpose.  I love you all so much!!!
Hermana Lindsey