Merry Christmas Orta Vez!‏

I think I titled last weeks email Merry Christmas but I´m lazy and don´t want to think of another title so there you have it.

Tuesday was the Multi-Zona. IT was great. Zamora and I gave a workshop about Predicad MI Evangelio. At point we watching this video that showed all the missionaried giving service and we totally feeling the spirit but then there was a technical difficulty and the video froze. Esta bien. WE were waiting there reverently and then I hear behind me "It´s because the computer is a decepticon." I laughed so hard I was crying.

I ONLY ATE TWO TOMALES THIS CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!! Last I ate so much food the 25 that I was sick for days and had to ask my ZLs to give me a blessing but year people only gave me two and todo salió bien. Woo!

In latin countries people like to celebrate with fire works. On the 24 we tried to go to bed at 10:30 but it was super hard to sleep with all the noise. At midnight I woke up and ti sounded like World War 3!! Zamora went and closed the door but I realized I might never see this again so I planched, got out of bed, grabbed my camera and went ourside on our balcony to watch all the fireworks. IT was so loud Hermana Zamora and I had to screamto talk to each other. They weren´t the coolest fire works they are just super loud. At one point we looked down the street and said "there are three people over there and one of them looks exactly like Dispicable Me. Those are the elders!! They are planching too!" Eventually we went back to bed and nothing super exciting happened. 

The 25 really wasn´t that great. We did weekly planning then our lunch appointment wasn´t home and we spent almost the whole afternoon looking for a member´s house where Zamora could talk to her family. At dinner one of the elders told us he was getting emergency transfered the next day so we were all just super bummed. It was less than average day. 

But none of that really matters. Christmas is just another day. The actual day itself doesn´t mean anything. What really matters is that we are using that day to show people we love them share the light of CHrist. 

One good part of the day was that we were walking down the street and this van pulled over and who got out? Familia Mejilla! THey are a family from OLANCHITO! They got out and the mom gave a big hug and all the kids. It felt really good. Especially since sometimes I wonder if anyone in Olanchito remembers me because I didn´t talk much there since I didn´t speak spanish. We are going back to Olanchito on divisions this week and I¨m excited. 

This week I read a talk called "Choose Wisely" by ELder Cook, que salió in the priesthood session this october. IT is wonderful. At one point he talked about young people who put off getting married. I have members tell me all the time I shouldn´t get married until I´m done with school. Now I´m in no way saying that I¨m in a rush to get married but I agree with what ELder Cook said:

       "Some young people profess their goal is to be married in the temple but do not date temple-worthy individuals. To be honest, some don’t even date, period! You single men, the longer you remain single after an appropriate age and maturity, the more comfortable you can become. But the more uncomfortable you ought to become! Please get “anxiously engaged” in spiritual and social activities compatible with your goal of a temple marriage.

        Some postpone marriage until education is complete and a job obtained. While widely accepted in the world, this reasoning does not demonstrate faith, does not comply with counsel of modern prophets, and is not compatible with sound doctrine."       There you have it. Young people who are purposfully putting off getting married are purposfully being disobedient to one of God´s commanmends. IF you get married while you´re still in school está bien. 

Also, Elder Cook talked a lot about Merlin Olsen. Do you know where Merlin Olsen went to school?? UTAH STATE!!! They ate lunch at the BLuebird! Elder Cook made me a little trunky. ha ha

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and has a happy New Year. Can you even believe that it´s new years!! I can´t. Love you all.

Love,

Hermana Odekirk

It's Christmas Time

This week was pretty good. Hermana Zamora and I are still trying to fill our teaching pool. When I got whitewashed in Santa Rita we found all the investigators of the hermanas who were there super fast but here we have only found a few. It´s a different experience.  In Ceiba people have money which means... no one wants to talk to you. The mission standard is that we have 35 investigators total, Zamora and I have 16. But we´re improving, last week we had 7. 

Tomorrow is the Multi Zona Confernce. Zamora and I are giving a presentation about pmg. It´s always super exciting when the multi zonas come around.

Speaking of STL duties. This week an elder called us because he is having a problem with a sister blah blah, no se que. He explained all the problems and I thought, "Freak, I don´t know what to do. HE should call the ZLs" and right after I thought this the elder mentioned, "I called the ZLs and they said I should call you guys" Puchica. Hna Zamora and I thought it was pretty funny.

So I have these really ugly, sturdy, sister missionary sandals, right. One day the Elders in my ward were making fun of them and said that Pedro (the apostle) would like them. At one point in the evening I saw elder Monterrosa talking on the phone and then he came over to me and said, "Hna it´s for you. It´s Pedro. He wants his sandals back." Super mean, va? But I have to admit it was super funny.

A girl in Las Colinas came home from her mission in Equador so there was an activity and the whole ward came and welcomed her and said nice things about her and I felt so weird to think that that´ll be me in five more months. Ahh! No me gusta.

We taught this old lady who prefers to speak english and let me tell you I can´t teach the missionary lessons in english, I don´t know how. This old lady was super funny, using all sorts of slang I haven´t heard in forever. Although at one point she started telling us her whole life story about her three different husbands, and it got into way more details then we needed to know. It got a little awkward. But it´s all good. THat´s the mission, right? A year and a half os awkward moments.

Also, she is selling her house, if you are interested in buying a 5 bedroom house for $420,000. haha

One of elders found out that his parents just got called to be missions presidents in... wait for iiiiiiiiit... Peru Lima City Central!! Shout out to Elder Salisbery!

This week the ZLs taught a lesson about overcoming the natural man and it was life changing. One of them talked about HOW the mission makes missionaries come home better people. He said that going on a mission for two years and baptizing tons of people does nothing to change you. What changes you is that during the mission you have such high standards you are forced to put off the natural man to a new level, which helps to feel the spirit more. I think we change as people because we learn to repent. We have higher standards so we have to repent more. 

Pues, that´s all folks. 

Love,

Hermana Odekirk

P.S. I have eaten 368 baleadas.

Not much to say

Pues, I wrote all the interesting stuff on friday.

My new apartment has one of those dangerous central american water heaters, so... I TOOK A HOT SHOWER FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A YEAR!!!!!!! And I do it every day now and I looooove it.

A friend asked me last week what I learned about the Savior this week and I felt really awful because I thought about it and didn´t really have a good answer sot his weekend I made an effort to learn something about Christ. I was reading the NT and I like this scripture in Lucas 9:56. Christ doesn´t want to punsih us. Repentence isn´t about punsishement. He wants to help us become better. He came to save us not destroy us ans when He comes again it will be the same thing. His purpose isn´t to destroy it´s to save.

One of the new Elders lived in Puerto Rico for two years because he played the bongo drums for... wait for iiiiiiiiit... PRINCE ROYCE!!!!! I know, all you nortes are saying who is that. He´s like the most famous latin singer next to Enrique Iglesias right now. All  the teenage girls want to marry prince Royce and I have shaken the hand of a kid who was part of his band. And remember when I was in the CCM with a kid who was a werewolf in Twilght? Yep. My mission rocks.

That´s all for this week. Take a hot shower.

Love,

Hermana Odekirk

Surprises at Changes Otra Vez‏

 

This week has been absolutely ridiculous!

Normally they tell us about transfers the monday before.  Then you have tuesday to say goodbye, but the area seventies of central america feel like we are wasting tuesday saying goodbye, so now the rule is that no one is allowed to know if they are getting changed until tueday at nine oclock!!!!!!!

I knew that i might get changed so on tuesday we went to my converts and some of my favorite investigators and it was super awkward because it was all, "I might have changes so I´m saying good bye but I might not... so this is awkward." It was awful. The DL called on tuesday and sí, I hd changes. And I might add that we always taught a real lesson not just said goodbye so I´m being punished for others´ disobedience, but whatever, ya me voy.

We got there and when they annouced the changes the AP said, "Hermana Odekirk de Santa Rita 2 va como Líder Entrenadora a La Colinas 2 con Hermana Zamora quien es Líder Entrenadora." auitrhñiauwerhgtuiñaHWRJJDHDJFJSLhfejeahjfkaksalshkgjksgjksdjksds That. just. happened.

I´m Sister Training Leader now. and Hermana Zamora and I were companions before in Olanchito so that´s weird, but it´s all good because we are good together. Las Colinas is a ward in the beautiful city of LA CEIBA! It is one the biggest touristy cities in Honduras so it has everything: beach, a mall, pizza hut, whatever you want. Google maps it.

For those who don´t know Sister Training Leader is a new posistion where sister missionaries will go on exchanges with other sister missionaries and be a support system for the sisters and we attend Mission Leadership Council. (I think that is how they say it in english.)  Which means...

I GET TO GO BACK TO OLANCHITO!!! Zamora and I do divisions with Hermanas in Olanchito (which I love), Ceiba (which I don´t fell a love for quite yet but it is super awsome and the love will come), Trujillo (which I love), and Roatán (which I´ve never been too but I´m excited to go there). Yes, I get to spend three days a transfer in Roatán. I am so stoked. 

Another thing is we got white washed. Both of us are new to the area AND neither of us have ever been STL before so we have a lot to learn this change. But it is so exciting!

This week the leaders didn´t get pday on wednesday like a normal transfer week because we had a special pday. We hiked Pico Bonito here in Ceiba and it was super cool. Then in the afternoon we had the Leadership Council. To be perfectly honest I was a little nervous about going to the meeting for the first time but obviously it went fine.

Now to the funny stuff. On wednesday morning I called a guy who drives a mototaxi to come takes us to the bus station. When he came he put two of my big suitcases TOP OF THE MOTOTAXI!! He then asked if we had a cord but we didn´t so he just said we´ll drive really  slow. I was worried. my entire life is in those maletas!! Then este tipo took the rockiest bumpiest road I know!!! Hna Stott and I had to reach and hold them or they would have fallen. It was ridicuous.

At change meeting President Klein said that Satan is miserable because he is single. I thought it ws pretty funny, but then there was also this part of every one in the room that thought "oh no. I´m single. I´m going to be miserable for all eternity."

Well that all the excitement for this week. Also, I have 359 baleadas.

Love,

Hermana Odekirk

Transfers

Non of you have written me to tell when the seventh Harry Potter book came out! I need answers people. Please help me.

We were teaching this lesson to two of our investigators who are super close to being baptized when I met the most polite apostate lady. She a relative of our converts who was at their house. She kindly waited until we were teaching about the Word of Wisdom and got all Christ should be the center of your message, not José Smith. I couldn´t agree more that´s why we only mentioned Smith once and CHrist a bigillion times. She started asking us a bunch of questions about the Bible to try and confuse us but we anwsered them all. I tried to ask her if we could send the missionaries to her house is Progreso so she could learn more, but she said no. She then asked what Christ´s ministry was. I said to complete the Atonement firstly, also to establish his church and heal and bless people. She his ministry is to "free people" Then she went off about how in her church they heal people physically, because freed people from their sicknesses. To be perfectly honest I was almost upset that she would the act of healing people physically in this life above the act of the Atonement. Sometimes I meet people with the most interesting apostasy.

We were getting ready to leave this morning and I went to the bathroom. I then went outside and washed my hands in the pila and filled a bucket with water and carried it inside to flush the toilet. When I got back to the bathroom with bucket I realized that it was still morning and WE STILL HAD RUNNING WATER!!!! I could´ve flushed the toilet and washed my hands in the sink! I was so angry! We only have running water in the morning so obviously we like to take advantage, and I forgot! beh.

Sometimes we meet people and tell them we´ll come back another day and teach them, but sometimes we don´t remember the names of these people, so my planner is full of names like Roas de Arriba, familia de frijoles, hombre that was shaving, hombre that has three daughters, that poor kid, the lady that lives on the corner, grandma, parents of Cristian, the guy with the hat. haha I love the mission.

Transfers are this week so we are waiting for the call to see if I´m getting transfered. Either way I won´t be in a trio anymore because hermana Stott will get her new companion this week. I had three changes in Olanchito, three in Tela, and as of right now I have three in Santa Rita and I have three left on my mission, so we´ll see how it goes.

The Church is true. Jesus Christ is our Savior.

Love,

Hermana Odekirk

Cheque pues, this has to be super fast because I have no time.

I want everyone to know that Sierra Tracey still owes me a dress!!

Thanksgiving is not a thing here, so on thursday I made a hand turkey and for dinner Stott and Diaz and I went to a restaurant called MegaPollo. I ate fried chicken with tajadas. It was a nice catrachan thanksgiving. We each said what we were grateful for. 

Hermana Stott and I got in a fight about when the 7th Harry Potter book came out so I need everyone to look it up and tell me. Pleas and Thankyou.

In the Doctrine and Convenants DVDs on disc one there is this video about the 10 virgins and it ends with this song that´s all, "quien es prudente?? Quien no lo es..." and I´ve been singing it for months but I don´t know many of the words. Hermana Stott and sing it in the street all the time and Diaz just luaghs at us. So the story is that yesterday in Gospel Principles Elder Hancock taught a lesson on the second coming and he mentioned the ten virgins and started laughing because it reminded me of the song. I couldn´t keep my composure!!! I was all red and crying bacause I was trying so hard not to laugh. but the more he explained the story the harder it was to not laugh. "y en la medionoche, caundo llega el Señor la luz de rectituuuuuuuuuud nos guia a su mansioooooooooon." Go look up the song. It rocks my socks.

Yesterday we went looking for this recent convert that no one knows. She lives in Bella Vista which is on the side of this mountain. We hiked, literally hiked in dirt and rocks, all over that mountain for an hour and never found her. I wish I could explain to you what Bella Vista is like but I can´t.

I WENT TO TELA TODAY!!!!! We went as a zone to the beach in Tela. It felt good to be back there. I got to see my old comps Andújar and Cuc, and Elder and Hermana Webb. I even got to see Hna. Sosa.

On the bus ride there I was thinking about how totally not trunky I am right now. Ive been super trunky since the day I entered the CCM but once I hit a year that all went away. I was on the bus with my zone singing songs from EFY and watching all the banana plantations pass by and thinking about how sad it is that none of you will ever really know Honduras. You´ll never by a pastelito in Olanchito, never climb the rocks to Almedarez´s house in Tela, never hike up the mountain to Villa Adela in Santa Rita. It makes me sad. I´m glad still have plenty of time left.

Have a great week. Look up the video about the ten virgins.

Love,

Hermana Odekirk