2016

New Year's Eve tacos and ginger ale! :)

I wish I could express in this email how much I love Bolivia. The people here are unbelievably humble. There is always a woman who sells scones on the street corner and we finally found her in her house to visit her on Saturday. We explained a bit about the message we have because she didn´t have much time. At the end, we were committing her to read The Restoration pamplet and pray about it and we´d come back next week to explain more. And she was nervous and said she didn´t know if she could do it. I was very humbled by her response that she is in her 30´s with 2 boys and her husband left her, so she doesn´t have much time because she is always working, but more than her parents died when she was 6 years old, so she had to start working with her older sister.She should´ve been starting 1st grade, but she couldnt go to school, meaning she can´t read. I almost cried when she said that and we told her that we would come and read with her and help her. When they pray here they give thanks for another day to live and for always having bread to eat everyday. 

Another reason why Bolivia is amazing: on new year´s eve right at midnight, EVERYONE shoots off fireworks. And I´m not talking fountains and sparklers, but giant ones that light up the sky. There were so many more than Christmas eve. We had to be inside at 7 pm and we made some tacos and goals for the year, then were awoken by a battle outside! Luckily, we live on the 3rd floor in the mountains so we can see all of Tarija! Way better than the 4th of July! Fireworks forever! Happy 2016! The year that everything changes.

We are really excited here in the mission because there will be a world wide conference, just for missionaries and the 1st Presidency and Apostles on January 20th. I am excited to see what more we can do to bring more people unto Christ! :)

The mission is a life changing experience and I do not even want to think about how it is 2016 and I will have to come home this year. But I still have time :)

Today Hermana Petroff is 20! I have spent Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year´s and now her birthday with her! 

Love Hermana Park

New Year, new you.

From the Christmas Skype with all the cool cats in my family, minus Scout.

December 28, 2015 

Yay! Christmas happened! I hope all could feel of Christ´s love :) I was SO HAPPY to be able to Skype my cute family. Best Christmas EVER. 

We had to be inside an hour earlier Christmas eve so we did the usual and ate the Greek pizza from down the road! :) We have to be in by 7 pm, two hours early, on New Year´s Eve! It seems like just yesterday I was with Meghan and Kristin Ferm at the YSA dance! Where does the time go. 

We had our Christmas conference with Presidente with all the missionaries in Tarija and Bermejo, so around 50 of us! We had a conference with him in the morning then we all sand songs and recent converts and investigators came! My zone sang "What Child is This?" and acted it out, and I got to be the angel! :) It was a little cheesy, but fun! 

Last night, the party next door blasted a remix of 80´s songs and older. We got to hear a nice rendition of "Another One Bites the Dust" while we tried to sleep! Also, we heard at least 5 times this week that everyone here has a sister in Virginia. So if anyone goes, I think you have some good odds of meeting a Bolivian! Gotta love Bolivia!

I was trying to think of a good resolution for this year, and here it is! I am going to do everything exactly how I think Christ would do it! WWJD. But really! As I read Jesus the Christ I am more inspired to be more like Him, do what He would do, say what He would say! 

I hope as you all come up with what you want to change and who you want to be, remember that it doesn´t matter who you were or what you have done. Because with Christ, we have a beautiful future :)

I LOVE YOU ALL and hope everyone stays super safe this new year :)

Happy Christmas Harry Potter

We decided to take a group pic with the less active member that we´ve been visiting when she invited over all of her friends to watch A Savior is Born! 

I´m honored to be a gringo (gringa)

We went to Crocan Pollo

Merry Christmas this week! I feel like Christmas 2014 was yesterday! 

We got our transfers.....AND I STAYED. This will be my 3rd transfer with Hermana Petroff, but I´m not complaining! :)

This week we were able to find a few new families to teach, the work is coming along, we are almost ready to split the stake in Tarija! Exciting things are happening! :)

I love you all and my Christmas wish is that everyone can have a happy time and just forget all your worries and only think about what this time of the year is for. Think of Christ. Think of the Baby in the manger. 

I LOVE YOU and merry Christmas! :)

Love,

Hermana Park

Màs Cristo

Last Monday we had an activity with the hermanas in my zone! We each brought a weird piece of clothing that we found in our apartment from a past hermana, and it got miscommunicated to Hermana Antonio from Peru, so I got a really cute skirt! haha 

I made a tree to put all of the mittens that everyone sent me on, and I promise it looked a lot cuter before it fell down and I had to use an unbelievable amount of tape to keep it up. But thanks for everyone who sent me one with a cute note! :)

The Bishop´s family, and Roxana and Jonny´s family last night in the family home evening! :)

It was a great week! As the sister leaders we were able to study with every companionship individually then inspect their apartment! Life in Bolivia is a bit toasty lately. Someone send some snow my way! 

Last night we had an adorable family home evening at the Bishop´s house with a family we are teaching, Roxana and Jonny. The Bishop gave the lesson on how we are all children of God, and they had never really thought about that before. It was a wonderful night and we had so much fun with them! They are learning that when they read The Book of Mormon, everything goes better, because they stopped reading for a while and basically everything went wrong in their lives that week. I hope that you can all really delight in reading the Book of Mormon. I promise that life goes better when you read! :) Like we tell the people we teach, at least 5 minutes every day. It´s better to read a little, than nothing at all! 

Next week is Christmas! The time is literally flyyying. As you all get all cozy with your hot chocolate and cookies and finish Christmas shopping, think of what gift you are going to give to Jesus Christ. Will you be more patient, more loving, read your scriptures more, dedicate all of Sunday to Him? Heavenly Father gave us Him as the best gift we have received! I hope we can all repay the favor and make this Christmas more about Christ and less about us. What´s really interesting is that in Spanish the word màs means more. So make this Christmas màs Christ! I love you all! 

Love,

Hermana Park

Letter Day!

When you send me 2 packages and they come on the same day!

At the waterfall with my zone

Candid with the contents of the package

The Culligan headband is my favorite! 

The zone leaders just gave me 18 LETTERS and I thought it was a joke. Everyone who sent one is an angel! So thank you! You know who you are!

Today we hermanas are going to a church to play soccer, then we are going to play a little white elephant game where everyone brought a weird piece of clothing from their house, because literally there are just bags and bags in every area from past sister missionaries, then we are eating a pizza. They call it the interminable, or unfinishable. 

Friday morning I woke up to hear ¨In the name of Jesus Christ, I command thee to leave!¨ And Hermana Petroff had a dream she was casting out a ghost. hahahaha gotta love companions! 

Sometimes things don´t go the way you wanted, but you just keep going and keep smiling because the mission is full of miracles! I may not have my hymnal because I lost it and my scriptures may be water stained because it´s been raining so much lately, but I have a wonderful family, food to eat, and a place to sleep. So there´s nothing wrong in my life :)

On Monday, we got to go to Santa Cruz for the leadership council with the mission president. It was all about the Sabbath Day. President told us a story of when he watched an apostle take the Sacrament. He picked up the bread, cried, then ate it, like he was literally eating the flesh of Christ. I tried to really keep the Sabbath Day holy. To holify it. So this week I want to challenge everyone to really sanctify the Sabbath Day. Don´t treat it like any other day! Give yourself a break from life and read your scriptures :) 

I love you all! Stay safe and have a snowball fight! 

Love, Hermana Park