The Last Day

Wow. Today is my very last P-Day. That's supes weird. Our apartment is covered in my things. Packing is the worst...especially when you have to keep it under 50 pounds. This is going to be an adventure. Yikes. 

I haven't been sick my whole mission. I've been so lucky, so blessed...until this weekend. Then it hit me. I keep saying it, my body is breaking down. That's real life! It knows it's done and it's just imploding. Thank heavens we had a mini-missionary here with us so that her and my comp could get some work done while I lay comatose on my bed with rotating companions. It did give me time to work on my final talk in our ward yesterday. A 15 min talk. In Spanish. Holy cow was that hard! But I did it. I was so worried that I was going to have a coughing fit at any moment and then pass out up there from lack of oxygen. That sure would have been an epic farewell but my companion said she prayed for me and it worked because I didn't cough once! There sure were a lot of eyes on me and they didn't seem to be confused eyes so I think I mostly made sense. Phew. I made a joke about me loving chocolate and then that is all I heard the rest of the day...Hey Hna Hall, how bout that chocolate. hahahaha. Oh man. Well, it's true, I do love chocolate. 

Yesterday was the most perfect day. We started it off by squeezing one more baptism in bright and early before church. That is just how we do it out here. haha. And just like we do here in San Jose Spanish program a cop showed up to check out the situation right during the service. Ah. Classic Hna Hall baptism. In my outgoing interview with President last night he said,"Thanks for all your hard work and for the theater." Well, I do what I can for the people. After the interview was the despedida (farewell) for all the departing missionaries. For the first time in a long time there were more Spanish speakers going home than English so the church was filled with Latinos. It was the best! I got up and made some jokes about getting married and over eating. They loved it. I thought it was going to be really sad and I would be in tears and snot or coughing my head off...some crazy disaster. But it was actually so much fun. My families from my previous areas came and loved me! We took photos, we laughed, we hugged. It was just awesome. I felt so loved. So blessed. We got home way past curfew but it was totes worth it. Sorry President. 

Whelp this is my last missionary post. I hope you've enjoyed it right along with me. I hope to see you all in person very soon. Thank you so much for all your support. Your love, prayers, letters have helped in more ways that I could ever express. This mission was a gift to me. I was not by any means perfect. I made a lot of really dumb mistakes. I had hard companions. I had hard days. But the time I've had here has blessed my life. I've learned so much. More than just Spanish and the fact that I can indeed eat 4 dinners and chile. I've learned to share the gospel. I've learned to look for and appreciate miracles and I've learned that our Father in Heaven loves us so much. I was lucky enough to help people into the waters of baptism, to start a new life walking in the joy of Christ but this mission has done more for me than I could have ever expected. I testify that Jesus Christ lives. I know there is a purpose and a plan for us. I know that we are meant and destined to have joy in this life and forever. All that we could ever imagine is waiting for us, we must only step up and ask for it. And it is never ever too late to do that. Come unto Him. 

Hasta ver!

xoxo, 

Hermana Hall

Final Countdown

One week from today I will no longer have a companion. It's going to be so weird. And thus begins the final countdown. I'm already getting texts like 'enjoy your last Tuesday!' Yikes! We are living up every moment and I'm brutally pushing my greenie so she doesn't have a melt down the moment I walk out the door. Ah kids. They are terrified until you leave them and they realize they never needed you anyway. I'm excited for her to have that experience, but before she gets there I'm going to try to keep her from hyperventilating.

We had an awesome baptism on Sunday. I love baptisms where you're not worried they aren't going to show. This one was solid, plus it also included two 8 yr olds so even if our girl backed out we were still going to get someone dunked. "M" is a very petite girl, but let's just say she has a very curvy figure and I knew we were going to have a hard time finding a jumpsuit for her. We even checked out 2 other chapels but about an hour before the baptism, I knew we were in big trouble. We were on the prowl for a medium cotton jumpsuit with the elastic waste. Yes, it HAS to have an elastic waste I replied to all the Elders confused by my request to scour every chapel in a 20 mile radius. Just in the nick of time our Zone Leaders showed up with the perfect fit. Well, it was the closest fit. "M" was about in tears over how unfeminine it was making her. She thanked me a million times that I let her keep her big, bright coral and gold earrings in. "Thank you for letting me keep at least some of my glamour!" she said. But she knew what she was doing was worth it. It wasn't over. As soon as they announced it was her time to be baptized, I got a strong feeling to get up and follower her in. As soon as I entered the bathroom all I could hear was someone hugging real tight the toilet bowl. I calmly walked back out into the font area and told the Bishop that we would have to have the kids go first. Oh the poor thing. I don't know if it was nerves or morning sickness but she was having a spell. It certainly didn't stop her and right after the boys went she got down in the water and her husband baptized her. The spirit filled my heart and I could feel my eyes welling up with tears. It happens at every baptism! Rain on my face! But honestly, it's the best feeling in the world. I'm so lucky to be a part of it. 

In other news, the week was filled with me making my kid cry on a regular basis. I'm sorry! Sometimes you have to use tough love! I'm learning so much about motherhood...it's terrifying me. She also started driving. This is my life. I'm going through all the stages, first it was potty training and now driving! The teenage years are the worst! 

Some precious moments include a 3 yr old girl praying to "Dioscito". That's like the English equivalent of saying "baby Jesus" in a prayer. I had to hold in my giggles, but it really was so precious. She must have said it a half dozen times but she was just really asking Dioscito for the sweetest things. 

Today I have a busted blood vessel in my eyeball so I fit right in for Halloween. I'm pretty sure I'm stressed but I think that's to be expected and I've been drinking Diet Coke for breakfast. Survival. 1 week. 

After the baptism, the Bishop sat down with us for a few minutes to sign the baptismal record and give us a little pep talk. It ended up being a really good lesson on prayer. I'll be speaking in our ward this Sunday on prayer so it came at no better time. One thing he talked about was our need to teach people the different kinds of prayer. It's really easy to give general, basic prayers or group prayers. But do investigators and members know the difference between these general prayers and a real, conversation with our Heavenly Father. He really got me thinking. Our personal prayers are a chance to do just that, communicate with our Father in Heaven. A huge part of that communication means to listen. I can't even begin to count the amount of times where I just said a quick little prayer, maybe even asked something super important and then closed and hopped into bed. Where was my time to listen. The Bishop reminded me that in the communication of prayer, we talk and then we STOP, we listen, then we respond. Then He responds. It's a two way communication in every sense of the definition. I was so grateful for this reminder especially to remember that although I have grown up this way, the rest of the world has no idea what the blessing of prayer means and it's our job to share that with them. Phew. That was close, now I have 8 days to go back and reteach everyone I've ever talked to!

'Tis the final countdown...

xoxo, 

Hna Hall

Salinas & Lettuce

I went on an exchange this week to the scariest/deadliest part of the mission. It's a small farm town that produces 80% of the nation's lettuce. Who knew? It's also full of gangs. Mainly, just lazy teenagers that don't want to work hard like their parents did so now they do dumb things in the streets. President recently opened this area up to sisters to everyone's surprise, but great things are going on down there! It was a really fun exchange and not at all like I had created in my head. It was not at all like West Side Story. 

Yesterday we went to the Monterey Aquarium and played with the jellyfish and penguins. I touched a stingray. I can't remember the last time I did that...then we spent the next 20 min trying to get a scardy cat Elder to touch it. He finally caved and was surprised that it was not at all the terrifying experience he thought it was going to be. I on the other hand thought they were really slimy and didn't care too much to feel it again. Our dinner last night was at Google. The Google buffet to be more specific. It was so cool. We have a few members that work there so we got to be special guests and eat anything we wanted! It was so exciting to eat something other than beans and rice! Also, I felt so cool being inside Google. Like maybe some of their success would drip down on me. 

We had a pretty awesome lesson this week at In-N-Out about prophets. He wanted to go to the Starbucks next door which reminded me that we needed to teach him about the word of wisdom...but I managed to point out that there was no room for us to sit and talk there. We walked over to In-N-Out and I realized I already had 2 dinners so there was no way I could eat any more but how awkward are we just sitting there and not ordering anything. No worries, our investigator ordered coffee. Dang it. We really have to teach that lesson...

I've got a week an a half left. How am I going to make the most of it? Well, we are for sure going to try to baptize everyone on the street. I'd like my despedida to occur in front of the baptismal font with a line of people in white jumpsuits out the door. Now, that's a party! 

xoxo, 

Hna Hall

System Shut Down

I'm pretty sure my body is fully aware that my mission is coming to an end because it has already started to shut down. I have to go through a morning process of dumping my body out of bed and then slowing rolling onto my knees, hands and roll my head back. It's terrible. I can hear my bones popping as I walk and I'm pretty sure my back is so tight you could bounce rubber balls off it for hours. I'm trying to trick my head into thinking it's not going home, but I can't seem to fool my body! 

The other day we were a bit low on our weekly contacts so we decided to head to the local park. We totes lucked out this day because there was a huge Mexican reunion! It was the best! We talked to about 50 of them, left our cards and testimonies and ran out before they gave us plates heaping full of beans and rice. I did grab a piece of steak which I ate like jerky on the go. I mean, you can't pass up some good carne asada. I love the Spanish program and it loves me...well my hips at least. 

Later that evening we stopped by a young recent convert's home who doesn't have family support and has a hard time getting to church. We talked about her coming back to church and she said she's busy right now preparing for Communion. Oh great. I tried to explain why she was covered and didn't need that but I think grandma worrying about her damned soul is winning right now. Dang it. At the end she said a lovely prayer that included praying for her brother to get of jail and that her mom can stop lying and that she can avoid getting in trouble with her stupid friends. I had to hold in my giggles. It was such a sweet and honest prayer. I love little honest prayers. I should probably also be praying for me to avoid trouble. Good call, little one. 

Then we had to go to our 2nd dinner for the evening. Chicken soup. Everyone looked like they were about to die. Since I have the most 'experience' at the table, it was I that took one for the team and we sneakily passed around our bowls when they weren't looking and I managed to push down 3 huge bowls of this chicken water. Oh man. I'm surprised I didn't burst like a dam. Not only have I sort of learned Spanish...but I have also developed a ridiculous large, steel lined stomach. Thanks Mexico. 

I went on exchanges with Spain the other day. That was so much fun. I can actually tell that my Spanish is better because my headache wasn't as bad for speaking only Spanish for 30 hours. Hooray! Don't worry, I am here to assure everyone that I indeed still have a Mexican/Spanish accent. It's pretty adorable. Spain loves it and so do all the Mexican day workers. Oops. We had a few extra minutes at the end of the day so we decided to take a little drive around the amusement park here - Great America. I've wanted to see it ever since I got here but it's hidden in the middle of the city so you can never see it from the road. We found a little private road just behind the park and then creepily drove it back and forth for like 15 min watching all the people scream. It was so fun. Ah the exciting mission life. 

Yesterday I ate pancakes made from lentils. Just sayin. I bet my mom just got super interested about that and is going to ask me for the recipe. 

Oh man. I can't wait to come home and just spend time with the family and friends. I'm excited that I feel like I know how to be a missionary all the time now. I'm looking forward to that. I'm looking forward to smiling more and letting people know why it is that I am. The general authorities certainly spoke very boldly to the world this weekend. I've sure learned to be pretty bold as a missionary and I hope I can continue to do my part as a member and testator of Christ when I return. Goooo Jesus!

xoxo,

Hna Hall

Sisters' Retreat

This past Thursday, we had a Sisters' Retreat for all the Sister Missionaries in the mission...which is now about 110 sisters. Just to show what that number really means when I got here there were 36. So yeah. Also, to explain what "retreat' for missionaries means I will say what is does not include...facials, pedicures or time to talk. Those things are all strictly forbidden. However, it was really fun. The last one was almost a year ago and it was a drag. I hated most of it. This year we did a bunch of different things. For starters, I got to write a skit for the sister leaders to do at the beginning. That was a hoot. Picture this: The wives of Nephi and Sam having a play date with the wives of Laman and Lemuel. It was filled with all kinds of punny Book of Mormon jokes, witty missionary jabs and a good hard look at how gossip and backbiting are never pretty in any century. I made myself laugh quite a few times and I heard some good chuckles from the audience so I think it was well received. It sure was a lot of fun.

 

They've been setting up pumpkin patches at several busy intersections around here. It's making me so trunky! haha. They are a big deal around here. They set up inflatable slides and games. It looks so fun I just want to go and hang out there! Maybe we can teach a lesson or two on the giant tiger slide.

 

We had another miracle Sunday ayer. Once again, the week got away from me and we were behind on all our goals. There was literally no visible way for us getting done what we needed to do. Not only that, but we had to help a sister move out for an emergency transfer. Oh man. After dinner I walked away from the Elders with my fist in the air shouting to my companion in the middle of the street "Here comes another test of faith, are you ready?!" One of the Elders shouted back at me, give up it Hna Hall, you don't stand a chance...just accept it. I turned around and said oh yeah...you're on...you vs me and the Lord! Deal! An hour later we had 4 new investigators. Booyah!

 

We got back in the car and I was joking with my companions (I have 2 right now) that I felt like Ammon running around giddy off all my missionary successes that I almost passed out. Then comes Aaron, the realist, reminding me to stop bragging, it's actually the Lord's success. Well, indeed I do know that, Aaron. There was only one way this happened and it was for sure not because of me and my terrible Spanish. Then we just stared at each other for like 5 minutes amazed at how things timed up just perfectly yesterday so we could find these people. We were late to everything yesterday but because of that we got to a street just in time to help a family unload their car who then invited us in so we could bear our testimonies and share what we are here to do. A FAMILY, whom you can just feel is ready to hear the gospel. It's remarkable how we are continually placed in the right path, at the right moment, for a grand reason.

 

Nothing was adding up to anything that made sense yesterday. We were losing time faster than a sinking ship and our goals were so far out of our range. And then again came the trial of our faith and the Lord made up the difference. The impossible turned possible. It will always and forever be true. I'm so grateful for this lesson on faith I'm learning right here at the end of my mission. I have a feeling I'm going to need a lot of faith when I get home...jobless, car less and homeless. Hmmm...oh my.

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

Mama Hall

This week was insane...as usual. Transfers were crazy - there were so many last minute changes and a lot of drama. There were plenty of confused, angry and some overjoyed missionaries. I can't believe it will be me up there at the front next transfer meeting, separated from my companion forever! We got two new roommates on Tuesday...from the Tongan program! So now we speak English, Spanish and Tongan in our apartment. It's pretty tight and cozy in there now, but we're making it work. It sure is nice to have other sisters in the zone. Actually, we got 6 more sisters in the zone! I think the President got tired of me complaining about the lack of estrogen in our zone meetings. But it was really draining.

 

I can't remember if I mentioned this before but for some reason missionaries have been calling me Mama Hall a lot lately. I'm sure it's meant in flattery, but it makes me feel so old! I guess I am pretty old to these kids. The other day they were saying whatever you think, Mama Hall knows best! I laughed as we walked out the door and then my sweet, young companion silently tugged on my sleeve and as I looked over to her she timidly whispered, "Can I go to the bathroom?" Oh...sure, sweetpea, come on let's go take you to the potty. Well, now I actually think I might be a mom. Seriously, where did the sleeve tugging come from though? That is not a one time occurrence. Oh heavens.

 

Some fun quotes from my presh companion this week include:

"I didn't know Samuel the Lamanite was a Lamanite!"

"You don't have to shampoo twice every day?"

In other random missionary news. I was doing an exchange in my last area the other day and we went to do service at a city park near the airport. It's basically the backyard to the airport...a city mandated park because too many planes crash land there. Oops. The missionaries that serve there have created a game, plane jumping. As the plane shadow comes roaring in across the park...they JUMP! Then there is a lot of laughter. I'm not sure I really got it, but they really loved it. So I tried it once. It was kind of a thrill! Oh the things we come up with to make the mission exciting when you don't have television. Speaking of television...I hope everyone is prepared to re-watch all the shows and movies you've seen in the past year and a half that will be like Christmas morning to me! Woohoo!

 

It was quite rainy Saturday and although I love the rain and I'm pretty sure California needed it, we were down lessons, contacts, investigators and pretty much all of our goals for the week. I was counting on Saturday being our big day...and then the rain killed it. I stared out the window for a few minutes feeling hopeless, defeated and so tired. We stayed inside to plan for our week until it calmed a bit. Before we left the house we said a pleading, well it was really just pure begging, prayer for help. We had so much to get done and only a day and a half in the week left to do it, we needed some serious help. We headed off, me still with a doubting heart, but it wasn't even 4 hours later that we had 4 new investigators, several lessons, a hundred contacts and full bellies. I couldn't believe it. Actually, I haven't believed a lot that has happened the past few weeks. I'm sad it took me until the last bit of my mission to figure out this little deal about sheer desperation and faith. I really am not capable of doing this work alone. The only way it gets done and the best way it gets done is with the Lord. It's not until we realize that we let ourselves be completely in His hands that things happen...the way they should. I thought back to the moment I growled at the rain through my window...when the outcome was bleak with no ray of hope. That's not what the Lord knew. He knew better and the moment we turned that over to Him, the moment we founds success. How grateful I am to my mission for these simple and life changing lessons that it has so brilliantly shined before my eyes. Now, the hard part, making sure I don't forget them. No wonder we have to hear the same stories over and over again. Idiots.

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

Fiji

While contacting the other day we ran into a family that was unloading their car. We offered our help expecting them to say no thanks like everyone else...but they took us up on it! We were so shocked and excited that we ran over there and began unloading huge boxes of alcohol. My sweet innocent companion actually had to ask me what it was. Presh. But then they invited us to stay and visit for awhile! Woohoo! They are from Fiji so I told them that I really like Fiji water and the bottles are so cool, but I had to know if it really is from there. They told me that indeed the water does come from the Fijian mountains and is the best in the world. You are all welcome. I ask the hard questions. It was the funniest visit. They were so warm and kind, just like Latinos. I asked them about their Gods. They asked about ours and then we prayed together...to one God. They invited us to their alcohol party but also said we could come back and talk about God again. That we will for sure do.

 

Later we gathered all the neighborhood kids around to teach them about the Holy Ghost. I love teaching kids...they get things about God so quickly. It was an awesome lesson...so I told them to run home right now and tell their parents about the beautiful angels they met in the street that want them to live with God again. We'll see what that brings us...

 

We've had a ton of success recently just walking the streets. We have to get in there...stalk people right in front of their faces. I'm so glad we have a car, but to find the people we have to use our feet. On Saturday we walked a Latino neighborhood for a little over an hour and picked up 4 new investigators. It was a miracle! I love miracles. They are such a high. They always come at a really good time.

 

Saturday night our ward had a "Cultural Activity". I've learned in Spanish wards this is code for tons of food and dancing. It was so much fun. There are some Hawaiian Latinos in our ward so they did some hula. That was beautiful. Then some families danced some traditional Mexican dances. I want one of those dresses. I also ate so much that my companion had to wheel me out in the trash can. Oops.

 

Today is the start of my last transfer. Six weeks left. I simply cannot believe it. This time is going to fly by. I hope you are all ready to hear me tell all my missionary stories over and over again until you pass out. It's gonna be great!

 

xoxo,

Hermana Hall

BYU beat UT?

So I heard that BYU beat UT the other day. It's still weird to me that I live in a world where I hear all news days and days later.  My favorite is when people start talking about a huge, current world event and we look like morons with our blank faces like the cold war just ended. Missionaries are so weird. I apologize in advance for all the things that I have no idea about when I return. Instead I have lots of crazy Spanish stories to tell everyone!

 

I have no recollection of the past week so I do not know what will appear in this email...

 

I do remember getting super fed up with my all the Elders in our zone and might have chastised them all a bit. Then I remembered they are just 20 yr old boys and I'm probably expecting a little too much. Mi malo. But they snapped right up into shape and we all worked out little missionary hineys last week and saw a lot of awesome miracles. We set some really high goals and on Sunday night when I had only met half of them I started to panic. I mean, I looked those Elders straight in the face and said this is an act of faith, do you have it or not? And then I can't do it?! How embarrassing! No. I would not let it happen. My companion and I were chanting in the car We Will, We Will Rock You...with the spirit! And then we hit the streets. In 1 hour we picked up 3 new investigators. There were miracles that dropped from the fruits of the heavenly tree. I couldn't believe we did it. But oh, we did. We met out goals so I don't have to go to zone meeting today with crow all over my face. Thank heavens.

 

The lesson that I continue to learn on the mission is how involved the Lord really is in this work. There is really very little I do every day to spread the gospel. My goal is to not mess it up. My goal is to open my mouth and spit out whatever the Holy Ghost needs to do. Sure, we study, we practice, we pray, we talk, we love...but we are literally nothing. I joke around that "I get dates". For some crazy reason, I do. I have gotten a lot of baptismal dates, it's true, but there is not a single date that the Lord hasn't just placed in my little hand to which I pray every moment I don't mess up. I can't believe how much the Lord trusts us, but really...He just needs our hearts. We can't mess it up. He can do anything with our tiny hearts and He does so much. What a testimony I have gained about the power of small and simple things for I am small and simple. I barely know Spanish, I still don't know how many Nefis there are I don't remember how to spell anything, and I don't even know what city I'm in half the time, but the Lord has directed me to His children. Lives are changing for the better every single day. Including mine.

 

We go over the same thing with members every day, they don't see how valuable they are in this work. Please don't forget how valuable each one of us is in the Lord's work. There are some awesome new videos on lds.org that show how easy it is to share the gospel, check them out. Open your hearts to those moments the Lord WILL give you. Smile. Open your mouth. Be a friend, the kind of friend our Savior is. I am kicking myself at all those moments I missed before the mission. I stayed in my happy bubble and went about my business, but you can bet that will change when I get home. There is nothing more rewarding than watching someone realize how valuable they are here in the this whole big plan the Lord has for us. They simply don't know. They don't know we have what they need. We must share it.

 

Well, there was that...an interesting email. Enjoy. Um...also. I fell in the tub and have huge bruises down my leg. I'm telling people that I got stuck while rock climbing because that sounds way cooler.

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

8

I only have 8 weeks left on my mission. 8 weeks. That's nothing. And yet, I've got so much to do in that time. Ahhhh!

 

This was a rough week. I had to spend several days out of my area putting out fires which means I had to abandon my  poor baby companion here with some other sisters. When I got back there were new fires to put out! But that's how it goes. At the end of the week, there was a last minute baptism in my last area of a women we were referred to all the way from El Salvador. I was ecstatic it finally happened. It took at least a dozen miracles for her to make it to the font and another half a dozen for me to make it to the baptism in time. It was a typical, crazy, last minute baptism including screaming children and your standard bossy member telling the Ward Mission Leader from the back of the room that he wasn't doing things correctly. Ah, people, gotta love 'em. But afterward, that sweet woman with dripping wet hair gave me the biggest hug in the world and just said thank you. I could barely keep my eyes from flooding. That's what it was all about. She found the peace she was looking for. It was sure an uphill battle getting her to the font and she knows it's going to be an uphill battle from now on, but that hug said it all. It was worth it.

 

I'm so grateful for the opportunities I've had to be in these people's lives, to be a part of their struggles, their joys and their changes. It lifts me up. It strengthens me and it reminds me that there really is someone who cares for us. He watches us. He protects us. He loves us. He calls us. As a missionary I get to be sent all the time on behalf of the Lord. Most of the time I have no idea where or why he has placed me as He does. I love it when I get to look someone in the eyes who has just been punched in the gut by the Holy Ghost and tell them that our Father in Heaven sent us to you, because he's aware of you and because He loves you and He wants you back. I've never ever doubted the truthfulness of those words I speak almost every single day. It's truly remarkable and it's a privilege to bear it.

 

 

xoxo,

Hermana Hall

BINGO Remix

From a baptism last week with Hna Bradshaw and Hna Raney.

I got to spend a day back in my first area this week which meant I got to call BINGO again. It was the best feeling ever when I walked in the door and half of the room passed out on the floor. Wendy, the Asian ring leader then came, grabbed my hand and escorted me around the room so I could say hello to everyone as they all clapped and chanted "9er, 9er". I swear, I'm not even making this up. If it wasn't so darn hilarious I would have been crying my eyes out I was so touched. As old and as terrible as their memories must be, they remember me over 8 months later. That's so cool. I'm so famous. To old people. Anywhooo...it was so great to see some of the families that I loved so much. Those that put up with me when I really couldn't speak a lick of Spanish. That's true love. It was so nice to see that people really did remember me and that I made an impact on their life. I had to be pried away from a few moms that burst into tears the moment I walked into the door. Wow. I had no idea I meant so much. Then I remembered why. I'm a missionary for the Lord. The love that I have expressed to these families is just a portion of the love the Lord has for them. No wonder they love missionaries so much. What a blessing it is to me that I even get to be a part of that. Ah love. It's the best.

 

We've had a mini missionary here this week. She just graduated high school and is with us to get a feel for how mission life is. She was just going to be with us 1 week but she is loving it so much she asked to stay a few more days. It's been really nice having her here...her and my new companion are the same age so they get along really well and I've just been making them give all the lessons. It's a little break. Speaking of break...when I went off on exchanges last week, she rolled her ankle so she's been gimping around now for the past several days. We look like quite the spectacle carrying around with us everywhere we go our own little mini missionary. Her mom is going to kill me when she gets her back, I specifically promised she would not be injured. Oops.

 

As usual, we've had a string of random and/or hilarious events occur this past week. We got a call during our studies last week to go help out this women who fell but couldn't get up. I told the Elder on the phone that maybe she should call 911 instead of the missionaries. Well, he said, I think she's alright, she just wants company. Oh. Ok. That we can do as long as she also wants to get baptized. We went over and as soon as she saw us she just began to weep. Then she held on to each of us for about 10 min a piece. I thought to myself, only on a mission would I hug a stranger that was crying alligator tears and for sure some snot all over my dress. Wow. We sure are blessed with the ability to love just about anyone. Not everyone, but pretty close. Later we ran into a cute old Indian lady who informed us that Jesus said to never let anyone kick you in the butt. Then she demonstrated by bending over. I love Indians. The rest of my week felt a lot again like a mother duck...I've got 2 cute ducklings waddling behind me at all times. The best is when I stop and they ram right into me. Maybe that's more like Lemmings. Man, I loved that game!

 

The hot item right now in the mission is the 2013 EFY album. Any missionary that has it is now the most popular missionary in the area. Instant cool. Missionary life is so weird.

 

xoxo,

Hermana Hall

The Perfect Baptism

The perfect baptism was had this past Saturday. It was perfect because it started basically on time, they only had to be dunked once and there wasn't a dry eye in the whole room! Woohoo! Making people feel the spirit so hard their eyes can't hold it in! It was a really special day. I didn't even have any panic that it wasn't going to happen or that something crazy was for sure about to happen. It was just perfect. What a relief. No crazies this time! Of course yesterday during the confirmation the man that was supposed to do one of the confirmations decided that he had the right and privilege to do them both so he wouldn't move out of the way for the Elder to do the second one. That was a little awkward to watch. The Elder was really good about it and just let him go. Oh well. At least it happened. 

Now that I've gotten used to living with 4 sisters in a tiny 1 bedroom apartment, it's really quiet and lonely with only the 2 of us there now. I'm sure it won't last long...but then again, I don't have much longer! Ahhhh!

We picked up a new investigator last week. We would be baptizing her but she's going back to Mexico in 2 weeks and thinks it would be too fast. I told her it would be but it'd also be an adventure and who doesn't love an adventure! She didn't fall for it. Anyway, she was so presh. She said she'd been wanting to have a Bible in her house for the longest time to keep away the evil spirits...which I know now are totes real...and she was overjoyed when we gave her the Book of Mormon. She said it's not the Bible, but I know it's from God and that keeps all the bad out. haha. So true. Now if only I could trick her into missing her flight...

I went on an English exchange last week. It's always super weird to me now to teach the gospel in English. Also, it's way harder. I feel bad for them. It was a really great experience and the Sisters were in awe at how 'easy' and 'quickly' they saw me invite someone at a service we were doing to be baptized. They were like how do we do that?! Uh...you just tell them. Of course we talked about it a little more...there is a lot of fear in sharing the gospel and inviting people to be baptized. Thankfully I learned pretty early on in my mission that what we have, the gospel of Jesus Christ, is something that everyone needs. They need to be baptized, they just don't know it yet. When I changed the way I looked at that, it was so much easier for me just to straight up ask something. Also...having this badge, speaking broken Spanish and working with humble Latinos has really helped. But the fear for that is gone. I only hope that I can do my part when I get back in the world. I remember real life. I remember not sharing the gospel...there were a million understandable reasons. However, the truth doesn't change. We have what EVERYONE needs. We have to share it and we should not be shy about it. You don't have to go around and invite people to be baptized every day like we do, but please remember there are simple things that we can do that will open the window or door even just a crack to something getting a little closer to the one thing they must absolutely have. So there's that. 

xoxo, 

Hna Hall

Starburst Missionary

Well things didn't turn out at all like I expected last week. Shocking. We went from 4 sister missionaries in the ward to 2. I lost 1 companion then another and then 2 roommates. It's a little weird that I lost a bunch of sisters around me when there are about 5 million that just came in. I'm now in a zone with 16 Elders and just us two in dresses. I have no idea how that happened, there are some zones now with more Sisters than Elders.  Apparently it's time to work with the boys. Good thing I've had a ton of practice.

 

We had a zone meeting the other day and I was in charge of a presentation on finding new investigators. There have been some interesting things going on in other zones in the mission and ours has the worst numbers right now...except for the Sisters...we hold them afloat. Ahem, humility. There is a zone that has a goal to get 21 baptisms this month and they are doing some crazy things to make that happen and it's totally working. We don't have any investigators...except ours...in the entire zone. So we have a tiny problem. I look around at these poor Elders and they are just so discouraged, they don't know what to do and they feel awful. I had a long chat about our situation here with Zone Leaders and we have to change things up. So I decided to pump them up with sugar! Then I rambled on, using the example of Nefi breaking his bow. We had an awesome discussion about how we really can do this with what we have. We can make a bow out of wood and the Lord will guide us.  We can find food, I mean investigators! We can be super stoked and happy missionaries! We can turn this zone around! We can do things to make this area shine! We can be Starburst Missionaries! Then I threw a bunch of Starbursts at them as we all screamed and pumped our fists up in the air with excitement! "I want to be a STARBURST MISSIONARY!" It was epic. We set some good zone goals and hopefully we can move forward with a more positive outlook. Satan loves it when the missionaries are discouraged...we're going to punch him in the face with Starbursts!

 

Other things that went down this week in Santa Clara...I spent a lot of time distracting kittens while my companion taught the good word of God. It wasn't the hardest thing I've had to do, but I did get a few scars out of it. 

 

I love seeing little miracles, or I guess some people say tender mercies, but really to me they are miracles. I love that on a mission since our focus is the gospel, we get to see them everywhere. I think it's a lot harder to see the little miracles in normal life, when there is so much other noise and concern. Each little miracle gives me a smile and it just adds another pebble to my collection of testimony that tells me God loves us and He made a way for us to come back and that way is Jesus Christ. Looking for those miracles can often be tedious, but I've seen them and when we find them they are so worth it. Find some of your own this week. I promise they are there. It will brighten up your day. It's just as my crazy convert would always sing to me in voicemail: miracles can happen if you just believe. True that.

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

Trio

Whelp, I'm gonna be in a trio this next transfer. That'll be interesting. I'm gonna get a new missionary too. I'm sure she will be 19 and we'll see how long it takes before she finds out how ancient I am and freaks out. We are going to have some great adventures! I am really sad to be losing my current companion, we've laughed so much. It's been such a treat.

 

Yesterday during testimony meeting someone got up and asked for help finding housing and then gave everyone his phone number...over the pulpit. I think I'm going to to try that when I get home except that I'll be looking for a husband. I had to give our investigators a head's up that this meeting would be a little different that then rest since anyone can get up and talk. At least we keep things interesting in Latino wards!

 

I had an all day meeting last Friday and it was pretty random, but I did find a way to pull out a theme. It seemed to be working well with others and listening to the Holy Ghost. Of course my part of the day was the interactive part where I had a bunch of Elders come up front, I tied their hands together with ribbon and made them tie a tie around someone's neck. It was so hilarious. Hopefully they got the idea that you have to work together even when stuck in pretty awkward or uncomfortable situations but it was at least entertaining. Due to the increase arrival of missionaries, our mission and I'm sure others are suffering from some growing pains and we've had to do things a bit differently. There are a lot of new sisters coming in that are co-covering multiple areas. The drama has just increased. Missionaries are having to learn new levels of compromise and humility. It's been a bumpy road. It's really hard to change your way of thinking and remember that this is the Lord's work so it doesn't really matter who gets credit, who has the most lessons, who has the most baptisms. We have to think of these people first. Always think of others first. Leave your pride at the door and beg for help each day from our Father in Heaven. That's a tough lesson for these young kids. But the Lord has called them, he will qualify them and the work really is rolling forward like a gigantic rock thing they talk about in the scriptures. Nothing can stop it.

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

Buns, the hot dog kind

We are already in the last week of this transfer. It has flown by. My last two transfers are going to be lightning speed. Cyn just reminded me that I'm going to be home 3 months from today. Holy guacamole! Man, I wish we had guacamole here, but they don't really do that. And if they do smash up avocados they put it with haberno peppers and you just start sweating out your eyeballs.

 

This past week we had to do more outdoor service. This is going to be the death of me. Let's put a 30 something yr old pale face redhead out in the sun for 3 hours and just watch what happens. It's not pretty people! We were cutting off dead flowers from a mile long row off plants. I thought I was going to die, I think I even passed out at one point. The 19 yr old missionaries don't quite get that your body literally shuts down at some point. They get super confused when I complain about my back and feet hurting. Back pain? What's that. Ugh. Kids these days!

 

We had a really interesting week. I sure know how to find the crazies or they sure know how to find me so we had some really draining encounters. My companion and I have spent a lot of time laughing about all the craziness and just keep ourselves really positive about, honestly, some pretty scary stuff. The topic that keeps coming up is fear. Recently, we were teaching a lesson about fear and faith and how faith can not exist where there is fear but faith can cast out fear. It's interesting how opposite and yet closely connected these two things are. It's so very hard to have enough faith to cast out fear and yet we know from everything the scriptures and prophets teach us that faith is so much more powerful than fear. When it comes to ourselves, we've been working on being warriors of faith. Everyday we remind ourselves that we are better than fear. We will have no fear opening our mouths, we will have no fear speaking the language, we will have no fear to share our testimonies. As we've put more focus on doing the things we've been asked to do, fearlessly, as missionaries...we are finding greater faith which in turn kills our fear. It's a never ending battle, but it's a battle we've been promised from on high that we can win. Never settle, never back down, never surrender to fear. Let our faith shield and protect us through the battles of every day life.

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

 

Quincenera

We went to Santa Cruz yesterday. This time we buried a Hermana in the sand. I felt 12 for doing it but I'm not going to lie, it felt fantastic! The beach is the best medicine for a long missionary week. I wish it was closer, but a 45 min bus ride really isn't bad. I'm so glad our President let's us go...now only if he'd let us ride the roller coasters on the Boardwalk! Our district had a blast yesterday. We were all laughing and smiling and just having a grand time. I don't think this zone has seen so much happiness in awhile and it was nice to be a part of that cheer. I think it's kind of hard to be unhappy around me. I'll take the bullet for that responsibility of providing joy unto all who will partake. Humility first.

 

This past week was my 15 month mark on the mission so my precious Spanish district threw a Quincenera for me. It was THE BEST! They got me 15 Dt Cokes, 15 bags of chips, 15 hand written priceless coupons for things that only missionaries can give to other missionaries and a bunch of other adorable memories. It  was so sweet I almost cried. The only thing missing was a big, huge, poofy dress and 15 men dressed up the same lined up by my side all night. So presh.

 

Just the normal missionary business the rest of the week. I went on exchanges up north and got to sit in a massage chair. I'm now considering telling President this is a must have for the well being of the missionaries. I didn't realize how busted up my back was. If anyone is planning on my Christmas present already...massages is a good start. Just saying. Oh, also I'm looking for a husband. No big.

 

Contacted a nun the other day. She sure looked uncomfortable when I talked about the power of God we have as a result of Joseph Smith and then I could see her getting a little jealous when I told her that I get to date when I get home. Ah poor nun. Come join us - life is better!

 

The other day in Zone Training I was in charge of a 20 min presentation on how to work well with others. I got up and told them we had to get the wiggles out like we do in primary so I made all 16 Elders stand up and learn all 8 verses of Book of Mormon Stories with the matching hand motions. It was the BEST. They loved it so much. Each pair ended up learning one verse and then performing their own each in order. It was fantastic. It should have been on television. I'm also glad they were good sports about it and didn't boo me off the stage. That would have been super embarrassing. Talk about backfire.

 

Well that's all for now folks. Until next week...say your prayers.

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

Mt Everest

The service projects in this area are really intense. I've been spoiled my whole mission with calling BINGO to old people and reading English books to 7 yr olds. In the Los Altos zone they work outside in the heat...with their hands! On Wednesday we had to rake, I swear, an entire acre of these tiny, pokey ball things that had been falling from the trees. There were millions. I was sweaty and blistery by the time we left. These hands are not made for that kind of work.

 

The very next day we went out to a ranch and summer camp for kids. They said we were going to hike up the hill over there carrying heavy things. I laughed because clearly they were kidding. Why on earth would we be doing that? Well, they weren't kidding. That's exactly what we did and it was a HIKE, like a Y Mount hike. There were about 10 times along the way where I really thought I better just lay down because I was going to die right there. The Elders were carrying these long pipes and we were just lagging behind them occasionally shouting out "is this poison oak?!". For the record, it was poison oak. We got to a really high point and I was done. Like, done, done. The Elders were still going straight up and my companion and I said we were just going to stay and wait here. A few of the Elders turned around and came back. They were so precious. No, Hna Hall, you can do this. We started this together and we are going to finish together! You can do this! Come on. They were so sweet to the old lady missionary that somehow ended up on this trek up Mt Everest. By the way, I'm still confused as to what kind of service this was because I for sure did nothing for nature except almost die in it. Finally, after A LOT of help and encouragement and probably just sheer miracles, I made it to the top to enjoy the beauty of the tiniest natural spring I have ever seen in my life. I didn't even care that the spring was so pathetic I could have made one myself about 300 feet below, I was overjoyed that I actually made it and shoved my face under that water and drank and drank and drank. It was the best water of my life!

 

Obviously on the way back down, us missionaries were joking about this being the metaphor of life. There were so many times where I really was going to give up, but thanks to the help, encouragement and love of others I made it to that spring and it was glorious! Totally worth it. In fact, after I made it up to the top I had forgotten all the pain, shortness of breath and negative/murmuring thoughts that had accompanied my journey all the way up. Indeed, that is life. The trials come, they are hard, and we may at times want to give up, but the end is always worth the effort. Thank heavens we have angels along the way to encourage and support us. I would have never made it without my companion and my Elder Angels and there are many times in my life when I have felt the same. This week I'm going to try to be an angel to someone else in return, hopefully not up another hike. See who you can be an angel to this week where you are. Help someone climb their Mt Everest today!

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

Deadly Straws

The other day whilst enjoying dinner with some members in a local hamburger joint, we were all sharing funny animal stories. I'm not sure how we got on the topic, but our Guatemalan Elder (he's so much funnier now that I can understand him) shared about 6 stories involving him and some kind of tragic/hilarious animal death. I started laughing so hard my body was shaking and then I couldn't control my shoulders, then my head shot back and then forward right into my beverage...dead on the straw that was sticking out. That's right, I stabbed myself in the head with my own straw. My forehead started bleeding and everyone just laughed even harder. So now I have a tiny, circular wound right in the middle of my forehead. Classic.

 

In other news...a bird lady came to church. She was wearing about 500 different colors because she said the birds like it and they will follow (and sing) her all the way down the street. Sure enough when I looked outside the hall, I saw birds pounding on the window just to get closer to her. True story. Anyway, pretty sure the birds guided her to the church because she loved it. She even got up and did the hand motions to Popcorn Popping with us in primary. That's a solid baptism right there. We'll just have to get a drop cloth for the birds.

 

We were back at our apartment pretty early on the 4th of July for safety reasons. After dark, we started hearing tons and tons of fireworks so we all ran outside to the tot lot to see if we could see them if we stood on top of the plastic castle. We could not. But we listened and imaged for a bit. Then we walked back to our apartment and realized we'd brought the wrong keys. I then watched as the 3 sisters took turns hoisting each other up into the tiny window. After about 20 min they finally pushed one through...with a little too much force and she landed face first on the carpet inside. I bet we never forget our keys again...well at least the Sister that face planted, I might on purpose just to watch that again.

 

This past week I had a leadership meeting at the mission office with a special guest speaker who was some kind of organization coach for the coach of the BYU football team. He taught us some strategies for how to help missionaries...using football. No, seriously, he made us all get up and practice how to be an offensive lineman. Now I know that a successful blocker depends on 4 things: your stance, how low you can get, the power you can explode through your butt and your ability to keep moving your feet. So, the next day when I went on exchanges I obviously tried my newly learned talent on the sister I was with. I took her down hard on the ground. I think we both learned some good things that day. It really is all in the stance.

 

My sweet new companion who said she prayed me here (oh man, she had no idea what she was thinking) shared with me a quote from President Ezra T Benson I'd remembered for years but could never find. He talked about the power of the Book of Mormon. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to get up and bear testimony during sacrament meeting and I shared my testimony of the power of the Book of Mormon. That book and I have had an interesting relationship throughout my life, but one of the things I am most grateful for is the opportunity to really come to love it on my mission. There are very special and powerful promises included in the sacred words that were preserved especially for us. As I have watched this beautiful book change lives and mine, the words of President Benson are seared on my heart (in my own words because I have a terrible memory). There is great power in the Book of Mormon. It gives us greater power to resist temptation and to avoid deception. I can't think of anything we need more than these two things in today's world. It's like Vitamin C on steroids...uh, healthy kind. We need these words every day, even just a little, and with them comes the power to resist temptation and to avoid deception. Thank heavens because Satan is getting really sneaky.  

 

xoxo,

Hna Hall

El Camino

I'm in heaven, like Celestial kind of heaven! Transfers were last Tuesday and I'm now in a new area a bit northwest of San Jose and with an awesome new companion. We will probably only be together for one transfer so we are just going to light up the place. We started by getting a new baptism date today. Holla. That's how I roll. This is the first one for my precious companion so she was all smiles and giggles all day. It was the best. We are going to do epic things.

 

Last week we did some service at an old people museum. Well, I don't think it's exactly an old people museum, but I think of most museums that are not in France...cause like this one time I went there...as for only old people. Anyway...it was SO fun. First we were banned upstairs doing inventory in a creepy museum attic. Obviously, we were surrounded by ghosts and what not. I'm a firm believer in all those things now after being in the Spanish program for so long. Holy cow. Later we helped out in the little gift shop and old ladies followed me around telling me how well I did on the museum and how beautiful and how much they loved it. I just told them they were welcome and if they wanted to have this kind of joy all the time they should check out our church. Tehehe.

 

Anywho...that's about all the time I have this evening. Don't worry, I've already managed to make a fool of myself a billion times in this new area. So I'll have plenty of hilarious and endearing stories for everyone next week. Thank heavens I can get away with it otherwise President would have shipped me home by now.

 

Oh and I have a new car with a blue tooth phone connection so I get to yell Spanish at the console while I'm driving down the 101 - it's the best!

 

xoxo,

Hermana Hall

Cuidado

Well, I'm getting transferred to my final area tomorrow. I'm so sad to leave this area, it's been so awesome!  Yesterday was so crazy busy, but we had a baptism so I was on cloud 9er all day! I got up to say my goodbyes in sacrament meeting and when I sat down people were weeping. That's right, weeping. They said such nice things to me. They love me, they really do! We had a beautiful baptism right after church and even the screaming 3 yr old couldn't chase the spirit that filled that room. I got a million kisses from the sweet woman we baptized then I had to run and grab her three extra jumpsuits to dry off with because her towel disappeared. oopsy. It's always going to be something. Right after, we went to watch the special missionary broadcast. I really enjoyed all those videos, it made me feel like I was back in the MTC with the spirit punching me in the eye balls every 5 seconds. Right after the broadcast we had to head over to another chapel for the missionary outgoing fireside. I have been leading the music at the past 5 of them and nothing was different this time except that right after President announced the opening hymn and turned around to sit down, I stood up, only instead of my foot being on the ground it was actually stuck in a metal grate and then went ankles, my knees, hands and face. I jumped right back up with my hair all over the world and announced to everyone that "I'm OK!". The room burst into laughter. President's face in priceless shock - Are you ok?! Is there blood? Are there bones sticking out? Are you going to die? Nope, nope, all good. Then I had to stand up there and lead a spiritual song having that epic scene replay in my head over and over...to the beat, of course. After I sat down, I realized I indeed did have blood and 4 or 5 purple lines dug into my knees. When I hit, I'm gonna hit hard. No worries, thanks to Lizzy, I always have the most fashionable band aids on hand. So many people came up to me afterward to give me hugs of support, sympathy and perhaps just gratitude for a bit of hilarity. I was informed on multiple occasions that I handled it like a pro. Yes! So, there's that.

 

I got to do an English exchange this week. That was fun. We had a really great "companionship study" where they just asked me a bunch of life questions. haha. I'm so old to them! I haven't really taught the gospel in English and it was nice to give it a go. I don't think I get as many understanding eyes when I'm speaking in English - they expect me to make sense - dang it! I think I might have actually even helped a little. One of their investigators asked a really good, but tough question and the two Sisters went a little blank and then both stared right at me. Oh, right. I guess that means I'm answering it. Some how I managed to answer it pretty decently because it left him speechless. That's right spirit punch!

 

Last Thursday was my last day at the Pulga. I had to make it the best Pulga day ever and it was. We took some time and walked around the whole thing looking for any last treasures. I'm going to miss being at that bizarre place! It was so fun crying repentance to all the passersby. Thank heavens I'm so cute or I might have been shot.

 

We had a great dinner this week with a strong member of the ward and she was sharing some of her very spiritual experiences with us. She's a dreamer, as I've learned a lot of the people I work with are. So we were talking about this being one of the gifts of the spirit. She went on to talk about a whole bunch of beautiful gifts of the spirit. As she was talking I was thinking about some of the gifts I've received by the spirit. I know I've got the gift of tongues...it's not perfect, but it's for sure there. I know I have a gift for taking to people, loving them and for just knowing the truth of this gospel. We then spent some time talking about how we can ask for the gifts of the spirit. I asked her why she thought God gives us these gifts and I loved her answer. She said, because He freely gives us everything. It's so true. Our Heavenly Father wants to give us everything! How amazing is that?! All we have to do is ask for them. All we have to do is desire them. Of course that comes with trying to do those things he has asked of us, but when we have that righteous desire, He will bless us with whatever we desire of Him. That gave me so much joy just thinking about and I wanted to share it. Our Heavenly Father is just waiting to give us everything! Let's go get it!

 

xoxo,

Hermana Hall

Spider killer

I'm now the official Sister Spider Killer. Seriously, that seems to be my #1 duty when I go out to visit other sisters in the mission. I've heard a lot of different types of screams and I've learned a variety of techniques for squishing and not making messes or causing further distress to the victims of these spider attacks. The other day I was in Gilroy (garlic land) and the Sisters walked right by a black widow, I thought they were going to pass out. I decided to not try and squish that one with a tissue so we just kept walking. Anyway, I'm putting this on my resume now.

 

For some reason, we have a lot of really young investigators. I love it because it keeps me on my toes and reminds me to always teach the gospel in really, really simple terms. Plus, it's like primary every day. We were teaching this 13 yr old boy about the Plan of Happiness and that we all get our bodies back again only they will be perfect, we won't be sick or anything. He yelled back to his grandma (who was sick) "Grandma, go to the spirit world to get better!" Then he stopped, thought and said, 'never mind, not right now...but like later". haha. The best. As we were ending the lesson, I asked who wanted to pray and they both shot their arms up in the air, hopped out of their chair saying "me, me, me!" I giggled. Then they decided the most fair way would be to paper, rock, scissors for it. Who does that?! PRS to get the chance TO pray?! I almost cried. Then they decided that wasn't enough so they just took turns during that actual prayer saying a line at the time. Probably not technically orthodox, but super presh so I didn't mind. Kids. I love their sweetness.

 

Speaking of kids, I'm still in charge of teaching music in the primary. I'm still confused on how that happened, but I'm enjoying it. With yesterday being Father's Day, I led all the kids up front to sing their daddy song. It was so sweet as I'm sure most of you were able to experience yesterday as well. Such a special spirit fills the room when children are singing so sweetly even when they have no idea what the words are. I've been teaching them a verse a week of the Book of Mormon Stories. Did you know there are 8? I didn't, but there are. We are on verse 4. I can now teach anyone all of the words plus coordinating hand motions. I'm putting that on my resume too.

 

This past weekend our ward had a taco sale to raise funds for the young women to go to girl's camp. Taco sale Saturday in a Spanish ward is my favorite thing ever. We asked if we could make it a little bigger and include a church tour and maybe have other games and things going on to encourage more ahem...non members...to stop by. It totally worked! We had so many people coming in and out of the church - it was fantastic! We set up a cute tour course throughout the building and strategically placed photos, pamphlets and videos for people to take. We had some music playing in the chapel that just lit up the place and the tour finished in the baptismal room with the font doors open (we wanted to just have that font filled and ready to go, but others frowned upon that). We had the Bible video of Jesus getting baptized just playing on repeat and anytime you walked into that room you couldn't help but be hit in the face with the spirit. It was perfect! I was reminded how powerful it can be to just be in a place of worship. There really is a difference, you can feel it, you can almost touch it. People might have come to get full on tacos, but I know they left both full in body and full in spirit. Now that is true happiness. Not to mention we also had a bouncy house...gotta finish off with that.

 

xoxo,

Hermana Hall