It was such happiness talking to you all on the phone this week. What a blessing. We had more than one member come up to us on Sunday and say that they could tell we had just talked to our families because we were still just all smiles. It was so good to hear your voices and talk with you all. I love you all so much.
I am very ready to get back to work as normal. The days during Christmas, we had a limited schedule as far as we couldn´t work after 7:30, unless it was a set appointment, and we couldn´t knock doors, or do contacts. If we didn´t have set appointments or they fell through we just had to go home. Yesterday was the only day that we had to go home early, but it was too much for me. I am going to be the most antsy returned missionary ever...just so you know. I get so stressed just sitting around. Que vergüenza...the mission has given me ADD. The one bit of news that is still kind of lame is that at the end of this week we will have New Years, so once again it might be a messed up schedule...I think maybe even more so because everyone will be drinking...so we´ll see what the plans are.
Well not much new to report since I talked to you all last. After I talked to you, we went and taught an investigator of ours. His name is Angel. He is the husband of a member in our ward. They are such a sweet family. They are quiet, but so kind. I just love them. He told us that he couldn´t come to Church the next day because his family was coming into town, but we prayed for him to come anyway, and all of a sudden, Sunday morning came and there he was with his family!!! It was such a blessing for us. We are trying to work on having more faith, and that was definitely a faith building experience. He is struggling accepting the idea of baptism...please pray for him so that he can be at ease and understand why it´s so important.
What else is new.....a ver....Oh I loved the Christmas pictures that you all sent. One thing that called my attention was Scott´s beard...? A donde!? (Dad, translate for him please.) When did he start growing a beard? Girls don´t like facial hair. He he he he .... just playing big bro :) I love you, you know that. The babies look so grown up and cute. I love that they still make the same faces in pictures though. Yay!
Oh, I got a phone call this morning from the Zone Leaders and they said that I am going to have an intercambio with the Hermanas in Magallanes, so that means that I get to go back and work in my old sector for one more day!!!!! Yay! They told me to make some miracles happen....( I know I´m not the one in charge of that, though....) I am excited to go back and check it out for the day, and work with Hermana Neubert there. She´s just great. I ´ll let you know how it goes. I know it´s going to be the best day ever!
Well, like I said, this week I am trying to work on having more faith. I know that if I had more faith I would have the eyes to see more miracles. I know that that promise works for everyone. I feel that in the mission sometimes rejections happen so often, or so many people don´t progress, or people fall through so often, that it becomes so easy to just have a fault of faith. I don´t want that to happen to me. I just need to not stress about it all so much, and just trust that the Lord has a plan and that He is leading us to those that need it most. Those who are prepared. I was talking to my compi about it the other day and she said that her worst nightmare is becoming an old grumpy missionary. It´s so true!!! I have seen it many times, where by the end of the mission, some missionaries are comfortable with themselves, and impatient with others, and so pessimistic that it can kill the ever so fragile element of faith that is left in them. I realized that during these crucial months of my mission I am deciding whether I become a missionary like that or not. Every day is important, and every decision will show if I am choosing to have faith or if I am choosing not to. Faith is a choice. We chose to have it and be happy and be like Christ, or we chose not to have it, and be sad. Faith is everything on the mission, and I want more of it. In myself and in others.
Me and my comp had a great Christmas... we pulled the mattresses off the beds and we put them around our humble little Christmas tree and we slept on the floor for the night. It was cute and fun. I love my little Canadian. And don't worry, she did get to talk to her family just fine...it all worked out great. Thanks so much for your help!
Thank you for everything you do for me. Thank you for making the sacrifices that you make for me and my mission. To give me the opportunities that I have been given. I can´t tell you how happy I am...it´s pure happiness. Not the kind of happiness that comes from good grades, or a cute boyfriend, or fancy clothes and nice hair....it´s so very much more than that. This happiness is just peace. It´s so full. I love what I am doing and I feel so very blessed and special to be doing it. Thank you for making it possible for me.
I love you all tons and tons. (It was hard to hang up the phone...ps. :) LOVE YOU.
-Hermana Bertagnole
Monday, December 27, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Hey there family!
I can´t believe that it is almost Christmas! Less than a week and I´ll be talking to you all on the phone! Cannot wait. I hope that you are all happy and together in these beautiful days of the season. I miss you guys, but I am so happy to be here doing what I am doing. These are once in a lifetime moments, and I am just trying really hard to soak it all in. It´s all coming and going so fast, that I am frantically trying to capture all that I can. I guess that is the way it is in life. I have seen it time and time again, but especially in the mission. Just love every second of every day. The hard ones are the ones that help us grow, but thankfully they aren´t the ones we remember most. I love how Heavenly Father helps us remember all the beauty.
I have been thinking a lot this week about why we celebrate Christmas... we went to the store last week and there was so much madness going on about the shopping and the presents and the candy... and I just got such a sick feeling inside. I am grateful for the opportunity to have a very simple Christmas. It’s so much better this way. It allows us to think about Christ, and what He has done for us. I can´t help but think that while we´re standing in huge lines at stores buying gifts that we can´t afford for people that will love us whether we give gifts or not...I can´t help but think that we lose track somewhere in there about why we even have Christmas. Is Christ pleased with how we chose to celebrate His sacred birth? Don´t go crazy with it. It should be peaceful, not a bit stressful. We can´t forget why we celebrate this sacred time of year. I am so grateful to celebrate by sharing this Gospel. It is so beautiful. The work is a little bit harder during this time of year because everyone is in vacations, or in the mall shopping, or with visits....there are so many distractions that no one really seems to have much time to talk about the Savior, whose name we celebrate, but I know that we are going to see miracles this next week. I know that If we help people understand the importance of this message, I know that hearts will be touched and lives will begin to change...I know mine has.
I am grateful to all those who support me so willingly. I thank you with all my heart. I love you all. I am grateful for your letters, and your love, and prayers. I hope that you all have a very merry Christmas. I hope that you all remember your Savior who was born into this world to make it possible for us, unworthy as we are, to return and live with our Heavenly Father again. I hope that you all recognize, and feel His love for you. I hope you all apply what He teaches us in your lives. If you do you will be happy. If you don´t you will not. It´s very simple. We complicate it all sometimes, but it´s not complicated at all. It is beautiful simplicity.
Well I am going to keep this short, because I am going to talk to you all soon!!!! Yeah! But I´m sending pictures. Love you guys more than you´ll ever know. Seriously though...I know it sounds cliche, but it´s true. :) SMILE AND LAUGH LOTS TOGETHER THIS CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I HUGE, HUGE HUG FOR EVERYBODY!!!!!!!!!!!!
Love you with all that I have.
-Hermanita Bertagnole
I can´t believe that it is almost Christmas! Less than a week and I´ll be talking to you all on the phone! Cannot wait. I hope that you are all happy and together in these beautiful days of the season. I miss you guys, but I am so happy to be here doing what I am doing. These are once in a lifetime moments, and I am just trying really hard to soak it all in. It´s all coming and going so fast, that I am frantically trying to capture all that I can. I guess that is the way it is in life. I have seen it time and time again, but especially in the mission. Just love every second of every day. The hard ones are the ones that help us grow, but thankfully they aren´t the ones we remember most. I love how Heavenly Father helps us remember all the beauty.
I have been thinking a lot this week about why we celebrate Christmas... we went to the store last week and there was so much madness going on about the shopping and the presents and the candy... and I just got such a sick feeling inside. I am grateful for the opportunity to have a very simple Christmas. It’s so much better this way. It allows us to think about Christ, and what He has done for us. I can´t help but think that while we´re standing in huge lines at stores buying gifts that we can´t afford for people that will love us whether we give gifts or not...I can´t help but think that we lose track somewhere in there about why we even have Christmas. Is Christ pleased with how we chose to celebrate His sacred birth? Don´t go crazy with it. It should be peaceful, not a bit stressful. We can´t forget why we celebrate this sacred time of year. I am so grateful to celebrate by sharing this Gospel. It is so beautiful. The work is a little bit harder during this time of year because everyone is in vacations, or in the mall shopping, or with visits....there are so many distractions that no one really seems to have much time to talk about the Savior, whose name we celebrate, but I know that we are going to see miracles this next week. I know that If we help people understand the importance of this message, I know that hearts will be touched and lives will begin to change...I know mine has.
I am grateful to all those who support me so willingly. I thank you with all my heart. I love you all. I am grateful for your letters, and your love, and prayers. I hope that you all have a very merry Christmas. I hope that you all remember your Savior who was born into this world to make it possible for us, unworthy as we are, to return and live with our Heavenly Father again. I hope that you all recognize, and feel His love for you. I hope you all apply what He teaches us in your lives. If you do you will be happy. If you don´t you will not. It´s very simple. We complicate it all sometimes, but it´s not complicated at all. It is beautiful simplicity.
Well I am going to keep this short, because I am going to talk to you all soon!!!! Yeah! But I´m sending pictures. Love you guys more than you´ll ever know. Seriously though...I know it sounds cliche, but it´s true. :) SMILE AND LAUGH LOTS TOGETHER THIS CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I HUGE, HUGE HUG FOR EVERYBODY!!!!!!!!!!!!
Love you with all that I have.
-Hermanita Bertagnole
Monday, December 13, 2010
Another beautiful week in the mission
Hello there family.
Thank you for the updates, letters, pictures, and videos. They were beautiful. I am glad to hear that Kirk´s funeral went well, (that sounds weird to say, but you know what I mean). I am glad it was a blessed experience, however difficult it may be.
Well, this week was beautiful...not so much weather wise, but it was a beautiful week full of great learning experiences, as usual. I have cried many tears this week. Tears of gratitude more than anything else. Gratitude that I don´t have to be perfect. Gratitude that Jesus Christ takes all that I have and purifies it. He takes our imperfect efforts, struggles, and weaknesses, and in return He us back sanctified, perfected, and pure miracles. I am so grateful for the lessons that I have been learning the last few weeks. It has had a lot to do with a change of mind and attitude, but I can feel myself changing and becoming a little better every day. I am so grateful that that is possible through the Atonement. How blessed we are to know about it and know how to apply it in our lives.
This week we took kind of a blow with some of our investigators. Many are leaving on summer vacations for a couple of months. But with that being said, we are starting to work with a lot of part member families, with is very promising. We had 4 people in the Church this week and all of them were from part member families; 3 husbands of the 3 of the Hermanas, and one of their sons. (I don´t know if that make sense). It was a testimony of the importance of working and focusing more on the family. We are still searching hard for the families that are being prepared to hear this beautiful message.
Ok. Can I just say that I am loving the heck out of my companion? This little Canadian is the best thing since sliced bread. Hermana Byam and I have been talking a lot lately about what we want for this cambio and for our missions in general. We have some great dreams, and visions. We have had some very special moments together, and I know that we support each other well. I feel like we are very compatible. When I´m down, she picks me up, and vice-versa. We work really well and hard together. It´s so great. The Spirit is strong with her. She´s way special. I have been blessed with such great companions in the mission! How did I get so lucky!
Anyway, I´m going to spend more time sending pictures this week, than writing a whole lot. The pictures always do it better justice.
But please know that I LOVE YOU! Thank you for all that you do and have done for me. Thank you a million times over....and I love you a billion times over. I hope that you all are getting as excited for Christmas as I am! I´ll miss you all, but I know that this will be a Christmas that I will remember for my whole life. And don´t worry we have lots of invitations (even from the members in my old ward in Magallanes , such great members.) , so we are well taken care of, so no need to worry about a lonely missionary. :) As for the phone call, we are receiving more details and instructions tomorrow, but I think that we can call the 24, 25, or 26 of December. What would be better for you? I know that we can talk for an hour, and I am pretty sure that we can just go to the house of the members that live in front of us. We´ll double check with all the rules and I´ll send you the details next Monday. CAN¨T WAIT!
LOVE YOU. (Big hugs and kisses)
-Hermana Ricitos de Oro (Goldilocks)....that´s what they finally started calling me in this ward...it´s hilarious because in every ward they have a new nickname for me because they can´t say my name. :) I think this is my fave so far. It´s better than Berta. jajajaja
Thank you for the updates, letters, pictures, and videos. They were beautiful. I am glad to hear that Kirk´s funeral went well, (that sounds weird to say, but you know what I mean). I am glad it was a blessed experience, however difficult it may be.
Well, this week was beautiful...not so much weather wise, but it was a beautiful week full of great learning experiences, as usual. I have cried many tears this week. Tears of gratitude more than anything else. Gratitude that I don´t have to be perfect. Gratitude that Jesus Christ takes all that I have and purifies it. He takes our imperfect efforts, struggles, and weaknesses, and in return He us back sanctified, perfected, and pure miracles. I am so grateful for the lessons that I have been learning the last few weeks. It has had a lot to do with a change of mind and attitude, but I can feel myself changing and becoming a little better every day. I am so grateful that that is possible through the Atonement. How blessed we are to know about it and know how to apply it in our lives.
This week we took kind of a blow with some of our investigators. Many are leaving on summer vacations for a couple of months. But with that being said, we are starting to work with a lot of part member families, with is very promising. We had 4 people in the Church this week and all of them were from part member families; 3 husbands of the 3 of the Hermanas, and one of their sons. (I don´t know if that make sense). It was a testimony of the importance of working and focusing more on the family. We are still searching hard for the families that are being prepared to hear this beautiful message.
Ok. Can I just say that I am loving the heck out of my companion? This little Canadian is the best thing since sliced bread. Hermana Byam and I have been talking a lot lately about what we want for this cambio and for our missions in general. We have some great dreams, and visions. We have had some very special moments together, and I know that we support each other well. I feel like we are very compatible. When I´m down, she picks me up, and vice-versa. We work really well and hard together. It´s so great. The Spirit is strong with her. She´s way special. I have been blessed with such great companions in the mission! How did I get so lucky!
Anyway, I´m going to spend more time sending pictures this week, than writing a whole lot. The pictures always do it better justice.
But please know that I LOVE YOU! Thank you for all that you do and have done for me. Thank you a million times over....and I love you a billion times over. I hope that you all are getting as excited for Christmas as I am! I´ll miss you all, but I know that this will be a Christmas that I will remember for my whole life. And don´t worry we have lots of invitations (even from the members in my old ward in Magallanes , such great members.) , so we are well taken care of, so no need to worry about a lonely missionary. :) As for the phone call, we are receiving more details and instructions tomorrow, but I think that we can call the 24, 25, or 26 of December. What would be better for you? I know that we can talk for an hour, and I am pretty sure that we can just go to the house of the members that live in front of us. We´ll double check with all the rules and I´ll send you the details next Monday. CAN¨T WAIT!
LOVE YOU. (Big hugs and kisses)
-Hermana Ricitos de Oro (Goldilocks)....that´s what they finally started calling me in this ward...it´s hilarious because in every ward they have a new nickname for me because they can´t say my name. :) I think this is my fave so far. It´s better than Berta. jajajaja
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Beautiful Mission
Hey there family,
Well, here I am. I officially have more of the mission behind me than ahead of me. Strange. I don´t feel like it. I still feel the same, but if I think about it, it blows my mind how fast time flies. Life is too short. Live it the best you can.
Well, I don´t have tons of time to write this week, but I want you to know that I am so incredibly happy. My new companion is just incredible. We work really well together. We both just have so much desire to grow and progress in the mission so that we can be better instruments in the hands of the Lord. We are working really hard together, and we are loving every second. Some of the highlights this week- we are working in a new sector that the missionaries haven´t worked in a long time called Rio Seco. It is a GOLD mine. Almost every door we know they will let us in. Seriously. They are a humble fishing community outside of the city, and there is just a strong spirit there. I love working there. We only get to go a few times a week though because it´s a 20 minute bus ride out of the city, but we see miracles there. I love it. (Sent a picture...the one with the ocean.)
Also we put up our Christmas tree yesterday. Amazing. Also, the ward here is crazy strong. Like a hundred people. Nuts. I almost feel bad being there! :) They are great though, and there is still a lot of work to do there. So I am just so happy. I got dad´s "bishop" letter this week. You´re just one inspired man, dad. I loved it. I read it lots. Thank you. I am a lucky daughter. What else, what else...oh if you can´t tell from the pictures, my new sector is like the Leawood of Punta Arenas. There are lots of really wealthy people here. It´s great though. Sometimes it´s really hard to find anyone home because they are always at work, but we are working really hard to get member referrals. Anyway, that´s all I have time for.
I´ll try and get all the Christmas call stuff worked out, too. Can´t wait to talk with you all! LOVE YOU ALL TONS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for your letters and pictures and video. LOVED THEM!
All the love I have to give,
-Hermana Bertagnole
Well, here I am. I officially have more of the mission behind me than ahead of me. Strange. I don´t feel like it. I still feel the same, but if I think about it, it blows my mind how fast time flies. Life is too short. Live it the best you can.
Well, I don´t have tons of time to write this week, but I want you to know that I am so incredibly happy. My new companion is just incredible. We work really well together. We both just have so much desire to grow and progress in the mission so that we can be better instruments in the hands of the Lord. We are working really hard together, and we are loving every second. Some of the highlights this week- we are working in a new sector that the missionaries haven´t worked in a long time called Rio Seco. It is a GOLD mine. Almost every door we know they will let us in. Seriously. They are a humble fishing community outside of the city, and there is just a strong spirit there. I love working there. We only get to go a few times a week though because it´s a 20 minute bus ride out of the city, but we see miracles there. I love it. (Sent a picture...the one with the ocean.)
Also we put up our Christmas tree yesterday. Amazing. Also, the ward here is crazy strong. Like a hundred people. Nuts. I almost feel bad being there! :) They are great though, and there is still a lot of work to do there. So I am just so happy. I got dad´s "bishop" letter this week. You´re just one inspired man, dad. I loved it. I read it lots. Thank you. I am a lucky daughter. What else, what else...oh if you can´t tell from the pictures, my new sector is like the Leawood of Punta Arenas. There are lots of really wealthy people here. It´s great though. Sometimes it´s really hard to find anyone home because they are always at work, but we are working really hard to get member referrals. Anyway, that´s all I have time for.
I´ll try and get all the Christmas call stuff worked out, too. Can´t wait to talk with you all! LOVE YOU ALL TONS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for your letters and pictures and video. LOVED THEM!
All the love I have to give,
-Hermana Bertagnole
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