Miracles!

pictures from Rosalind's baptism

  the sunset from one of our favorite spots in our area

 If you can see I am wearing hermana Palomino´s chapa and they are both wearing mine.

Halloween and the American table at the nations party.

pictures from aranjuez. I was sooooo happy to see trees!  I was almost in tears.  I was super happy!

Hola familia y amigos,

Okay, this week has been a lot better.  We are beginning to find people and so hopefully this upcoming week we will begin to start teaching.  We only had one lesson this week!  One persone we found was Dantel´s aunt.  Dantel just got baptized, like 2 weeks ago and he is already sharing the gospel.  He brought his aunt to church and we are going to start teaching her!  And he really wants to bring his mom to church!  This guy is incredible!

This week has been really good! We had a great week working with the members, and we are starting to find people to teach. The members are really great and every time we get to know a new family, I fall in love with them. I am so excited to keep working with them and animo them for the obra misional. 

Yesterday we had a really cool experience. I had been praying for opportunities to serve. And I was finding them. Moments where I could help someone carry something or help someone get their stroller on or off the metro. But I wasn´t acting. I rationalized that they wouldnt want my help or that by the time I got to them, my help would not be needed. So I set the goal to find and DO service. Yesterday there was a woman carrying two wooden shelf units. She set them down on a bench to rest and grabbed her arm as if she was in pain/tired. I asked her if we could help and she gave me one of the shelves. We began talking to her as we walked and when we got to the final destination we stayed with her and kept talking as she waited for her sister to come get the shelves. Long story short, she had heard bad things about our church and in the end, she said she respected other religions but did not want to learn more. We left her with a pass along card. I was a little sad that she did not want to meet with us, but I realized that if nothing else she will hopefully think better of us. She may continue to hear bad things about the church, but she will be able to remember the service we provided and hopefully think better of us. And to me this is a MIRACLE!

I LOVE the mission, I LOVE my Savior, and I LOVE the Gospel. I know this church is true, and I am working hard to help others know the same. It is not easy, I have many faults, but I would not change the opportunities or experience I have had and I know I will have!

The part in grey is my letter to President.

Halloween in Spain: Not a thing.  They dressed up and just walked around.  It was really lame.  Apparently there were some parties, but trick or treating isn´t a thing.  There were restaurantes and things decorated but they never really celebrated it.  And the costumes that we did see were pretty gory.  "Blood" on the neck or those franquenstine scars and lots of makeup around the eye to make people look dead.  The kids weren´t dressed this way, but all the adults and teens were.  But only about 1 of every 15 people dressed up.

A family in our ward knew it was a big holiday for us so they had us over for dinner. All day me and Hna. Palomino had switched chapas [name tags], but during dinner everyone switched.  Elder Echegeray from Argentina had one of mine.  It was SO funny.  Best part.  Me and Elder Cloward (in my ward and my zone leader) hit 15 months on the first.  We were talking about this halloween night.  Elder Echegeray, pretending to be me says 15 meses, que guay! (15 months, how cool!)  Then, with the little English that he knows, he says, "Michigan.  My family!" and gets all sad about it.  it was hilarious!

Nov. 1st is a bigger holiday for them. EVERYTHING was closed, and I guess they go to the cemeteries and visit their loved ones and leave flowers and stuff.  It was also Dia de las Naciones. Day of the Nations.  We had a huge ward activity combined with the other ward that shares our capilla and each person brought food from their country.  We had brownies, PB&J and Sloppy Joes.  The Sloppy Joes, I made, and everyone LOVED them.  THey are all so latin though, they would not make a sandwich, but preferred to eat it with their rice.

Today we have spent in Aranjuez.  a BEAUTIFUL pueblito in southern Madrid.  It isn´t really part of madrid, but it is just south of it.  We saw a palace and a lot of pretty gardens.

The day after halloween I found Christmas decorations.  Since thanksgiving is not a thing here, for companion study Nov. 1st we decorated and listened to Christmas music.  We have a Dunkin Donuts in our area so I kept that tradition alive and we got donuts after!  Although thanksgiving is not a thing, we already have two comidas for that day.  The ward members know it is a holiday for us, so they are going to feed us.  We also have zone conference in which we always get dominos pizza, but because it is on thanksgiving, maybe they will do something special.  I don´t know, but it shouldn´t be a bad thanksgiving considering I am in Spain.

One last thing….  I got an email from my recent converts in Guatemala. They told me that I am their favorite missionary and that although they are facing adversities they endure with the gospel. It was amazing to hear them say that. 

However, the best part was that they told me they are preparing and taking classes to go to the TEMPLE!!!!!!  They seem so excited and I am beyond excited for them.  I love that I can email them, and that they email me.  They end the email saying, I´m going to try and translate it, "We hope to see you soon, and what day is better than the day of our sealing...how much time to you lack to finish the mission?"  I don´t know if this is an invitation, but it is super exciting none the less.  I LOVE them so much!  If my whole mission was to find them, it was worth it.  And I have done more, I LOVE THE MISSION!

I will be smiling all day when I think about them!  Maybe even all week!

Con amor,

Hermana Olsen