Merry Christmas

Hellooooo!!!
First... Aunt Jeanie... THANK you for your letter. I needed that. Thank you thank you. How is my cousin Haley? I´ve been meaning to throw that question out for a while!!

Also... family- thank you SO much for the packages. They were brilliant- and we are SO excited to give them to the kids!! We spent the morning arranging them... and we know exactly where we want to distribute them. There is an area that we pass by in bus that is a little... umm... I forget words... colony, villiage... I forgot how to call it...but... ya.. of ¨houses¨ that are literally sticks with plastic/tarp or bags used to haul corn. We´ve seen kids running around there.... and we are thrilled to be able to do something with these for Christmas!!!! I feel like you were inspired. Thank you!!
Also... thank you SO much for the cleaning supplies!! Hermana Bautista was really confused as to why you sent them... and then as to why I was SO stoked about sponges, gloves, and wipes.... but she said that it didn´t take long for her to put it all together- that if my family sent that for Christmas... then who I am and what I do makes more sense. pf... whatever that means, right? Thank you!!

Dad.. you asked about nursing... and I´m sorry- I thought I had said something about it in the begining... but I was probably too frazzled with everything else! A transfer or two before I came... they realized that they had a nurse here- Hermana Woods- so she took over in August. SO... this is perfect... because I can have time in the field to do what I love the most and to stabalize my spanish... and then in February we´re going to be companions she that she can TRAIN me.. and then I´ll take over after that so that she can go be a regular missionary too! It´s such a blessing... and when we see each other at meetings... she assures me that she is organizing everything and has so much to teach me and warn me about... and a plan to prepare me. HOW GREAT IS THAT?? I feel so much better knowing that I´ll have a yoda for that- because it sounds like a really heavy load. Really heavy. So heavy... that I hardly ever allow myself to think about that... because I´m often a bit overwhelmed as it is... and it´s super hard to imagine doing what I´m doing right now AND handling all the physical and mental needs of the mission. YET.... I´m trying more than anything else... to build my faith so that such miracles will happen in the future... and present. :)

We continue to work towards bautismo with Juan Carlos and ¨Pedro¨.... but as expected yet unexpected... there is such incredible opposition. I can´t express how much I love these men... and all of my investigadores... these moments to pray, fast, and work for their happiness.... are so much more fulfilling than all the tests I passed in nursing school combined... this really matters. We have some other people such as Javier y Gudiel that are getting so close to accepting this invitation to be baptized.... SO CLOSE. This whole thing is such a roller coaster. Like... sunday... we nearly jogged door to door for 2 hours straight before church trying to remind and help people get to church... and hardly ANYONE would open their door for us. We were just a bit disheartened... but then to walk into the chapel and see all the youth GLOWING from the EFY El Salvador... and hear their testimonies... and to see Javier and Gudiel in church... and have little tender mercies totally showered on us...... quick change of heart. Yet... despite the efforts of the ward (They put together a bunch of groups every saturday to go pass by homes of innactive and investigadores to invite for church- how great is that?) and our running...... it´s cutting season. Many are gone cutting cafe or frijoles... so it´s a bit difficult to find anyone home... let alone in church. Yet.... miracles come after the prueba of our fe.

I have the commandment and blessed opportunity to teach Hermana Bautista english. I have such guilt that I have been so awful about this. President Lopez is SO passionate about the latinos learning english in their mission- because really... that isn´t just for a hobby. He tells us gringos that if we help them with ingles... we are changing their future... and blessing a future family. So... we´re working on that... and I´m still so amazed that now it´s way easier to just speak spanish... and now the temptation is to just speak spanish..... how weird?

I sang with an Elder at the stake christmas devotional- which was completely darling. (the devotional- not the song. The song was totally akward with the electric keyboard.... roaring wind... one microphone for this elder that is like 6 4¨... and me... and... ya... bad bad... but they were super stoked about it.)

We have cambios... um.. transfers, right?- we might change companions and/or areas- the 22nd. I have such mixed feelings and apprehension about it. We know that Hermana Bautista is going to serve in Belice in the future....but we don´t know if this cambio or the next! We just opened this area.. and are still working on knowing everything and fixing all the problems that existed here before. HErmana Bautista is the senior comp and has been such a champ about everything. I´m still trying to be competent in spanish...and I´m still directionally impaired.-... and even worse with names in spanish. People have been ¨joking¨ about me training this next cambio- because president seems to do that to ¨newish¨ gringas- and that´s what happened to the last nurse. So... I have this nightmare that I´m going to train here next cambio. I need more faith. I´m a bit scared of continuing in this area with Hna Bautista... because I still get so lost!! YET... I know that president is inspired... and that it will all work out. I just... think too much... and rely too much on my own abilities. Really.. I know that if I humble myself and really allow the Lord to work through me... obviously... His power will superar all else! What else matters!??

Sorry this is so scattered. I don´t even know if it made sense. I´m gonna send pictures of soccer, our household pets (I know that´s against the rules to have pets... but I we can´t seem to get rid of these HUGE spiders. I´m learning to embrace and borderline adore them), and Christmas. I loved the nativity scene of corn husks.
Hermana Clark