Hermana Kennedy and the Mandarin Monster

Hi family.  So we got to the internet place a little late today which is why this may be shorter.

President,

We currently have one investigator with a baptismal date.  Paco has his interview tonight, and if he passes, he will be baptized on Saturday!  We are so excited for him.  His wife and sons have been waiting a very long time for this, and they will be an amazing source of love and support for him.  Too, he is already participating in Gospel Principles, and he has found some friends in Priesthood meeting, so we aren't worried about his long term conversion.  He was really touched by his younger son's recent baptism which is why he finally decided to start listening to the missionaries.  I'm happy to be here to help him continue.

We had a great experience this past week with Power Hour.  It isn't something I've ever done before, but Hermana Smith suggested it last week during exchanges, so we decided to implement it into our week.  From it, we found not only six nuevos, but also a lot of potential investigators.  It was amazing the difference between just regular contacting, and actually contacting with a goal and purpose in mind.  I loved seeing the Lord's hand in that time, and I'm excited to continue it this week.

Thanks for all that you do.  Have a great week.
Hermana Kennedy

We are so excited for Paco, and I'm especially excited for Hermana Franco, because if he passes his interview, this will be her first baptism in her whole five months on the mission.  I know that that doesn't sound like anything for Ethan and Mark, but here that's pretty rough.  She's always been transferred before baptisms of people she's taught, so this will be really exciting for her.

A zone activity

So right now, it's mandarin season in Ecuador.  No, I don't mean that there are a lot of Chinese people here in Ecuador.  I mean the oranges.  On almost every bus, men and women come on holding huge bags of mandarin oranges, yelling "Mandarinas! Mandarinas! Un dollar!  Un dollar!"  Well, it's like twelve mandarins for a dollar, and who can pass up that deal?  I love the mandarins here, so I've bought two of those twelve orange bags in two weeks.  And, we have investigators and members giving us each at least one each day.  My companions sometimes don't want theirs, so I eat them.  Needless to say, I don't think I'm lacking in Vitamin C right now.  I have eaten, and will continue to eat, many mandarin oranges.

Also, today was my first day without my boot!  Yay!  My ankle is actually doing great.  I don't have

any pain or anything.  I can tell though that my body is a little stressed without the support of the boot.  I guess I'll have to adjust once more to a new situation :-)  But it's so nice not to have it. Because it's so dang hot here, I was sweating all the time, and my boot had a very interesting smell to it.  I am very glad to be rid of it.

My first day without my official boot.  But I still wore my
mission boots to bowl :-)

And our zone headed into Quito today to go bowling!  It was super fun, and my trio got to be in a lane with three hilarious elders.  One is having a very hard time with his companion, another had a companion who didn't want to bowl, and the other's companion was more interested in hanging with the other native Spanish speakers.  So, those of us who were bowling REALLY WANTED to bowl!  I'm afraid I did not win, although I came in a close second, which I would say isn't bad for a recently unbooted hermana.

And how great was this General Conference?  We got to have an English room with the other English speaking missionaries, so I listened in my native tongue.  Two of my favorite talks were from Elder Donald L. Hallstrom and Elder Neil L. Andersen.  I loved Elder Hallstrom's talk because it made me think about my own situation.  The ankle thing has been horribly hard on me, and I think when I received a priesthood blessing the day after my first doctor's appointment, I didn't have the faith to NOT be healed.  I sort of hoped that my ankle would miraculously heal, and I wouldn't even need the boot for six weeks.  But then came the news that I would be going home, and I couldn't believe it.  I couldn't believe that God would send me away from the work I loved so much.  But God has His mysteries, and who are we to expect anything from Him?  He has given us this beautiful life, and what more should we ask from Him?  As it was, my ankle (though I was walking on it for two weeks in a less than great boot on the rocky roads of San Pablo) was, as Dr. Moore put it, healing perfectly.  And God has helped me in these last four weeks to not tire out as fast, and to be able to keep walking.

Too, I loved Elder Andersen's talk.  I'm not one of those people who can take notes during General Conference, because I know that I'll get the Ensign later, and I like to just focus on how I feel.  I know that he talked about President Nelson which was beautiful, especially since it was like an introduction to our next prophet.  That's just what I believe; it's not doctrine.  But I just remember that I had this beautiful feeling all through his talk, and something he said at the end brought me to tears.  It's so silly that I can't remember it, but I know it made me feel the Spirit.  If you didn't have the chance to watch conference, or if you would like to do so, you can do it at lds.org.  It's a chance to listen to living apostles of the Lord, Jesus Christ, and it will touch your heart.

I love you all,
Hermana Kennedy