Hermana Kennedy and All You Need is Bread...for Realz...

Hi family!  Here's my letter to President Murphy:

Hi President Murphy,

We saw a lot of miracles this week here in Otavalo.  Alejandro passed his baptismal interview, so he will be getting baptized this Saturday.  We are telling the members it begins at 5:30 p.m. so that they arrive n time for it to actually begin at 6:00 :-). Alejandro and his mom are both super excited, and they've invited their family in Yaruqui to come, and they confirmed, so it's going to be really special.  Alejandro is such a great kid, and he has such hope that his baptism will help his dad as well have a desire to listen to us because he wants an eternal family.  We are all thankful for his mom's support, but even more that of the ward.  They are already telling us all what they would like to do for him for his baptism.  We really the Latino ward because they are always so excited for baptisms and are asking us to please focus a little more on them, which is kind of sad, but also okay, because we understand, and we want to help them a lot.

We also talked yesterday with Maria Yaselga.  She is Milton's mom, and we have had a little bit of a hard time with her, because she worries about baptizing Milton, and then him going inactive like some of his siblings, but we spoke about free agency, and she agreed this week to a baptismal date for the 7th of July, because she understand the doctrine behind Milton being baptized, and she wants him to be baptized. However, we were concerned, because the past bishop is now trying to convince members to leave Latino ward and come to his new ward in Centenario, and she really liked him as a bishop, but yesterday she explained to us that he has been visiting them, but that she knows that Milton will be baptized in the Latino ward.  She knows that that is her ward, and that is where she wants him baptized, so we were really happy about that.

And we talked to Diana and José this week, and we were going to be straight with them, because the last lesson we had with Joe, he seemed like he wasn't really taking what we said seriously, and so we were going to be really direct with him.  But before we could do anything, they told us that they planned the civity to earn money to get married for the 9th of June.  And that José wants to be baptized on the 23rd of June since they are planning on getting married on the 18th.  Oh, and they have started reading the Book of Mormon every day as a family, and José is starting to get up early each morning to read on his own.  And they passed by us yesterday on our way out of stake conference, and José told us that he felt something he hasn't ever felt before, and he is taking that as his answer.  He knows it's true, and he's doing his part to strengthen his testimony.  It was amazing.

I love the people here.  Otavalo is amazing, and I just love this place.  I love the hermanas here a lot too, and I worry a lot about them.  They had a hard week with illnesses and investigators leaving them and everything, but they are amazing. They all have such desires to work hard and do great things.  Thank you for allowing me to work with them because it's such an honor.

Thank you for your work and your example. Have a great week,
Hermana Kennedy

Okay, so it was a pretty good week here in good ol' Otavalo.  I sure do love this little lice-infested home of mine.  I wear my hair up every single day, and people sometimes kind of complain to me, telling me that I should wear it down, and I'm like "Oh no, it's just much easier for me like this," and then they look at my companion and ask me why she has her hair down then, and I'm like "Oh, every person is different..." when really what I'm thinking is "LICE!"

Also, I weighed myself this week at an hermana's house, and I'm at 186!  (That's right world--you all know my weight now. And let's remember that I'm 5'10" tall, shall we, before we judge me toooooo harshly?) That means that I'm five pounds lighter (maybe more) than when I came on my mission!  And that's also after an entire week of not running since we had meetings every morning!  And after an entire week of eating bread.

That's right, BREAD!

I'm dealing with a bit of stress right now, and so last Monday night, we passed a bread vendor and she yelled out, "12 panes, 1 dolar!"  I was like, 12 BREAD, ONLY 1 DOLLAR????!!!!!  And my resolve crumbled!  I've really been trying to limit the amount of carbs I eat on my own since we receive so much rice and bread and potatoes, but I couldn't help it.  So I bought it.  And I ate like two breads each day. I'm so ashamed, but it's okay.  I won't do it again, and next time I go to their house in three weeks, I can weigh myself again.  I'm hoping to be down a little more.  You know, the bread here is just so good.  Every person knows it.  Every missionary says it...even those with gluten intolerance! ;-). But I have to get back in the saddle this week and be a little stricter, because I would love to come home a little thinner :-)

Also, we headed to an investigator's house yesterday, and they have a kitten (like a teenager cat really), and it was so cute to see him doing a little butt wiggle every time he would jump from one bed to the next.  I miss cats.  Like, a lot.  Dogs just don't do it for me.

So, you know, things aren't always perfect on a mission.  There are different trials, but our family knows what the biggest trial has been for all of us as missionaries, right?  Well, that trial is upon me now as you all know.  Yesterday, my companion and I saw Hermana Murphy [the mission president's wife], and she came up to me and told me to wait for a minute because she wanted to talk to me.  I thought maybe something was wrong, but she just asked how we were doing, and then she looked at me and said, "You're doing a great job, and I am so grateful for you."  Well, I just stated crying and told her that I'm so stressed, and she said that she could see it in my face, and then she just gave me a big hug.  I think I haven't realized how stressed I've been for the past two weeks, but it's been really hard, and I'm sorry, Mama, but my fingernails are non-existent, and my Tourette's is out of control, and I feel like a loser of a missionary.  Sorry, that's a big downer for my email.

But then today, I got this email from Hermana Murphy.  Would you please include it on the blog so that I can make sure and keep it forever?

Beautiful Hermana Kennedy,

I was so happy to see you and your companion and all of the other missionaries yesterday at stake conference.  I am so sad though to hear and see that you are feeling exhausted and worn out...all normal by the way, especially for an especially hard-working, deeply-caring hermana.  You hermanas are my heroes with all you do, all you walk, all you care about others, and keep getting up and doing it all day after day.  Please know that the Murphys, but more importantly the Lord, is so pleased with you and so incredibly grateful for your love and care of the people here in Ecuador.  He is aware of every ache, every tear, every sorrow, and every joy we feel.

It is a rough principle, and I do remember learning it on my mission, that without all the struggles, we truly cannot become who the Lord would have us become.  He is molding us into the thing he needs us to be...kind of like the C.S. Lewis quote about building a home.  It is in the struggle that we get to know him and also get to know ourselves.  You re so incredibly loved and so incredibly wonderful.

A few words of advice:

1.  A good missionary is one who cares and desires to bring the gospel to others, not someone who is better at numbers, etc.  This is you.  You desire with all your heart to do those things to bring the joy and peace of the gospel to more people.  If you only knew my numbers from my mission, you might not think I was a success, but I was so glad to have the assurances that I was doing all that I could.  That is all the Lord expects.  Remember D&C 123 tells us that "Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed." You only can do what you can do...do it cheerfully, and do it well, and the Lord will step in.

2.  Remember D&C 82:10.  The Lord is bound when you do what he says.  You are doing what he says, and he will bless you...whether it is now or when you go home, we don't know.  But I KNOW this is true.

3.  Remember, Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  I don't know all the ways to come unto him, but I do know what it means to be tired, and heavy laden and to labor.  The Lord can pick up the slack.  Just do what you can do, and don't stress about the things you can't.

We love you so much!  You are a miracle and a joy to have.  If we could clone you, we would.  But then President Murphy wouldn't have anything to do and we don't want that :-)

Know that you are in my prayers.
Love,
Hna. Murphy

So yes, I cried a little more.

And sorry, Mama, about Interlochen, but what good news about your new, fun calling!  Know that I am so excited to play viola with you for the few days I'll be home.  I'm seriously so excited for good music again.  Really, people here are so tone deaf, and sometimes I just miss being able to sit in a sacrament meeting and hear everybody singing different parts and a strong melody.  And to play good music with you.  I know it's sad that all those years of practice and lessons sometimes seem like they add up to nothing since we don't have music careers, but I will be forever grateful for the skill of being able to play viola and play it pretty dang well.

I'm so happy that the house sold finally.
And yes, I would love to go back to State College and say goodbye one last time and have Jess do my hair.
And I always knew my purple room was a winner.  Glad the new owners are going to keep it that color :-)

I love you guys a lot.  I miss you all so much, and I pray for you all every day.  Sometimes I forget specific things and then I feel bad, but I know that you all don't mind.  But I love you all so much, and I can't wait too see you in only ten weeks!  Yes, I will admit, I am very, VERY excited to see you all!

Thanks to everyone who writes me.  Everything and anything you write means something to me, because it means that someone back home loves me.  That's all I need.

Okay, I love you.  Have a wonderful week!
Love,
Hermana Kennedy

Hermana Kennedy and the Beard Hive

Hi family! Here's my letter to President this week:

Buenas tardes, President Murphy,

We currently have Alejandro with a baptismal date.  He's ready for his interview this Saturday, and the family finally talked to his dad about permission.  It didn't go very well at first, because they waited so long to talk to him about it, and he felt like they were doing it behind his back.  But Jennifer (Alejandro's mom) said that now he's okay with it, but he just didn't like that they had waited so long.  They're a good family, but his dad is a little hard, so we are hoping that Alejandro's baptism can soften his heart a little bit.

Melany is doing well after her baptism last week, and we are getting ready to teach her the lessons again.  This week, we focused on the importance of the Spirit in her life.  Her family is also doing well.

We were able to set a tentative marriage date with José and Diana for June 18.  José wants to get married on the 18th because it's the date when he first met her.  They're really great, and we are planning on setting a baptismal date with him this week, but first we need to explain the Great Apostasy. He still doesn't understand completely that there is only one true church, and he is holding on a little to some Catholic traditions, so we are going to work on that with him.

The hermanas here in Campo are doing well. We  had an activity with them today so we could get to know one another, and it was great!  We had a lot of fun, and I'm really excited too see how the hermanas can become more united during this transfer.

Thank you for your hard work and your example.  We will see you on Wednesday.
Hermana Kennedy

So, today for the first time, I went to the Cascada de Peguche.  It's a pretty big tourist waterfall, and it was awesome!  Seriously, there was water blowing everywhere, and I got soaking wet, but it was super awesome!  And I always feel so legit hiking through the Ecuadorian jungle to get to these waterfalls.  We went with three companionships of hermanas that are also here in Campo, because I really want the hermanas to be more united since we are kind of spread out.  I think it was a hit!  We had two new trainers there, and for their first P-day, it was pretty dope. And we saw some llamas, so even better.  I love the hermanas here, and I just want them to make the most of their missions, and work hard, and have fun at the same time, and so I was glad that everyone liked it.

So, like I told you last week, I started taking antibiotics for the never-ending cold I've had for forever.  Well, being me, I actually read the warnings and everything which are included in the packet since I've never taken it before.  Three days in, I rubbed behind my left ear to find a very large rash back there.  It didn't itch or anything, but it was there, and I read that it is, in fact, a possible allergic reaction to the antibiotics so I stopped taking them.  The next day, the rash had spread a little to my other ear, and along my right jawline.  The next day, I had a rash on my arm.  Thankfully, it's not colored and doesn't itch, but I felt very funny looking, especially on my jaw.  It felt like a serious hermana beard, and since hermanas aren't allowed to sport beards on missions, I was sure I was breaking a rule ;-). But I'm okay, and there weren't any other side effects.  But I actually do feel much better.  Like, my nose hasn't felt this good for a while so maybe it was worth it.  And I guess I actually have an allergy!  Who knew?

And don't worry about me vomiting again.  Unfortunately, some occasional vomiting and/or diarrhea is very normal in our mission because people aren't very sanitary.  I wonder if it might have been a bit of reflux also because I had a passion fruit and banana smoothie followed by an orange, so I think it was really my own fault.  I just need to be more careful.  It just means I'm losing a little bit of weight ;-)  And I had to laugh through the irony of my companion bemoaning a pimple on the side of her face while I was vomiting through the night....

I know now what the brothers and Daddy have been talking about for years.  How they said missions are basically two-year guilt trips?  And how Daddy said he felt no guilt falling asleep on the airplane on his way home from Argentina because he knew he had worked his butt off on his mission?  Sometimes, mission life just weighs on me a little.  There's so much pressure to be better and find more people and be a better disciple of Christ and love everyone and think about everyone else first.  I just always feel like a loser and that I'm not doing enough, and that I'll never live up to expectations and that I just generally suck.  Honestly, I just wanted to stay in my pajamas today.  We went to the activity today, and it was so much fun, and I got back soaking wet, and I took a hot shower, and I got in my pajamas and read my emails....and it was so hard to put a skirt back on and head back out.  I'm just tired, you know?

I'm happy though that for these next six weeks, I have friends here.  Honestly, last transfer, I felt a little bit alone because all my friends were in Quito, but now I have a lot of friends here, and I'm really grateful.

Please say a prayer for Christian Arias, Alejandro's dad.  We really want this to be okay for him.

I love you guys a lot.  Have a great week.
Hermana Kennedy

Hermana Kennedy and the H.H. Kennedy

We never know what we're going to get when Johannah sends an email.  Sometimes a certain letter on the keyboard doesn't work, but usually the space bar gives her trouble.  Because of this, I transcribe every email.  I think the one from this week takes the cake.  Here's a sample sentence with her describing her traditional dress: 

Okay,so Im n the traditionaclothing. It doesnt look very gopod at the baptism,but I hadmoretimefor church the next day to put it allon,and stuff,sodont worry. Hermana Carresskirtpartis acheat,becauseitssewn likeaskirt,but mine is the real deal,and it wasmuch better on Sunday. The picsoutsideareof some of our investigatorssince Hna Carre wasleaving, and the lastone with the guy is our mission leader. All the mmeberstoldus how ebautifulwelooked. Even an hermano cameup, and said, Hermanas, Im sorry to say ythis, but you boith look very beautiful :-)  Hes an older,marriedhermano, mso wearent worried.

:-)

Hi family!  Here's my letter to President Murphy:

Hi President Murphy,

Melany was baptized this past Saturday!  We are so happy for her and her family! They were so excited for her, and we were really grateful for the ward's support.  I love seeing how the Gospel blesses families and helps them truly understand that families are eternal.  I loved seeing the difference in her and her family throughout the conversion process, and it was especially wonderful to see her bearing her testimony after she was baptized.  This Gospel is true, and I know that it can bless every family.

We are still working with Alejandro.  His date is for the 2nd of June, and he's excited.  He knows the the church is true, and he wants to be baptized.  Really, the family situation is sad.  His mom told us about her life a little this past week.  She married her husband because he promised her mom that he would always support her going to church (even though he wasn't a member).  Then, for years, he wouldn't let her go.  There was a time when she actually went inactive because she was so tired of the fighting, until one day she got up and got ready to go to church.  He stood in the doorway and said, "You aren't going to church and taking my son and leaving me here alone."  And she said, "I don't care," and she went.  And he's never stopped her since.  They need to talk to him about the baptismal date.  That's the only struggle right now.  They keep saying that they're going to, but we don't want this to cause more problems.  The mom has seen his heart soften over time, so she told us yesterday that she would ask him.  I love that family, and I really hope that this can be what they need to become an eternal family as well.

We are heading to La Family Remache tonight to talk to them about going to church in Ibarra.  We are just going to tell them that they can attend there, and we will visit them on Sunday to find out if they went.  We tried to visit them this week, but they got back late at night because the mom's dad is currently struggling with cancer, but she says that she will be home tonight.

Thank you for you example and hard work.  Have a great week,
Hermana Kennedy

Well, Hermana Carré left.  I sent her to Quito on a bus yesterday.  I miss her, but that just means that I loved her, so it's okay.  Everyone needs to serve her time.  I'm now with Hermana Vigo.  She's from Lima, Pera, and she is serving her last six weeks on the mission.  Yep, I will be helping ANOTHER hermana finish her mission.  Yesterday, on the phone call, Ethan asked if we have terms here like "killing companions" and stuff, like when we are their last companions, and we do but we aren't supposed to use those terms.  However, I have now "killed" three hermanas, and it's the worst.  They pack and talk about how little time they have left, and then they head off to freedom.  Ugh, but it's fine.

Too, it was AWESOME talking to you guys yesterday.  Seriously, I'm ready to take on the next three months now!  I just love you guys, and I'm so excited to hang out and talk ALLLLLL the time.  Best moment of my week.

Also, we now have five companionships to serve.  One is in San Pablo, so I get to go back to my old house for interviews and everything!  This transfer is going to be great because we are going to do all sorts of stuff with the hermanas.  And make shirts.  I'm pumped.  It's gonna be great.

That's about it to report this week.  Sorry it was all packing and cleaning and stuff. I love you guys, and I started antibiotics :-)

Love,
Hermana Kennedy

Hermana Kennedy and the Beginning of the End

Hi President Murphy,

Melany Saransig passed her baptismal interview!  She will be baptized this Saturday at 7 p.m.  We are so happy for her.  It was so sweet this week, because we were teaching about temples, and she says, "I remember the temple."  She told us all that she remembers about her family's sealing, and it was so sweet.  She remembers her parents dressed all in white, and how they went into the sealing room together.  I love that she will be able to share that with people for the rest of her life, and hopefully her baptism will mean as much too.  That family is so wonderful, and we have loved seeing the change in them from when we first met them until now.  They're full of light and happiness, and we just love them.

We were also able to set a baptismal date for June 2nd with Alejandro Arias.  His mom is the Primary President in Latino, and he too has changed a lot from when we first showed up.  He told us that he wasn't sure he really believed in God and that he only went to church because his mom made him go, but we had an interesting experience yesterday.  We went to Otavalo yesterday, so we verified in a lesson with him if he went to church, and he told us "no".  We asked why, and very guiltily, he told us that he went fishing with his dad.  When we asked him how he felt, he said he felt really bad about it, because he knows that he should have gone to church, but that his dad had never taken him fishing before. But we asked what he would do next time, and he said that he would got to church, because he didn't want to feel badly again. He's a little nervous to talk to his dad about his baptismal date, because his dad is a little hard.  We taught the Plan of Salvation yesterday, and when we reached the celestial kingdom, without any prompting, he said that he wanted his dad to be there with him, his mom, and his little brother.  Even though he's only nine, he recognizes the importance of eternal families, so we said that he could tell his dad that when he talks to him about his date.  He's such a good, obedient kid, and we know that everything will happen in God's time, but in the meantime, we are praying a lot that his dad's heart will be softened toward his son.

This week, we have plans to set a marriage goal with José and Diana.  Diana is a member, and she's reactivating herself, and she brings José to church with her.  She wants to get married, because she knows about the law of chastity, and he wants to get married because he loves her, so this week we are going to set a baptismal date for the end of June, or the beginning of July.  José's main concern is the money, but we are going to talk to them about it and figure out something.  They are such good parents for their daughter, and they share the responsibility, and we know that marriage will help them so much.

I love Otavalo.  I love being back here.  We do worry a little about the hermanas in Campo, because we just aren't super unified, but we have some plans for this week, and I have plans for how we can have better unity in the coming transfer.

Thank you for all of your hard work, and thank you for allowing me to come back to Otavalo.  I'll see you this Wednesday!

Have a wonderful week,
Hermana Kennedy

Okay, so you know what, having a keyboard that actually works makes such a huge difference in writing emails.  Seriously, I wrote all of that in like seven minutes!  I'm sure if I typed like a normal person, it would be even faster, but I'm afraid that like my father of old, I'm a keyboard pecker.  What can I say?  I am my father's daughter :-)

It was week five this week.  I always get sad in week five, just because it always seems so long, but I'm good now.  I'm happy, healthy (getting over a cold) and getting FAT because we only got to run once this whole week.  I feel so gross. Seriously, we had so many meetings and interviews and everything, so our mornings were filled.  I'm praying so hard that I get a new companion who will also go out running with me.  And someone who works hard.  And someone happy.  Could you pray for me too?  Because they'll probably be my last companion, so I really want a good one.  And so begins the end.

I said goodbye to Hermana Giles for the last time this past Tuesday.  Next time I see her, I'll be me, and she will be her, and we won't be hermanas anymore.  We had consejo de liderazgo together, and I was fine.  I was like, Okay, it's okay.  You'll be fine.  And then she got up to give her final testimony, and it was all I could do to not cry.  And then after the meeting finished, I went up and hugged her, and just cried.  I didn't feel any shame even though all these people were there.  I just cried because I love her so much.  How lucky am I?

She and Hermana Carré go home in eight days, and then I enter my last twelve weeks.  That's a big step, and it's crazy to think back to when I first met Hermana Giles.  I had a month and half as a missionary (and only in the CCM), and she had just hit four months, and now look where we are.

I love this country.  I love the people and the culture and the food and everything.  It's a good place, and I feel like my mission has just been so interesting, and to think that I have three more months to make the very most of it!

We had a cute experience this last week with an investigator.  Her name is Rita, and we visit her and her partner, Alex.  They aren't married.  Rita is such a sweet person.  She has had a horribly difficult life, but within her, there is this great desire to show people love and there isn't a selfish bone in her body.  She actually spent part of her childhood in a convent.  Anyway, last week she told us that she wanted to make us breakfast.  It's not often that we get offers like that so we said okay.  We showed up bright and early at 8 a.m. at her house, and she gives us this beautiful breakfast--bread with cheese and a hard boiled egg, herbal tea, homemade juice, and my favorite, a fruit salad.  It seems so insignificant, but as missionaries we aren't often showed random kindness like that, and it just meant so much to me.  People here have so little to give, and yet they give everything.  They're so selfless here.  Kids are taught to share and to take care of each other, and people give so willingly of what little they do have.  It just touches my heart, ya know?  I wish I could be more like them.

I love you guys. Pray for me.  I really want to finish my mission in a good way, working hard until the last minute.

I love you all soooooo much, and I"ll see you THIS SUNDAY!!!!!

Love,
Hermana Kennedy

Hermana Kennedy and It's a New CAR-eer

Hi family, friends, enemies, animals, and aliens,

Well, here's my letter to President Murphy:

Buenas tardes, President Murphy,

Another good week here in Otavalo.  I'm not actually sure that it's possible to have a bad week here, because I just love this place so much.  For a lot of my mission, I have felt like I just didn't get to finish my Otavalo time because of my ankle, and I always wanted to come back, so I am SO grateful to be back here.  I just love the people, and even though the work is still hard and sad sometimes, I just love it here, so it's okay.

That being said, the baptismal date we set with Jonathan and Christian fell through because they didn't come to church yesterday.  We don't really know why, because we explained directly to them that in order to be baptized, they had to come yesterday.  We aren't going to set another date with them until they start coming to church.  We want them to realize that going to church isn't just until their baptism either, but that it's something they need to do every single week.  We think that maybe their mom isn't as supportive of them as we thought.  Yes, she says she wants them to be baptized, but she refuses to come to church despite everything that we explained last week, and we think that maybe on Sunday morning she makes her sons feel guilty for not going to Ibarra to help her, and so they choose their mom.  I appreciate their loyalty, but it's just a little frustrating, because we feel like if she were really supportive of their decision, she would be encouraging them to go to church and come to Ibarra after church.  This week, we are really going to focus on why we go to church:  not so that we can be baptized, or so that we can come closer to God, but that it's really all about the sacrament.  We want to focus in on the importance of the Atonement in their lives, and why they need to come to church.  Maybe that'll help.

Melany Saransig is set to have her interview this Saturday.  It's really wonderful to see the difference in her family now than when we first went to visit them.  I felt a little uncomfortable because they seemed uncomfortable, and now we start out every lesson with a hymn, a prayer, and the lesson, and they are coming to church each week, and there is a happiness and a light in their home that wasn't there before.  We are so excited to see how the Gospel is helping their life again.  Melany will be baptized the 12th of May.

Christopher's date also fell through because it freaked him out a bit.  We scheduled an appointment after the one where we set the date, we called him to confirm the appointment, but he told us that the church wasn't for him.  We freaked out a bit, but we asked if we could meet with him and talk to him about it, and so we are going to focus in first on his role as a child of God.  He told us that he supposes that God exists, but he hasn't ever had a spiritual experience or felt that he is important to God, and we think that that's maybe why the baptismal date scared him.  He doesn't have a testimony of God or see why he would matter to God, so being baptized seemed like a lot.  However, he's okay meeting with us, and we just need to help him feel the Spirit in his life.

We are working a lot with referrals right now.  We have a couple of people with whom we are planning on setting dates this week, and all are referrals from members.  Many of them are kids, but they have good support systems seeing as the majority of their parents are active members of the church and have attended church their whole life.  But for some weird reason, they aren't baptized ;-)

We had two exchanges this week, and they were good.  We have good hermanas here in Campo, and I'm proud of the work they are doing.  Each one has something different to offer, and we are grateful to be working with them.  We are working on calling them more throughout the week and sending them messages and everything so that they know that we are thinking about them.  We aren't perfect hermana leaders, but we are working on being better and asking new plans each week to help the hermanas here.  We have two Moronitas planned for this week with the central hermanas, as well as the Imbaya hermanas.

Thank you for all of the opportunities you have given me on my mission.  Thank you for your counsel and your hard work.  We appreciate all that you and Hermana Murphy do.

Have a wonderful week,
Hermana Kennedy

Okie dokie lokie.  We are coming up on Hermana Carré's last two weeks!  Super crazy, right?  We are in Quito right now, because she has her final English certification exam tonight, and we have mission council tomorrow, so we headed to a shopping center and bought good food to celebrate.  I like this companionship because it's just very chill.  She goes out running with me in the morning, and we laugh a lot which is always good.  I'll miss her when she leaves. I don't really like that I've had a different companion for the last three transfers.  If they were bad companions, then yeah, that's fine ;-), but they're good companions, so it's kind of sad.

So Mother's Day.  We still haven't heard anything from President Murphy about times or anything, and since Hermana Carré has to go to Quito on Mother's Day, we aren't sure if we are going to be calling Saturday or Sunday, but hopefully we will know soon.

So I went and had the traditional clothing made for me this week, because it costs the same as just buying it, and it actually fits me.  However, the skirt part (the anaco) is a bit of a puzzle, and most women have been doing it since they were seven, so I have some catching up to do on putting it on, because it is a bit elaborate.  But I had an hermana show me while I was doing it myself, and I've been practicing every morning, and I've almost got it!  The front turns out really good now--it's just getting the back that I mess up.  By the time I get home, Imma be a master!

We were heading back from church yesterday when we saw all of these people dressed all fancy, and a few younger looking people had those triangle things on that normally go over graduation robes (hoods?), so we thought, Oh, it must be a high school graduation or something.  Made sense, right?  But then I looked a little closer at the hood and saw written, Escuela de Conduccion.  Yep, they had graduated from driving school!  They had a whole graduation ceremony and everything.  I wanted to walk in and be like, So, I already know how to drive, so can I get one of those fancy hoods too?  Driving isn't super big here in South American unless you're actually planning on making a career as a taxi or truck driver, so very few people can drive.  It's just funny sometimes seeing the difference between countries.

Also, yesterday as we were getting ready for church, we heard a giant BOOM outside, like a firework.  You need to understand that we seriously live right on the Plaza de Ponchos which is the main thing here in Otavalo.  We also live among the indigenous people.  They speak Quichua, and when when men speak in Quichua to each other, they say "Waiki" which means "brother".  However, it's a different word from man to woman, and woman to woman.  Anyways, among the mission, any indigenous man with a braid is known as Waiki even though as women, we could never say that to them.  Anyways, we look out the window, and see two older Waiki doing something that looks very dangerous.  In other words, it's something Daddy would do.  I'm definitely starting to understand why Daddy belongs to the tribe of Manasseh ;-). They have homemade fireworks, and they stick them in a beer bottle, light them up, and the rocket goes shooting sideways.  Not up, but sideways.  There isn't any fire or anything, but I'm thinking, what is going to happen if that hits anyone?  After a little while, they took a rest and went down another street.  Who knows what happened next?

I had what was probably the sweetest moment yet of my mission this week.  So again, Quichua is big here, and I really want to learn it.  Honestly, when people speak, it sounds like Chinese.  It's crazy and very complicated, but I'm working on learning it.  Anyways, we had lunch on Thursday with a very indigenous family, and I hate when we go in, and they start speaking Quichua, so I try to keep asking questions so that they can't start talking about us.  But I asked them if they knew any songs in Quichua.  I didn't know if maybe they had folk songs, or lullabies, or something, but after we finished eating, the Hermana Valentina heads into another room, and I thought, "Okay, well we will leave then," (because everyone else had already left the table), when she comes back holding a book.  Otavalo ward used to be conducted strictly in Quichua, because that's all that anybody understood, but the Church has been transitioning the Quichua wards here into Spanish, because that's what the majority of people here speak.  However, it meant that a few Quichua hymnals were printed for the members.  They are few and far between, and I've only ever seen two, but Hermana Valentina came back holding one.  She sat down close to me, opened the book and said, "Let's sing, Hermana."  I sat there and sang hymns in Quichua with her for about twenty minutes.  I thought that she just wanted to sing one, but she just kept turning the page.  I would look at the notes and figure out the melody, and then we would restart together, singing in Quichua.  It was so beautiful.  I understood like one word out of it all, and I messed up the pronunciation in a few places, but music really is a universal language.  It doesn't matter if you speak or understand the language or not, because you can still feel the Spirit.  Sitting there, singing with a little old lady in her native language singing about the Savior?  How could you NOT feel the Spirit?  And other family members felt it too.  One was cleaning up the table, and she would pick things up really quietly or push the chairs in really softly, because it was just a sweet moment.  And of all things, Hermana Valentina has a beautiful voice.  Sometimes, as missionaries, we focus so much on investigators and converts, but members need those spiritual moments too.  They need to feel their Savior's love and that's why I love having lunch with members.  Yes, sometimes they give us interesting food, or it's hard to make conversation, but I love being able to share moments with them. And Hermana Valentina said that she would let us borrow her hymnal sometime and make copies, but only if we promise to return it.  I feel a little scared even having it leave her house because to me, it's so precious, but I'll have to ask her this week.

I love music.  I love being able to contribute something in that way, because music isn't really a big thing here, but people love it.

I really love being a missionary.  Yes, I'm not constantly exhausted, and it's sad when people decide that they don't want the Gospel in their lives, but there are those moments that just make it all worth while.  It's a beautiful work, and I wouldn't be here if the church weren't true.  Always pray to know if the church is true, if nothing else then to strengthen our testimony of it.  Read The Book of Mormon.  It teaches us more about the Atonement and the divine gift of God in sending his beloved son here to earth.

I love you all.  Give Hootie a big huge for me.  I miss that fat cat.  I have a picture of him in my agenda, and I show it to anyone who says that they love cats too :-). Have a fantastic week!

Love,
Hermana Kennedy