What will be my fate?‏

Well, we weren´t affected by changes. It was the most calm experience when we got the phone call informing us if we would have them or not, because we knew that with this new training program that we would stay together, but you can never know for sure! Now, however, I´m just a little bit conscious of how I will end my mission. This will be my fourth change in the area, and that training program will be ending, and Hermana Garcia is my third companion in this area. Ugh... we´ll see. It would be a little bit sad having to end in a different area where I would only be for 6 weeks.

We´ve been meeting some really interesting people who have shown good interest, but church attendance is always the true test, but we´re hopeful for this coming Sunday.

Have I mentioned how amazing people can be sometimes? We truly know amazing people in our branch. They are just so humble and always willing to do anything that is asked of them. For example, we are working with the mom of Jorge and Mario, Mercedes... she wants to get baptized, but is having a hard time giving up coffee. This morning we called her to talk to her about possibly getting a blessing of strength and assurance and she said that it sounded good, we called our branch president at 7 a.m. and said that he could be at her house within 20 minutes. That is just one example of many. It´s just such a relief to see those tender mercies of the Lord shown through humble people to make up for all of the disappointment and ridiculous things that one can deal with in a day.

Oh yeah... the other week, I got real, real sick with vomits and diarhea, but all is well now!! The Priesthood is truly the power of God held by worthy men of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Heavenly Father requires that we have faith... at times, that´s all He asks. As humans, we are so weak and can be very hard-headed, but He loves us and treats us with MUCH patience.

Don´t worry, I still haven´t gotten this whole emailing once a week thing down... I still sit down and draw a blank about what I should write about. Sorry. Oh and... I haven´t written in my journal since September... there is no time anymore! I feel terrible about it and know I will regret it (and already do), but I just don´t know how the time passed so quickly or how I got so far behind!!!

Hermana Garcia is doing great. She is honestly a hilarious fireball and I love her to death. She is so good at being straight up with people and getting to the point. At times, I can see that I am actually helping her with some things, but so often I find that I am the one that needs and is learning from her.

Hope all is well. As the mission goes on, my prayers get longer and longer, because I always try to pray for you all at home, for the mission leaders, for the people in my area, the people in my old areas, forgiveness, thanks for all the miracles and blessings that God gives, etc... And I just keep on getting to know more and more people and making more and more mistakes! So... I can´t imagine how long my prayers will be in about 50 years... and to think that Grandpa George always prayed for each and every one of his kids and grandkids, etc. I love that man.

Know that you are all in my prayers. Con mucho amor,
Hermana Marin

George got baptized!!‏

Well... Jorge and Mario got baptized. They´re brothers and we are currently working with their mom and sister, too. In the picture: Jorge is the one to the left of his mom, Mercedes (the woman in the bright pink shirt), and Mario to the right. The girl between me and Hermana Garcia is their sister, Ingrid. They are an amazing family. We are just praying lots for the dad/husband, because he isn´t so keen on changing his habits or life.

I have learned so much from Jorge in these past 2-ish months of knowing him. He´s 17 and has made so many changes. He was going to get baptized 2 weeks ago with Domingo, but had to wait because of some worthiness issues, but he made lots of sacrifices and has been so strong. A few days before the baptism, we were checking up on how he was doing with his goals and he was just beaming with joy the whole time. He has been working since he was 14 years old, repairing cars, so wasn´t going to school. Today he starts he studies. He talks about wanting to go on a mission. And lots of good stuff... I love seeing people change their lives and being HAPPY about it.

Have you noticed the same guy in all of the baptism pictures from San Pedro, and always in white... yeah, that´s Rafael. He´s our branch mission leader and is a rockstar. He basically does a ton. He is the one that introduced us to Jorge, who then introduced us to Mario, and the rest of the family a little bit afterward. Have I mentioned how essential the members are in the work of the Lord?

Can I also just mention how incredibly appreciative I am to know that the priesthood, the power of God, is here on the earth, held by worthy, faithful men? Miracles exist, but we must have the faith necessary. We are so incredibly fortunate to have an incredibly loving and merciful Heavenly Father whose goal is to bless us, comfort us, and help us return to Him.

All my love,
Hermana Marin

Mas....‏ (January 10, 2012) 2 of 2

211 - Guatemalans go ALL OUT when it comes to Nativities. Seriously. It´s huge here. Almost every house has something more-or-less extravagant like this. Awesome, huh?
246 - Domingo´s baptism!! Not as many people could attend, because it was New Years and there were NO buses (have I mentioned that no one has a car in our area?). It was very peaceful and fun.
202 - Yep... that´s our branch president trying to give me bunny ears. And yes... I adore my area.

FOTOS!!!‏ (January 10, 2012) 1 of 2

165 - Just notice on which steps each of us are standing.. have I mentioned how much of a tiny, fireball she is?
173 - From the big, Christmas activity that we had on the 22 of December. There were acts and dances and all sorts of good stuff! I love how much everyone participates in my area.
189 - Relief Society dance!
197 - This picture doesn´t show at all how many people actually showed up. After I took this picture, TONS kept on rollin in. It was fantastic and packed.
203 - Relief Society again, but in the typical Corte skirts from here.
210 - December 24th! I hate looking even more like a giant next to my comp sometimes... but all´s well :)

Happy New Year!!‏ (January 3, 2012)

Well... we celebrated and started off the new year with a baptism... Jose Domingo... and for those who don´t know, Domingo means Sunday in Spanish :) Domingo got baptized on Domingo to start his year off as clean and new as you can get! He is incredible. The day of his baptism he got up at 5 in the morning, along with 6 other Priesthood holders from the branch, to dig the hole in the cemetary for a son of a member who dies on Saturday. I´ll send pictures in the future. The baptism was great. Because of lack of transportation and other conflicts, not many were able to attend, but it was peaceful and beautiful. Domingo started going to church because of his friend of Jeronimo (that got baptized in October)... and just strengthens my testimony even more of how essential the members are in this work.

Have I mentioned how different life is here in Guate? There are so many Catholic practices and customs that are mixed into the culture that sometimes it is hard to decide if it is something Catholic or something Central American... and if it is or isn´t against Church doctrine... especially when it comes to deaths and funerals. We had to deal with a few doubts and attacks by members and non-members this past weekend that didn´t make it the funnest. We did the best we could to explain and calm everyone down that we ran in with. Life is interesting in a tiny, Catholic pueblito in Guatemala :)

We met a great family the other day. The dad is around 27 years old, the "mom" (who isn´t the real mom, but the woman of the dad) is 16, and the three children are 11, 11 (twin girls), and 12. It was interesting. The parents could not keep their hands to themselves while we were teaching... it was funny, awkward, and ridiculous all at the same time. We´ll see how it goes in future lessons.

We were going to watch the fireworks on the roof again, but the family in whose house we live got home late, so we couldn´t... we had to climb onto the pila to try to get a better view... but it didn´t work out too well :) But hey... it was my last firework show here in Guate... I couldn´t just sleep through it :(

Hope everyone is doing great and that you enjoyed your celebrations of a brand new year!

Love,
Hermana Marin