Alright, update.

First off, I'm learning a lot about myself and how I need to change. It's easy to focus on myself when I can`t really talk to anyone and I am trying so hard to be obedient and learn and all that. But, there's a catch! It makes me selfish! Good heavens, I had no idea! It was something of a crushing blow to realize that about myself! But, that's a new goal to work on. `Love thy neighbor`. Love is powerful and if I think of others first instead of `Me me me`, it will be much much better.

Besides that, it has been a much better week. I know it`s tough and sometimes I dream about the time when I can return to carpets and warm showers, clean streets...but that`s not important. I have my whole life to live like that. It`s a priviledge. Now is my time to give, completely to the Lord and his people. It is worth it.

I`m able to share more. My companera is very good about giving me opportunities to talk in lessons and I am trying to open up more with small talk. A work in progress, both in English and Spanish.

Funny story of the week: My companera and I were in this woman`s house, sharing a message. There were a couple of baby chicks running around near our feet and they suddenly just hopped onto her leg. She didn`t bother to shoo them off but left them there as we shared the message. I was dying! I tried so hard to keep my focus and not to laugh, but everytime I looked at the chicks I had to stifle down the laughter.

The people:

Yeimi was baptized this Wednesday. It was so wonderful. I love baptisms for the strong tender feelings of the Spirit. It fills the room. And, for me, it reminds me so much of my own baptism. I am grateful every day for how it has changed my life. I would not be here among these great people without it. Eddy, our investigator with a baptism date no longer has a date. He desperately wants to be baptized but he has a problem with drinking. A prerequisite to baptism is no more consumption of alcohol. We found him obviously drunk the other day. We want so badly to help, but we could not teach him at that point because he would not have been receptive to anything we said. We have an idea to help him though. Another recent convert had been a bolo (drunk) and the gospel has drastically changed his life, so we want him to share his testimony with Eddy. Also, we shared a lesson with this one family where the wife is a less active member. It was a very powerful message and I know that at least the wife felt the Spirit. Their son Donny is potentially interested in learning more, but the father is not incredibly interested. We`ll see what happens. We have another family, Irma Geronimo, that I like very much. She seems interested, but hasn`t gotten permission from her husband to go to church. Poco a poco.

I like it here. My companion and I are getting eaten alive by something at nights and we`re not sure what else to do. We`ll figure something out though. I have to get going, but I just want to say it was great getting to talk to mi familia yesterday! Thanks guys for your support! I love you all for infinity and beyond.

Hermana E. Schultz