Monday, March 30, 2015

A Little Email

Dear Family, Friends, and...the rest: 

Hah. Just kidding. You`re all my friends, and like family to me! Especially those who are family. 

Yeah, just a little example of when Hermana Cannon thinks she`s funny. We`ll just say I`m tired. 

Speaking of sleeping, I can`t believe I totally forgot to tell you all! At least...I think I did. Every time I got on to email, I forgot, and now... well anyway. As of many-a-month ago, President Goates changed the mission schedule, due to the fact that everyone was asleep from 1 in the afternoon to about 5 or 6. So basically, we got a SIESTA!!! That`s right ladies and gentlemen, at 2:30 after lunch, for one hour, the missionaries here in Mendoza Argentina were given a mandatory siesta! And then we were allowed to stay out until 10 at night instead of 9, to be able to meet with more people. Here in Argentina, even the little kids are up at night till about 11 or 12 even. Crazy right? So basically, that happened. And sometimes it was a little hard to get to sleep at that hour, but it`s been really nice, and very effective. 

However, now that the weather is a little colder, the siesta isn`t as forever long, and in April we go back to the normal schedule. So, glad I got the news out just before it`s irrelevant again. Surprize! 

This week we were able to meet with Edelmira finally! We went with the branch president`s daughter, Celeste, who`s leaving for her mission in Peru in July. After a few minutes of talking, we found out that Edelmira hadn`t talked to her partner Daniel, and they`re still living together. So that was sad to find out. We shared Doctrine and Covenants 20:37 which shares the requirements of baptism, and talked a lot about repentance, and the importance of repenting fully before being baptized, in order for it to have more meaning, and to really prepare for a new life. We re-explained the Law of Chastity, so that it was even more clear for her. We came to a point in the lesson where she finally asked, "So, if I want to be baptized, what do I have to do? Or, what`s the next step?" Golden! You know things are going well when Investigators ask questions like that. Answer? We`ve been explaining that all along! Keep the commandments. Read your scriptures. Pray. Talk to your partner, and keep the law of chastity. 

And, I think she was a little disapointed to hear that. Which, to me, made sense. I do the same thing. A lot of times I ask, what can I do now? What`s the secret to feel the spirit more? To be more like Christ? To be a better missionary? Hoping, that maybe this time I`ll find some secret ingredient in the Book of Mormon, something I missed before. But that`s just it. Like Kung Fu Panda, (You had da noodle dweam?) the secret ingredient is what you already have. The answers are always what you learned in primary. Not because they`re easy. But because they`re true. There`s strength in reading scriptures every day. There`s power in praying with real intent. There`s refuge in repentance.  And there`s spiritual enlightenment in the chapel every week. They`re simple, sometimes hard, and they often seem repetative, but I know the little things, always the little things, are the most necessary, the most strengthening, and the most true things we can be doing to be a better missionary, person, mom, brother, student, disciple of Jesus Christ. 

Love you all! Have a great week, one and all! And don`t forget the little things! 

Hermana Cannon

ps. The pictures! We set a goal with a less active family that if they read they`re scriptures and prayed every day for a month, I would make them cookies. They did it! Wahoo! Then there`s the Zone conference, and intercambios with Hermana Dutra, our Brasilian Sister Training leader. We`ve been in the same district my whole mission, so that`s been fun. She`s the best. 



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Monday, March 23, 2015

Hna Cannon`s Failed Attempt at Email Title

Dear Fam: 

Hey! It`s another one of those, Suddenly everything that happened this week just flew away, much less became translated from Spanish to English. :) Asi que, bueno. 

Well this week one of our investigators had a futbol game (as in, the game that you play with your fut. ...soccer. It was soccer.) So there`s a picture of us with her just before the game. Celina, is who it is. She`s really great. Because of the game, and preparing for it, we weren`t able to teach the lesson we had planned for this week. But we did go over for lunch, and we were able to talk with Sergio, her husband...who isn`t her husband since they`re not married. Speaking of the lesson we were planning on giving this week... But anyway, it was really great because we`ve been focusing a lot lately on trying not to just teach moms and kids without the dad being involved, and the importance of finding and teaching future priesthood holders. Sergio however, doesn`t show much interest right now in participating in the lessons. He believes in God, but doesn`t like the idea of religion. So, while eating the deliciously succulent asado, we casually brought up the subject with him, and were able to have a great discussion about his family, his work, and his beliefs. We`re really hoping his heart will be softened so that we can teach the whole family, (He, She, and I guess their three year old son Lucas too. :) ) so any prayers in that regard would be appreciated. 

Hmmm... I guess I really don`t have a whole lot more to tell for this week. We found lots of new investigators, so that`s been great, and we`re excited to see their progression. One new investigator in particular, Maria Castillo, we`ve been trying to meet with for quite a while. Finally yesterday we were able to sit down with her and teach the first lesson. Turns out not only had she looked at the pamphlet we had given her, but she had been reading parts of it out loud to her family. She said her kids started calling us, "las chicas de los libritos", or, "the girls with the little books." Darling. 

The lesson with her went really well. She had lots of questions, and understood everything very well. The best part was at the end when she offered the prayer. It`s pretty hard to get the investigators to pray in the first lesson, but it`s also very helpful and important that they do so, and become comfortable with talking to their heavenly father. After her beautiful and sincere prayer, she says, "No sè como saliò, pero sentì algo." or, "I don`t know how it turned out, but I felt something." I think that`s my favorite part of missionary work, hearing the investigators pray to their father in heaven for the first time. Truly special. 

Oh! And speaking of prayers, Celina also prayed for the first time this week! It was also very sincere, and very sweet, and a big step for her. She was really nervous, it was sweet. 

Well, I guess that`s about it for this week. Thanks so much for the prayers, and support. I love you all and hope you have a great week! 

Hermana Cannon




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Monday, March 9, 2015

Con Amor, La de Argentina

Hola mis queridos! 

What to tell, what to tell. Firstly, yes it is traslado time! And secondly, SURPRISE! We`re staying right where we are! Kind of a given, so we can finish another traslado of training, but with President Goates, we never know what`s going to happen when changes come. Anyway, here`s to another few months en la cordillera! 

First of all, this week we met with Edelmira again. Thank you so much for your prayers! She was feeling loads better this week. She came out with a smile, and hugged us all (we went with a member), it was great. And she told us that she had been reading the Book of Mormon again! Wahoo! So the thing with Edelmira is that she has a few obstacles in her progression. Firstly, she isn`t married and living with someone, and she works on Sundays. During companion and personal study, Hermana Cortès and I spent a lot of time thinking about what we could teach and how we could help her. And we decided, with a little help from above, that we know what she needs. She needs to keep the law of chastity, and guardar el dia de reposo. (haha I don`t remember how to say that in english.  Keep the law of day of rest? haha Awkward.) So in our lesson on teusday we taught the 10 commandments, focusing on those two things. I`ve never been one to be direct with the investigators. I always get scared they`ll get mad or something. But it went really well, and it was exactly what she needed. In all reality, God has blessings in store for her, if only she can keep the commandments. And if she doesn`t know what the commandments are, how can she keep them? We talked a lot about the temple, and how if they can get married, or separated if that needs to happen, she can enjoy all the blessings found within. It was so sweet to talk about the temple with her, and watch her face as she tried to imagine what it`s like inside, and what one can feel upon entering. She does want to do all she can to get there. She and her pareja have to have a talk, and we haven`t been able to meet with them since, so we`re still waiting to see what happens. But I`m so grateful for the spirit we were able to feel in the lesson, because we were able to be very straight forward, as well as show a lot of love for her. Definitely going to try to teach like that more often. :) 

Wow, long story. :) 

Another thing that happened this week, we`ve been trying to meet with everyone on the ward list, because there just so happens to be more less actives than active members, and a lot of them no one knows nothing... (oh no... the double negatives have got me too! Spanish, please leave my english alone.) No one knows anything about. So we met with a less active, who at first sight began sharing all the reasons she was never going to return to chruch, and how she told the other missionaries she didn`t want to meet with them anymore. She had separated from her husband, her kids left her, one of her sons had passed away, and there was so much pain, and so many things and people she didn`t want to forgive. Recently we`ve been trying to show a little more faith in meeting with people by being just a bit more persistant than, "okay, we`ll try back another time." So I asked if perhaps we could sing a hymn for her nada mas. She accepted, and we pulled out "Asombro me da" (I stand all amazed). I felt a little awkward singing for her becuase she kept looking away, and we were just standing there in her yard singing as motercycles passed, but after the hymn, her whole demeaner changed. We shared our testimonies of the atonement, and offered again to visit with her another time. And she accepted. I truly know that the hymns are inspired, and that they truly are a prayer unto God. Music really can touch the hard-to-reach places of the heart, and I`m so grateful for their sweet spirit. 

Also this week, another kind of funny thing happened. We were supposed to go to Mendoza monday night to be able to attend the meeting teusday morning, but we missed the bus. At first we were super bummed, but then that night both Hna Cortès and I felt pretty sick, we think it was from the full concentrated power of the sun we had been walking in that day. So it turned out that it was a good thing we were able to sleep in our own beds that night, and not on a bumpy, up-chuck-a-rama bus ride, if you know what I mean. So remember, siempre hay una razòn porque pasan las cosas, sola que a veces al pricipio, no podemos verla. Oh, and also, we did make it to the meeting in the morning as well. Bonus! 

Thanks again so much for your prayers for Edelmira. We`re hoping to see her again soon and help her out a little more. :) Have a great week! 

Hermana Cannon

p.s. The photos: Hermana Cannon sharing the gospel with every creature, Argentine version of Pizza Planet, and yo y mi compañera y hija chilena! 



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Monday, March 2, 2015

Animo de los Andes

Dear Familia:

This week was so great! This week we found a new investigator named Celina, and we`re really excited to be working with her. She had met with the missionaries before, but she said herself, I feel like back then I wasn`t really ready to learn all this. Now, with you two, I feel like I`m ready. Wahoo! Nothing better to hear from investigators. We have another appoinment with her today, so I`ll let you know how it goes! 

Also this week, we met with another investigator named Edelmira, an Hermana in her 40s. She`s been going through a lot of tough times lately. After our visit with her, she said she feels like she has more purpose, feels more support, and the care that God has for her, and it was very sweet. Prayers for her would be appreciated. That she can feel God`s love, and have the strength to keep going, even when things are hard. Thanks so much! 

Speaking of prayer, this week I wanted to bear my testimony of the power of prayer. This week I made a goal to pray more specifically. Being a missionary, it`s actually pretty easy because after companionship planning we have every layed out in the planner, and I can just read down the list, asking to be able to find each person in their homes, and take a moment to pray specifically for their needs. And wow. The results were astounding. We had so many more lessons, I felt more love and care for the members and investigators, we recieved and contacted referrals and met lots of new people, and looking back on the week, I couldn`t believe what we had accomplished. 

I know that God directs this work, and there is no greater joy than knowing that you have an instrument in his hands in helping his children become closer to him.

Also this week, we played the "Por Que Estamos Aqui" game, one that Hermana Fernandez taught me. Whenever an appointment falls though, we imediately turn around and ask, why are we here? If we`re not meeting with this person today, why does God want us in this area? Who is here that we can find? Taking that way of thinking really helped us to work more effectively with every moment we`ve been given, and helped us combat the discouragement that comes when people don`t recieve us. 

I love missionary work! So great.  

I love you all! Have a great week!

Hermana Cannon

p.s. Here are some pictures of some new companions I had for the week. Hermana Nordgran, for intercambios, and a goat. For...intercambios... haha



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