August 31, 2017

Week 4. GAME DAY

Heyyyyo everyone, well just another week here in the CCM. This week has been by far my favorite. There has just been fun stuff happening left and right. 

This week has been so great!! We are half way through the CCM and there are so many new people that you just feel like...Okay. I think I finally figured this place out. We still have that same schedule which can be boring at times but this week we found lots of ways to keep things exciting. Also I really love it here. I love the people and I am learning so much. I just get to talk about Jesus all the time. Cool huh?

Well. The gift of tongues... Some moments it is in full swing and the next moment I think to myself...Do I even know any Spanish?? On Tuesday night we were assigned a new companion, a Latina companion to teach a lesson with. My head just ached from thinking so hard and staring at my companion with my mouth open like ¿Que?. The lesson didn´t go quite as well as we would have liked. As we were planning our first 15 minute lesson about prayer and Heavenly Father´s love for her...She looked at me and says in Spanish "And right here, will you give the Baptismal invitation?" In my mind I was like....HAH not a good idea in this little lesson... But that is a lot harder to say than "Sí". Anyway. We gave the lesson, I asked our fake investigator to be baptized and she said no...because I am sure she was confused as can be. Sometimes there is a huge language barrier....Example number 2. Hermana Edwards and I used one of the bathrooms that had a CAUTION WET FLOOR sign. So logically we walked around it. But then right when we finish a Latina worker comes in and is trying to explain that it was being cleaned and that we will now have chemicals on our butts. She looked so scared for us...But we just laughed because it was like...I have no idea what to say. 

GAME DAY Y´ALL. Our district is 11A and we have a rivalry district with 6A who beat our Elders at basketball. Well they challenged the whole district to a huge volleyball game. 12 vs 12 on a huge sand volleyball court. It was super competitive and so much fun. AND WE SMASHED THEM. We all held our head a little higher that day. It was so so much fun. Of course it was just friendly competition....

This week was fun but also one of my most spiritual and personally successful weeks. I had a lesson with one of my "investigators" and it was the first time I felt like I was not limited because of the language. I just spoke and the lesson was so powerful about the Plan of salvation. I left and just felt like...Yes...This is why I am supposed to be here. I can do this!

STORY TIME

Sunday night Hermana Edwards got a really bad migraine!!! We figured we would just need to skip the devotional and have her sleep it off. I asked her if she wanted a blessing, she said no...So we went back to the casa and I wrote in my journal, read my scriptures, lots of good stuff. After about an hour of her tossing and turning she looked at me and decided that she did want to get a blessing. We got redressed and put on our big rain coats and started searching for our elders who were at the devotional. We were just wandering around with these trench coats and like weirdly looking for the elders. We finally found them and they gave her a blessing. It was an amazing blessing and gave her a lot of peace. Afterwards we went back to the casa and wrote about our super cool and spiritual experience and then go to sleep. I can hear Hermana Edwards and I know that she is not sleeping. She finally gets out of bed and goes to the bathroom and is vomiting for a good 5 minutes. Her migraine had gotten that bad!!!! So at 1am we left our casa again and were going to go to the reception office to see if anyone could help her! They called the doctor and he gave her something that was weak!!!! I looked at him and my Mama Crofts came out I just said "seriously, she needs something more!!! She has been throwing up, and is in so much pain!! Maybe another blessing???" The doctor loaded us up on his golf cart and we drove all around campus in the rain to find someone to give her another blessing. WE FOUND SOMEONE. She got her blessing!! And we got to ride the golf cart all the way back to the casa. Yes to you at home this might not seem like the most glamorous or exciting night. But here in the CCM, we do the same thing daily... So riding a golf cart at 1am in the rain is exhilarating hahah. Of course at the expense of Hermana Edwards. But she recovered nicely....hopefully leaving the migraines in the past. 

Lots of love 

Hermana Crofts

(who is now called HerMAMA Crofts by our district..)

Got the best package ever: Reeses, Honey Bunches of Oats and Jerky

CCM website pic of Hermana Crofts & Edwards

Hermana Edwards and I

The Hermanas

The district at the Mexico City Temple

The Elders

August 24, 2017

WEEK 3

Well everyone, I have claimed two nicknames here in the CCM. 1. "Mom" (I think it means I am loving like a mom...not bossy...I hope.)  2. "Hermana Crocs" (I wear my fav shoes every day: my cool Crocs.)  The days are starting to pick up pace. Wahoo that’s a huge blessing. Originally, they were just sluggin on by.

FOOD. Yes... the food is getting worse. Thank you Momma Crofts for giving me unrealistic expectations about food. I think I eat a whole jar of peanut butter and at least half a cantaloupe daily. Not together of course... that would be gross. One day at breakfast,  I was putting peanut butter on my cereal, and this Elder turned to his companion and was just like "Dude.... Hermanas LOVE peanut butter." I just laughed because I couldn't tell if he was mocking me or really just had this new realization.  But usually those are the reliably tasty foods. GUESS WHAT?! Somehow I got my hands on a whole bag of Honey Bunches of Oats, my favorite cereal. A Hermana was leaving to her mission and didn't have room for it!!!! My stomach has been so happy, except is has been only like 3 days and I already ate it all. So temporarily my stomach was happy....ALSO ALICIA CROFTS SENT ME DONUTS. I opened it and the four girls in our room looked at those donuts like they were the greatest thing we had ever seen. We all ate a couple and then since Alicia sent me 2 dozen donuts we shared them with our district. Everyone just like “ooed and ahhhed” they were so tasty. 

So look Tuesday... man what a day. I went on my morning run with Hermana Edwards and just felt horrible. We ran back to the house and I had major diarrhea!! I really have done fairly well with the food... but something got me good. If that's not a great way to start the day, I don't know what is. #blessed  Luckily, it was just that morning and afterwards I was fine. Later, we were in our language study and our maestro comes in late and says "I am so sorry that I am late but I have great news. We are going to practice teaching with another district!!!!! Aren´t you guys excited??? You aren´t excited?"  My jaw just dropped because I was like seriously?? I am leaving the perfect nonjudgmental zone that is our district.... So we go and we teach this other district and I was assigned to teach with this girl who has fantastic Spanish!! She is on my same week but took like 7 years of Spanish and just has Spanish like you wouldn´t believe. It was very very humbling for me. My Spanish was okay and I felt like I could bring the Spirit but for some reason, it really got me discouraged. Right after we had another lesson on “Stress and how to identify stress in your life and what to do with it.” So we got the combination of those back to back... After that, we were doing our daily planning and we could tell that there was this weird lull on everyone in the district and I just felt so sad. I said a little prayer in my heart that I would just cheer up because nothing had really got me down like this before!! Right after, I just felt like "Heather...ask for a blessing." In my mind I was like "NOW??" I pushed away the thought and then looked up at all my Elders in the district and it was like "HEATHER. YOU ASKED FOR HELP. NOW ASK FOR A BLESSING." I was like "okayyyyyyy settle down....I´ll ask." So I like pretended to throw something in the garbage and then I just stopped in front of the Elders and started to cry and asked for a blessing. They asked me who they wanted to give it and I really felt like it needed to be Elder Smith and then right after he volunteered. So then all 8 of the Elders, who have become like a little family to me here gave me a blessing. Elder Smith had no way of knowing what I needed, I didn´t even know what I needed!! The blessing really felt like it was coming straight from God. It was really really cool AND it helped me so much!! Later when I talked to him he was kinda timid and told me that he was glad that he could help but truthfully couldn´t remember anything that he said. He was just a mouthpiece and it was a huge testimony builder for me. The rest of the day went up from there and the week has also been better!!! I have just been so hard on myself. I feel like the Spanish should be coming quicker and I should be remembering it...But then I told myself to knock it off and quit being so hard on myself. 

This week we got a new "investigator" to teach here in the CCM. We had our first lesson and we prepared everything we were going to say and what we would ask.. all that jazz. Hermana Edwards speaks amazing Spanish. Everyone thinks she should be on her 6th week by how great she does. I actually do really well but love the security of having my notes in the lesson except they just distract me. During our lesson I was speaking and then stumbled over my words and went to look at my notes.... Hermana Edwards put her hand over them and gave me the look like "girl you got this" and I just spoke and it was in not great Spanish but the spirit was strong and it was such an AMAZING lesson. We both just left like skipping down the hall back to our classroom. I no longer use my notes in the lessons and it has helped improve them SO MUCH. The spirit is stronger in those lessons and it is just about the only time during the day that I feel confident in my Spanish. 

I love my district here. We have become like this cute little family that will go and play volleyball together and we just have fun. The boys just make us laugh hahah. Story time!!! The other day we were doing our studying outside and we got attacked by these malicious ants. So today I was walking to write this email and I was with the Hermanas (Hermanas Edwards, Wahlquist, and Spencer) While we were walking, we were just chatting and seriously bird poop missed me by a solid 3 inches. I just laughed like hallelujiah!! Not 5 seconds later, bird poop hits Hermana Spencer right in the neck. HAHAHAH.

Love,

Hermana Crofts

Picture from the CCM Facebook page. The girl in the middle looks familiar.

CCM Arrivals August 9, 2017. Hermana Crofts is second row in the center.

Me and my comp, Hermana Edwards

This is my cute district

Temple pics I forgot to send from last week.

Hermana Spencer and I grabbing some ice cream at the tienda. Happy moment for sure!

Hermana Edwards and I working on TALL. It is supposed to help us learn Spanish.

This is our room. Cute huh? I am on the bottom bunk.

Our district at lunch today.

My 3 Hermanas and our casa #3. The days are all sunny and then randomly it just POURS!!!!

Donuts, of course the donuts from Alicia.  Happiest moment of the week!

Anyway this is our daily district volleyball. Wahooooo!

You would all be proud at how good I have gotten. I can really hold my own. I feel like the cool sand volleyball players at the Olympics. I know that it doesn´t get that intense. But just imagine that because I promise I look THAT COOL.

August 17, 2017

One Eternity Later

Well, I finished the first week and a half. HAH. Barely! Seriously, I think this has been one of the longest weeks of my life. Thankfully every day gets a little bit better and a little bit quicker.  It's been a huge adjustment but I've just tried to stay positive and not be too hard on myself. I got here and you're with all these missionaries that all feel exactly as you do so that helps. 

My companion is Hermana Edwards. She's from Orange County California. She is headed to New Jersey. I just love her. We met before we got on our flight in Salt Lake. We just talked and it was this instant bond. After the flight, we just met right up and then sat together on the bus (which was the bus that 50 missionaries almost died on) but anyway we chatted forever. When I was walking into the CCM, I just thought "Okay Heavenly Father if you really love me you`'ll give me her as a companion." So he loves me! Really having her has been a huge blessing because this week has been hard on both of us but we have made it better! She also goes running with me every morning which is the best. Also, our district is awesome. There are 12 of us (8 Elders and 4 Hermanas). We just get stuff done and laugh. A lot. Oh man Hahahahaah thank goodness for the humor of 18 year old boys. 

You either laugh or cry here. I prefer to laugh. 

Ahhhhhhhh don de lenguas (the gift of tongues). Don de lenguas is real. Diarrhea is also real.

 But really, one week in and I’ve learned more Spanish than I have in my entire life. I still say a lot of stupid stuff..... I can usually understand what is being asked or what the conversation is about but sometimes I just sit there with my mouth open like "huh? ¿Que?" The first day I answered a question by saying “the prophet makes me feel funny,” and I told my first "investigator" that “Jesus Christ takes away our fish." Wahoo But just asked her yesterday and she's going to be baptized! 

FOOD. Well. The food gets worse daily. On Tuesday, we were having blessings flying everywhere. Breakfast was tasty. And lunch we had hamburgers REPEAT HAMBURGERS!! It was the most disgusting and glorious hamburger I've ever had. And then we got pizza. I think Heavenly Father was like ahhh yeah give her a break give her something good. Yeah it was the best. My stomach has done pretty okay with the food. 

Well if you wanna know our daily schedule I'll tell ya. Our day consists of waking up at 5:50am, go running, get ready, personal study, breakfast, language study, companionship study, TALL (BYU language teaching tool),lunch, study, gym time, teach fake investigator, dinner, study, personal time, sleep. Exciting huh?  

The first week was really hard saying goodbye to loves ones but I really feel like this is where I'm supposed to be. Every day I find little tender mercies and my favorites are the things that just make me laugh. 

Also this week we had two devotionals one by Elder Anderson and the other by Elder Ballard. They were the best. I got to go to the temple today sooooooo #blessed. 

Wow I am so glad to hear from all of you. I am kinda in a unique situation where I get to check my email every day #tabletmission. So there were a couple days where those emails even the one liners just got me through the week. I would like to formally apologize to all of my siblings for being the worst emailer on the face of the planet. I now understand that as a missionary you really look forward to the emails...So thank you for being better than I was. 

I’m doing good this week. Last week, Wowza it was hard. The days felt like months!!!! By the end of the week I just thought yeah I’ve gotta have been here for at least 7 months. I think that was partly because the first 4 days they did not give us any gym time!!! None. So you know me, miss ADD, sitting in class with this ball of energy. I really felt like I was going to explode. I was trying so hard to concentrate but wow it was hard hahaha. Hermana Edwards and I both felt like that and so we started running in the morning to make it through our morning classes. Also, we work out during gym time in the middle of the day to get through the rest. That alone has helped me so much!!!!! Honestly It's a little weird to be here. Sometimes I'll look around and think oh hey look there’s all the missionaries and then sometimes I just laugh because I'm like "what the heck? I'm a missionary!!" I am happy to be a missionary and I feel like I work hard and this truly is where I need to be. It is cool because I feel like I just get to talk about my bff Jesus all day. Spanish is testing my patience. I just get so hard on myself.  I am grateful for my teachers and my district. I have already memorized su objectivo, la primera vision, and the baptismal invitation in Spanish. So that is neat. It's cool because I really am seeing the purposes missionaries serve in the world and I am seeing how this will really bless me in my life. I have been forced to become stronger hahah. I love to just laugh here. I laugh off so many things that I could really let affect me. Sometimes our district will just mess around and laugh but honestly that just keeps me staying sane. I am quite the chatter so I just love to talk hahahah. I feel like I gave up a lot to come here and anything less than my best effort is a waste. 

Last week, really was so hard. I just dreaded waking up because it was so so hard and the days felt like forever. I have been so happy this week because it has just flown by and it has been fun!!!! Last week, everyone just said “make it to Sunday.” So I made it and really that is all I needed. On Sunday, I got to meet with my Branch president and it was so great because we just talked about everything and he seriously just read my mind!!! He was talking to me and telling me things that I didn’t even know I was having a hard time with. I really felt like if I were to have had an interview with Jesus Christ that it would have been similar to this. I just felt so consumed with love and it was like a 360 degree turn around. I really felt like in that moment he was receiving revelation for my needs. The Church is true folks!

Sorry this family email isn’t anything to great. I went and emailed everyone personally and then went back and read something else and would come back. Just know that I love you all a whole lot. I think about you guys and I miss you but I just feel blessed to have the family that I do. 

LOVE YOU

Love always

Hermana Crofts

PS there is this really cool thing called missionarypackagemx.com and it makes it so you can send me stuff. Truthfully, I do not really need anything. But you can email it and they will print it out and give it to me throughout the day or week. I can’t force you to do anything really.....But if you ever want to say hi or make me smile, or tell me a funny story, or share a scripture, or just say hi......I would love it. :) 

Elder Haitt (He is a friend of a friend but so fun to see a familiar face)

The Hermanas we arrived with. I only know the ones in the front.

My cute companion, Hermana Edwards

She is so great!

The 4 girls in our district. Hermana Edwards, Me, Hermana Spencer (from South Jordan), & Hermana Wahlquist (from Northern Cali)

Next is our district!!

They are all so funny. Keeps our spirits high.

Me

The other 3 are all serving their missions in New Jersey. I am the black sheep.

The Mexico City Temple is SO COOL.  The outside really is huge.  I get to go once more while in the CCM.