Week 68: At the End of the Day

Happy end of January!

Conferencia de las Hermanas was a blast (and Hermana Pooley is my favorite)

I remember being in school, and how January always felt like the longest month of the year. It just dragged on and on. But now I’m a missionary, and time doesn’t work the way it should anymore, and I’m still super confused how we got to this point, because that also means we’re almost halfway through this transfer? Time goes by way too fast once you reach … a considerable amount of time on your mission that I will not be referring to as the end.

Will I ever be able to keep still when someone says a photo is being taken? I’m guessing no, even though change is possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ

We had Conferencia de las Hermanas this week, which means that we got to spend time with the Rodens, aka my Second Parents. I love them so much. President Roden and I had a good interview that made me cry, which isn’t that impressive of a feat, given how I cry when friends send me emails, but I digress. Then Hermana Roden and I got to talk about one of my newly curated favorite topics of conversation: missionary health! Oh, how dearly I treasure being the nurse, and how grateful I am that I don’t have to be an actual healthcare professional (#blessed).

My collage of pictures from church magazines is my pride and joy

This week also featured my district leader being the best during his checkup calls, some really promising investigators, and the best Noche de Hermanamiento that Barrio La Viña has ever seen!

Scenes from a balcony

I don’t want to act like I never get sad or frustrated ever, but something I’ve learned this transfer really is the importance of perspective and valuing the things that matter most. In Mosiah 24, it reads:

27 And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order.

Nooooooo 😭😭😭

I have never been a very organized person, and my mission hasn’t really changed that.  But what it has done is instill in me the importance of priorities. Knowing what they are for you, and making sure your actions reflect it. I’ve also come to learn that my priority in life is to be happy and to help others feel that, too. My actions are definitely not perfect, but I’m getting better! And, at the end of the day, that’s what really matters.

—Love all of you,

Hermana Newton

Week 67: Pura Chapina

I’m legal here now!

We love opening the door of the library and taking pics because the lighting is good.

You should ask my dad, who’s an actual lawyer, but I’m pretty sure I was technically never here illegally. I just have all the documents set in order to get an ID and all that jazz. I’m pura chapina (that’s the nickname for Guatemalans).

Here I am, hour three of sitting in immigration and doing nothing.

But it didn’t start out so easy, dear reader. You see, I’m not sure if you’ve ever read this scripture that says:

“But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.”

That scripture foretells a lot of things, including my trip to the capital this week! We got to the immigration offices around 9 a.m., and I was the first appointment of the day! But not even a minute into the worker looking at my papers, he announced that something was wrong with them. The area offices in Guatemala City are in charge of the paperwork stuff, so I went to find the hermano who came with us and said he would be right outside the door if we needed anything. The man was not right outside the door. The second time I checked, it was to no avail, but third time’s the charm, and he started getting to work solving my legal problems!

I went to brush my teeth, and when I returned from the bathroom …

Unfortunately, fixing legal problems means patience. I had to leave that room and sit in the front lobby for over four hours until whatever was wrong with me was fixed. At one point, it was suggested I’d have to stay in the capital one more night, but the Lord is merciful, and that was not a trial I had to bear. And because we left the capital late thanks to yours truly, we got to stay the night in Xela! My home.

Is this a random picture of a bank in Guatemala City, or could there be more here than meets the eye? 👀

When we got back to the area, we hit the ground running, and even though we had a day less in the area than we originally thought, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday were busy and joyful! Looking through member lists, calling former investigators, all of that jazz. Even though it’s hard, that new adventure of getting to know the people has been my favorite part of opening areas.

There are a million things I’ve learned this week. Some of my favorite stuff has been inside Jesus the Christ. At one point, Talmage quotes a scripture from Moses 6 that particularly struck me:

52 … hearken unto my voice, and believe, and repent of all thy transgressions, and be baptized, even in water, in the name of mine Only Begotten Son, who is full of grace and truth, which is Jesus Christ, the only name which shall be given under heaven, whereby salvation shall come unto the children of men.

At the end of the day, this is what really matters. There are countless things to worry over, notice, and scrutinize, but the truth of the situation is that everything comes down to Christ. And when He’s at the center of what we're doing, it will fall into place. It all starts when we listen and believe.

—Pura Chiva,

Hermana Newton

Week 66: Huehue, Don’t Tell Me!

I had literally no time to take pictures this week. But does anyone remember that time I mentioned Hermana Noyola and I did a Christmas-themed photo shoot and I promised I’d attach the pics in my weekly, and then I didn’t? No one? Well, you’re in luck! I promise there will be photos of Hermana Herrera and Huehue next week, though. 

Good morning, good evening, good night!
That opening doesn’t sound right.
But I’ve said my hello,
So on with the show
Because this week, there’s so much to write!

I’m sure including a limerick at the start of this email only makes sense to a select group of people, but either way, I’m pretty sure it gets the job done! In case it didn’t, bienvenidos a todos from Huehuetenango, where my new area is!

It turns out I was doing a little foreshadowing last week without even knowing it when I was talking about the Cerro, because my new area is Cerrito/La Viña. Why’s there a slash? Thank you for asking, my dear reader. I’m serving in two wards at once! Is it stressful? Obviously! But hey, double the area, double the baptisms? We’ll have to wait and see!

The week started out with a bang because one of the APs tested positive for COVID. (': And then the nurse phone died. It just got too stressed from all the chaos, I guess, and decided it wasn’t going to charge anymore. And so then the Baúl phone was ringing up a storm as we got prepared for transfers. Hermana Noyola got to basically be an AP for a day, because all of the other office missionaries had to quarantine. Her new companion is Hermana Dunford, who I knew would be my replacement the moment I met her. Everyone thought I’d be an STL or training, but instead, I get to take a break! Or as much of a break as you can have when you’re in charge of two new areas.

My new companion is Hermana Herrera! She was trained by Hermana Ramirez, who just so happens to be Hermana Noyola’s trainer. Cerrito/Viña also happens to be where Hermana Noyola was born (mission-wise, not literally), and the area Hermana Dunford just left. President Roden just played an Uno Reverse card on us, as if no one would notice. What a trickster.

But Hermana Herrera is great! She is Hermana Gonzalez-level calm, which is an achievement I didn’t think was possible, yet here we are. She’s also a fantastic cook, amazingly organized, and can cut a perfectly straight line without drawing it out with a ruler first! And she has a killer testimony. In one of our first lessons together, she shared a scripture that I love in Mosiah 4:

9 Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.

Most people just stop there, but Hermana Herrera is a go-getter, and she included verse 10, which reads:

10 And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them.

Some of you might remember me talking about my time in Tennessee, where a lot of people think that having a testimony in Jesus Christ only consists of verse 9. But it doesn’t. If we believe in God, we believe that we need to repent, because true forgiveness and pardon can only come from him. There are so many things that we know are true, but that only takes you so far. You also need a leap of faith.

Being a missionary means taking that leap, and I’ll be honest, I’m freaking out most of the time. But I’m also learning to trust, and that the unknown isn’t so bad. Especially when you have someone by your side.

—Thank you, Carl,

Hermana Newton

Week 65: ABC

Good morning!

We went bright and early to fill the baptismal font. It literally took four hours, and it never warmed up! 

This week has had an alphabetical quality to it. A lot has happened, so I figured I’d take an abecedarian stroll down memory lane.

One of the necessary missionary/convert photo ops you were all waiting for.

A is for Angie

I don’t know if I’ve talked about Angie a whole lot, but she is the sweetest girl in the universe. We met her at the end of last transfer after an extensive battle to have our schedules line up. Her grandma is a church member, and she was so excited to learn (or review) gospel principles. We set her on date for this Saturday, and lo and behold:

B is for Baptism (and Baul)

Angie isn’t the first person I’ve taught who’s gotten baptized (shoutout to Angela and Alex), but she’s the first person I’ve taught whose baptism I was able to attend. Funny how getting transferred and moving to a different country can hinder that. But Angie was able to complete her first covenant with God, and it was so pure. The district was so supportive, and all of us baptized this transfer! Which was a really cool miracle, especially since I have gotten the official news that I’m getting transferred. I know it would be easy to think that I would stay in Baul forever, but unfortunately, I cannot. Or so it has been explained to me.

Hermana Paty let us use her house (and her oven) to make my mom’s chocolate peppermint cookie recipe. Thanks to her and Mom!

C is for Cookie (and Cerro and Cliffhangers)

With me leaving the area and all, we've been trying to jam pack as many fun activities as possible for the next couple of days. That included baking cookies with the familia Aguirre Recinos, as well as them taking us up to the Cerro El Baul!

Hermana Paty is part of the ward missionary leadership, and she is a total sweetheart. So is her daughter Nahomy!

“Cerro” is a Spanish word for “hill,” which is funny, because the Cerro here is actually a mountain. It’s obviously the reason Baul has the name it does, which means it’s the claim to fame of our area. But the funny thing is that I’ve somehow managed to evade hiking it my entire time here? But this morning, I said enough was enough! We rose bright and early and we climbed that mountain, and the view was absolutely gorgeous!

Up the Cerro!

One of my favorite things about Xela, but specifically Baul, is how you’re able to see the temple from everywhere. In my normal, proselytizing, day-to-day, I can just look off in the distance, and there it is. I was able to see the temple pretty well until we got on the trail to the Cerro. Suddenly, there were all of these trees surrounding me, and it became a lot harder to spot. I was still able to make out the white dot in the distance in between the branches, but the higher up we went, the harder it was to see. I realized that my life often follows a similar pattern. I'm probably progressing, and getting closer to my goal, but it's easy to lose sight of the thing that really matters. Philippians 3 says:

13 … but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

When I reached the top of that mountain, I was able to look over all of Xela. All of the roads I’ve trod looked so inconsequential and small, but at the end of the journey, the temple beamed more brightly than ever, even from so far away. And there was nothing keeping me away from it.

Hermana Noyola is the best!!! I will miss my friend :'(

There is so much that my mission has taught me, and even with the grief of having to leave an area behind, I know what’s in store. Even if the picture isn't as clear as I would like. Especially since I don’t even know where I'm going! I guess we’ll have to wait until next week. But until then …

I’ve made it to 15 months? Sorry, it didn’t fit in with the alphabet thing I planned.

—Absolutely, Brightly, Compassionately,

Hermana Newton

Week 64: The Year Without a Mary Claus

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

First picture of me in 2022!

Can you believe we’re in 2022? Can you believe that 2021 is done? A whole year in the service of the Lord. Absolutely crazy how time works like that.

Hanging out with Luna (one of the dogs we took care of this week)

This week was characterized by dogsitting. Members go out of town, but do you know who doesn’t do that and provides free service? You’re absolutely right if you guessed certain pro bono lawyers, as well as the missionaries! So we stopped by houses and fed the dogs, and gave them some belly rubs for good measure. 

If you don’t know about the obscenely large New Year’s hat I own that is still in my house … now you know.

We heralded in the new year by going to bed early and getting a good night’s sleep. We also had a fun zone activity where we made churrasco and got temporarily locked inside the courtyard of the stake center, but no worries! Look who made it out safely!

I waited behind the door so Hermana Noyola could try to take a picture with both dogs without being distracted by another human

But you know how the saying goes. New year, new standard works to study. I am absolutely ecstatic, because we’re reading from the Old Testament this year. Even better, we’re starting off studying in the Pearl of Great Price as well! Can’t get much better than that, ladies and gents.

I love being able to always see the temple, even if the camera doesn’t always portray it well.

For the first week of 2022, one of the assigned chapters was Moses 1. That entire chapter absolutely stellar, but I know that one verse is particularly famous:

39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

Which is all good and fine. But true fans who pay attention to my Facebook captions might remember verses that precede it:

37 And the Lord God spake unto Moses, saying: The heavens, they are many, and they cannot be numbered unto man; but they are numbered unto me, for they are mine.

38 And as one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof even so shall another come; and there is no end to my works, neither to my words.

We are children of an infinite God with infinite possibilities. And we should never cut Him short, but rather trust in His promise, and know that He’s numbered us. More than that, we are His.

We were driving by the Marimba (a statue of a lady playing the marimba), and I wanted to take a picture of the sky. Little did I know that someone was hanging out in the corner of my shot.

— Prospero año,

Hermana Newton