Random Facts about Teopisca...

*Along with stray dogs and cats, there are stray horses and cows... roaming through the streets. We will be contacting in the street and my companion usually has to pull me out of the way of two things, 1. mototaxis or 2. a stray horse or cow. It's whatevs.

*We had a pretty strong earthquake a couple of weeks ago, and ever since there's been weird weather. It started out raining and now its freezing cold in the mornings and super hot during the day. (Not quite Tapachula hot... but you know).

*Along with the hobbit hills, the water truck plays hobbit music.... it's very fitting.

*How people give direccions here. 

Me: Where do you live?

Them: Over there!

Me: But where over there? 

Them: Over there! You can't miss it.

Me: OK, on what street?

Them: Oh... I don't know. But it's right by the corn mill! 

Me: Ohhh, OK, so on calzada de panteon?

Them: Yeah! Right over there!!

Me: OK, what number is your house?

Them: Oh... it doesn't have a number.... but I'll describe how you get there! You go walking down this street... and right in the corner there's a 2 floored green house. I don't live there. You just keep going and you pass a little store and 4 or 5 dogs.... it's not there either. Like 4 or 5 houses before the first green house I told you about.... yeah that's my house. It's a block house, with a black door. (AKA.... EVERY SINGLE HOUSE IN TEOPISCA)...

 

*There is constant marimba music.

Christmas Dinner

 

*Locked doors are unheard of.

*People grow their corn, cut their corn, mash their corn, and make handmade corn tortillas IT'S DELISH.

BIENVENIDOS A TEOPISCA THE LAND I CALL MY HOME.   

That's all for today, it was great to see you all on Christmas!!! 

Hermana Hansen

 Since we didn't have power on Christmas morning..we made s'mores for breakfast

Skyping with our missionary on Christmas Day (best gift ever!)

We loved skyping with Hermana Hansen on Christmas Day! Our call was delayed, as it was difficult to find a cyber open on Christmas. But after an hour and a half of shenanigans...they finally found a cyber they could skype from (the original place they had made previous arrangements with were no-shows). While we visited, the cute people that owned the cyber brought them a yummy holiday drink only made around Christmas time.

She said when they woke up Christmas morning they had no running water or electricity...Merry Christmas Hermanas! haha She also said they had attended a fun Christmas party with other Elders and Hermanas in their District earlier that day.

District Christmas Party! Games and yummy food!

On Christmas Eve, they visited with a fun family who had bought fireworks for the occasion. Hermana Hansen was in charge of dessert and taught them how to make S'mores...this was a new experience for them.

I attempted to record part of Hermana Hansen's testimony. Sorry for the poor quality...we had a bad connection...and a very noisy 4 year old.

A Christmas Miracle!!

Well, I guess I will start out with what could possibly be the greatest miracle of my mission (kidding only kidding)...... MY LOST PACKAGE WAS FOUND. On Wednesday, I received a wonderful phone call from my good friend (and assistent to the president) Elder de Jesus, that somehow my package had gotten sent to TAPACHULA. But it had made its way back to the mission home and I would receive it in January. WOOO!!!!!

 But, the sad part was, we wouldn't be able to do the Christmas crafts with the Hermanas in the branch that mom had sent. So, randomly on Thursday, President George called and said he was heading down to Comitan for an interview and would stop by Teopisca to bring my package!! WHAT!!!!!

So we received everything and did the crafts yesterday which turned out super cute!!! And we have been kept warm by the fuzzy socks and gloves thanks to Aunt Jill and the chocolate has all been eaten... let's just say it came at a difficult time for us in the month... ;) you feel me? hahahahaha.

SO THE PRAYERS AND FASTS OF EVERYONE WERE ALL HEARD AND WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR THEM (OK.... maybe we didn't fast. but pray, we did) 

Well, yesterday something marvelous happened..... randomly the district president showed up with his 2nd councilor and the secretaries to our little sacrament meeting in Teopisca....and it was amazing!!! They gave talks that followed the exact needs of what we had given in our report that we send to the Stake every transfer. 

They were so loving. After the meeting they asked, "Hermanas, do you know of some less actives who may need something that we could go visit?" 

And then they did divisions with our members right in the moment and we all went to visit the people who hadn't come to church! I could not believe it. It was beautiful to see such real intent and reaction in church leaders. It's such a miracle to have such great leaders here in San Cris. 

Welllll that's all I can think of that happened this week. Hope you all have a wonderful NAVIDAD. And just think of Jesus Christ being born in a stable.... such humble circumstances.... just think about it.

Hermana Hansen

Ha Nacido un Salvador

 Yes, today is change day. But we are staying in Teopisca!! Woohoo!!! That means I am officially starting my last transfer..... what? Luckily this transfer is a week longer..... so I get 7 weeks to work my butt off instead of only six. GO TEAM.

Besides the temple dedication of the Tijuana temple yesterday (which was awesome)..... It was ma girl TAYLOR SWIFTS BIRTHDAY. #taylorswiftordie

This week I really have been reminded of WHY we are here as missionaries, and how important it is to fight Satan with positivity. I think that's how Satan tries to get us.... as missionaries and  in La Vida Real too. Between my Christmas package getting lost, the Guadelupean trekies waking us up at 4 am every morning and everyone being gone because of the Virgin de Guadelupe celebrations, health problems, and not baptizing for the first time in my mission this transfer...Satan was working on me with the little things. 

It got to the point on Saturday night when our district leader said, "Don't worry, Hermana, tomorrow is the temple dedication! And all will be great!"

I responded, "Great? Great that we can't bring any investigators to church because you have to have a temple recommend to enter? Tell me how that is great, Elder?" 

What Elder Santos told me kind of slapped me in the face and woke me up a bit, "Hermana, tomorrow the first presidency will be dedicating a house of the Lord on the earth. And you think bringing investigators to church is more important?" 

  

Oops. bueno tiene razòn. Sooooooo I quit complaining, enjoyed the temple dedication, and enjoyed all of the tender mercies that God gave us yesterday.

Including....... Hermana M.

Hermana M is a progressing investigator, who committed earlier this week with her sister to live the word of wisdom and also the law of chastity. We thought these would be hard ones for them, because they have led pretty rough lives. They were abandoned by their mother and a dead father at very young ages, don't have education, and barely make enough money to cover their 25 dollar rent in the tiny cement room they live in with their three kids. 

But.. since we have contacted them they really are making changes in their lives. They come to our activities all by themselves now. They were sad they couldn't come to church on Sunday for the temple dedication. They are also trying to read the Book of Mormon, even if they don't know how to read very well. They pray daily, and are learning of their worth as daughters of God. It's amazing to see. 

Last night, we asked Hermana M how dropping coffee was going, and she said, "Well, our boss offers it to us about three times a day, but we haven't drank a drop. We are still good to be baptized in January, right?"

WOOOOOO! There are a whole lot of escogidos on the mission... who just come to us prepared,  don't drink coffee, or have any sort of addiction, and their life is already great, and they get baptized almost too easily. But Hermana M. really sees the blessings in her life, and the changes the gospel has brought. She's escodido, but in a different way. That's why we are here... to help people accept Jesus Christ's atonement and to help them learn how to change their lives for the better.

 A Savior is Born

I hope you will check out this video if you haven't already because Nos Ha Nacido un Salvador.  And if He can save people like Hermana M, He can save us too. 

Ha Nacido un Salvador

Les amo muchhho.

Hermana Hansen

A Magical experience of Christlike Love

 
This whole week was fun and interesting. We have been making plans to try to convince investigators to make the hour journey to San Cris from Teopisca. Every fast Sunday we meet with our rama up there instead of in our casa de oracion. If it's hard to get the members to go, imagine investigators!

It's not so much the distance..but because a round trip ticket for one person costs a minimum of about 65 pesos (that's like 4 bucks). When you work 12 hours a day in a cake store for 50 pesos.... well it's a lot of money that people here just don't have.

So we have one family that has come to church since the very first Sunday we got here. We found them while street contacting our second day here. La familia B. They really want to get baptized. We just have to get them married...which is a problem because they don't have their identifications or the birth certificate of their baby.

Anyway, they hardly even have enough money to buy diapers, let alone go to San Cris. Also, their baby has a hernia and is getting an operation this week. But they really wanted to go.. so we prayed really hard and decided that we would invite them to go with us... o sea... pay for them.
 
I know it was the right decision because what happened yesterday was absolutely magical. Seriously. We get there and testimony meeting was beautiful. The classes were beautiful. Everything was beautiful! I have never been so grateful for 3 hours of church, and classes that don't consist of reading every scripture from the index about the topic given. (Since the church is very new in Teopisca, it's kind of at an elementary school level.....going to San Cris was like entering college. It was wonderful!!)

 
And the members! A LA MECHA THESE TRISTE LOVING MEMBERS. Were amazing. A bunch of members immediately swarmed the B. family, asking them who they are, how they are, etc etc. When one sister found out they would be coming up on Tuesday for their baby's surgery, she gave them her direction and cell number. Then she offered her house up that they could stay in, and to cook them meals. IT WAS AMAZING. 

After an amazing class of Prinicipos del evangelio given by Elder Crowely, (where one less active member I had just met gave me her earrings just because I told her I liked them), we met the branch president and asked if he could give their baby a blessing. After the blessing, they commented about her surgery, and asked if the church could voluntarily donate some money for their operation. I was super nervous, thinking for sure the President was gonna think they had just come to ask for money. But his response was the most Christlike response I could have hoped for, and really surprised me.

He said, "Of course." He even had his counselor pass around an envelope in Relief Society and Priesthood meeting for anyone who wanted to donate a peso or two for the surgery. In this short time, about 100 dollars were raised!!!

Afterwards, everyone was showering them with love and support as well. All of the sisters were so happy to have Hermanas in the ward, even if we are far away in Teopisca. It was a magical experience. I have never felt so much love so quickly from a ward! They were all so Christlike. And our B. family was very impressed.

When we visited them later that night El hermano told us that he had felt a warm feeling in his chest during the last class. It was so strong he almost cried. Later he told his wife, "This is where we are staying, honey. It's here with the Hermanitas."

And even better, they went to the DIF to ask for their new identifications, and they are going to ask for the birth certificate today! So we pretty much just need to raise the money to marry them!! They felt so much love and support. I will be forever grateful for this loving branch that made them (and us) feel so welcome.

LOVE YOU ALL.! 

Hermana Hansen

PS Oh and I forgot to mention... FYI...I don't have lice anymore but I had FLEAS. 

That's all. Parasites love me, and I don't discriminate.