I just found out I actually have an hour on the computer,
instead of a half hour! It is a miracle! Seriously. So excited about that extra
30 minutes. Maybe my emails will actually be coherent now, but probably
not, haha.
This week I thought I would relate some funny things I have
said/have been said by people in our distric – funny Spanish moments:
1. This week we were
teaching Pamela the first lesson. The first lesson is the first vision, Book of
Mormon, modern day revelation, and the power of prayer. Well, I was trying to
teach her about prophets. In doing so I tried to communicate that prophets are
the mouthpiece of the Lord. Instead of saying that, however, I said: "The Prophet is a mouth" (except in
Spanish), to which she replied "El profeta es una BOCA!????" No. Just
to clarify, the prophet is not a giant mouth. My apologies Pamela.
2. Elder Mortensen
told Carlos that Christ Atoned for our sins in the Garden of Eden, instead of
the Garden of Gethsemane. False doctrine on every level; well-done Elder
Mortensen.
3. Hermana Howard
thought the word "tired" was "comida." So for a solid 3
days she was telling everyone "I am food" instead of "I am
tired." We got a kick out of that.
4. My personal
favorite that happened this week was with Jose. This week we worked on door
approaches, so Jose was "in his house" and we were contacting at his
door. Like half way through our
conversation he goes: "Wait . . . do
you guys even speak Spanish?" AWESOME. Thanks, Jose!
Mom/most people who have written me: you wanted to know
a little bit more about the people in my district. I’ll tell you some more
about everyone:
Elder Roundy: Coolest kid I have ever met. He is so awkward
and has the absolute biggest heart. He is from Orem and is 19 years old. What a
character!
Elder Spinder: Elder Spinder is also from Orem. Fun fact
about Elder Spinder is that he doesn’t know ANYONE that isn’t LDS. I’m not kidding; not a single soul. Crazy,
right? We call him Elder Spiderman because in his first lesson with Carlos,
Carlos goes "Ohhhh Elder Speeeender, like Speeeeder" – but say that
all with a thick Spanish accent. Maybe it was funnier here. I am telling you,
everything is funnier here. Also, Elder Spinder has all of the kids’ mannerisms
put into one person. He does the eye-darty thing like Amelia. His complaining
voice sounds just like Gus. His frowny face looks exactly like Emmeline. It’s
weird. He is my nieces and nephews.
Elder Mortensen: Arguably the funniest person I have ever met
in real life. He is absolutely hilarious and tells the most detailed incredible
stories. "Apparently they thrive off citrus; they are very prone to
scurvy!" Maybe I’ll explain that quote another time, hahahaha.
Elder White: Elder White is our District Leader. He is so
caring. He is from Preston, ID and played baseball for UT State. He is so
dedicated and hard working.
Elder Peterson: Elder Peterson holds a special place in my
heart. His family comes from some tough situations. He has very little gospel
knowledge and he teaches very simply. That simplicity makes his testimony a
POWERHOUSE. Every time he bears his
testimony there isn’t a dry eye in the place. He finished reading the Book of Mormon for the
first time a few weeks ago and now every time he talks about the Book of Mormon
he has a little "I read that!" smirk. It’s great. He's a good kid.
Elder Cannon: We have special moments called "Story
Time with Elder Cannon" because he knows the most random things and LOVES
to talk/tell you about them. HA. Oh, Elder Cannon. He is from the tri-cities!
Fellow Washingtonian :)
Hermana Howard: Hermana Howard is my comp and she is the bomb.
She is very loud and outgoing. We have a lot of fun together. Maybe too much fun, haha.
Hermana Draper: We call Hermana Draper “Hermana Gato” because
she is obsessed with cats. She is so great. She is probably one of the most diligent
workers I have ever met.
Hermana Woodward:
Hermana Woodard is from Haiti. She was
adopted from an orphanage down there when she was 10--so she speaks Creole! How
cool is that?! She is the HAPPIEST
person I have EVER met. She literally smiles 100% of the day.
Hermana Steele:
SO FUNNY. Such an individual. She is from Southern California and so she
shortens all her words, haha. She’s great.
Hermana Beaty: We
call her Hermana Bonita because one week an Elder was like "Your last name
is literally Beauty." So, we have called her Hermana Bonita ever since.
She got baptized when she was 16. She is
quiet and loves candy. She is like the tiniest person, but she eats more candy
than anyone I’ve ever met haha. She's great, too.
All six of us girls are in a room together. It is a party.
We made a pact – liked signed an actual document – that we would all invite
each other to our weddings because, apparently, we are still in second grade. :)
The weeks go by faster and faster. I literally feel like last P-DAY was
yesterday. I still love my time here.
I forgot my study journal with all my spiritual thoughts, so
all of those that I wanted to write will either get written in letters or in
next week’s journal. There were a lot of good things this week though, especially
because of Easter. Feliz Pascua! We had Bishop Causse (of the presiding
Bishopric) speak to us, as well as Sheri Dew. SHERI DEW! MAN it was GREAT. However, the absolute coolest part was that
Bishop Causse came to OUR Sacrament meeting. OURS – our little zone of like 40
people. It was Fast Sunday, so he got up
and bore his testimony – IN SPANISH. He
is from France. English is his second
language, but he has been learning Spanish the past year. It was such a tender mercy because his Spanish
was so simple, so we could all understand him. It was awesome. Easter was fabulous.
Something Bishop Causse said that really stuck out to me is:
"Make the veil so thin that there is no difference between your faith and
your knowledge."
I love you guys!
Amor Siempre,
Hermana Alivia Burnham
P.S.: I have gotten
all your packages. Thank you! Dad, I have been playing basketball with the guys
during gym time. I am the only girl who plays. We play bump/just shoot around.
I don’t know what it is, but my three is magic. I can literally hit my three
from anywhere, anytime. What? So great.
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