Kidney Stones

Life Lessons

Hey, so you know how they say that the mission prepares you for married life? Well I think I am super ready after this week. You know how they say having a kidney stone is like having a baby? Well, guess who had a kidney stone this week. Yup. It was fun. I think I am ready to have kids ;)

One thing that I really appreciated from this experience was the power of priesthood. It is something I am truly grateful for. It was amazing how God was kind enough to bless us with the Priesthood. How grateful I am to have a worthy father that holds the Priesthood. After taking some drugs, I asked for a blessing, and right after the blessing, I didn´t have any pain. Just shows to me how much our Father in Heaven loves us :) <3

Overview of the week

This week was so rough. We had to leave during Pday to go to a leadership meeting in Curitiba on monday and returned Tuesday night. Wednesday I passed the kidney stone, and we couldn´t work, thursday I spent half the day doing exams and the other half working, friday, we had to go to Irati for a meeting and spend the whole day there, and Saturday and Sunday we went to work. It was probably the craziest week that i´ve ever had one the mission

During the meeting I was pretty scared because I felt like the new kid, hardly knowing what I should be doing, and just guessing, but it turned out great! We were making comments on how to better our teaching, and after I made a comment, he said that he would call me to be the STL of the STLs. I´m gonna have to thank sister Torres for that one because we went psycho when we were together for 4 months on our teaching. I just hope I can help others even being the new kid :)

I love you guys! Sorryt hat this was short, It was an unproductive week, I promise that next week will be better! :)

Until the Dust

Today was fun.

I love surprises. Today was full of a lot. This sunday we found out that there would have a leadership conference on tuesday and we learned on sunday night that we would leave the next day during our Pday (today) to go to Curitiba. So we had to go to the rodoviaria this morning and board a bus for 4 hours. There was an accident on the highway so it took 5 hours. Then we had to go to Portão from the bus and we took the wrong bus. And here I am. Today was long. But. It´ll be all good.

The week.

Me and Sister B worked until the dust. This doesnt make sense in English, but it´s a phrase that is used a lot here. And it´s the best way I could describe it ;) Basically we worked hard this week together. We had a great week and it was one of those weeks where you collapse on the bed but it´s a good collapse.

I think that´s it. The week was good. I hardly remember anything, but I remember that it was good :)

I`m not gonna lie. Sometimes I feel like I run out of things to say in these ;) Anyone have any ideas?

Anyways. I love you guys! Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Parco

Test of Faith

Test of faith

This week was a bit rough with a test of faith. We only had 3 hours on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday to work in our area this week so it was a bit rough to follow up with our families, BUT I have full confidence that our week will be better next week and everyone will start making changes in their life! 

New things

So splits. Kind of scary. I didn´t really know what to do the first day because the STL that was before me and had to pass all the information to me forgot and they just said that i´d be one. But I think I did okay. At times I think it´s just a good switch up for them an me. I just like to be with them during the day to see what they need and how I can help them. And what´s going on in their head. And laugh with them. I just like to see how they are :) But they went great and I learned a lot!  I´ve just been a bit stressed lately because our area is suffering, but it will all be wonderful in the end! It´s a bit difficult to be in the interior because splits are 1 hour away riding the bus. So theres absolutely no way that you can switch areas. You have to abandon your area for a few days and stay in the other. This week was also a bit difficult too because we had a zone conference and a stake conference on Sunday, So we left our area thursday in the morning and returned Sunday during the night. I was absolutely DEAD. A little stressful, but I know i´ll survive! :)

Have you ever heard of a situation with 10 girls, 2 bathrooms, and 6 beds? Well, I passed through this! Gosh. Why am I talking so formal. Anyways. Probably the most awesomest thing ever. I have a photo, but i forgot my cord. It´s all of the girls that I take care of. I love their guts. It was the funnest night ever. But seriously. We took pictures and right before we went to bed, we read a scripture together and said a prayer with all 10 of us. It brought me back to my kid days with slumber parties. We ordered pizza and just sat and talked. This happened because we had our zone conference on saturday and we had to stay because the stake conference would be in the same place the next day. So it was basically a fun night :) And we did a super blitz in the area of one of the sisters in Guarapuava and found a bunch of new people for them. It was pretty exciting :) 

Things I learned

I am grateful for a mission. I feel I have been truly humbled and like the scriptures say, less than the dust of the earth. I am greatful for my weaknesses and the tender mercies that I still have even being less than the dust than the earth. I am grateful for my faults so that I can learn from the and make them strengths. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve. I am grateful for the many blessings that I have received from my Father. I am grateful for a Father in Heaven that always forgives me even when I feel like I don´t deserve it. I am grateful for the many people and their strengths that can show me through their example of how I can be better. I am grateful for repentance. I am grateful for change. I love my Heavenly Father and his only begotton son, Jesus Christ. I am grateful for the Gosple. And I would never change or risk anything in the place of my testimony of the gospel. Because this is who I am. And if you take away the gosple, you´re gonna take away me. I know me father lives. I know He loves me. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and I know that the Gosple is His plan for us.

LOVE YOU ALL!! :D

Sister Parco

Reunited and It Feels So Good

Monday

Monday was awesome! I travelled alone.. WEIRD. To Curitiba for four hours to go to a meeting with everyone and guess who my companion was?!?!?!? SISTER T. Gosh it was so amazing seeing everyone there :) And here we were, all sad at the conference that we wouldn´t see each other again. BUT we´re gonna see each other until we get home! I saw Sister T, Sister P, and Sister D. I´ll be able to see sister D because we will have reunions every transfer! WHOOOHOOO! :D It was probably the best thing ever. Gosh I love them so much :)

But anyways, I was with Sister T and we were going to stay the night in the city because we had training the next day, and we would go to a city that we've never heard of. But, we decided, hey, as long as we´re here, why don´t we just go to ALA V. So we asked the assistants and they were awesome with it :D SO WE GOT TO GO TO ALA V TOGETHER!!!! We started everything that happened there and finished everything that we started there. Together. Gah. It was the best thing ever. We arrived there monday night and we decided to surprise the ward because they always have a huge Noite familiar. So we went there and they were literally talking about the two of us as we ran into the house with our clothes dripping wet because none of us brought an umbrella. It was pretty tense :) We run inside and everyone looks at us as if it were a dream. Everyone started screaming and freaked out. It was so flipping hilarious. And all the people that I love were there. It was WONDERFUL. SO we gave them all hugs and stayed there for the message. But do you want to know what the best part was? We got to see A and her family. And L ran up and gave us a hug, and A ran up and gave us a hug, and said that we should never leave. I missed them soooo much. And that time there was so precious.

We also got to visit A and A. They have the priesthood and it was S who gave it to them! Gosh, I think this is my favorite part. Seeing the growth in everyone. See how everyone has changed, how they´ve become strong, and how much has changed in them. I already said it in the email of photos, but it was the sweetest things to see A and A, they started talking about how the gospel changed them and how much we did and that they´ll never forget everything that we did. A started to cry and thanked us for everything. That touched my heart sooo much <3 I loved that sooo much :)

Tuesday

Tuesday we had one on one time with A and S. It was the best thing ever. It felt like home. We reaffirmed how important it was to keep being strong and going on until the end and bore our testimony to them and reminded them of the importance of the Gospel. I LOVE THAT FAMILY SOOO MUCH. It was seriously so natural to be there. They are one of my favorites here on the mission <3

Wednesday

Training! I have a picture of the newbie, but for some reason, it didn´t pass on the computer so i´ll send it next week :) We stayed there and learned and did all the welcoming and stuff and then took a bus at 6 to get back home at 10:15. It was a bit rough. Poor girl. Rough first day for her.

About Sister B. SHE IS GREAT :) She´s dedicated and has the purest testimony every. She´s the only member in her family and found the church when she prayed at 15 years old. She´s a hard worker and loves everything and is doing everything to do her best. She basically doesn´t need to be trained ;) , but i´m trying my best to teach her and also learn with her too! :) I think we´ll do a lot of stuff together here in Prudentopolis (Celestialtopolis ;))

Thursday

Thursday was good too! It was so much fun working with a greenie because everything is so new to them. Things that i´ve seen over and over and over are all new to her, and everything is so raw and genuine. I love that. Gah. I love seeing everything. And seeing how nervous they are for convites batismais. But she killed it. I´d do the sign to her and she´d look over and talk and invite real fast :)

Friday, Saturday, Sunday

All good. Happy things. Learned a lot.

Gotta go, my time is short :) Love you guys!!!

I'm a Grandma!

So. I became a mom and a grandma/aunt/step mother, I´m not actually sure what you call it yet, all in the same day. I´m training! WHOOOHOOO :) I´m so excited to excite her and show her how awesome it is to be a missionary! And I´ll be an STL these last 2 transfers. I think this is very clever of President to keep me from being trunky ;) But i´m ready to go out strong! 

Good things

I tried corn icecream. It was interesting. It was corn icecream with grape ice cream. It was interesting.

Did you know that miracles happen when you are tempted? It´s funny. At times I´m tempted to walk a little slower to pass by 5 minutes more faster instead of deciding to do contacts. But when that happened this week, we decided to ignore it and knock another door, It´s funny that the first door we knocked after we were tempted to walk to our lunch which was SUPER FAR, was opened for us and let us in! WHAT.

We found a familia that reminds me of A <3 It´s a family of 5. M, J, C, L, e M. They are the cutest most wonderfulest things ever. We left them a book of mormom, and returned and they all read it as a family and went to church this week! WHAT? I love them. And she was the only one in Gospel Principles that participated! It reminds me so much of A <3 So stubborn and isn´t afraid to speak :) I love them so much. Just in the two times we visited them we´re so chill and I love them so much :)

I got new shoes! We contacted someone and while we were teaching, she told me that me shoes were all torn up and asked if I wanted some shoes that she had. She had reason, I had forgotten to super glue them that day ;) They were exactly my size! Little miracles :)

A is doing great too! It´s another family that went to church! I love her. She is so humble <3 :) I love meeting all these people :) Ana is very special to me becuase she doesn´t know how to read, but she says that she prays about everything we teach and she feels good. And with A we have the opportunidade to teach everything simple. I love that. Yesterday we taught the Plan of Salvation, using the hymn, I am a child of God. I love the Primary song book! :)

Bad things

For some reason I could not sleep monday and tuesday night. I think I stayed up until 2 thinking on monday night and woke up at 5. WHAT. Needless to say. I giggled all of wednesday and half of thursday until I was almost literally falling asleep in the lessons, but, because of this, I had a miracle! Tuesday night the same thing happened. So many thoughts running through my head, at about 12 I said a little prayer, and I pleaded and said that I was really tired and needed to sleep a lot. I asked him, If it were according to his will that I could be able to sleep after I sang I am a child of God. All three verses. And guess what happened?!?!?!?! Exactly that. I finished and started to sing the first three lines of the first again and BAM. I LOVE MIRACLES!

I saw something that really made me mad and sad. On Tuesday when we were walking, I had a Nephi on top of the tower moment. We were walking, and I see this Old man (probably the little boys dad or grandpa) drunk as ever, and an 11 year old walking trying to keep him up and lifting him to his Grandpa´s house. And here it is, this little 11 year old trying to support the weight of his grandpa. Well, the grandpa is so drunk that he falls down and starts bleeding and the 11 year old absolutely embarrassed and worried, and sad, and everything at the same time. We ran over to help the old man get up and guide him to his house. Gah. It made me so frustrated. Who deserves to go through that? The last thing I want to see is an 11 year old having to deal with a drunk family member. He didn´t deserve that. And that poor little kid torn by probably love and embarrasment... Gah. It just made me real frustrated with the world. I was pretty frustrated the whole day. Not even mentioning that we ran into one of our LA´s drunk as ever too going home to her 11 year old daughter. It was really a Nephi praying on the tower moment. And smelling marijuana and seeing these people stuck in bars smoking. It just made me really sad. 11 year olds are so stinking innocent. They don´t and shoudln´t pass through things like this.

Anyways, I love you guys a lot and am excited to hear about your week! I´ll make sure to keep you guys updated on the adventures that we´re gonna have in these two transfers! :) Be good, Love your life, and just go get em :)

Sister Parco 

Contacts

So this is going to be short because I spent a lot of time reading and responding some other emails, so sorry that this will be short! 

I love contacts. The weirdest things always happen in them. Like old catholic ladies that we need to have our heart close to God and that as we were trying to practically walk away from her she starts speaking all these weird things and puts her hand on our hearts and giving us all these blessings and it was just weird. Plain weird. But hilarious after we left. You meet so many different people on the mission....

But we met a lot of great people this week, and 3 families went to church! I don´t remember a lot of what happened this week, but it was awesome! I love every single one of you guys and wish the best for you guys! Have a great New Year! :)

But I love everything here. And I love walking in the mud and I like slipping, and walking with broken umbrellas and just talking to every single persong about the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love being a missionary. And I love learning and testifying of simple truths. I love the fact that I have the chance to help every single person I see and that I do just that--help. I love the Gosple. I love the true joy that it brings. I love having the chance to just concentrate on helping people. I love my family and I love the truths that help me recognize what I´m supposed to be. What I want to reach. And what capacity that us as children of our Heavenly Father have. Because it´s a lot. And as we might think that it will change, maybe according to how many mistakes we make, or what things we do, but it never will change. I´m grateful to know what our Heavenly Father hopes of us. And what He wants us to be. I love my Heavenly Father and I am grateful for the sacrifice that Christ made for us. 

Love you guys! :) 

Sister Parco

We Wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

Disclaimer. So I hope that I looked awake on the Google+! I just wanted to tell you guys that if I seemed like a zombie, it was pretty much for the fact that it had been 2 weeks without a proper Pday.  But that is okay because we will finally have a good pday this thursday :) Let me tell you, it was a lot different this time google+ing you guys because hahah well, I know that I will be returning in 3 months! It was just a see ya later ;) 

But don´t you worry :) I´m still as focused as i´ll ever be :) That won´t ever change :) 

Miracles

This week was awesome! We had to go with faith a lot of the week, and we just saw wonderful miracles! This week we decided to drop everything for 2 days and knock on doors offering to show the video He is the Gift. So here we are knocking doors on day 24 when people are going to church or preparing dinner, and also day 25 when people are waking up to open presents and doing other things. We´re thinking alright in a normal situation, no one would do this. But we just decided to go for it, and it´s funny how many people the Lord put in our way during those hours. We found and talked and taught more people during those hours that we thought we would. We taught about 4 or  families. WHAT? It´s a Christmas Miracle! :) 

Even more miracles. This week we recieved a refernce and it just shows how awesome Heavenly Father is. Well the Sister's found a mother who went straight up to them and said. Hey, I need you to visit my daughter She doesn´t have a church and I want her to start going to church. She woke up this morning and said she had a desire to go to the mormon church. Uh. What. Okay. So we´re gonna visit her this week. 

Sentimental time

So, let me just say that it was absolutely wonderfl to see your faces this Christmas and I couldn´t have asked for a better Christmas present than this! You are all beautiful and wonderful and just spectacular! I love you guys sooo much and I hope that you had an amazing Christmas! :) Have a wonderful week! :)

Sister Parco