Brrr...who would've thought that I'd be so cold in Honduras?
Wait, what? Cold in Honduras? Yes
family, friends, and dearly beloved pets, I was cold this past week in
Honduras. I never thought that this day would come, but it did. Let me
explain.
This past Wednesday
it started to rain. With the rain, came a cool breeze. We were talking
with our 'cocinera' at lunch at she told us that there was a cold front
coming in that would last for 72 hours. We were a little surprised but
told ourselves, "How bad can 'Honduras cold' be?" As we walked home from
lunch to study, the rain started coming down harder and the cool breeze
became a cold wind. That was when it all began.
For the past 5 days it hasn't topped 70 degrees here
in Santa Cruz. I swear there were some days when it didn't top 60
degrees (for Honduras, that's like 20 degrees). The sun didn't come out
from behind the clouds for 5 days straight and it was almost always
sprinkling rain. The nights were cold to the point that one family gave
us extra blankets to keep warm. Some mornings we studied with sweaters
and blankets and walked around all day with sweaters. Showering was
almost impossible seeing as the water was basically recently-melted ice.
The roads were covered in mud and we almost slipped 100 times.
Sounds rough, huh? Well, it wasn't. I loved every
minute of it! :) What a nice break from the constant heat and sun. Today
the sun came back out and it's starting to heat up once again.
Well, this week flew by so fast I almost don't remember
what happened. We worked hard once again and saw some of the fruits of
our labors in miracles that occured.
Miracle #1: Jensy
was baptized yesterday! What a happy day for her and her family. I hope
and pray that one day through her example her whole family can come
back to church. She's a strong young lady that can do amazing things if
she puts her mind to it.
Miracle #2: Fabiola was baptized yesterday!
Wait, what? Who's Fabiola? Good question. Fabiola is the 16 year old
daughter of Lilian Corea who was baptized a few weeks ago. While she
wasn't open to the missionaries at first, she's been going to church for
a few weeks now and has found a few friends that have helped her feel
fellowshipped. This past Thursday
Lilian called us and said, "Fabiola wants to get baptized." We talked
with her the next day, found out she knew all the lessons, and baptized
her yesterday. What an amazing miracle! The Lord truly touched her
heart.
Miracle #3: I had a Thanksgiving Dinner this week! Who would have thought? Well this Wednesday
we were with la Familia Flores and they offered to have us over for
their Thanksgiving Day Dinner. Though it wasn't anything grand like in
Utah, we still had oven-roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, rice, salad,
and homemade orange juice. Afterwards we went around the table and
shared what we were thankful for. I told them I was thankful for the amazing family that I have. The whole evening was truly a miracle.
Miracle #4: I found Christmas lights in my
house! The other night I was searching for instructions to the portable
DVD player in the empty box and when I opened it up, I saw a strand of
Christmas lights! I almost couldn't contain my excitement as I rushed to
the nearest outlet to plug them in to see if they worked. To my
surprise, they still worked! So, thanks to missionaries of the past, our
house looks a little more festive :)
Miracle #5: Yesterday after lunch we were
calling people to remind them of our appointments. With every call, we
discovered that all of our plans had fallen through. My companion got a
little discouraged and sat down on his hammock and didn't respond to my
questions of what we were going to do. A little frustrated, I said a
prayer in my heart to receive guidance to plan the rest of our day. I
felt the inspiration to look through a list of members that we have in
our Area Book. As I did so, I started listing families, both active and
less-active, that we could visit. With that list of people we set out to
work. The second family we visited greeted us with open arms and
smiles. The first thing the sister said was, "What a miracle that the
missionaries have visited me again!" We read 1 Nephi 8:10-12 with them
and asked if there was anyone we could visit. To our surprise she told
us that she has 1 sister that she would like us to visit. The Spirit
truly guided us yesterday. What a miracle!
Miracle #6: Last night we were approached by a
drunkard in the street on our way to an appointment. Normally we just
keep walking to avoid any confrontations, but last night we stopped to
talk with him. As he told us his life story and his interaction with the
church, we noticed a man approach us as well and stop a few feet away.
As we started to walk away they both followed us. With time, the
drunkard, who kept calling us his "bellos gringitos" or "beautiful
little white guys," left us, but the other man kept walking with us.
Naturally we started talking with him and found out that he is
interested in joining the church. He even invited us to his house. What a
miracle!
Well that's about all the time I have to share my
miracles with you. Know that there are hundreds more miracles that I
experience on a daily basis. I understand even better now what Nephi
talks about when he mentions the 'tender mercies of the Lord' that are
evident in our daily lives. I challenge each one of us to look for the
small miracles every day. :)
Dad, you were right about the weather :) Sounds like
the weather is really taking a nose dive in Utah! 20 degrees? I don't
think I could handle that right now ;) It sounds like you had a great
week. Love you bunches!
Mom, yes, I'm feeling much better. I'm not sure what
hit me, but it didn't last more than a few days. I'm up and functioning
again! The new house is nice. It's bigger than the other one, but it's a
little older. The tiles are super ugly and the paint is horridly
colorful, but the bathroom and kitchen are in good shape. We have water
every other day, meaning that we bring in water using buckets every
other day. The neighbors are kind and like to talk to us on occasion. We
cook our own breakfast, pay a sister to make lunch, and the members
give us dinner. We wash our own garments, but the rest of our clothes
are washed by a sister who lives nearby. Everything works out well! :)
Thanks for your concern! Love you!
Eric, I have something to tell you. Ahem. ¡Feliz
Cumpleaños! o sea, Happy Birthday! I hope you have a super fantastic
birthday. Eat an extra slice of cake for me! You should be receiving a
letter soon, but knowing the mail system, you may not get it for a few
months... Love you brother!
Well, I must be off. There's still lots to do before
the day's over! I love you all so so so much. It may sound cliche and
repetative, but I truly mean it. I love you! There's just one more miracle I want to share with you.
Miracle #7: T he fact that Elder Roberts has such an amazing family. You are truly a miracle in my life! :)
Keep being stellar!
Con Cariño,
Elder Roberts
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