In the mission field

Wow, so much has happened this past week I cannot even believe it. I am going to try and share a few things, in what order, I do not know. But PLEASE I am so sorry if I do not respond personally to emails this week, I am trying my best!

First of all, THANK YOU. This week has been pretty darn hard, and all of your emails just made me so happy so thank you, really I could not feel more blessed! And also, thank you for sending a package, we do not get them until like once every six weeks so I probably wont get it for a while )if it makes it here, but thank you. I really feel so loved!! 

Okay..... here goes nothing!

I am here in Antigua Guatemala. It rains so hard ALL DAY. And it makes contacting hilarious! HILARIOUS! Because we are trying to run and catch people in the rain, anyway hilarious. And also, it is pretty darn cold, believe it or not! So if you ever want to send me like a sweater.... I am not holding you back! 

My companions name is Hermana Marroquien and surprise... she does not speak English! You are probably thinking, oh what a blessing, you will learn espanol! And yes, she is a blessing, but my Spanish is worse than it has ever ever been! It is quite funny actually, but you know I am just having faith that the gift of tongues will come in my package in six weeks! But she is a good trainer, so it is just fine!

The mission qualifications and standards here are pretty crazy! We have to have 3 baptisms a month, 8 investigators attend church every week, 11 lessons con a miembro, 11 other lessons, 12 new investigators every week and 35 contacts every day, with 10 of them being families. WOW. ya, I know! 

So the best place to contact here is on buses. Now you are probably thinking, oh a bus, just go talk to a couple people, how sweet. NO. What we have to do is stand up in front of the bus and contact the whole bus, which is HILARIOUS because there are no traffic rules here in Guatemala and so you are being tossed to and fro while trying to invite all of these people to church in a language that you do not know! AND THEN you pass through each seat and ask for directions to their home to share this message, AND THEN you don't understand any of the information they give you and so you have to have them write it down and then the bus makes a sharp turn so next thing you know, you are sitting on their lap, how special huh? IT is pretty hilarious, but effective because then you get a lot of contacts!

The other day, it was pouring rain... and I am mean pouring rain. But we needed 7 new investigators, which means that you have had a 1st lesson with them and they accept a second. So we prayed and got to work. Oh and did I mention, they do not walk here... THEY RUN. Literally, I am going to win the award for the greatest calves when I come home. But anyway, we were able to teach 7 new people in the pouring rain, so I am grateful that the lord provided!

OH. Alright, 6 30 is a lie. I am thrilled if I get to sleep past 5 oclock in the morning.... it is really neat!

But our mission president told us that he wants us to suffer, so I guess I am doing what he wants. I mean, I am not really suffering, it is just the hardest adjustment I have ever had to make, but I know I can do this!

Another thing is that we do not eat dinner here. WE eat breakfast before we leave, have lunch with our cook around 2 and then do not eat again until after planning at 9 30. It is actually pretty effective because then people are home around the hours that you would be eating!

We have a couple of investigators right now, and if you could pray for them that would be so awesome!! One is named Crisitan. He is 12 years old and is a cousin to a family recently baptized. His parents wont let him be baptized, and so we need all the prayers. Another is JOse, he is 21 and needs the inspirationa and the testimony and faith to be baptized. The other is Oscar, he has work on Sundays so he ant come to church and therefore cannot be baptized. But, I know that if we pray he will be able to find a new job!

One thing I have learned here is just how lucky we are. We are so lucky. These people have literally nothing. Each house is a tin roofed, cement floor room .With one or two beds for the whole family to share, no light except for if the door is open and it they are lucky they have a stove. But if not, they cook on a fire outside of their houses. They literally have nothing, and it has just made me so grateful and has truly humbled me. 

I know without a doubt that this is the Lord´s work. So many times I have prayed for little things and my prayers have been answered right away. Other times, he lets me suffer. But I know that it is only through my suffering that I am going to grow and become closed to my Savior. 

This is truly the hardest thing I have ever done, you really cannot prepare for a mission, it is something you just have to experience. There are times when i just cry, and just want to come home, but I know that this will  eventually end and right now I need to give all that I can to this. I just have to try my best. 

Our mission is the highest baptizing mission in central America because we believe in EXACT obedience, which is hard sometimes, but I know that it is going to bring miracles.

I can do this, with your prayers, I know that this is something that I will be able to do! Thank you so much! I pray for each of you cada noche, and don't know how I would do this without my family. I wish I could be there for so many things, and I just hope you all don't forget the girl over here in Antigua Guatemala who cant speak the language and has blister the size of who knows what mountain and looks like a tornado just hit me at all times, but who is trying her best to give it all to this work!

I LOVE YOU ALL! 

Survived an earthquake!

Familia!!!

Oh how I love your letters. I am so sorry if I don't get back to all this week, because I just wanted to take the time to read them all thoroughly this week. Really, thank you so so much! So many exciting things. WOW! I was thinking about how much I think about home, not in a bad or a distracting way, but I think it is because I love and miss you all so much! So I have figured out that I think air mail is the fastest, dear elders sometimes work but I don't get them for a couple of weeks. 

Alright, this week was pretty wild. here is the RUN DOWN:

1. I survived my first earth quake! did you hear about that? It was a 5.9, but the worst of it was not felt here. But man, the whole room was shaking and it was pretty scary! and yes, if you do not remember an earthquake is indeed my childhood fear, so well isn't that fun. So after, they evacuated us, they told us about how there would probably be an after shock.. as if I wasn't already traumatized enough. And they said it would probably happen while we were sleeping... equally as comforting. So they said that if it did happen, we needed to get underneath our beds. I asked if he thought that they would collapse, and he said "well, if they did, you would never know." OKAY. So that night after searching for places I would hide in case, and finding there were none.. I just decided that I probably should not sleep that night.. but good news, there wasn't an aftershock! 

2. I placed my first real Book of Mormon! there is this guy who serves us food and I had just been having a feeling that I needed to talk to him about the church, but I had been to afraid. So I told my companion that I was going to do it on Sunday. So Sunday came and he happened to be the only one in the serving line, and so I figured that this was my chance. I went up to him, more nervous then I had ever been and asked if he was a member. He said no and I asked why not. He said he didn't really know about the church so I asked if he would like to learn more! he said YES! so I got him a Book of Mormon and brought it to him at dinner and he just looked and grabbed the book and said, "oh oh oh, this is so precious. thank you so much!" It was awesome, I don't know if he will ever read it but I knew I had to follow the prompting!

3. So in our leader meeting the other day, president told us that the general young womens president and relief society president were touring central american and wanted to come to the CCM that night for dinner. He asked me and the other hermana leader to pick 15 hermanas to have dinner with them. So we were all excited! And then we got there and my companera and I were at a table of the young womens general president and Latinas. They told us that we would be translating... um alright... four weeks of spanish. Yep, so that was really exciting, trying to translate. Actually it was quite hilarious really, but hey we tried our best and it turned out to be a really neat experience! We took a picture with them, so maybe they will show it is GC? jk :)

4. I leave the CCM on Tuesday! I AM SO SCARED! But hey, I am just praying really hard, and even if my trainer does not know English, which she probably will not, I know that somehow I will be able to do this. SOMEHOW. hahaha My Spanish is actually a lot better, especially during lessons. I am just so grateful for the spirit and help that it brings! But with me leaving on Tuesday, I don't think I will be able to email that whole week so I am so sorry! But I will be fine, and will have the help I need to make it though my first week in the field :)

5. I have realized this week that people are going to start caring about the gospel when they know that you care about them. You must prepare a lesson, always with their needs in mind but then the spirit might direct you in a different path. More times then not, we have taught a different lesson then we had planned. It is amazing how the spirit works.

6. This week we had to give an impromptu lesson about the Law of Chastity to a Latino distrito... that was fun. You never realize how little spanish you know until you are asked to give an impromptu lesson about the Law of chastity.

All in all, I am doing well, I am not sick anymore, and I know that is all thanks to your prayers and the Lords help. It truly was a miracle how fast I was healed, I am so grateful for it! The next time I email you I will be out in the field!! WOOT! I could use all the prayers I could get, but I know I can do this! I love you all and pray for you constantly.

Amy

Since Amy will be leaving the CCM next week, until we know more, the address to the mission home is:

 

Sister Amy Elizabeth Funk

Guatemala Guatemala City Central Mission

Apartado 921-A Zona 9

01009 Guatemala City

Guatemala

Guatemala

Hurrah for Espanol

Hello!

I know I know, I am writing on a Monday again! But it is because new missioneros are coming in this week and we are going on a field trip to.... WALMART. I have never been this excited or thought I would be this excited to go to Walmart in my whole life! But yes, the older missioneros are leaving, so you know what that means? We are going to be the oldest kids here is the CCM. Anyway, yes we are going to be the oldest and then we leave in two weeks! WHAT! so if you are sending any more letters, I would start sending them to the mission home. Also, with this next group of missionaries we are getting, we are getting only 8 Norte elderes, no new hermanas and 70 LATINOS. yes. I am actually really excited because I love latinos. Speaking of Latinos, actually, not speaking of Latinos, pero are you getting my letters I am sending? I have sent ones each pday.. I think. anyway, I have received a couple of your letters and I LOVE THEM! They make my whole day. They take about two weeks, and them sometimes they are very scattered! Anyway. I love your letters and I love you all!

Okay okay news from this week, not to much to tell but I will try my best to give you something!

Me and mi companera taught the plan of salvation to our invesigador this week. It was a really special lesson because I was able to use a picture of our family to tell about personal families. It added so much more to it and made me so grateful that our family can be together forever. 

We have learned a LOT of vocab this week, like ALOT. I have no idea how I am going to be able to remember it all, but I am just really trying my best! I try to use the things I learn in my conversation and so we will see, it is getting better and I know that it will just take time!

I have been also trying to strengthen my own testimony because I know that it is very important to do that in order to have the power you need for conversion. It has been a good experience and I know that it will pay off when I am teaching out in the field. I also had the thought this week, what if I have a trainer who speaks NO english?! ya, I am kinda scared. HURRAH FOR ESPANOL.

I bore my testimony in sacrament meeting yesterday in espanol.. that was pretty exciting. Also.. fast sundays at the MTC... MAN ARE THEY LONG! From 5 saturday night to 5:45 sunday... Ya.. hm. BUT I did it, and that is all that matters.

Okay.. now for the funny moments of the week!

1. our teacher has taught us that when our investigator tells us he or she has not been reading el libro de mormon, that we needed to be and act devastated. So We were teaching our investigator (our teacher) and I asked him if he had been reading his LDM, and he said that he was too busy. So then I proceeded to be devastated, just like he had told us too. It was kind of funny, but hey he commited to read cada noche :)

2. The girls here love love love to talk about home and about their future weddings with their prince charming at home. The other day at lunch, that was all they were talking about, about what wedding colors, etc.. and so me and my companion, trying not to get distracted from the work on the subject of boys, started talking about our funerals, like what colors we wanted and stuff. hahaha it was hilarious!

3. Latinos do not understand American phrases. THEY DO NOT. it is hilarious. A girl in my distrito asked our teacher if she "got a kick out of being an investigator" and our teacher was like, " well.. no, I do not know who is supposed to be kicking me." hahaha to good. these things happen every day.

That really is all from this week! I am just trying to learn espanol, strengthen my testimony and put everything into this! I hope that you all know that I pray each night for you and just love you with all my heart!!!

Hermana Funk

Some Things Are Meant To Be

I would title this week, "Somethings are meant to be". Yep, that is it. You want to know why? Well, here it is!

So You know how we used to pretend that we were each the girls from Little women in correspondence with our ages? And I was always Beth.. The one who gave people medicine and then got a fever of her own and died? Well, surprise, surprise, that is exactly what happened this week.. except I am not dead!

I have been giving medicine to all those who are sick and checking up on them and whatever, and then on Friday I woke up just sick. I had a fever, a cold, stomach problems and just about the worst feelings ever .I went throughout that day just trying my best and then woke up Saturday morning with an even higher fever and I couldn't do anything. Sister Nicolaysen (the MTC presidents wife) made me stay in bed and I could not sleep because I was so frustrated I was so sick. So I got up and kept going and then that night I had a blessing from my teacher Hermano Cano, who I think the world of. It was all in Spanish but I was able to get from it that my whole body would be healed, and I remembered in my setting apart blessing how it told me that I would see miracles. so that night I went to bed and asked and pleaded so hard that I would wake up healed, and I did. It was seriously a,amazing. I still have a cough and stuffy nose but it had not kept me from working or doing anything, I felt so so blessed!

So last week a group of people went to their missions and a new group came in. So this means that there are a lot of both Nortes and LATINOS (YESSS!) It has been so fun, and especially with the calling I have, I have had the opportunity to really get to know each one. I am loving it and just am grateful for this opportunity I have to serve them! It is so weird that the olders misioneros leave this next week and that we will be the oldest ones, and that I am halfway done! YES! It is awesome, but scary at the same time! But when the old ones left, we all got to get out of this prison (it really is a prison.. no one goes in or out and if you do there are guards with shot guns) yep. and we got to go to the mercado! It was really fun and just nice to get out and see a little bit of Guatemala!

I just have to tell you all, I am so grateful for you letters and emails. I seriously cry every time I get a letter because it makes me feel so loved and comes at the times when I need them most, so really thank you for always taking the time to do that for me. It means the world! and I am am only allowed to write back on Pdays, but I do write back I promise!!!

I am doing better with the language  Hermano Cano makes us speak only Spanish from 9 in the morning to ten at night... ya right... but I try my best! I really do, and I am noticing a difference. Do the Latinos laugh at my Spanish  Yes, yes they do. But do I care? No. I keep talking, because I know it is the ONLY way I am going to improve.

I want to tell you about some neat experiences I had this week that have really shaped me and my testimony.

1. I was having sort of a hard morning the other morning, just feeling really down on myself, and I was reading my scriptures. I was reading in D &C ten where is is talking about how ministering angels will come and carry the message of the truth to the people. I KNEW at that moment that Grandma Johnson was there. I could feel it. I know that her plan right now is not going to be to help me personally, but to help carry the message of truth to my investigators. She is going to be my constant spirit companion. I loved it and it has really given me strength to know that I am not alone in this experience.

2. I have realized this week why missionarys always say they are so happy. They are not happy because great things are happening to them, they are not happy because everything is going their way, they are happy because for once in their life they are completely focused on other people.  When you focus on other people, your own needs are taken care of. I have made a goal to in my prayers and in my doings each day to make others my top priority and it will bless me far more than it ever would if I was focused on myself.

OKay now for some funny moments of the week:

1. I am really good friends with this elder in my district named Elder Uribe. During deportes one night we decided to have hymn karaoke night. We had people join in doing solos, duets, all to Spanish hymns. It was hilarious! It is just the little things that keep ya going.

2. So there was this older missionary couple who came in to talk to us about mental health and such on Sunday night (instead of watching legacy :) ) and I was talking to the wife of the couple and I was asking her about their mission or whatever. I asked her,"how has it been?" she looked at me with horror and said "WHAT?" and I said "Hows it been?" and she said " Oh I thought you said, How is the Bed?" hahahahhaa okay.. yep I am asking you how is your bed. OH the memories.

3. Our whole distrito is sick. There is not one soul left. So We like to call ourselves the nose blow choir. And a fun fact. a district of Latinos cannot sing to save their lives so whenever they start singing, we have a nose blow choir performance to drown out the noise.

I think that is about it for this week. I am just trying my hardest and it is because of you all and the Lord that I have the strength to keep going, so really I thank you for that. You never know just how much it means until you are a missionary. It is the best. So thank you! I am putting my all into this all day every day and I know that it will pay off!

I love you and and pray for you each separately and by name each night. I can feel that heavenly father is with you all as well as with me!

LOVE YOU

Hermana Funk 

Hermana Coolio Funky

Hola!

I know what you are thinking, what the heck?! she was not supposed to write until Wednesday! I know that and I am sorry, so do not feel bad if you have not emailed me because I guess our Pday changes every week, so just to be safe, always email me on Sunday or before. I really am sorry though, but I got emails enough to keep me going throughout this week! so it is totally fine!

Wow! What a week. It is always the hardest typing because I have no idea what you guys want to hear, but I think I am just going to go throughout my week and tell you some different points!

1. I have never worked so hard in my life. I really have made an effort to put my whole might mind and strength into this whole ordeal and it is paying off but it has also been some of the hardest times I have ever had. But I know that if I did not have hard times, I would not grow so it is okay. I get through them though! And being a missionary, you have bad hours and good hours, instead of good days and bad days. So one hour you are down, then the next you are up, so it all evens out in the end. :)

2. We are now teaching a new investigator... who is our teacher. And our teacher is no Mrs. nice. She looooooves to push us and she how hard we can work. She has the profile of Marta, a lady who has four kids and wants the gospel but is not married and her husband is not good to her, and just a lot of things. AND ALSO. she will take no English! The second you say something in English, she will no "no entiendo". ummm alright, let me just get out my Spanish dictionary. it is so hard. and our first lesson with her was pretty bad, we just felt like we were not working in unity and were focusing on the lesson rather than her. BUT I want to tell you what I learned from this. After our lesson, we were feeling pretty down on ourselves. And we just wanted to know how we could improve. Throughout the next couple of classes we had that day, it became very apparent how we could improve. STOP WORRYING ABOUT THE SPANISH AND FOCUS ON THE PERSON. That truly is what it comes down too. Take the time to listen to to what they are saying, without thinking in your mind what you are going to say next and then let the spirit tell you what to say. And stick to the doctrine and the things you know. We are just to focused on the Spanish rather than the person. So my companera and I are excited for tonight to really try to put that into practice. I know that it will make all the difference!

3. Everyone is sick. You don't really realize how many sicknesses there are on this planet until you come to the CCM. But lucky for them, we have something called a Botequin. A first aid kit that has just about every medicine a person could need. The leaders have to carry it around, so I even have one of my own... pretty cool huh? But seriously, there are so many people who are sick, but I have been greatly blessed and have not been sick once while I have been here, I cant even believe how lucky I am!

4. i have made a goal to read all my scriptures and predicad me evangelio in spanish. And guess what? It works! it truly makes so much of a difference! I am understanding everything my teacher is saying, what preach my gospel is saying, and even sometimes what the LAtino missioneros are saying.¨I still cannot speak it very well, but I am just trying my very hardest and best and I know that it will come!
NOW. I just have to share with you some hilarious things from the CCM this past week., Literally, this place is Hilarious. HILARIOUS.

1. The Latina hermanas love to learn English words. So sometimes I will go into their rooms at night and point at things and tell them the English words for them. But they have the hardest time understanding how to say it. For instance, I was trying to teach them how to say "hair". THEY CANNOT SAY HAIR! they say "hayyer." "hayyyyyer". no, "HAir.", okay "Hayyyyer." It is hilarious, I do it mostly for my own enjoyment. :) And then they will tell you phrases they learned in english throughout the day. This one Hermana was sitting next to me at dinner and she tapped me on the shoulder and whispered in my ear, "Am I beautiful?", mind you this hermana knows 0 English.. it was hilarious!

2. It was President nicolaysen (the MTC president) birthday this week. So during lunch, they suprised him with a marriachi band. They serendaded us all of lunch and it was just the best. They also had a cake... and well.. I love cake. So that was just the bomb.

3. Like I said last week, the hispanic elders LOVE nortes. They truly do. It is no lie. This one came up to me this week and said "give me your..... number... no.. give me your... mail... no...give me your....email. yes email." and I looked at him and I said, "I am sorry, I am a missionary!" and he didn't understand I guess.. because he is very persistent. But not instead of him, it is his companion.. so that is just a lot of fun. All the time. Also, the people working in the kitchen really love nortes too, so you just feel a lot of... love.. everywhere you go. :)

4. Like I said, yesterday we watched the Bachelor: Pioneer style. Would you like to know what this was? Legacy. Yes. Legacy. The movie mom and dad would always make us go to for family night at temple square. You would have thought we were watching Americas greatest love story. You get 100 missionaries who have not watched a movie for about a month and let them watch Legacy... man. They were hootin and hollerin and laughing at things like people dropping their hammers, crying, sighing, everything. IT WAS HILARIOUS! The elders wanted to watch the kissing moments over and over again. hahaha

5. So every night at 7:30 we have what is called refaccion, which is a break and snack time. we were having that last night, and they always give us candy on sundays. So we were all in line and they were giving us cholcoate bars with the name, St. Gerrund. I had mine in hand and this rather strict, rather obedient sister came up to me and said, "um, do you think we are allowed to eat catholic chocolate?" just saying. and then she didnt eat one. OKAY!

Truth be told, life is good here. They have us busy, and the moments that we are not busy, are the times I miss you all the most. I pray for each of you by name each night and thank my Heavenly Father that I have such an incredible family. I really have no idea how I ever got so lucky. I love my companion, my district is the best, and I am doing ym best to be the best missionary I can be. I have such a far ways to go, but I just try and keep my faith strong. Thank you all for helping me to do that!

So just a reminder, email me on Sundays, and do Dear Elders. When I dont have itme to write, I write you letters so please do not think that I have forgotten about you!!

I love each and every one of you!!

hermana coolio funky

A Day at the CCM

Alot of you have been asking, Miramy, tell us about a day in the CCM, so I am going to do that!

So we wake up at 6:30.. SURPRISE! Ad to be honest, it has not been hard at all. The first couple of nights I got a cumulative of 5 hours of sleep but that it because one of the Latinas was snoring, so then another Hermana gave me earplugs and MAN. It made all the difference! But anyway, we wake up and we have an hour to get ready, which is super nice! And then we go to breakfast. NOW. The food in the CCM has been rather hard on a lot of peoples stomachs. Almost every day people are throwing up and stuff but honestly I have prayed so hard that I would not get sick and have been very blessed because of it! I have not gotten sick, and you have to eat everything they put on your plate or else they get offended, so man.. it has been a little rough. But they do have ICE CREAM and fruit.. so ya know, I am just fine!

So after we have breakfast, we do personal study and companionship study and language study.. a lot of study, But Something interesting about those study times is that you are not studying for yourself and not just studying random language phrases, you are studying the things for your investigator, so you are constantly thinking about others which has been so awesome. I wish sometimes that I could just read the BOM, just whatever I wanted, but I know that I am out here to serve other people, not myself.

After that we have more classes, DEPORTES (sports, mom :) ) and dinner and then more classes and then we teach at night. That is about a day in the CCM. Now I have a couple things to tell you all about.

1. THE LATINOS. HILARIOUS. in the CCM, it is about half and half Latinos and North Americans. ( We cannot call ourselves Americans or else they get offended becuase they are Americans too. Whatevz. ) Anyway, they do not speak english. And I just want to get to know them so every day Hermana Godfrey (my compenera and I) go sit by them at meals and try our best to talk to them in our broken broken broken Espanol. It is hilarious. I am not sure if they are laughing at me, or if they think I am funny. Probably the first one. :) anywyay, they are just the sweetest girls and try their best to help us with our spanish and always have smiles. I seriously love them. Except for the one in my room snores... but I am over it. AND THEN there are the Latino elders... hmm hmmm hmm. I had to go and talk to our zone leader because at every meal.. well they just really love North American girls and so it was just constant stares and points and ya.. pretty funny though. I get a kick out of it sometimes and then others I am just like.. hmm. This is weird. But it has gotten better!

2. The water is constantly off. The first nightr we got here, a water pipe broke and flooded the girls rooms. So that was neat. And then they will just come around and tell us, "we are shutting off the water for 6 hours right now." Hmm, alright, thanks. And then sometimes actually like all the time, it just does not work. It is quite funny. Everything here is quite funny!

3. We are teching a real investigator!! His name is Daniel and he works in the kitchen. We had no idea he waws a real investigator until like the second time we taught him. our district all teaches him. Anyway, Hermana Godfrey and I decided that since we did not know like any spanish, we would do the best we culd and let the spirit take over. We quit wworrying about the language barrier and just did the best we could! We also started singing him hymns every night and I cannot even tellyou what a difference that has made. It has been the coolest expereince to learn that we are not teaching lessons, we are teaching people. We have been able to communicate through the spirit and he told us last night that he wants to be baptized! COOLEST THING EVER! and the thing is is that I know it is completely the spirit because We did not know enough Spanish to have it be anything else. It has been such a good growing and learning expereince. During one lesson I accidentally said "pescado" (fish) instead of "pecado" (sin) and he looked at me and said "tiene hambre?" ALRIGHT AMY.

4. I got called to be the Hermana Training LEader, which has been a very humbling experience. They do not usually call them until they have been in for at least two weeks, ad I got called on the second day because they accidentally chose two from one zone instead of one from each so they needed on from our zone. I just mostly make sure all the Hermanas are doing okay, and report it each Sunday. This past sunday we were having that meeting and they asked me different questions. SO. You know how I dont know like any spanish? So the only thing I could say was "esta Bien." to everything! ha, oh well, it was an experience to laugh about and I have a goal to get better!

5. some of the girls here know who miranda sings is! Hallelujah!

6. So I have been very discouraged with the lanugage. I mean, I am trying so hard but I can just not form sentences. I have been so down on my self and it has been a pretty rough week with that. Last night we had a devotional from Elder Scott broadcasted from the provo MTC and he talked about revelation, which was way cool. At the end he said, " I give you and Apolostic blessing from the Lord that those of you who are learning a language will be given the gift of tounges according to your faith and dillegence." It hit me like a brick. IT seriously was exactly what I needed to hear and I know that I can do this! I could appreciate your prayers as I put all I have into this!

Honestly, life is good. I am very grateful for this opportunity and I know that I need to be here. I must admit I have wished a lot this week that I can be home and I HAVE NO IDEA HOW IT HAS ONLY BEEN A WEEK?! But. That is not the point, the point is I am doing this because I know it is right.
I pray for each of you by name every night and even though I am on the opposite side of the world, I can feel your love. I am okay! I promise! I am not even lying! yes, it is hard, but if it wasn't it would not be work.
ALSO. You can send letters through Dear elder to here and also, mail gets to Guatemala just fine. Also, when sending a package, you don't need to put the stickers on, all you need to do is just put Hermana Funk!
I love you all so much. SO MUCH! I cannot wait to hear from you again!

Hermana Funk.

Hola

Hey! I am Hermana Funk and I will be serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for the next 18 months in the Guatemala City Central Mission. My sister will be updating my blog while I am on my mission, sharing different stories and experiences! If you would like to hear more, I would love to hear from you! I hope that through this blog you are able to share in my experiences alongside me. I love the gospel and am so excited I have to share it with the people of Guatemala!