What a week!

Family: Dad asked me if we are in a ward--it's a ward (Barrio Cordova). There are 18 missionaries here in Manta and we each have our own sector. We are the only hermanas. We eat random things from the house or that we buy quickly for dinner. I am making my comp stop sometimes for 20 mins and take a break because normally she doesn't and we go without food the whole rest of the day. not ok haha.

Hola familia y queridos amigos! Wow I can´t believe it´s Monday again, yet I am so grateful it is! I have definitely learned a lot this week. I´m gunna try and sum up the week into some highlights but they will still have details because I don't know how to write or speak without them haha.

Last P-day, Hna Angulo and I had Mediterranean food--in Ecuador--it was pretty good! A few days later, we were passing by and the same guy who works there all the time was outside. Hna Angulo has always had the impression to talk to him but never has so I made her go and we talked to Soheil. He has light in his eyes and showed a desire to go to church and learn! He told us his crazy life story about how he escaped from his country Iran and came here. He has huge scars on his arms because he was tortured for trying to escape before. We are so blessed to live in a free country! Apparently he came to church at 11 (our ward starts at 8) and didn't see anybody because we were all finishing up classes so he left. But we are gunna visit him this week. We will see!

Also on Monday, after that dinner we had a visit with some recent converts--parents of the Bishop. The hermana pulled out Sprite and wafer cookies and served a huge plateful and huge glasses of Sprite. She refilled our glasses and wouldn´t accept less and kept telling us to keep eating. I literally felt like the guy in Matilda as she said Eat, Eat! And we just had to eat and say Gracias, Hermana. hahaha oh geez

This week was a good one with the Arroba family--Lucy´s family. We had a lesson with the whole family (minus Lucy) with the Zambrano parents and we watched Legacy. We explained afterwards their questions, and bore testimony about the Restoration and prophet Joseph Smith. The Spirit was very sweet and then we all knelt on their cement floor as Hermano Zambrano prayed. It was really great, and even better was the fact that all of the family (minus Lucy and her dad of course) wanted to be there and watch and participate. This family is slowly changing--I love them. Later on in the week, we had a great lesson with Lucy, her sister Jennifer and Daniele--one of the Zambrano girls. It was perfect because it was just them, they were talking girl talk and our lesson was the talk by Elder Uchtdorf where he talks about true, eternal happiness and relates the Gospel to fairy tales. Lucy is getting baptized on the 3rd of September!! The Zone Leaders want us to ask her for this weekend (for numbers I´m sure) so I guess we have to ask but we all feel good about the 3rd. We teach people, not lessons and not numbers :) She came to church and I hope she´s good--some dumb sister in the ward stood up and made comments about proper church dress (Lucy and our other investigator were wearing nice jeans and the other sisters were wearing skirts so who do you think the comment was directed towards?? It made me pretty mad and we tried to smooth it over so I hope that didn't make an impact on her.)

We have an investigator named Gisela--we had 2 lessons with her this week and we are very excited about her. The first one, she broke down crying, telling us about her life and her hardships of being a single mom of 3 and working all hours of the night to provide for her fam because she separated from her husband 6 mos ago and that was a horrible relationship so she did it for her kids. Her kids are so cute and she is so beautiful and strong. Her mom also hasn´t talked to her in 3 months on top of all that and she told us about that--there´s a reason we saw her on the street one day waiting for her kids to get home from school. We invited her to church and she said she would try even though she works until 3 or 4 am on Sat nights and would have to be at church like 4 hours later. We were in Relief Society yesterday when Gisela peeked through the window with an hermano from another ward who helped her find us. What faith she had to come! That was a tender mercy.

So there is this 19 year old named Manuel that we saw a few weeks ago with his cousins and apparently he had been taught once by Hna Angulo and the other hermana but they never could find him after. Well we saw him again this week--coincidence I think not because every time after talking to him I feel so strongly he wants this and needs it and we need to be diligent in teaching him! The problem is he forgets about lesson times and doesn't always follow through--normally we would drop people like this but for some reason we really feel like we need to be perseverant. We found him and his cousins at home on Saturday and had a 1.5 hour lesson with them. Manuel has so much curiosity about us--they can see something different and was so respectful--he asked exactly what we can eat and drink and then disappeared as we were talking to his cousins. He came back, having bought us peach juice and crackers from a nearby store. They had many questions and Manuel said he wants to be a missionary and be baptized--you can tell he needs something in his life and we NEED the Brigadas here in Ecuador! Tell David Sheets that Ecuador is so close to Panama :) they need you guys down here too haha. Anyway, we taught them about the Plan of Salvation using my pictures and everything made sense to them and was different. Manuel looked up and asked me how I knew this was true. I told him I prayed because really we can´t know things are true without praying. He asked me exactly how I felt when I prayed and I told him and bore my testimony. He then wanted to know how different missionaries get assigned to different places and we told him about the process. I then told him and his cousins that I really don´t know exactly why I´m here but that I do know there is a reason. He said, really seriously,--to help me. I testified that I know there is a reason me and my comp are here in Manta and the Lord knows everything! This kid didn´t come to church though BUT his cousins accepted the compromise to pray and we saw them yesterday and they actually did. Pepe--one of his cousins said after much time of not praying he was going to pray. We have a lesson with Pepe and his sister Rebeca on Sunday and then Manuel we are going to set up a schedule when he gets back from travel with his dad this week.

So, one of these days we didn´t have lunch and we went to a place to eat. I ordered a salad because I had been dying to have one and it looked like a clean place. BAD idea. hahaha I could just imagine Dad´s head shaking back and forth in a kind of I-told-you-so manner. Haha that's all I could think of afterwards and I deserved it. I´m just glad Ecuador sells bananas everywhere.

Then, on Friday I think it was, we had lunch at the normal house we go to on Fridays and it was the ¨worst lunch I ever had¨ haha literally. Fish soup--I started laughing outloud when it was just me and my comp as I was forcing that stuff down. Then rice, weird weird weird beans, and a fried egg. Something was bad in that meal, though, because I was pretty sick the rest of the day. But it passed too. All these sicknesses I mention are things that are during that day or the next or I feel weird but I take my pill and go about our work and it´s fine--so don´t worry, Mom! I´m not really sick and haven´t had to stay home or anything.

Funny story of the week: I got asked out like 3 times by this Cholo guy. He passed us on a motorcycle and as he was passing tried to speak English which I ignored and then said, ¨You wanna go out?!¨ I ignored that as well. Then later on, we were walking down the street and he came out and said, Hey! Remember me? I´m the guy that asked you out. I just ignored him and we kept walking--kinda laughing at all the stupids here that speak English to us. The last time was at night and he was somewhere and came out and said--I´m still waiting for my answer! I turned around and said We are missionaries and kept walking but my comp wouldn´t have that. I turned around and she had marched up there telling him the respect he should have for us, etc, etc and he apologized saying he thought we spoke English, to which my comp started speaking broken English (she was upset--I have no other explanation for this haha) and then they both were kinda on edge and getting upset so I quickly grabbed my companion and told her lets go! Haha men make Hna Angulo mad. I was laughing--not thinking it was a big deal and just had brushed it off but nope! But as missionaries we can't get in fights so I tried to calm her down hahaha. So that's in detail of the weird things that happen here along with the wonderful work we are doing.

Kathy is a wonderful investigator and we have high hopes for her but she is not married. Her spouse had a bunch of questions for us though but he has a bit of changing to do so we are gunna keep going slowly!

In church yesterday, I played the piano, spoke (the Bishop told me as I was playing the opening song--crazy), and taught Gospel Principles. baha

So---this week apart from these experiences has been one of frustration, learning, and dealing. Wow sorry this is so long already. Long story short, our ward and area has so many problems and struggles with conversion. We virtually have zero support as missionaries. We feel the burden of all of Manta upon us sometimes! We can´t do it alone and have a plan to start working first with the leaders and the members. I am so dedicated to changing the missionary work here in our ward and it's going to take sacrifice and changes in our normal plans and teaching but that's what needs to be done. Member missionary work is so important and without conversion in the members or leaders of the ward, it doesn´t work. Don´t ever take the U.S. or wards for granted. Our Bishop doesn´t even read his scriptures he told us at lunch one day it had been so long since he had read. We helped his family read, bore testimony, have FHE with them tonight and have plans to visit each leader and family and other members, share a short-spiritual message, bless their homes, set up an FHE, and leave so the Spirit remains and they are reminded of what they know and the blessings of the Gospel. The 2nd counselor of the Stake Pres--Hermano Salazar who is 23 and the fam we eat Sundays with--promised us blessings and changes if we do those things and other specific plans we have and we know it´s true so I felt like Logan this week and that's where our focus will be for a while! Maybe the whole time--but I know we will need to be patient, work hard, and the changes will come. I am very determined and we are gunna do it.

Last thing--last night was way rough. Hna Angulo didn´t have a good day, was down, and super impatient, and I was made to feel very inferior a lot of the day and especially last night. I have been pretty frustrated this week with certain things and last night was definitely my comp but we had a good conversation and things will improve. It´s normally good and we are both learning patience and it's ok that we aren´t best friends but we still can laugh and teach and cry and everything together so thats good-I know we are being blessed and things will be up and down in this work.

I feel so blessed to have a newfound love of this Gospel. It´s so true--I promise that if you read the scriptures everyday, pray sincerely, and keep the commandments, you will feel the Spirit of Heavenly Father in your life strongly and be able to know for yourself the truthfulness of these things. The Book of Mormon is true, Jesus Christ lives, through prayer we can feel His love and we don´t need to go through this life alone!

LOVE YOU ALL sooo much. Miss you so much this week!

Love,

Hermana Bryan

Dallin: You were a Dad, huh??  Awesome!  What all did you have to do?  I love hearing from you.  What is your job in Panama??  Who is awesome in Panama? (when you're there).  I miss you like crazy!  Party Rock played the other day haha it reminded me of Logan and Cameron too--dance for me and do a flash mob in Panama--you know Dad wants to show off his crazy moves.  LOVE YOU bud.  The church is true--find a friend to share it with!

Logan: How you give me strength!  I love you so so much and miss you like crazy.  I wish we could do this together.  Hna Maldonado said she saw you?  How was that? How is she?  I´m so glad your week was better--I literally was praying all the time that the Lord would place tender mercies in your life and path.  He literally fulfills His promises to his missionaries.  In the Conference Ensign one of the apostles said that the sun never sets on righteous missionaries proclaiming the truthfulness of the Gospel.  I think of you when I read that quote and can see you fulfilling that and imagine you proclaiming this truth.  It just reminds me of you and gives me strength.  I´m so grateful for your example, Logan.  Isn´t it crazy some of the people we meet and the excuses or questions they have?  Haha it's weird for sure..I loved reading your good and weird experiences.  I love you so so much and miss you like crazy.  Time warp to 2 years?! :) just kidding.  Know I pray for you every single day and miss you! 

Mom and Dad: I love you so so much.  How I wish you were here or I could hug you.  Translating, Dad??!  How will that work?  You will be so awesome.  Mom, I hope you figured out the clinic--you will be great and Ellen knows all I know so she will be of help if you need it!  The story about Kelsie is so neat, I´m so glad you shared that and all of your other advice and quotes and stories.  I miss you both so much and am so grateful for your prayers and support!  Tell Papa and Odie I got their Dear Elder and sent them a handwritten letter 2 weeks ago so hopefully they get it soon.  I sent Dallin a letter, the recorder--make sure to let me know if you get it, and other letters for you to send to people that I don´t have their addresses....haha thank you.  I love you so much and am excited for you in Panama!  You are doing the work of the Lord and what Christ would be doing too if He were here. Thank you!  Tell everyone Hi from me and I love them.  Thank you for your teachings and I have realized every day more and more how blessed I am not only to live in the U.S. but to live in your home and be your daughter.  How grateful I am for parents who live the Gospel and teach the righteous principles of the Gospel.  I am so so eternally grateful for you both.  I love you!  Can´t wait until we are reunited.

First Week in Ecuador!

THANK YOU EVERYONE for the amazing birthday wishes! I laughed so much and smiled and even teared up--you don´t know how much it means to have so much support and love from you all. Thank you so so so much!

Also--you can email me! They never said anything about that. I just can´t email back :(   I am way sad about that especially because mail takes 2 weeks each way but hey it could be worse and be like a month!  So I will hand write I promise and please please keep emailing me because it gets me through some hard times and I love you all! The mission address is on my fbook for packages but the pouch mail is what you use for regular mail!

Ok--WARNING--this is going to be LONG. REALLY LONG. I have so much to say and talk about haha so sorry for everyone who reads this!! I will cut it down next time when all this is normal haha.

Alrighty, so saying goodbye to the people at the MTC was so sad! It was like saying goodbye to second family because we had all gone through the exact same emotions--that's what I love about all of us being together. My comp and I stayed up way too late just talking in bed even though I had to get up at 4 am the next morning! How I ended up loving that place, the Spirit, its environment, and the people! It was incredible to talk to you, family on Tuesday. I´m eternally grateful I didn´t wait until Miami to call as we found out I had like 3 minutes. I´m gunna tell the last week like it was :)

So I got to Guayaquil and somehow knew that my luggage wasn´t going to get there. Yup--they lost all my luggage. So the two office elders that met me at the airport took me back to the temple dorms. The assistants met me there and had some food waiting leftover from the earlier dinner with our Mission Pres but since I got there so late I went up to bed. One of the sisters inside gave me some pajamas and shampoo--bless her heart. The pillows here are like the fatness of 5 pillows put together haha. I didn´t sleep hardly at all due to the humidity and how sad and frustrated I was feeling about my luggage and missing home and the language, etc. First night was kinda rough.

The next day we had orientation and trainings all day going over rules (turns out my mission is one of the strictest for a lot of stuff my comp and I were talking about!) I left with the secretary to go get my bags from the airport to find out they would get there that night hopefully and didn´t have them that morning. Haha that was the cherry on top. My interview with President Amaya during training was good but very short. He taught me some great things though from Preach My Gospel and taught about that when I work hard, I will have the Spirit, which in turn will make me happy. He and his wife are really sharp. Not super loving or parent like but have good things to teach us. I kept falling asleep all day which didn´t help but I felt probably the most depressed I´ve felt in my life for a long long time that second day. The thought of not seeing family and my loved ones for over a year made me want to die inside!

*I am a firm believer that people would be fully dedicated, focused, happy, productive, etc. if missionary work were as families! Let´s do that--I´ll write Pres. Monson, k? :) think about it--I dont see any downsides haha* I think about Logan every single day and wonder about his experiences--I can´t wait to hear from you Logee!

So continuation: on the way to the 6 pm temple session I was just so weighed down like I said that I was just so glad to be going. Good thing I have been many times to the temple to know what was being said and going on because everything was spoken so fast haha! I love the temple SO SO much. It is absolutely incredible how much more peace and a much better attitude I had immediately after. It´s amazing. Afterwards, we chatted with all the new missionaries and it was so great to get to know people better, sing American songs they knew and speak English with the only other gringo newbie (Elder Barker is from Kaysville). Poor guy--he is so lost and overwhelmed but so happy and taught me a lot tonight about good attitudes. Also, they didn't feed us dinner hahaha its been kinda disorganized at the beginning. So that second day was wow rough but also great at the end and just a confirmation of the temple and how much we need to go!

We woke up the next morning and because they didn't know plans, we ended up going to another session. I really think that was a tender mercy from Heavenly Father--I could literally feel the extra strength and peace these temple sessions gave me in my life to be able to handle what I was feeling and feel the love and peace of my Heavenly Father. We then had a training meeting and when a sister asked a question, for some reason I knew she was going to be my trainer. Her name is Hermana Angulo and she is from Columbia! We are proselyting in an area called Manta, 4 hours on bus from Guayaquil. It is a beach, coastal town and I think it is the perfect area for me to be. Heavenly Father knows the beach is my happy place :) Also, the wonderful air cools it down a lot and we don't sweat as much as we would if we were in Guayaquil. Blessings! On the bus ride to Manta, we talked the whole time and I was just so excited! I know I was being blessed by the Lord and the blessings of the temple to feel that way. Everything here reminds me of living in El Salvador! I'm really really glad I did that to prepare myself for actually living in another culture--not just visiting. Also, Ecuador is more well off than Central America from what I can observe. It's still humble of course but that's what I've observed!

We live in a nice, open, house and the shower water isn´t ice cold--it feels pretty nice each morning so I'm very very lucky here! We live on the 5th floor so that was absolutely hilarious. Climbing the steep stairs with my two 50 pound suitcases and 2 carryons that probably weighed the same. Hahaha two girls in skirts doing that was a sight to see I'm sure! My comp doesn't really speak English. It's hard when I want to find words to express myself, but somehow I usually find a way or we look things up in the dictionary!

My first day en el campo was good! We had lunch with the Sambranos--the family of the ward mission leader and they are seriously awesome! They are hilarious, have such strong testimonies and I loved it. My first meal was....fish!! It's a coastal town after all :) It was actually good! People serve SO much food here and I can't finish it ever haha. Hopefully they can feel my love as I turn down more food. We then visited Jennifer--she is a recent convert and is 17 years old. What a faithful, darling young girl! We visited other investigators and converts. Everyone LOVED the hermana that I am replacing so it´s hard for them but hopefully can see and feel my love for them. I like this place and I like walking-talking with my comp. We had fun and after an excessive amounts of calls from people on the side of the street in English acknowledging a gringa, I started saying Lo Siento! No hablo ingles! She thought that was hilarious. We say sooo many prayers during the day and I know we need it!

Second day, we had a very busy and productive day. We knocked doors in an area that hadn´t been visited in almost 4 months. We shared a lesson with a wonderfully musical and talented family we found at home--the son has 3 guitars and played some Linkin Park haha. But I have missed listening to guitar :) They are awesome and I´m excited for our next lesson. While my comp was using the public phone outside a store, she encouraged me to contact the lady running the store right inside (inside meaning the bars that = the door here so I wasn't away from my comp dont worry!) I just began to chat with her and she told me how badly she wants to visit the USA. I told her about some places there and laughed with her and she asked why I was here. I told her we were missionaries and what church and she jumped up super excited and asked if we had time to come inside. DUH we have time!! We had time to chat, talk about God, giver her a pamphlet and then she said the prayer and mentioned how we illuminated her day and was grateful. The rest of the prayer was beautiful and she is so humble. We have a follow up appt tomorrow! We visited Laura, an investigator and she accepted a baptismal date!! She was so excited. She had her friend there too in the lesson and we have an appt with her tomorrow as well. Her hubby is from New York and we spoke a bit of English. It´s funny how enthralled people can be with just a normal girl because I have white skin and blonde hair. I actually think the Lord needed a gringa here to maybe get some people to pay attention to what we represent as weird as that may sound. This night we visited Jennifer´s family and her sister is investigating. The whole family participated though and I felt much more close to them like they could feel my love. However, we had a bit of a more dark, scary lesson with them and their friend who was there. I won't go into details and it wasn´t crazy at all but we tried to teach them truths and answer their qestions, calm their fears but we left feeling weighed down, a bit scared and more dark. Dad told me I would encounter many people that had scary and dark experiences because of the commonality of such experience in Latin American and that is so true. How grateful I was for prayer and a safe home to go to.

My comp is awesome and teaches superbly and I think we are a good pair because sometimes she has a hard time just chatting with people and wants to only teach them. She said she has struggled to show love and feel it sometimes and she is very very preoccupied with obedience so that's awesome. I think I will be good for her and I really think she is good for me. We are different but we have fun and get along and I´m learning lots too :)

I'm very in awe of the reception and normality and acceptance of singing hymns and everything wityh us and random people we contact and share lessons with! It's so awesome here--that would never happen in the states! People believe in God and LOVE talking about spiritual things. They are so accepting of religion. Our major problems are having them let go of family traditions (if they are Catholic just cuz their family is), seeing a reason for organized religion, having them actually follow through and show conversion--no one came to church that promised they would but we have faith and will work hard and poco a poco!

I woke up a bit sad on Sunday as it was my bday and Sundays are always harder but how wrong I was. As soon as the Sambrano family entered--they gave me extra hugs and kisses and made a big deal about wishing me happy birthday (they had remembered from a brief mention a few days back!) So then everyone else waiting for church to start wished me happy birthday and told each other it was my bday--I love the Latins! Testimony meeting was great. The little Sambrano boy touched my heart so much and I started crying. He has such a sweet spirit and is always smiling. We had a wonderful lesson later with our next door neighbors and they were very receptive--it was lovely. I hope things continue! We had lunch with the Salazar couple-.-he is 23 and she is 27 and they are super powerful and awesome! They fed us a great lunch and pulled out cake they had rushed to buy after finding out it was my bday hahaha oops. They lit a huge candle and it was way fun to be with them. We then had a member in her typical clothes (SO cool) come with us to lessons. We had a great lesson with Lucy (Jennifers sister) and her friend. Lucy is practially already Mormon ha! She just needs to feel that she knows and get an answer for herself instead of feeling confused but we testifed and I shared my feelings and she promised to pray about it specifically so we will see! We then visited the Delgado family--members with their recent convert brtother. After our message, they all of a sudden pulled out a cake that said Feliz Cumpleanos Bryan and had two 2 candles in the middle they had bought! I was so so so touched they did that without knowing me and only from hearing it at church. Also I made 2 families break the sabbath but because of their wonderful intentions it doesnt count, right? :)

We then had ward council with the Bishop who I think was very receptive to our advice and questions--we need to work hard with our ward for attendance and conversion but we can do it! He is a man who thinks the more time a missionary has in the field, the better they are. So I followed President Amaya's advice and told him I had less than a year in the field when he asked. He took it as I was super experienced....but President Amaya said to specifically say that for those people who think like that ha! We went to Laura's tonight and she already is facing major opposition after deciding to get baptized with her boyfriend and 4 year old son. She still wants to get baptized--I just hope she can pray for the strength to resolve the rest of her life and feel the love and strength of the Lord during this hard time. The adversary doesn't want us to make good decisions in our lives and we have over and over again shared Joseph Smith's experience with the adversary right before the First Vision because right before an incredible experience from God, the adversary comes and tries to stop it. Anyway, there is work to be done, people to find, and love to be shared to help the work of the Lord progress and keep moving forward.

It still is hard for me that I won't see anyone for 16.5 months but I´m learning a lot and I´m trying to be what I need to be. Missionary work is awesome--I just hope I can be guided by the Spirit in my teaching and litle by little I´m learning! Also, I feel very blessed in communicating in Spanish. There are some times I struggle and I definitely struggle to understand everything--people speak soo fast and some eat their words and it's cool cuz they really do speak sing-songy Spanish but I like speaking and learning :) I´m so excited for the day I don't have to think about it and so excited for the day I will be able to experience the fruits of our labors. This church is so true. I get emotional when I bear testimony to pèople about the first vision and about the Book of Mormon. I truly can feel God´s love and peace. I wouldn´t be able to do this without all of you. I LOVE YOU!!! Email me I cant wait to hear from you :)

Love,

Hermana Bryan