Week Sixty: Crazy

Carolina and Andrea's Baptism Day!!

Area: Penco
Companion: Hermana Romney

Dear familia,

This week has been so crazy. Like ... if I had to describe how I felt this cambio, I think I would say that I was like a chicken running around with my head cut off. I really wanted Hermana Romney to have a great last week of her mission, so we worked really hard and had a lot of great experiences. I can't even begin to think about this week ... I can't believe that it happened.

Basically, we have been preparing like nuts for the baptism of Carolina and Andrea. They are soooo cute and as soon as they made the decision to get baptized, there was no looking back. We went and had our support interviews with them (like, the interview where they go and get to know the District Leader) and then we had their real interviews. They were sooo prepared. I don't know exactly what happened, but Heavenly Father miraculously touched their hearts and they have been progressing leaps and bounds. I love that we were able to be a small part of that miracle. It was awesome because the Hermana that first found the familia Mejias lives in Chile and was able to go to the baptism. I feel like the missionary force is soo sooo big and really one person is only a little little part ... but God's work continues to move forward ... it is incredible.

Carolina and Andrea

We had a weird experience where we basically saw a man die (literally) this week. He was lying on the ground with a ton of people surrounding him ... and I was so afraid to see who it was because if it was a person that I knew I would have probably freaked. It was heartbreaking to see this guy surrounded by people crying and crying ... and not being able to do anything. Hermana Romney and I looked at each other and we kept walking past the scene, but Hermana looked over at me and said, "Hey, do you think we should have contacted those people?" Haha, what a missionary.

It has been so awesome killing Hermana Romney. She is a picture-perfect example of what I want to be like when I leave the mission. She was super dedicated until the very end and sooo focused on the work. I can't even begin to tell you guys how much I love and admire Hermana Romney. She is the best and I have learned so much from her. She taught me how to have swag and how to be a better teacher. She taught me about diligence and how to help people to progress. I am eternally grateful that I have had the opportunity to be her companion for three months. I am eternally grateful.

We ate this massive Chorrillana in a Fire station last P-day. It was super good.

Completos with Claudia and fam.

This week, we had consejo and it was so good. I love being a missionary and I love learning how to be a better missionary every day. We are still talking about how we can work with the members more and more to bring more people to Christ and I love it. I have always loved working with members and now I am absolutely sure that it is the best way to work. I feel like the mission is also teaching me how I can be a good member when I get home, which is a great lesson to learn.

On Saturday, when we had the baptism, we also had a Sister Study in the morning AND an activity in another chapel. I was soooo stressed out even though I told myself that I wasn't stressed out. It was the kind of stress where I was just worried about every little detail ... even though I knew that God had everything under control and nothing crazy was really going to happen.

The Sister Study was awesome. We went back into the big forest that is behind our house to change up the setting a little bit and talked about love. We talked about how we can love ourselves more, how we can love our companions more, and how we can love God more. I felt the Spirit so strongly. I know that God loves us sooo much, and I really have been blessed to be able to see His love for others so much in the mission. It is such a special thing, and I know that I will always be grateful for it! I really have learned a lot from this group of Hermanas. There are a lot of super people that are coming in with this cambio, so I am super excited.

The Sister Study session on Saturday. It was so fun!

After, we were running around to get ready for the baptism. We turned the water on high an hour before the baptism was about to start ... and when we got back from picking up the refreshments, it was almost flooded. Holy cow, that was a close one. We pushed a few buttons that we assumed emptied the font and turned off the water. It ended up just right. The water wasn't too cold ... and it wasn't too hot either.

It was exciting to see how excited Carolina was. She hadn't been too keen on baptism the whole time that she has been investigating, but she was sooo cute as she entered into the waters of baptism. Andrea was even happier. She kept saying it in English. "I am happy. happy. happy." And when she came out of the water, the look on her face was priceless. They are going to be such good members!! They even got to church before us on Sunday. It has been such an awesome experience to be a part of their conversion.

We had cambios ... and my new companion is Hermana Antillon from the United States. I love her soooo much!! We were in Tome together and I love her. We are going to have such a fun time together.

Yeah ... this letter is jumbled and crazy ... but so is my brain right now. I love you all sooo sooo sooooooooo much! I hope you have a good week!! :)

Love,

Laney

PS. I'm flying solo right now. Hermana Romney just left the ciber with the other ladies that are going home today. Bahhhhhh ... so sad

PPS. Hey ... so just so you guys know ... I am 99 percent sure that I am going back to BYU-Idaho. [Mom note: There has been some debate for several months about whether Laney would be returning to BYU-Idaho or transferring to Provo. It seems she has gotten her answer.:)] I love you guys so much. I am a hot mess. I can't believe the time is going by so quickly. I just couldn't stop denying the Spirit. Hermana Romney told me that in her exit interview yesterday, Presidente said that she had to do everything that she could to follow the spirit and that she had to follow it as quickly as possible. So I feel like I have been feeling the spirit tell me that a lot ... and so now I need to follow that.