My mission has truly prepared me for the rest of my life

Dear Familia,

Sweet pic!  This week was okay.  Actually, it was a little difficult. Trios are not my thing. We are three very different people with three very different styles of doing missionary work. So last night we had a companionship inventory and were open and honest. I won’t go into details about all our problems, but one is our different senses oh humor. They like to joke, but their jokes aren’t "knock knock, who’s there?"  If a joke is not a joke on both sides, but is hurting someones feelings, it ceases to be a joke.  I like to laugh . . I love to laugh, but only when everyone is laughing. Last night and this morning, I told my companions that we need to change.  We need to be more careful with our joking, and give the proper respect to the nametag we wear.  I reminded them that we are not ourselves, but representatives of Jesus, and we must emulate Him in every way.  Can you imagine Jesus walking down the streets with his apostles sarcastically joking, laughing too loudly?  I can’t. So we will see what happens. They might be mad at me cause I called them out.  She says that she is just having fun, but at whose expense?

I have always wanted to give the best of me, but as I look back on my mission, I wonder if I could have given more.  But, one cannot go back, only look ahead.  It might have taken me awhile, but I have learned what the Lord expects of me as a missionary, and in these last few months I have, I want to give Him all I have.  I don’t regret the beginning of my mission, cause it was all the mistakes I made that brought me to this understanding I now have.  Besides, even though I might not have been able to apply the knowledge I have now back in the beginning of my mission, I have the rest of my life to apply it.  My mission has truly prepared me for the rest of my life.

Sometimes I wonder why the Lord called me to serve a mission.  I feel like I have done so little good, but maybe the little good I have done has made a difference.  I don’t think the Lord sent me to Chile to change the world, but rather to change me.  I honestly can’t imagine my life without the mission.

The other day when I was in the temple, I felt such peace.  I felt protected.  I couldn’t remember my problems, or my worries.  It was wonderful.  But when I left the temple, I was back in the real world. It was shocking leaving the peace of the temple, and I wonder if leaving the mission is something similar.

This is Llay Llay

This week, guess what . . I lost my agenda . . . again!  This time it fell out when I was in a taxi, and I had no hope of finding it again.  I didn’t have another freak out session.  Though I was sad, I realized that there was nothing I could do but make another agenda to finish the change.  This happened on Friday.  I did pray that by some miracle I could find my agenda. Then, on Sunday, the other sister missionaries in our ward told me that they had my agenda in their house.  I asked how that was possible.  They said that a man who they contacted one day found the agenda in the street, and when he saw the sisters passing his store on Saturday he called them over and gave them the agenda.  WHAT?  The Lord really effects miracles, and the small things that are important to us, are important to him.

Right now we are working with about three families super bakanes!  One of them is married and they have fecha!  They are so amazing!  Another one we are planning their wedding . . . jajaja . . we'll see if they actually get married.  So, despite our hard week, the Lord has blessed us, and I know that as we work on bettering ourselves, and repent everyday, the Lord will continue to bless us.

This week I didn't do any exchanges since the last time we talked, but I will be doing two this week.  I did call all the sisters this week, and always see them in church.  Over half of our sister group are in our branch.  There are 9 sisters missionaries in the branch.  We are over half of the relief society. Fun stuff.  One sister in my group, Hna V, from utah, is new in the mission.  This is her second change, and we fall really well together.  She reminds me so much of me in the beginning of my mission, and she has said that she is sad that I am finishing the mission in 2 changes cause she wants to be my companion.  I told her that I will see what I can do.  She is a very special sister.  Also, another one of the sisters, sister T, asked me to talk to president so that I can be her companion.  JAJAJa.

I really love this calling.  Sometimes I have no idea how to help these sisters, but I love them so much.  More than the investigators, this change, for me, has been about the sisters. Every Saturday we send a report to president about the state of the sister in our group. Basically how they are doing, emotionally, physically, and with missionary work.  When I travel, the companionship that we are doing exchanges with comes to our apartment in the morning, one of the sisters stays with my companions, and I go with the other.  Then the next day I wake up early with the sister that I am doing exchanges with, and we go back to my apartment.

I love horses!

Okay, now for an important item of business.  Mothers day is in like 2 weeks . . what?  I honestly feel like Christmas was yesterday.  But, as of right now, we are planning to skype on Sunday the 11th at 4pm our time.  We just had a time change.  The hour was set back one hour. So I will leave you to do the math.

But, thats all I have to say for today.  I love you all.  Have a great week!

Con amor, 

Hna Ostler