I had to be the leader!

Family! 

First of all that was the best email ever!  Basically exactly what I needed to hear. So we didn't email yesterday because we went to the temple so today is our pday.  Doing the veil in Spanish was so hard!  Oh but the temple was amazing.  I think being a missionary makes you forget what peace feels like.

Well, you're not going to get a long email cause I wrote a long letter to president and I printed out the recipes and your email cause I just loved it!  Oh and it was a long email but it was exactly what I needed.  Literally I was sitting here sobbing.

Basically it was a rough week.  I got sick again on Monday night and on Tuesday I had no energy.  Like I have never been that weak in my life.  Then on Wednesday I lost hearing in my left ear, now my right.  Its that same thing that happened to me at the beginning of last semester.  My ears are just clogged up and it sucks!  Cause now I really don't know whats going on.  

This week I started having some trouble.  I'm not going to tell you everything, cause I am trying to be positive and venting never helps.  But basically it's just a little trouble with a companion.  Its just hard to follow her sometimes. But I have prayed continually for love and charity.  If Mormon could love his wicked soldiers, I can do this.  I am here to be the type of missionary God wants me to be.  Right now he is teaching me humility and patience.  Basically the hardest Christlike attributes to learn . . for me!

We lost O**, so that was a bummer.  But I felt him slipping away, and I guess this just isn't his time.  But I know, someday, probably in the next life, he will accept this gospel.  Then in the next world he will find me, shake my hand with both of his like he always does, and he will smell like old people and soap, and he will thank me for trying.

So that's how the first half the of week went.  I was pretty down, but it was a different type of down than from the beginning of my mission.  I wasn't frustrated with myself for feeling down, or upset, I realized that those feelings are part of the mission, and that I would be stronger in the end.

On Friday we found this amazing family.  M* T*, C* and their four kids.  They are really open to the gospel and they are already married!  They came to church with us on Sunday, which was an act of faith! All their kids are under 9! Three boys and a 5 month old baby girl!  Oh, it hurts me not to be able to hold that baby!!  But, church was basically like daycare entertaining those boys.  I haven't played the piano in church yet, cause another sister plays too and I've only attended 2 sacrament meetings in this transfer.  But I am playing for the primary and the AP called me and asked if I would play in zone conference next week.  The two songs he picked aren't in English so I don't know them, but we got special permission to barrow the extra keyboard the church has.  So now I practice at night and I just love it!

On Saturday we had a stake activity.  All the youth in the stake and all the missionaries in the stake got together, and each youth was assigned a missionary.  I got assigned two young woman, 12 and 13.  Then they gave us a map of a small area and a list of antigo investigators to go visit.  We had two hours to work on the streets with them, and basically I was on my own . . no trainer!  I had to be the leader!  It was scary and I didn't know if I was a good enough missionary to teach these girls how to be missionaries, but I really wanted them to have a good experience.  I was just praying for help.

In the beginning they were super nervous, and didn't want to talk to anyone.  I explained to them how to contact someone, and they just didn't want to.  So I went first, showing by example, what to do, and what to say.  Then they still didn't want to.  So we did a practice.  I pretended to be a random person and they practiced contacting me.  Then it was the real thing!

The first time I had to save them cause they just didn't know what to do, but they got better.  I would point to a person, and give them a card and stand by them as they told the person we were member of the Church of Jesus Christ and we had a message for them.  After the two hours were up they were knocking doors themselves, and asking me for a pamphlet to hand out, or a card.  They even placed a Book of Mormon!  Oh I was so proud of them! They saved me a couple times when my Spanish failed.

I really loved that activity.  It made me realize that I can do this.  You're right mom, I am so blessed!  Those two girls are actually in our ward and so I get to talk to them all them time, and I think I am their favorite:)

That Catholic lady I committed to baptism . . yeah, we haven't revisited her again.  That goes back to some other frustrations I have.  So I'm not sure if she will progress.  Blah, its just so frustrating cause there is nothing I can do about it.  But we have been teaching Estrella, and I have really connected with her.  She is only 8 but she understands everything and she really wants to be baptized!  I listen to her, and teach her like a person instead of a number. Yesterday her mom gave her permission to be baptized and I was just so happy!

So the mission is still good . .. hard but good.  What doesn't kill you makes you stronger right?  Yep, that's what I tell myself everyday.  I was pretty homesick this week, but your email just helped so much!  I love you all!!!

Love always, Hermana Ostler

My eyes were filled with tears of joy

Love this pictures, and the stories, and basically I'm the best april fooler ever!! Thanks Amanda for helping me pull that off!  Yep, I've been planning that for about 3 weeks . . . hehehe.  Okay, to start off, yes I got mail!  But we´ll get to that a little later.  Yes we had investigators in conference, and we are required to watch it in Spanish, so I didn't get too much out of it.  But more on that later.  Yes, my wards name is Simon Bolivar, and my mind is too full with trying to learn Spanish that I couldn't tell you land marks if I try. Sorry!  Dad, we have no time to sight see!  But I have been to the center of Santiago . . more on that later.  Exercise is basically just stretching, but we walk so much that we burn enough calories.  I'm not sure about the email thing, I haven't heard anything.  No the emails aren't too long!  I love them.

Okay, so it is starting to get cold cold cold!  Yep, I'm going to die this winter. Like it was 5 degrees one morning and I just wrapped myself up in all my sweaters and stuff.  I need to by more sweaters.  Also boots!  But basically its cold in the mornings and at night.  But during the day it is still hot hot hot!  So it sucks, cause you want to bundle yourself up in the morning, but you know you will be dying of heat by the afternoon.

So last pday, we went to Santiago center. Like I am talking the center of the biggest city in Chile.  I felt like Elphaba in Oz!  It was so big, and just packed with people.  But I just loved it!  Pdays we usually just rest, because we are so exhausted from the week.  But its good.

  

So Tuesday was probably the worst day of my mission so far.  I felt like I had been trying to make myself happy for too long, and my moments of joy were far too few, and often forced.  I was frustrated with the language, and my head was killing me!  I had no ganas to do anything.  I felt like my companions thought I knew nothing about the gospel because my vast gospel knowledge doesn't show through in Spanish.  It was a hard day, I hadn't felt so down in a long time.

That night, I was making cookies for district class and talking to Hermana Leyva in English. It was just a relief to just use my own language. I was telling her about my frustrations.  She said that they knew I was a good missionary, and that I had come prepared, and she understood my frustration with the language.  Then, after Hermana Hernandez finished showering, we all had a heart to heart.  Hermana Hernandez said that she wanted me to feel comfortable in the companionship and like I could open up to them when I am feeling down, upset, frustrated, sick . . . anything.  So I just opened up and told them that I hadn't been feeling myself lately because my personality doesn't come across in Spanish, nor my scripture and gospel knowledge.  They assured me that the little I contributed to each lesson always brought the spirit, and often changed the mood of the lesson.

Hermana Leyva said that even though she can say a lot, she never feels like she is speaking through the spirit, but that every time I talk, I am always speaking through the spirit, and the courage it takes to open my mouth and even speak is admirable.  She then shared some experiences she had while learning English, and how she left like giving up so many times. Then she said: it took me three years to learn English, look how far you have come in 1 month!   They said some more stuff, and of course I was just crying through the whole thing, but afterwards I felt so much better, and had a desire to try again.

I guess having faith doesn't mean you will never fall, it just means that you know the Savior will be there to catch you every time you do fall, and oh how I fell.  But Jesus reached out his hand to pull me out of the water, just like Paul.

The next day, Wednesday, I received a bucket load of letters and a package from home!  Oh it was just what I needed.  I didn't have time to read everything!  And I could barely read cause my eyes were just filled with tears of joy!  So thank you, thank you thank you thank you!  You have no idea what letters from home does for a missionary!  Also shout out to Aubrey Sintay.  Thanks for the amazing letter.  Your words encouraged me to keep trying, because you never know who is looking up to you!  And of course, MARY!  Thanks for the letter!  Oh, I read each of your letters about 3 times!  You always remind me that I can do hard things.  Also, I need you mission and MTC address!

Everyone always told me that at about 6 weeks in the mission I would wake up and realize that I love it.  Well, those letters woke me up.  I realized that so many people believe in me, and I just need to believe in myself.  Someone flipped a switch in my mind, and now I love this!  Like everyday I wake up and I cant wait to teach another lesson, I can't wait to learn more Spanish, I can't wait to study the scriptures and find answers to the questions of our investigators.  The only way I can describe it is a mighty change of heart.  I no longer care about myself, my focus is on the people, the work.  I don't long for home anymore, I just want to stay here forever!  So I'm doing great great great!

So those cookies I made were nasty!  The oven here suck, and I'm going to have to learn to bake all over again.  But the elders ate them.  Oh, if you could send me some recipes that would be great!  Just email them and I will print them off.  Here's what I want: Banana bread, my banana cake, brownies, chocolate cake recipe on the back to the hersheys coco container, scones, and if you could find a pretzel recipe that would be great!  Also, the Hermana that feeds us lunch everyday, asked if you could send dryer sheets.  They don't sell them here cause no one has a dryer, but she does, so if you could send some for her that would be great!  Shes literally like my mom out here.

Yes, conference was great!  I only watched 3 sessions.  Heres what happened.  We watched the first sessions . . great!  I could understand the topic of most talks, and definitely felt the spirit.  Then we had lunch at the chapel, a sister from the ward brought it.  But this heavy cream that was in the fruit salad did not fall well with me.  My companions said it is loaded with grease, and that gringos usually have a hard time with it.  Half way through the second session I was feeling really bad, and didn't know if I could make it through three hours of teaching.  I told my companions I was feeling sick, but we just had to visit O**.  While we were teaching him it got worse and worse.  When we left his house, I could barley walk, and I threw up in the streets.  Yeah, it was gross.  O** let me use his bathroom to clean up, but I did not feel better, and we ended up going home two hours early.

My companions kept trying to get me to drink Sprite, and I tried to tell them I just couldn't handle it, but they made me, and I threw it up.  I didn't sleep at all Saturday night, and I think I threw up nine times.  Yeah, it was bad.  I just wanted to go home so my mom could take care of me.

The next day I was feeling better, but I was just so weak.  I couldn't even lift a spoon.  So I spent the day at Hermana Sari´s house.  She took care of me.  And I got to watch the third session with English subtitles.  But I slept through the 4th session cause my head was just pounding.  I was able to hold down some chicken soup, and later some bread and crackers. Hermana Saris husband gave me a blessing, and though it was in Spanish I could understand it.  He blessed me that I would pass the night well, and have strength in my body tomorrow.  Last night was probably the best sleep I ever got and now I am back up and ready to go!  My stomach is still a little weak, but I think I'll be fine.  So yeah, that's how the conference weekend went.

Luckily my companions were able to attend with our investigators, we had three that came on Sunday.  But the terrible news is I think we are losing O**.  Sunday morning they went by to pick him up for conference and he said he doesn't want to continue!  When they told me that my heart broke!  We don't know what happened, but we are praying so hard for him!  We think he is being influenced by his ex-wife.  She doesn't like us too much.  But we know he had a testimony.  He is just so so so good!  We don't want to lose him.  So pray for him.  He´s like my Chilean grandpa.

So that was my week.  My Spanish is improving, and since Tuesday I now have a lot more confidence, and I am trying to just be myself.  Also, I committed someone to baptism this week. At first she denied, and said she had her church, Catholic . . of course, and I could tell my companions were going to give up . .  but then I jumped in and asked: do you want to know if the Catholic church is true? She was taken aback by that, but responded that she did want to know.  Then I told her she could pray to know if the Catholic church was true, or if the Church of Jesus Christ was true, and I promised her that she would receive an answer. Then we asked again if she would be baptised when she found out the church was true. She said yes!  We went back to visit her a few days later, and I know she received an answer to her prayers, I can tell she knows the Book of Mormon is true, she just doesn't want to change her life.  She is comfortable.  Wo is he that says all is well in Zion!

Well, I was going to finish this email with a happy story, but I don't have time. Basically we taught this lesson to this man and when we asked him if he prayed to know if the church was true he said he had and that he believed it was true!  It was amazing!  The spirit was guiding us through that lesson and when he told us he knew the church was true the spirit just filled the room, it was going to burst!  When we left that lesson we were literally skipping all the way to coordination!  It was amazing!

Okay, well I love you all, and hopefully I can send some pictures next week!  Thanks so so so much for the letters and the package.  The peanut butter and dove chocolate were perfect!  Oh it was like tasting home!  LOVe LOVE loVe you ALL!

Love siempre, 

Hermana Ostler

APRIL FOOLS!

So I have been typing for like an hour, and the internet glitched so I lost everything! Ah I am so so so so frustrated!  So I don't have time to say everything. We are leaving in like two minutes.  Just know I'm doing better, and hopefully I will have time to write a letter to you today to make up for the missing email.  Sorry!!!!  Hopefully I have time to upload a picture or two.  You know what they say, a picture is worth a thousand words.  So here is a couple thousand words for you.

I love you all.  Still haven't gotten mail but hopefully tomorrow!  I don't need the shoes anymore so don't  worry about the address.

Lots of love from Chile! 

Hermana Ostler

(Note from Delene, Hermana Ostler's Mom).  The above is the email we received Monday morning, April 1st.  I was so sad.  Our family was on vacation at the Eppich's cabin and Janet had just received an email from her missionary in Africa.  He told her he'd had a horrible week and was sick.  Then he typed "April Fools."  It never crossed my mind that Saydi would "April Fool's" us.  But she did. The following is the email that was forwarded to us by my oldest daughter, Amanda late Monday night.  We didn't actually read it until Wednesday.  Way to go Saydi - you got us good!!!!



Dear familia!

APRIL FOOLS!!  Haha, sorry, I couldn't help myself.  I thought of this a few weeks ago and couldn't resist.  So you can ground me when I get home.

Okay, to answer your two important questions.  My favorite scripture is in 1 Nephi 21: 15-16.  I think it's chapter 21.  It might be 19 or 20.  Basically its the scripture that says "but I will not forget thee O house of Israel.  I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands."

My ward is called Simon Bolivar, but it's not in Simon Bolivar.  The street is called Santo Domingo.  But don't worry about the shoes.  I am actually fine!  I started wearing my other shoes and they are perfect!  My feet just needed to adjust to walking all the time.  We get mail on Wednesdays now.  That's when I have district class, and the office brings it.  It's usually some of the couple missionaries.  I don't know what  my address is.

There are only three of us in the apartment now because the other sisters moved out.  It was so crowded.  The reason we didn't do three companionship's is because Hermana Leyva and I are still being trained.  We have on transfer of training left.  And two of the sisters in the other companionship just arrived and they are both being trained by the one sister. It's good they are gone because we only had one bathroom for 6 missionaries which would not have worked!  So they left on Wednesday to another apartment that the Elders moved out of.

Hermana's Hernandez, Leyva & Ostler

We all have our own sectors to work in, so there are not 12 missionaries working one area.  We are all in the same ward boundaries, but we have our own sectors.  Yeah, that's all I remember from your bucket load of questions.  Ha ha

So Monday was super hard.  I just didn't want to be here.  I felt out of place.  Tuesday morning I was still feeling so so so low!  I didn't want to work, I didn't want to study. Nothing.  Then we hit the streets and everything changed.  I don't know what it was, but after we taught a quick five minute lesson to some lady in a store my whole outlook changed.  It really doesn't matter where I am, and it's not about what I want.  The Lord needs me in Simon Bolivar, so I will give it everything I have and learn all I can.

Hermana Hernandez trains so differently than Hermana Chamberlain.  We are walking down the street, Hermana Hernandez catches my eyes, then points with her lips to some woman about to walk past and that's my cue to open my mouth and talk! She will stop during lessons, look at me and wait for me to say something.  It's so different. . . . and I love it!

It is still a little hard adjusting to teaching with 3 missionaries, especially since Hermana Leyva and Hermana Hernandez already had a system.  But they have welcomed me and we all get along so so so well!

We speak Spanish all the time.  I catch myself thinking in Spanish and not  being able to remember English words at the end of the day.  It's exhausting on my mind to always be speaking Spanish, and at times its frustrating, but it is so so so helpful. Hermana Leyva helps me a lot with my Spanish.  She quietly corrects my little mistakes, and always lends a word during a lesson when I can't remember one or forget.  It's still hard, but I have more faith now that it will come.

We still have progressing investigators that we teach 20 to thirty minute lessons to, but we also turn our street contacts into lessons.  If a contact is going over 2 minutes, we will ask the person if we can say a prayer for them.  They always agree, then we give them a pamphlet and either talk about Jose Smith, Plan of Salvation or the Gospel of Christ. We say another prayer, get their address and chao!  I love the short simple lessons.

Teaching a lot makes the time fly by!  In Los Andes I looked at my watch every 30 minutes.  Here, 2 hours will go by and it feels like 5 minutes.  I'm learning a lot, but it kinda feels like I'm starting my mission all over again.

We eat lunch every day with the same sister.  Hermana Sari from Peru.  She is the Relief Society President.  She is one of the only members from the ward that lives in our sector.  The other missionaries in the ward eat with different members every day.  They have a calendar for feeding and a calendar for washing clothes.  This ward is so so so organized.  But no one plays the piano, so looks like I'll have to swallow my fear and just do it!

My new zone isn't as amazingly awesome as my last zone.  But they are great.  We have fun, but the lessons and teaching . . . . . .   I don't know if these elders are as focused as the elders in my other zone. But there is an elder in my zone from Brazil!  He's awesome.  I was talking to him about Harrison, and if Portuguese was hard to learn. He said for gringos it's easier because all the sounds are from the back of the throat, like English.  Whereas in Spanish, all the sound does from the front of the mouth, and movement of the tongue against the teeth instead of the roof of the mouth in English. So you can do it Harrison!  But wow, it's so awesome how the work is just exploding! There's not room in our mission for more missionaries!!!

This week was the Santa Semana . . . Easter.  So there was no one in the streets for the weekend.  Everyone left for the beach!  Also, Thursday was la dia de joven en combata, or something.  Apparently it's dangerous.  So Wednesday and Thursday we had to go home early.  Basically we decorated our planners, cleaned the house, and talked about music, movies and boys!  These sisters are so so so fun!  When it's time to work, we work!  But we also take our 20 minute break everyday, to rest our feet and minds, and at night we laugh, tease and joke.  It's so fun!

Right now we are teaching a man named O**.  He is 84 years old and doesn't hear so well.  He is a sweet old man, and I always enjoy visiting him, but in the beginning of the week I thought our visits and lessons were close to pointless.  I didn't think that he understood, but really, it was me who didn't understand.  On Thursday we taught him the ley de castidad, and going into the lesson I had already made up my mind that he wouldn't understand.  After we taught the basics of the law, and read from the pamphlet, I asked him what he understood about the law and how it applied to him.  I was expecting him to shrug his shoulders and say:  no se.  But he didn't.  His answer proved that he had understood everything we had taught, and more importantly that he was willing to live the commandment.  I realized then, that I had been grossly underestimating O**'s ability to not only understand, but his willingness to follow Christ.

As he said the closing prayer a few minutes later, he thanked Heavenly Father for us, and for the teachings of the gospel.  As he finished the simple prayer, I was filled with such love for him and I realized that it was only a fraction of the love his Heavenly Father feels for him.  O** helped remind me why I am serving a mission.  It's not about me and who I want to teach.  It's about the Lord and who he wants me to teach.  O** has proved to me that you never know who is ready for the gospel.

On Friday, we taught him the Word of Wisdom and after the lesson he gave us a bag of tea had.  He is just so willing to live the gospel.  It was so funny!  He went through all the tea he had and asked if they were okay because some of them were herbal teas.  Oh, he is just great great great!  Whenever I am having a hard time or I am tired, Hermana Hernandez says . . . 'think of Oscar! That's why you are here.'  It always makes me feel so much better!

We did a service project this week and helped a member paint her house.  I think that is the picture I sent yesterday.  Also, on Easter, we forgot to buy chocolate to celebrate, but some ward members came over and gave us a little basket of chocolate eggs.  It was so sweet.  But they came over at like 10:30PM and when the door rang we were so scared.  We couldn't see anyone outside the door, and no one answered when we asked who was there.  Then they knocked on the door, and we saw a man through the peep hole.  He said he was from the church, but we didn't recognize him.  So we had Hermana Leyva answer the door while Hermana Hernandez and I stood around the corner with the broom to use as a weapon.  It was so so so funny!  Because it was just a cute couple with their little girl and a basket of chocolate eggs.

So I love you all!  And I'm going to try to send some more pictures that Amanda will send to you tomorrow!  Hehehe, I hope you don't hate me too much for my little joke.

Love always,
Hermana Ostler

This is what I did every night in Los Andes!
Ah, I miss my bike!

Me - in Chile!

I miss Hermana Chamberlain

Well, I really started to appreciate my companion and just love her.  I know the Lord helped me, but I guess it was a little too late.  I GOT CHANGED!!  I'm in Santiago central in the ward Simon Bolivar in a trio with dos Latinas.  One of them is from Peru, Hermana Leyas and she got here when I did so we are now both finishing our training with Hermana Henriques who is from Mexico.  But they both speak English.  Hermana Leyas studied at BYU for 3 years and Hermana Henriques lived in Cali for 6 years.  We live in an apartment with three other sisters so it is crowded!  I really don't know how we are going to live!  I feel like I was just getting used to the sector, the work, the life as a missionary and now they throw me for another loop.  It's like starting all over again.  I just feel so out of place here.  But I'll get through.

I realized this week that a lot of my frustration stemmed from not being able to see my growth.  I have really been focusing on the things that I am leaning and trying to change myself in so many ways that I wanted to see more change.  Also I thought that I had enough experience with Mexico and Hawaii to get me through the mission that I forgot who gave me the strength to get through all those other trials.  I tried to rely on my experience instead of relying on the Lord.  I guess I was sitting in one place watching a tree grow and when I didn't see it change I got mad.  But what I failed to do is ask the master gardener what nutrients and work the tree needs to grow.  I was trying to grow a tree using rose feed.  But the master gardener has different tools he wants me to use now.  I already grew my rose bush, this is a tree I am working with now.  I need to look to the proper source, do my work, then leave the tree to grow.

I got a letter from Grandpa Skinner this week, oh it just made my day.  I think I read it like 4 times! It was such a testimony of hard work yielding results and always trusting in the Lord.  But other than another letter from Amanda and one from Mary (which I loved!) I haven't gotten any mail, and we are not getting mail tomorrow because we are getting like 23 missionaries and 19 are sisters.

Hermana Chamberlain is going to train one of them.  It's crazy.  This mission is going to burst!  So I really don't need skirts now because I will be walking, but if you still have those grey shoes that we got from the mall I would love them! My shoes are good, but those were like butter on my feet and my foot still hurts sometimes from that bug bite.

There was a corner spider in our apartment this week.  It just a really big poisonous spider in Chile and I killed it cause my companion was so scared. So basically I saved our lives.  But there are not a lot of bugs here, its to dry.  And I haven't eaten anything weird, just a lot of carbs.  Chile is the second top consumer of bread in the world, second to France.  Oh but the bread is amazing!  O, if you could send a picture of my baptism that would be amazing!

We had a baptism this week, the familia a**.  Basically the parents are members but they went inactive.  But now they want to come back and raise their kids in the gospel.  So we taught the two oldest girls and baptised them.  It was great.  It was the perfect way to say goodbye to Los Andes.

I just don't really feel like typing about Los Andes cause I just miss it so so so much!  But I will tell you about this man we taught.  Lets call him Juan cause I don't remember his name.  We started teaching him and he seemed golden.  He loves the bible and believes in the apostasy.  He thinks that all the religions just teach their own doctrine. So we jumped in and started telling him about Jose Smith and the restoration.  He wasn't having it.  We tried to tell him there was proof that Jose was a prophet and we brought out the Book of Mormon  . . . I swear I could hear him say: A bible a bible we have a bible and need not more.  I thought about Harrison and our little joke with that scripture and almost laughed during the lesson.  I just let the whole thing role off my back.  But Hermana Chamberlain took it really hard.

But we met someone later in the week who really is golden, M**.  She lives in a vineyard and guess what she gave us?  Yep grapes fresh from the vine that tasted like candy!  She had met with the missionaries when she visited her mom in the South and she has been looking for them ever since she returned.  Basically shes just going to get baptized.  For the rest of the day I was singing:  I went in a vineyard today.  I went in a vineyard today and met M**.  haha, it was so funny.

Oh I miss Los Andes!  It was just so so so great!  I don't know how I feel about this sector.  My companions say the work is great here and so is the ward.  There are 12 missionaries in our ward! Crazy!  But I want to go back to Los Andes with my bike and my vineyards, and all the crazy Catholics.  But the Lord wants me here so I will go and do.

Okay, so I'm trying to send more pictures, but this computer can't read my card.  Sorry, I'll try to work on it.  

I'm not sure how far we rode are bikes everyday . . . a lot!  Also, I know about the plaque thing.  All my pictures now you can see it.  Yeah, this computer won't read my card . .  sorry!

Also, Harrison, you are going to Brazil.  I just thought I would remind you;)  Wow, I'm just still so excited. And Jackson is getting married!!  And Wilson is turning 11!!  loco!  But other than that your lives sound boring. But I love reading about them!  So keep telling me!  I think maybe your mail got lost.  But I sent a letter home last week, so we'll see how the Chilean mail is.

Oh, shout out to Mary because you are going into the MTC soon!  Blah I'm so happy for you.  You know it will be hard, but you can do it!!  I loved your letter so so so much!  I sent you a letter but I don't know if it will get to you before you leave.  But it's not very good.

Well, I have 15 more minutes, and I could sit here and tell you about how I really really really want to go back to Los Andes and how I miss Hermana Chamberlain, but then I might start crying and I've been tying so hard to hold it in all day.  Basically, its just been an emotional week and I've been trying to watch that dang tree grow and its just not helping.  I feel like this is hard, but at the same time nothing is happening.  The tree isn't growing.  But trees aren't meant to be watched.  They are meant to be cared for and then someday when I go to water the tree, I will realize how far it as come from the little twig it once was.

The language is still hard, but I was able to work with one of the other new sister this week while my companion went to the temple and I realized what a head start I got.  So poco a poco its coming and I know in this next change its just going to explode.  Well I hope so.  I hope they speak Spanish with me and not English.  

I just really don't know what else to say.  Basically I'm just in shock that I'm even here right now.  It feels like the beginning all over again, and I don't know if I can endure that again.  ugh . ..  why why why?  Just when things were starting to get good!  I pray that one day I will get to return to Los Andes, maybe when I can speak Spanish a little better.

Okay, last couple questions.  No there is no asado there is just pan pan pan!  And I think it fell from heaven. There is a lot of choclo (corn) and I love it!  It's all so so so much better than in the states. I forgot the last couple questions but I got to go.  I love you all.  les vaya bien!

Hermana Ostler         

I'm starting to love it

I'm on my way to the Bishops house.  We go there every Thursday for lunch. It's out in the
country and so beautiful but we have to cross the highway and a stream to get there.

BLAH  . . . . . . BRAZIL!!  I´m kinda freaking out right now!  That is so so so so so so awesome! Oh Harrison you will be amazing!  Portuguese!  Wow, I do not envy you.  But you can do it! Hopefully your Spanish background will help you.  Wow, I just want to sing and dance!  That is the greatest news ever!  The amazon!  Oh you are going to love it! 

Jefferson . . . your Spanish is so good!  You should come to Chile:) hahaha, well the Spanish here is so different.  But I am starting to love it! Some of my favorite things they do are cut the S off the ends of words.  Like mas o menos, they say ma o meno.  Also they add ´Po to the end of everything!  Like for si they say si-po and yo se-po.  I just love it!  I'm still not fluent and still get frustrated a lot, but I know that eventually my diligence will pay off.

I love the Hawaii picture!  Just yesterday I was missing Hawaii so so so so much!  Just everything! On Thursday I was missing home a lot.  But I'm getting better!  I have moments of complete joy! The days are so long, but the weeks fly by.  Its Monday again . . . really?

So first I want to tell you about fruit.  On Wednesday (my one month anniversary) we saw the fruit of our labors . .  literally!  So we met this man . .  A**.  But we call him hombre de uvas.  He stopped us as we were going to visit a less active member.  He stared talking to us in English . . well a little.  He told us that he met the first LDS missionaries that came to Los Andes and he taught them Spanish and they taught him English. It was cool.  Then he picked a couple clusters of grapes for us from his vine and we set an appointment to come visit him.  Well that appointment was on Wednesday but when we got there he had to leave, so to compensate he gave a huge bag of grapes form his vine.  That bag must have weighed 3 plus pounds!

Then at lunch that day, Hermana Reyes sent us with two huge apples for the road, then we found J**, and we taught her and her family the first lesson.  They are golden!  They were asking questions about Jose Smith and the Book of Mormon and it was just great.  During the lesson they brought out a huge plate of honey dew . .  so good!  Then they sent us with two giant plums and another bag of grapes.  We had so much fruit there wasn't room to carry it.

Later, as I was thinking about all the fruit we had received the thought came to my mind [this is the fruit of your labor] we have just been working so hard and not finding anyone to teach, but I think the fruit that day was the Lords way of telling us that its coming. Then later that day we met Is** in the streets.  We were stopped on the road, trying to figure out how to get to our next appointment, and she asked us if we needed help.  We talked to her for a minute, and she told us she is having a hard time and asked if we had a minute to talk with her.  So we went to her house and she told us how she is broke and has no food and how her children will not help her.  She told us about her terrible marriage and how when she saw us on the street she was praying that we wouldn't turn the corner until she got to us.  It was a great experience.  I really hope that we can teach her more and she will accept the gospel.

Also we had a baptism this week!  F**.  We have never taught him but he had been investigating the church for over a year, and none of the elders that worked with him could get him to commit to a baptism date.  Then the week we arrived we met him at church and had plans to go visit him, but then when we were eating with the bishop he told us that F** had called and wanted to be baptized!!  It was crazy.  The ward kept asking us what we did, and we shrugged our shoulders and said it was the Lord.  The baptism was on Saturday and it was so so so great!  I love F**.  He's just  . . . blah I can't really describe him.  Basically we would be best friends if I spoke better Spanish.  He really is going to be great for the ward.

Also I got to play the piano this week while we were at the chapel a lot preparing for the baptism!  Oh it was great.  I don't play in church cause my companion plays and she's way better at hymns than me.  But F** had me play and he wants to organize a talent show for the ward and he wants me to play.  We really want to pull this ward together.  They are great people but they are all really old.  So we want to organize fun activities that will be appealing to the younger less active families in the ward.  So a talent show is perfect.  We are also going to start teaching English classes on Saturday]!  Whoa!! I'm so excited.

My companion and I are working well together.  Sometimes I get frustrated with her. There was one day that I was getting so so so frustrated with her for the stupidest things, and no matter what I tried I could not think of anything good about her.  Then the next morning, I was reading in the scriptures, and found this great scripture, basically it made me realize that God loves us all the same, and just because I may do things differently than my companion, it doesn't mean that God loves me more.  So that day every time I thought of something bad about my companion I would think of one good thing, remind myself that God loves her the same that he loves me, and then sing a hymn. I'm learning a lot about myself out here.

I've realized that becoming a good missionary isn't about what I do, if I follow the rules or not, it is about what I think. If I can start to think like Christ would think then I will have no desire to break the rule.  I will only want to do his will.  I guess before my mission I thought I could still somehow hold onto my old life.  But I now know that I have to forsake everything for the work.  My books, my music . . everything!  Sometimes when I would get really frustrated or down I would think about one of my favorite books to make me feel better, and that's not a bad thought, but there is a better thought out there.  I realize that I need to be 100 percent focused on the work, and when I am down I need to think of ways I can help others instead of focusing on myself and what I want.

A few more quick things.  I got a letter from Amanda!  Thanks so much! What you said was exactly what I needed.  Also if you could send those shoe squishy things.  I forgot them.  I left them in the hallway by my room, and whenever you feel like sending me a new skirt go for it!  I did not think it was going to be this hot or that I would be riding a bike all day.  So a light weight full skirt or two would be great! Also my companion knows Johnny Vance! He was her first zone leader.

Okay, now I'm going to try and send some pictures.  Sorry this email isn't that great.  I'm just so overwhelmed by the whole Brazil thing!  I'm so so so happy for you Harrison.  A mission is so hard, but I'm starting to love it. I'm enjoying more and enduring less.  Now I just need to work on loving the people and having my only desire be to serve them and invite them unto Christ.  I need to stop thinking about what I want, and that I am tired, or hot, or can't speak the language.  Cause the moment that I stop thinking about myself and give my problems to the Lord, he will bless me!

Love always 

Hermana Ostler

We don't have a mop so I scrubbed the floor Cinderella style.

This is our amazing zone!
We are basically the best ever!

I wish you guys could meet F**.  The Bishop baptized him!

I feel your prayers

Familia!

So, I´m still in Chile . . . just in case you were wondering.  This week went so so so much faster than last week.  Like I can´t believe it´s already Monday.  I just love reading your email!  Wow, I don´t even know what to tell you.  This week went so fast everything just blurred into one.

The work here is really slow.  No one is open to the gospel, well, we just haven't found the people who are.  You see, our sector is divided into 5 smaller sectors, and president likes us to pick a sector to focus on.  Last week, as we were getting oriented with the area we were jumping around to all the different sectors.  Yes, we were working hard, but we weren't working effectively.  The Elders before us left us a note that said sectors 3, 4, and 1 had already been worked by the missionaries. They suggested that we work sector 5 (which is like a 15 minute bike ride away, but it´s out in the country and its so so so beautiful!) or sector two.  They said there are a lot of new young families in sector two.  So we started out every day in sector three, cause that´s where our current investigators are, then we jumped form sector 5 to 2 trying o work.  But no one was open to the gospel.

On Wednesday night, after being turned away by another reference, we were just sitting on our bikes in sector two pretty discouraged wondering what we should do.  Hermana Chamberlain looked at me and said ¨I don´t know if this is where we are supposed to be.¨  I agreed.  I think that we were expecting to ride into a sector and then just have angels start singing, telling us we were in the right place.  But that's not how the Lord works.  As we started thinking and talking about it, we realized ALL our current investigators live in sector 3 as well as most of the members.  Plus, not 5 minutes before, a woman stopped us and started asking us about our church, we set an appointment to meet with her, and guess where she lives? Sector 3.  The Lord had been nudging us toward sector three all along, we just weren´t listening.

So this week our focus has been on sector three.  We haven´t had any more success, but at the end of the day we are not disappointed with ourselves like we were before.  We are doing all we can do, and we don´t know why the Lord wants us in sector 3, but we will be diligent and faithful.  We will lift up our heads and rejoice.  Every missionary has hard times.  Look at Alma and the people of Ammonihah (Alma chpt 8).  They wanted to kill him!  But when the Lord told him to return, he speedily obeyed.

This week at district class we met our other district leader.  His companion was sick last week so he wasn´t there.  His name is Elder Villagran, and he is an amazing missionary, leader, and teacher.  I want to be the kind of missionary he is.  I can´t really describe it, but he just oozes with charity, love, patience, brotherly kindness, humility, and goodness. All the missionaries in our zone are just great!  They are all such good examples to me of what it looks like to be a good missionary.

Spanish is still hard for me.  But I´m trying to use it as much as I can.  But, a lot of times with Hermana Chamberlain its just easy to fall back on English, and when we´re out teaching I just can´t understand anyone!  It´s just frustrating cause I have so many things that I want to say, so many different ways to explain the gospel, but I can only say what I know how to say, not what I want to say.

We have a few solid investigators right now.  On Monday we found N**.  She is seventeen and her aunt is a member.  We were teaching her the first lesson, and I could tell she wan´t that into it.  She was nice, and answered all our questions, but I wanted her to see that this wasn´t just a cool story, but that it applied to her.  As Hermana Chamberlain was telling her that she could pray to know if this was true, I interrupted her and asked ¨N**, do you want to know if there is a true church?¨ She paused and said yes. Then I asked ¨Do you believe that if you pray God will talk with you¿¨ She paused then said yes.  Then I testified that if she prayed sincerely that God would hear her and answer her prayer.  She then expressed a true desire to know if there was a true church on the earth.  My companion took over from there and told her that she should talk to her aunt about what she believes.  So I´m excited to see in N** progress.  We haven't been able to meet with her since, because she's in school and then she was out of town this weekend.  But hopefully she is there today and we can teach her about the BOM.

We are also teaching this other family, O** and H** and their two kids.  O** loves the Gospel and she wants to be baptized so bad!  But her and H** aren´t married, and H** doesn't see and need for God in his life.  He also doesn't see a rush to get married. So their wedding is planned for next year!!  We are trying to work with him, cause O** always says, I would get married today so I could be baptized tomorrow.  I love her, she just has so much Animo for the gospel, and her two kids remind me of me and Jackson when we were kids.  The son will just push the daughters buttons all the time, and she always gives him a reaction.  Then he walks away with a smug little smile.  It always makes me laugh.  I just want to tell that little girl that I know exactly how she feels.

There's another one of our investigators, E**, who really wants to get baptized, but he can´t cause he´s living with someone and they can´t get married because he´s married to someone else and its really hard to get a divorce in Chile, plus his ex wife lives all the way in the north and she doesn't want a divorce because she's from Peru and she gets certain benefits from being married to a Chilano.  So it´s complicated.  Every night we pray that he can get a divorce . . . yeah I´ve never prayed for a divorce before.

Here, we get just as excited when investigators get married and when they get baptized.  In district class we all rejoiced just as much when someone told us that their investigator got married as when someone told us that there was a baptism on Saturday.  But that´s Chile.  No one wants to get married because it's so hard to get divorced, and relationships to them are so selfish.  They just want to be in a relationship when it´s easy.

We visited J** again this week, and she told us she hasn´t drank since our last visit!  We were so so so happy.  She really wants to change her life, and we just are praying that the Lord will soften her heart.

So now some random stuff.  There was a little earthquake I think Thursday night.  We were just doing our weekly planing and all the sudden the earth shook . . . it was so bacon!  Also, the mail usually takes 2-3 weeks to get here from the US, and they only deliver it on Tuesdays during district class.  It is so great when that truck pulls up along the street and all the missionaries swarm it.  Seriously, they are more excited than kids on Christmas day.  I don´t even care if I don´t get anything, I just love watching how happy the other missionaries are.

Oh, on Saturday, we had lunch with the greatest family ever!  Literally, they are the equivalent of us, but Chilean style.  I laughed through the whole meal even though I usually didn't know what was going on.  For that hour and a half I felt at home, and it was beautiful. But I have never been so full in my life!  First we ate an avocado filled with ham and topped with homemade mayo.  Sounds weird but it was so good.  I thought that was the meal.  But then they took our plates away and came back with a man size bowl of Casuela . . . a traditional Chilean food.  Oh it was so good!  But I felt like I was going to explode.  Then for dessert we had about an eighth of a watermelon each!  I have never been that full, not even on thanksgiving!

Almost every family that we have eaten with has asked us if we play the piano cause no one in the ward plays. And they actually have a real piano in the chapel!  So boys . . . . PRACTICE!

On Friday we had fase uno, which is where all the newbe  missionaries go the the office in Santiago for training.  It was a long day.  We had to wake up at 5 to get there in time. But it was so great to see all the new missionaries and see that I´m not the only one struggling.  Hermana Ibarra from my MTC district was there and we are basically going through the same thing.  She is also opening a new area with her comp, but her area is way big, and they don't have a map.  Also the elders before them left not only a terrible apartment, but a disorganized and incomplete area book.  So we were blessed that the elders before us cared so much about their investigators that they wanted to make sure they were taken care of.

Sorry, I can´t send pictures.  This computer doesn't have a card reader either.  But today hopefully I can find a card reader that has a usb so I can hook it into the computer.

Things are getting better.  Everyday is like an emotional roller coaster.  I usually start out pretty down cause I don´t want to wake up and I don´t want to do our pathetic workout.  Then before personal study I always pray to have a better attitude.  Then we do four hours of study, at which time I always find something to help me keep going.  Before we leave the apartment I get down again, cause I just don´t think I can make it through the day.  During lunch I´m usually frustrated as I try to follow the conversation, and just sit there as my companion does all the talking and everyone thinks I´m just this little mute girl.  After lunch is the hardest because we are so so so full and it is so so so hot outside.  The only thing I want to do is go sleep off my food coma.  Then around 6 when it starts to cool down and people are getting home from work, and we actually start teaching instead of knocking on doors and doing street contacts, my roller coaster goes up up and up. It peeks when the sun sets behind the mountains, painting the sky with a breath taking glow of pinks, purples and oranges.  It´s always at that time that I know the Lord loves me, and that I´ve almost made it through one more day.

So, poco a poco I´m adjusting to this life.  Things aren´t perfect, but when have they ever been? There are sometimes when I am so so so so down, and I don´t even have the desire to care, actually I don´t even have the desire to desire to care, and I think about home and all the places I'd rather be, all the things I'd rather be doing, all the books I could be reading, the piano songs I could be practicing, or the songs I could be listening too, and that´s when I feel your prayers.  That´s when I know that my strength isn't enough, that it will never be enough.  That's when I look down at my watch and say 'One more hour, then you can give up,' and when that hour is up I say it again. One more hour and then you can buy a plane ticket and go home.  After that hour I say it again and again and again, until the day is finally over, and I realized that somehow I made it through.  Those are the times that I look back in the sand and only see one set of foot prints and realize that the Lord has been carrying me.  Someday I´ll be able to walk on my own, someday I might even be able to run, but right now I needed carried. So thanks for all the prayers.  I feel them and they help.

Oh yeah, the dogs.  Jackson said I would hate them, but I think I just love them more!  There are so many dogs that have the same coloring as copper and I always miss him so much!  And at night I love it when the dogs follow us because it makes us feel safe.  Yes, there are some mean dogs, and really dirty nasty dogs, and dogs that bark their heads off at us, but then there are really nice, sweet dogs that make sure we are safe, and that make me feel less alone.  So as of yet, I don´t hate the dogs.

And chubs!  That so great you went out with the missionaries.  I know how it feels to be out for three hours and not get in any houses.  No fun!  But that´s the mission!!

Well, I love you all!  Just keep being awesome . . . and write me lots of letters, cause that´s about the only literature I get out here:)

Love always, 

Hermana Ostler

I truly am a representative of Christ

Familia!!

Hey, guess what?  I´m in Chile! and this keyboard is really weird!!  Okay, so I am going to organize my letter by categories.

First, Companion:

Her name is Abigail Chamberlain from Indiana.  She´s awesome!  She speaks Spanish so well, and I don´t know how she learned it.  She kinda reminds me of Amanda.  I´m not really sure why.  She had a very different teaching style than me. She knows how to talk about the gospel.  This will be her last area.  I´m killing her!  But she´s only here for two more months, so she won´t complete my training and we don´t really know what is going to happen.  It´s all because worldwide they shortened this transfer to 4 weeks instead of 6 because of the new departure dates at the MTC.  So we´ll see.

There are a lot of things about Hermana Chamberlain that I like.  She´s very focused and a rule follower.  She dosen´t get annoyed with all my questions! But right now she is a little disorganized because we are opening a new area for sisters.  There were elders here before, then they put us in.  So not only am I lost, but she´s lost too.  It can be frustrating sometimes.  But we work well together.  She just is go go go!  Yesterday we rode our bikes by this beautiful vineyard and she didn't even glance at it.  I had to slow down because the sight just took my breath away.  But she wants to finish her mission strong, and she thinks she doesn't have time to appreciate the beauty of this county. Maybe I can help her chillax.

Second, Culture:

So basically the ward is awesome!  All the brothers in the ward are like Brother Cuevas, so warm and welcoming.  Everyone just loves us!  Apparently there were 3 elders here before us, and so everyone always asks if there is just two of us.  One hermano that we ate lunch with said, two sisters are better than three elders!  Haha, it was great!   But we eat lunch with the members instead of dinner, cause that is the main meal here, and they eat a lot of carbs here.  One meal we had was potatoes stuffed with nasty Kraft cheese and rice . . . no meat!  And their food is really flavorless so they use a lot of condiments.  Like there is always ketchup and mayonnaise on the table.  Also, they eat the main meal first, then when the plate is clear they eat the side dishes, which is always salad, and by salad I mean tomatoes with salt and oil on them.  There is a lot of pan here.  They eat pan like Mexicans eat tortillas,  It is so so so good!  I think I might get fat!  But we bike everywhere, so that´s good.  I don´t like biking, and I think we could get more done if we just walked, cause then we wouldn´t get lost so much and we could talk to people as we go.  Oh, they also eat a lot of ice cream!  I love it!!

Third, Experiences:

So we are opening this area for sisters, and we kinda started from scratch (PS, I´m in Los Andes the area is called Primer Crucero).  The Elders left a really good area book for us, but a really dirty apartment.  Our first night, when we arrived, we couldn´t find the apartment, then some sisters who happened to be doing their visiting teaching found us, and helped us find it.  It was nothing short of a miracle.  My first day as a missionary was so long!  I have never been that tired in my life!!  I wasn´t like physically exhausted, I just couldn't keep my eyes open.  It was rough.  

Wow, there's just so much to say, there´s no way I can say it all.  I want to tell you guys about J.  After visiting a super awesome investigator, we asked her for references and she told us to go visit her neighbor.  So we went to her neighbors house, but no one was home, so we started walking back down the street.  We passed this woman, and we greeted her.  She paused and stared at us like she knew us.  We asked her if everything was okay, she said no, and then just started crying.  She told us to come to her house. Guess what house was hers?  Yes, the neighbor of out investigator!

We sat down with her and she started sobbing!  She told us there was so much pain in her life and she begged us to help her.  She said she has been trying to quit drinking for so long, but can´t.  She wants God to help her, but doesn't think he will.  We just comforted her, prayed with her, and sang a song for her.  There was a point when she stopped crying and looked at me.  She took my hand and just stared at me.  In that moment I knew Jesus loved her and that if He could be with her he would, but he couldn´t so he sent me instead.  I realized that I truly am a representative of Christ, sent here to Chile to do what he would do.  We set a return appointment with her where we want to teach her about the word of wisdom.

We also met this other guy on the streets who just chewed us out.  He told us that our religion only wanted money and that we were brainwashed.  My companion kept trying to testify, but he wasn´t having it.  Sometimes she´s a little timid.  If I had the vocab I would have said something along the lines of, you can believe what you want, here's what I believe, please respect that, like I respect what you think.  It was nice to meet you, goodbye.  But she wouldn´t walk away.  He is bitter at the church cause his daughter is a member and he couldn´t go to her wedding.

Fourth, Random:

So my feet are good. My shoes are already so dirty!  Oh, I got bit by some bug and my foot was swollen for like 4 days.  The women in relief society were really worried about me.  But I just took Advil and elevated it during personal study.  It´s getting better now.  The hardest part for me is still Spanish.  They speak so fast here!  And they are so lazy in their language.  They cut off the endings of words, and use the weirdest slang. Also they mumble so so so much!  I´m having the hardest time.  I've definitely had my hard times.

On Friday, as we were walking to go contact a reference I just felt so so so alone.  It has only been four days, and I saw the endless road stretch out in front of me.  I just didn´t think I could do it.  My companion looked over and asked if everything was okay.  I said "yeah, this is just harder than I thought it would be."  She said we should go sit down.  So we found a bench, and when she asked me what was wrong, I started talking about how frustrating it is that I can´t understand or speak this language because it is so different from the Spanish I am used to.  Then I just started crying.  I thought how much easier it would be to be in a different mission.  A mission where they speak my language.  I would be such a better missionary if I could just speak English!  Everyone keeps telling me that I will learn it, but I just don´t see how.

When I cleared the tears from my eyes, I saw the glow of the sun behind the mountains.  It was beautiful.  I smelt the grass and roses in the air.  It was beautiful.  I saw children laughing in the streets.  It was beautiful.  By the thorns in His crown, to the sunset colored sky, He finds a way to say I love you.  Yes, this is hard, but I am not alone.  I think people who serve foreign missions suffer something that those who serve in the states don´t suffer.  We are humbled so so so fast by our lack of language skills. All the Elders I have met from the states are so humble.  Here, we realize quickly that we cannot make it on our own.  Yes, the road ahead of me is long, but I don´t have to walk it alone.

President, his wife, daughter, and her husband came to our ward (yes, I got the bag . . . thanks!)  and it was testimony meeting.  Near the end of the meeting the husband of presidents daughter got up.  He said three words into the mic "no hablo espanol" then he sang I Stand All Amazed.  Tears trickled down my cheeks as he sang that song. Though he cannot speak the language, he brought the spirit into that room stronger than any words that had yet been spoken.  The Lord will give to what I need to invite the spirit.

So that´s life in Chile.  It´s all really overwhelming.  I wish I could send you some pictures, but this computer doesn't have a card reader and I don't have a usb cord for my camera.  Pday is going by so fast!  But we are going to get Competos after this!  I´m so excited to try them.

Harrison!  A su mision!  Estoy my emocionada por usted!  Que bacon! Also, don´t be disappointed if you don´t get called to a foreign mission.  It´s harder than you think. I've lived in a foreign country, but being a missionary is so so so different!  But wherever you go you will love it!

There are only 3 gringos in my zone, me, my companion, and our district leader.  Hna Chamberlain says that I will probably be getting a Latin companion next and then I will probably train until the end of my mission.  Next transfer there are 18 plus sisters coming to the mission, and no one to train them.  I hope president gives me a chance to learn the language before he makes me train.  I just feel like I have so much to learn and I don´t know where to focus!! 

They don´t have cheerios here:( and I´m getting super tan!  Its awesome!  Yeah, it´s way way way way hot!!

Okay, got to go!  Oh my gosh that Portuguese song that I like is playing!! hahah.  Love you all!!

Love always, 

Hermana Ostler