Well that's a wrap!

October 30, 2017

Holis everyone! This is officially my last weekly letter of my mission! So I have been trying to think about what I wanted to say in my final letter. 

First off I feel so grateful that I listened to that little prompting I got when I was 14 to serve a mission. I have learned so, so, so many things. I have met such amazing people, learned to speak a different language, make new friends from all over the world, overcome hardships and trials, and gained a better understanding and a stronger testimony of our savior Jesus Christ.

I think the biggest thing I can testify to is just how much He and our Heavenly Father loves us. Everything about life is because they love us so so much. I know that the missionary work is in other words, a work of love. Everyone, not just the missionaries, as the opportunity to share this love with everyone they know.

As I was listening to some missionaries teach the restoration of the gospel during a capillas abierta, I had a little sadness hit my heart that my time to teach as missionary is now coming to an end. I felt a little regret too, because my time in capillas abiertas has limited a lot of my time teaching. I felt as if that maybe I could've had touched so many others lives if I could have just not been in capillas abiertas. That night I read a letter my sweet cute grandma Penrod sent me a few months ago. In that letter she said that "any effort given to bring people unto christ is enough for our Heavenly Father." I felt the spirit comfort me in that moment, and I know she is right and in my efforts in capillas abiertas I was helping others come unto Christ. And I know that even if we aren't full time missionaries, our efforts to bring others unto Christ will be always be enough to God too.

I have truly loved serving in my three areas: Miramar, Puerto, and Independencia B, and I have especially loved serving in the church open houses. I have loved loving the people here and my companions, and all of them. I love President and Sister Cifuentes. I love Argentina, this work, and my loving Savior. I love you all as well, and as much as I hate leaving, I will be happy to be apart of your lives again.

I know that the true church of christ has been restored upon the earth by the profet Joseph Smith, and I know that we have a living profet today and his name is Thomas S. Monson. I know that this gospel is true, and that we are here on this earth because God loves us, and he wants us to learn how to love like he does and so he gave us life. I know that if we live our lives according to his gospel, if we rely on the atonement of Jesus Christ, we will make it back home and we will help others make it back home too.

Estos 18 meses, han sido lo mejor. Estoy agradecida de haber podido ser misionera y compartir este mensaje con todos. Amo la misión! 

Con amor,

Hermana Davidson 

It went by fast

Oct 16, 2017

Everyone loves letting me know these days how close I am to coming home.

My response is the same everytime: "It went by fast".

Lately I have felt so grateful for the decision that I have made to serve a mission. I have loved all the people I have met (except angry taxi drivers) and have loved being in the chuch open houses. It has been a stretching and growing experience, but I have loved every second of it. I feel so lucky to have been here, and am grateful I still have a few weeks to keep doing what I love.

Anyways, not much to say other than that I LOVE YOU!

Con amor,

Hermana D

Deja-vu

October 9, 2017

Holis peeps!

I'm so glad that everyone enjoyed the video I sent last week.

This weekend was really kind of special for me. The idea of a ward having a capilla abierta is that they do it every 6 months, so I have been here for 8 months so that means I'm doing some capilla abiertas in the same ward for the second time haha. It's actually really fun. 

Last weekend we had a capilla abierta in Azul. I was there a few months ago for the last capilla abierta. The sisters gave us a plan in the morning to go invite people, and as we were walking in the streets looking for the houses I started laughing because I was literally inviting the same exact people 6 months ago with Hermana Estrada haha.

 During rehearsal with the branch, one of the cute members there came up to me and recognized me from the last time. She introduced me to a sister that was a recent convert that got baptized about six months ago. She had known a little bit about the church because she had a few friends from the branch, but had never listened to the missionaries. One of these friends invited her to the capilla abierta back in April and she had loved everything and accepted to listen to the missionaries. A few months later she got baptized and is faithful member of the church serving as the secretary in the Relief Society presidency. 

It was so special to meet someone that had gotten baptized from the capillas abiertas. I knew that there are a few in the mission but I had never had the chance to meet any until then.

I love this work and I love this program! I know that it is inspired of God to help bring His sheep back to His fold. I honestly wish I could do capillas abiertas forever! I'll skip the bus rides though, those I won't miss at all haha!

Love you all and have a great week!

Con Amor,

Hermana Davidson

Week of Lasts

September 25, 2017

This week was really good. There's so many things I want to write about that I just don't know where to begin. 

Well it was Hermana Leguizamóns last week in her mission. It was crazy to think that 3 transfers came and went so quickly. We learned soooo much together and we went through a lot of amazing and really challenging times together. Between almost missing buses, the challenges of having a broken foot, having successful stake trainings, we have had quite the adventure.When we had our last companionship inventory, I pretty much bawled. She did too, so it's fine.

Our capilla abierta was in a little pueblo called Lobería. The weather has been so nice and warm lately that we even had a part of it outside. 

Our ward training on Sunday was the perfect end. We did it differently this time, and we focused more on how to invite people to the capilla abierta. Me and Legui did some examples, and even the stake mission leader came and did examples too. It was something totally different from all the rest of the trainings that I have done, and the members responded really well to it and I felt the spirit so strongly.

Also, in sacrament meeting, the branch president decided to let Hermana Leguizamon give a short talk because it was her last Sunday. But then everyone thought it was my last Sunday too so they decided that I should give a talk too. Except I didn't know about it until it was announced during sacrament meeting haha lol. But it went really good for completely winging it. 

Well, this week I will be getting my new companion. It's weird that this will be my last one, but I feel pretty excited about it.

Love you all and hope you have a great week!

Con amor,

Hermana Davidson

Tender Mercies

September 11, 2017

Holis!

This week was really quite interesting. Because we live close to the mission office, sometimes we house sisters that come to Bahia Blanca to do tramites (visa stuff that I still don't understand). This week we were 5 in our teeny apartment and it was really weird living with more people than just your companion haha. But it was really fun in the end.

This week we had interviews with President Cifuentes. We had to teach him what being "your own agent" means and give him scripture examples and an example of when in our lives we were our own agents. I was nervouse because I had never had an interview where I had to teach him but he liked everything I had to say so I was relieved. We talked about next transfer (my LAST) and my new companion (also my LAST). He asked me to focus on teaching the next hermana as best I can. I don't feel too nervous. I did it once, I can do it twice. Poor Legui was the guinea pig haha!

So this week I just about lost everything. Right when I think I have all my marbles together, I lose them. One of the things I lost was our cell phone, oops, and so we had to run over to a members house to ask if we could use their phone. Somehow we took advantage of the situation and we were able to talk the hermana into letting us help her clean her back patio for her daughter's birthday on Saturday. It was a lot more than we had originally bargained for (they're part-time hoarders I think) but it felt great to help clean their house, especially because it would be so pretty if they remodeled it. I totally thought of "flip or flop" from HGTV the entire time ha.

Bahia Blanca is famous for crazy winds and dust, and so I took a broom and literally swept the sides of the house because it was just caked in dust from years of Bahis winds haha. The hermana had no idea that her house was a different color.

Our capilla abierta was in Mar del Plata this weekend, and luckily enough we didn't have a ward training on Sunday because of General conference coming up (we don't do capilla abiertas during conference weekend). So we took advantage of our time on Sunday to go to church to PUERTO on Sunday. I hadn't felt so happy in such a long time seeing old member friends. Flavia was there too, so it was extra sweet. Sadly my camera died so I wasn't able to take pictures with everyone, but it was happy day. We visited a few people in their houses as well, and felt so weird to be walking in the old streets that I used to walk in everyday. Even though there were some streets I remember I hated contacting, I felt so happy to back again haha.

We felt sooo soo soo lucky to have been able to spend a day in Puerto because

1. Hermana Leguizamon completed 18 MONTHS on Sunday

2. She started her mission in Puerto

3. We both served in Puerto

It was so so so needed.

Anyways, that is pretty much everything from this week! Love you all and can't wait to hear from you soon!

Con amor, Hermana Davidson

PS. Thanks Mom and nice neighbors in Mountain Green for sending me packages! The goodies aren't going to last very long 

Sorry

Hey everyone! 

August 28, 2017

Sorry if I had you all worried because it has been a while since I've written. Life on the mish has been a rollercoaster. The mish has been like the cat and mouse rollercoaster at Lagoon, fun at the moment but you walk off with whiplash haha.

Anywho, We keep chugging along. We had transfers two weeks ago and Hermana Leguizamon and I are still together for the third transfer for a row. We haven't killed each other yet, no worries  She is honestly so great and am so grateful for all the things she does for me and the assignment.​

So here is a little run down of what has been going on: We had 2 STAKE trainings, where we talked in front of stake presidencies and bishops and ward mission leaders. I almost peed my pants but they went really well. One of them was in Mar del Plata and the Stake president that weekend came to a capilla abierta we had over there and accompanied none members during the tours. We were so touched that he made an effort to come and participate.

The area has been a bit rocky. The two investigators we had... Are two fruits that haven't quite matured yet. But we have plans to work with members, incomplete families, and less actives to look for new potential investigators. Lets see what happens with that.

Anyways, love you all and hope you have a great week!

Con amor, 

Hermana Davidson

Just Grateful

August 7, 2017

So after yesterday I have just felt so incredibly grateful for my mission and the things I have experienced and for the miracles that I have witnessed.

Every month I send a monthly updated of the capilla abiertas with the data of capilla abiertas during the year and dates of capilla abiertas for the approxiamte 3 months. I have been really worried for the past month because it seemed like none of the wards here wanted to schedule anymore. When I sent the update to president I kind of had a break down because we had weeks with no capilla abiertas planned. Legui and I decided that we would fast specifically to schedule capilla abiertas yesterday. The minute that we ended our fast, the stake mission leader of Bahia Blanca called us to schedule one. Later that day we called other stakes and were able to fill the months of August and October. It was a huge relief and I just felt so much of Heavenly Father's love.

Our capilla abierta this weekend was probably my favorite so far. We were in  the tiniest little branch but the members worked so hard and invited so many people. We had the biggest group of visitors come that I had seen in my time here and we received 13 references. There are only two elders there so they were on cloud 9 to have 13 references for themselves.

That's pretty much all I have time for to share this week but I just love you all and thank you for all your prayers! Love you have a great week!

Enjoy this lovely picture. The sister is cute and pregnant but the elders are just examples of what happens when you come to the Bahia 

Con amor, Hermana Davidson