Waterfalls and A Wonderful Week

Hola!!! We went into the jungle today!! Well actually, I always am in the jungle...but we hiked up to a waterfall today! I didn't have tennis shoes so it was rough and I just went barefoot most of the way...but hey gotta do what you gotta do right? It was beautiful! I love the jungle haha THIS is my mission!!! Im much much happier this week. Here's a day in the life of Hermana Woody

Wake up at 6:30 lay there for a good 15 minutes contemplating life.

7 to 7:40ish workout haha do Tae bow kick boxing workouts

8 to 1:30ish chill at the house, and by chill I mean study and cook lunch. 

2 to about 8 walk and talk! We talk to everyone that we can see. We can't tract so its all about contacts. When we do go to houses we just yell Buenas! We teach a guy in a barber shop, a family in a tiny tiny shack, lessons on the streets. pretty much everywhere. The people are really receptive here! Except for those catholics...there was one lady this week who just goes "Im superrrr catholic" and I just wanted to say well Im suppppperrrr Mormon!! but...I just smiled, said adios and walked away haha. we don't have any golden investigators, but we have some promising people for sure. Oh yeah, the spanish I learmed is NOT the spanish here at all!! also we walk so freakin far in a day it's literally trek...so many hills. I always sing my way up them because it makes it easier. I started singing the Climb once...it was very fitting haha

So that's me everyday! I've embraced the fact that Im a gringa, I live in the mountains, The food here is wack, people all have real lives that need help, and again..THIS is my mission! WE had a sweet experience with a lady this week who was really really sick, she could hardly move. We taught her the Plan of Salvation and it was such a spiritual experience. The gift of tongues is real! I had an immediate love for her and could literally feel God's love for her. It was incredible. I love the people here!!!

Funny things...we ran out of good food so we made pancakes out of chocolate cake mix haha it was pretty nast. I killed not 1, not 2, but 5 spiders in the shower this week!! like spiders should NOT be in the shower..am I right or am I right? oh yeah and yesterday I accidentally told a lady I was racist...we were talking about Obama and I said oh I don't care for him...Oh so you're racist...si! oops hahaa. people are crazy, but life is good! We went to a baptism yesterday and they had me sing on the spot...it was fun though! then a niño came up to me and picked me a flower, and his sister came over and gave me a HUGE bouquet of flowers haha it was great. 

Happy summer to you all! I don't even remember what that's like....so Enjoy it! Te quierro mucho familia y amigos!

Hermana Woody 

Jazzie is in Honduras, Santa Lucia!

Okay I want you to close your eyes. well....I guess you can't really close them and read hahah but just think....You're sitting on the indiana jones ride at disneyland, but it's not a ride, it's a car. You're treking up Mt everest with 200 pounds of luggage on top of you listening to spanish rap. You get to your house and THEN there are 100 stairs you have to trek up and bam. then you are at your house! You're so excited to be home, but then you walk inside and realize that there is NOTHING in there. No beds, just bugs. Oh yeah, and your neighbors are cows on one side, and chickens on the other. you are so thirsty, but NO water!! no water in the house, to drink, nada.  Welp that was my first day here!!!

HI EVERYONE!! I have zero time to write but I will try to tell you some stuff. Oh yeah, by the way, NO ONE can pronounce Woods here so they all call me Hna Boots hahah I feel like I am Dora the Explorer but in real life...haha

Honduras is the craziest place I have ever been to! It's sorta like africa, but we live in the mountains. At the very very top of the mountain!!! The highest little house. I will try to send pics but everything is in Spanish so idk if it'll work. Yes, that's another things. EVERYTHING is in spanish everywhere. my comp is from Bolivia and doesn't speak English so we speak spanish from the minute I wake up to the minute I fall asleep. I even dream in Spanish...it is so bizzare! I am also THE only white, blonde, tall person in all the land. And people whistle at me, blow kisses, and yell gringa...novia...etc. I need to learn how to say "I am a human, not a dog, knock it off!"haha but all is well. 

Honestly, this week was really hard. But, I would just think okay, my parents and brother did this, I have friends out here too right now, I can do this! The people here are so humble and I want to teach them so badly I just need to learn spanish first. I know that after time it'll come though. I have never prayed harder and more diligently in my life. This is the craziest thing I have ever done. I am all about adventure, but this is crazy!!! Sorry Im all over the place...I have 5 minutes left. 

It's been a rollercoaster ever since. We opened up a new area called Santa Lucia and it is gorgeous!! Look it up online! mountains everywhere, and the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. Sometimes, the sunsets are what gets me through the tough days. I am happy to be here though. Thanks for all the love and support. I love all the letters and love! Sorry I can't reply to everyone. I love and miss you all so so much. Come and visit me in honduras!! 

XOXO Hermana Boots

Cheespas! (some spanish word...i think it means Spark haha) Last Week at the CCM

Hi friends!!! This was a great week! I seriously love spanish!! I leave the CCM on Monday morning!!! I can't believe it's finally time to go! haha seriously, this morning my companion and I walked out and we look straight awful (She dared me to wear my teeva sandals...and I'm rockin walmart sweats and my sweet authentic bag from Mexico City haha it's great) and I just said "Yonz, we're veterans, we own this place, so who cares what people think?!" two seconds we saw one of the presidents and ran the other direction haha. but it's okay because YOPOW (you only P day once a week haha) 

We had a lot of good lessons this week as well! We have this one teacher who is hilarious and he hurt his foot and started talking that he wanted to have "feliz pieds" like the movie and he started to tap dance..it was great haha. Then we were talking about the priesthood and he compared it to the power like in Dragon ball Z..we were cracking up and explained that the priesthood is even better than that power! 

okay so funny story of the week is that on Monday we decided to make it 'Murica monday and our whole district matched and were patriotic for our group pictures. Half way through the day we realized that it was Cinco de Mayo...oops haha we were celebrating the wrong country. But It was sweet cause the food here is nast and we were hoping for american food for lunch in honor of our America day..and guess what?! we walked into the cafeteria and it was cheesburgers and waffle fries! It was a Murica Monday miracle haha. 

Big news. I took a challenge this weekend that my dad gave me and I highlighted all the references to the Savior in El Libro de Mormon! I did it in one day!! I also did a full fast for 24 hours for the family and it looks like it worked! Instead of Feasting on the words of christ, I decided to feast on the Word Christ and I was filled with the spirit instead on hunger..it was loco!! But a good crazy! This is without a doubt the ONLY true church and everyone needs to know about it! I encourage you guys to do this challenge!! 

I'm so so excited to get to honduras!!! Next time I talk to you all I will be out in the field. I love and miss you all tons and tons. Have a great week!! I can't wait to skype the fam on Sunday!!! Adios!

hermana Woody

A Word from the Space Ship Galactica

Hellooo!!!!! I've made it a month wooh hooo!!!! Time is seriously FLYING. It's insane that I only have one Pday left here...I'm so excited to get to Honduras!  Me encanta español ahora y cada vez es más fácil enseñar y entender! finalmente, yo puede habla que yo quierro hablo!! Ignore my awful grammar and everything...but I seriously love spanish!! I can finally understand and go off of the spirit instead of a script and it's way better that way. It's amazing the progress that we can make in just a month! I wish that you guys could just come sit in on a lesson. One day I will teach you all ;)

Here's a little story about my district...they've become my second family here. esta bien! So, sometimes I get in trouble for dozing off in TALL..which is a computer instructed spanish lesson. All the elders sit there and pretend to be on a freakin Spaceship...and my Zone leader is the captain...and I get in trouble for peacefully resting my eyes while they yell "let the space battleship gallactaca commence!" or whatever the heck they say... haha they are interesting. but all is well! We all wear headsets, so naturally we are on a spaceship. The elders are a bit dorky,but they know it and love it, so you gotta love them!

hmm...I forgot to tell you all last week but we had an earthquake here!! It was a 7.3 or something like that..There are a bunch of green circles that you're supposed to stand in when there's one. So when we heard the sirens go off we were all so excited and ran out to meet in there. The ground felt like waves of the ocean and it was SWEET! I wasn't scared, cause we are protected here, but it was a sweet experience. 

In other news, I got 10 MOSQUITO BITES THIS WEEK!!! All two days apart on the same leg...yeah, NOT fun. It storms every day here so there are bugs everywhere...but the rain is worth it! We always dance around after gym, and we started CCM 4 square this week haha good times. 

We got to go to the temple today!! We finally go to leave the CCM walls and see what Mexico city is really like. It's super sketch as I always say, but it was awesome! I love being a part of a different culture, it's sweet. A lot of it reminds me of when we were traveling through Africa. There is a lot of poverty, but it is just the way of life for them here. There's 15,000 people here per square mile!!! It's insane! But, I'm thankful for everything that we have, and with that, I'm excited to bring our message to these people to make them happy as well.

Oh yeah, one more thing! I spoke in church on Sunday and gave my first talk in Spanish! It was sweet! Then right after, my companera got up to speak and she says " Hola, yo Soy hermana Woods..." there was a silence for a little bit and then everyone started busting up laughing because her name is Hermana Johnson, or Yonz for short haha. I love her! This week was really good and I can't wait to skype the fam on mother's day. Love you all, have a great week!! 

XOXO your favorite missionary :)