Last Zone Meeting

Hellooo everyone!

Time is flying. It's already Monday! What?! Mom! I received your Valentine's Day package. Thank you! That was quite the package! Hermana Rodriguez and I were really excited.

We had a really great week, and once again we witnessed many miracles. On Tuesday we had a Zone Meeting, and since it was the last zone meeting of the transfer, all of the missionaries that finish their missions at the end of the transfer were asked to bear their testimonies. That was such an incredible experience. There are six of us in our zone that finish their missions this transfer. The spirit was incredibly strong and it was neat to see how converted we have all become as a result of trying to invite people to come unto Christ. (Hello, run-on sentences! Sorry. That's how they speak here in Argentina.) It truly was a moment I will never forget. It was neat to reflect on the progress that we have made in every aspect of our lives. One Elder talked about how we go home as different people. It's true. I'm still Brittni Vawdrey. But, I'm not the same person I was when I came on my mission. But I'm the new and improved! And as horribly sad as it is that our full-time mission is coming to an end, our missions don't end. As members of the Church we are missionaries every day of our lives. It's just time to change the location. The Lord needs us to be in other places, doing other things so that we can continue to help Him bring all of His children unto Christ.

Another day this week we had quite the adventure because there was another big storm. It didn't rain much, but the wind was out of control! Which isn't that pleasant when you have to walk around in a skirt all day. haha. Because of the wind it ended up cutting out the lights! We got to our apartment one night and had to plan by candle night. :) It was funny because the lights came back on at about 10:25, and we go to bed at 10:30. So we had 5 minutes of light before we had to turn it out again. :)  But it was a good experience to realize just how blessed we are to have light and electricity. For example, instead of taking the elevator we had to hike all of the windy stairs. God has a funny sense of humor sometimes to help us remember just how blessed we are, right?

We found several great new investigators this week. And N came to church! It was such a miracle! I wish I had time to tell you all the details. I just have to say that when we give the Lord our hearts, when we do absolutely everything in our power, He does the rest. :)

I know the gospel has been restored. We have the fullness of the gospel on the earth today, and it will never be taken away again! I love my Savior. I know He lives. I know the Lord hears and answers every prayer. We are children of God and we have so much divine potential that we can't even comprehend it. Only because the Lord loves us, and wants us and trusts in us to accomplish great things. So. Keep doing those great things that you're doing. You're making the Lord proud!

Family, I love you! I hope you have a great week! Les quiero mucho!
-Hermana Vawdrey

As a request from the Mama, here are some fun facts/quirks about Argentina:

• People here in Barrio Pueyrredón love Backstreet Boys. And AC/DC. ha Dad, it makes me think of random times driving in "Gus" when we would listen to AC/DC on the way to the boy's sports games. Good times!

• Floppy hair! Oh my. I've never seen so many loose, floppy ponytails in my life! And it's always right on top of their head! ha I get a kick out of it.

• Umm Fashion, (because I naturally notice that) saggy crotch pants are every where. "Pantalones feos" is what I call them. They're so ugly I got a pair because they'll be fun to use for some costume parties in the future.

• Argentines LOVE stickers! They put them on everything. Phones, computers, cars, wallets, etc.

• Pan. Argentines cannot live one day without eating their pan (bread)/ They eat bread every day. And it's funny because when it's served they almost never put it on their plate, it always goes on the table.

• They are so direct! If you look fat, have a bad hair day, etc. they tell you! It's like Grandpa Jon. hahah No filter. ;)

But I love these people. I want you to know that.

Brian Edwards! HELLO!! I got your letter! How great to hear from you. :) I meant to write to you quite a while ago, but I figured you had moved already from the previous apartment address. I hope you're enjoying your internship-trip thing in New York!

Hermana Rodriguez and me

Thanks for sending new socks, Mom. This is what I was wearing!

So pretty before it rains. The sky is huge here without mountains.

I LOVE the Book of Mormon!

Family and Friends,

Again, my heart is full. To quote an investigator, "I am in LOVE with the Book of Mormon." It is true! It penetrates my heart and allows the Lord to communicate to me in a way that no one else can. It was a hard week, but it was possible because of all of the encouragement, faith, hope, and "love notes" that the Lord helped me find this week in the Book of Mormon. I know I can always find them there.

Yesterday we witnessed a miracle. Remember last week when I told you about J? He's the "tough guy with long, shoulder-length, curly hair, piercings, beard, tattoos, etc. Not anymore! He came to church yesterday in a white shirt and tie. He borrowed his friend's dress shoes and polished them up all nice. And, he cut his hair!! Wow. I wish I had a before and after picture. It makes me think of the movie "The Other Side of Heaven" when they find the drunk less-active guy and clean him up and bring him to church. That's totally how it was! J was grinning from ear to ear the whole time. He talked to the bishop and he has the goal to get the Aaronic Priesthood in the next little bit. Incredible. No one is ever too far off the path of the gospel to be able to be cleaned up, forgiven, and changed through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I know that my Redeemer lives. Because if it wasn't for him, we would never be able to see these moments of immense joy.

I don't know what it is, but Hermana Rodriguez and I have a talent for finding investigators with really interesting situations and doubts. haha Presidente Parreño came with us yesterday to a lesson to help us try to re-activate an RM/ex-obispo (bishop). And well...that was intimidating. What do you do/say during a lesson when your MISSION PRESIDENT is sitting next to you?! But the Lord comforted me through the Holy Ghost and we had all of the words and direction we needed for that lesson. It went really well.

We're working with another investigator that was going to an evangelical church before, but she had a really bad experience because the people judged her because of her poverty. Sad. We've been able to practice charity, and I've been able to witness that charity, the pure love of Christ that truly heals every problem and every situation. It's interesting because in these past few weeks the Lord has really pushed me out of my comfort zone. We've taught investigators that have concerns or doubts that I've never had before. It's blessed us with the opportunity to consult with the Lord and receive personal revelation of how we can help his children come back unto him. And it's made me remember something that Hermana Juli Jensen once told me. "No one really knows how to be a good missionary. You just have to try." That's some serious wisdom there. No one really knows! No one really knows how to be a perfect father, perfect teacher, etc. You just have to try! And somehow in the middle of all the trying, the effort, sweat and tears, we figure it out.

I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is true! The teachings and the doctrine are perfect--not us. We're all just trying to figure it out, little by little, precept by precept.

Family, I love you. Thanks for all that you do. Have a great week!

-Hermana Vawdrey

The Lord takes care of his missionaries!

Family and Friends,

Wow, family, new ward huh? That's really exciting. I love change. After 12 years of living right on the borders of the ward boundaries, I guess it's about time that we get bumped into another ward, right? AH! And did you hear! They opened up 58 new missions in the world! TWO in Argentina, EIGHT in Mexico, and many more. It's so neat to see the gospel spreading throughout the Earth. :) I'm still anxious to see when a mission will open up in China. :) Ty: I can see you serving your mission there!

Mom, Happy belated birthday! And M (one of the members here) says Happy Birthday too! I showed her a family picture the other day and she called you the young, rubia, movie star. haha It's true. You're beautiful. I hope you had a wonderful birthday.

Yesterday we witnessed something truly remarkable. MG, one of the members has been working on coming back to church. Her son has been inactive for years and years, but he agreed to have a Noche de Hogar (FHE) last night. He got baptized when he was 14, and he is now 35. He's got long hair, a beard, and he's covered in tattoos. Ha! We decided to keep it simple, and we taught about the faith. We read in the Book of Mormón when Alma compared faith to a seed. It was incredible to watch how the spirit brought all of the gospel topics to his remembrance. He truly had a repentent heart and said he wants to change, and he wants to come back to church. We gave him a new Book of Mormón and he started to cry. He told us about how he felt when he got baptized, and how he wants to feel that way again. It was such a blessing to be able to witness that. The Lord has been preparing him to come back, and we are feeling so blessed to be able to help him.

We heard some interesting news the other day: Remember how we used to live in another apartment here in Barrio Pueyrredón? Shortly after we moved there was a huge fire that badly damaged the 11th floor (where we lived) and several other apartments. The Lord takes care of his missionaries!

The church is true! And it always will be. I love you all! Have a good week.

-Hermana Vawdrey

It's not an event. It's a PROCESS!

Family and Friends,

Hello! I'm glad to hear that things are well. Not excited to hear all of the trunky things about school and going back to the real world...ha pero bueno. I'm happy. I want you to know that I'm happy! I love the gospel and I love that I become more and more converted every day. Dad, I loved what you shared with your ward the other day that not just "every member a missionary," but every member an investigator! It's true! Our road to conversion does not end when we meet the missionaries, or when we get baptized, or if we finish the Book of Mormon again. It's not an event. It's a process! I've been studying that a lot lately, and I love it! Our lives, our testimonies, our joys, our sorrows, our laughs, and our cries are not events. It's all part of the process of our personal conversion.

To all of you that are thinking about going on a mission but can't quite make a decision. Stop thinking! Just do it! It's good. It's right. You're only going to be more happy, more converted, and more secure in the gospel. And you get to be a representative of Jesus Christ and help your brothers and sisters while you do it. Serving a mission is an incredible thing. An incredible process. Just the other day I re-read my missionary call letter. I found it interesting because part of it says that...okay más o menos...it says through our hard work, diligence, and reliance on the Lord we will be able to BECOME the missionaries that he wants us to be. Again. It's not an event, it's a process. The word "become" means that it is a process. When you leave the MTC or when you complete a year on your mission, that doesn't necessarily mean that you have become a good missionary. It's a continuing process. I think even those who completed their missions keep going in their personal process of becoming the missionary the Lord wants and needs us to be. But what's so wonderful is that we can do it. We CAN become the missionary, the children of God that He wants to be as we rely on Him.

This week. Well...it was hot. What else? ha No, it was a good week once again. We saw many miracles. We're working a lot with a girl named J. She's 24 and has investigated the church quite a bit. She's really smart, has a lot of conocimiento...how do you say that in English?? (knowledge/understanding) But she gets stuck on little things, and it turns into big doubts. We're learning a lot that when investigators have a doubt, it's normally only a tiny part of the real doubt. There is always something deep down based on a bad past experience, or a misunderstanding. That's when the role of the Spirit comes in. We're focusing on asking "inspired questions" to try to find the real doubt. Presidente Parreño's wife is going to come with us to a lesson tomorrow to help us out. We're excited.

Ah! News: Yesterday they called a new mission leader! And get this: It's J's dad! Super cool. What would be even more cool is that if the first baptism we have with him is his daughter. Hmm. But the Lord is in charge.

Mama, here's your questions:

• The first group of new young missionaries will arrive to our mission right after I leave. We're expecting a group of over 30!! (Depending on how everything goes with their Visas) Everyone is very excited and anxious about the new "jovencitos."
• Forever ago you asked me how many there are in our district. There are 8 of us. 4 companionships, 4 elderes and 4 hermanas. Then there are 30 of us in la Zona Bahía Blanca. 6 hermanas I wanna say?
• Our ward recently has had about 50 people there for Sacrament Meeting. There is room for growth, and lots of menos activos (less actives).  :(  But our bishop is fantastic, and some of the members are always willing to help us out.  :)
• Our apartment? It's good! We love it! It's quiet because there are just two of us. I feel like I always have to have music on. ha But it's cute. I recently used my interior design skills and we put pictures us on the wall to make it feel more homey.  :)

All right. I'm almost out of time. Family I love you! Amigos, you too. :) Hope you all have a great week!

-Hermana Vawdrey

PS: Sarah Pinnock: CONGRATULATIONS on your mission call to Bahía Blanca! You are going to LOVE it! I am really excited for you. Hopefully we'll be able to meet before you leave :)

We were given a bagful of fresh grapes. We're loving it!

Our study area

"Living" room

Kitchen

His way is perfect!

¡Hola Familia mía y amigos!

It sounds like you all had a fun week. I'm glad to hear that all is well back at home. Here in Argentina I'm doing good too. :) This past week our mission president challenged us to have a "semana celestial," or a celestial week to strive to be the best we can be, the most obedient, diligent, faithful possible. It was a really neat experience. Yet again, we saw so many miracles. For sure Satan was trying his best to discourage us with the heat and the "never-ending siesta," but as we endured to the end each and everyday we were able to see the Lord's hand in our lives. Sometimes the miracles didn't come until the very end of the day, but Hermana Rodriguez and I had some really neat experiences. Have I ever told you that I love being a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Well...I do.

The beautiful little girl we baptized last week

One of the cute members we've been focusing on lately had a neat experience. She was living with her mom and her son, but her mom is really against the church and would try to do anything possible to create distractions when she tried to study the scriptures or pray. Finally she decided that she wanted to move and find her own place to live so that she could have a place where the Holy Ghost could dwell. We taught her earlier in the week about prayer and how you should always pray to counsel with the Lord before you do anything. (Alma 37:37) A few days later she sent us a text message saying that she prayed to the Lord for His help, and through a big miracle was able to find a new place to move to! It makes me smile so big to see her growing so much spiritually. I can see in her countenance now just how much more she confides in the Lord. It's a beautiful thing.

This cute little abuelito (grandpa) got baptized this weekend en el Barrio Villa Serra de los Élderes Adkin y Whiteman. He's 76 years old, and a 77 year old member baptized him. :) Poor grandpa can hardly walk, and he can't bend his knees very well so it made it hard for him to get baptized. I think they had to try 7 times to get it right! At first he didn't go completely under the water because he didn't bend his knees. Then he finally did, but the cute old member baptizing him mixed up the words of the prayer. I was sitting next to an investigator at the time. She was super worried about this poor old man that had to keep trying to get baptized. But the spirit helped me teach a profound lesson as I was explaining to her that baptism is a very sacred thing. It's a covenant that we make with our Father in Heaven. It is the door to enter into His presence. And His house is a house of order! You can't just go through the motions, get part of it right, and expect to go in. It has to all be perfect. He is perfect, and His way is perfect!

Elder Atkin, Member, Convert, Elder Whiteman

I was also humbled this week by the example of one of the members here in Barrio Pueyrredón. Presidente Detlefsen's mother-in-law has been really really sick and was hospitalized. A medication she was prescribed to take had some really bad side effects, and after time her stomach was all perforated and infection had spread through out her entire body. She's in her seventies. The poor thing! She was in a medically-induced coma for about a week so that the medics could control the infection and help her body heal. This past week she was making lots of progress so they took out the breathing tube and everything and now she's on bed rest. Her calling in the ward is to make the calendar for the missionaries so that they can eat with the members. They said the second day that she was out of her coma she was already worrying about the missionaries and how she hadn't been magnifying her calling for a week. That woman is a die hard example of someone who wants to serve the Lord. She is always focused serving others. Now don't worry, we've been fine. We just filled up the calendar ourselves while she was in the hospital, but it was so sweet to hear how quickly she remembered her responsablity to serve the missionaries. :)

All right, I'm out of time. But I hope you know that I love you all and hope this letter finds you well :)

-Hermana Vawdrey

Juli J! I got your dearelder! It made my day. Thank you! I can't wait to be your friend in the real world. Don't worry, I'm working hard, but I'll be home soon. Hope you're enjoying institute! Love you Hern.

Sergio: Recibí su carta también! ¡Gracias! Espero que disfrutara sus vacaciones y que todo esté bien. Mi buena amiga la Hermana Squire está ahora en Barrio Puerto. Cuídela para mi, bueno? Mande saludos a su hija y la famlia Greco!

ESTEFANIA HENRIK!! Felicidades por su llamamiento misional! Estas nocitias me pusieron re contenta :) Será una misionera de diez!!

I am converted!

I live in a land of miracles. So many incredible things happened this week! It was kind of a roller coaster of emotion, but we ended it on such a spiritual high! It was a week when the Lord truly blessed us for all of our efforts and the righteous desires of our hearts.

First of all, C got baptized! She`s nine years old and is such a sweet girl. Like the famous Primary song, she is like a sunbeam. She carries the light of Christ with her everywhere she goes, and I feel so grateful that I got to know her, and that I got to be one of the missionaries to help prepare her to get baptized. It was kind of a fight to get permission for her to get baptized (because she often lives with her Grandma in another pueblo), but thanks to the hand of the Lord we were able to help this sweet girl follow the example of Jesus Christ and get baptized. It was a beautiful baptismal service too...minus the fact that the hot water for the baptismal font didn't work. :S Thank goodness it's so hot outside because it wasn't a big deal. (I would send a picture, but we're at the ciber that erased my last memory card...so I'll send one next week. I sent a picture of her in last week's letter, however.)

We found an investigator this week that has an interesting story. A little while ago she was living in Barrio Hospital, and while she lived there she met Hermana Rodriguez. She recently moved here, and then we saw her in the street one day and she recognized Hermana Rodriguez! We recognized that as a big sign that the Lord is putting both of them again in the same place. When we first talked to her she didn't have a job, they didn`t have any light in their house, and she hadn't eaten for 5 days because she didn't have money. Heart wrenching. We taught her a little bit, read from the Book of Mormon, invited her to pray, and promised that if she would trust in the Lord that she would be delivered from all of her present afflictions. The next time we saw her she came out of the house crying at the sight of us. She said after we left the other day she prayed for help. She was able to find a job for both her and her daughter! "He heard my prayer, chicas!" she said. We're really excited for her.

Oh. And OH my gosh. Yesterday was a day of miracles. A went to church! And her boyfriend! (who has been less-active for years.) It was incredible. The members received them so well. There were 3 other less actives that came yesterday, and C received the Holy Ghost! We were on cloud nine.

I am converted to this gospel more and more every time I go to church. Every time I pray, hear a prophet's voice, witness a baptism, etc. This gospel is true and I am so grateful to be able to dedicate all of my time to proclaim it!

I love you all and hope you're well!
-Hermana Vawdrey

• Spring Hollow Young Women--Thank you for your package!! Thank you, thank you. I actually received it about two weeks ago and I kept forgetting to tell you. Thanks for thinking of me! Love you all!

• Grandma Rodgers--I also received your package. THANK YOU! Thank you so much for your love, prayers and support. I love you!

Coincidence? No!

Queridos amigos y familia,

I just want to start out and say, BRIAN! Elder Vawdrey! You are so cool! Thank you for your e-mail today. I truly view you as a spiritual giant, and I am proud to be able to call you my brother :)

Well here we are again. Another Monday! Crazy. We had such an incredible week. We witnessed so many miracles. We saw so many fruits of our labors, and I feel so humbled every day to be able to do so with Christ's name on my chest. Several missionaries en la Misión Bahía Blanca finish their missions today, and it's starting to freak me out because this is my last transfer. I'm next. It makes me feel sick. I'm not ready to be done! Thank goodness this last transfer is a long one. :) I'm realizing just how much the Lord has qualified me during my mission, and He still does! Like the famous scripture says, "The Lord chooses the weak ones...but whom he calls he qualifies."

Being a missionary is a challenge. I could wake up everyday and make a very long list of all the challenges I face every day, but instead I choose to make a list of all of the blessings I receive, how much patience the Lord gives me, and how many of his children I get to help invite to come unto Christ. And that list is always sooo long. ¡Es maravilloso!

This week was neat to see in those tough moments how the Lord blessed me with just the amount of energy, or just the amount of patience necesary to do whatever the task was that he wanted me to do. He always gives us the "necessary." Then it's up to endure and to trust in Him that he is there to help us.

I love the Atonement! It's real. It has changed me. It changes people every day. It empowers us, and it truly is the secret to every New Year's Resolution. I found a quote by Elder Henry B. Eyring the other day that 'If ever you feel the influence of the Spirit in your life, that is evidence that the Atonement is working in you.' :) And that's because the Spirit testifies of the truth, it moves us to do good things and to abandon the actions and things that keep us from becoming more like God. So! If we're doing good things, and the spirit is present, all we need to do is follow the promptings of the spirit to accept and to put the Atonement in practice and we can basically conquer the world!

The other day after lunch we had planned to go by an investigators' house because they weren't home for the appointment we had for them the previous day. Right when we got to the house she pulled up in her car! Coincidence? No. We started talking a little bit outside and she said that just barely while she was at work (she works at a carnicería--butcher shop) 3 muchachos came in and robbed all the money they had. She was pretty shaken up, the poor thing. But amidst all of that, she insisted that we come in and share our message. We explained to her the Restoration and the spirit was incredibly strong. She loved every minute! At the end we asked her if she was willing to follow the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized, and she was like YEAH! Of course! We were shocked. She is so prepared to hear the message. That day especially, with the robbery, she had to endure something difficult so that she could recognize better the things that God has given her. We feel like she has a lot of potential to progress, we're praying hard!

We had a lesson the other day with an ex-investigator. We stopped going by a few months ago because she left for vacation. Yet we felt prompted to see her one day, and sure enough she was home! We went into her house, and she said, "Chicas! I was hoping you would come by because I wanted to tell you something! Remember last time when you came to my house and we kneeled down and prayed? You prayed that my brother could stop drinking so that he wouldn't be so sick. And guess what? He stopped drinking! I went by to see him two weeks ago and he was drinking tea instead of alcohol. I couldn't believe it! So 5 days later I went back to see if he really had stopped drinking. And he still hadn't drank any alcohol, he was drinking tea! Then a few days later I went by again to see if he had fallen back into his old habit again, but no! God heard our prayer! He answered it! My brother has been an alcoholic for years! And now he's completely given it up!" She is a sweetheart. It made our day to see her experience the evidence that the Lord answers our prayers.

Yesterday we were contacting a bunch of references, and we were on our way to visit some recent converts. On the way we passed by the house of some ex-investigators. (We recently stopped going by because they weren't progressing.) But right as we were going to keep walking by, the boyfriend opened the door! Coincidence? No. They invited us in, and as we chit-chatted, Hermana Rodriguez and I panicked for a second over what the Lord needed us to teach them. The thought came into my mind to read Lehi's dream in 1 Nefi 8. We read part of it with them, applied it to them, and asked them where they think they are in the dream? The spirit was really strong and the girl started crying because she was feeling the spirit. Not only that, but they really, truly promised to come to church on Sunday. I couldn't believe it. We are so excited for them!

Okay. I'm out of time. Family, friends, I LOVE YOU! Be good. Live the gospel and enjoy the blessings.

-Hermana Vawdrey

A cute girl we've been teaching

La Zona Bahia Blanca

Obedience brings blessings, but exact blessings bring MIRACLES!

Hola otra vez!

This week has been a big week for many reasons. I passed my one month mark here at the MTC, and I now have only one month left! For that I am really excited, but also a little bit worried. The first month went by so fast, and it's scary to think how much more I need to learn in a month. However, I know this is the Lord's way! If he says we will be ready after 9 weeks of being at the MTC, then we will!

My companionship has made leaps and bounds this week. Our amount of CPI's (companionship inventories) has lowered--which I am extremely grateful for. We've learned the importance of being completely honest with what is going through our heads so that we can have more unity. I feel very blessed and humbled to be in a trio because of the opportunity it gives me to turn to the Lord for comfort and advice when we have our differences. This week Hermana Griffin was called as the Senior Companion, so it's been interesting to see a new way of leadership. Our teaching is also improving each day, and our investigators are still doing great. We have really bonded with our district this week also, which has been so great. They feel like my second family! 

Sister Britter's MTC District

Probably one of the hardest rules for me to keep here at the MTC is no dancing. Ah! It's such a big part of me, it's hard to just turn that "off!" After sitting in class for 8 hours straight, I get the wiggles and all these clogging rhythms get stuck in my head and I just need to get them out! I'll be completely honest with you, if ever I was alone in the bathroom I would clog :) However! We have been counselled many times lately that "obedience brings blessing, but exact blessings bring MIRACLES!" I felt like that was really directed at me, and so I set some new goals to allow exact obedience to bring miracles into my life. I mean, who doesn't want to see miracles in their life? I decided to commit to the Lord that I wouldn't clog again while I am here at the MTC. So far so good! It's been stinkin' hard, but I have felt the support of my Savior each and every time I am tempted to dance. I know it seems so simple, but I truly have seen miracles each day since I have given that up. I now have to run at least a mile or two every gym time to get my energy out, but I know the Lord ALWAYS provides a way for you to accomplish what He has commanded you to. (1 Nephi 3:7) One of my favorite scriptures this week is found in Romans 5: 3-6. The Lord has some interesting ways to teach us lessons, but I know He knows exactly what He is doing, and He will never let us down.

Elder Russell M. Nelson

So two weeks ago I was asked to say the closing prayer at the devotional on September 20th. Of course I said yes, but I was freakin' out because, what do you pray for with the entire MTC listening to you?! Well Tuesday came and then I started worrying that I wouldn't be able to say the prayer in English! I have pretty much stopped praying in English, so when I practiced earlier in the morning it was like this war in my head between English and Spanish words. haha I guess that's a good sign because I'm forgetting my English, but I still spent most of the day praying that I would be able to say the prayer without any accidental Spanish words. After dinner was incredible because the spirit here at the MTC was SOOO strong. You could literally feel the presence of a servant of God. It was the neatest feeling! Come to find out, the choir was going to sing "Consider the Lilies" (President Monson's favorite song,) so then I my companions had me getting nervous that I would be praying for the prophet! Well it turned out that Elder Russell M. Nelson came to speak to us! (I was super excited since I know his Grandkids: Lindsay & Russell). It was incredible. He talked about the importance of the Book of Mormon, and how it is THE tool we need to convert God's children to the church. He showed us the October issue of the Ensign and the incredible words said there. The entire magazine is dedicated to the importance of the Book of Mormon. I highly recommend that you read it, because it is so good! When the time came, I went up to say the prayer, and I DID IT! I did it in complete English! I was so happy. I was shaking really bad because of nervousness, but I did it! It was absolutely incredible to have the privilege of saying the last words after an apostle. I selfishly made eye contact with him when I turned around to walk back to my seat, hoping that I could shake his hand or something...haha but he didn't. At least I made eye contact though, right!

Well time is short when you're serving the Lord. I hope all is well! 

Love you! 

-Hermana Vawdrey

Ps. Ellie, CONGRATS on being married! I'm so happy for you.

Pss. Brother Nadauld-thanks for teaching me how to do a good handshake (back in like 2005-ish when you were our home teacher) because people compliment me on it all the time!

Psss. Chantelle Lyman, I see your brother here all the time :) Hope you're doing well!

Pssss. BYU 50th ward, thank you for the letters you sent me last week! It's so great to hear from you.