Transfer to Ixtapaluca

Greetings from the far eastern end of the mission in the Ixtapaluca Zone. First, great news! I talked with Hermana Wong on the phone this week (she is still in my previous area with a great sister named Hermana Vazquez who left the CCM with me). Ingrid was baptized and apparently the baptism was absolutely beautiful and everything went so well! It won't be long before Aide, her mom, is baptized too. I just know it. I'm really sad I that couldn't be there for the baptism (I am so far away from everyone now) but I feel so blessed to know that I was involved every step of the way and was able to serve and teach that wonderful family for so long. I hope to be with them in the Temple one day.

Now, about my area. I will try to give as much information as I can, so here goes. Our area covers two little pueblos (towns) that are nestled in the mountains. The air is much, much fresher and cleaner and it makes me very happy. I am covering two Wards, one of which takes up the upper side of the "hill" in one pueblo and the other which takes up the bottom half of the "hill" as well as another pueblo. We walk A LOT. Also, to get from one pueblo to the other, we take a combi (taxi) for about 20 minutes. You have to time it well because it runs on a very strict schedule and only comes every two hours. To email, I come back down to Ixtapaluca where we have our district and zone meetings. We take a combi to get there as well. It is about a 25 minute drive in a combi down a very looonnngggg curvy road on the mountainside (I understand car-sickness now). 

Working here is very different than working in the city. There are not nearly as many people to contact but there are a ton of Church members who are some of the most wonderful people I have every met in my life. I almost cry every time I enter their homes or talk to them because they are so humble, sincere, loving, and willing to help. I have been receiving referrals left and right - more in just 5 days of work than I ever got during my five and a half months in my previous area. They tell us "hermanas, whenever you don't have any food to eat or need anything, please come right over. It is a blessing to have you in our home." Basically I don't have to worry about going hungry or doing laundry here because the members are climbing over each other to help us. This morning Hermana Yolanda knocked on our door and basically told us that she would be expecting us at her house for lunch today because she knows it's P Day and we don't have a place to eat. Eight of her nine children have served missions, so she understands. She and her family are some the most amazing people. She wanted me to send a hello and a hug to you today as I write to you. The hermanas who were here before left us lots of lists of potential investigators to look for. We will be doing that, working with the people who are less active in the Gospel, and contact the referencias we have received to find people to teach. 

My apartment is actually a little house and it is so pretty, but FREEZING. I haven't been this cold in a long time. We work and sleep in our coats. I can see my breath inside the house. President should be getting a space heater to us today but we have been sleeping under 6 or 7 blankets to keep warm. We study in our beds too because it is so cold. The bathroom has water that condenses on the ceiling but we have a shower with hot water that works when we turn on the boiler outside. I periodically have to turn off the water and wait a few moments for it to heat up again while showering though because it doesn't last that long...but I am grateful for it. My first morning there I enjoyed a bucket shower - splashed myself with water using a bowl and a bucket - because we didn't have gas. That was fun :) But we have lots of flowers, and cactus, and peach trees outside our house which I love. It's in a beautiful place. I don't have time for pics this week but I will try to get them to you next week. 

As for other little details, I ate rabbit leg in a bowl of salsa for lunch yesterday with the usual rice and tortillas - can't leave those out - and it was really tasty. I loved it actually. I am definitely not in the city any more. I am walking older cobblestone or dirt roads at times where people ride their horses or pull their donkeys along. I can see the horizon and wake up to the mountains every morning. President talked to me the other day and told me that I didn't live in Nevada in the country for nothing. He firmly believes that I was supposed to be the one to work and continue training Hermana Carrasco in this area. I am so grateful to be here right now. 

Being a missionary is just the best :) No matter what comes our way, we have the decision to make the best of things. Life is too short to be unhappy. Being happy is so much more fun and fulfilling. 

Love you all so much!

Love, Hermana Jones 

Parent note: The pictures below are courtesy of President and Hermana Stutznegger last week at changes. Hermana Jones got to help give vaccinations. This is quite humorous because this is a child who would cry and have anxiety when receiving vaccinations as a little one. We did not see this coming. However, she did have valuable experience giving vaccinations as she grew up...to cattle on her Grandpa and Grandma Jones' ranch. As we liken the scriptures to ourselves we see that "all these things shall give thee experience and be for thy good." 

Parent note: The pictures below are also courtesy of President and Sister Stutznegger, who brought much needed supplies to the missionaries in the Ixtapaluca Zone. The Stutzneggers reported that they found the missionaries happy, cold, and excited. We are grateful for the way that they lead, love, and care for their missionaries!

Prospero Año y Felicidad!

Hey everybody! Happy New Year and hello 2016! This is my first email of the year. And, I come home this year. Que loco! No puede ser, en serio. Ok, I am going to write the majority of stuff as I send pics so just a quick little update on me here. The time has come for me to leave the city and the Fovissste Ward! I have changes! This is going to be a very big change for the whole mission due to the boundary adjustments. Almost everyone has changes. By the way, all of the flu vaccinations finally came so I will be helping administer those during changes tomorrow haha :) Alright so guess what? Hermana Carrasco and I are being shipped out to the farthest corner of the new part of the mission in Ixtapaluca! We will potentially be in charge of two Wards where we know absolutely no one. Also, we are going out to the mountains! No more city for me! It is just going to be me, my trainee companion who has 2 months in the mission, and the mountains. Apparently it snows there too so that makes me very happy :) I am so excited....and nervous....and excited! My new areas are HUGE compared to my current area. Literally, we are in no man's land and the area is quite rural. Should be interesting. The sisters who are serving there right now will show us around for a day and then we are on our own. I must say though that I LOVE the people that I have served in my first area and will miss them!

We had a little bit of a scare this week. On Wednesday we had divisions. Hna Wong and I went with Hna Lambert (SO FUN) while Hna Carrasco went with Hna Sic. It came time to meet up again at the church around 8 but when we arrived we found my companion crying and Hna Sic just looking totally dazed. Turns out that they had been assaulted by three men and robbed. They were not physically harmed in any way but my companion's backpack was stolen as well as Hna Sic's phone. Poor things. They are doing just fine though. Later that night, I began to have a little episode. It became harder to breathe, my vision started going fuzzy/sparkly, my hands were purple and sweaty, and my whole body was trembling. The whole week leading up to that point I had felt weak and shaky and finally things just got really weird. Thankfully, the Elders were able to come right over and give me a blessing. Elder Miller wrapped my feet up in his sweater (terrible mistake haha now it's infected with my foot fungus) and I began to feel better. Also, I was able to get in Saturday for medical treatment and some blood tests; everything came back normal so I am not sure what's going on. We were thinking that I might have anemia or something of that nature, but nope. Nothing like that has happened since then but I don't feel 100%. Don't worry though, it might have just been stress:)

Well the next time you hear from me I will be out in my new area! Love you!

Love Hermana Jones

(Parent note:  Please keep Emily in your prayers that she can remain safe and maintain good health.)

Los tiangis! Long long long street markets where people just camp out and sell things under tarps and tents. You can find everything from pig entrails to pirated movies. Haha I mean everything. We have found skirts for a lady who wouldn't come to church because she didn't have anything to wear. The tiangis cover entire streets. We have made friends with a boy who sells fruit and a man who sells the most delicious aguacates (avacados) and makes fresh guac right there. We are faithful clients haha :)

Hermano Levi is THE BEST. He is a teacher at the CCM and is such a huge help. Gonna miss him.

English class (love my kiddos that I teach each week). L to R - Rodrigo, Giovani, Marlene, Cesar, Ivan, and Karla. Darlings!

Esperanza! The most beautiful pan (bread) store in the whole world. Basically a giant bakery of Mexican goodness.

Christmas Eve with the Castillo Family! We enjoyed whacking a Santa piñata and eating romeritos, bacalao, and pavo.

More from Christmas Eve.

Waiting anxiously (can you tell?) outside the Reyes Fuentes home on Christmas Day before talking to you and seeing you on Skype! We were a mess :) 

The Reyes Fuentes Family who we spent Christmas with. Such a wonderful family. Not all of them are shown here but I thanked them profusely on your behalf and mine. 

I took a picture with a real live Mariachi band! Three of them aren't pictured here but they were so excited to take a pic with me haha :) I LOVE their music. 

Hermana Norma. I love this sweet old woman. I have eaten with her every Wednesday since coming to this area. She is an angel and I will dearly miss her. She was baptized in the 1970s. She always has a big bouquet of flowers on her table every week, usually lilies and gerber daisies.

Painting the apartment. THAT was a lot of work.

Peace out to Fovissste 2, my first area, after 5 1/2 months!

What happened to 2015?!

Prospero Año y Felicidad a todos! What happened with 2015!? It just moved right along didn't it? One moment I was in Provo and the next in the capitol of Mexico! This New Year's will be special because it means almost a full year of missionary work for me. There are many goals I have that I will be working on. One scripture I love that I would like to share with you all as you are thinking about your own New Year's goals is Doctrina y Convenios 58: 27-28. My mission president loves this scripture. The power really is in each of us to do good things and be anxiously engaged in bringing that goodness to others.

I had a very interesting Sunday (December 27). Yesterday one of our investigators who we haven't been able to contact for over a month now since the first lesson with him (which was very spiritual) showed up at the church yesterday and came to all three hours! It was incredible! He really enjoyed it and wants us to visit him this week. His name is Mauricio. The assistants to the president (elders in our mission) found him in a moment when he was seeking for God again in his life. They passed him along as a reference to us. I am looking forward to working with him more.

I also met a returned missionary who served in my mission a few years ago who now has a nice thick beard and longer curly hair pulled back into a ponytail. He is doing a bike ride for Pennies4Miles -- a cancer research fund. He began his bikeride in Anchorage, Alaska, on June 1st, rode to New York, is here in Mexico now, and will be going all the way to the tip of Argentina. All he has is his bike and a backpack. It was very fun meeting him! In the words of one of the Elders, "He is a MAN" haha :)

After lunch on our way back to the church the five of us missionaries were walking behind a man in a fedorah hat, black leather jacket and tight maroon pants speaking in English with a funny accent. He was obviously in distress as he was talking on the phone saying over and over again, "Mike, Mike get me out of here! I missed my flight last night and I'm stranded here in Mexico City! Mike!!!" We kept walking but I think we all had the same impression to talk to him, so we sent the Elders back to ask him if they could help him. His name is Leonardo de Julianni. Turns out that he grew up in the church and is a musician/backup guitar player for bands like Phobia, Swedish House Mafia, and others I can't remember the names of. He is from Irvine, California, but his dad actually lives in our area and his mom was Italian. He speaks fluent Spanish and Italtian so that was fun for Hermana Wong. We invited him inside the church where Elder Miller offered a prayer and then Leo asked if he could offer one. He began sobbing as he prayed, apologizing for not being a better son but feeling so grateful for the opportunity to live and be forgiven. He also prayed for his 7 year old daughter who lives in Utah with her mom and step-dad and is preparing to be baptized. It was a very sincere prayer. He kept telling us how much he loves missionaries and how this was a sign for him that he needs to go back to church. I truly hope he does. It was a very exciting Sunday to say the least :)

I love you all so much and hope you enjoy your last week of 2015. It's been a good one. Thank you to everyone who wrote me the letters! Best Christmas present ever. I have loved reading them :) Dear familia, it was so wonderful to see all of you again as we Skyped on Christmas Day. I had a ton of fun talking with you and hearing your voices. Love you guys. Time is flying.

Hermana Jones

Christmas Miracle!

Merry Christmas all the way from good ol D.F. MEXICOOOOOOOO!!!! Hello everybody! I hope you are all enjoying plenty of hot chocolate and snow and everything Christmas in northeastern Nevada. Christmas here in Mexico is pretty fun and very different than anything I have ever experienced. I mean my goodness. Every night since Dia de La Virgen there have been fiestas and posadas in every street. In our apartment complex there is a group of people who gather together every night RIGHT below our window and hold their posada while we are planning. This is a nativity of sorts but it is all focused on La Virgen María. They start out by singing a song as they all light each other's candles. Then they gather around the alter and nativity set they have made and chant prayers. They pass around a white rose and each person says something they love about her and then they chant again. Afterwards the adults string up a piñata and the kids take turns whacking it to more chanting. There is plenty of coca cola and ponche (a cider type of drink with fruit that doesn't exist in the U.S. and it is really tasty) to be had. The festivities continue for a few hours. One night there was a party until 4 am. Fortunately Hermana Carrasco and I slept just fine but poor Hermana Wong couldn't sleep, thanks to both the party and me apparently teaching lessons/praying en español in my sleep haha. It has been interesting to experience this new culture during December. There are so many alters and nativity scenes set up everywhere. People go all out. I will try to send a few pictures and maybe a video if possible. We had our combined Fovissste and Oriental Wards party on Saturday and I had the great honor and privilege of hitting and breaking a piñata blindfolded! Never in my life before my mission did I ever think I would be in Mexico hitting a piñata.

This has been one rollercoaster of a week. We successfully scheduled a baptismal date with Ingrid for January 9th! (I most likely will not be here because President Stutznegger told me that I will likely change areas. If I do get moved I hope I can get permission to come back for her baptism.) My companions and I are very happy and grateful for that. It's a Christmas miracle! :) On the other hand, we have had a lot of difficulties this week, just stressful situations and a few problems with the ward due to miscommunication. Finally on Sunday afternoon I just broke down and cried. Everything finally just built up and had to come out, and with it being my first Christmas away from home I just let it out haha. It was kind of pathetic actually but we sat down on a sidewalk curb and my companions let me cry for awhile. We have been through a lot this week and it brought us all really close together. I am so grateful for my companions and the people I am meeting here in the mission. I have met a few of my best friends here. I am also learning so much too. In our district meeting tonight one of my zone leaders said something I really liked. In English, basically what he said was that the easy things pass but the difficult hard things are what matter the most to us. Ingrid for example. We have been working with this family for 3 months now and I have been blessed to witness the change that has occurred in their home. Now, Ingrid is getting baptized and Aide is totally on board with her daughter's decision. This baptism will mean so much to me because it is something I have worked on for a long time. It is the hard things that in the end are the most worth it. 

I am so grateful for each one of you and the impact you have had in my life. There is one quote I would like to share with you. I am sorry I don't have it written down in English but it is from a talk by President Monson called The Best Christmas Ever from a few years ago. He says, "Si queremos tener la mejor Navidad de nuestra vida, debemos prestar atención al sonido de los pies calzados con sandalias; debemos tratar de alcanzar la mano del Carpintero. Con cada paso que demos en sus huellas, abandonaremos una duda y ganaremos una verdad." It basically says that if we want to have the best Christmas of our lives, we should give attention to the sound of sandaled feet – we should reach for the hand of the Carpenter. With every step we take in His footsteps, we abandon a doubt and gain a truth. I know that this is true. Our Savior Jesus Christ was born in the humblest of circumstances and suffered more than anyone ever has in the history of the world. He lived and died over 2000 years ago so that we might live too. I am so grateful for the sacred opportunity to work shoulder to shoulder with Him this Christmas season. I wish all of you a very Merry Christmas, the best one you have ever had in your lives. Remember that true happiness comes from bringing happiness to others, as President McKay once said. I love you and, more importantly, the Savior loves you. Merry Christmas :)

Love Hermana Jones

A few of the Missionaries from my zone. We have been going a lot of contacting and tour giving of the church throughout this month and have had a lot of success.

This was us at the Temple Visitor's Center with Erick and his family. Ingrid and her younger sister, Kamilla, is with us as well.

Ward Christmas party. It isn't Christmas in Mexico without piñatas. There were 5 at this party :)

The altar that was outside our apartment window. Now there is a huge nativity in its place. 

Me eating a torta de tamale -- basically a tamale sandwich -- and Hermana Carrasco eating an elote. Yes, that is the real Nacho Libre corn with mayo and cheese on a stick and it is SO GOOD.

Us with out "Mesa de Navidad" and our gingerbread house haha that is about all the decorating we can do in our apartment.

Also, me holding my Christmas Cactus with a little silver star on it :) The cactus was a gift from a few Ward members.

We love Hermana Stutznegger!

More Christmas pics.

I love the missionaries here. So many cool people.

The group of us missionaries who won an activity at zone conference. Champs :)

This was at the tiangis (large street markets). One of the Church members was packing up all of her stuff that she was selling so they loaded me up and I carried a lot of it back to her house. Apparently I am "strong" haha.

Some of the graffiti here. It is EVERYWHERE.

Playing futbol.

Area by my apartment where I often run early in the morning.

This is the perfect time of year to give the gift of service and see the blessings and miracles that come from it.

Hello family and friends! I don’t have much time to write today because we had our mission Christmas party today and we have a short bit of time to write before going to teach (we are going to meet with Erick and his family...I told you about them last week!). So, sorry about that but just know that I am doing well and having a swell time here in Mexico! What a fun, memorable day. We first had a devotional and then a talent show. After that we enjoyed participating in various events including limbo, hula hoop, arm wrestling, and stick pull. We finished off with some free time. Let me just say that I am blessed to be in this mission with wonderful missionaries, and with the Stutzneggers!

This week we had a neat experience. My companions and I walked in the dark and cold and rain from 5:00 to 8:00 in the evening because every single one of our appointments and backups fell through. So, we hoisted our bags up and walked, and knocked, and talked. I decided right then in my mind that I love walking and knocking doors. It’s fun! I decided that I would fear no man and talk to everyone we could. I also decided in that moment that I would do this instead of giving up because I love our Savior, Jesus Christ and that I would find someone new to teach for Him that evening before going back to the apartment. My hair was a wet mess and we were all shivering, but we talked to a lot of people, got rejected a ton, and had ourselves a grand old time! I am not joking when I say that. I was happy to be in that situation for Him. After awhile, I had an impression to knock on a specific door and so we did. After a few moments a woman opened the door and said “que milagro” which is a saying here that means, wow I am so happy to see you! She invited us in and explained to us that she had been meeting with two other Hermana missionaries about a year ago and had loved the lessons. She even went to Church a few times but eventually work got in the way and the sisters changed areas and she lost contact with the Church. She hadn’t seen another missionary since then and had felt the absence of God in her life. She was so happy to see us because a little before we had knocked on her door she had been really sad and dealing with some family issues. She cannot wait to begin taking the lessons again. This was a miracle for my companions and me. The Lord had blessed us after hours of walking and being rejected. Many of you may be feeling this way in your lives right now, but this is the perfect time of year to give the gift of service and see the blessings and miracles that come from it.

I had a great time helping out with zone conferences last week; I also got to be in a little group that sang “The First Noel” in Spanish. A highlight of the week was watching the three sessions of the Tijuana Mexico Temple dedication. President Uchtdorf, Elder Oaks, and Elder Wilson (from the Seventy) were there. It was so beautiful and I loved their words. Hermana Wong knew many of the people who participated because it is very near her home so that was fun! I am sorry I don’t have more time to write more but I love you so much. And Dad, thank you for your email to me last week. I have read it several times since then. Also, the new stake in our mission is the Ixtapaluca Stake and it takes in a large chunk of land. We are all very excited over here.

Also, my package and all of the letters came! Thank you so much. I look forward to reading them all on Christmas. Gosh you people are so good! I have been enjoying chugging hot chocolate the past few days and my companions LOVED the gingerbread house, especially darling little Hermana Carrasco. She has never done anything like that before and she was squealing with joy the whole time. I love you. Say hi, and Merry Christmas, to everyone for me!

Love Hermana Jones

The pictures are courtesy of Hermana Stutznegger :)

Hermana Wong and Hermana Carrasco.

Don't forget the reason for the season!

I love Christmas carols.

What would Christmas be without the feats of strength? :)

...and volleyball

Merry Christmas!

I love my mission.

One year left!

Yep, that`s right. One year from TODAY I will be on an airplane home. So crazy! Time is flying and most of the time I feel like I am flying by the seat of my pants but so far this whole thing called a full time mission has been an amazing experience that is changing my life. 

Well I have had a fun/interesting week this week. On Tuesday I watched poor Hermana Wong as she was wheeled out of the little prep room in the hospital for her medical procedure and was later there when she began waking up from the anesthesia. All I can say is it was fun to listen to her talk while still being loopy and seeing the looks on the nurses' faces. Hehe :) Then, as we were all leaving the hospital and heading back to President's house I began to feel pretty lousy. He and Sister Stutznegger sent me straight to bed and I laid there for three hours, not able to fall asleep because of the aches, pains, and chills I had all over my body. Later Hermana Stutznegger came in to check on me and we realized that I had a 101.3 degree temp so they pumped me with a bunch of ibuprofen and aspirin. I slept for 12 HOURS that night (first time in six months). My comps went back to work on Wednesday and I just chilled with President and his wife. Best time ever :) They are SO WONDERFUL! I even got to help plan for zone conferences this week.

 

Ok funny side story here - I will be helping give flu vaccinations to all of the missionaries because vaccinating calves on grandpa’s ranch totally qualifies me for this kind of thing hahahahahaha I am so excited and hope all you ranch folk back home are proud of me! Also I am putting a musical number together the morning of so that should be fun - this and helping with the shots means I will get to see Los Reyes tomorrow! I stayed with the Stutzneggers until Friday morning to get my temp back to normal. Feeling just fine now so don't worry :) Still waiting to get sick from the food which hasn't happened yet. Many opportunities lie ahead.

Ok BIG NEWS about our mission. Starting in January our mission will be significantly growing in size and there are new areas for the hermanas to work! I am so excited! We will be gaining a huge chunk of the northern part of the Mexico City Chalco Mission (southeast of us). I don't remember all of the details exactly but I am sure you can read more about it from Hermana Stutznegger's blog. I'll try to get more deets for next week. Anywho, so happy about this. Apparently these new areas are much more like little Mexican pueblas instead of the city so I really hope that I will have the opportunity to serve there at some point. I have been in the same area, the same 15 streets, for almost a third of my mission now. Haha basically it is time for a change :) President is aware of that so hopefully soon! Maybe after I finish training. By the way, my companions are great. Being in a trio is definitely a different dynamic, and training is draining (haha that rhymes) but I am learning and growing a lot.

 

Well needless to say I didn't get a whole lot of work done this week but there is one experience I had that I would like to share. There is a part-member family we have been working with for a long time now. Erick, the husband and dad, is a less active in the Gospel. His wife Aide and her daughter Ingrid, who is 11, are not members of the Church. Erick and Aide also have a little daughter named Camilla who is 3. For the longest time it was so hard for us to teach them, especially Aide, but over time they have really changed and opened up to us. This past Saturday we went with them to the Visitors Center by the Temple (after lots of stressing and trying to arrange plans we found a member from another Ward who took us in his van). It was a wonderful experience and we really focused on talking about eternal families and covenants. I had the opportunity to bear my testimony to them about eternal families. As I thought about my own family at home, and how this wonderful family right here had the potential to be eternal like mine, I felt words that were not my own come to me as I testified. It was a beautiful experience. They accepted our invitation to come to church the next day. That night as I prayed before going to bed I had the distinct impression to specifically fast for, and pray that, Aide and Ingrid would feel and recognize the Spirit in Church, desire to be baptized, and specifically tell me that they wanted to be baptized. Well, the next day they came to Sacrament Meeting and we had the most wonderful meeting where the members shared their testimonies of the Gospel - literally perfect for them. After the last person spoke, Ingrid, who was sitting behind me, leaned forward to me and whispered "Hermana, a lo mejor, yo quiero bautizarse" which means "sister, perhaps, I want to be baptized". In that moment, my heart was thumping so hard and so fast and all I could do was beam from ear to ear, pat her on the face and say "muy bien Ingrid". Then, after the meeting ended, Erick and Aide began asking when they could meet with the Bishop so that Erick could baptize Ingrid, and Aide could also be baptized. Literally that is one of the happiest moments of my life. Lately I have struggling because I have walked the same streets for weeks trying to help people and nothing has seemed to be happening. This was a direct answer to a specific prayer to Heavenly Father after following a prompting. I know that He is aware of me, and the people I am teaching. All of the walking and stressing and pleading is not in vain. Sometimes things happen right away and others take years, but I know that as we keep trying and doing our part the Lord blesses us. 

I love you all and hope you enjoy your second week of December! (I will be staying in on Friday and Saturday for security reasons - it's Virgin Day down here in Mexico.) 

Love Hermana Jones