This week was pretty exciting and also full of events! I am soooooooo good!!!! Don’t worry. It is like I didn’t even get sick! Hahahaha

On Monday we cleaned the house and did all the p-day stuff that we had to. Then we went to the family home evening, ate with a family and talked with all the Hermanas (Sister missionaries). A successful Monday!

Then on Tuesday we got up and studied and killed it in our estudios.  We were ready to convert the world.  Then we went to lunch and it was full of onions and rice and I wasn’t really hungry for lunch but we have to eat everything. So I ate it.  Then we went to work. I told my companion that I didn’t feel too good so we weren’t running around the place. We went to the meeting with the leader missional and divided our area with the elders so the borders are defined. I was there and every minute I felt a little more sick and a little more and a little more until Hermana Salguero looked at me in shock and asked if I was ok because I was very pale (surprise). The elders looked at me in shock too with horror on their faces. Then they gave me a blessing and we got up to go. 

We got out of the house and were walking down the street a little ways and I started to throw up. The family of the lider missional (ward mission leader) was there watching, and the elders were watching.  I straightened up and kept walking and we contacted some people and I was there testifying and I got panicky because I felt sick again. We finished quickly and we got back to the street and I puked everything out… right there in front of the people. And then we walked more and contacted some more investigators again and they seem pretty positive. 

We got to the house so I could take pepto bismol but we still had appointments so we called a sister to divide with us.  I went to mama Julie´s house and when I got there the Presidencia of the relief society was there. I sat on the couch and I felt sick until I had to run out of the house to throw up again with all of them watching me. I came back in and laid there and I got up again to go to the bathroom because I then had diahrea. Super bad. I was there for a really long time jaja, and mama Julie was scared because I hadn’t come out yet.  She yelled, “Hna ashton?”  Yea?  “Are you ok?”   “Kind of.”  She was scared that I had passed out in the bathroom. 

She called the doctor of the mission because the nurse wasn’t answering and I, at that point, didn’t have anything in my stomach or intestines. She bought suero (serum) so I could get hydrated but it all came up. 

The doctor sent us to the hospital and they stuck an IV in me. But this time I was prepared and it didn’t hurt as bad. The medicine that they give really hurts when it goes into you but in the end it makes everything a lotttttt better. Jaja. That night Hna Salguero was really bored in the hospitla with me and the next morning we got up and I felt so good. I was ready to leave but the doctor said that I had to stay 3 days. I thought that was a joke because the last time I was only there a night and they let me go home with some pills. But I was at the house for a week because the pills were too strong. But this time I felt soo much better and they weren’t going to let me go! But… 

we had visitors and we read a lot of the scriptures and they fed my companion and only gave me liquids and gross food without flavor. But  the zone leaders and district leaders came and the wife of the Bishop and President y Hna Vasquez (her mission president and his wife), and the Pres. de Estaca (Stake President), because he is the doctor. 

They said that I could go early. So we only had to stay one more night but when we woke up on Thursday, the nurse came in and was giving me more antiboitica and changing the iv when I felt my bed move and the tubes of the IV were swinging. I asked if we were having an earthquake and she stopped moving and sure enough we were on the sixth floor of the hospitla and having an eartthquake. I thought that it was sooo cool! haha but seriously, it was better in the bed of the hospitla because it moved more gracefully. This earthquake wasn’t as stong as others though. 

we got out of the hospital in time to go to the multizona (multi-zone meeting) where we saw Presidente and Hna Vasquez for the last time and will receive our new Pres. and wife this coming week. It was nice. We learned about agency.  Elder Bednar is great.

David, our investigator,  is sooooo awesome and is going to get baptized this 8 de julio. !!!!!!!! yeaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!

Last night we had a thunderstorm and it was the coooooooolest ever. In Utah we don’t know what thunder is. But I can tell you that here, it literally shakes the house. I was so scared and so excited at the same time!  When it was sooooooo loud and shook the ground, I could only think of what power angels have because in Alma 36 when Alma explains how the angel shook the earth with the voice of thunder, I understood. sooooooooo cooooooooool and really scary. I understand how it might invite someone to reflect on their life and make them repent. 

But today was really normal.  We got up and cleaned the house and the elders made brownies and now we are going to celebrate the birthday of another Elder.

I love you all and am siempre (always) praying for you!!!! Be gooood. ok?. Live the gospel.  The world will end one of these days and all we have to do is repent. So repent and get over any differences you have with people.   Just love each other. 

I love you all so much!

We didn’t have changes which is really a relief. I was praying really hard for that! We have a lot of people we are teaching here who are progressing so much and they are going to get baptized in this change (primero dios). 

We are still working with Christy and we found out why she has become more turned off to baptism. It is because her catholic aunt was there when we visited and told her not to go to church and told her that Chrsity had already been baptized and how it should only be done one time. She was then confused because the aunt was asking her why she was going to church where she doesn’t belong. When Christy finally opened up to us to tell us what was happening, we were finally able to address the issue. She is now more excited and we need to talk to her dad about the whole situation so that she gets baptized soon. 

David is such a good kid. He spends the weekend with Hna Julie our cook and he is the best kid ever. I hope to have a kid like him someday. Ja Ja.

We are also teaching Jose Luis another kid who is really funny. He is twelve but has so much personality. 

This week we ate a ton of fatty food. A ton. And we are fat, so our goals for this change are to not eat as much greasy food (wish us luck because everything is cooked in oil, and oil, and more oil). 

There isn’t time to write now but I hope that you are all reading your scriptures and being good.

Love, Joy

Subject: I made it a year.

One year has passed so fast and I can’t believe it at all.

I have learned a ton here and I don’t even know where to start. Haha. There have been many adventures. I do have to tell you that I still have not learned to pick up chickens. 

On Friday, we had dinner with the bishop and his wife and they have a ton of chickens at their house and when we got there, all of them were set loose and we had to chase after them, but they are terrifying creatures that squawk and peck and I was horrified. I ended up being the one throwing water under the truck to get them to run and be caught, because I CANNOT catch chickens. They are gross. That is the end of it. Haja, but my compañion and the bishop were making fun of me because of it. Haja it would actually be funny to see it all again. It was chaos.

We are teaching a youth named Cristy and she is daughter of a member but he wasn’t there to raise her because he went to the United States to work.  So she grew up with her catholic grandparents who didn’t teach her anything about God or religion. Now the dad is back and is taking her to church, but it has been hard to teach her because she doesn’t open up about how she feels and she doesn´t trust anyone. We have taught her everything and we have taught at a slow pace so that she can understand. We also tried teaching at a faster but simpler pace and she still doesn´t get it. It is very frustrating but we know that she will get baptised, we just need to help her understand her testimony. 

Also, you should give references to the missionaries and be there when they teach. Share your testimonies with people- they don’t bite. They are actually a lot more open to talk about religion than you think. They are searching for the truth. They are looking for blessings and the gospel blesses familias. 

This week I read in Helaman 5 and I read verse 6 where it talks about the names that we have and how Helaman gave his sons the names of Lehi and Nefi like their ancestors and how they did good works. So when we think of our names we should think of our people and do what would make them proud. I have on my tag Ashton and Jesucristo. These are two very important names and I need to live my life to serve them. A jesucristo y mi familia! 

I love you. 

And I also am so grateful that you guys are my family. I don´t know what I did in heaven to deserve you guys. It almost hurts to know that I am so spoiled to have people who love me so much. I love you all!

Hermana Ashton

This week started the rainy season! We were at the church for a baptism and we were going to leave at the end but that is when it started to downpour. We were under the porch but with the wind we were still getting wet and I actually felt cold. That was quite nice. So, when we couldn’t leave in those moments we gathered all the youth together to give a lesson to one of their friends whose name is David. He is living with Hna Julie who is like our mom here in Chaparastique and her family is really nice. 

Today we went to the salon with all the Hermanas and some of them cut their hair and some dyed it and my comp put on fake nails. Whoooo and I was there to watch becuase I have seen what they do at that salon and I am not a top fan... but it is all good. I started to use Tresemme shampoo and I think that is helping my hair because the poor thing is mistreated. 

We are preparing to receive the Apostle Renlund so we’ve been reading some talks. I really liked a talk by Elder Anderson about faith and one from October by Nelson about joy! that was one of my faves.  Haja!

I am glad to know that everyone is happy and working hard! I hope that everyone is reading their scriptures and enjoying their time on vacation. Remember to always be constant in your prayers! I love you allllllllllllll 

Ugh! Now the APs are being baiuncos and making us say good bye! loveeeeeeee youuuuuuuu!