Mexico Week 41 -- I'm a Mom Again

This past week was filled with experiences!! I don’t have much time but next week I’ll send the pictures. 

First things first!  Four LARGE packages showed up last Friday. Imagine me, Hermana Malacara, and four huge heavy packages on a bus, trying to get on and get off, and then the elders making fun of us for having so many packages. Also, I’m prideful so after they make fun of us, they offer to help!  Well, I tell them no and we are about dying as we make it home. However, our house looks absolutely AWESOME! 

I love that all of the Coke products say Haz Alguien Feliz – Make Someone Happy – right now.  Ahhhh, Coke is great. 

Also I say winner, winner chicken dinner to the Princess Goldfish! Those are sweet!!

I want to tell you guys about our investigator Anabel. She is a mom of five, but with three kids already grown up and two younger ones. We have about a month teaching her but she is precious, she is so special and so sincere. We teach her something and she wants to live it, she wants to change. She was involved pretty heavily with drugs but she has two weeks without using anything! Her prayers are my absolute favorite. She literally talks and just pleads with our Heavenly Father. She wants to understand and she wants to be obedient. She says that we are her angels. We taught her the law of chastity last week (because she is living with someone and not married) and she closes the pamphlet and says well, I think this is the end of our time together. I was a little nervous because I thought she was going to get really mad, but she says I just have a lot of sins. You guys are better off saving someone easier, someone with less mistakes. She felt so hopeless and we testified so firmly of the Atonement and how she can repent. It was an incredible experience for me and it was awesome. We are hoping to see her at church this week! 

Hermano Jose just keeps surprising us! He’ll be getting baptized this weekend!  He doesn’t talk much and he likes to keep things to himself, but little by little, he’s opening up more and sharing how he feels.  He knows the gospel is true, he feels ready to be baptized, and he hasn’t been smoking!  He told us that before he knew that God existed but never that he worried about us individually. He said that in these weeks with us, he feels it. He knows that our Heavenly Father worries about him and cares about him.  His baptism will be so pretty!! 

This week we found a new family by showing them the video, “El es la Dadiva” – He is the Gift. El hermano teared up afterward and told us how much the video made him reflect on his life. He tell us that he is an alcoholic and just wants to leave it completely. He looks at us with tears in his eyes and asks us, “Can you help me?”  Wow, they are so special and we’re excited to keep working with them! 

Now for the transfer news: Hermana Malacara was transferred.  Still in my zone, but no longer my companion. I am training a new missionary. Her name is Hermana Gonzalez and I already love her! She is from the Tampico mission (I can’t remember the actual name of where she lives). Yesterday I was in Cruz del Sur all day in meetings and then meeting our new companions and for this reason I couldn’t write yesterday! But we will be staying here in Tlaquepaque.  Woo! Hoo! She is so animated and excited and really focused.

Yesterday I was reflecting so much about my mission and really my whole life. I saw just how many changes I’ve made and how much I have grown. I have passed through hard things but the Lord has delivered me. My relationship with my Heavenly Father has improved so much. I understand the Atonement better. I am stronger. I understand my purpose as I missionary and I know exactly why I’m here. I just want to be a good example for my new companion because she is going to be an incredible missionary and it’s my job to help mold her. I think we are really going to see some miracles here. I love this gospel, and I love the Lord. Our president told us about 50 times yesterday that the Lord trusts us so much, it’s He that called us. He knows we’re not perfect, but he trusts us. I felt the Spirit so strongly, the strongest I’ve ever felt it in these past few weeks. Our president told the newbies that he looks for trainers that are obedient, that are christlike, and that work hard. I just feel super honored, and I am so excited! 

My mission is passing by a lot faster than I would like! Ahhhh, well I love you guys tons!! Be good! Show the Lord you love Him!

Mexico Week 13 -- Dos Gringas

To my favorite people in the entire world....SOOOO, I'M TRAINING AN AMERICAN!!!   Remember how I thought President was crazy for calling me to train in the first place? Well, turns out he's even crazier because we're just a couple of gringas walking the streets in Mexico!  

So all of the trainers went to the chapel Tuesday morning.  We had a meeting with President Camarillo before the new missionaries arrived.  He told us that one of us Americans would be training an American.  He talked a ton about avoiding the temptation to speak English, to take the harder route.  He said that for this exact reason, American elders don't train American elders because the new missionaries never learn Spanish.  The whole time he was talking I just felt that it was me.  I felt so many things and I already thought he was crazy enough asking me to train and then this too!  Sometimes I think Heavenly Father has more faith in me than I deserve.  Sometimes I think ... ¨What are you thinking, I know I work hard but I'm not that good!¨ ... and then the Spirit knocks some sense into me and I'm ready to go again! 

She has such a desire to learn Spanish, we really don't speak English except for her Spanglish sometimes.  I have a feeling that she's going to learn really fast and I'm going to do all I can to help her!  I'm a little nervous, but the Lord called me right?  Ah, every night I'm just praying to be a good example and teach her well and that we can be good missionaries and I think we can do it. 

Sooo, are you ready for more of my pride problems?  A couple of people this week have made comments about us both being new and Americans.  Honestly, it just makes me want to work so hard.  I have so much faith in the Lord and we're going to work our tails off and find every single person in this area that's ready for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.  I have been absolutely exhausted every night this week, but I'm happy ... even more importantly I'm flipping determined. 

So fun fact, they have KUMON here! Remember the tutoring place and their name is misspelled? Cracks me up every time. 

Are you guys ready for a great story? It kind of made my day.  So I called an Hermana in our ward to make sure we were good to go to eat at her house the next day.  She answers the phone, I tell her it's the missionaries and she says ¨What's your name?  I tell her that Hermana Valdez is in Samora now and everything, like hey, you know my voice.  Then she asks me again what my name is.  I told her Hermana Rawe and she says ¨Hermana Rawe?! You sounded like a Mexican I thought it was your new companion! Holy Hannah, you speak good!¨ After the baptism of María Dolores ... probably the highlight of my week. 

I hope you all had an incredible week. Be good! Be missionaries! 

Mexico Week 12 -- Training Time

Hello to all my favorite people!  So I got a phone call this week from President Camarillo and I’ll be training a new missionary! But, I’ll be training her here in Cruz del Sur 3!!  Hermana Valdez is headed for Samora, and I’m going to miss her tons ... For real, so so much!  When I got the call, I was a little nervous.  I mean, who decided I was ready for this?  But these past couple of days, I just feel filled with faith, I’m honestly really excited.  I know that the Lord calls us in our weaknesses, but that He will always qualify us for His work.  I know that He has a plan and if He’s going to call me to something, of course He’s going to help me out! 

I loved talking with y’all on Saturday! Ahh, it was so great to see your faces and be reminded of that Rawe family sarcasm!  LOVE IT!  Seeing you guys and our house made me realize how short and temporary my mission is.  I feel like I was just there and I’ve already been a missionary for four months. The mission really is so short, and I don’t want to waste any of my time!  I get to have y’all for forever, but I’m only here for a year and a half! Rach, you looked beautiful for Prom and I hope you had a blast!  I love y’all to pieces and am so grateful for all of your support. 

Also, last week Brad told me that Charly gets really fired up if somebody forgets to pray for me. They’ve said two prayers many a night because she doesn’t let it pass...HOW CUTE IS THAT??!! I almost died reading that, Charly Bear’s got my back! 

Let’s talk about how amazing the Reynaga family is and especially Paty. She’s going to get baptized soon!  We taught her tithing this week and I was a little nervous because money is really, really tight at their house. But, WOW, she started telling us about all of the blessings she had received and of course she was going to pay tithing.  We extended the commitment and she tells us, ¨Well wait, I’m not waiting till I get baptized, I really need to pay now!¨  Her 8 year old son, Roxton, accepted a baptismal date too.  I was talking, just looking at him and invited him.  He got the biggest smile on his face and said yes!  He said he wanted to follow Jesus Christ and that he knew he had a Heavenly Father who loved him.  We also had a Restoration lesson with them and watched parts of the Joseph Smith movie.  The Spirit was so strong and Hermana Valdez and I bore such powerful testimonies.  There’s not a doubt in my heart!  I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet.  Paty believes it too.  Honestly, their baptisms are going to be so special. I also gave them some skirts for Sunday and they looked so great and were all so excited! 

This week, we were chatting with Hermana Claudia, the nurse that takes care of Antonio’s wife, and she told us some pretty cool stuff.  She told us that Antonio is praying. He’s really praying.  She told us that little things are changing and it all began when we started visiting him.  Sometimes we don’t see all changes, we don’t know what people do when we’re not around.  Sometimes we plant seeds and we don’t even know it.  Antonio is 80 years old and has a whole lifetime not believing in God.  He’s not going to change in a heartbeat.  However, I have so much faith in Him and I know he’s starting to change! 

After we found out Hermana Valdez was heading out, we visited the Infante family. We had one of the most spiritual lessons I’ve ever had.  We all chose our favorite hymns, bore testimony of them, and then sang our favorite verse.  There were tears and the Spirit was super strong and their whole family was together.  Sometimes it really feels like home being in their house. 

Well I love being a missionary.  Lately I just feel filled with faith and I’m ready to work!  I know that the Savior is always right by my side. I know that this is His work and that I’m completely dependent on Him.  I know that He lives, this is His Gospel, and I am loving life! 

Love you all so much! 

My Companion

My compañera!! Her name is Hermana Valdez. She is the same age as me and she is from Mexico City! Thank the heavens that she speaks pretty good English. She's only supposed to speak to me in Spanish which is actually really helpful! 

She is so patient and helps me so much. She is literally the sweetest thing and she works so hard...ahhhh just a great trainer. Not to mention, she's pretty funny! Oh and for some reason she reminds me a ton of Rebecca Ortiz! She's been out here three months, which means she just finished her training. Her trainer is now training Hermana Daniel! How crazy!