All Back 110%

Hello Family!

 

Progress report on injuries: completely gone! Well, slightly discolored and tender but I am back 110%!

Stories about lessons and memorable experiences: Well, we had to recommit our lady who was going to be baptized to read the Book of Mormon and to pray because she doesn't have a testimony yet:( but We are back on track! We had a slightly paranoid lady tell me that I look like I would be a nun in another life (she has some pretty neat conspiracies... and thinks the neighbors have a vendetta against her and pay men to through stink bombs at her house)

 

At one point she said : "there! they did it again! can you smell that?!?!' (we couldn't smell anything...). Someone thought Hna. Gawrych was my mom. Our WML almost got my name right this week! He called me Hna. Gardy. The funny thing is is that the Elder Boren in our ward transferred and we have another Elder Boren that transferred in and the WML still can't remember his name. haha.

This Sunday I actually understood what was going in in Relief Society! (well, I usually understand other Sundays but this one more than others). Our lesson was on prayer and how it is a blessing and commandment. The Gospel Principles class (we had lots of people this week!) was about the Signs of the Second Coming. People on the street talk to us about those sometimes and get way into it and worked up and all I can really say to them is that if you are righteous, you don't really need to worry! Also, I suppose I can say that the signs about the Restoration and BoM have come to pass!

Testimony was amazing this week. We have a less active who is very old and can't come to church sometimes because she just physically can't but her testimony is so strong. She tries to come as often as she can and I was sitting next to her during the meeting and she decided to bear her testimony and we all had to help her get up there. Her testimony was amazing and the Spirit was so strong in that meeting. She is so sweet and firm in her faith.

They decorated the plaza with lights! Some people decorate their houses but not many. They have pasteles for Christmas, and lots of treats and dulces. There is one called Tembleke which is like a coconut pudding and it is my favorite! I have the recipe and I am going to make it. I also sent a package with some of the treats inside for everyone to try.

I received the package from Aunt Jenny and cousins and the letter from Family Beck! I am so happy to hear that Natalie is doing well and I cannot wait to read her emails home!

Good luck everyone with finals and with Christmas decorations! Keep your eyes out on the mail. I cannot believe that it is Christmas already because I feel I left home last week! I love and miss everyone but you all feel so close to me anyways.

Hannah can take my converse! Be careful that you don't hurt your ankle dancing in them! They can be tough to dance in sometimes. When is the Nutcracker for you?!?! Pinky Luck!

I loved the pictures from dad! did Jonny and Hannah run too??

I love you all take care!!

 

Love Hermana Hardy

On The Mend...

Hello everyone!

My injuries are healing so fast that is really is quite the miracle. I am so grateful for that and for everyone's prayers because Í know that Heavenly Father is looking out for me. I have a lot of new skin! that part is healed up even though it still looks a bit funny. I was hoping that I would have a wicked big bruise but it does not look as hard core as I wished haha:) My leg is still tender and I cannot run or stomp on cockroaches with it (I accidently tried--ouch!) and the rest of me is okay!

 

Jonny told me to tell a funny story and lots of funny things happen but I think my favorite one this week was during a really good lesson with a woman and her son (this 8 year old who is awesome and straight up said that he wanted to be baptized before we invited him. Then he ran around his apartment saying "baptize me baptize me baptize me" and we told him that we have to teach him more and he said, "what are you going to teach me next" He also loves the BoM and reads it a lot.).

But I digress... So I have a habit of smiling and nodding while everyone else speaks and this kid totally called me out on it. He said, "she nods A LOT' and then during the lesson he would start nodding furiously at me to make fun of me. Then later he started COUNTING all the times I nodded. So he was counting on his fingers and held out five fingers and said, "she's nodded 5 times!" (and I did not realized that he was talking about me) so I nodded my head at him again because I didn't know what he was talking about and then he said "six!!!!' and yeah. My companion was dying and had to explain that part to me after. heheheh. I will work on that.

Thanksgiving was fun!! We ended up spending 4 hours at a new inv. house. She is the one that invited us over after she heard about the accident. So for the first little bit they had me play hymns on their piano and they showed us pictures of everything (including missionaries they met with 13 yes 13 years ago).

 

The woman also took photos of me and Hna. Gawrych at the piano and posted them on FB with a "had the mormon missionaries over for Thanksgiving!' where a member saw them and was so excited haha. (The inv's name is María Castillo if you want to look her up and try to find the pictures mom)

Then we ate and it was rice (no beans this time) and it was basically the same normal dish they make with chicken and some potatoes that they cook in a pot with spices and whatnot and sauce except they used turkey haha. Then we had pumpkin spice flavored flan! strange! Then they insisted on taking all these pictures with us haha, so many pictures. THEN the woman's sister came over and we had an AMAZING lesson with her and her sister. The husband left and worked on other stuff but it was really neat to teach them.

Then a member (the woman who loves me so) picked us up for Thanksgiving at her house where there were 18 people total and rice with grandules, turkey, bread, more rice, and really tasty postre. Then we had what they call a "Paranda" where everyone has a musical instrument and sings together.

 

 

They gave me this strange instrument which is a hollowed out gourd (long) with lines cut into it and you scrape a giant fork thing against it. It is kinda like a washboard sounding thing but with a gourd and fork. horrible sounding thing but with the other instruments it sounds cool. It is surprisingly hard to play. The members think I am slightly rythmically challenged now but they laughed and helped me out. Hna. Gawrych has pictures but she forgot her cord. We were invited to another paranda this week so I will take more pictures then!!

 

We are still preparing people to be baptized and no one came to church yesterday, it was very sad, but we are trying to stay positive!

So transfers are tomorrow!! AND I am staying with Hna. Gawrych here in Cabo Rojo!! Wahoo! We are so happy to have Christmas together here!!

Happy Birthday to Alexis and Geoff! Your cards will be late, I am sorry. But I will send them this week! Have so much fun!

Everyone make sure that they go to christmas.mormon.org and watch the video, it is so special and neat! Make sure you share it with EVERYONE!!!

Love Hermana Hardy

Mercies, Miracles & Gratitude

Hello Family!
 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAMA!!! I love you so much! I hope you have a wonderful time and that your marathon goes well!

I am feeling much much better today. I am exhausted and a little bit bruised but to be honest I am not nearly as injured as I would have thought I would be for being hit by a car (which means that I have been blessed very, very much). We have been given permission to use the car if we really need to. For the most part we have had members drive us to appointments. We have had almost all member presents this weekend!

I have to admit something.... several weeks ago I DID say to my companion that I would rather be hit by a car than to be bitten by a dog... Sooooo I had it coming.

I would like to say that even after being hit by a car I would still rather deal with that than be bitten by a dog.

Thursday we kinda chilled out at the apartment for the day. We took our time doing weekly planning, wrote letters, cards to members for Thanksgiving, we cleaned the apartment (I kinda helped a little bit but not much) because Hna. Boucher came to let me call Mama and to do an apartment inspection.

Friday we visited people (member present and then with a less active and then English class). It was exhausting. Saturday we rested a bit more but still had 2 member presents (Hna Broyles went with Hna. Gawrych to the one in the early morning because I was not walking or moving very well that morning).

Sunday, of course I went to church! I received all sorts of attention by people who have never spoken to me before (usually they all talk to Hna. Gawrych) and I had no idea what was going on but I am pretty good at saying I got hit by a car in spanish now. We had a total of 4 lessons today and I am tired. The members are very sweet and they all thought that my leg is broken (some STILL think that it is broken because someone spread that rumor around). NADA ROTO! I'm really good at saying that too.

So for the accident part!
 

 

We were on the side of the road contacting a man in front of a chain link fence, he even said we could return and teach his family and Hermana Gawrych was writing our number and I was looking at the man thinking that I didn't do very bad at contacting him (very prideful of me so yeah).

 

 

When completely out of nowhere I am hit and I just remember looking at the ground and seeing grass as I rotate around towards my right shoulder and being hit again (I realized it was the side view mirror later) and then I was facing towards the road and I saw the mirror roll away into the grass and then I was down against the fence looking at my leg.

 

 

My left shoe flew off my foot. I never actually saw the car as far as I can remember, just grass. I knew what had happened though right away and I screamed a bit and a man that had been sitting on the porch with our contact ran out right away and he was holding my hand and a woman who saw it all happen was standing in front of me and they were helping my companion call 911 and it hurt. Then a huge group of teenage boys came running around and after a while they left as more people came.
 

 

(Please see pictures for reference and explanation for how I was hit)

All I knew is that there were lots of people around me shouting in Spanish and I only understood a little bit. However I did see a white car drive past and stop and I saw a woman get out and I thought it was a member but I wasn't sure as she got closer and then her face was in front of mine and it was Hna. Franqui!!

 

I cannot describe how relieved I was to see her and she was just saying that I was going to be okay and she would take care of everything. She speaks a lot of English too so that was very nice. There are no members in the area we were in (30 minutes away from town driving) and I know that Heavenly Father planned for her to be driving by at that exact time to take care of me.

 

[On the phone, Emily also told me one of the EMTs and one of the police were members of the Church as well. She was well ministered to and the Elders were knocking themselves out to give her blessings :) ]

Her daughter Alanis was there too (9 years old) and her husband just got back from the states and he helped my companion a lot too. So I rode in an ambulance for the first time, went to the ER. There were 13 people there for me not including my companion and me. Apparently more members had shown up where the accident was and I didn't see them there but they showed up at the hospital (Metropolitan hospital of Cabo Rojo or something for Jonny haha:)) and the elders came and brought me a blanket and East High sweatshirt (they have a lot of nerve haha) and socks because it was freezing and I was shaking and everything.
 

In the end, nothing is broken, I am just scraped up and bruised but the bruising isn't too bad at all and my leg is the worst of it and even that is healing up very quickly. Everyone in Puerto Rico knows and even random people in the U.S. that the members know and called (hahaha). The nurse showed up right before they wrapped my leg up after they took x-rays. I never hit my head! My neck is sore from whiplash so my headache is sometimes worse than my leg when we are out visiting for a long time but I am still smiling!

We don't really know anything about who it was and all the members are really upset about that but I am fine, the person must be freaked out of their mind! Hopefully they are okay.

Miracles! Lots and lots of them! I had so many people who just so happened to be driving by after it all happened and so many people were there at the hospital with me. Hno. Franqui just kept on saying to me ""Look! There are so many people here for you, you two are never alone" That was a wonderful comfort to me.

 

We have had strangers call us to ask us how we are doing and one woman invited us to Thanksgiving!! Awesome, right? We have had the members help us with just about everything. My favorite part was speaking to Mama on the phone and tell her that I am okay. The missionary work is moving forward despite and because of what has happened:)

So for Thanksgiving we have two appointments- one at 12:00 and the other at 5:00 (we were invited to more but we had to decline). There are lots of people willing to drive us to those appointments.

Well, I do not know that more to say! I know that Heavenly Father has protected me and that He has a purpose in everything. I am excited to see what else will happen as a result! The past few days have been ridiculous and crazy but I have never felt so loved. The people here are so kind (even if they are dramatic) and they have the biggest hearts. I am hoping to accomplish even more the next few weeks with their help.

I love you all SOOOO MUCH! Happy Thanksgiving! Remember to be grateful everyday because that is more important than being grateful once a year:)

Love Hermana Hardy