2 girls 1 bike

Hi everyone! 

This email might be a little short as I dont really remember a lot that happened this week.. 

Last Monday we were given a reference for a medical reason, so we went by and found out that she was a less active, and her husband and kids arent members, and she wants her kids to be baptized. The thing is that she lives one block outside our area. But, since her mom attends our ward, she as well has always come to ours. So we talked with the elders from the other ward and they gave us permission to teach them. So we went by and Marco and Mateo accepted a baptisimal date! So we talked with our bishop and the bishop of the other ward so that they can be baptized in our ward. It was all great until it got a little complicated with the situation of where they live.. and my comp and I felt it would all be better to pass them off to the elders. So thats the story of how we found and lost investigators in the same week. 

And now, Aldana. The one we were helping get married so that she can get baptized. Well there ended up being a huge personal problem between her and her boyfriend. He wont committ to marrying her even though she wants to so bad. Its hard because I want her to get married to get baptized because I know how much it will bless her life, but I also love her so much that I dont want her marrying someone who isnt going to be a good husband.. UGH. We´re working on it. 

Other than that, not much has happened. My bike broke down life 3 times this week. On thursday we left the bike shop and about 20 minutes later the tire dicided to blow up. ALL the bike shops were closed so we went saturday and sunday on one bike. It was an adventure. 

I was assigned to talk yesterday and my topic was the sabbath day. I read something that I really liked. Normally when we think of the Sabbath, we thing of a list of things we can and cannot do. But instead of doing that, we should thing of the sabbath as a sign between us and God. When we´re thinking about doing something, instead of thinking about whether or not it is or isnt appropriate for the sabbath, we can think "what message do I want to send to God?" 

I love you all and hope you have a great week! I cant believe its already almost August!! 

Love,

Hermana Prestwich 

Sadly this is the only picture I took worth sending this week.. We matched for a practice we did :)

Bautizar... Zárate... BAUTIZÁRATE.

Hello friends and fam! 

It has been an awesome first week here in Zárate.I absolutely love my area and my companion and the ward. It´s incredibly different than Palermo, but I love it already. For one. bikes are probably the greatest things ever invented. I mean, my legs didnt really agree with that the first couple of days. but it sure helps us get home on time as we both are the WORST with cutting people off and leaving houses. Ha..

The week has been super super busy. With having to help plan zone meetings and open chapels and activities with the ward and other missionaries, we´ve been going non-stop... And I love it. I think the thing I hate the most while being a missionary is having nothing to do. (Im sure those at home wont believe that). But its the BEST when theres always something to do. 

Okay. So, our first day together we found a less active. His girlfriend isnt a member but wants to get baptize.. pero mal. So we set an appointment with them and went back the next day. The problem was that their doorbell doesnt work, they couldnt hear us clap our hands, and the door was locked. So my companion and I had the bright idea to try to jump the wall. Hah.. she sacrificed me and I did it after thinking if I had enough strength. Eventually I did it, in a skirt and opened the door. But anyway the moral of that story is that we found them and were able to talk with them. They had met with the missionaries before and were working on getting married so she could be baptized, but they couldnt because they didnt have some of the papers. But the miracle is that now they do! And so we´re going to help them get married. :))))) So she can get baptized!! :)))))

The thing is we´ve just been super busy. Hahah we´re helping the youth film a video, we had to travel to go to help the elders with an open chapel which took all day, we have the owner of our building breathing down the back of our necks for having bikes, we´re completely out of money because the mission doesnt have any, and we´re just running back and forth constantly.. and its awesome :) 

We´re also doing a competition in the ward called "Fishers of Men" where the members have a ton of ways to gain points. Like doing visits with us, giving us a reference, giving a book of mormon to someone, inviting us to eat and bringing a friend.. Its super awesome and we´re all super excited for it. (Im pretty sure Ive used the word "super" like a million times in this email).

Also.. my companion. She is the best. We have so much fun together. At least 5 times a day im in pain from laughing so hard from something. Like yesterday when she stopped out of no where to avoid hitting a man and I wasnt looking and just crashed into her. Por suerte, I only broke her seat (which we fixed with tape) But we were laughing so hard. 

Life is great. Im super happy. The mission is incredible. We havent had a ton of times for studies this week as we´ve had to leave early almost every day, but Ive been thinking a lot of how God sees us. Something thats really helped me and motivated me in the misison is seeing everyone as children of God. As we´re walking or biking and we see someone I think of them as His childres, and how He of course wants everyone to come to Him, and it makes me instantly have the desire to help them. And obviously, this applies to everyone, not just missionaries. I think if we look at others as our brothers and sisters, and God´s children, we´ll learn to really love them and care for them as that. 

I love you all, and hope you have a super great week! Hahahh

Love,

Hermana Prestwich 

I cant' promise these pictures will work... 

1. She´s the cutest. 

2. My comp :) .. and our child of a zone leader.

3. Zona Bautizárate

Goodbye Palermo, Hello Zarate!‏

Or in other words, goodbye to capital and buses and clean animals and hello to dirt roads and bikes and animals that are... not so clean. 

First off, I'm super super excited for this change! Yesterday at around 7 I got a call from President, and President only calls when they´re changing your position in the mission. So yesterday I was called to be a Sister Training Leader, and I'm in Zarate with Hermana Olivares! I did divisions with her in Palermo and I LOVE her so it´s going to be awesome. She finishes her mission this transfer so we have 6 weeks together! 

As much as I was ready to leave Palermo, it was really hard. Saying goodbye to so many who had changed my life was incredibly difficult. Way harder than leaving Escobar. I think because Im now able to fully communicate and be myself, so I developed many strong relationships. I'm not going to tell you the amount of times I cried this week because that would just be embarrassing. 

I found out I was for sure leaving the area on Thursday, when my comp got the call to train! I can't believe it. We finished her training today and she´s already training. I'm a grandma! 

I left Palermo on a good note with the baptism of Rosa, Sofias mom! She is a miracle, honestly. It was the most amazing thing to see her enter the water and enter into this covenant.  That family is so special to me. I know that their dad is going to accept one day and they´re going to be sealed as a family. 

I have so much more to say about this week, but at the same time, I don't have anything else to say. I'm super happy with this change, but going to miss Palermo un montón. Also like the majority of my friends in the mission went home today so that was super sad saying goodbye to all of them. 

I'm really thankful for the opportunity to serve. For the trials that God gives me in the mission, and all that He gave me in Palermo. Thanks to those I was able to grow and learn. I'm super thankful for everyone I have met here in the mission, and for everything they have taught me. 

Also... Shout out to my bro for getting his mission call to PERU!!!!!!!!! It's going to be amazing. (because peruvian food is the best) LOVE YOU. 

Love,

Hermana Prestwich

I don't have many pictures due to me forgetting my card, but here´s what I do have. 

1. Rosa´s baptism! 

2. Sofia made us pizza :) 

Mi ultima semana en Palermo....?‏

Hi friends and fam! This week went by incredibly fast. A lot happened in a
short time so I'm just going to bullet point it all for ya.

- Monday we went to visit Sofia and her mom, Rosa, who we dropped as a
progressing investigator the week before. But this time the bishop asked to
come with us. I'm sure I've mentioned it before but the bishop in the ward
has SO MUCH POWER when he speaks. You just want to hear more and more and
more. And so that's what happened. He talked. Rosa listened. Rosa has been
saying that she hasn't gotten an answer for about 2 weeks now. But the
bishop was forward and said "I think you´ve gotten an answer and you know
that this church is true" And she just goes "...yep" and by the end of this
hour long lesson the spirit was so strong that we invited her to be
baptized again and she accepted!! So Rosa will be baptized this coming
Sunday :) Pray for her!

-During that lesson with the bishop, he wanted to share a scripture in the
bible, so he looked at us and asked us to open to it. I kinda just started
at him like "... uh.." And he goes "you dont have the bible?" and he took
my continued stare as a no and goes "What. I've never heard of missionaries
without the bible. This must be a different church" I mean I would totally
carry it around if it didn't way a million pounds. So advice to all you
missionaries out there, if the bishop wants to accompany you, make sure you
have the bible.

-Friday we got to go to San Fernando for like the millionth time this week
thanks for have to get my comapnions DNI. But this time we got to go to
meet the new mission president. We had to be there at 7:15, which called
for a wake up call at 4:45, and being on the train at 5:30. I was sick the
night before so this resulted in a morning of pounding headaches and
throwing up every 30 minutes. It was super fun. But the new president and
his family are super awesome. It's super different without President Ayre,
but when he walked in I just felt good. I know that he was called of God to
be here with us at this time.

-Jose Antonio has been coming to church for 3 weeks now. If you don't
remember, he´s the one we had to stop visiting because of some feelings he
expressed. But he got up to share his testimony yesterday and said that he
had stopped coming to church for a while and didn't feel any different. That
he felt the same as he had before finding the church. But, had had many
feelings or desires to go to church or read, but never acted on them. He
said one day he was cleaning his room and found a paper with a scripture on
it. It was 2 Nephi 31:19-20.(look it up) And then right after recieved a
message saying something about hoping to see him at church the next day.
That message was one that we sent. I remember that week feeling so strongly
that we needed to send him a message inviting him to church. I had felt it
all week but something kept me from doing it until Saturday night. When he
shared that I just felt so strongly that God works in amazing ways. Putting
the idea in our heads to send even a message can bring someone back to
church.

A member of our bishopric shared something yesterday that I really liked.
He said "If we´re bad, He wants us to be *good*. If we´re good, He wants us
to be* better*. And if we´re better, he wants us to strive for* excellency*"
There´s always something we can work on. We´re never going to be perfect in
this life, but we can always keep trying.

Also, shout out to my dad who was called to be bishop yesterday! And to my
mom who helped him get there. Love you!

Have a great week!
Love,
Hermana Prestwich

Pictures

1. Buenos Aires

2. I chopped my hair off

3. mi hijita

4.  Representing the USA without trying to offend

5.  New Pres!

6.  Camanitoooo