December 8,2010

Dear Beloved Wonderful Fantastic Family,
That is horrible that Eagle lost what happened? How did Braiden do this week? Tell him to forget Sefiert and that the girls will still be interested even if he does horrible, so he is not worried! I Love playing basketball and I am going to miss it in exactly 3 weeks from today I believe is when I leave! I am so excited to go to Paraguay, I really think that the Spanish is going very well! I have been so blessed with understanding the language! Although there is a hermana in my district that is struggling pretty badly I pray for her every night! But it is amazing how I went from absolutely no studying in high school to all I do is study all day! I spend every reasonable second I have studying the language and the doctrine. I have challenged myself to see how many scripture references I can memorize and I'm at about 35 right now but sometimes I forget some of them! What's happening for Christmas this year? Anything exciting? I'm not sure what happens here on Christmas but I really want Christmas music and they don't allow it here any music!
Okay so yesterday was the second trc (investigator role play teaching thing once a week) that we taught in Spanish and for the first time I felt the spirit while teaching! I was so worried that I would not be able to feel the spirit if I taught in Spanish because I was focusing on the worlds so much, but yesterday was so good! I shared like 5 scriptures throughout and I still can't believe how real the gift of tongues blesses all the missionaries, how can someone go from no history of the background an in 5 weeks be speaking a 35 min lesson, sharing scriptures and answering concerns, if you think about it it is amazing in that amount of time. Every night I pray the spirit loosens my tongue because with out it I could not do it!
Family I had the most amazing experience today! So yesterday me and Elder Kirth got a new companion who has been here for 14 weeks because of a medical delay so he can't leave the country (but he just got re-assigned to Boise) and is leaving this Thursday so I told him to look for you and send my love! Look for his name is Elder Davis. He had a doctor's apt. today and so we got to go to the outside world to a hospital for a doctors apt. for him. Elder Kirth and I were writing letters int he waiting area when a 55 year is women walked in who has obviously a hard life. As she walked by I felt prompted to say "have a good day" so id did and she stopped and looked at us like she had seen us before. We told her we were missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She said she had us over about 8 years ago...and then she paused and started to cry. By now we had gotten up and were by her.
She said she had listened to the missionaries after her husband had died. We talked to her for about 8 minutes about how she will see him again and that you can be happy attains through the Church of Christ. Her name was Alice Santiago. She was crying the whole time and said that she wanted to feel happy again. So I told her that some missionaries could stop by her house and teach her about the plan of happiness. I wrote down her information and shook her hand and she went to her appointment. When we got back tot he mtc I called the Provo mission president and gave him the information and he said thank you and that they would visit her! It is the most amazing feeling and I love her and I don't even know her! I love this work! I am sitting in the washing room with 560 missionary around me right now and trying not to cry ha! everything is well here and today is amazing!
I am not sure what my favorite scripture is this week but D& C 95:1 is still good and alma 36:# and probably Mosiah 2:41 is really good this week.
I love you and thanks for the letters !
Elder Shaw