December 24, 2012

DEAREST MOTHER AND FATHER!!!!!!!!! Wow, thank you for both of your spiritual emails. I loved them both. Those miracles of mom´s were amazing and dad your message about the Savior was powerful. I am so blessed to have you two. Thanks for the examples and support that you are to me. Well, the day is finally here and I can hardly wait! I have been so excited to finally get to call you guys! I miss you all so much and it´s so crazy that we are not going to be together this year for Christmas. But yesterday at church we had a really great sacrament meeting and I felt the spirit so strong and I felt like my heart was about to burst, not even joking. It was incredible and all the people who gave talks had the spirit and then the bishop gave a talk and it was about him when he was little, they could never even afford a tree for Christmas but he remembers being with his family and that was all that mattered because he had Christmas in his heart. But one year they finally were able to go cut down a small tree and they thought it was the most beautiful thing in the world but it was just like an ugly weed. But he said Christmas night they all just sat around the tree and sang and were just so happy to be with the family. How amazing. It really is a humbling experience to be over here in Nicaragua. They have nothing but they all invited us over for dinner and for everything. It´s like they are serving us but they have nothing and they still want us to be happy. It´s amazing. We have been giving out some gifts and people are so happy. It´s priceless, the act of giving. I love it. So it reminds me of the grinch when they all have nothing for Christmas but they all are still singing and everything. Then the grinch realizes that gifts are not the true meaning of Christmas. It´s weird in Spanish because the word Navidad doesn´t have anything to do with Christ so I definitely like the word Christmas a lot better because in the name alone it shows us what we need to celebrate. And even though Christ wasn´t born this month it´s a very good tradition and helps us to remember our Savior.

Well here is the thing, tomorrow I will be calling sometime after lunch. So I was thinking between like 1 and 3. Hope that´s ok and that you are not busy. So are you going to Salt Lake this year? Hopefully you all have a wonderful Christmas! I will be missing being with you but what a blessing we have to be able to talk. I feel soooo blessed. I am just so excited. I don´t even feel like it´s real. Am I really going to call tomorrow!!?!?!?!?!??! ahhhh. But yeah. Just pick up the phone if you see a weird number. We had a zone activity today and it was cool hanging with Sister Creel and all of the Elders. We have a really fun zone this change and things are great. Changes were actually on the 19 but my comp and I are still together and neither of us got changed. So things are good and we get to spend Christmas together. Nicaragua has their Christmas today basically. They have huge dinners and family over and all that jazz and then tomorrow they just open presents in the morning and that is it. They will all be staying up until 1 in the morning tonight with fireworks and alcohol and all that stuff. hahaha. Yeah, I am glad we will be in the house before it gets crazy. So today we were invited to 4 different houses to eat dinner. And we cannot turn down invitations. I feel like Dave and Nat... having to go to a bunch of different houses to eat and all. Now I understand how exhausting that is! Sorry Dave and Nat! You two are so dang tough! haha. So tell everyone MERRY CHRISTMAS and that next year we will party even harder. hehehe. I miss you all soooo much and the 16 days of Christmas has been sooooooooooooooo great. I LOVED the owls with the m and m´s, I almost cried with excitement. And all the stories that you sent. With the oranges and the trees and all that great stuff. WOW. It has been so fun. Thanks so much. I know that a lot of time and hard work has gone into all of that. Dad, yes 90 degrees over here in the Managua heat. It´s absolutely crazy and today we were sweating a lot. I love you all soooo much. Mom, I am so proud of you on the piano. Such a trooper. My parents and family are the very BEST! Thanks for all and I will call you tomorrow!!!!! hahahah so good to say that! BYE LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! hasta manana love Court