Semana Dos

Hola!!
It is so awesome to hear from all of you so often! I love getting news from home! Getting letters here is always the highlight of the day!

This past week has flown by! It seriously has been 2 weeks already! I'm already 1/52 of the way through my mission! Can you believe that?! Everything here is really good. This week, Elder Martino and I started teaching an investagator named Gloria. She is Colombian but lives here in the states. She is an OBGYN who can no longer work due to cancer. She had a severe surgery done on her neck and is unable to move around much. The Gospel is very new to her. Understanding the concept of a Savior such as Jesus Christ brings her so much Joy. She has a hard time with the concept of an afterlife though. Lucky for us we get to address her doubts (in spanish) everyday for the next seven weeks. It is a huge blessing to see the gospel enrich and make a difference in people's lives. I read a scripture this week that really hit home. It is in Alma. Ammon is preaching. In Alma 26: 12-16, it talks alot about how I feel about the gospel.
 12 Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.
 13 Behold, how many thousands of our brethren has he loosed from the pains of hell; and they are brought to sing redeeming love, and this because of the power of his word which is in us, therefore have we not great reason to rejoice?
 14 Yea, we have reason to praise him forever, for he is the Most High God, and has loosed our brethren from the chains of hell.
 15 Yea, they were encircled about with everlasting darkness and destruction; but behold, he has brought them into his everlasting light, yea, into everlasting salvation; and they are encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love; yea, and we have been instruments in his hands of doing this great and marvelous work.
 16 Therefore, let us glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long-suffering towards the children of men? Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel.
Some new things here! New missionaries for starters! They are hillarious to watch with their dazed faces and blank stares when you speak to them in Spanish. I love it. I was there only two weeks ago! My spanish is improving SOOO much! After studying for litterally 12 hours a day, I guess it should! I love the Spanish language, and I've gotten to the point that I can speak for an entire day and communicate all my wants and needs! It is super cool to learn and stretch. The greatest day ever though, will be when I can tell a joke in Spanish and people will both get it AND think it is funny!! I am working for that day!
Some things that I've resolved to do this week have been:
Only pray in Spanish and speak only spanish from 6:30 till 4 everyday.
Another is to never eat enchiladas here again. They do a number on your body AND your soul!
Find atleast one new "favorite" scripture everyday.
Wear matching socks (it's amazing how when they are all black but the patterns still stick out).
Forget myself and lose myself in the work.

Some things that would be super awesome, is pictures!! Please send (real live, through snail mail) pictures of you and your families!! I realized when I left home that the only pictures I have are of my "older sister" Kat Ferrin in Latvia on her mission! So please! I'd love to see your faces! Also please pray for me, my companion and all the missionaries in the field. I'm gonna give it to you straight. Being a missionary is the best thing I have ever done, but at 6:30 in the morning when that alarm goes off and you already have a migrane from dreaming in spanish, it can be kinda hard! So please pray for all of us! I pray for you!  Thank you so much to all those who write me! And if you don't...START!!! I'd love to hear from you.

Some pearls of wisdom. We are happiest when we serve others. Hard work is incredibly satisfying. Sometimes your work doesn't pay off how you want it to, but it always pays off!!

Some really funny things have happened here lately. I've come to love rice even more here!! They still have it at every meal so I can still eat it for breakfast! Today I got to see Chelsea Christensen who works here and didn't even think about giving her a hug :) Only a few weeks and I'm already getting awkward around girls. I'm starting to understand why Return Missionaries are the way they are. All in all, I'm getting stretched and it is way awesome!

I love you all! The Church is true, the book is Blue, See you in two,
Elder Anderson