Surprise Transfer to a New Area

Boy, do I have lots to report this week...

So, I was told that I wasn't going to be changing areas. Well, I went to the cambios meeting and Hermana Agle really needed to use the bathroom after she found out who her new companion would be (Hermana Jones!!!). So, I went with her to the bathroom and when we came back, everyone was looking at me...turns out they had announced that I was going to Prolima with Hermana Larsen!

Before: A garage.

So, either they forgot to put my name on the list of people changing areas or Pres. Archibald had changed his mind between the email and the meeting. It was super crazy that day becuase I had to go quickly pack my stuff and then I went to my new area... Prolima in the Lima Region.

Hermana Larsen and I are openening up a new area for Hermanas! Prolima is a huge area that has been proselytized on and off the past few years with only Elders. Most recently, it has been part of Elder Johnson's area, but his area is so large that he didn't get to come up to our new area very often. Anyway, we are basically starting from scratch....

We got to our room the first night with our luggage and blow-up mattresses...and nothing else! All we had was a room (garage, actually. Our room is a garage!) with a tiny little bathroom. It was a tough night roughing it! The next day we got our beds and most of the stuff we needed. During this next week, we should get the rest of the things we need to make it a room good for missionaries. Today, we even got a thermal for our shower...yay no more icy showers!!!

Sleeping in the garage on an
inflatable mattress.

This week has been super tough because we are getting to know our area, which is definitely different from all the other areas for Hermanas. We are definitely in a poorer area of Lima now. Our house is in the safest part of Prolima, so we feel pretty safe there. We are just trying to figure our way around, learn where the safer areas are, and identify the unsafe areas so we can have members come with us to those places.

One challenge for this area is that there are hundreds of inactive members. Part of the reason is that the chapel is 15 minutes away by bus, 10 minutes for a taxi, and getting either to go up there is a challenge. The ward is really small, but if everyone came there wouldn't be enough room in the chapel. The members are really great, and they are super excited to have sister missionaries in the ward for the first time ever. I think they will be really great to work with.

My new companion: Hermana Larsen
preparing her inflatable mattress.

Hermana Larsen is really awesome. She is super chill and definitely has helped me get through this first week. She is from Ogden and has been out on her mission for 5 months (the same as Hermana Agle). The only challenge is that we both know only a little Spanish, so teaching is going to be very interesting for us.

Also, now I have a pensionista for all 3 meals. Her name is Hermana Maria. She used to work in the office for one of the missions a long time ago when she went on a couple's mission with her husband who has since passed away. She is really nice. Her food is good, but not as good as Hermana Juanita. At least now I will have 3 meals a day, everyday. It's definitely an adjustment to worry about eating dinner before 9 PM every night!

Slow transformation into a missionary apartment fit for a Hermana.

This week has been hard trying to adjust to the new area and find members. On Saturday, we were walking around Acobamba looking for members, talking to people, and knocking doors. We saw a group of children that were staring at us, so we decided to go say hi. They thought we were pretty awesome. I showed them pics of my family, which they thought was pretty cool. One of the girls even had the name Ashley just like my sister! Anyway, we gave them pamphlets to give to their families, found out when their parents are usually home, then we tried to leave. We started knocking on more doors, and the kids started to follow us around and talk to us some more. Then I had an inspired thought...I asked them if they knew anyone who was pregnant. They did, and took us over to near where they live. We contacted a young man who's girlfriend had recently become pregnant, and we met his mom and some more of his family. We are super excited to try to work with them, and hopefully they will accept our message! It was definitely meant to be that we had the opportunity to talk to those kids at that time!

Hermana Larsen and myself at cambios meeting.