Birthday Celebrations

SO MANY EMAILS. OH MY GOODNESS. I had soooo many emails this morning! So if I don't reply it's simply cause I didn't have enough time. but thank you soooo much for all your birthday lovin!!!!! 

This passed week has been good! Christmas was very low key and honestly wasn't that hard for me! My compi had a way harder time than I did. But we got through it! I think my birthday was harder for me. But it was still fun! It was a working day and we don't have any investigators right now cause its soo hard to meet with people during this time of the year cause everyone is working or out of town. So once January hits we are going on the hunt. But anyways, we had lunch at mamita C-----'s house! She made me a secco de pollo. SO GOOD. Shout out to Josh Mundy for recommending that plate. Then we went and visited some less active members. At one of the houses was a member who had been excommunicated. And ever since I got here to playas I've been working with him to try and little by little influence him and his family to come back to church. And for him to work on cleaning up his life so hopefully he can be re-baptized one day. We visited them last Saturday and invited them to come to church with us on Sunday. They agreed that they would go for an hour then go to work after. So about 5 minutes after the meeting started, I see their WHOLE FAMILY walk into the chapel. I've NEVER seen their older son come to church.... NEVER. And everytime we go over there he tries his hardest to ignore me... which I'm not really sure how that's possible considering ya can't really miss me. But lately he's been opening up to me and listening and he prayed with us yesterday! It was great! Anywho, so they came to church all of them! And I about flippin cried when they walked in. My face lit up! So when we visited them on Saturday I asked the dad to think about some goals he wants to make for the new year and on my birthday we were gonnna come over and talk about them!  So on my birthday we went over there and he wasn't there... and at first I was like ok lets get going. But then I felt like I needed to wait. So we waited and about 30 mins later he got home! I was so excited! So we all sat down together and I asked him about his goals. And he told me he had a lot, but that he was going to share one with me. And that goal was to come to church 10-20 times this year, because this past year he had only gone 3-4. He told me he wanted to start coming back and eventually become an active member again. He continued to tell me that he even talked to the branch president on Sunday and told him, "to lock your other 99 sheep up, because I am a lost sheep and I need your help". He told me that he wants to do this but it is going to be very very hard for him. And that he needs our help. I told him I wanted to make a little mini goal for him, to read for 5 minutes everyday in his scriptures. He said he would try and asked if every Saturday evening we could come over and read together with him and his family. And I obvi was like uh YES!  haha... Then things started to get super tender. He started to cry, and he looked at me and he said "Sister, I want you to know how much I love you and appreciate you. And I want you to know that I don't know your dad... but I know that he loves you and appreciates you so much too. And I hope you never forget about this family." Then I started balling of course. And it honestly was one of the most tender and beautiful moments I think I've ever experienced in the mission. I just wanted to hug him. He got up and so did I and we exchanged a very firm handshake. Ha. I don't have words to describe the spirit and the love I felt and still feel from him and his family. I know that this year, he will reactivate and I will do everything in my power to help him. 

So after that we had been invited to mamita A----- house to celebrate my birthday. I bought a cake and we headed over there. Well we all sat around and chatted a little bit... They cut the cake, we ate the cake and left. They didn't even sing to me :(   It made me kinda sad. But mamita C----- had plans to have another little thing for me at her house with her family. So after we left there we went to mamita c-----'s! And her husband bought me a huge chocolate cake. They put a big tinker bell candle in it and all sang happy birthday to me! It was so fun! It was mamita, her hubby, her 4 kids, two grandchildren, her sister, and her mom. and obvi my compi! We all ate cake and laughed and had fun together before we had to come home. It was so great! I was so happy and so grateful I just fell into mamita C-----'s arms and started crying. We both cried together and told each other we loved each other. Her and her family really made my birthday so special for me. I am so blessed!

Thank you all again for all your love this season! I hope everyone has a wonderful new year! be safe! Love y'all!

Kisses

Hermana Younce