We got special permission to email today since the Library was closed yesterday for the holidays. yay!
So here I am in Oxnard, CA- only about 15 minutes from Ventura. My new companion is Hermana Frost from Montecello, UT. She is very nice and we get along well. She even likes to jog so I have someone jogging next to me in the morning now! :) The strange part is that she's only been out a couple more months than me so her Spanish isn't that much different than mine. This makes things interesting, but we're learning together and I think we'll both improve our Spanish a lot this transfer since we have to be more independent in the language. I already love her and we've got some great goals for this area. it's so interesting how everyone does things so differently and everyone has a different view of missionary work, lessons, working with the wards, etc. I'm definitely getting some great marriage prep :)
This area is actually pretty different from Ventura. I work in a pretty established ward here and the leaders have much more experience than the little branch I worked in in Ventura. We don't have as many investigators, but we're working on finding more this week. We do have a few really great investigators though. About a week before I got here they contacted a 19 year old friend of a member named Ivy. She's amazing! They taught her everyday and when I got here they'd gone through the first three lessons and she had a baptism date. She LOVES the Book of Mormon and reads everyday! She has come to church once and loves everything that we teach her. I already love her so much. Her baptism is set for the 31 of July and she's really excited about it. The hard part is that her family is not very supportive. Her mom feels like a failure in raising her Catholic and her dad just doesn't even want to listen to it. He wouldn't let her go to FHE last night. We feel like her mom is coming around, but we just keep praying that her dads heart will soften. I'm pretty sure she will go forward despite what her family says, but they are really important to her and she wants them to feel comfortable with it, which we can understand. Sometimes I just don't understand how they could discourage their daughter from something that has changed her life and made her a better person in just the first couple of weeks. I think with time and prayer, they will see what a blessing it is for Ivy and them.
My health has improved this week and I feel much better! And we got extra medical miles to drive to Ventura on PDay for chirpractor appointments. The Lord is definitely looking out for me and strengthing me. He is with me everyday and I love the opportunity I have to truly depend on him and abandon my pride. Every trial is truly a blessing and an opportunity to grow and change into a more worthy servant of the Lord.
I love you all very much and I'm so grateful for the support you give me. I have a lot to be grateful for.
Have a great week!
love,
Hermana Hatch
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