Week 3: A Trip to Viña del Mar!

Hola Familia!!

I WENT TO VINA DEL MAR THIS WEEK!!! Hermana Segovia has a different Visa becuase shes from the philippines and to get all her paperwork done we had to go to Vina!! I was so excited to go to my mission!! We had to wake up at like 530 and we left at 6. Our driver/ helper with paperwork spoke absolutely no english so the whole day was interesting haha.  The drive was about 2 hours and we got to Vina right as the sun was rising!! It was so beautiful. the only pictures I took I had to sneak in on the car ride cuz I wasn´t sure if I was allowed to take pictures. But we saw the ocean on the drive and it made me so excited to leave the MTC haha. We spent pretty much all morning just waiting in passport and immigration offices. but after we walked around the city a little bit and got empanadas. It was so fun and so awesome to see a little glimpse of my mission!! When we got back we had to go to class and teach lessons again and we were sooooo tired but all the other missionaries were so jealous especially the ones who are going to vina too. 

The soccer tournament last week was so fun!! By far my favorite day at the CCM. There's about 50 missionaries here and everyone was playing. We organized into 6 different teams and took turns playing 5 minute games. I love being at a small MTC you get really close with everyone here. 

Last Saturday was so sad because we had to say goodbye to the group that has already been here for 3 weeks. One of the sisters, hermana cox, plays the harmonica and at breakfast she started playing God Be With You Til We Meet Again, on the harmonica. It was hilarious and I was crying from laughing and also cuz I was so sad to see them go! Hermana Segovia and I were so sad all day. We both got really close to Hermana Miller and it was hard to see her go. So its just been us 25 missionaries here for the past 5 days. Its been so weird. The new group is coming tomorrow so I'm really excited for that! It will be fun to be the old ones here at the CCM. 

Spanish is hard but definitely coming along!! We got new teachers this week who ONLY speak in Spanish all day. We also got new investigators so it'll be nice to have a fresh start in teaching now that we actually sort of know what we're doing. 

We didn't get to go to the temple today because its closed the next two weeks. So sad. But we had an amazing class this morning with an American couple who are on a mission at the Santiago temple. They taught me so much and I felt the Spirit so strong. I can't even count the amount of times I feel the spirit here its just so amazing every day! there are hard parts of every day but every night I go to bed so happy and so grateful that I get to be here. I love everyone here and I love that I get to be a missionary. I am seriously so happy here and I know its because I feel the spirit all the time and get to teach about our Savior! The atonement is so real and I know Jesus Christ loves us so much!. 

I love you guys! Good job Matt on volleyball and Parker in band and Zach in sales! I hope school is going well for everyone! Also pay attention in seminary! It's the best! I love you guys so much. Keep me updated. 

Hermana Snyder

Week 2: So Much Better!

Hola!

THIS WEEK WAS SO MUCH BETTER!! Honestly, the first week was so so hard and I was really struggling, but this week was so much better. I really got into the swing of things and I know that I can do anything with the help of the Lord!

So at first, it was hard with my companion hermana Segovia. We are just so so incredibly different. She is from the philippines and we just come from totally different backgrounds. It was hard to relate to her at first, but I need to testify that God puts companionships together for a reason. I didn't know I could feel so much love for someone I just met two weeks ago, but I feel so much love for Hermana Segovia. She is really really struggling with Spanish and last week we were teaching a  lesson and she just broke down into tears because she was so frustrated. all she could say was I know this church is true and that Christ is our savior. I started crying too first of all because I hated to see her so sad but mostly because I felt the spirit so strong from her sweet little testimony. After the lesson she cried to me in the bathroom and said I just love God so much and I want to express myself. I want to be able to tell these people the truth but Spanish won't let me do that! I told her that her little testimony brought the spirit which testifies more than the most eloquent lesson. I told her the Lord placed her here for a reason because he knows she can do it. It was a really tender moment and Hermana Segovia may only be 5 feet tall but she has a heart the size of a mountain! I love her so much and she is such a good example to me. She is so tiny, but when we hug she tells me she fits right in my heart.

FUTBOL: So we basically play soccer everyday for exercise and it's like my favorite time of day. I have bruises all over my shins and the other day an elder kicked the ball so hard and it hit me right in the face. haha! I was the only sister playing and all the elders were like are you ok!? All I said was, is there dirt on my face!? and then I kept playing haha. I just had a tiny headache the rest of the day, but I'm fine now. I'm super excited cuz today we're having a whole CCM soccer tournament!

Today we got to go to the temple and it was in English! hallelujah! We also walked around Santiago today and I bought a super cool bible scripture case and some Chilean chocolate.  It was cool to finally see the city. Also I found cereal in Chile which was exciting because I've been very cereal deprived here. 

So, none of the teachers speak english here haha. If they do its very broken and a lot of the time its hard for us to understand what they want us to do. But I can tell my Spanish is improving leaps and bounds! Pray for Hermana Segovia, she is really struggling in Spanish! but she is so positive all the time and seriously CRACKS ME UP! SHE IS HILARIOUS. the other day we were talking about the plates that Nephi got from Laban and one of the sisters was saying she didn't know a lot about all the different ancient plates and hermana Segovia said, the only plates I know about are the ones in the cafeteria. haha! She loves to eat and tells me all the time it's her best talent. 

My favorite part of a typical day is at night when the whole CCM comes home and we all hang out in the lobby. I always play the piano and all the missionaries sing hymns. The spirit is so strong and I just love everyone here so much! These people are amazing and the church is so true! I love you guys and miss you so much. 

Hermana Snyder

Week 1: I Survived My First Week at the CCM!

First Week in the CCM!!

I survived my first week!! When I arrived in Dallas I was so happy to see like 25 other missionaries waiting for the same flight! There were six other sisters and I think 20 elders! I sat next to Hermana Smith on the plane and we bonded immediately! When we got off the plane they drove us to the CCM in Santiago where we got our name tags! It was so awesome to finally have that name tag on! that day we just kind of walked around like zombies because we were so tired as we unpacked and got a little tour of the CCM. That night we got our companion and my companion is Hermana Segovia! She is from the Philippines and she is absolutely the cutest. She is so funny and cracks me up every single day. I started making a list of funny things she says and does haha! She is also so in tune with the Spirit and has such as strong love for God and Jesus Christ and for everyone. 

Every day we have Spanish classes, we teach investigators (who are just our teachers) and exercise time! I love exercise time. we usually play soccer with the other district who has exercise at the same time as us. The days are so so long we are in class from 8 in the morning until 9 at night. In my district sometimes we'll just get up and start doing jumping jacks or running around the room so we don't fall asleep. I love my district! At first, everyone was a little awkward but since spending 12 hours a day together the past 6 days we have definitely bonded. Spanish is coming along. Its so so so so hard to teach lessons in Spanish because there is so much I want to say but I physically can't do it. I have been studying a lot and sitting next to the Latina hermanas at meals to help with Spanish. I seriously love all the people here. They are so inspiring and kind and I know God has called a lot of amazing missionaries to do his work. There have been lots of hard times where I feel lonely and far away from home and from God, but then I remember that I am here for a reason and I am surrounded by people going through the same thing. The other sisters here have been the biggest blessing in my life. I've known them for a week and I feel like we are best friends. I am in a room with two sisters who have already been here for 3 weeks hermana miller and hermana Durbin and I love them so much. I just see the hand of God through my companion and the other sisters here. Today I was having a hard time and one of the Latina hermanas comforted me in the most broken English but I could feel her love and her spirit was so so sweet. we can barely even communicate but love is the same no matter what language!! 

The food is not my favorite haha. Its very Chilean and mostly rice, weird meats and sauces, and pasta. It's not bad just not my favorite. For breakfast they have cereal but only strawberry and chocolate milk! They don't even have real milk! haha! it's so weird. I usually have yogurt and a banana in the morning. 

Some elders asked me to play the piano in church on Sunday and I practiced the songs they asked me to play but after sacrament started the MTC president decided to add another song for the rest hymn.  I didn't know what song it was cuz the title was in Spanish but I figured I would recognize it once I started playing. I was so wrong!! haha. It was a song only in the Spanish book with 4 flats haha. I struggled through the first verse and then just did the right hand for the other verses.  It was hilarious because none of the other American missionaries knew what song it was so the whole MTC was just struggling together. At first, I was a little embarrassed that I played so bad but after learning that all the other missionaries were just as confused as I was I think its pretty funny now. Also no one in my district can carry a tune, so singing 5 plus hymns with them everyday is pretty funny.

This week has honestly probably been one of the hardest weeks of my life (its muy muy muy hard and I need your prayers!) but I know that I am here to do the Lord's work and he is just humbling me right now! I know that there are good things in store and there is so much love in my heart right now! I love and miss you guys so much!