Week 20: FELIZ NAVIDAD!

I think this is my favorite picture in the mission so far...Me and Javiera with the snow machine AND the random old guy who totally photobombed our picture!! haha!

FELIZ NAVIDAD!!

I love Christmas in Chile! All the houses are decorated and I've made Christmas cookies and sang lots of Christmas hymns! We spent the whole week inviting anyone and everyone to sacrament meeting for the special Christmas meeting. A bunch of menos activos went and a whole family that we invited went that has been inactive for about a year. A lot of members invited their friends and all my recent converts went too! It was a great Sunday!

Last night there was a Christmas concert in the stake and let me tell you, the stake of Villa Alemana is INSANELY talented!! It wasn't like the Christmas concerts in our stake. There was like a full on stage with lights, a snow machine (that was bubbles)  and live instruments! It was so so so good. A bunch of primary kids sang and then the youth choir sang. There was no adult choir just the youth. But seriously all the songs gave me chills. The youth here have literally some of the best voices I've ever heard! 

Also on tuesday, we had zone conference! It was way fun because we brought p-day clothes and played a bunch of games like relay races and human foosball. After we sang a bunch of hymns which was awesome because singing Christmas hymns is like my favorite way to feel the Christmas spirit. I got to see so many of my friends from the mission and it really gave me the encouragement I needed for this week.

As far as the work goes, it was pretty slow. We are struggling to find new people to teach. All of the appointments fell through and we spent everyday walking and contacting. But that's just how it goes on the mission! There are some good weeks and some slower weeks but I have faith we are going to find some awesome people!

I love you guys I can't wait to skype tomorrow!! I love you all with my whole heart!! talk to you tomorrow!

Hermana Snyder

Alejandro is moving and this was probably the last time I am ever going to see him and he gave me this box of chocolates. He's the best and he genuinely thanked me for teaching him the gospel. 

At our Christmas Zone Conference. So fun to see old friends.

Week 19: MARCELA SE BAUTIZÒ

Marcela's Baptism

Hola Familia!! Feliz Navidad!!

Wow so much happened this week!! We had cambios and I had to say goodbye to my little Brazilian trainer! I actually miss her a lot!! My new companion is very different. haha! Her name is Hermana Ash and she is a gringa!! We talk a little too much in English haha. She is from Kansas and plays lacrosse for BYU. She has a year in the mission and she is a super hard worker! Really diligent and SUPER strict. I'm still getting used to that cuz Hermana Wurdel was a little more relaxed. But she is super cute and I think we are going to have a great transfer together!! 

Ok, but Marcela was baptized!! We went to fill up the font and it was draining from a previous baptism so we had to fill it up again, but before we did that we had to clean it because there were literally dead spiders floating everywhere in the water. So I got in there and cleaned out the font with the water in it haha! The baptism was so cute and so many members came! Her daughters were really happy and so was she! 

Right after the baptism was the ward Christmas party and it was a concert on the soccer court outside! It was so fun and this ward is sooooo musically talented! I took videos so hopefully, they send. Two sisters asked me to play "Oh Holy Night" for them like right before they sang. I had about 5 minutes to practice a whole arrangement and then play it in front of the whole ward!!! It was so crazy but it turned out ok. I improvised and simplified the left hand a little bit. haha. After we ate a bunch of treats that the members made and it was so so fun. Marcela and her whole family were there and the ward has been so good with welcoming them!!

Also, the other day, a couple from the ward came to our house and weeded our whole yard while we were gone! Our yard is super ugly with all the weeds and we got home at 9:30 pm and they were just finishing up! I almost started crying, I was so grateful! The members here are literally so full of love and such good examples of Christlike service. They are truly an inspiration to me. 

I can't wait for Christmas and to skype with you guys, I miss you so much and hope you're all doing great!! The church is true and although its really hard, I love being out here in Chile on the mission! 

Love Hermana Snyder

Cleaning the spiders out of the font!! 

At the ward Christmas party right after the baptism!

Anggie and Camila...love these girls!

Camila smashed a cupcake in her mom's face and said "Happy Baptism!" haha!

Week 18: Graduation, Transfers and an Earthquake!!

Hola Familia!!! 

I FINISHED MY TRAINING!! 12 WEEKS!! For cambios, I'm staying in my sector and Hermana Wurdel is leaving. Its a little bittersweet. I'm gonna miss her but I'm excited to see who is my new companion!! Now I have to lead the sector, so let's see how that goes. 

So this week I got a call from Salt Lake inviting me and my companion and some other missionaries from our zone for an interview about the church and missionary work in Chile. We went with another pair of sisters and 4 other elders. We went to this fancy hotel in Viña where they served us a super fancy lunch and asked us questions about missionaries and what we think we can improve. The coolest part was that in the middle of the interview there was an earthquake and we were on the 13th floor of the building. It lasted for like 30 seconds and all the pictures on the walls were shaking and the glasses and it was actually super cool. 

This week we met a really interesting guy named Cristian. When we first met him, he said he didn't believe in God or anything that he can't see but he invited us to stop by the next day anyway. We taught him and gave him a book of Mormon and he said he would read the whole book to know if it was true! The next appointment he had read 5 chapters and told us he prayed every single day since the first visit. He told us he believes in God now and he seems to really be searching for the truth. He didn't come to church which was sad and later told us it was because he was just tired. Also, he smokes marijuana for "medical purposes." He's gonna take a lot of work, but I think he has some intention.

Marcela (Anggie andCamila's mom) accepted to be baptized!! Her boyfriend from Concepcion broke up with her and even though she is sad about that she told us she wants to be baptized for herself and not for him. We aren't sure when, but she is going to be baptized hopefully this week or next week!! 

We had a family home evening/ going away party for Hermana Wurdel with all of her converts! All of the kids in the picture are converts from this year and 5 of them are from Hermana Wurdel!! We decorated Christmas cookies and watched all the light the world videos it was so fun.

None of our investigators or recent converts came to church last Sunday and at first, I was so frustrated and discouraged but its fine because Anggie was confirmed that Sunday! There is always something good to look for in each day! 

The mission is so hard and so frustrating sometimes, but there are little miracles every single day! I love my ward and all the people I've met!

Things that are just things:

• The Christmas tree in the church here makes the tree in our chapel look like a twig. It is HUGE and so beautiful! 
• Chileans love love love Christmas (who doesn't) and its basically the same here as at home. The same decorations, same songs, everyone makes Christmas cookies.
• The shower in our house is either 23,439 degrees or frozen. there is no in between
• I can almost understand everything our ward mission leader says!!

I love you all so so so much and miss you guys a lot and a year and a half still seems like a really long time to me. It's so hard not to think about how much time I have left because I know that's not going to help me. But I'm going to keep going!!  I already have 4 months!

I'm so excited that Christmas is so close. I can't wait to Skype!!! 2 semanas!

Love,

Hermana Snyder

With Javiera...She joined the church a few months ago and she helps us so much. She is awesome!

At the fancy hotel in Viña del Mar

Going away party for Hermana Wurdel

Marcela made this empanada for me and Hermana Wurdel made the sign to celebrate my 4 months in the mission! 

Week 17: Camila and Anggie's Baptism

Anggie and Camila (middle) The sweetest girls ever!

Hola Familia!!

Anggie and Camila were baptized!! It was soooo sweet and they are both so cute. Earlier in the week Hermana Wurdel and I each gave them one of our dresses because they don't have any to wear, and we wanted them to have a new dress to wear to their baptism and when they go to church. They showed up in their dresses and they were so excited!

We had the baptism Saturday morning because that is the only time Anggie didn't have to work. We were stressed that no one would come because it is so hard to get members to wake up and come to a baptism Saturday morning. The day before we spent the whole day committing members to come and so many people showed up!! The night before we stayed up so late baking for the little party afterward. Hermana Wurdel made cake from Brazil and I made brownies from the box. haha! (But they were so good all the members were so impressed because Chileans never make brownies) A ton of the members also brought food. 

I played the piano and Hermana Wurdel and I sang "Peace in Christ" and Camila started crying after the song. It was so so sweet! Camila and Anggie are so special. They have so much faith and Camila actually said she is sad that church is only on Sunday because she wants to go more haha😁

Today we had a zone activity! We made tacos and then played the game where you tie balloons to your ankles and have to pop each other's balloons. What's more is the balloons were filled with flour and towards the end it was just a big balloon popping flour fight and now I'm covered in flour sitting writing in the cyber. haha. 

Christmas is really big in Chile. There are so many houses with a bunch of lights and decorations. I'll take some pictures and send them next week! In all the stores there is always Christmas music (in English) playing. They also make this bread called pan de pascua and it's like a fruitcake. It's pretty good and we've eaten it like 213,489 times already. 

That's about it this week! I'm so happy to be a member of the church! I can't imagine my life without this gospel and this sense of hope we have. I am seeing first hand more and more people come to the knowledge of the truth and I believe that even though the world seems to be becoming more and more wicked, the good is growing just as rapidly! Whenever we meet people in the street that have lost hope and just talk about all the bad in the world, I always tell them that there is so much good too. As missionaries we are here to spread the good and to bring hope and peace to the people that have lost their hope. 

I love you guys. I hope everything is good at home and I miss you so much! I can't wait until Christmas to talk to you all! I know this church is true and that life is full of miracles!

Con mucho amor

Hermana Snyder

Camila and Anggie and their family