Hola!!!

Thank you soooooo much for your emails and answers. I really appreciate it. I´m glad to hear that you are all doing good and that the garden looks great. Are there any trees livings still? I hope so.

Well, things here are cooling off. We´ve had snow almost everyday and the ice is getting worse. I´ve fallen only once. ^_^ I´ve had my fair share of accidents this last week. It´s been pretty funny. I hit my head on a stop sign, got hit in the face by a volleyball, and fell down. Don´t worry, we´re having fun and there isn´t any permanent damage. As you can see, Hermana Alfarro is having a harder time in the snow than I am. This is the third time in her life that she has been in snow. I have yet to buy earmuffs and I´m going to have to buy another pair of shoes. The only pair left right now is starting to die. I´m going to try looking today. I am veeeeery grateful for our warm house and chapel. I thank Heavenly Father every day for my many blessings. It´s not only the homeless people but there are a lot of homeless dogs and cats in the streets. They have their own packs and territories. The other day, a dog that was skin and bones, with a hurt leg, followed us 10 blocks to see if we would take him into a warm house and feed him. It breaks my heart especially when I see dead animals in the street and frozen dead animals on the sidewalk. Sorry for the sad image. It´s an everyday thing here.

So the spanish is growing. Almost nobody here speaks english so it´s pretty much pure spanish.  Hermana Alfarro loves talking with people and helping them understand. She tries everyday to think of each investigator individually and process their needs. She loves to learn and is always asking me questions about everything. She is good with makeup and walking fast (which I am still developing). She has high goals and does everything to meet them. She is wonderful and I am grateful for all that I am learning from her.
 I am happy and we are having a ton of good times. Being happy is a choice. You´re happiness is not determined by what happens outside of you, but what happens inside of you.

Congratulations on becoming executive secretary. Any calling from the Lord is an amazing calling and I am so happy that you are worthy to receive a calling from Him. We were talking in Relief Society and I remembered something that President Gulbrandsen said to me. Every person who has the Gospel in their lives in these last days showed great faith and valor in the premortal existence. We are living in the last days before the Second Coming to prepare the world and the way. We have been blessed with this opportunity to share the Gospel with the world. It is a grand responsibility and we are told that our Heavenly Father saved His strongest and choicest children for this last great battle. You (parents included) showed extremely great faith in the premortal life and continue to do so. If you listen to the adversary when he says: ¨You´re nothing special. You may have been that way before this life, but not now. You have nothing to offer.¨ You are letting him win; he´s a liar. Don´t listen to him. You are a child of God who was chosen for these last days, and God doesn´t make mistakes. He chose each and every part of you. The color of your eyes, the type of hair you have, everything. Again, God doesn´t make mistakes. Please study Preach My Gospel. It is meant for everyone in all stages of life. Especially, please read the quotes from each prophet about missionary work in the beginning of the manual.

I am very excited for Anthony and the choice he has made. This is going to change your life if you let it. Please give everything to your Heavenly Father. Hold nothing back. Choose to be happy. Choose to do His will. Forget yourself in the work and don´t think about things at home. This will change and bless your mission. It doesn´t matter what other people do or think. The Lord will not judge you for their actions; He will look at yours. Read your purpose in Preach My Gospel. Your part is to invite and help others come unto Christ. If you invite everyone and try to help everyone, you will be ok. Pray everyday fervently and sincerely. Study your scriptures everyday and please do not forget your patriarchal blessing.

Best of luck with your operation, Dad. I like your nose just the way it is, but if you prefer to take some off the top that´s ok. I hope you will be able to breathe better. Stay safe.

I wish that I could share with you everything that I am learning, but there is neither time nor space. I feel like I would be writing the Book of Mormon if I wrote everything I have been learning on the mission. Speaking of which, how is the reading together as a family coming? What about the hymns? Right now, I am in Moroni and in Spanish I am in 2 Nefi. I am also working on memorizing the Scripture masteries in spanish.

Hermana Alfarro just told me that we get mail here in Rio Gallegos just as often as the people up north. I think it´s Usuaia that´s different. She said that she would pay for somethings if you could send them. We haven´t found a certain type of pen here and we were hoping that you could send it to us. Brand: Pilot (or which ever you can find) Color: black Point: 0.38 (the most important part is that it´s black and 0.38.) Thank you sooooo much. Also, if you think it won´t explode. Ranch Dressing would be nice. I feel bad asking for things, but I know you want to know what I need or would like since you aren´t here with me.

I love you all sooooo much. Thank you for everything you do. Your prayers, letters, spiritual experiences and thoughts,  and packages mean the world to me.

Well, I have to go. It´s time to go play sports. I´ll write again soon.

Love
Hermana Alvey