"missionaries are far from normal"

Hello Everyone!

 This week President offered a challenge on who can find the most new investigators! CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!! He thinks he can do it, but he doesn't know what he's up against! Pretty much all of this past week we spent finding potentials, so we are so ready to take him down! Haha but the "prizes" (Missionary prizes are much different) for the top three companionships are 1-three hours with President coming out to work with you 2- two hours of working with him and his wife and 3- two hours of comp study with him and his wife. It's exciting. But things are really picking up! We finally found this area's Little Mexico! And it is GREAT! Except for the ginormous spiders, (shiver)  it's my favorite place to be in. We are going to set up a free lemonade stand (hopefully she's practiced her lemonade recipe) outside a flea market where there are tons of Hispanics on Saturday, and find even more potentials! And after a bit, we are going to start up English class down here!

Weird that you bring up service, everyone has been talking about that lately! And it's Service September (so much better than 'No shave November that my husband says is coming up) in our mission. Is that like a world-wide thing? I'm so confused! Maybe it's just the Lord's way of letting me know that I (we all) need to focus on serving more. We haven't really been able to do a lot of service yet here, because we have no idea where to go to volunteer! But we have great plans now so I'm excited! 

We finally got furniture!  We got the last shipment of great stuff! They're cutting things down now since they have so many new missionaries, so we were real blessed to be able to get all the things we have! Now we have beds, a ginormous study table, a little kitchen table, dressers, a toaster, pots and pans, and A MICROWAVE! I love the microwave! (I know where Heidi's priorities are) I really hope they have them in Argentina because they are seriously the best.

Learning a language is tons of fun. (said nobody, but positive Heidi ever) I finally found a movie quote to describe it! Sometimes I feel like Marlin from Finding Nemo when Squirt is talking to him--"It's like he's trying to tell me something, I know it!" and then-WHEEEEEEE-into the Swirling Vortex of Doom.  But somehow, I always survive. Seriously, it's only through the help of God and my blessed companion that lessons go well and people are able to feel the Spirit.

Ok so if you hadn't figured it out already, last week was just a wig. Don't worry! Haha my companion is a hoot and bought a wig for her sister's birthday, so we've been having some fun with it. But we don't leave the house with it on, once outside we are normal missionaries! But not normal people, because missionaries are far from normal. Especially when in a new area and looking specifically for Hispanics. Sometimes when it's late we go to Walmart and look for people there, because we can't knock after dark.  It's really fun though! We have not perfected the art of starting a semi-casual conversation with someone that looks Hispanic in order to find out if they actually are Spanish and would be interested in learning more about God. We were trying this on Saturday, and someone passed by us speaking Spanish! Before they could get away, I turned and said Hey! I'm learning Spanish, can I practice with you? She said "i'm shopping!" and gave me the weirdest look...  We get weird looks all the time. But it's so worth it because we are blessed with people that are interested!
 In church this week we talked about being examples and standing up for your standards. I've been thinking about it a lot, and how it's so awkward sometimes to leave a bad movie, or tell your friends not to cuss around you, or to refuse a drink that someone's offering you, but how it's so worth it in the end! You may get weird looks like I do every time you stick to your standards, but I promise that you will be greatly blessed for it. A lot of times too, we don't realize the effect that we are having on others.  They might not tell you, and you might not see it, but there is always someone that is impressed by your actions and may even decide to change themselves. "Be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity." Good luck this week as you stand for what's right! I hope you find the joy that this brings :D

A Dios!

Hermana Albright

A surprise!!

Hola everyone!

So transfers have come and gone, with lots of changes all around! I'm opening a new area, with a new companion.

 President split up all the trios! So I probably won't be getting my visa super soon. The church office just sent an email this week saying that they're still working on it. But a sister that had been here for seven months just got hers and is now in Argentina! Whoohoo!  Anyway, my new area is in Hopewell :D It's just a well of hope right now! We go to a Spanish ward (SO FUN!) about thirty or twenty minutes away (not so fun). We cover a ton of area so we've got a lot of work to do! My companion is amazing!!!! She's hilarious and super chill but at the same time way dedicated to the work. (sounds like Heidi, except the super chill part haha) So it's the best! Our apartment was completely empty, so right now we're borrowing air mattresses and trying to find things like a microwave and vacuum and such household pluses.

 In other news...I dyed my hair! What do you think? 

(If you were wondering what my mom thought... she about had a heart attack.  I don't think she was able to sleep the next 3 nights....)

It's definitely weird opening a new area here, where nobody knows where Hispanics live. It's like trying to find a needle in a haystack! But as we were trying to get referrals one day, and everyone we were talking to was super pessimistic about this area, my companion turned to me and said We are just like Nephi when he was told to build a boat! He had no idea what he was doing, and nobody thought he could do it, but he just turned to the Lord and found success in what he was asked to do.  So here's my chance to be like Nephi! It's very exciting.  It also strengthens my testimony about the worth of souls.  For if we should labor all our days here, and bring but one soul unto God, how great will be our joy in the kingdom of heaven! I know there's someone ready and waiting to hear the Gospel here and I'm so touched that I have this opportunity to find them! I hope you all know how much you are loved by the Lord.  Have a great week!

A Dios!

Hermana Albright

P.s Mom got a hand written letter from Heidi this week and she had a few things she wanted to add:

Heidi loves her new companion and her new area, although she was sad to leave behind all the investigators she was working with. she loves the new ward, it is all Spanish, and has all the regular meetings, primary, relief society ym and yw. And this week  one of the investigators they were working with came to the Spanish ward, and she was very happy to see him, and thought that it was a tender mercy from the Lord.  They have 3 potential investigators they are working with.  AND on the hair note, she and her companion went wig shopping for the companion's sister's birthday, and Heidi had much fun trying on wigs.  She said that she learned never to dye her hair black as it does not look good on her. Her companion did buy a wig for her sister, which is what I think Heidi had on. What a relief to me!  They got a couch from the AP's and had some air mattress's and were supposed to get more stuff on Friday for their apartment.

Pictures included

Another short e-mail from Miss Heidi this week.  I included some of the beginning of her letter where she answers all of my mom's questions.  I thought that inquiring minds would like to know some of the things!! 

On Pday (preparation day) , we email, buy groceries, eat lunch, and then do something with the sisters, but twice a transfer we get to do something as a zone.  And us girls definitley play sports!!!! We love playing soccer, basketball, and volleyball mostly..... best part about being in the states, I can just buy whatever I really need..... We live in an apartment with an English companionship, it's so much fun! There's a gym in our complex that we go to every morning, it's really nice.  

Hey y'all! Craziness going on up in here! 37 (including me!)  new missionaries last transfer + 35 this transfer = 144 trainers and trainees! Yikes a bagel! Normally, we get a call on Sunday nights about transfers, but we won't know this time until Tuesday.  So...hopefully I'm still in this area next week!!! I love the people here so much and the work is really moving forward it's so exciting!

 In other news, every week we have district meeting, and last week I gave my first training for that! It went pretty well I think! Luckily I have a super nice district so they wouldn't even tell me if it was anything but good ;)  We met some really cool people this week! I'm super excited to work with them. And we've definitely been beyond blessed in every aspect.  This Friday is the BYU vs UVA game! Woot woot! (Anybody see that disappointing game??!! I'm pretty sure my husband cried for the rest of the night). We don't get to go to the game, but we do get to go to the fireside! (if we're still in this area and not transferred). So that's super exciting! I love firesides!

 I slammed my finger in the car door the other day and now it's twice the normal size and lots of fun colors. (Don't worry mom, I can still bend it a little so I don't think it's broken).  And we've had a ton of bus adventures! (I wonder if her bus driver is Ms. Frizzle?) I seriosly love taking the bus. You meet so many interesting (and interested!) people it's so great. So basically, if you can't tell from all the exclamation points, it has been a really exciting week. I'm loving it here! It's really interesting, in the beginning I kept forgetting that I wan't in Argentina and now I keep forgetting that I'm still going there one day (hopefully). And Virginia is GORGEOUS!!!! I seriously feel like I'm camping every day.Hope you all have a great day!