Junie B. Jones and Amelia Bedilia 12/14/15

Dear Familia,

This week was very different.
It's hard to explain why but I'll try, by telling you a couple things that are different:

1. I'm on an island.
2. My companion is 34, is from Malaga Spain, and doesn't speak English.
3. I'm no longer serving in a ward but a branch with about 35 active members.
4. It's warm.
5. We have to buy our water to drink.
6. The water I shower in, and bush my teeth with, smells like the ocean.
7. The people here are more friendly.
8. The people here are more crazy.

Let me first tell you about my comp. It's hard to explain what she's like—Amelia Bedelia. (Is that her name? Those children books. She is crazy.) But let me just remind you—I'm like Junie B Jones—so I'm crazy too. The only difference is our age. So we get along pretty well. 

She loves cooking.... so I will be fed well. We decided each week, she is going to teach me how to cook something, because I can't cook. I'm really excited to work with her. She is really patient and already has helped me so much with my Spanish. She was baptized about three years ago, and the first one in her family.

The ward here is really cool and the members, although there are few, are super strong. There is one girl I have already become great friends with; she is 16, and is always with us!!! In all our lessons, contacting...so it's like we're in a trio. She is super cool. The ward is amazing with the missionary work—like so involved. It's unbelievable.

I still miss my old ward a bit, and friends, but I'm trying to just fall in love as fast as I can with the people here.

Challenge: go visit someone in your ward that you don't know or who you don't normally visit. Don't bring anything, just go visit them to visit them. Talk to them, see how they're doing, and  wish them a Merry Christmas.

Love, Hermana Kelemen