Letter from 2/26/2014

I am still BLOWN away by how much the boys are growing and changing. Time is really flying by, if I think about it. I´m almost a third of the way into the mission. This is both exciting to me, as well as a good reminder to stay focused and make the most of every moment, every day.

I´m trying to upload a photo or two to send along with this letter, but uploading is not this computer´s specialty. Haha. Crossing fingers! Anyway, we have just been working right along here in Mao. It´s a little hotter here these days. Something that I have really loved about my experience here is making friends with the members. It´s really special to me that I have these relationships. I am learning a lot and growing in a lot of ways. (Not sideways, although I eat a lot more these days. Haha.) I´m just so happy and contented to be here. We are teaching a girl who is preparing to be baptized and we got permission from President to have her cousin who is serving in this mission come and perform the baptism. I am SO excited, and hope everything goes the way we are expecting it to. She is making changes in her life, and I just love her. I know the gospel will guide and protect her as she finds her way through the growing up process. I´m attaching a picture of her and her little (second?) cousin, who is adorable and was crawling around the house stark naked the last time we visited this week. Haha. Oh, I just really feel like the people here are my family. Leaving Mao will be hard when it comes time. Which reminds me- the bishop´s wife and her family have family in Arlington! Her name is Nivelkis and her sister is Dulce. Dulce´s husband is Benito, who just arrived here in town from Texas. Dulce wants me to give her your number before I leave Mao. We will have to coordinate with Sofia, I think. Haha. The bishop´s sons are preparing for missions, and the one who reminds me a TON of Josh just got his call to the Santo Domingo East mission... and he reports to the CCM on Josh´s birthday! Haha. How crazy is that?? Anyway, I need to go and I will send more pictures next week. I love you all so much. The gospel is true!! It changes lives. Until next week!!

Hermana Harden

Letter from 2/21/2014

Letter from 2/21/2014 -- WELL we moved. We still don´t have a laundry line up or any clothespins.... or running water right now. But we are there! Haha. The house is a really nice change from the old one. I have pictures... but this computer just will not read my memory. What a punk. BUT LET ME JUST TELL YOU how glad I am that we moved in spite of the kinks along the way... because the night before during planning, my companion stopped and pointed behind me AND THERE WAS A TARANTULA ON THE WALL. I swiftly removed myself from the room, then we finished planning in the other room... like a couple of dummies, because the tarantula disappeared and we didn´t know if it was still in the house. Hahaha. But I´m pretty sure it left through the window, because we never saw it again. baha.

Things are going well here. We have been blessed with some really special opportunities to start preparing some families to be sealed. We are also teaching a couple of young women who are preparing to be baptized, and we found an inactive member who is about my age who has always had a strong testimony, but wasn´t coming to church because her mom didn´t want to go. She told me as we were sitting in stake conference a week ago that she wants to serve a mission too. She is AMAZING. I don´t know if I had already mentioned her to you... I wish I could tell you just exactly how amazing these experiences have been, but I am already out of time. I promise to do better next week, and you WILL hear from me Wednesday. I love you so much.

All my love and more,

Brenna

Letter from 2/12/2014

 I´m still laughing about your last letter. It was like I was hearing your voice in my head when I read about Dad and your laptop and how you fell asleep at like 915pm. Hahaha. Thank you so much for sending the photos! I don´t have my adapter this week, but I WILL bring it and send as many photos as humanly possible next week. GUESS WHAT, I got the lip balm!! I am currently using EOS in Tangerine, or as I call it, Orange Egg. Haha. It seems to be pretty decent so far, but I´ll keep using it and trying the others a week at a time and let you know the results! I am also way excited to hear that the Lego Movie is good!! I am most definitely putting it on my list.

I´m doing well, eating lots of yogurt because it comes in KILLER flavors here, such as guayaba and piña colada. Also because I am aware of my calcium needs as a woman in her twenties. Haha. I wrote a few letters and sent them with the zone leaders yesterday- one for Seth, one for Josh and one for Rebecca since it´s almost her birthday. Hopefully they will make the voyage in a timely manner.

We are moving to our new house Friday! We went to clean it today, but there was no water. Que normal. Haha. But hopefully it will be all sorted out by Friday. The house is on the third level and has roof access. I will be tanning every p-day I think because my legs are still pasty and mosquito bitten. Haha. Oh, and I love love love the photos from Seth´s baptism!! I´m going to try to print them asap and show the whole world. <330 .gif=""> Elder Day is officially in Puerto Plata as of today, opening a new area and training a new missionary. He promised he would conference in for our district meetings. Haha. Other than him, everyone else stayed here in Mao! This is good news, because the elders in our ward are really good missionaries.

I can´t wait to have the opportunity to talk to you guys again. Just a few short months! I pray every day for you all and think about you all of the time. I need to go, and I still need to send you a short separate email, Mom. I LOVE YOU ALL!

Hermana Harden

Letter from 2/5/2014

First of all... did you hear the cool story from Gramma Judy??? If not, call her!! I don´t have time to relate it here. Feel free to post it, too!! I cried as I read it. Heavenly Father is SO COOL!!!!

This week has been full of cool blessings. I am suddenly ¨cool¨ with all of the little kids, especially little girls in our lessons. Haha. They just laugh and giggle and want to play. There are two of them in particular who are just ADORABLE. I will try to remember to take pictures. I learned how to make empanadas and Dominican meatballs this week! You guys are in for a serious treat!! AND we went to see the new house we are going to move to! It´s pretty stinking awesome!!! I will take more pictures of the house too, when we finally move in.

But what really takes the cake was going to a lesson with the elders and a sister missionary from the other ward here in Mao. There is an investigator from Haiti who has come to church twice. He only knows a little spanish, so I have talked with him in franish a little bit. Haha. Anyway, Sister Pierre from Mao 2 is from Haiti as well, and we went to the outskirts of town where he lives yesterday. Hermana Pierre translated as all four of us taught the Plan of Salvation to about 6 different people in this lesson. At the end of the lesson, the investigator asked when he will qualify for baptism. How cool is that??!!! I am SO excited for him!!! I hope that we will remain friends. He is such a humble guy. Hopefully I will still be here to attend his baptism!

Transfers are next week, so you may not hear from me until Thursday. But you will hear from me! I love you all so much and keep praying for your happiness and safety. I trust in Heavenly Father. Everyone should, really. I love you!!!!

Hermana Harden

Letter from 1/29/2014

Anyway... things are good here! I found out that we will be moving before the end of this transfer to an even BETTER house than the elders!!! Woohooo!!! Suckers! Just kidding, the elders here are actually really great. :) We played soccer today and let me just say that what I have gained in endurance and muscle, I have lost in sprinting. It was ugly. Bahaha. Yesterday there was no water in the house, which we discovered after cleaning the elder´s old house. We definitely went out proselyting as our dirty selves. Wasn´t as bad as I thought it would be, but I will not be electing to skip showers in the near future. Haha.
Speaking of showers, I destroyed one of the towels I brought! I didn´t want to, but a mouse got into my suitcase a few weeks ago and I don´t know if you know this, but towels make bomb mouse nests. Haha. There were SO many holes. I cleaned it with detergent and a little bleach, as well as the inside of my suitcase. I always make sure it is zipped now. But the towel in parts makes for excellent miscellaneous use, so I´m not too sad. For example, we had no kitchen towels... and now we do. Haha. I am definitely looking forward to moving. We will live on the second level, so hopefully there will be less furry-crawly friend problems. I heard a rumor about a water heater as well, but I refuse to get my hopes up. I want to surprise myself. :0)

BY THE WAY. Those mint melt things are SOOO good. Where are they from??

I´m looking forward to hearing a recording or two from the NTCC performance if there are any! I am so proud of my musical family. Josh included!! He told me he´s singing with Vocal Majority. You guys are total rock stars. :)) In the way of music-- remember that cd that I got from an AP? It is SO good! The group is called The Lowlights and they sing all kinds of folk versions of hymns. There´s a banjo rendition of If You Could Hie To Kolob and a really pretty celtic-y song. Check them out!!! I think the whole family will love them.

Things are going well here. We are having a lot more progress with less actives in the ward, although progress with investigators is slow. Remember the woman we read the Book of Mormon with? Well, we had some sad news the other day from the elders that she has been smoking. There had been some suspicion before, and we even talked about the word of wisdom, which she understands perfectly. It was pretty confusing, I have to admit. But here´s the thing- she came to church this Sunday!!! For the first time since I have been here! I don´t know exactly what´s going on with the smoking, but I am so happy that she is coming back! She made comments in Relief Society and everything. I just love her. We see her son a lot in the mission. He is assigned to the mission office right now and is helping us with the new house situation. He was serving in Mexico, but fell from a third story and had memory loss. He had surgery and recovered then was reassigned to Santiago. He is a really cool person. A really good missionary.

One of our partially active families is starting to prepare to go to the temple to be sealed in April!!! I am so happy for them!! Their daughters are just so sweet. One is a teenager, and the other is about the twins´ age. They have another daughter who is older, but doesn´t live at home. We had a family home evening with them last night. I really hope they make it to the temple. I will totally ask for permission to attend if I´m not still here in Mao!

Man, it´s hard to  believe my second transfer is almost over already. I don´t know what will change with this transfer yet, and it´s a little nerve wracking. Haha. Just two weeks! Anyway, it´s time to go. I love you all so much!!! Say your prayers and serve one another!

Hermana Harden xoxoxo

Letter from 1/22/2014

Mom. haha. I already explained about this keyboard. Sorry it´s so loco. i hope it´s not too much of a headache to edit. Man things are going so well here in the DR! I will try to type fast because time is slipping away from me, like usual. Like I said, I got the package!! What a wonderful thing!! I am taking photos to share soon, but obviously this computer center is not the fanciest, so I will wait until next week to try to send them.

I bought laundry soap with my debit card today! It was such a good feeling to know that I have a plan B if needs be. Speaking of laundry, have I told you that we have a semi automatic washer and dry our clothes on the line? You should be so impressed. I´m practically a laundry expert now. haha. There´s this soap that I use to wash whites to make them super bright, and it has glycerin in it. It says to use gloves, but I never do because I´m too cool and tough for that busniess. Also because I have yet to see gloves in the grocery store. hahaha.

Man I am wishing you all the best with your applications and school slash work projects!! It sounds like things are just moving right along at home. Gosh it´s already time to go!! Quickly I will tell you that the elders moved into a new place and I am super jealous! It´s gorgeous and has a water heater! agh. haha. Anyway, if you can, go ahead and add my letter to dad to this week´s. I´m sorry it´s so short! I love you so much and the Liahona for February is the bomb!! Go read it!! Missing you all so much and thinking of you always.

Hey pops! Things are really good here, I had an interview with President Douglas this week, and got to talk with Hermana Douglas as well. They really are so great. I hope you guys get to meet them some day. This tranfer is flying by. They´re already talking about what´s going to happen in the next. President took the liberty of telling me that I probably won´t be training this transfer. I was like oh that´s so good to know.... haha. The ward is doing really well. We have more and more members coming out with us all of the time. It´s actually kind of a miracle. I´m getting along better with my companion these days, which is great. One of the members runs a colmado, or kind of a mini restaurant and we eat there sometimes. Food is less of a stress these days because we are eating in the houses of members less. That and I´m just less stressed. haha. Oh man. The weather here has been a little more warm this week. Stronger sun anyway. We don´t see a lot of rain down here in Mao. This centro de internet is partially out of doors and the caps lock key was sticking... now it´s just doing what it wants. haha. Oh man, I love you dad. I hope all is well with you, and will you give the boys a big hug and kiss from me? Until next week!!

Your favorite daughter,

Brenna