Sunday, March 1, 2015

LONG AWAITED post from Christmas 14





12/25/14 This week has been busy!

I got to go on intercambios, or exchanges, and I went to an area called Alcala de Heneres. It was beautiful, but I had to take a train there and it took forever. I spent a whole day there and got to teach with another companion, Hermana Chavarria. Hermana Chavarria is from Spain and doesnt speak English, but understands a lot. She is the sweetest and helped me so much with my Spanish!

Teaching here in Alcobendas is difficult right now because of all of the holidays. Everyone is busy and dont seem to have the time to meet, but that´s ok! We arent teaching Cecilio anymore because he decided he didnt want to see us anymore. But that´s ok!

David Archuleta came to Madrid. We saw him perform twice and he also attended church in my ward Sunday. He´s really quite talented and it was a once in a lifetime experience.

This week, one of our less active members in the church (Toni, who is learning spanish), took the 9 missionaries in our ward out to a typical Galician lunch. We ate really good bread, octopus on potatos, calamari, really good marinated pork over french fries, pigs ear, and some other really good stuff. I dont remember all of it, or even the names of them, but it was the best food I´ve ever eaten, minus the pigs ear. Never, never, never eat pigs ear! YUCK! Today, for Christmas, our ward mission leader invited us for lunch and he made cows tongue and it was surprisingly good! I´d probably eat it again!

The language is coming, slowly but surely! We had a lesson the other day about temples and I realized that I was speaking in Spanish and saying things without thinking about them and without even realizing i could say them in spanish! It´s amazing what we can do with the help of the Lord.

Last night, for Noche Buena (Christmas Eve) we sang in a really popular square in Alcobendas. We sang Christmas Carols and I realized during one of the songs, that it really felt like Christmas. I felt so at home there and I remembered that it didnt matter that I didnt have Christmas presents or that I was thousands of miles away from my family, because the reason for this holiday is Christ. Christ is our gift, the first gift of Christmas. God loves each of us so much, that he sent his only begotten son for each of us, that through him, we could return to live with our father in heaven again after this life. Remember that! Im so thankful for this season and for this opportunity to teach about and come closer to Christ.

I love you all and hope you´re doing well! Merry Christmas from Spain! I can´t wait to hear from you all!

Love,
Hermana Griffin!

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