Birthday celebration in Argentina

​Hi Everyone! 

I'm here in a new pueblito, called Chos Malal. It's really hot, and really dry, but there are mountains to see so it isn't quite like Portales. But, I can see the sunsets now! Ooh, I missed those! It's great here with my Canadian companion, Hermana Miller. She's a hoot and everyone loves her. She's full of energy and love for everyone.

We get to cook every day here, in other areas we get lunches from members, but here there are about 10 members so we get to cook everything. We've been trying to change up our diet and have succeeded in cooking Stir Fry, tacos, and a classic meat and potatoes. We get excited to cook and get creative :)

We laugh about how everyone stares at the two gringas walking down the street in skirts. Good news is everyone is curious as to what exactly we're doing in Argentina and we talk to a lot of people because of their curiosity! 

I had the blessing of passing my 20th birthday here in Chos Malal and we had a little fiestita with a family from the church here. My favorite part was the can of fake snow that I got drenched with after I blew out the candles. 

I don't have much in the way of time so I'll head out now! But I love you guys! And I hope that in this season of Christmas you are all remembering the true meaning of the celebration. 

-- 

Hermana Christensen

argentinamish.blogspot.com

Sister Hannah Noel Christensen

JUL28 ARG-NEU

2023 N 900 E Unit 800

Provo, UT 84602

Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of Him to declare His word among His people, that they might have everlasting life. --3 Nephi 5:13

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What's up?

Well, it's been a while! Now that it's getting to be cold in the states, it's warming up  here in the Patagonia. San Martin is as lovely as ever and I am enjoying it, as well as getting a little sunburned. 

I've had the blessing of seeing a few miracles here during my 4 months. In fact, just last week Hna Vasquez and I were hiking our tails off to get to a member's house when we were stopped by a man also going to his house. He asked us if we were "Los Mormónes" to which we responded that yes, we're missionaries for the church. The next words out of his mouth were "Tengo que ir a la capilla!" or " I have to go to church!" Breathless from the hike, and shocked at what we had just heard, we decided to stare. When he asked us when the meetings are we both wisely replied "Los Domingos!". Obviously he already knew church is on Sunday, so he asked again this time more specific. "¿A que hora empiezan las reuniones?" After we communicated that they start at 10 am on Sundays, we planned to talk after church to set up a day for a lesson. He entered his home and left Hna Vasquez and I to look at each other in amazement. It was really quite an experience! And guess who was at church yesterday! And we're going to go visit him tonight for his first lesson. Normally it's a struggle getting people to come to church after teaching several lessons! Church attendance isn't a habit here, and he came before having any lessons! Needless to say, my companion and I were all smiles. 

I've been here in San Martin for quite some time now and with transfers coming up this weekend, I'm preparing myself to hear the news that it's my turn to go. Secretly I'm hoping to stay here for my birthday and Christmas, but life is like that in the mission! I really have grown to love so many people here, the members are tops and it's a huge blessing to be able to be an instrument in the Lord's hands to help someone grow in the gospel. I have 5 months in the mission, but by gosh and by golly, I'm going to make the most of the next 13. 

I know without a doubt that we are sons and daughters of a loving Heavenly Father. I feel His love everyday. I know that He has the best plan for us and we just need to find it and trust Him. I am grateful to be a missionary in this time and be able to share this message of happiness with my brothers and sisters in Argentina. 

For those of you celebrating Thanksgiving, enjoy some extra feasting for me, I'll probably be eating more pasta come Thursday :) But more importantly show your gratitude by serving someone. And by serving I don't mean spooning mashed potatoes on their plates ;)  An act of loving service is always appreciated and always needed. 

Have a fabulous week everyone, I love you all!

Photos with Companions

dscn1434 is intercambios in Bariloche with Hna Duarte (hna training leader)

dscn1438...guess who else was in Bariloche!!! Hermana Terry!!! YAY!

dscn 1462 my mini companion from Honduras saw snow for the first time! 

Service project hike

Last time with Hna Sparacino!

​Volcan Lanin. I hiked that sucker!

The view from Volcan Lanin, mountains to infinity and beyond!!!

The gang that hiked the volcano with the member that took us. We hiked it with materials to build shelters for future hikers as a service project.

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Packages and letter-English

Dear Missionary Families,

 

We know that missionaries love to receive emails, letters and packages from home.  We realize how important it is for missionaries to feel loved and remembered.  To help avoid problems in this regard, we have the following recommendations for your consideration:

1.      Place “Gift Money” on your missionary´s personal credit or debit card.  This is the easiest and safest way to give your missionary a gift for Christmas, his or her birthday or any other occasion.  There is no postage charge, no customs fee and no risk of a package being lost or arriving late.  Many missionaries have told us how much they enjoy being given money to buy a gift for themselves while here in Argentina.  We strongly urge you to consider this safe, inexpensive and convenient option instead of mailing a package to your missionary.

 

2.      Letters and Small Padded Envelopes.  If you send letters, cards or small padded envelopes to your missionary, it is best to send it to the mission office at the address below.  It normally requires two or three weeks for letters, cards or small padded envelopes to arrive in Argentina.  It may take an additional two weeks to be delivered to the missionary´s area of service.  Letters and small padded envelopes are not usually required to be screened through customs.  Please use this address to mail letters and small padded envelopes:

Elder or Sister Full Name of Missionary

             Misión Argentina Neuquén
             Zapla N 24 – Casilla de Correo 321
             8300 Neuquén
             Neuquén Argentina    

 

3.      Large Padded Envelopes and other Packages.  The Area Presidency has requested that parents, family and friends refrain from mailing large padded enverlopes and other packages at this time.  Argentina is experiencing issues with importation of non-domestic products.  As a result, the country has imposed very strict regulations regarding packages sent from outside of the country.  The best way to mail gifts or other momentos is by using personal debit cards and placing the money in these accounts.  Please do not send large padded envelopes and other packages until further notice.

Thank you so much for considering these guidelines.  Please share these guidelines with family and friends who might be sending letters or packages to your missionary.

We love your missionaries and are so grateful for the privilege of working with them.

Best personal regards,

President and Sister Paul R. Lovell
Argentina Neuquén Mission

Package info-Spanish

Las Cartas y Paquetes

Querida Familia del misionero,

Sabemos que a los misioneros les encanta recibir correos electrónicos, cartas y paquetes de casa. Nos damos cuenta de lo importante que es para los misioneros sentirse amados y recordados. Para ayudar a evitar problemas en este sentido, tenemos las siguientes recomendaciones para su consideración:

1. Poner "Dinero de regalo" en su tarjeta de crédito personal del misionero o tarjeta de débito. Esta es la forma más fácil y segura para darle a su misionero un regalo para la Navidad, su cumpleaños o cualquier otra ocasión. No se cobra gastos de envío, tarifa de aduanas y no hay riesgo como en los paquetes que se pierdan o lleguen tarde. Muchos misioneros nos han dicho cuánto les gusta que les den dinero para comprar un regalo para sí mismos, mientras que están aquí en la Argentina. Instamos enérgicamente a considerar esta opción segura, barata y cómoda, en lugar de enviar un paquete a su misionero. 

2. Las cartas y los pequeños sobres acolchonados. Si envía cartas, tarjetas o pequeños sobres acolchonados para el misionero, lo mejor es enviarlo a la oficina de la misión a la dirección que se encuentra debajo. Normalmente se necesitan dos o tres semanas para cartas, tarjetas o pequeños sobres acolchonados para llegar a Argentina. Pueden pasar dos semanas adicionales que se entregarán a la zona de la misión que estén sirviendo. Las cartas y sobres acolchonados pequeños no suelen ser necesarios para ser examinados por la aduana.  Las cartas y pequeños paquetes o correo enviados a la oficina de la misión debe ser la siguiente dirección:
                   
                    Elder o Hermana (Nombre Completo del Misionero)
                    Misión Argentina Neuquén

                    Zapla N 24 – Casilla de Correo 321

                    8300 Neuquén

                    Neuquén Argentina

3. Grandes sobres acolchonados y otros paquetes. . Hemos recibido noticia del Presidencia del Área que por causa de cambios en las reglas de importación de Argentina, no deben enviar mas grandes sobres acolchonados y otros paquetes.  La mejor manera de dar regalos y otras cosas a misioneros es por su tarjeta personal de débito.   No podemos recibir mas paquetes que vienen afuera del país.

 

Muchas gracias por considerar estas directrices. Por favor, comparta estas pautas con la familia y amigos que podrían estar enviando cartas o paquetes a su misionero.

Nos encantan sus misioneros y estamos muy agradecidos por el privilegio de trabajar con ellos.

 

Saluda con cariños,

 

Presidente y Hermana Lovell

Argentina Neuquén Misión

 

New companion and a stomach bug

Hola!

Hermana Sparacino se fue a las 8 en la mañana hoy por Esquel y mi nueva compañera viene a las 6:45, Hna Vasques de las Honduras! Woo ciao English! Haha I am sad to see my trainer go, but I am super excited for a Latina companion! My Spanish is "re bueno" according to one of my zone leaders and Hna Sparacino, but a transfer with 100% Spanish is going to do so much! 

I had my first run in with stomach problems this weekend, apparently it's impressive that I made it this far! We did a "tsunami" in Junin to help the Hermanas there and when we got back to San Martin it was freezing and pouring and we didn't have the appropiate clothing for that weather. And the next day I had quite the fever, headache and cold on top of upset stomach. Talk about a long weekend! Haha but I am feeling much better, our mission nurse put me on a diet of veggies, rice, noodles, "the bland things" is literally what she told me. 

I think we're going to enjoy this beautiful day and go on a hike today! La primavera here is gorgeous, so many colors! This beautiful world is such a blessing and a testament of the love our Father in Heaven has for us. I am so grateful for the blessing to be here and see all of His wonderful creations.

I hope that all of you are doing well, I miss you all! Let me know how you're doing!

con amor

Hermana Christensen

General Conference Musings

Hola everyone! 

For those of you who might not know, this weekend, we had the opportunity to hear from our beloved prophet and apostles and the leaders of the church. Two times a year, we have General Conference and everyone in the world has the wonderful chance to hear the words of the Lord through His prophets. In this email, I would like to share a few thoughts, quotes or messages from this past General Conference that really touched my heart. It isn't good enough to read my wimpy transcriptions though, I invite all of you who might not have had the chance to go online to www.lds.organd read, watch or listen to the talks yourself. I promise you can be uplifted spiritually through the teachings of the living prophets.

From Lynn G. Robbins, a question. Which way do you face? 

Do we face the way of the Lord or the world? 

Neil L. Anderson

Opposition sends seekers of truth to their knees...Spiritual questions deserve spiritual answers from God. 

Tad R. Callister talked about the importance and the power of prayer. He talked about our morning prayers, personal and as a family. Do we let our children (or ourselves) march out the door in the morning to the most dangerous war and to face Satan without the protection of morning prayer?

I loved that Jorg Klebingat counseled us to acknowledge our weakness but to overcome them rather than letting them overcome us. That is something I think we all struggle with, we find a weakness or a fault and then it becomes everything and suddenly we are convinced that we are nothing.

Jeffrey R. Holland, who is such a powerful and wonderful speaker said something that touched my heart. "I may not be my brother's keeper, but I am my brother's brother." Isn't that true? As sons and daughters of the same God, we are brothers and sisters. We should take up our duty then to help each other in times of need, for truly we all need help during this mortal life. 

I absolutely loved Richard G Scott's talk about the things we need to do to strengthen ourselves and our family and that absolutely nothing is more important than our foundation in Christ. 

I learned so much this weekend and am so grateful that I live in a time where we have a living prophet, called by God to lead and guide us. I love this gospel and I love the Lord.

Hermana Christensen

pictures

Service Project Selfie: Agus, Cami, Me

S

Mama Spara and I last P-day

In Which Hannah's Red Hair Attracts Younger Men

Hna Sparacino had to go to Neuquén for tramites so I went to Junin and had a trio party with Hnas Mejia and Zenger. I left for Junin at 10 pm Wednesday night. We had to ask someone to "pay" for my bus ticket with their card and that we would give them the money. And of course, Elder Slavens asked the young man. Jokingly, I said to the Elders "Hey, just because he's paying doesn't mean it is a date. If he tries anything it is your fault." So we laughed about that and I got on the bus by myself. I sat down and the young man sat down in a different place. I got out my journal with the intent to write and about 2 minutes later, guess who comes and sits by me. So we make a little small talk, his name is Juan, he is 18 and likes music. I explained that I am a missionary and yada yada. Then he starts to compliment me...According to Juan, I am the most beautiful girl in Argentina. I blamed my hair and said I'm just different. He asked about my husband (Elder Slavens) and I explained, again, that we are missionaries and none of us are married and threw in for good measure that I have a boyfriend in the States. That didn't help my situation. Juan then proceeded to tell me that my novio probably isn't very faithful because there are lots of girls in the States. And then....he asked me what I would do if he (Juan) kissed me!!! To which I replied "No no no no no no no no no no no no no! " Seriously, I said no like 20 times. You have to realize, I am a foreign young woman who has very limited Spanish and at this moment was alone without a phone! I was terrified. And couldn't get rid of him. He was running in circles, I'm beautiful, he's in love with me, my boyfriend isn't faithful, he wants to kiss me. I was running in circles, I'm not the most beautiful girl in Argentina, I am a missionary, I have a faithful boyfriend, he cannot kiss me. Then he proceeds to ask me if I need a place to stay because he and his mom (talk about lame, he invited me to his mom's house) have some room at their place. After a long, very cozy hour on the bus, we arrived in Junin and I ran to the welcoming arms of the waiting Hermanas.

Three Months Down

Hola all!
I reached 3 months this week!
So something that cracks me up, people find out I am from New Mexico and 2 things come to mind, first-it is obviously Mexico and I speak Spanish perfectly. Then I correct them with my poor Spanish (haha) and they ask about Roswell and Area 51 and aliens. And I realized that I honestly don't know the story about Roswell at all!
I am so excited about General Conference coming up in 2 weeks! For those of you who don't know, General Conference is 4 sessions in which the entire population of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints gets to hear counsel from the prophet and apostles of the world. It is a wonderful weekend full of spiritual lessons that we can all benefit from. I invite all of you to listen to at least one session the first weekend of October; I promise it will be worth the two hours.
The missionaries here in San Martin were able to attend a fireside with the temple president and his wife from Buenos Aires. Wow, it was quite lovely. At the end of his talk, one of the members of the Branch Presidency here went up and whispered something to President Fernandez, who then turned back to all of us sitting in the audience and asked me to sing. He chose the hymn " Yo Sé Que Vive Mi Señor" and asked that I sing the first verse and that the rest join in for the last 3. What a blessing it was. I sang with tears in my eyes as I sang my testimony. I really do know that Christ lives, that He is our Savior and Redeemer. I am thankful every day for his Atoning sacrifice that allows us, sinners and mere humans to progress and learn from our mistakes.

I hope that this letter finds you all healthy, happy and blessed.
Con amor,
Hermana Christensen

Six weeks and lovin' it!

I cannot believe that I have almost completed my first transfer in Argentina! My Castellano is not where I wanted it :( but it is progressing a little every day. Hermana and I had a visit from the Hermana Training Leaders this last week. They are in Barilochi (which is where Hna Terry is!! She is doing great according to the HTLs) and the visit the Hermanas in the area every month to do intercambios. I got to go with Hermana Guerra from Brasil! A whole day without a single word in English, because even if I didn't know it in Spanish, I couldn't ask her! Whew...talk about a brain workout! But it was great, we visited a contact and had a great first lesson!
It is almost spring here, which I was super excited about until I found out that primavera here means more lluvia...ah...but rain is better than windy springs in Portales! ;)
We had almuerzo with Hermana Aguerra from church, who is the music director and once she realized that I was the soprano voice she could hear coming from the congregation and that I play the piano, she pulled out music for me to play and then requested a couple of hymns for me to play and sing. It was great fun, I miss singing and playing! I sing every day, hopefully it isn't annoying for Hna Sparacino! She has her own little radio companion! I am always humming or doing lip trills or something! But it is nothing compared to the hours of singing I did at Eastern! I think this break from heavy training will really make me appreciate it even more!
We did a service project as missionaries in San Martin at Puentes de Luz, which is a facility for disabled people here. It was lovely. We spent the morning helping landscape and plant trees. Thanks to Dad, I have experience with that!
Elder Randall asked me to speak on Missionary Conduct in our Reunion de Distrito this past week. I enjoyed studying it out a bit and what I learned that really what we need is the conduct of Christ. As misisonaries and representatives of Him, we have to show His love.
I have begun to read El Libro de Mormón, gosh, reading the scriptures in Spanish is way slower than English. But I notice different things, usually little words like "siempre" (always). That word really means a lot when you think about it. Not many things always work, but the Lord always loves us. How blessed we are!
I love you all and hope that everything is going splendidly wherever you are!
Ciao
Hermana Hannah Christensen

Two Months

I hope that is how you spell that...but anyways, today marks two months since I reported to the MTC! How crazy is that?
Argentina is slowly warming up, hallelujah! and things are still going well. Hermana Sparacino and I have had some really exciting lessons this week with our investigators. It is such a blessing to help people come unto Christ, which is exactly what we are called to do as missionaries.
Unfortunately, the majority of our investigators didn't come to church this week. We have been studying a lot about the importance of church attendence recently and I am really coming to understand it more. I have always known, but I think I am learning how to apply it to my life better.
Durante uno de nuestros almuerzos, hicimos tortas fritas con la Hermana Godoy! Tortas fritas are basically scones, at least the ones my mom makes, and Hermana Sparacino and I got to get in the kitchen and cook. We made it fun with different shapes como corazones, estrellitas, un oso...that looked goofy, pescados, all sorts! We had a blast!
Our district hike last P-Day was beautiful. I didn't know we were right next to a lake! We hiked all the way up one of the mountains and had a gorgeous overlook of the town and lake. This lunes, tenemos plans to go to the lake and have a picnic.
During one of our talks with our District Leader, we formed a new goal. After our baptism and confirmation, we have the blessing of being able to have the Holy Ghost with us at ALL times, but have we ever managed to actually have His presence throughout an entire day? As humans, we all make mistakes and lose the guidance and presence of the Holy Ghost. But, we are working towards improvement. Life is all about progressing, growing, and learning. So, that is something our district has set as a goal. We are all going to slowly improve so that we can have the Holy Ghost with us more and more and more. As missionaries, we rely very heavily on the promptings of the Holy Ghost as to what to say, who to talk to, where to go, and many other things. It isn't us personally that changes people, it is through the Holy Ghost that people come unto Christ and experience a "mighty change in heart". We just invite them and help them to do just that.
I hope you are all doing splendidly-sending a shoutout of congratulations to my awesome brother and his new bride for their wedding in the temple! I am so thankful for the blessings of the temple in my life, that I can be with my family for eternity and that eventually I can be sealed to my husband for all eternity, to love him and be with him beyond the grave. I see many broken families every day and it makes me so much more thankful for the things I have. I love this gospel.
I love you all, and I hope that somehow, everyday, you are finding a way to come closer to our Savior.

Con amor,
Hermana Christensen

Hermana Hannah Christensen
Argentina Neuquén Mission
Casilla de Correo 321
8300 Neuquén, Neuquén
Argentina

Learning Spanish

..Hola from Argentina!
Espero que ustedes son feliz y buenisimo en los Estados Unidos. Sé que yo amo Argentina! Alright, back to English ;)
San Martín is still cold and rainy, but lovely! Our district has hiking plans in the mountains for the afternoon of our P-Day.
I love the food. Mmm...so tasty! Pasta, bread, delicious pastries :) and not nearly as much beef as I was expecting! I also love that sometimes we have fruit, fresh fruit for dessert! I was talking to Hna Sparacino about Argentina and what our favorite aspects are and other than the people, we both agreed that the food was the winner. We met a Canadian in the correo this morning, who was travelling and had been in South America for 5 months. We decided that we definitely are having the better experience. First, we're missionaries-which is practically the coolest thing ever, and we are really getting to know the people, the culture, the life of Argentina!

The members are fabulous, I have no idea what they are saying a lot of the time, but I think it has all been nice..! I do communicate, although a lot less than in English. Let's just say that I practically have a whole new personality in Argentina because I lack the communication skills. I did have a really great experience in a lesson this week though. We had lunch with a family and the father is not a member. This family loves to chat and I had no idea what was being said, because not only is my Spanish limited, they were talking about weird things not related to the gospel...talk about lost! However, mid way through the spiritual thought that Hna Sparacino was giving, I knew what to say. And when the time came, I began. I shared the testimony of Sidney Rigdon and Joseph Smith in Doctrine and Covenants 76:22-24--And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives! For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father-That by him, and through him, and of him, the words are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God.
As I read, I personally felt the Holy Ghost testifying to me that what I was reading was true. I felt my testimony grow in that moment and as I bore mine I was filled with so much love for this family.
I also add my testimony to those that have been given. I know that God is our Father and that His son, Jesus Christ is our Savior. I love being a missionary, I love doing His work.
Have a great week! I love you all!

Hermana Hannah Christensen

Hermana Hannah Christensen
Argentina Neuquén Mission
Casilla de Correo 321
8300 Neuquén, Neuquén
Argentina

First week in ARGENTINA!!

Well, I'm here in Argentina! This is my future for the next 16 months! We were in the air for about 15 hours total to get to Neuquén. We stayed in the mission home for a couple days doing orientation and paperwork. Thursday afternoon we met our trainers and got assigned to our first area! *Drumroll please*...my trainer is...Hermana Sparacino! from Woodbridge, VA. She has been on a mission for 10 months. She's a sweetie, very quiet and calm...not quite like me! Haha but we are getting along wonderfully, hopefully I'll learn a few things about being a calm person. We are companions here in San Martín. I couldn´t tell you where it is geographically other than south of Neuquén. But it is colder here than Neuquén was, we are in the mountains. And it is rainy. What kind of winter is that? It rained nonstop for the first few days and was freezing...but yesterday and so far today, it is clear, cold, and sunny!
Spanish...well, I definitely don't understand a lot! They don't necessarily talk very fast, but what they do do is mumble. Ah! After taking Diction (someone tell Dr. G, she'll appreciate this) I want to IPA everything and re-teach them how to speak their language! Haha I love them though. The people are very kind. Oh and greeting everyone with a kiss is my new favorite thing. As Hermanas we only kiss greet other women, but just saying, when I come home, everyone is getting greeted by me like that. It is the best! I don't know why I like it so much, I just think it is so sweet!
I've done a bit of contacting with Hna Sparacino. Talk about nerve wracking!! Some houses you clap at the gate, and some houses you knock the door. It is fun, but then I never understand what they are saying when they answer... :/ I'll get there.
*sidenote: This Spanish keyboard really cramps my typing...talk about slow!*
We had lunch (lunch is the big meal of the day here) with a family yesterday after church. Oof...if I eat that much everyday, I'm going to have a problem. According to the other missionaries, and from what I have seen, rejecting seconds...thirds...etc. isn´t acceptable. So after two heaping plates of spaghetti and two pieces of cake and helado, I was stuffed! And we have lunch with families every day this week! Yikes! I'm going to really appreciate my 30 minutes of ejercicios en la mañana!
I hope that I don't have any really bad type-o's in this letter, I'm trying to type fast on a keyboard that is oriented differently than what I'm used to.
I love you all and hope that everyone is doing well! I invite you to do something this week to serve another, whether it be a family member, friend, or stranger: find an opportunity to serve someone and tell me about it!

Con amor,
Hermana Christensen


Hermana Hannah Christensen
Argentina Neuquén Mission
Casilla de Correo 321
8300 Neuquén, Neuquén
Argentina

Almost time for Argentina!

I'm leaving on a jet plane! Don't know when I'll be back again (jk I'll be back in December of 2015)!! WE HAVE FLIGHT PLANS FOR ARGENTINA! I don't actually have a visa in my possession, but I am leaving the country on Monday, July 28! Hermana Terry, Elders McCutcheon, Valenzuela, Gregory, Merrill and I will all be flying from Salt Lake City to Atlanta GA for a 4 hour layover and then off to Buenos Aires! I cannot believe I have been here for 5 weeks and am "ready" to leave. Don't get me wrong, I am so excited to go but sad to leave so many friends here at the comfortable MTC.
In preparation for our flight on Monday, Hermana Terry and I cleaned our apartment (which is really quiet again now that the other 4 Hermanas are in Mexico) and have begun to pack. We barely started the packing process and are nearly done, we just have out the living essentials and neither of us can figure out how or why it took the last four Hermanas 5 days to pack and they still left a few things for us to find...
Every Wednesday, our P-Day, we do service (cleaning around the campus). Our district is pretty much the coolest cleaners. When they sweep, the elders go from building to building "playing Quidditch" complete with commentary in a British accent. Hermana Terry and I are super efficient and end up doing like 5 chores when everyone else does 1-2 and today, we had our reward. There is a room here on West Campus. It is full of pillows, nearly to the ceiling and it is a blast. That is right, the workers took the 7 of us in our district to this secret room and we had a massive pillow swim/fight. It was the best!
We had 10 girls at "Girls' Soccer on Thursdays" last Thursday and all of them said it was their favorite gym experience here, so I think we have something going! I am sad that I only have one more soccer day here though :( I think we'll have a few more and hopefully it continues to happen and keep growing even after we leave. The workers here said they've never had sister missionaries organize a soccer game and they thought it was so cool to see us playing!
Our Branch President's wife, Sister Doman always has a tie contest between the Elders on Sundays and it is the event of the week for them. She doesn't like red ties though so this last Domingo, all of the Elders in our zone wore red ties just for her!
We get 12 new Elders in our zone today which puts us at 30 Elders and 6 Hermanas! Hermana Terry and I are the new Sister Training Leaders and are doing our best to keep track of the whopping 4 other Hermanas (chiste jajajajaja). We love them all and are proud of ourselves for knowing everyone's name and a bit about them. Now we just have to add these next twelve to our brains!
The devotionals this week were good! Tomorrow is Pioneer Day which is huge here in Utah, so on Sunday, T.C. Christensen was the speaker and we heard lots of cool pioneer stories and how they apply to us as missionaries! Yesterday night we had quite a treat! Stanley G Ellis of the 70 was there with his wife and 8 of his 9 children who have all served missions (the youngest is currently in Korea!) They each bore their testimony on missionary work. Talk about strong! I really enjoyed the points that Sister Ellis made, she said
Faith=power
Obedience=the price
Love=the motive
The Spirit=the key
Christ=the reason
Joy=the reward
It is so true. Each of those points are huge attributes of missionary work. Through faith, comes miracles. Speaking of which, the topic for Sunday was Faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement and as I was studying and preparing my talk I came across a scripture in Ether in the Book of Mormon which says: "For if there be no faith among the children of men, God can do no miracle among them; wherefore, he showed not himself until after their faith."
I read that and thought "Peter Pan!" Now before you all go declaring me crazy, let me explain. Peter Pan is my favorite story, not the Disney version, the book and play by J.M. Barrie. Read it this week if you haven't already. In the story, Tinkerbell drinks poison intended for Peter in order to save his life. When Peter realizes she is dying, he explains to Wendy that in order for Tinkerbell to survive, the children in the world have to believe in her. Peter turns to the audience and asks "Do you believe in fairies?" and the audience must declare their belief in fairies so that Tink can live! It is the same with God, we must have faith, we must believe, before we can see miracles. So I marked my scripture, wrote Peter Pan and "I do believe in fairies!" right next to the verse and used the analogy in my talk. And yes, I did talk on Sunday, and everyone loved the Peter Pan part.
My district is singing on Sunday since it is our last chance. We'll be singing The Olive Tree and as of now, we don't have a pianist so I might be singing and playing the piano! We'll see how that goes...
I love and miss you all! I hope that you are having wonderful summers and using this time to grow closer to Christ. I have grown so much in these past few weeks and I am so grateful for this opportunity to serve the Lord. When I came here, I wanted to help others. I still do, but now I know that I am really here to serve the Lord. For it is His work and His glory to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. And it is my job to help him do just that. I love the Lord, I love this gospel. I love the Book of Mormon (which I hope to finish before I get on the plane on Monday). I love missionary work. I know I am supposed to be here and that there are people in Argentina who have been prepared by the Lord to be taught by me.

Until next time, which will be from in Argentina!

Hermana Christensen

argentinamish.blogspot.com

Sister Hannah Noel Christensen
JUL28 ARG-NEU
2023 N 900 E Unit 800
Provo, UT 84602

VISA, soccer, favorite hymns and The Atonement

Hey everyone!

I'm four weeks into my MTC training people! I'm scheduled to leave on the 28th of July, but don't have my visa yet...none of us in our district has gotten one yet! Who knows where I'll be headed on the 28th, hopefully Argentina! 

I didn't write any new jokes this week, I know you are all so upset. That last one was a knee slapper, right? 

I think I've mentioned this before, but the rule that says sister missionaries can't play soccer with Elders is really getting me down. Never fear though, Hermana Terry and I have started Girl Soccer on Thursdays! Last week was definitely a bust...we had two other sister missionaries there. But that is because all of the other sisters in our zone had something come up! 4 of them were moving to different apartments, 1 was getting her visa for Mexico, the other three were at the doctor. So tomorrow, we'll have at least 8 more there. Our elders still tease us about our 4 person soccer game :/

One of the ten elders in our new district is from the Roswell Stake! I got so excited! Scott Wilson, from Roswell 2nd ward. I don't actually know him, but I recognized him and we've chatted a bit about good ole New Mexico! 

Every Sunday, the sister missionaries get to watch Music and the Spoken Word broadcast before Relief Society-which has been such a wonderful experience. All of you know I love music and choir-y things and getting outside music is great! But this last Sunday, the broadcasting system in West Campus was down so instead of watching and listening to people sing, we sang. We had a hymn testimony meeting. One by one, sisters stood up and shared their favorite hymn and bore their testimony. After each one, we sang the favorite hymn. One of the fastest ways to invite the Spirit is through hymns. What a spiritual experience we had. It was definitely my favorite. There were so many sisters sharing their favorite song that I didn't get to.  But I did bear my testimony. My favorite hymn is number 72 in the LDS hymnbook-Praise to the Lord, the Almighty. It is such a powerful hymn of praise, my favorite line says, "Hast thou not seen, all that thou needeth hath been granted in what He ordaineth?" I know that everything on this earth is because of Jesus Christ. We may not see Him, but we see everything because of Him. I love my Lord. I was reading in the Book of Mormon the other day in Alma 26, and received yet another testimony of the love He has for us. In verses 17,19, 20 it says:

Who could have supposed that our God would have been so merciful as to have snatched us from our awful, sinful, and polluted state?...Why did he not consign us to an awful destruction, yea, why did he not let the sword of his justice fall upon us, and doom us to eternal despair? Oh, my soul, almost as it were, fleeth at the thought. Behold he did not exercise his justice upon us, but in his great mercy hath brought us over that everlasting gulf of death and misery, even to the salvation of our souls.

Wow. God has so much love for us that He allows us to make mistakes. He let us come to earth and make wrong decisions, decisions that lead us away from Him. But through all that, He loves us so much to provide mercy. He sent His Son, Jesus Christ to be our Savior and Redeemer. He allowed His Only Begotten to die for His other children, us, who are far from perfect. He loves us that much and I know it. 

Our Sunday devotional speaker was Richard I Heaton. He talked about charity, the pure love of Christ. He invited us to ask ourselves, WWJF, What Would Jesus Feel? Something I've learned a lot here at the MTC is to have charity. I have felt the love of God, the love He has for us, I feel it in my heart when I teach my investigators.  

Last night, our speaker at devotional was L. Edward Brown. He reminded us that as missionaries, we have taken Christ's name upon us. We are His representatives and that should not be taken lightly. In our devotional review as a district, Elder McCutcheon said something that really stuck out to me, he said: "Because we have taken His name upon us, the phrase 'taking His name in vain' applies to more than just our words. It applies to our actions." Takes on a whole new meaning doesn't it? I'm trying to really take it to heart and always do things that are pleasing to the Lord. I'm no where near perfect, but it is through little goals that we improve! 

Here are some pictures of our happenings this week:

Provo Temple with my district!

Hermana Terry and I with the Hermanas in the district just younger than us at the Provo Temple!

I love and miss you all!

Love, Hermana Christensen 

Fouth of July pictures

The Beautiful Provo Temple :)

Singing Battle Hymn of the Republic on the 4th!

Patriotic Companionship!

Stadium of Fire Fireworks!

The Zone! Before our oldest district left... we get 10 new elders joining us today!!

Storytime with Hermano Castro!

xoxo
Hma C, Aunt Hannah, Awesome sister, etc. :)
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Music at the MTC!

Whoa...we're halfway there! Whoa! Living on a prayer!
3 weeks down, 3 weeks left at the MTC! Hermana Terry and I are going crazy with excitement, nerves and as always, Spanish! Sometimes I still can't believe I'm a missionary! But here I am, learning lots and growing so much!
Our 4th of July was pretty good here at the MTC; we had classes and study time like normal all day, but in the evening-we partied...well...for missionaries. That means a devotional for those of you wondering how missionaries party. We had a devotional on freedom and then we watched 17 Miracles-a movie about the miracles that happened to some of the pioneers as the crossed the plains to go to Utah-while we waited for the fireworks! We got ice cream and a firework show from BYU's Stadium of Fire! It was fun! I love the 4th of July. We are so blessed to have our freedoms, both in this country and the freedom from God to make decisions.

On Sunday, we had a "Mission Conference" where we heard about some changes in the roles of missionaries! Now, we get to remain in contact with our converts after we leave the area and are supposed to remain in contact with them for at least a year! Not only do we teach people and bring them to Christ, we help them stay close to Him. Each new member needs a 1) Friend  2) Responsibility/Calling in the church and 3) Nourishment in the gospel.

Our Sunday Devotional speaker was Josh Wright-a pianist! We were treated to some very beautiful piano music: Chopin Ballade Number 1, La Campanella (I'm not sure if I got that word right...I wrote what I thought I heard him say...), his own arrangement of Clair de Lune and How Great Thou Art (BEAUTIFUL!), and All Creatures of Our God and King. It was such a blessing to hear that music. I miss music so much! I'm surprised my companion hasn't gotten tired of my constant humming and singing :) She claims to like it actually!

Tuesday's Devotional and devotional review with our district were an answer to mine and Hma T's prayers! We've been having a hard time being with 5 18 and 19 year old boys all day. They are quite literally like brothers. And they don't have any problem being annoying :) but all of them stayed awake during the devotional (a first) and then after, during our brief discussion, the Spirit was so present. Each one of us bore testimony of how we felt the Holy Ghost testify to us earlier in the evening and each of us was touched by each other's words. As I bore my testimony, I felt the Spirit stronger than ever before in my life and I know it was because it was testifying the truthfulness of what I was saying. I know the Holy Ghost is a comforter and testifier of truths. The speaker in the devotional was Elder Neil L. Anderson of the Quorum of the Twelve and he spoke on the Holy Ghost. His wife made a comment in her testimony that REALLY stuck out to me. She said "Sometimes I sit and think about the blessing of the Holy Ghost, and I think how wonderful it is that we have the gift to have a member of the Godhead with us at all times." She said that and I was struck, I had never thought of it that way. When we receive the gift of the Holy Ghost after baptism, we literally have the gift and ability TO HAVE A MEMBER OF THE GODHEAD BE WITH US, ALWAYS. I had to say that in all caps because that is how it came to me. With such strength and power in that thought. I love this gospel and the blessings it brings me.

Funny story: last P-day, Hma Terry and I were back at our apartment; she was writing letters and I was laying in bed chatting with her. I started to doze off and as I did the weirdest thing happened. My brain decided to write a joke. As it finished the punch line, it woke me up and I literally sat up and looked at Hma Terry and said, "I just wrote a joke." And we both just busted up laughing because it was so random, she thought I was asleep and then out of nowhere I had a joke! After I told it to her, we laughed and laughed and laughed! But when we stopped neither of us could decide if it was actually funny or just the whole situation was what made it funny...So here it is:
Farmer Brown's vet was out at the farm doing his yearly check up of all the animals. After assuring Farmer Brown that they were all healthy and doing well, he began to leave. Before he could, Farmer Brown stopped him and said, "Wait, would ya look at my cat, she keeps getting pregnant and I'm tired of having lots of little kittens running all over the place."
The vet thought for a moment and then asked, "Why don't you just get her fixed Farmer Brown?"
And Farmer Brown said "Because! Before you begin fixing others, you must first fix yourself!"

Yes, that was it. And yes, we've come to the conclusion that really what was funny was the situation. Everyone in our zone might have helped us realize that when none of them laughed...
We were sad to see our oldest district go this week. They're all in Mexico now!! We get 10 new elders today though!

I know God is our loving Heavenly Father. I know He wants us to be happy, and I know that we can be happy through His plan for us. I know that plan includes this life on earth, and although it is very difficult at times "It will all be worth it in the end" (17 Miracles) when we have endured it well. I know the Book of Mormon is true and is another testament of Christ. I know that we can get "nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book" (Joseph Smith). I read it every day and every time I do, I receive a confirmation that Christ died for me and atoned for my sins. I love my Savior and am forever indebted to Him. I am so grateful for this opportunity I have to help others come unto Christ.

I love you all!
Hermana Hannah Christensen

argentinamish.blogspot.com

Hermana Hannah Noel Christensen
JUL28 ARG-NEU
2023 N 900 E Unit 800
Provo, UT 84602

Pictures

The District!

The field is white and ready to harvest... ba dum..tsh!

Me and Hermana T outside the Provo Temple

Awkward no-touching picture with our favorite teacher:)

ARGENTINA, HERE WE COME!!

Game Day Baby!!

Hola Amigos!

This week has been full of ups and downs! But what a great week it has been overall! Sad news and crazy things first: our teacher Hermano Graff has been transferred to teach another district :( along with losing him, we also lost his alter ego Alfonso, who was our "investigator". Our zone is sickly and falling apart! Elder Skalla had a hernia removed, Elder Garnett had an appendectomy, Elder Marshall had an absyss from a dry socket, Elder Merling had a cold, Hermana Jensen had a kidney infection, and two other sisters had to go to the doctor for other illnesses. And I managed to hyper extend my knee during a relay race to 'reduce stress'. Everyone is slowly getting back to full health though! One of the districts in our zone leaves next week! Hma Terry and I are sad to see them go, they are hilarious and we're all best friends now. Also, Hma Terry and I have discovered that we have the worst age perception ever. Pretty much all of the elders in the other districts are younger than we thought, some are even younger than us! Last week on our prep. day, Hma Terry and I somehow managed to not know how to work the laundry machines or dryers at the laundry place...which resulted in only half of her clothes getting cleaned and all of our laundry drying in our apartment. It looked like we lived in a clothing shop with everything laid out to dry. You would think that seeing clothes all over our apartment would make us fail our room inspection, but no. While we did fail, the note said it was because of our bathroom, even though it was definitely the cleanest room in the apartment! We laughed for a while about that. Another sad fact: sister missionaries can't play soccer with the elders. Our elders have decided they like that and have taken to playing soccer without us every day this week. :( 

Hermana Terry and I loved singing in church so much that we sang in one of our lessons to our investigator Lorena! In the intro to the hymnal it says that one of the easiest way to invite the Spirit is by singing hymns. Amen. After we finished singing (in Espanol), I could feel the Holy Ghost much stronger than most of the times when we stumbled through the lessons speaking broken Spanish. Speaking of language, both Hma Terry and I felt like it was a rough semana (week) for Spanish. While we are getting close to understanding most everything, the speaking part of learning a language is struggling. Neither of us felt like we really were learning as much as we did the first week. So we have a new language plan. We now learn 20 palabras (words) a day. We write them on a notecard and quiz each other all day. Woohoo! 

Devotionals!! Twice a week, all the missionaries in the MTC get together to listen to a speaker. It might be one of my favorite times during the week. They've all been so good so far!! No, I haven't seen the prophet; being on West Campus, we don't see hardly anyone. But so far, I've heard D. Todd Christofferson speak, Janice Kapp Perry speak, Stephen B. Allen (managing director of the missionary dept), and Lowell M Snow (former member of the 70). Each speaker has had a profound and very spiritual message. Also, after the devotional on Sunday, we watched a video of David A Bednar's "Character of Christ". Oh my goodness people, what an amazing message! I invite all of you to listen to it, watch it, read it, whatever! It has a message for everyone! He talks about becoming more Christlike by putting of the "natural man". If anything, you have to watch it to find out who he compares the "natural man" to! It is the best!! 

I really loved what Brother Snow said last night in his talk. (Side note, Sister Doman-who is the wife of my Branch President- says all the time "Everyone just wants to be loved!") Brother Snow said something last night that ties in to that statement wonderfully. Everyone just wants to be loved, and "Those who are lost are without affection." As a missionary of the Lord, I am finding those who are lost. I am teaching them that Heavenly Father loves them, that because He loves them, He provided a Savior, His own son, Jesus Christ to die for all of our imperfections so that we can be worthy to return to Him. What an astounding blessing! Brother Snow also gave 5 points to help us become truly converted to the Lord. 

1. Choose Him. Choose the Lord

2. Take His spirit for your guide.

3. Be a true disciple

4. Help Him do His work and exercise His power.

5. Seek to have His image in your countenance.

Beautiful words, aren't they?

Hermana Terry and I are practically best friends now. We were talking last night about ourselves and people in our lives and she exclaimed, "We are twins! We are literally the same person!" I'm so lucky to have such a great companion who I get along great with-we're quite literally together 24/7. 

Sister Doman also told us a story about her son DJ, who now plays football for BYU. Game days were always his favorite, the excitement of having a game that night, putting on his jersey, listening to music to pump him up, getting ready with the rest of the team. Looking in the mirror and seeing himself in his football jersey and saying to his reflection "It's game day, baby."  All those things were the best feelings he experienced. He loved game days best of all. But when he served his mission, he would get ready in the morning and put on his white shirt and tie, and his name tag. And then he would look in the mirror and see himself as a missionary, a representative of Jesus Christ, and the feelings he felt when he looked in the mirror as a missionary by far surpassed those he had as a football player. I have the same experience every morning when I get ready. I put on my skirt, or my dress and get ready like normal. But when I put on my name tag that says Hermana Christensen La Iglesia de Jesucristo do los Santos de los Ultimos Dias, I am overwhelmed with joy. The gospel is a message of great peace and joy and I am blessed to have it in my life, but now I want to share that peace and joy with others. It's game day baby. It's time to spread the word.

Lots of love,

Hermana Christensen

argentinamish.blogspot.com

Sister Hannah Noel Christensen

JUL28 ARG-NEU

2023 N 900 E Unit 800

Provo, UT 84602

P.S. There's this awesome thing called Dear Elder where you can type up a letter and have it printed and delivered to me here at the MTC that very day if you want to send me a letter without spending money on a stamp :) I'm pretty sure you just need to know my address (which I conveniently typed for you just above this post script). Love you all! :)

Hey everyone!

I've now been out for a whole week and I am loving it! The MTC (Missionary Training Center) is amazing! Everyone is SO happy and helpful! Since I'm learning Spanish, I live on West Campus and all of us are Spanish speakers. Every time we pass someone it' "Hola Hermanas!" and "Hola Elderes!" It's great! My companion is Hermana Terry (FYI, Hermana=Sister). She's from South Jordan, UT and I love her! I don't know how many times a day I say, "Mi companera es muy inteligente!" I don't know how to get all the accents and Spanish symbols on this keyboard so they're missing, but I know they are, it isn't that my Spanish is slightly off :) She is fun, loving, way smart, and super nice! We're the only Hermanas in our District, we have five Elders as well and we love every single one of them! They are the best. And our zone? Super cool! We all get along great and help each other out and laugh together and all sorts of good things. 

The food is...well, edible. I definitely miss mom's cooking. Thankfully Hma. Terry and I have stronger stomachs than the Elders, who go to the bathroom way more than we do... :/ Since all of us here on West Campus will be going to soccer oriented countries, every once in a while we go to eat in the cafeteria and scores from the World Cup are posted next to the menu. 

My favorite thing about the MTC is definitely the environment. I haven't had a bad day yet. I think it might be impossible in such a spiritual atmosphere and when everyone around you is positive about life. The life here is extremely busy; we're up at 6:30 and in bed at 10:30 with hours of class, language study, personal study, companion study, lessons (in which we're teaching and only speaking Spanish!!!) and the occasional walk around to stretch and regain focus. The focus part is mainly for our baby Elders who just graduated High School in May and get a bit fidgety, but we love them anyways!

Love, love, love, how often am I going to use that word in this email? Who knows, probably a ton more after this. It's one of the things I'm really learning how to do. One of our very first lessons was on learning how to love. Missionaries serve people, but how can you truly serve if you don't love? It's very important. In devotional Tuesday night, Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve quoted Doctrine and Covenants 18:10 "Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God." I've always loved that scripture but I am really learning how to apply it in my life cada dia. You wouldn't think that you could grow to love someone in as little as 3 days, but by day 3 I definitely had a strong love and care for everyone in my district. 

Our teacher is Hermano Graff-he just got off his mission 7 weeks ago!! He is fresh off the field and so eager to teach us. He is the best. He speaks with so much power and is a great Spanish teacher . He works really hard to help us learn and boy are we learning. Hermano Graff made our day when he told Hma Terry and I that our Spanish is way advanced for how long we've been here and that he is extremely impressed with us and grateful for our hard work. We felt like our Spanish was pretty lame that day, but those words were such a comfort. 

On Sunday's devotional, Janice Kapp Perry was the speaker, and we sang her arrangement of "As Sisters in Zion" and "Army of Helaman" but with new words to "As Sisters in Zion" that applied to us sister missionaries.

The sisters of Zion are called to God's labor,

We willingly serve Him with spirit and might.

We go to the nations with truth everlasting,

We teach of our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Hma Terry and I are singing on Sunday! And we sang in the MTC choir for the Tuesday Devotional. Brother Egget was a really energetic conductor and so funny! It definitely wasn't the same as singing at Eastern, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. 

Thanks to Grandma Donna and Ralph for putting me up the two days before I entered the MTC, I loved it! And for everyone who knows how big of a deal this is-I beat Grandma at Aggravation. Twice. :) Thanks to everyone who emailed me, it brightened my day to see how many emails I had to read :) Thanks for your love and support.

I miss everyone at home but I know that this is where I am supposed to be. I have felt the Holy Ghost testify truths to me stronger than ever before. I know that the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is on this earth and I am so grateful I have the opportunity to share the blessings it offers with others in the world. I know that God loves each and every one of us because we are His children (Romans 8:16). I know that Christ came to the earth and suffered for our sins. I know that because of His Atonement, I can return to live with my Father in Heaven. I know that the Book of Mormon is true and from God. I am grateful to have been raised in the gospel to know these truths, but I am even more grateful that I can share them with others. 

Love, 

Hermana Christensen

P.S. My mailing address while I'm here at the MTC is:

Sister Hannah Noel Christensen
JUL28  ARG-NEU
2023 N 900 E Unit 800
Provo UT 84602

and I love handwritten letters :)