SEMANA 56!!!

Hola Todos!

Wow what a crazy week!  This week was a lot better than last week! Partially because I wasn't sick, but also because we taught SO many more lessons! We taught ten more lessons this last week than we taught two weeks ago. We are finding people in their houses and are finally seeing some progress!  

(haha) It was a great week, but it started off with a little craziness... (haha) After we wrote our families on Monday, we were on our way to the church to play games with the other Missionaries in our district... We were REALLY late because our air conditioning has been broken and we had it fixed last Monday (Thank HEAVEN... it was so freaking hot last week) So anyways, we´re walking down the street on our way to catch the bus, and Hermana Ball conveniently remembers that we need to call a member to confirm family night that night, she starts rummaging through her bag to find our phone and steps RIGHT in a giant hole!! (hahahaa) She started screaming like she was dying, and running around like a chicken with her head cut off... I was just laughing cause I could see she obviously hadn't twisted it... she was just in a lot of pain. Turns out she has a nice cut on the back of her ankle. It looks pretty painful I guess, but not painful enough to get stitches. We went back to the house frustrated and I cleaned and bandaged the cut and we finally made it to our district activity. The crappy part about having a hurt companion is when one of you´s hurt you´re both hurt by fault... She´s been really great about it though, luckily! (haha) There are so many Hermanas that would want to stay home and rest but not us! We left that very night to our family night and have worked full days every day, she´s been in a lot of pain though, so we´re kinda taking it slow... Anyways, that´s not the end of the story... (haha) Remember how we got our air fixed? We got home Monday night and turned the air on, we planned and then I started cooking dinner. (Not really dinner just egg sandwiches) When all of a sudden the power goes out! No lights, and worse NO air conditioning... even worse than that, our little fans didn't work! It was SO HOT!! We were just like, "WE are NOT sleeping without Air AGAIN!" (haha) So we went and talked to our landlord who lives right below us and he called the electric company. He told us someone would come to fix it soon. (haha) Keep in mind at this point it´s like 9:55 and we need to be in bed by 10:30... so, we wait and wait and wait and no one showed up... finally at like 10:40 we decided we were going to have to sleep in the heat. True missionary style, we took one of our mattresses outside on our deck and set up camp on that. SLEEPOVER!!! (hah) but really it was the worst... We were just lying there half asleep dying... At about midnight, I rolled over and saw the LIGHTS ON IN the house!!! (haha) I scared Hermana Ball half to death waking her up and we both ran inside and slept in the nice AC! (haha) It was so funny! The mission´s the best! 

Really though, after Monday things were a lot better! The Lord kept sending us tender mercies all week! In the beginning of the week, we were walking around in the heat talking about how much we missed Otter Pops from the states and how great they were. Then, we were out doing contacts on Wednesday and it was blistering hot! We ended up contacting a couple who let us sit down and start sharing with them! When out of the blue, the lady gets up and brings us each two frozen Popsicles that look and taste just like otter pops! It was the greatest! We were both more than happy with the two, but she then goes and comes back with a box of 40 of them!! We were so stoked! We stuck 'em in our freezer and have been eating them all week long!!  

Also, I would like you all to know the four years of piano lessons I took without hardly ever practicing have NOT gone to waste! About a month ago, I found a simplified hymn book in the house of some of the Hermanas and have started playing a little on P-days, and while we wait for all the Paraguayos to get to their meetings in the church (they´re always late). We had a piano player in our ward, but he moved recently so last Sunday we sang without a piano... (haha) It was awful. Think 80 tone deaf people singing without a piano... It was pretty bad. So, after I told Rita (the Hermana that leads the music) I could probably play this last Sunday... She was like, ¨Sure it's always better with the Piano.¨ Thing is, I´m not really that good, but I really applied myself practiced Monday and for like 15 minutes before our meetings during the week, and when Sunday came around, I played the piano during sacrament meeting!!! Whod´ve thought I´d ever do that in my life... (haha) It was so funny! So mom, all those piano lessons weren't a waste... They prepared me to play piano here in Paraguay. :)

So yeah, that's a few of the things that happened last week! We're working so hard and finding tons of people! Also, Pablo´s doing a lot better! He went and talked to a psychiatrist last week and they told him he doesn't need to go to the clinic, he´s just gonna go talk to this councilor and work things out at home! It´s going to be such a great thing! He´s doing so much better. He´s gone eight whole days without a drop of alcohol! Thank you all so much for all of your prayers! I love the mission. It´s such a great experience! (haha) Can´t believe General Conference is next week! We´re so stoked, it´s like a holiday in the mission! Love you all! Have a great week!

Hermana Austin