Hola

Hello~

I only have 37 minutes! We have an hour to email- there is a local library we go to... but we have to email the president... and then i have to read all the emails. . . so i'll do my best to fill you in...

First of all- we had a mission-wide conference call with President Hale last night after conference. We were all expecting it to be about the new temple- but unfortunately it was some sad news. He was experiencing loss of sensation in one of his feet, and after a series of MRI's and appointments, they found a tumor in his spinal column. They don't know if it is cancerous or not- but he has done his homework and found the best doctor in the nation to perform the long risky surgery. He flies to Salt Lake on Wednesday and will have the surgery Thursday in Provo. He has been working closely with the First Presidency and the 12- he is good friends with lots of them. He told us in the phone call that they have been praying specifically for him and the Florida Ft. Lauderdale Mission in all of their quorum and presidency meetings. When he said that I was just overwhelmed with the spirit! He received a blessing and said this was an attempt of the adversary to stop the work in Florida- but that it was the worst thing he could do. This trial will be a blessing to the mission and we will see the results immediately. We have already united as a mission since the call and it has been an amazing feeling. After the conference call, our zone (we made the call together) had a prayer- it was such an amazing experience... really so neat. I know that the Lord's will will be done, and hopefully all will go well and he can recover and finish off his mission. Please pray for him...

I'm sure you are ready for spring. Hopefully it will warm up there soon. It's 80 degrees here!  Conference was great! We watched all four sessions at the church. We had James come-(the one in the wheelchair who was my first discussion) - he looked so nice in his suit and he was able to walk with the help of a special walker. It was very humbling to see him walk in. We have been inviting him to church every lesson but "he wasn't going to make any promises".  One evening I called him to check up on him and he said... "I was just about to call you! I found a solution". We weren't sure what his solution was for- or what his problem was but we knew it was something good...So we went to his house and found out what he had to say. We have been working with him to pray specifically for what he needs- and he said he prayed and received an answer. He said " I am going to spend the day with you on Sunday!" We were thrilled! He said.. "Once I had the desire to try and figure out a way to come, it just came to me... my eyes fell upon my walker. I look at it every day and pass my it- but it wasn't until I asked for a way to go to church that it came to me that I could use that and walk the couple of feet into the church bldg. from the car." It was amazing! We were planning on riding the bus with him, but he wasn't thrilled about that because it is hard to maneuver his jazzy on the bus... We were just so excited that he solved this problem! He came to conference! He watched the 1st session at the chapel, and the second one at the bishops house. It was great!

I had my first baptism last night. Jed from Haiti. A brother from the ward baptized him. It was a great night. He is such an amazing polite man. He just is glowing and I know he will be a strong member.

Mom, we do have a car- but only have 800 miles a month, so we just use that to get to church and meetings and stuff. We use our bikes as much as possible because we can talk to people more. I haven't got my bike yet- it is here, but we live far from the office so I am just borrowing one until we have a chance to get up there.

We are trying to work even harder this week to meet the mission goals. We need the members help though- to go teach with us and stuff. You guys should try and set a goal to go out and teach with the missionaries-- lots of times we have to teach James outside because we can't go in his house (just the 2 of us) ... so you guys should let them know when you are available to help!

We contacted a guy from Cuba last week who invited us to his daughter's birthday party.  He and his wife were really nice.  They went all out- had music, food, the whole 9 yards.  It made me feel like I wasn't even in the U.S. !

That's cool you saw me in the choir on the MTC special- I didn't get to see it- I was bummed!

Glad to hear that Matt could come up. Tell him I miss him and love him. Tyson too!

Some of my favorite talks from conference were:

C. Scott Grow- on the atonement

D. Todd Christofferson- correction

Paul V Johnson- trials.

I loved that Orson Whitney quote you sent mom- that was great.

So dearelder letters still work- but try and send them out Monday or Tuesday so there is maybe a chance that I will get them before Monday- then I'll have more time to email if I can read them before!

The Spanish is still not really coming along. We don't speak it that much- so it is hard for me to improve. Pray that I will have the courage to try to speak when I have the chance, and that I can learn a little more each day. Once the language barrier is gone it will be so much better!

I forgot to tell you that the President gave us a pen when we got here that says, "How has the Lord blessed your life today?" and challenged us to write in our journals daily... you should do it too!

I am about out of time. I love you and miss you all so much. Thank you for the prayers and the support.

I know that I was called to this mission for a reason. I am so grateful to be here and to be learning so much each day. I love this work, and I love that I can be an instrument in God's hands to bring people closer to Christ.

xoxo

Hermanita Tyson.