Nothing to Write About

Okay, maybe I have one or two things to write about.

This week Hermana Lyons and I went on a diet.  Don't worry, I haven't gotten too fat (most of my clothes are even a little big), but I was eating a few too many cookies and hallullas con queso maybe for the good of my waistline....  So we decided that on P-Days we can eat whatever we want (obviously) and we still have to eat whatever we are given in any Chilean household (ditto on the obviously thing) and we also have free reign on the banana cake with lemon icing (or any other delicious treat created by the mission home cook/cleaning lady, Hermana Lily) in President's house (we don's spend that much time there, but it's still a good just-in-case rule!).  The rest of the week there is no rule about how MUCH we can eat, but we are only allowed to eat things that are good for us.  So if I want to eat 20 apples in one day, I can.  But no chocolate or cookies or Chilean bread made with lard, no matter how delicious it might be!  It wasn't too hard, though.

Something crazy happened in our house this week.  On Tuesday Hermana Lyons and I had stopped by the house to pick up the dirty laundry so we could drop it off at the home of the sister in our ward who does it for us, when Hermana Frandsen called and said not to take Hermana Álvarez's laundry bag.  I asked why, and she said, "my companion got cambioed.  She's leavingtomorrow."  I asked who her new companion (Hermana Frandsen's) would be.  She said, "They said maybe Hermana Call, but I'm not sure," and they didn't know either where Hermana Álvarez would be headed.  It was crazy (as previously stated).  So they next day after district class Hermana's Álvarez and Hermana Frandsen went to the office to do the companion switch.  When we came home after lunch, turned out our new housemate IS Hermana Call (don't be fooled by her name or her gringa face, she's from Mexico) and that she and Hermana Álvarez had just switched companions and areas.  Mid-week and just four days after a regular cambio.  Kind of strange, but sometimes the mission is just like that.  So now we are four English speakers, though Hermana Call says she isn't sure which is her "native" language.

Two other things happened that same day.  One:  Hermana Frandsen got a package from her family that they had been talking about in their emails for WEEKS.  What was in it?  Only a ten-pound tub of Nutella.  It's huge.  I've really never seen anything like it.  Hermana Frandsen was a little frustrated that it came the week we decided to go on a diet, but I did eat some of it today.  And we made Nutella cookies this morning at President's house. They were great.  The other weird thing that happened that day is that on their way home from the office after the comp switch, the assistants were driving them out to Hualqui and they got in a car accident.  Hermana Frandsen smacked into the seat in front of her and has had a pretty bruise on the bridge of her nose for the past week, but other than that everyone is okay.  And so is the assistant's truck.

The last highlight of this week that I want to mention is that this morning Hermana Arrington invited the four of us and Hermana Álvarez and her companion, Hermana Mena (I know her from my very first days in the mission.  She was in Lib while I was in Cordillera, so we saw each other ocassionally on P-days and then she was Hermana Fajardo's companion the transfer before we both got sent to San Javier.  But she goes home this transfer.  Boo.), over to their house to cook in their awesome kitchen with granite countertops and a Bosch and a convection oven and stuff.  We made Nutella cookies and Hermana Pulsipher's featherweight rolls and Hermana Lily (mission home "maid") made us Cafe Rio salads for lunch.  With black beans and barbecue pork.  It was the best!   There should be pics coming soon!  It's always so nice to cook in a real kitchen.  Our oven in Hualqui burns everything to a crisp on the bottom, no matter how high up we put the rack, so this convection oven was a refreshing change!

Well, that is all I have for today.  Except for your commitment, of course!  In conjunction with reading the Book of Mormon every day (how are we doing???), I want to invite you all to be SO EXCITED about GENERAL CONFERENCE!!!!!!!!  And then watch it.  :)  Best commitment ever, I think.  Book of Mormon and Conference.  We're stoked.  Hermana Frandsen says it's like missionary Christmas.  It is pretty exciting for us.

Thanks so much for all your love and support and prayers and packages (don't worry, it'll all get eaten even if we only do it on P-days!).  You're all the best!

Lovelovelove,

Herman