HAPPY Almost HALLOWEEN

 We got to go to the temple today too! It's crazy how peaceful and amazing it is even though you're surrounded by the most busy city. So incredible.

On Oct 29, 2014, at 4:28 PM, brittany.smart@myldsmail.net wrote:

¡Hola mi familia y amigos!

     Another great week here in the Big Apple! The weather has been a bit crazy from everything to crazy rain and wind to hot and sunny! Welcome to fall:) the leaves are finally starting to change though and our church (which is kind of like home base) is across from a park filled with gorgeous trees so it's super beautiful! 

    So this week me and Sis Baker were walking home and she told me this really cool analogy that fits perfectly with this week so I'm going to share! Sometimes missionary work feels like you're running up the downward escalator and getting no where and putting forth so much effort. There are little moments when you realize you're making progress, and sometimes it's really fun, but then sometimes like this week you're able to make a huge jump up and it's so exciting! We had one of those amazing jumps forward this week. We were able to take two members with us to our lesson with Gloria and Fernanda because we were taking Fanny and then Maria wanted to come too last minute! We talked about sabbath day, fasting, tithing and it was a good lesson with really good testimony. But then as we were wrapping up and asking Gloria if she felt like she had been receiving answers she paused and told us everything that was worrying here with not following the catholic traditions of her family and just everything, Maria was able to share an amazing testimony of her experience with prayer and then we stopped and we all knelt down together and she gave a specific prayer asking if this is what they were supposed to be doing and wow. The spirit in their apartment were so strong and we were crying a little and it was such a powerful moment. I'm not sure what's in their future but I love them and sir family so much! It's so incredible the power of the spirit! Personal revelation is real. I know that with all my heart that we can communicate with our Heavenly Father and receive answers to all our questions in life!! 

     So Monday was a day of food....I know I've told you that the Spanish program gets fed a ton but it's been a little while since we've eaten a ton. But Monday Leo made us a delicious brunch after district meeting, then we ate pizza at a members house, AND THEN immediately after ate tacos at another members house and luckily took the tamales on the road. That's just one day. It's crazy here haha.

    Yesterday was a true New York experience! We went downtown for the chiropractor for sis Baker and saw crazies as usual, then we did this awesome scavenger hunt for Halloween/ APF where we street contact so many different kinds of people! We talked to this amazing lady at a bus stop who was super interested and loved how young we were and sharing messages about Christ and in the middle got interrupted by this crazy guy asking for food, we also stopped this amazing family in the subway and the daughter was adorable and kept showing us her tooth she lost, I stopped two families on the street in Spanish haha it was hard, met a man from Africa on the subway. Also we went to do a lookup from a lady that the elders had met...telling us she was super awesome and ready! So we get in the door and she's kind of interesting...she asked us at one point if we only spoke English. But we had been speaking to her in spanish the whole time. And she didn't understand that we spoke two languages? any way throughout the lesson she just seems super confused and then we look down and look up like half a second later and she's asleep. We try and make a little noise, and nothing. I had to try to contain laughter and we both just looked at each other like ummm what do we do? Haha. Luckily a little while later she opens her eyes and we kind of just continue and try to wrap up. Needless to say she is a very confused older lady. She was super excited to pray, but thought she had to pay us to come back, and when we invited her to church said she was catholic? It was crazy, and then the chair I was sitting on as we put it back the cushion part falls off and she tells us this whole story about where the nails went. It was an experience hahaha. And then later that night going home on the dyckman subway stop there was human poop just chilling on the platform. So yeah. Yesterday was a welcome to New York! Haha seriously though New York is amazing and wonderful and the people are awesome! I just love meeting so many people and knowing they're children of God and want to just share that love with everyone! It's great. 

      Two quick things before I wrap up with pictures! Sunday was the primary program and so adorable! Little kids singing and saying things in Spanish is the cutest. AND we got the huge surprise of a new ward mission leader being called! He seems really excited and wanting to do more! So hopefully we can get the ward super involved :) 

     Well I hope y'all have an awesome week, stay safe on Halloween, share the gospel with someone, and keep smiling! Hope y'all know how much I know that this gospel is true and how much I love it with all my heart. It's so exciting to see that light come into people's lives more fully! I absolutely love being a missionary and serving the people of New York! The church is so true! Love you all:) 

xoxo

Hermana Smart