Livin Dominican: We're not in Nibaje anymore

It is official... I love Puerto Plata. Basically everything is different but I still appreciate all of it´s differentness. We spent the morning at the beach today as a zone. There are the really popular ones and then others that basically no one knows about so we were the only ones there. It also helped that it was pouring down rain half of the morning. We all just laughed at the irony that we sweat and want to die of heat all week long and then the one day that it cools off and decides to rain...is the day that we decided to spend at the beach. It was still really pretty though and we had a lot of fun playing volleyball and soccer and taking pictures. I always love playing soccer here because it´s always me and a ton of Latin elders. The other sisters and the American elders said they were usually kicked out of the game because they can´t hold there own. I am pleased to say that yours truly was one of the captains today. haha.

I´m still getting to know the area and the members/investigators but things are going well and we had a lot of interesting experiences this week. The first one was with a guy named Gregori. We met him last Wednesday when we were visiting a member. We walked in to share a message and he started to hit on me. She reprimanded him but he would not stop. We didn´t stay long and just explained why we are here and what we do and then invited him to church. A few days later we were at the store eating some lunch and he popped up again. He just pulled up a chair to our table and sat down. He kept trying to pester us and so we just kept turning the conversation to the gospel. We were able to teach him a little bit about prophets there in La Sirena and invited him to stake conference the next day. To my grand surprise he showed up at the stake center early the next morning. The elders came up to us and asked how he had come. Apparently they have been trying to teach him for a few months now. They told us that it was near impossible and I just smiled and said that I always like a challenge. Monday we had another lesson with him in the member´s home. As we started out he was so irreverent. He was talking during the prayer and laughing right afterward. I stopped and explained a little strongly that it was not ok to do that. He tried to crack another joke and I told him that my purpose here is not to do anything else other than try and help other people get to know their savior and change their lives for the better. I was really blunt and straightforward and I think that took everyone by surprise including myself. We went back on Tuesday with the elders to teach again and there was an amazing change. We had warned them that it was still a little bit of a fight to get him to focus and not be disrespectful but when we started the lesson things were so different. He still isn´t the ideal investigator but he listened yesterday and didn´t make any jokes during the lesson. He even remembered some of the things that we talked about. We left and the elders asked me again what in the world we had done. All we did was have faith that even Gregori can listen to the gospel, and talked to him boldly and explained the true purpose of our call. I´m interested to see what will happen with him.

We are also teaching a couple named Oneyda and Luis. He basically isn´t an official person. He has no documents of his birth and so never went to school and according to the government here he has never existed. This makes a little hard to get married...but we are trying to help him work on finding papers so that they can progress toward baptism. Up until now Hermana Tuah told me that he has refused to pray. We had a good lesson with them and then afterward I asked him to pray as the head of the house and then asked if we could offer the prayer kneeling down. He said no for a good 5 minutes but I persisted. I shared scriptures, pumped him up...nothing. His wife offered to say it and I told her no. So I finally just bowed my head and waited. After a few more minutes of silence he started to pray. I am not sure I have ever felt such an influence come from a simple prayer. It was such a strong and powerful prayer and we could all feel the spirit just fill the room.

Apart from these two lessons we had many more spiritual ones. We taught a lady that the sisters contacted when buying icecream two weeks ago. She has received almost all of the lessons and is excited to get baptized with her family. Sadly, she just moved to another area to be closer to her boyfriend (soon to be husband). We also taught a teenage boy that the elders have been trying to teach for awhile. He comes to church every week but when they try and have a lesson he won´t focus or listen. We were able to commit him to a baptismal date in about a month. So good things are happening with the work here in Puerto Plata!

This zone is really different from Santiago but I like it. The zone leaders are in our ward and we have worked with them quite a bit. I was with one of them in Santiago a few transfers ago so it´s nice to have a familiar face. We do a lot of things together as a zone which I like. Santiago was a little secluded and most people keep to their district or companionship. Here we have activites every week and service during the week. We help at a foundation that was started by some Canadian members that helps some of the poverty here. They build houses, provide clothes and food to people, etc. Twice a week we walk quite a ways and then take a little boat over a sewage river to go help out. I enjoy it and like to feel like I´m doing some good temporally as well as spiritually.

The city is also really different. The main means of transportation here is through something called moto conchos. They are basically motorcycles that act as taxis. We are not allowed to ride on them (for obvious reasons) and so we must rely on the rutas or pay a real taxi (which we can´t afford). The rutas here are different then in Santiago. There are very few and a couple different kinds. They use 12 passenger vans as well as the beat up old cars and shove 18 people and 7 people into each one respectively. Always a nice adventure!

I am able to see the ocean almost every day and the mountains here are covered in beautiful greenery. It is SO HOT all the time but it is so gorgeous here that I forgive the heat a little bit.

Puerto Plata is a little more relaxed because it´s not a huge city and the people are a little bit more friendly. They are also more used to Americans so I don´t get harrassed as much in the street which is a nice little break.

Anyway, there is so much more to tell but I have already written basically a book this week. I still love the mission. My companion is wonderful and we work really well together. I am positive that we are going to see a few more miracles this transfer and I am excited to be able to start a little new. Take time to look at the beauty around you and be grateful for the good things instead of focusing on the more negative ones. Take time to have faith in other people! Everyone can change. Everyone can accept the gospel. It does not matter where we have been in the past or where we are now. It is all about where we are going. Hope you are all doing well back there in the freezing cold! I thought of you as I played in the sand today.

Lots of love!

Hermana Ewell