:0)

Hola Mi Familia! ¿Cómo están? Espero que estén bien. Well, lots has happened this week! First off, last Monday, I believe I said we were going to go to a mountain. So we went to Cerro Campanario, and it was BEAUTIFUL. We rode up on a chair lift (like we were skiing), and it is beautiful up there. I actually have pictures, and I´ll send them very soon. But anyway, that was fun.

Then Monday night HermanasTejerina (from Salta Argentina) and Varela (from Cordoba Argentina) got to our apt. I hurried and packed, and Hna. Varela and I headed to El Bolson together bright and early in the morning. Hna. Tejerina is actually training Hna. Varela, so it was fun to work with Hna. Varela. They were having a little bit of a hard time, so they needed to see new places and have different experiences for a day or two. But they´re good to go now! We worked Tuesday and Wednesday just like normal, and we were blessed to find some new investigators, etc... It was a good time. And Hna. Celis and Hna. Schafer (MTC Companion) had served there so it was fun to hear a couple of things about them. 

And, El Bolson is very pretty as well. A lot of very close up mountains. The city is basically just in a little hole between all the mountains. Fun.

Thursday Hna. Tejerina and Hna. Porter rode to El Bolson, and then Hna. Porter got on the next available bus to head back to Bariloche. So it was a good little trip. But talk about luxurious traveling! I´m not sure if we have these kinds of buses in the United States, but if so, I´m going to seriously consider forgetting driving, and I´m going to ride buses when I go long distances. They´re huge buses, and they´re two floors. The chairs are basically beds -- footstoles, pillows, blankets... very luxurious. 

So we got to work here in Bariloche on Thursday. Saturday we had a lesson with Eduardo, Mariahelem (Magdalena/Marilena... a little confusion with her name haha), Eduardo´s sister´s, Nelida and Ester, and Nelida´s boyfriend, Mario. We watched ¨Together Forever¨ and it was good. Eduardo´s mom passed away a while back, and it was good to watch it with them. So anyway, they assured us that they would all be in church the next day.

So Sunday, we had SIX investigators in church! It was so great! We had Eduardo, Marahelem, Nelida, Mario, Belen (another sister) and another girl, Mariana, who has family members that are church members. It was so great. They got there late, so we were getting worried that they wouldn´t make it for sacrament meeting, but they made it. :D And the Bishop came in for Gospel Principles so that was nice.

While I was gone, Hna. Porter and Hna. Tejerina, and a member, had a good lesson with Sebastian and Cecilia. They basically taught the Law of Chastity. It sounds like it went well. We haven´t had the chance to talk with them sense. So we´re hoping. :D

Lets see, what else? We had a good lesson with the Beltran family last night. We did ¨La Lista de los conocidos¨with them. It´s good that they´re thinking a little bit about sharing the Gospel.

Tomorrow we have zone conference, so I´ll get to meet my new mission president. That should be good.

Hna. Porter and I were talking the other day about how whenever we have a hard time, we always look forward to something good that´ll happen in the future. For example, we think, ¨things will be better in my next area¨. Or, ¨it´ll be easier with my next companion¨, etc... I was thinking about how I have done this my whole life, and ít´s not a good thing! I really want to learn to enjoy the moment, and just enjoy life. We should look forward to good things that´ll happen in the future, but be happy with what´s happening right now. 

Well, I think that´s about it for what´s happening here. Things are going well. I´m happy to be here and for everything that I´m learning. I know that Jesus Christ lives. He came, lived, died, and was resurrected, so we can live together forever as a happy family. Keep doing the little things!

Love Always,
Hermana Jana Banana Pincock

Hola! :D

Hola mi familia! ¿Cómo están? Well, I read a little of the emails, and it sounds like the family reunion went well. I´m so glad that you´re all home safe. An answer to prayers. And, fun Mom and Dad that you went and listened to Hna. and Presidente Cook! They were amazing leaders of the mission and are amazing people. It made me giggle to read some of the things that they commented on. Raising pulpits, etc... It´s the truth! And fun that you met Hna. Bladh and Hna. Beus. I don´t know the other Hna. fun fun.

I´m impressed that you all wrote when it was so late. From cell phones even... :D Well, things here are going well. We were blessed to find more new investigators this week so that´s a huge blessing.

Eduardo and Marilena: They work a lot and it´s hard to find them. When they are home it´s pretty late and we are usually not in their area at night so it´s a little tricky. However, it was Argentina´s independence day on Thursday so we were able to have a lesson. But Eduardo had left. Aahh! However, we were able to teach Marilena, and two of Eduardo´s sisters - Anahi and Belen. A good lesson. And our neighbor went with us to the lesson. She served about the time Anna Karina did in Cordoba, here in Argentina. She´s great. Her name is Sulma.

Sulma is amazing. She´s always bringing us over food at night. Empanadas, hamburgers, etc... I want to be more like her. She just does it to be nice. The other night our calefactor (heater) turned off, and we didn´t know how to do it so she came over to help us out. And our landlord who´s also a member. So we have good help around.

Anyway, we also went over to Eduardo and Marilena´s house on Saturday to invite them to church again. Marilena wasn´t there and so we couldn´t teach a lesson ( just three males were there in the house) but we invited them to church. We thought we were all good to go but they didn´t make it to church yesterday. :o( Next week.

We also had a great lesson with Piera and Natalia, and Natalia´s boyfriend. Have I talked about them? They showed up to church the first week Hna. Porter and I went to church here. He´s a member, but in-active. They went to church hoping that the church, or north americans, might be able to help them get to the US because Piera´s son ( and Natalia´s brother) recently passed away and he lived there. Anyway, we taught the Plan of Salvation the week before. They live really far away (like 45 minutes walking) but we went and watched the movie ¨Together Forever¨ ( I think). It´s called ¨Juntos Para Siempre¨in Castellano. Anyway, it was perfect. They definitely felt the Spirit. The tears flowed for about everyone. It was actually the first time Hna. Porter had seen it as well. Afterwards Hna. Porter and I sang ¨I know that My Redeemer Lives¨ and the Spirit was so strong. We talked about Heavenly Father´s plan, and what THEY need to do. It was good. They weren´t able to make it to church either... but it´s okay! We´ll get them there next week.

So things continue to go well here. I´m still thoroughly enjoying being here with Hna. Porter. She´s amazing. I´m actually going on a little field-trip this week. There are sisters in El Bolson, another city not too far away. Our leaders called and said that I´ll be heading to Bolson for like 3 or 4 days to be with one of the sisters, and the other companion will be here with Hna. Porter. We´re not exactly sure about all of the details, but I hope we´ll be able to help out.

Today with our zone we´re headed to hike a hill/mountain so that should be fun. I don´t remember what it´s called, but it´s supposed to be one of the prettiest views in the world. So that should be nice. And the sun is shining and it´s not too cold. yay!

Lets see... what else? I have been reading the conference talks. Today I read the talk by President Eyring about adversity. It really makes me think. He talked about a man who served as a bishop and the influence that he had on the people. Particularly the youth. Pres. Eyring made a simple statement: ¨He loved them, and they knew it¨. I thought that was really profound. It´s something I would really like to work on. I need to develop and focus on my love for the people, and then show it. From my companion, to investigators, members, to contacts. Love and charity. So important.

Oh, yesterday I had to opportunity to speak in church. The bishop called and asked earlier in the week if I could speak. He said I could choose one of the attributes of Christ that´s in ¨Preach My Gospel¨. I chose faith. I think it went well. Dad, I read your story on faith. The one that the man is hanging onto a branch when he has fallen off the cliff. The people thoroughly enjoyed it.

Well, I hope everything is going well. I love you all very much. I know that the church is true. I know that we have trials to test our faith and make us stronger. But we can always overcome our trials as we hold onto the iron rod and have faith in Jesus Christ. I know that Jesus Christ is my older brother, and if I follow His example, I´ll be happy. And I´ll help other people be happy as well.

Be happy, and as grandma would say, ¨Be of good cheer. Make it a happy day¨. I love you!

Love Always,
Hermana Jana Banana Pincock

Hola! 07.06.2009 (Email)

Hola! Cómo están? Espero que todo esté bien. Todo está bien acá. First off, I read Dad´s adventure. I´m so glad you´re okay! It sounds like it was quite the experience, but that you had lots of good help. An answer to prayers.

Yep, I bought boots last week. They were pretty expensive, and I didn´t look around much because we didn´t have time. So I was actually feeling pretty guilty about it. But today we have been looking because Hna. Porter needs boots as well, and I´m feeling much better about my purchase. They seem to be really good, just expensive... But they´re good. So gracias!

Well, starting off with last week´s preparation day. Hna. Porter and I were cleaning our apt. and I was wiping off the water heater. As I was scrubbing (but not hard!) the little knob, it broke off, and water starting SPRAYING EVERYWHERE!!! So, not knowing how to turn the water off, we got the help of our landlord, who also didn´t know to turn it off, so she was trying to call people. Have in mind that water is still spraying everywhere and I was trying to plug it with my hands basically. VERY WET! So she finally got a hold of someone, and we found the correct knob to turn to stop the water. Very exciting. So the blessing is that we don´t have carpet, just tile, and we just mopped all the water ( a good amount of water) out the door. So it all worked out just fine, and I don´t think I´ll forget soon.

Lets see, what else... oh, Happy 4th of July to everyone! I haven´t read much of the emails, but it sounds like you had a good time. It´s a good holiday. We ate a little to celebrate. :D

Oh, so we´ve been hearing a good deal about ¨la gripe ¨A¨ ¨. I don´t remember if it´s the flu or the fever in english. Flu I think. Anyway, it turns out that it has arrived here from the US and Mexico. The city seems to be concerned, and they don´t want big groups of people gathering together. However, there is absolutely no reason to worry. Hna. Porter and I have great health, all the members are telling us what we should do to avoid getting it, and we have actually been instructed by our leaders that we shouldn´t shake hands with ahyone, or ¨da besos¨(kiss anyone on the cheek) for the next little while. What a hard habit to break! So anyway, if you hear anything, don´t worry. We´re great.

We found some good investigators this week so we´re excited about that. We got a couple of ward references as well so we´re excited to get a hold of them.

There is a couple that had been going to church with the elders before we got here, that needs to get married. We had their phone number but not their address. When we called, he didn´t know the address, and we couldn´t find the house. But good news! They went to church yesterday, so now we have a much better idea of where they live and we have an appt. to teach them. I´m impressed with them and really feel like they´re going to progress. They´re named Eduardo and Marilena.

The youth here in the ward are selling food, trying to raise money to go to the temple in October. I think it´s neat.

Oh, I think I read some questions about the area, and why we´re here now. So it turns out that a while back, a year or two ago, there were elders and sisters. The area was split in two. They took the sisters out of the area, and so the elders area just became much bigger. They had their area, and the sisters area. Because of different circumstances, and we´re not a 100% sure, they took the elders out, and put us sisters back in. And Hna. Porter and I get to do it! We´re still having a good time.

Oh, this is funny. Hna. Porter and I were talking about the personality test, where you find out if you´re red, yellow, white, or blue. I couldn´t remember very well. I remembered that I had a little of all, but almost no yellow. I guess I´m not very exciting. jaja The funny thing is, is that she´s almost completely yellow. So I think we´re a good match. :D

I played the piano yesterday in church. Very enjoyable.

We have our new mission president here! I think we have zone conference July 21 so I´ll meet him then I believe. I think it sounds fun if you want to hear Pres. and Hermana Cook speak. If you can make it there it sounds great. If not,it´s just fine. I´m sure they´ll both do a wonderful job.

We have a lot of rain here. I like it. Snow in the mountains, but nothing down below yet.

We continue to try to meet the members and to work with them. We have started doing the ¨lista de los conocidos¨where you write everyone down you can think of that hasn´t heard about the gospel, and so far it seems to be going pretty well. We did it with the Bishop and his family the other day. It went well.

Well, I think I´m going to go now. I love you all a ton, and you´re always in my prayers. I know that this is the church of Jesus Christ. He is our Savior and Redeemer. If we live His teachings, we find peace and happiness in this life, and this happiness and joy will never end. Even in the eternities. Obedience as well is so important. It protects and guides us. I love you!

Love always,
Hermana Jana Banana Pincock

Hola de las montanas! 06.29.2009 (Email)

Mi Familia,

Hola! How are you all doing? I´m doing great here in Bariloche. Talk about big changes in the last week! So I said some ¨goodbye´s¨there in Allen on Wednesday. Sister Contreras, a missionary visiting from her area for a couple of days while she waited for her new companion to arrive to the mission, got to Allen at six. We went to an appt. and then I left Allen at 8:00. I was in the airport for like 3 hours in Neuquen, and it was good to talk to other missionaries. I talked to a couple passing through who had been in Bariloche, so they gave me a ¨heads up¨on a couple of things. Then I got to Bariloche at six in the morning.

We were in the bus terminal for a couple of hours, and then the zone leaders took me to my new apt. The owner/landlord is a member, so I was with her for a couple of hours while I waited for Hna. Porter to get here. Then we went to the bus terminal.

So we basically ate, cleaned a tiny bit, and then started planning. It was interesting. We just read the area book about investigators, etc... to try to think what we could do. It was a completely different experience.Where to start?

We headed out that night to buy food, and it was funny because we just had to ask people where the store was. Because we had no idea! But we eventually found our way there. jaja

The next morning consisted of finding a map. We have one really big map in our apt. that we can´t carry around, and another that doesn´t have all our area. And so after going to lots of places, and asking lots of questions, we finally got ahold of a fairly good map. Yay! We found our way to our lunch appt, surprisingly without problems, and the family we ate with is wonderful. We took out our map and they spent a good amount of time explaining where our area starts and ends - more or less.

So it turns out, that our area is HUGE. We´re actually pretty excited about it. We called our zone leaders to ask where the limits are, and they basically said not to worry... they were pretty sure we wouldn´t be leaving our area. jaja

And it´s true... Bariloche is BEAUTIFUL. Bariloche is known for the mountains, snow, lakes, and... chocolate. Not too bad eh? :D It´s also fairly cold. Not colder than an Idaho winter though. Well, so far anyway. I think I am going to buy boots, to try to keep warm.

Oh, something funny is that we have a large amount of stairs in one part of our area. It´s like right next to our apt, and to get to the other half of our area, it´s fastest to go up and down these stairs. But I have no idea how many there are. Hundreds. We´ll get our exercise.

So these last couple of days we have been trying to meet the members. We want to get to know them, and to gain their confidence, because we want to work a lot with members. I think it´ll be the best thing. We want them to find people, and to teach them in the houses of the members.

Hna. Porter and I have actually enjoyed getting here, not knowing anything. We have no predispositions about who people are, how they are, if they´re willing to help, etc.... It´s wonderful. So far all the members we have met have been wonderful, and we´re excited.

We met our Bishop yesterday in church.Yay! A Bishop! It was the soonest he could meet with us. He´s young, and is recently married with two little kids. He reminds me of Brother Remington. :D His daughter actually reminds me A LOT of Nyah. It´s pretty crazy. She´s 2 I believe as well. Anyway, I think he´s like 26 yrs old. We ate lunch with him and his family yesterday, and thoroughly enjoyed it. We asked him for the names of 5 less-active families, and he gave the names to us on the spot. He´s ready to help us and to help us teach people in their house. :D

Hna. Porter is great. She already talks spanish really well. Much better than I did when I had been in the mission for 3 months. She has 4 brothers/sisters, and her brother is serving in Mexico. She´s 23, and taught dance before the mission, and graduated from cosmotology school. Her family lives in Spanish Fork, Utah. She´s a ¨people person¨and I´m loving it. I´m excited to serve with her, and Hna. Schwab trained her well. :D

I really feel like we have been guided these last couple of days. We have found houses, directions, and people, that we couldn´t have been able to find if Heavenly Father´s hand wasn´t in it. I know He has really been helping and guiding us, and that He´ll continue to do so. This is His work.

Yesterday in church three people went to Sacrament meeting that we didn´t know. The man is a member, but his mother-in-law and girlfriend aren´t. The brother of his girlfriend was living in Miami, and passed away. They went to the church, hoping a north american could help them. Unfortunately we have no idea how we can help them get to Miami, but yes, we can teach them about the Plan of Salvation. A miracle that they went to church yesterday. We have an appt. with them tomorrow.

Oh, I ran into the sister that´s in Allen with Hna. Hedquist in Allen, in the bus terminal in Neuquen. I told her to take care of Allen. :o) She´s from Nebraska, and seems great. I´m sure that great things will happen in Allen.

I know that this is the church of Jesus Christ. I know that Jesus Christ lives, and that He is the Savior of the world. If we use His atoning sacrifice in our lives, we can become like Him, and Heavenly Father. I love you, and I know that we have the authority to seal families forever. We should always have our eyes fixed on the holy temple.

I love you!

Love always,
Hermana Jana Banana Pincock

Baptism and Transfers! 06.24.2009 (Email)

Hola! How are you all doing? I hope great. I hope you got the pictures okay. I thought you´d like to see them. First off, transfers! I´m headed to Bariloche! I´m actually very surprised, because I have been told the whole mission that there isn´t an area for sisters in Bariloche, so that I would never go there. So from what I understand, I think my new companion and I may be opening an area. We´ll see. My new companion is going to be Hna. Porter, from Utah. She got here with Hna. Hedquist, and was trained by Hna. Schwab. :D Surprises! So I´m going to leave here at 7:30 tonight, and go to Neuquen. And then at 11:00 I´ll leave Neuquen to Bariloche, and I´ll get there about 5:00 in the morning. I´m headed to mountains and snow! I´m actually excited about that because I have missed the mountains and snow. We´ll see what adventures lay ahead. :0)

Hna. Legro is coming here. I´ve never met her, but she got here with Elder Jensen, and he assures me that she´s a great missionary. That should be good. I feel like Hna. Hedquist is ready to take over. She´s well prepared and knows the area well. I have no doubt that good things will continue to happen.

The baptism on Saturday was wonderful. Santiago was baptized by his dad, Hna. Angel Peñalver. Tamara Troncoso, an 18 year old was also baptized, as well as a man, Juan Carlos Flores - 45 ish years old I think. It was a wonderful baptism, and we had great ward support. I think there were atleast 50 people there so we were very pleased with the turn-out.

More good news! We had a lesson with Hna. Eloisa Panero and Hno. Mansilla, ¨the bishop¨. We talked about baptism, and temples, and what you have to do to prepare. He urged her not to put off her baptism for much time. It was so good for me to hear from someone else other than a missionary. Especially her leader! She said she wants to be baptized in July, and we put her date for July 11th! One of her granddaughters is actually living with her as well right now, who is 11, who would like to take the missionary lessons as well to prepare for baptism. Yay! So they should have some baptisms here this next transfer. :o) I would love to be here to see Hna. Panero, but being transfered is part of the mission. I´m just happy she´s going forward with it.

Lets see, what else? Ah, Sergio and Patricia. They were all dressed and ready to go to the baptism, and their car didn´t start. :o( Then they went to Plottier on Sunday so they didn´t go to church. But, we had some really good lessons with Patricia this week. Sergio wasn´t there, but on one side I think it was better. When Sergio is there, Patricia doesn´t say much about what she thinks about everything. But she really opened up to us last night and Hna. Hedquist knows how she can help her move forward. I just pray for them.

We actually didn´t find out until last night about transfers because everything is so crazy. So, I didn´t know if I should be saying ¨bye¨to people etc... However, as I was praying Monday night I really felt like I would be transfered, so I kind of said an unofficial goodbye to a couple of people. Do you all remember Irene? I must admit, that I wasn´t a real fan of saying bye to her. She has been the grandma that I don´t have here in Argentina. I just love her with all my heart. She has definitely made an impact on me.

Well, I have A LOT of packing to do in the next 3 hours, so I need to get busy. I hope you all know how much I love you. I know families can be eternal. I know that this is the true church of Jesus Christ. He is the guide. We have a living Prophet and Apostles. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the path to happiness. Read the scriptures and pray always!

Love Always,

Hermana Jana Banana Pincock

Jana in Allen with the Pear Statue

Second, Santiago´s baptism! Santiago is the little guy next to his dad, Hno. Peñalver.

Hola! 06.15.2009 (Email)

Hola! ¿Cómo están? Espero que todo esté bien. Todo está bien acá. First off, Lisa and Jordan, happy moving day! I hope all goes well as planned, and that no one seriously injures their back or anything while you´re moving things around. :D

Mom, Happy Birthday on Saturday! Have a wonderful birthday, and eat lots of yummy dessert.

Dad, Happy Father´s Day on Sunday! It´s actually Father´s Day here as well. I´m not exactly sure why Mother´s Day is different. Anyway, have a fantastic day!

Also, good luck everyone participating in the Ragnar Relay! Run hard, and be careful! Be careful traveling to the relay as well.

Next week on Wednesday is when we have preparation day I believe. It´s when we have transfers because the new mission president will be coming soon. Everything is a little different. So anyway, I don´t know if I´ll be writing on Monday, Wednesday, or when... we´ll see.

Alright, so good news... Sergio, Patricia and their daughters Yosie and Micaela went to church yesterday! Yay! It was stake conference in Roca, and it was the satellite broadcast that they do now. Elder Perry, President Eyring, the Sunday School General President, and a member of the seventy spoke. It was a very good lesson, and Sergio and Patricia seemed to have enjoyed it. :D We also had a very good lesson Saturday night. We taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Faith, Repentance, Baptism, the Gift of the Holy Ghost, and Enduring to the End). Or, the path to eternal life. It went well. In Elder Eyring´s talk he talked about the importance of baptism, and invited all those within the reach of his voice, who hadn´t been baptized in the church yet, to come and be baptized in the church of Jesus Christ. :D

Lets see, Santiago is progressing well towards his baptism this Saturday. We´re hoping and praying that all goes as planned. He has had a hard time going to primary, so last night we taught him with the primary teacher, and talked about the importance of going ( instead of running outside or going to priesthood meetings with his dad). He needs to drink milk before eating meat. :D It went well, and he assured us that this next week he will be in and participate in Primary.

Well, things haven´t gone like we would like with Hna. Panero and Victor. Yes, Victor is a member. He´s 21, but didn´t serve a mission. He hasn´t been active for very long. A while before I got here. So anyway, the elders talked to Victor, and the ward mission leader, but it hasn´t clicked yet. Hna. Hedquist and I were talking to a ward member, and she suggested that we have a lesson with the ¨bishop¨, teach all the doctrine and make sure they understand, and then let them make a decision and set goals. So we´ll see what happens. But for now, she doesn´t have a baptismal date.

Last preparation day we went to Roca for a zone activity. We really got together to practice singing a song for President and Hna. Cook since it was their last zone conference with us. So no one told us to bring preparation day clothes, but they were playing soccer. So Hna. Hedquist and I played in our skirts and church shoes. :D Pretty funny. I couldn´t be quite as aggressive as normal. jaja No really, it was just a funny experience because about all their elders were in their suits and church shoes as well. Good times. Chaos.

So Friday we had zone conference, and it was SO good. I loved it. We have a really good zone here in Roca. Lots of good things are happening. I think 11 baptisms are scheduled for this next Saturday. So 11 in one stake!

I have really been trying to focus more on using the scriptures in my teachings. Introducing, reading, and applying them. The usage of scriptures makes a really big difference. Very important.

Well, I think that this is pretty much what has happened this last week. I love you. I know that the church is true. I know we have a living prophet, and the the Bible, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, Pearl of Great Price, as well as the words of the living prophets all come from a loving Heavenly Father. We need to Feast upon them!

I love you all very much, have fun, and be safe!

Love always,
Hermana Jana Banana Pincock

P.S. I read about Nephi in Helaman 10 this morning, and I want to be a missionary like him. Verses 4 and 5 I believe were the verses I especially like. A good read. :D