Drunk popcicles

This week has been nuts. I´ve lived in 3 houses this week. Each one, I stayed on a dirty mattress that smelled like B.O. and had a permanant dip mark from the elders... they closed a sector in another ward of Elders, and we get all their stuff. So it all smells, and is beat up. We´re temporarily staying in Hna. Rasmussen´s house, which is within walking distance to our sector. I missed that lil Hermana. She was my MTC comp and I love her. We talk about living in Cabins with our families, and camping in the spring in our next life, and don´t even get trunky. We work hard, and love our missions.

there are lots of drunks here. more that sicuani. they drink because they´re cold... makes sense I guess.

My new companion is Hermana Purse from Idaho. her blog is hermanapurse.blogspot.com She actually found my blog, and had seen all my pictures and read all my emails before she got here. So my weirdness is not a surprise to her haha. She is great. She reminds me so much of Mom. So soft spoken, loves to read, likes LOTR (she likes it a lot more than mom haha). It´s been a hard week adjusting to our brand new sector (we have no area book to go off of... starting from scratch) but we are loving puno. Our ward is so great. Barrio Victoria. The bishop loves us, the sisters are so excited to finally have hermanas in their ward, and man. THey all just want to help us. We have a lot of work to do, and I´m excited to do it.

Fun story for the week. I decided contacting in the cemetary is a good idea. Why? because it´s an easy way to bring up the Plan of Salvation. People are sad, and are looking for answers. Also, the cemetary is really cool looking. two birds, one stone. We found this lady picking grass by a moselium, and asked her if we could help. She immediately started crying and said her kids had all died and her husband left her. She was picking grass to feed her guinea pigs, because that is what she lives off of. My heart just broke... She has nothing, and I have everything, and still sometimes I´m ungrateful. She just talked to us about her life and let us help her pick grass. She doesn´t have an address, so we will just go back in the afternoons at 3pm to help her pick grass at the cemetary.

This has been a hard and great week. Good things are coming, I know it. 

It was so good to talk to you guys over skype. I love you all, and I didn´t even get too emotional this time. WOOOT. I´ll see your faces in 5 months.  

love love love,

HErmana Allred

1--  last district meeting in cusco

2-- saying bye to hna. Quezada. she got transferred too.

3-- THe Casa family. one of my favorites. 

1-- the pinterest lady´s house. she´s a member, and her house is my new dream house... I love every square inch of it. She collects all kinds of fun things. 

2-- she paints rocks shiny. 

3-- her loft

1-- her elaborate cactus collection

2-- Hna. Irvine and I on her balcony

3-- The pinterest lady, Ynes de Madrid. What a charmed life. 

1-- her perfect prom stairs. 

2-- I´m trying to learn quechua, but so far It all sounds like gibberish. Brings me back to my first months learning spanish. Noqu Panai Llapa Puka (I, HErmana Allred....) One day I will understand how to say "having been born of goodly parents"

3-- skyping with the fam. So great.