Dedication of the Trujillo Temple!

Dearest family and friends,

I hope you have all had a wonderful week this week! 

We sure have had a great one here in Piura! 

One of the funny things that happened this week was that they came to fumigate our apartment. Okay, so it wasnt' actually that funny because it was really just kind of scary. Like I said with the pictures, the machine seriously looked and sounded like a chainsaw and everything smelled so horrible. Also, when they fumigate everyone has to leave their house and sit outside for at least an hour, so when we walked outside it looked like a world war 2 war zone. Everyone was sitting outside in their pjs and covering their face with masks or their shirts and there was a ton of smoke in the air that looked and smelled pretty poisonous. It was pretty freaky. And it totally interrupted our studies :( in the end we went and studied in Hermana Aida's house because there was just no other way that we were going to be able to study. When we went back to our house, everything smelled HORRIBLE. We had to wash ALL of our dishes and pretty much all of our clothes and sheets and everything because it all was filled with the horrible smell. They fumigated again today, but this time we didn't let them in because it's just seriously too much work, and we don't even have that many mosquitos in our house. haha

When they came to fumigate our apartment....it looked like a chainsaw and sounded pretty much the same...kind of scary! 

So that was kind of funny. Also this week we had exchanges with the sisters of Paita (El Pescador. I was with Hermana C. She's from Provo Utah. Her dad teaches Literature at BYU and she's really neat. We got along really well...it felt like we'd been friends forever. We worked super hard and were super exhausted when we finished. She is a really good example to me of giving everything she has in every moment. I'm so grateful for this calling in the mission right now. It's helped keep me from falling into the same routine every day and helped me keep improving and doing something better everyday.

Hermana C. and I (we made patacones and eggs!)

I feel so blessed to be a missionary here in Piura at this time. We had the opportunity this week to participate (via broadcast) in the cultural celebration and the dedication. My companion and I--along with the people that went with us--thouroughly enjoyed the cultural celebration and the dedication of the gorgeous Trujillo Temple. It was such a blessing to see and hear all of the wonderful things that were said and done in conjunction with that sacred event. Something that really touched me as i watched all of it was the love that the Lord really has for each and every one of His children. Whether it's in Gilbert Arizona or in Trujillo Peru, He is proud of all that His saints are doing to come closer to Him and is very pleased that we continue working to build and attend His Houses throughout the world. It was especially neat for me because I wasn't able to be there for the events for the Gilbert temple, but I was able to participate here.

I loved the comments of both President Uchtdorf and Elder Bednar about the corner stone ceremony. I was touched by the comments they made about the place that Jesus Christ should have in our lives. It has led to some serious personal study and sould searching, and as a result, I can truly say that I honestly feel the Savior Jesus Christ much closer to me in my life. I love Him and am so grateful for His infinite sacrifice. Even though I don't understand even the hundreth part of what it really means for my life that He gave His life for me, I am grateful for what I know and for the opportunity to have the time in this life to keep giving all my effort to learn more. I love Him so much.

This week, I lost something really small but really important for me. I spent pretty much a whole day kind of stressed about where it could be and what I would do if I didn't find it. I prayed several times during the day for guidance to know where it could be hidden and how I could find it. At the very END of the day, I finally found what I needed. It was an interesting experience, and a little bit stressful, but it made me realize that my Heavenly Father really does take the time to worry about me and the things that i'm concerned about...no matter how little. I testify that Heavenly Father really is concerned about each and every one of us and the things that are going on in our everyday lives. Trust in Him and you will always find what you look for.

Something that I was able to study and reflect about a lot this week was the talk that Elder Ballard gave in the Priesthoood session of the last conference entitled "The Greatest Generation of Young Adults." I recommend it for all of you that are interested in reading it. It's an amazing talk. I loved how he talked about the need to raise the bar and be more prepared for the unique difficulties that those in our generation are facing. I also loved the part that talked about how we should apply what we learn in our missions in our everyday lives. I have really learned that the things that I learn here in the mission really aren't just so that I can have a good mission and go home with a lot of cool experiences. He has sent me here so that I can learn the skills that He needs me to have to keep blessing the lives of the people that surround me for my whole life. 

I love you all so much. I pray for every one of you every day. I know that the Savior Jesus Christ lives and I testify of the reality of His infinite Atoning sacrifice. I know that because of Him we each have the opportunity to "raise the bar" in our own lives each day...continuously repenting and becoming better people. 

Love you all!! Have a wonderful week!

Love,

Hermana Garner

Their stress relief (bubble wrap haha)