Sister Chronicles #4

In honor of my love for sisterhood, I'd like to present a very dear sister and friend of mine.
Maria Belen Chipana

She made me laugh every single day. We talked like parrots. We imitated some of our "special" investigators. We made faces to each other at meal times. We wrote to some missionaries in Mom's mission, and we sent them a really foul picture of us. We took care of each other when we were sick. Like when she had a fever. And when I threw up. You know that good feeling you get at baptisms? She would say, "It's like we're totally in love!!" And then every night when we went to bed, she told me to dream with my dream boy. . . .whoever he was! We'd wear matching goofy earrings. We made a gag gift for our district leader's birthday which included a painted t-shirt, a Jehovah's Witnesses' Bible study book, and a maxi pad. I'm pretty sure we laughed so hard that we wet our pants. We'd sing songs from The Sound of Music. There was a lady who passed our window at lunch every day, and we'd say her name out the window in a very creepy sort of way . .. YOLANDA!! Needless to say, we avoided the street corner where she sold pudding . . .haha.

But besides all the funny stuff, she worked hard. She was honest and direct with everyone we taught. She was a very diligent student of the Gospel. She was very realistic, but she also has tons of faith. She's obedient to what she puts her mind to, which is quite a lot. She was very self-confident and very loyal. She wrote me a nice note every week after we weren't companions because she promised she'd to it. We wrote so regularly in our journals and we worked on our Personal Progress. She always prayed for her mom, who to this day knows the Gospel is true but can't give up smoking. She's an excellent missionary; she's trained 4 new missionaries.


Why am I writing this blog post? 'Cause I miss that girl!! And she doesn't come home until June. Guess I gotta wait s'more . . .
p.s. I didn't find one normal picture of the two of us. But we laughed so hard together, these type of pictures became normal!

A Taste of the Wild

Sister Crews came out of the bathroom, and said, "Wow, I've just seen a taste of the wild in the bathroom. Check out the Moose Faucets!"

What?!

So we all went into the bathroom (which sounds funny in itself, knowing it's a one-person bathroom) and saw what she had seen.

Moose Faucets.

You Are Not Me

Dear Reader:
You may think you know me. But you don't.
Maybe I'm not be the best writer.
Maybe I don't write about how people in other countries do their food storage. Maybe I don't write what you want to read. Maybe you'll want to read something else. Maybe I'm not sorry for that either. Maybe I just want to make people happy, but I don't like to brag about myself when I do it. Maybe I love people, but maybe I hate their sarcasm. Taz vez solo quiero pensar en espanol para que nadie me entienda. Maybe I hate boys and the concept that one day I'll have to marry one of them. Maybe I hate cooking for myself because everything ends in a disaster. Maybe I just want to cry right now because I'm so frustrated with the world. Maybe I'm bored but I can't decide if I like it or dislike it. Maybe I'd like to meet new people, but I prefer just holing down here in the basement with my computer typing my heart out. Maybe I hate people really. Maybe I despise change. Maybe I fear that people don't like me. Maybe I really am a happy person, but right now I'm just mad. Maybe I'm mad because I think those who are closest to me don't really care about the things I care about. Maybe I'm blocking myself out. Maybe I really don't like myself right now. Maybe I'm good at some things, but I don't know what, so I just keep doing what I've always done, hoping that someday I'll be good at something, when really I'm not good at anything.
So maybe I'm not the best writer.
Maybe I just don't care because I know if I wrote what you wanted to read, it wouldn't be me.
You wouldn't understand. Not even Maybe.
You wouldn't understand. Ever.
Because you are not me.

I Love Water

The Love of Water
Water is like love.
We all need it.
Sometimes it's hot and passionate.
Sometimes it leaks out a bit at a time.
With it, we clean ourselves,
our dishes, our clothes, and cars.
Sometimes we crave it.
Sometimes we have to pay more to use it.
Life stinks (literally) without it.
It's very refreshing.
And delicious to partake.
Plus also, it's always fun to surprise your friends
with a little spurt of it every now and then.

Tribute to Trees

William Goldman in his novel The Princess Bride mentions how the supposedly original author of the tale, S. Morgenstern, loved trees. Apparently, Goldman revised (ok, excluded is the better word choice here) several pages of Morgenstern's literary tribute to trees. In action-packed part of the novel (ok, well this is actually from Buttercup's Baby, the revised sequel, included in the 30th anniversary edition of Princess Bride), Goldman comments that he cut out a huge chunk of a literary tribute to trees that Morgenstern had originally included. He (Morgenstern) figured that the only way people would read his environmentalist plug, would be to include in the most action-packed part of the book.
That's why I found it so funny when I watched the movie again today. As Westley and Buttercup bravely enter the Fire Swamp, the grandpa narrates: "Great trees block the sun." And later Westley comments, "It's not that bad. I'm not saying I'd like to build a summer home here, but the trees are actually quite lovely."
Lovely trees . . .oh yes! =)

Couch Potato

So, the next few weeks for me will be relatively .. .unbusy. In honor of my couch potato status, I would like to share a few favorite experiences of sleeping on the couch.
1. In our house in Texas. I had an era in my childhood when I was scared to sleep in my bed. Why . ..who knows. Maybe Heidi smelled bad. Or maybe my bed was uncomfortable. Or maybe I overheard Dad snoring. Dunno, really. But sometimes, I'd sneak out and sleep on the living room couch facing the front door. My only fear: that a robber would break in the front door during the night.
I was a brilliant child.
2. In my current apartment, Thanksgiving 2008. Mom came to visit, but I convinced her to stay the night here since all my roommates were out of town. We slept on the couches. I had the little one, and although it was comfy, it was way too small. My body was all crinkled when I woke up.
3. In Mom's missionary apartment. The air mattress was just too cold. Plus also, Mom had left her scriptures there after reading them. And I was too lazy to inflate the air.
4. In the Hansen's home. Only they don't believe in heaters, so I was pretty cold. But I used Emily's fake-animal print blankets.
5. At my friend Hannah's apartment. We started watching a movie, and I fell asleep in the opening credits. I woke up at 3 am, and then drove home, picking up some of Hannah's stuff that she left at my apartment to take it back to her.
I'm sure there are many other occasions, like the I-was-reading-a-book-and-it-put-me-to-sleep. Futons? Well, that's another story . . .But, I must admit . . .some couches are pretty comfortable. =)

Top Ten List of "Why I'm posting on my blog"

1. I've been away for 18 months.
2. I know that Jon, Spencer, Heidi, and prolly the others of my family are anxiously waiting to see a new blog post.
3. Like every recently returned missionary, I feel a little bored with a lack of things to do.
4. I'm checking on the internet on my newly set up computer. Yup, it works.
5. I was reading my last blog posts and they were pretty funny. I'll have to write some more funny stuff.
6. I'm practicing my english, although the whole writing thing ain't rilly a pro'lem.
7. I know you've missed me.
8. I've missed ya'll peeps too.
9. I got distracted down here in the basement in my process of moving my junk.
10. And simply .. . I want you to know that I love you!