September 5, 2016- Lots of Fried Food and Moving!

Hello my wonderful family and friends!
   
     This week was another awesome week here in Minnesota. However, it was a little different because we had P-day on Friday and got to go to the Minnesota State Fair!! Going to the fair was so much fun! I tried a lot of good food (the food that's really really bad for you). I ate a fried Reese's, Sweet Martha's Cookies (they're like famous here), a torta, some homemade ice cream made from a John Deere Engine, and I tried Cheese curds as well. Needless to say, I didn't feel super great after the fair, but all the food I tried was really good. We ran into a lot of Mormons who were all super excited to see us. It was funny, because randomly we would just hear people cheering and yelling: "LOOK IT'S THE SISTER MISSIONARIES!" The Minnesota State Fair is a HUGE thing here, and it almost felt like I was at Disneyland because there were so many people there!

View from  Skyride way up high above the Minneapolis State Fair

Cool View from on the Skyride

"Homemade Ice Cream made from a John Deere Engine.  Super Good!  I got Chocolate ...OF COURSE!"

 

"Fired Reese's.  So good but so bad!"

Random Mormon lady that we ran into at the fair. Super Sweet. Her name was Sister Henninger.

This nativity set received the Sweepstakes Award.  My mom collects nativities so I took this picture for her.

My Grandma Smith was a knitter.  She knit stockings for all her children and grandchildren.  I took this picture in honor of her!

Just Abe and I at the Minneapolis State Fair!

"You can imagine that I was FREAKING OUT!!!"

Having some fun at the fair!

     Hermana Brittner and I had to move out of our house this week, because the family that we live with has a daughter Charlotte, who is leaving on her mission next week! They were going to have family come stay with them and needed the space.  So we are currently living at an apartment with some of the other sister missionaries. It's super fun because it's like a sleepover every night! We will be staying there for another week or so!

Moving into the Apple Valley sisters apartment for a week and a half!! Lots of stuff to move around. WOOO!

     WE FINALLY SAW ANDY! We hadn't seen Andy for about 3 weeks, because he works a lot. The first thing he said to us was in English! It kind of caught us off guard, but apparently he has been practicing his english at work. We just caught up with him. He said he wants to come to church, but with work it's hard. We are supposed to see him this next week, and we hope that we will be able to pick up where we left off.  He definitely still has a desire to learn, but he is just too busy.
     Also, we finally saw Julia as well! Julia was the girl we met at the park. She is doing really well. We could only meet with her for a little bit, but we shared a message about the Book of Mormon. She said that she has been reading in the Book of Mormon, and she really likes it! She starts school tomorrow, so we aren't sure when we are going to see her next. But, we are really happy that we got to see her again. She's awesome!!
    We had an AWESOME first lesson this week with Viviana Jimel, and Santos. They are from Puerto Rico, so they talk REALLLLY FAST. I can understand the gist of what they are saying, but it definitely requires a lot of concentration.We just taught them about the Restoration. They had a lot of questions, but they said they would read the Book of Mormon and pray about it! We asked them to be baptized, and Viviana said that she would be if she comes to know that the Book of Mormon is true. Jimel didn't really give us an answer, but he wants to read the Book of Mormon with his kids! And Santos was a little different. He is an older hispanic guy, so has a lot of knowledge in the Bible. He's awesome and had a lot of input in the lesson. At one point, he started singing a song to us in Spanish. Surprisingly, he was actually really good!!! He was like performing for us, and it was funny. After the lesson, Viviana gave us some Masamora. It;s a classic desert from Puerto Rico made out of Corn! IT WAS LIKE HEAVEN!!
     We visit this older lady, named Leonor, two time a week. She is in our branch, but she lives in a nursing home. She has had a really hard life, and she's not that happy of a person.  But I love her so much!! And this week she FINALLY smiled at us! She told us a joke, an even though I didn't understand what she was saying, we all laughed and SO DID SHE. Later on during the visit, she sang for us! She told us how when she was a teenager and lived in Spain that she received a lot of rewards for her singing!!! How amazing is that? It may not seem like that big of a deal that she smiled, but it was because she like never smiles. It made me so happy that I almost wanted to cry. Love her so much.
    We had a baptism in our Branch of a 9 year old boy, named Andreas. He was supposed to be baptized when he was 8 but he broke his leg. So, he was so excited to finally be baptized. Afterwards, our branch had this amazing dinner.  I tried this hispanic soup that was sooo good! It's called Posole! I am so grateful to be serving spanish speaking, because Hispanic food is SO good. Also, yesterday Hermana Brittner and I taught sunday school again. I was able to help more in this lesson than ever before. It still is a littler nerve racking speaking spanish and trying to teach in front of a big group of people, but it was a lot easier this time. I know that it's because I have the help of my Savior Jesus Christ!!
     One thing that I have been thinking about a lot this week is the difference between Light and Darkness. In Sunday School, we taught about Ammon teaching King Lamoni. In Alma 19 it has a verse about Lamoni's conversion, and I just love it.  In verse 6, it says, " he knew that the dark veil of unbelief was being cast away from his mind, and the light which did light up his mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which was a marvelous light of his goodness—yea, this light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and that the light of everlasting life was lit up in his soul, yea, he knew that this had overcome his natural frame, and he was carried away in God—"
The light that this gospel brings people is unbelievable, and this is one of the things I LOVE about being a missionary. I love being able to see the change that happens in peoples's lives. Even if we are at the bottom of the sea-the darkest part- I know that Our Savior Jesus Christ can lift us up into the light! I know that His Atonement is real and it works! Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can receive the most marvelous light in our lives!! I knowthat He individually suffered for each and every single person who has ever lived, is living, and will live. He knows how to help us and he is SO willing to help us too! We just have to turn to Him and ask him for the help! I love this gospel and I know that it is true! I feel so blessed to have this opportunity to serve the Lord every single day!

I love you all, but more importantly Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, love you SO much more!! Don't ever forget that!

love,
Hermana Duvall

Valeria and Aimee!!!  They are two little girls in my branch!!  Love them so much!!

Entrance to the Chamber of Secrets???