Sept. 20, 2010

My Dear Familia,

Bienvenidos from the beautiful area of Gazcue! So, it´s been one crazy week, full of adventures, challenges, and of course the work of the Lord! Not going to lie though, it has been hard. Lots of adjustments and new things...and of course that bit about speaking spanish all the time. But all is well in Zion. My new comp is Hna Mejia who´s from right here in Santo Domingo. She is very patient with me and I feel very blessed to have her as a trainer. She´s been out for about 6 months and knows the area fairly well. We live in an apartment just a block away from the stake center and mission office. The ward here is awesome and the members are so welcoming. Although the sisters here before me left big shoes to fill, eveyone loved them and is sad when they find out I was sent as the replacement. Haha. The weather is...hot. Really hot. And humid. I have to drink ten times more water than I´m used to. I´m sweating my body weight away, literally. Pretty sure I´ve lost weight in just the last week since all my clothes are looser. So hey, fringe benefit I guess!

Let´s see what else...oh for the first 3 days I was here our apartment did not have electricity, or luz as they call it here. Good thing I brought flashlights! It was interesting to say the least... Honestly I kind of feel like I´m at girls camp. I did my first load of laundry today which was a cross between using some type of washing machine thingy, a sink to rinse, and a line to hang dry. Definitely missing the washing machines of the MTC. Ummm oh the bugs here really like me. So much that I have approximately 27 mosquito bites on my legs currently, all below the knee thanks to my skirts. Lots of repellent and anti itch cream is in the works. Today we also go to to the store for the first time so now I actually have food to eat. We also went to payless since my comp needed new shoes...who knew they had that here?

Anyways all that´s really the lame stuff. The amazing stuff is the work! The people here are so willing to talk about God and I love it. We always have a pool of investigators and continually find more. But it´s a little difficult for me since I don´t speak spanish so well. Lots of smiling and nodding my head is going on lol. I can speak ok when it comes down to it, but I get intimidated and just lose my head alot. I feel like I´m always repeating the same stuff, but I guess my testimony doesn´t change a whole lot. I also had the opportunity to share a lesson with a member family in English since that´s all the father speaks. It made me realize why the Lord sent me here...because I needed to be humbled by learning a knew language. I will never look at non native english speakers the same way again. Each day is trial of my faith as I try to adjust and follow the promptings of the Spirit. There are moments of discouragement, but also moments of peace and joy. Yesterday Hna Mejia and I taught a first lesson to two brothers Alejandro and Istalen. It was messy for my parts, but we could all feel the Spirit strongly and I found myself just relishing the privilege to be a part of it. We have three progressing investigators right now. Grisel has been taking the lessons for while but is struggling to give up smoking. Please keep her in your prayers. Grace is another one who has three children and who´s mother is a member, but she is also struggling with the word of wisdom. There are many obstacles that face each of us, but as I work with these choice spirits, I feel the support of the Lord with both them and me.

I am so grateful for this gospel and the many ways it has blessed my life. I know that it is true. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and that He is the only way. Our Heavenly Father is mindful of us always, and He answers prayers. I can´t tell you how many of my silent prayers have been answered just in this first week. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all things shall be added unto you!

Love,
Hermana Bradley

Sept. 9, 2010

Hola Familia y Amigos!
Esta semana ha sido muy bien. He cantado la cancion secreta oracion muchas veces por causa de un elder en mi distrito le gusta mucho, y ahora me gusta tambien....casi. Haha. Ok enough spanish for one day. So this is my last week in the hallowed (and very narrow might I add) halls of the CCM. While I will most definitely be sad to say goodbye to friends and teachers, I am so excited to get out into the field and start doing some real work. Plus I'm feeling pretty good about my Spanish, which means it's time to be humbled again, and I'm fairly sure the field will do just that. :-)

So, as for exciting adventures this week. Last week for simulation Hna Peterson and I got to teach a room full of males the law of chastity. It was great because we thought we were going to teach a room full of young women originally, just like all the elders had done. But of course our teacher in his infinite wisdom decided to make it more difficult, so we taught a bishop and a bunch of young men. Definitely a highlight moment for me. Not. Oh well. Still learning.

I also had a wonderful surprise this week when I received not just one package, but TWO! One from Hna Petty at the MTC and the other from my family delivered via the Andersons. So happy! I cannot begin to express how that one bag of snickers has brightened my life. Seriously, it's borderline pathetic. But I am happy so it's all good. Here's your enterainment for the week though: yesterday as I was passing one of the latin elders in the hall he started barking like a dog so I called him "Elder Perro" only to hear all the rest of the latin missionaries go "Ohhhh!!!! Ouch!" Apparently saying that means something different than I thought...one point for the innocent gringa.

Some other highlights of the week included a lesson by my MDT teacher about "Hasta el Fin", and since it's too complicated to explain via email, suffice it to say it broadened my horizons on how I need to pray, study, and pretty much do everything in life....do it EVEN UNTIL you succeed. So amazing. We also got to watch an amazing movie on Sunday called How Rare a Posession. I'd never heard of it and if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. It's about the Book of Mormon and an Italian Priest's life ambition to be baptized. DiFrancesca is seriously my hero. Such dedication.

Anyways I'm running short on time and I'm sorry I didn't get any personal family emails out this week, I'll make up for it next time. Know that I love you all, I'm doing great, and I can't wait to get out there and WORK!

Love,
Hermana Bradley

Subject: The Perfect Monday

Aug. 26, 2010


Familia y Amigos,

Hello hello! Another exciting week in the Dominican Republic to report! First of all, I finally got mail! Oh happy day…thank you Kimber and Sara…return letters will arrive shortly. J So, on Monday we had to bid a fond farewell to our seven Haitian missionaries as they returned to there homeland. Because of this, we were finally able to take pictures…so I now have some legit tropical pictures. But who knows when I´ll be able to develop them. One thing at a time I guess. Later that day we got to visit the university again where Hna Peterson and I had amazing experiences. We prayed for the Lord’s help in guiding us to people He had prepared to hear our message, and we were so blessed! In a little less than two hours we were able to talk to about seven people, three of which were really excited to hear what we had to say, and two that we gave book of mormons. It was incredible! A young man named Juande was my favorite. I told Hna Peterson it was her turn to lead us and start a contact, so she started walking over to this student that was sitting under a tree with his knees up and his head hiding. I thought to myself “Oh no, he’s not going to want to talk to us. As soon as he looks up and sees us he’s going to get up and walk away.” But I was dead wrong. The moment we approached and his head come up, I could see in his face that he was ready. Such a bright countenance! We were able to share the first vision in Spanish and our testimonies, and then gave him a book of mormon and asked him to pray about it. He was so open and positive. Ah I just loved it. After that we were both so happy. Then when we got back to the CCM Hna Peterson had a package waiting for her from dearelder.com…which apparently delivers here just fine. (Hint Hint haha j/k). Inside the package was a huge stash of candy, albeit it was pretty melted. But in her infinite kindness, Hna Peterson shared with me and I savored a snickers bar like it was the last piece of chocolate on earth. I will never take that candy bar for granted again, because most of their chocolate down here isn’t that tasty. Basically, between the snickers and contacting on Monday, it was the best day ever lol.

Tuesday was another exciting day as we finally got to visit the store and leave the CCM. But, saddest story of my life. I have been waiting weeks to buy new shampoo because the stuff I brought from home hasn’t been so great on the hair. So I spent a good five minutes carefully choosing which scent of herbal essences I would buy. Made it to the register with it because it was on my receipt, but by the time we got back to the CCM my precious raspberry shampoo had disappeared. I almost shed tears…pathetic I know. But my love for shampoo and clean hair is pretty high up there. And to top it off they were fresh out of snickers at the store. Sad day. But I will not be discouraged!

Now for the funny stories of the week! Yesterday in the computer lab Hna Peterson and I were practicing our Spanish on the TALL program until we got kicked out because another class needed them. Elder Lisle from district 3 likes to make jokes and said something smart, so I jokingly made an angry face and walked up to him pretending like I was going to give him a good punch in the nose. Apparently my face was more serious than I thought because I have never seen a boy so fear struck in his life. Hahaha. He claimed he was only afraid I was going to encroach on the ‘elder bubble’ that’s enforced between us, but I suspect otherwise lol. The other thing of this week that brought joy to my heart was this morning when I shared with Hna Peterson my strange dream of being stuck in a train station. She proceeded to interpret it as being stuck here in the CCM, between places, not going anywhere. Suddenly I felt like I should’ve watched that movie the Terminal so I would be better prepped for coping. But only 3 more weeks more inside these gates!

Anywho, life is good and this gospel is amazing. I continue to learn more each day about our Heavenly Father’s love for each and every one of His children. He teaches us through our weaknesses and trials, which ultimately make us stronger and bring us closer to Him. I know this gospel is true and I love being able to share it in broken Spanish with the amazing people of the Dominican Republic. Never be afraid to share your testimony with those you meet! The Lord is working through all of us in different ways. Be prepared to seize the moment! Love you guys!
Love,
Hermana Bradley

All packages should go to this address and not the one listed.  I cannot change the one to the side.  She will probably not get any packages sent into the country.

 

AP-000914

Sister Elyse Marie Bradley

Dominican Republic Santo Domingo East Mission

8532 NW 66th St.

Miami, FL 33166

Family Dearest,

 

Bienvenidos! Actually, I don't know if that's a proper salutation or not. Clearly I'm still learning lol. So how is everyone? I hope fantastic, because the gospel is true and life is good! I was so happy to finally hear from Sister Marchant through the email chain. I love hearing about the work moving forward in Korea. I wish I could read all of my missionary friends emails..but alas no time. Amanda Bailey also sent me an email - thank you so much! So good to hear from you! You are going to change kids lives in NC and I'm so excited for you! Keep me updated!. Bonnie - thanks for your email as well! So glad to hear the fam is doing well. Give the kids and Mas a hug for me, and tell Becca good luck! As for news from my Jeru friends...I'm a little in the dark. For all I know they have all been translated since my departure, which wouldn't really surprise me. But if you are a Jeru person...or one who considers me a friend, I would sincerely like to know what you are up to. Write me on dearelder...it takes five seconds...ok ok, maybe like 10 minutes. But seriously, I'm in a dry spell for lettters and it's killing me. Maybe the postal service down here just hates me, but I haven't gotten a thing for 2 weeks. I know, wah wah. I'll stop whining now.

 

Anywho, things here in the DR MTC are about the same as they were last week. Haha, really things are great though. Today for service we got to weed the gardens around the temple. Call me crazy, but I think I actually enjoyed it. Just getting out and DOING somethings feels good, even if its humid and I sweat like crazy. Yesterday was another trip to the university where Hermana Peterson and I were able to talk to Francisca, Horace, and Juana. The campus is pretty dead right now because most people are on vacation, but next week it starts up again so that will be nice. My Spanish has progressed enough now that I can usually express myself so people understand me, but my comprehension of natives when they speak is still a struggle. Poco a poco right? Right. Francisca was especially open with us and we were able to share a Book of Mormon. It made me anxious to get out in the field. The MTC is great and all, but I'm getting impatient. yet again I find the Lord teaching me patience. Obviously I don't come by it easily lol. This week I started having parts of my dreams in Spanish...I was pretty excited lol. If only I could sleep more....I've been struggling a little with sleep here. But I think once I get out into the field I will sleep better. I've also been playing lots of ping pong this week. I was excited to finally find an elder that can beat me...gives me something to work towards lol.

 

I continue to count my blessings every day and I am especially grateful for this amazing opportunity to serve the Lord and share His gospel with His children. I am starting to udnerstand what it's like to have that constant companionship of the Spirit...such an amazing gift. The Lord's hand is in each and every one of our lives, every moment of every day, and all we need to do is open our eyes to see it. Bless you all!

 

Love,

Hermana Bradley

August 12, 2010

A Mí Querida Familia,

 

Every week I dread having to sum up my experiences in one brief email to you...but have no fear, because I will prevail! My first week here in the D.R. has been one full of trial and error. As Dickens would say, it was the best of times, it was the worst of times. And living within the gated walls of our little MTC is proving to be a challenge for my wandering spirit. I´m only beginning to understand the meaning of how a mission is hard. But at the same time I´m getting just a small taste of how incredibly rewarding this work can be. I know it will only continue harder and better as I go out into the field.

 

So...some experiences to share! I´ll start with a funny one. First, my sweet companion Hermana Peterson is such a trooper with Spanish. She uses what she knows and just gets by with a limited vocab as best she can. She really is amazing and I admire her perseverance. However, the other day as we were talking with an elder from her old district she tried to ask him where his drawings aka dibujas were since he´s big into drawing. But instead she said "Donde esta su bruja?" which means "Where is your witch?" to which he replied "En mi cuarto!" (In my room). Hahaha. I almost died laughing. I love spanish.

 

On a more spiritual note, I had two really amazing experiences this week. First was on Monday where we got to go visit the university and basically meet people as we shared folletos (pamphlets). I'll be honest, I was scared out of my mind to talk to these people in Spanish. But as we started out, my fears became less and less important as I realized that these people desperately needed to hear what I had to say...even if it was a few broken words of Spanish. We ended up having some really neat conversations. However, it instilled an even greater desire in me to learn this language. Poco a poco...I will get it. :-) The other experience I had was last night with our MED teacher Hn. Mediavilla. After my companion and I taught him our lesson both of us expressed some frustrations in not being able to say what we feel in the language. However, he shared a wonderful scripture from Moses about our Heavenly Father's love and sorrow for us. It made me more determined than ever to do this work with all my heart.

 

Today has been pretty exciting as well since we got to go to the temple this morning and then do service this afternoon. The session was in English, much to my dismay, but it was probably better that way. Maybe I'm not ready to tackle that task in Spanish yet. The Santo Domingo temple is beautiful though, and very small...which is almost a nice change I think. Service was exciting as Hna. Peterson and I got to pick up trash between bushes at the university. I now know the full meaning of "noxious weeds"...at least I think that's what they're called.

 

Well I'm running out of time, but basically life is good. I have many things to be grateful for...like delicious food (I love la bandera!), a ping pong table (I have to exercise control daily not to sneak down and play outside of gym time lol), air conditioned buildings, amazing teachers and leaders (Elder Vinas visited us this week!), a great companion, a wonderful district, and of course this wonderful gospel! thank you so much for all of your love, support, and prayers, I wouldn't be able to make it through a day without them! I love you guys!!!!!

 

Love,

Hermana Bradley

Hola Mi Familia!

 

So you get an extra email this week since they allow us to contact you about our safe arrival. I decided not to call you from the airport because I figured it would just make me homesick. Besides, every pay phone in the entire Miami airport was occupied by the poor desperate elders. Just know I love ya'll! Anyways, the trip down was pretty long and tiring, but I think my trip to Jerusalem still takes the cake for most exhausting. Our flights were booked from Salt Lake to Dallas, Dallas to Miami, and Miami to Santo Domingo. I had a really neat experience talking with a man named Ferdinand from the Philippines. I was only able to give a pass along card though because in my desperation to stay underweight for travel I failed to have an extra Book of Mormon with me. Never again! I would have gladly sacrificed anything in my bag to have had one to share...oh well. Next time then.

 

Santo Domingo is beautiful...and hot. We flew in around 7pm at night and when we walked outside it felt like walking into a sauna. I felt so bad for all the elders that kept their suit jackets on. The travel experience as a whole was kind of crazy. Nobody knew where we were supposed to go once we got off the plane and there were so many lines! Tourist cards...money changers....immigration...baggage claim...customs. Although, I suppose it wasn't really that bad compared to security and customs into Israel. I didn't get body searched this time though, what a disapointment. :-) Some of the elders were totally shell-shocked though, wandering around with lost looks on their faces. Poor little boys getting sent into a third world country when they've hardly traveled farther than state boundaries...hahaha. I do feel bad for them though.

 

The MTC here is right on temple grounds and my new companion Hermana Peterson and I have an entire 8 person bedroom to ourselves because we're the only sisters here. If I felt like the minority in Provo, here it's even worse. I'm just glad I have a companion at all. I wasn't really a big fan of being stuck in a threesome with 2 elders for the trip over here. We also have a beautiful view of the temple from our bedroom window...pictures coming forth soon! Today we're jumping into orientation and we've been sufficiently chastised for not "speaking out language" enough. The Spanish here is crazy though! Coming out of the airport I swore they were speaking some form of Chinese and not Spanish. And they mumble alot. I hate mumbling....especially trying to understand Spanish mumbling. I will keep trying though! Anyways, they're telling us to finish up so I better go.

 

Thank you for all your love and prayers! I am safe and sound and loving every minute of being here! My P-Day is thursdays now, so I'll write again then. Oh and here's my new address for the next 6 weeks before I head out into the field...

 

MTC Address:

Hermana Elyse Marie Bradley

Avenida Bolivar 825

Los Robles, Santo Domingo

Domincan Republic

 

Love,

Hermana Bradley

Voy a La Republica Dominicana!

Dear Family & Friends,

 

So in a little less than 24 hours I will be on my way to the beautiful country of the Domincan Republic! I can't wait!!!! Today we went to the temple again and as I walked out I just felt all the silly stress leave me and I realized I don't need to fear about anything, because I have the Lord to back me up. Such a good feeling. I'm especially excited to get there and visit the Santo Domingo temple, which I just learned is right next to the MTC! Dream come true. Although going to the temple and having everyone speak Spanish, that could be a challenge, but I'm looking forward to it.

 

This week has been full of ups and downs, like always. But just as Hermana Petty and I were discussing, the lower the lows the higher the highs. There must needs be opposition in all things, and I'm learning that lesson good and well. :-) Something that I've been trying to focus on this week is how to plan better. We've been taught quite a few times on the importance of setting goals and challenging ourselves. I love that quote that says "People rarely change unless invited to do so. " Well I've been invited to change about a million different ways in the past few weeks, and I'm still getting the hang of it. But I think I'm making progress. Hopefully.

 

As for my foot problems, last week proved exciting with a trip off to the podiatrist. Getting out of the MTC was kind of nice...and weird. Being in Provo where I've lived for the past 5 years of my life while having a black badge on felt stranger than I thought it would. Suddenly I was out around real people and yeah...it was strange. Anyways, the podiatrist said I had a pre-existing condition in my foot where a bone in the back of my heel protrudes slightly, which was agitated by my new shoes. Because of this, my heel started to swell a little and now is pinching my achilles tendon. Luckily he said it wasn't that serious and just gave me some inserts for my shoes so that it doesn't pinch the tendon. I've been wearing for almost a week now and they work well in every pair of shoes except one. Plus I'll get to wear sandals once I get to the D.R. So...todo bien.

 

Another thing I've been reminded of A LOT this week....well every week really, is that I can't do this. At least not by myself. Everytime I try to speak spanish, share a lesson, or even bear my testimony, I fail miserably if I simply rely on my own knowledge and ability. The Lord has supported me so much these past few weeks, and yet I still seem to forget on a daily basis that it's HIM that's doing all of this, not me. But just like everything else, I'm still learning.

 

Yesterday Hma Petty and I taught our first lesson in Spanish. It was crazy! I was saying things in Spanish I didn't even know I could say! Suddenly Spanish makes sense and I can just string the words together to makes sentences that are actually understandable. I don't think I ever really understood what the gift of tongues was until I got here, but I sure do now! It's amazing to be sitting there thinking things in your head in English and then have them come out of your mouth in another language! I feel blessed to have that experience and just hope that as I continue to study and put faith in the Lord, He will bless me.

 

I'm so happy to be out here serving a mission and I am learning new things about this gospel, the Lord, and myself each and every day. I know now more than ever that this is where I'm supposed to be and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I'm grateful to have so many incredible people in my life that love and support me. I feel the support of your prayers constantly, so thank you! So long for now, and the next email you get will be coming from the Caribbean!

 

Love,

Hermana Bradley