Hola Familia! What a crazy week! It went by really fast but I have a lot to say and lots of really awesome pictures.

I hope that I will have time to send them all. Shout out to Kelsie Brown, thanks for the letter I got it this week and will try to write you back soon. The sad part of this week is that we have been missing a companion since Wednesday! Another hermana had her companion go to get her immigrations paperwork so we have had to lend our companion. It's been sad and we want her back but we should get her back on Tuesday hopefully. I have council this week and I'm supposed to go to Huancavelica this week too so should be busy.

Last Monday we went to the ruins of Tunan Marca which aren't the ones that are in my area they are a city of ruins that is located outside of Juaja. I still want to go find the ones in my area but I have heard it's a pretty good hike. Our district leader had been before so he knew how to get there. All of the ruins in these parts were cities built on the very top of hills or mountains. The legends are according to the locals (the elders pension) is that they did that in order to be able to throw rocks down to kill their enemies for protection. Most all of them have a wall around them and towers near the walls that were a little bit bigger then the other buildings which were also used for protection. There are some other ruins that we just saw passing that have 6 huge towers right in the front way before the city even starts. It was so sweet to visit them at the same time I have been reading in the war chapters of the Book of Mormon and realize that they set up their cities the same way and that they used similar tactics. The Book of Mormon is true!

picture of the entire city of ruins

So since Rissa always talks about how people give her things in her letters I just had to mention that people here give us gifts all the time too. Last Monday we got offered three raw potatoes each just off the street and we were like well what in the world are we going to do with these so we gave them to our pension family. We also get offered unlimited soda crackers. Man these people just love soda crackers. Every time we go into a little store or something we get them. It's not like getting offered to go to 6 flags but they are still so kind. :)

Comp picture, not sure why we all decided to wear black.

We found more ways to do service this week, we were able to help a lady clean a freshly killed oveja, man what's that word, oh sheep. Right up my alley. But not up my companions. And we pealed a total of about 2 hours of potatoes while we taught lessons. We also got to help a lady with her baby carry the heaviest bag of corn ever a few blocks down the street. I love doing service.

This is what Peruvians wear when they go dancing. They are so ugly and so unflattering in every way shape and form.

Reality of revelation: We had a really awesome experience this week that we are sure was guidance from the Lord. Our relief society president and her husband who was our second counselor in the bishopric hadn't been to church in about 2 months and every time anyone had gone to see the relief society president she turned everyone away. As we were walking down the street my companion said we need to go visit her right now. I was like well we had other plans but lets go. Do you know where she lives? No. Me neither. But lets try. We started walking and ended up right at her door. We knocked not knowing before hand what we would say. She opened the door, and we started talking to her. She started to cry and hugged us for a long time. She said her husband had left her and she hadn't had the strength to come to church but that she plans on it in the future. We left astounded that we had left right in the exact moment that was needed. We hope to be able to help her again over the next several weeks.

This is what I mean when I say pueblito. Little village. They all look about like that.

One of the coolest experiences of the week was going to a ward baptism on Sunday with our investigators and pastor friend. We don't have a baptismal font here so we baptize in the river. The moment of the baptism was so calm and peaceful. I lead the music while everyone else sat on the banks on the side and I remember feeling the spirit so strongly. I know that God was pleased with his decision to be baptized because of the way it felt to be there. 

In my area we baptize in rivers. This is a little bank off the side of the river that's really calm. He wasn't our baptism just one from the ward that we brought investigators to.

All girls group picture

I hope you all have a great week! 

Hermana Rhoten 1