Email: August 17th

Here's the latest from Anna:

Hello everyone!
So I didn't write yesterday because it was a national holiday and our Mission President has made a change where if there's a national holiday on a Monday the missionaries work and then have their P day on Tuesday.....but its only when the president says this. Its because lots of families are together on National Holidays.

Anyway I made it through another week.......right now I feel pretty frustrated because every Sunday all these people say they want to go to church but then when we pass by on Sunday....their are either not there or have excuses. Soooo...that's frustrating! But we actually had the members assist church this past Sunday!!!!!!!!!! About half of the people in Ituzaingo are members but totally inactive......so we have a branch not because there are few members but because everyone is inactive...

Well I gave a talk this past Sunday in church and to be totally honest.....I "ripped everyone a new one"..........My talk was about obedience and I just let the ward have it because people don't attend church every Sunday. People's expressions during my talk were hilarious!!!!!!

I talked about how the only good excuse not to attend church was because you or your child is sick in bed.....Not cause you're tired, its cold, there's rain. I also talked about how you can't allow your children or teenagers choose if they want to go to church.....they don't know better and the parents have a responsibility to help their children choose the right and I talked about how in our house how mom and dad always made us go to church and my friend`s parents too.

I also talked how sad I think it is when I see other church's members help each other attend church and how pathetic it is when I see more people in other churchs here in Ituzaingo than the true church.......And I said.....how many people are here today??????

Everyone's eyes were HUGE!!!!! I also talked about how we can repent and be better because of our Saviors atonement for our sins. Yep......the sacrament meeting was dead silent during my talk. Afterwards I had many people come up to me and say....Hermana Schmidt - You taught with power and authority!!!!!!!! (You all know how passionate I am when its something I care about)............

What was good was there were many inactive people in church this day and I think they all got my message. There are families in this ward who don't make their kids or teenagers attend church so I really let them have it about that!!!! Anyway lots of people came up to me after and just told me how much they appreciated my talk and felt the Spirit. SO I was really happy about how well it went.

I always have a million things I want to tell yall and then I forget........Seriously there are days where I just can't believe the things I see here.....and I just have to laugh so I don't lose my mind. Safety and Sanitation don't exist here. Everything that is illegal in the US when its comes to driving - is totally done here. People are on motorcyles with their babies or children......everyone sits in the back of trucks.....no one wears seatbelts......all types of motor vehicles are allowed on the roads.........I see very few helmets.

Its crazy.....also people let their kids play with just about everything.........fireworks, saws, slingshots, sharp objects, axes...........I kid you not........I explained to my companion why it would be dangerous for 3 yr old to play with scissors.....even if their not very sharp....because you might lose an eye...well my companion's reaction was hilarious because I think shes used to seeing people play with dangerous things.

After I explained to her why it was dangerous....she went and explained to the Mother ( who is a member in our ward) and the Mother took away the scissors!! VICTORY!!!!!!!!!!

Yep....Ituzaingo is like the Galveston in Texas. But South America style.......so the areas that we think are slummy and crappy in Galveston are nothing compared to what I see in bad areas here.......there are people who literally live in wooden shacks that are rotting and falling apart. I have now figured out what a "bad house" is here. If you have cement walls with brick and glass in your windows you are doing just fine!!!!!! Also lots of people dont even have tiles on their floors......the normal person doesn't have carpet here.........my companion doesn't know what carpet is......if you have tiles.....you're doing great!

I have learned that my mission is comprised of some of the poorest states in Argentina where the government is corrupted. But there are really pretty houses too and I have love for Ituzaingo as well................I am still going through culture shock....... but everyone says my Spanish is getting better. And there are active members in this ward who I just love!!!!

This upcoming tuesday is transfers.........please pray that the Mission President will really be inspired about who my next companion will be. It could stay the same but I am hoping for a change and someone who speaks english also so I can get much more help. Anyways tomorrow my companion and I go to Posada for District meeting......I am ALWAYS sooo excited to leave Ituzaingo and go the city!! I love you all very much and pray!! PLEASE WRITE TO ME IN EMAILS ALSO WITH LETTERS!!! Love hermana Schmidt

Once again, here are Anna's addresses:

Hermana Anna Schmidt
la Misión Argentina Resistencia
Avenida Rivadavia 323
Resistencia, Chaco 3.500
Argentina

Pouch address
Hermana Anna Schmidt
la Misión Argentina Resistencia
PO Box 30150
Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0150
United States

Sorry about the delay!

I haven't posted in a couple of weeks because of finals and everything. But here's Anna's most recent email from August 9th:

Hello! Thank you for your emails!!!!!!!!!

Another week has gone by....... I only have 2 weeks until transfers and I am praying that I´ll have a companion who speaks english and Spanish fluently and whos really going to be able to guide us in the missionary work in Ituzaingo Corrientes and really lead us!!!

I was pretty upset when I got that blessing that said I was also here to help my companion because I'm new and I need help! But I am happy to say that in one week we have 3 investigaters with baptism dates. Hopefully these investigators will make it to those dates. I felt really inspired that we needed to ask these people to set a goal of baptism and they all said yes....hopefully they will attend church so this can happen.

I have some funny stories and random stuff to share. I've been emailing about our new investigator Salvador Florida who really likes me because I look like his family!! They are all tall blondes (Rubios) with blue eyes! He lives alone here in Ituzaingo but is friends with like the entire town I think! We have been teaching him and he really likes everything we have been teaching. He actually came to Sacrament meeting last sunday and it was testimony meeting and it really stuck out to him. He really like how we share our testimonies!! Anyway he is just awesome and really has a place in my heart. He's this tall 64 yr old man with blonde hair and blue eyes and very Argentine. There are alot of Germans in different parts Argentina (they are all blonde so I can tell who the germans are) but in my little "beach town" Ituzaingo- people are NOT used to blondes which is why I hear catcalls and whistles and kissy noises everywhere I go and its VERY annoying.

Anyway Hermano (brother) Salvador actually had us over for Almuerzo (lunch...biggest meal here where everyone eats together) and he made the most delicious barbecue EVER!! It was really sweet!! I will eventually email pictures as well.........I have tons of pictures to send to ya'll!! Well whenever we teach we always begin by singing a hyms to invite the spirit and all that.

Well we were singing I am a child of God to Hermano Salvador and his cat comes into the room and starts meowing softly.........we continued singing and the meowing got louder and Louder and Louder.....I look over and hermano is trying to shush the Cat and be very respectful while doing it because he respects us. Well it got to the point where it was distracting because the cat was so loud and hermano got really frustrated with his cat!!!

I was trying to not to die laughing while this man is waving his hand at his cat and eventually got up and kicked the cat out of the room but the cat wouldn´t leave.....one of the funniest things I've ever seen and when he came back and sat down all frustrated- I looked at him and said "Que chistoso" which is "how funny"!! He looked up at me and I burst out laughing!! My companion started laughing too and then Hermano loved how we had a sense of humor about the whole thing. He said something about how the cat wanted food but was fat enough. Really funny...he later said the cat wanted to sing with us.

I brought pictures of my family to share with him and he shared all his family pictures. Really awesome and fun and when I teach him I know he understands everything I'm saying and it touched by the Spirit strongly. We are teaching the word of wisdom soon because he drinks and smokes alittle so we need to teach that right away so he can be baptized. He has accepted a date in Sept!

Yep....so we are teaching lots of people but people in this are won't go to church or do commitments so we are working hard to fix this. Noel Gomez is still here visiting her family and my companion and I had been able to spend 3 p-days with her!!! My companion, who is very sweet but totally oblivious never told me that the missionaries always do their laundry at the Gomez house cause they have a washer and a spinner !!!!! So I've been able to actually get out of our apartment on p days now because we would spend the whole day in the apartment for p day and my companion finally understood that I was depressed about this. So she has been very sweet and supportive with us leaving our apartment and making sure I get to vent and relax. Having Noel here has been so awesome!

She told me that I'm the first and only missionary she had talked in english to!!!! She told me that hermana Gomez (her mom) was like" you need to talk to her because no one in this town speaks english but you and I can tell that she is lonely" Now Noel and I are like best friends now and she is acutally going to serve a mission after she finishes her Masters in Resistencia. Seriously I love the Gomez family!! They are like the only 100% solid family in the church in Ituzaingo.....theres maybe 1 other family thats strong in the church but has a lot of serious problems. Anyway I`ve written about the Gomez family before. I love them and many members here serve the missionaries soooo much. We need to do the same in our homes and wards!! Its so awesome when people want to listen and learn from the missionaries because they love us soooo much. Its hilarious how being a missionary can invoke the craziest reactions from people.

People can dislike you so much and then around the corner you met someone who just grabs your face with love because you are teaching their family who are not yet members. Anyway Mom hopefully I will get your envelope not this wednesday but next Wednesday at my district meeting in POsada. My mission is HUGE and so all our mail goes to the mission office in Resistencia and then gets distributed out to the areas of the missionaries which is 4 different states. I get all my mail when my companion and I go to Posada which is like a big city where we have our meetings for District.

I'm actually hoping to go to Posada as my next area in my mission but I don't think that will happen for another 4 months. I'm pretty sure my companion will be leaving in 2 weeks at this next tranfer.........I'm praying to have a really strong leader as my next companion. I love you all every much and pray for everyone everyday. love hermana Schmidt

Emails: July 5th and 12th

Here are are the most recent emails from Anna! She's officially been in Argentina for 6 weeks!
She hasn't been able to send out any written letters because she hasn't learned how to use the mail system there yet, so right now email is her only communication with us. She has been receiving everyone's written letters though (it takes about three weeks for her to receive it, so the fastest way to communicate with her is still by email or dearelder) and she appreciates all of your love and support!
Here's the first one from July 5th:

Hello everyone !! First off I received a WHOLE bunch of letters and I was thrilled!! Thank you ALL for the letters!! It made me soo happy!! It takes about 3 weeks for a letter to come from Us to Argentina!! Just soooo you know!! Make sure you thanks Sharon Erland for her sweet letter and to all my family who wrote....THANKYOU!!! I will write someday when I figure out how to use the mail here and I have a companion who knows what a postcard is.......

I have much to say and wrote down a bunch of stuff so I wouldn't forget but always somehow I forget something I want to say!! First off I am thrilled to report that we now have "hot water" in our apartment now. I was so mad at my companion about this......I just could not understand why she would not fix this so we wouldn't have to boil hot water in a bucket to bathe with. I seriously thought that the average person didn't have hot water in their homes.....I threw a fit about this and we went and bought a new Ducha Electrica which is basically a little toaster that connect to the shower head and heats the water when it comes out.........I have never been so thrilled to have a normal warm shower in my whole life. I loved what Austin wrote in his letter about how you can't believe how crappy your apartment is and for Argentina it's just such a nice apartment....but seriously I can't complain b/c its not horrible at all but its not like back home.


ANYWAY....yep I'm going through that stage of culture shock where I keep looking for American products here and I'm sooo thrilled when I find them!!!

Guess what I found out this past week??? My Companion who has been here for 4 months had no idea that Ituzaingo is basically the Galveston of Argentina!! It a beach town!! There is a HUGE giant river that it like the size of the ocean with sand & waves and everything.......so now lots of things make sense!!! Its not like a normal big city with giant stores or anything........Anyways tonight was exactly pretty cool.....my companion had to go to Resistencia to do some work on her visa here for Argentina and I had to go with her....so at 3:30 am we got up and got on a bus (the buses here are really nice that people use travel between towns) and slept for 3 hrs until we got to Resistencia.

The wards are huge in Resistencia!!! I miss huge wards and I miss our Nottingham County Ward sooooooooooooo bad!! In Ituzaingo we have a beautiful building with only a branch sized amount of people attending ( I seriously think everyone is inactive in South America) Anyways, afterwards we went with the Elders who are the President's assistants in a really nice minivan with leather seats (the church's car of course) and they drove us back to Ituzaingo b-c they were driving through for a another zone conference. My mission includes 4 states in Argentina! We had soooo much fun!! AND....guess what?? There is an actual Walmart in Corrientes and we went to it!! I have never been sooo happy in my life for a Walmart....and I hate Walmart back home......I bought PEANUT BUTTER and organic good .......I was soooo thrilled......I miss being vegan sooo much and I've gained weight from all the food people give me but not alot........still I have NOW figured out to only eat half of my plate and give the other half to my companion and then I eat very little the rest of the day becuase we walk all day anyway so I can burn it off........I know that shouldn't be my first thought and its not but it is something I care about.......anyway after my mission I'll have all the time I want to eat vegna and work out.......

so back to missionary work....I am soo excited to say that I finished reading Alma a few weeks again which I think is a big deal.....I love reading my book of Mormon...now its something I do because I want to & look forward to reading everyday during personal study and not because I have to!!! I feel so much better after I read it and its amazing how we are able to receive personal revelation while we read our scriptures. I had my first interview with the Mission President last Wednesday and I was terrified of this man......but he was soooo kind & supportive.... I was shocked....he is very strict but because of this he gets results......before he was mission President...Resistencia was the lowest number baptizing mission in South American....now its the Highest in all of South America!!! Our Motto is "Baptizmos Cada Semana"........Baptisms every week!!! I think he let my companion have it a little though because our numbers were horrible..........she is a good missionary and we work hard but our planning isn't good.........because I don't speak Spanish- well its hard to express the changes that I think we need to make.......but anyway the President is pleased with me and very supportive and talked to my other hermana friend in Posada about me and said really good things....he also sympathizes with me because he knows that I'm having a hard time right now adjusting to everything. But that's normal.....

last Friday during our lunch with the members I just started bawling.....because I wanted my Mom soooooooo much. There is a lady whose a member who is 75 and is taking care of her Mom who is 95........CRAZY!! Her Mother actually has an eyes missing and there's nothing in it!! Well this got me to thinking about you Mom and I thought I'm going to take care of my Mom when she gets old.....anyway yes I miss you Dad of course and Johnny & Laura and everyone and my perfect comfortable life in the US!! I was soo sad on 4th of July to not be in America.....I have never had sooo much pride for my country in my whole life!!! But its okay........because when my companion and I teach a lesson and I see someone tear up because somewhere deep inside they remember who they are when they feel the spirit....that makes it all worth it!! I have been helping my Companion be more effective and when we met someone we make an appointment RIGHT away ...........After this past week we have 25 new investigators.......this is awesome!! A yway my time is up.....I love you all and thanks for your prayers and letters!!! This past week I celebrated 3 months in my mission...my companion made me the cutest card ever!!! I love you!! Keep writing! love hermana schmidt p.s. they lied in the mtc when they said men wouldn't try to kiss me hello.......YUCK!!!!!! Its awkward too because they wont try to kiss my companion hello but they will try to kiss me hello...... The woman always kiss each other hello but men usually only when they know you.....My companion cracks up everyday b-c men are always saying stuff to me and whistling & hissing (which I hate) but I ignore them or smile & wave hello and then walk really fast away.....I've got funny stories but no time! Ciao!!

Here is her most recent one sent today, July 12th:

Hello everyone!!! WOW......I am soooo bummed to not have an email from dad, mom or Laura.......but I did get a whole bunch of letters about a week ago from everyone so I appreciate it MUCHO.........

This past week was interesting AND really hard.....lots of rejections which I haven't experienced too much of til now and I had major food poisoning which kept me in bed for a day & a half. I forgot to tell ya'll last week that I got kicked out of my first house!!!! This teenager said we could come in and teach......right as we were about to sit down- her Mother came into the room in a fit and said we are Evangelical ( sp?) in this house and we believe in Jesus Christ and GOD!!!!!!! She pointed at all her tacky gothic stuff on the walls and told us to get out and that she didn't need us to create confusion in her home.....I'm not going to lie...I was mad but I just looked at her and said we have a HUGE testimony of Jesus Christ ALSO....He IS our Savior. We left......This past week when we went up to contact this old lady...she just looked at us with a really nasty sneer and said "You are not representatives of Jesus Christ" That one actually hurt my feelings a bit....wha's weird though is part of me is glad it stung a little because it means that I really want to be like Jesus Christ and its hurtful for a person to say I'm not...interesting but no worries I got over it quickly.......What's interesting as a missionary is that many people cry to you....you really don't know them at all but as they talk to you about things in their life...they just start bawling and I don't understand everything but I understand the important parts and I can feel their pain. My friend Hermana Tritsch (in Posada) said its because maybe their minds don't recognize who we are but their hearts & souls know that we are Rep. of Christ and want their pain healed.

This pasy week was really hard for me.....I miss stupid things back home.....I miss being in control of my time and working out everyday and not having serious responsibility on my head. I hate being fat and not having total control over my diet. I miss my family, home and my PERFECT life back in the US. In my prayers- my thanks has REALLY doubled....tripled. But I also know that what I'm feeling is normal and eventually with time my Spanish will improve and I will love being here. My mission president, everyone says....things will get better!! SO I'm just holding onto faith that things will.

Yesterday,Sunday was a good day!!!! We has a mom in her 20's attend church with her 2 children. She is separated and so pretty & sweet!! I did everything in my power to help her that morning because she has forgotten and her children were tired and REALLY cranky!! My companion and I sang songs.....I gave stickers and brushed teeth and hair!!! We got that family to sacrament meeting and afterwards I had everyone in the ward come up and talk to her!! Some of the members know her Mother!!! Awesome!! We also found out that she stopped saying prayers after the death of her father yrs ago and she is still torn up about his death. SO we are going to teach the Plan of Salvation on Tuesday. We also taught a family this past week who the Mother has been trying to figure out for yrs which church is true!!!! We have had many good experiences lately as well!!! I was also told this past week on a day when I was really struggling how Sisters who are from the US are not usually sent to South America.....The church sends Sister to Europe or keep them in the States. My Mission President said the church sends the strong women to South America. He said you are one of the strong ones.......I feel much better but I'm also waiting for the day when I FEEL strong. Anyway yep....lots of stuff going on and Tuesday night is my first possible transfer!!! But I'm pretty sure I;ll be in Ituzaingo with my trainer another 6 weeks but who knows.......Í'll find out Tuesday night when the Elders call.

The Weather here today is insane!!! We had the craziest weather all night with a huge thunderstorm and its been raining most of the day.....now its freezing again here!!! There are also tornadoes here which I was not thrilled to hear about and the sky will turn red....it scares me to death but I just throw up my hands said God- I know you'll protect me so I'm going to try not to worry!!!CRAZY CRAZY!! Okay well I love you all and pray for you all!!!!!!!!! Stay safe!!! Love you all- Hermana Schmidt

Anna's mission address in Argentina!

Below are all addresses for Anna -  it costs 98 to mail an overseas letter - if
you go through dear elder it is free - if you want to mail to the pouch you can
only send a letter size sheet of paper fold in thirds and taped and addressed on
the outside with stamp - they dont accept any other kind of mail (cards and / or
letters in envelopes)

Hermana Anna Schmidt
la Misión Argentina Resistencia
Avenida Rivadavia 323
Resistencia, Chaco 3.500
Argentina

Pouch address
Hermana Anna Schmidt
la Misión Argentina Resistencia
PO Box 30150
Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0150
United States

Anna's third week in Argentina!

We've received another email from Anna. Other than having some major blisters and food poisoning, she's doing well! Here's her latest email:

SO I believe that I've been here for about 3 weeks now??? Everything is starting to blur together...Lots of things have happened...hopefully I can remember them all...the mosquitoes are eating me alive out here!!! They are huge!!!! I found out why my feet are in so much pain from another Sister who served here!! Its because the ground is mostly sand so your feet grip the ground differently. I have horrible blisters in between my toes (which I;m sure you all want to hear about ) so I'm in so much pain as I walk around. Hopefully my body will adjust soon!!!

I'm also eating alot of food here which is horrible for my weight...........the second I come back home- I'm going Vegan again!!!!!!! The food is very good and the people give us giant plates of food but I kept getting sick my first few weeks.......I found out the the butchers don't sanitize the counters here........which is the most disgusting thing I've ever heard of in my life. My companion from Peru has no idea about bacteria/sanitation and food poisoning so now I keep a REALLY close eye on everything she does with our food. I also realized that the people here drink water straight out of the sink which is dangerous and they serve it to the missionaries too. The Doctor in the MTC warned us about all of this stuff! Its okay though because after my mission the church will give me medicine to kill worms and other scary stuff thats probably in my body right now.

Last Saturday I had my first Actividad de Zona in Posada (the big city part). My companion and I got on a bus (Rio Uruguay) at 10 pm Friday night (we had to get permission because we're not allowed out after 9 pm) there's a set of sister missionaries are Hermana M and Hermana Trisch in our District in Posada. We spent the night with them and then took a city bus to another area in Posada to the church. It was sooo cool to be on that bus! You have to hold on for dear life!!! I was like I can't believe I'm in Argentina on this bus right now.We arrived at the church where our mission President was with other people in our Zone.

I also found out why we are not allowed to use both straps on our backpacks because thieves on motorcycles will drive past you and grab your backpack and literally drag your body with it!!! Yep I'm the most paranoid missionary with a backpack when I'm in the big city of Posada. All of our churchs here have metal bars and iron gates around them here.

It was sooo awesome b-c I got to see Elder Meeks from my district in the MTC!!! Its so ironic because somehow Elder Meeks and I always end up together somehow......he's older like I am and we just relate really well to each other. Hes just a really real person and hilarious. He and I are both going through major culture shock and we just wanted to talk forever about all the crazy stuff we've seen and experienced!

It was pretty cool to be in the bigger part of POsada and I could tell which people were German!!!! People still look at me pretty weird though......I've actually experienced my first rejections from people which I didn't enjoy very much. I was thrilled because I was able to buy a pillow and sheets at this giant store called Libertine ( I think) which is like Argentina's version of Walmart!!! (Mom I used my credit card which in american money should be only about $30) I was using this filthy pillow that I think is about 10 yrs old and yep....I'm sooooo thrilled to just have a clean bed to sleep on with a new pillow and clean sheets!!! Its amazing when simple things make you soo happy and you realize how blessed you are back home!

We were out friday night and it starting pouring like hurricane weather!! It was sooo scary with all the lighting and thunder! Of course my companion and I were out in the middle of nowhere when it started pouring.......... I just looked at the sky and like -God you better protect me because there's no way I would be here right now if I wasn't serving a mission!!!!!!! I had never missed a hot shower so much in my life!! I was soaked wet!! But after boiling water on the stove to bathe with, I felt so better!!

I have good news!!! We have been visiting with Oscar and he actually came to my english class saturday night! It went really well!! I taught everyone how to pray in english!!!! Then Oscar came to church on sunday too!!! I was sooo thrilled to see him!!! He is still smoking but at least he's attending church now. He can't receive the Priesthood right now but its good that hes in church! We were visiting his apartment so much that we started teaching his older sister who is a single mother with 2 children from 2 different men.......every time I go to that apartment I get bitten by fleas on their couch but its worth it after seeing her children's faces while looking at pictures of Jesus that I bring. Shes not interested but I know she feels the spirit while we´re in her apartment!!! I pray that Heavenly Father will soften her heart daily.

Another investigator has agreed to be baptized but she has to get married first. Her name is Nioami llanes and she has been taught for a really long time by the missionaries but because she's not married and living with a man & child they had together.....she has to wait until she's married. But she has agreed to be baptized!!!

Sunday was kinda tough for me......the Bishop asked me how I was doing with the Language and I just burst into tears and left the room. There are different kinds of Spanish here and so its confusing and my Companion is WONDERFUL but she has no education therefore isn't able to help me with the grammar of Spanish. Argentinian's speak a certain kind of spanish called Casteliano where we pronounce the double ll and y differently. I love it!!! But its confusing because other people speak Paraguayan also.......I don't really understand it really but there are just lots of different words and ways people speak here.

The Bishop and his wife were soooo sweet to me after I left the room bawling. Everyone is REALLY kind and supportive to me with my language. But everyone says that I've improving fast and when people write stuff down I understand better. I have to remind myself that 3 months ago I knew NOTHING!! Also many people say that I know more than other missionaries who come here first. I just want soooo badly to understand people when they talk to me!!!! I want to be able to really talk to them and help them!! But I am teaching more and more everyday in Spanish.

I am starting to really care for & love the people we teach and I find myself wanting them to have a fullness of happiness in their lives. I want the people who are suffering & struggling to know of their Savior and his love for them. Through the atonement of Jesus Christ all things are made fair.......that is my favorite line in Preach My Gospel. The Savior has the power to change us and heal our hearts. I realized recently that its a HUGE lie when others say People can't change!!! The Savior has the power to change ANY & ALL but we must reach out to him to help change us. After all we can possibly do....we acknowledge that we are powerless and then allow the Savior to step in and make up the difference. I'm grateful for this opportunity to be here in Argentina and serve these people. This is REALLY crazy hard and some days I question my sanity because honestly if this wasn't God's church on the earth with priesthood power than mormon missionaries would be the craziest people alive!! But because its true and Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price which is sooo difficult that we can't even imagine/comprehend the pain he went through......I too can can handle the pain & challenges I face everyday here.

Yeah....so don't worry about me - I'm in a safe little town here and in a blessing I was told that my family doesn't need to worry about me because I'm in Jesus Christ's hands right now!!! God protects his missionaries!! I love you all!! Mom, please tell me how much is in my account every week so I know!!! And......tell me whats going on with my family & America.....I have never had sooo much pride for my country than I do right now!! We are so blessed- its disgusting!!!!! love you all!!! -hermana Anna Schmidt

Anna's first two weeks in Argentina!

Sorry I'm behind with this (as usual) but here are Anna's first two emails from her first two weeks in Argentina!

Just some highlights: The people in Argentina call her Sister Rubia (Sister Blond) because they can't pronounce 'Schmidt'. Her companion is from Peru and doesn't speak any English and Anna speaks only broken Spanish, so they both are teaching each other the language!

The first one was received June 8th:

hello everybody!!! I have so much to say!! First off...I'm on a different planet. I'm going through culture shock right now but what's soooo crazy is that I´m happy here!!!! I feel so much better here even though these people have so little compared to Americans. After arriving in Resistencia.....I went through orientation at the mission president's house and then in the evening our first companions arrived to pick us up for our first area!! I found out the my mission is the size of California!!!! In California there are 26 different missions and mine is only one!!! I met my first companion who DOESN'T speak English!! She is 32 yrs old, from Peru and is under 5 ft tall!! We are the funniest pair you're ever seen!!! She is amazing!!! Very patient, loving but pushes me as well!!! Exactly what I need!!! Right now I'm in Ituzaingo, Posada....go look it up! My companion and I are the only missionaries in this province......the elders in our district are an hr away.......this is another world over here!!! Here are some differences:

1. No doorbells.......we clap!

2. Biggest meal of the day is lunch!!! Kids come home from school for this and its a huge meal!! Dinner is kinda a snack later for the people here!

3.No one is in a hurry here.......being American and after being in the m.t.c. I'm always in a hurry......everyone is slowwwwwwww here........it cracks me up because I end my prayers and look up quickly and everyone is still thinking about the prayer with their eyes closed and arms folded.

4. the teenage boys love the missionaries and many converts are teenage boys!! Now that I´m here.....we have more....haha..they all jump up to shake my hand and the little girls all want to kiss me. Some people call me Hermana Rubia.....Sister Blonde. Everywhere I go people stare at me.....I'm starting to get really self conscience about it actually....all the men get big grins on their faces when they see me.....yep.....kinda awkward but I just smile and say hi!! One investigator wrote in my dictionary....you is beautiful! Really! yeah......but people are really, really respectful to me!

5. ALMOST everyone listens to the missionaries!!! They are so respectful and polite and getting people baptized is NOT a problem.......keeping them active is the problem!!!! I seriously think about half of south america are members but not active....its soooooo different than the u.s.!!!! People want to listen to you!! They are very religious and polite and social with you!

6. Sanitation does not exist here at all........everyone touches your food and we kiss all the woman hello on both sides of their cheeks and touch everything. I'm not going to go into further details but everything that you wouldn't do in America...they do here.... The Mission President asked me if I was in good health.....when I said yes....he replied I hope you stay in good health!! I have to wear repellent everyday so I don´t get Dengue Fever which once you get it you have it for life. Its chills & pains in your bones and your skin breaks out in lesions everywhere.....I have been thinking about my blessing I received in the m.t.c. where I was told that my family doesn't need to worry about me because now I'm in the Savior's hands. it all sounds crazy but I'm happy despite it all!!!!!!!!! We have this electrical thing hooked up to our shower to kill the bacteria......but its freezing right now here b/c its winter.....I actually boil water on our one burner that actually works on our stove-top (the oven doesn't work either) and bathe with water in a big bucket b/c our water is freezing and its soo cold outside right now!

7. Most people can't say my name and even my companion can't.....its really funny!!!!!

8. Remember how I hate singing in front of people?? Well I'm the best singer here....its cracks me up b/c pretty much no one can sing in tune.......sacrament meeting is the best.......heehee

9. The members constantly give references to the missionaries and come along to help teach almost everyday.......they seriously put the american members to shame in this area.......and these members aren't even ward missionaries....you should share this with Brother Poulton!!

10. no one is on time and totally chill..........sooo funny!!!

11. There are stray dogs and cats EVERYWHERE........

11. Some people here don't even have glass windows and share their home with mosquitoes.........My attitude about some things are really changed......I've always though why would someone want to come to America to work at Mcdonalds??? Now I know........b/c for most of the people here a Hotel 6 bedroom would be the nicest place they've EVER been in..........but seriously these people are really blessed b/c they have soooooo little.....(no washing machines, dryers, cars, microwaves, proper protection from basic elements) they ARE humble!!!!!!! They want to listen!!! I wonder how many of these people will make it to the Celestial Kingdom over us americans who have it all!!!! Not everyone is poor here but many are lacking.......but they don´t even know it and are really happy! My apartment is not the best and I'm terrified of my bathroom but I'm happy and working hard.......

Spanish is hard!!!! But I have to remember that I've been called and I have power b/c of that. My companion and I have a lot of really funny moments where we just both crack up laughing and can't stop......We've had funny moments where we totally misunderstand each other and laugh after wards......I make her write stuff down and then I'm able to understand better!!! People talk really fast here!!!!!!! Its frustrating but also funny b/c my companion doesn't speak English and I don't really speak Spanish so we are teaching each other........whenever I get frustrated I just say something hilarious and stupid to her face and of course she doesn't understand which makes me crack up and feel better....I also get her to say crazy stuff in English and its just hilarious!! Anyway I'm over my time period....there's no more count down outside the m.t.c. and I feel to be more obedient next week!! I love you all and don´t worry....right now I feel totally safe!!

One more thing: I'm only allowed 4 packages during my entire time out in the field!! Also when you send them your suppose to write down the value.........only write down $40 or else you have to pay extra!!! talk to you next week!!!! love hermana schmidt.........have an awesome week!

Here's the second email, received Monday June 14th:

Hello everyone! You know you're a missionary when your legs are covered in over 50 bug bites (yes I counted & praying that I don't catch malaria or dengue fever) you get food poisoning (last Thursday) and have the world's biggest blister on the bottom of your foot burst while you´re walking on it (thank goodness my companion doesn't understand English) and a newly baptized member all of the sudden drops the church and I thought I had gotten lice.........yep that was this past week. Saturday night when my companion and I went home to our pension (apartment) I was exhausted, cranky and discouraged.

It's frustrating b/c I want to be able to communicate with these people!!!! I seriously could get this work done if I only spoke Spanish.....I am comfortable enough right now to say that I speak very broken spanish. The problem is everyone talks REALLY fast!!! I make my companion write down the words I don't understand. Anyway when I learn this language and I'm the senior companion- I'm determined to convert half of Argentina. As for right now I´m learn poco & poco........little bit at a time!!!

I really like the people here b/c they are really bold & passionate and of course with my personality that's perfect!!! I'm really enjoying working with the members of the Ward and I'm so excited b/c this Saturday I'm going to teach my first english class to the public!!! It cracks me up b/c everyone calls me Hermana Rubia (my companion still cant say my name right and now I'm actually having trouble saying it b/c I´m talking so much Spanish)......the little boys scream "te amo hermana Rubia"! I love you sister blonde! But its perfect b/c I'm blond and blue eyes and from the US people want to talk to me so we can use this to get appointments (citas) to teach!!

This past weekend we visited one of my companions newest baptized jovens (young adult) His name is Oscar and he´s 20. He was just baptized the week Sunday before I came. He wasn't in church and when my companion called him I could tell he was acting weird. What's really interesting right now is that I'm super sensitive to others' feelings and maybe I can't speak the language but I feel other peoples' emotions SUPER strongly right now. We went to visit Oscar and when we entered his apartment I was hit in the face with a bad spirit.....his friends were there and everyone had been smoking and there was an ashtray right next to us on the table and it was really uncomfortable. My companion is WONDERFUL but she is not observant most of the time. She wanted to sing and I whispered in her ear how I did NOT feel the spirit at all.....his friends had gotten up and let us sit on the couch and they kinda stood in the corner of the tiny room. My companion seemed alarmed after I said that but I was just like- lets just do this.......Oscar is questioning everything now and my companion told him how Satan works really hard on new members! Our visit was short b/c It was not comfortable there with his friends. She picked up the ashtray and asked him if he was smoking and drinking.......anyway as we left his apartment I just started bawling in public.......I don´t even know him but I was soooo sad. My companion was sooo sweet and said lo siento hermana!! (Im sorry sister)

These people have soooo little and then we give them the Gospel of Jesus Christ but they either fall away fast or don't stay active. My companion cried later in our apartment after we planned for the night. I felt really bad for her b/c you work with your investigators and love them so much and invest your time & energy with the hope that they accept the Gospel and have the same blessings you do. SO when they fall away- it breaks your heart. Its discouraging b/c you want them to always be close to their Savior.

I'm in a small town right now......but we travel to the bigger city of Posada for zone conferences and district activities. I love it b/c we use this one bus line called Rio Uragray (cant spell it) that's a double-decker bus and the seats are sooo comfy and they feed us lunch and play American movies which I always hate bc there is no censoring here and so they always play really disturbing rated r movies that are really violent & upsetting........so I always nap during the bus rides. We are contacting lots and teaching a lot but we actually need progressing investigators......I'm working with my companion so that we can really focus on certain people and get them to church & progress......anyway I love you all and I'm sooooo insanely grateful for my PERFECT life in the US!!!! We literally have it all in the US. I'm really grateful for this chance to bring a fullness of happiness to the lives of the people in Argentina! Its just so cool and different here........by the way I recommend emailing now that I´m out in the field b/c its quickest!!!!!!! love you dad, mom, laura, johnny and family, friends! Ciao!

Anna's in Argentina!

So here's the latest email from Anna. She left this Monday for Argentina and arrived in Resistencia after traveling for 30+ hours. We still don't have her new address, but everyone can go to dearelder.com and write her a letter that way. MAKE SURE TO CHOOSE ARGENTINA-RESISTENCIA instead of Provo MTC. Here's the email:

Hello everyone! I can´t believe it but I´m finally in Argentina after 2 days of traveling on 3 different planes and buses......let me just say I´m so excited to be here and am just thrilled!!! It´s a whole other world here and kinda crazy!!! Right now I´m in the mission president´s home doing all kinds of stuff that needs to be taken care of like documentation and stuff like that. Later I´ll be meeting my first companion and trainer which I am soooo excited about. Also I have to say that even the fast food here is soooooooooo yummy!!! I seriously am in shock that I´m here! The traffic is crazy!!! I try not to watch while we are being driven around.....seriously it´s all in God´s hands bc most people dont wear seatbelts and there are no stop signs!!!!!!!!!! Dont worry ....I insist on wearing mine.....I wont be driving! ANyway I love you all and pray for me!!! Love you all- hermana schmidt......its weird bc here I look different from most people!!

Anna mailed me a cd with all of the pictures she took at the mtc, so I'll make sure to post them next entry. Please everyone send Anna dearelders because I'm sure she could use the support now that she's actually out in the field in Argentina!
Thanks everyone for all the support you've given her these past two months!
-Laura