Challege to read the BOM by August!

Okay...I´m here. We had transfers...and the day came. After 4 1/2 months together, my companion got transferred to Arequipa. She will finish her mission there, and she is actually training for her last two transfers. It was bittersweet to see her go, but she was excited to get out of Tacna after 9 months, and we were ready for a change. Haha. My new companion is awesome. She is from Argentina, and has 14 months in the mission, so she will probably finish her mission here in Tacna, and I think I will probably have one or two more transfers here in Para Chico before I get transferred.

This week was busy busy BUSY, but it was a spiritual feast! We had the most amazing opportunity to have a member of the quorum of the 70 here to talk to our whole mission on Friday, and on Thursday we had our leadership conference with the zone leaders, sister training leaders, president and sister Zobrist, and Elder C. Scott Grow and his wife. It was absolutely incredible.  His testimony of the atonement hit me like ton of bricks, and I now have a weird obsession with finding doctrine of the atonement in the Book of Mormon. You can all read my spanglish study journals when I get home, and see some of the amazing things that I have found in my personal studies.

Besides Elder Grow coming down, we have just been working a ton. We are coming into summer time here and it is insanely hot. It´s gotten to a point where working at 2 and 3pm in the afternoon is next to impossible. We have to do language study in the afternoon because the mission nurse doesn´t want us out in the sun too much.

Last week for Pday we went to the beach and it was a ton of fun.  I will send some pictures. We played volleyball, went fishing, ate, played soccer, and searched for crabs (all the mature elders of course) haha. It was such a blast.

This week I have had some cool experiences that have helped my understand a little better the things that I personally need to do better.  I have come to realize how much I love goals. Setting them, keeping them, finishing them....everything goals! AND...speaking of goals I have one for each of you. I have a goal to finish the Book of Mormon in Spanish in this transfer (I´m in Helaman 3) and in English the transfer after this in April.  I want to challenge anyone who would like too (and for those of you in my immediate family...this is not an option) to read personally the Book of Mormon from cover to cover before I get home in August. I was telling Summer that they have these little flea market places here that have some SWEET stuff, and for everyone who finishes the Book of Mormon I will bring home a prize from the lovely country of Perú.  You can never read the Book of Mormon too many times, or have too many personal confirmations that it is the word of God, and I know that it will be a wonderful experience for anyone who is willing to spend the time to read it, and put forth the effort.

les amo MUCHO! 

xoxoxo,

sister carli stone