a-sort-of-vacation

Hey family!!Como estan? We just go done having a zone cook-out. It wasn't exactly the vacation Hermana Graham and I had in mind but it was still fun. Things are going well in Bolivar but we've been having some challenges the last couple of weeks...everything we that was going so well has kind of faded off into the distance. Karen didn't get baptized because she hasn't come to church again-she's great and so prepared but lets little things get in the way and we haven't even been able to teach her in over a week because of all the holidays last week (in November Panama celebrates like 15 holidays all having to do with their Independence Day...). Blah.
But we're truckin on and not giving up on her because she's awesome. We've also been struggling to find new families. Or we find them but then they just want nice bible study classes and don't want to progress. We're going to reboot our looking for families at night plan again this week because last week a bunch of other appointments and activities got in the way so we're hoping to have more success now.
I love being with Hermana Graham! :) But I think the chances of us spending Christmas are pretty small...*sigh*
This week I have been studying conference talks from the last 2-3 years like mad and have been reminded again of how much I love conference and how lucky we are to have living prophets and apostles to guide us. Their talks are scripture, and every time we re-read them we understand something better or can apply something else in our lives.
This week I've also been thinking about Captain Moroni again. As I was reading in Alma a couple of weeks ago I read in Alma 40-something (right when the war first starts) about how Moroni went to the prophetAlma to ask him to pray to know the Lamanite strategy so they'd know how to defend and prepare themselves. I've been thinking about that alot lately and how we can apply it to us. Satan gets sneakier and sneakier every day with more and more experience. Every single one of us has different weak points, and sometimes he's so sneaky that we don't even realize he's working on us until we've fallen into his trap. So to help us identify his strategy so we can prepare ourselves, we can ask God and seek personal revelation. Then he can tell us so we can prepare for and not fall into his traps. Hmmm interesante verdad?
The answers come through scriptures, the words of the prophets, and thoughts and feelings. So then we can be prepared and strong and fortified.
Alexander, my awesome convert from San Miguelito, called last night. He is so great and I love him so much. He turns 16 next year and he's so smart and has the craziest, most awful family but he's reading his scriptures every day now and praying and working so hard to be a missionary in his family. I'm so proud of him :) He told me that when I go home I have to tell you all about how I "rescued a future missionary in San Miguelito." I told him not to worry, that my family already knows all about him and about how he's my favorite, haha.
I worry about him a lot but I'm so happy to hear that the hermanas there are still helping him and that he's progressing. :)
I heard the daughter of a mission president who served in Columbia bear her testimony a couple of months ago and she said her dad always asked the missionaries in the farewell dinner to share an experience that had made the whole 2 years or the whole 1 1/2 years worth it. I think Alexander is mine.
Yikes, so many things I want to tell you all. Did I tell you about my cool experience applying what Elder Scott taught a couple of conferences ago about receiving spiritual guidance and personal revelation? It was pretty sweet, but to be continued because I'm almost out of time. I have to leave you with cliff hanger! haha.
Thanks for everything!!
Love,
Hermana Dance