Chile! Hermana Thompson

Hola from Chile!

I made it safely and man I could not love this place more! It is beautiful, not what I was expecting. SO much has happened. I feel like I have been here forever. I don´t really know where to start. I live off of campus but we come to the CCM everyday. The first day we were here, (1/1/14) we spent all day at Alcanatara (my new home) settling in, studying, getting the swing of things. The next day was the first real day at the CCM and we hit the ground running. We wake up at 6:45, have personal study for an hour and eat breakfast. Oh man breakfast is weird here!! They eat yogurt in their cereal! No cold milk, only warm, so i avoid that... Every meal is pretty much the same every day. They eat a ton of bread! but it is so good. We run around the city every morning. Then we take a bus to the CCM and have language study (rough)! We have 3 investigators right now and let's just say i struggle understanding what they even say... but I just let the spirit guide me and somehow it seems to work out and I can get my point across in as few words as possible.

My companion is Hermana Truman. She is from Las Vegas. Sweet girl and man she is patient with me and my spanish!! Oh, there are 4 of us girls who share a room and we have 40 minutes to get ready in the morning... yes that includes showering. I am a hot mess everyday!! Hermana Truman and I are the only hermanas in our district. Elder Litza is from Citrus Heights! Elder Daniel, Texas. Elder Gamboa, LA. And Elder Jepsson, Idaho. Elder Chuquel, Brazil. Elder Gambo, Daniel, and Chuquel are going to my mission! There is a district 2 weeks ahead of us that also lives at Alcantara and they are all great! 2 elders and 2 sisters from North America the others are Latinos. Elder Hansen, Elder Brock, Hermana Ardnt, and Hermana Weist(she is from Roseville, same birthday, same hospital...Crazy!).

MY days are all mixed up, but Friday was a really rough day. I was struggling big time with the language and was getting so frustatred with myself. It was bad. We taught an investigator and I just did not even know what he was saying, so I pretty much just sat there. But this was my motivation to try so much harder to get the language down; not for myself, but to benefit my investigators so I will be able to teach them the gospel. Since then I have learned how to pray and bear my tesimony in spanish. POOF! I have the best teachers! They are so great because they relate to us on a social level as well as on a spiritual level. They have so much valid advice, it's great. 

This life is not a ladder climbing competition; we all progress at different rates in different times of our lives. BE patient with yourself and always remember to only compare yourself to yourself!

The church is true and book is blue! 

I love you all and I testify that this gospel is true and I am doing the Lord's work. There is no other place i would rather be. 

Much love From Santiago,

Hermana Thompson

I am doing well. I love this gospel so much, it is great!

P.S. there are so many Latinos here in the CCM, and we are surrounded by Spanish! They have to translate for us few north americans haha. FYI, we can only take pictures on Pday while in the CCM :(

My district!

The other missionaries staying at Alcantara

I made it!

hello there! well I made it to Chile. The flight was long but i slept. I am living in Alcantara 360 look it up. It is beautiful!! The church bought it in 1961. It was a swiss embassy. There a ton of trees here. Weather is beautiful. I am staying with 3 other sisters. 2 elders are going to my mission. 1 elder is from citrus heights. I love it already! I love you guys dont worry about me!!

much love xoxo

hermana Thompson

And there she goes...

the Eve of 2014 marks the beginning of Kendal's new life as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints…

Adios Home Sweet Home

Hello Santiago Chile

End of a Chapter

Last Wednesday marked a pause to my life in Provo. As my mom and I drove back to San Ramon, I had 11 hours to reflect on all of the experiences and memories created. Provo has become my home; friends have become my family. When I first arrived in Provo, I had no idea how much I would change because of living there. Living in Provo has helped me evaluate my life goals and realign my priorities. Although school hasn't always been at the top of my list (Sorry Mom!), I learned so much about myself and adventure out of my comfort zone. I gained so many invaluable lessons living on my own that are applicable to my future and ability to overcome day to day struggles. Living in "Mormon Central" allowed me to grow closer to Heavenly Father and strengthen my testimony; that has led to the next step in my life: My Mission. I have met some absolutely amazing people in Provo that have forever changed my perspective, my self, and my heart. They have been there for me and taken such care of me when I have felt I had nowhere to go or no one to talk to. They helped me get to where I am today, always encouraging me to take the next step in the right direction. Although they weren't always aware of what I was going through, because they live close to the spirit they were able to say just what I needed to hear at the exact moment I needed to hear it.

Just a few snippets of my life in Provo

Goodbye Belmont!

Goodbye to the Best Roommate Ever!!!!!!!!!

Goodbye to all these people that have become family 

 Goodbye my cute little munchkins

 Goodbye to my childhood best friend

 Goodbye to pranks on the boys 

 Goodbye to days full of fun 

Goodbye to Rachel!

Goodbye to Hayley and good luck in Mexico City!!

 Goodbye to the guy that threw the best parties!

 Goodbye to Philip who was always willing to be crazy with us

 Goodbye to the nights filled with laughter

Goodbye to random adventures with these 3 boys

Goodbye to my Galena Sisters

Goodbye to Eric and all the jokes

Goodbye to BYU football games

 Goodbye to Crazy Dances with these guys.

Goodbye to Heather who will be serving in the Oakland Visitor's Center

 Goodbye to the wonderful people I met at Vivint!!

 Goodbye and Good luck to this girl who happens to be my cousin ;)

 Goodbye to my San Ramon best friend

Goodbye to this girl who kept all my secrets

Temple

Last Wednesday, I had the privilege to go thru the Oakland Temple and what a remarkable experience it was. I was surrounded by so many loved ones and felt the love from those who were not able to make it.  Looking over and seeing my Mom, Dad and those who were there to support me is another confirmation of how true this church is. Going thru the temple is such a personal and sacred experience, but I wanted to share just a few brief thoughts. I felt so at home as I entered the temple, it just kind of clicked in my head; everything made sense. It is simple really. I feel honored to have been able to make further covenants with my Heavenly Father. I know I now have a greater responsibility, but I also know that as I keep the commandments I will be able to fulfill God's plan for me. Sitting in the temple brought so much peace to my soul as I reflected on my life. I have so many exciting things coming up and I get so caught up in all the craziness sometimes that I forget why I am serving a mission in the first place. The clothes, the packing, the language, the logistics, don't really matter; my spiritual preparation to teach the truth to God's children is where I need to focus my attention. I am going to Chile to bring people true happiness. I need to prepare myself to meet the people who need me to show them the way. The temple has changed my perspective on a lot of things. It made me realize how dumb some of the things I stress over are and how stupid it is to look at my phone for 15 minutes before bed instead of reading my scriptures. The temple has helped me to realign my priorities. I love the temple. I know it is God's home on earth, the spirit testifies that to me when I enter the doors. I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the true church. I love this gospel with all of my being.

These two lovely people have been the ultimate example to me. I owe my life to them. 

 

                       

I feel so grateful to have so many wonderful examples in my life that have shown me the way to live a true happy life.  Shout out to my parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, cousins, and all of my church leaders who have influenced my life and helped me along the way. Each and everyone of you have helped me get to where I am. I cannot thank you enough!! <3