Caught in a downpour!

Monday, December 28, 2009

"It was the most perfect Christmas that a Missionary can have!"

December 26, 2009 - Hey Beautiful and Wonderful Family,
What an excellent day yesterday was. It was so good to be able to talk with each one of you and hear your voices. You all sound great. Dallis, you sound just like Chase. It is amazing. I cannot wait to see you all. I actually made it through the phone call without crying, but right when I hung up, the tears came out. It wasn’t because I was sad; it was because I was overfilled with the joy of being able to talk with my perfect family. I love you guys so much. We went to dinner afterwards and it was fun to spend the night with the Canches Family. We ate pig and turkey with rice and then had soda and cake for dessert. We also watched the second part of my High School Musical with Whitley and they loved it. We then went outside and lit off some fireworks, and about every single one was illegal in the United States. It was way fun. It was the most perfect Christmas that a Missionary can have: being with President in the morning, talking with the family in the afternoon, and finishing the day with a wonderful member family. I loved my second Christmas in the Mission. It was so fun to sleep at President’s house and feel just like I was in my own house with parents and everything. And guess what? President invited us today to do it all over again for New Years!!! That means this week, we will again be going to President’s house to spend the night and celebrate. I cannot believe it. I am so blessed. Please do not worry about me because I am being more than taken care of. I feel so spoiled and special. I love it. No more Holiday Seasons in the Mission. We are done!!! For the next Thanksgiving and Christmas, I will be sharing the table with you and it is going to be great. I absolutely cannot wait. I love you so much and cannot wait to see you. I am glad that you all liked my gifts. I had fun getting them together. Thanks Mom for putting presents under the tree for me again. I cannot wait to open them when I get home. I don’t know if I’ll be able to wait until Christmas to open them, but they will be opened with excitement because I already want to open them. I love you so much. Thank you family for being so sweet. I honestly have the perfect family and I would never do anything to change it. I love you so much and never forget it. WE ARE SO BLESSED!!! I write over and over again in my journal that I will never be able to thank Heavenly Father enough for the special blessing he has given me of having the best family on earth. I love you guys so much. Take care. Have a very Happy New Year!!! I’ll be writing in a week. I love you so much!!! Love you forever, Coco

Sunday, December 20, 2009

"I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!"

December 19, 2009 - Hey Merry Family,
I love you so very much. Can you believe we are already in the week of Christmas? It came so fast. But you know what that means…PHONE CALL!!! I am so excited to be able to talk to you guys this week. Remember what I said in our phone call on Mother’s Day. This is the longest period of time that we have had to go without being able to hear each others’ voices. After this, there is one more phone call, and then I’ll be home. :) Imagine how strong we have become. We are a strong surviving family and I love that so much. . Excellent news… I finished my first journal this week. By that, I mean that I have been writing in my journal every single day since I started my Mission and I have now filled up one whole journal and I am starting the second one. My journal is my most-prized possession now because it has fourteen months of my life written in it. I cannot wait to be back at home and be able to share everyday and every experience with you. We will be able to read every day and just laugh or cry depending on what was going on that day. I am so excited to share my Mission with you, my sweet and cherished family. I love you.
I received a Christmas package from Grandma and Granpda Olsen full of good Christmas goodies. Please tell them thanks and let them know of my love for them. I am going to take the goodies to President’s house on Christmas Eve to share with everyone. We are going to have so much fun and I am so excited for this week. It is another week that is just going to fly by. We’ll be talking next Friday and then writing each other on Saturday. What a great and merry week it is going to be. :) Christmas is not a hugely celebrated Holiday here in Peru. The people are just not as excited as they should be. A lot say that it is a sad Holiday because a lot of kids pass this day just like any other regular day. But I am glad I am here. I am bringing the Christmas Spirit into every house that I walk into. I love Christmas. I think everyone in the Offices is getting tired of me repeating the same Christmas songs. But I just keep on singing because I love it. It is the best time of year and it will be even better next year because I will be with you! :) I cannot wait. Elder Steed and I stayed up the other night watching the lights that I put up on our porch. It was so fun to just sit in peacefulness and watch the lights. I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!
My companion has a lot of work right now because there are a ton of Christmas packages that are arriving and he has to go to the Post Office to take them out. We went the other day to take thirteen packages out and it took us four hours. Right now, I think there are thirty more packages and even more on the way. It is the Christmas Season, so why not send your Missionary a package… The whole Mission is receiving packages. We have a new Gringo Missionary Couple that entered in the Mission. They are in my ward and are so fun. They can’t speak or understand even a little bit of Spanish so they are struggling. They are being supported by three of their kids that are currently serving Missions, one in the Philippines, one in Guatemala, and one in Chile. They are a Missionary Family. It is fun to have some adult Utahns in the Mission. We are trying to help them learn Spanish and get used to the culture which is a lot of fun. I honestly love the Mission. I really do. It is the best. I love you guys so so much and I am more than excited for our phone call this week. I am so glad that the house is finally started and I can’t wait to see the finished product. (Mom, don’t forget to put in a scrapbooking room…) It is going to be a wonderful, comfy, and cozy home. I am excited to come home to a new house. I love you so much family and can’t wait to hear your laughs and your voices. I love you forever. Love, Coco

Monday, December 14, 2009

"I absolutely love this culture!"

December 12, 2009 - Hey Cute Family,
So we have two wards now. Our new ward is Las Violetas and it is so much fun to get to know new members and a new area. We have two baptismal dates already and we are hoping that they will be baptized this month of December. It feels great to be out teaching again. The only thing is that Lima is really hard to teach in. The people are more educated and we get rejected a lot of the time, but the work still goes on. It makes it difficult sometimes to be rejected, but it is not worth it to get discouraged. I can’t let myself get down or it takes a little while to get back up. So I had a lot of surprises this week. I was able to spend all Sunday in Church with Landon and his mom, and then we also spent the night together in the Christmas Devotional of the First Presidency. It was a splendid day with them. Landon’s mom is so nice and we had fun just talking about how you came to know each other and the stories about being a Missionary Mom. I’m sure you are living the same experiences Mom. You are going to love the stories she will tell you when they get back in Utah. Thank you so much for the gifts. I am so excited to give President and Sister Pérez their gifts for Christmas. They are going to love their gifts. I love the book and the sweet note that you wrote. The book is perfect. It is full of nursery stories and other tales that are perfect. I love the pictures as well. Thank you for the candy and for the “To: Coco From: Santa” notes. They make me really happy. I am just like a little kid waiting for Santa to come. I actually had a sweet member tell me that I have such a childlike spirit because I love Christmas so much. I am all about being happy during this time of year. I have been singing many Christmas hymns to the members and I love doing it. Thanks again for the sweet packages you sent with Landon and his mom. But there was an even bigger surprise. We had just gotten home on Thursday and were about to go and plan for the next day when someone rang the doorbell. I answered the speaker phone and they asked for Elder Quinn in English. I was very surprised and I told them I would be right there. I opened the front door and I recognized the man’s face, but I wasn’t sure who it was. He asked me if I recognized him and I said that I did. He then proceeded to tell me that he was Leslie’s dad. I about fainted because I couldn’t believe that he was here. I could not believe that someone who lives so close to me was in the front door of the Mission Offices here in Peru. He then went to the car and brought out a package. It was huge…a garbage bag filled to the seam of candy. I was so excited. I told him to tell everyone “hello” for me. I was basically in shock for ten minutes afterward still finding it hard to believe that I had just seen one of my best friend’s dad. Thank you so much for the candy and treats. I have so much candy now that I don’t even know what to do with it. I am going to be gaining a lot of weight in these next few weeks… :) Another cool surprise is that we have two new missionaries in the mission who are from Riverton High that I knew. We are all from the same graduating class so you will find them in the Yearbook. They are Matt French and Garrett Crosby. I am excited to see them and talk about how their lives have been since high school. It really is a small world. Today we hung out in the afternoon with Landon and his mom just talking about the fun trip they had this week. We are going to have to do a similar trip. I am so excited. I really love the Christmas letters from all of the family. They are so sweet. And I especially love the last half of Tuacahn High School Musical. We watched a little bit of it and everybody started whistling when they saw me and Whitley kiss in “Breaking Free.” They were very impressed by mine and Whitley’s performance. Landon and his mom are excited to see me live someday. I can’t wait to perform again. :) Please give Whitley and her family a big thank you from me for their sweet gift. It wasn’t necessary for them to do that. They really are a great family and she is such a special girl. Our Christmas phone call....I am so excited and already starting my list of things to talk about. Good and bad news: we are only going to be able to talk for one hour. I can’t go over. It’s going to be fine. I feel like we are always close and that the weeks are just passing away so fast. I love you so much and cannot wait to hear your voices. I absolutely love this culture and I am so excited to spend one more Christmas down here in Peru. It is going to be so much fun. I hope that you are all in the Christmas Spirit as much as I am. I know that I am not going to be with you for Christmas, but I am going to be okay. I am so excited for Christmas. This is by far the best time of the year. I love you all so much. Don’t ever forget it. I will love you forever. Take care until next week.
Love, Coco
P.S. Tell Grandpa and Grandma Quinn not to worry about sending candy.… Send my love to them and to Grandma and Grandpa Olsen as well. :)

Saturday, December 12, 2009

"It was such a good day."

December 5, 2009 - Hey Lovely Family,
Feliz and Merry December!!! Can you believe that we are already in December? I told you that this week was going to just fly by. It flew by. I can’t even believe that it is already Saturday. Changes went great. Fun news: I put up the Christmas tree this week and it looks great. It is just your ordinary green Christmas tree with red and gold ornaments. It also has some candy-cane shaped ornaments, poinsettias, and a silver star on top. It makes us all so happy and we have the lights on all day long. We keep the room lights off where it is so that we can just enjoy the natural Christmas light. I love this time of year. I feel so happy and excited for everything that happens and the emotions that there are in the Christmas season. I love Christmas!!! Soooo… My biggest news!!! I saw Landon today and I met his mom!!! It was such a good day. We went with him, his mom, and the Pérez Family to La Bistecca to celebrate Carolina’s Birthday. We ate a delicious meal, and then President surprised Carolina and all of us by inviting us to go BOWLING!!! That’s right. Yes, Dallis, there are bowling alleys in Peru, not a lot, but there is at least one… We all had the privilege of going to a really ritzy part of Miraflores and bowl with the Pérez Family and the Rich Family. It was so much fun. Landon and his mom couldn’t stop talking about how good Chase was in Les Mis. They said that they absolutely loved it. Landon told me that if I say that I am better than Chase, then I must be amazing because he says that Chase is a star. I told him that he will just have to wait and he is so excited to see me in a show. His mom is so nice and told me about her moments shared with you. They will be passing by the Offices tomorrow to drop off their suitcase full of packages and I hope we will have even more time to talk. :) Carolina really is so cool. She is going back home on Friday. I am going to miss having her around when we go with the Pérez Family because she loves to joke and just brightens our day. Thanks in advance for the gifts; I can’t wait to see what there is for me. I have a great new companion! His name is Elder Samayoa and he is from Guatemala. He is so funny and he is just so fun to be around. I love him to death. The little that I know about him is that before the Mission, he had worked in mechanics on cars and other such things and that he also worked in Postal Services. He is so cool. I am so excited because he has a huge desire to work and I want to work hard. We want to have a lot of baptisms this month of December. His Birthday was yesterday so we kind of celebrated it today as well with Carolina. I am so excited to have him as my companion. He is really easy to love and get along with. So, that was my week. I am way excited to receive the packages and see what is inside. Thank you for all that you have done to help me out. I love you guys so much. I hope it is snowing like crazy there and that everything is going okay. I love you so much. Take care until next week. I love you so much. I will have a lot more to write next week. I LOVE YOU FOREVER!!! Love,Coco

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

"IT IS A MIRACLE!"

November 28, 2009 - 8:00 pm. - New Email.......

It’s a Miracle!!! Martha got baptized today!!! I have had a really stressful week worrying about Sister Martha. Today was the day we had set as her Baptism, and she wasn’t interviewed or anything. I left all day today to do some shopping and eat and have some fun. I entered for my first time in a Star*Bucks. Elder Steed and I bought cinnamon rolls. They were so good. We got home and I put up some Christmas lights in my room and it looks great! (I think we’re putting the Christmas Tree up tonight). :) A phone call came in at 5:20pm. It was Martha!!! I couldn’t believe it. I honestly could not believe it. God had answered my prayers. I immediately got so excited that I could hardly talk. She told me that she was calling from a public phone booth and that she would be in the Church in forty minutes for her Baptism. I was so excited. I told her we would be there waiting. I immediately called up Members and the Bishop and we got the baptismal clothes together and we headed off to the Church. We got there and waited for her arrival. She arrived safely. We immediately threw her into her baptismal interview. Wednesday, she was overstraining her wrist washing her clothes and her blankets and it really started to hurt. Come to find out she has osteoporosis and has very weak bones. She was in the hospital getting a bandage put on and couldn’t go to work since. Plus, her cell phone was hidden in a random drawer and she found it today. So everything is okay. She came to her baptism and I had the amazing privilege of baptizing her. What she didn’t realize was that her mom was in the baptism and when Martha saw her after being baptized, she broke into tears and both of them gave each other hugs. It was a very tender-hearted moment. Martha Victoria Oporto Soto was baptized the 28th of November, 2009. IT IS A MIRACLE!!! :) So everything is absolutely perfect. I am now totally relieved of my worries of Martha. The Lord answered my prayers and my tears. She was baptized today! I know that God loves us and listens to us. I am so thankful that Heavenly Father let me live this precious moment tonight. One more soul brought to the fold of God!!! I love being a Missionary! I love the Gospel! I love life! Everything is great!!! I love you all so much!!! Love you Forever! Colyn

"I love being here in Peru!"

November 28, 2009 -
Hey Cougar Family, Well, I don’t really have a lot to say. I am honestly in shock with what has been going on this week. As for Martha, I don’t know what happened. Let me explain. We had been teaching her basically everyday at her work. She went home last weekend to celebrate her grandkids’ birthdays. She did attend Church which was great. She was only going to come for Sacrament and then go home, but she loves Church and decided to stay for all of Church and then go home. We were so happy and excited for her. The Bishop announced her baptism so that everyone would plan to attend. We programmed it for today. But something happened since Monday. We went to visit her at her work on Monday, but she hadn’t come because she was tired from the weekend. Since that day, I have been worried sick about her. We haven’t had any contact with her since the phone call that Elder Sandoval made. I have been praying my heart out all week to get in contact with her, and have been almost in tears a couple of times. I honestly don’t know what happened. We went to her shop and asked the other small shops nearby if they know something about her, and no one does. I don’t know what has happened and I am really shocked. She was already dressed in white and in the water because she was already prepared before I met her, but now I have no idea where she is. Her house phone is now cut out, and her cell phone is either dead, or she doesn’t have it near her, because it always goes to the message machine. I do not know what has happened, and I need to find out. So just keep praying for her. We are hoping that everything is going okay. I still love her to death, which is why I am so worried about her. I can’t believe this happened this week. I shouldn’t have told you guys about her until she was already baptized, but now you know. It’s a trial that I have to learn from and survive. Heavenly Father wants me to learn something from this. I hope that we do get in contact with her before time starts to pass and that she will still get baptized. Keep praying for me and her… This week, we had a Mission inspection by Elder Pino from the First Quorum of the Seventy. He came and met every Missionary and shared with us some ways to improve the Mission. He was very happy with the Peru Lima North Mission. He said that he usually does a ton of practices with Missions, but he didn’t feel the need to do that with ours. He just motivated us, telling us that our Mission is very powerful. He reminded us that we are the first convert in the Mission. We have to become totally converted and compromised to the Gospel. We can never let it go. We then had a surprise inspection of the Offices. Elder Pino came and checked out everything. He asked us who we are, what our job requires, and everything that we do. He also inspected our rooms upstairs to make sure that we were living well. He was very impressed by our Offices. It was really need to talk with someone from the First Quorum of the Seventy. He asked us what we liked to do. I told him that I am a performer: singer, dancer, actor. He was really impressed. He then asked everyone what sports they played. I told him that baseball was always my sport. He was so excited about that because he finally had someone to talk with who knew a little bit about baseball. We had a fun, quick conversation about what positions I played and my favorite team, and other things like that. It was really neat to be with President Pérez and Elder Pino, knowing that they were both happy with the work that we are doing here in the Mission Offices and for the condition the Mission is in. The Peru Lima North Mission Rocks!!! This week I have been getting ready for the Changes. It’s Change Week once again: time to send the old Missionaries home and bring the new ones in. I am excited to see the new Missionaries. Two of them are from Riverton High School. We weren't close friends, but we did know each other, so I am excited to see them as Missionaries. So this week is going to fly by. I am getting a new companion. Elder Sandoval is finally healed and he is now walking without crutches. It is time for him to leave the Offices. My new companion is from Guatemala. His name is Elder Samayoa. I am so excited. I met him when I was in Iquitos. He is really happy, and they say that he is a good worker so I am excited to be companions with him. We are going to be here as companions in the Offices for Christmas and New Years! I am so excited. Oh, by the way, we are decorating for Christmas today. We are going to put up the Christmas tree and I am so excited!!! I love Christmastime. It is the best time of the year. This is my last Holiday Season in the Mission and I know that I am going to love it. I hope that all of you are enjoying it just as much as I am. Did you already decorate for Christmas? I sure hope so. :) I’m so glad that everyone was able to be there for Thanksgiving. I did eat pizza, but the day passed just like any other normal day. It was really nice because I didn’t miss home at all. I really am overcoming the homesickness. I love that feeling. I am doing great… BYU vs. Utah today huh? Go COUGARS!!! I really hope they tear it up… Fun news: we got a phone call last night from Elder Rich!!! He told us all about him coming down next week with his Mom. I am so excited to see him and meet his Mom!!! He also told me that he met Whitley and gave her a huge hug just to make me a little jealous. He said that same thing, that Whitley and DeLaney are beautiful girls. It’s always great news to know that my friends are doing okay. I can’t wait to see them again. But, like I said. This week is going to fly by: changes, Elder Rich, Carolina’s Birthday with the Pérez Family. I’ll be writing home again in no time. Happy 13 Months Tomorrow!!! Time is just flying by now. I cannot believe it. I love being a Missionary. I love being here in Peru. I am so thankful for the blessings I receive and see everyday. I love the Mission. I love you all so much. Keep a prayer in your hearts for Martha. Keep your hopes up that she will still get baptized. I love you so much. Love You Forever!!! Colyn