WOAH, WE'RE HALF WAY THERE...WOAH-OH, LIVIN' ON A PRAYER! HAHAHA, Literally:)

I went on divisions with Hermana Moon this week. 2 Gringas in one area...that was interesting. People screamed "Speak English!" at us hahaha!

Hola!

THIS WEEK WAS SO AMAZING!!

First off, I'm writing (today) Tuesday because I asked special permission from President Hayes. Yesterday Hermana Velez and I had chequeo del mes (monthly check for the new missionaries), we didn't get back to our area until Pday was over. However, we had an amazing family home evening! Last night, the Chaverri family invited us over!! In the Chaverri family it's Anna Lauren and Luis Claudio (Stake President that is going to be the area 70) and their 5 daughters. I absolutely love them and their house reminds me of home. It's beautiful! They always make us feel so welcome and they cook food like at home!! Steak, salad, and potatoes! If it didn't include rice I'd call it a Zerilli dinner! However, I've learned here, if it doesn't have rice...we should be concerned:) The Elders came too and we taught their investigators who are going to get married so that they can be baptized too. Just like Maria and Andres. It was a great lesson and we all enjoyed it!

This past week was one of miracles! I have to tell you about Saturday in particular...We had a really crazy day planned with appointments in all areas. Honestly, we were really really nervous about how we were going to be able to do it all! Luckily everything ended up working out. It started out with us looking for new investigators. It was a little discouraging knocking on door after door and being rejected until we literally got to the last house on the street. We knocked and a young looking guy came smiling and let us in saying that he knew who we were but never had spoken with us before. We immediately felt like things were right! He went to invite his mom to come and she came out speaking English. Oh hey another investigator that speaks English, haha! They are African, and they are bilingual. The lesson went super well. They both accepted baptismal dates and we are looking forward to the next lesson.

After finding them, we went to teach Maria and Andres and then hopped on a bus to visit Steven's family. We taught them within the hour that we had until another lesson. We taught Joseph Smith and The First Vision. Steven was there and he was so excited that we were teaching that he literally couldn't close his mouth. He would scream out parts of the lesson that we hadn't even taught! hahaha, it was hilarious! In the end, Pamela and Alan said that they were looking forward to going to church with the family Sunday. Then they said that they didn't want to just keep going to church...they want to be members. In that moment I think my heart stopped. WHAT!! They want to be baptized!!! We hadn't even asked! Well, looks like we will be planning another wedding!! Also, they asked about Alexandra, Steven's little sister who is 8 and we told her that she could get baptized whenever she wanted! She said that she really wants to get baptized and we are ecstatic for her! I left their house in almost tears. I have fasted and prayed for this family for these past 3 months and this is evidence that EVERYTHING is in the Lords timing! What was so sweet is that Steven said "Everyone told me that if I got baptized and kept going to church, eventually my family would join too." How amazing is that? After that house, we hopped on a bus and then took off running to meet up with a member to go teach Carolina. We had an amazing lesson with her about the Sabbath Day, and now we have her committed to attend church every Sunday! So far so good! 

Saturday night, we were exhausted but I couldn't have been happier!! The Lord is blessing us for our efforts. I am amazed at His love and His tender mercies. 

Oh and guess what. I COMPLETED 9 MONTHS!!!!
"WOAH, WE'RE HALF WAY THERE...WOAH-OH, LIVIN' ON A PRAYER!" HAHAHA, Literally:) I cant believe it. Where did time go? I will be seeing you all before I know it! 

Love you all so much and pray for you always! Thank you all for your support and emails, and I am so sorry that I don't have time to reply to everyone. Take care and read your scriptures!

EWWWWWWW!!!!!!!! COCKROACH!!!!!

Hey everyone!! How's the weather over there? I can tell you how it is here....HOT HOT HOTTTTTT!! 

Remember how I had previously written that the normal fall, winter, spring, summer don't exist here? Well that's still true. However, normally here it is hot one day and there is rain the next. Sadly, there has been absolutely no rain! Everyday the sun has been incredibly hot and without mercy. This isn't normal. We all started to become a little worried, and still are worried. Then we found that at certain times of the day, we don't get water in the house. They are rationing out the water here because there is so little of it. It's strange knowing that in California, we didn't have rain for a long time but we always had water in the house!

I have to say, it was a tough week in general, long and so hard. Migraines, lots of sweat and hundreds of doors that people didn't want to open to us. The motivation to find someone to teach was that much more when we just wanted to get out of the sun! I kinda felt like a missionary failure because our numbers were awful, but it's OK. Stress in the mission is different. If I fail, I don't just fail myself like in the real world, I'm failing The Lord! Today I look back and think, yeah it was hard but every week can't be easy. I will never learn anything. President Hayes taught me in the beginning of my mission something that has stuck with me. When I was worried and felt like I couldn't handle the challenges of the mission he told me that Heavenly Father was challenging me for a reason. I had had things easy until that point and I needed to go through something hard so that he could bless me. Week by week I have moments when I think of that. If I want to grow as a person and a missionary, I need to stretch and be challenged. I'm so grateful for an amazing companion like Hermana Velez who I can laugh with when things get hard!! When faced with difficult things we can shake off the bad, smile and get back to work. 

Helaman 15:6 

"Yea, I say unto you, that the more part of them are doing this, and they are striving with unwearied diligence that they may bring the remainder of their brethren to the knowledge of the truth; therefore there are many who do add to their numbers daily." 

Well, as always there was a miracle! Yesterday, Steven's whole family came to church. His mom and her boyfriend, and his 3 brothers and sisters. I have been trying ever since Steven was baptized to get them to come to church and FINALLY they committed and they came! What was even better, THEY LOVED it! The kids loved primary and the parents said that they had been to other churches before but had never felt like they did in our church. I loved seeing how happy Steven was to see his family with him at church!! I know without a doubt that God blessed us.

Sorry, that's all I have for this week!! Please keep doing what you know is right! Read the scriptures, say your prayers, and go to church!! Remember Christ in your lives, He will never forget you! 

Love you so much! Pura vida 

Hermana Zerilli

NOW I TOLD YOU IT WAS A TOUGH WEEK. I JUST WANTED TO BRUSH MY TEETH AND GO TO BED. EWWWWWWW!!!!!!!! COCKROACH!!!!! I COULD GO MY WHOLE LIFE WITHOUT EVER SEEING ONE, LET ALONE HAVING ONE CRAWL AROUND ON MY TOOTHBRUSH!!

 THANK YOU MOM FOR SENDING A BACK UP TOOTHBRUSH HEAD!!!! 

Watching "Meet the Mormons" with Maria and Andres

They call these doraditos...we wanted nachos. 

It said with salsa! 

This is ketchup and mayonnaise...definitely not salsa!

Closest thing I could find to an Icee....

powdered milk and condensed milk 

This is the cacao that Maria and Andres gave us...

the seeds were ok to eat 

after we got over the awful appearance!

So people here don't actually EAT the orange...

they suck on it! I dont know how to explain  it but Hermana Velez and I learned yesterday.

.

HAZ LO JUSTO!

What a week!! 

I have to say, the exhaustion from last week kinda carried over into this week and I really just relied on all of the Coca Cola that the people gave us to keep my wheels spinning!! Haha!

This week we saw such incredible miracles and tender mercies. 

One of my all time favorite moments of my mission happened this last Tuesday. Well it actually started 2 weeks ago Friday.  I don’t know why but I felt prompted to put some of the Spanish CTR Rings (HLJ Rings) that mom had sent me in my backpack that day. We went to an area to visit a menos activa (less active) and I gave her 6 year old daughter one of the CTR Rings. She immediately put it on and took off. When we left the house, little kids slowly started coming up to us asking if we had rings for them. I was completely caught off guard but I gave them all rings. Then more and more kids started coming. We then had the chance to share the message of "Haz lo justo" or "Choose The Right" with them. We told them that they needed to wear their rings everyday to remind them to make good choices because they are children of God. We ran out of rings and actually left some kids in tears. We promised that we would return Tuesday and we did!! The kids remembered and everyone receiving a ring. I have to tell you that to see all of the kids come running to see us, including those kids whom already had rings and were wearing them, filled my heart with joy! I was so happy I could’ve cried! It was beyond precious!  All of the kids also wanted us to meet their parents (talk about references hahaha!). We have goals to go visit all of their families and explain the rings. Now, when we work in that area some of the kids yell, "Thanks for the rings!" when we walk by. I know that God works in simple ways. It is incredible that something so small and at times insignificant like a CTR Ring can make a big difference in someone’s happiness.

Wednesday we had plans to visit someone that we had met by knocking doors. Her best friend lives in The United States and is a member, married in the temple. She has family who are members and the Bishops wife, Yorlenni, is her friend from work. We had an appointment with Yorlenni to go to her house and teach her however, it didn’t work out because she had left. Hermana Yorlenni then took us to the house of one of her dear friends. Her name is Maria Carmen, she’s in her 70s and she lives practically alone. She cuts hair for a living and has cut the Bishop’s hair ever since he was little. We went to her house to get to know her, and she is the absolute sweetest lady ever!! She is incredibly humble and was moved by our message. She said that she had always viewed Yorlenni’s family as an example to her and she knows that it’s because of the Gospel. At the end, she said that she wants us to come back and explain more!! Hermana Velez and I felt so happy after to have met her. In sacrament meeting yesterday, Yorlenni got up and bore her testimony about the experience she had had with us. Apparently, they had tried to share the gospel with Maria Carmen before, but she wasn’t as interested. Yorlenni was so happy that she took us to visit her and she truly felt the joy from missionary work. We felt SO GOOD! 

Speaking of church, President and Hermana Hayes came yesterday with their friends from Idaho!! It was such an amazing surprise!! They got to meet Maria and Andres, and were surprised when Andres started speaking English to them ahhahaha!

I want you all to know, that I know without a doubt, that I am where I need to be. I love this work with all of my heart! It’s not easy but it’s beyond worth it! If I wrote down every miracle that I see, I would have a book by now...(well I do have a book) haha. I feel so blessed to be serving!

Thank you for all that you do! I love you and remember....HAZ LO JUSTO!

HAZ LO JUSTO! 

Some of the kids that we met and their CTR Rings :)

 

We learned how to make piñatas the other day with a menos activa

Basketball in the morning

The elders and us....it’s so beautiful in the park.

A normal breakfast menu 

My French Toast...

Andres and Maria gave us cacao and they told us to take a picture to show the family…Uncle Ryan, look what I’m holding!!

It’s always fun when you have to wait for the bus surrounded by fruit trees. We found guava!! I had never had it before but it’s good!

God answers prayers!

This week was crazy but so amazing! For the first time in my whole mission, I needed to sleep a little extra with today being P day. I was exhausted!!

Well Monday, like I had written, I went to San Jose to have the training for the trainers. They fed us yummy Price Mart pizza so it was all worth it haha. At night, I went to work with Hermana Montepece in her area. I met Hermana Montepece my first night here so it was really fun for her to see my progress with the Spanish language and in teaching. We visited some people and had a family home evening with some members in her area. They fed us a whole lot and honestly I had no room in my stomach. I am arriving at my limit with plantains I think. 

The next day, we headed back to the office. We waited a long time for the Latinas to get there. One of the Latinas was already there and she was from Mexico. I love Mexicans. Hermana Perez is Mexican, we are Mexican right? Seriously, I don’t know anymore, LOL:) I was thinking about how fun it would be to train a Mexican but we were still waiting on the other Hermana to get there so I wasn’t going to make any assumptions. As time passed, President called us in to the room to announce the companionships. Normally, he tells the trainers before he announces it but this time he didn’t. The other new Hermana had just gotten there, He started announces the companionships and when it got to the Hermana Mexicana that was there, Hermana Moon ended up being her trainer. That meant that the other Hermana was my companion! WELL, as it turns out she had flown in directly from Mexico, her home! I’m training a Mexican! Her name is Hermana Velez and she is so amazing!! I love her already!! Honestly, since Hermana Perez, I haven’t felt like I’ve really had a companion who has been a good friend for me. They have been great and we have seen miracles together but they were all a little serious and didn’t smile much. I prayed to my Heavenly Father for someone who could be a friend. Well apparently Hermana Velez did too. She had to wait in Mexico for her Visa so she had a companion there. She says that her companion was sooo serious and wasn’t very much fun. When she got to the office, for the few minutes that she saw me, she had a prayer in her heart that I could be her companion. Well, God answers prayers!! She has such a fun outgoing personality like me. I’m looking forward to this change!

We came back to our area Tuesday and then left again Wednesday to stay the night in San Jose. That night, all of the Hermanas were there that were heading home! They didn’t let us sleep! They were all crying and laughing and playing music loud. It’s okay though because I got to say bye to all of them! I really can’t imagine leaving the mission. It’s crazy for me that they are all home now.

Thursday we got up at 4 am, after not sleeping, to go to the Temple!! I can’t express to you all how much I needed the Temple. 6 months is too long to go without the Temple. It was so beautiful and we went with Zone La Paz, so I got to see Hermana Herrera who is in Aserri, and other friends of mine. Thursday was our P-day and we got home really late.

Friday we visited like normal and we had an incredible lesson with Carolina, the ex Jehovah’s Witness. She is progressing sooo well. We shared with her the Book of Mormon and she is reading it! She loves to ask questions and some are actually a little funny. She asked why we, as missionaries, don’t knock on every door. I joked that if we don’t like the color of the house we don’t knock! Hahahaha no! I told her that we are guided by the Spirit. I testified of the Spirit and I shared my personal spiritual experience of when I felt the Spirit pull me to her house. She started to cry and tell me that for weeks she had been on her knees praying to God to show her that he hadn’t abandoned her. She had felt lost and without the truth. She said that she needed something in her life to show her hope. "and here you are!" she said. I felt so good, I can’t even explain it. In that moment I thought, "I am doing my job!!"

This weekend was conference. I’m going to be honest, I didn’t learn as much as I should have… butttt I know that their messages were inspired and that everyone who spoke is a servant called of God. I watched all 4 sessions in Spanish. It was tough! Yes, I understood it but the entire time my brain was fighting to hear the English in the background and I couldn’t focus!! Ugh!

By the end, I was absolutely exhausted, the other elders too. I miss English a lot at times. I am looking forward to the Liahona Conference Edition hahaha. However, I was very interested in the overall themes of this year. Priesthood. Family. Temple. The Restoration. I think it’s clear now, more than ever, that we need to be living/sharing what we know. We are incredibly blessed to have the knowledge that we do but just as we heard, knowledge isn’t enough. We need to believe!

ALSO! Remember how I said that the Stake President here traveled to Salt Lake City to attend conference with his family....well his name is Luis Claudio Chaverri....a new area 70!!! They announced his name in conference and all of us freaked out!! I know that our Heavenly Father is very much aware of us. I am in little ward Pococi in Guapiles, Costa Rica, that is a tiny little country, and Heavenly Father knows exactly who should serve. It’s awesome to say that in my mission, we taught lessons with the area 70 haha!

Well I love you all more than you know!! Thank you for your prayers and your love. May God bless you always!! Besos y abrassos a todos! 

Hermana Zerilli

ps fam... I found Riley Matthews in a 

Liahona(magazine) hahahaha!

I went on divisions with Hermana Montepece and the little girl gave us drawing....I’m having a “first vision” moment with the pillar of light directly above my head hahahaha

Hermana Velez 

When the bus terminal is full of missionaries…

Another 3 generations picture with me,

Hermana Perez, and Hermana Velez!

District Zion! Poco-sion and Gua-sion

My MTC friends

I told Elder Henry to take a picture for 

our moms and he made that face!

Hermana Moon and I

It’s blazing hot so I bought a dress that a lot of the ladies here wear. It’s easy, breezy and only 5 mil!! 

I love Hermana Hayes, my mission Mom. We all sat there in the Celestial Room at the Temple and I just bawled. It just hit me, everything that I need to do better. The Temple reminded me of the eternal consequences of everything I'm doing and the reason that I'm here. Hermana Hayes talked to me in the changing room and told me that I need to stop compairng myself to others because they are looking at me and saying that they want to be like me! She says that President Hayes has so much confidence in me and knows that I can do big things. Ahh, I needed the Temple! The mission kicks my butt at times. I don't want to be a floater, I want to work hard all of the time!

In the Temple, they thought I was one of the Latinas. Hermana Gividen was behind me in line and the Gringa worker went straight to her to ask her if she wanted to do it in English! She didn't ask me at all hahahahah! She just sent me to the Spanish worker! 

This is Brother Alejandro Chaverri's family (he's the brother of President Chaverri, the new area 70). His wife's name is Teresa, everyone calls her my twin (even though we don't look alike), hahaha. they call her Tere, so they call me Terre, which kinda sounds like Tay! We ate with them and the Stake1st Counselor's family, and talked a whole lot about General Conference with them. 

Teresa is next to me in the tan colored dress in this picture.

A Letter Home...

To the Zerilli 5,                                                           3/11/2016

Hi! How are you all doing? Right now I'm sitting in our apartment after a long but great day. We had a ward mission activity and it was a success! It is really hot here. Everywhere is Costa Rica, there are signs for summer sales and advertisements for swim suits and beach towels. Apparently it's summer! However, Guapiles is different. They say that the normal summer and winter don't exist here. It's the same crazy weather all year long. One day I use my umbrella for the blazing hot sun and the next day (or hour) I use the same umbrella for the pouring rain. No matter the temperature, I feel wet all of the time! Today the sun had no mercy and it is one of the days where I return home sweating and with heat rash. However, no need to worry! The sun here is nothing like it was in the Caribbean when it turned us all to lobsters. I Haven't experienced any major burning! 

With Anthony and Parker's birthdays coming up I decided that I wanted to send something. I think that it's about time that I show just a little bit of the huge gratitude that I have for the countless packages that I have received in my time here. I think the other missionaries secretly wish that they were a part of the Zerilli Family when they see me rolling out of the office with 2 giant packages every other month. Haha! No really, the packages are not expected because, wow, they are expensive to send, but I really feel loved and not forgotten, so thank you! Just tonight I received a surprise package from the Horsley's and I can't explain how happy and thankful I felt! Please hug them and tell them thank you for me in person when you get the chance. 

In this package I've sent you are just a few things that you might enjoy...and if not it's okay. This place/culture isn't the most drastically different but it definitely isn't home, haha! Too bad I can't send you mangos or papaya, I think that's the best this ng to eat here! I'm almost at the halfway mark in the mission and I really can't believe it. When I first got here to Costa Rica time was awfully slow. I lived for Pday (Mondays) because that was the only day that I really felt relieved from the stress of trying to understand/talk with people in another language. I counted the days for everything because I needed to have something to keep me trucking along. I was happy but I was sad because of the challenges that I was facing. I mean, who likes challenges? However, I felt an immense amount of support from home, the Hermanas here with me, President Hayes, The Lord, and my Heavenly Father. Now I'm here with almost 9 months under my belt and I have no idea where time has gone! I think that time is definitely something that my Heavenly Father has taught me in the mission...and that Mom and Dad have taught me all of my life! Too bad it took me this long to learn. TIME IS PRECIOUS! It's amazing what you can do in an hour. Now, how many hours did I spend before my mission staring at my phone? That makes me so mad at myself!! This life is short, we really need to make the best of it. I am determined to change the way I use my time after the mission. I don't want to waste away days doing nothing. Each day is a gift and each of us have a divine purpose to be living. 

Today, President and Hermana Hayes stopped by to check in and answer questions about doctrine. They mentioned that we will be going to the Temple at the end of the month. I'm ecstatic!! I need a Temple trip! President turned and asked me, "neither one of you were here when we went last October right?" I said, "No, I was here!" He then replied in the funniest way, "Hermana how many months do you have? You're old!" haha, I laughed. Apparently I am "old" for an Hermana. Hermana Perez leaves this month and Hermana Munguia the change (transfer) after in May. After them, the next Hermanas (2) leave in November. There aren't very many of us here in this tiny country but I'm so happy to be a part of this group. My time in the mission so far has been that of adventure, sacrifice, change, learning and a whole lot of trial and error. I can't deny that as a person, I'm different than when I started, but I'm nowhere close to who I want to be. The mission, or the process of coming to Christ in general, has a way of pointing out ever single one of your weaknesses, flaws, and imperfections. It is only though mercy and the atoning sacrifice of our Savior that we can change and become better. I am beyond grateful for that! This life is a refining experience and the Lord promises that if we are truly humble, He will make weak things strong. I have learned that humility and patience are the keys to many things, and oh how difficult it is to have them! I feel a great urgency to learn as much as I can and absorb every little thing in these next 9 months because I know that I will only have this opportunity once. I have to say that the mission has probably been the hardest thing that I've ever done in my entire life. 

I miss music, food from home, my own schedule, the gym, school, work, sleep, air conditioning, carpet, friends and most of all YOU GUYS!  It's tough! The wall in front of me is filled with pictures of all of you and often my thoughts during the day turn to home. "I wonder if Dad took the boys to Philly Cheese Steak today..." "Does Mom still say holy heck? (because I tend to say it)" "Is Anthony taller than Parker yet and does Trev have things hiding in his hair?" Thanks to your emails, I feel close to home every Monday. I remember all of the times before I left that Dad reminded  me to enjoy my time with the family because it's going to be hard in the mission. Well as always Dad, YOU WIN! Although it's difficult, and at times I just want to pack up and head home, there are a million things keeping me here. Well First, I made a covenant with the Lord, haha. But also, one of the biggest things is my testimony of eternal families. 

The other day I had a really amazing spiritual experience. We were in a FHE (family home evening) with a member couple and our investigators who are going to be married, to be baptized in April. we were teaching about eternal families and Temple. At one point, I felt prompted to share my testimony. I reached into my backpack and pulled out the photo album that Mom sent me. I showed them the picture of us in front of the Temple, the day we were sealed together. I testified to this couple of the power of the Priesthood to seal families and of a loving Heavenly Father who allows us to have happiness with our families for eternity if we live righteously. I couldn't fight the tears. You know I'm a big baby anyways, haha. The Spirit testified to our investigators and everyone in the room, including myself, that my words were true! Immediately after, our investigator, Maria, said, "I want to be sealed in the Temple! When can we do it?" I was so happy to hear that. I know that one day this couple will be. 

So yeah, 548 days is a whole lot but that's nothing compared to eternity. We will be the ZERILLI 6 FOREVER! You have no clue how grateful I am for every single one of you. I know I'm not the easiest to deal with but you love me anyhow. Enrique R. Farabella of the 70 taught in our Stake Conference transmission the other day that the real MTC is in the home. He couldn't have been more correct! Experiences from hone have guided my way in the mission and lessons that I have learned have helped me to teach and testify. This letter is just a little trunky, but I want each and every one of you to know just how much you mean to me! You have shaped my life for the better! Please continue  to stay strong in love, faith, and in testimony. Share your testimony, be those great examples I know that you are and help those that have fallen. Outside of our little family, other family members are struggling and that breaks my heart. I teach less active/inactive members all the time and it kills me to think that those people are within our family. Do all that you can and help the missionaries. Don't be afraid to give references, you are only blessing lives. Mom, you have my friends' addresses, send the missionaries there during college breaks! You will be blessed even more than I know you already are because you all do so much. I want you 5 to know that this Gospel Is True, all of it! I know it with all of my heart! God lives. Our Savior Jesus Christ lives and He will come again. We were chosen to live in this day to prepare the world for His coming. What a great responsibility and blessing! 

Thank you for raising my in the true church and for being incredible examples for me and for everyone else that we know. 

Adios y vayan con dios:)
Les Amo y Pura Vida 
♥Hermana Zerilli