Loving my last area!

Hermana Alba! I love her to pieces!

setting up the christmas tree with the duera family!

You can see the ocean in the back! How beautiful!what a sunset!

My sweet Hermana Chavez! Oh, how I love her!

Hola mi querida familia!

I sure do enjoy writing each other every week. It is a fun way to communicate, right? But do you realize that Christmas is next week and we will get to talk for skype again! How fun will that be! I will be so happy to see you all, but I will be so anxious and excited to see you all in person just a week after that! WOW! Mom, I love that you said that you are getting the piano tuned! All I want to do is just sit at the piano and play for hours and hours and hours with a beautiful, in tune piano. I cant wait to hear the girls play the piano!

It has been a whirlwind of a week for Hna Harvey and I. I am just trying to soak up every single bit of the mission that I possibly can. We started our week out with a fun noche de hogar with the familia Duera! We helped set up their little Christmas tree with them. Hermana harvey was laughing so hard at how they were decorating it. It was more like just throwing a whole bunch of tissel and string onto the tree. It was so full with "stuff" that we couldnt even see the tree! haha It was so fun. We drank hot milk and ate the famous "tarta de fiambre." Then we shared a message about Christ. It was so wonderful and there was a nice Christmas spirit. By the way, have you seen the 30 second video, "Él es la Dádiva?" (I dont know the name in english, but it is excellent!!)

This week is our missions Christmas Conference! Hermana Harvey and I have been asked to participate in the choir. Oh my heavens, how I have enjoyed being in the choir. Once a week, we have been traveling to Montevideo to practice and the music is breath taking. It has helped us more to feel in the Christmas spirit. I love singing...I think my love for it has grown in the mission.Wednesday is the conference, and we will perform all of the songs that we have been practicing. They are beautiful.

Like I said before, I feel such a mix of emotions. My body has never felt such a crazy mix before! haha. My dear Hermana Chavez (you all remember my dear Hermana Chavez), left the mission yesterday because she has injured her knee and cant walk anymore. President sent her home and few weeks early. This week has been the party week! We have thrown goodbye parties for her! We had one with the ward and then yesterday, the other hermanas came to Piriapolis and we had a surprise party for her. I cannot even express my love for this girl! We have had some crazy experiences together. Saying goodbye to her was so hard. I dont know the next time I will see her in person. Peru and Arizona are pretty far away from each other. I cant even imagine what it will be like saying goodbye to this country and the people here in just a few weeks. 

Our week ended with a beautiful Sunday! Enrique received the priesthood! It was another one of those never forgetting experiences. Hermana Harvey and I had the great opportunity to be in the room when he was ordained. It brought back so many experiences of when Hna Cox and I witnessed all of our "Priesthood Men" in Melo receive the Melquisedec Priesthood. Mom, dad, James, Annie, Hannah, Grandma, Grandpa, and whoever else reads my letters...the priesthood is amazing! The gospel changes lives! I can imagine in the future that my joy will be my own family, but right now, my joy is sharing the gospel and seeing people CHANGE! Enrique is a changed man! He is not the same man that he was when we first met him. His blessing that the bishop gave him was so beautiful. He is flying high. He was like Zeezrom, Enrique didn't even believe in God before, but now he believes with all of his heart. (Alma 15) Needless to say, I left church yesterday feeling completely grateful and overwhelmed at the many blessings that I have been able to witness and be apart of. It is so fun for me to reflect upon my mission and to think of all of the many miracles that i have been able to witness. 

I am still praying hard that President will let me travel the 6 hours to visit Melo before I leave. I cant leave this country without visiting my sacred land. Please pray hard! My oor Hermana Harvey....she knows absolutely everything about Melo and the people there that I love so much! haha. I wonder how many times I mention the word "Melo" everyday. I don't know, but A LOT!

I have some fun plans up my sleeve to do with you all when I get home...I am thinking of a URUGUAY PARTY! everything Uruguay! ;) You will all LOVE it!

I really love you all so much! What a special experience it will be to pray together as a family and to read the scriptures together as a family. Those moments are so special to me know because now I know how important they really are. The church is true, Christ lives. I know that with all of my heart.

Con mucho mucho mucho amor,

Hermana Coon