Serving in Santiago: I'M ALIVE

So this was the craziest week everrrr!!!!! hahah I'm sure most of you heard about the earthquake right?? Yeah that was the craziest scariest thing I've ever experienced ever!!! hahaha. Me and Hermana Maxfield were just sitting there in the apartment doing weekly planning as usual, when all the sudden we feel the room start to quiver a little bit. We just sat there still for a while and didn't really think anything of it since we had already felt a few small earthquakes since being in Chile. but then after about 20 seconds right as I was expecting it to stop, it starting getting wayyyy stronger!!! hahhaa So of course I start freaking out and Hna. Maxfield's just like "Get to the door frame! Get to the door frame!" So I get to the door frame and am just gripping the sides of it for my dear life and just start praying harder than I ever have before!! I literally saw my life flash before my eyes!!!!! hahahah It was so crazy. I have never felt so vulnerable ever in my life haha. Then when things calmed down we peaked out side and saw our neighbor Isabel who was out of breath and trying to calm down her dogs. She told us to get out of there so we got out of there haha. When we got down to the bottom floor (we live on the fifth floor) we saw that the majority of the residents had also come downstairs and among them we saw one of our investigators that also lives in our building. When I saw her I just hugged her as hard as I could and was so happy that she was okay!! But then we had to leave because we had an appointment with Hernan haha. Missionary in any weather!!! So then we went to teach Hernan and he was totally calm and just like, hey if it's our time to die it's our time to die! haha. Then during the lesson there was like two aftershocks!! haha but they were just small. Since then I've felt two others in the middle of the night and another small one during the day. People are saying that we are still waiting for a bigger one so I'm just getting my last confessions in! haha. Nah I think we'll be fine. Santiago is built for earthquakes. Nothing fell and no one was hurt over here. But there were about 12 people in northern Chile that died but its super far from where we are. But I was pretty shocked to hear that. Calling all prayers for northern Chile!

But yeah so that was the craziest thing from this week haha. But don't worry I am totally fine and even though I was scared out of my mind for a second there I thought it was overall the awesomest experience ever haha. XD

An another note, Hernan is doing awesome and is getting baptized this Sunday! :) He is so awesome and is amazingly prepared. It's been a really great experience teaching him and has been amazing how readily he has accepted all the new commitments. We were a little worried about tithing so we had our ward mission leader teach about that during gospel principles. Another investigator, Ruben, was also there that day to hear the lesson and last week, our ward mission leader said he saw him filling out a tithing envelope.

The faith of these people is so inspiring and strengthens me every day. We're also teaching someone named Adrian who is just amazing. We asked him to share his testimony with us and then found out that he had been receiving little signs every few days that made him think about us, The Book of Mormon, and baptism, and let him know that this was the path for him. He went away on vacation for the Idependance Day weekend (Sept. 18th in Chile) and when he got home he told us that he had brought with him 2 books-- his Book of Mormon and another novel he was reading but that he couldn't read the novel because all he wanted to do was read the Book of Mormon. We went through the chapters he read and he showed us the connections he had made between the stories and his own life. I saw something in him that I had seen before in myself and it brought tears to my eyes. It's amazing to see someone discover their spirituality and to feel a personal connection with God. I felt such a deep love for him and knew in that moment that when I opened my call back in Provo in April 2014, God wasn't just calling me to Santiago, Chile, he was calling me to Adrian. It's something I haven't always felt out here but something that I keep feeling more of as my conversion runs deeper and deeper. There is something eternal about the relationships I'm developing out here, and I can't deny the feeling that tells me we've always been a family and that these people are truly my brothers and sisters. It gives me an amazing sense of identity no matter where I am or who I'm with. And it is amazing to testify of that to the friends we are teaching, feel the spirit, sense in their eyes that they felt it too, and flash back for an instant beyond the veil and feel the love that has always been between us, regardless of age, gender, race, or nationality. Its so incredibly beautiful.

I love this gospel. I love this work. I love being a missionary. I love being a disciple of Christ. I love all of you. I love Chile. I love everything!!! Even earthquakes haha. :)

Sending allllllllll my love,

Hermana Cannon II

1. Me and my cute companion :D