9/14/20: a personal thank you to Mark Zuckerberg...and also the Book of Mormon

 Whaaaaaaat a weeeeeeeeek!! We had a crazy, busy, awesome, learning, fruit (because that stuff rains from the sky here during harvest season) filled week!

The big events:

1. I went back to Los Baños!?!?!?! Just for a day on exchanges. Hermana Larsen and I drove down there for the day to check in with the sisters in the Merced Zone there. It was awesome to be reunited with the memories there as well as my hijita, Hermana Vansklyke who is back serving there after medical leave (we love Covid). We also went up to Riverbank for am exchange to check in with the sisters from the Modesto Zones. What a beautiful drive and area and it was super cool to run around very far north end of the mission with Hermana Grigg. 

2. We have been teaching and testifying up a storm over here in Ceres! We found a great part member family within the branch and put the two teenagers on date for baptism this month. We also continue to meet with the Perez Family every week and the teens there are slowly coming to know the truth of the gospel... they are pretty comfortable with us and they actually read what we give them and they have some awesome questions! We also went with a member to their home all the way out there in the middle of nowhere to help get them the sacrament. We also took the sacrament again with this HUGE family- the Manzanos!! One of the YSA aged boys that lives within the home just got baptized and his entire family is interested in learning more about why he decided to join the church. There was a lot of people to juggle so we went with the Zone Leaders. We also ate a lot of tacos and frijoles there. They wouldn't let us leave without eating at least like 3 plates... so that was fun.

3. LUPITA GOT BAPTIZED!!! We got to call in and watch her baptism in Mexico City!! She was so happy! Also... her daughter was there. The elders we passed her off too were pretty excited as well.

4. JUAN GOT BAPTIZED!!! YES FACEBOOK WORKS WE FOUND HIM ON FACEBOOK AND HE WAS SUPER DUPER READY AND ACCEPTED THE GOSPEL YES THIS IS THE LORDS WORK NOT OURS. He got baptized in a lake!! I love Juan. WE MOSTLY TAUGHT HIM THROUGH FACEBOOK. Something he told me when we were teaching him really stuck out to me. He said that his whole life he had just been looking for this feeling of peace... and he tried a lot of different thing to find it... but the Book of Mormon and what he found there was the only type of peace that he had found that stuck with him for more than a few hours. It was so cool to see him take that step of baptism! Also the lake where we were at is owned by a member and to get to the house to change and get dressed and stuff you have to take a hold cart. Muy bien

5. I ran 4 miles one day. It's been a hot minute since doing that. 

Lots of love

Hermana Allen

2- I caught a fish today when we went back to a zone activity.Yes. I did that. 

3- Juan's baptism

5- Lupitas baptism

6- the manzanos house