haby burday tu you!

I am a little sad that I only have one birthday on the mission. & I am happy to be 23! :] It just feels like a solid age. I felt so loved by Heavenly Father, and so loved by the members. It kind of felt like a farewell of sorts, but quien sabe? Solo Dios. 

My birthdays have always begun with a healthy dose of stress. I recognized it though, last year mi mejor amiga got pulled over on the way to the temple. Talk about stressful. It all worked out though! I had a birthday lunch with my district at "El Pappaturro," a Salvadoranian restaurant. It was actually the first time I had had popusas my entire mission. The Zone Leaders were nice enough to buy me a bolsa of hot cheetos puffs. 

I had a birthday dinner at la Familia Marun's. They definitely take the favorite family award. :) Hna Pamatz spent two days cooking my birthday dinner--Mole. This isn't your let-me-take-my-can-of-dona-Maria-and-put-it-on-chicken-and-call-it-Mole. This was the real deal. I've never been a mole fan, but this birthday meal changed EVERYTHING. I have been dreaming about this Mole all week long. I asked Hna what ingredients the mole had, she mentioned: animal crackers, orange juice, chocolate, peanuts, garlic, avocado leaves, just to name a few. There was also rice that was scarily similar to cafe rio's lime and cilantro rice. Oh, it was definitely the best meal I've had on my mission. The Marun's went all out, and Maria (nuestra investigadora) called me to ask what kind of cake I liked. My heart was so happy all day. 

As far as missionary work goes. I brought my 10 year-journal to emailing so that I could sufficiently explain how wonderful everything has been over here in Pecan Park/the Broadway Zone.

-I went on exchanges in Galena Park again, this time with Hna Tonga's trainee Hna Snow. She was so sweet, and we got to ride bikes, the weather was pleasant! The Galena Park Hnas live in a trailer, so it's always an adventure to go over there. 

-We finally met with Ashley. It had been 2 weeks. And we found out, she doesn't hate us! There were just a series of events that made it really hard for us to see her (e.i. phone breakings, us not knowing her schedule, our note to her getting lost).

-Had a couple of great lessons with Byron. We have to push his baptismal date back though because he didn't come to church this week! We had set up a ride, but he woke up late, and then his self set up ride fell through. I love teaching Byron though because he "gets things." 

-Maria (fam Marun's friend) is amazing. I have discovered on the mission that one of my talents is definitely counseling/advice giving. I think it comes from being a logical thinker. Maria's daughter Itzel was not too happy on my birthday. She told me she had actually packed a maleta (suitcase) because she wanted to runaway. I helped her to see that her mother does love her (she was jealous because she had seen her parents play with her sisters). She sobbed as I encouraged her mother to list reasons she loved Itzel. Oh, it was such a toughing moment. And my heart was so full as Itzel exclaimed, "me duele mi corazon." She was feeling the spirit as she hugged her mother and realized that in fact her mother loves her very much.

-Had an amazing exchange with Sis Wenzel! (We came out together, and were the outcasts from the group we came with. We were the only two who didn't have sisters from our district here). Sis Wenzel and her companion are English speakers working in a predominately Hispanic community. It gets a little tough to find investigators at times. So we put into action on exchanges an idea I came up with Hna Tonga in Pasadena. We first went over to the Spanish Elders' apartment, asked them for a ward list, and then went to visit their members and asked for referrals. It worked so well! We were able to set up two Family Home Evenings and an Hour of Power for the sisters with a Spanish member as well. We're getting creative over here with our finding in Tejas. Now if only, I could get bursts of inspiration for my own area!

I love my mission.

I love feliz birthdays.

I love the people who make up my mission.

Con Amor, 

Hna Flores