Writing a letter in one hour sounds like a simple task...but it really
stresses me out. Here it goes... :)

I tried on pants..real pants.. like *not* my nacho libre stretchy pants...
for the first time in 5 months.. I was actually suprised. They didnt
*not*fit, they just fit differently :) I am turning into a latina.
BASICALLY, im
Shakira. Im just going to keep telling myself this.. It doesnt matter how
much rice goes to my hips, the people here *STILL* love me...maybe not me
but my skin,eyes and hair.. Its so funny. I just love Ecuador.

Loja is absolutley breathtaking. I could come back and live here.. or just
never leave. Im contemplating it. Walking around here is like hiking. It is
very hilly.. Its an adventure. We live 15 minutes away from the Rainforest
canopy. Its unreal. Its literally unreal. I am like amazed EVERY time we
walk outside.

Sadly, I dont really know my sector very well because my companion has been
SUPER sick. We ate Chancho(pig) our first day here (my first and last time)
and we think thats what got us but we have both had some serious stomach
issues. The joys of a mission. She has had it way worse than me though, so
dont worry about me. haha :)

***(((BACKSTORY: Eating pig or pork has been against the rules until recently, now the missionaries have permission to eat pork.))))****Although I advised Bekah to NOT, too many bugs in pork!! 

Here in Loja, we dont have wards.. The church is so small that we only have
branches. We have 6 missionaries in every branch.. In our Branch..called
Loja, we have 500 ish members but only 60 something are active. Its so
crazy. Im not sure what happened to drive so many people away from the
church but i could understand why its hard to be LDS here.. The dominant
religion is Catholism.. Shocker, right? Like every other South American
country.. but really..the people are suuuuuuuuper Catholic. They are great.
They just are missing the gospel.. :) NOT FOR LONG! :)

I am so happy to be serving here. Its been a beautiful week, even from the
apartment.

:) Sorry this is short and sorry my english is so terrible.. haha that
seems to  come when you learn a new language.

I love you all so much!

STAY SAFE!

Hna Bennett

Loja (full form: Ciudad de la Inmaculada Concepción de Loja) is the capital of Ecuador's Loja Province. It is located in the Cuxibamba valley in the south of the country, sharing borders with the provinces of Zamora-Chinchipe and El Oro, and withPeru in the south. Loja holds a rich tradition in the arts, and for this reason is known as the Music and Cultural Capital of Ecuador. The city is home to two major universities.

The city has a population of about 200,000, and is situated 2060 m (6758 ft) above sea level. It has a mild Andean climate, ranging between 16 and 30°C.

I had a dream about 3 weeks ago that I was going to go to Loja..ever since then, I have been telling my companions that I was going to have transfers and that I was going to Loja! (not sure Hermana Crum or Hermana Angulo appreciated that hah).. So...no suprise that today, I am being transferred to Loja! I went to Guayaquil (3 hours) ..came back to Machala (3 more hours) and luckily enough the elderes told me and my new companion (Hermana Baca) that we can have a Pday! So I am here! :) I am headed to LOJA! I saw Elder Whetton from my CCM group and he told me that hes eaten all kinds of fun things like rabbits, and guinea pigs.. Gulp. 

So christmas...
After we got off skype and went back to our house, we were so bored.. it was extremely lonely! Our cute hermana that lives next door, Hermana Flor invited us to listen to the Choir sing.. So beautiful! After, the Queva Family invited us to eat dinner with them.. we felt so loved. It was truly an answer to our prayers because we were feeling slightly homesick expecially since our sector has not been progressing as well as we had desired. It was just a reminder that the Lord loves us and has given us members to work with and help, even in times where we arent exactly receiveing baptisms and new investigators. It was such a tender mercy. 

What more? My invitation for you all is to write down your tender mercies. I decided during this last transfers to dedicate a page in my agenda to tender mercies..and it sincerely helped me see the good in my day. It helped remind me of happy pivitol moments of other days that had passed! It has been such a blessing. 

Over Christmas, I really remembered why I am here. I remembered that I am serving this mission because I love the Lord and he called me to do this. When President Monson announced the age change, it wasnt even an option to say no. He was speaking directly to me. The prophet himself might as well called me by name to serve here in Ecuador. Thats how I felt and its been testified to me alot recently. Its not important if you dont know the language or culture, your light and your testimony will help people. Thats what is most important. I love you all so much. 

I am grateful for friends and family that support and love me. I am grateful for faithful friends on all corners of the Earth serving. You can do hard things! 

My love and prayers are with you :)

PS forward this to aunt julie

Family & Friends,How are you? Sorry I fell off the face of the planet last week. Last week was difficult but thats okay :) I have another new companion! Hermana Angulo is her name and she is from Cordoba, Argentina! She is super awesome. Seriously. I love her. Its been a fun week because we have the same time in the mission. Its been weird because we both have the same time in the mission. She left only 2 ish weeks before me.. and was waiting in Argentina for her visa for 2 months..so she finished her training (first 12 weeks) in Argentina and then once she got here(1 month ago), Presidente asked her to do her 12 weeks of training again! So..she has more time on the mission than me by two weeks but I have 6 more weeks in Ecuador..but she knows Spanish.. So.. we pretty much train eachother.. neither of us are the senior comp! She is so awesome.We are already planning how Im going to fit her in my suitcases when I come home. LOVE her.

Plus.. She was companions with Allie Clawson in argentina. We were meant to know eachother. Love her. 

My spanish is getting so much better.. Hermana Angulo is mi don de Dios (Gift from God!)..She is the sweetest thing..She is a little on the timid side..and so am I (in Spanish!) So.. I sometimes have to be the voice during lessons..which is such a blessing. We really have not had much success in this area but its okay. We have hope and have had strong efforts to find more people. Ill tell more stories later.. but basically heres a funny story.

My district leader is from Lima Peru and is trying to learn english. I decided to tell him that the word Cocopuff means something extremely offensive. (Which is a big deal..because all the latinos know offensive words in english..) So.. I accidently like 3 days later used the word with him and he was so in shock! Hilarious. I finally came clean..but yes..it was seriously the greatest thing in the world. 

Anyways. this is short. Ill explain more stories on christmas..aka 2 DAYS! Holler. Love you all. 

Hna Bennett

Feet sore, shoes wet and I think moldy! Yuk! I am sweating bullets, spiders in the apartment, roosters crowing outside, devil dog barking....LOVING ECUADOR!!!! So, I have looked at pictures and letters of my friends in Argentina and Chili....what resort are they at??? This is the best apartment I have lived in so far and there have been five. Sister Crum and I are working hard. We had some set backs this week but we are moving forward. I have come to realize that this isn't a numbers game, that we are saving lives here in Ecuador!! We are praying and working hard. I am sorry to tell Luke that the momma doggie is sad, all her puppies died though. I don't know why either. Sad week here!!  We are staying busy and find refuge in the scriptures. The members are great to us here. We are searching for ways to serve them. It is a cultural thing here not to let us help so we are looking for secret ways to help. Sorry so short...time starved!! I love you all so much!!!
Hermana Bennett