HAPPIEST BIRTHDAY!

Mother Dearest!  

I am so sad...I arranged for some members to call you on your birthday and sing to you in English I had a little note too. BUT they dialed the number wrong...I am sorry that I wasn´t able to do a lot for you on your birthday but I am so blessed to have you as my mom.  You have always been my best friend and have helped me through everything!  I don´t know how you know it but you always know when I need a hug or just to talk!  Thank you for everything!

A copy of the note Caitlin wrote out for the members to read to Mom 

We had transfers this week and I now am with Hermana Toone from Mesa AZ!  I am so excited to be with her!  I think we are going to get a long just great!  She is 20 years old and has 14 months in the mission!  She was studying music at BYU and she seem like an outdoorsy girl.  I really think that our personalities are the same!

This week...What can I say.....We worked!  Working hard all day long and looking for people to teach.  It was a pretty normal week for us but we loved every minute of it.  On Monday we had a zone activity and we had a BBQ!  I miss hamburgers so much!  8 months since I have eaten one!  It was great because we played volleyball and got to know each other better. I don´t think that I will have another activity because President doesn´t want us to be unfocused.

It rained really hard Monday and we were running through the streets with our investigators.  HAHAHA!  I will never forget the moments that we have been drenched in the rain!

I have really com to love the members here!  They are even more excited to work with us and help us with fellow shipping!  They are such a great help!

I got a call saying that my package arrived!  WHOO HOO!  I am just waiting for it to get into my hands now!  THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

The package Mom sent to Caitlin

I love you so much Mom!

Hermana Drew

you daughter

Zone Los Torres!

The Last Supper

8 Months!

MOM! 

This week was pretty normal!  I am one month older today.....the time is going by way too fast! One more week here and we have transfers.  Hermana Salazar feels like she is going to stay and that I will be transfered.  But only President Whitehead knows what is going to happen.  Sometimes I wish that I knew what was coming but I guess that is the purpose of God´s plan, that we always try to be ready for anything that will happen.

We have one investigator that is amazing.  When we showed up to teach his sister he listened in.  There is a group here called 4th and 5th step for AA.  And this group helps the people overcome their addictions but the people think that they can believe in Christ in whatever way they want and they can do whatever they want.  He was a part of this group and he expressed that he gave this group everything.  All of his feelings and the deepest things from his soul but it was all for nothing.  He told us that this group will not help him be saved. When we invited him to be baptized he told us that he had no doubt that this is what he should do.  He really is a golden investigator!

I love this work with all of my heart!  I have really learned to have charity and patience.  I don´t know if I have really changed a lot but sometimes I look in the mirror and doubt if that person really is me.  It is amazing what the mission can do for us!

I love you so much!

Hermana Drew

Vending Bread!

Malinalco

Re Dedication of Our Lives

MOM!

Ay ay ay....You still haven´t sent off the package.  Luckily you aren´t here or I will give you a stern talking too in Spanish.  AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I am just kidding Mom!  The address to the mission home is 

Hermana Caitlin Abby Drew

Avenida Fuente de las Pirámide No. 1, Piso1,

Lomas de Tecamachalco, C.P. 53950

Naucalpan, Edo. De México

My shoes are now living!  So no worries about shoes! I went to an investigator that has a shoe repair shop and they look just like new!  

So I have been feeling so blessed to have this opportunity to be a part of this mission in a time of such excitement.  The work of the Lord has been moving forward and really fast in these times.  As we watched the cultural celebration for the temple, on Saturday, (PS you can watch it online), it helped my testimony of the Book of Mormon grow.  I know that it is true with all of my heart.  I loved hearing about the history of Mexico and the church.  All of the sacrifices that they endured to help this gospel grow  for future generations.  It is my par,t as a missionary, to help spread the gospel in every one of my areas so that other missionaries will be able to help more people come unto Christ. 

The re-dedication was beautiful!  I was able to see the branch from Valle de Bravo and see my first convert.  He has changed so much since the first time I knew him.  I am glad to see that the branch and the missionaries are helping bind the recent converts to the church.  I loved what President Eyring and Holland said in the re-dedication.  We must have a re-dedication in our lives and that we can do it through the temple.  If there is one thing that I miss the most it is going to the temple so often.  It was a way for me to receive peace and direction and now my greatest desire is that other people will be able to enter the temple too.

This week we have found a lot of new people.  Irene is a mom that has three kids and her husband heard about the church because he works driving taxis and the missionaries talked to him before.  She is really interested in the message and her kids want to participate too.  We taught her the importance of prophets and she told us that she knows that this message is true.  I love when people have their hearts open to our message.  It is a sign of humility.

Teo is a older woman who the Elders found.  They helped her with her bags.  She is very receptive to the message and wants to be a part of the ward.  She came to the ward activity on Friday and even brought a dessert to share.  The ward members were helpful and welcomed her and make her feel like a part of the ward.

Something that I was reading this week was a talk called "Truly Good and without Guile".  I LOVE THIS TALK!  It is the perfect talk for members of the church. Sometimes we do things just to gain recognition but in this talk it helps us to understand that we should be, ¨more anxious to serve than to have dominion¨.  I think that it is a problem that I have always had.  With so many callings in the church I wasn´t really focused on serving people.  I had lost the desire to serve but being here on my mission has helped me realize that it isn´t about the callings or assignments that we have, it all depends on the service that we give.  I can truly testify that this is the Lord´s work.

The typical day as Hermanita Drew eh...

6:25 we wake up, say prayers, and exercise for 30 min

7:00 we get ready

7:55 we start our personal study

8:55 we start our companionship study

9:55 we start language study

10:25 we head out the door and start contacting.  Our day includes contacting and visiting different people and a lot of walking.....

2:00 time to eat

3:00 we start working again

9:00 we go home and pray and plan for the next day

10:25 we sleep

We try to do everything 5 min before and we do everything on time 100 percent obedient!

I love you tons Mom!  Thank you for everything!

Hermanita Drew

Hermana Salazar and Hermana Drew

"My companion said you couldn't crush an egg if you pressed it tip to tip, she lied"

We were able to go to the Temple Dedication with some of the members from Valle de Bravo!

Definitely look better, but I'm not sure they will last the rest of her mission 

Hermana Salazar, Hermana Drew and Teo

Souvenirs from the Dedication of the Mexico City Temple  

Elder Christofferson came to visit!

Hermana Drew is on the far left on the second row.

WHAT A WEEK!

MOM!

This week was crazy for us too!  We have been working all day long walking for ever in the hot sun!  My poor shoes couldn't take it anymore and they broke......:(  Luckily we know a shoe repair man!  I am so happy that I will be keeping the same shoes for all of my mission!  

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!  I loved the pictures of the wedding!  Everyone is so much older now!  I loved the pic of my sisters!  Hailey, Mckenna, Ashlee, and Tay!  They all look so beautiful!  (One of Caitlin's best friends got married)

The wedding sounds like a dream!  I wish that I could have been there.  We always talked about being in each others weddings!  I hope she knows that I was there in spirit!  

Most exciting thing that happened this week.....We had two wonderful confirmations this Sunday!  The blessings were priceless. Sometimes I wish that I could remember my confirmation blessing but the Patriarchal Blessing is close enough.   Both of the blessings talked about their future families.  How they will be blessed through the Gospel and how they will have the strength that they need.  Ah I loved every moment of it!

We also had a wedding here in good old Tenancingo!  Two of our converts were married!  Edgar and Alejandra!  They have been fighting for this wedding for 2 months now!  It was a great experience to see them finally completing what they have always wanted.  

DF means Distrito Federal or Federal District in English. It is the capital of Mexico.

Thank you so much for your advice mom.  It is comforting to know how much a mission changes the lives of people.  I remember the blessing everyday and every time I read my Patriarchal blessing.

I love you MOST!

Hermanita Drew

My shoes broke because we walked to this area.

Broken Strap.

The black ones don't look much better.

Elder D. Todd Christofferson!

This week I had my first experience riding the Subway in the DF.......HAHAHAHAHAHA!  It was Crazy!  DF is a high paced city with adventures in every moment.  When we got off the bus to head to the Subway, I was already overwhelmed.  I have heard so many stories about the Subway and my nerves were getting to me.  Hermana Salazar and I have never ventured in DF   but everyone else in our District had.  We had all of our things bundled up so that pic pockets wouldn´t touch us and we were frantically following our district, running through the subway making sure that we got to the church on time.  Our legs hurt so bad from all of the running and muscle straining from riding the subway.  

At the beginning we have to pass through a gate that turns.  Like the ones in Disneyland.  I put my ticket through and started to walk through but as I got one leg through......it stopped turning.   HAHAHAHA I was stuck with a bar in the middle of my legs, in the subway, in a skirt.....hahahaha Just imagine that for a little bit......Luckily I am tall enough that I slid my leg over the bar and headed on my way.  HAHAHAHA Everyone was laughing at me. It was hilarious!  

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!  MOM!  That is right!  This week I had the experience of a lifetime meeting Elder D. Todd Christofferson!  He is one of my favorite apostles! The spirit was so strong as we listened to him.  He testified of the importance of keeping the spirit with us.  I think that is the most important thing that we can do. Maintain this gift for the rest of our lives.  I loved every moment of it.  We took a picture as a mission but It hasn´t arrived in my email yet.

As we finished the conference, we sang ¨Called to Serve¨.  Usually we stand to sing this song  but I don´t know what is wrong with my mission.  They always wait till the last moment to stand up. This time we sang the first verse sitting.  But Hermana Salazar and I decided that we needed to stand up.  So the second verse we stood up.  The only two missionaries in front of the apostle and the president of the mission.  I felt alone.  Seeing everyone look at me and waiting for somebody else to join us.  A little bit later, 2 other missionaries joined in.  Then 2 more.  Then the whole mission.  I started to cry in this moment, when I realized our mission is unified.  The spirit testified that I don't need to be scared to stand up for what is right.  That I don´t need to be afraid to be myself.  That I don´t need to wait for somebody else to do the right thing.  I need to act according to my beliefs and my way of being.  It was a day that I will never forget.

As we prepared to take a bus home.  We went to pay and realized that the taxi driver had given us 200 fake pesos.  It was so frustrating in the moment.  But then we asked, ¨what do we need to learn from this experience?¨ We didn´t learn anything until we had gotten home.  We had 34 pesos for 4 days.  and That was not going to last us.  We said a specific prayer that we would have a miracle.  Money on our mission cards,  anything.  As we finished we went to check our cards and.....nothing. So we continued working and as we got home that night.  We checked our books for money (because we always hide our money in the books).  I checked through everyone and as I got to the last book...  I found 500 pesos that I had lost about a month ago.  Heavenly Father knows the timing of everything and answers prayers!  Never give up hope!

I love you tons Mom!  Thank you for everything you have done for me!

Hermanita Drew

My two companions

Missionaries that came to the Mexico City West Mission on the same day as me

The Mexico City Temple Openhouse!

This week was amazing!  At the beginning I was feeling a little like the Seed from Micheal McClane´s musical The Garden.  Waiting for my opportunity to grow.  Thinking that I wasn´t progressing.  Then I read a talk in the Liahona for July.  It talks about Joseph Smith but helped me realized that we don´t need to be perfect to be powerful instruments in the hands of God.

We worked really hard this week to have a lot of people go to church.  The members and the investigators are all dedicated to the church.  I have seen so many powerful testimonies here.  

The open house was perfect.  We almost couldn´t go because all of the spots were filled on the bus. But that morning a few were not able to go.  It was a long bus drive to DF but I love traveling with all of my heart.  At the temple I was able to see 2 missionaries from my zone in the CCM.  

I had a very powerful experience in the temple.  We went with our investigator Viridiana who was baptized this past Sunday.  To be in the temple and feel the spirit was an experience that strengthened my testimony.  As we entered the instruction room, I remembered my first time in the temple.  I was going through the motions very confused but suddenly I felt that Grandma Beth was with me.  In this same room here in Mexico I felt her again!  As we got closer to the Celestial room I noticed that the guide in front of the door was my teacher from the CCM, Hermana Vergara!  I started to cry!  I can only imagine how it will feel to be reunited with our loved ones after this life but seeing her again was practically the same!  

As we left the temple we asked Viridiana how she is feeling about her up coming baptism and she told us that she was even more excited.  Her prayer at the end of her baptism service was a testimony of how she has always felt the spirit and the love of God but that day she felt it more.  She has the strongest testimony.

This is the work of the Lord and I am so Grateful to be a part of it!

(Note from Mom:  She forgot to sign her email, but just imagine her saying, "I love you Mom, you are the best mom in the whole world, I hope I can be like you someday"  Of course I'm kidding, A girl can dream though, right?! )

Missionaries and investigators

Me, Viridiana and her children and Hermana Salzar

I love to see the Temple!

Hermana Salazar and I 

Hermana Salazar Viridiana and I

The bus ride

Virindiana's Baptism

Viridiana and her children

Flan!

So Big news....We had transfers again but.....nothing changed!  I am so grateful that I get to work with Hermana Salazar again!  She is a great missionary that works so hard and has this pure love for the people!  Hermana Salazar has 10 months in the mission. She is from Tampico and is the only member in her family.  She is 20 years old and a member of the church for 3 years!  She is really dedicated to the work and I love it!  We have had a lot of success in our last transfer!  Our zone leaders called us the Saturday night and told us that we would be staying together.  We were so excited that we could not sleep.  We were laughing about things that had happened and we got a little slap happy.  My companion then asked me, ¨are you sure that you want to spend another transfer with me?¨ HaHAHAHAHAHA I can tell that it is going to be a great transfer!

My week was great!  We had exchanges again and I left my area to work with the SLT´s.  I learned so much in the exchange but the most important is to ask inspired questions. Our investigators are progressing so much!  The are all reading the Book of Mormon and have that true desire to follow Jesus Christ.  I am so excited to see them progress even more!

The funnest thing we did this week was make flan with a member!  It was delicious!  Speaking of which I need you send me a recipe to make cupcakes.  And could you send it so it is in the metric system?  Something simple but delicious!

We had a lot of spiritual experiences this week!  3 in one day!  First we went with an investigator named Leti.  We hadn't seen her for a long time but we decided to pass by her house again.  When we asked her how she had been, she told us that her daughter had forgiven her and was speaking with her again!  It was the happiest moment ever!  We remembered the promise that we had made at the beginning of the lesson that if she continued in this path and obeyed the commandments, her daughter would forgive her.  

Next we were with an investigator that is 17 years old.  Her dad is an alcoholic and is very sick right now.  She told us that she wants to be baptized more than ever and help her family know the truth too!

The last story is when we were about to go home.  We were with an investigator teaching about repentance when all of the sudden it started pouring!  We had to be home in 5 minutes and there was no way that we could leave without all of our books and clothes being soaked.  I started to pray and my companion had noticed that I was praying so she started to pray too.  Without knowing it we had both asked for the rain to stop in 2 minutes so that we could make it home.  Within less than 2 minutes the rain had completely stopped and we were able to get home.

I have a testimony that Heavenly Father fulfills His promises.  It is amazing that He knows exactly what we need in the moment we need it!

I love this Gospel, I love the mission, and I love you!

Hermanita Drew

PS HAPPY ANNIVERSARY this Friday!