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Well as all of you know, I have been experiencing health challenges this past month. Well, this past Monday, the Mission Department felt it would be best that I return home to receive medical treatment by the physicians here in Salt Lake City. I am back home for now and will keep you all posted as I find out what is going on. Hopefully, the doctors will figure out what is going on and I can move forward. At this moment, my adventure in Nicaragua has come to a halt. I will keep you posted on what happens!

Best Companionship Ever!

Hello family! Hope you all had a lovely week. Sorry this email is going to be really short because nothing has happened much this week. As you know I am still sick  I have a doctors appointment this Thursday I believe. So hopefully the doctors will be able to see what is going on.  I was sad to get the emergency transfer call but I am happy to be returning to my old zone. Hermana Rogers is in the zone so I am super stoked to see her more! Also I am in a foursome! Wilysnn, Hermana Bernards, Scott and I are all comps! The 4 gringas together, too much fun! I don't think there has ever been a foursome companionship of all white chicks until now.  I have more energy now than the early week but I still have pain in my stomach from eating. 

Lovely masks for the days we don't want to wear makeup!

Today was the first day I left the house to be active and do something. We went to this really huge market today and went shopping which was really fun! Me and Hra. Wheat.  Wilsynn and I found these funky masks which I will send a pic of them later. We went to Subway for lunch and hung out for the day which was really fun. We all bought these Nica nightgowns and they are legit! I will send a pic next week. Anyways, sorry this is so short, nothing has happened. Hna Scott is taking good care of me and I am slowly getting my strength back. Pray that the doctors can find what is going on this week. Love you all and have a good week.

Me, Hra Scott, Wheat and Bernards!

Hermana Howell 

Happy, Happy, Happy

Buenas tardes querido familia! I hope you are all doing very well! Well as you all know I am not doing too hot. I have been sick for most of the week. I started feeling sick on Monday night and each day it got progressively worse. On Wednesday we had a multi-zone conference in Matagalpa and it was really fun! It was all day long but it was a really good meeting. The meeting ended at 6 and there weren't any buses heading back to our area so the whole zone had to squeeze into a tiny van meant to fit only like 15 people....yeah we made 26 people fit! hahaha it was so funny. We were singing hymns the whole way and there was so much missionary spirit! I loved it. Well my health got a little worse on Thursday and Friday so I went to Esteli to do some lab work. I am trying to have a positive outlook on everything that is happening so what happened in the lab at Esteli probably made my week! So I am in this lab, it was a little sketch, and this lady starts to take my blood. Well after she finished taking my blood I start feeling light headed. Then I was thinking, 'Yep I am going to pass out.' The laboratory lady starts yelling 'She is white! She is going to pass out!' Well her solution to this was start hitting my face and pinching my cheeks. OW! Then she shoves rubbing alcohol up my nose to apparently wake me up. Talk about horrible. I was like 'Please leave me be and pass out.' hahaha it was too funny. I didn't pass out though so I guess it worked! 

Saturday night I received a call from Hermana Collado. She said that when I come to Managua tomorrow, I need to bring extra clothes.  For my mission I have had a picture of Christ with the scripture Proverbs 3:5 that says 'Trust in the Lord...lean not unto thine own understanding.' I don't understand why this is happening to me but I do know that my Savior lives. He gives me trials for my own benefit and these trials strengthen my faith. I don't have control over this situation but I do have control over my attitude so I have decided to have a positive attitude. I am putting all of my faith and will in the hands of the Lord. He knows what is best for me. Whatever happens, happens for a reason and will benefit me in some way. 

Thank you for all of your prayers. I have felt the spirit, added strength and I have been able to find joy these last couple of days. So many people are taking care of me here so don't worry! I love you all so much! Hope you have a wonderful week! Talk to you soon! 

Hermana Howell 

NEVER SAY NEVER

Que tal familia? I hope you all had a wonderful week! Can you believe that today I have six months in the mission?!? SO CRAZY. Only 12 more months and I will be chilling in the airport waiting for you all. Okay lets not think about that because I forget that the mission is not real life sometimes and honestly the thought of coming home scares me. Anyways, this week was a week of ups and downs but overall I had a lot of growth this week. 

As a tradition of every new change, my district picked a district name. We decided to be ¨marvel¨like as the Avengers and I am Captain America! We took a district picture which I will send and it was pretty awesome; thanks to the hermanas who thought of it! haha

This week I had divisions with Hermana Taufoou and it was a lot of fun! She is from Idaho so it was fun to talk about that beloved state! We have been having a lot of problems with dogs recently so what did I decide to do. I decided to try out that dog repeller device that Dad sent me in my Christmas package. Let me tell you, that thing is so dang fun! The dogs all freak out and run the other way looking so confused! All the missionaries here love it and everyone wants to try it. It is sad how easily missionaries are entertained. Dad, I am worried I will start playing that spagetti game next. Only you Dad would think of sending the dog repeller! But THANK YOU. Seriously I love it! It has helped us a lot haha.

Also, I got Aunt Steph's package this week and some letters! THANK YOU! I loved all the photos you send Aunt Steph! Seriously mail is the best thing in the world. 

So my highlight of my week was this Sunday. As a district this week, we are having a competition. Whoever earns a certain number of points gets a certain thing and the highest reward is to eat at this American restaurant. These last two weeks have been really tough for us in our area. We haven't been having any success and we have been becoming discouraged. Sunday was the last day of this competition and we only had 4 points and we had to get 25 points to eat at this restaurant. So our hope was pretty low; we knew that this would be impossible to accomplish. Our hope was at least to obtain 10 points which got us a donut. To attain the 10 points, we were relying on investigators to come to church and no one came to church. Seriously no one came to church. There was only 20 people in church which has been the lowest it has ever been in the time that I have been here. After church my comp cried because of this frustration and I was pretty discouraged with the situation of the rama. The Elders gave us a little pep talk and Elder Gomez asked us  if we had put all of our energy and work in this work. We both answered no, we could do more. We realized, as a companionship, we needed to work harder and change what we were doing; realy on the Lord and be missionaries of Preach my Gospel. This literally changed our day and how we worked. At the end of the day, we went from having 4 points to 26 points. We contacted 20 people of whom were 7 families, committed a woman to come to church and put 9 BAPTISM DATES! Never in my mission, well in these short six months, have I put 9 baptism dates in one day, nevertheless in one week! It was absolutely a miracle! We even put a baptismal date in a street contact! I felt at the end of Sunday that I finally felt satisfied with myself. I never had felt so guided by the spirit before. Throughout Sunday, I just felt the presence of the spirit so strongly, guiding me and putting the words in my mouth to say to the people. I felt I was finally successfu but what I learned more was what it takes to be a good missionary. First and foremost, a misisonary needs to be humble and rely on the Lord. We have the spirit when we are humble and hearts are touched when we teach by the Spirit. As I trusted in the Lord, I was guided by the spirit about where to go and what to say and who to talk to. As I strived to be the missinoary that Preach my Gospel teaches and obey, I felt the Savior was satisfied in my work and never felt so much joy! All we need to do in this life is trust the Lord and wait to see miracles! I love being a missionary!!

I love you all so much and can't wait to see your wonderful faces in May! Thanks for all of your support and love! I couldn't do this without all of you, my wonderful family. Have a wonderufl week and look for opportunities to serve the Lord. All members are missionareis! There truly is no other joy in this world than sharing the knowledge with our brothers and sisters that they can be with their families for eternity. I love you all so much!!!

Con muchísimo amor,

Hermana Howell