week 27 Christmas week!!!!

Merry Christmas everyone! I'm assuming you'll all get this around Christmas time, so if its Christmas and you're reading this, STOP! Go be with your families and you can read this some other time. because family is the best part of Christmas. I feel like I'm being one of those commercials between conference sessions: "give your family everything... give them your time" haha. But seriously christmas is all about giving and one of the most meaningful gifts you can give is your time. That reminds me of a talk I heard yesterday in church when he talked about how Christmas means giving and he reminded us that the Father gave His Son and the Son gave his life and without giving there is no true Christmas. Anyways, here's a little bit of what happened in my week:

Mini Miracle!
After a long day of almost complete contacting (our appointments fell through) we ran out of cards and resorted to door-to-door inviting everyone to the special sacrament meeting the next day at 9am and had pretty much no success. We were 100% pooped and it had gotten dark and we were walking down a road that I've walked probably a million times when we passed someone going in the opposite direction when we heard him say really fast and quiet "Quiero un Libro de Mormón" (I want a Book of Mormon) We flipped around and were like wait what?? really??? then I noticed his conditions: first of all he was on crutches because his leg had clearly been amputated, and second he was carrying groceries bags between his fingers (one of them super swollen with stitches) struggling not to drop them. So we offered to carry his bags and said that of course we could give him a book of Mormon. On the walk to his house, he gradually told us his story and how he recently has had a strong interest in spiritual things. He has cancer and told us he wants to learn about what the next life will be like. Elder Sanchez and I were so surprised and impressed by his faith and set up an appointment with him for after Christmas. I really can't wait to help him out more!!!

I got my christmas package and i put it under my little tree that I've been slowly decorating this month!🎄

A missionaries' mom sent him like 5 copies of a game called "Cover your Assets" (which just happens to be one of my favorite games ever) and that missionary gave a copy to Elder Perez who is in our district, so today I got to teach them how to play it!! What a party hahaha

I finally did official, planned service for the first time in my whole mission! There was a sister in the ward that was moving and the only person that came to help was the Elder's Quorum president  so we were able to help a lot. It took the whole morning and two trips but we did it!

Ok I'll end with one of my favorite quotes that I've probably already used but it's so good that you need to hear it again:
"Let us focus on four gifts Jesus Christ gave to all who are willing to receive them ... First, he gave you and me an unlimited capacity to love... A second gift the savior offers you is the ability to love... A third gift from the savior is that of repentance... A fourth gift from our savior is actually a promise - a promise of life everlasting."
- President Russell M. Nelson

Merry Christmas!

My family is so crazy!!!!!  And I LOVE THEM!!

Week 25 & 26

So much has happened these last two weeks that I think it will be better to explain with pictures. In a nutshell this is what happened:
-TRANSFERS!!
Normally a missionary stays in one area for two transfers (or 3 months). I have already had THREE transfers here so we thought for sure I was going to leave the area, but Tuesday night we got a call and they told us that Elder Flores had transfers and I didn't!! Which means I am STILL in my first area. At the end of this transfer I will have been here for 6 months! Anyways we all traveled to San Jose for the special transfers (special because the new companionships were announced right there in the moment and nobody knew anything ahead of time) and I was paired with drumroll.........................................Elder Sanchez! He is known for being a really hard worker and I know we will work great together.

I saw my cousin, Clayton again at transfers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

-VOLCANO!!

 The highlight of last week was our mission's christmas activity which was a trip to the Irazu volcano. It was such an awesome experience and I made so many new missionary friends. Unfortunately it was really cold and cloudy so we didn't get to see the actual crater thing but hey it was still a fun adventure. Afterwards we went to a park where we played some games like capture the flag and it was kind of raining. It was misting. Like the mist was heavy enough to be falling, but juuuust barely. We ate a big lunch there and then went on a hike and saw some pretty wacky trees. After that we all headed back to our individual areas and work the rest of the day.

 

 

Today we finally doing something together with the elders in the zone (soccer and basketball)  I hope you like the pictures!

Manfred, the coolest guy ever!   

Some fun Christmas decorations 

These are the people who used to cook us lunch!  yum 

I was inspired by the beauty of the nature at the volcano and at the park afterwards, and I

 felt so grateful for our Heavenly Father who directed the creation of all of it and I want to
share another quote by my favorite prophet again :)

“I believe in beauty. The earth in its pristine beauty is an expression of the nature of its
Creator…. I believe in the beauty of nature—the flowers, the fruit, the sky, the peaks and
the plains from which they rise. I see and believe in the beauty of animals....I believe in
beauty—the beauty of God's unspoiled creations, the beauty of his sons and daughters
who walk without whimpering, meeting the challenges of each new day.” - Gordon B.
Hinckley
I too believe in the beauty of all the creations of God, (especially girls:) Hahaha, but in all seriousness we are the greatest creation of God. Every person has so much beauty and potential, and as a missionary I have the opportunity to help people realize that.
Have an awesome week guys and enjoy the beauty of the world - especially the SNOW!! I really miss the snow.
Love, Elder Hilton

Week 24

Hi everyone, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you are all ready for Christmas! we have started the Light the World initiative and I love it so much. Basically it consists of us missionaries visiting members who bring friends to their houses and sharing the new video of the nativity with them. I have already seen it so many times, but every time I get super close to crying because it's SO AWESOME! I don't even know what language it's in, but it doesn't matter because the expression and music all makes up for it. If you haven't seen it, invite some friends over for a 'Christmas night' and watch the video together and I promise they will appreciate it. This week we have been working a lot with members and I had so many awesome experiences, but unfortunately we had to go to San Jose today and so I don't have much time to write. My companion had to go to the migration offices to get his official ID, and meanwhile I went with some other missionaries to sing carols outside in the center for a big group of people. I managed to snag a little picture:

Our Christmas activity for the mission is going to a volcano and that's going to happen on Thursday! And even more exciting is the fact that transfers are this Wednesday, so next week I'm 90% sure that I'm going to be with a new companion. I hope... :) But hey, I know that the Lord will put me where I need to be and more than anything, I'm excited for the change. I know that the Lord puts us in situations where we learn and that he wants us to share what we learn with our friends so we can all progress together like a family. I know that families are so important in God's plan, and that's why we are raised in them, and that's why we have wards, and stakes, and groups of all kinds; to strengthen our families! I love my family and if you see my dad, tell him happy birthday! It's tomorrow (the 3rd)!
Love you all!
Elder Hilton

week 23:

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays where some of my favorite memories are always made. I love being with the extended family and playing games and of course THE FOOD!!! Man i'm gonna miss all the turkey, mashed potatoes, salad, sweet potatoes, green beans, jello, and loads of pie. (Sadly, Thanksgiving isn't really a holiday here. Also, they don't celebrate Halloween, which means the Christmas season starts in October!) But my favorite part is definitely the family. It is one of the few times I get to see my cousins and aunts and uncles and it's always so fun. God knows where the true sources of happiness come from, and that's why he puts us in families. Families are the best place to learn to love and grow and I'm so grateful to have been raised in mine.
One thing we've learned in our family is the importance of humility and showing gratitude, and this season is the perfect time to practice it. I think that one of the reasons that Christmastime is always so happy and memorable is because of the way we think about others. I hope we can all enjoy this season with our families as we think about and care for others. I truly believe that we are empowered by the christlike attribute of humility.
Quote of the week!
  Richard Edgley said
As I have pondered faithful members, I am struck by two qualities they all seem to have. First, regardless of social or economic status or position, their humility leads to submissiveness to the Lord’s will. And second, in spite of the difficulties and trials of life, they are able to maintain a sense of gratitude for God’s blessings and life’s goodness. Humility and gratitude are truly the twin characteristics of happiness. –, The Empowerment of Humility

I hope you all have a great week!!!

Our little tiny tree

 

My great friend Manfred

This is the best family ever!!!!!  I love them so much! 

 

Christmas trees here look quite different than at home!