Semana 18 - Dreaming and Finding

Hola! 

I just wanted to start off with a quick birthday shout out to Katelynne, the best big sis ever! And Annie C Roberts, my BFF since the womb!

We had a meeting this week on "Facebook finding" which in my opinion is really "how to be a social media ~influencer~ 101". But seriously, things are always changing and with the pandemic, a lot of doors have closed (LITERALLY) but also so many have opened because of this situation. Some people call us on their lunch breaks, in the car taking their kids to soccer, in the shower, you name it! jk about the shower lol. But seriously, it has been such a blessing to be able to reach so many people. We also filmed a video for our mission's Spanish Facebook page, "Representantes de Jesuscristo en MD y DC" so go check it out for some quality content :) 

On Sunday, we had a devotional with 2 people that are working on the temple! Sadly it's been postponed because they don't want to limit the amount of people that can come. They told really interesting stories about the many miracles in the process, symbolism in the details, and the special spirit that is there even though the site can get messy and loud. 

Here's a random but funny story. So I had a dream that the mission president called and asked to talk to me and told me that I was reassigned to speak CHINESE in the mission. I go "I'm sorry sir you've got the wrong person I barely even speak Spanish". Now whenever we get a call from the mission president I joke about my dream coming true and I'm like "alright guys it's been real I'm gonna go pack my stuff".  Anyway, it hasn't happened. yet. 

This week was great in terms of talking to people! We were able to have some really great lessons and we have been crazy busy since the day I got here. A cool lady said she wanted to be a missionary like us so we told her she needed to be a member first. She said yes to being baptized! But this is only our 3rd time talking to her and she's a little hard to get ahold of so we'll see what happens! 

One night, a sister in our zone taught us basic ballet moves for FHE and it brought me back to the glory days. If I don't somehow find myself in a ballet dance battle and convert everyone with my sick moves, I'm gonna be a little disappointed. Sometimes our apartment seems to get smaller and smaller so getting outside or just moving around is a major key. 

With the transfer coming to a close. We found out that we are losing Hermana Barreda to the Visitor's Center and it will be Hermana Eich and I taking on our whole area. And if life hasn't been crazy enough, we will likely get another companion at some point because we've been getting around 20 new missionaries a week. I reflected about what I have learned this transfer and it really boils down to being happy and appreciating where we are in life. Make the best of the situation and realize it is just for a season. Everyday is a step forward, even if it's slow. It's still progress. You can't control the situation but you can control how you react to it. Thank you 1000x for your constant love and support!!! 

Con amor, Hermana Dangl

I went swimming!

Before this gets out to my mission president, I'll admit that yes the subject line is just clickbait, but now you're here so keep reading! Unfortunately, the only thing I went swimming in this week was the humidity. It's got me missing Grandma Kettley's pool just a bit :/ 

I'll jump right into the highlights of the week! Last p-day, we went to a place called Needwood Lake to go exploring and WOW that place is straight out of a movie. That night we played 2 truths and a lie as a district and they didn't believe it at first and wanted proof that I could do a back flip so I sent a video and now they think I'm kinda cool :)

One day we were at the church studying outside on a blanket on the grass. We moved the blanket a bit and I saw that we had been sitting on a frog. I freaked out for a second then remembered I'm a strong independent woman so I picked it up. I debated kissing it to see if it would turn into a prince but I decided ehh I probably shouldn't. Also before you ask, yes of course I got a picture, I'm Sherrilynne's daughter. I started petting its head in hopes of domesticating it so I could take it home as my new pet. But noooo, this little guy disagreed and belly flopped out of my hands so I picked it up again to put it somewhere safe. Anyway, he was a cool guy but wasn't really interested in our message.

When we were at the church, I saw a picture of the first presidency and had a lightning strike of inspiration. In life I've learned that trios have power that is unmatched so I told them my idea to reenact the picture on the wall. We set up a nice contraption of a chair, table, and picture stand to hold the camera. All I can say is that our photo deserves a spot in the Louvre or something because it's absolutely beautiful. 

Jessica is still a rockstar and we've met with some great new people this week as well as some of our amazing members. One family even brought us cool Honduran food! One day at the Visitors Center we were sitting outside and saw a biker outside the gates taking a picture of the sign and temple. We started talking and he was telling us all about himself and how he wants to start going to church again. He asked a ton of questions but after 45 minutes we had to get going so we told him that he could find all the answers on the church website and encouraged him to get in contact with the missionaries. It made me miss talking to people in person but I've also learned that in this hard time, where people really need the light of the gospel, God's work is moving forward whether we are teaching someone through the gates of the temple, on phones, over text, or in person. I've tried to make it a goal to appreciate where I'm at right now and see the Lord's tender mercies, many of which I've seen because of the situation we are in.

This week we had an amazing mission conference for the sisters!! We also had a 4 hour new missionary training but I wouldn't have traded those 8 hours on zoom for anything! We heard from our amazing leadership then later from THE Emily Belle Freeman and her daughter. We were also able to invite special women in our lives to join the zoom! My favorite piece of wisdom from the day was to "see the worth in others to see the worth in yourself" and to LOVE MUCH. Now more than ever we need to love others and remember our divine worth as children of a loving Heavenly Father. Take care y'all! 

:o), Hna Dangl 

 Model of the DC Temple in the Visitor Center

First Presidency Photo

Zooming with mom, Katelynne (sister) to listen to Emily Belle Freeman 

and her daughter Grace, for a Sisters Conference Zoom.

Mom talking to Pres. and Sis. Neilson after the zoom. 

The moms all stayed on to chat and didn't want to leave.

Emily Belle Freeman - We are big fans of her 

"Don't Miss This" Come Follow Me Podcast 

We have seen her at TOFW for years, so this was a treat.  

Mom and Emily in Feb. 2020

Semana 16 - Back and better than ever!

Wow, what a month! Oh whoops I meant week! 

They say the second time you leave for your mission it gets easier. Well, it doesn't but that's what I get for having such awesome family/friends and a beautiful home for making it hard to say goodbye. Anyway, 2nd times a charm so hopefully I can stay out longer than 6 weeks this time :) 

My plane arrived a little early to a ghost townish, under construction airport so I walked around the airport with 2 ladies from the plane for a good 30 minutes trying to find the exit. They were both from the area so I trusted them more than myself but we ended up getting pretty lost. After a bit, I found my companions and the AP's there to pick me up. I'm in a trio! My companions, Hermana Eich and Hermana Barreda, are both from Utah and are amazing!! Also, I can't forget to mention our Chevy Equinox, which I was appalled was not given a name yet so I named it "The Blue Stallion" but reply to this if you have any other ideas. We then ended our night at this cool new place called Cafe Rio (not sure if many of you guys have heard about it, it's kinda underground).

For the rest of my life, I will not stop talking about how amazing and beautiful it is here!!! It is so so green which makes being quarentined a little better because I get to go outside to the coolest lakes, parks, forests, etc. Expect many, many, many nature pics :) 

We are in the Washington DC 1st ward and cover a pretty big area which includes Rockville, Potomac, and Bethesda. For one of our outings, we drove to see some mansions in Potomac and WOW. It definitely made me think for a second about marrying a politician and having a nice big house near the city, but I'm here to get work done so I'll come back to that later. 

My second day here, we were in charge of making a post for our Facebook page so we went to the park with some chalk. We wrote, "Jesús ama a todos" but I guess waking up at 6:30 (3:30am CA time) wrecked me just a bit and I wrote the "J" in Jesus BACKWARDS. I didn't even notice until we were done and I wasn't going to broadcast this to everyone but it's already on the internet for everyone to see and my misfortunes make for good content so I'll attach the picture. 

We went to the Temple Visitor's Center which is next to our church building and the temple!!! It's HUGE and so beautiful. We will hear from President Nelson about the details and if the open house this fall will be postponed or not. 

   

We've been doing lots of contacting, lessons with members and referrals, and studying. The apartment is small and sadly the DC area is still pretty behind with reopening stuff but staying positive is KEY! We have had a lot of success with people we are teaching and have the most awesome woman named Jessica.  She's a STAR and is getting baptized in July. She even fasted with us for a whole 24 hours! 

We meet on Zoom pretty much every day with our mission but on Sunday we had a testimony meeting and I along with the only other new missionary this week (my CCM comp Hermana Neff!!!) were asked to bear our testimonies and introduce ourselves. Our mission president's wife encouraged us to ask ourselves "How are we making the impossible possible?" Missionary work has changed in BIG ways and it's up to us reach people in new and creative ways and to adapt to change instead of dwelling on how things used to be. 

We had a really great devotional by Elder Gay of the 70 and he shared the story of Gordon B. Hinckley (my friend from the good old days) who had all the odds stacked against him but received the advice from his father to "forget himself and go to work". This is not about us and our will, it is about Gods. Years later, when President Hinckley's wife passed away, he went back to the same apartment he lived in during his mission in England and prayed to rededicate himself to forget himself and go to work once more. I plan to do this too and make the most of my time as a representative of Christ. 

JOHN 14:27

Con amor, Hermana Dangl 

If you love me, send me a letter! 

198 Halpine Rd. #1236 Rockville, MD 20852 

 The Washington DC Temple 

 Touching Moroni

 P-day fun

 "Jesus ama a todos" chalk drawing for facebook post.

It is so green here! 

 My "last supper" the night before I left to DC.

 Last pic in front of Newport Beach Temple

 2nd time to be set apart. 

 I love sunsets, and this was my scenery on the way home 

from being set apart. My last night in Newport. 

 At the airport saying bye to the family. 

 I can do this once again! 

Flying over my neighborhood to DC. 

Semana 6, 7, and 8 Spring Break on the Mish?

Sorry this should have been sent out last week.

¡Hola!

Another week just livin the dream! It's not DC, but Newport will do for now. I have In-n-out, Pressed Juicery, and home cooked meals, so it definitely could be worse. 

One of the best decisions I ever made was deciding to impulse buy a ukulele on Amazon (it's probably up there with deciding to serve a mission). I was like a kid on Christmas day when it came and in my humble opinion, I'm basically a pro now. Playing it makes me feel like I'm on vacation in Hawaii, sitting on the beach with the waves crashing in the background, and the sun setting over the ocean, but in reality I've been stuck in my house for 17 days due to a worldwide pandemic and people are convinced it's the end of the world. It's quite ironic.  

This week I 

-Did 589273 puzzles with Jeffrey 

-Ate way too much avocado toast (this California girl reallyyy missed avocados)

-Made bread #domestic

-Started a side hustle selling old clothes bc I'm a bUsiNesS wOmAn

-Got updated on the latest tik tok trends 

-And most importantly, I watched General Conference!! 

Conference this weekend was AMAZING! Some highlights  

- My old teacher from byu, Brad Wilcox (Brad daddy) was called to the Young Men's Presidency

- 8 new temples announced and the new proclamation of the Restoration!  

- Fav quote by Elder Holland "you haven't come this far to only come this far" and so so so many more. It was all just SOO GOOD. Plz watch it if you haven't 

-Invitation for a worldwide 24 hour fast for our current world situation. I invite you ALL to join us in this fast on Friday April 10!! I know that fasting and sincere prayer can bring miracles!!  

During this time of change and uncertainty, I've learned to cling to the things and truths that I know will never change. I take so much comfort in knowing that our loving Heavenly Father is there for us every step of the way and that He is in charge. He will never give us anything we can't handle and can give us the strength to overcome any challenges we face. 

This weekend I was temporarily released as a missionary because it will be at least a few weeks until it is safe enough to send me out. Fingers crossed for next month! Because of that, with a heavy heart, I regret to inform you that I will probably hold off on emails until I'm back in the field :( However, I will keep y'all in the loop with any updates and hopefully I'll be back at it again in a hot sec! 

Con amor, Rachel :)

A walk in the beautiful Back Bay

Me and my brother.

 Geico the Gecko, mom's class pet is home with us now. 

Zooming with the extended family on Sunday for church.

Semana 5 - Here for a good time, not a long time

¡Hola todos!

And now for this weeks episode, it's HOMETOWN EDITION!! Yep you heard me! This letter is coming to you from good ole Newport Beach instead of Mexico City- mi corazon :(

Due to the coronavirus, the CCM is being completely shut down and everyone is being emergency evacuated back to their home countries. Coming home after 6 weeks was the last thing I expected to do, but even though it's been hard, I trust that God sees the path perfectly in this time of so much uncertainty and confusion. Hopefully after our 2 week quarantine, the party can continue and we can go to our missions! This week has been WILD, but I'm alive to tell the tale so stay tuned for some drama. 

Thursday night during class, a supervisor came in and announced that instead of leaving on the 31st of March to go to our missions, we were going to be leaving a week early on that Monday or Tuesday so we could get back in the states before countries closed their borders.  

We thought we had a couple days but the next morning, they came in again and called out 6 names, told them they had 45 minutes to pack all their stuff, and be at the buses to fly to their missions. The rest of us were told go pack up our stuff so we could be ready to leave at any moment. We lost more than half of our district that day and it was so rough to say goodbye to the people who had become like family to me. 

At 2 am that night, we got a knock on our door and were told that 2 Hermanas in our casa had 15 minutes to be at the buses to leave. There was still uncertainty who was being sent home or to their missions but they ended up sending all missionaries home. It broke my heart to not be going to DC, but I'll get there eventually! 

The rest of my district, including my companion, left the next day and I concluded that as the last man standing, it's clear that I'd survive the zombie apocalypse. I joined another district of a whopping 3 people for the next 2 days and finally finessed a flight to lax on Tuesday morning.

Also they ran out of masks so I improvised and used my hair scarf bandana as a mask at the airport (pic is attached). You know that relatable moment when you have to go to a music festival at 8 but you gotta not catch a deadly disease at the airport at 9? Yeah me too.  

I'm pretty sure I can have visitors but only from a safe distance of 6 feet! I think the kids these days call it "Social distancing?" 

And now for an update on my white dot story! One of the senior couples in the CCM presidency saw my white dot but said they thought I'd been there for a while. I just told them I was on my 6th week but just forgot to take it off. They're too sweet to joke around with so I ultimately retired the white dot.  RIP to a fallen soldier :( 

Some things I learned in the past 6 weeks

- I am an EXCELLENT bug killer.

- I missed ice. Like a lot. 

- I have a new found love for poetry! They are 95% of the time very sarcastic, nonetheless they are straight fire. Special s/o to Hermana Warren for being my teacher. 

Amidst all this craziness it is SO important to have hope! A couple days ago, for the first time ever, it was a little cold so I pulled out my jacket and inside the pocket I found a fortune.  It read "Don't give up, the beginning is always the hardest." I know with out a doubt that God is mindful of each of us.  He know our joys, pains, struggles, and sorrows. When life throws you a curveball, tighten your grip on the bat, and keep swinging. Keep going and keep pushing. God loves you and I love you! 

Con amor, Hermana Dangl 

 My MTC District aka mi familia 

The Final Five

ALL ALONE :( 

Final selfie with Esteban 

 The Final Five go to their last meal.

Safety 1st, Fashion 2nd

Semana 4 - One month in the simulation!

¡Hola familia y amigos! 

What a boring and uneventful past week this has been! I hit one month on the mish woooo!! 

On Thursday we had a day of ALL Spanish! Well... sorta! We lasted most of the day, but for this week and next week we are in full spanish mode. To make things exciting, we play a game called "Quien es el Latino" where we pick one person to be the Latino(a) but we all make sure we speak all spanish to cover up who the actual Latino is. If by the end of the day our teacher doesn't guess correctly we get a point. When we get 4 points our teacher will bring us churros or make us all paintings. The stakes are HIGH.

Thursday night was salchicha noche (Costco hotdog night) and the boys in our district had the great idea to do an eating contest. 6 was the record, but in my opinion that's pretty weak. 

Sunday was probably my favorite day this week! I spoke about the Plan of Salvation in church and it was pretty fire. Also we were some of the only people in the world that had a church meeting. It caused me to count my blessings and be grateful that we have the opportunity every week to worship together and take the sacrament. We are no longer allowed to meet all together as an MTC so we met as a branch for devotional. That night we listened to "Character of Christ" by David A. Bednar and it reminded me of my special responsibility as a representative of Christ.  It was super bien. 

On Monday we had a service activity putting together packets for the new missionaries and I found a stack of white dots that we had to wear our first week so I put one on my tag as a joke. I had a good amount of people come up to me and ask me how long I have been here and I told them that I was the only North American to come to the CCM this week. (To provide some background, North Americans and Haitians can no longer come to the CCM, only Latinos). They were super surprised and thought I was 100% serious, it was great. Another girl said her whole table at dinner was talking about it so I'm pretty much the talk of the CCM. That's showbiz baby. 

Shoutout to the coronavirus for being a party pooper because we can't go to the temple :( Also, I've been hearing a lot about the toilet paper fiasco in the states, but thankfully the CCM is stocked with enough toilet paper to last about 10 years. We are safe and thriving here. Everyone else: take your vitamins, eat your greens, wash your hands, and remember to trust in the Lord! He loves you and is mindful of you :) 

Con amor, Hermana Dangl 

B for "Benemerito" but also for "baptisms" 

An international holiday: Ice Cream Friday

#Gainz #SwolSZN #GettinBig