January 27, 2014

Here we are with day 6 in my third mission, Boston Massachusetts. I have a ton of things I want to say, but I don't know where to start.

I guess I'll start with how cool it is that I'm in Boston! Well, I'm actually not in Boston. I'm in the middle of two towns called Framingham and Marlborough. All the towns here end in -ton, -ham, and -borough. I'm still not entirely sure as to the size of these towns, but I can tell you that there is a Dunkin Donuts on every street corner. But the point is, I still have moments every once in a while when I realize that I'm actually on the east coast of the US and not the west coast.

The mission here is really different. Everything is different. Everything. Sometimes I don't even feel like I'm a missionary because everything is so different than what I'm used to. Of course my loyalties still lie in Rancagua. It's an understatement to say that I miss Chile. But I'm really trying to give Massachusetts a chance. I want to love it. I'm just still getting over my last breakup. But everyday I put a big smile on my face and pretend that I absolutely love this mission and never want to leave.

The worst part is that I feel like a greenie again. Everything is very different. Everything. I'm getting used to the way they plan and the way they teach lessons. I'm even back to not understanding what the heck is going on when we're in Portuguese lessons. By the way, I'm over the moon that I have the opportunity to learn another language on my mission. I always said I wanted to serve more missions in other countries so I had VIP access to the gift of tongues. And now here I am learning Portuguese! It's slightly frustrating because of how similar it is to Spanish. I understand a surprising amount, but I can't say much. It's like listening to somebody speak Spanish with a crazy accent and throw in random French words. Let's just say I'm still working on it. But I've already started reading the Book of Mormon, or O Livro de Mórmon, so I should be speaking in no time.

The best part though is my companions (and maybe my apartment--it's REALLY nice) Sister L and Sister P. Sister L is from Brazil, but she grew up in Utah so she speaks perfect English. Sister P is from Utah too. They're both really awesome and we all get along well. President Packard told me he wanted to give me a soft landing so he gave me some of the best companions in the mission. We cover two wards--Framingham and Marlborough--Portuguese and Spanish speaking, which means I'm still Hermana Hutchinson, but all of the gringos call me Sister Hutchinson. In the Framingham ward there is a Spanish group. It functions as a branch, but it's acts under the direction of the ward. It's really cool. The end goal is that it will turn into a branch and eventually a ward. I LOVE the Spanish group. Imagine little Hermana Hutchinson speaking English ALL week and really itching to speak in what she presumes is really her native tongue and then showing up at the Spanish ward. I was in heaven for 3 hours! I loved talking to everyone and finding out where they're from. Most of them are from Guatemala, but Peru and Colombia are also represented and my absolute favorite CHILE!!! I met a guy from Chile yesterday. We were in the Marlborough ward, in the Portuguese class and you can imagine that even though I could understand quite a bit, I still didn't really know what they were saying. All the sudden a guy walked in and said that he spoke Spanish so I invited him to sit next to me. We muddled through the lesson, kind of understanding what they were talking about (the fall of adam and eve). Then we started talking after. He asked where I was from and I said that I'm from Idaho, but I'd been in Chile for the last 8 months and he basically said (I'm claiming translator rights here since this conversation was taking place in Spanish) Shut up! I'M from Chile. (This was actually a 40 year old man, not a 15 year old girl) (translator rights) Then we both got all excited. Turns out he's from Santiago and he's been in the US for 15 years, which means he doesn't sound like a Chilean anymore. But the good news is that he wants to feed us dinner sometime, so I'm looking forward to a delicious Chilean meal.

So this is my life right now. I'm learning Portuguese and how to be a missionary in Boston. I am really enjoying being here though, even though I still really miss my homeland--I mean Chile.

I'm glad everything is going well in the land of potatoes! Can you believe that I'm coming up on 9 months? That's happening way sooner than it should. Love you all!

Hermana Hutchinson