Day 6

With the awful weather and both the girls having a virus, it was inevitable that I would catch something. Difficult time getting up this morning after minimal sleep with a head cold, but I managed to be up and got ready and left for church at 9:15 while the family was still sleeping. Church starts at 11:30. Thanks to the kindness of strangers , occurrences stemming from avoiding creepy strangers, and answered prayers, I finally managed to find the church at 11:50. I was absolutely elated, though disappointed that I thought I missed the Sacrament, but thanks to a confirmation and about 5 baby blessings, I still got to take it. This was very much needed and made Liz very much happier.

The ward is extremely diverse, and now that I think about it, not a single individual that I personally met was Spanish. The culture of the ward is different than what I am used to. During Sacrament meeting and Relief Society, everyone was conducting conversations. They were quiet during prayers and during the Sacrament, but never at any other time. Neither the chorister nor the pianist can count, and the ward is tone-deaf (as am I, and during this meeting I couldn’t hide behind an instrument to cover it up), but they sing praises with all their heart, and the spirit is definitely still there, which I love. They have a nice group of kids in the YSA Sunday School class who were all very kind and helpful to me. They invited me to some activities, none of which I can attend so far as I am working those hours, but it was way nice to meet members my age. The Primary visited Relief Society to sing and give out little ornament things and cake for Mother’s Day. I took it as a good excuse to break my fast a little early.

With my cold and little sleep, I didn’t care to do any more exploring, so I returned home while the family was still out to chill, eat, do dishes, and talk to people who make me abundantly happy.

I ate gespacho for the first time, once again: love. The food here is amazing. I’m uber excited to go explore more of Madrid in warmer weather. Hopefully I can knock this cold out quickly. Yes, Mom, I am drinking lots of water. The cups here are ridiculously tiny. This family hardly drinks any water.