Costa Rica: Pure Life, Powerful Life

Principle #11: Seek Learning and Education Life is a continual learning process! It's important for us to take advantage of all of the resources for learning that our Heavenly Father has given us.  1. People around me, my leaders:  I have learned so much from people here in Costa Rica. The "Ticos" have a unique culture and perspective, and I love talking with them. Our Self-Reliance manager is a very supportive, hardworking and inspirational man that I feel so blessed to have worked with. I have also learned from the examples of members of the Church who are so willing to make sacrifices to live the Gospel and fulfill their callings. 2. Books and media: The Self-Reliance manuals materials that the Church has created online and in print have been inspirational to me and helped us as we've supported and trained local leaders. 3. The scriptures, the Holy Ghost: Personal scripture study has been an important asset to me throughout my internship

Integrity is a quality that I think is sometimes hard to measure, yet defines so much of our character. It is tied to virtue. In Preach My Gospel it says, "What you choose to think and do when you are alone and you believe no one is watching is a strong measure of your virtue." Natalie and I have been flying solo as a companionship for the past 2.5 months. It was up to decide how to act. Now Natalie is back in the United States with her family (she got permission to return early for an important family reunion) and I'm on my own! I am happy to find myself studying the scriptures, exercising, and completing my self-reliance commitments on my own. I know I can continue to improve my integrity and virtue by being more reliable and responsible in all I do.

You might think living in Costa Rica is just like being on vacation all of the time, but there is a certain level of endurance I am learning at this point being here. We go back and forth from our tiny apartment to the Institute Building most days, making phone calls, doing homework online, planning lessons and attending meetings. It sometimes gets monotonous. Sometimes the leaders and people we so desperately want to help with the Self-Reliance Initiative are not willing to take ownership of or use it. I've had moments of homesickness, missing my family, friends, my car, my dogs... even Diet Dr. Pepper! Three months is a long time to be away! So the topic we covered this week in my Self-Reliance group was appropriate for me: Persevere . We can persevere by doing four things: 1. Keep a positive attitude 2. Remember to work together 3. Replace fear with faith 4. Move forward with patience and courage Natalie has really helped me through lately with her positive at