My heart has changed

Hello Everyone!

Risk while you are sick is great!

I wasn't able to write last week, but don't worry.  Everything is good!  I had to go to the hospital Monday, and the rest of the week I have been confined to the house. They operated on my two big toes. Operate is a nasty word, but I suppose all the walking got to me. But they are healing really well, I´m able to walk and talk and everything, no worries. Someday I´ll tell you all the full story. But so much has happened!

About the baptism, Derian is fourteen years old and is really smart, like it scares me. I honestly feel like he baptized himself, like we didn't do anything. He actually asked us if he could get baptized earlier than the date that we had planned. No one does that. We found him, he came to church, and in three weeks he was baptized. We found him in the street with a drunk guy and he said we could pass by. It really is a bit of a miracle. He continues attending church and is helping pass the sacrament. Now that´s nifty.

Last night in Santa Cruz

Other exciting news is that I have been sent to a new area! After eight months, (six transfers) They finally remembered that Elder Toney exists and has been in Santa Cruz for all of his mission! Just kidding, I really love Santa Cruz, and have been very happy. In that short eight month period I have progressed more than in any other time in my life. But man it was getting crazy. as people would always tell me, I might as well buy a house and wait for the church calling, cause it looks like I´m in mission Santa Cruz. I've gotten lots of good jokes, like how my name must have dropped of the board of missionaries and they just plain forgot me there. If there is one good thing, it´s that I am now semi famous for being in my first area so long. (semi) Sincerely I believe that not moving me was inspired. I really have learned so much. I can say honestly that I love the people of Santa Cruz. When I look out over the congregation in church there isn't a single person I don´t know (...there aren't many people that attend....kidding) My heart has changed, my attitude has changed, I´m happier than I have ever been. Last night as I packed (late cause I'm a procrastinator and holy cats batman, how did I accumulate so much stuff?) It began to rain, hard. I went out to the balcony and stared out over the rain washed town. I felt all the hard experiences, all of the hurt, all of the failure wash away in the relentless deluge. Leaving me only with a healed feeling, that it was now time for me to go, that Santa Cruz was giving me it´s last good bye.

It´s hard to imagine my mission not being in Santa Cruz, it´s all I know. But when they called and told me that I would be going to San Pedro de Poas, I knew it was right, I felt it. This town is on the edge of a national park that includes the volcano, Poas. The area is inordinately hilly, and very high up, so it is super nice here, no more heat for this boy. The houses are beautiful, the streets are paved, and the cars are shiny (That honestly scared the bejeebies outa' me at first, in Santa Cruz, a car is only shiny for the first two minutes after you wash it, because there is so much dust.


So when I saw so many shiny cars, I thought, "Why has everyone gone to the car wash at the same time?" but it turns out that here, there isn't so much dust that it blinds and chokes you, oh how I will miss Santa Cruz)

Poas is in the zone of Alejuela, fun fact about Costa Rica, Soccer is popular (obviously) and here there are many many teams, but there are two that stand above the rest, La liga y Saprisa, its a great way to get in to an argument, cause everyone has got an opinion. I am saprisista, which is the team from San José, La liga, or LDA (liga deportiva alejuelense) is based here, in Alajuela, so I gotta be careful when I wear my Saprisa jersey, cause apparently that can be dangerous here. Also, from here on out, all of my family and friends are Saprisista,by association, cus' S is best.

Alright, enough now.

Wondorously,

Elder Noah M. Toney

Hermana Rios and Elder Carias (two of my favorite missionaries) 

Elder Carias is my zone leader