Wednesday, August 29, 2012

August 27, 2012


Hello Everyone!
 
I am going to type as fast as I can because I have quite the stories to tell you!
 
Last Saturday we got a call from our apartment Maintenance man. After he fixed our sink about a month ago, we set up an appointment, but it was really awkward, and all he wanted to do was bash. So we didn't try to teach him again. Then about a week or so ago he came and fixed another part of our bathroom, and asked us if we could date as missionaries, and we explained our call. So on Saturday we missed a call from him while we were in a lesson. When we got in the car I handed the phone to Sister L and said "Your turn." When he answered he told her he was lonely and wanted to hang out with us. She explained to him our purpose as missionaries, and he then told her that our church was wrong because we have been commanded to multiply and replenish the earth, and he asked her if she would ever be interested in him (mind you he is like in his 30's and has a 10 year old child, and is yuck). So she told him no, and then he continued to bash the church and told her that we are wrong for being missionaries, and wouldn't let her cut the conversation off, so she then hung up on him. We then called our District Leader who told us to call President. It wouldn't have been THAT big of a deal, but this man has a key to our apartment!! So President told us he did not want us staying in the apartment and wanted us at a hotel. So we had to pack up stuff and go find a hotel. We then had to wait to find out what President decided for us. Everything was up in the air. He told us Sunday that he wanted to wait till Monday when Sister L ct results (she was in a car accident and has back problems and weak kidneys, then recently has had debilitating abdominal pains) came back to tell us where he was going to move us since we couldn't live in that apartment anymore. So we stayed in the hotel Sunday night too. Then on Monday when the results came back that everything was fine (basically stupid results, because she isn't fine... anyhow) President decided to move us to another town 20 minutes south. One of his councilors, President T, lives there and they have NEVER had sisters in that ward before.Crazy right?!

It has been really hard, because last Sunday we got a new Ward Mission Leader and we met with him, and he is really going to change things. We were SO excited to work with him!! And after I emailed you about doing laundry a lady in the ward called and said she wanted us to do laundry at her house for free!! But I do know that if Heavenly Father wanted us there this would not have happened. It all happens for a reason, and not going to lie, none of our investigators were progressing. Out of all of our lessons two weeks ago, only 2 out of them didn't cancel on us. We just have a hard time with people there making commitments. So I think that Heavenly Father had us do what we were supposed to, and then move on. We changed the area book a ton and updated that, and then we also showed/trained the Ward Misson Leader into what is ideal. Seriously we had a two hour training/meeting with him Sunday night, and Monday night we got the news we were leaving. So sad. 

This area is a lot greener and more established than our other area was. We had the south side (the ghetto, literally). People would always tell us to be careful, and most of the people were on parole. Yep crazy. But this is a college town, and so we will be able to work with more singles, (no singles ward though) and there are alot more trees and GRASS!! We ate at a members house this past week and she told us that she told her husband if they were moving to NM that she had to have grass. And have grass she did! He babies it for her, but she said she doesn't have to water it more than anyone else, but that they have to get stickers and stuff out. She told us to take off our shoes and walk in it, and I was more than happy to! I miss green!!

Anyhow I have pictures to attach. The Spanish Elders were living in it before (and though they are offended to think that they are dirty, we had to wipe the WHOLE PLACE down). And as fun as that is, we found a little visitor on Saturday night. Yep, a mouse. The elders keep saying "we never saw a mouse when we lived there." Well, of course not, you lived in a pig sty, and once we cleaned everything they had to come out in search of food. So we went to Walmart, because as I was standing on the couch and repeating "THIS IS NOT OK," and we bought 6 mouse traps. I woke up that night at about 12:30 and could hear one in our room, so I woke Sister L up and we went searching for it, but it must have been in the walls or something, but we did see its bite marks on some of her stuff on the floor. (YUCK!!) And at that time we checked the traps and had caught one. SO GROSS! Luckily the elders like us enough to come and get rid of it for us in the morning. We also caught another one last night. Seriously this is so gross. It makes me so not happy, but I'm looking at it like an adventure. Right?! The house is actually better than our old apt, and the ward here is amazing. I got the welcome yesterday in this ward I thought I would have gotten before, but really it is just because they have never had sisters before.

So I'm about out of time. But I'm excited for this next part of the mission, a new adventure. :) Love you all!
 

Our new place

Sister L and me

 

August 20, 2012


 

In front of the Lubbock Temple

My events for the week:

We had Zone Conference in Lubbock this past Thursday with Elder Paul V. Johnson. It was amazing, and I'm not going to lie I had been pretty discouraged and homesick for about a week leading up to zone conference. But the Spirit there, and the encouragement was amazing and I have a new drive. Missionary work is just really hard, and all of our appointments this week cancelled on us. All of them except 2, seriously all week. So the beginning of the week I was just not happy, but after Zone Conference even when things don't go the way I expect, it is all about trusting God's plan. And so I have a new zeal and outlook, and I'm so happy that my attitude is better.
 
We also had some excitement this week. Sister L has health issues, and on Wed we went to the Doctors and they ordered a CT on her for Friday. Not going to lie, I loved being back in the hospital. It just feels a bit like home. :) Today we find out the results. She really has not been doing well, and President called yesterday and said there is a chance that we will be moved. . I feel like I still have a lot of work to do here. We just got a new ward mission leader yesterday and met with him last night and I am so excited for all the plans we have for this ward!
 
So I'll only have the picture from Zone conference by the temple to attach, and since my other card with all the pictures is retarded, I am sending it home. I was able to upload the pictures when I was home with it, but the computers here at the library hate this card, so I'll just send it in a package home, and you can upload the pictures.  I love you all lots!
-Sister P.

August 13, 2012


Hello!!

Things are really picking up here. We have a few key investigators and I'm excited to see where it goes. We had this amazing lesson with this woman named Maria who only speaks spanish. I know right, I don't speak spanish,  but President T of the mission presidency went out teaching with us (amazing spirit by the way) and he said he wanted to go visit this family. So he translated the whole time, but the Spirit was so strong, and she said that she wants us to teach her not the Spanish Elders. So we will have her daughter translate, and see how that goes, but it was an amazing lesson. We have had such full days of going lesson to lesson that it has been a whirlwind, but so great. The members are coming out with us more, and bringing us to their homes to teach referrals, and it has been a really good week. This week we have Zone Conference in Lubbock, and apparently there will be a General Authority there. That's exciting. So I'm excited to go to that!
 
Love you all to the moon and back!! Sister P.
 

 

August 6, 2012


August 6, 2012

First off happy one month gone. Miss you all loads and hope you are soaking up the summer sun for me, (actually I'm doing plenty of that here... yes loads and loads of sunscreen everyday, but no burns yet!!) But really I just hope my babies are remembering me! Seriously that is the hardest thing out here too, not being able to hold and snuggle all the cute babies in the ward, and believe me there are a ton!! When they say a family ward they mean it here, it is probably one of the nosiest wards I've ever been in, but it makes it nice for inv. because they don't have to stress about their own kids having to be quiet. :)

This week has been hotter than hades, but we are treking through. I was sick on the 2nd, I woke up feeling not so good, and almost threw up a few times throughout the day. We went out for about three hours and then I asked if we could go home for a bit, and Sister L is so very sweet, so I slept for an hour while she worked on the area book, and then when I came out she said, I still have work to do here if you want to lay down for a bit longer. I slept for TWO HOURS longer. I really did not feel good. I didn't eat really anything all day, but that was the only day I was feeling like that.

We don't have a lot of progressing inv. right now. A sister yesterday in her testimony talked about how sometimes we don't reap the fruits but are the ones who are plowing, and that is how I feel right now. You have to plow the field before you can grow anything, so we are working hard on our area book here getting it organized, because it is a military town we have about 25-50 people we go to see each day and tons of them don't even live here anymore. But it has already brought us prospective people to teach, it just isn't exactly what I was expecting to do. But that's what missions are all about. :) So life is good. And I have a better out look on life this week, I am gaining understanding about this area, the members, the inv, and how I play into it all. So I'm excited. This month's Ensign talks alot about our duties and really helped too.

I love you all.  Thanks for all your love, your prayers, and your support. I couldn't do this without you.
Keep on Keepin on!
xoxo- Sister P.


Thursday, August 2, 2012

July 30, 2012




Hello Fam and Friends!!

I got my bike it is in fine shape, BUT we don't ride as much as we thought. SUPER DISAPPOINTING. Just because we bought all my clothes and shoes for bike riding. We are supposed to ride all day on Thursdays, but my companion was in a car accident in April and still has back issues. So... I still haven't even bought a helmet. Sad right? But I am super glad I didn't pay all that money for a brand new bike.

There is our companionship (which has a car) and the elders in our ward (yes we share our ward). The elders are biking elders so when we have to go to church and such they come with us. And on Tuesday Sister L brought her companion to Lubbock, the transfer spot and picked me up. Usually if you are transferring in Texas you bus to the next location. The church rents a charter bus from some Baptist church and it drives up through the mission one day and down the next for transfers. I haven't had to do that so we'll see how that all goes. President A wishes we could all get together for transfers as a whole mission but it is something like 12 hours from the top of the mission to the bottom, and is just not possible.

My area is only 2 hours away from Lubbock though, so the ride wasn't bad. It's a lot of farm lands and reminded me of Idaho a little. It's an airforce base, and being such has hard times with investigators in the ward. We have more in actives then not, because it is hard to fellowship when people are moving in and out every other month. It is the land of the dairy farmers, and though I have not seen any cows we can sure smell them when the wind is coming in town. Yuck is all we can say about that. When we start conversation with people and ask them what they do here for fun, they just laugh at us and say there isn't anything fun to do here. Haha. Such a small town. We have the south part of the city and that includes the lower income part. With the desert and dryness there is no green grass, and it just reminds me a lot of Mexico with people having boarded up windows to keep the dust out. We know we are in a nicer part of town when the windows aren't covered with sheets or boards or towels to keep the dirt out.

Even though I bought everything to ride a bike in my outfits and shoes and stuff have been perfect. I have been applying sunscreen daily to my face and top of my feet because it is very hot and I'm sure I'll get burnt. So far I still love my clothes, but I am finding I really love my dresses and not so fond of skirts. And all those shirts I bought at Target I don't have a ton of motion in, so they aren't my favorite to wear all day long. Oh well. They match perfectly and such is life.

Sister L has been out a year this month. She is from San Diego and her parents are from the Philippines. Her parents spoke Tagalog in the home so she knows that too. She is teaching me great things and is so patient with me. I am loving her fun sense of humor, and she thinks I'm funny which is great! We are loud and get along so well. I'm so happy that she is my trainer. She thinks she isn't a good enough missionary to be a trainer, and is so humble. She is very laid back and is helping me not to stress about things and everything in our companionship is going so well!

Right now we have about 7 progressing inv. (investigators). Some of them we are wondering how much they are really interested, but we are working hard. We have been tracking, and it actually is not as bad as everyone makes it sound. Everyone here has a pretty strong faith in God and opens their doors to us to "talk about Jesus". The struggle comes in helping them realize that just having that faith is not enough. That we have to act on it and make changes in our lives because of it. But I have been humbled a lot by the way the people trust in their Savior, and see His hand in their lives, and make Him a part of their every move. They are amazing. We just are trying to find those who are ready for more.

Our other struggle is the members. Like I said most of them are just passing through, and so we struggle with finding people who will be here long enough to fellowship our investigators. I had a really hard time with it this past week and through prayer we decided to pass out the ward mission plan with a magnet on the back so they can all see it and put it on the fridge. It's hard because without ward help all our work is in vain. A baptism will not help someone unless they endure. So we passed those out, and passed around a sign up sheet for members to come out and help fellowship, so we'll see how that goes. I just have been having a hard time, because our work is being stopped because of others. I am trying to be patient but I just want to start helping the ward RIGHT NOW. But there are lessons I need to learn.

Next week I will send pictures, I forgot my camera this week. Our apartment is ghetto (carpet in the kitchen) but spacious and I like it. (yes dad we have AC- only after I called to get it fixed. The sisters were just making due with it being crappy. Now it is nice and cold!!)

I love you all so SO much and miss you more. If you send me letters I can read them not on P-day but will reply on p-day.

Lots of love, Amanda


Wednesday, August 1, 2012

July 25, 2012


Since I didn't get a p-day this week (here they are on Mondays), Sister L (my companion- from California) said while she emails the President that I could send you a quick hello! I am currently serving in New Mexico. This is training so I'll for sure be here with Sister L for 12 weeks. She is awesome and so fun by the way!! We have the south part of the ward with Elders in the north. We have a whole bunch of appointments set up for today and I'm way excited! I'm so happy to finally be here and unpacked!! So I love you all!
Also I had two amazing people sit next to me on the planes. The first one was a member from Spanish Fork, Sister  B and at the end of our flight she gave me SIXTY dollars to buy the 4 of us traveling lunch!! Soo sweet of her!! Then the hour flight I sat next to a religious man from Lubbock and he had the most amazing faith and story and cried and I loved it! And he said he would stop by our church on Sunday and I got his address and he said he wants me to stop by and meet his wife and we can talk about our beliefs. I told him at that point that I didn't know where I would be stationed but in the next 18 months I would come see him, so pray I get transfered to Lubbock! Sister A met him and talked to him after the plane and asked if any missionary could come stop by and he said only me. Haha. So really I'm crossing my fingers and hoping I get to go there!! He had so much of the truth and just needs us to come teach him the rest!
President and Sister A are awesome. Really the sweetest people ever, and they just want to love us and do what's best for us. Seriously I am so blessed! They really are the best! He is so inspired and has the coolest stories working with the 12 Apostles and Prophet.
I saw the Lubbock Temple. The babiest one ever! One session at a time with only 40 people in it! Crazy! I hope I get to go at least once while I'm here! (again pray I get transfered to Lubbock! haha)
Love ya'll!!