Missionary Moments: Dang Rain!

Dang, I'm getting sick. Yes, i'm taking medicine, No, i don't get a lot of sleep. But that's okay. Who doesn't need to be humbled?

Each week almost feels the same. Just the little things are different. We ended up going to Scottsdale and Phoenix (and we may or may not have accidental left the mission and gone to tempe) to get our car fixed. We had to meet up with Elder Stewart (the Vehicle Coordinator) early in the morning on Wednesday, and we followed him to a little junkie car repairer place. It was so much fun, as we watched Elder Stewart talk on his phone while he was driving, I steered as he was talking on his phone. He missed the exit and we left the mission (direct quote: are we on the 101? No! Dang it! I took you out of the mission. I must have passed it while I was on the phone. That's what happens when I get the BSing!") So we ended up with a 2012 chevy Colorado truck for the next 2 days. We made everyone else jealous. Sister Arias wanted to ride in the truck so we took the other sisters out to lunch. Heck, we didn't care, we had free miles! (the truck only had 870 miles on it anyway). We ended up taking the truck back on friday morning cause they didn't get our car fixed in time, and as we were driving back to get to mesa, I took the wrong exit (we wanted north, not south) and we ended up in tempe. This is what happens we don't have a map and don't get directions. Last time elder stewart gave me directions we drove all around phoenix looking for the non existent camleback exit. But we had some fun.

We had a random "how to socialize' meeting on friday with the pioneer zone. It was given by the bishop of another Liahona ward and it was really good. He really just went over basic stuff about how we need to connect with the people that we are talking to as we are contacting them and teaching them. It was really funny and it will hopefully be used by the missionaries. I have learned this gradually on my mission as i have been in the VC and attempted to talk to people. Like snow birds. Speaking of meeting people, I met someone from Sarah's mission: Lidia jones. she said that she was in your zone. She asked me if i had a sister named sarah and I said yes (random question anyway) but she figured since beu wasn't a common name, we had to be related. by jove you're right!

Oh, i guess you want to know transfer news: I'm staying here in Liahona 4 with hna mckee. This makes transfer number 5. let's just face it, i'll die here! (aka, end my mission for those who don't get the missionary vernacular) Pretty much everyone is staying in my district except for elder pearson. anyway, elder biddle, a funny kid from billings who knows the rieds, is going to be the new DL. Pearson is going to be ZL in a different zone. so. That's the exciting news for me.

We had our farewell prep meeting for sister Nishiguchi, sister card and sister cottrell. I'm really sad to see her leave because she isn't just my best friend, but she was pretty much everyone's friend at the vc. she took the time to get to know everyone and help those that really struggled with self confidence and other missionary or personal issues. She is an amazing person and I am stoked to hang out with her after the mission. According to sister cottrell, we are pretty much twins, and tom boys. I'm just more boy boy than her. But she told me not to quote her on that. :D

I had a junta (meeting) with elder white last night randomly. We talked about the VC, the sisters and the lack of drama compared to last year. He said that he wouldn't be calling another trainer, but felt that the new director who is coming in january should be involved in picking her. (for those who don't know, a trainer is like the AP in the VC). Elder white said that my name had come up alot in the choosing of a new trainer, but because i would be leaving soon, it probably wouldn't be me. but he did ask for my advice in who i thought would be a good trainer. It makes me feel good that he does value my opinion, even tho i'm not in the position of athourity to give it. We talked for quite a long time about my frustrations with the area and I asked him for a blessing which was amazing, btw. I hadn't gotten one since my last trio so it felt good to get one again. It was quite helpful to me in the searching that i'm doing personally in my life. It's going to be interesting to see how the new director does.

This week for the christmas lights, we are busy. I get put on theaters a lot, where we show a 6 minute movie called luke 2. it's the nativity story. So my job is to try and get people into the theaters. And some do and most don't, using the excuse, I've seen it before. Imagine that! I sit and watch it at least 10 times a night if not more. So one day I got sick of that excuse and so I went into the movie every time we started it with the attitude of that i would learn something every time I watched it. And i did. And I let the people know what I learned. It's kinda like reading the scriptures, you can read the same passage of scripture many times and learn something new or feel somethingyou hadn't before. So, now, when people say that, it's one of the lamest excuses they can come up with.

Well, this week proved challenging in regards to missionary work. We had stake conference and it was difficult to get people to church. The two families that had said they would come, didn't. One bailed out on us and the other ones ride fell thru (all right, they flat out came up with an excuse and didn't get them). oh well. It just forces us to look to other people in the ward to have them come and help us out.

Last night we were supposed to have a ward activity at the christmas lights, but it was canceled because of the rain, so instead we went and visited our new ward mission leader, Hermano Orlando Escobar. He seems a bit over whelmed with the task that he now has but thats okay. It just gives us an opportunity to teach him how it needs to be done. He can do it! and his wife is totally on board so that makes it better.

We have been progressing with the Linconas. We took the new Ward mission leaders wife with us and that lesson didn't go so well, she talks. a lot. about random stuff. it was hard to follow the conversation. Then we took the YW president with us, and she helped us out really well. We had a really good talk about what the atonement is and what it signifies for us individually. Antonia is reading the Book of Mormon and the pamphlets to her 4 year old son and is able to remember what she read. She read the family proclamation and was pointing out parts to her 'novio' jose. It was kinda funny.

Raquel won't be able to be baptized, probably this month. She didn't understand that you can't be drinking coffee for a few weeks before you get baptized. she just thought that you had to be willing to live the palabra de sabaduria. That's our fault, we didn't check as thoroughly as we should have when we went over the interview questions. Her husband didn't give permission for his daughter to be baptized so thats a little stinker.

Overall, we are struggling wtih our ward. It's hard to work with people that always just talk about missionary work but leave it for other people to do beacsue they aren't assigned to it. We were talking to clarissa hernandez (one of my absolute favorite people!) last night, the YW president, and she said she loves doing missionary work, that she feels like she's on fire. Happy day! we have one person to help us. Pretty much, we just need to get united with the members. I think the members are feeling that because they feed us dinner they are doing their duty, when it is so much more than that. Sister mckee thinks that we shouldn't be allowed over to dinner with members unless we have an investigator with us. That would be interesting. and Challenging. Regardless, we need to get more creative in working with the members.

It's hard to be able to get with our investigators during christmas lights, but they are staying pretty good. That's a blessing from the lord.

so that's my life. I tired, but that's life as a missionary anyway. I lvoe you lots and hope you enjoy your cold and snow and ice. i'll take the rain!

love emily