A Week Full of Surprises

What's up!?

Soooooo...this email will probably be short because it's a tad difficult to type. I fractured my finger in two places on Wednesday. We went to the doctor on Saturday to have it x-rayed because it still looked like a zombie finger. I will be going to a hand specialist soon to have it looked at just because it is my dominant hand. It's great though! The work goes on. And the ward has been awesome. I even had a ward member volunteer to write all my emails today. :D

Surprise 2: We went on exchanges this past week and I was able to go with Sister R**!! It was so fun to be her companion again for a day. We talked about each other's missions the whole day and the experiences we've had since the MTC. We honestly had so much fun teaching together again. 

Thanksgiving was fun! The G**s had us over for breakfast and then the G**s had us for dinner. It was way fun. And from the picture that I heard you saw, you could tell that we had an awesome comp study that day;). Ya it was 87 degrees! Definitely not Utah weather. Today it actually looked a little bit like fall finally. 

We had the chance to be able to go read to N**. I never thought I would be able to see what it is like to teach someone who is so close to going back home. She looks worse every time we see her, but she still understands and responds to us. It's hard for her to talk. She will make noises and you can tell that she is trying to say something but no words are coming out. When we would ask if she would like us to read more, though, she would nod her head yes. N** did start talking as we left, though. She told us she loved us. It's so sad to see her body shutting down, but I am so excited for her. Soon she will be back home and now she will have more of an understanding of the gospel:)

Yesterday we were able to help with Sharing Time in Primary. It was so cute! I didn't realize how many of them I knew until we went in and sat down and a lot of them turned and waved! The Sharing Time was about developing and sharing your testimony to prepare to serve a mission. At the end they sang "I hope They Call Me on a Mission" to us. We were first with Junior Primary and when they started singing I couldn't keep my tears in! (I'm a softie I know!). They were so full of the Spirit. I realized also that it was the first time I had heard that song since I've been out.

I hope you all have a great week. I thought about writing more but it's taken me about 20 minutes to write this, so I'll just say thank you for everything and remind you that The Lord loves you all!!

xoxo, Sister G

 

Exchanges with Sister R**

"Diligent Sisters getting in their mandatory companion study time on this warm Thanksgiving day before contacting and blessing families with their glowing spirits."

 

Happy Thanksgiving Week!

Happy Thanksgiving week!!!!

This week was good! Sister F** and I are working hard and are laughing every day! (I forgot to mention that she is from S** S**!) 

We are still teaching the two 9 yr olds who are doing well. We are getting creative and finding new ways to teach them, which is awesome. They are starting to understand and remember, which makes us super happy. Also, we love it when they come up to us whenever they see us to say hi to us. :) We taught one of them this morning and it went very well!

Oh, do you remember N**, the cute 98 yr old who reminds me of Great Grandma?? She is on hospice now:( We went to go visit her. She is still so sweet and positive and says tomorrow she will be back up and kicking. We are going over again on Wednesday to read the Book of Mormon with her. 

People are interesting. Everyone is so completely different with different stories. And yet we all have one thing in common. We are all Heavenly Father's children and He loves us. He wants the best for us and will help us any way that He can. Please don't forget that. We are all family. NO MATTER WHAT. 

Thank you for the light you all have and the light that you share with others. Happy Thanksgiving this week. Thank you for all the love and support you have given me.

xoxo,

Sister G

 

Because we haven't taken any pictures still and we had a gift card to McDonald's

 

Hey Hey Hey!

Hey!

So...It was a great week this week! You'll just have to trust me though because this letter will probably be short (like me!) hahahaha I think I am a little sleep deprived :D

Transfer day was Tuesday! The checkpoint I was at is the first/last checkpoint so after we all dropped off our companions we went to IHOP for breakfast to kill some time before the other side of the mission arrived. It was so fun!! Who knew that a bunch of missionaries would have time to just go to breakfast together!

Sister F** arrived Tuesday afternoon and we have been working hard ever since! She has also been dancing like her whole life and has a similar personality to me so we get along very well! We both have the discipline and work ethic of a dancer!! It's been fun working with her this week and we are going to have a great transfer! (Oh- so a new missionary goes through training their first 12 weeks in the mission. The first 6 is training and the last 6 are follow-up training. That's what I am doing with Sister F**).

Hump day was Wednesday. It was weird, but it was just a normal day which was great! But my death in the mission was foreshadowed that day as we came across two VERY dead animals! haha Thank you so much for the Hump Day package as well! It didn't even cross my mind so it was a fun/sad surprise! It's a happy feeling knowing you've made it halfway, but also very sad knowing you only have so much time left. I loved everything in the package though, thank you!

Church was good yesterday! The H** Family came to church!!!!! They only stayed for Sacrament Meeting, but they came:) They said nothing else has changed with their reading and praying and everything, so that's a blessing! I'm so happy to see them again. 

Thank you so much for all the love and support! I know that this is where I need to be and I wouldn't want to be anywhere else right now and I'm thankful to know that I have so much support! Have a great week this week!!

xoxo,

 Sister G

 

On Saturday we helped out with a service project of cleaning out a backyard of a family in the ward. It was so great to be able to help out!!

[Last day with Sister B**]

On Saturday we helped out with a service project of cleaning out a backyard of a family in the ward. It was so great to be able to help out!!

[New companion: Sister F**]

Last Week of the First Half

Hey!

Happy birthday this week Grandma Mecham!

I hope everyone had a good Halloween! 

This week was good. As I'm trying to figure out what to tell you all about, I realize that I can't remember because there is always so much going on and so much to remember haha! 

We are still teaching the two 9 yr olds and it is going well. We have had to get creative and find new ways to teach to keep them engaged and to help them remember. Ya, I'm not creative so it's been interesting! 

Oh I should probably mention transfer news....Make your guesses now! Ready? And the correct answer is......I am staying in Santa Maria. the second part of the answer is....I am getting a new companion.  Yep, Sister B is leaving me. She's been an awesome companion and I love her and have loved watching her grow and learn during her first 6 weeks. She will be going to Ventura YSA. The funny thing is the sister who is leaving that area is taking her place! They are just switching places. I will be follow-up training Sister F**. I met her at the training meetings and I am super excited to be working with her! 

One of my favorite things out here is when I actually get to see the someone receiving the light of the gospel. It's rare to actually get to see it grow, especially when you aren't teaching much, but it's cool to witness. We are helping a mom in our ward read the Book of Mormon again and it was so cool to watch her last night as we were reading. She actually had started reading on her own and she was so proud that she was through 1 Nephi. We started 2 Nephi and it was so fun to watch her get all into what were were reading. She was making comments all over the place and getting excited when she marked different things. Being able to witness things like this makes my time out here even better. Sometimes it feels like nothing is happening, but in all reality so much is happening.

This Gospel is true. It is the only way to find true and everlasting peace. Answers come as you ask in faith and seek for them. But you have to listen and be in a position to be able to hear. That means living the way God wants you to live. Actually it's the way He NEEDS you to live if you are to return home to Him and live with Him again. 

Have a great week! Remember who you are!

xoxo, Sister G

We took pictures on Halloween (Thanks to our Mommas!)

We made cookies for our district (Thanks Morris Fam!)

I forgot to add that L** and her girls came to church!!!!!!

We have been trying to meet with them and we were able to this week and then they came to church. C** hasn't been meeting with us but I know he will eventually. L** has an interesting background and only recently started to develop a relationship with God. We are just reading the Book of Mormon because that is the only thing she is open to right now, even though she believes everything that we believe. I know they will eventually make covenants with God and be baptized.