Week 43: Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!!! I hope you were all able to have a lovely Christmas day! And Christmas Eve. And Boxing Day today since that is a thing! We had a pretty good Christmas, I have to admit.

Our week started off by heading to York for p-day where we mostly sang to practice for our various musical items that we were doing in the next 24 hours. We then all headed off as a zone to do some Christmas caroling again in York city center. That was pretty fun. Not as cold this time thankfully. We then slept on the floor again... Can't wait till that becomes a less frequent thing for me... But we then got on the coach, continued to practice all of our musical numbers, and headed to Billingham! So fun. The Christmas social was a blast, loved it so much. We started it out by breaking into groups and rotating through various games and activities that the senior couples were running. We then all got together for the entertainment part of the day... Which each zone went through and did about a half an hour of performing. It was so fun. Some people did songs, one guy did a hilarious stand up comedy routine, there was some dancing and lip syncing, there were a couple of little skits, some rapping and guitar playing. Our zone mostly just sang, there are a lot of singers in my zone. It was pretty fun. From there, we set up a very lovely Christmas dinner that we all had together. It was catered by this place that did the most amazing pulled pork sandwich I have had in a long time. So good. We of course also had Christmas crackers, so English! From there, we took a group photo because we always do. Santa and Mrs. Claus also came to visit, that was really fun. We then had a cute little nativity and then we all had to head home! Man, good thing I like traveling. Basically, this whole past week we visited a lot of members. Tried to bring a lot of Christmas cheer to people. We also were given a lot of gifts from people, which I was so surprised about. People are so kind and giving! So grateful for their kindness. Christmas Eve was so much fun. We went to M's home and not only ate, but helped her prepare a really great Christmas Eve meal. I love when I go to their home. She does such good food with so much flavor. Some of the meal was typical Christmas, a stuffed turkey. We also did this amazing dish of chicken and vegetables and cheese and hard boiled eggs and this really great garlic butter sauce... It was amazing! And she also took really green bananas, chopped them into big pieces, fried them, and then smashed them with a rock to make these chip sort of things that we then put really fresh and delicious guacamole on. Sorry if a lot of this email is about food... I love food and I had a lot of really good food this past week. So sorry for that random focus. But yeah. We had a good Christmas Eve. Christmas day! We slept in... Opened some presents! Went to church. We had a shorter service where we just sang a lot of songs and had some readings from the Christmas devotional in between. It was really lovely. Because not that many people showed up for church that day, Sister Majc ended up playing again and I once again lead the music. Real grateful I learned how to do that. It was a really great service. I love talking about the real meaning of Christmas! After church, we got picked up by a taxi with a couple of other members and headed off to the Brooksbanks for a wonderful Christmas meal! That woman is amazing. So much food. She had done 5 separate meat dishes alone. Just crazy. We really enjoyed our time at her home. Played some silly games, ate way too much once again... Good thing the new year is coming up! Any of you have any good New Year's resolutions?? I'm not really sure yet myself... But yeah... Hope you are all having a brilliant Christmas holiday and I will email you all again next year! ;) Love you!!! Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!!!

Week 42: Mission Tour

So I don't have a ton of time to write on account of too many people on trains and being here in York.... but I do want to share some highlights this week! We delivered and received Christmas cards, helped with the primary nativity, helped at the ward Christmas party, shared #lighttheworld with some people, spent time with the STLs, sang Christmas songs, visited less active members, knocked lots of doors.... That is about it. The real highlight is from the mission tour with President Kearon. Amazing! So good.... so, outside of the fact that my back and shoulders hurt way bad from sleeping on the wood floor that night, I had an amazing day! Talk about prayers and questions answered. It was a pretty inspirational day. Plus, if nothing else, I love taking coach rides with my zone. We have started doing this thing where we always sing on the coach which is awesome. We have quite a few very talented singers with quite the range, it's awesome. Also, when we I was having an elder help me sort out some music on my iPad, the elder sitting next to him saw the photo of me with a fake moustache on and said that I looked like what he looked like before the mission lol. Same curly hair and everything. But yeah, President Kearon is so amazing. He is such a genuine, warm, friendly, funny person. We all got to shake hands with him at the start of the meeting and he asked us each our names and where we are from. He knew Vancouver Washington! That was cool. Goodness, that man is so inspired. I loved every time he listened to one of us speaking, he would nod, sometimes closing his eyes, pause and then respond. He listened like he was listening to his favourite song or something. Listening to missionaries testify is his jam! It was so cool. He spoke a lot about how we are the message, even by just how we appear and how we present ourselves to those we meet. We spoke about how we as a church, while we may not like it, we thrive on adversity and make the most of it. We talked about being happy. We talked again about stretching and not stressing and that we are good enough and that everyday we have a new beginning and God gives us billions of chances to start again and do better and just start where we are and even the smallest improvements are good. We talked about hastening the hastening. We talked about the Spirit in conversion and the role that each of us play at different stages. Some really touching experiences and stories were told, it was so lovely. We of course had a lunch of Subway at this meeting, (it's all we ever have!) and we had sat at a table marked for the sisters and the next thing we knew we were being joined by President Turvey and President Kearon! That was a surprise, but a lovely one at that. It was just such a good experience that left me feeling invigorated and excited. Love missionary meetings! Even President Kearon said he prefers missionary meetings over other kinds. That was funny.... So yeah, amazing meeting full of laughter and the spirit.

Week 41: Transfer 8 already!

Surprise, surprise, Sister Majc and I are staying here in Pontefract together for her second transfer of training. The interesting thing is that our flat started with four, then Sister Hippard left bringing us to three, and now Sister Cockburn is going home, so we are down to two! With Christmas and things all happening, so most people didn't get moved around. Only like two companionships are changing in our whole zone. Yup! And yes, this transfer was only five weeks if you thought it came quickly. This next transfer will be seven weeks to equalise it out. Here we go into the depths of winter!

Monday: For pday we went to Selby to go bowling. It was supposed to be as a zone, but only us, the Selby Elders and the York One Elders showed up. It was way fun anyways. Took some traveling, but we did it. Sister Cockburn really wanted to since it was her last real mission pday, so we humoured her. Got back to Pontey and caught a bus to Featherstone. Visited with M, continued to teach her English and small aspects of the gospel that we can talk about in Spanish.... man, so grateful Sister Majc knows Spanish, my Spanish is atrocious! 

Tuesday: Zone training! Got to go to York! So fun! And we had a very Christmas themed meeting. President and Sister Turvey were there, which was nice. We talked about the Grinch and how some people have hearts that just don't get the Christmas spirit that we feel. It was good, I really like all of my current leaders. We then went back to Pontefract, did some finding and things, went to the Waites for tea, and then went to the chapel so Sister Cockburn could do some things, but as it turned out the room we wanted was being used by the YW, so we ended up joining them in making Christmas cards for the whole ward. It was fun. I finger painted, lol. 

Wednesday: Went to Castleford to go visit some less active members. We knocked on one of their doors, but they weren't in sadly, but when we kept going we ran into her on the street. That was pretty great. God does work in mysterious ways! Able to share some things with her and to invite her to church once again. So here is hoping! We then were able to use our time at the chapel so Sister Cockburn could prep to go home. Went home, had tea, and then had ward coordination meeting at our ward mission leaders house. Thank goodness he and his wife do not live far. They are so funny. Love the Bartons. 

Thursday: Went to go see K, and her niece was also there, so that was nice to teach the, both. Talk about a house getting ready for Christmas! We then went by some old potentials and knocked on some doors. Went to go see J, but she wasn't in, so we headed off to Castleford again. Had tea with the Bottoms and the Keys, who are lovely people. We then came back to Pontey, to the chapel, to see O! Had a good lesson with her and really continued to figure out more of where she is coming from on things. It was lovely. 

Friday: Had weekly planning while Sister Cockburn started to pack! We then headed off, went by a less active, not home. Visited a member at the library and O happened to be working at the same time, so we were able to have a lovely chat with both of them. Played with the member's little boy for a bit, he is so funny... and really liked to skip down the sidewalk. We then went to go see V who is just great. She got a cake for Sister Cockburns going away. She also gave us a bunch of clothing to try... We then headed home, trying to talk to people along the way.

Saturday: Went to go see a member who struggles this time of year. Waited forever for a bus. Had lunch. Finally got in to see a less active who always flogs. We then did some contacting and headed off to Knottingly to have tea with some less active members. We then had to head in early because transfer calls were tonight instead of Sunday! Surprise! We found out in the middle of the day. So we got the exciting call then about how basically no one was going anywhere! Whooo!

Sunday: Sister Cockburns last full day! So crazy! Had church and helped out the primary again. I ended up having to sit with some kids because they were being crazy... It was still fun. In the evening, we went to Roy and Jill's for a Christmas dinner, which was of course very nice. We even had Christmas cracker thingies which was pretty fun. We then went to go visit O, who had gone to a Christingle and brought us each one of the oranges they made. Had a lovely lesson with her and Sister Cockburn was able to say her goodbyes to everyone she wanted to. Glad that I will be sticking around at least one more transfer!

So here we go into another transfer! It is going by way too quickly! Hope you are all having fun getting ready for Christmas! Such an amazing time of year! Love you guys!!

Sister Barret

Subject: Week 40: Back To The Trio Days

Day 285: Pday! Had a fun pday, the STLs came down to spend some time with the four of us down here in Pontefract. We went to go play pool in Castleford, which was surprisingly fun since none of us knew what we were doing. We made some pretty good shots though. We then headed back to Pontefract, so we could get to Featherstone. But then our appointment flogged so we just street contacted home.... It wasn't too bad though because we came across some horses 🐴. Sister Majc used to have a horse so she was just thrilled 😁. We ended up naming them. They were pretty cute, though I don't think they were all that interested in listening to our message.

Day 286: We had a lot of potential return appointments... we went to each of them, but no response from any of them. Sad. But at least the less active lady we visit was in! We were able to see J and spend some time with her, hopefully helping her increase her faith and desire to come to church. After seeing her, we went home to have our 12 week study before going to ward Coordination. Went to our meeting, and then went home for tea. President and Sister Turvey came by to speak with Sister Hippard, and they thought our flat was a good place to do that... it caused for an interesting evening, that is for sure!

Day 287: Went to Selby again for district meeting, which was our second district meeting this transfer, we keep having all of these different meetings lately! It was fun, we missed our bus so we were stuck in Selby for awhile... But we got home eventually! Because we knew it was Sister Hippard's last night, we all went out for Indian food! Don't worry, our tea still only lasted an hour. 😉 Afterwards, went out finding again before having a quick lesson with O where we shared the Christmas 🎄 initiative with her! Love it so much. If you still haven't looked at it, do so! It's great! After our lesson, we went to the Relief Society Activity where we made Christmas wreaths! I'm quite proud of mine, went for the simple look. O enjoyed being there as well. We had to leave shortly after though so we could get back in time Sister Hippard to be picked up by President and Sister Turvey. And so by the end of the night, we were back to being a trio!

Day 288: I really had to look at my journal to see what happened this day.... First day as a trio! Went out knocking, shared the Christmas 🎄 initiative with some people. Went to O's house for lunch, had a good time with her, read some scriptures. We then went out to Knottingly to go by some less actives and also to have tea with some less actives, it was a good time. While we were waiting for the bus back, we sort of saw someone get hit by a car... His body went flying and his bottle smashed so it made quite the sound. It was pretty scary. But he seemed actually pretty alright when we went over. Thankfully, a lot of people had gone over, so none of us had to bring back to our memory first aid. So yeah... that was eventful.

Day 289: Friday, Friday, Friday. Had our weekly planning, putting the two areas back together and all that, really added to our plans. It'll be sad for when we split it again. So, we went to go see R and J, and then we did some finding, went home, grabbed the guitar 🎸 and then headed off to the Waites! We had tea, helped them do some Christmas 🎄 decorating, and did some Christmas 🎄 caroling as well! It was a pretty fun time.

Day 290: A service Saturday! First, we helped out some members by hoovering and mopping their floors. She had been in the hospital for awhile recently, so we were happy to help! We did some finding later, and then also did our weekly street clean as well! Just trying to help make the world a better place! We were tired though, so for tea we got take away... don't worry, that is not a frequent happening at all. We then went out to visit P. So yeah, that was our day, went home, studied, planned, did all the things we needed to do...

Day 291: When I shook hands with the visiting high councilman today, he said, "I really like your hair! If only we could transplant it onto my head, that would be amazing!" He was bald. It was hilarious. So yeah, I guess you could say church was pretty good. I started playing prelude as well, but then I convinced Sister Majc to take my place... which lead to her playing for sacrament again... I'm sure she doesn't appreciate me sort of volunteering her to play right now, but one day she will. I may have even volunteered her to play for the primary presentation of the nativity in a few weeks... oops. But I am not willing to turn down any invitation we are given to help the ward! After church we went by some less active members and street contacted as we went. I think fasting on a mission is in some ways harder, some ways easier than back home. It's hard being out and about all day... At least I can see the blessings from doing so! I think since coming on my mission, I have been a lot more aware of the times that Heavenly Father has answered my prayers. Which has been many times, and I am so grateful for that!

So yeah, that was my week!

Sister Barret

Week 37: Sister Majc

Sister Barret & Sister Majc

Sadly, her name is not pronounced Magic, but instead like Mites. Don't
ask me why, she says it makes perfect sense in her native language of
Slovenian. Yes, I did not know Slovenia existed basically until I met
her on Tuesday! Seems like a cool place.

So this week... Monday was mostly me prepping for my new baby girl to
arrive! Tuesday, I went off to Leeds to pick her up! Went on a bit of
a field trip to some cool rocks for testimonies and bonding time. We
ended up not getting back to Pontefract till eight that night.
Wednesday, Sister Majc's first full day! Did lots of different things.
It's nice, because I can decide when we have our 12 Week study, we are
having it at night so we aren't out too much in the cold and dark.
Thursday was spent knocking and seeing some less actives. Friday we
went out to a random village area to knock some more. Saturday, we
knocked more and also did some service by cleaning up rubbish from the
streets. Sunday, Remembrance Sunday, had our poppies on! It's been
going well here! Still teaching O

and trying to find others ready
to listen! Working with some less actives as well. It's been good!

Hope you are all well! Love you! Also, who is excited about Christmas
coming up?! Makes it a lot easier to talk about Jesus Christ to
people! 😊🎄

Sister Barret

Snow in Pontefract

Week 36: Transfers!!

Can't believe it is another transfer already!!!! I am staying here in Pontefract and I am training again!!!! Next week I will be able to tell you all about her! I realized that she and I are going to be spending Christmas together! How crazy is that!? It is just around the corner...

Not too much has happened this week outside of the normal missionary miracles that occur! We were able to have a lovely tea with O and some members, we had some great lessons with R, when we went to go see K, some of her kids sat in as well. Bonfire Night happened, but we didn't do anything... Except have to be in early. We also had to be in early on Halloween. We miss all of the fun things. But we were able to see some fireworks from our windows, so that was cool! We got to look at some Christmas stuff, saw some kittens, saw some members, tried playing prelude music for church again, had a surprise flat inspection, went to York for district meeting... It was just a pretty good normal week!!

Hope you guys are all having pretty good normal weeks as well! Love you all!!!

Week 35: Sick :(

Monday: Pday. Had FHE and taught F again, so yeah, a good day.

Tuesday: Got flogged some more, felt sick some more, dropped someone
because he isn't really interested. Went to go see the Waites and had
tea with them and taught D as well, a pretty good evening!

Wednesday: Had district meeting, rode the bus more... We ride the bus
so much. Had a blessing, which was helpful. Went to go see a recent
convert who is lovely. Knocked some doors. Met some lovely people.
Good day.

Thursday: Had lots of meal appointments with members, that was fun.
Got to help them in their missionary work, so that was good. Got
flogged. A companion felt sick again. We have had a lot of sickness
going around.

Friday: Went to go see S again, so much fun. Got flogged. I dunno.
Normal missionary stuff.

Saturday: The sister training leaders came to Pontefract to go on a
bit of a blitz with us, so that was fun. We were able to find lots of
people and have a good time with it. And then we went home for a bit
and headed out to a different part of our area... And one of my
companions felt really ill so we ended up not having the most
effective day, but we still spoke to people and tried to do things.

Sunday: Our ward had the primary program! That was way cute. The
primary here consists of about nine kids, three of them English isn't
their first language, and they did great. There were like these two
nine year old boys, they being the oldest in the primary, that did
some really great singing, I was quite impressed. It was a nice day,
met with a guy who wants to learn again about the church.

Love you guys!

Sister Barret

Week 34: What A Week.....

Monday: Pday. Nothing exciting. We then went to see Marien and her
family again for FHE. Quite lovely. Kind of ended up watching their
kids at one point... Their little boy is so cute. And their little
girl. Both their kids are just adorable. Eyre family is great, even if
he language barrier is still kind of there. We are getting better with
our half English, half Spanish conversations.

Tuesday: Got up, got on a train and headed to York! And oh my
goodness, we were there for interviews, but I personally got so much
more out of the travel over. So, it was someone from York One funeral,
which made me quite sad because it was very unanticipated. So the
funeral was this day, so members from the ward were about.... And when
I first got through the doors of the building I was so excited because
Cheryl was there! I was completely surprised! I came through the door
completely ignoring the other missionaries who were in there and gave
her a big hug. Man, I was just overjoyed. I totally get that scripture
in D&c better, "how great will be your joy..." Yeah. It was great.
Headed back home. Had a pasty, which was nice and basically what I had
anticipated it to be like. Went to go see David and the Whaites, which
was of course great. They are so funny and just got back from Canada
the day before to see a new grand baby. So yeah, that was nice. We
then went to the chapel... But then ended up spending our time instead
of teaching a new person, having our Mormon.org time where I actually
just sat in the corner practicing piano. Mom, be proud of me! 😉

Wednesday: Went to Selby for district meeting and coughed half the
time... Came home and went to go see a recent convert named Ron. He's
nice and very smart. Had a good lesson with him. Then headed out to do
a bit knocking... But I had to sit for a bit because my body was kind
of giving up a bit... Had tea with some members and hen went to go see
Sarah again. That was fun, even if that's basically when I just lost
my voice...

Thursday: Well... For the first time on my mission I stayed in... Due
to being sick. Not a fan. Slept and didn't leave till about 12:30, did
some missionary work, had tea at a members house, and then went back
home and slept for 12 hours. Not a very eventful day in general.

Friday: Did our planning, went to see Howard, we are debating how long
we are going to keep seeing him for... Went to go see Sue, that was
lovely. The missionary who taught her thirty years ago Skyped in, that
was fun. Wen then went home, went to ward coordination and then caught
a train to York! So good to see Sister Lundahl again. There were nine
of us I the York One sisters flat... That was fun!

Saturday: Woke up at 4:30 in he morning so we could be at the
chapel... At was fun.. Took a coach to Huddersfield and got to the
meeting super early. Which wasn't actually that bad because that mean
that I got to see everyone I wanted to. Thougbeing there with all of
me my mission made me realise just how few people I know in my
mission. There are 206 of us in my mission. It was so great seeing
Sister Pro, Sister Wood, Sister Koepf... So many people I love! So
yeah. Mission Conference. Five general authorities. It was awesome. We
got to shake hands with all of them and their wives. And then we went
back to York and went on exchange. I went with Sister Berg. Did some
finding and went by some less actives because all of our plans fell
through... And then at tea time, I felt horrible so I called Sister
Turvey again and stayed home.

Sunday: Another wonderful conference! So many good things this week
basically. Got to see lots of people from York which was also amazing.
President Nelson is so great, it was just an amazing conference. And I
sat there struggling to not cough, but that's okay... We went back to
Pontey after that. Went to visit some people. Got rudely kicked out by
a carer. Had pancakes at a members house. Tried to avoid being out in
the cold. Yup. That's about it.

It was a very long and very filled week basically. It was amazing,
even if difficult for me on a personal health level. But good. Hope
all of you are having a good week as well! Love you guys!

Sister Barret

Week 32: Okay....

So, everyone, this week hasn't been all that eventful... Until last
night, when we found out about an ET... So Sister Pro is leaving me
to go be an STL in Doncaster. Sister Gorniak is going home to
Australia due to some personal struggles. Sister Cockburn and I are
staying here and getting another sister to be in a trio! 😀 So yeah!
Exciting and crazy things are happening here in Pontefract. The new
sister's name is Sister Hippard and she is from Canada. As of
right now, that is all I know. But I'll know more by tonight!

I'm sad Sister Pro is going, we had such a fun time together. That is
probably why we are getting separated, we were getting along too well.
😉 Even though we kept getting flogged a bunch this past week, it's
still been so fun. We are continuing to work with a lot of less
actives, trying to find those lost sheep out there. And we have been
able to find some of them, so that's been cool. We saw our
investigator, O, and her boyfriend, C, voluntarily showed up
to join us, so that was nice. We rode the bus a lot. 🚌 Even though
this area is geologically smaller than York 1, it is more spread out. My
last area was mostly central.

Um... Not much else... Oh! I gave a talk on Sunday! Not only was I
suppose to do the typical introduce myself, first Sunday sort of deal,
but like an actual ten minute talk on thoughts and impressions I had
from conference. I didn't write it fully out, but it was on Elder
Andersons talk about members and missionaries. I thought it went
pretty well. Hopefully the ward thought so too!

I love you guys so much! Hope you are doing well! ❤️❤️❤️

Sister Barret

Week 31: From York to Pontefract

Day 222: My last full day in York, my last pday in York.... We ended
up mostly chilling at the chapel and playing games there. So yeah,
nothing exciting really. Afterwards, I went around with the desire to
say goodbye to some people... That didn't happen exactly... But, we
did go see S, and all of her family was there. So that was really
great, being able to see them all and say goodbye. Sister Lundahl and
I were able to bare our testimonies to them. It was when S said
the prayer at the end that I got the closest to crying the entire time
I was getting ready to move. Love that family. Once home that
night.... I continued to put off packing....

Day 223: Got up early so I could pack.... Oh well. We then headed off
bright and early so we could be at the station at half seven.... Three
hours before my train, but we had to be there for the other sisters
and such. Saw off Sister Barry, said goodbye to Elder Bailey, picked
up Sister Lundahl's new companion, Sister Reynolds, said goodbye to my
baby girl, and then got on a train all on my own! Crazy... Got to
Leeds, met up with Sister Pro, and then waited around for the rare
train to Pontefract! Got to Pontefract, had lunch, and then headed out
for the day! Pontefract is quite different from York.... Much hillier.
And we don't just cover Pontefract, but also Knottingly, Featherstone,
Castleford... And one more that I can't remember. Normingtom
or something like that. We ended up going to visit a less active,
D, he's super nice. And had tea at a newly returned members home,
they are hilarious. Overall, a pretty good day!

Day 224: First full day in Pontefract! Went to see an investigator,
had a pretty normal day of finding... Yup. Our investigator is named
O. But yeah, it was good stuff.

Day 225: We are doing a lot of work with less actives in this area. We
first went to see J and talked about the gospel of Jesus Christ.
She has a lot of cool old American western stuff, felt right back at
home! Just kidding. But she is really sweet. We then went to go see
S, who is amazing and her nine year old granddaughter is
investigating the church, so that's pretty cool.

Day 226: We went on a sort of mini split (with permission), so I went
out for a few hours with Sister Cockburn. She's very sweet and
musically talented. And from New Zealand. We went about going by some
members, did some finding, tried by a few lost sheep... Pretty normal
missionary stuff. We then went to ward coordination.... Which was very
different than what I am used to in York one... Slowly but surely,
getting used to the new area....

Day 227: Yay conference weekend! Started out by watching the women's
session with our relief society in the morning over breakfast. Loved
Elder Uchtdorfs talk. It is a good thing to remember as missionaries!
Fourth floor, last door. Quite catchy. We then went to try to find
more lost sheep... And then headed to York! We went to York to watch
conference. Caught a train, got stuck in some rain.... Ended up
sitting outside my old flat waiting around for them to show up. And oh
was Sister Lundahl surprised to see me! She had no idea I was coming.
No one did. I didn't till I got to Pontefract. So I was able to
surprise a couple of people.... Surprised S and A, love
them! Surprised Sh who tackled me with a hug... It was a good
evening between that and a great session of conference. Until we had
to head home.... We thought we had the right train times.... But we
were wrong. And we ended up having to take a train from York to Leeds
to Wakefield (crossing three mission zones!) to Pontefract... Want to
know when we got home? Let's just say, we were barely home in time for
lights out. It's funny, cause back home, that would be no big deal,
but as missionaries, it was the worst! We were tired and stressed and
just wanted to be home. But alas, we had to take a super packed train,
full of people who were just partying since it was a Saturday night...
Man, crazy stuff. But we did get home eventually, safe and sound 😊

Day 228: More conference! But this time, we watched at members houses,
first at the Goslings and then we went to the Bartons, whose parents
are in York one! They were all super great of course, lots of snacks
😉 I loved the emphasis on the simple doctrines, faith, repentance,
the plan of happiness, and also the focus on missionary work! All very
applicable to what I am currently doing, so that was very nice. I hope
all of you also enjoyed it! I personally can't pick a favourite, but I
would love to hear all of yours!

Love you guys!!!

Week 30: Transfer 6

Hey everyone! Guess what?! I'm leaving York! It's crazy and I was
starting to think I'd be lucky enough to just stay here forever... But
alas, the time has come. I'm moving areas. But, I am not moving very
far away. I am staying in the same zone! I will still be in the York
zone, but instead of serving in the York one ward, I will be serving
over in Pontefract with Sister Pro! I've met her before, she's been
serving there in Pontefract for awhile now, and she's great!

Day 215: Another zone p-day, so fun. Played some land hockey and other
various games... Also found out a lot of the zone is more musically
inclined than they had originally let on. Afterwards, we tried to make
contact with Ch... Still no luck. Ended up visiting a member. And
then that night, I convinced Sister Lundahl to dye her hair for the
first time! So funny. And fun. And looks good!

Day 216: Got flogged like twenty times.... But we had a good time
knocking doors.... This guy opened the door and I started talking and
said something about us being volunteers for our church.... He looked
at us and asked "oranges?" I was so confused! I had no idea what he
was talking about!!! And then I kind of repeated myself and he was all
like, "Oh, I know who you are, you're Jehovah's Witnesses, I can
read." I just looked at him thinking no..... No.... Not at all... Man,
some people really make me laugh. We then went to have tea at the
Gore's house with the elders, which is still weird. Oh well. Then we
went to ward coordination like usual. Afterwards, we then went to see
if we could go by S. Couldn't find her, she wasn't in, but then I
oddly decided to go down a random snicket.... Where she was walking
our way! Thank goodness! She invited us up and we finally made contact
again! Yay!

Day 217: We had district meeting, last one of the transfer, and the
APs and zone leaders were all there! And my DL had asked me to
instruct the training model! Ack! It was the first time I've done that
outside of my own companionship.... I was a bit stressed with such an
audience... But it happened, I survived. Went by a potential, she
wasn't in, which was still disappointing as ever. We continued on our
way... But then a car pulled up beside us, it was her! She had to go
pick up her son who had just had an accident at school and had to take
him to the doctor, but came back just to tell us she hadn't forgotten
us! So great! We were so happy! Knocked some doors and had some good
conversations. Some guy asked if we were Mormons or JWs. We told him
and he said that we didn't look like JWs. I wonder what he meant....
Visited a less active, had tea at a members house, went to see Sh
again. And she is finally reading the Book of Mormon again! Yay!

Day 218: Went to a potential lesson out in a village.... And
scheduled! L is a lovely lady and is curious to find out if God is
really there. So yeah. That was awesome. We then also went to visit a
less active, which turned out to be weirdly inspired. And then we had
tea with S, K was also there and actually sat in on the lesson
portion, where I know he felt the spirit... Then we went to the chapel
where someone was supposed to meet us, but alas, no show. Sad. But
still a good day in general!

Day 219: Knocked some doors, visited a member who is going through a
bit of a hard time because her father is passing away, had tea at
bishops, where he referred us to someone! We are pretty excited about
that! Tried to see Chl, still nothing... Had popped by the chapel
to help clean up after some baptisms, K, who was taught by the
York two sisters thanked me because it was actually Sister Barry and I
who had found her and taught her for the first time. Made me feel good
😊

Day 220: Went to see Sh again, had lunch with her. Man, she
seriously has the cutest daughters ever. We then went by a potential
and then had tea at a members house... Basically, we kind of just ate
a lot....

Day 221: Last day of Sister Lundahl's 12 Week training. Crazy. Hope
she learned enough from me! Sacrament meeting was so good, it was a
missionaries farewell. His uncle spoke first, talking about missionary
work and all the hardships and blessings... He said something about
saying farewell to his son and then later thinking about how that may
have been the last time he ever saw his son because missionaries can
die since we are humans too.... Man, the ward lost it. Everyone just
started laughing so hard, us and the elders were all sitting there
thinking, well thanks for that thought.... It was so funny. It was
good though. Got to say sorta goodbyes to people since I wasn't sure
at that point if I was going, I just thought I was. After church, had
tea with some members, got flogged, visited another less active and
then we're in early for transfer calls!

And that's my week! Hope you are all doing well, seeing miracles,
sharing the gospel, serving others, all that good stuff that makes
life worth while! Love you guys! Wish me luck in Pontefract!

Week 28: Service With a Smile :)

Day 201: During p-day Sister Lundahl and I bought a notebook and wrote
our testimonies in it for Ch. We also printed out a picture of all of us at her baptism.
And then bought a frame for it. When we gave it to her
that night she was soooo happy and surprised. Love her.

Day 202: Did lots of finding, that was fun. Also went to see B
and then later, R. Pretty uneventful day more or less.

Day 203: Was feeling a bit low.... But we ended up having good day!
Found some people, taught some less actives, got an opportunity to
give service.... It was just a good day.

Day 204: Went out to a random village on the outside of the main part
of York. Nice to get out of Acomb for a bit. Plus we met some nice
people, so that is always great!

Day 205: We were out knocking when the elders came walking down
the road...Apparently they had planned to knock the same road, awkward. Got
flogged a few times, found some potentials, good stuff. Went and saw
S, that's always great. Her son Sh actually sat in the whole lesson, we
still have hopes for him!

Day 206: Went by Sh, but she was sleeping, so we just left a note.
We then headed out to help L with the elders to move a cemented
together rock wall from one place to another in her back garden. It
was hard work, but it felt really good actually, different and out of
our usual routine. Showed up one of the elders by moving a rock he
didn't want to lift. Lol. Went by P that evening. It was a good day.

Day 207: Went to church without anyone with us, no investigators, no
less actives, no recent converts.... It was kinda sad, but they all
had their reasons and such. So we sat by a member... And then towards
the end of sacrament meeting, I see Sh with her girls, and also her
friend, G and her daughter, M. M ended up running in and
sitting with us, the rest of them stayed out in the hall till the
sacrament was over. But they were all there, and they enjoyed it. 😊
Miracles happen! Did some finding after that... Yup. That's been my
week!

What can I say? Service to others brings miracles, even if the miracle
is completely unattached to the service you are giving. It's great!

Sister Barret

#crownsup

Week 27: the sun shines on the righteous

Our lovely elderly neighbour Barry said this to us as we were leaving
the flat Sunday. He couldn't have been more right! We did have another
day of more or less lovely weather. Seriously, Sister Lundahl has only
had like four days of being really rained on since coming on her
mission. It was basically every day when I came out... She thinks
England is a beautiful sunshiny place... Just wait. In like a week
it'll be back to raining every day.... Oh well.

Day 194: Had some fish and chips. Played lots of volleyball with the
other missionaries. So fun. Slightly crashed the other ward’s barbecue.
Good day in general. Talk to the same guy for the third time. Went to
Ch's and started making baptism arrangements.

Day 195: Was sore from playing volleyball... Fixed up Ch's
baptismal programme. We then went
and saw Ch. Had a lesson with her, then she had to go to sort
something out at the bank, we promised her it'd be alright when we
prayed together, we then did some service for her by helping out in
her front garden.  While we were still working, she came back, and she said
she felt really calm when she got to the bus stop, and then at the
bank it was all alright. So yay! That was great. Miracles happen as
you serve those around you! 😊 Also, a very affectionate cat showed up
half way through, that was weird... We then saw S, who is still so
strong and amazing. Went to ward coordination, always a fun one. And
then we went to go find Sh.... And we did! We finally saw her
again. Her friends are becoming less wary of us as we pop up more
often, I've decided we are going to baptise all of them one day. 😉
you never know...

Day 196: Had some potential lessons that didn't work out, that's
always rough. Also went by a member, but she was running out. You know
what is awkward? When you are knocking somewhere, and like a door to
door salesperson comes behind you and ends up passing you.... Yeah, we
go elsewhere because people really don't like us then... Had tea at
the C’s, and then went to see Ch with Sister Barton. That was
super great. Sister Barton has such an amazing testimony of the
gospel. The Barton’s were converts when they were a young family, and
they have such amazing testimonies. Love them. Plus, they have been
super helpful with family history.

Day 197: Zone Conference! It was like a dual, zone training and zone
conference.... That lasted for about seven and a half hours.... It was
a bit of a long day, but it went fast because it was of course great!
I love my zone leaders, they are so hilarious. For this conference,
they came up with a hilarious little hashtag for all of us to remember
what we learned:  #crownsup 👑 yeah. That's a thing now. And it
is because we are kingdom builders, we are heirs to a heavenly throne
and we are here to help others find their divine potential as well.
Yup. Everyone should use it. And throughout the time we were together,
Elder Iakopo or Elder Schäfer would randomly say "Crowns up!" and we
would all put our hands to our head, fingers spread wide, for our
crowns. I feel like that sums up just how crazy missionaries are....

But besides that, we had a very uplifting, inspiring, and instructive
conference. We talked a lot a lot a lot about member involvement and
how it truly is the key. We all need to work together in helping our
brothers and sisters return to live with God again. Because who
doesn't want that? We all want to be able to run up to each other at
that day, rejoicing that the other was able to find the gospel and
stay strong in it. Such an amazing thing to think about. So I
thought it was great to receive some instruction on the subject. A
member in the York stake high council came to speak to us and he said
something interesting about what he discovered about sharing the
gospel with his friends:  that it is never too early to invite them to
something. Doesn't have to be learning from the missionaries or coming
to church that first time, but even just inviting them into his home,
inviting them to a ward activity, less scary things like that. He has
come to find it really does work and he's seen lots of his friends
accept the gospel. I share this not because I want all of you to start
inviting everyone you know to everything, but maybe think of one
person and a small way you can help introduce them to the gospel so
they could accept it one day. We also talked a lot about finding and
having the faith to find, which is something that once again, I needed
to hear. Cause I have been struggling in that particular aspect of
missionary work lately.... Even though I know I clearly haven't spoken
to everyone yet and I obviously still have a reason to be here in
York. It's something I understand intellectually, but I'm having a
hard time with the faith aspect of it. Alas, there are always people.
Just gotta keep going!

Day 198: Ch is so excited for her baptism! Knocked some doors,
nothing too crazy. Tried to see Sh again, but she has had a lot of
crazy things happen lately. 😕

Day 199: Ch's baptism! It happened! We had some minor scares, but
it all worked out! It was beautiful! Everything went so well. She had
a bit of an anxiety attack after going into the water, but we got her
out, she was able to do it! And a few minutes later, she was soooo
happy! Just glowing. She was so full of lovely feelings. Sister
Lundahl and I made some really great refreshments, that was fun. It
was a lovely service. Because we were in the Relief Society room
instead of the chapel due to York 2  having a baptism in there,
and a wedding that was there 95% of the
day.... Oh well. We made it work. Got everything cleaned up and set up
in time! It was great. Ch was just so so happy and excited.

Day 200: Can you believe it's been 200 days? Feels like a lot when I
say that. Oh well. Ch was confirmed! She was once again, so happy.
It was great. After church, we went and saw P, who said we were an
answer to her prayer, and then went and saw K. And that was that!
A good week over all!

Love all of you!

Week 26: Miracles

Day 187: After pday, we went to go see Ch. Oh my gosh, an amazing
thing happened. She finally opened up to us. She told us her whole
life story, and oh my gosh it was amazing. She is an amazing person
and she makes so much more sense to us now! She had gone to do family
history for the first time that morning and she loved it. I now have a
testimony that doing family history produces absolute miracles. It was
the breakthrough we needed to continue to help her progress.

Day 188: Normal day... Someone didn't show, no one wanted to talk with
us, visited with some members, knocked on some doors, went to a
meeting.... All good stuff.

Day 189: After district meeting and before heading out on exchange
Elder Barney gave me a blessing. We then went to their area and had a
good day. It was the first time I went on exchange with an STL other
than Sister Barry! Sister Connolly was so sweet and said some
very nice things to me. Very motivational, which I suppose is the
whole point.

Day 190: Rained all day, which I thought was appropriate. Saw Ch
and she showed us some photos of her life which was so cool to see.
Saw S which is always great of course.

Day 191: Ch's birthday was today! We surprised her with a cake,
she was so happily surprised! And she passed her baptismal interview!
Yay! We then went to tea with the elders at bishops house. And then we
went and saw L, and we hopefully have helped her to set a goal with
herself to come to church... So we will see.

Day 192: had a potential lesson, that was a bit odd. He had to after
being there for like five minutes... Oh well. Visited with some other
members. The elders came and gave Ch a blessing, that was great.

Day 193: Started figuring things out for Ch's baptism next week...
Not sure how it'll work out, but I know it will. And I know this
because during the sacrament,no had been praying about it, and then
all of the talks during sacrament meeting were about how God performs
miracles for those who trust in Him. So I was sitting there thinking,
well Heavenly Father, I get the picture, I just need to move forward
and trust Him. After church, we went and saw another less active
member, that was of course lovely. She's such a sweetie.

So that has been my week, hope you guys are doing well and seeing
miracles for yourself! Love you!

Week 25: Here We Go!

Day 180: Another pday. Went and had lunch with some other
missionaries, went to some shops, ended up at the chapel for a good
chunk of time with a bunch of other missionaries watching films. Good
stuff. Always nice to have just a chill day. Tried by Sh again and
still nothing... Ended up going to see Ch, who we had a great
lesson with. On her own she acknowledged the need for her to stop
smoking, so that was awesome. I was kind of tired when we went by, but
it was okay.

Day 181: Did some service for a lady by doing her back garden. That
was fun. Knocked some doors, talked to some lovely people. Had ward
coordination, met Elder Barney's new trainee Elder Holyoak. Nothing
too exciting.

Day 182: went to district meeting, met with a less active member who
contacted us through Mormon.org (that was intense), went and saw L
(who judged shaved her head for charity!), and partied hard. Sounds
like mission life right?!

Day 183: officially six months since I reported to the MTC crazy!!
Gave some more service, helped paint a raft thingy that I have a cute
picture on my camera of but I didn't ever use a computer today so I
can't exactly send it, sorry. Went to Ch's and read lots of Book
of Mormon with her to help her understand more.

Day 184: went and saw the Hicktons, I feel bad for them, they are
having some struggles due to their grandpa's health failing. It's sad.
I guess I kind of know what it's like. We then went to have tea at a
members house with the elders for the first time, that was fun. And a
bit totally weird. Went and saw P and R again. They are
seriously great.

Day 185: tried to see some people, summer makes missionary work
sometimes harder since no one ever seems to be in any more, even when
they say they will be. We got a text from some random number asking if
it I was that "American lass" that had knocked on his door. Funny how
random stuff like that happens. We also got another text from the less
active we met for the first time saying her partner was okay with her
seeing us again, so that was a huge comfort.

Day 186: Ch came to church again! She is so great. I also sang in
sacrament meeting. After church we went and saw Ch again. We just
have to keep slowly working with her. It'll be good. She still wants
to be baptised so that's great. Not too much else exciting happened
this week... Sorry for the boring email! I love you guys! ❤️

Week 24: Transfer 5

Yup, last night we got the phone call for transfer 5. Of course,
Sister Lundahl and I are staying quite comfortably right here. York 1
transfer 5 here I come!

Day 173:  We ended up going out for lunch with the York 2 sisters, to a real
restaurant, which was so weird... It was pretty good, we had a good
time. We then went around to some shops and headed over to the church
for zone p-day, which was way fun. The Culberts have the funniest
games for us to play. Afterwards, we went out finding before going out
to see P.

Day 174: ran around trying to have lessons and them not working out
for us... That's never fun.... What was fun was a little project we
were putting together for district meeting the next day. We had been
assigned to instruct on fun finding... So we went around videoing
ourselves talking to people (Sister Lundahl's idea). Don't worry, we
got permission from these people. It was hilarious. Had tea at the
Cosens, went to ward coordination, normal missionary stuff. Not all
that exciting of a day.

Day 175: okay, we had possibly the best district meeting ever. The
people in my district are a bit crazy, I love them, plus we had the
zone leaders, and they always have these wild ideas as well
Learned lots, felt the spirit, man, it was weird though. We finally
got a hold of Ch!!! Set something up for the next day. 😊 oh, I
almost lost Sister Lundahl. Without meaning to, I got off the bus
without her, I bought she was right behind me, like usual, but no...
Thankfully, she got off the bus at the next stop... Yeah, in case you
were wondering, I am the worst trainer ever... Man, I almost went into
a panic.

Day 176: went knocking, talked to some lovely people, made some new
friends. Finally saw Ch again! Not only were we able to lift her
spirits, but in general reassure her that everything was alright and
it'll all work out in the end. So that was great. For sure how to
follow the spirit as to how we could help her... Ended up seeing L,
which is always nice. Found out that apparently in our mission we are
all going to get a free flu shot... So yeah. Keeping up on that I
suppose.

Day 177: went and saw T for the first time in forever. Her
daughter S was also there, so it was a good chance for us to shat
with her as well. T wants to get to the temple, so we are going to
try and help her in that. Went and saw S, that was of course
lovely. And then we went to Ch's. We retaught her the first
lesson, and she seemed to understand it a lot better, the spirit was
for sure there, it was cool. She even prayed at the end, which she
hasn't done in forever. And she still wants to get baptised! She said
she feels like the first time, she wasn't ready, but now she feels
more confident. So that was super awesome.

Day 178: Happy 6 year anniversary Chelsey and Owen! Knocked for a long
time.... That was fun of course.... Had tea with Ch at the
Barton's home. So nice of them to have us all. And they have just been
so kind to her. They are also helping her get started on her family
history, which is so great of them. Afterwards, we ended up going to
go see K. And I really feel like she is starting to maybe have a
bit of a change of heart in things. And while she was expressing a
concern of hers to us, all of a sudden, from her neighbors house, we
hear, "don't worry, be happy."

Day 179: Ch came to church and loved it! S bore her testimony
and her family came to support her! We taught gospel principles and it
went just fine! Basically, it was a pretty good Sunday. 😊

Hope you guys are all having a good week! Love you all! ❤️❤️❤️

Week 23: Patience!

Patience, something I have been trying to acquire more of in my life,
which may have been a mistake though to I pray for.... Because this
week for sure tried my patience. I felt like I had no energy on top of
all the crazy that happened... So here is hoping for a better week
ahead of me!

Day 166:  Ran into Sh grocery shopping again and still
couldn't believe that the baby hadn't come yet. After p-day, we went
to York2 to go on exchange! I ended up just coming back to York 1
though so we could go to the YSA FHE with an investigator. That was
fun. Haven't been to an FHE like that since like the beginning of my
mission.

Day 167: Not the most exciting exchanges have been on ever. Not a
whole lot to say about it to be honest.

Day 168: did some finding. Nothing too crazy.... Started getting
serious about baptism planning. Stuff like that. I decided that I
would never say no to missionaries when I'm back unless I have a
really good reason.

Day 169: made Ch programme, she's super excited, we are excited
as well, it's going great! Met a really cool guy and taught him for
the first time. Other normal missionary stuff.

Day 170: a bit of a roller coaster day... Lots of running around.
Ch is starting to get a bit nervous about being baptised.... But
we tried to help her as best we could and she said she would be fine
tomorrow. So here is hoping!

Day 171: Went and saw K for the first time! Seriously, the
cutest newborn baby I have ever seen. And A is so cute with her.
They are all so pretty. We weren't there long though because we had to
run to Ch's to go see her and go over some things before her
baptism that evening. We got to her house....the curtains were
closed....there was a note on the door... It read, Sorry, gone to
Lincoln, Ch. Yup. So that was a bit disappointing. Thankfully,
Brother Wilkinson was with us, so he immediately said that he would
let the ward know, that was handy. We called the elders and some other
people, but then went home to have the second half of our lunch hour
since we had cut it short earlier to get everything in, Elder Vickers
thought it'd be a good idea for us to do. So then we went to the park
with the elders so we could hand them J over gracefully. Even
though it was awkward and took some time, it was our best decision. We
then went by some other less actives. The York two sisters ended up
spending the night. It was fun stuff.

Day 172: Not a very exciting Sunday... J still came to church with
the elders, that was good. A less active we have been working with
came, that was awesome too. Did some finding, knocked some doors,
talked to people who have spoken to me before... Went and saw R
and made some muffins! Yum! She used to work at a bakery, so she is a
pro!

And that's my week. Hope you guys are all doing great!

Week 22: A Sunday Surprise!

Day 159: Bumped into Sh while we were out and about shopping, can't believe how much energy she has despite being way overdue... Also, went to Primark for the first time today... It is a pretty great store. Kind of like Target in a way I would say would be the closest American equivalent. After p-day though, we had like the best lesson ever with Ch, talk about spirit guided. We felt so great afterwards. It was awesome. I don't really remember half of it, so you know it must have been something good. ;)

Day 160: Went and saw J again, he's been doing pretty well. Knocked some doors that we found out the elders had knocked like two days prior (the struggle of sharing an area...). Went and saw L again. She is seriously the chattiest lady I have ever met. Which is great, unless you need to hurry!

DAy 161: Sh still hasn't had her baby, we went and saw her for a bit before she had to go to the hospital to make sure everything was still okay. S came with us to see Ch again, it was another great lesson, and we set up a time for her baptism interview!! 

Day 162: Whoo! Zone training! It was of course super great, I have some really great mission leadership and my zone is just the best! Afterwards, we ran over to go see A, which was good since it's been awhile and she needed the upliftment. She then gave us some chocolates, a few little white chocolate mousse cups (which were great) and a cucumber. That's always fun... After that, we ran back to the church where we had our interviews with President Turvey. While our companions were in with him, we also had a chat with Sister Turvey. It was fun having a chat with them, letting them know a bit about myself and about how things are going here in York. Later, we went finding, had tea with the Bartons, went and saw P again and just helped her understand the Book of Mormon. I seriously love talking about the Book of Mormon.

Day 163: Went to go see Ch before her interview.... She didn't open the door. So interview cancelled. Couldn't get a hold of her. Rest of the day I was a bit grumpy... We ended up seeing the Turver's instead, which is always great. They are just so adorable. So we have been having beautiful weather here in York... Until literally the last half hour of the day, it just came in buckets. We were drenched in seconds. We were at B's, but then we had to get home somehow! We just got so soaked, we ended up jumping in puddles for the fun of it. It was quite fun.

Day 164: We walked a lot, my feet hurt  really bad when we got home. Met some really great people though, which is the best. We also saw J again, and Brother Wilkinson was able to pop by and meet him as well, so that was great. This ward is seriously so great. I love them so much. It is almost like my second home ward with how long I have been here. 

Day 165: Sunday. A day of absolute miracles. And I started out grumpy. I didn't have a good attitude on the day. We went out contacting for a bit, and ran into J, who was going to come to church, but was just kind of going to eat in the park right next door before hand. So yay! J surprised us and came to church, stayed the whole time, and loved it! After we were contacting though, we went in for lunch before church. We started cooking, when all of a sudden, we look out the window and we see Ch walking up to the church building, super early. I made Sister Lundahl drop everything and we literally ran to the church across the parking lot. We chatted with her, turns out she had been super sick and was sleeping all day, was keeping all of the commitments, and excited to be at church! We left her there so we could eat, I called Elder Vickers, and we all got to the church as quickly as we could and Ch had and passed her interview before the meeting even started! So yay! Ch is going to be baptised this Saturday!!! We are pretty excited for her and everything. Now we have a baptism to plan!

Week 20

Day 145: Another p-day come and gone. Didn't do much. Knocked some doors. Went and saw S. Usual missionary stuff.

Day 146: Went knocking, taught Ch who is so excited to be baptised, stopped by Sh, had tea at the Gore's, went to ward coordination and taught C. We were walking home later that evening when a guy we had contacted a few weeks passed ran into us again. He remembered me and said that he had told his wife and some friends about us because he thought it was so great that young women like ourselves are going out and talking to people about God. So that was cool. He still wasn't really interested, but cool to know people appreciate what we do.

Day 147: I was well tired this day... And some grumpy old lady told me to get a real job. Nothing much happened. This guy tried to hold hands with Sister Lundahl, that was funny and awkward.

Day 148: Went on exchange! I went with Sister Chamings, who is seriously Wendy from Peter Pan. Taught some people, had a good day. Killed my feet. Someone thought I was Canadian again. That keeps happening now that I am no longer with another American.... Sister Barry said that she always feels like companions are meant to be with each other, but for some reason, she said she felt like that was especially true for Sister Lundahl and I. Interesting thought.

Day 149: Oh, little dumb miracle. I had prayed that I would receive a letter from someone when I got home from exchange... And when we got home from exchange there was a letter right there on the ground waiting for me. Yes, God even listens to our dumb things sometimes. He knew what it meant to me, so He helped it to happen. God loves us so much! Knocked some doors, went to go see Ch and her house was all smoky and I got worried. It was her friend, and Ch had said no when she offered her one as well! Yay Chl!!!

Day 150: So, something that I have really learned a lot about since coming on my mission is trying to follow the Spirit more. And today I think I did a better job about it. We were knocking somewhere, and it was not being very productive. That is when I had the thought to go knock back where Sister Lundahl and I were knocking her very first day. So we did. And then once we were on the street, I felt like we should knock from the opposite end we were on. And Sister Lundahl thought I was just being weird, but I just told her that I felt like we should. No, we don't have a story about finding this like picture perfect golden investigator. Instead, we found this amazing person, who is actually an excommunicated member. She was absolutely lovely. We had such a good chat with her and she said we could come back around again. When we left, we felt like we were meant to meet her. It was so cool. God knows best! And it really showed me that God truly does remember all of His children, even the ones who have gone away for a bit. So cool. And then that night, we street contacted a lady who gave us doughnuts. You could say it was a pretty good day. ;)

Day 151: Sh came to church! But had to leave because A sort of threw a fit... But it was awesome she came. She is so close to her due date... She also had us over for tea, which was so good! I have never had minted lamb before, but news flash, it is good. She really does do good food. Sadly, Ch did not come to church. We stopped by her house in the evening, and good thing we did. She felt bad about it. She got really anxious, and that's why she didn't go. So we were able to reassure her and help her by coming by. Thankfully, she does still have a desire to be baptised, so we are still moving forward! She is so great. Like everyone else, she has her struggles, but we are doing our best to help her!

So lesson learned this week, trust God's timing. It is so much better than our own. Just remember that when things don't work out as planned!!!

Love you guys!!! <3

Week 19: Swedish Fish

Apparently Swedish Fish are actually quiet American. And why do I bring this up? Because of my new Swedish trainee, Sister Lundahl!! Obviously, she is from Sweden, she is 20, has two older brothers, she loves the outdoors, and is the sweetest person ever! And as I am writing this I feel like I am trying to set her up on a date... That is weird. Oh well. Moving right along....

Day 138: Happy Fourth of July!!! Weird to celebrate it in the country we declared independence from... Oh well! We went out with S and K, which was well fun. They are so sweet. We had lunch and walked about, then they brought us back to York. We then met up with the other missionaries there where Sister Barry had organized a 4th of July barbecue for all of us. And for some reason, we trusted the non-Americans to cook the burgers... They set off the fire alarm ;) Love them. And once p-day was over, we ran to Sh's, A's and S's and had little testimony meetings. It was so great. And even though I wasn't going anywhere, it was a pretty emotional thing. It was so wonderful. I am so blessed to be a part of the lives of these amazing people.

Day 139: Woke up early, got the bus, got the train... And picked up my trainee!!! AAAHHH!! I can't believe it. So crazy... I can't believe that I am at this point in my mission... She is so great though. We ended up finding most of the day and had tea at the Cosens'. So not too terrible of a first day...

Day 140: I am pretty sure everything is conspiring against me to make me feel miserable as a trainer. Everything has been falling through... Also, it is weird to be back in the 12 week program. Three hours of study is a lot longer than two... Went and saw L and B, so at least we didn't find all day...

Day 141: I'm starting to understand some of the things Sister Wood would do a lot better now that I am in her shoes. We went and taught Sh, where A was pretty tired, making it hard to teach. We also then taught Ch, and brought S with us. Had the easiest law of chastity lesson I have ever had, oh my goodness, she is so excited to be baptised!!! Things are falling into place as far as Ch seems to be going. Which is awesome. Went and saw P at the end of the day, R was there, so that was nice.

Day 142: Everything fall through again.... Not sure if I like this whole responsibility thing... At least I know the area and the people we can go by and such...

Day 143: Saw Sh again. Talked to lots of people. Nothing exciting. Got caught in an evening down pour.

Day 144: Ch came to church!!!! Yay!!!! And Sh would have if it wasn't' for a bit of miscommunication. But Ch liked it and said she wanted to come again, so yay!!! Also, Sister Lundahl and I were chatting as we were out finding, and it just like hit me just how many people are praying for me. Maybe not always specifically for me, but for missionaries in general. All the people at the temple, in church meetings, on individual basis, so many people pray for missionaries. Yeah, it was just a cool little moment I had while walking down Green Lane again.

So yeah. That has been my week! Hope you are all having a good one as well! Love you guys!!!! Miss you!

Week 18: Transfer #4

Soooooo..... We got our transfer call last night! And I am staying here in the beautiful city of York! But Sister Wood is going. And I am training. And now I am also panicking a bit as well. It'll be exciting. Next week I will be able to tell you how it actually is! I pick her up tomorrow!

With new Mission President Turvey & his wife

Day 131: Another zone p-day full of fun games and such. Including human Hungry Hippos... That was a bit of a dangerous game.... But fun! And then afterwards, we went finding for 3 hours because all of our plans fell through, which is seriously the worst.

Day 132: Went and saw both C and S! C said that we are her guardian angels, which was very sweet. And then S said that I always look posh... Which is hilarious since I for sure just look like a frumpy sister missionary 95% of the time....  Also, she says I am going to marry Mr. Muscle, which is funnier to me because it is actually a cleaning product here. And then we also saw C again. A lot of running around to different lessons basically, which is always fun! :)

Day 133: We had to open the building and turn on the heating before 7 am because of an STL meeting that was happening there later. It is both the best and the worst living right by the building... Knocked lots of doors in the rain, had some good conversations, it was fun. Especially when it started getting windy as well! We then also went to S's, which is always the best! She is seriously the sweetest lady.

Day 134: We cleaned the building with the elders... Because we met President Turvey today!!! He is pretty cool. I think I will like him. It is a bit weird making the switch, but we will manage. I don't think a whole lot is going to change... Maybe our use of iPads, but other than that, we are just going to keep going the way we are. We then went to tea at the Gores, and Sister Gore brought us and Ch to the building for the Relief Society activity! C also came, so that was awesome.

Day 135: Sister Wood and I had our last Weekly Planning.... Weird... And then we went to see S and Ch again, so that was great. They are progressing so well. Love them.

Day 136: Went contacting for a bit and then saw Sh again with Sister Cosens... And Sh surprised us with making us lunch! Spag bol and brownies she had put Ferrero Roche in, making them really yummy. Got flogged a few more times. Visited Pat and Barbara... We were street contacting down the road when this lady stopped us! She complimented my skirt. And then we got chatting and she wanted us to meet her dog so we went with her to her house... Where she lives with her sister, a lady we have contacted like 5 or 6 times! Turns out, they have family members who are members, and we taught them and scheduled them for baptism!!!! It was awesome. Miracles are so real.

Day 137: Sh came to church!!! It was so great. The only thing was A kind of running around everywhere, but that is to be anticipated by a two year old coming to church for the first time. We also went to see S again, but then we were surprised by a house full of people! K, A, S, L, and S's friend were all there, so that was quite unanticipated.... Missions really do keep us on our toes....

Well wish me luck folks! Cause I am starting a new adventure tomorrow! One that I really don't know if I can do! I am quite nervous, but I know God has called me for a reason, and it is up to me to find our what that reason is!!! Love you guys! I'm sure you will hear all about it next week :)

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Sister Barret