Monday, May 8, 2017

Week 62: Lots of Meetings!

So, this has been such a week....

On Monday, after pday, Sister Reynolds and I did a bit of knocking and then had plans to see a less active lady, but on our way we ran into someone else who Sister Reynolds had met a bit ago and spoke to her for quite some time.... so it turned to late to go by the member and we just street contacted the rest of the night. And at nine, three extra companionships of sisters showed up at our flat so we had ten sisters in total sleeping in our flat because....

On Tuesday we had to get up a bit early so we could all get to the church and get a coach to zone conference in Billingham! It was really good, we covered a lot of things and had an opportunity to train each of our zones individually, but it was only for 75 minutes, so it was almost more like a big district meeting, it went well. I honestly didn't say much, but the zone seemed to appreciate what we covered. I had been asked to organise a musical Item for the conference, which I did, but we didn't do anything super special. I just wanted to do something simple that would bring the spirit quickly into the meeting. I think I did a pretty good job getting a bunch of good singers, so I think it went well. I love getting together with everyone! Always such a spiritual boost! Afterwards, we traveled home and really didn't have much time to do anything else with our day.

Apparently, every first Wednesday of the month, our zone goes and helps clean up this park in Gateshead. We had a beautiful day and it's a really lovely park, so we had a super fun time sweeping the paths and talking to some people who passed our way. It was the weirdest thing being out so long in my jeans... Especially since afterwards, we went to help an older lady clean her windows. Thankfully she lives in a bungalow, so it was pretty easy. And it was such a lovely day! By the end, Sister Reynolds and I were turning a bit pink! We went home to change and have some comp study and then went to have tea with our bishop and his family. They are super cute, a really sweet family. Who are also pretty into their fandoms! We then ran to try to go see the Egyptian people we met a bit ago, but they weren't in, so we instead went to go see a less active recent convert who lives close by. Her cousin was there and kept asking lots of questions, he seems to be interested, but doesn't want to admit it.

We went on another exchange! This time with the sisters who we live with. Sister Chiu and I went out and did lots of finding. At one point, we were walking passed this older lady who was pulling up some weeds and we offered to help. Normally people say they are alright, but she let us! She was really sweet, and after we helped her, she let us in to wash our hands and we had a bit of a chat. She wasn't really interested, but she was sweet and we were able to uplift her. And as a thank you gift, she gave us this Noah's Ark lamp! I'll send a photo so you can know what I am talking about! So yeah, ended up carrying that around for a while! We had tea with an older lady in the ward and then we ended our exchange because Sister Reynolds and I had to get to Newton Aycliffe to sleep over again because...

We had to wake up bright and early Friday night to get to Leeds for MLC! This whole leadership thing just means more meetings I feel like sometimes 😂 jk. It was a way good meeting. Sister Brown got me to sing in a group for that as well. As you may have noticed, President really loves his musical items. A lot. It was a nice meeting, and I feel like us and the zone leaders in our zone are finally on the same page. Which is so good. After MLC, Sister Turvey gathered all of us sisters together and we had a chat. She feels kind of bad because we don't get the same sort of support as zone leaders, who have their district leaders, the office APs and also the travelling APs.... whereas it's jut kind of us as far as female leadership. So yeah, it was really nice. Cause our mission does have a pretty high ratio of sisters I feel like. I dunno. It was just nice of her to take us aside and have a little focus on our sisters. After the meeting we took the long trek back home, once again getting home in time to not have time to really do anything.

Saturday was back to a more normal missionary day. We went to go see a lady Sister Reynolds met on exchange, who had so many questions. We tried our best to stay focused, but it was a bit all over the place until the very end. We seized an opportunity and boldly declared the truth. It was amazing to feel the difference in the room as we testified of the Restoration, sharing the First Vision and Moroni's promise. The mom and son were still and quiet, and at the end, she said something about how there was power in the words we shared. We tried to help her see that that meant it was true.... but people have agency, so we left her with a Book of Mormon and she seemed very grateful for our visit and the peace we brought into their home. It was just a really neat experience that helped build my testimony of the power of the message of the Restoration. It brings the spirit fast. We then went home, had lunch, had comp Study, went to read the Book of Mormon with an older lady who can't read well, did some finding, tried by an investigator, and then visited a member, went home and had tea. That was our day. It was good.

Church! Love going to church. Especially with the Mandarin branch at the same time, it's just funny. It's a bit crazy, with two congregations each with two sets of missionaries, so there are eight of us running around. Oh! Almost forgot to mention the miracle that happened inches morning. I think I've mentioned how there is a very good metro system here in Newcastle that we use everyday. It's how we get to church. So we were running to catch our metro and we hear the door sounds going and we are running down the stairs knowing it'll be close if we make it at all... Sister Reynolds barely makes it on and I..... I'm right outside with a panicked look on my face! There was a moment of terror when all of a sudden.... the metro doors open again and I have the chance to get on. Yeah. It probably doesn't sound that great, but metros never do that! I've seen many a person just barely miss it and have such a disappointed face as they have to wait for another one. Yeah. It was a modern day miracle. My testimony of going to church was strengthened. After church, we went to go visit a less active lady, who really appreciated it. She apparently had lost our number, so it was good that we contacted her! We then headed home and had our weekly planning! Always a good time. Got things sorted for future exchanges, called lots of people... it was good stuff!

Hope you all had a good week! Love you!

Sister Barret

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