Week 2

(Note: pictures added to previous posts)

From Aug. 25th email:

Two weeks already! It's gone by so quickly! I got to play my 1st game of basketball in Connecticut. Sadly it wasn't competitive, but it made me happy.

My area covers Burlington, Canton, New Hartford, Winsted, Colebrook, Collinsville, Norfolk (pronounced "Nurforlk") & a few other little towns I can't remember the names of. It's a very big area & there aren't a whole lot of people. The people are great here, just a bit stubborn. I guess that's a New England trait. Smoking is a real big hang-up for a lot of investigators. We've been doing a lot of tracting because our numbers are low & we don't have many appointments. We need something to get the ball rolling here, but Sis. Wilson said they've tried about everything. But we are working hard & being obedient so something will happen.

Thursday we went to the mission office to do service because we missed out on some hours on Wednesday. I strongly believe they should call some office sisters. I bet they would get more done. Elder & Sister Carr were on vacation so they were a bit short-handed. We put together the departing & incoming missionary binders & got to see who the new missionaries are & got to know the dirt on everyone. It's a lovely job. :)

Friday we had 3 dinner appointments scheduled (I don't know how that happened) but one fell through so we only had to stuff ourselves with 2 meals. The 1st appt. was with the Tibidous. They are a very Christian family but aren't interested in joining the Church. They have the missionaries over to set a good example for their kids. They tell us how much they admire us for giving up 1 1/2 yrs. for the Lord. The last appt. was a less-active family from Utah. The wife wants to get active again so that's what our job is.

Saturday was a LONG day of tracting. We had no appointments so we headed to the Massachusetts border (picture above) & worked our way down. Sis. Wilson & I had a good time getting to know each other & getting some exercise. We pretty much climbed the 3 biggest "hills" Connecticut has & now I'm a bit sore. But I really enjoyed it. No one really wanted to listen to us. One lady let us in for cookies & a glass of water because her mother had let the Elders in before. She was way nice & had been to Idaho white-water rafting. Things like that make your day so much better!

Sunday we had an appt. with Arthur King who had been investigating the Church earlier but had lost contact. We talked about the Fall & I could tell that it really hit him. Not many people know that the Fall was actually a good thing. He always does his reading & loves the Book of Mormon.

I keep noticing a huge change in myself. I'm much more confident in speaking & my teaching is getting so much better. In my personal study I ran across a few scriptures in Alma 17 which answered my prayers & helped me to learn to teach by the spirit. It was exactly what I needed & helped to build my testimony. I'd encourage all of you to read that chapter. Keep praying for me & all the missionaries. We're doing a great work in bringing the lost sheep into the fold of Christ!

A whole new world!

From letter of Aug. 18, 2008:

We were met at the Connecticut airport about 3:45 p.m. [Aug. 11] by the mission pres. & his wife. They're great! As soon as we walked outside it was pouring rain! My umbrella has become my best friend! Sisters Baird & Jones picked me up & we did a bit of street contacting before heading to the mission home. There we had a very yummy dinner & a brief testimony meeting. I got a nice big room to myself & the bed was so comfy, especially since I'd been up since 1:15 a.m. & hadn't slept a bit on the plane.

Tuesday we had breakfast & lunch at the mission home with orientation smashed in between. Elder Carr (Sr. Missionary) made sure Elder Taylor [Shey Taylor of Declo just completing mission there] & I got a picture together. Then we met our trainers. Mine is Sister Wilson. She's a military child so she's not from any particular place. I like her work ethic--it really pushes me to be doing missionary work all of the time. I was terrified to knock on doors & wait those few, agonizing seconds before they would answer. But I'm over that now. I'm used to their rejection & them saying, "I'm all set" because they're Catholic. Tracting here doesn't yield much. We've given away only 1 Book of Mormon all week.

Wednesday all of our appointments fell through so we did some street contacting in Winsted, the most "city" part of our area, yet it is the poorest & kind of scary. We met a Catholic guy who really questions whether that religion is true. He had a definite interest in the BofM, but he lives out of our area in Torrington. Hopefully the Elders there will pick him up soon. That experience really lifted my spirits after such a sucky day.

Thursday was district meeting. There are 4 Elders in our district. I can't remember their names but 2 are from Canada. We had a couple of appointments, but the investigators don't seem to be progressing much. They like the company more than they have the desire to change. But Thursdays are amazing because of Hal & Jan, a part-member family. He joined 2 yrs. ago after investigating for 20 years. She still hasn't joined. But they always have the Sisters over on Thursdays for dinner. I get to practice the lessons on them. It's like a home away from home.

Friday we tracted in the rain. Once again, people don't wanna hear about Mormons. But we did give away a Bof M at the last house we stopped at. Elder & Sister Carr took us out to a really good Chinese restaurant. I got to hear her conversion story & how they met.

Saturday we did service for about 7 hours: painting the living room of a lady in the ward. It worked out to our advantage because we have to have another female with us to teach single men & she agreed to come with us that night. It was really good because she could give insights that hit home with the investigator.

Sunday we didn't have meetings with the bishop so we had a yummy breakfast with a member couple who are from Italy. Church was a bit different because it was so small. There are more people at the singles' branch [at home]. It's hard to remember everyone's names because I've never heard them before! Lots of people are converts who have come from other countries. The ward is great, but they have no desire to do missionary work. Any ideas how to motivate them? There hasn't been a baptism here in years. I guess that comes with being in a wealthy ward. We have lots of investigators but they aren't progressing. This used to be an Elders' area, but they moved Sisters in & they have worked super hard to get it where it is. Hopefully I can help in some way. This is definitely hard work, but I've never grown so much! I'm very happy to be here in Connecticut. It's a whole new world, but I'm slowly getting used to it.

I'm leaving on a jet plane . . . .

Monday, August 11, 2008:
*Up at 1:30 a.m.
*Leave MTC at 3:00 a.m. (picture below)
*Flight leaves Salt Lake City 6:00 a.m.
Will be traveling with 7 Elders going to
same mission.
*Layover in Atlanta, Georgia at 11:40 a.m.
(with a 25 minute call home).
*Arrive at Bradley Airport in Hartford,
Connecticut about 4:00 p.m.

More MTC notes

Email of Saturday, August 9, 2008:

We got an extra day to do laundry because we're all leaving Monday. I can't believe there are only 2 more days until I head out to CT. Crazy, isn't it!

We had a "Priesthood Appreciation Day" on Thursday to show how much we appreciate the Elders in our district. We gave them lots of candy & each a blue oil thingy so they had something to remember us by. We even gave out Starbursts to the other Elders that opened the doors for us & took our trays for meals. I haven't had to take my tray to the nasty smelling place because the Elders are so nice about taking it for us. They're pretty much awesome!

MTC happenings

From email of Wednesday, August 6, 2008:

We've had a few great firesides each Sunday & Tuesday. One was by Sister Kathryn Madsen, wife of former Seventy, David W. Madsen. She talked about finding the talents within ourselves & developing them. She stressed the fact that everyone has different talents & they all come together & compliment each other. That really made me think because I tend to compare myself with others. But I'm ME! No one has been nor ever will be just like me. Elder Madsen talked about "The Good Shepherd" & how shepherds lead instead of push. We are all shepherds as missionaries. "Your voice will become His voice & your hands will become his Hands." Aaah! I love all this spiritual-ness! I've never felt the Spirit so strong.

We had a teaching appointment (where we teach a pretend investigator) & my companion & I were soooo confident about it. We have a certain scenario & we plan for that certain person. But the guy we had didn't stick to the scenario & started spouting off scriptures & answering his own questions & throwing in Mormon humor. He even answered his phone TWICE during the appointment. How do you teach someone like that?! We were a bit disappointed with it, but oh well. It's another learning experience. My companion & I finally figured out a teaching method which works perfectly for us. I'm finally becoming a confident teacher! I'm so grateful for this missionary experience. I can't wait to get out there to Connecticut!

First day

From her letter of July 23, 2008:

"Wow! Today has been pretty overwhelming but it's not near as bad as I thought it would be. . . . we got shuffled through a billion lines & stations to get all that we needed & to make sure everything was good to go. All of the buildings look alike . . . so I had to wander around for awhile before I found my residence hall. . . . no one else was there, so I sat around until [some]one finally showed up. All 3 of my roommates are going to the Maryland Baltimore Mission. I'm stuck with about 6 Elders going to Connecticut but they all seem pretty cool. There are all different personalities in the district (7 Connecticut/4 Baltimore) & some just might be hard to get along with, but I'll try my best. I saw Cameron Briggs [from Malta] in the cafeteria today. . . . . I'm actually liking it here, at least so far. You feel the spirit so strong here that you have that fire to get out and do missionary work. I'm really happy that I'm able to be here to prepare to bring souls unto Christ. Don't ever worry about me. I'm doing the Lord's work & will be watched over & blessed. P.S. My companion is Sister Rosser from Las Vegas." (Pictured above: roomies Sisters Lindsey, Wilson & Rosser)

Sister Darrington at the MTC

"Sister Darrington" arrived at the MTC in Provo, Utah, July 23, 2008. She is excited to begin a new chapter in her life serving as a representative of Jesus Christ! Her tentative departure date to the mission is August 11.

MTC mailing address:

Sister Brenda M. Darrington

MTC Mailbox #140

CT-HAR 0811

2005 N. 900 E.

Provo, Utah 84604-1793