Christmas in Connecticut?

Dec. 15, 2008 email: NOPE! I'm getting exiled to East Providence, RI! I'm super excited about it. I hear that it's the "big city." My new companion will be Sister Jones from SLC (in red sweater vest below). She's a hard worker so hopefully I'll pick up on that. Sister Haueter is going off to Windsor...they're closing Canton for a short time. I guess there hasn't been much progress the past few years. The sad thing is this past week has been our best ever. Oh well. President knows what the Lord wants. The Bristol Elders will be taking care of the area for the time being.

Thursday was probably our biggest day. We had a great district meeting & then went out for district unity because that was our last time together. The zone leader that was there on exchanges (because Elder Bodily was at the temple...going home Wednesday!) asked me if I knew any Cranneys from southern Idaho. I said I did...he says that Bryce Cranney is/was the ward mission leader out in West Warrick, RI or somewhere around there. Crazy!

We had a lesson with Lillian after that. Our main focus was on prayer & finding out if the Book of Mormon was true. We got off on a little tangent because she wondered why a loving Heavenly Father would let so much suffering happen. We explained that sometimes we don't have all the answers. Some suffering occurs because of the agency of others, but sometimes, such as in the case of cancer, things just happen. Heavenly Father can see the big picture. He knows what's best for us. She committed to read the BOM, which is a huge step. We're slowly softening her old, stubborn heart. :)

The Perdomos were later that night, too. Our main focus was prayer & scripture study. It was a great lesson! We read passages from the BOM out loud with the kids. They are such special kids. They are very ready for the Gospel. We've tried to get the family to church ever since I've been here and it finally happened this week! Four investigators at church! I'm going to miss that family very much. They hold a very, very special place in my heart. Friday we had a "Sisters' Seminar" (right) at the mission home in West Hartford. It was great! The assistants did trainings on how to find investigators & how to improve our teaching skills. Its nice to get an outsiders opinion on those things because us Sisters have been trained by the same people and we are all stuck in the same "box" of thinking. I truly felt the Spirit there & it got me excited about the work.

We got a tiny bit of that ice storm, but most of it was just rain. And I mean RAIN! The next few days were bitterly cold, but today is beautiful! I wish the whole winter was like this. If you come across any good object lessons/stories/etc. that I can apply to the missionary lessons, send them to me, please! I need to spice up my teaching a bit. Thanks to all of you who have sent me letters & packages. Thanks to grandma especially for the scarf & money. They help so much! Love you all and hope you have a great week!

BUURRR!!!

Dec. 8, 2008, email: We got our first real Connecticut snowfall Saturday night. I looked out the window Sunday morning and just about cried. We have gone so long without snow and cold, why couldn't we go longer! It reminded me of my days in Rexburg when my roommate and I would whine and complain that there was new snow just about every morning. The cold here is unbelievable! You'll have to experience it yourself to really know.

This week has been great! Our numbers aren't so hot, but not every success is seen in numbers. Last night we met with our new ward mission leader, Bro. Patterson, who just moved in. He's going to be awesome at this calling. He has such a great attitude about missionary work and even said that he's here to serve us. Things will be picking up here in the Canton ward! Saturday & Sunday we had a mission-wide fast for the "faith to find." I guess the whole mission has been struggling, but I know that this fast will help. I know that the Lord has prepared so many people for the gospel. He will soften the icy hearts of the New Englanders. We just have to trust in Him that he will show us where they are.

Saturday was our ward Christmas devotional, which consisted of musical numbers & a reading of the Christmas story from Luke. It turned out great! Lillian, one of our investigators, came to it with her son and another friend. It was such a great missionary tool to expose non-members to what we believe. Sister Haueter's piano solo was so beautiful & our song was pretty good. We hadn't practiced with the other sisters so it was good for the time spend on it. Earlier that day we got a call from Bro. Moore (right with wife, Freda) in Burlington to see if we could help him get his wood stacked before the snow came. Another service project involving splitting & stacking wood! And once again, I LOVED it! That's really funny to say, but once you go a long time without doing it, it feels so good to start again. We had to "wrestle" the wood splitter into his barn afterward which was quite the task! I picked up a few bruises on my legs & my whole body is sore! I'm sure the job was more suited for men, but Sister missionaries can do anything. Bro. Moore took us on a pick-up truck ride all over his property. They have 15 acres or so and even have a little campground area out back. So cool! It reminded me of Almo.

Friday night we went over to the Bayley's & made gingerbread houses with their kids. I haven't done that in years & I had a blast. Mine was supposed to be a temple, but it didn't turn out so well. I took some pictures so maybe someday you'll be able to see the fun we have.

Thursday was our last district meeting with our DL, Elder Bodily, because he's headed home next week. To celebrate, we had our meeting in Goshen & went to the infamous TSB [Torrington Super Buffet]. YUM! I think we have the best bunch of Elders in this district. So spiritual, yet they know how to have some fun. I'm gonna miss them if I get transferred next week.

Monday night we did exchanges with the Rocky Hill sisters so I finally got to experience a new area! That helped me get out of the little rut I was in. Surprisingly enough, I wasn't scared or timid about talking to people or tracting. I'm so thankful for the progress I've made so far. I know I've grown leaps & bounds, but I'm looking forward to more growth.

Well, that's a slightly brief summary of my week. I could spend hours writing every detail & every spiritual experience, but I don't have that kind of time. This week, I've really seen the many "tender mercies" that the Lord gives to his children. Hearts have been softened & testimonies strengthened. I'm so thankful to be out here in Connecticut at this time. It's a wonderful place with some awesome people!

It's the 1st snowfall of the winter!

From Dec. 1, 2008 email: We got our first snow yesterday, but it didn't stick. Yay! It's a VERY foggy day. . . I've never felt so claustrophobic!

This week was busy because of Zone Conference & Thanksgiving. Monday night we had an appointment with Lillian which went great! We took Sister Woodward, a new move in, with us & they clicked. Both were Home-Ec teachers & short & had a few other things in common. When Sister Woodward shared her testimony, it really touched Lillian. I know that she felt the Spirit. Now we just have to get her praying & reading the BoM.

We had Zone Conference on Wednesday instead of Thursday because of Thanksgiving. Such a super meeting! They talked a lot about faith, which I have been lacking a lot. The mission must be needing more faith as a whole, even though I felt like each training was directed towards me. The assistants gave the 3 stages of faith: 1-sounds good; 2-belief; 3-knowledge. For too many of us, our faith is in the belief stage. We don't make that extra stretch to make it a knowledge. We believe that there are people out there waiting for us to find them. We don't have that hope & faith to KNOW they are out there.

Thanksgiving was great! We started out our day at the Hartford Zone Turkey Bowl at Trinity College in Hartford. That was my 1st time in the city of Hartford. What an experience! Sister Haueter & I were the only Sisters there & she didn't want to play, so I didn't get in on any games. But I don't want to make the Elders look bad, do I? :) I got to toss the ball around a bit so that made me happy. I caught a somewhat difficult pass & one of the Elders said, "She's on my team." Hahaha. I have to thank my brothers that I'm making a good impression on the Elders with my sweet football skills. I made a pumpkin & a coconut cream pie & took them so the Elders could stuff their faces. Good reviews! And thanks Mom for that package [pie ingredients]! I loved it! Later that day we went to the Rasbands for dinner. They're such a great family. Dinner was amazing as usual. They do something each night called "thankfuls" where each person says what they are thankful for. I said I was most thankful to have a family out here that would take us in & treat us like our own would. I almost teared up after I said that. It was my 1st little bit of homesickness. But it didn't last too long. I thought the holidays would be a bit harder to get through, but I'm doing good so far. Although I miss being with the family this time of year, I'll survive. I know I'm doing a great work here.

From 24 Nov 2008 email:

I'm glad to hear that gas prices are going down there, too. The lowest I've seen is about $1.94 on Friday. Who knows what they'll be today! And yes, I've used my long coat. I've never been so cold in my life! The chill just bites you to the bone. It's time to layer up. Soon I'll look like a giant marshmallow under my coat, but who cares because I'll be warm.

The only investigator we met with this week was Lillian. We taught her the plan of salvation which she was very interested in. She had told us when we first met her that it would be quite a miracle if we ever got her to change. But I'm seeing the Spirit work it's magic with her. She had so many good questions about it & wanted to be sure that she had it down right. Two of her sons showed up & took part in the lesson. Maybe something will become of that, too. We're meeting with her later this afternoon because our P-day is cut short. We get Thursday off for Thanksgiving & we have to make it up today.

Yesterday we attended an inter-faith Thanksgiving musical event at the Collinsville Congregational Church. A youth choir from the ward was singing & we wanted to show our support for them. It was a great program. But it made me appreciate belonging to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Some other churches have some crazy ideas of how to run things. However, I respect their members because they have that religious base in their life. Hopefully we'll get some support from the community for our Christmas program/nativity we're having on Dec. 6.

Saturday we joined forces with some of the ward members & helped the Burwoods clean up their yard. Boy, it was good to get out & do some work! We raked leaves, whacked weeds & other yard jobs. It was bitterly cold, but we all braved the weather to do some service. The Burwoods were VERY appreciative because they are older & have a hard time keeping up with their couple of acres. Sister Burwood even baked us pumpkin pies to show how much she cared.

We had another member move into the ward, making a grand total of 32 new members since I've been here. This ward is multiplying as fast as the mold in our bathroom. Sister Woodward (left), originally from Ohio, just got done serving in the missionary department at church headquarters. She provided counseling for missionaries who were going home because of emotional problems. I didn't know such a thing existed! She's always willing to help us missionaries & has opened up her home to us whenever we're in the area (Norfolk).

This week I've realized that I haven't been working as hard as I could be & that I'm not as obedient as I should be. But I'm changing . . . becoming more of what Heavenly Father wants me to be & less of what I want to be. I know that it's going to be a rough journey to
get there, but it will be worth it. The hardest thing for me is asking for help. When I first came out, I didn't want to turn into one of those cheesy missionaries, but now I know that they are the best ones. They know without a doubt that every effort they make to bring others to Christ is worth it. So watch out . . . I might be one of those weird missionaries who has a hard time adjusting to "real life" when I get home.

Thanks for all your love & support! You keep me going through the hard times. Love you!

Another Week

From Monday, 10 Nov 2008, email:

Sounds like more exciting things are happening back home. Did you get to learn a little bit about Connecticut from "Elder" Taylor's talk? I hear from people out here that he was a pretty awesome missionary. Elder Carr always tells me stories of him. Did he talk about the time he got to bale hay for a preacher of another church? Must have been right at home on the farm equipment!

There hasn't been anything too exciting going on this week. We met with the Perdomos on Thursday, but there were so many distractions. We used a cute object lesson about the gospel of Jesus Christ that the kids really liked. The family loves us to death, but are still a bit hesitant about being baptized. They aren't sure that it is true so this week we will be giving a lesson on prayer & fasting. Hopefully they will take it to heart & learn for themselves that this church is true & Joseph Smith was a prophet. They have so much potential!

Friday we went to Norfolk to help Ky Byrne (right) split wood.

We work with her doing service at the soup kitchen in Winsted. She instantly took a liking to us & has been a bit curious about our beliefs. It's kind of funny to say, but I enjoyed splitting wood. The rewards were about 1/2 cord done & a sore body. It was nice to break away from the usual missionary work & do some actual manual labor. Ky has been working on her 1850-ish house so we chatted a bit about fixing up old houses. I thought of Almo & all the work that you have been doing there. Save some for me when I get home! :) Hopefully she'll be calling us back this week so we can help her out some more.

We had a great meeting with our new district on Thursday. We talked about how we can gain back our enthusiasm in doing missionary work. Most missionaries hit a wall where they lose their steam. But this is the perfect time to do a personal inventory. Why are you out on a mission? What has kept you going? How will you feel when you step onto that plane when you're flying home? These questions have helped me to keep going through this rut my companion & I are in. We've put ourselves in order & set new goals so we'll make it the best transfer ever!

Sister Haueter says she knows of Devery Greene & knows who her brothers are. What a small world! And I remembered that Paul Allred had emailed me before my mission saying that he grew up in Burley & knew some Darringtons. I thought about it for a while and it hit me that there was an Elder Allred in my zone. And it just so happens to be THE Elder Allred. He's a great missionary.

I hope all continues to go well at home. Let the branch know that I'm thinking of them & that I miss them. And tell them good luck in all that they do! Love you all! Keep praying for the missionaries. And I'm extending a commitment to you all to read & study Preach My Gospel. It's not just for missionaries!

Transfers & no snow

From email of Nov. 3, 2008: There were tiny snow flakes on Wednesday. Nothing too bad . . . yet! It feels like it is wanting to snow today. Ugh. Time to start layering up! We had to be in at 6 pm Halloween night so we turned on the Christmas music & relaxed. Sister Haueter & I LOVE the Mo-Tab Christmas concert with Sissel. I'm very much excited for Thanksgiving. We already have Thanksgiving dinner & Christmas Eve planned with members. Apparently there's a rivalry between a couple of members to see who can get the missionaries over for Christmas. But I might not still be here then. All the Connecticut Sisters

I am staying here in Canton with Sister Haueter another transfer. YAY! We are going to really dig into the work these next few weeks now that we've cleaned up the area a bit & have a game plan down. I was worried they would ship me out after we got things going here. None of the Sisters are moving this transfer. They are making big changes regarding the zones & districts. There are only 3 stakes in the mission so they are making just 3 zones to coordinate with those stakes.

We finally met with the Perdormo family Thursday night. We haven't been able to sit down with them this whole transfer. They are such a golden family. They had a baptismal date a few years ago but got pressured too much by one Elder so they backed out. They know it's true so we'll be working with them to strengthen their testimonies & get a baptism date. The gospel will bless their lives tremendously especially knowing that they can be together as a family forever. Their kids are the most important thing to them & they are such a close family. I hope that we can get them baptized so they will have the fullness of the gospel in their lives. I have pictures of them which I'll send home sometime soon, hopefully!

We had dinner with the Walburger family last night. They are seriously one of the coolest families in the area. They would do anything for us & their kids love us to death. Those kids are sooo smart. We were carrying on a conversation with them about the history of America & the Revolutionary War & such, & they are only 9 (twins) & 4! They are smarter than me! Haha! I'm going to ask [the mom] what she did with those kids. The family recently moved in from New Jersey & had previously lived in New York City. Brother Walburger worked for a bank on Wall Street when Sept. 11 happened & they lived only 4 blocks from the towers. Soon after, they moved to New Jersey & he had to commute to work. But he decided to change jobs & move to Connecticut & is very glad he did because of the financial crisis I hear so much about.

Elder Udy [in her mission] is from Washington State somewhere. I'm not sure exactly where. I wonder if there is any relation to the Idaho Udys. Speaking of relations, there is a family in the Bloomfield Ward that traces its roots back to the early days of Connecticut who we might be related to. The name is on the list [Mom] sent me, but I can't remember which one it is! They own the original house & farm that their (& our) ancestors had. Sister Rail from the office knows them & is going to introduce them to me when we get the chance. How exciting is that?!

Holly sent me pictures of the little Durfs in their Halloween costumes. I don't think they could get any cuter! I'm sad I'm missing time with them & the rest of the family, but there will be time after the mission. Maybe everyone needs a friendly reminder that they have a poor, tired sister on a mission who doesn't get much mail from family! I want to know what's going on in everyones lives. Even if you haven't written me yet, I still love you . . . for now! Just kidding! Thanks for being so wonderful!

We just keep plugging along!

From Oct 27, 2008, email: There was a pretty good wind/rain storm this weekend. Today has been pretty warm, but maybe that's the calm before the storm.

In regard to our investigator, "King Arthur," he decided that he liked his beer, tobacco & women too much to be baptized right now. He knows that HE needs to have the desire to change. I'm glad that he didn't just jump into being baptized & then not live up to his commitments he would make. There have been so many new members fall away & I don't want that to happen with him. But he did come to church yesterday & seemed to enjoy it. I was a bit anxious about it because that was my first investigator at church & I wondered how he would behave.

Saturday night we were doing some former-investigator stop-bys to see if they were interested in seeing the missionaries again. We stopped by one in Collinsville & were very surprised that she welcomed us right in. It just so happens that she was already a member & the Elders that were there previously didn't figure that out. She was baptized when she was about 12 & had lived next to the Sisters in Goshen back in the day. But she has had a horrible life these past few years & to top it off, she has terminal cancer. She just wants to die & wonders why she is still here. I couldn't hold back my tears as she described the pain she has gone through physically, mentally & emotionally. We shared a little thought with her & also our testimonies, which brightened her up a bit. She even agreed to come to church next week. Hopefully that goes through! She's such a special woman.

Friday night Elder & Sister Carr took some of us missionaries to the infamous TSB--Torrington Super Buffet. YUMMY! It's the best Chinese Buffet I've been to. Sister Haueter, along with AP Elder Udy & Office Elder Sheffet, downed a little octopus. YUCK! I could never do that. This evening out was our payment for helping Elder Carr with some office work. The other AP & OE are leaving this transfer so this was their first & last hurrah at TSB. Their companions just HAD to come along.

Well, that's about the excitingness of the week. We just keep plugging along at the work. No matter how many times we get told that people are "all set"--Catholic--we still keep going. There are people out there who have been prepared to hear the message of the Restoration. We have to find that needle in a haystack. But we will do it . . . with God, anything is possible!

Canton District: back row, Kanaga, Christensen, Kirkham, Aplanalp. Front, Darrington, Haueter.