I Love Groton!

From April 27, 2009 email:

Our weather here has been pretty crazy ,too. Two straight days of hard rain and then 80 degree weather yesterday! New England weather is more indecisive than out West!

Last night the mission put on a musical fireside in the Warwick chapel. Wilfreida Shultz, a recent convert, drove us there so we didn't have to use our miles. And we brought along Kelsi, our 11-year-old investigator. I was awestruck at the talent in this mission. There was a choir, solos, quartets, organ & violin music, and much much more! I wish all of you could have been there to feel the Spirit in the room. It was entitled, "The Living Christ" and focused on the divine mission of the Savior. It was so beautiful! Kelsi loved it. After the program she leaned over to me and asked how we become missionaries. I explained simply the process of filling out papers and putting our lives in order. She thought for a second and said, "I want to be a missionary someday." I just about cried and my heart leaped for joy. She is one of the reasons that we Sisters are in Groton. She comes from a rough background, but she is still holding strong. She has been to many other churches with her split-up family, and she feels that something is different in this church. That's why she wants to be a member of it. Her birthday is Wednesday so we're trying to figure out something special we could do for her. I feel so priviledged to be able to teach such a sweet girl!

Saturday morning we did a "service blitz" for the members in which we went around to their homes and practically demanded that we do service. The first lady we went to didn't have anything for us to do right then, but we set up a time on Saturday to restain her deck. Then we went to the Edwards family. He is in the Coast Guard & is gone often. She stays at home and takes care of her two kids, one of which has spina bifida and is in a wheelchair. We swept, mopped, and cleaned up the kitchen because there was no way that she could get around to it at that time. She said the closing prayer in Sacrament meeting on Sunday and the first thing she prayed about was the missionaries. She thanked us for our service & prayed for our success. That really touched me & I had to fight back the tears. I was able to touch someone's life through that service, no matter how small that was. I felt great!

While we were greeting everyone for Sacrament, the Relief Society president gave us hugs and said that was from our mothers. Boy, did that almost make me cry, too! I can't believe how much of a boob I've become. I guess that means I'm becoming a real Sister! :) Then our Relief Society lesson was on "Return to Virtue" by Sister Dalton. That caused me to think back to my life before I was a missionary. You don't realize how much crap you let into your life without noticing. I'm afraid I became desensitized to movies, radio, TV, and the internet. I'm going to choose much wiser when I get home. Keeping our lives free from that mud will help us to be more virtuous.

Most of our investigators are progressing along well. I can't believe the success of this area. I do know that I was prepared for us to get here. I've really found my place here in Groton. I've realized why I'm out here on a mission and what good I can do. Here I've grown to love my mission more than I ever thought I could. I love to see the gospel bring light & life into people's lives. And I've realized that I can't be passive...I always have to be doing good & improving myself. I'm glad that you can see the change in me already. Hopefully you see even greater change in the coming months!