From email of June 15, 2009: I'm glad to hear that we aren't the only ones floating away. It has rained SO hard these past few days that we thought about building an ark. But of course the New England weather is so dynamic that we had rain/fog/sun/hot all in one day. I thought Idaho weather was bad.
This week hasn't been the best. A lot of our appointments have fallen through and things just aren't working out how we'd like. These are the times that missionary work is hard. We go out and talk to people all day long, but get rejected. Most everyone is "all set" and they don't give us the time of day. Some of our investigators aren't progressing along as they should which is frustrating. If I would have known that missionary work was this hard, I probably wouldn't have come. But I know it is for my good. I'm a better person because of it. Plus the joys of seeing someone accept the gospel and enter the waters of baptism overshadow these tough times. It makes it all worth while! I'm also appreciating the little blessings that I'm given each day from Heavenly Father.
Kelsi is leaving this week for Utah to get baptized. Yay! I'm excited for her. She's being a great example to her father and is key to getting hime reactivated. He knows it is true, but just can't make the effort to change. We see that a lot. People believe, but laziness and habit get the best of them. Gloria is doing good, but is as stubborn as ever. We pray for her daily so that she will open up her heart to the gospel. Keep her in your prayers!
Hopefully I'll have lots more to report next week! We're still trudging a long in the rain and the sunshine. We know that the Lord promises us and our families great blessings for our service. That's what keeps us going. These hard times usually mean something good is around the corner!
From June 8, 2009 email: The baptism on Saturday was great! There were over 80 people in attendance there. Most of the ward showed up, along with a few family members on the Steel sid
Other than the baptism, it seemed like everything was falling through this week. We had to reschedule a lot of our appointments and things just didn't work out. It's so frustrating! Here you are working your tail off to get a baptism and everything else falls apart. I know it's the adversary working against us. I don't see it coming to an end anytime soon since we have two more baptisms coming up. But we'll power through it. Just keep us in your prayers!
Gloria took us onto the submarine base this week to do a little grocery shopping. They have a little thing called the Commissary in which is pretty much a giant grocery store. Everything is tax free and a bit cheaper than a regular store. Hmm...Joel, do you have something like that where you're at? She bought us a few things there, which has really helped us out this week. Then we went back to her house for a lesson. We read through 3 Nephi 27 and discussed it. It seems that Gloria needs to open her heart and her mind to the gospel. She tells us every reason why the Book of Mormon/church can't be true, but doesn't plant that seed of faith to see if it really is true. So we'll be working on that this week.
That's the most exciting bit of our week. Things are coming along here in Groton and we're expecting it to pick up even more. I'm so grateful for all of you that sacrifice so I can be out here. It's truly a blessing to you, me, and all of those who accept the gospel here.
From June 1, 2009 email:
Yes, you did hear something about transfers. But Sister Mortimer and I have escaped being transferred again. This is the longest I've ever been with a companion and we are still getting along great! None of the Sisters moved this time around so there will be some big changes next transfer. Earlier today we had a BBQ with the district at Harkness State Park, which is right by the ocean. We had some good food and some good fun! Sister M & I bought $1 kites at Wal-Mart and the Elders had a heck of a time with them. There was a gentle breeze to keep the kites up. It was such a beautiful day!
We had a great lesson with Gloria this week. This was the first time that we were able to sit down and have an actual lesson with her. We read through Alma 32 which talks about planting the seed of faith. She has made such great changes in the past few weeks. We have become such great friends with her, which has broken down a few barriers that had been put up with the Elders. We're expecting great things to happen with her!
Brother Steel (left) is still on for this Saturday. There is going to be a huge crowd there with most of the ward attending. It has been such an amazing blessing to have taught this wonderful family. They have invited us over to lobster dinner sometime this week when their friends from Utah come. Last night we were talking with Bro. Steel before his interview and he said that they were thinking about getting sealed in the Timpanogas temple and wanted us there. That would be super convenient for us!
I love being in Groton! The members here are great and the investigators are solid. This past week I've been thinking a lot about how much I've changed since I came out. My scriptural knowledge has increased ten fold. My confidence has blossomed. I can't ever imagine not serving a mission. It makes you such a better person. I can't believe this will be coming to an end shortly. It has been the greatest experience of my life. Thanks for all that you do! Every letter & email keeps me going. Keep reading the scriptures, praying, and going to the temple! Remember what's most important in life!
Sorry I couldn't get an email off yesterday. I forgot it was Memorial Day! In celebration of it, we roasted marshmallows in the church kitchen and made smores. Yum!
Last Monday, Sister Mortimer and I visited Mystic Seaport. A member's husband works there as a rigger so we got free passes there. It was very cool to learn about the seafaring history of the Northeast. Apparently Mystic/Stonington were big whaling communities. We got to board an old whaling ship that is under construction. I don't see how people could live on those things! Ugh. I could never be a sailor. I took lots of pictures so you all can enjoy it. See below.
Our investigators are doing well & Bro. Steel is still on for the 6th of June. I'm so excited for the family. I wish all families could embrace the gospel so they can be together forever. But sadly, people are blinded by "things" and aren't willing to sacrifice. Sister M.'s dad lives in Pennsylvania and she got the news today that they are combining the two missions in Pennsylvania. Missionary work in New England is slowing down. I wish they would humble themselves! They don't know what they are missing! I feel like Alma when he cried, "O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people! Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth." (Alma 29:1-2) It is super frustrating when people blow off the thing that you hold most dear. But we still keep plugging along as we find those who will embrace it.
Well, we've got to help out at the blood drive at the church. Hope you all have a wonderful week!
From May 18, 2009, email:
At zone conference this week we were told that the mission is downsizing from 120-something missionaries to around 70. We currently have 10 sisters, but our quota is being bumped down to 6. So we'll be seeing a lot of missionaries go home, but not so many coming out. It's pretty sad, but I guess the need is greater elsewhere. Work in the New England area has slowed down over the past few years. Hopefully we can get things going again! Other than that, zone conference was great. We switched back to the usual 9:00-3:00 schedule instead of 8:30-12:00. Zone conferences are so much more productive than before! We talked a lot about our purpose as missionaries (we've hit that REALLY hard) and finding. We're good teachers out here, but I can honestly say that we aren't so good at finding. WE are "breaking the traditions of our fathers" so that we are talking with everyone and having a direct purpose to what we say. Then we heard the testimonies of the departing missionaries. It's crazy how fast time goes by. Two of them expressed their genuine, heartfelt testimonies and their love for the work which almost brought me to tears (big surprise, eh?). Another just seemed to rattle off a script that he'd been practicing for 24 months. You can tell those missionaries who really put their hearts into it. I admire them. I want to be like that when my time is up here.
Investigator Kelsi (right)
From May 11, 2009 email:
It was so wonderful to talk to you all yesterday! I'm glad that everyone is doing great and that I'm not missing out on much. Mom, I'm glad you didn't think the card was cheesy. I sure did when I picked it out. Plus it took me a few tries to get the message right. Now you can get a Happy Mother's Day greeting any day you want!
This week we had some really great lessons with investigators. We also picked up a few new ones this week. I'm surprised how things are falling into place here in Groton. This is truly a blessed area! Yesterday, Sister M & I had a special fast for Ryan. He'll be graduating in a couple of weeks and so we're hoping for a miracle before then! Kelsi is doing great...she loves it every time we go over. I'm used to looking up to other people, so it's a change to have someone look up to me. She wants to follow our example and be who we are. I'm excited for her to be baptized!
We are struggling to get some of our investigators to progress. They just haven't had that turning point in their life to really want to change. They still want things to be easy and they don't want to have to put much effort into it. But I've realized that's not what the Gospel is about. It is about sacrifice. And they aren't willing to do that. Gurrr. We're continuing to pray for them so they will have that desire to truly change.
Gloria took us out for our first "grinders" this week. Apparently a grinder is just a sub sandwich. But oh was it good! It had salami (surprisingly good), provalone cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. Mmmm. Then we walked over to the Sea Swirl ice cream shop for a treat. We had an interesting experience while we were there. While we were sitting down, we heard someone yell, "Hey Sisters!" We turn around and there is this young girl walking towards us toting two kids. She is from California, served a mission to France, and was visiting her aunt & uncle in Stonington. She was super nice, and said that she knew it was sister missionaries because we stick out like a sore thumb. It's crazy that were were there at that exact moment for her to see us. Gloria has been softening her heart to the church and we even figured out her reason for not joining. She doesn't think she can make that commitment. We got through all of her false excusing and got to the root of the problem. She would do wonders if she put her whole heart into it and made that leap of faith. Plus I think she would love the temple. She comes to church almost every week. That's one of the hardest steps to take!
From May 4, 2009 email:
The tulips are just blooming out there? Ours have come and gone. It is SO pretty out here in the springtime! The magnolia trees are in bloom, along with every flower you could ever think of. Most of the trees have leaves on them already. We had a hot streak of weather earlier this week. Our car thermometer got up to 85 degrees. And I got my first sunburn of the season. I needed a little color to me. But now it's been rainy & dreary the past few days. The locals say that this isn't normal weather...it just can't make up its mind!
Monday after Preparation Day we had a lesson with our sweet Kelsi. She was asked to give a talk in Primary, even though she hasn't been baptized yet. And the topic just happened to be baptism. So we taught her about it and helped her with her talk. She is so stinkin' smart! We centered the talk around the 4th Article of Faith. We didn't tell her what to write...she wrote it all herself. Her father, Seth, also helped out. Every once in a while he would stop and say, "oh yeah, I remember that." He's been inactive since he was about 17, but we are seeing great changes in him. We went to Primary on Sunday to watch Kelsi give her talk & she did great! It was her birthday this past week so now she's in Young Womens. She's going to love it!
On Wednesday, Gloria, an eternal investigator, took us out to the infamous Paul's Pasta Shop by the Thames River. Mmmm...that was good! It took us a long time to decide what to get because there were so many good things to choose from. Then she took us down to Avery Point where we could watch the Block Island ferry take off and also see two small lighthouses. I've really grown to love the ocean! Later that night, we tried to commit Ryan to baptism, but he is still hesitant. He hasn't talked to his parents about it yet & he thinks it will be best to do it in person. That won't happen until his graduation, which means he'll be gone after that! He knows that the Church is true & has received answers to his prayers. It's so frustrating to see someone come to the knowledge of the truth and then hold back. We're still working our hardest with him, but there may be other missionaries down the line see him baptized.
Thursday we had a wonderful mission conference. This started out as a training for the leadership, then the addition of the Sisters, and then evolved into a whole mission event. Two members of the Missionary Department in SLC came to train us how to be better missionaries. I absolutely loved it! I think the mission had been focusing too much on numbers rather than individuals. But we learned how to create success in this stubborn, New England area. We were told to remember our purpose: "to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ & His Atonement, repentance, BAPTISM, the gift of the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end." They focused a lot on baptism & how to be more bold in extending those commitments. I'm learning how to come outside of my timid nature & be more bold. Boy is it hard! I got to meet the new Sisters in the mission there. Things have changed so quickly! I'm now the 4th "oldest" in the mission. I'll attach a picture of all the Sisters.
Yesterday we had a great experience. We went over to the Steels and taught a wonderful lesson on reaching your divine potential. Bro. Steel isn't a member, but comes to church with his wife every week. He has taken the missionary lessons before, but said he wasn't ready for anything. But last night, he consented to take the lessons again! This makes Sister Mortimer and I SO happy! We have watched their family over the past few weeks & have so greatly desired that they could be sealed together in the temple. The baptism isn't the important part, it's that sealing power only found in the temple. He is extremely close to baptism, which makes not only us, but Sister Steel so happy! He is a wonderful man and we know that this will do wonders for their little family.
Yesterday was our special missionary fast at church & this is one of the blessings of it! I'm so thankful to be a missionary! It has been tough work, but every minute of it has been worth it. My testimony has grown immensely, as well as my love for others. I'm slowly realizing who my Heavenly Father wants me to become and how I can get there. Love you all! Remember that your Father in Heaven knows each of you. He knows what you are capable of doing and what you can become. So let him lead you along!
