Goodness

Hello.

 

I got more time to email this week!  Suprise.  Sister Low, my new companion and trainer didn't have time to email because of transfer meeting, so she needs to email her family and I get to email you again.  You should be super excited.

 

Well yesterday, which seems like 10 years ago, they took us from the MTC to the mission home.  It was about a 45 minute drive, and I have no idea what direction.  There we met the AP, and Sister Preston fed us breakfast and lunch.  Which was good.  We spent the time alternatively introducing ourselves, learning how to be a Christlike Missionary, and meeting with President Preston. I already love the Prestons.  Just thinking about them makes me want to cry, because I miss them, haha.  President is so happy, he always has a smile on his face.  He said he doesn't discipline, he just doesn't like it when people make him sad.  Because most of the time he is happy.  I loved the mission home and felt so much more comfortable there than at the MTC.

 

We then went to a Stake Center where they assigned us our trainers.  They brought all the new missionaries and all the trainers together, and just started calling us out.  It was crazy.  They usually don't have nearly as many missionaries come in as with our group (there was 15 of us), so it was quite exciting, and they even opened a new area!  So they were all excited about that.  Also in mission news, there is now sisters on the Isle of Man, which everyone is buzzing about.  I guess they whitewashed that area, and now all the sisters hope they will have a chance to serve there.

 

Elder Sorensen is a legend around here.  Therefore I have made a lot of friends, haha.

 

My trainer is Sister Low.  She is from Murray Utah, and came out last year the same transfer as me.  She has already trained one missionary, so she knows what she is doing.  They have changed the curriculum for training, so we'll have like mini MTC everyday for one hour.  So we have an extra hour of companionship study now.  We are assigned to labor in Stafford, which is the most southern of the sister areas.  Apparently there have been sisters in this area for like 3 years, and President Preston seems to want to keep on the tradition.  My flat address is:

 

Flat 2 New Garden House

New Garden Street

Stafford STAFFS

ST17 4DC

 

We made our way via train, which was quite the exciting experience.  I had a lot of luggage, and the train had an electrical problem, so we had to stop in Stoke.  We were stranded there for a while, until a nice member couple, the Hills came to pick us up.  Then we went to the apartment and started out tracting.

 

Missionary work is not all its cracked up to be.  My dear friends that are Elders only email home about the exciting bits.  Or they make it more exciting.  The first hour I watched Sister Low as she tried to chase down every person in Stafford.  She is much braver than me.  We had an appointment scheduled, but they were a no show, so we went tracting in a little street called Surrey Road.  It reminded me a lot of Private Drive, so that made things a bit better.  Except I was afraid my soul would get sucked out of my body by Dementors.

 

We only really talked to one person and he was Atheist.  I feel like I can relate to people fairly well, and he was fine talking to me, but didn't want to hear about the gospel.  And the gospel is kind of the thing we are supposed to be talking about.  We ran to the bus, which we missed, so we had to walk all the way across town back home.

 

Last night sometime during the evening I thought Sister Low told me to get up, so I got out of bed and started praying, only to realize she was still asleep, and it was probably only about midnight.  I didn't sleep so hot last night, needless to say.

 

This morning we had a lesson scheduled with someone named Ann Marie. They met her out tracting last week.  She lives in Darrington, which is a ways outside of Stafford.  So we rode the bus, and I had a pleasent conversation with a lady who is CofA.

 

Ann Marie is so lonely, and can't get out because she hurt her foot.  She is like 52 or something.  She was so excited to see us and to "moan" to us about all her problems.  We taught her the first lesson, and I'm not sure that anything sank in.  She did accept a date to be baptized on the 24, providing it is in the morning, because her 60s night is that evening.  She wants to come to church really bad, mostly to meet new people, and she did pray.  She prayed and blessed us over and over.  It was very sweet.

 

We went tracting in Darrington, and they don't have numbers on their houses.  Their houses are named.  So that is cool.  Except no one wanted to listen to us.  Blarg.  If they knew what they were missing.

 

On the bus ride back I talked to a 17 year old named Luke.  He was entertained because I am American.  We had a good conversation about bands... which is not what I'm here to talk about :P  But I figure, I did tell him why I was here, and so maybe he will have a good impression of the church?  IDK.  I gave him a passalong card.

 

And now I'm writing all of you.  I'm not sure how I am going to do this for a year and a half.  The exciting parts must be really exciting since everyone loves their mission so much.  It is definitely already been a refiners fire for me anyway.  Just need to be molded a bit more everyday.

 

I love you all so much, and I would love to hear from you all.... soon!

 

My best,

 

Jasmine