FAMILY!!
I am in the Visitor's
Center in Oakland on my first P-Day in the field writing you an email! Crazy!
Obviously there is a lot to tell you.
First, I had to wake
up at 3 am- 3! To get on a bus at 5 to go to the Salt Lake City airport. It was
dark and cold, and when we got there, I pinched my finger in my luggage so bad
it was bleeding everywhere with little blood blisters. Sorry, that's probably
gross...but I thought what a terrible start. But I was so wrong! One of our
elders in our travel group (13 of us total going to our missionthat day) had a
mom who works at Delta. She paid for all our bags, overweight or not. Then she
told us they had breakfast waiting for us at the gate. WHAT?! We were basically
treated like rockstars. Then her and her coworkers lent us their cell phones to
call our families so we didn't have to pay! I called mom and dad. Then they
pulled out Halloween candy, cheezits, caramel corn, etc to make ourselves large
treat bags to take with us. I have never been so impressed with Delta haha.
Also in the airport, we talked to a couple from Arizona who had tons of Mormon
friends, but said they didn't really want missionaries. A man came up to Sister
Olsen and I and said he shed tears just standing next to us because he thought
of his daughter who is 19 and putting in her papers, he said he texted her to
let her know he was standing next to sister missionaries :). The elder I rode with
on the plane was one of many of the elders going with us who are Tongan. Let's
just say he took up his seat, AND half of my seat.
We all came down the
runway in Oakland airport to see President Meredith and his wife
smiling and waiting for us. They are some of the kindest people I have ever
met. Apparently the last president had to clean up the mission and send several
missionaries home and he was a lot stricter with rules and obedience. President
Meredith is very patient and kind. Someone said he is like a cool grandpa.
Their story is so interesting. He never served a mission due to military (air
force), and they wanted to serve after seeing their kids go. They were in
Richmond, VA for only 4 months when Elder Nelson happened to go to their
mission conference, instead of the next state over for his original plans.
Elder Nelson knew that the supposed-to-be-new Oakland/San Francisco
mission president's wife was too ill to fill the calling, so he was looking for
new one. President Meredith said he wouldn't stop looking at them
almost the whole conference. Later they got a call from Elder Holland and were
asked to fill the calling. They were given much shorter notice than most
mission presidents are, but they accepted. On the first day, we took care of paper
work, a quick interview, a buffet (where sister olsen and I tried chicken feet
because the Asian sister told us it would give us good skin haha), a temple
walk around the Oakland temple, a quick tour throught the visitor's center, a
talk standing on top of the temple overlooking San Francsico and the whole
mission (I will send a picture), and then HOMEMADE chili/chips/cheese and pie.
I was so spoiled allll day. The area is absolutely beautiful though.
That night, I got
assigned my first companion/trainer- Hermana Hewett! I say Hermana, because she
actually speaks spanish and just served in the spanish areas. Her tag still
says Hermana too. I will talk more about Spanish later...but she is so
welcoming to me, and we are getting along great. She is actually a convert of
only a year and a half, and she left behind a job in China and dumped her
boyfriend because she got an answer to go on a mission. She is from North
Carolina, and we are both blonde haired blue eyed and serving in the English
speaking Walnut Creek area!
Walnut Creek is in the
Oakland zone, and is very warm in the day and very cold at night. We are
staying with a family called the Greaves, who are from South Africa, and they
joined the church only two years ago in the States, but they knew when they
moved in, they wanted to build a place for the sister missionaries to live. So
we live with members who are so kind and have cool accents and adorable
children! They also have two cats! I couldn't have asked for a better living
situation, especially after hearing about the scary apartments the other
missionaries live in. Our apartment is actually really cute. We had Mongolian
sisters live there before us, so they left a TON of blankets and clothes we had
to go through, not to mention random mongolian books that are hilarious.
We have been talking
to a few people who speak mostly spanish, so Hermana is trying to teach me some
things, like basic testimony phrases. We also are teaching a mongolian couple,
so that language barrier is tricky, and we are giving them mongolian pamphlets
and Book of Mormon. Already we have seen such diversity. Why did I only get
trained in English?! A language would have been very helpful. Also, they rotate
the missionaries here no matter what language, so I have heard that I could
very much go into a Spanish area . And just like my trainer, Spanish go
English, etc. Also, my companion said she did not get called to the Visitor's
Center, but she served there anyways for her first transfer. She said all the
sisters must work there during Christmas because it is always full and busy, so
I will definitely have to work there sometime, which I am very excited about. I
wish I would have gotten better training for it in the MTC though, you get a
whole week of Visitor's Center/Tour guide training. Also, currently only
spanish and chinese sisters are in san francisco, no english. I really hope to
get to work there anyways though.
Our ward is the BEST I
could have asked for. We have had members tell us they love missionary work and
WANT to come with us. They call US and approach US. They really are so pumped
about missionary work! We talked to our bishop, and he told us a small reason
why. The last bishop was only 42 and died of a heart attack on a scout hiking
trip this summer. His first counselor is our bishop now and he is no older than
30 probably. He said there is a "rawness" about the ward right now,
and he said he had felt a stirring inside that something big was about to
happen in the ward, and that when us sisters came over to his house, he felt
that stirring again! We actually were going to make contact to a referral from
the VC (Visitor's Center) when this shiny black Prius pulls up with a young guy
who reminds me of a mix between Hugh Dancy and Mark Zuckerburg from the social
network, straight skinny pants, stylish sunglasses and he calls out
"sisters!". We were just shocked and said "biiiishop?"
We went to his house later for dinner where they fed us pizza and told us
about five names of people to see (all in the ward, less actives/focus
families, but he has a friend we are seeing as well). The next day in church we
had to bear our testimony about 3 times and afterwards, Bishop Oyler announced
to the combined Sunday School he had full trust in us and told us to refer
their friends to us. MTC told us different ways to build that trust up, but its
already so easy actually, because the members are ready and willing to talk to
their friends! Everyone is also excited because they can pronounce our names
unlike the mongolian sisters before us haha. A very dynamite, put together
ward. They have a HUGE Halloween party/chili cook off this Saturday, where they
said it is so well organized and attended, that out of 300 people that go, 20%
are usually nonmembers from the neighborhood-- perfect for us to set up a
welcoming booth with displays, a video playing, pamplets, mormon.org cards, etc We are so excited. Also there is a
photo booth where they are going to have to retrieve their picture online with
a question asking if they want to hear more from the missionaries. The ward has
this thought up already, we just have to come and be the missionaries haha.
Once again, spoiled. Also a lady in our ward teaches like 15 Zumba classes a
week and in the past told us she hosts some IN the church building so the
sisters can have a booth set up in the foyer. Seriously, I have never seen this
much natural missionary spirit in one ward.
However, we still have
empty blocks of time where we tract or try to find people (Sister Hewett is new
to the area as well so both of us don't know where we are going and the area
book is a little messy still). I didn't realize there would be such...awkward
times to try and fill. Hopefully that will pick up though as we are getting to
know people and get new investigators. Usually, the converts around here are
actually found through street contacting though. My first time doing it, we
talked to a guy fixing a show car outside in his driveway. He was very open,
nice, religious, etc. He is not even doing anything right now, he is taking off
of work for a year he said. So since he has time and is looking to do right
things with his life/read scriptures or uplifting things, I gave him a Book of
Mormon, he said he would read it, and we are going to go back this week. It
actually was a Book of Mormon from EFY, so a teenager from Texas had their
notes/testimony in it that I had been wanting to give away. So if my EFY kids,
or Mary Tony reads this (it was one from your kids)- a guy in California has
it! What a cool connection of my life in Texas and now in California.
Our investigators are
great. Annette basically is a member. She is having trouble giving up coffee,
but loves church and we see her just serving and being the last person still
cleaning up at ward activities. Korina loves her husband and kids and wants
them to have good traditions and religion in their life. She is looking for
guidance right now, and when her car broke down in front of the sister
missionaries before us, she saw it as a sign. I invited her to be baptized (on
my third day in the mission!) and she said yes! We are working to get her
baptized Nov 11. Norman Su is married to a member, Mandy, from Salt Lake City.
We are seeing them tonight, but he talked to us in church on Sunday and he
seems very willing and excited to meet with us. Zaya and Peter are our
mongolian couple, they heard the sisters say "Jesus Christ" and they
wanted to know more. They are so sweet and have two little kids, one of which
are the largest cheeks I have ever seen on a baby :).
Sorry this is so long,
there was a lot to tell. But I am well, this area is exciting for missionary
work right now, and the church is true!
Love,
Sister Martin
p.s. enjoy my
pictures finally! pic 1) mom and dad and i at the slc temple, thought they
would like it 2) my mtc comp, sister olsen 3) the sisters in our district 4)
sister coulsen (gwen) and i. she is going to russia, this is also a good
picture of my tag, which is rare because my hair covers it up a lot. i will put
more pics in a separate email.
that last email, i forgot to say that the last
pic was my district, going to oakland/ san fran, san fernando cali, and salt
lake city. these pics are me and our favorite teacher, sister winters! we
seriously loved out mtc teachers. sister loie benson and i were able to be at
the mtc for a week together! the last pic is the sisters in my zone (going to
texas and arizona), we are not really ready for the picture...
also one at the temple, you can see sister dyreng's personality a little.
1)at
the airport, with the table of breakfast and treats! how fun
2) mom, you can give
this pic to sister williams for the ward board, this is me on top of the
oakland temple which overlooks san francisco and oakland mission.
3)President and Sister
Meridith, me, and Sister Hewett
1)a
mongolian language book we found that says "let's make our country
up!"
2) a bearded dragon
lizard (like the ones todd mom and i saw at petco!) that belongs to a family in
the ward and the son really wanted us to hold it. i was smiling right until
sister hewett took the picture he scared me cause he started to crawl up my
arm.
3)it was cold and
rainy today, so we both wore scarves. a close up of sister hewett and i in our
apartment.
4)mom you would be so
proud. i have made my bed every day. also the greaves already had cute matching
bed sets for us.
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