Week 17

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

My week has been pretty good. Just adjusting to a new companion really. She has been out for a while so she likes to do things her way, but she is good at what she does so I don't know why I am always so quick to fight it. I don't know if I said this before, but sister Barker is a sleepwalker and talker. It is soooo funny. She is crazy! She gets up in the middle of the night and will jump on the bed and scream and run around. She is not a mumbler either. She will speak so clearly! Its weird. I really gotta get a video sometime. 

I met some really cool people this week!! On Monday night we found this lady who is Jewish and lived through the Holocaust. Tons of her family died in the concentration camps. Her grandpa was the strongest man in the world! Look him up, I'm pretty sure he is called the mighty atom. She had all these bent iron bars that he would bend over his head and wrap around his arm. Crazy!

Also got to go to a members house for thanksgiving and it was awesome! Her family is super musically talented and most of them are performers. So we all ate outside and they put on a little concert. I could've stayed forever! They were amazing!! 

When I went to go see Donna this week I was so nervous. I had no idea how I was going to tell her that she is too sick to be baptized. But then after talking for a bit, her sister walked in! I had never met her. but the only thing I had ever heard was that she was super against Donna being baptized. But then I was able to talk to the both of them about temples, and how those who are not able to be baptized for themselves can be baptized in the temple. Her sister was so nice and gave me her number so that I could contact her if there is any news on what we can do to get Donna baptized. And Donna asked me if I would go and do her work in the temple. It was so so special. I still cant even believe that that all happened. 

Had a wonderful visit with my pal Chuck. We invited him to walk around the temple with us. So he came and we were able to read the Living Christ with him and answer his questions, talk about his concerns. And then we just walked around and took lots of pictures! He is the sweetest! I want to print off all the pictures I got of him and put them in a little book for him to keep. He keeps saying that he needs a break from the lds church. But he comes to church every time I invite him and he almost always meets us when we ask him. So we will just keep seeing him :)

I finally got my tiwi card! So I can drive now. Because my comp is the sister training leader, she goes on exchanges with all the other sisters, so then other sisters come and stay with me for the day. We do this like once a week. So its nice to be able to drive because I am the one who actually knows the area. And we drive like the nicest car which is fun. We still have the Malibu ;)

Gave a talk yesterday in church. They gave me no direction or time frame. but I think it was fine. I talked about being a disciple of Christ and how we can become more Christlike by not only changing our behavior but by ultimately changing our nature. That as missionaries and disciples of Christ, we stand as a witness of Him and that we must strive to be constantly converted to Him. 

I hope that you are all doing well!    

love you all

Sister Grant    

Week 16

Hey everyone! Hope you're all doing well. 

This week has been madness! Been keeping super busy. So transfers were on Tuesday! Sister Barker and her last comp came in a day early because they were in the Gila valley and are still training so I got to meet her early! It was sad I didn't get to go to the transfer sight and say my goodbyes but all is well. Sister Barker is so sweet, very motivated and obedient. One of the most dedicated missionaries in the mission. It's awesome, it'll just take some adjusting on my part.. lol! 

Man we sure went straight to work on Tuesday. Sometimes I feel like she is the energizer bunny of missionaries, and there is no off switch haha! I almost feel bad because this whole time I'm thinking I really enjoy being a missionary and that I work pretty hard.. nope. Sister Barker makes me look like a disobedient slacker hahaha! But I think this will be good. Whip me into shape with a smile. 

I will say, taking over the area has been a bit stressful. I know the area I know the people, I know the needs of the people we are working with but right before transfers there have been a few people to drop some bombs for news and I feel like it all kinda fell on my head. Sister Barker goes home in February, so she is a well seasoned missionary but I feel like it's more about knowing these people, so I've had to call sister Gadd a few times to ask for help because Sister Barker doesn't know these people yet.. 

I was so excited because we got Donna to church yesterday! It was pretty hectic, but she was able to come for sacrament. Some members of the ward went to go pick her up. I am so glad that she came this week because it was the primary program! She loved it, and Chuck came too! He said that it was the best Sunday service he'd ever been to. Then after sacrament, Donna was feeling sick so we went with the members to take her back... oh gosh it was so bad! She was mumbling and we couldn't understand her. Then she just threw up everywhere! All over herself, I felt sooooo bad. But she just wasn't there. She is really digressing. I talked to president and he said she isn't cleared to be baptized. I'm sooo sad. I think her time is coming soon. It's been hard to watch her wither away. But we got her to church.. 

This week has just been super busy trying to catch sister Barker up on everything. But it's been really cool to see how much I've progressed. In my personal study I've been reading an article on becoming a consecrated missionary. It's really opened my eyes on what it means to become. I know I'm not a bad missionary, but there are just so many things I want to be better at.  I just have to take it one step at a time, one thing at a time and as long as I am striving to become better and more consecrated, the Lord will make up for the list of things I still need to improve on. 

I'm still trudging along, just trying to remember to smile. 

Love you all! 

Sister Grant

Week 15

Well my 12 weeks of training have come to a close. I am super excited to take over my area tomorrow! My new comps name is Sister Barker, and she comes in tonight! So we are going straight to work in the morning. 

This week was really good! Other than the fact that I broke my finger last week. Like, as soon as I sent my emails I got up to go play a game with everyone else and I was out just like that haha. We were playing a game called 3 hit kill, it's a juggling game with a soccer ball and Sister Gadd through the ball at me and when I went to catch it, it jammed my finger. Then of course later in the day I totally fell on my face and landed on my finger, so I am sure that's what did the job. But I'm in a splint for a while and I'm sure it'll be good as new in no time.

This week was awesome though because we saw so much progress! We got to go see Donna! She isn't doing too well and her speech is getting really bad. But she is so excited about the baptism date we just set with her! She committed to stop smoking and live all of the word of wisdom! We also got to go see Rachel and we set a date with her to go to the temple! I am so excited because I get to go with her to do baptisms. Also, I love going to Rachel's because her kids are hysterical. 

We were super busy this week, we set a ton of temple dates with people. And I don't have a ton of time to write. But it was a good way to end the transfer.  

Hope everyone is doing well!

Sister Grant 

Week 14

This week was long and short at the same time. It was really weird. But honestly I'm so excited for transfers! Sister Gadd and I are friends, but we seem to be getting on each other's nerves.  It's just hard to be glued at the hip with someone 24-7 for like 3 months. 

Even though we sometimes struggle things are going very well. My district is pretty great and we have lots of fun. My investigators are awesome! Chuck is my favorite person in the world! He is 88 and we are going to invite him to be baptized pretty soon. We have to keep teaching the plan of salvation over and over because he always forgets. But he is such a hoot 🤣 He always calls me little Grant and says he would join the church as soon as I am the bishop hahaha! He comes to church and everyone in the ward loves him!

Sadly our other investigator Donna (the old woman with ms) is in the hospital. She has fallen everyday for like 2 weeks and the last time was pretty bad. Once she is out of the hospital they are going to move her to a nursing home where they can take better care of her. So I'm happy she will be getting the care she needs. But it also means she will be out of my area. So I'll have to pass her on. But lucky for the missionaries who get her! We set a baptism date with her this week. 

Our zone focus is on getting people to the temple. So we have been setting temple dates with everyone this week. I am excited because everyone is accepting it very well! I can't wait to be able to go to the temple with them! 

This Sunday was pretty cool, it was regional conference. I've never actually had a regional conference before. We met as a stake and heard from our stake president. Then we watched a broadcast from Salt Lake. Elder Christofferson spoke which was pretty good. Honestly I don't remember what he even talked about. I was practicing sign language the whole time... 

Not a whole lot to talk about this week, and not a whole lot of pictures. To be honest, the most interesting thing about this week is that sister Gadd and I are trying this new thing. We got this new spray deodorant, but it's like all natural, no anti perspirant. And we got this special detoxing clay that is supposed to be really good for your skin.. we'll have to see how well it works, but it's supposed to be way better for you than regular deodorant. One of the ladies we are teaching was telling us all about it. So if it works I eventually won't have to really put anything other than the little spray and I won't smell at all. But for now I'm pretty sure I smell so bad hahaha! 

Hope everyone else had a good week! 

Sister Grant