Sorry if these seem kinda choppy at times. I try and edit out most names for people's privacy. (Don't know if that is necessary, but I figured I would do it.) So if things sound kinda funny, it's probably me. Thanks, Pauline
Hello Family,
So my letter is coming later than usual today because when we came to the library this morning there was a two and a half hour wait. So we decided to reserve the computers for right before we had to go back out and work. :D So here we are!!
So this Saturday was a baptism. Its hard to type how she talks but she is a cute little black girl. 21. Born and raised in the ghetto... She has a huge personality and a huge testimony so she just loves to steal the show during church. Its refreshing to have her most of the time at church because she's not what you usually expect. She says "O yea" "YEA" and "O I'M SORRY" all the time during the lessons randomly. She gets to the church and we show her the font and she says "WOW... THAT'S SEXY" haha. Then after our ward mission leader baptizes her she turns around and says "can you shut the doors? Travis and I are going to go for a swim!" HAHAH. Then during her testimony she just kept saying "wow... isn't that beautiful? and "you know wha I meeeeean?" . She is so amazing. Im so glad that she now has the gospel to lean on.
So ... good news everyone.. Trader Joe's was a hit. That was our pday activity last week and IT WAS AMAAAAZING!! They actually have reasonable prices. I bought 14 things and only 4 of those things were more than 2.00 AHHHH... I almost had a heart attack right there in the aisle (?). 19 CENT BANANAS!! can you believe it? O mom you would be proud to know I am now a big banana eater. O they are fantastic.. sadly though I have also become a big oreo eater... missions do weird things to you. I have never liked oreos but now i cant eat enough of them!
So another funny thing that happened this week was we went out to lunch with our April baptismal date... and we told her she could choose the place, so she told us and we told her we would meet her there... so we walk in the place. Its called "the taste of seafood"... and its packed first of all but when we walk in two blond very white girls in dresses and clunky shoes... the whole place pretty much turned around and jaws dropped. We were for sure the only white people to have ever eaten there. haha.. but we just walked in... dooo do doo.. ordered some fish and chips with some mac and cheese and proceeded to eat. We asked around for opinions on what we should eat first. It was funny to see people's reactions when we would walk up and talk to them but then they would just be super nice and give their favorite dishes. It was so fun. We asked our investigator if she was ashamed to be with the only white people in the place and she just laughed and said... no one cares. And really they didn't. I love Harlem!!
Well the amazing investigator's baptism is this Saturday. I think he should marry one of my roomies. Hes totally going to be at least a stake president. We just told him that he still had the chance to go on a mission and he was so excited/scared!!!
This week has been a very interesting week actually. We had an amazing district meeting where we talked about exactly what I needed to hear. I didn't even know that's what I needed to hear so good thing my district leader man is so inspired. (His name is Elder Raymond by the way. He wants to play football for BYU.. so if he ends up doing it I just wanted to say his name in my letter for proof that I actually knew him. haha.) Anyways we talked about those times where we felt the worst. Like the times when we "disappointed" our parents and we got the "i expected more from you" talk. And how heartbreaking it is to hear that. Sorry mom and dad btw for all the times I did that. But we paralleled it to our Heavenly Father and how badly we as missionaries need to strive to never let Him say He expected more from us. You should always do what is expected of you. Then it is up to you to do more then what is expected.
We also talked about how our missions are our greatest opportunities to become who we really want to be (who God wants us to be). Sometimes I get frustrated with whats happening and whats not happening and I ask myself... is this really worth it? Is this what I want. And then I realized that this really is what I want. I asked Heavenly Father to help me become more charitable, more patient, more Christ like over all and its not just going to happen at the snap of my fingers, it will happen over time as I work hard and rely on God. That sounded a lot less cool then I wanted it to but just know that I am understanding how God works more and more everyday. We have to have a good attitude about things, do our best and then leave the rest to Him. That's how things get done. God will always guide our path in the right direction, we just have to be willing to keep moving our feet, no matter how hard it is.
We get to go to the temple with our ward to help them do baptisms this Friday. Which is very rare. But because the ward asked us to go because they needed endowed sisters we got permission to go !!! YAYA! We get to see one of our converts go to the temple for the first time. Its going to fantastic.
Keep the mail coming friends and family!
ok well I gotta go,
I love you all to the moon and back
Sis Kaitlyn Wadsworth
ps tell linsey cahoon to go to byu so she can be my roomie when I get back and then she can help me with my hw :D:D
when does kenton leave? did he leave already? because justin from work is in the mtc right now!!
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
So on to some good stories. I had so much I wanted to say these last two weeks that I didn't get to. So I fell down some stairs in the projects last week, my companion got smashed by some subway doors, I trip alll the time, o man ... its all just so funny. Here we are trying to be dignified representatives of the Lord but because we are so tired we are just clumsy and silly looking haha. I love it.
I am so excited!! We have a baptism this Saturday. She is so excited! She is helping us teach her best friend and she is so cute when she talks about the gospel. We told her friend about the Restoration and Joseph Smith and our sister that is getting baptized commented after we told Joseph's First Vision and she was like "OOO man thats sexy" hahaha. O I bet Joseph was up in heaven laguhing saying man I have never heard that one before. Really though she was so cute just testifying in her own way that she knew that it was true to her friend. So sweet. She also said she wants to go to BYU now because we talk about it so much. She is just too cute for life.
Another investigator is set on his baptism on the 28th. I can't even tell you how excited I am. It was so cool to have sis Stirling back for a couple of days so we got to meet with him like good ole times. He took her departure pretty hard but he is doing good now. It was so exciting to talk to him about what is going to happen and who will do what. He has his Mormon friends from Provo and Texas all coming. One of his new little buddies will be baptising him. He asked me to give a talk. eekkks. haha. He really is so amazing. It has been such a blessing to be part of his conversion. I have no doubt in my mind that he will be a strong member for the rest of his life. I know he will be married in the temple and prob be a mission president one day. haha. Its very humbling to know that I in a very small way helped him progress towards happiness that will last forever. That I was able to help him live with God again. *SHIVERS* wow.
I got the socks mom. Thank you so much. they are perfect. I unfortunately didn't get my package because the APS forgot to give it to me and so sis stirling is going to get it for me next time she is at the misison office so I don't have to wait over a month for it. I love having hookups :D The mail has been coming slower and slower... I guess everyone is already forgetting about me. hahaha jk. I think its God's way of making sure I am really relying on Him 100% not my letters. jk.
So I don't know if anyone got to read the story in the Ensign this week called Learning to Share the Gospel but you really should read it. Its such an amazing talk. It has helped me a lot this week to continue to talk to everyone I can, even when I am tired because it talked about how when we are diligent in anything like talking to everyone we can God will see that and then trust us with more opportunities to share the gospel. So if he sees us working hard... we will find the people that we deserve to have but if we are not working hard... we wont find anyone in our sporadic efforts. We must be consistent in our service to the Lord. Don't' just do it when it is convenient.
I really would love some more pictures from everyone. I miss all your faces. Especially Janson pictures. I love the ones I have but more would be fabulous.
I got to work yesterday with sis stirling's new comp. She is in the spanish program and so she has been helping with my spanish. I have been having the strange desire lately to read from the spanish book of mormon and to work on praying in spanish. Just kinda as a fun challenge for me. We work with a lot of bilingual people and so I think it would be cool to be able to talk to them in their native language even if only a few lines or so. She said she was impressed with how much I already knew and that I just needed to work on learning Gospel associated words! yay! So that's a new development.
I just wanted to take this little extra time I have to tell everyone who reads this how much our Heavenly Father, God Himself, loves you. I am so grateful for the opportunity I have had to in a small way see everyone as God sees them. There are so many lost and confused people in the world. I sometimes wonder how God could love the man who just yelled profanity at me because he thought Mormons worshipped Joseph Smith. But then I see that God loves him too because he is one of his children. No matter how far we wander he always loves us and always wants us to be happy. He always provides a way for us to come back to him, no matter how lost we are. That is through Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Christ suffered all for us so that any imperfections we have that bring us sorrow can be erased. Not just covered up, but erased. I doubt I will ever fully understand the Atonement but I know that it is real and that it is beautiful. I know God loves us and that Jesus Christ to loves us. They would do anything for us, even send a scraggly sister missionary, to new york to share her small but firm testimony with a man who likes to yell profanity so that he has the chance to have the same happiness that she already knows. Thank you for all your support as I go about this great and marvelous work.
Ok i am off to trader joes which turns out to be the cheapest grocery store in NEW YORK... who woulda thunk?? haha
love you so so much.. even to the moon and back,
Love Sis
I am so excited!! We have a baptism this Saturday. She is so excited! She is helping us teach her best friend and she is so cute when she talks about the gospel. We told her friend about the Restoration and Joseph Smith and our sister that is getting baptized commented after we told Joseph's First Vision and she was like "OOO man thats sexy" hahaha. O I bet Joseph was up in heaven laguhing saying man I have never heard that one before. Really though she was so cute just testifying in her own way that she knew that it was true to her friend. So sweet. She also said she wants to go to BYU now because we talk about it so much. She is just too cute for life.
Another investigator is set on his baptism on the 28th. I can't even tell you how excited I am. It was so cool to have sis Stirling back for a couple of days so we got to meet with him like good ole times. He took her departure pretty hard but he is doing good now. It was so exciting to talk to him about what is going to happen and who will do what. He has his Mormon friends from Provo and Texas all coming. One of his new little buddies will be baptising him. He asked me to give a talk. eekkks. haha. He really is so amazing. It has been such a blessing to be part of his conversion. I have no doubt in my mind that he will be a strong member for the rest of his life. I know he will be married in the temple and prob be a mission president one day. haha. Its very humbling to know that I in a very small way helped him progress towards happiness that will last forever. That I was able to help him live with God again. *SHIVERS* wow.
I got the socks mom. Thank you so much. they are perfect. I unfortunately didn't get my package because the APS forgot to give it to me and so sis stirling is going to get it for me next time she is at the misison office so I don't have to wait over a month for it. I love having hookups :D The mail has been coming slower and slower... I guess everyone is already forgetting about me. hahaha jk. I think its God's way of making sure I am really relying on Him 100% not my letters. jk.
So I don't know if anyone got to read the story in the Ensign this week called Learning to Share the Gospel but you really should read it. Its such an amazing talk. It has helped me a lot this week to continue to talk to everyone I can, even when I am tired because it talked about how when we are diligent in anything like talking to everyone we can God will see that and then trust us with more opportunities to share the gospel. So if he sees us working hard... we will find the people that we deserve to have but if we are not working hard... we wont find anyone in our sporadic efforts. We must be consistent in our service to the Lord. Don't' just do it when it is convenient.
I really would love some more pictures from everyone. I miss all your faces. Especially Janson pictures. I love the ones I have but more would be fabulous.
I got to work yesterday with sis stirling's new comp. She is in the spanish program and so she has been helping with my spanish. I have been having the strange desire lately to read from the spanish book of mormon and to work on praying in spanish. Just kinda as a fun challenge for me. We work with a lot of bilingual people and so I think it would be cool to be able to talk to them in their native language even if only a few lines or so. She said she was impressed with how much I already knew and that I just needed to work on learning Gospel associated words! yay! So that's a new development.
I just wanted to take this little extra time I have to tell everyone who reads this how much our Heavenly Father, God Himself, loves you. I am so grateful for the opportunity I have had to in a small way see everyone as God sees them. There are so many lost and confused people in the world. I sometimes wonder how God could love the man who just yelled profanity at me because he thought Mormons worshipped Joseph Smith. But then I see that God loves him too because he is one of his children. No matter how far we wander he always loves us and always wants us to be happy. He always provides a way for us to come back to him, no matter how lost we are. That is through Jesus Christ and His Atonement. Christ suffered all for us so that any imperfections we have that bring us sorrow can be erased. Not just covered up, but erased. I doubt I will ever fully understand the Atonement but I know that it is real and that it is beautiful. I know God loves us and that Jesus Christ to loves us. They would do anything for us, even send a scraggly sister missionary, to new york to share her small but firm testimony with a man who likes to yell profanity so that he has the chance to have the same happiness that she already knows. Thank you for all your support as I go about this great and marvelous work.
Ok i am off to trader joes which turns out to be the cheapest grocery store in NEW YORK... who woulda thunk?? haha
love you so so much.. even to the moon and back,
Love Sis
Thursday, March 5, 2009
AHHH CRAZYNESS
Ok family sadly this will be the shortest letter ever because I have to share my small amount of time with my new companion. YEA CRAZY HUH??
OK sooo.... we were sure neither of us would get transferred because we were both new to the area and my comp is leaving next cycle and I am a greenie... so transfer call day comes around and sis stirling got called to be a zion companionship (never done before with sisters that's how amazing she is). That means she travels around and trains people. No area assigned to her and her new comp. So that meant I had to take over the area!! AHHHH SO CRAZY!!! My comp is obviously still the senior comp but now I have to lead her around and have been asked to take care of all our amazing investigators. I was so shocked and still am but after talking to the APs and the president they reassured me that they know I can do it. AHHHH !! SO CRAZY! I was so sad to see her leave but I know I will survive!
So some random things for this week:
We challenged one investigator to decide about baptism and yesterday he told us ... I'm so close sisters I know it!! ahhhh so happy!
Our other investigator took us to Spanish Harlem to get our nails done. hahaha. She wanted us to get really long ones like hers but that was not happening!!! I don't even know how to tell you they were like swirly and sparkly!!! so ghettto fab. Loved it!
So it has been so cold lately so much snow and cold wind. One especially wet day I realized my feet were sooo amazingly cold that I didn't understand so we went to the Church and I took my "water proof boots" off to find all 3 pairs of socks soaked through!! ahh so we went to a close by member's house and blow dried my feet warm and then put plastic bags over my socks... too funny because later we were asked to take our shoes off at an appointment. Boy did they get a surprise. You really have no shame as a missionary... i might as well have worn the grocery bags on the outside. HAHAH
love you alll to the moon and back.
Siswa
OK sooo.... we were sure neither of us would get transferred because we were both new to the area and my comp is leaving next cycle and I am a greenie... so transfer call day comes around and sis stirling got called to be a zion companionship (never done before with sisters that's how amazing she is). That means she travels around and trains people. No area assigned to her and her new comp. So that meant I had to take over the area!! AHHHH SO CRAZY!!! My comp is obviously still the senior comp but now I have to lead her around and have been asked to take care of all our amazing investigators. I was so shocked and still am but after talking to the APs and the president they reassured me that they know I can do it. AHHHH !! SO CRAZY! I was so sad to see her leave but I know I will survive!
So some random things for this week:
We challenged one investigator to decide about baptism and yesterday he told us ... I'm so close sisters I know it!! ahhhh so happy!
Our other investigator took us to Spanish Harlem to get our nails done. hahaha. She wanted us to get really long ones like hers but that was not happening!!! I don't even know how to tell you they were like swirly and sparkly!!! so ghettto fab. Loved it!
So it has been so cold lately so much snow and cold wind. One especially wet day I realized my feet were sooo amazingly cold that I didn't understand so we went to the Church and I took my "water proof boots" off to find all 3 pairs of socks soaked through!! ahh so we went to a close by member's house and blow dried my feet warm and then put plastic bags over my socks... too funny because later we were asked to take our shoes off at an appointment. Boy did they get a surprise. You really have no shame as a missionary... i might as well have worn the grocery bags on the outside. HAHAH
love you alll to the moon and back.
Siswa
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