Monday, November 18, 2013

Allergies, Jesus, Funeral, P***, and MIRACLES!

Hello Family!

It's been another great week here in Brownwood, TX! Quite a bit has happened in the past week!

Before I begin-- transfer calls are November 30th, I sent another package home with 2 cd's full of pictures so that should get to you in a while... with the rest of last weeks letter :( I am sad that it didn’t get to you in time before today.... :(

So here is this week!

Tuesday we had Zone conference with San Anglo Zone (I am in the Abaline zone). So we were in San Angelo. Sister Augustin came up to me and said "Hey, yesterday an elder was asking about you" and I said, "Would that Elder happen to be Nater Thompson?" She responded, “Yes, but then she said "I had to think who you were so I asked if you were the one with pretty curly hair?" Nate said....... “No she has thick strait hair....." needless to say they got it figured out!!! My friends never saw natural curly hair :) lol!!!! And I have gone back to straitening it :) lol!!!

I was so spiritually fed at zone conference... The scriptures really are all about missionary work… end of story!!!!!! It was amazing we went though a chapter and dissected how Alma teaches and how we should teach--- it was awesome!!!

Wednesday was a strange, strange day. lol!! We have been working a lot on reactivation and such, so we go over to do service quite frequently! So, we went over to the Dovall’s. Sister Dovall is a member. She is on her 6th marriage and he is not a member :) Anyway, so usually when we go over there, Lynn, the husband, always leaves… but this time, for some reason, he didn't... So we were talking-- then out of the blue, he grabs Sister Dunham’s palm and starts reading it... (IT IS A VERY COMMON THING TO BE JUDGED AS A MISSIONARY, THEY TRY TO GUESS WHAT YOU WERE LIKE WHEN YOU WERE HOME AND WHAT NOT AND HOW WE ARE AS MISSIONARIES) So he is judging us-- he tells Sister Dunham that she is a very reserved person and has a very long life line. (Mind you, I am giving the very condensed version because we were there for nearly 2 hours). Then Sister Clark is the party crazy girl (That is how I would judge her). And here is mine… and he was soooooooo right (And we can safely say I am his favorite :) He said I “have a VERY, VERY long life line. Around the age of 50-60 something dramatic is going to change in my life!  I have a huge, huge heart and a very contagious smile. He said, “your heart-- it so big and you want to help everybody, and when people don't appreciate, or won’t accept your help your heart just aches. Well, don't let that ache drag your smile down because people need your smile. People need it. “It was amazing to have a non-member tell me things that my setting apart blessing had said. He was sooooo right though. I want to help everybody. People here in Brownwood live in very, very humble circumstances. They are broken, broken people. They have little money and the majority of them live in filth. It is sooo sad.

Speaking of living in filth.... I know the bed but (bug) story is everyone’s favorite… so here is an addition to that story. We felt we needed to go back to Brother Elm’s house (the bed bug house)... We haven't been back since that dramatic time! So, we get there and he proceeds to tell us that the exterminator wouldn't come help him because his house was too dirty, and that if he wanted to get it exterminated he would have to clean it and put all of his clothes in bags. Well, he is in a wheelchair so he can't do it. So I march up to him (putting my big girl panties on) and ask, “Well, what needs to be done first?”

We set up an appointment to come back. Friday night we went back with the other sisters and begin working. So this man has lived in his house for 20 years, and I am safely going to say I doubt his house has been vacuumed in 20 years. We took garbage bags and threw soooooooo much stuff away. It was soooo nasty! There were shoes that hadn't been worn in years, so there were webs all over them and nasty, nasty!! Then we had to clean out his drawers... and we found is porn stash :( Broke our hearts. It's so sad to see a member of the church fall into such horrible temptation and be lost in a filthy world :( We didn’t ask permission, but we just scooped and threw everything away. We didn't look-- just got it out of that house.

There were also very strange items in that house. So when we got everything out of the room we moved a dresser, and there were probably 3 inches of dust under that thing... I asked him if he had a vacuum. He said, “No.” So we went to our house to get ours. We had to empty the bag 5 times because it was full.... WE HAVN'T EVEN EMPTIED IT ONCE AT OUR HOUSE. It was very sad.

Moral of the story is… I would like to challenge everybody this week to find a less-active that needs help and help them. Ask them how you can serve. Do something good for somebody! I am very grateful I was raised in a clean home and that I know how to clean.

My poor companions this week :( both of them are EXTREMELY allergic to cats and EVERYBODY IN BROWNWOOD HAS HOARDS OF CATS! So, as we have been serving others they have been dieing. They never once have complained. Their poor eyes get so red and they can't breathe, but they know what needs to be done and they do it :)
I love my companions!

Also, do you remember when I told y’all about a member that has seen Jesus? I hope I told you bout that.... Well, apparently the other sisters took him to their lesson and this investigator was like, “Sometimes I can smell my mom’s perfume...” Then this member was like "And when you get close to Jesus you can smell him. I smell him all the time..." ............................................................................................................
AHHHHHHHHH!!!! BROTHER---- WHAT THE CRAP?? YOU’RE CRAZY!!! Needless to say, we aren't going to be taking him to any lessons..........
This place is weird.....

Then remember JACK AND AMY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CRAP YOU DON'T, BECAUSE YOU HAVEN'T GOTTEN MY LETTER YET!!! WELL, I AM JUST GOING TO SKIP AHEAD! They are the most solid people in the world! I wish y’all could meet them! We went over to their house and they were like, “Guess what?!?!.... We haven't smoked in 6 days. We are quitting coffee (we didn't even talk to them about the W.O.W. very much). And Amy had taken her facial piercing out! WE SAID NOTHING ABOUT THAT- Bottom line..... This is what the church does for people. We, as missionaries, aren't here to drag people to the waters. We are supposed to find people ready to sprint by themselves!!! They are doing everything by themselves, and with God, it is just amazing!! I can't explain it!!!

Sad thing though. We found out that jack is on parole and will be for the next 4 years--- so we don't know if he'll be able to be baptized with Amy on the 30th. I AM GOING TO HAVE A REAL- REAL BAPTISM! But, we called President Augustin and he said to get all the information about it and he will pray about it and if he feels good about it he'll send it to President Monson to give the final say. I KNOW JACK IS READY. THAT MAN AND HIS WIFE ARE SOOOOOOO READY! THEY READ THE SCRIPTURES--- TOGETHER THEY PRAY TOGETHER--- THEY TALK ABOUT US ALLLLLL THE TIME!! HE IS READY.

I don't think he'll be baptized with Amy, but i know it won't take him 4 years to get to be baptized before then :) And I will come back for that day… and when they go to the temple!!! I don't care when!!!!! I am here to bring families to the gospel!!! They are amazing!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Then worst part of my letter...... I am going to rant a little more about how everybody needs to learn to play the piano....... so here is my story....

Once upon a time there was a missionary. Her name was Sister Dawes. She is a missionary in a ward that has 1 member that can play the piano. So, when that member is busy, Sister Dawes has to fill in..... Well, Monday morning at 10 a.m. there was a funeral for a lady in the ward and the pianist had to work.... and the family needed a piano player...... so guess who was asked???...... SISTER DAWES. Moral of the story is... this morning I played for a funeral.....................................and boy...............I regret not practicing....................... more now than ever ........................!


Have a great day!
The End.




So there was my lovely story:) I am sorry this letter is so scattered... and maybe those that are not mom shouldn't read it until she proofs it because, quite frankly, I spell wrong and don't punctuate because I am trying to get everything I want down before my hour is up!!

Love y’all much!

Have a great week :)

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