MIS DESEOS

We have transfer calls this upcoming Saturday and I just can't believe it's my second to last transfer calls! It's crazy when little realizations like that set in and I realize how actually old I am... GAH.

It was a pretty great week! I'll be honest, Monday and Tuesday were ROUGH, but we worked through it. Actually Wednesday was a little bit rocky, too. I'm just really starting to realize what a perfectionist I am and how hard I am on myself. It's so destructive! Just say no to perfectionism people!! 

We did have some AWESOME times this week though. I'll split them into 3 categories. Lessons, Zone conference takeaways, and other stuff. 

Lesson highlights: 

Olandra with Sister Richland- It was good but her husband is afraid of the idea of her changing religions, so we're not sure where that's gonna go. 

Lauren- a super hard working single mom who got excited about the story of Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi. 

Rosa- we watched Jose Smith Profeta de la restauracion with her and Sister Doman and it was great because the spirit was there and she opened up to us about some of her questions and insecurities. Then last night we went to her house for dinner!

Eduardo with Brother Mark Shipman- We weren't expecting much because he was pretty stand-offish the first time we met him but he got super into the Restoration! Turns out he just got a job at Bishop Shipman's company too, which is cool and funny because we go there every week for lunch on Fridays! 

Karina and Jamie Reina- twin 18 yr old daughters of the Reina's. We started practice teaching them this week and holy cow they are so smart! They came up with some really good questions. 

The Gonzales- new family! Their next door neighbor was the one that bashed us a couple of weeks ago. Haha take that Satan.

Alen with Brother Spakman- He's such a good kid!! We're really excited about him but we actually have to pass him to the Elders because he's more comfortable with English. 

Margarita and Juan with Sister Doman- It was such a great Restoration lesson!!

We ended up with 10 member present lessons the last 2 weeks!! Woo hoo!!

OKAY NOW FOR MY FAVE- Zone Conference highlights <3

ZONE CONFERENCE WAS SO GOOD OH MY GOODNESS. It was on Thursday! It was so cool because usually each zone conference or so we have a new theme or focus as a mission. At this zone conference- sice it was the first one of the year, we had a review of all the focuses from the last year. It was cool! It was like a refresher course of everything I've ever learned on my mission. It was totally throwback Thursday. 

Some topics we reviewed, and who was my companion at the time we focused on them: 

Finding ideas- Hermana Luévano

member missionary work- Hermana Hull

planning- Hermana Hull

42 principles sheets- Hermana Dee

companion unity- Hermana Shewell

record keeping- Hermana Marble

consecration- Hermana Marble - something I especially loved that president said, was that consecration is like an association with the sacred. Would you say, do , or think that in the temple? 1 Corinthians 13 

using scriptures in teaching- Hermana Buss

referrals- hermana Marble

standards of excellence- Hermana Tolliver

The main thing that President and Sister Lewis talked about, (the newly introduced theme/focus is our desires) : President talked about how desires ->priorities -> choices-> actions and how our desires affect everything!  "If you have a vision of what you want to become, let that vision shape your desires." -President Lewis

We also talked a lot about agency (our ability to choose), and how God won't make us into something we don't choose to become.  "What we insistently desire is what we will eventually become..." - Elder Neal A. Maxwell. 

"There's a spark of divinity within each of us and the only thing that's getting in the way is how we choose to use our own agency."- President Lewis. 

So at the end of President Lewis's first training he encouraged each of us to make a list of our top 3 desires for our missions. How we want to improve, how we want our missions to change us. My top 3 were these: 

1- Be more forgiving. Especially of myself! And forgive faster. If someone offends me, turn outward and serve them. It makes me feel a lot better! 

2- Be more open and outwardly loving towards others. Seeing Hermana Hull at zone conference and spending a little time with her made me realize the reason why our two transfers together were the happiest times of my mission: because she brought out the best in me- she taught me how to love people. I need to remember those lessons and apply them more! Channel that part of me more!

3- Use honest and accurate language. I tend to over exaggerate a lot and have a tendency to choose the most dramatic words to describe things! Lol gotta work on that. 

Sister Tolliver and I are SO excited about all of our goals and have been already seeing awesome changes because of them. 

Hermana Tolliver's first Zone Conference!

All the missionaries

Family picture

Hermana Knight and Sister Enman

Sister Holmes, Hermana Pons, Hermana Knight

Hermana Hull and I at camera war

Hermana Knight and Elder Oliverson

Sister Lewis and Hermana Knight

Hermana Hull, Hermana Young, and Elder Vejnar candid

Hermana Knight and Sister Hansen

Hermana Knight and Sister Goodrich

Yakima Valley Zone

Other Stuff:

 Maria in white salmon wrote me and Hermana Hull a poem!! Hermana Pons was there on exchanges on Tuesday and took a video of Maria reading her poem out loud to us. It was SO SWEET. It's called "my missionary sisters". Hermana Hull was full on crying (como siempre haha) and I definitely was tearing up quite a bit. She (Maria) is truly a miracle. I love her so much. 

Yesterday it was insanely foggy in Kittitas! We were tracting in a trailer park on main street and a police pulled over to the side of the road where we were and asked us what we were doing. We told him we were out and about trying to get to know people and talk about the gospel. We told him we were missionaries. He was like "Oh! Well are you having any success?" He was so nice! We said no and that we were planning on leaving pretty soon anyway, and he was like, "Yeah you probably should because it's getting dark and really hard to see."

Then later that night (at 9:15) we were trying to drive home from our visit to Rosa, and we somehow managed to drive over a nail and a screw! so Brother Robins (thank goodness) was able to come and help us change our tire. My dad made me learn how to do that when I was like 15 before I could get my license, but unfortunatley that was like 7 years ago so I didn't remember! Brother Robins gave us a refresher course :) 

All my boots are dying. The weather is HORRIBLE here. It's been like snow, sleet, freezing rain, then it got really warm and all melted, and turned into slush, then it froze again... ugh. Even my new boots I just got about 4 months ago are literally falling apart! 

We got to teach Mia Maids yesterday! It was so fun! 

We had dinner at Rosa's last night and Hermana Tolliver almost died when she tried the insanely hot salsa. It was HILARIOUS. 

Hermana Tolliver and Alen's pet ferret!!

I think that's all, folks! I love and miss you all!