Katy's homecoming talk

Everyone is invited and welcome to attend this Sunday while Katy speaks about her mission, her experiences and Jesus Christ

Sunday, December 16th @ 11 a.m.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

1500 California Lane

Arlington, Texas 76015

If you have any questions, please email me: stacybthiot@gmail.com

I'll be home for Christmas

Querida familia,

I have a lot of things on my mind with more things continuing to pop up, so I hope I'm able to express myself as coherently as possible. This December we have a Christmas theme of a White Christmas. We all know it won't snow here, but we'll have a white Christmas seeing many truly converted people baptized this month. Because of that, it's also a miracle month, and as a mission, when we experience miracles, we call them in to share them with the zone and the whole mission eventually. (I haven't been the best at doing that, though.) On Tuesday we had a meeting with all the zone leaders (and exchange sisters) where we discussed our mission goals. Our goal is to have each companionship baptize at least one person during December. Our zone leaders called us after the meeting and asked us to call in a miracle that day. I got off the phone and told Sister Marroquin that we had to have a miracle and call it in. She was really confused and said that hopefully we'd get one. I told her that we would get one because we were assigned a miracle and there was just no other option. :) So we were searching for a miracle all day and I was sure it was going to be one of those instances where you work so hard all day and at 8:30 before you turn home you would meet that golden person who want to be baptized. But it didn't happen that way.

We met a potential investigator a few weeks ago who told us that she is surrounded by negative people and that when we knocked on her door she felt hope and peace. Her mom is not our biggest fan (or the biggest fan of missionaries or church or something, we're not sure), so when she answers the door we don't even get a "hi" in before the door is shut in our faces. We have been trying to look for Sandra, and she had told us the week before that she was moving into a different apartment in the same building, and since we can't get any info from her mom we did what missionaries do best and started knocking every door. This building is really funky because there are four hallways (three floors) that meet up in the middle and we got completely lost and forgot which doors we had knocked before. So we started and we ended up seeing a lady from the week before who had already rejected us, and then I remembered she told us the woman across from her spoke Spanish but was rarely home. So after apologizing and saying goodbye we knocked the neighbor's door. Tamara opened the door and told us about how she has been going to various churches and is not satisfied with how people don't even prepare to go to church (just roll out of bed) or they just throw Christ's name out there just for the sake of saying it. We told her how much our Savior means to us and bore testimony that she will be happy and satisfied with the message we share. She let us in, and we met her daughter who's 16 and her son who's 2. Tamara speaks perfect English but is from... PUERTO RICO! We had a great lesson with her--she and her daughter were very receptive and she said she wants her children to be baptized. We told her the little way can wait till he's 8 :) and we invited them to church on Sunday. The next day we went by to ask if they want to go to church in Spanish or English (because her daughter doesn't speak Spanish), and they chose Spanish (I think because they really like us... we probably shouldn't have gone back... but they were our miracle... and we gave them the option...). They came to church! They were excited about it! And they loved it. And they said they will be baptized.

That was our miracle. My last week and we met such an amazing family. We taught about the Restoration last night, and they accepted that we have a living prophet (Tamara said, "I've been wondering where the Noahs and Moseses are now." What?). Tamara's uncle had a Book of Mormon and she never read it and was really happy when I had a copy to leave with them in English. She said that everything clicked during the lesson, that it makes sense and she feels that it's right. We were a little dumbfounded by her response (it's what we pray for every single day, probably 20 times a day) but assured her that it's true. I broke the news to them that I was leaving this week and they wanted to know when I was coming back. :) They were a little confused at church when the bishop asked me and Elder Sarmiento (who's also leaving for Peru) to bear our testimonies.

Oh, that's another story. I got up and of course just started crying. I have been serving in Del Norte for 9 months now, putting all my strength, my heart, my mind into the members here and their neighbors. They are my family, and I am going to miss them so much. If only I could see my family and go to the Del Norte ward on Sunday... When I said that it was my last week on my mission, I heard an "Awww" from the right side of the chapel. I looked over and saw my friend Viri with a sad face. Sister Marroquin said that a lot of the women in the ward were crying--"You even made our investigator cry!" haha and Tamara didn't even know what was going on.

Heavenly Father has blessed me on my mission. I thought I was going to be a wreck during lessons, but I never cried when I taught people. I didn't cry when bearing my testimony. But it's been a tearful week this week. I had my departing interview with President on Saturday and cried through the whole thing. I assured President that I have a very emotional family (sorry to rat you out) and that it's nothing to worry about. At the end of the interview he asked if I had any question for him. I asked him what I should do when I go home, but he didn't have the magic answer. :) He did ask me if he could give me a blessing, and it was a really beautiful blessing. He told me some really special things. One of the most special things is knowing that I was sent to this mission to serve with President Lewis. I'm sure the Jardines (the former mission president) was great, but when I get their picture in my call letter, it didn't feel right. When Grandpa told me that I was actually getting a new president (who I met when I was in the MTC), I felt a lot more peaceful when I saw their picture online. In the MTC I heard that missionaries are often chosen to go to a certain place because of the mission president. And I know that is true for me. Dad, you have some competition because he said if I want to live in Utah he will call some of his sons who have their own businesses. :)

Oh no, too many things running through my head and not enough time or brain power to remember what I was going to say. A lot of missionaries say they are not ready to go home when the time comes because they love their missions so much. President told us a while ago that we can go home either feeling the pain from hard work or of feeling regret. I am going home with the pain from hard work, and I am grateful for that. I have spent my physical and emotional energy, and although I am extremely sad to leave my family here, I know that I am starting a new mission. This was just a spring board, and I don't see it as ending my mission. Tracting is going to end (and for the most part I oddly like tracting), inviting people to be baptized is going to end, the tag is going to come off and I won't stand out anymore. But President doesn't make mistakes--like when he has a read the talk The Challenge to Become by Elder Oaks time and time again. I am converted to this gospel. I know that this is Christ's church, and although I don't know what kind of person I will really be after my mission, I will forever be a missionary. Maybe not a full-time one. But I can't even imagine losing sight of the things I have learned and treasured here--Elder Holland would give me a lecture for that, and it wouldn't be pretty. (He came and spoke to us in January and I was literally on the first row smack dab in front of him when he said you can't even think about walking away from what you have taught on your mission. Got the message!)

Thank you for all your love and support. Your prayers have helped me have the physical and spiritual strength to serve this past year and a half with all my heart, might, and mind. President invited us to read two scriptures every day until Christmas: Luke 2:10-11. And the angel said unto them: Fear not. For I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be unto all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is CHRIST the Lord. I know that we will have no fear and we will be able to accomplish all our Heavenly Father has for us because of the birth, life, and death of His Son Jesus Christ.

Love,

Hermana Brinkerhoff

Walking on water

Hermosa familia,

This week has been a wet one. Oh yeah, and I went on two exchanges, one of which was on bikes. That was an adventure--squeezing my backpack under my raincoat and not caring one bit about the state of my frumpy hair. And the poor bike I was riding is one of the elder's, and it was all duct taped and one of the brakes didn't work. I was a sight to behold. But the end of the night brought an amazing miracle. That morning during companionship study, Sister Angimarau (from Kiribati) and I role played contacting someone whose husband recently passed away. Well that night I asked Sister A if we could go visit one of her investigators, and on the way she turned to go see a potential that they had been trying to visit. We rode up to the house and they invited us right in and made us some hot chocolate--she felt so bad for us on our bikes. The potential is Jackie, and she told us that her ex-husband had just passed away the Thursday before. It made her think a lot about the purpose of life and where we go after, and she said her daughter has been struggling with the passing of her father. Sister A and I had a flashback to companionship study--it was a little trippy. We taught Jackie about the plan of salvation and she said that this is something she really needs in her life right now. She couldn't stop talking about how grateful she was that we would remember and visit her out in the rain and cold on our bikes. She is excited to go to church and read the Book of Mormon. We invited her to be baptized when she knows what we teach is true and she said, "Oh absolutely." Miracle Jackie. The bad thing about exchanges is that it makes me really sad when I can't keep teaching them...

My other exchange was in El Dorado Hills, which is a ritzy city. The sisters live in a literal mansion. For morning exercise, we played volleyball and racquetball in the indoor gym. They have a theater room and I don't even know what else--it was incredible. I didn't feel like a missionary. That's why they moved in with the Gomms after the exchange. :) And the Gomms--this is a good one. I was roommates with their daughter for two years at EFY BYU. I guess it's a good thing I didn't serve in English work. I also met Kamille's in-laws during the exchange... Oh yeah, so I slept in a queen-sized bed during the exchange (attached pic).

We had a mission-wide Spanish activity on Friday night after zone conference with Elder and Sister Porter. President wanted me to have an interview with Elder Porter, and Elder Porter was probably really confused why because I'm going home so soon. But he gave me soon good tips of what to do when I get home. The Spanish activity was a tour of paintings from the Book of Mormon by a Brasilian artist, folkloric dances from Mexico and Brasil, the missionaries sang a song, President and Sister Lewis spoke, there was a video about the Book of Mormon, a potluck from different countries, photo booth. I got to see people from my first two areas, which was really neat, and one man from Stockton now lives in Lodi, and he told me his daughter (my first convert Alicia) lives in Mexico and is still active. YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And it's been raining a ton and luckily I have boots that can withstand anything. I'll attach some pics from yesterday--outside our church building.

Love you all,

kates

Pictures:

Dances and flood and a family I LOVE. Hermana Ramirez was the first person I met in the ward--she went on an exchange with me 3 months after being baptized and now they're sealed! And hermano is really proud that he can say my name. :) He always smiles when I tell him WOW GOOD JOB HERMANO!

Feliz dia de accion de gracias!

Querida familia,

I have about one minute to jot a quick note. I had to follow-up with President about an exchange I went on last week, and that stole all my time. This past week I went down for the count. I've attached a few photos that Scott should consider not looking at unless he wants to tear up. I was sick with a cold the past week and didn't really do anything special to take care of it except eat Vitamin C drops. Eventually the sore throat went away, but I got slammed with an eye infection. I got home from my exchange to Sacramento/Elk Grove on Thursday night and woke up Friday morning to a very gloopy eye. My eye was red as we did weekly planning, and I was rubbing and scratching and doing everything you shouldn't do. I thought I was just tired, so I took a quick nap during lunch and woke up with stuff in both eyes and two red eyes. I had red eyes for three days straight. I went to our ward Thanksgiving dinner with Sister Marroquin's sunglasses, and people thought I was trying to be cool like a celebrity because I was strange and wearing sunglasses inside. I ended up working with the mission nurse, the mission doctor, a former mission doctor in Utah, and eventually a real live eye doctor on Monday until I go the eye drops that did the trick. I'll be infected for two weeks, but now my eyes are white. :)

We have an investigator who has asked us some really good questions about the Plan of Salvation (she's been studying with another religious group...), so I've been having great personal studies in the morning. I've been reading Jesus the Christ. I am really grateful that Heavenly Father created a perfect plan for us. Even though we won't understand everything or have physical evidence, I'm thankful for the principle of faith--the very first principle of the gospel. I know that Christ was chosen as our Savior from the foundation of the world. I am grateful for His love, His example, and His atonement that gives us the hope to be forgiven and to move on and progress. I've expected a lot of myself as a missionary, and maybe I haven't seen as many baptisms as I imagined, but the mission has changed me. I am grateful to be truly converted and to have the desire to become more like my Savior. We just got the conference issue of the Ensign--I was reminded about how much the apostles spoke about becoming a more Christian Christian.

Love you,

kates

The sprint

Hola mi querida familia,

I hope you liked my pictures last week. I know that they were sent/posted on my blog because Sister Fernandez mentioned a few of the pics. Thanks for posting those, Stace!

I got an AMAZING package from Lisa VanGemert this past week. It says greetings from golden state of California and has everything golden in it. At the beginning of my mission she sent me a green package because I was a greenie, and now I got everything you can imagine: golden oreo cookies, Burger King gift card, gold $1 coins, Nesquik, Ohs cereal, ring pops (everything is in a yellow package), lemonhead candies, Juicy Fruit gum, a box of lemon bars mix, Swedish fish. It is INCREDIBLE. The three of us (Sister Schow, Sister Marroquin, and I) have really enjoyed the goodies. Sister Schow has been trying a lot of new things. :) Lisa, thank you SO VERY MUCH for the incredible package. I love absolutely everything in it, and especially your thoughtfulness. Oh my goodness--I don't think she should have put so much time and money into a package for me, but it has made me really happy, especially because it reminds me of the sweet memories I have in California. I didn't even know where Sacramento was before my mission and now it forever holds a precious spot in my heart.

I went on an exchange to South Sacramento/Elk Grove this past week with Hermana Toro. My little Torito. She's going to be training soon--that's just my personal opinion. I counted it up, and I've been to that very house 7 times for exchanges. So even though that's the only area I didn't serve in, I basically did serve there. Oh, and I played the piano at a wedding. That was a first... and probably a last. It was really interesting.

We are going to have a neat activity at the end of this month. All the Spanish wards and branches in the mission are invited to come to an activity in Elk Grove where there is going to be art displayed of Book of Mormon stories. There's also going to be a dance presentation of professional Hispanic dancers and food and I don't know what else it entails. I'm glad it's happening soon so I can go. That's strange... I don't feel like I'm ending. I feel like the mission is going to go on forever, but I know that isn't going to happen.

Our investigator An last night committed to a December 8 baptism. She asked why we chose that date. We told her just because... and I didn't admit because that was my last Saturday. Yikes. But I'm hoping and praying that she will be baptized that day! That would be fantastic.

Love you all,

kates

Fotos

Dear family,

Finally I figured out why my camera was acting up, so now I have pictures from a long time ago. These are all just random.

We had an investigator, Julio, at church yesterday! We went to visit him in the morning before church--good thing because he hadn't started getting ready yet. We told him we'd see him there. When we didn't see him in the chapel at 11, we called him and he said no one was outside to take him. We didn't know he didn't have a car to get there... So we said that it looked like it was going to happen because it was already after 11 and that's when church starts. But then Sister Marroquin and I thought about a member that we could call that lives by him. We called her up and they said that they would pass by and get him. That was a tender mercy. But then we called Julio and he said it wasn't going to go. I told him that they were already on the way, they were they, everything. I couldn't really understand what he was saying. Something about a box they are sending to Honduras. (They've been collecting clothes and things all year to send to their family in Honduras--the box will cost at least $300 to send. It's monstrous.) Anyway, I wasn't going to have any of that and told him to go talk to the ride because they were outside his complex. Next thing we knew, they were sitting next to us at church and Julio was sitting behind us, not a happy camper. :) But I pretended like he was really excited to be there after sacrament meeting and he ended up having a great time at church. He was smiling by the end of it and shaking all the members' hands. We finally broke a very long dry spell, and it feels so good.

This is my last transfer to go on exchanges with sisters in the mission. President said that at this point we can have 192 missionaries in the mission, but come February that number is changing to 250, and more than half of the new missionaries are going to be sisters. So he is putting a lot more responsibility on the exchange sisters--the sisters in the mission will go to us instead of their district leaders and zone leaders for sensitive/emotional issues and things like that so that we don't have 75 sisters all calling President and his wife when things go south. I am also going on full exchanges with 5 sisters and combined exchanges with one companionship, so I will be away from my area 6 times this transfer. It's going to be crazy and I'm going to be tired, but that's how I want to go out. One of my exchanges will be in Stockton, where I started my mission. I haven't served there for about a year, so that'll be good to go back for the day.

I'm going to attach pics really quickly and provide a little explanation.

1. Most of the ward before it split. Hopefully I'll get the real pic soon from bishop.

2. My friend Yeni who the zone leaders baptized in August. She's 19.

3. Bike sister for a day in Folsom with Sister Agavale and Sister Teerime. I came out with both of them.

4. Did I mention I was sore for a week after that? And I think I get to ride a bike twice this transfer.

5. Familia Bustos with a blanket that hermana knitted. She's always knitting. The kids were all baptized this summer.

6. Sacramento sunset

7. Spiderman with our friend Jordy, who's Batman. He's not a boy--he only ever acts like a superhero...

8. Recent convert Gloria laughing with Sister Toro. We have good lessons, obviously.

9. Sacramento temple.

10. Me with my island sisters

11. The elders who gave me a Spiderman doll in Stockton. "head, shoulders, knees and webs" it sings.

12. My "soccer shoes." I played soccer in the outfit I wore to the temple, and my soccer shoes got holes in them. Sister Schow loves my soccer shoes.

13. Sister Toro, Schow, me

14. We were matching at church.

15. Carinia and Freddie's baptism. The APs, Elder Verde and Elder Walker, baptized them.

16. Sister Marroquin and I at our investigator Katia's house. She loves reptiles, especially snakes. I like the bearded dragon, Pumpkin.

17. The group at Coloma--the missionaries who are leaving soon

18. Panning for gold

19. Sister Schow said she had the best birthday in years. :) success!

20. Jimmer

21. This is for Sister Fernandez. Proof I met your family in Sacramento. She baptized the Sanchez family, and I met them on an exchange. Hermano is on a singing show competition, something like "Tengo talento, mucho talento." I have talent--a lot of talent.

22. Kiddos in the ward at a ward activity--multicultural night

23. We dressed up as Nefitas y Lamanitas at the multicultural night--I actually just put it on after the activity

24. Our district at the bishop's house

Happy Halloween!

Querida familia,

You'll never guess. I am staying in East Sac for my last transfer of the mission. By the end of this transfer, I will have been here for nine whole months. That is incredible! I'm staying here with Hermana Marroquin and Sister Schow. Sister Schow told us to call her last night right when we got the call because she was "going to be on pins and needles all night without being able to sleep" if we didn't let her know. She told me yesterday morning that she prayed that President Lewis would be inspired to know where I should go this transfer. She's so precious.

We have about three people who are looking like they have a lot of potential to be baptized this transfer. We met a man last week named J who was supposedly less active but now in our ward's records. The elders in the area before us left us a sheet with his name and address and it said, "Works Sundays." So we finally made our way over there to find the two men (it was actually two men) who were less active and "worked on Sunday" and lived together. It turns out that Julio was almost baptized about a year ago and grew up in Honduras going to our church. We saw him last night and he invited us to come back tomorrow night--Halloween--so we're going to see him Thursday. He said he'll be going to church with us on Sunday! I am grateful that someone wants to go to church with us. :)

And our other investigators are all at about the same point as last week. Our investigator M wants to come to church and asked her boss for Sundays off, but he didn't give her last Sunday. She works at a carwash and Sacramento gets really rainy in the winter, so maybe it will start raining soon. :) But we're hoping that her boss will soften his heart. She had the courage to ask for it off, and we know something good will come from her faith. She wants to be baptized--the thought of being absolutely clean from everything she's done in the past is a huge relief for her. I can't believe the opposition that people face to go to church and be baptized. The world is so overpowering, and I can just imagine how Christ feels--so heartbroken for the sins of the world and that so many don't even pay attention to the real reason why we're here and the gospel that he so eloquently taught.

We went to a stake trunk or treat on Saturday night. Sister Marroquin asked me about every day if we were going to go--so we did. It was advertised in the newspaper, so it was a community event, and it was really fun. I saw the Ramirez family there (they used to go to our ward before it was split, so now they're in the new ward). Hermana gave me a hug and told me that they were sealed that day. I was overjoyed to see the smile on her face and to know that they are going to be a family forever. She was baptized last October (and her husband was baptized a few years ago), so they have been looking forward to this day for a little while.

And the Rodriguez family called me last week. They called our number just to make sure that I was still in the area, even though they know that we can't call or visit them since they're in a different zone. Hermana told me that anytime I want, their house is open--that I was part of the family. I love that family, and I wish I could know more about how they're doing, but I'll trust that Elder Muffler (who I was in the MTC with) is taking care of them. And the Ramirez family since they live a street away.

The mission has treated me well. I have had a lot of little, sweet experiences here. I am grateful for who it has made me become. It's going to be extra hard to leave because East Sac has been my home for almost a year. The members are my ward family. I guess I'll save getting weepy for another six weeks. So happy to stay!

Love,

kates