I'm Melting

Querida Familia,

I think it's getting close to the end of my mission because I don't hear a lot from my family. Thanks for the email, Momma--that's how I know you're all still alive and kickin. 

This week we helped the Ro family move to a different area, which will actually be in a different stake pretty soon, so we won't be teaching them anymore. It was really sad when we were driving away--I was crying and thought "oooh dear. What is it going to be like at the end of my mission with everybody that I've met this last year and a half." But we'll worry about that when it comes. I still have a lot to go.

We met an English woman this week who said hi in passing and after we knocked a door and she ended a phone call she started questioning us a lot and asking if we would really tell her that she could receive an answer to her questions through a feeling. Yeah, that's pretty much it. At first she was kind of hostile/unbelieving, but after talking with her and testifying that yeah, the answer will come through a peaceful feeling, not some grand vision or sign, her demeanor changed. She said that there was something special about us, and I knew she could feel it, but she still refused to have missionaries come teach her, although she asked us to stop by her apartment next time we were in the area... Sometimes I feel like people open up to us and pour out all their frustrations with us a lot more as sister missionaries. I've had a lot of people tell me, "I don't know why I'm saying this to you. I just met you and I haven't even told anyone else."

Like I mentioned, our ward is going to divide next week. We're staying in Del Norte and the other ward is actually going to a different stake. We were talking with the APs, zone leaders, and district leader this week about the new areas, and I told one of the APs that the area left to us is really English. We're going to have to be creative to find the Hispanics in our area, and he told us about his ward mission leader who speaks Spanish. We stopped by his house because we were in the area and found his wife at home. She told us that just that morning she prayed for a missionary experience but was nervous about sharing the gospel in English because she doesn't speak it very well (but they go to an English ward). And then we showed up! We're going to have a family home evening with them tonight and talk about how they can participate more in missionary work. He works with a lot of people who speak Spanish and we invited his wife to be on the lookout for us at the store and around the neighborhood for people who speak Spanish. :)

Pictures:

1) Jonathan with his big (and little) wheel bike

2) Sisters' meeting--we're decorating cards. With permission from President and Sister Lewis I invited Sister Schow because she's a sister missionary. So she joined us for lunch and activities! She loved it.

3) All the sisters in the mission (last transfer)

4) Brother Gomm with a horn from Jerusalem... I think. And Elder Villalva from Ecuador and Elder Harrison

5) The zone leaders serve in our ward and in the young single adult ward. One of the YSAs decorates cupcakes, so we got red velvet cupcakes with name tags :)

6) Turns out Sister Toro and I are now Elder Brinkerhoff and Elder Toro...

7) Elder Muffler and me--we were together in the MTC and have served together for almost 5 transfers I think? It's been a long time. This was taken yesterday after church.

8) The dress that Hermana Gatica made for me! And she has dresses in about 10 different colors for herself

9) View of the lake from El Dorado Hills

10) Downtown Sacramento

I liked this quote President included at the end of his email: “Most of us don’t mind doing what we ought to do when it doesn’t interfere with what we want to do, but it takes discipline and maturity to do what we ought to do whether we want to or not.  Duty is too often what one expects from others and not what one does.  What people think and believe and plan are all very important, but what they do is the thing that counts most.” (Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin)

Love you all,

kates

Round 4.5 of East Sac

Buenos dias mi querida familia,

We got transfer calls last night. Elder Walker, the new AP, asked me if we were sitting down to hear the news. Sister Toro and I will be staying together for round 2 in East Sac (my round 4.5). Elder Walker is Brian Grimmett's brother-in-law. He was my district leader when I moved up to East Sac, and I knew he was going to be AP sometime on his mission. I've been pretty good at that guessing game so far.

Mom--I got your package with the skin cream and Codie's baby shower invitation! It's too bad you didn't get to see the invitation--it's really cute. When I think of Codie, I naturally think of swimming and the Olympics, and it's been absolutely killing me this week. Sister Schow watches TV in a little room off to the side of the house (actually, right near the kitchen where we do our studies), and I've been hearing Olympic coverage every day and dying within. Okay, so I'm being a little dramatic. But really--I love the Olympics and I overheard Michael Phelps' diet yet again and the familiar Olympic music. I just sing the theme music all the way to my room and close my door. :) Oh, and I've been using the skin cream twice each day! So far so good. Gracias. Also, Mom--could you please send me a copy of my call letter? President asked me to request that a few weeks ago but I've been forgetting... Thank you!

I also got a package this week from the Jurado-Prieto family in Manteca! I love that family with all my heart. They sent me a bag from Peru that says Peru and it's really pretty and I love it and Peru and will be going there someday after my mission and staying with Sister Estrada. A member in the Del Norte Ward here in East Sac, Melix, gave me a bag from El Salvador that's woven--well, she explained how they made it but I can't remember exactly what she said.

Our English investigator Re came to church this Sunday. We couldn't stay the full three hours. We've been needing to find her fellowshippers at church, which is hard to do since we don't serve in that area, nor live in the area. She paid fast offering, so I asked her if she wanted to take it to the bishop herself. She got to meet the bishop, and we walked her to Gospel Principles. I thought we should probably show her where the Relief Society room is since she'd never been, and as we were walking in the hallway I saw a woman who bore her testimony who I thought would be perfect for Rebecca. I stopped her in the hallway and asked her what her name is and if she'd be going to RS and would sit next to Rebecca. Two other women in the hallway stopped and introduced themselves, and I was so grateful that Heavenly Father heard my little prayer, however trivial it may have seemed. She texted us after church and said she made friends with those women and they swapped telephone numbers and said she can sit with them anytime at church.

We met an amazing couple this week who was actually a referral from a member. They own two local Mexican restaurants and gave us a gift certificate for a dinner for two. We cashed in on Saturday night--Joe T. Garcia's might have a new rival! I'm kidding. But it was delicious, and we're excited to teach them again on Friday. I know their lives would be richly blessed with the message of the gospel--as with everyone, of course, but they have experienced a lot of big trials this past year and need true peace in their hearts.

A member from El Dorado Hills came to a dinner our district leader made for us on Sunday. Brother Gomm opened up Jerusalem to the preaching of the gospel when he was a missionary. He told us about a lot of neat experiences that he had, and I wish I had time to share some of those--next week. Anyway, I asked him if he was related to Jessica Gomm (who was my friend from EFY and married Steve Kimball) because I knew she was from CA. He said that was his daughter and we thought it was pretty funny that 11 years later I'm serving in the mission where she's from. That was really wonderful getting to hear from him and hearing his testimony.

Love you all!

kates

Faith in Every Footstep Miracle

Familia Brinkalink,

Yep, new name. A member called me Hermana Brinkalink a few weeks ago. Hermana Toro gets off easy with her name. It's short, Spanish, and means bull. Oh, I don't think I told you about this. When Sister Schow first met Sister Toro, she looked at her name tag and said, "Toro... Toro. Sounds like a bunch of bull to me!" hahah That's why Sister Schow and I get along so well. She's always making off-the-wall comments. When she's leaving she likes to say, "I'm off like a herd of turtles" or "I'm off like a dirty shirt."

This week I went on exchanges with the ASL sisters, which was so neat! Sadly the appointment they had set up cancelled--actually, they had called her on Tuesday night and everything was good to go and then Wednesday her son told them that she was in Mexico. Now I could see how that would be more plausible with one of MY investigators, but still it was a little random. Ah, such is missionary life. So we just visited potentials and referrals, and I learned how to sign, "I don't know sign language." Instead of texting their investigators to communicate, they have a video phone with camera and everything so they can see them on the TV--just a big version of Skype. I was blown away. And the sisters cover the Roseville Mission as well as a lot of Sacramento. They have a lot of work today and a lot of challenges! 

We had a ward activity on Friday night. We had dinner and there was a violinist and a pianist/harmonica-ist who played pioneer songs. There were a few members of the ward who spoke about how they're pioneers in their families. We have a lot of pioneers because the majority of them are converts/the first members in their families. That was neat being able to hear about how they themselves are the pioneers--and then when we went to the English ward last Sunday with Re we heard about English members' pioneer heritage. Two very different backgrounds with the gospel of Jesus Christ as the common link.

I went to Deseret Book last week and made a dent in my checking account. I got a few CDs, bought a General Conference on CDs in Spanish, bought scripture cases for my English and Spanish scriptures, got some magazines--maybe that's all I should admit. I was a happy camper last week! Deseret Book is dangerous for any member but especially for a missionary. Yiikes. I think I told you about how Re went to Deseret Book and bought a scripture case and a little hymn book and a bookmark for her scriptures she bought from DI. Another one of our investigators, whose daughter is a member in our ward, got a hymn book from Deseret Book. I guess people really do like it that we start out our lessons with a hymn! And the Ro family were talking about how they needed to get a hymn book--I think they'll be making their way over there pretty soon. :)

We had a new missionary meeting last Tuesday for trainers/new missionaries. I wasn't able to go to it when I trained Sister Beale because President Lewis was recovering from his surgery in Utah and I was emergency transferred out of the area when she went her second transfer. President taught about the doctrine of Christ and asked us why we think he always trains on that. He said that he can read 2 Nephi 31 and 3 Nephi 11 over and over again and still get a thrill of out it. We have a sisters' meeting/luncheon today at the mission office and after talking to President and Sister Lewis, Sister Schow is coming with us! After all, she is a missionary--she knows most of the sisters anyway.

Oh yeah, we had a lesson on Saturday with Re and asked Sister Druyon, the executive secretary of the mission, to come to the lesson with us. She served her mission in France and her first companion was Sister Brinkerhoff. She treated us to Cheesecake Factory afterwards. We were really spoiled on Saturday!

Love you all,

kates

September baptisms

Querida familia,

Well we didn't have any baptisms this week. The cool news is that we have a baptismal goal of 67 for this month in the mission, and last week (two days ago--Saturday) we had 66 either baptized or with dates. President asked us to fast as a mission so that we could reach our goal of 67, and there are 69 planning to be baptized this month. Although we weren't able to have any in July, we have a few lined up for September! Yeah, we need to work on August still.

We're teaching an English woman, Re, who lives in Rancho Cordova. We actually got to go to her ward yesterday before our ward at 11 am. She accepted a baptismal date of August 4 but had to change it since her daughter is having an operation that day (and her daughter was the one who hooked us up with her mom--she wants to drive in from Idaho for the baptism, so we pushed it back to Labor Day weekend, September 1). Looks like I'll have at least one English baptism on my mission--I'm really excited! I love Re so much. She's really cute--she went to D.I. and bought skirts and tops for Sunday and scriptures. She then went to Deseret Book and bought a scripture case, a bookmark, and a hymnbook. (I forgot to mention that her husband is a member.) She is really getting into this! It's amazing to see the change.

I have a lot of cute pictures I want to send but don't have time to upload those today. I actually don't really have more time to write. This week I got to go on exchanges with the sisters in El Dorado Hills. It's really fun getting to go to areas of the mission that I would never get to serve in because they're English only. The hills are incredible! And the houses are ENORMOUS! And there are so many gated communities. Wow--that was a fun day. Because the companionship is a trio, I didn't want to walk around with them in a group of 4. So we split up the day, and I went out with each sister one at a time to tract and teach. I was nervous our little Toyota wouldn't get up some of the driveways--they went on forever and were steep! And I didn't know if my legs would make it up to some of the houses. We went to dinner with a member couple--the wife has been in about 30 movies and lots of commercials and magazines. She was a nun in Sister Act 2! haha and sadly I can't remember all the other movies she's/they've been in. They live in a beautiful home with a view of the gorgeous lake, and we got to see a family of about 10 deer! She fed them corn tortillas. I almost died. 

A member in the ward made a dress for me and I wore it yesterday. We got a picture together and I got a LOT of compliments on the dress. It is too cute! I wish I had time to send pics. I love this ward and this area so much. Just when I said that last time (in Manteca), I was emergency transferred, so I need to watch what I say! But East Sac has become a very special place to me. I love the investigators, the people, the Spanish members, the English members--I love it all. I like it when people say that the areas you serve in during your missions become sacred ground--that's really true.

Love you all,

Kates

Stiffnecked Missionary

Buenos dias familia,

This week was great! We almost reached all of our goals with lessons and finding new people to teach and so on. I suppose I failed to mention the past few weeks that I am still an exchange sister although I'm training. And Sister Toro is a trooper! If I were in her shoes I would be completely stressed out having my trainer leave, but she is such a natural missionary and determined and focused that I'm not even worried about her--okay, maybe a little just because it has been only three weeks! But I don't think I've stressed enough how completely amazing she is. WOW! Heavenly Father blessed me this transfer--He seems to do that a lot. Having said that, I went on a split exchange with Sister Romero in Sacramento and her companion Sister Ashton came to East Sac where she served for 6 months, which is nice because this is her last transfer and she got to see a few people before going home.

We had an amazing miracle on Friday morning. We decided to call a woman who was investigating the church with her children but has since been dropped because she's not married and because of issues with becoming a resident and marriage delaying that process even more, she decided not to be baptized with her children in January. Her youngest is turning 8 in September and she has decided to be baptized with her!!!!!!! When we texted her (oh yeah, we were texting), we were just asking when we could meet with her because I've been feeling this urge lately that we've needed to visit her and prepare her for baptism (teach the lessons again and everything). She asked if everything was okay and if there was something we needed to meet with her about. We said that we just wanted to see them and then finally asked if she's been thinking about baptism lately. She said, "Hermana, I just decided that I was going to do it and I told myself I was going to get baptized with my daughter in September. It's like you read my mind because I was just thinking about it and wanted to tell you, but I was going to wait to do it in person." Wow!!! That's the Spirit at its finest! Sister Fernandez is probably freaking out right now--you know who I'm talking about! We're having a baptism in September!

Also this week we started teaching a woman in English. Re lives in Rancho Cordova and since there aren't any sisters who live close to there, we get to teach her! Her daughter was baptized last year in the young single adult ward and has since gotten married and moved to Idaho, but has been sharing the gospel with her mother. When we leave her reading assignments, she and her daughter talk over the phone and her daughter explains what she's reading. :) Actually, I just got a phone call this morning while emailing from another English woman in Rancho Cordova who wants sister missionaries. Looks like we're taking over English work... Just kidding.

Oh, something really important. On Saturday morning I was getting ready and was going to put on mascara (I really should leave that part out of the story because it makes me sound really pathetic) and whipped my head back to get my hair out of my face and heard a "cuuuhh" in my neck and felt a really horrible pain. I grabbed my head to keep it balanced so my neck wouldn't have to support the weight and laid on the bed for a good half hour before Sister Schow found me there. I ended up lying on the bed for about three hours, received a blessing from the elders and the mission housing coordinator who happened to be in the neighborhood helping other elders move in. My neck is super sore, and it took me a long time to get up because my head would just pound. I've been taking Ibuprofen and doing a therapy that the mission nurse told me to do. I might see a chiropractor this week. We went to a baptism Saturday night (Elaury, Gloria's Jose got baptized! And the Camachos' father who's 82.) and people were calling me a robot and Sister Schow said that I shouldn't be so stiffnecked. Ouch. The elders said my posture was so good I could balance a book on my head. It's getting better slowly--I just have to turn my whole body to look at someone to the side. And I have a cold, so that makes things a whole lot more fun!

I love yall! I feel like we're going to see a lot more miracles really soon. First a little opposition had to enter the picture. :)

Love,

kates

Here comes the sun

Buenos dias familia,

This week was pretty good--pretty typical, which is a good thing. The only thing that's a little different is that I've been extremely exhausted this week (and the past few weeks--maybe it's been my whole mission;). This week I've felt like I've needed to be dragged to walk to any doors. Wow, it's no wonder boys 19-21 years old are the ones who are supposed to serve missions! Those are my thoughts pretty much every morning because I just think "ohh my body." And good thing elders are the ones who serve for 2 years--18 months sounds good to me! Thankfully Sister Toro is a napper, too (just like Sister Novakovich!), so we get to eat lunch really quickly and use the rest of our hour to take a little snoozer--never enough!

A theme from our district meeting this week was, "Have we been on our knees enough?" That's been a question on my mind this week--have I been praying enough with faith that Heavenly Father will hear and answer my/our prayers? The motto for the month in the mission is Faith in Every Footstep, which I obviously love because Stace, Jo and I sang that at my farewell. Yeah, remember that tear jerker? Oh boy was I a mess. Anyway, it's neat to think about the pioneers this month (we got to watch 17 Miracles on the 4th of July in our zones) and how they sacrificed so much for this work. Well we're involved in the same work as we find new people who will be pioneers in their families for generations to come as they accept and live the gospel. Last month we had a goal of baptizing 55 people in the mission and we baptized 60. This month the goal is 67. We had a miracle yesterday at church--we worked all week to find someone (a family) to come to church, but it didn't look like it would happen (but we still had faith that after doing all that we could, the arm of the Lord would be revealed). And it was! There's a man named D who lives with (or is just always at their home--we don't really understand) a less-active family. We taught them this week and invited him to church. After calling the family about 10 times Sunday morning before church to wake them up (we warned them we'd do it if they gave us permission--it didn't work, by the way), we thought it was a lost cause. And then they came! And D loved church and loves learning! We're hoping that he's our July miracle. 

We had a stake correlation meeting yesterday with stake leaders and ward mission leaders and missionaries in our zone. I appreciated what one of the counselors in the Stake Presidency said about having faith that our prayers will be answered, after doing all that we can. Oftentimes we conjure up the faith that things will happen if we truly believe with all our hearts that it will without putting in the effort to do it. President talked about how Heavenly Father can do anything, of course, but He expects us to do our part, to really think about it and study it out and put forth the effort. Only after that do we have the promise that he will make things work out for our good (if that's His will). But we're the ones who need to get things moving first. That's something I need to work on a little bit--I pray earnestly with the best intentions but sometimes I don't study it out enough and think of what I am capable of doing first before the Lord takes over and the miracle happens.

Another focus for our companionship right now is family home evening. We printed off family home evening packets to give to every family in our area and cute sheets of paper where they can make family assignments so everyone gets involved. So far we've been able to teach three or four families about FHE and will be following up with them on that! We want to follow up with them every week about it because I think it's something that will really help the families in our ward (well, it doesn't hurt that it's a promise from the prophet and apostles that it'll strengthen the family). Make sure you're doing your family home evenings! I always think about my siblings and their families when I'm teaching this and hoping y'all are doing it. :)

Love you all. Thank you for your prayers and letters and emails and pictures!

Happy birthday Millerman and Scottie!!!

Love,

kates

Happy 4th of July

Katy's email home this week was an email in photos. Here they are, enjoy!

1. Turtle in a front yard of someone's house. Name is Shady. How could we not get a pic? They've had it for 12 years...

2. Irvin--the most energetic 2-year-old I've ever met in my life. His family are members of the church. Every time we go by to visit them, he tries to steal our hymn books and is all over everywhere. But he's really cute.

3. Angelica's--eating dinner as a district at a member's home. These are some members that ate with us!

4. Hermano Pallares--always has to get pics with the missionaries, so I have a lot with him! He's the high priest group leader (I think that's what it's called--maybe not) and is a great help to us.

5. Carlos--Carlos Chavez. Hi Carlos! He was our ward mission leader until he MOVED to San Jose. There he is with the zone leaders (I think--I can't see the pic), Elders Watko and Jensen.

6. District pic fail.

7. District pic blurry but worked that time.

8. Elder Rizo--David Archuleta actually came to California, not Chile. (jk... he just looks like him)

9. Sister Novakovich's sister drew this cute pic of us haha

10. Peek of Sister Schow's home!

11. Reaching for Celestial Way.

12. When we went to the temple last week!

13. Rafael, Jonathan, and Ari--Rafael's shirt says "We reserve the right to arm bears." He doesn't understand it :)

14. The Rodriguez Christmas--opening their scriptures. They loved them!!! Thanks, Mom!! They said many many many thanks to you.

15. 4th of July games!

16. Here we're playing a game, but in the morning we ran a 5k game. I just ran in circles around a sister while she ran/walked because I had to stay with a companion :)

17. Sisters up north in Sacramento!

18. Elder Dahl--this is Kevin's son. I worked for Kevin for 2 years in Utah. And now his son and I are in the same mission!

19. President Lewis and Sister Toro and me.

20. We had the activity at the Mormon Center, which is the chapel next to the temple.

21. With Hermana Estrada and Mason who I love.