Moth In My Shoe!!!

Well! I have been a missionary now for one month and 3 days! CRAZY! I can hardly believe it. It feels like I've been here for forever, but it also feels like I just got here at the same time. Weird, I know.

So this week has been really tough, but it's been good! I love being a missionary. 

I keep having moments where it hits me that I'm a missionary and I freak out and think WHAT AM I DOING?! but the moment passes and I'm fine again :)

On the 3rd we did a lot of tracting. Most people weren't home and if they were they did not want to talk to us. BUT that night we went to visit a previous investigator at an apartment complex. She wasn't home but her sisters and her niece were home. Her niece followed us around as we knocked on doors. She was so cute! Haha, actually she knocked on most of the doors for us. We got three potential investigators! It was awesome! We were so stoked. 

4th of July was the hardest day. Again, most people weren't home and if they were, they didn't want to talk to us. Most of the people were rude too, which is weird since normally people here are really nice. Let me just tell you my day in bullet points. Here it goes:

-Sister Sherrow didn't feel good that morning. She slept and I studied by myself.

-We decided to go finding even though Sister Sherrow didn't feel well.

-I put on my shoe and felt something inside, so I took my shoe off thinking it was a hair or something. Nope. MOTH!!!! Yup. I freaked out and got different shoes.

-We went out to lunch.

-Went finding and found no one.

-Had a traditional, American, 4th of July dinner...cereal and toast at home. 

-Went to the appointments that we set up with 2 of our potentials. They weren't home.

-Decided to tract at the apartment complex.

-The first door we knock on is a rude lady, we call her rude lady, who says "We don't accept solicitors of any kind here. Thank you." *SLAM* (That's the door by the way.) Ok...Have a nice day.

-Next door. *knock knock*

-Rude lady opens her door again. "Actually the complex doesn't accept solicitors of any kind here."

-Sister Sherrow: "We aren't solic..."

-Rude lady: "You're soliciting your ideas. In order to do that here you have to sign in at the front desk which is closed, so you need to leave the premises now or I'll call the cops."

-We walk away while rude lady watches us.

-I want to punch rude lady, but decide not to because I'm a missionary.

-I remember about my ministerial certificate, but it's too late to show rude lady.

-Worst part is...we have a member with us.

-We go home.

-We talk to a creepy guy, we call him creepy guy, and all he does is stare and tell me I'm pretty.

-Now I think I have a stalker. 

-I sing a song about our day and play the guitar we found in the attic.

-We go to bed and listen to the fireworks.

It was a rough day.

The next day was alright, but our other potential wasn't there for the appointment we set up. We were pretty bummed.

BUT life is still good! I'm learning and growing! I love it! We had interviews with our new president, President Gerber. I asked him what I should do if I can't come home after a hard day and still be happy. I can do that now, but I was worried that after so many hard days I wont' be able to stay positive. President Gerber told me something really cool. FUTURE MISSIONARIES, LISTEN TO THIS:

"You have a hundred successes every day."

We are missionaries to help coach people to eternal salvation. We can help people do that no matter how the encounter goes. We can help with a smile, a hello, a pass along card. For some people it's more dramatic; we teach them the lessons and they get baptized. We help everyone in different ways, but just by doing something, no matter how big or little, we are helping people progress toward eternal salvation. You have hundreds of successes each day. Count your successes. DO NOT look at your failures. You don't have any failures. 

I love President Gerber. He and his wife are awesome. We're going to visit them today :)

Some cool things:

-We taught a couple lessons with the zone leaders. They are super awesome. Elders are such good teachers. It was really cool to teach with them and see the difference between how sisters teach and elders teach. It was super cool!

-It rains all the time and it's warm and there is thunder and I love it!

-We are planning a fireside for non-members and investigators! I'm super stoked.

-Testimony meeting yesterday was awesome! Every testimony was short and sweet and PURE testimony. Have you ever had an hour of hearing pure testimony? It's pretty cool.

-We bore our testimonies which helped the members see who we are and a lot of them talked to us finally.

-The ward and bishop didn't seem very supportive, but yesterday that changed. I think they trust us now and I don't know what caused the sudden change, but it's cool! Plus now we're getting fed more! haha.

I've started reading the Book of Mormon again, but with a fresh copy of the Book of Mormon. I wanted to start fresh. No markings. No bent pages. I've never really read the Book of Mormon. I didn't really get into it or fully understand it until my second semester at BYU-I. It is so awesome! I just finished 1 Nephi 17. If you can, by next week read 1 Nephi 1-25. Read it. I’ll read up to there too and give my insights. Maybe some of you can give me your insights too! 

This challenge is for everyone! I don't care if you're a member or not or even if I know you or not. Read those chapters. They're easy and you have a whole week to do it. :) Maybe we can do this each week. I don't know. It might be fun. 

Quick tip:

Do NOT put top ramen and chicken in a crock pot. The chicken will taste good, but the ramen will be nasty mush.

I love and miss you all, but I know that I need to be here. I'm sealed to my family for eternity, so being out here for 18 months isn't that hard. :) I am so grateful for this gospel. I know that it is true. I know that I am where the Lord needs me. I know that families can be together forever. I love God! I love Jesus!

Love,

Sister Heywood