Beans and More Beans

 

Dear Family and Friends,

So I guess I complained a little too much last week about not having dinner appointments because I'm being overloaded this week.  Partly because I got transferred.  Yep.  It was a huge shocker.  I thought because they're expecting our visas soon I'd just stay in my area and we'd be a trio or something, but they moved me to West Jordan, the Copperhills 5th branch Spanish speaking.  It was really hard to leave Riverton because I really grew to love the people and the area was finally picking up.  But I know it's in good hands with Sister Hodgson and her new greenie companion.  Also, I absolutely love my new area.  It took me a long time to love my last area but it's been so easy to love it here.  The people are awesome and I love speaking Spanish all the time. 

So my new companions are Sister Wanlass and Sister Danielson.  Sister Wanlass is from New Jersey and New York and she's been out for about a year.  Sister Danielson is from Iowa and she's still in training.  Which is unfortunate because that means we still have an hour of training every day.  But we've been working really well together and we have a car!  I was worried about being in a trio, but it's been working out and it's actually really fun, except I sleep on the floor.

So we have 5 investigators, one we just picked up on sunday.  One's name is Estevan and he's 21.  He's golden.  He teaches us every time we go over there.  He's not on date technically because he's still on probation for something that happened a year and a half ago, but he'll be baptized in July.  Yesterday at church he told me that he wants to start paying tithing because he feels like he's already a member.  He's also saving up for his mission.

Adan and Josefina are an older couple that are here from Mexico for a few months.  Adan is really interested but they don't really understand the importance of being baptized by someone with the priesthood, in fact they think it's against God's commandments.  Adan also is mostly deaf and blind, so it's extra hard to teach them.  Any prayers for them would be much appreciated because it's going to take a miracle.  But they believe Joseph Smith is a prophet and that the Book of Mormon is the word of God?  Ya spanish...

And the last two investigators are Luis and Luis Jr.  I've only taught Luis once and it was a powerful lesson.  They were going to drop him until that lesson and he came to church on sunday!  And he brought his son!  And they are now really wanting to get involved in the church and they will be baptized soon. 

So that's all really.  I'm so happy here and the only thing really that I'm struggling with is love for a certain person with an accent.  I've developed that since being on my mission.  I can't handle anyone that speaks english with an accent (meaning english, australian, etc.)  But I remembered Dad's advice, "if you want someone to love you, make them serve you in some way."  So I'm going to serve him and I WILL learn to love him. 

Also, spanish people get offended if you don't eat their food.  I'm starting to get sick.

Love,

Hermana (again) Borup

 A Near Death experience

 

Dear Family and Friends,

So I'm gonna start out on the good news because this week was quite the week.  First off, Zach's still on date to be baptized on the 8th of June!!!  Wahoo!!!  He's basically fantastic.  I love him.  We have another appointment with him and his mom tonight and his mom's boyfriend will be there with his little girl who's also 9 and not baptized.  

Lisa's baptism on Monday went great, despite all the drama leading up to it.  Her fellowshipper family said that we saved it.  Really all we did was make a billion calls and stress but oh well, I'll take the credit.  The family's not too happy and called President Miller to report on the Elders.  All we did at the baptism was bare our testimonies, which was somewhat weird because we didn't know her at all.  It wasn't personal and not for her, but just a simple testimony.

We picked up a new investigator this week and his wife will be one this coming week.  They are the couple that just moved here from Nevada and and the nicest people I have ever met.  He thinks we're angels.  He told us that he's not a good candidate to join our church because he's 60 and pretty set in his ways but as we started to teach him, he told us at the end that the little kid inside of him was being drawn in.  So that was an excellent evening and they want to feed us too.  Which was great at that time because we didn't have dinner appointments all week and we were running out of food.

We got to go to the temple on thursday!  It was fantastic!  I love the temple and I wish we can go more often, but I got to go twice this transfer, so I really shouldn't be complaining.  One of the elders in my district was super sick but he still made it.

So this week...  wow.  Wednesday we had training, and ya.  I just am not a huge fan of training.  It was good but the role playing was ugh.  Then on friday at weekly planning I got a little frustrated but we had our first real good comp inventory and fixed those problems.  But I also got a bad flat on friday.  We dropped the bike off at a family that we love's house and they fixed it for me.  In the meantime we were on foot, in the pouring rain.  It wasn't that fun.  Then on saturday I woke up with a huge headache and I was exhausted.  Sister Hodgson was sort of understanding but she was still getting frustrated with me.  I slept during language study and also lunch.  But then I took an excedrin and felt a lot better.  That night we got a call from a lady in the other sister's area and she invited us to dinner.  So we went with her and met the sisters at Village Inn.  While we were coming home we almost died.  Really though.  We almost got in a bad accident that would have killed sister hodgson and I.  But we're safe.  And then we were both sick to our stomachs the rest of the night.  Ya saturday and friday weren't the best.  Sunday was good though.

This morning I had a bad allergic reaction and I took benadryl that took me out.  Ya... I'm still kind of out of it.  But I'm happy and if it stops raining, we get to go hiking today!

Love,

Madi

A week of being set up

Dear Family and Friends,

Congratulations on the ironman!  

So this was an interesting week.  Tuesday Sister Hodgson's sister was our companion because she was going into the MTC the next day.  So that was a fun day.  I felt bad for her though because we had district meeting and all studies and no appointment.  But we did end up teaching two less active families and we had dinner with the most interesting ward mission leader we have that quizzed us on scriptures from the bible on the nature of god... yes. 

So we've been focusing on leadership and working with leadership better so this week we met with all of our ward mission leaders and went over the Catch the Wave talk.  Some of our meetings were fantastic, others did no good.  We have one that I think is inactive.  He doesn't really come to anything and every time we talk to him, nothing comes of it.  It's frustrating all right.  So we've kind of bypassed him and now we just go straight to the bishop which we feel really bad about but what else are we supposed to do?

It's official, I look like everyone's granddaughters!  Also, if they have a grandson that just got back from a mission, they want me to date them.  It's awkward sometimes.  On tuesday we did service at a house and he was really trying to get my email so that his grandson could write me.  This is what I know of him, he just got back from a mission, he hasn't dated at all because he's super shy and he goes to Utah State.  Ya...  I don't think so.  Also, I'm pretty sure we got into a house of a less active because I remind him of his favorite granddaughter.  According to his wife, the granddaughter is the "apple of bill's eye."  Great!  I'll take it.  He's been reading and coming to church so whatever it takes right?  Oh boy.

We saw an AP again this week.  Surprise!  He was at zone meeting though so it wasn't so bad, but it's still leadership.  They're smothering us!

Friday!  We had lots of miracles!  It was the best day ever!  We now have more than 5 solid potentials that we have appointments with this week.  One house was a couple that just moved here from Nevada and they don't know a lot about our church but they want to know more and they love their neighbors and they want to go to church with us in the "brown building".  Awesome!  It was fantastic.  Every house we knocked on that night were nonmembers that wanted to meet with us.  I'm so excited.

And then sunday we got to go to a priesthood meeting and it was the weirdest experience.  We presented something and then we had to talk in relief society right afterwards.  Wow what a difference.  Relief society had space to breathe, it smelled nice, it was set up nicely, people were smiling and there was even a tablecloth and chandeliers.  I'm starting to like relief society more and more.  And Dennise was there!  She had her bishop's interview right afterwards and we're meeting with her this week to see how it went!

Well the church is true and I love you all.  

Love,

Hermana Borup