It was seriously the best thing. I was so excited, but I should probably let you know you didn't finish writing in the card!
Hahaha you were saying something about something and then it said "with"...and then nothing.
It was funny though...my roommates got a REAL kick out of it.
That's what the MTC does to you...the DUMBEST things turn into the FUNNIEST things you've ever heard! I don't even know who I am anymore. :)
Actually, my entire district is going to Riverside! We all leave together on Tuesday. We report to the travel office at 7:30 AM.
TOTES excited.
I now play four square on the daily. To be honest, I think I'm quite good. :)
It's about the only thing we can do with the elders that is competitive enough to meet my needs. We don't get gym time today and I am super bummed.
I am getting it, but it's a bit SCARY to think that I only have a few more days until the real thing.
We practice with progressing investigators (who are just our teachers playing the role of an investigator.) When you see your TRC investigator, even outside of the room, you need to treat them like an investigator.
So, we received both of our slips on Saturday and needed to be prepared for Monday afternoon.
An hour before we were supposed to teach, one of the teachers tells us that we will no longer be teaching "Rachel" and instead we need to prepare for "Lawana."
It was TERRIFYING.
We met Lawana on the first day we were here. She is a large black woman with a BIG attitude and she is not easy to teach. She makes it more of a debate and she runs the show.
She is VERY intimidating.
In TRC she has been known to throw missionaries out of her "house." (Some of the TRC investigators are members and some are not...we are never told.)
Maybe 5 minutes into the lesson she says "Hold up! How do you know that He wants Lawana to do that? You don't know me. You don't know my life!"
We tried to bear testimony and read scripture, but it was not what she wanted to hear.
She probably said "You don't know Lawana" a thousand times.
The only thing we had going for us was that we were funny and she knew that we loved her (OBVIOUSLY I love her, I want to be her best friend!)
Finally, as we asked her questions (we asked about a hundred) she started to break down and cry and said that she knew Jesus Christ had sent us and that she's missing something in her life.
HALLELUJAH!
She committed to pray and invited us back on Wednesday. We were so happy when we left. It truly felt like an accomplishment.
Again, we couldn't answer anything right. When we tried to remind her why she invited us back she said she only let us come because her friend asked her to meet with us. :(
We tried everything we knew and we were still not getting anywhere and I was seriously about to cry when she went silent for a very long time.
Eventually, she said "I am probably going to get in big trouble for this, but..." and then she stopped being an investigator and told us her conversion story.
It was sweet and very humbling. After she was done, I hugged her goodbye and thanked her before we left.
We went WAY over time and we were late for our next appointment.
I actually wish we didn't go to the next appointment because neither Sister Todd or I wanted to be there and we were still all worked up over Lawana so I can't even tell you how it went because I don't remember.
She didn't want to hear it.
It was really AWKWARD for the next 4 hours because she wouldn't let it go and even WORSE she wouldn't talk to me about it.
She kept saying "Sister, I don't want to talk about it." It was a real test of my patience.
After a while I had to go to the bathroom (which was awkward because we hadn't talked and we have to go together) and when I walked out of the stall she was sitting in the corner on the bathroom floor.
DISGUSTING.
So, I tried to help her and tell her that everything happens for a reason, but she snapped at me and said "Sister, do not talk about it anymore."
Really? You are calling attention to yourself by sitting on the bathroom floor and when someone tries to help you, you shut them down?
I couldn't take it anymore.
I said "Okay, I don't mean to sound rude, but you look PATHETIC. So stand up, get over it and let's move on shall we?" :)
Luckily, she did just that.
I had a meeting with the new districts in our zone right after, but when I got home we had a very loving talk and everything is good again. That was by far the hardest thing these past couple of days.
Heavenly Father loves all of His children and truly knows us better than we know ourselves.
We need to have faith and put our trust in Him. If we do that and work hard, everything will work out and we will be blessed.
I wish I could write more, but I am completely out of time.
Tell the boys they should be receiving a letter soon :)
Five sisters are sick (myself included) and one of them has bronchitis.
I have brought two of the sisters to get blessings in the middle of the night and everyone is dealing with feeling inadequate or homesick.
Life is good.
THE CHURCH IS TRUE!
(email received May 4, 2013)
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| After a long day in the MTC Nat came home to find her door decorated by some of the sisters in her district. |
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| The lovely sisters responsible for her door decorations. |
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| Sisters Lasson and Hadley. These are the new Sister Training Leaders that Natalie trained. |
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| Elders Cowley and Rainey. Nat's Zone Leaders in MTC (ASL missionaries) |
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