Hello!
I have to write this from my iPad thing, so if there are a ton of
errors that is why and I apologize in advance.
Well this first week has been.....interesting. My trainer is Sister
LeBaron. She is a cute red head from Hurricane Utah. She is amazing,
yes I have pictures, but they are on my camera, so I can't send them.
But don't worry, I will find a way!!
My first area: Portland Oregon, East Stake, Rocky Butte Ward.
Honestly I feel like I am in the ghetto. Everyone looks the same. Not
to be rude or judgmental, but they all have baggy clothes, they just
look miserable and unhappy. A lot of people seem grouchy. They homes
are small and kinda gross looking, there are some reeeeeaaally weird
smells here. And it doesn't help that mold is like a thing here. But
yes, it is very pretty here.
My first day tracting, we were in Vancouver, with some other sisters,
I was with Sister Blanch. She is incredible and we just clicked
immediately so she was like I hope we are companions!! Haha I hope so
too. Anyway I went out with her first and she just kept saying how
impressed she was with me. She was like “ok I will just ease you into
it and then we can go from there.” I let her take the first door just
to see what to say and all that. Then the next door I was like “I got
it.” and she was like ummmmm ok.. Ahahah I knocked and someone
answered, I just started talking and testified of Christ and the Book
of Mormon, I asked her if she had read it and here belief in God,
anyway, I gave my first Book of Mormon away to her. And Sister Blanch
was like holy. Crap.. Hahahahaha she was like you are fearless!!
Hahaha that wasn't my area so I don't know if any of these people have
contActed them, but Sister Blanch kept calling me her little miracle.
Hahaha way too funny. I love her a ton, and she taught me a lot of
good things about talking to people.
We stayed at the mission home that night. Super nice. It was
bittersweet though, we knew we would be saying goodbye soon.
President and Sister Taylor though are awesome. Oh man. Guess what.
The next day at breakfast Sister Taylor had the Perfect thing for me
to eat. I swear it was inspiration hahah. So I loooove Greek yogurt.
Well Sister Taylor had Greek yogurt and fresh berries, aaaaand semi
sweet chocolate chips. Umm hello, let's just be best friends!!! Hahaha
she was like I have never put the chocolate chips in it!! She tried it
and like it. It is way good. Go try it. You're welcome in advance
hahaha!!
Saturday was sketchy. We tracted a scary neighborhood and everyone was
so rude. We got the doors slammed, cussed at, we had one lady follow us
down the street to our car, and she was totally crazy. Maybe high too
but anyway..she went on about how she is just like Christ, and how she
was raised from the dead, and how she is the minister for the
neighborhood. She told us that we dress badly and we should take our
tags off because we are judging people and stuff... Anyway she used
some pretty colorful language to tell us about ourselves. Craaaaazy.
She is a weirdo. Ahahah.
We live in an apartment, it smells like cigarettes, but we cleaned it
and the land lords did a lot too so it doesn't smell too bad now.
Not gonna lie, my biggest struggle so far has been fear. The first
night at the apartment I freaked myself out. I just felt that
something bad was there. So I told my companion and she was like “I'm
glad you said something.” We said a prayer together and went to bed. I
slept really good. Then on Saturday after everything, we were going to
bed and I just felt so icky. It was bad and I was terrified. To just
even move. I did not sleep at all. I prayed literally constantly that
night. Then Sister LeBaron tells her life story with that sort of
stuff, she has had some really scary experiences. She told me she
felt there was something there but it wasn't hostile. So I'm like yeah
thanks! Anyway, I found that the more I dwell on it the worse it is. If
I let it scare me, it has more power. Well great. Anyway, it comes
and goes, and I shall conquer. We told our elders though, and they
helped out a ton. They gave us some instruction, and they call us
every night before we go to bed just to check on us. But it has gotten
better. So sorry for scaring the crap out of you mom, but it is fine.
Hahaha. Satan is real, and I never really under stood his power, I
know he is evil, but we most of the time see him as just he tempts us
by putting thoughts into your head. Um. No. He Is down right evil, and
he can manifest that when he wants. However, he is also a whiny snot,
so don't let him but ya too much. He has power to bruise our heel but
we have power to CRUSH his head. Fear is his tool, get rid of your
fear, replace it with faith and trust in The Lord, and Satan has no
power.
We are teaching some great people, I'm still trying to get to know
everyone, and remember their situations. One of our investigators has
a pet squirrel. Yea. Awesome. I guess they found it in bad shape when
it was a baby and nursed it back to health, and they got the shots and
everything for it and got it registered. So it is legal. I got to pet
it. Sister LeBaron has a pic I will try to send you sometime. It was
cool!!
The neighborhood here just seems messed up. Like there isn't
organization. Everything looks the same the roads have weird
intersections, and little street signs, luckily sister LeBaron has a
gps and so we get around ok. Plus things are just buried in trees.
My first day tracting with Sister Blanch, we drove to this one area, I
don't know what it was, but on the way these it was literally like
driving through a thick forest. But with housed dotted here and there.
Very pretty. It is humid here. But not too bad. You feel sticky by the
end of the day and that is pretty gross.. It is pretty nice as far as
heat. It does get pretty hot, but it is nice. My first 2 days here it
rained. It would drizzle and then it would just be dark and gloomy,
then it would pour, then the sun would poke out and then it would
pour...so the rain here is pretty bipolar, but other than that, the
weather is nice.
It is weird being in a different ward. I don't like being in the
family ward. I miss my YSA ward so friggen much. The ward here I
guess has issues. We met a man yesterday, a very sweet guy from
England, he is less active, and told us how he just feels ignored and
unwelcome. I just felt so bad for him, he said even the bishop doesn't
call him or return his calls. And no one talks to him, and when he
does come to church he sits alone. He said he just has a ton of
questions and he doesn't want to discuss it because he thinks they are
destructive questions to one’s faith. He questions Joseph smith and the
plates and things like that. We offered many times to sit with him and
discuss the questions he has and he finally accepted. He said they are
silly and not important. And I told him that we are not perfect
teachers, nor do we know everything, but we will try our very best to
help him find answers, and that if it was important to him, the. It
was important to Heavenly Father. And he just seemed to kind of light
up, and then he was like yeeaah! So we asked him to write his
questions down and he is gonna give us a call. He would not give us
his number, but he was like I will call I promise. So I am really
looking forward to hearing from him and teaching him.
Mom, I need my insurance card. I know it is still in my gold wallet,
but I don't remember where I left it. I will send my address too but I
have to look it up. You can only send packages to the mission office,
and letters to my apartment, or you can send it all to the mission
office.
Apartment address
9923 NE Prescott street #17
Portland, OR
97220
Thank you all for writing me, it means a lot to hear from home.
Miss you lots, love you dearly!
Sister Morgan
I have to write this from my iPad thing, so if there are a ton of
errors that is why and I apologize in advance.
Well this first week has been.....interesting. My trainer is Sister
LeBaron. She is a cute red head from Hurricane Utah. She is amazing,
yes I have pictures, but they are on my camera, so I can't send them.
But don't worry, I will find a way!!
My first area: Portland Oregon, East Stake, Rocky Butte Ward.
Honestly I feel like I am in the ghetto. Everyone looks the same. Not
to be rude or judgmental, but they all have baggy clothes, they just
look miserable and unhappy. A lot of people seem grouchy. They homes
are small and kinda gross looking, there are some reeeeeaaally weird
smells here. And it doesn't help that mold is like a thing here. But
yes, it is very pretty here.
My first day tracting, we were in Vancouver, with some other sisters,
I was with Sister Blanch. She is incredible and we just clicked
immediately so she was like I hope we are companions!! Haha I hope so
too. Anyway I went out with her first and she just kept saying how
impressed she was with me. She was like “ok I will just ease you into
it and then we can go from there.” I let her take the first door just
to see what to say and all that. Then the next door I was like “I got
it.” and she was like ummmmm ok.. Ahahah I knocked and someone
answered, I just started talking and testified of Christ and the Book
of Mormon, I asked her if she had read it and here belief in God,
anyway, I gave my first Book of Mormon away to her. And Sister Blanch
was like holy. Crap.. Hahahahaha she was like you are fearless!!
Hahaha that wasn't my area so I don't know if any of these people have
contActed them, but Sister Blanch kept calling me her little miracle.
Hahaha way too funny. I love her a ton, and she taught me a lot of
good things about talking to people.
We stayed at the mission home that night. Super nice. It was
bittersweet though, we knew we would be saying goodbye soon.
President and Sister Taylor though are awesome. Oh man. Guess what.
The next day at breakfast Sister Taylor had the Perfect thing for me
to eat. I swear it was inspiration hahah. So I loooove Greek yogurt.
Well Sister Taylor had Greek yogurt and fresh berries, aaaaand semi
sweet chocolate chips. Umm hello, let's just be best friends!!! Hahaha
she was like I have never put the chocolate chips in it!! She tried it
and like it. It is way good. Go try it. You're welcome in advance
hahaha!!
Saturday was sketchy. We tracted a scary neighborhood and everyone was
so rude. We got the doors slammed, cussed at, we had one lady follow us
down the street to our car, and she was totally crazy. Maybe high too
but anyway..she went on about how she is just like Christ, and how she
was raised from the dead, and how she is the minister for the
neighborhood. She told us that we dress badly and we should take our
tags off because we are judging people and stuff... Anyway she used
some pretty colorful language to tell us about ourselves. Craaaaazy.
She is a weirdo. Ahahah.
We live in an apartment, it smells like cigarettes, but we cleaned it
and the land lords did a lot too so it doesn't smell too bad now.
Not gonna lie, my biggest struggle so far has been fear. The first
night at the apartment I freaked myself out. I just felt that
something bad was there. So I told my companion and she was like “I'm
glad you said something.” We said a prayer together and went to bed. I
slept really good. Then on Saturday after everything, we were going to
bed and I just felt so icky. It was bad and I was terrified. To just
even move. I did not sleep at all. I prayed literally constantly that
night. Then Sister LeBaron tells her life story with that sort of
stuff, she has had some really scary experiences. She told me she
felt there was something there but it wasn't hostile. So I'm like yeah
thanks! Anyway, I found that the more I dwell on it the worse it is. If
I let it scare me, it has more power. Well great. Anyway, it comes
and goes, and I shall conquer. We told our elders though, and they
helped out a ton. They gave us some instruction, and they call us
every night before we go to bed just to check on us. But it has gotten
better. So sorry for scaring the crap out of you mom, but it is fine.
Hahaha. Satan is real, and I never really under stood his power, I
know he is evil, but we most of the time see him as just he tempts us
by putting thoughts into your head. Um. No. He Is down right evil, and
he can manifest that when he wants. However, he is also a whiny snot,
so don't let him but ya too much. He has power to bruise our heel but
we have power to CRUSH his head. Fear is his tool, get rid of your
fear, replace it with faith and trust in The Lord, and Satan has no
power.
We are teaching some great people, I'm still trying to get to know
everyone, and remember their situations. One of our investigators has
a pet squirrel. Yea. Awesome. I guess they found it in bad shape when
it was a baby and nursed it back to health, and they got the shots and
everything for it and got it registered. So it is legal. I got to pet
it. Sister LeBaron has a pic I will try to send you sometime. It was
cool!!
I had dinner with the Smith family, they are a cute older couple in my
ward here, their home smelled JUST like Gran and Pa's and it made me
sad. She fed us a friggen feast though. Oh man I probably gained like
100 pounds already! Hahah
ward here, their home smelled JUST like Gran and Pa's and it made me
sad. She fed us a friggen feast though. Oh man I probably gained like
100 pounds already! Hahah
The neighborhood here just seems messed up. Like there isn't
organization. Everything looks the same the roads have weird
intersections, and little street signs, luckily sister LeBaron has a
gps and so we get around ok. Plus things are just buried in trees.
My first day tracting with Sister Blanch, we drove to this one area, I
don't know what it was, but on the way these it was literally like
driving through a thick forest. But with housed dotted here and there.
Very pretty. It is humid here. But not too bad. You feel sticky by the
end of the day and that is pretty gross.. It is pretty nice as far as
heat. It does get pretty hot, but it is nice. My first 2 days here it
rained. It would drizzle and then it would just be dark and gloomy,
then it would pour, then the sun would poke out and then it would
pour...so the rain here is pretty bipolar, but other than that, the
weather is nice.
It is weird being in a different ward. I don't like being in the
family ward. I miss my YSA ward so friggen much. The ward here I
guess has issues. We met a man yesterday, a very sweet guy from
England, he is less active, and told us how he just feels ignored and
unwelcome. I just felt so bad for him, he said even the bishop doesn't
call him or return his calls. And no one talks to him, and when he
does come to church he sits alone. He said he just has a ton of
questions and he doesn't want to discuss it because he thinks they are
destructive questions to one’s faith. He questions Joseph smith and the
plates and things like that. We offered many times to sit with him and
discuss the questions he has and he finally accepted. He said they are
silly and not important. And I told him that we are not perfect
teachers, nor do we know everything, but we will try our very best to
help him find answers, and that if it was important to him, the. It
was important to Heavenly Father. And he just seemed to kind of light
up, and then he was like yeeaah! So we asked him to write his
questions down and he is gonna give us a call. He would not give us
his number, but he was like I will call I promise. So I am really
looking forward to hearing from him and teaching him.
Mom, I need my insurance card. I know it is still in my gold wallet,
but I don't remember where I left it. I will send my address too but I
have to look it up. You can only send packages to the mission office,
and letters to my apartment, or you can send it all to the mission
office.
Apartment address
9923 NE Prescott street #17
Portland, OR
97220
Thank you all for writing me, it means a lot to hear from home.
Miss you lots, love you dearly!
Sister Morgan
