Hi Mom!
How are you? How did everything go this week? How is Norman doing?
This has been an exciting week in the Chardon Branch. Yesterday, Sister Carter and I had several important people at church. Have I told you about Billy? He is a less active man in the branch, and Sister Carter and I have been meeting with him every week since I got here. He was baptized about three years ago, but he fell away shortly thereafter. Lately, though, for some reason he has completely turned his life around. Yesterday was his first day back at church! He was just beaming when we walked in and saw him there in the hall. He is so sweet and sincere about making changes in his life. I was so proud of him yesterday. The neat thing is that we don't know why he wanted to change, and it was all so self-motivated. We called him to set up the first appointment at the beginning of September, but since then, he's the one who texts us during the week to make sure we're still meeting on Friday. And he texts us sometimes to update us on his progress.
Also, our investigator Tina finally came to church yesterday. At our meeting with her this week, we talked about baptism, and she wants to do it! Also, she prayed out loud, and Sister Carter says Tina has never agreed to that before. She is another one who is making some amazing changes all on her own. For our next lesson, she requested that we talk about fasting and tithing, because she said those are the two hardest principles for her, and she really wants to get over them before she is baptized. But then, on Saturday, when we called her about church the next day, she asked if it was alright for her just to eat something small that day to go with one of her medications. Apparently, she had thought it was fast Sunday, and she was already planning on fasting! She keeps surprising me with how willing she is to make changes.
This week is transfers, but all four sisters in the Chardon Branch are staying. That's good, because none of us expected or wanted to be transferred. Next transfer I will definitely get a new companion, though, because Sister Carter dies at the end of this transfer! Did you have lots of missionary jargon in Italy? I never realized there was so much of it. For example, I was born in Chardon, I'm growing up in a home (meaning I'm living in one of the historic Kirtland homes for my first few transfers), I'm killing Sister Carter (because she dies while I'm her companion), investigators flame us when they don't show up to lessons, and Sister Hill and Sister Palfrey are my sisters because we all have the same mom (trainer). Funny, isn't it?
Also, have I told you about the Ohio accent? It's similar to the New York/Pennsylvania accent, in this area anyway. You can do it if you just change your short a's to "ee-a" dipthongs. For example, the most common thing we hear tracting: "I'm Cee-atholic."
Do you have any tracting advice? Most of the people here don't want to talk to us at all. I think that's partially the culture in this area, though, because people are busy and not super-friendly. Oh well, I love them anyway. And we found a few great people this week! I love it when that happens, it's always a miracle in some way.
On a side note: If you ever might want, perhaps, to send me a Christmas present, I would really love a beautiful Mormon Tabernacle choir CD. The new mission rule is that we can listen to anything sung by the Mormon Tabernacle choir, so it's not just hymns anymore!
Hope everything is going well! Love you!
Love,
Katherine
Hi Mom! Alright, I just got your email!
I did hear about DaNece, I'm so excited for her!
Hm, Ceci's mental block... If she were an investigator, I would sit down with her and ask her lots of questions to try to get to the "center of the onion." They teach us that when someone has a question or concern, usually it's just a cover for a concern that's several layers deeper, like layers on an onion! That would be the missionary approach. Oh, and then I would read her a story from the Book of Mormon about someone who has her same concern, and help her relate to that person, and then have her see in the scriptures how that person gets an answer to their problem. And then have her pray out loud! :-) I'm glad Sophie's reading, too.
Well, I love you! Have a good week!
Love,
Katherine
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