Another busy week as a missionary!

This week was so busy! But every week is really, normal missionary stuff.

Monday we had dinner with a member, she is a ward missionary and just the sweetest convert. She told us that she thinks that the university ward has been waiting for this particular set of missionaries (us)! I don't know what they have been waiting for but I felt such a change this week! They seem more open towards us than before and they are coming to us with friends! Of course I'm always praying for their missionary work and I really just hope that they are never hesitant to share their beliefs. I don't know how much longer I will stay in this area but I can feel a change in me already - mostly of the member that I want to be when I get home. The Lord knows what we all need to learn, and these singles have taught ME so much about the importance of saying, "I'm a Mormon, I know it, I live it, I love it." 

The Bishop actually gave us an assignment! We are working with a LA sister and really just (on her request) converting her. She doesn't have a testimony and knows certain things are true but just doesn't have a personal relationship with her Father in Heaven and her Savior. She is HILARIOUS and tells us the best stories, we give her homework each week that I hope will help her to learn how to read the scriptures. This week is Alma 32, with questions. Many people go through their life not really knowing HOW to read their scriptures. I'm excited to help her.

I see who I would have been in her. She grew up in the church, but never took the time to actually gain a testimony, and honestly I know that if I had not have put forth personal effort in gaining one myself and going on my mission, I would be just like her... in 15 years. I'm so grateful for the examples in my life, I am learning so much working with members as well as investigators. 

We had some LONG public transportation rides this week. We have been going ALL OVER. If you sit down with a map of this area, you will notice that Boston is HUGE, but that we also include a ridiculously large area of Brighton (where we live), Arlington, Brookline, Jamaica Plain, Newton, and more. We have a GIGANTIC geographical area and a very small demographic - single women between the 18-25 or 30-45. My "Charlie Card" is my bestest friend. I am becoming a LEGIT public transportation hopper, especially because your average human would simply look it up on their smartphone and never quite grasp the hang of it - but with me? Oh, I've MEMORIZED the public transportation system for multiple areas. Just tooting my own horn here, ignore me, read on. 

My new companion is lovely, she is completely OPPOSITE of my last companion in practically every single way possible. So some days I know I tick her off, but that honestly it's mostly because I just am ignorant of the way she would like to do missionary work. I've really only had one side of the work so far, so I don't know certain things. Sometimes it's really frustrating because I'm trying to be the best missionary possible and I can't grasp my own style. I think the Lord is choosing to show be VERY different ways to do the same work so that I will continue to learn. THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING TO LEARN Y'ALL. 

Here are some things from my GREAT THINGS journal, I always write 10 great things at the end of each day :) 

-A less active we met with on Wednesday came to church, we think since winter break!

-Great meals all week long! And so healthy! The Lord knew that I needed veggies! 

-We met with K on Thursday and turned it into a dinner that night with some girls from University Ward, and it was so so much fun! We had ice cream together and talked and talked :)

-Our new investigator S came to church! She stood up and introduced herself and told the ward about her baptismal date and getting ready for it, she was SO EXCITED! Adorable. 

-The Bishop from the other ward gave us assignments for this week as well! 

-We went all the way to Jamaica Plain when our member lived in MEDFORD, which is crazy far, but she picked us up and took us out to dinner that night because our dinner cancelled. It was a miracle. 

This week has been really great, and I'm sure next week will be even better. I am getting much much happier in the work. 

Oh, and a Bostonian thing: 

They have nicknames for some cities out here... Sister J HATES them, but they're funny. Mattapan=Murderpan, Dorchester=lock-your-door-chester, Glouster=Glockster, I can't think of any more at the moment, but I think they're funny (mostly because these cities are not THAT sketchy).  

Love you all

Sister HRP

Sorry, late post!

This week has brought so many changes and so many blessings! 

Transfers were on Thursday. The night before we had 15 girls in our apartment! There were so many new people coming in that we crammed so many of them into a 4 sister apartment. It was so much fun. We stayed up talking for way too long.

I am staying just where I am, but Sister F is gone. She is going to "tour" for a bit before she leaves in a couple weeks. I'm sad to see my 'mom' go away, but I've been really blessed with so many good things. I'm moving on very quickly and am unusually happy about the whole thing. :) 

My new companion is Sister J, she is great. She has a beautiful singing voice and a great sense of humor. She loves the work and she is a great teacher. People can really relate to her, she is a convert and she has a great job (backup singer for Gladys Knight) before she came on a mission. People love to talk to her about her conversion story and the people who don't relate with me well LOVE her. 

On Saturday we had Elder Ballard come to the mission! He spoke to us and answered questions! We all shook his hand and were so inspired by his words! I cam with questions about what I wanted from my mission and they were all answered. In fact the one I've been struggling with the most was really made so clear to me, and I have a new found resolve to be an even better missionary. 

Plus the Bishops also went to a meeting with him and we can see a change already! The Bishop from our ward actually called us this morning! That never happens! 

The University ward was on fire this week, 3 referrals in one weekend!

Also we taught a friend of a member of the Charles River Ward. The work is really picking up! 

Sunday I really felt like part of the ward, finally. They were so friendly and excited! I could feel the love from them and the love for them. One girl that I thought didn't really like us much gave me Gluten Free cookies because she saw them somewhere and "thought of me." I didn't know that she had ever thought of me! 

 Our dinner calendar is completely booked for the next two weeks! Which is crazy, because that has not happened lately.

I can't wait for even more work with them and their friends. We have two potential investigators that members have told us about just this week, and we are so excited to meet with them. 

Ya'll should know that everyone makes a big big difference for the kingdom. Your wards need you, your families need you, your friends need you. It is amazing how one faithful member can change peoples minds about Mormons. I have really felt that here. The people we teach always had a great LDS role model. 

Thank you for the support! I'm still at the same address, I just got a new comp. The place is sort of perpetually moist and sort of trashy, but it's home. :) We are going to start running in the mornings, wish us luck! 

love, sister hrp

She didn't send a subject this time so here is your hannah-esque creative title

Ya'll outdid yourself this week! No but really. I got 3 packages and quite a few letters! I loved it all and I definitely am not starving anymore :) I will write you back. Promise. 

This has been a great week, despite some setbacks. I really feel like my happiness and joy in the work grows each and every week, and when before I saw my members as a "duty" that now I see them as people that I love and yearn to help and serve!

I want you all to know the importance of member missionary work, I'm not going to preach to you or anything, but honestly I think Heavenly Father (more than anything else) is preparing me to share the gospel for the rest of my life. I know all of you do things everyday, and I am so proud of all of you. Every "mormon" word that you pop into a casual conversation, every time you write a blog post on your source of strength, when you tell people about yourself and always include the gospel. I really love the spirit of missionary work in these YSA wards and am so proud of these students that live their lives in such a way that they are able to talk about Relief Society and Family Home Evening to their friends as a casual reference to their lives. I know that by living our religion boldly and genuinely, that people will know where to turn when they have questions, and the "myths" of mormonism can be resolved one faithful Saint at a time. 

I love our wards! They have such a spirit of missionary work but we know that they have even more potential! We have been coming up with small ideas to help them. 

Last sunday a Ward Missionary helped us and announced a missionary moment. She stood up and asked who in relief society would be willing to find a missionary moment during that week and share it with the class the next sunday. I was shocked with the amount of hands that popped up, willing to find one this week! 

Yesterday the girl that had volunteered stood up and told the Relief Society how she was able to share the gospel to her own sister who had fallen away a few years past and that had been unwilling to hear about anything religious. She had been praying for a missionary experience since she accepted the challenged and she said something like this: "The Lord presented me with an opportunity to share the gospel with my sister. Her baby has been very sick, and she has been to the doctor multiple times without an answer or solution. She asked me if I would pray for her baby. I told her absolutely! It came completely out of the blue! She hadn't mentioned anything religious to me for a very long time. But because the Lord had provided me with this opportunity, I asked her if she had asked our father for a blessing. She said she hadn't thought about that, but that she would." She continued that her sister's baby was given a blessing, that it was a beautiful experience, and that she was blessed with peace. Her sister called to tell her about what had happened, she was so glad that the conversation about the gospel had started. 

She said, "Because of that door opening, I asked her if she would accept a Book of Mormon, and she said that she would like that. I wrote my testimony in it and sent it to her. I just want to thank you for asking me to find an opportunity this last week, because I was praying and asking for one, the Lord blessed me with an opportunity to bless my Sister's life, and my testimony of missionary work has really grown. "

It was amazing. We gave the ward missionary M&M candies with a paper "Missionary Moment" taped on for the girl that shared. She loved the idea and it really was so cute to see their enthusiasm and happiness of our care and effort towards their ward. 

We have really been striving to work with our YSA wards in an effective way - working around their very busy schedules and their personality as a young ward. I would love any ideas that you have about the best way to work with young people and how we can help them spread the gospel. They love unique ideas and fun activities. We were praised for our marshmallow spaghetti towers that we had them build at the BU FHE on monday.

I ponder about how to help these students all the time - especially because we are around their same age, women, and inviting them to change. We only meet with the women, and we have certain struggles of how to motivate them as we are not two cute young men wanting to meet with them. :) I think of how I would have reacted at BYU, and realize many times that these girls are just like I was. I feel guilty about my apathetic nature when it came to missionary work. 

I love all of you and I pray for you! Keep up the GREAT work and know that the Lord needs you wherever you are! 

Some more things that are different about HERE: 

They have Dunkin Donuts EVERYWHERE. This city really does run on Dunkin, I feel like you can't walk more than 4 blocks without seeing one, as my father would say, "You can hardly swing a dead cat without hitting one!" 

The roads are SO NARROW. They are insane. I feel like there isn't enough room for two cars. The other day we got splashed so badly from a car that zipped by us in the rain. We walked into the church soaking and the Elders said we got "hobo-splashed." 

Also the water that comes out of the tap is practically at boiling temperature 3 seconds it comes out. Random. I know. 

Love you all, 

sister HRP 

and YAY! We have a few pictures! (I'll have to ask her what specific captions to put on each of these, but this is what it looks like: 

Cute companions!

Temple day!

Selfie Sunday?