Sober Style

I don't know what I'm going to do after the mission, when I'm not required to write my life's story for the week..... Yea, I'm probably going to end up as THAT  RM..............#awkward

Oh well.

I'm starting to think that no week on the mission is ever NOT crazy.

SOML.

Let's get this party on then:

Our weekly English lesson consisted of a Russian, a Ukranian, a Asian, and an Indian (like the from-India kind....not the Native American kind:). But instead of our lesson ending all cordial-like it ended with the Russian and the Indian in an argument over some detail of a story just told. They're going off, back and forth, back and forth, only understanding half of what they're saying and a third of what the other's saying in broken English, and Sis Bishop and I have NO idea how to bring it in.

So we just sat there, trying to figure out ourselves what on earth was going on, while the Ukranian and the Asian's heads just kept turning back and forth between the two antagonists.

Now, Boys! Boys!

They finally resolved their differences, while the rest of us resolved to never get in an argument with a Russian or an Indian.......especially if they can't speak English all that well:) lol

After my fainting episode on the 4th, I've been considering options, and finally agreed to go see a neurologist (yeeeeaaa…..yikes).  I get an appointment, and show up for the" consultation” .......which.....turns out.......is more like the drunk driver test on steroids.

"Touch your nose, then touch my finger, now do it ten times....."

"Walk in a straight line, one foot after the other..."

"Follow my finger with your eyes....."

"Close your eyes and extend your arms....."

Basically.....if I ever get pulled over for drunk driving....I'll know the drill.

And then the neurologist asks, "Do you ever feel like you're drunk when you're not actually drunk?"

How am I supposed to answer THAT question?? She just stared at me like I was a Martian when I told her I didn’t drink……

 #noshame       #sober4lyf

Basically the result of that appointment was more tests……THAT drill I know all too well. Until then, I’m under orders to have someone call 911 if I pass out for more than 10 seconds or have another seizure. 

Great.

I’m REALLY hoping I don’t end up on the EMT’s Frequent Flyer list…….. either way they don’t serve enough peanuts. lol:)

A new set of STL’s have been called and….lucky us…it’s the two sisters in our district! Close to home…that’s how I like it;)

So we got picked as guinea pigs for their first exchange. I left my area to go with Sis Ankowiak (from Poland). We end up at a member’s home to do service and come to find….he used to live in NEW HAMPSHIRE.

Get out.

I swear this world is always getting smaller. We got to chat for a bit about the old stomping ground, and then got to work harvesting his swiss chard. And LOTS of it. We filled three large baskets full of the “green stuff,” hauled it inside, washed, dried, and cut all of it………like 6 GALLONS of swiss chard.

Took us three hours to get it all done, and by the end we had prune hands and blistered fingers…but hey….we got skills too;)

(tangent………we also went over to the ward mission leader’s house to make flour bombs for “service” too……….that’s what’s up!)

On Tuesday, we decided to stop by a less-active's home (one that we'd been trying to visit and get in contact with for months). His son came to the door and after a few minutes of conversation, he said, "I'm a member of your church, y'know."

We were taken aback, and asked him how long he'd been a member, where he'd been baptized, and such. He told us he was baptized 12 years ago by a set of elders in the area, but that after they got transferred, they never set foot in the church again, and the missionaries stopped coming by.

He said, "When we were taking the lesson, it was a family thing, and we were all in it together. Now, we've all gone our separate ways, and that's why we haven't been active." We quickly invited him to meet with missionaries again, and to come back to church. He texted us that night, and said “I’ve been thinking about what you said. Can we meet and start reading the Book of Mormon again?”

Talk about YEA.

We were SO pumped!!! We eventually scheduled a time to meet with him at the church to talk and read together, and when we showed up, he’s sitting in his car, with his best friend with him to listen to us as well!

Whaaaaaaat?!!!!

Best. Less-active. EVER.

We got to show them both around the building, and Carlos (the LA) just kept saying, "Wow...it's been too long!" as he again walked those halls he hadn't walked for 12 years! It was a truly precious experience for me to see the way the gospel light came back into his eyes!

He and his friend are now meeting with us frequently, and they're coming back to church! Carlos also told us, "I want to get my family back here too!" This work is amazing and we’re seeing miracles!!!!!

On Friday we showed up to our dinner appointment, and ended up sitting outside with the family, while waiting for the meat on the grill to finish. Turns out, their neighbor was sitting on his porch as well soooooooo…….stay sitting on the neighbor’s porch?? Ain’t nobody got time for that!

Over we go.

What started off as a casual hello turned into an hour long conversation with him and he eventually came to dinner with us and the family! Woo hoo!!!

While sitting there chatting, though, Owen (the neighbor), told us about his life, how he’d met elders before but didn’t like them because “they were WAY too pushy”……. (we can fix that:) but that he’d attended church before. He seemed a bit hesitant to warm up to us, and began avoiding “churchy” stuff.

Our conversation then went somehow from that to GUNS.   

 #notguilty  

Aaaaaannnnnd….then we couldn’t be stopped. NRA…..Reugers…..Sigs…..M1911’s…...trap and skeet…..indoor vs outdoor range…..M16s……Remingtons……and concealed carry permits.

The whole shebang.

He went on and on, and the two of us had a blast chatting about a topic that mattered to both of us. And honestly, it was crazy to see his willingness to come over for dinner and a spiritual message, and a “slight” commitment to come to church, AFTER we’d made that connection over GUNS.

Go figure.

I honestly believe that everyone needs to know you care, before they can care about what you know. (Yea…totally not my quote….and totally over-used…but hey, it is what it is;). Making connections with people is one of my favorite things to do. And I saw it work wonders with Owen. When he finally saw us as more than just “textbook missionaries” and that we had an interest in his interests….he came around.

Really, you never know what it is you bring to the table. I believe you can find similarities and connections with just about any person. Sometimes, it’s easy to feel as a missionary that there’s no way you can relate and love certain people. But, there’s always more to people than meets the eyes.

Get to know people. Learn about their interests. Find out what matters to them. Listen and love. You never know what connections you’ll find and friendships you’ll forge until you try:)

This gospel is amazing! Missionary work is incredible! And the gospel is true!!!!

Onward and upward,

Sister Anna Parker

 oh, and btw....we and the STL's were given two new Oreck vacuums from guess who:) ......#livininstyle:)