A Little Burst of Sunshine: Horizon, TX, Transfer 9, Week 6

Holy cow, has another transfer really come and gone already? I'm really not liking how these numbers are going. And every time I get discouraged thinking about how much I still want to improve on and how little time I have left to do it, my companion gets after me. In just a couple weeks I'll have less time left that she has out. And she's only been out for 3 months. But anyway... It was a good week and I really do enjoy the time I've had here in Horizon. I can feel great things coming!

Monday: It was p-day. One of the families in the Spanish ward invited us and the Elders for breakfast. They fixed pancakes and eggs and it was SO good! They also had menudo (cow intestine soup) that they offered to us, but we all turned it down. We had dinner with the same family that night too. Then we went and did our laundry and wrote a few letters. That evening, we taught a lesson with the Elders because we found (or got the referral for this brother from one of Sister Jardine's friends in Utah who was unloading his semi up there in Logan and talked to him about the Gospel and discovered that he lives down here, but in the Elders' area). After the lesson, we were standing outside for about 5 minutes, and I got attacked by 33 mosquitoes. If any of you remember how allergic I am, you can imagine that I was pretty miserable when my ankles swelled up to be the size of softballs.

Tuesday: I got 2 more mosquito bites. I have since learned my lesson and put on repellent before we leave the house. We also found a couple new investigators.

Wednesday: My companion was sick again. When we called Sister Miller, she told us to find someone to go with me and someone to stay with her, so I went on exchanges that night. That was weird. REALLY weird. It was the first time my whole mission that I haven't been with my companion. I mean, I was still with someone, but I don't know WHAT I'm going to do when I get home in a few months and can do what I want when I want and don't need anyone with me to do it. Mom and Kesha, you better be ready to spend some time with me because I don't know if I'll be able to handle being alone.

Thursday: We had district meeting--the last of the transfer. Weird. It doesn't seem like a whole transfer has gone by already. Probably because it's been so out-of-the-ordinary. I also got a letter from Emily Mower, and want to say CONGRATULATIONS on the mission call! The people of Honduras will be greatly blessed!

Friday: We did a little weekly planning, then went to a lunch appointment at the McDermed's house. We have been spending a lot of time with them, as Sister McDermed has cancer and doesn't have much time left. They also had a non-member friend there, and we were able to share a spiritual message with all of them. It was so great! And before we left, we sang a few hymns to Sister McDermed. There wasn't a dry eye in the room. And that night we had several really powerful lessons. What a great day!

Saturday: We had one heck of a companion study talking about Revelations chapters 6-11. We were really wishing we had the institute manual, but for now the scriptures had to do (not that they're bad, just the institute manual could have helped us understand things a little more clearly). I can't wait to get home and have SO many more resources at my fingertips! We went on an adventure to the absolute middle of nowhere trying to find a referral from some of the English Elders. The street showed up on my GPS, so we headed off to find it. An hour of driving and many dirt paths later, we got to where the house should have been and found nothing but broken beer bottles and sagebrush. But it sure was an adventure. We also had double dinners that night, and were SO full we didn't want to think of food ever again. We helped a recent convert who is a geometry teacher grade her students' latest tests for service time. That worked my brain--in a good way. I guess that's something I've got to get used to. As we were driving home from her house around 9:25 or so, I realized that we were getting transfer news that night. Holy Cow! I'm ALWAYS freaking out all day on transfer news day, and it hadn't even crossed my mind. As we were pulling in our driveway, the phone rang and it was Elder Pearson. He asked us if we like our apartment (which now we do) because we're both staying! Yay! I'm so excited for another 6 weeks of work here in Horizon! And so happy that I only have to go through another 2 transfer news days. (With that said, where do y'all think I'm gonna "die"--Horizon City, Rio Rancho, or Santa Fe--the other sister area was closed because we now only have 7 Spanish sisters since one is going home this week--also leaving me the oldest sister in the mission. how weird is that?)

Sunday: We had stake conference. It was only the second one I've been to my whole mission, because I was transferred just a week or two before stake conference in Cortez and Santa Fe. It was a way good conference. And it was nice not being in church all day long so we could make some good visits. I'd forgotten what it was like to only have one meeting to go to on Sundays after 5 weeks of 2 wards. Also, in talking to the Zone Leaders, we are now the only sisters in the 3 zones south of Albuquerque. That means there are like 7 companionships of sisters up north, and us. I feel VERY outnumbered. If we have zone conference combined with the other zones (which we very well could with a member of the 70 coming in October and Christmas coming up) we are going to be so extremely outnumbered it's not even going to be funny. And it's gonna be weird for me to go home and start hanging out with girls again, but I don't think I'll be able to hang out with guys either after 18 months of missionary friendships. Whatever. I promise, sooner or later, I'll get over the awkward RM stage.