Thursday, July 28, 2011

Glasses, Affe, Jing, Sister Davis







My last District







Truro members



















July 24th 2011

I have never walked so much in life, ridin a bike so much in my life, and sweated so much in my life. yuck. The humidity level here on Saturday was a level 2, I don't really know what that means except sticky, hot, unbearable, and gross. I was chugging water like no other. We had a ward activity on Saturday and all the members kept telling us about how to avoid be dehydrated and dying. Salt tablets, wearing a hat, and having president send us a car, were just some of the best suggestions. I like the whole sending us a car one myself :)
So let me tell you all about our investigators! You'll love them. I sure do. Gloria is amazing. She is so quiet, kinda shy, but after I threw a few sarcastic comments at her she finally threw one back. She's on date for baptism in September and I'm so excited for her. You can tell she really knows that it's true, it's exciting to see the gospel really change someone's life.
Jing and Chen are amazing. They are both from China and have been taught a lot. We're trying to get them to set a date for baptism...and hopefully marriage :) I love teaching foreigners, they are so blunt and straightforward. Jing was teaching me a phrase in chinese and she started to laugh, I asked her if she was laughing because my accent was bad and she straight up said, "yes." cool. I'm working on it! I had remembered chinese phrase that Matt had taught me that he learned on his mission "do you like cats." I thought I'd impress them with it, and after some time they finally figured out what I was saying and then taught me the correct way to say it. haha oh dear...I try to be cool but it sometimes doesn't work out.
We got 3 people on date for baptism my first week here: Jacob, from Lebanon, really cool, searching, when the sisters had met him he already had a Book of Mormon in Arabic. Affe, from China has super cute glasses, kinda like Maddie's but bigger, I tried them on and totally want some now. And Jerome. He's from the phillipines, really nice, really sincere. It's so fun to teach these people! I feel like every lesson I want to cry because the Spirit is so strong. The members that have been coming with us are so great. Whenever they bear their testimony I just feel so warm all over, I keep thinking, "I hope our investigator can feel that!"
Jamil and Christian are pretty cool as well. Jamil is from Africa and Christian is from Columbia. They are both friends and we sometimes teach them together. They are around our age so it's fun to joke with them. Actually most of the people we are teaching are our age. It's kinda cool. So good story: We're on our way to see a potential when we spot Christian and Jamil coming out of a store. We cross the street and start talking to them, trying to get an appointment. All the sudden this guy walks out of the store, he has shades on and it's totally not sunny, and I don't think he was acutally wearing a matrix coat but that's what I picture him in. Anyways he walks by and goes, "mormons?" I immediately turn thinking, "sweet! he's interested lets talk to this guy." I say to him, "ya you heard of us?" He replies with, "no but you guys really intrigue me....and your really hot." and then walks away. Can you say, AWKWARD?! I turn to face Jamil and Christian and just bust up laughing. I couldn't help it. It was ridiculous. Who are these crazies we keep running into? haha oh dear. Anyways Jamil and Christian are great. Jamil is super passionate in what he believes in. When he starts to talk about God he puts his heart to his chest trying to get the point across like he really means it. Christian has the best questions about the Book of Mormon and he's searching for the restored gospel, you can just tell with his sincereity and the questions he asks.
Church on Sunday was amazing. We're getting a new Bishop and the whole bishopric spoke and their talks were incredible! It was like they were speaking right to our investigators. So amazing. I love the gospel. It's so true, you can just see evidence of it everywhere. oh Oh OH! Exciting news! I get to go to a conference in Halifax next week and guess where I get to spend the night on my way to Halifax....you guessed it...TRURO! yahoo! I get to go back woop woop! The conference is for newer missionaries so while in Halifax, I drop off Sister Davis and get to work with Sister Hudson for 2 days! I'm so stolked! Sister Hudson was my MTC comp and we've always wanted to serve together. We beg president everytime we see him. He probably thinks putting us together for 2 days will get us off his case about it. we'll see about that....:)
Thank you for your prayers and love and support! Sometimes I feel strength coming from some other source than myself, and I know that it's through other's prayers that I can feel that strength. Have a great week!
Love,
Sister Crane

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Members in Truro







Brother and Sister Mingo















Sister Laliberte


Nathan (our investigator)



Greg













Tatamagouche and roasted oysters

























Monday, July 18, 2011

Me and my Bike





















What's new in Fredericton?

China, Bahamas, Japan, Columbia, Lebanon, Africa, Phillipines, and Canada. What do all of these countries have in common? All of our investigators are from one of those countries. INSANE?! or what?! I know, it's nuts. So many accents, so little time. But seriously. In Truro we had 10 investigators, 4 of which were solid. Here in Fredericton they have 17 investigators and I'd say 80% are solid. It's insane people! We spent 12 hours planning this week! It normally takes 3 hours to plan and you betcha it took us 12. Sister Davis was constantly giving me the run down on our investigators and it was so confusing because they all come from such diverse backgrounds that keeping them straight was nuts. We taught 6 member present lessons on Saturday which is the most I've ever taught in one day. This area is on fire. For REALS! Ok so now that I've explained to you my shock factor, let me walk you through this crazy hard week:
So I found out I was leaving Truro and telling the members was so hard. Sister Mingo cried, Sister Priest cried, Sister Criss cried, Sister Putnam cried, Sister Reyes cried,and I cried over and over. Seesh. It was like a cry fest, I was on the verge of tears like 3 days straight and so stressed out because I had so many people to say good-bye to. We went from house to house to house saying, "sign my book, take a picture, see ya later." gah. It was annoying to say the least, because I hate good-byes. It was like leaving my family all over again. So I finally some how was able to pack throughout that whole process and then Sister Glenn dropped me off. That was so hard to say good-bye to her. We both balled our eyes out. I feel like we are the same person sometimes, we just clicked so well it was hard to say good-bye and think that our adventures together in Truro were over. So I got in the transfer van and rode with another sister, Sister Tolliver who was going to PEI and some other Elders headed for New Brunswick, and we left my safety net of Nova Scotia. So sad. I met up with Sister Davis and it's been so great!
We drove the 4 1/2 hours to get here and Sister Davis was so excited to tell me about all 17 investigators and where they are from and yada yada yada. Of course it all went over my head until I actually met half of them. wowzer, it was a LOT to take in. Sister Davis has been really great through all of it, she is really sensitive to the fact that I've been in one area for a year and that it's hard for me to change. She's been really flexible about our routine and wants to change things up, like how we plan, and work with members and all that jazz. The bikes, however are a whole other story!
So we live at the top of this GI-normous hill! who the hay decided to give us bikes to ride up a huge hill! This hill seriously reminds me of a San Francisco hill. I might be exagerating. It's not as steep as one of those but it's worse because it's so tall and is a gradual incline all the way up. How in the world am I supposed to bike up a hill, in a skirt, with this insane helmet they've got for me?! I'm totally sending pictures so you all can get a visual of how ridiculous my helmet is. It's like a military helmet. I feel like bombs are going to go off everytime I strap it on. Luckily we don't live too far from the church, but biking from the church to our apartment stinks because it's all up hill. After our very first bikeride just from the church to our apartment my legs were on FIRE. I felt like jello for the rest of the day. I'm so out of shape it's not even funny. Ok it is kind of funny and one day I'll laugh, but this whole not having a car bites sometimes. All the sisters who served here kept telling me what a blessing it was to have a bike because they used to just have to walk and take the bus and the bus doesn't come too often. I'm really trying to be grateful, I just don't want to die on a bike. I'm so clumsy and with my massive helmet I look even clumsier. I'll adjust but for now I'll take pictures so I can remember these ridiculous moments.
What I love about transfers is I get to come to this new area and as an onlooker see what changes need to be made. We only have 2 people on date right now. And with 17 investigators we should have WAY more. This week our goal is to get 3 more on date. I'm ready and pumped to do it. We gotta start baptizing these people or we'll never get anywhere. On Saturday already we got someone on date, Jerome, he's from the Phillipines, nicest guy ever. Most of these people are college students, it's a college town. On saturday we picked out baptismal dates for 4 people and just went down the line picking a date and then praying, felt good, next date, pray about it, feel good, next... and so on. I loved it. I think one big reason I'm here is to help this area catch the vision of baptism. Another reason I think I'm here is to get the members on board. The sisters before were seeing the same members week after week. That's changing this week. We are going to start with 4 member visits per week. We had one on Sunday and it was so good. This family that we taught really opened up about problems they were having and thanked us for our care and concern and asked us to pray for them. Members need that spiritual uplift ment just like less-actives, and investigators. And if we show sincere and genuine love for the members, they will trust us and help us with our work! Members are the key. Oh did I mention we have Elders in our ward?! so weird. I'm used to being 45 minutes away from the closest missionaries. Now we see missionaries multiple times a week! It's awesome. We're also working on being in unison with the Elders here, making it a team effort instead of "you go off and do your thing and we'll go off here."
IN CONCLUSION! I'm sad to be out of Nova Scotia. Do I miss Truro? yes. I think about it all the time, but do I love Fredericton? Totally! It was hard at first not knowing anyone, but the more people we see and teach the better I feel and the easier it is to move on and be where I'm at. I'm grateful that God knows us so well. He knows our strengths and weaknesses. He knows what we need better than we do. I'm excited to help this area grow and develop. I'm excited to be apart of this area that is growing and developing! :) The church is true!
Love,
Sister Crane

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Mom and Dad visit Truro































July 11, 2011

Drum roll please! Transfers are here!...........I'M BEING TRANSFERED! to............FREDERICTON, NEW BRUNSWICK! I'm leaving the province and going to New Brunswick. All I know about it is that they speak a lot more french there, and get this IT'S A BIKING AREA....ah! I have to ride a bike! ah! what am I going to do!?! My new companion is Sister Davis and she has been out 3 months. I met her at Sister's conference and she is really sweet. I'm excited that I get to be with her. She's from California I think. It's insane. I don't even know how to feel. I'm so so sad to leave Truro, but I feel like it's time. It's so weird that this is my first and possibly only transfer. Since I only have 6 months left I probably won't go any where else, it's possible but if you look at my track record...it's likely I'll die there (meaning I'll end my mission there). Woah. A lot to take in.
This week was great! As some of you may know my parents came! Don't worry it was legit, President Simpson authorized me to be able to spend 3 hours with them where they took me out to lunch and got to meet a few recent converts. Dad was in Halifax for a business conference and since Nova Scotia is all the way across the country I guess President Simpson had a soft heart and let them see me. The time went by crazy fast. We went for fish and chips and I showed them around Truro...there wasn't much to see but I think they liked it. It was crazy surreal but such a fun experience that I'll remember forever.
Our investigators are the best! Nathan is doing so great! That's a baptism I will be so sad to miss. He had an amazing experience that he shared with us last Monday night. 1st off he said he LOVED church and that he's never felt so much love in one church before. He then said that when he had gotten home from church that night he started to read more of the Book of Mormon. He read from 9-12 or 1 in the morning and then decided he needed to go to bed because he needed to wake up at 5am for work. He tried to sleep but couldn't. So he read more. Then he got to the chapter in The Book of Mormon about King Benjamin's speech where the people are converted and experience a change of heart. He said something clicked and he just knew that The Book of Mormon was true. AH! As he told us this Sister Glenn and I are freaking out inside and we both in unison, after a bit of silence, say, "Wow, that's amazing!" Ah! he knows it's true. He told his family about his baptism and his mom and sister are going to come. Nathan is so solid it's the best.
Amber is doing great too. She seems really excited for her baptism! Awww I'm going to miss her baptism by a week! ugh! Stinking transfers! We started a scripture study class this summer and our first one was last Thursday. It went really well. We went through the first 10 chapters of the Book of Mormon and we're going to try to get through half of it this summer. Amber, Nathan, and Cheryl (all investigators) came. It was awesome. Cheryl is also on date for baptism! yay! August 20th. She's a former investigator and we picked her back up and I'm really excited that she's progressing toward baptism.
Oh man it's so hard to write this e-mail and focus on last week because I'm freaking out inside about being transferred since I found out like 10 minutes ago so I apologize if this is at all scattered.
Church was great. Here's a tender mercy I experienced: They were short on speakers so they asked Sister Glenn and I from the pulpit to come up and share our testimonies. I didn't want to leave Truro without doing that so it was a real blessing to bear my testimony for the last time there.
I can't even remember what else happened this week! Steve's doing good, we're a little afraid he's getting attatched to us instead of the Book of Mormon. We're making strategies to bring men to the lessons so he doesn't get the wrong idea about us. :) He comes to church though and reads the Book of Mormon so he's doing his part.
And there you go for now. I'm sure so much more happened but all I can think about is who I'm going to tell first that I'm leaving. It's so sad. Now Truro will be a memory. I still think when I get home and people ask me where I served I'll say, "Truro, Nova Scotia." But I'm sure in 6 months that will change :) I know I'll love Fredericton. I've heard great things about it. For one it's a ward! woah. That'll be way different. I've been in this tiny branch for so long I think I've forgotten what a ward is like. It's blowing my mind. Ok so I'm off for an adventure to Tatamagouche. Sister Hansen, a member, is taking us up there to check out a maple tree factory. sweet! You know you're in Canada when you go visit one of those! Prayers would be nice on my behalf this week as I go through this change! Thank you! The church is true and God does direct this great work!
Love,
Sister Crane