Week 74 (Jan 16th-22nd 2018)
One year ago this week I packed my bags and transferred out of my first area and away from my second companion, Sister Carter. This week I packed an overnight bag and went on an exchange to New Smyrna with my Sister Training Leader, Sister Carter(!). That’s right! Belleview Beauties back at it and reunited for one day only to hasten the work of the Lord!
It was such a blast to spend the day with Sister Carter and reminisce about our beloved Belleview and the hilarious people and experiences we had therein. What was really amazing was being able to see how much each of us have grown over the course of our missions. When Sister Carter and I were first put together I was just out of training with three months in the field under my belt and she had been out only one transfer longer than me, a total of 4.5 months. At the time, we felt totally inadequate and under-qualified to be together on our own without a more seasoned missionary to guide us.
Now Sister Carter is nearing the end of her mission, this next week will be her final in the field and her exchange with me was her last. After our companionship she has trained a new missionary herself and has been an STL for a few months now. I have since had 9 other companions and am currently training a new sister on my own. It’s surreal to realize that we are the seasoned seniors now.
When we contacted a woman while she was in her front yard, we were both silently impressed at the others progress in confidence, ease, and power in teaching simple truths of the restored gospel. It’s reassuring to recognize that I have changed for the better, and that I really am progressing as a missionary and as a daughter of God each day through my continued diligence and Christ’s grace.
Sister Carter and I started our day helping a member tend to their small garden of potted pineapples by weeding and pruning. While doing so, I remarked to her that I was reminded of the allegory of the olive tree in Jacob chapter 5, and compared it to our service as laborers in the Lords vineyard in Florida; with pineapples instead of olive trees. It seemed fitting.
Then we got to give service at a thrift store in their area by tagging and hanging donated clothes. The place was slammed because apparently a very wealthy gentleman had donated the entirety of his wardrobe in his mansion in preparation for his trip to Costa Rica. There were tens of boxes of men’s shirts and pants from expensive designers and brands such as Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, etc. Most of them still had the tags and had never been worn. It’s crazy how what a person donates to a thrift store can reveal so much about the kind of person they are.
While we were there we saw a couple of nude mannequins in the front window that were quite anatomically correct and made us somewhat uncomfortable; so we asked if we could dress them and we got the go ahead. So that was fun finding the gems in the store and mix and matching to create a chic look. When we were done they were styling and modest. A sign of a Sister Missionaries touch.
Then we got a real treat: we got permission to Skype Lillian! If you’ve been following my mission for a while, you’ll know that Lillian is a recent convert that Sister Carter and I taught and helped prepare to enter the waters of baptism a year ago next month. She’s had quite the journey and has the strongest faith. We video called her and read Moroni 10 and discussed gifts of the spirit! She just received her patriarchal blessing a few weeks ago (so proud of her!), and so she’s been wanting to learn more about that. What an angel.
Innocent left for Boston this week, we helped him prep to go. Sister Russell packed his bags while I helped him with his ticket and boarding pass. His original flight was cancelled, and so I helped him with a new one. Booking, cancelling, rebooking Innocents ticket squelched any desire in me to be a jet-setter. It’s so difficult to navigate; and it really shouldn’t be. I mean, we’ve been flying for 100+ years people. There has to be an easier way to do this.
On his last full day in Deltona he went out with our Elders for a few hours and had a blast. When we heard the stories both from his side and the elders we were dying of laughter. He was dressed up and wearing his suit, and apparently at one door they knocked the person asked if they were detectives/officers, to which Innocent responded, “We are officers of Jesus Christ.” The Elders said that at one point when they were driving in silence, they heard innocent say quietly in the backseat, “Fishers of men. We are... fishing”. He’s the perfect missionary.
This is the last week of the transfer; this last one has come and gone so fast. We’re loving Deltona and looking forward to sticking around here together. We get the call this Saturday with the actual transfer news, however it’s very unlikely that I will be sent anywhere else. I’m glad, Sister Russell and I are just getting started.
-Sister Olivia Petty🍍
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