Olmstead #2

Hello lovely family! 

Well it has been a fantastic week here in Olmstead with Sister Rasmussen! For a while I had wanted to stay in Kingsbridge, but now that I am here I love it! I truly believe there are people here I need to meet, things I need to learn and things other people need to learn from me. It is cool to see how God's plan for me is way better than what my plan is for me. I thought it would be hard to be motivated to be in an area for 5 weeks, but I have actually never connected faster with a ward or with the people. I have been working really hard at remembering names (something I have always been bad with) and so far I am doing really good! I have actually surprised myself by how many names my brain actually can hold. You just have to really put forth effort. 

Well every area you serve in is a little different with a little different focus. In this area we are working to strengthen the ward. The relief society had a work shop on visiting teaching on Sunday (they put on a little skit that The missionaries got pulled into). But it went well! So we have been following up with everyone with their assignments and teaching the what it means To visit teach if they don't know. We have an investigator who will be baptized on the 26th so that is really awesome! Natasha (from my old area) will be baptized on the 14th. I'm hoof to get permission to see it. We have a lot of media referrals we have been trying to look up. Yesterday we met a referral and she is awesome! She is searching for truth in her life and has been mislead by church pastors she thought she could trust. We reassured her that the message we will teach is one we want her to pray about instead of taking our word for it. We told her that if she prays, she can know the truth through the power of the Holy Ghost. By the end of talking with her at the door she went from being hesitant to wanting us over on Friday! 

I am so happy to be serving here. It is so fun to serve around all the sisters I got to know by being a sister training leader. I love Sister Rasmussen. She is so much fun and she works hard! I am follow up training her, so she is still new. I love being able to share some knowledge and experience and to see her excitement. This is still new for her, so it is fun to see her learn and grow. The ward is pretty small, which I like. The people are friendly and welcoming. And there is still a lot of diversity, which I love. Oh yeah! And we are a model district which is new for me. We still have an area, but if there is an investigator that is found that could be taught better by a certain set of missionaries, then they are reassigned. We still teach any single sister. The thing I don't like is that we need Elders to escort us into any appointment we have in Hunt's Point or above Allerton Ave. They have to pick us up and drop us off. I feel bad and like it is a waste of time for them. But..it didn't take too long for me to find out why we need an escort. So I'm glad they are there, but I still feel bad they have to babysit us. 

Well I just got done seeing the Statue of Liberty with all the missionaries going home this cycle and their companions. It was fun to see everyone and to see the sights. There is so much to see and do here in NY city. I have been a good amount of times but feel like I have barely seen anything at all! There is so much to explore and see! My last trip to the city will be to go the the temple with President Morgan and the missionaries who are going home next cycle. That should be fun. 

Well, I love you all so much! Thank you for being so good with staying in contact with me :) it is so great to hear from you every time! I love you lots!