Howdy y'all
So just a little business to get out of the way before we get to the good stuff. This week the Mission Office is moving so that means we have a new address for letters. It is as follows:
Sister Kelsey Berg
Texas Houston South Mission
602 Eldridge Road
Sugar Land, TX 77478
Because of this move we didn't get our mail this week, I hope to get it on Wednesday at transfers, so if you wrote me I will write you back next week. It is a little confusing, the old address works until March 23rd and the new address doesn't work until March 25th so if you get mail back that says 'undeliverable' resend it to the new address after the 25th. Sorry about the hassle.
Now on to the good stuff!!
I'm getting transfered this week and my companion is training again. I figured that the Lord decided to transfer me because he knows I would go crazy if I was in Houston for the Final Four (which we all know BYU is going to be a part of) next week and couldn't go watch. (ha ha) I'm excited for the adventures and experiences that await me in my next area. I don't know where I'm going yet- I find that out at transfer meeting on Wednesday. Investigator updates:
Giovanni: You know an investigator is legit when he asks you how to apply in his life the things that he is learning. He came to church again this week and is really starting to get to know people and feel comfortable. His date is April 2nd and I can't think of a better thing than being able to come back to Houston 1 for his baptism on Conference Weekend! He is just so solid and is really starting to change and soften up.
Carina & Jose: So this week we went over to teach Jaime, the less active member that they live with. We thought we were going to just be teaching him but Carina and Jose joined us like it was nothing. ha ha Carina spend the whole time reading and marking the Book of Mormon and she told us how much she enjoys reading it. Their date is April 30th and I am so excited for them. They weren't able to come to church because Jose had to work but I can just see them being amazing members in no time! ha ha
Juan Jose (Pepe): He is a new this week that we met contacting. He is 21 and is here all by himself, family lives in Mexico. He is a plumber, has no phone, his car is broken, and he lives in this cute little one room house in the backyard of some of his friends. We taught him last night and I'm sad that I won't be able to continue with him but he is so humble and sincere. He actually read the pamphlet that we gave him (really rare) and could recall a lot of it pretty good. He said the prayer at the end of our lesson and it was a really good one! His date is April 30th. (I extended him that one so that it was still in the next transfer so that I could get permission to come back when he gets baptized! We can't come to baptisms out of our area if it has been more than one transfer, so I was kinda sneaky, ha ha but I have faith that he will be ready)
Well that is a quick update. Next week I will have new people to tell you about and tell you all about my new area!! The question that Giovanni asked us this week got me thinking- how often in the church do we teach things, such as to youth, and not teach them how to apply it? We teach them to prepare to go on a mission, or even small things like obeying the Word of Wisdom, but we don't teach them what that looks like or how to apply it in their lives. Like with modesty for example, what does keeping the WOW look like? What kind of friends do you have? What do you spend your free time doing? What kind of hobbies do you have? What simple things do you do every day to help you acheive your goal? Just simple questions which help us see the bigger picture and see the small steps on how we can reach our goals and apply what we learn and truely make it a part of us.
Well its going to be 80's all week down here in Texas. I hope that all of you are doing fantastic and that our Heavenly Father continues to bless you all. Please know of my love, admiration, and gratitude for all of you and your continued support and love. Cheer loud for my Cougars for me!!
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Monday, March 14, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 14
Howdy y'all,
Things are going good down here in Texas. Its actually thundering, lightening, and raining really, really, really hard right now, (no rainstorm like a Texas storm) but it has been pretty nice weather all week- I don't even need a jacket! What am I doing? I have more important things to talk about than the weather!!!! So here is a run down of our investigators right now:
Giovanni: I told y'all a little about him a couple weeks ago but this week he accepted a date!! His date is April 2nd. He is super intelligent and we have to study the scriptures that we give him as homework because he always has very smart and deep questions about them. He has had a hard time in the past when it comes to praying because he is worried about saying something to God that he will regret but this week he prayed for the first time with us, earlier this week, and then said the opening prayer in our lesson yesterday. He has come to church for 3 weeks and Hna. Tuckett and I have already seen a change in him. He is a lot softer now and seems a lot happier. Just to recap, he is in the States investigating his brothers death by a drunk driver in 2001, because the driver never served time. He has a lot of pain in his life and likes to be able to understand everything so that has made his relationship with Heavenly Father a little strained but he is improving and he is already feeling the changes in his life.
Gloria: She is a 24 year old mom of 2. (We thought she was like 30 until we actually asked her this week). She has very little, if any, religious background and that has made us take a step back and be super simple and starting some sort of base. She asked us this week how to know if the Bible is true and when we extended her a baptismal date she didn't know what baptism was. She is improving and has a desire to change her life, and she has come to church for 3 weeks and enjoys Relief Society.
Carina & Jose: They are a new family we met this week that I am super excited about. We met them while visiting a less active member (who has been less active for 9 years since moving here from Guatemala) that we found, Jamie, who lives with them. They see the differences in Jamie's life, especially in the few times recently since we have been coming over, and they want to change for their kids and gain a better relationship with God. They are so cute (call each other baby, something I haven't heard anyone else say yet) and actually married (a very rare thing in Hispanic culture at this point) and have 2 little kids, Emmanuel (3) and Alison (18 months). They like the gospel already because they have been so confused for so long that its nice to hear something that actually makes sense. They always tell us to not stop coming over and they are very eager and willing to learn more. Jose wants to quit drinking and be a better father. Both of them have had a hard and difficult past and want to move away from that. I'm super excited for them to keep progressing.
These are the investigators that I'm most excited for right now. I love all of our 11 investigators but these are the ones that are progressing the most. Its kinda weird at this point because transfers are next week and we have a feeling that Hermana Tuckett will be training again because there are 4 new spanish sisters coming in, which means that I will get moved. The way it works is that we find out on Monday morning if in fact she is training, and then if she is I find out where I'm going at Transfer meeting on Wednesday. So next Monday I will let you all know if I'm staying or going! Things are going well though, this transfer has kinda gone by fast. Our days are really long so I have to make sure and write in my journal every night or else I blend the days together and can't tell one days experiences from the next. I'm going to send pictures home next week so when my Mom gets those she can attach a few in an email and you all can see my awesome tan!! Ha ha, just kidding, but I do hope that you all are enjoying the snow. ;) Spanish is coming along slowly. I am understanding more words and trying to actively listen and write down the words that I can make out so I can learn them. My head hurts by the end of every day from concentrating so hard. Yeah, yeah I know that all of you just thought of some sarcastic comment you would tell me if I was there in person, ha ha. I hope all is going well with all of you and your families. The work of the Lord continues to progress in Houston and He is the one directing it. Thanks again for all your letters, love, and support.
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Things are going good down here in Texas. Its actually thundering, lightening, and raining really, really, really hard right now, (no rainstorm like a Texas storm) but it has been pretty nice weather all week- I don't even need a jacket! What am I doing? I have more important things to talk about than the weather!!!! So here is a run down of our investigators right now:
Giovanni: I told y'all a little about him a couple weeks ago but this week he accepted a date!! His date is April 2nd. He is super intelligent and we have to study the scriptures that we give him as homework because he always has very smart and deep questions about them. He has had a hard time in the past when it comes to praying because he is worried about saying something to God that he will regret but this week he prayed for the first time with us, earlier this week, and then said the opening prayer in our lesson yesterday. He has come to church for 3 weeks and Hna. Tuckett and I have already seen a change in him. He is a lot softer now and seems a lot happier. Just to recap, he is in the States investigating his brothers death by a drunk driver in 2001, because the driver never served time. He has a lot of pain in his life and likes to be able to understand everything so that has made his relationship with Heavenly Father a little strained but he is improving and he is already feeling the changes in his life.
Gloria: She is a 24 year old mom of 2. (We thought she was like 30 until we actually asked her this week). She has very little, if any, religious background and that has made us take a step back and be super simple and starting some sort of base. She asked us this week how to know if the Bible is true and when we extended her a baptismal date she didn't know what baptism was. She is improving and has a desire to change her life, and she has come to church for 3 weeks and enjoys Relief Society.
Carina & Jose: They are a new family we met this week that I am super excited about. We met them while visiting a less active member (who has been less active for 9 years since moving here from Guatemala) that we found, Jamie, who lives with them. They see the differences in Jamie's life, especially in the few times recently since we have been coming over, and they want to change for their kids and gain a better relationship with God. They are so cute (call each other baby, something I haven't heard anyone else say yet) and actually married (a very rare thing in Hispanic culture at this point) and have 2 little kids, Emmanuel (3) and Alison (18 months). They like the gospel already because they have been so confused for so long that its nice to hear something that actually makes sense. They always tell us to not stop coming over and they are very eager and willing to learn more. Jose wants to quit drinking and be a better father. Both of them have had a hard and difficult past and want to move away from that. I'm super excited for them to keep progressing.
These are the investigators that I'm most excited for right now. I love all of our 11 investigators but these are the ones that are progressing the most. Its kinda weird at this point because transfers are next week and we have a feeling that Hermana Tuckett will be training again because there are 4 new spanish sisters coming in, which means that I will get moved. The way it works is that we find out on Monday morning if in fact she is training, and then if she is I find out where I'm going at Transfer meeting on Wednesday. So next Monday I will let you all know if I'm staying or going! Things are going well though, this transfer has kinda gone by fast. Our days are really long so I have to make sure and write in my journal every night or else I blend the days together and can't tell one days experiences from the next. I'm going to send pictures home next week so when my Mom gets those she can attach a few in an email and you all can see my awesome tan!! Ha ha, just kidding, but I do hope that you all are enjoying the snow. ;) Spanish is coming along slowly. I am understanding more words and trying to actively listen and write down the words that I can make out so I can learn them. My head hurts by the end of every day from concentrating so hard. Yeah, yeah I know that all of you just thought of some sarcastic comment you would tell me if I was there in person, ha ha. I hope all is going well with all of you and your families. The work of the Lord continues to progress in Houston and He is the one directing it. Thanks again for all your letters, love, and support.
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Monday, March 7, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 13
Howdy y'all
So tomorrow is my 3 month mark!! It feels like I have been in Texas forever! Everything is going good and we had our first baptism of the transfer yesterday!! His name is Carlos Villatoro and he is from Honduras! He is awesome and has such a strong testimony. It was such an interesting experience last night. I have to be honest I didn't feel anything different until he walked down into the font, and then the Spirit was so strong and it was a feeling that I can't even really describe. It was amazing and it was an experience I will always remember. We had an investigator, Giovanni, come to the baptism and he came to church yesterday for the 2nd time also. He is the one that is really intelligent and is here investigating his brothers death. He really enjoys church and I can see the Spirit, through reading the Book of Mormon and going to church, softening his heart so hopefully he will be open to praying here pretty soon. We taught him the Restoration last week and it all made sense to him and he didn't have any questions. His questions all come from the readings we give him. He is so logical that he has questions about particular verses that we had never even though of before! The Spirit will keep working on him and I know that once he prays he will get all of his answers. He will be baptized before we know it!
So surprise!! You know how I told y'all that my trainer is on her last transfer? Well guess what... that's not true. I found out this week that she was extended before I got here so she has one more transfer. Which changes up my thinking a bit. I was so nervous because thinking that this was her last one meant that there was a pretty good chance that I would have to take over the area. The area is going so good that its very doubtful that they would whitewash the area, that's when they bring in 2 new missionaries. So it was just logical that I would be the one to say, but now with her not going home yet there are of course 3 options! 1- I get transferred. 2- She gets transferred. 3- We both stay. I'm convinced that she will probably stay and train because there is going to be a huge turnover of spanish sisters here really soon and we get 4 new ones this next transfer which is March 23, but we will see what happens and what the Lord has planned! At this point we have 7 investigators with a date, 15 progressing, and we had 10 at church yesterday which was pretty awesome! The work of the Lord is in full force here that is for sure!
I feel impressed to ask a favor of y'all. I'm not quite sure who is all on the email list or who all reads this every week, my mom tells me that people have been added, but I hope you all feel some sort of spiritual uplifting and enlightenment each week. I have thought this week about what I wanted to write about today. I have thought about how I am taking 18 months of my life to come to Texas and help strangers find true happiness in their life and how to fully allow Savior's Atonement to make their life easier, yet there may be people at home that I love and care about and mean so much to me that might not have found this true happiness for themselves yet. So my favor is for all of you to do as the Introduction to the Book of Mormon says and ask God, the Eternal Father, if these things are true. Just read a little bit of the Book of Mormon, my personal favorites are Enos 1:1-8, Ether 12:17, and 3 Nephi 27. Read these, or even just read Joseph Smith's account, and humble yourself to pray to our Heavenly Father to know if these things are true. I testify in the name of Jesus Christ that you will receive and answer and that you will know of a surety that these thing are true. The second part of the favor is, if you feel comfortable, to write me and tell me of your experience and how you know that the Book of Mormon is true and that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. With these experiences I can help my investigators understand what to look for and all the different ways that we can receive our answers through the Holy Ghost.
Anyway... I hope all is going well with all of you!! As I do every week I want to thank you all for your letters, emails, love, and continued support. Spanish is coming along slowly but surely and I know the Lord will continue to bless me. Right now I am in a town called Brazos. Its totally country and I love it! ha ha. We are just spending the day with some other sisters and things are going well. The weather is totally spring weather with it being cool in the mornings and nights, but warmer during the day. May our Heavenly Father's choicest blessings be upon y'all!!
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
So tomorrow is my 3 month mark!! It feels like I have been in Texas forever! Everything is going good and we had our first baptism of the transfer yesterday!! His name is Carlos Villatoro and he is from Honduras! He is awesome and has such a strong testimony. It was such an interesting experience last night. I have to be honest I didn't feel anything different until he walked down into the font, and then the Spirit was so strong and it was a feeling that I can't even really describe. It was amazing and it was an experience I will always remember. We had an investigator, Giovanni, come to the baptism and he came to church yesterday for the 2nd time also. He is the one that is really intelligent and is here investigating his brothers death. He really enjoys church and I can see the Spirit, through reading the Book of Mormon and going to church, softening his heart so hopefully he will be open to praying here pretty soon. We taught him the Restoration last week and it all made sense to him and he didn't have any questions. His questions all come from the readings we give him. He is so logical that he has questions about particular verses that we had never even though of before! The Spirit will keep working on him and I know that once he prays he will get all of his answers. He will be baptized before we know it!
So surprise!! You know how I told y'all that my trainer is on her last transfer? Well guess what... that's not true. I found out this week that she was extended before I got here so she has one more transfer. Which changes up my thinking a bit. I was so nervous because thinking that this was her last one meant that there was a pretty good chance that I would have to take over the area. The area is going so good that its very doubtful that they would whitewash the area, that's when they bring in 2 new missionaries. So it was just logical that I would be the one to say, but now with her not going home yet there are of course 3 options! 1- I get transferred. 2- She gets transferred. 3- We both stay. I'm convinced that she will probably stay and train because there is going to be a huge turnover of spanish sisters here really soon and we get 4 new ones this next transfer which is March 23, but we will see what happens and what the Lord has planned! At this point we have 7 investigators with a date, 15 progressing, and we had 10 at church yesterday which was pretty awesome! The work of the Lord is in full force here that is for sure!
I feel impressed to ask a favor of y'all. I'm not quite sure who is all on the email list or who all reads this every week, my mom tells me that people have been added, but I hope you all feel some sort of spiritual uplifting and enlightenment each week. I have thought this week about what I wanted to write about today. I have thought about how I am taking 18 months of my life to come to Texas and help strangers find true happiness in their life and how to fully allow Savior's Atonement to make their life easier, yet there may be people at home that I love and care about and mean so much to me that might not have found this true happiness for themselves yet. So my favor is for all of you to do as the Introduction to the Book of Mormon says and ask God, the Eternal Father, if these things are true. Just read a little bit of the Book of Mormon, my personal favorites are Enos 1:1-8, Ether 12:17, and 3 Nephi 27. Read these, or even just read Joseph Smith's account, and humble yourself to pray to our Heavenly Father to know if these things are true. I testify in the name of Jesus Christ that you will receive and answer and that you will know of a surety that these thing are true. The second part of the favor is, if you feel comfortable, to write me and tell me of your experience and how you know that the Book of Mormon is true and that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God. With these experiences I can help my investigators understand what to look for and all the different ways that we can receive our answers through the Holy Ghost.
Anyway... I hope all is going well with all of you!! As I do every week I want to thank you all for your letters, emails, love, and continued support. Spanish is coming along slowly but surely and I know the Lord will continue to bless me. Right now I am in a town called Brazos. Its totally country and I love it! ha ha. We are just spending the day with some other sisters and things are going well. The weather is totally spring weather with it being cool in the mornings and nights, but warmer during the day. May our Heavenly Father's choicest blessings be upon y'all!!
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Monday, February 28, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 12
Howdy y'all!!
So it was actually a fast week! This weekend my companion (Hermana Tuckett) was sick and it turned out to be a blessing because I took the time that she was sleeping to read the talks in the Texas Houston South Mission handbook and reading those made quite a difference. My favorite, and the ones that really hit me, were "Continue in Patience" by President Uchtdorf, "We Are Doing A Great Work and Cannot Come Down" by President Uchtdorf, "An High Priest of Good Things to Come" by Elder Holland (I encourage you all you read this one, its AMAZING!) , and "A Child and A Disciple" by President Erying. They all helped lift my spirits and my trust in the Lord. I figure that the 2 biggest things that I will learn on the mission is patience and diligence. Its hard for me to struggle with something as I have with learning Spanish. I know that it will come and that the Lord will help me, I just need to get my heart and my head in the same place and put aside my fear. I am working really hard to change my thoughts in the morning to make it so I am thinking about my investigators and the people who's life I can help change that day. I am working on having patience and enduring my afflictions and difficulties well, just just enduring them.
One of my favorite quotes "Patience means to abide in faith, knowing that sometimes it is in the waiting rather than in the receiving that we grow the most." That quote from President Uchtdorf really stuck out to me because I realized that that is what the Lord is doing with me. I am learning to put my faith and trust in him and that in due time I will learn what I need to and he will then bless me with what I want. I wouldn't be able to learn these things if I knew spanish right now, I now realize that more than I did before. On of my favorite quotes from Elder Holland is " Some blessing come soon, some come late, and some don't come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ they come." And another one that spoke directly to me and I hope will speak to some of you "You keep your chin up. It will be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come." I just love Elder Holland!!
Anyway it was a good week. I had my first spainsh fiesta and the only thing it had in common with other ward parties I have been to was that it was in the gym of the church. ha ha. It didn't have funeral potatoes or any sort of casserole and it was no music that we have ever played in the good ol' Mill Road Ward but it was a good time. We even had 3 investigators out to it! We had 8 investigators to church yesterday and have 12 progressing. We have 6 with a date and that is only going to improve as we had a challenge from our mission president this week to double that number. Things are going well here and I am happy to hear that things seem to be going well at home. I will think of you all as I go outside and enjoy the 65 degree weather... ha ha. Thanks again for all of you and for your letter, love and continued support, it means the world to me. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless you and your families.
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
So it was actually a fast week! This weekend my companion (Hermana Tuckett) was sick and it turned out to be a blessing because I took the time that she was sleeping to read the talks in the Texas Houston South Mission handbook and reading those made quite a difference. My favorite, and the ones that really hit me, were "Continue in Patience" by President Uchtdorf, "We Are Doing A Great Work and Cannot Come Down" by President Uchtdorf, "An High Priest of Good Things to Come" by Elder Holland (I encourage you all you read this one, its AMAZING!) , and "A Child and A Disciple" by President Erying. They all helped lift my spirits and my trust in the Lord. I figure that the 2 biggest things that I will learn on the mission is patience and diligence. Its hard for me to struggle with something as I have with learning Spanish. I know that it will come and that the Lord will help me, I just need to get my heart and my head in the same place and put aside my fear. I am working really hard to change my thoughts in the morning to make it so I am thinking about my investigators and the people who's life I can help change that day. I am working on having patience and enduring my afflictions and difficulties well, just just enduring them.
One of my favorite quotes "Patience means to abide in faith, knowing that sometimes it is in the waiting rather than in the receiving that we grow the most." That quote from President Uchtdorf really stuck out to me because I realized that that is what the Lord is doing with me. I am learning to put my faith and trust in him and that in due time I will learn what I need to and he will then bless me with what I want. I wouldn't be able to learn these things if I knew spanish right now, I now realize that more than I did before. On of my favorite quotes from Elder Holland is " Some blessing come soon, some come late, and some don't come until heaven; but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ they come." And another one that spoke directly to me and I hope will speak to some of you "You keep your chin up. It will be alright in the end. Trust God and believe in good things to come." I just love Elder Holland!!
Anyway it was a good week. I had my first spainsh fiesta and the only thing it had in common with other ward parties I have been to was that it was in the gym of the church. ha ha. It didn't have funeral potatoes or any sort of casserole and it was no music that we have ever played in the good ol' Mill Road Ward but it was a good time. We even had 3 investigators out to it! We had 8 investigators to church yesterday and have 12 progressing. We have 6 with a date and that is only going to improve as we had a challenge from our mission president this week to double that number. Things are going well here and I am happy to hear that things seem to be going well at home. I will think of you all as I go outside and enjoy the 65 degree weather... ha ha. Thanks again for all of you and for your letter, love and continued support, it means the world to me. May our Heavenly Father continue to bless you and your families.
Love always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Letters from Kelsey - 11
Howdy y'all!
So sorry this is a day late, I know you all were dying of suspense, but since yesterday was President's Day they changed our P-day. Today I made sure to leave me with enough time so I could write a good email to you all. So I'm not really as homesick anymore just in case y'all were wondering, only in the mornings during study time before we get out and work. So last week my mom sent me an email asking me questions and I should've forwarded it on here so you all could know too so I'm going to to it this week.
1. Tell me about your trainer, where is she from, how long has she been out, etc.
2. What is your apartment like?
3. Did you get your bicycle? Are you riding bikes or in a car?
4. What is your area like?
5. Have you taught anyone yet? Are you using spanish alot?
6. What is the weather like?
7. Are you close to places to go buy things you need?
1. My trainer is Hermana Tuckett. She is from Alpine, UT and this is her last transfer- she even extended, and we get along great.
2. My apartment is pretty clean and spacious. Our kitchen is little but its not like we cook alot anyway. Our bathroom is small but all is well. Its clean and in good repair and that is about all I can ask for.
3. I did get my bike and it is nice. We have both bikes and a car, we have rode bikes about 2 times already and we wear shorts underneath so all is good there.
4. My area is in the very far northeast corner of the mission (Houston mission to the north and Houston East to the east). It is in a suburb of Houston about 20 min from downtown. It is a decent area, not a whole lot of white people around. I like it though, it sure is different than Utah, and there are no mountains so I have no idea which way is north or where anything is relative to me. I miss the green... I know Utah isn't that green right now but here we don't really have a spring and my companion said the place we are doesn't really ever get green... We have a spanish ward (Houston 1) and it is full of great people and great member missionaries.
5. We have done a whole lot of teaching (I think we taught 23 lessons this week) and have 9 investigators with baptismal dates and we had 8 at church on sunday. I try to use the little spanish I know, but it is not enough. Like I said I understand easily less than 20% of what is said during the day, but all the ward members tell me it is getting better so I guess I better believe them.
6. The weather was cold when I got here but has started to warm up and the humidity is certainly coming.
7. Yeah we have a Walmart kinda close. (yes I have to shop at walmart... The things we will do for the Lord- I'm hoping that if I shop at one here He will stop the one they are building in Heber but I don't think that will happen) I did go to Ross last week and buy some shortsleeve shirts so I'm good to go clothes wise.
So things are going better. We have some great investigators that I am excited about and excited to teach. So this week we met Giovanni at a gas station, we went by to set up a time to teach and we ended up standing on his porch for 45 minutes while he told us his life story. He is an engineer and is very smart. He knows there is a God (sees the logical part of it) and there have been times in his life where he has had everything and yet still felt something missing (do any of you know what could fill this hole??? hmm... I wonder...) So we left him with a Book of Mormon and he said he would read it and I'm so excited to teach him because I know that the gospel will fill this whole and bring peace to some of the burdens he has been carrying. I'm excited to teach him the logical part of the gospel because there are so many logical reasons also to why this is tur true church.
This week did go by fast and I like being out and teaching a lot better than sitting in my apartment studying. We did have some fun adventures this week though, so part of our area is pretty south and it takes us about 30 min to get there so we don't go down a whole lot but on Sunday we didn't have any appointments so we took the bikes down and explored for a couple hours. It was pretty cool and it was a gorgeous day and a very pretty area. There wasn't a whole lot of hispanics but there were some pretty cool looking houses and apartments and it is totally a place I would come visit when I get home and am not a missionary. Well like I said things are getting better and starting to go by fast. I heard the heartbreak back home about Jerry Sloan resigning... I have to be honest and when I read that we were in the car coming back from a mission conference with another compainionship and I let out a gasp and they all asked what had happened and they didn't believe that I had gasped about that but come on! Thats big news!! I though the only way Jerry Sloan would stop coaching is when he died! (kinda like Orrin Hatch) ;) haha. That is all the politics and sports I am going to talk about for now (GO COUGARS!!).
I hope all is going well with all of you and you are all staying positive and keeping your heads up! I know that our Heavenly Father loves us and that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can all be made clean and be forgiven of our sins and that He will take our burdens if we let him. Don't let discourgagement get you down, we have the blessings and fullness of the gospel in our lives!!! What more could be better!?!?! I love you all and thank you always for your continued support. I'm going to share a secret with you all... I probably wouldn't have stayed on the mission if I didn't know that me coming home early would disappoint you all. Sometimes the only thing that keeps me from calling my mission president and throwing in the towel is knowing that if I did that I would be letting y'all down. The knowledge that all of the people I love and respect know I can do this makes me believe in myself at times when I just want to give up, but the support of you all keeps me going so I thank you will all of my heart. May our Heavenly Father bless you and your families.
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
So sorry this is a day late, I know you all were dying of suspense, but since yesterday was President's Day they changed our P-day. Today I made sure to leave me with enough time so I could write a good email to you all. So I'm not really as homesick anymore just in case y'all were wondering, only in the mornings during study time before we get out and work. So last week my mom sent me an email asking me questions and I should've forwarded it on here so you all could know too so I'm going to to it this week.
1. Tell me about your trainer, where is she from, how long has she been out, etc.
2. What is your apartment like?
3. Did you get your bicycle? Are you riding bikes or in a car?
4. What is your area like?
5. Have you taught anyone yet? Are you using spanish alot?
6. What is the weather like?
7. Are you close to places to go buy things you need?
1. My trainer is Hermana Tuckett. She is from Alpine, UT and this is her last transfer- she even extended, and we get along great.
2. My apartment is pretty clean and spacious. Our kitchen is little but its not like we cook alot anyway. Our bathroom is small but all is well. Its clean and in good repair and that is about all I can ask for.
3. I did get my bike and it is nice. We have both bikes and a car, we have rode bikes about 2 times already and we wear shorts underneath so all is good there.
4. My area is in the very far northeast corner of the mission (Houston mission to the north and Houston East to the east). It is in a suburb of Houston about 20 min from downtown. It is a decent area, not a whole lot of white people around. I like it though, it sure is different than Utah, and there are no mountains so I have no idea which way is north or where anything is relative to me. I miss the green... I know Utah isn't that green right now but here we don't really have a spring and my companion said the place we are doesn't really ever get green... We have a spanish ward (Houston 1) and it is full of great people and great member missionaries.
5. We have done a whole lot of teaching (I think we taught 23 lessons this week) and have 9 investigators with baptismal dates and we had 8 at church on sunday. I try to use the little spanish I know, but it is not enough. Like I said I understand easily less than 20% of what is said during the day, but all the ward members tell me it is getting better so I guess I better believe them.
6. The weather was cold when I got here but has started to warm up and the humidity is certainly coming.
7. Yeah we have a Walmart kinda close. (yes I have to shop at walmart... The things we will do for the Lord- I'm hoping that if I shop at one here He will stop the one they are building in Heber but I don't think that will happen) I did go to Ross last week and buy some shortsleeve shirts so I'm good to go clothes wise.
So things are going better. We have some great investigators that I am excited about and excited to teach. So this week we met Giovanni at a gas station, we went by to set up a time to teach and we ended up standing on his porch for 45 minutes while he told us his life story. He is an engineer and is very smart. He knows there is a God (sees the logical part of it) and there have been times in his life where he has had everything and yet still felt something missing (do any of you know what could fill this hole??? hmm... I wonder...) So we left him with a Book of Mormon and he said he would read it and I'm so excited to teach him because I know that the gospel will fill this whole and bring peace to some of the burdens he has been carrying. I'm excited to teach him the logical part of the gospel because there are so many logical reasons also to why this is tur true church.
This week did go by fast and I like being out and teaching a lot better than sitting in my apartment studying. We did have some fun adventures this week though, so part of our area is pretty south and it takes us about 30 min to get there so we don't go down a whole lot but on Sunday we didn't have any appointments so we took the bikes down and explored for a couple hours. It was pretty cool and it was a gorgeous day and a very pretty area. There wasn't a whole lot of hispanics but there were some pretty cool looking houses and apartments and it is totally a place I would come visit when I get home and am not a missionary. Well like I said things are getting better and starting to go by fast. I heard the heartbreak back home about Jerry Sloan resigning... I have to be honest and when I read that we were in the car coming back from a mission conference with another compainionship and I let out a gasp and they all asked what had happened and they didn't believe that I had gasped about that but come on! Thats big news!! I though the only way Jerry Sloan would stop coaching is when he died! (kinda like Orrin Hatch) ;) haha. That is all the politics and sports I am going to talk about for now (GO COUGARS!!).
I hope all is going well with all of you and you are all staying positive and keeping your heads up! I know that our Heavenly Father loves us and that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ we can all be made clean and be forgiven of our sins and that He will take our burdens if we let him. Don't let discourgagement get you down, we have the blessings and fullness of the gospel in our lives!!! What more could be better!?!?! I love you all and thank you always for your continued support. I'm going to share a secret with you all... I probably wouldn't have stayed on the mission if I didn't know that me coming home early would disappoint you all. Sometimes the only thing that keeps me from calling my mission president and throwing in the towel is knowing that if I did that I would be letting y'all down. The knowledge that all of the people I love and respect know I can do this makes me believe in myself at times when I just want to give up, but the support of you all keeps me going so I thank you will all of my heart. May our Heavenly Father bless you and your families.
Love Always,
Sister Kelsey Berg
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