A very adventurous week!

 

Hey everyone, 

 

This was a very full and interesting week, and we met with a ton of different people. First Rick, this single Christian guy who loves having these long discussions with me and Sister Baldridge. He accepts everything we tell him and he's pretty funny. When we were talking about marriage/family, he asks us how many kids we want, then turns to me and says, "I'm not hearing a number, Petersen!!" I don't know why he skips the "sister" part when saying my name, haha. We also FINALLY had a lesson with the family from Sierra Leone. Alpha (the dad) said yes to a conditional baptism, and his sister seemed interested as well. 

We did a lot of service this week. We helped an investigator of the elders' pack up, she's moving to CA, Orange County area. The next day she fed us lunch, authentic Mexican food! She made homemade enchilada sauce and everything! The spiciness was at a level that I could handle, but my nose started running because of it. However, Sis. B was having a hard time with it- my poor Utah companion.... haha. Anyways, this investigator, Lorena, told us how much the missionaries and the Church have blessed her life, and how her little kids want to be missionaries some day. She told us that what we do really matters, even if we are discouraged and feel like we're not doing anything. That was a big turning point for me. 

So is the Book of Mormon musical in San Diego right now? Or did it come there right before coming to Columbus? Anyways, we had an interesting discussion with some members in our ward that saw it. The wife and oldest daughter thought it was entertaining and enjoyed it, though obviously very "out-there" and included some false doctrine. The husband though was offended by it, and said how it was NOT okay to poke fun at Christ and mock him and Joseph Smith. I left the dinner appointment realizing that Satan uses tactics for the sake of entertainment and other subtle ways to deceive us and think that some things are okay, even though they are totally not. 

We did exchanges in Mt. Vernon, the northeastern part of the mission, and an hour away. I worked with Sister Chapman on Friday, who is from western Australia! She's hilarious. We'd be lost, then she'd figure it out and say, "By jolly, she's got it!!" It was a pretty fun exchange, and the next day we did service at a farm, after having breakfast at a member's house. The drive out there was SO BEAUTIFUL (pictures included!) and so green. Coolest part is that when we were driving closer to the farm, we got passed by an AMISH BUGGY!!! Heck yes! I also saw a barn full of old-fashioned buggies that they use (I included a pic of that as well, but it's a little hard to see). 

Linda is still on-date for baptism on the 7th. However, she needs to quit smoking by the end of this week and she's having a hard time. We're reallyyy hoping and praying she makes it through, there are other uncertainties in her life that she's really stressed and anxious about. 

We've been low on miles this week because we had to drive so far for exchanges. However, that just means we're walking more! I'm thoroughly enjoying the exercise, and we definitely get to talk to more people! We even joined in on a corn-hole game (I think that's what it's called) some guys were playing on the sidewalk. 

For Memorial Day, we attended the ward picnic and had a great time with the members. I'm really liking this ward more and more. Right when we arrived, Sister Davis, our awesome Relief Society president, stopped me and said, "I know something about you, Sister Petersen! Apparently you know my niece, Janel??" She's Janel's aunt!!!! I was so excited, like, "SHE'S ONE OF MY ROOMMATES!" For our P-day, we just decided to swap our proselyting hours, and instead of going out in the evening, we worked in the morning and mid-day, fitting the picnic in the middle of it. But yeah, all the libraries were closed, so that's why we're emailing today. 

So excited for Taylor's graduation! And Hayley's promotion! So crazy. 

Love you all, 

Sister Petersen

Pictures: 

#1: Building in Westerville

#2: Me making pretzel dough

#3: Us with the Mt. Vernon sisters before we drove back to W-ville

#4: Uptown Westerville

#5: Drive to the farm near Danville

#6: Amish Buggy Carport

#7, 8, 9:  Scenic Ohio!

Staying in Westerville! Yay!

No offense to all you tuna casserole makers out there -- Whitney has never had this exotic dish :)

Hey everyone!

It's been a good week! Thursday was transfer day but neither Sis. Baldridge or I are getting transferred, so that's great! On Wednesday was our zone fun day, and we went to members' homes in New Albany, which is the area next to ours. First we went to someone's mansion with a huge basement and a home gym/basketball court, which was pretty sweet. Then we went to someone else's house for a barbecue and it was just so nice to actually HANG OUT with people my age. Missionaries don't get to just "hang out" very often...

At the end of last P-day, we went out to knock some doors and when we got out of the car, the tornado sirens were going off. It wasn't even windy, so I was like, whatever, let's just do what we were going to do. We talked to this guy on his porch for a while, and then it started raining. Then it started down-pouring like crazy, and so we had to adjust our plans a bit. Apparently that evening, a funnel cloud actually formed somewhere and three tornadoes touched down in Xenia, some other part of the mission. The weather here never ceases to amaze me, it was so hot on Monday and Tuesday, then rainy every day for the rest of the week and COLD! When we were cleaning out a member's garage on Saturday morning, it started hailing for a minute! 

Linda is still on-date for baptism. We just need to make sure she quits smoking in time. We met a former investigator this week, Steven, who is Vietnamese and is REALLY hard to understand when he talks. But apparently he showed up at church yesterday and he couldn't find us (we were in class), so he left! We had no idea he would come to church, we just had an appointment set up for this week. At least he wants to learn, but Sis. Baldridge and I are praying for the gift of interpreting tongues...

We've done service for some people this week, including the Santillans, who are some of our favorites. When we're with Sister Santillan, it's sooo tempting to just hang out with her all day, but we can't. We cleaned out their garage and basement, and got to enjoy lunch with them. She also let Sis. Baldridge and I rummage through some of her daughters' old accessories and clothes, so now Sis. Baldridge and I have matching necklaces!! It's awesome. 

I think I would say that the "weirdest" thing I've been fed on my mission is tuna casserole, which we were served on Friday. I didn't even know people still made that kind of thing! After the wife went into how unhealthy it was and how much she likes her sour cream, needless to say I ate only a portion of what was given me, haha.

But while I'm on the topic of food, we're going to Graeter's ice cream today, which is supposed to be pretty good. They're well known for their Buckeye ice cream... for me, I'm like, "Buckeye EVERYTHING!" Haha. 

Love you! 

Sister Petersen

The Work Rolls Forward

We enjoyed our Skype call with Whitney on Mother's Day!  One of the stories she told us was about the $80 brownies (see end of this letter);  their ward had a fundraiser dinner for the youth.  A member said he would bid for any dessert the missionaries wanted, so Whitney and her companion chose the chocolate-peanut butter brownies.  The bidding went back and forth until the price got driven up to $80!!!!  So she sent a picture of her $80  brownies.

 

Hey everyone, 

So good to talk to you guys over skype on Sunday! That was awesome! I was a little worried to talk to you that day because I was finally finding my focus in the work and didn't want to lose that, but it was okay! I don't know if you sent that package or not, but tomorrow's transfers, so you probably don't want to send that yet. General guidelines for packages (this can go for everyone): healthy snacks are best! People were shoving wayyy too much dessert at us this last week, haha. Fun stickers and post-its are great too :)

I can't believe there were fires THAT close to our house. And you left Mr. Jinx there alone at home again! Sheesh. But I'm glad it didn't actually get to our neighborhood, though it was sooo close. 

Meanwhile, here in Ohio, the weather is ever-changing. We had more thunder and rain storms, and then on Monday and Tuesday, it was hot and humid. Sis. Baldridge and I were actually feeling heat exhaustion come on the first day, and we were feeling pretty awful. I also learned I'm kind of crabby when it's hot, I need to work on that, haha. But today is overcast and cooler, really nice! And Ohio is BEAUTIFUL. So green, and trees and fields and grass and streams and rivers everywhere!

Last week was insanely awesome. After a week of nothing happening, we went out Tuesday morning and in 2 hours found 3 new investigators. We found 3 others that week. Trial precedes the miracle. One of the people we are now teaching is actually a former investigator, and she's in a mess. After she talked forever to us about her transgressions, financial straits, and other issues, we realized we opened up a big can of worms with her and we're working with the bishop to guide us in the direction we should take with her. In talking with people last week, it's amazing how open someone can be with the missionaries- people will tell us anything and everything. I've been told some pretty shocking stuff recently. Teri, the woman I mentioned, came to church this week and it was a little nerve-racking to control her tongue and see how she understood the lessons that were taught. 

Last Monday, when P-day ended, we went to this burrito place for dinner. There was a long line and we talked to some people. There was this guy I talked to who didn't believe in God and didn't want to discuss religion. But when Sis. Baldridge and I were going to pay for our meal, the cashier told us that the guy had already paid for it. There is hope in this world! Someone from one of the other wards in the area had also slipped us cash on their way out. Tender mercies of the Lord!

We also met with Rick, a guy who had previously started learning about the Church. We had a long discussion with him about the Church and being a Christian, and told him more about the Book of Mormon. The problem is that he doesn't have a car, neither does Teri, and we're trying to figure out how to get him to church. He's a single guy, and not many members are in his area. 

On Saturday we did a mission-wide "Social Media Split" where members went out with missionaries and documented us, and posted pictures to social media. This was against the Book of Mormon musical that's coming to Columbus this week, and to show what missionaries actually do and how we actually are. We did various things that day, like heart-attack an investigator's door and do service at a member's home. It was a cool idea, and we're hoping that some success will be found throughout the mission. 

We had a great lesson with Linda on Saturday as well, and we committed her to be baptized on June 7th. She's resolving her own concerns through reading the Book of Mormon, and she came to church again this week. She's super sweet, I'm excited to get her to baptism. 

Last night we put on a youth activity and did Glow-in-the-Dark dodgeball. We had glow-in-the-dark tape and a blacklight, and everyone wore glowstick necklaces. It was super fun! 

Today we're having a zone fun day, and doing a barbecue. Oh, and random side note, we had dinner at a member's house last night that was right next to the governor of Ohio's home. That was kind of fun, it was a super nice area. 

I included lots of pictures this time- last week we went street contacting at Inniswood Metro Gardens (so beautiful!). Also, there's pics of me and Sis. Baldridge with the flowers you sent me, and then me with the $80 Buckeye Brownies that a member won for us at the Young Women's fundraiser dinner on Friday night.

Love,

Sister Petersen

"Well, YOU can take me to church...."

The first paragraph is Whitney's reaction to finding out her brother just got called to serve in the Argentina Bahia Blanca mission - priceless!

Dear family, 

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH MYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY GOSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Taylor's going to Argentina!!! Can't even describe how I feel right now. That's so awesome. What a stud. Life sounds incredible and awesome and amazing back home, that's for sure!! You're all doing some good stuff! And Taylor, your mission is going to have huge impact on people, and it seems like it already is!! You've made a good choice. 

Couple of business items: here's my new address: 

4302 Executive Pkwy., Suite 223

Westerville, OH 43081

(since I transferred to Westerville, I haven't gotten any mail, and the elders in Zanesville checked my mail over there and I had nothing there as well. It's slightly depressing.... ) :)

ALSO: I get to Skype next weekend! I'll be at our ward mission leader's house for dinner at 5 pm on Sunday, which is 2 o'clock Pacific Time.

So, this week. It was a little rough- no one let us in, and despite all our efforts, no new investigators and no people at church. Everything was working against us this week. Half our lessons got canceled and working with the members here is difficult. We're trying to figure out how to mobilize them so they can go out with us, because we're getting tired of calling everyone in the ward directory for help, haha. Not sure what the deal is... any ideas? 

HOWEVER, Westerville is still cool. On Saturday night, we got to talk to an OSU student on the doorstep and had a great theological discussion. We also attended the baptism of someone that the elders in our ward taught, and I was the pianist for that. I was reminded of what my work is here- to bring souls to Christ and baptize. Also, there's a LOT of people here that are straight out of Africa, especially in our Columbus area. There was a family from Sierra Leone we were going to start teaching again, but they flaked out on us last second. I've also talked with people from Ghana and Liberia. 

Awkward story for the week: So we had a lesson set up with this 18 year old kid named Troy, but when we showed up, he wasn't home. However, these three older guys who knew his family were sitting in the garage smoking, and we started talking to them about what we do. Two of them got into a conversation with Sis. Balridge and I, and it wasn't long before the one guy talking to me stopped me and said how pretty I was for a redhead. I just went back into, "So Christ established his church on the earth..." but then he kept saying how cute I was, doing the work and whatever. Awkward. Meanwhile, I thought Sis. Baldridge was in the process of picking up the other guy as a new investigator, so I was enduring until her conversation was wrapping up. But then I heard how she kept saying, "No, as a missionary, I CAN'T DATE!" I also heard the guy say to her, "Well, YOU can take me to church," after she told him she would send missionaries in the area he lived to him. Eventually, as we tried to get out of there, one of them asked us, "So when are you going to become nuns??" and Sis. Balridge threw up her hands and yelled out, "WE ARE NUNS!!!!" We had a lot of laughs after that experience. 

Earlier this week, there was this CRAZY thunder/lighting storm. We actually headed in a little earlier than usual because it was wild, and there were a tornado warning and flash flood warning. It's been raining every day the past week, and I've had to continue wearing a coat as well, and tights... it's MAY, what the heck Ohio?! This place sure is interesting and quite opposite of California. 

Sooo sorry, but I forgot to take pictures this week and didn't bring my camera out with me! I promise I'll include some next time, because it's beautiful here!

Love, 

Sister Petersen