Dear mom and papa and family,
OH MY GOSH. ABBIE AND JAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited to hear that wonderful news! Crazy! I just wrote all the Hulmes today, so hopefully they will get it soon, but that was part of my questions for them all. I wanted to know about missions! Oh my goodness SO exciting! Congratulations kids! I love you guys! And Abigail. Write me immediately! I need a letter from you girl! I love you!
So I don't have much time. But I will try to fill you in as short as possible. So G is doing fine. Not much to report. H about the same. But this week something else happened that was REALLY exciting! So about 2 weeks ago, we found this kid named T. He is 18 years old. He goes to college in Evesham but lives a little ways outside in a town called Honeybourne. He is a good kid. We met him and set an appointment to see him the next day. He showed up, an hour early. But waited for us. He loved the idea of prayers, and he was really attentive. He did ask us a lot of questions about ourselves so we were a bit worried that he was meeting us for the wrong reason. But it was great. He read from the introduction to 1 Nephi 4 in that night before he met with us! So we set a time to meet with him the next week. We saw him this last week 4 times. And he came to church! He has prayed about whether what we are teaching him is true, and he has received what he feels is an answer. After he prayed, all his strength left him. So he kept praying, and it would return little by little. In one lesson, we taught him part of the plan of salvation. At the end, we gave him a chapter to read for when we would see him the next day. And both Sister P and I thought we were giving him one chapter (2 Nephi 31) but actually we gave him 2 Nephi 2 - ALL about baptism. So we saw him the next day, and we started reading it with him, and part way through, Sister P felt inspired to invite him to be baptized. And he just said, yeah, when? Where? What do I wear? When we told him it would either be in Cheltenham or Worcester, he was like, yeah, I think I can get the bus there. What a good kid! We told him we probably would be able to find him a lift. Ha-ha. So that was GREAT! We are so excited! So when he came to church on Sunday, everyone was able to meet him. And they all loved him and invited him over. And it was SO great! It was also great, because nobody else came but us and T for gospel principles, so we continued on in our lessons. And at the end, we asked him to pray, and he did! And it was great. He is such a good kid, and is really trying to do what's right. We are so blessed to have found someone who wants to learn! We are so excited! So right now, the plan is that T C is getting baptized on February 19th. How cool! (and it's really cool, because I thought it would be cool to baptize a boy that was 17 because papa was 17 when he was baptized. and this kid, his name is T. last name pretty close to Clark. and he is 18! what are the chances!? SO coool!!!
Did Caroline really name her dog after me!? Wow! I can't wait to meet this dog! That’s really sweet!
We had a great week teaching T and Ty. we weren't able to find a member to come out with us at all this week, so we decided we needed to be bold, and be "men" (we want to be men, because we don't think that men shy away from hard things to teach like we sometimes could...) and we decided to be men and to bring The Family: A Proclamation to the World and read it with them. And guess what? They LOVED it! So much! So we left it with them and asked them to highlight their favorite parts, and we'd come back and talk about it. And they both really loved how family is central to God's plan. And they loved it all really. And so I think they are now thinking about getting married. They didn't know before how really important it is. They only know one couple who is married. ONE. Can you imagine? The world is so different over here. Nobody is married! And it is just expensive and has no reason to them. So we are excited that they now are starting to realize the importance! Hopefully they will have the desire to change. We love them so much though. And want so badly to be able to have the happiness that comes with having a family.
Well, your week sounds like it was fun! Sorry about your eye! What a pain! But I am glad it all worked out and that you got to go to Lucy’s! I am jealous. That sounds like so much fun to go over there right now and help. But alas. I'm across the world. But it sounds like you guys had fun. And you will have to make me these meals when I get home. I miss your meals mom! But we have been making more fun healthy food.
Yesterday was Sister P's birthday. And we went to Cs for our weekly time to make a treat with her and then read the scriptures. Well, her mom came in, and she was filling up a lighter. I didn’t' know you could fill up a lighter. But I wouldn't because of what happened after. So she was filling it up, and the stuff she was filling it was kept dripping out. And then C was telling her mom that that really wasn't a good idea. But she didn’t' really listen. And then V just lit the lighter, and the fire caught her sweater and her whole hand, so she dropped it. But there was the fluid on the floor, so the fire spread. And we just all stood there in shock. She covered it with a towel, and it went out after a bit. But oh my goodness. We laughed so hard. C was a bit upset with her mom. But we laughed. Oh, and nobody was hurt. Otherwise we wouldn't laugh. But needless to say, she just threw the lighter away after that. Oh my goodness. Hilarious! And this was right after Sister P complained that nothing really excited had happened on her birthday. ha-ha. Good times.
Anyway. This has been a great week! we worked SO hard. Oh, I found out that I have shin splints. I was having a really rough time walking because my shin hurt so badly. So I called Sister Ogden after it hurting for a week. And she called Dr. Simonson, and he told me I have shin splints. From walking too much. How annoying! So I’m taking medicine to calm it down so I can walk normally again. And then maybe run. That’s fun.
Hmm. what else. We taught Young Women’s yesterday. We were supposed to talk on creating a spiritual environment in the home. We were given the manual, and knew that we had to do something else to make it more interesting. So we read from 1 Nephi, all about the difference between Nephi and Laman and Lemuel. They went on the same trips. Asked to do the same things. Had the same trials (i.e. ship, plates, and bow) yet their attitudes were completely different. Who would you want to be? Who would you want to be around? Someone who complains ALL the time? Or someone who is strong and thinks of solutions. Definitely Nephi. Anyway, it turned out to be a pretty good lesson. We were pleased. We have become part of every priesthood/auxiliary presidency it feels like. We are just running everywhere doing everything. Learning valuable tools.
Anyway, things are going great! I love it here! We are so happy! I love you so much! Thanks for all you do. Thank you thank you! I love you!
Love,
Annie
England Birmingham Mission
This is where I am serving!!!
Monday, January 31, 2011
President Ogden Interviews - Inspired!
Dear mom and papa and family,
I love that you got to get in contact with Sister P's mama. I love her and I don't even know her! Last night, we were praying at the end of our planning session (Sister P was praying) and it was like a 15 minute prayer, praying for each family member (and wife/husband and child) from each of our families by name and for their needs. Wow. We know each other really well. And I could do that with her family. And her extended family. We know each other REALLY well. Ha-ha. And we really are kindred spirits. Friends for life. I can't believe we will be able to have 6 months together by the end. We are SO lucky! Who would have guessed that we (who go together so well, and get along SO well) would be let to stay together! Tender mercies! And I am Ann(e) and she is Diana. But I don't have red hair. But we are bosom friends. Ha-ha
Yeah. E is doing well I think. She is having a hard time because she and her new companion are white washing an area, and that is SO hard. So probably a good place to jump right back in. I can't believe she goes home soon. I’m just so glad that she will be at BYU when I get back. I’ll miss the harp department the way it was. I miss Tess. And Marielle. Bah. I hate that people grow up! Ha-ha.
I can't believe that you were there for S's birthing experience, but it sounds like that was such a wonderful experience for you and also helpful to her. She is a lucky girl!
Oh G. I don’t' know. But we would LOVE to be here for his baptism. We love him and his family so so so much! They are seriously so amazing. They just feel like family. Wonderful.
Gm and are doing well. We are still teaching them, and Gm came to church on Sunday, so that was good! We are trying to get them to come more than once a month as their agreement is. But we won't complain. She is a good example to him. Oh their family is wonderful. He’d be the most amazing member. And their kids are just beautiful. I’ve never seen such a beautiful family!
T and Ty! this week, we were really stressed out because we knew we needed to bring up marriage with them, but we knew we needed to do it well, so we could discuss it, and share with them what we feel, and what the prophet says. And on Friday night, we went over, and it was weird. We just talked about random subjects for like 30 minutes. I kept thinking that we should start the lesson, but I didn't feel that we should. So we kept going. And then all of the sudden, Ty brought up how they didn't want to get married. So that opened it up. We discussed it. And we are bringing The Family, A Proclamation to the World, to our next appointment. And came to sacrament meeting yesterday!!! We are thrilled! So many people came up and met her after, and the Ws invited her to dinner. They set up a time and everything. So things are going well. And hopefully sometime soon T will feel comfortable in coming too. Thanks for the prayers for them! They still need them!
This week we had interviews. They were so SO so SO great! I love having my interviews with President Ogden. I love being able to just talk to him one on one, and he is so amazing. I felt the Spirit so strong. It was really wonderful. And at interviews, we were introduced to our new standards of excellence and goals. It’s weird, because some key indicators changed and so the focus changed, and now we are doing things so differently. We feel so good about what the changes are, and we are really excited! We also have a goal called "3 and 1" from President Ogden. And the goal is 3 investigators at church every Sunday. 3 returning members at church every Sunday. And 1 always with a baptismal date. And we have changed our focus so much, and things are even more effective! I love that! Being able to figure out how to be more effective! What a blessing!
Things here are going well. We are so happy, and excited to work. We love the work, and we love teaching. We were able to teach Relief Society on Sunday, and we taught from President Monson's talk on charity from the relief society session and it went really well. We love our branch. And despite feeling inadequate for all the things we are asked to do as missionaries, I am grateful for those experiences. They teach me something, and help me rely on the spirit. It’s wonderful. Next Sunday, we are teaching the young women’s lesson. So that should be good too. Hopefully it goes great! Prayers would be appreciated. Thanks!
Well, thank you everyone for the wonderful letters! Packages (Barbara Harvath! and Kristy! thank you thank you!!!) and the prayers! I love you all and I love the gospel so much! I am grateful for my chance to serve the Lord for these 18 months! I love you!
Love,
Sister Annie Clark
I love that you got to get in contact with Sister P's mama. I love her and I don't even know her! Last night, we were praying at the end of our planning session (Sister P was praying) and it was like a 15 minute prayer, praying for each family member (and wife/husband and child) from each of our families by name and for their needs. Wow. We know each other really well. And I could do that with her family. And her extended family. We know each other REALLY well. Ha-ha. And we really are kindred spirits. Friends for life. I can't believe we will be able to have 6 months together by the end. We are SO lucky! Who would have guessed that we (who go together so well, and get along SO well) would be let to stay together! Tender mercies! And I am Ann(e) and she is Diana. But I don't have red hair. But we are bosom friends. Ha-ha
Yeah. E is doing well I think. She is having a hard time because she and her new companion are white washing an area, and that is SO hard. So probably a good place to jump right back in. I can't believe she goes home soon. I’m just so glad that she will be at BYU when I get back. I’ll miss the harp department the way it was. I miss Tess. And Marielle. Bah. I hate that people grow up! Ha-ha.
I can't believe that you were there for S's birthing experience, but it sounds like that was such a wonderful experience for you and also helpful to her. She is a lucky girl!
Oh G. I don’t' know. But we would LOVE to be here for his baptism. We love him and his family so so so much! They are seriously so amazing. They just feel like family. Wonderful.
Gm and are doing well. We are still teaching them, and Gm came to church on Sunday, so that was good! We are trying to get them to come more than once a month as their agreement is. But we won't complain. She is a good example to him. Oh their family is wonderful. He’d be the most amazing member. And their kids are just beautiful. I’ve never seen such a beautiful family!
T and Ty! this week, we were really stressed out because we knew we needed to bring up marriage with them, but we knew we needed to do it well, so we could discuss it, and share with them what we feel, and what the prophet says. And on Friday night, we went over, and it was weird. We just talked about random subjects for like 30 minutes. I kept thinking that we should start the lesson, but I didn't feel that we should. So we kept going. And then all of the sudden, Ty brought up how they didn't want to get married. So that opened it up. We discussed it. And we are bringing The Family, A Proclamation to the World, to our next appointment. And came to sacrament meeting yesterday!!! We are thrilled! So many people came up and met her after, and the Ws invited her to dinner. They set up a time and everything. So things are going well. And hopefully sometime soon T will feel comfortable in coming too. Thanks for the prayers for them! They still need them!
This week we had interviews. They were so SO so SO great! I love having my interviews with President Ogden. I love being able to just talk to him one on one, and he is so amazing. I felt the Spirit so strong. It was really wonderful. And at interviews, we were introduced to our new standards of excellence and goals. It’s weird, because some key indicators changed and so the focus changed, and now we are doing things so differently. We feel so good about what the changes are, and we are really excited! We also have a goal called "3 and 1" from President Ogden. And the goal is 3 investigators at church every Sunday. 3 returning members at church every Sunday. And 1 always with a baptismal date. And we have changed our focus so much, and things are even more effective! I love that! Being able to figure out how to be more effective! What a blessing!
Things here are going well. We are so happy, and excited to work. We love the work, and we love teaching. We were able to teach Relief Society on Sunday, and we taught from President Monson's talk on charity from the relief society session and it went really well. We love our branch. And despite feeling inadequate for all the things we are asked to do as missionaries, I am grateful for those experiences. They teach me something, and help me rely on the spirit. It’s wonderful. Next Sunday, we are teaching the young women’s lesson. So that should be good too. Hopefully it goes great! Prayers would be appreciated. Thanks!
Well, thank you everyone for the wonderful letters! Packages (Barbara Harvath! and Kristy! thank you thank you!!!) and the prayers! I love you all and I love the gospel so much! I am grateful for my chance to serve the Lord for these 18 months! I love you!
Love,
Sister Annie Clark
Monday, January 17, 2011
Phones! Phones are so dumb.
17 January 2011
Dear Mum, Papa, and Family,
So yeah, Sister P and I are both staying for the next six weeks. And then, I am betting one of us would leave. They wouldn't leave us both in the same area, in the same companionship. We will have 6 months together by the end of this transfer. That’s a pretty long time. But they are extending people's stays in areas. I think it's so people can get used to the ward, the area, and the companion and then be able to work hard. Those first weeks of moving into a new area are so hard, and never as productive as the end. So hopefully this will up the productivity of the mission. But we'll see. Some sisters have been with the same companions for 9 months and are still together. Although that sounds great to be with Sister P for that long, I think other sisters would help me grow more by that point. But right now we are doing great and growing lots, and working hard! Love it!
That’s so adorable that Hailey put halfway on her facebook! Goodness, how did I get so lucky to have such a GREAT best friend!? I love her!!!
And J Cis married too? They are dropping like flies. Good for him! Ha-ha. Is E H married yet? A B wrote me this week, and updated me on the engaged group. I am missing so many weddings. I also got a letter from M, and she is getting married in a few months! I miss her, and I am sad I won't be there for the wedding. Hopefully I’ll get pictures.
I love the journal entries. I just got my LCR quiz back, I did so well. I filled out every entry! With every wrong answer! I thought at least I could have more creative answers?
So things here are going well. We are working hard. We had the MOST ridiculous experience this week. So we went to a lady's home for a lunch appointment, and then we took her out teaching with us. We went to this man's home that we had met a few weeks earlier (because our appointment flogged us), and this man apparently is losing his memory. So he didn't know who we were, but he invited us in. we taught him a bit of the restoration and shared a book of Mormon with him and invited him to church. By the end we were realizing that his memory was really bad because he kept repeating a lot of things. So we went back to drop off S, then drove to our dinner appointment. When we got there, I asked Sister P for the phone. And she thought I had it. I thought she had it. Neither one of us had it! So we had to look through our planners to find the old man's phone number so that we could see if he could see if we left our phone. He didn't even remember that we had just come to his home. So we asked him to look for a little mobile phone and we'd call him back. When I called back, he asked”what does the leaflet that I am looking for look like?” I said, "Actually it's a little black and silver mobile phone", and he then remembered and said that that's what he had been looking for and he'd keep looking. This conversation happened maybe four or five times until we were satisfied that he had remembered to look and that it wasn't there. During this fiasco, we were also trying to get hold of S to see if we had left the phone in her home. Her phone was busy the WHOLE time we tried. And of course, us being the smart cookies we are, we also called our mobile phone so hopefully someone could hear it and answer it. But no luck. Well, we were in the dark without a mobile phone for about three hours. Not able to track it down. We went to another lesson, and then raced back to S's to hopefully be able to find it. When we got to S's flat complex, the fire alarm was going off, and we found out that it had been going off for the last two hours. So no wonder she didn’t' hear our phone going off. But the phone ended up being in her bathroom. We grabbed it, raced home, and were home on time. What a mess! That teaches us! From now on, we will have to always check who has the phone. Phones. They are nuisances. That was a good story of the week.
Anyway. Not much else to report really. We have some REALLY good goals for the next transfer. We are so grateful for our time in Evesham. The branch is having a hard time at the moment, but we know that when we are being tried it's because something really good is going to happen. And we think it's that G will get baptized soon.
Speaking of G. We have been praying about how to help G get to the waters of baptism. And we realized that he has a testimony, but he doesn't recognize it as such. But he doesn't mind sharing it with others. He shares the plan of salvation with people so much. Of course he knows it's true! So we prayed about it, and both Sister P and I feel like we need to take G out teaching with us. So we called him and told him we were prompted to take him out teaching with us, and that we feel that it will help him, and he immediately said yes. G is so willing to do anything to feel the spirit, and to know what's true. He is truly amazing, and everyone in the branch is seeing a huge change in G. It’s soon!!! We know it's soon!
We are also teaching a man named H. He is the husband of a semi less active member. And she is adorable. They have two little kids, and Gm (the wife) is going to raise the children LDS, so H is taking the lessons to learn about the church for purely informative reasons. But we have been teaching them, and we think that this may lead to him being baptized. We had a really funny experience. We were sitting there, talking to H about his questions. And he said that he just doesn't understand the book of Mormon or Joseph Smith, that it just seems too farfetched. This is when Gm said "well, H, you have to pray about it to know if it's true. That’s the only way. But you aren't going to do that because you just want to learn about the church, so you will never know." and H just gave her this look like he was annoyed and now he is going to pray and find out. It was great. Hopefully this reverse psychology will work on H. They are an awesome family though. They have the most beautiful house in the whole world. And Gm offered for us to be able to stay there when you come and pick me up. She really wants us to. So that's an option. But they have the cutest babies. One is a little two year old girl - E. And there is a four month old boy named B. The most beautiful, posh family I have ever met. They are amazing! (Every time we think of H, we think of What's Up Doc. We should start calling him Steve.)
We are teaching T and Tm still. We are still praying about how to bring up them getting married so that they are able to be baptism candidates. Their issue has been that neither T nor Tm has a job and they have this one year old baby. And they would lose their benefits from the government if they were to get married. But a blessing has come in the way of a job for Tom. We are still waiting to hear back, but hopefully T has been able to get a good job. That will help things dramatically. And we brought a young married girl from the ward with us teaching them last week, and it made all the difference. And so we are going to teach her tonight with the same girl and her husband. Fellow shippers are the key! So pray for T and Tm please!
Anyway, that's all here at the moment. Things are great! Love life and love being on a mission! I can't believe that yesterday was 9 months. Halfway through. Crazy!
Well, I love you all! I know that this church is true, and I know I am in the right place! I am so grateful for my chance to be here, and I am grateful for all your prayers, letters, and support! Thank you for everything! Love you SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much!
All my love heaped up pressed down and running over,
Sister Ann/Annie Clark
Dear Mum, Papa, and Family,
So yeah, Sister P and I are both staying for the next six weeks. And then, I am betting one of us would leave. They wouldn't leave us both in the same area, in the same companionship. We will have 6 months together by the end of this transfer. That’s a pretty long time. But they are extending people's stays in areas. I think it's so people can get used to the ward, the area, and the companion and then be able to work hard. Those first weeks of moving into a new area are so hard, and never as productive as the end. So hopefully this will up the productivity of the mission. But we'll see. Some sisters have been with the same companions for 9 months and are still together. Although that sounds great to be with Sister P for that long, I think other sisters would help me grow more by that point. But right now we are doing great and growing lots, and working hard! Love it!
That’s so adorable that Hailey put halfway on her facebook! Goodness, how did I get so lucky to have such a GREAT best friend!? I love her!!!
And J Cis married too? They are dropping like flies. Good for him! Ha-ha. Is E H married yet? A B wrote me this week, and updated me on the engaged group. I am missing so many weddings. I also got a letter from M, and she is getting married in a few months! I miss her, and I am sad I won't be there for the wedding. Hopefully I’ll get pictures.
I love the journal entries. I just got my LCR quiz back, I did so well. I filled out every entry! With every wrong answer! I thought at least I could have more creative answers?
So things here are going well. We are working hard. We had the MOST ridiculous experience this week. So we went to a lady's home for a lunch appointment, and then we took her out teaching with us. We went to this man's home that we had met a few weeks earlier (because our appointment flogged us), and this man apparently is losing his memory. So he didn't know who we were, but he invited us in. we taught him a bit of the restoration and shared a book of Mormon with him and invited him to church. By the end we were realizing that his memory was really bad because he kept repeating a lot of things. So we went back to drop off S, then drove to our dinner appointment. When we got there, I asked Sister P for the phone. And she thought I had it. I thought she had it. Neither one of us had it! So we had to look through our planners to find the old man's phone number so that we could see if he could see if we left our phone. He didn't even remember that we had just come to his home. So we asked him to look for a little mobile phone and we'd call him back. When I called back, he asked”what does the leaflet that I am looking for look like?” I said, "Actually it's a little black and silver mobile phone", and he then remembered and said that that's what he had been looking for and he'd keep looking. This conversation happened maybe four or five times until we were satisfied that he had remembered to look and that it wasn't there. During this fiasco, we were also trying to get hold of S to see if we had left the phone in her home. Her phone was busy the WHOLE time we tried. And of course, us being the smart cookies we are, we also called our mobile phone so hopefully someone could hear it and answer it. But no luck. Well, we were in the dark without a mobile phone for about three hours. Not able to track it down. We went to another lesson, and then raced back to S's to hopefully be able to find it. When we got to S's flat complex, the fire alarm was going off, and we found out that it had been going off for the last two hours. So no wonder she didn’t' hear our phone going off. But the phone ended up being in her bathroom. We grabbed it, raced home, and were home on time. What a mess! That teaches us! From now on, we will have to always check who has the phone. Phones. They are nuisances. That was a good story of the week.
Anyway. Not much else to report really. We have some REALLY good goals for the next transfer. We are so grateful for our time in Evesham. The branch is having a hard time at the moment, but we know that when we are being tried it's because something really good is going to happen. And we think it's that G will get baptized soon.
Speaking of G. We have been praying about how to help G get to the waters of baptism. And we realized that he has a testimony, but he doesn't recognize it as such. But he doesn't mind sharing it with others. He shares the plan of salvation with people so much. Of course he knows it's true! So we prayed about it, and both Sister P and I feel like we need to take G out teaching with us. So we called him and told him we were prompted to take him out teaching with us, and that we feel that it will help him, and he immediately said yes. G is so willing to do anything to feel the spirit, and to know what's true. He is truly amazing, and everyone in the branch is seeing a huge change in G. It’s soon!!! We know it's soon!
We are also teaching a man named H. He is the husband of a semi less active member. And she is adorable. They have two little kids, and Gm (the wife) is going to raise the children LDS, so H is taking the lessons to learn about the church for purely informative reasons. But we have been teaching them, and we think that this may lead to him being baptized. We had a really funny experience. We were sitting there, talking to H about his questions. And he said that he just doesn't understand the book of Mormon or Joseph Smith, that it just seems too farfetched. This is when Gm said "well, H, you have to pray about it to know if it's true. That’s the only way. But you aren't going to do that because you just want to learn about the church, so you will never know." and H just gave her this look like he was annoyed and now he is going to pray and find out. It was great. Hopefully this reverse psychology will work on H. They are an awesome family though. They have the most beautiful house in the whole world. And Gm offered for us to be able to stay there when you come and pick me up. She really wants us to. So that's an option. But they have the cutest babies. One is a little two year old girl - E. And there is a four month old boy named B. The most beautiful, posh family I have ever met. They are amazing! (Every time we think of H, we think of What's Up Doc. We should start calling him Steve.)
We are teaching T and Tm still. We are still praying about how to bring up them getting married so that they are able to be baptism candidates. Their issue has been that neither T nor Tm has a job and they have this one year old baby. And they would lose their benefits from the government if they were to get married. But a blessing has come in the way of a job for Tom. We are still waiting to hear back, but hopefully T has been able to get a good job. That will help things dramatically. And we brought a young married girl from the ward with us teaching them last week, and it made all the difference. And so we are going to teach her tonight with the same girl and her husband. Fellow shippers are the key! So pray for T and Tm please!
Anyway, that's all here at the moment. Things are great! Love life and love being on a mission! I can't believe that yesterday was 9 months. Halfway through. Crazy!
Well, I love you all! I know that this church is true, and I know I am in the right place! I am so grateful for my chance to be here, and I am grateful for all your prayers, letters, and support! Thank you for everything! Love you SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much!
All my love heaped up pressed down and running over,
Sister Ann/Annie Clark
Still in Evesham - not transferred!
January 9, 2011
Dear momma, papa, and family,
So big news. We didn't get transferred! This was the biggest transfer since President Ogden came, 75 percent of the mission got changed. But we are the lucky 25 percent that stayed! And we are SO happy. That means that Sister P and I will be spending 6 months (one third!) of our mission together. Crazy!
So we are doing much better. We are barely coughing at all anymore. It’s nice. And we have started waking up early again to work out. It feels so good to do that! This morning, we started our training to beat G B on the Rowing machine for the 1000 meters race. We have to work hard. So it will be an awesome and grueling 6 weeks. (See Sister P's email)
A G was baptized in Cheltenham because it's the stake center, and it's the closest baptismal font to their house. That’s basically why. Remember, we meet in Evesham High School; we don't have a building at all. But they are looking to find one to meet in. that would be nice.
I think my boots will last the whole mission. The sole was coming off again, so I had to get them glued again. This is the second time, but it's ok. I think that they will last the mission. And I love them so much, hopefully when I get home I can have them re-soled, then I can have them for longer. They are good boots! They have done me well!
Oh man, I am sorry about the camera! What a pain! I don’t' know why it would do that. It has been such a hustle, sorry about that! Hopefully it all works out!
Thanks for the recipes. We will see if we can try those out. Thanks!
So this week. It’s been crazy. We have had transfers. We had the rowing competition. We are teaching this great man. His name is W, he is from the Philippines, and he is so great. He was being taught earlier in the year by the elders, but they stopped for some reason. But we went to his home with our district leader (elder Magpantay is from the Philippines as well, so they could talk) and we taught a lesson. It was really wonderful. The spirit was so strong, and we are going to teach him again today. We are really excited!
Our teaching pool is finally growing after 3 months. We are so happy! We love teaching. And we find that we are the happiest while teaching. We realize that that is our calling. Finding is hard, and not always fun, but that's because you want to be teaching! So it's incentive to find someone to teach. That’s what I think! But we are doing really well. And right now the weather is GORGEOUS! It’s about 50 Fahrenheit right now, and we are going without jackets. So funny!
Things are going well. We are working so hard, and have such a desire to help the people in this area. We are hopeful, and we try to rely on the spirit, and it really makes us feel good.
We went to a lesson with G on Tuesday. He said the closing prayer, and it was amazing. It really touched us. He paused a lot to think, and he asked that we would be able to continue to focus so that we could help him get to baptism. Really cool. he is deciding when to be baptized, but he is thinking in the next 8 weeks. we are thrilled, and we know he is getting closer every day. we are so blessed to be able to teach someone as great as he is. Their family is amazing, and I can't wait to finally be able to see them go to the temple together! What a blessing!
Well, sorry about the short letter. More next Monday, regular schedule again. This week has just been so crazy! But I love you! I am so grateful for God's hand in our lives. We are really being looked after, and He is leading us to where we need to be. I know that the Church is true, and I am grateful to be serving our Father in this way.
Have a good week. And pray for someone that you can share the gospel with!
Love,
Sister (not elder - my voice is back) Clark
Dear momma, papa, and family,
So big news. We didn't get transferred! This was the biggest transfer since President Ogden came, 75 percent of the mission got changed. But we are the lucky 25 percent that stayed! And we are SO happy. That means that Sister P and I will be spending 6 months (one third!) of our mission together. Crazy!
So we are doing much better. We are barely coughing at all anymore. It’s nice. And we have started waking up early again to work out. It feels so good to do that! This morning, we started our training to beat G B on the Rowing machine for the 1000 meters race. We have to work hard. So it will be an awesome and grueling 6 weeks. (See Sister P's email)
A G was baptized in Cheltenham because it's the stake center, and it's the closest baptismal font to their house. That’s basically why. Remember, we meet in Evesham High School; we don't have a building at all. But they are looking to find one to meet in. that would be nice.
I think my boots will last the whole mission. The sole was coming off again, so I had to get them glued again. This is the second time, but it's ok. I think that they will last the mission. And I love them so much, hopefully when I get home I can have them re-soled, then I can have them for longer. They are good boots! They have done me well!
Oh man, I am sorry about the camera! What a pain! I don’t' know why it would do that. It has been such a hustle, sorry about that! Hopefully it all works out!
Thanks for the recipes. We will see if we can try those out. Thanks!
So this week. It’s been crazy. We have had transfers. We had the rowing competition. We are teaching this great man. His name is W, he is from the Philippines, and he is so great. He was being taught earlier in the year by the elders, but they stopped for some reason. But we went to his home with our district leader (elder Magpantay is from the Philippines as well, so they could talk) and we taught a lesson. It was really wonderful. The spirit was so strong, and we are going to teach him again today. We are really excited!
Our teaching pool is finally growing after 3 months. We are so happy! We love teaching. And we find that we are the happiest while teaching. We realize that that is our calling. Finding is hard, and not always fun, but that's because you want to be teaching! So it's incentive to find someone to teach. That’s what I think! But we are doing really well. And right now the weather is GORGEOUS! It’s about 50 Fahrenheit right now, and we are going without jackets. So funny!
Things are going well. We are working so hard, and have such a desire to help the people in this area. We are hopeful, and we try to rely on the spirit, and it really makes us feel good.
We went to a lesson with G on Tuesday. He said the closing prayer, and it was amazing. It really touched us. He paused a lot to think, and he asked that we would be able to continue to focus so that we could help him get to baptism. Really cool. he is deciding when to be baptized, but he is thinking in the next 8 weeks. we are thrilled, and we know he is getting closer every day. we are so blessed to be able to teach someone as great as he is. Their family is amazing, and I can't wait to finally be able to see them go to the temple together! What a blessing!
Well, sorry about the short letter. More next Monday, regular schedule again. This week has just been so crazy! But I love you! I am so grateful for God's hand in our lives. We are really being looked after, and He is leading us to where we need to be. I know that the Church is true, and I am grateful to be serving our Father in this way.
Have a good week. And pray for someone that you can share the gospel with!
Love,
Sister (not elder - my voice is back) Clark
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Sick of the flu!
3 January 2011
Dear mum, papa, and family,
Love you! I had so much fun talking to you at Christmas. I love that! Oh, and for the record, we were strictly told that we were able to talk no longer than 40 minutes. I think I kept within that. I tried to for sure. So that's why I was rushing, not because I didn't want to talk to you. I can't believe that J could talk to his family for over 5 hours! That’s a bit excessive. How are J and Je doing? How fun that they are both serving at the same time. I love that!
Oh this week last week... it's been a doozy. Monday to Thursday, we were pretty sick. Wednesday night, Sister R took Sister P and me to the doctor and it turns out that my flu had turned into a chest infection. So I had to get antibiotics, which really seems to have done a lot. So I am happy about that. Really annoying. Apparently one elder at the talent show had the swine flu. Lovely. So I am just grateful that I am doing better. I’m still not all the way better yet though. It’s lasted a long time. But I am hoping that it will continue to subside.
How fun that you went to Utah! How is all the family doing? I wonder if everybody would send me their Christmas card. And anybody else who sent them out. I got the Orris-Linford’s, which was so much fun to get! I just would love the others as well.
I am so excited Annelise is married. Thanks for sending me the picture! It took me a minute to even figure out it was her, because I wasn't expecting it to be her. Wow. Hopefully he's a great guy! She looked beautiful.
Thursday, we did some work. We were so sick of staying in by this point, so we went out and visited some people. But I was still having a terrible cough, and my voice sounded AWFUL. It’s finally almost back now, but just getting there. I still sound like a man. If I’d answer the phone, the district leader or whoever would call me Elder Clark. Nice.
Friday. We scheduled a lot of people to come out teaching with us for the next week. We were pretty excited to get someone almost every day. So that's exciting. And then we went and visited more people. That night, the Ws had us for dinner, and they were so funny that night! Brother W and E ran around trying to snap each other with tea towels. Except E only being four, doesn't really know how, but J definitely got her pretty good. And they showed us their wedding album. It was great! Because by a certain point, we weren't able to be outside, we had to be in because of New Years Eve, so it was a delightful night. I love that family!
Saturday. We went to A G’s baptism in Cheltenham. He is the cutest kid. When we walking into the room, he came up to us and hugged us. And then a couple more times that day. He likes us! Yay! Then the rest of the day we went to go visit people. It was nice to finally see people that we weren't able to see for a while because of not being able to drive. We finally gave out most of our Christmas cards as well. Felt good.
Sunday! We had church. Later we went to dinner at the D's home. Then we went to S’s to visit. Apparently S was all ready for church. He had his suit and tie and books ready, and then he chickened out and got too nervous. Sweet man. Hopefully he will build up the courage next week. He just has such bad anxiety, poor guy.
Monday. Today we went shopping for a couple hours to find Sister P some boots. She had some as a hand-me-down from another sister, but those broke, and she has either been wearing mine (almost 4 sizes too big) or just flats. Which is painful. We finally found some today. Hopefully they will last the walking we do.
It’s good to finally be back on a normal schedule. We have been a bit discouraged. Especially starting with G not getting baptized, and then the snow keeping us stuck, and then being sick. We are trying to get back to where we want to be.
Now. Here are funny quotes going back a few months:
Brother P (gospel principles teacher) - is there anyone we shouldn’t share the gospel with?
J (recent convert) - Catholics
This one is about tea tree oil in zone conference
Elder: does it have tea in it?
Sister Ogden: you're not going to drink it, you're just going to inhale it
M (former investigator): well I’m happy now because you gave me an owl
Peter (an old man we met on the street) - You don't have to be mad (crazy) but it helps
M (same former invest.) - Wherever u are un whatever u maybe doing. I thank u both 4 me owl cake I enjoyed very much thank u again.
December Testimony meeting:
B B: I'd like to bear my testimony that I know this church is true. I like coming to church every Sunday...and I hope my dad gets baptized on the 18th of December. in the name...
H B: I'd like to bear my testimony...and like B I hope my dad get's baptized on the 18th because I want more than anything in the world for our family to be sealed in he temple.
T (invest); I have to go - I have an AA meeting tonight
Sister P: what's that?
Sister Clark: trying to nonchalantly tell her
Sister P: oh. sorry, it's just been a while since I’ve gone
M B: I could do with a drink. where is the heck apple juice?
A G (about his baptism): It’s just one dunk in the water and then you feel great!
Well, I hope you have a great first week of 2011. I love you! pray for us please to be able to work hard without any illness. oh, and transfers are next Wednesday. so we won't be emailing till next Wednesday, and post anything from now until we know where I’ll be at the mission home:
187 Penns Lane
Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands
England B76 1JU
UK
I love you love you love you!
love,
Sister Annie Clark
ps. do you have the recipe for gingerbread cake? or Dutch babies? I’d love it :) thanks!
Dear mum, papa, and family,
Love you! I had so much fun talking to you at Christmas. I love that! Oh, and for the record, we were strictly told that we were able to talk no longer than 40 minutes. I think I kept within that. I tried to for sure. So that's why I was rushing, not because I didn't want to talk to you. I can't believe that J could talk to his family for over 5 hours! That’s a bit excessive. How are J and Je doing? How fun that they are both serving at the same time. I love that!
Oh this week last week... it's been a doozy. Monday to Thursday, we were pretty sick. Wednesday night, Sister R took Sister P and me to the doctor and it turns out that my flu had turned into a chest infection. So I had to get antibiotics, which really seems to have done a lot. So I am happy about that. Really annoying. Apparently one elder at the talent show had the swine flu. Lovely. So I am just grateful that I am doing better. I’m still not all the way better yet though. It’s lasted a long time. But I am hoping that it will continue to subside.
How fun that you went to Utah! How is all the family doing? I wonder if everybody would send me their Christmas card. And anybody else who sent them out. I got the Orris-Linford’s, which was so much fun to get! I just would love the others as well.
I am so excited Annelise is married. Thanks for sending me the picture! It took me a minute to even figure out it was her, because I wasn't expecting it to be her. Wow. Hopefully he's a great guy! She looked beautiful.
Thursday, we did some work. We were so sick of staying in by this point, so we went out and visited some people. But I was still having a terrible cough, and my voice sounded AWFUL. It’s finally almost back now, but just getting there. I still sound like a man. If I’d answer the phone, the district leader or whoever would call me Elder Clark. Nice.
Friday. We scheduled a lot of people to come out teaching with us for the next week. We were pretty excited to get someone almost every day. So that's exciting. And then we went and visited more people. That night, the Ws had us for dinner, and they were so funny that night! Brother W and E ran around trying to snap each other with tea towels. Except E only being four, doesn't really know how, but J definitely got her pretty good. And they showed us their wedding album. It was great! Because by a certain point, we weren't able to be outside, we had to be in because of New Years Eve, so it was a delightful night. I love that family!
Saturday. We went to A G’s baptism in Cheltenham. He is the cutest kid. When we walking into the room, he came up to us and hugged us. And then a couple more times that day. He likes us! Yay! Then the rest of the day we went to go visit people. It was nice to finally see people that we weren't able to see for a while because of not being able to drive. We finally gave out most of our Christmas cards as well. Felt good.
Sunday! We had church. Later we went to dinner at the D's home. Then we went to S’s to visit. Apparently S was all ready for church. He had his suit and tie and books ready, and then he chickened out and got too nervous. Sweet man. Hopefully he will build up the courage next week. He just has such bad anxiety, poor guy.
Monday. Today we went shopping for a couple hours to find Sister P some boots. She had some as a hand-me-down from another sister, but those broke, and she has either been wearing mine (almost 4 sizes too big) or just flats. Which is painful. We finally found some today. Hopefully they will last the walking we do.
It’s good to finally be back on a normal schedule. We have been a bit discouraged. Especially starting with G not getting baptized, and then the snow keeping us stuck, and then being sick. We are trying to get back to where we want to be.
Now. Here are funny quotes going back a few months:
Brother P (gospel principles teacher) - is there anyone we shouldn’t share the gospel with?
J (recent convert) - Catholics
This one is about tea tree oil in zone conference
Elder: does it have tea in it?
Sister Ogden: you're not going to drink it, you're just going to inhale it
M (former investigator): well I’m happy now because you gave me an owl
Peter (an old man we met on the street) - You don't have to be mad (crazy) but it helps
M (same former invest.) - Wherever u are un whatever u maybe doing. I thank u both 4 me owl cake I enjoyed very much thank u again.
December Testimony meeting:
B B: I'd like to bear my testimony that I know this church is true. I like coming to church every Sunday...and I hope my dad gets baptized on the 18th of December. in the name...
H B: I'd like to bear my testimony...and like B I hope my dad get's baptized on the 18th because I want more than anything in the world for our family to be sealed in he temple.
T (invest); I have to go - I have an AA meeting tonight
Sister P: what's that?
Sister Clark: trying to nonchalantly tell her
Sister P: oh. sorry, it's just been a while since I’ve gone
M B: I could do with a drink. where is the heck apple juice?
A G (about his baptism): It’s just one dunk in the water and then you feel great!
Well, I hope you have a great first week of 2011. I love you! pray for us please to be able to work hard without any illness. oh, and transfers are next Wednesday. so we won't be emailing till next Wednesday, and post anything from now until we know where I’ll be at the mission home:
187 Penns Lane
Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands
England B76 1JU
UK
I love you love you love you!
love,
Sister Annie Clark
ps. do you have the recipe for gingerbread cake? or Dutch babies? I’d love it :) thanks!
Christmas in Evesham
29 December 2010
So this week has been crazy. So last week, we had three normal working days. Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday. Of those days, we had to spend all of them just working in Evesham because of the terrible road conditions due to the snow. And we had no access to our car. This meant our days consisted of walking ALL day through high sludge. So this is an example of what we wore every day. At least 2 tops and two cardigans and a heavy coat, scarf, hat, and gloves, two skirts, two pairs of thick tights, two pairs of socks, a couple plastic bags on our feet to make sure they don’t get drenched, and then a pair of boots. And we were still cold. No joke. It was a good three days. Hard, but good. It was really cool though, in those three days, while we were walking around we saw so many people that we were meaning to see that week. It was so cool! The Lord really put people in our path that would help us out. It was a cool experience. On Wednesday night, we spent about three hours tracting. At one house, they asked us if we were caroling, so we just sang. It was funny. At another house, the man just opened his upstairs window to tell us “no” and he knocked icicles off the roof which hit me. Which of course he didn’t even notice. Oh gosh, sometimes tracting can be so funny.
Thursday night the sisters from New Castle Emlyn in Wales came to stay the night with us so they would not have to drive the whole next morning to get to the mission Christmas party. That was really fun. It is always good to see the other sisters!
Friday! Christmas Eve, the Christmas party! It was the funnest day of my life. We had such a good time. There was a pig roasting, which I wasn’t so keen on, but it looked way cool! And then there was a massive talent show. Massive meaning like 5 hours! It was amazing. I have never laughed so hard in my life. There was everything from guitars and singing, to ridiculous magic tricks, to Hakka’s (an ancient Maury tradition), and harmonica (one elder played it entirely with his nose…), the chanter from bagpipes, the upright bass, break dancing, beat boxing, dancing. Oh it was hilarious. So sister Pope and I decided to also contribute a little something to the talent show. So we did an interpretive dance to Brett Raymond’s “my Heavenly Father Loves Me”. Oh my word. Picture this. We both have skirts on. Sister Pope has gold shiny stretchy pants on. I have butterfly wings on. We both have yellow headbands on. Oh, we looked great. And it was so funny. We keep playing the song over and over again on the camera, because it was so great. I tried to email it to you, but it wouldn’t let me. It’s too much space, and I don’t know how to reduce it. Sorry. But just imagine it, it was funny. Yep. We received many compliments. For real! After the talent show there was a Christmas devotional. Lots of music and inspirational missionary Christmas stories. It was really nice. I accompanied a sister singing Oh Holy Night, and all the German missionaries singing Stille Nacht, and then I accompanied the congregational hymns too. All the sisters sang John Rutter's “Angels Carol” which much to my amazement sounded great! It was an incredible night. I felt the spirit so much. I really feel so at home with the mission, I love it. I just feel like I have a lot of brothers and sisters here, and that president and sister Ogden are our parents away from home. It’s really nice! Afterward, we took pictures forever, and then went home. It was sad to leave, because it was such a great time, but it’s great to know we are all going back to the same work wherever we are.
Saturday = CHRISTMAS!!! Sister Pope and I woke up and opened our presents. To avoid confusion, we awoke no earlier than usual. And we got the best presents! Our branch family loves us so much! We loved it! And oh, the presents that you, my wonderful parents, sent me were GREAT! THANKS!!! I love the long johns so much. SO much! I feel like wearing them all the time. They are so comfortable! I especially love the fit and feel of the cheetah print ones. Great! Thanks SOOOOO much!!!! We then went to the G’s for Christmas. That family is so adorable. They have two little boys. A is turning 8 this week, and getting baptized on Saturday. He is SO smart. You can ask him on what day of the week any date is, and he’ll figure it out and tell you so fast! It’s so cool. He’s a really brilliant kid. We played battleship, and he almost beat me. My word! Cool kid. The other child, H, is 4 and completely adorable. He has some learning difficulties, and is in his own world most of the time. And when we were at the table having Christmas dinner, he just kept talking about a cave. Then he looked at his mum and said,
H: “mum, do you know what my last wish is?” (Say this in your most posh English accent of a 4 year old)
C: what?
H: “Your Freedom!!!” then he points to all of us. And your freedom and your freedom and your freedom.
Apparently he was reliving Aladdin when Aladdin was stuck in the cave. Oh gosh, we laughed so hard!
The G’s gave us the best gift ever! They bought a webcam so we could Skype our families. So at 4:30 sister pope skipped her family! And I met some of them! It was so great! I love her family. I feel like I know them all so well…we tell lots of stories. I was so excited to finally meet them! And then I talked to my family! It was wonderful! It was great. I got to see Mom and Papa and D, and D got M and R’s family on Skype on his computer so I could see them through the computer. And then S and L were on speaker phones! I loved talking to everyone! I was pretty good, I didn’t get too emotional. I cried a bit after. I only really cried when L got on the phone. For some reason she makes me cry, ha-ha! It was so fun to talk to you all! Thanks so much! I loved it.
Oh, and sorry about my voice. I thought I had just lost it from all the talking and cheering the day before. But that night, I got a bad fever. And the next day it turned into a bad flu. And sister pope got it too. Actually 1/3 of the WHOLE mission has the flu. And it’s pretty bad. We are going to the doctors today for it. We have been sick inside, not moving since Boxing Day. But the branch has been so good to us. The R’s and the B’s went shopping for us, and have helped us out so much! Today we are both feeling much better. But I have a terrible cough, which we are afraid has turned into a chest infection. And it’s hard to sleep at night because of the coughing. And I still can’t talk. I answered the phone yesterday when some missionaries called, and they called me Elder Clark because I sound like a man. Nice. So I am trying not to talk much. We are doing lots of reading, and trying our best to get better. But prayers would be much appreciated! A cool story came out of it though. When we told G B that I was sick, before Sister P was sick, the first question he asked was if I had had a priesthood blessing. The answer was a yes. But that means he has a testimony of blessings. So cool!
So I am really sad, because I wanted to bear my testimony to you, my dear family, on Christmas, but it was all so hectic, that I totally forgot. But I just want you to know that I know that this church is true. God really is our Father, and he leads and guides our church today through the prophet of the world, Thomas S. Monson. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that he restored the keys of the priesthood on the earth today through Jesus Christ. I am grateful to the Book of Mormon. I love reading it SO much, and I find answers in it every time I read it prayerfully. I love this gospel. I love teaching it to people, and seeing how it changes all lives for the better. I know that it’s true. And I know that families can be together forever. I am SO grateful for that! That makes me so happy. I am so grateful for the many blessings that I have, and for the wonderful family support system I have. Thank you so much for all your love, prayers, and kindness. I know I haven’t always been perfect, but I always want to do what’s right. I am grateful for the atonement which makes that possible one day!
I love you! Happy Christmas and a happy new year! Bring on 2011!!!!!!!!!!!
All my love heaped up pressed down and running over,
Sister Annie Clark
Mom, thanks again for the package. I REALLY appreciate it! I know that was a sacrifice, but I want you to know that I love all that you sent, and I love you so much and miss you dearly! I know sister pope loves her gifts too! We can't wait to wear our aprons to DA's together. It will be great! love love love love you!!!!!
So this week has been crazy. So last week, we had three normal working days. Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday. Of those days, we had to spend all of them just working in Evesham because of the terrible road conditions due to the snow. And we had no access to our car. This meant our days consisted of walking ALL day through high sludge. So this is an example of what we wore every day. At least 2 tops and two cardigans and a heavy coat, scarf, hat, and gloves, two skirts, two pairs of thick tights, two pairs of socks, a couple plastic bags on our feet to make sure they don’t get drenched, and then a pair of boots. And we were still cold. No joke. It was a good three days. Hard, but good. It was really cool though, in those three days, while we were walking around we saw so many people that we were meaning to see that week. It was so cool! The Lord really put people in our path that would help us out. It was a cool experience. On Wednesday night, we spent about three hours tracting. At one house, they asked us if we were caroling, so we just sang. It was funny. At another house, the man just opened his upstairs window to tell us “no” and he knocked icicles off the roof which hit me. Which of course he didn’t even notice. Oh gosh, sometimes tracting can be so funny.
Thursday night the sisters from New Castle Emlyn in Wales came to stay the night with us so they would not have to drive the whole next morning to get to the mission Christmas party. That was really fun. It is always good to see the other sisters!
Friday! Christmas Eve, the Christmas party! It was the funnest day of my life. We had such a good time. There was a pig roasting, which I wasn’t so keen on, but it looked way cool! And then there was a massive talent show. Massive meaning like 5 hours! It was amazing. I have never laughed so hard in my life. There was everything from guitars and singing, to ridiculous magic tricks, to Hakka’s (an ancient Maury tradition), and harmonica (one elder played it entirely with his nose…), the chanter from bagpipes, the upright bass, break dancing, beat boxing, dancing. Oh it was hilarious. So sister Pope and I decided to also contribute a little something to the talent show. So we did an interpretive dance to Brett Raymond’s “my Heavenly Father Loves Me”. Oh my word. Picture this. We both have skirts on. Sister Pope has gold shiny stretchy pants on. I have butterfly wings on. We both have yellow headbands on. Oh, we looked great. And it was so funny. We keep playing the song over and over again on the camera, because it was so great. I tried to email it to you, but it wouldn’t let me. It’s too much space, and I don’t know how to reduce it. Sorry. But just imagine it, it was funny. Yep. We received many compliments. For real! After the talent show there was a Christmas devotional. Lots of music and inspirational missionary Christmas stories. It was really nice. I accompanied a sister singing Oh Holy Night, and all the German missionaries singing Stille Nacht, and then I accompanied the congregational hymns too. All the sisters sang John Rutter's “Angels Carol” which much to my amazement sounded great! It was an incredible night. I felt the spirit so much. I really feel so at home with the mission, I love it. I just feel like I have a lot of brothers and sisters here, and that president and sister Ogden are our parents away from home. It’s really nice! Afterward, we took pictures forever, and then went home. It was sad to leave, because it was such a great time, but it’s great to know we are all going back to the same work wherever we are.
Saturday = CHRISTMAS!!! Sister Pope and I woke up and opened our presents. To avoid confusion, we awoke no earlier than usual. And we got the best presents! Our branch family loves us so much! We loved it! And oh, the presents that you, my wonderful parents, sent me were GREAT! THANKS!!! I love the long johns so much. SO much! I feel like wearing them all the time. They are so comfortable! I especially love the fit and feel of the cheetah print ones. Great! Thanks SOOOOO much!!!! We then went to the G’s for Christmas. That family is so adorable. They have two little boys. A is turning 8 this week, and getting baptized on Saturday. He is SO smart. You can ask him on what day of the week any date is, and he’ll figure it out and tell you so fast! It’s so cool. He’s a really brilliant kid. We played battleship, and he almost beat me. My word! Cool kid. The other child, H, is 4 and completely adorable. He has some learning difficulties, and is in his own world most of the time. And when we were at the table having Christmas dinner, he just kept talking about a cave. Then he looked at his mum and said,
H: “mum, do you know what my last wish is?” (Say this in your most posh English accent of a 4 year old)
C: what?
H: “Your Freedom!!!” then he points to all of us. And your freedom and your freedom and your freedom.
Apparently he was reliving Aladdin when Aladdin was stuck in the cave. Oh gosh, we laughed so hard!
The G’s gave us the best gift ever! They bought a webcam so we could Skype our families. So at 4:30 sister pope skipped her family! And I met some of them! It was so great! I love her family. I feel like I know them all so well…we tell lots of stories. I was so excited to finally meet them! And then I talked to my family! It was wonderful! It was great. I got to see Mom and Papa and D, and D got M and R’s family on Skype on his computer so I could see them through the computer. And then S and L were on speaker phones! I loved talking to everyone! I was pretty good, I didn’t get too emotional. I cried a bit after. I only really cried when L got on the phone. For some reason she makes me cry, ha-ha! It was so fun to talk to you all! Thanks so much! I loved it.
Oh, and sorry about my voice. I thought I had just lost it from all the talking and cheering the day before. But that night, I got a bad fever. And the next day it turned into a bad flu. And sister pope got it too. Actually 1/3 of the WHOLE mission has the flu. And it’s pretty bad. We are going to the doctors today for it. We have been sick inside, not moving since Boxing Day. But the branch has been so good to us. The R’s and the B’s went shopping for us, and have helped us out so much! Today we are both feeling much better. But I have a terrible cough, which we are afraid has turned into a chest infection. And it’s hard to sleep at night because of the coughing. And I still can’t talk. I answered the phone yesterday when some missionaries called, and they called me Elder Clark because I sound like a man. Nice. So I am trying not to talk much. We are doing lots of reading, and trying our best to get better. But prayers would be much appreciated! A cool story came out of it though. When we told G B that I was sick, before Sister P was sick, the first question he asked was if I had had a priesthood blessing. The answer was a yes. But that means he has a testimony of blessings. So cool!
So I am really sad, because I wanted to bear my testimony to you, my dear family, on Christmas, but it was all so hectic, that I totally forgot. But I just want you to know that I know that this church is true. God really is our Father, and he leads and guides our church today through the prophet of the world, Thomas S. Monson. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet, and that he restored the keys of the priesthood on the earth today through Jesus Christ. I am grateful to the Book of Mormon. I love reading it SO much, and I find answers in it every time I read it prayerfully. I love this gospel. I love teaching it to people, and seeing how it changes all lives for the better. I know that it’s true. And I know that families can be together forever. I am SO grateful for that! That makes me so happy. I am so grateful for the many blessings that I have, and for the wonderful family support system I have. Thank you so much for all your love, prayers, and kindness. I know I haven’t always been perfect, but I always want to do what’s right. I am grateful for the atonement which makes that possible one day!
I love you! Happy Christmas and a happy new year! Bring on 2011!!!!!!!!!!!
All my love heaped up pressed down and running over,
Sister Annie Clark
Mom, thanks again for the package. I REALLY appreciate it! I know that was a sacrifice, but I want you to know that I love all that you sent, and I love you so much and miss you dearly! I know sister pope loves her gifts too! We can't wait to wear our aprons to DA's together. It will be great! love love love love you!!!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)