Day in the Life [생활에 있는 일]: Greeny Miracles and Officially part of the Korea Seoul South Mission now!

P-day (Monday) was finally a success! All of the sister missionaries from the 수원 zone met together to visit the traditional Korean Folk Village in our area. It was all very interesting. I wish they had a guided tour available because I had so many questions! Instead, we enjoyed ourselves as we took our time exploring. The two Korean sisters tried to explain the culture and the different parts and meanings of the village, but weren't able to go into too much detail. I think they were bored but we stayed as long as we could per my request. While there, we were able to watch an equestrian show (not sure how authentic that is haha) as well as a tradition wedding. I really enjoyed myself. On our way home we ran into our homeless looking friend at the same bus terminal/train station. He talked our ears off as usual but we decided to talk to him because he had punked us on an appointment so we wanted to follow up and set another time to meet. I like him. After about 40 minutes of (him) talking we told him we had to go. By that time it was already after 7 PM and we should have already eaten dinner and changed into our missionary clothes (as opposed to our P-day jeans and T-shirts) by then. It was worth the delay but by the time we got home we only had time to finish our studies and weekly planning.

Tuesday we had a combined district meeting. All 20 missionaries in the 수원 zone gathered for training. It was okay. The best part was when Elder Lee and Sohn came into the room with a delicious cake to celebrate Elder Sorensen's birthday on Thursday and Sister Hunt's that was on Saturday. Best way to celebrate? CAKE! (duh) I happened to be sitting between both of them so I recommended the cake be put in front of me... To be fair of course ;) I'm a genius, I know.

When combined training ended, we broke off into districts to talk about our weekly goals and stats. At the end of every district meeting the district leader opens the floor for questions. Elder Schofield asked when it was appropriate to bear testimony when 전도ing. As I've already shared, proselyting here can be tough because people are typically really rude when they aren't interested. Testimonies are powerful and special but this elder talked about it being exhausting (spiritually) to testify all day long- especially when people don't listen or appreciate it. Before I knew it, my hand was in the air to answer his question. Do you remember a few days ago when my companion and I were teaching that atheist woman? I shared that experience of her seeming disinterested? In that lesson she asked me again why I was here on a mission. Because of my poor prospective I didn't want to share anything meaningful so instead, I was brief. After the appointment I regretted it. I went on to tell my district that we are set apart as missionaries. We should be spiritually exhausted on a daily basis because our calling is to teach and to testify of what we know. This gospel has changed our lives. We love our Savior and Heavenly Father so much that we are sacrificing everything to be here and to proclaim His word. It is not up to us who we choose to testify to. We want everyone to know and be given the opportunity to choose to know this gospel for themselves. Elder Schofield thanked me and the meeting ended. As I said those words of advice out loud, I realized that I needed to adjust my attitude about testifying just like Elder Schofield. Soon it was time to get back to work. Today I went on splits again. This time I was scheduled to serve with 최 자매님 (Sister Chey) in 신갈 (Singal) while my companion took Sister Hunt to our area of 곡반정 (Gokbanjang).

The only appointment scheduled, of helping a recent convert garden, fell through because of the rain. Rainy days aren't ideal for 전도 either but we didn't have too many options. Personally I thought maybe we would talk to 10 people before it was time to go home. Instead we talked to 32 people! Greeny miracle! Oh, I think I failed to mention that this is 최 자매님's second transfer and it is my first… therefore we are both greenies/newbies. Anyway, that evening I spent most of my time reading the Book of Mormon. I finished the book of Mosiah and started reading Alma! I was excited to have already gotten so far. Just when we were about to call it a day and go to bed, we got a call from our district leader Elder Cho. He was doing his nightly calls to all of the missionaries to make sure everyone was home and safe. 최 자매님 is hilarious and somehow convinced him to sing us a song. It was so humiliating for him but it made my night! I was laughing so hard. Bless his heart haha.

Wednesday, I woke up to the rain pounding on the window. It was almost time to get up to exercise so I started getting out of bed. As I did, 최 자매님 sat up, looked out the window, and laid back down and said, "there is too much rain, it (referring to exercise) is impossible." Haha I was still tired so I followed her lead and laid back down. We only stayed in bed for an extra 20 minutes before we finally got up to get ready for the day. We had our normal study time but it was a lot more fun than usual! She is so funny! We shared stories and laughed all morning. Even though she is Korean and there is still a language barrier, our humor is the same. I love her. I hope I get to serve with her in the future. After our study time, we went to a lunch appointment.

The appointment was with a lady that has been less active for over 15 years. She divorced the father of her two sons and remarried a Buddhist man (It is Korean culture to follow the husbands religion) so she hasn't been to church since. Her two sons are both older; one being a senior in high school and the other is serving as a missionary in Seoul. She takes good care of the missionaries here in hopes that others will do the same for her son in Seoul. That is about all I understood as we got to know her during lunch. After we ate we shared a message about the atonement with her. For the first half of the message I spoke in English and 최 자매님 translated. I shared the concept of Kintsugi which is a Japanese method of mending broken or cracked pottery. The pottery is often mended using gold or other precious materials. This woman had studied pottery so I thought she might appreciate the analogy. I explained that we resemble a piece if beautiful pottery. If the pottery cracks or breaks, that represents our sins and mistakes. The process of Kintsugi (keyword being: process) represents the atonement. Once this process in implemented and applied, the pottery/we become more beautiful and valuable through our knowledge and experiences. She began to tear up as I testified (in Korean) about the truthfulness of the atonement and the wholeness we can feel when we use it properly. I reminded her of her beauty and worth. I ended by telling her that her Father in Heaven loves her. She was tearing up. She thanked us and told us that she had forgotten what the spirit felt like. She couldn't deny the feeling that was so strong and apparent to everyone in the room. Another greeny miracle! I feel so blessed to have been part of that experience with this member.

We had to leave soon after in order to meet up with our companions to unsplit. We ended with a prayer even though I didn't want to leave haha. Once on the bus, 최 자매님 and I got caught up in talking and
laughing. After a good laugh I started looking around and noticed the bus was nearly empty. As I continued to look around, guess what I spotted? 50,000 ₩ (which is equivalent to $50)!! I poked 최 자매님 and signaled her to look in the same direction. Her eyes lit up like it was Christmas as she eagerly whispered, "Get it!" We were sly about switched seats. No one was around and we didn't know what to do. Then 최 자매님 said, "Isn't it obvious that this is a direct blessing from God?!" I laughed as she reminded me of the infamous 'greeny power' while we proceeded to split the unclaimed cash. Greeny miracle! Before you judge us, what would you have done? The only other person on the bus was the driver.. Be honest. Haha it was hilarious when we finally met up with our companions and asked them if they had experienced any miracles. It was obviously a loaded question and they knew it. We went on to tell them all about the miracles we had experienced and naturally they were happy for us… And when I say that, I mean to say that they were very jealous. ^^

As we unsplit at the train station 윤 자매님 and I had to quickly run home to drop my things off before our next appointment. This appointment was with a woman I approached a couple weeks ago while we were street boarding (proselyting with a poster/board, on a street- the name may have been self-explanatory but I wasn't sure haha). As I taught her English, I used that time to get to know her so we could get a better idea of what to teach her for the second part of the lesson. Apparently she had met with missionaries when she was in college! She was familiar with our beliefs since she attended a few activity and services. We moved on and taught the How to Begin Teaching section from Preach My Gospel. At the end we extended an invitation for her to be baptized. She told us that if she finds that it is true she will. We set a date (7/28/13)!!! It was awesome. Her two daughters were running around the whole time- maybe in the future appointments we will be able to teach her whole family. In the meantime we are focusing on finding a ward member to fellowship her and be present for future lessons together. So exciting!

English class was next. My class was a decent size this week. I read the second chapter of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.' As I did 윤 자매님 and I acted it out with puppets to help everyone understand. I also defined words on the chalkboard to help explain what everything meant- it's hilarious what some kids think words mean. Anyway, it was a short chapter so after I read we went around the room and everyone took turns repeating sentences after me. I think it really helps… If not, they at least enjoy it and have a good laugh at their pronunciation.

Thursday was a weird morning. At 8 AM we had just started our personal study time when our cell phone rang. It was a member very eagerly inviting us over to her house. She invited a friend of hers over to make some kind of fruit drink (from scratch) and she wanted to introduce her to the sister missionaries. Since this member lived pretty far away we finished putting ourselves together and went
straight over. It took an hour and a half to arrive! Once there, we were quickly put to work and introduced to this friend. She was fascinated with everything about me haha. It was awkward at first when she almost poked my eyes out as she tried to touch my eyelashes. Then she would just stare and compliment me on every feature of my face. She sounds like a weirdo... She wasn't, she was actually pretty awesome but one thing I've learned is that Koreans say exactly what they think. So even if she was in the middle of a story, she would stop to comment on my hair for example haha. Anyway, as we worked away on this mystery fruit drink, lunch was prepared and we were able to eat together. As soon as we finished eating 윤 자매님 and I had to leave in order to meet Sister Hunt and Sister Chey (최 자매님) to go on another split.

When we finally met up with them we decided to heart attack the elders door since it was Elder Sorensen's birthday. As we arrived, guess who we ran into? Elders Cho and Sorensen.... FAIL! We pretended to be visiting a member but they knew we were lying. We left a lame note on the door and decided to get pizza for lunch instead. After we ate I went on splits with Sister Hunt. She is from Colorado and a world class equestrian. She has been here over a year! I cannot imagine being that far into my mission... Considering I just started it feels like I'll be here forever. Anyway, we took the subway straight to her apartment and had language study. It was actually effective! She gave me a lot of helpful advice that helped her when she was starting off. I'm excited to tell my companion so she can help me practice using Sister Hunt's suggestions. The rest of the day we tried to be productive but every member visit was a bust. Looking back we basically just 전도ed a little and ate a lot. I cannot complain haha.

Friday morning Sister Hunt and I went on a run. She is a little out of shape since every companion she has had doesn't like to exercise so she hasn't for a while- which is a huge bummer. (Warning to all my future companions, exercising in the morning is not an option- it will always happen!) As we ran I tried to maintain a slow jog to stay close to the pace she was running but I still managed to stay half a block
or more ahead of her. I felt bad but as I ran I passed an old man speed walking. I saw his eyes shift back and forth from me to Sister Hunt a few times. He gave me a double thumbs up with a huge smile- it was adorable!!

Once we prepared for the day and finished our study time, we had to unsplit early in order for the normal companionships to have our weekly planning time. 윤 자매님 and I went straight home to plan. After we had an appointment. It was with a referral that we received from a member of our ward earlier that day. We went over to this persons house with little to no information, only knowing that they were
interested in our 30/30 program. It turned out to be a mother and her two sons (about 10 and 8 years old if I had to guess). I evaluated their English level and gave them workbooks that I would teach them from in our future meetings. Next we shared a gospel message and mostly introduced the idea of God and Jesus Christ to them. They were very open and interested. We weren't able to teach too much since they were a lively bunch with all kinds of questions. The mother had prepared a small snack for us and gave us ice cream as we were walking out the door. It was awesome. Overall I feel like it was a good appointment even though it didn't feel like too much was accomplished. When we reached our bus stop to go to our apartment, it was time to go straight home to prepare for the next day (which happened to be packed).

Saturday was SO busy! We had four consecutive appointments scheduled. Like last week, they were all across town. All of the lessons are 30/30 so I actually feel useful because I teach half the lesson ^^ it may not be in Korean but that's not the point haha. The first lesson was okay. We finished talking about the restoration and Joseph Smith with her. The investigator was taking all kinds of notes and I was feeling the spirit especially when both 윤 자매님 and I testified at the end. After our testimonies she said, "I just have one question." Expecting something gospel related, we leaned in. "Do both of you wear makeup?" she asked. Haha I was pretty confused, as you can imagine. We laughed, answered her silly question, and closed with a prayer. I was bummed because she had seemed so interested.

The next appointment went a lot better! It was the son and mother again. They continue to progress and their questions amazing me. Today we taught about the plan of salvation. Before we began the son wanted to share with us what he enjoyed from the last reading we invited them to read in preparation for this appointment (2 Nephi chapter 2). He really enjoyed verse 30 that says, "I have spoken these few words unto you all, my sons, in the last days of my probation; and I have chosen the good part, according to the words of the prophet. And I have none other object save it be the everlasting welfare of your souls. Amen." He told us that the last half really touched him. This boy is 15 years old and I swear he is an angel. I see him being baptized soon, as well as his mother and maybe his father too. Anyway, as we taught, the mother was fascinated with the plan of salvation. Over and over she kept saying, "this makes so much sense!" We know!! Haha it was awesome. I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to teach them. I have really grown to love them.

Our next appointment was with the atheist woman. I adjusted my attitude and guess what? It was the best lesson I ever taught!! It was a 30/30 appointment but instead it lasted 2 hours! She started talking
about her cute little family and asking about mine. I showed her a picture and when she saw my parents she was amazed at how young they are. I told her how strong they both are. She agreed and told me about the strength of her own mother. 윤 자매님 was inspired to ask her to elaborate about her mother. As she went on, she shared some personal struggles she is facing. In short, she feels a huge burden placed on her shoulders to have to support both her parents and parents-in-law. She started to become emotional. We learned that she has never shared this struggle with anyone because she thinks that it is her burden and not anyone else's. She wants to be the one to fix it but doesn't know how. Almost instantly I felt promoted to share a story with her. It goes as follows: After high school I was struggling to correct a lot of mistakes I had made. I was in a low place and felt really alone in the process of trying to change. I had the same thought, 'this was my problem and I needed to fix it on my own.' I was embarrassed to talk to people about it so I struggled silently. One day, I attended an institute class (religion class) I was enrolled in near Moorpark College. For some reason I was the only one to show up- even though it was a full class! My teacher, Brother Mannwaring, asked me if there was a specific topic I was curious about since I was the only one he had to teach that day. I started to cry. I was so sad and didn't know where to turn for help. I spared him the details but expressed my concern and feelings of loneliness. He reminded me of the relationship I can have with my Savior, Jesus Christ. He directed me to a few verses in the scriptures to validate his point. That lesson changed my whole perspective. I was never alone, I was just unaware of where to go for help. After I shared this with her, she began to cry. This was a very personal experience for me to share so naturally I was a little teary eyed as well. She thanked me with a quiet voice that was soon followed by her saying, "but I just don't like admitting that I am weak..." As her voice trailed off, I smiled and flipped to the scripture Ether 12:27 which reads: "And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them." I told her that I know it's hard to admit our weaknesses. For me, that experience was hard but I now know that my Father in Heaven was just trying to get my attention so that he could help. After all, He wants to help us. I looked her in the eyes and said, "He loves and cares about you." I testified about prayer and that she can find comfort, answers, and direction like I was able to find. As I said this, her eyes were glued to the scripture we had just read. She was slowly nodding her head up and down and once I concluded, she looked me in the eye and very sincerely said thank you. She was feeling the spirit. As was I and 윤 자매님 too. It was an awesome moment. I feel like I was able to plant a seed in her to help her recognize the Lords hand in her life. It was an awesome lesson. We left and head home for dinner.

Our last appointment fell through so instead we met up with the elders in our ward to practice the song we were asked to sing in church on Sunday. We practiced so many times! Haha It was tough because I feel like I'm such a bad singer. Not only that but it just so happened we were asked to sing the EFY medley. I love that song but I had to learn the Korean version. Oh! And did I mention that the first half is just the girls singing? And when I say girls I mean just 윤 자매님 and I. We are the only sisters so we were responsible for singing over half the song on our own... ugh so embarrassing. It was nice having Elder Arnett around though. He is so musically talented. I asked him to stand next to me when we sing in front of the congregation so he could hum the tune for me to make sure that I stay on beat when I have to sing alone. Anyway I had a lot of fun practicing despite the fact that I was dreading the performance... When it was time to leave we didn't have to rush home so 윤 자매님 and I decided to walk. It only takes about 25 minutes so as we walked on the empty sidewalk and practiced singing
some more. We really enjoyed ourselves, especially laughing at ourselves! ^^

Sunday was so great! We arrived at the chapel early to practice the song some more. Once church began I was so nervous! All I could think about was the very likely possibility of me messing up. But I am happy to report, we crushed it! *please go back and read that in the Fat Amy voice from Pitch Perfect* haha. Elder Arnett only hummed the first note to signal me when to start and after that I did everything else all on my own! ^^ Also, guess what? I belted it out and rocked it. I'm still not confident in my singing abilities but the whole ward was very impressed and I was proud. That song really invited the spirit and I was definitely feeling it. It was so cool.

Once church ended we had an appointment with the young brother and sister that are getting baptized next week. (6/23/13 to be exact!) We taught them the third lesson as well as half of the fourth. I love teaching kids!! I made mazes for them to solve to find all the 5 steps of Jesus Christ's Gospel. They raced and had a lot of fun. Next we played a memory game for the 10 commandments. Again, we had so much fun! The mom sat in and was laughing and enjoying watching her kids get excited about learning the gospel. It was a good feeling.

After church we went home to finish the study time we missed out on in the morning. By 7 PM we headed out the door to finished the day with 전도. We quickly learned that our plan to 전도 last, was a stupid. The streets were almost empty and the people were angry. Typically families are out and about and so happy and pleasant to talk to... It was a bummer to end the day with so many rude people but despite the difficulty, we still stayed out on the streets until 9 PM.

Today is Monday again but not your average Monday. This morning we had transfer calls come in from President Furniss! Guess what?! I'M STAYING!!!! If it weren't obnoxious to change the font, size, color, as well as underline, bold, and italics that last sentenece, I WOULD HAVE! (papa did it for you my dear) I am so happy! I am officially in the Seoul South Mission! This week we will have a mission tour for training and to say goodbye to the Daejeon missionaries. It is sad but I am also so excited!!!

I love you all. I am so happy to be here. I cannot wait to meet my new mission president so soon!!

사랑해요!