Mind Blown

5/26-6/1
Monday started early as Sister Mineer and I hopped on a few busses and subways to make our way to the 가정 and 답동 sister missionaries house for an exchange. Even though it wasn't PDAY we still still took time to email home. All six sisters went to the same PC방 (computer room) and then we swapped companionships. I brought Sister Bassett back to 만수 (Mansu) with me. We were in the MTC together and that automatically makes us friends of some sort. We had so much fun! I don't think we stopped talking all day!

Our first appointment together was with a semi-less active gossip queen of the ward, 오진수S (Sister Oh). The day before, I asked Sister Mineer to make an appointment with her to do a practice lesson but Sister Oh was so confused and invited another set of elders to come too. Instead of teaching anything, she took us to eat an early dinner. For me it was more like lunch since Sister Mineer and I spent all morning and into the afternoon traveling. It was an okay meal. The member is way good at English, but she wanted to spend her time talking about ward gossip to Elder Park. Us Americas got into our own conversation. It was enjoyable but less than productive haha.

Next was another 20 minute practice lesson with the bishops wife. Sister Bassett wanted to practice different proselyting approaches so we did. After the first try she gave some suggestions about how to use the Book of Mormon more. In our re-practice I tried. It took me about ten minutes, but I did get my point across. As I was teaching, bishop arrived home. He quickly changed from his suit and joined us. We talked some small things about the Book of Mormon and our current investigators. I love being in a ward where all of the members are so on board to help! I feel so blessed. We got to talking so long that bishop got hungry and asked if they could take us to dinner. The four of us got in the car and went to their favorite 갈국수 (noodle soup) restaurant. It was delicious but we weren't hungry haha. We cleared our bowls and I mostly listened at Sister Bassett talked with them. It is funny because I am interested in getting to know people, but I learned that I don't like to talk that much haha. It was a productive use of time so I was content just listening. I love Sister Bassett! She is so good at Korean and I am so grateful that she came and was able to help build a stronger relationship with our bishop and his family. They drove us home after. Sister Bassett and I talked the whole night away. I was tired, but it was fun talking so I'm not complaining.

Tuesday was a normal morning until we began to travel and exchange before Sister Bassett and Nebeker had an appointment. Once back with Sister Mineer, we had about three hours until our next exchange would begin. We went home for lunch and then head back out to prep Sister Mineer with directions of how to arrive at all of the scheduled appointments we had.

We met the 연수 (Younsu) sisters and I paired up with Sister Hammerl to serve in her area. Before having dinner at her home we spent a good amount of time finding people to talk to on the street. Sister Hammerl is filled with this renewed enthusiasm for missionary work. It was incredible to see! She is literally sleeping, breathing, and eating missionary work. Because of that, we had an awesome time together! By 7PM we went to an appointment with a woman Sister Bagley and I found when we were doing callbacks one night in Mansu. Her name is (Sunny) and her daughter 이연수 (Younsu- yes the same name as the town where she lives haha). This mother and daughter are incredible at English so Sister Hammerl started out the lesson in English. We read the story of Ammon from The Book of Mormon stories and they loved it. Sunny and her daughter are so prepare to hear the message about this gospel, it is incredible to see! The spirit was so strong throughout the entire lesson. By the end we ended up talking about prayer. The daughter is 11 years old and she already prays and has been praying on her own for years. I felt prompted to ask why and she said, "It is just my instinct." What kind of child says that haha? Her mother was previously apprehensive and reluctant to pray but when she heard that her daughter has and continues to do so, she decided she wanted to start too. To end the appointment we invited Sunny to pray. Her and her daughter did like a tag team prayer where they would take turns talking and then ended together in unison. It was adorable and so sincere! I love them.

Wednesday was a good morning. The night before I got ready for bed quickly and was sleeping before Sister Hammerl even got out of the shower. I slept so well! After the routine we ran a few errands before unsplitting for district meeting. I had previously tried so hard to have our exchange overlap a district meeting (because Elder Westbrook cares about training and Elder Berry doesn't). I was sad that it didn't work out. After 만수 all arrived for our meeting- guess how long it lasted? 20 minutes!! Normally they go for an hour and a half! It blew my mind and I was so sad. Instead of training Elder Berry was shockingly productive. We prepared for the zone proselyting activity that would be in our area. So while it wasn't training, I'm grateful it was something. For the proselyting activity we came up with four teams, they are as follows:

• Alpha- English survey/English class flyering
• Beta- sticker board, gospel survey
• Charley- free hugs
• Delta- taekwondo/street boarding

We chose a location where all four teams could semi be spread out but still in the same vicinity. It was the best activity that had happened thus far. As soon as the activity was over, all of the 만수 (Mansu) missionaries had to head to the church to meet a member. This member is so kind and takes us to eat fairly often. There were so many of us and Elder Godfrey was loud enough, that we (me and my companion) didn't have too much of a chance to talk with the member. I felt bad just eating and leaving but he was just grateful that all of us made time. The ward members here are AWESOME!

Thursday was the day that Summer began. Out of NOWHERE the humidity and heat kicked itself into high gear! Thankfully it was PDAY and temple day so we spent a good part of the day away from the heat. Today, the temple session was EXACTLY what I needed. Once it was over I took a seat next to my go-to Elder Pruner. He too is from California and we have an unspoken pact to stand together amongst all of the Utahans haha. Today I was feeling a little down. I was worrying about my family as well as some friends. I expressed this concern to the three missionaries sitting nearby (Elder Robinson, Pruner, and my companion). My mind and heart felt so burdened with wanted to help and be home with those I love. The reasons I came to serve can be numbered with the people whom I want to help- most of which include my family members and relatives. Amidst my soon-to-be-meltdown Elder Robinson shared some words of wisdom. He told me, "Just like in the scriptures, miracles aren't found in the absence of an example but in the presence." *insert mind-blown noise* that was exactly what I needed to hear. Maybe we came to serve the Korean people for 18-24 months but we are are here being conditioned to help our families, future families, and dear friends for the rest of forever! I love that and it was so motivating to keep working hard in order to learn all I could so I could fulfill my role as this magnificent plan that God himself created for us!

After an extra hour of praying, pondering, and talking- we were the last four missionaries out if the temple. I love the temple! Waiting outside for us were other good friends who were getting impatient and hungry. We made our way back into our mission boundaries and found a buffet that would satisfy everyone's tastebuds. Among those who came I made sure to sit next to my favorites- Elders Knapp, 오성택E (Elder Oh), Oscarmiller, and Nixon. Maybe I don't know them all super well but they are HILARIOUS! Even though we spent over two hours at the buffet, it was definitely PDAY time well spend.

Sister Mineer and I made our way home to meet our first appointment for the evening. It was with 조재순S (Grandma Cho). She is the grandma who doesn't care too much about our gospel message but will sit through it for her 7 year old granddaughter to practice English with foreigners. Just a side note: I initially thought this kind-of-investigator was a waste of time but in my heart I came to a conclusion that in fact it is good. We were called to Korea to testify about how this gospel blesses our lives. We then invite others to take it for a spin but if they choose not to, that is okay. This investigator maybe doesn't show interest right now but I feel that later on, our testimonies will be like a planted seed within her heart that she will eventually listen to. Anyway, the lesson was okay. We at least felt the spirit as we taught. We quickly made our way to 정현지S (HyonChee's) house for our final appointment before her baptism this weekend! We focused on families and our fabulous member 김소정S (Sister Kim) came with us. We taught about family home evening and they committed to hold one that coming Saturday together. They are so amazing! The lesson was perfect and the family just felt so open and happy. It was a great meeting.

Friday was such a good day! It started off a little weird when a man came to fix our refrigerator and he happened to be my age. In normal life, nothing would be wrong with that but having been living in this missionary bubble of rules and guidelines, I felt weird. While he worked Sister Mineer and I took our studies outside. It was fun. We stayed on our balcony and in case anyone doesn't know, I am 5'3" and she is 5'11". As we looked over the balcony I was able to see a beautifully gray sky but she was able to see a little higher over the balcony wall and enjoy a nice view of the city below. It was a hilarious realization. When the fridge was fixed we came back in and had our weekly planning meeting. It was a good meeting.

Earlier in the day we had texted our Ethiopian investigator, Seblewongel. We wanted to meet her but she never texted back to our diplomatic text which in fact implied no real need for a response. We didn't give her much of an option, we just said we would stop by around 5:30PM. We met our member, 이은성S (Sister Lee) and then arrived at Seble's. She told us that her phone is over on minutes and texts so she couldn't text us back but that she was expecting us. I was so grateful to hear that! Sister Lee talked all about baptism before the adorable baby started to cry. In order to maintain the reverence, Sister Lee scooped up the baby, grabbed the stroller and took her for a walk, giving us an opportunity to teach. It went so well!! She hasn't committed to baptism yet but she definitely has it in the forefront of her mind.

The meeting went a little late but we got out the door and into a taxi in order to make it to 이두례S (Momma Lee's) house for dinner. Before we arrived I was having the BEST conversation with the taxi driver man. We were cracking up about everything! I think he was delirious because he had been working for almost a full 24 hours straight! I felt bad for him but it was so much fun. He spoke zero percent of English and it amazed me how well we could communicate! Korean is a crazy language and sometimes I surprise myself with my ability to carry on conversations and what not with complete strangers. Once we arrived, I went to pay and he gave me back 100₩ aka 10¢ and yelled, "Discount!" Haha it was hilarious.

Momma Lee fed us so much food and was so happy to see us. Like always I ate wayyyy too much but I told her I was doing it for her because I loved her. I know I didn't have to but seriously, that's a thing here. The more you eat, the more your show your appreciation and love. It was a great way to end the day.

Saturday was another (and I think the last) combined mission tour. Quentin L. Cook from the quorum of the twelve apostles came to speak to both the Seoul and Seoul South missions. He and his wife are fantastic human beings! That are literally the most adorable and sincere people. I love them! I learned so much about love and charity. One scripture he shared was in Doctrine and Covenants 31:7. It says, "I will open the hearts of the people, and they will receive you. And I will establish a church by your hand." By my hand He (Jesus Christ) will go about establishing His church! I just need faith that The Lord will do his part. He went on to promise us that if we have more faith, we WILL see more success. Immediately I thought about our not-so-committed investigators... I need to have more faith in them that they are listening and yearning for the change that God can help bring into their lives! I learned so much, it was a phenomenal meeting.

We quickly ate at the nearby Costco food court before heading back home for our appointments. The trains and buses didn't line up super well so we ended up being about 20 minutes late for our appointment with 구혜연S (Amanda). She was fine and our member was on time and kept her company with her two crazy kids. The lesson was short but anyway it was good. After was English class but our other investigator, 김하나 (Chloe) was only available at 3PM, the same time! While Sister Mineer took lead in class, I took Chloe to the other room for our appointment. It was so much fun!! We are 동갑 or same age so it just felt like friends hanging out. When it came time for the gospel message, I was SO impressed! We gave her the talk called, "Protection from Pornography-A Christ-Focused Home by Linda S. Reeves. So I first want to start off by saying that I DID NOT know the title of that talk when I printed it off. I just read my notes and thought she would like it. When it came time to talk about it I was SO impressed with the questions she wrote and the parts that she marked as important. She continues to amaze me. We did have a semi-awkward conversation about pornography and the evil that it is but all in all, the spirt was there and it was great.

After English class and that appointment we made out way home for dinner. We ate quickly and were able to make a few items in preparation for HyonChee's baptism. It was a productively stressful evening.

Sunday was quite the day!! In the morning we had church. HyonChee came as always. Today it was my turn to be in Relief Society. It was so fun to be able to announce the baptismal service that would be held later that evening. So many women have been preparing the food and anxiously awaiting this baptism. I love this ward so much! For Sunday school HyonChee decided that she wanted to attend Gospel Principle's class instead of young men and young woman's class. It was impressive how much she learned and participated. She is so amazing! Sacrament meeting was also great.

When church ended, all of the missionaries came with us to meet a woman teaching free Korean to foreigners. This lady had previously flagged us down on the street to teach us about this free Korean class that apparently a number of foreigners attended. It seemed to be a possibly productive finding activity, so we went. It turns out that it was not exactly what we were expecting. There is a church here called 신천지. This church is essentially the scariest one I've ever come in contact with. There whole method is to plant people in different congregations with the objective of placing doubt in the members and bringing them to their church. When they are placing doubts they wait for the priest or some one to make a mistake and then teach people this leader or church cannot be trusted. Strange right? Well anyway, they were kind and tried to be really friendly with us but it didn't take long for us to realize who they were. We left quickly.

Next was baptismal preparation! Sister Bagley and her companion Sister Giles and Elder Meeks arrived so we could practice the musical number a few times before preforming. People started trickling in and they were all so excited to see Sister Bagley. I too was SO happy to see her again. When 현지S (HyonChee) arrived with her family, Sister Bagley and I pulled HyonChee aside to talk about what she would say for her testimony. She was so nervous, but when she began to speak I felt the spirit so strong. This is an amazing girl! I feel so blessed and privileged to have been a small part of finding, teaching, and baptizing her. I love her so much! We quickly got her dressed, took a few pictures, and began the meeting. The first speaker was our true and loyal, 이은성S (Sister Lee). She is always so fantastic. Next I spoke and bore my testimony all about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I explained that she would become clean after baptism but it is through the Atonement that we can continually become clean. The last speakers were Sister Mineer and Sister Bagley. They are both so cute!

Before the actual baptism 오광철B (Brother Oh- Sister Lee's husband) brought HyonChee up to demonstrate how he would baptize her. Brother Oh tipped her backwards just a little and she squealed because she thought she was going to fall haha it was so cute. All four of us sister missionaries walked her to the font and anxiously waited and watched from the doorway where she entered the font. I held Sister Bagley's hand and I cannot tell you how happy we all where when the prayer was said and she was immersed in the water. Words cannot describe how happy I was. We got her dried off and dressed. Previously I had bought her a dress to wear for her baptism but she thinks she looks fat in it so she wore shorts and a t-shirt instead haha. Oh well. I made her promise to wear it next Sunday for when she will receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

To finish the meeting HyonChee's parents were asked to come up to introduce themselves as well as congratulate their daughter. They are great people! Next was her little sister, she is 12 and had no idea what was going on haha. She mostly said embarrassing things about her sister haha. Lastly was HyonChee and her testimony. She is the sweetest girl. She starred at me the whole time as if asking for reassurance if what she was saying was okay. It was more than okay, it was beautiful! The service ended with a prayer and delicious food that the women of the ward had prepared. It was perfect! I tried to organize as much as I could but the members went above and beyond what was asked of them. They have been amazing throughout this whole process and I am so happy and grateful to help the church in this area thrive and grow.

Most everyone lingered for over an hour to congratulate HyonChee and to talk with her family. We eventually had to encourage people to leave by 9PM haha. When the church was cleaned and locked the four of us sisters went back to the house for a sleepover! As if it wasn't enough to see Sister Bagley but I was also about to talk with her allllll night. After our companions were fast asleep we continued to talk and talk and talk until 3AM... If this is the kind of reunion that happens from a few weeks of separation, I can only imagine what it will be like to see my family again. ^^ it was a great  and I and still on cloud nine after HyonChee's baptismal service.

I love you all. I'm sorry this is so late haha- I am well aware how busy missionary life is but this week I've started to fee like I've had doubt the amount of responsibilities and tasks to accomplish. I'm not complaining though, I love the fast paced schedule! It keeps be busy and totally focused on the work.

Have a great week!!
Sister Sloan

Roller Coaster Week

5/19-25
Monday. Today was a roller-coaster!! ..and yes that is foreshadowing. Today, I tried to plan a fun activity for just the sisters in the zone. There is a Cultural Korean museum in our zone where you can try on traditional (한복) Korean clothing and take pictures in different scenes. It sounded fun but soon after everyone's (late) arrival we were informed of the operating hours. Guess what? No Mondays! (we would have known had we had a smartphone..) They graciously gave us ten minutes to hurry through, but I was disappointed. We took some pictures then went our separate ways. Sister Mineer and I we not satisfied with our almost two hours of travel for nothing so we decided to have a walk around town. Guess what we found? A carnival! It was in town and there was a particular ride called 'Sundrop' that we may or may not have utilized to justify our traveling all the way to 답동 (Dapdong) area. President Morrise previously had opposed the idea of going to amusement parks so I'm not totally sure if this was or wasn't against the rules.. But it was AWESOME!!


Sister Mineer and I made our way back just in time to meet up with 정현지S (HyonChee) to walk to the church together for her baptismal interview. Our walk together was fun. We reviewed what would be asked and she told me, "Yeah I know, it will be easy." I smiled and said, "Also for your baptism you are still comfortable bearing your testimony in front of everyone, right?" She smiled and confirmed. I was SO excited!! Elder Berry (our district leader) was waiting and got right to business. Sister Mineer, Elder Meeks, and I waited in the hall.

From the very beginning of the interview something just didn't feel right. I tried listening in and to me it seemed as if HyonChee just wasn't answering the questions. I hoped she was just being quiet but maybe half an hour later her and Elder Berry walked out; Elder Berry shaking his head saying, "Not this week." I was so confused but immediately put my arm around her shoulders as we started our walk home together. I tried asking what she thought and what happened, but she ignored me and squirmed out of my grip. I tried to change the subject but she just didn't want to talk, period. She walked half a step behind us as if she wanted nothing to do with us. My heart was broken. This sweet girl whom I have come to love with all my heart was totally ignoring us, wanting nothing to do with us. It wasn't long until we parted ways. I attempted to give her a hug but she stood motionless as I wrapped my arms around her. For a moment I didn't even recognize her as I watched her walk away. What changed?

I immediately called Elder Berry to get to the bottom of things. Apparently she was just not as committed as we had previously thought. Before the interview even began she said to Elder Berry, "We can just cancel it..." Elder Berry said, "Woah, wait a second we haven't even started yet.." As they proceeded he came to understand that she got the idea of everything but just didn't get the importance of it all, it hadn't sunk deep enough for her to feel it. From what I heard it sounded like Elder Berry handled it well. I cannot even describe the heartbreak I felt. We were supposed to quickly make our way to the mission home for the night but my motivation to hurry or walk fast... 없어 (did not exist). I cried for two hours straight as we switched from bus to subway, from 급행 (speed train) to normal trains. I kept my head down and Sister Mineer stood by me, just holding me with her arm around my shoulders. She is basically six feet tall and I was far from standing up straight, so maybe it looked funny but I was devastated and didn't care. Along the way we ran into a couple other sister companionships but I kept my distance while Sister Mineer talked to them.

I know that people have agency and that's not why I was upset. I was upset because I felt like this beautiful girl was ready to live, love, and reap the benefits the gospel had to offer. But instead I was maybe too nïeve, not committed enough, not obedient enough, not able to teach well enough, and the list goes on. On one hand I don't think anyone is to blame but on the other I feel like I should have done more or at least had been more aware of how HyonChee really felt.

We arrived at the mission home just after 10:30PM and went straight to bed. I couldn't sleep.

Tuesday was off to a strange start when I woke up feeling like there was a pit in my stomach reminding me of the realness of what had happened with 정현지S (HyonChee) the night before. I kept remember her emotionless face as she turned to walk away...

6:30AM came too quickly but we all got up to exercise. Upon our return we had two bathrooms and 10 girls to accommodate. I waited and as I did President Morrise pulled me into his dinning room to talk to me. We talked about a number of things but then he asked the inevitable question, "Are you okay?" Immediately following this question I turned my face downwards in attempt to hide the tears forming in my eyes. I was brief but recounted what had happened the night before. He too was sad. He quickly hopped to his feet and said, "Maybe I can't hug you but I can definitely shake your hand!" He stood tall in a pair of Levi's and a bottom up shirt as I too got on my feet but in a pair of spandex pants and an oversized Korean T-shirt. I felt underdressed and less than worthy of the praise he proceeded to give me.

As we stood he shook my hand. It is Korean style to shake with one hand, then to show your respect, your place your other hand on your arm which is extended. Depending on the amount of closeness of respect you want to show, you can place your hand further down your arm. With the most respect he could show, President shook my hand while grasping our handshake with his other hand. I was a tender moment as he looked at me with tears in his eyes too, telling me that I was doing great work. I appreciate him.

I quickly hopped in the shower and was dressed in no time. Today was zone conference and the zone gathered in 송파 (Songpa) for a hike! Sister Mineer and I prepared well and bought matching Korean-styled hiking gear. We stood out but were proud of it- WE have companionship unity haha. The hike consisted for three separate stops where we received training from President and Sister Morrise, the Office Couple Elder and Sister Grosebeck, and the Assistants to the President Elders Schofield and 김재겸E (Elder Kim). The whole training was about "faith, hope, charity and love with an eye single to the glory of God." It was fantastic!!



Sister Mineer and I stayed together at the front of the group for most of the hike with Elder Kim, my mission father. Also it was a blast because I was able to see Elders Pruner, Higham, and DeMille- they are the coolest. It was so much fun talking with them as well as super interesting to hear all about the ancient 산성리 fortress that we were hiking to. By the end we had sung a few hymns and had a testimony meeting as a zone 'High on a Mountain Top' haha. Get it? (It's a hymn ㅋㅋ) This was the BEST zone conference.

To end the evening we gathered our things from the mission home, ate dinner at Pizza School, and began an exchange with 답동 (Dapdong) sisters. I brought Sister Nebeker, a greenie, to Mansu. On our way home We received a text from a strange number saying it was 정현지S (HyonChee) and her phone was taken away. She said she had a change of heart and wanted to be baptized. I was super skeptical but I set up an appointment to meet with her tomorrow. We got home about 11:30PM and were exhausted!!

Wednesday was back to the routine. By 4PM we found ourselves in 가정 area for another zone proselyting activity. This time sister missionaries were in charge so it was awesome! We had an English contest where Koreans would race in reading a verse of a song from the movie "Frozen" called, 'Let It Go.' It was a huge success! Koreans all love that movie so instead of reading we had a few groups of students that came over to sing- both boys and girls alike had no shame haha. So entertaining! After reading, or singing in some cases, they were asked to write their phone number down (to be later informed about our English class and 30/30 program) and take a popular treat called a chocopie. We received over 70 numbers in two hours! Huge success!

After the activity we unsplit with 답동 (Dapdong) sister just to exchange with 계산 (GaySan) sisters. I left with Sister Telford to serve in her area. It took just under two hours to travel back by subway. We ate dinner and then had about three hours to contact on the street and visit less active members. It was pretty successful because we were able to teach and testify on the street more than once! Blessing!

Also while I was out of 만수 (Mansu) area Sister Mineer, Sister Watkins, and our awesome member 이은성S (Sister Lee) met with 정현지S (HyonChee). All went well and she was able to resolve her concerns and rescheduled her baptismal date for next Saturday. I want to be excited but I'm still a little on edge. We'll see how things turn out, I have faith in her.

Thursday was a busy day! In 계산 (GaySan) they don't really have investigators so our whole day was spent finding less active members and proselyting. Again it was successful! The first success began by getting into a less active members home. She allowed us to sing her "I am a Child of God" and share a brief message. After the song her husband arrived home. I asked if he wanted us to sing again and he requested "How Firm A Foundation." As we sang, they sang along. These less active members still have a testimonies, but I was curious why they don't come out to church anymore. They said because of the bishop and stake president, they apparently don't like them. What a lame reason! It's like what Jeffrey R. Holland said,

“So be kind regarding human frailty--your own as well as that of those who serve with you in a Church led by volunteer, mortal men and women. Except in the case of His only perfect Begotten Son, imperfect people are all God has ever had to work with. That must be terribly frustrating to Him, but He deals with it. So should we. … So be patient and kind and forgiving.”

It was a good visit. No one was home at any of the other houses we visited. We did some contacting on the street and then found a park for Sister Telford to practice teaching me for the pass-off program recently renamed as 'Teacher Improvement.' She taught about the creation of the world and the fall of Adam and Eve and the Plan of Salvation. She did so great! We even had a few people listening in. Soon after, it was time to unsplit. On our way we passed a cellphone store doing a contest. There was a spinning wheel and magnet darts, depending on what you landed on, you got a prize.
Both Sister Telford and I won the biggest prize on accident! 24 rolls of toilet paper each!! Haha the announcing lady had a microphone to her mouth as she asked about our nametags and church. I wonder how many contacts we can count? Haha just kidding but anyway she said that it is by the grace of God that we both won the biggest prize twice in a row haha. Just planting seeds, just planting seeds hehe.

We unsplit over dinner together and then head to our kinda sorta investigator appointment. After 30 minutes of English with the seven year old girl, the grandma served us dinner. Yay.. and stuff! We meet in this filthy auto bike shop so Sister Mineer and I were curious what 조재순S (Sister Cho) made for us. The grandpa and another worker joined us and they loved the food. Us on the other hand were already full and frankly a little grossed out by what we saw. We stomached enough and then proceeded with the lesson. Everyone left except the grandma. She didn't do her homework of reading the Book of Mormon introduction so we read together. This family literally does not care and the message we are sharing. I can tell when people want me to understand and when they are purposely using words beyond my vocabulary and understanding. Unfortunately, she was speaking in a way I could not understand and even her body language was sending conflicting ideas. Sister Mineer and I just taught and testified and closed. I'm super curious what we should do but for now we have two appointments set up for next week.

Friday we had a lunch and practice lesson appointment with 박미영S (Sister Park). It was a quick visit but we left well fed and practiced for the rest of the day. Before attempting to visit a few less-active members, we met Elders Meeks and Berry at the church to practice the song we still plan to sing at 현지 (HyonChee)'s baptism. Elder Meeks played guitar as Sister Mineer and I sang. We are not talented singers whatsoever but it sounded better than the last time we practiced.

Next was a failed attempt to visit a few less-actives and investigators. We did, however, run into Elders Park (박동규E) and Godfrey. They were on their way to buy fruit with the money Elder Park's sister gave to the missionaries- ₩70,000 (~$70)! They divided out ₩20,000 to us and Sister Mineer and I bought apples, bananas, grapes, (참회) melon, and tomatoes. Score!! To end the day, we went home and planned out the coming week. Sister Mineer and I always have such a fun time together. We concluded the evening with a prayer and some awesome face masks that an investigator gave us.

Saturday was fairly uneventful. We only had time for an hour and a half of study before traveling to the 12 Week Follow Up meeting at the mission office. We traveled with Elders Park (박동규E) and Godfrey by bus... It took FOREVER! We arrived after 2.5 hours and had 20 minutes to find lunch, eat, and be seated for the meeting. Stress! The actual meeting was mundane- I have trained four times now so I've been to this meeting a lot... The jokes are all the same, the topics, the agenda, ect. The spirit is always unique so at least that was good.

When the meeting concluded I had a question for President Morrise and it turned out that he had a couple things to say to me too; we both grabbed a chair and had a little chat. Earlier in the week President Morrise made me aware of how public my blog was and that a member of his family back in Utah pointed out something that I wrote that was the opposite of positive about a fellow missionary. You can imagine my embarrassment but anyway that was Tuesday and today is Saturday. Today he decided that he needed to remind me that he had the upmost confidence in me and he reiterated how proud he is of the work we [me and Sister Mineer] are doing. It felt good to hear that from him because honestly I haven't been able to shake the suggestions he recommended to me... mostly because I had no direct control of fixing them immediately but anyway that's that. I love President Morrise. I really feel so blessed to be able serve with him.

We then quickly hurried out of the mission office to eat dinner. A few other companionships joined us which made it fun. I spend most of my time with 오성택E (Elder Oh). He was one of the zone leaders I had when serving in 수원 (Suwon). He has one and a half transfers left until he goes home so he talked all about how we are such old missionaries haha (I have 2.5 transfers left). It wasn't 'trunky talk' but more like reminiscing on all of the dramatic changes that have happened to our original missions (his being Seoul and mine being Daejoen). Missionary time feels like hyperspeed some times! So much has changed!

Most of us had to travel home by subway so we made our way together. On our first subway there was a seat for all of us to sit by strangers to talk to; we seized the opportunity. After a few stops an old man boarded the subway. It is common courtesy to give your seat to people older than you and this man happened to walk right over and stare at my seat. I took the hint and sensed his reluctance. As he sat he pulled a mysterious item from his pockets that he was signaling for me to grab. I did and it was a necklace. Maybe it was worth American quarter... I showed my appreciation but then he took it upon himself to try putting it on me. I awkwardly dodged him for a few second as I tried to communicate to him that I would do it. Once wearing the necklace he kept commenting on the beauty of it. I tried to change the conversation in order to have a missionary conversation but as soon as I asked about his family, he responded with much excitement he exclaimed, "I'M SINGLE!" in English. That is code for: RED FLAG! He then began reaching for me (I assume he was reach for the necklace) and that is wen Elder Oh and his companion Elder Oscermiller decided it was time to help me out. Elder Oh instinctively threw his arm in the mans path of touching me and told him very sternly he was not allowed to touch me. I was grateful when both motioned for me to stand behind them- they are 6 foot and 6"5' aka the tallest elders we were with (maybe in the mission). I was anxious to change subways because I was a little creeped out as well as embarrassed that I wearing a necklace from this creep. EVERY missionary we were with would not stop complimenting it with an enormous amount of sarcasm... I ripped it off as fast as I could as soon as we were off the subway haha. The rest of our travel time was less than eventful in comparison... We got home just before 9PM. We planned and called it a night.

Sunday was AWESOME!!! Guess who came to church? 정현지S (HyonChee), Seblewongel (our Ethiopian investigator), her husband Abraham, and 3 month old baby! The ward was amazing as usual with everyone. People were loving towards HyonChee for rescheduling her baptism and welcoming to Seble and her family. I don't think they help their adorable baby at all during the three hours of church haha. Members and the missioanries alike really stepped up to the plate when it came to translating the meeting for them (their first language is Amharic- only spoken in Ethiopia, second English, third Korean- but only pleasantries). It was so cool to see. Sister Mineer took charge of Seble and her family while I stuck with HyonChee. I love her. In young women's class she conducted! Also in Sunday school she saved a seat for me because I was running all over trying to help Seble and other members ha. My heart melted when I walked in and saw HyonChee craning her neck to get my attention and then once our eyes met, she patted the seat next to her indicating it was saved for me. We were friends again and I love her.

During sacrament meeting she chose a seat in the back. We sat alone and during a quiet moment I showed her a letter that I wrote to her. I still have to translate it but before I could even tell her that she grabbed it and with a whisper she said, "I English very well." It was cute. We spent the next ten minutes translating it. It is as follows:

현지, 자매님에 대해 걱정스러워요. 자매님의 침례접견 후에 제가 너무 혼란했어요. 왜 침례식에 갑자기 취소했는지 공금했어요. 정견 후에 많이 슬폈어요. 울고 기도하는 것을 많이 했어요. 하나님과 함께 관계를 쌓는 것을 돕고싶어요. 하지만 때때로 어떻게 해야할지 잘몰라요. 의사소통이 잘되지 않기 대운이요. 침례식을 잘준비하기 위해 매일 기도랑 구절을 읽는 것을 해야해요. 언제 기도하고 읽을 때, 주님은 너를 위해 계획을 알수있어요. 아버지신 주님이 천국에 살고 계신 것을 알 수 있게 기도했봤요? 예수 그리스도 후기선도 교회가 주님의 참된 교회라는 것을 알게 해달라고 기도 해봤어요? 모세와 조셉 스미스 토마스 에스 몬슨 회장님이 하나님의 선지자라는 것을 알게 해달라고 기도 해봐요?
저는 이 모든 것과 주님이 참되 다는 것을 알고있어요. 하지만 현지는 스스로 알아야 한다는게 필요해요. 오늘 이더서 2장을 읽었어요. 여기에는 야헷인은 주님의 인도를 따라서 약속된 땅으로 갔어요. 그들이 기도하는 것을 잊었을 때 그들은 인도를 받지 않았어요. 하지만 그들이 기도했을때, 주님은 그들에게 대답했어요. 저는 비슷한 일을 자매님을 위해 할 수 있다는 것을 알고있습니다. 이 복음이 현지자매님을 축복할 것이 다 하지만 이게 찾기 위해 자매님은 열심히 보야합니다. 사랑해요!
사랑으로, 슬론 자매

In short, I shared what I had learned in my personal study during the week. I am reading in Ether where, through prayer mind revelation, the Jaradites are guided to a promised land. In the process Jared tells his brother to pray. He does. They receive guidance from God and follow. They end up on a beach for four years. After all this time God comes to them and to paraphrase God he says, "Hello~! You prayed and I got you this far but you forgot to continually pray. This isn't the promised land I told you about." Then the brother of Jared repents and prays again. This story reminded me of HyonChee because maybe she prayed came to know she wanted to be baptized but then maybe somewhere along the way she stopped reading the Book of Mormon or praying. She was maybe at a standstill like the Jaradites so after reiterating this story I told her that the only way that she'll be able to make a decision and be happy with it, is if she continually and diligently prays and reads the scriptures. I bore my testimony and invited her to act.

After translating and reading the letter together she then drew a picture of me being sad. Then next to it drew a happy face. She said, don't be the sad one. She makes me smile. I've said it before but I'll say it again, I love her!

When church ended, we ate dinner together- Seble, Abraham, HyonChee, and the ward. It was so awesome. A member gave Seble and her family a ride home while HyonChee went into her baptismal interview. This time was much fast and Elder Berry was impressed with the change in her countenance. All is well today and all this hard missionary work seems to be paying off. I love being here and being able to share this experience with so many people I have come to love.

How is everyone?
LOVE YOU

Sister Sloan
슬론 자매

Say "Yes" 예 to the Dress!

5/12-18
Monday was a spectacular day! It was Mother's Day in America so I was able to Skype my family. They all looked so great!! It was a huge teaser though because the rest of the day all I wanted to do was call them again. I still have 3.5 more months here in Korea so I won't be home THAT soon, but anyway I am SO excited to see them when I do complete my time here.





Lunch was waiting for us when we arrived at 이현자S (Sister Lee)'s house. She is the bishop's wife as well as the Young Women President. Her sense of humor is funny, but she also scares me haha.. I put on a brave face and lunch was actually really fun. Two other ward members came and they were mad at Sister Lee for making us waste our PDAY time at her house. We didn't mind but it was nice to have them shoeing us out the door so we could have a fun day. We went straight to 주안역 (Juan Station) where there is an underground shopping center. I was on the hunt for a dress that 현지S could wear for her baptism. I found a cute dress and a pair of matching shoes. Maybe it cost a pretty little penny but I don't care, our HyonChee will only be baptized once! After all, what would Cover Girl say? (She's worth it! ㅋ)

Sister You and Brother Beck

Once PDAY time was over we met the 부평 (BuPyong) Sister missionaries for an exchange. I quickly brought Sister DeBuse with me to go to our dinner appointment. Originally we were just supposed to eat with 유경숙S (Sister You), but her husband, 백용실B (Brother Beck) came home from work to join us. They are my FAVORITE ward members. Brother Beck calls me Smart Sloan so I guess they like me too haha. It was a blast and after our meal we practiced teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ to Sister You. She pretended to be a tough investigator but it turned out well. Afterwards we were planning to meet HyonChee at the church so she could try on baptismal dresses as well as the dress we found but instead Brother Beck and his wife offered us a ride. He understood very well what our plans were but he just laughed and said he wanted to learn where HyonChee's house was- which meant he would pick HyonChee up from the church and drop us all back off at her house that she had just left haha. Silly man.

I had sent HyonChee a picture of the dress earlier so it was no surprise when she saw it, but when she finally tried it on she was beaming. It was a little tighter and shorter on her than I was on me when I tried it on... so she was a little insecure about how she thought she looked. I thought it was gorgeous and so did her parents. However she would NOT take her arms off of her stomach in attempt to cover what she thought was fat. It also took me a few minutes to answer all of her parents questions;

"What is this for?" "Her baptism."
"Oh, she'll wear it to be baptized?"
"No, not for the actual baptism, just on the day."
"So what dress will she wear to be baptized?"
"We have another dress for that.."
"Is this dress a gift from the ward?"
"No, a gift from me."
"That's nice but why?" "I want to help make her baptism special."
"After the baptism shall we return it?"
"No, she can keep it and wear it to church."
"Is she supposed to always wear a dress?" (To church she wear pants because she doesn't own dresses or skirts)
"Uh... yes we should always look our best for church."

Man! It felt like an interrogation! I did NOT mean it to be such a big deal, just a quiet gift but I failed. To end this ordeal her parents felt so grateful and were in awe of their beautiful daughter. We took a picture or two before leaving them to their evening. I just love that family. They will all be phenomenal leaders in the church someday.

Tuesday, we did the routine. Studied, ate lunch, and were out the door. We had a practice lesson with a member, 김보희S (Sister Kim) before we met our investigator for our scheduled appointment. The practice lesson was okay, but mostly Sister DeBuse and I learned what she shouldn't teach in our next appointment with 김하나S (HahNah). Once in the real lesson, we focused on the spirit and attempted to help her identify it. We are getting closer but still not an 'ahha' moment from her yet.

By 6PM we unsplit and Sister Mineer and I were on our way to a potential investigator appointment. So, this potential investigator was a referral from a member, 최응규B (Brother Choi). He is a strange individual- divorced, a little crazy, and 58. The referral he gave us was a seven year old girl... How creepy does that sound? A man almost 60 referring a 7 year old girl? I was very skeptical. On our way, I was in the middle of texting this man to receive his address but instead the phone battery decided to die! It was awful but eventually I remembered that we had another potential investigator that lived near by who had the elders phone number. Thankfully she was at her shop working and let me use her phone. Both sets of elders came to save us and it turned out just fine. Brother Choi walked us all to this motorcycle shop where we met the seven year old girl and her grandparents. When they introduced themselves it all made sense. Brother Choi wasn't referring the seven year old, instead he was being sneaking in referring her grandparents and using the seven year olds interest in English to lure the family in haha. I wish he would have filled us in on the plan but oh well, I understood and explained how our Family English Program worked (30 minutes of teaching English and 30 minutes of teaching about the Gospel). It went well and we set up an appointment to meet with them twice a week for the next six weeks! Another stressfully productive day behind us.

Wednesday was district meeting. Ever since I was called to be a Sister Training Leader, President Morrise has approached MLC a little differently by preparing an outline of what should be covered in future district and zone training meetings for the month. Some district leaders take the suggestions and expand on them but Elder Berry literally just reads the printout to us and then says, "Well, that's all the paper says so it looks like we're done, any questions?" No commitment, no testimony, no nothing. It's pretty disappointing. The opposite of an edifying district meeting, we all left together to meet the zone for a proselyting activity. When the activity ended, Sister Mineer and I were planning to split and exchange with the 가정 (KahJeong) sister missionaries. It was a lame activity so Sister Blickenstaff and I left early and traveled back to her area. It was her birthday so we were able to have two dinners (one with a member and the other with an investigator) as well as three cakes haha. It was a blast!

Thursday was an awesome morning! This transfer 답동 (DapDong) area was opened for sister missionaries and those sisters share a house with 가정 (KahJeong) sisters. As a four-person house, exercise in the morning is way fun! They live on the 30th floor so what does that mean? Lots of stairs! Our warm up was running down the stairs and to a nearby park. After a few laps, stretching, and exercising, we ran back AND up the 30 flights of stairs. I was the first to finish but man was a breathing heavy! I have maintained a solid 55kilo (~121 lbs) weight by running and doing small CrossFit stuff everyday but dang!! Those stairs were hard.

After, we did the routine. By 11:30AM Sister Blickenstaff and I were at a part member families house to meet the non-member wife to go bowling with her friends. It was so fun! These three little Asian mothers were so good at bowling!! They just laughed at me and Sister Blickenstaff as we consistently got gutter-balls. Eventually they started showing us some techniques to help and it worked! By the last game the women started a bet. Two good bowlers against us missionaries and one good bowler- all Sister Blickenstaff and I needed to do was account for ONE person. Did we do it? No :( haha we had a good time together though. After lunch together we left to find a few more potential investigator's houses. No one was home so we left notes on the door before heading back to unsplit. I love Sister Blickenstaff! We have so much in common and ALWAYS have a fun time together. She reminds me a lot of Sister Bagley.

Once back with Sister Mineer it looked as if she was going to burst into tears as she recounted all that her and Sister Lee had done, or tried to do. It was obvious that things didn't go quite as they planned because she quickly handed the phone back to me and unloaded all of the things that needed to be fixed. I feel so sorry for having to put young missionaries though so many exchanges. For me it is fun and I learn a lot but for greenies it is so stressful and overwhelming. We got everything fixed and headed to the two appointments we had scheduled for the evening.

First was our seven year old referral who is not even old enough to be an investigator but anyway we taught her English. When the 30 minutes were up we called the grandparents over for the gospel message. They are SO not interested. The grandfather couldn't even sit through two minutes of us talking. Thankfully the grandmother did and accepted a Book of Mormon. Her interest level is about the same as her husbands but I am grateful for her being polite and respectful towards us. We aren't too sure how to proceed but anyway it was a simple yet good lesson.

Next was our family appointment! 현지S (HyonChee) texted us saying that she had a bunch of homework to complete and asked if our gospel message could be just an hour as opposed one and a half. When we arrived we got straight to business. We taught the last few commandments of the Law of Chastity and the Word of Wisdom. A good 20 minutes into the lesson the father arrived home from work. When we saw us teaching he immediately said, "Why did you start without me?!" Of course we felt bad but also that statement made me smile. This family is so prepared. I cannot wait to see them at the temple someday.

During the lesson HyonChee turned to us and asked if either Sister Mineer or I had ever broken or not followed all of the commandments that we have taught her. Her question of curiosity was followed by an uncomfortable silence which clearly illustrated the imperfect choices that we had both made in our lives. Amid the awkwardness I repositioned myself so I was sitting taller on my knees. I flipped to the back of the chastity pamphlet and read, "God has made it possible for you to repent and become clean again... Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and true repentance, you can be forgiven and feel peace." I bore my testimony of the realness of the Atonement of Jesus Christ. After, the member (김소정S) proceeded to tell a story from her own life. As she did, I zoned out. My mind wandered to the stupidity of my life and it didn't take long for me totally change my demeanor and forget what I so powerfully had just testified about... HyonChee noticed. She was across the room and was trying to ask what was wrong. Was I tired, bored, ect. I said I was ashamed. She immediately sent her little sister to grab her phone so she could text me something. She said, "Sloan, maybe those things were bad but if you repented, God must forgive you!" She is a phenomenal human being. And she is right. I am forgiven and worth of the spirit so all is well.

Friday felt less productive than normal. Weekly planning went well. It is hard staying inside for so long so Sister Mineer and I took a 20 minute break to go grab some delicious ice cream to split up the time. The weather is so nice nowadays! Today was the first time that I felt hot. Summer is coming quickly but this time I am making a conscience effort to enjoy what spring we have left. After planning we met Elder Berry and Meeks at the church. Elder Meeks is so good at guitar and we decided to use him in a musical number for HyonChee's baptism next week. We sort of practiced a few times but we mostly just figured out how to put words to it and then called it good.

Saturday was busy! Our appointment with 구혜연S (Amanda) went well. 김미란S (Sister Kim) joined us and we taught all about faith and invited her to be baptized again. With success we invited her to HyonChee baptism and she was actually pretty excited to see one! I hope it will help her recognize that it isn't as scary as she thinks it is. Next was English class. Today is Stake Conference so the members that bring our class to life, were absent. Three students came so Sister Mineer and I stayed stayed Amanda to teach her at the intermediate table. It was hilarious! She mostly just made fun of Mongolian... Don't ask me why.

When we cleaned up English class we ate dinner with the elders then traveled to Stake Conference. It was a fantastic session! Our area seventy, President Ringwood came and spoke. The focus was about member missionary work again and specifically holding on to those whom we already have. The video that they showed off of LDS.org about a ward in Florida was so good! I'm so grateful that we went. As we left the chapel 백용실B and his daughter 백하영S gave us a ride home. I love them!! They went from arguing about HaYong being fat and needing a diet to singing a medley of church songs. It was so entertaining.

Sunday started off a little disappointing. HyonChee texted the night before at about 11Pm saying that she couldn't make it to Stake Conference because she would be traveling to her grandfathers house for his 60th birthday. Of course family is important but this was the Sunday before her baptism! Satan is a sneaky devil and I hate him. The ride we had previously scheduled to take HyonChee, took us instead. 이두례S (Sister Lee) and her daughter 김소정S (Sister Kim) are such genuine people. I am grateful to have become such close friends with them. They were both so curious to know all about our investigators and how they could help- they must have been listening last night hehe. Once we arrived the members quickly rushed us to sit by a non-member woman that came. She came with 서B (Brother Soh) who is 68. His wife died a few months ago from cancer and this woman we brought was his new girlfriend who he intended to marry the coming Saturday..... Uhh.... What?? It was strange but we made friends with his his girlfriend and received her phone number.

During the meeting there were many speakers, including President Morrise and Ringwood. I love President Morrise's example of only speaking Korean! His Korean has improved so much since coming back to Korea. He speaking in a way and used words that old people use but that because that's what he learned when he served here forever ago. Anyway, President Spoke about tasting of the fruit of life. He used the right about of humor and sincerity to really move us all. I really love him.

As we were leaving the church again, 백용실S (Brother Beck) made sure to get us in his car with his wife (유경숙S) and daughter (하영S) so we could come over for lunch. I was attempting to fast but they wouldn't hear of it. haha. It was a delicious meal and soo much fun. I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love this family. I say that a lot but seriously, they are my favorite!! They even told me that they are looking to move but won't leave 만수 (Mansu) because I am here. I know that it was a joke but hey I'll take it!

After lunch, we went home to complete our studies and then walked about an hour to our dinner appointment with a family whom I refer to as 'cute couple.' They are newlyweds and I seriously envy them. They are THE cutest!! I told them that every time I see them together, all I want to do is get married too. They just laughed and gazed into each other's eye. JEALOUS! Anyway, we had a great discussion about their missions and the missionary work they are doing now. 이세리S (Sister Lee) and 임큰솔B (Brother Lim) are such awesome members!! Do you know what makes them even better? They served us brownies for dessert!!!! I felt like I took a huge bite out of America when I sink my teeth into that doughy-chocolately-goodness. Seriously, it was unbelievably delicious.

To end the evening and our week we had our missionary coordinating meeting. 오광철B (Brother Oh) and his wife 이은성 (Sister Lee) came. It was a great meeting. He was proud of all of our hard work. To conclude we made a program for HyonChee's baptismal service. I AM SO EXCITED!!!

This week was a great week. I swear I'm not getting trunky or itching to get home but after Skype on Monday and hanging out with 'cute couple' on Sunday, focusing again might be a process haha. Any tips? I love you all!!!
Have. Great week ^^
Sister Sloan
슬론 자매

Grandma's Cell Phone

5/5-11
Monday was a great PDAY! With three new missionaries in our ward, the seniors wanted to have them experience a meat buffet. As we were asking around to members on Sunday about what places they would recommended, we found a member that actually works at one! She (한정희S) told us to come for lunch and she would feed us! Our ward members are so generous! Lunch was unbelievable. After we ate, Sister Mineer and I left to run some errands.  First, we bought Sister Mineer a camera because hers had been stolen on her layover coming to Korea- so sad!  We found her a sweet deal and then decided to go shopping to spend all the money we saved haha.

An old grandma whose phone we found on a bus
and chased her down to return it.  haha  SO CUTE!

We waited a good 20 minutes for the correct bus to come and when it finally did, we boarded and proceeded to take our seats. Just before I sat down, I saw an old flip phone sitting on the seat... I looked to the lady sitting next to it asking if it was hers. In a nonchalant way she said, "No, it is the grandmother's, who just got off the bus." After saying this she turned back to once again look out her window as if she couldn't be bothered to help. I looked at Sister Mineer with a distortedly confused face as I said, "What the?!" I pushed the button signaling to the driver that we would take the next stop. Once off the bus we ran the opposite way that the bus had been driving to try and find the grandma who had just gotten off the bus... She was a fast moving grandma! It took us about 10 minutes of running to catch up haha. When we finally were within hearing range I yelled out, "할머니!" (Grandma!) she turned around confused but was able to immediately connect the dots when we proceeded walking towards her holding our her phone out for her to grab. She asked a million questions about how we found the phone... She also caught on to our heavy breathing and this 80ish year old woman, standing about 4'5' slapped my arm and said "아이고! You are angels." I replied and said, "No ma'am, we are just serving as missionaries haha." She took our name card and thanked us continually as we parted ways. Before we were out of hearing range again we turned to wave as she told all the other people on the street who we were and what we had just done. Job well done!

Once back at the bus stop we waited maybe 30 minutes this time for the right bus to come. I had a less than productive conversation with a lady trying to convince her that we weren't a cult... Fail but anyway I tried and testified. Talk about a productive PDAY! After a small time shopping, we met the elders from 만수 and 연수 for a combined district street boarding activity. It was a 'free hug' thing again. It was rainy and windy... My new line was, "I'm cold! Hug me!" The elders were alert and they saved us sisters and we saved them from receiving hugs being offered by the opposite gender. It was fun but again, not a super productive approach for missionaries haha. The greenies sure had fun though.

Tuesday was Missionary Leadership Council. Today we received a bonus hour of extra training... 10AM-5PM! Longest meeting, ever! The normal meeting stuff was productive and fun being able to converse with everyone about new policies and training for this month. But then the last two hours were probably the biggest waste of time. From Japan the mission flew in our area psychologist doctor. He is certified and a professional but it turns out we heard more from his wife than from him. Both of them have huge personalities and it was hard to focus on the main idea with them yelling over each other. Man, it was obnoxious. On our way home we were asked to deliver a package to a sister in our zone. I think maybe yesterday this greenie had told her parents that she was homesick so her parents overnighted a teddy bear. In order to deliver this, we had to give our member practice lesson and dinner appointment to the elders and make a pitstop maybe an hour from our house. She was grateful. We got home late, but I think it was worth it.

Wednesday we had the first of eight exchanges that we will have this transfer. I brought the soon-to-return-home Sister Watkins to Mansu for the day. We tried to visit a number of less-active members and potential investigators but only our loyal less-active, 정혜연S (Sister Jeong) was at her convenience store working. We sad down with her for a few minutes and shared a small thought with her. It went really well. We found out that she is looking for a different job in order to come to church on Sundays! That was good news! We will pray for her!

To end the day we went to the church to celebrate Elder Park's birthday. His sister gave him cake and he wanted to share with us. It was, of course, delicious but also super fun way to conclude our day.

Elder Park's 22nd Birthday (international age).

Thursday was zone training. Sister Watkins and I unsplit just before I had to leave to attend a meeting called District Leader's council. It was boring at first, because we waited about 30 minutes for all of the elders to arrive... Lame! Once all together, we collaborated and then joined the rest of our zone for the training. The night before Elders Clawson and Thompson called and asked me to train (since all zone leaders had been instructed to include STL's more). I had an idea of what I wanted to talk about but they proposed the following idea:

Them: "So as part of the training we will be showing a clip from The District 2 DVD, do you want to talk lead in that?"

Me: "Let me get this straight, you want me to press play?"

Them: "Uh..... Did you have any other ideas?"

Gotta love elders right? Haha I in fact did have an idea and I trained on the recent conference talk, 'The Choice Generation' by Randall L. Ridd. I feel like it went really well. I focused on 'catching a glimpse of our potential' and then consecrating all of our resources to become such. Our mission is currently in the middle of a 40 day fast in order to become more consecrated as a whole, so I thought it was all very applicable.. Or so I hope. It was scary training almost 50 missionaries, included President and Sister Morrise who showed up but all in all I am happy with how it all turned out.

After the training ended, it was time for another exchange- that's right, back to back exchanges! I left with Sister Stastny to serve in 연수. On the subway to her area we tried talking to a few people but it seemed that nobody was in the mood. I turned and said that to Sister Stastny and added, "Maybe everyone is fasting too (because we were)." Then she turned and said through her teeth and a clenched jaw, " We are all just feeling so consecrated!" Hahahahaha It was hilarious. I love her!

Friday was a good morning. By 3PM we unsplit. Since we were near an investigators house, Sister Mineer and I decided to stop by to invite her to a members house for dinner that night. She wasn't home at first but while I was in the process of leaving a note on her door, she showed up! We came in for a little, but then had to leave soon after. We ended up leaving the phone there so we were back and forth from her house to ours until it was time for our dinner appointment. Our investigator ended up having to take care of her granddaughter, we were disappointed. The dinner was at 배애숙S (Sister Bah)'a house. She is our relief society president and normally is the opposite of happy but today she was grinning ear to ear! I'm not totally sure what changed but anyway I was happy that our visit was fun and productive. To end the night, we went to another members house for dessert. 김정은S (Sister Kim) is so awesome and she sat through our awful Korean lesson like a champ. A few members actually have told me lately that they are getting used to my Korean. I'm not totally sure what that means but they do say it's cute... Backhanded compliment of not, I'll take it ha.

Saturday was a lot of fun. In the morning Bishop (김우식B) normally picks us up to go farming but today he denied us the privilege because he wanted us to prepare for the youth dessert party that would take place at 12:30PM. The dessert party was way fun but not super productive for missionary work but anyway we built stronger relationships with the youth so that was a plus. Just before the dessert was about to be brought out, our investigator Amanda (구혜연S) showed up early for our appointment. I convinced her to let us do our gospel message first and they we could free talk in English as we enjoyed some dessert. Despite my best efforts, all of the good desserts were gone when we came back down stairs haha. Oh well, at least we did have a good lesson!

Next, English class. I was in charge today and it was super fun. I literally just kept track of the time and made the transitions to each activity. Next was dinner at home before heading back to the just for a potential investigator appointment. The appointment was weird... We received the referral from a member that told us they were interested in the Family English Program (30 minutes of an English lesson and 30 minutes of a gospel lesson). When we arrived they were a little surprised when we made the attempt to transition. We did How to Begin Teaching, introduced the Book of Mormon, and tried to made a return appointment. We will see what happens, but from what I gathered, they won't call us back.

Sunday was fantastically amazing day! First, church! Guess who came?? Our true and loyal 정현지S (HyonChee) AND HER FATHER! This week while we were on exchange I missed the lesson with the family. Sister Mineer and Sister Hammerl taught the commandments of baptism, confirmation, and the Ten Commandments. They said it went really well, they even invited the father to be baptized. He declined again and said he needed to do more research so Sister Hammerl pushed hard to commit him to coming to church, and it worked! They both came and stayed for all three hours!! I love them so much. Before church began I sat down with HyonChee to figure out the logistics of her baptism in 2 weeks~! It was cute because I asked her if she could share her testimony after the actual baptism is preformed.
HyonChee: "What is a testimony?"
Me: "Well, why do you want to get baptized?"
HyonChee: "After I receive baptism I can be clean from sin and it will help me grow closer with God."
Me: "HyonChee, that is a testimony." ^^ Is to she he cutest?!

After church Sister Mineer tried to stop by our Ethiopian investigator's house, Seblewongel. She wasn't home so we left a note an a conference talk in her door that we found in her language, Amharic. Next, we hurried home to have our much needed weekly planning session. To conclude the evening we had our missionary coordinating meeting. It was short because our ward mission leader, 오광철B wanted to have us participate in a YouTube channel he is trying to create. So there is the Korean language but then there is this simplified way of writing Korean that he has used for over 30 years and has just patented haha. He is crazy smart! I did not catch on at all haha but it was cool to see him write. To demonstrate he chose his favorite verse from the Book of Mormon, wrote it, and then read it back. I swear his simplified version looked more like Arabic but anyway it was cool.

The walk home was a pain, monsoon season is beginning. By the time we walked the 7ish minutes home, both Sister Mineer and I were soaked!! Not cool. All in all though it was a fantastically busy week.  Missionary work is so fun but on the flip side, I have never been so tired in my entire life. I'm here to testify that The Lord's timing is on hyper speed sometimes haha. But my father always told me, "everything in life worth doing, is hard."

Have a good week everyone! Happy Mother's Day to my beautiful mother and every other mother reading this!

슬론 자매
Sister Sloan

FaceTiming with the family on Mother's Day!!!

My Fourth Daughter-Sister Mineer

4/28-5/4
Monday was a great morning. In place of mine and Sister Bagley's personal and companionship study we decided to head to the church to watch the Sunday morning General Conference session. Because we still weren't caught up on watching all of conference in English, we dubbed today and tomorrow worthy to do such. It was so awesome!! It got off to a fantastic start with Dieter F. Uchtdorf's talk about being grateful in any circumstance.

"[With] the eyes of faith we look beyond our present-day challenges.  This is not a gratitude of the lips but of the soul. It is a gratitude that heals the heart and expands the mind." 

How do you show your gratitude to God? Mind blowing. The concluding talk by Thomas S. Monson, 'Love- the Essence of the Gospel' was also phenomenal.

"Blame keeps wounds open. Only forgiveness heals." 

I learned a lot from each speaker in this session.

After our minds were blown over and over, it was time for lunch! On our way to a members house for lunch we met the elders at the post office to mail Sister Bagley, Elder Knapp, and Elder Higham's suitcases to their new houses.

There is something here called 택배 (teakbay) which delivers packages within 24 hours and is so cheap. It is too bad America doesn't have something like this but I guess South Korea is a little smaller than America... After we finished we walked to our lunch appointment with 한금아S (Sister Han). She is pretty intimidating woman. She stands about 5 feet tall or less but still manages to keep me walking on egg shells around her. She is a rare Korean that speaks with sarcasm, but I'll be honest in saying I think she just always seems mad ha. During lunch once I got used to it, we had a super entertaining meal together. She somehow got to talking about learning other Asian languages and was making fun of how they all sound haha. It was great. When it came time for our spiritual message we shared the talk 'Love- the Essence of the Gospel' by Thomas S. Monson. After I pulled the talk out of my bag and read the title in Korean, Sister Han asked what '정수' meant in English, I said 'essence.' Her smile of approval was followed by her saying, "I already knew that, but I was just checking to make sure you are still studying Korean." RUDE! She definitely scared me and I will probably never forget that word because of it ha.

After lunch, our PDAY began! We emailed and then hung out at home. Sister Bagley had to finish getting things together so while she did that, I wrote letters and relaxed. It was nice. By 6PM we found ourselves on a bus traveling to a members house for dinner and a practice 'PMG' lesson. 유경숙S (Sister You) taught us how to make a few side dishes before we ate, she is so talented! Koreans are so resourceful! We made a rice cake pancake thing made of rice and a plant called mugwort. Sounds nasty huh? It doesn't have much of a taste so it was fine but anyway I'm pretty sure it's a weed... Lately Sister Bagley and I have been asking ourselves, 'How in the world do people come up with this kind of stuff?'

Tuesday was mine and Sister Bagley's last full day together. How sad is that! Again, this morning we watched conference, but this time with was the General Priesthood Session. Another fantastic session! Our minds were once again blown. I love the leaders of This Church! It is unreal how solid and brilliant all of these men and women are. I really look up to their amount of faith and trust that they all have in our God and Savior. It is interesting, because as a missionary I have had times where I am caught in a stupor of thought which results in me seriously questioning my faith. Seems backwards right? I have been certified and deemed one worthy to testify and bring souls unto Christ but I too am learning how to follow and apply same teachings that I study and teach everyday. However, it isn't backward at all. When my faith takes a step back to question, I always find an answer that causes my faith shoot forward ten steps. This is especially true when it comes to listening to our amazing prophet Thomas S. Monson, the apostles, and any leader of the church. Their testimonies and conviction keep me grounded and reminds me what the power and influence of the spirit is as well as what it feels like. So if you ever know anyone whose faith is dwindling, you can count on the prophet.

We traveled home, ate lunch, and left again for an appointment. 정혜연S (Sister Jeong), our less-active member, was so sad to hear that Sister Bagley would be leaving so we set a time to come by for one last visit together. It was a good time as always, but also super sad when it came time to say goodbye. I feel very grateful to be staying, but it is a strange thought to imagine Mansu without Sister Bagley.. As a companionship we really made a name for ourselves here but now my other half is leaving! I am excited to train but anyway it is still a sad thought. After our visit with Sister Jeong we made our way to 김보희S (Sister Kim)'s house for a practice lesson. Another sad goodbye. To end the night we visited our Korean Momma, 이두례S (Sister Lee). All day Sister Bagley and I had been practicing the nursery rhymes that Sister Lee had taught us weeks earlier so tonight before we ate, we preformed:

나리 나리, 개나리. 입에 따다 물고요. 병아리떼 종종종. 봄나들이갑니다. (Song about a flower)

곰세마리가, 한 집에 있어. 아빠곰, 엄마곰, 애기곰. 아빠곰은 뚱뚱해 엄마곰은 날씬해, 애기곰은 너무 귀여워. 으쓱, 으쓱 잘 한다. (Song about three bears)

She was so proud of us when we finished haha, it was adorable. Afterwards we ate delicious food together, talked about many things, and ended with a practice lesson. It was a good night. Also I have failed to mention that every member we have visited this week has given us a bunch of food! It hardly makes sense because they give it to us to say 'goodbye' and 'job well done' to Sister Bagley but she leaves in the morning so she won't even be able to enjoy any of it haha!

Wednesday morning we cleaned the house and got Sister Bagley all ready to go. We made our way to the 신도림 (Sindorem) subway station where all missionaries meet to switch companionship. When we arrived there were over 50 missionaries! What a sight that was! I hugged my beloved companion goodbye and then waited around for the other trainers to arrive so we could head to the mission home together.

Trainers meeting was fun as usual. I really love the office couple, Elder and Sister Grosebeck. Their sense of humor is so dry and yet so hilarious. They did a skit about cleaning on PDAY- the same one they always do. The script hasn't varied in the least since the Seoul South mission began, but it still gets me every time haha. Next was a training. President Morrise trained us trainers and the assistants took the trainees in the other room for their training. Before coming back together, President Morrise asked a few of the trainers to share an experience about how our faith has been strengthened recently. I shared the experience Sister Hammerl and I had with applying the scriptures of 1 Nephi 1-3 to an investigators concerns and needs. I felt the spirit so strongly when President Morrise asked us to share as well as while I was speaking. I love being a missionary and I love that I know that I am in a position to be called upon at any moment to testify of the realness and truthfulness of this gospel. It was a great experience.

When the time came to meet our trainees I was so nervous! I was called to train Sister Haley Dawn Mineer from Parowon, Utah! She is blonde and 5" 11'.... She is definitely going to stick out like a soar thumb here haha. Sister Mineer is a very happy person, always smiling but just like every other greenie in the room, she was exhausted from the 16 hour plane ride and the 5ish hours of sleep they had last night. I'm sure she will be more talkative in about a week. I am so excited to show her around Mansu!

When training ended we traveled home with the elders from Mansu and Yonsu. The three greenies were in a daze the whole subway/ride home. One funny thing to note: when we got off the charter bus, the driver was hurrying us so I took it upon myself to take all the luggage out from under the bus. No one else was doing it... So I did. Afterwards I heard 박동규E (Elder Park) saying to another elder, "I'm pretty sure she isn't a girl." Haha I just laughed, bless his heart. On our way home we made a pitstop at our member 노경아S (Sister No)'s house to pick up some food she wanted to give to us. It was very kind, but also awful timing ha. When we finally got home we planned for the next day, ate dinner, and went straight to sleep. It was a long day.

Thursday was busy! In the morning. We had a potential investigator appointment. 이은성S (Sister Lee), our go-to member, came with us. It turned out this person had zero gospel interest so we just got to know each other and gave her a pamphlet to read though. Seed planted, check! Next we walked around trying to find a less-active/ recent convert member. We failed and the member never called or texted us back, sad.

By 3PM we found ourselves at the famous 인천대겅원 (Incheon Big Park... literally translated). Here we met a member who wanted to make a short video of us missionaries baring our testimonies. It went well... I am so awkward in front of a camera but oh well, I just bore my testimony and shared my favorite scripture with my awkward half smile frown haha. Hopefully it turned out less retarded than what I remember.

What we do as missionaries... TESTIFY! Check it out~

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C0LYCP4_9v8&feature=youtu.be

To end the day we ate dinner, met up with 김소정S (Sister Kim), and head over to 정현지 (HyonChee)'s house for our lesson. It went well. In order to prepare HyonChee for her baptismal date, we taught four commandments of obedience, praying, scripture reading, and keeping the Sabbath day holy. Nothing too special to report, but the whole family enjoyed and agreed with the message. Oh! Also, the parents were helping get involved with planning the logistics of the baptismal service! I really hope it all goes well and it helps that the whole family now sees it as an big event!!

Friday was an early morning because we had to received Sister Mineer's foreigner card. Normally we apply of those cards on PDAY but the next few Mondays are holidays. It was beautiful weather outside so I was grateful to be able to enjoy it as we traveled. We were in and out fairly quickly. I know my way around those offices pretty well nowadays haha. I've been there five times! Crazy. Once we were home we studied. By 4PM we met up with 이은성S (Sister Lee) again for another potential investigator appointment. I felt bad calling her again... I ask so many favors from her but she is always available and willing. I did try other members but I think it was meant to be because the appointment went well and we have a new investigator!!

Her name is Seblewongel Tariku Kassa from Ethiopia (Southern Africa). Her and her husband Abraham are Ethiopian and came here to work. Their situation is unique, because when they came, Seble did not know that she was two months pregnant. She stayed slim all the way up until her 7th month! The baby came as a surprise and they had no money to go back to their country and now that their baby is technically 'Korean' the government is making it so difficult for them to leave again. It is a tragic story but when I heard it, all I could think was that this family is here for a reason. This beautiful family was referred to us from another set of elders closer to Seoul. They moved recently and are now in our area. I feel privileged to have met Seble and their beautiful (almost three month old) baby, Rachsa Abraham Tilahun. They are a humble family. They speak VERY little Korean and their second language is English. We are really going to need the help of the spirit when teaching them but we are excited.

Saturday was farming day! Fun side note, the member who rents this so called 'farm land' (I put that in quotes because the land is the least fertile farm land I've ever seen... trash and rocks EVERYWHERE) had a discussion with the landlord this week. The landlord saw us foreigners farming and mistook us for immigrant workers ha! He threaten to take the land back if he kept us working. In order to save his land, he lied. He said they we were college students doing research... So the landlord gave him more. haha. What a joke! Why not tell him that we are service missionaries?! Haha.

We farmed sweet potatoes then watered the potatoes and green onions that are growing. Pretty fun! After all that hard work we ate lunch together like we always do. It was delicious but it left us with less time to study. It turned out to be okay though because both of our appointments cancelled! Well one rescheduled but anyway all we had for the rest of the day was English class and weekly planning.

Sunday was good. 현지(HyonChee) came to church and Sister Mineer and I split up for Young Women's class and Relief Society. When it was time for sacrament meeting a bunch of members were crowding my companion to say hi. But guess what?! When she tried to show them her name, realized that she didn't have her nametag! I quickly grabbed a member for another member split and we ran home to retrieve it. Since it is Sister Mineer, Elder Godfrey, and Elder Meeks first Sunday in this ward they were going to give an small introduction after the sacrament was passed. There was a risk that we would miss her time to speak so we split up. Unfortunalty me and the member who left, missed sacrament. I was so sad and Sister Mineer felt so bad. Oh well, it wasn't the worst thing that could have happened. After church we waited around for our rescheduled appointment with 김하나S (HahNah). Two YSA members joined us. We had originally invited 오의림S (UhRem) but 백하영S (HaYong) decided she wanted in too. The lesson was okay... We should have prepared better but anyway we taught about eternal life being our ultimate goal. Next time we'll discuss how we can set smaller goals (like coming to church, praying, reading the scriptures) to achieve our big goal.

Directly after the lesson we saw our investigator off and then went home with HaYong. Her parents (백용실B and 유경숙S) invited us over for dinner. It was a Blast!! This family is my FAVORITE family in all of Korea!! The father and I get along well with our sarcastic personalities, me and his wife constantly cook and clean together, and HaYong is just an adorable senior in high school that won't ever stop hugging me or holding my hand. I feel so loved every time I am with them. As we ate we were all entertained by Elder Godfrey. Him and Sister Mineer were in the same MTC district so she warned me a little about him. He is loud and ridiculous. Everyone can't help but smile and laugh every time he opens his mouth. I'll have to take a video or two to remember because words will never described him well. I'll end by saying he is a little behind in his common sense and doesn't pick up on social cues quickly... His ignorance and veil on oblivion is hilarious but also adorable. He will be a great missionary.

This week was fun and Sister Mineer is definitely a huge blessing to both me and Mansu area! We get along and she is ready to work, I love it! I have four more months to set Korea on fire with the gospel and she is ready to move at full speed!! I miss you all, thank you for your love and prayers. I too want to pray for all of you too. If there is anything big or small that I can pray for, please email me! I pray for most of you by name anyway on a daily basis, let me know what I can help with! :)

Love you! Have a great week!
Sister Sloan

Corn ice cream

Meet Sister Mineer from Parowan, Utah.  She is 5'11"  I love her~

I received the sweetest letter from my trainer, Sister Yoon.  Believe it or not, it is all in Korean and i UNDERSTOOD IT!  I miss her..

English Class!  Check out our commercial.

http://youtu.be/ORIRt8ZjqDA

Crammed in Sister Park's car after dinner with all the missionaries and some members to end our fast.  So fun!!

Sunset in Incheon