Week 11: I Nearly Ruin a Sacred Ordinance

The same kid wanted to take MORE pictures of me and I don't have any other pictures this week, so enjoy my squinty eye and messy part!

On Sunday just before ward council, the new ward music director asked if I could be a backup pianist for sacrament meeting. This was my Worst Fear, but of course I said I could do it! After ward council, we tried calling and texting to see who was playing and if she'd picked hymns, but she didn't pick up! So the bishopric asked me just to do it. The sister who was conducting the music really wanted us to sing The Day Dawn Is Breaking, so I stumbled through that with a lot of wrong notes! She also wanted us to sing I Stand All Amazed but I had attempted to play that in zone council a few days earlier and I was Not Interested in taking the Spirit out of the sacrament, so we sang There Is A Green Hill Far Away instead. It was fine, but not perfect. I was literally shaking the whole time. But I made it! And the sacrament wasn't ruined (by some minor miracle).

We also taught institute last night! It was lots of fun because as many of you know teaching institute is secretly my dream job! And the elders (with whom we switched off) said we did a good job! Win! We talked about divine truth and receiving revelation. It was great! I love talking about truth!

Sister Bangura went to this all-you-can-eat sushi place on Thursday and our server asked us what church we were from and if he could come! He even gave us his number and actually responds to our texts! He was working on Sunday, so he couldn't make it, but we're gonna keep trying with him! He's so cool! I love Dan!

Yesterday, I had my first real-person zone conference, because last transfer we did service for zone conference. We sat down for daily planning at 8:31 and checked to see how long it would take us to get to the chapel. It was 8:33 when we read the email that said that zone conference had been moved from 10:00 to 8:30. After hurriedly calling and texting our district and getting no responses, we rushed out the door and made it there at 9:10. Not exactly right on time. But, what are you gonna do? Read the zone conference schedule when it gets sent at the beginning of the transfer? Couldn't be me.

It was a good meeting, though. Lots of sitting. Lots of training. 

On Monday, it POURED. All day. This was very exciting because I don't have rubber rainboots, and so I was soaked. All day. I think my hair got wet and dried about a dozen times throughout the course of the day. We went downtown to talk to people, but people weren't outside. Because it was pouring. Missionary work is Difficult when there aren't people to talk to. That night for FHE we went out to hang food drive flyers on people's doors, and it was pouring and dark and cold! I thought I was going to get pneumonia, but I didn't. I just drank too much hot chocolate and put on my warmest jammies.

Last night, Sister Bangura gave me a rice bag for the start of the winter (which is terrifying because it's September) and I put it on my neck like a heating pad and it HURT! Because I am constantly tense! I knew that I was a stress case but I didn't know that it was bad enough that forcing my muscles to relax would be painful! I should probably work on that. Do some yoga.

This Sunday was Institute Sunday (which is a lot like Seminary Sunday) so one of the institute teachers spoke about how the Book of Mormon is the keystone of our religion. It was good, but he kept getting very distracted and asked us if we wanted to hear about the first baseball game, and it was sacrament meeting, so no one said anything, and then he told us that "In the Big Inning, Eve took first, Adam told second, and Cain struck out Abel." Nobody laughed, but. It was sacrament meeting. He also told us that in high school he played Joseph Smith in a play about the restoration and that his brother had to be his stunt double for when he got "tarred and feathered" (covered in molasses). He was grateful that his brother took one for the team but thought it was very amusing that the high school reenactment of the restoration required a Joseph Smith stunt double. 

A recent convert moved into our ward last week and she is SO cute and fun! Her name is Tess and she's living with her cousin who wanted to know all about our thoughts on the political climates in England and the states and about our families. He was very intrigued that we're basically his age and gave up a year and a half just to ... teach people about Jesus? A lot of people are very intrigued by it. Anyway, Tess has been living in a little town her whole life and was so cute and kind of afraid of moving from her small family ward of old people to a big YSA, but she made friends with some great kids in the ward super fast and I'm so excited for her! I feel like a mom!

Some of the family ward sisters also introduced us to a girl named Linh who babysits for and lives with a family of members. She's very sweet and has a lot of good questions, but she's Buddhist and says she's just interested in learning about Jesus Christ, not following Him. We're gonna try to change that 😉

On Sunday night, we went to visit a less-active member whose name kept coming up, and she wasn't home but her brand-new roommate had just moved into our ward and invited us in. She said she was from Cardston and living away from home for the first time and fed us all sorts of yummy baked and canned food that her mom had sent with her. It was great. We had a great time.

On Saturday I was "doing family history" (I had listened to a general conference talk that mentioned Charles C. Rich and I was like wow! I'm related to him! so I looked him up on FamilySearch) and it turns out that he had FIFTY-ONE CHILDREN. That's SO MANY. No wonder I have so many cousins.

John 6:66-69 says "From that time many of his [Jesus's] disciples went back, and walked no more with him. Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." I love this scripture because I love Peter's question! I also believe and am sure that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of the living God. And I recognize that there is nowhere else to go! He is the way! I also just find Peter to be very human and very relatable. But he was still the senior apostle! I love it!

On that note, I want to wish a very happy belated birthday to my #1 fave President Nelson! We watched his birthday bash and my companion made fun of me for being too invested. What can I say? I think he's great! And I am so so grateful for a prophet!

Sorry for a long email that I didn't proofread! I love you all so much! Have the best week!

Love, 

Sister Willis

P.S. I watched the Book of Mormon videos trailer and the music was GREAT I am PUMPED! I LOVE the Book of Mormon!!!!