Week 30 (10/28/13)

Honestly, this week has been INSANE. We have had so many set appointments and things. I have come home every single night exhausted. It's crazy. AND, I just found out that us and the ELders in our ward have the biggest area in our zone! I feel like it's way smaller than Naples though, weird. We are so blessed in this area to have so many member referrals (I just learned to spell that word) though! It's so awesome how much we have to do! :) I'm loving it! Being so tired you can hardly move is the best feeling in the world! :) :)

We have seen SO many miracles. I keep a miracle journal and every single day without fail I can see something easily that Heavenly Father has blessed us with.

I met a family that know people that live in Saratoga Springs! Crazy right? They're members though.... so not as cool... but still!

I LOVE the Book of Mormon. It. Is. SO. True. I finished it for my 6th time this last week and I just love it. Everytime I read it I am just reminded of how true it is. I love it. I love it. I love it. READ IT EVERY SINGLE DAY. It will change your life! It's the best book ever. This time instead of marking when it talks about Christ I'm going through it with a missionary mind and marking when it talks about missionary work and stuff like that. There's a LOT of it in there! We read the story about Nephi building the boat from the perspective of Hastening the Work. It was amazing! The scriptures apply so well to our own lives! :) The more I read them, the more I love them! :)

It's amazing how well I connect with everyone here, and that's why I'm STAYING! :D now here's the story... the peachyness of missionary work....

My comp and I have not been donig so good. I thought it would get better as we got farther in the transfer, but it really hasn't... she's having a lot of problems at home and she's gonig through a lot. Plus, it's been this way with all her other companions so it wasn't really a surprise to me or President when there was problems. Sometimes they would go away, but she just is having a really hard life right now and it comes out in the work and on me. I have really learned to rely on my Heavenly Father so much these past 6 weeks. He's there. And always will be. I can tell you that.

President knew we were having a hard time, I'd tell him in my letters and he called us a couple times. So anyways, this past week they made this new change with transfers. We all had an extra 4 hours to deep clean our apartments on Saturday and once we were done we called the ZL's to get our transfer updates. I thought for sure I was leaving, just with her and other things, I almost packed my bags.... but long story short... well, I'm still gonna make it long let's be honest this is me, look at the email already.... she didn't get her stuff clean in time and we had appointments all day. The ZL's were so confused, but I told her we couldn't call them and tell them it was clean until it really was. So we didn't even know all Saturday what was going on with transfers and that made me so mad. She basically told me she was doing it to bug me... ah. So, the ZL and our DL were super concerned cuz Saturday night she still woudln't clean.. so we still didn't know what was going on. They called President, and he called us asking us what was going on. I told him and he just said he'd stay in contact with us. We drive home and the ZL's and STL's are in our apartment cleaning it hahaha it was actually pretty funny. Sister O was not happy cuz they had moved her stuff which I didn't dare to do.

So the STL said that she felt like we needed to do an emergecny exchange. So, I grabed my stuff and Sister Hill and I went to their place. It was really nice to be able to talk to her and have support. The Elders came and gave me an amazing blessing. The priesthood is SO REAL. I love it. It was such a simple blessing, but the second he put his hands on my head I was comforted. I felt so at peace and couldn't help but cry becuase I knew that Heavenly Father was completly aware of me. It was an amazing experience. So the next morning we exchanged back and drove to Tampa... I forgot to mention President told Sister O that night that she needed to come up (on p-day :P) to talk to him. Tampa was an hour drive... so that was fun. They talked for about 45minutes while I ate cupcakes and talked to the senior couples and office missionaries. President really didn't talk to me, all he told me was that she knew it was her fault and she didnt' blame me for anything. He then told us he'd call us later to tell us what was going on with transfers. 20minutes after we left he called us and told us Sister O was leaving and I was staying.

SO! There's my story. It's crazy.... I know. Dramatic. It could probably make a pretty good movie actually...

But I know that this transfer is right. I love this area so much and I love the people more than anything and Sister O told President that there are people here that need me, which I feel that too. So I think that's the only reason that I'm staying. It's pretty crazy.... but so right.

I love Sister O so much, and I'm so glad I've got to serve and learn from her. She's taught me really without her knowing it, how much our Heavenly Father knows us, and how blessed I truly am. I don't know why I am so lucky to have the family I have, and to be here in the mission in the world, but I thank my Heavnly Father every single day for it. I don't understand why I have it so good, but I am so grateful.

Thank you all for everything! You can keep sending the letters tooooooo

5921 Topher Trail

Mulberry, FL 33860

I love you all so much! :) :)

Love, Sister Calder ;)

Week 29 (10/21/13)

This week has been INSANE! I can't believe how much work there is in this area! We are so busy and exhausted when we get home! I haven't written hardly any letters cuz of it. Also- just know. I have written everyone back. So if you don't have a letter from me and your wrote it, I probably didn't get it :( so please don't think I hate you! I love hearing from you all and it actually  makes the work a little bit easier to hear what's going on at home :)

We had a missionaries worst nightmare lesson in Gospel Principles on Sunday. Heavenly Mother. Good stuff. Not. Oh man. Hahaha It still feels like a dream.

On Tuesday we get ready to go out and look outside... they took our stairs out.... so we couldn't get down from our apartment!! They didn't give us warning or anything! It was CRAZY! But SO funny. Good thing we still had weekly planning to do! But we had to cancel an appointment! Funnnnn times.

We have had even more success leaving the Saviors peace and blessing in members homes!

We met one of the sisters previous gators and she was awesome! Millions of dollars worth of collectiable things in her house! That hard thing is, she doesn't believe in God. This is the first time I"ve had to deal with this and it's HARD! But makes you really wonder how you have and how you gained your own testimony of God and who he really is. I love it! :)

I got my hair cut on Monday. Worst experience ever. I will never do that again. Mom... you're the only one touching it from now on. 2 inches. GRRRRRRRRRR. Too much and it doesn't look good. Huh. It's hard I know. Hair. Of all the things I could worry about. Oh well!  

I had a cool experience.... not cool..... I got denied for the first time... while trying to give someone a book of Mormon. That was fun! Hahaha not. Everyone else has taken one, but he really wouldn't. Good thing I know where he lives haha :) jokes.... sort of.

Also... an avocado fell from a tree I went to pick it up and there was a lady there. I gave it to her, and now we are going back to pray with her! Lesson, pick up avocados.

I realy don't know what else to say!

Don't send me letters so my address, send them to the mission home cuz transfer calls are this week! :)

Ohhh.... and the bishop called Sister O. and I up to talk on sunday cuz their talks fell through! It was so much fun and awesome! :)

 

I love you all! :)

Love, Sister Calder

Week 28 (10/14/13)

So sorry about the short letter last time! Apparently that's no good for a lot of people... hahaha.

So the beginning of this week was great. I was backing the car out of the driveway of a less active who had just told us they weren't interested and not to come back. There is lots of rain and mud in Florida.... so I backed out and turned the wheel and it went off the drive way... and the tire got stuck. IDK how to explain it more than that... but I have a pic! So you can look at that. 5 million phone calls, and one hour later with no help from ANYONE... we prayed. Yeah I know, should have done that in the first place. But we prayed and right after that things started working. It was going to cost 100$ for a towing truck guy to get it out, but I did not want to pay that. After we prayed we decided that we would let the LA's husband get it out. He had done it before with other people who had gotten caught in there. So we put a board under it and he pulled it from behind. Luckily, NOTHING was damaged. It was seriously a miracle. Plus, we got to talk to that LA and a ton of her neighbors while we were trying to work it all out. It rock. I honestly think it was meant to happen!  We brought them all cookies later that night to say thank you :)

Last p-day we played a game called scatter-ball... like dodgeball.... it was awesome. Then we played kickball in the rain like champs. We need to be on a powerade commercial or billboard.

Ernie and Ashley are the best recent convers ever. Honestly I have so much love for them it's not even funny. He's so protective of us and he's basically like our dad :) super redneck who has done some hard core stuff that I can't even talk about. That's all.... he's the best.

Polk county is the meth capitol of the US. It's probs second next to Jamaica in the world. No jokes. That makes ya'll feel better about me being here right? Hahaha

The LA Sister Greene who's husband passed away is still having a hard time, but it's amazing how I've been able to connect with her. It's crazy how I can feel that I am here for specific people.... there is even this other LA girl who's a couple years older than me and I just love her to death!!!!!! She's the best! :) I just know I am here for them and probs more people as well!

We had a really cool experience. We say a prayer in people's homes called the Saviors Peace and Blessing. I can't remember if I've told ya'll about it (that ya'll is stuck in my brain.... I am trying so hard to get it out! Sorry....  probably sound insane. I have no idea how I just changed that to italics...) it's just a prayer with people addressing their specific needs. We go around and ask people what each of them need. So we did it for a family in the ward. Their oldest son just asked to have opportunities in baseball. He's been struggling with church and stuff and his mom has been worried about him, so she said she was sad when that's all he asked for. Literally 2 days later he had all of this stuff open up in baseball for him! He recognized and told his mom that is was from the prayer. SO COOL! She balled as she told the story in RS and now everyone wants us to come and do it in their home! It gave me the spiritual chills like CRAZY!

I have 39 bug bites on my left leg and 84 on my right. No joke. I went through with a pen and counted them all. I got attacked last night. I look like I have a rash all over... but it's just the bites... good stuff.

I love being a missionary! More than anything! It makes me SO happy to be here and to be serving my Heavenly Father!

I love you all so much! This gospel is 100% true! It's the greatest thing in the world!

Love, Sister Calder ;)

Bugs are the enemy

Stuck in the mud

Now that's a gator

Sacred to get my hair cut 

Week 27 (10/7/13)

AMAZING week. As always :)

Conference ROCKED! My notebook is so full!

I forgot to mention last week that Elder Teh came and visited our mission. It rocked. That's all :)

2 really special things happened this week.

 

#1 I hit 33 MPH on my bike. It's a record. Sometimes you just have to take a little bit of time out of your day when you see those speed things on the road in a small town. That's good advice for all of you. It's worth it.  

#2 I hit my 6 month mark. AH! I know. I still can't believe it. My comp wouldn't sing Happy Birthday to me though.... haha ohhhh well.

 And! I'm emailing my family so that's about it for this week! I had more, but I'll tell you all next week!

Love you all!

:)

Love Sister Calder :)

Me and Sister Lee of course 

Emailing my family in my new mustache shirt that they sent me 

I promise it said 33 but Sister O. just got 31

Millions of bug bites

Week 26 (9/30/13)

So. I am living in Duck Dynasty. Just to let ya'll know. Oh man. ya'll just came off the page. That was crazy. Apparently we are now in the bible belt. Being more up North in Florida is really fun :) it's very south! Nothing in Naples was South. But everyone and everything here is. It. Rocks.

We had a cool experience this week (let's be honest, what's new? I have one of those every single day). We have an investigator named Felisha. She is AMAZING. We taught her the first lesson and she said the spirit was like pins and needles stabbing her! She loved it! Then she texted us on Saturday and asked us if we wanted to come over! Of course we said YES! So we went over and she told us that she got this job she had been applying for! So she's a nurse right now. She has 3 kids and wants to spend more time with them. So she applied to be a bus driver cuz she did that a while ago and loved it. She applied right after our lesson with her and Tuesday and they called her on Saturday and told her that she got the job! She was so happy and wanted us over so that she could tell us. She said that we were angels sent to her and that she knows she was blessed with this job because of us and what we were teaching her! We told her that was exactly it and that she was being blessed because of it! Oh man. We love her so much! She gave us some pretty jewlery and we are going to her sons birthday party haha. She is honestly the best and I love her so much!

I absolutly love my mission! It's the best thing that I've ever done! This gospel is real and it is so amazingly true! It changes peoples lives. It's amazing. I love it more than anything in the world. I love seeing how people remember what we are teaching them. We have heard people say- "I've heard this before" more than once. Because they totally have! I am learning and growing so much every day! There is nothing that can turn you more Christ-like than going on a mission! Every day I am seeing more like our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ does. I can't believe that I have been out for 6 months already! It goes by way too fast! I miss my family and everyone like crazy! But I would never trade this for anything! I know this gospel is true! And I know that Heavenly Father knows us each individually and loves us more than we could ever comprehend! Don't forget about General Conference this weekend! We are SO excited to hear from our prophet and apostles! I know if you have a question in mind that you go with, that it will be answered! Watch all sessions! Then watch them all again! This is the greatest opportunity we have!

 

Love you all!

 

Love, Sister Calder :)

 

P.S. This is the Florida Tampa Mission Facebook site! So instead of a blog like President and Sister Summerhayes they are doing this!

 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/floridatampamission