Week 51 (3/24/14)

Okay I PROMISE that I'm not being like over optimistic or anything…. but this week was pretty much the bomb too. We've just seen SO many miracles!! :) 

Something cool I've realized is how much I've been able to not only teach by the spirit, but teach simply as well. You know how they say the more you learn the more you are able to teach simply? Well it's totally true! I love it!! :) I have seen how much I've been able to talk to non members and explain things that they understand. We're constantly thinking about non-members for everything! You can usually see us cringing in sacrament meeting or trying to distract people when people go deeper than deep. Which seems to happen in our ward a lot… it must be the old ladies. 

When I first came out on my mission I really wanted to tell everyone that families can be together forever! But now along with that, my real goal is to make people happy! Mainly because the gospel brings SO much happiness into my life and I want other to have that same JOY! 

It's cool :) 

It's spring break so it's been CRAZY here! The traffic is awful and it's taking us a lot longer to get places! We're living in a vacation place… I think I just forgot that. 

We're doing a 5K on Saturday! We're SUPER excited! Fun finding activities! :D

I got to talk to Ernie and Ashley on the phone :) they were planning on coming down this weekend but stuff got messed up. So in a couple weeks they will come down here and go to church with us and then on p-day we'll hangout and go to the beach and stuff. I'M SOOOOOOOOOOO EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D :D I love those guys so much! 

We got to have dinner with our mission president on Tuesday! He took us to this awesome place. it was pretty fun. It was about 6 sets of sisters and then him, Sister Cusick, and Kate. Pres asked Sister Upshaw and I why we were so happy… all we could say was- "WE JUST LOVE EACH OTHER!" Hopefully he'll keep us together longer….

I ate sushi for the first time and actually liked it! One had tuna… one had crab… and one had shrimp! There ya go. Branching out…. we go to lunch every week with the YW president and one of the young women who's having a hard time. SHe loves it!!!! She seems happier and we just love her!

Our less active work has been taking off! We have seen so much success and we love it!!!! :D 

We set a date with Terri Taddle! We're SUPER excited for her! 

Yeah. That's a good run down. Boring email eh? Sorry!! Everything is just great :) 

I love you all! 

Love, Sister Calder

Giant hamburger that President was really impressed that I ate

This has our name in it. this is a Filipino from my ward. What is this stuff though?

Squished a giant cockroach

I ate like 4 of these. Store bought cupcakes are my  weakness.

Week 37 (12/16/13)

Crazy news! I'm back with my trainer Sister Andersen! AH! At transfers we were sitting next to each other and both of us still weren't getting called up! Then... there was no more English Sisters. So we thought we'd be in a Zebra! Nope! When  he said we were together I said, "wait, you know we've been together right?" then President said- "well, was it broken?"

So there ya go! He doesn't fix not broken things! But we've been having SO MUCH FUN! And we're so excited to work with this bran new ward!

We are serving in University Park ward! It's officially been a ward for 1 month! They pulled people from 3 different wards! This does not happen in Utah... it's been a little crazy compiling info! The ward is STELLAR though! I seriously love it so much! There are so many unique cool people here! People in the circus... a par-olympian... a biker girl.... a real life actor! 

It's so cool!

I can't even describe how amazing our first ward counsel was! I was blown away by this bran new ward and bishop! They really get this hastening the work! It was so amazing to see! I have never felt the spirit so strong in a ward counsel before! 

I've realized this week that sometimes you have personal experiences, and you don't have to share them! Let's just say, I was at a mission low, and now I'm at the highest high!!!!!!! :) and I couldn't be happier! 

"Few experiences compare to the joy of helping others learn and live the gospel."

That's truth right there!

I love it! :) 

Our WML rocks hard core. He got me SO pumped! 

I love you all! 

Merry Christmas! 

Do the work!

Love, Sister Calder ;) the one in Florida... the other one is a lot cooler.... in the Philippines ;)

Week 9 (6/3/13)

This week has been AMAZING! I seriously cannot tell you how much I love my mission!

I have really developed a strong testimony on prayer. I have had so many prayers answered and have really learned to listen and know exactly what my Heavenly Father wants me to do.

We have gotten caught in LOTS of rain storms. Welcome to Florida summer and hurricane season :)

Sister Miles left and it makes me want to cry every single day. I love her so much. :(

I love p-days! I had to buy a volleyball cuz Sister Miles left and she was the only one that had one! I used a whole bag of m&m's and threw them in the Elders mouths. That was fun. Plus we had a nutella party cuz Elder Langi was leaving. I brought pickles for it and people loved it! It really is good. Everyone go and try it now ;)

I left my first Saviors Peace and Blessing! It is just a mighty prayer on peoples homes. The woman was in tears by the end. We felt the spirit SO strong! It was amazing!!! The new people in our zone are pretty cool! Nothing compares to our old zone though ;)

It's funny how much comp inventory helps! Sister A and I are getting along better than ever!!!

We were going to visit a referral that the Spanish sisters gave us. We visited the whole house twice and when the wrong person answered we were shocked, but we decided it was good cuz then they have a chance to hear the gospel! Looking on the bright side :) that's what we are working on.

Sorry this one is so quick. It's been a crazy p-day.

I almost ran over a baby bird, but then we saved it's life instead.

I have decided that fasting on the mission is hard. I had a really hard time with it last week. So this week I prayed that I would be able to focus on what I was fasting for and not my hunger. IT TOTALLY WORKED. Imagine that :)

Anyways. I love you all so much!!!! :)

 

 "The trick is to enjoy life. Don't wish away your days, waiting for the better ones ahead. The grand and the simple. They are equally wonderful."

-Sister Hinkely :)

 

Love, Sister Calder

Week 8 (5/28/13)

Well this one is probably going to be short again :)

 

This week was pretty awesome. We went to a wedding on Friday. It was a recent convert and someone Sister Andersen knew was going to be there. We got invited and needed a ride cuz we are on bike so the Elders drove us. The trio forwarded the message to us about the wedding cuz that used to be Sister Andersens phone so the groom invited them as well. Then the Naples Sisters felt left out so they came too. It was pretty awesome and they were totally cool with it. The couple was cute. It was on the beach, but not all the way so we could go. We now know why we can't go on the beach.... it's not good for the Elders.... or the Sisters really. But it was so much fun.

We had transfers this past week. Everyone thought that I would be training after 6 weeks. I was totally willing and ready to do it. I thought I would learn a lot if I did. But, Sister Andersen didn't get transfered so I'm still with her :) but it's good cuz then I can learn even more from her :)

One of the Sisters went home. Me and her cried a lot together. I have become so close with her. She makes me feel like I can be myself and I can talk to her about anything. She's just like Sister Lee ;) She got hurt abgout 11 weeks ago and still isn't healing. She's going home to get a scope and to heal a little bit. Then they will know if she needs surgery or not. She's coming back though sooner or later thank goodness! Not to the same area... but I will see her every once in a while :)

P-days are the greatest. We basically just laugh the whole time. I could sit and explain to you all the funny things that go on... but it wouldn't make sense. :) Let's just say I convinced everyone that pickles and Nutella are good (which they really are!!!!!!) and they all ate it. Most everyone liked it :) I love our zone! Too bad that was our last p-day together :( Everyone has some change going on except the Spanish Sisters and Sister Andersen and I.

We taught the first lesson to Dawn. I recited the first vision and cried a lot. She said it peirced her soul. She believe that it is the true church.... someone is holding her back though. But we just contine to pray and we know that everything will work out in time. :)

Sister Andersen and I laugh a lot :) missions really are the funnest thing ever. Elder Anderson was right when he said it should be mission FUN cuz it totally is :)

I have learned a lot about having a personal relationship with my Heavenly Father. We pray so much. I love it :) I feel like every day I come closer to my Father in Heaven and I can listen to the spirit better and I can find who I need to find and say what I need to say.

 

"If we exercise faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the enabling power of his Atonement strengthens us in our momemnt of need."

-Elder Cardon GC April 2013

 

Mom- this quote reminded me of you :)

 

"How you love and honor her father, his priesthood, and his divine role will be reflected and perhaps amplified in your daughter's attitudes and behavior."

-Sister Dalton GC April 2013

 

Because it was memorial day I was reminded of dad. This has nothing to do with the quote but I could just see everyone in our family huddled around the graves of grandpa and dad and eating food. We celebrate the lives of the people we love becuase we have the firm knowledge that we will see them again. That's why I'm here. To share that amazing message with others. :)

 

I love you all so much! :) Don't forget about me please :)

 

Love, Sister Calder

Mom- Elder Langi is a football player for the U. Sister Miles and I tricked him by telling him that we were going to write our names on his shirt and we did a big Y instead ;) some of my cousins might actually know who he is. He also likes my sunglasses..... his first name is Haveais. I think he was a reciever or something. But you should ask people if they know him ;)

Too bad he got transfered. He's pretty much the best haha

Week 7 (5/20/13)

This week has been slow. We had appointments and all of them fell through. We are stuggling to find people and have done a lot of tracting. I went on an exchange with our Sister Training leader (who we used to live with) and I loved every second of it! I learned more from her in one day than I have since being out in the field. I felt like a real missionary for a day. I really don't know what that means. But it felt really good. Now I am working on those things she taught me with my comp and everything has been a lot better! I even learned some Spanish! They have an English class that they teach and I was able to sit in on it. The Spanish brothers would say something in English then Sister Hill would make me say it in Spanish. They all laughed really hard at me. Let's just say- I'm very white :) it didn't help that that day I got SUPER sunburned! But I did learn how to say that I don't speak spanish but we have sister missionaries who do speak spanish, can we send them over? So when we are tracting and come into a Spanish family we can send these sisters over. I'm pretty excited about it :)

We learned at lot about working with memebers in our zone conference on Tuesday. It was a lot of fun, and very interesting. They really want us to focus on memebers, and member referrals. So that's what we have been working on lately :)

On Saturday we went to the Hatianaries baptism. It was an amazing experience. We got there late because they were delivering a couch to our house. But we came in while they were playing prelude (I was asked to play, but I had another sister do it becuase I knew we would be late. I am so grateful for her!!!!:)) and the woman that got baptized came in waving her hands and said with a huge bright smile on her face- "I'm so happy!" I couldn't help but cry. That is what this gospel is. Pure joy. Even now I get emotional writing about it. That is how we should always feel. So happy about the gospel that we cannot even contain ourselves. That's why I'm here. I am so happy about the gospel that I cannot even hold it in any longer. I have to share it with everyone! :)

 

Helamen 5:11

We are those angels. The Hope of Israel. :)

I can't even explain to you how much happiness I feel to be a member of our Heavenly Fathers army.

 

"As we give devoted service to Him, He draws closer to those we love in our families."

-Presdient Eyring April 2013 General Conference

 

I thought that quote would give hope to those of you who are struggling with your children or family members who have fallen away. I have a firm testimony that if we trust in the Lord, and serve him with all of our heart, might, mind, and strength that everything will be made right in the end. I can promise you that as a representative of Jesus Christ. :)

 

I love you all to infinity and beyond :)

 

Love, Sister Calder