"I Don't Think it's Just a Coincidence."

11-17-14

We were out tracting one afternoon because everything fell through and it was SOOOOOO cold. Like, we wanted to cry a little. We were knocking doors and no one was answering.  At the end of the hour we were walking back to our car, and we see this weird looking dude standing on a street corner with his hood up and honestly, he looked a little creepy to me. He seemed to be around his late 20's  and didn't seem to be paying attention to much of anything.

We decided to talk to him anyway, so we say hello and start walking over to him. He starts to say, “What are you pretty ladies doing out in the cold?" in a really low, kind of slow voice. In my head I'm like, "Oh great. This is going to be interesting." And then before we can start talking to him, a dude in a car pulls up and calls out to him and asks him if he knows where a certain street is, so we awkwardly wait while that conversation happens. Finally he turns

back to us. We're able to introduce ourselves and start to tell him what we're doing, but THEN a bus pulls up and a little girl jumps off and runs over to the guy we're talking to. She hugs him and he hugs her back and introduces her as his daughter. The little girl didn't let go, and kept holding on to her dad and looking up at us with big brown eyes. All of a sudden my heart softened and I began to see this man a little differently.

We started up a conversation with him and we get talking a little bit about the Book of Mormon. Sister Maddox had one in her hand and his eyes get a little glimmer in them as he looks at it and he asks, "Are you passing these out?" Big smiles come across all our faces as we give him the Book of Mormon. He proceeds to tell us how he's been recently trying to turn his life around and how he's back in school and working for a cement place and he now has custody of his little girl. He began to tell us more of his story and the way he was raised.  As he started talking, he covered his little girl's ears as he told us how his father was abusive and a drug addict and how he didn't want his daughter to grow up in a home like that. He uncovered her ears and hugged her a little closer.

Long story short, he wanted what we have, and he realized that. This next week we'll go back and teach him. It was a good lesson to me on not making judgments on first impressions. It was also just such a beautiful conversation. The spirit was there and you could feel it. He even said at the end, "I don't think it's just a coincidence that we met today." No C------, it wasn't. Because you and I are exactly where we need to be.

(Oh!!! Also, our atheist D------- has now not only decided that he's going to act as if God is real, but he finally understands that he really just needs to find out if the Book of Mormon is true and that will answer all the crazy little questions he always asks! He progresses really slowly, but it's so fun to watch!)

A Little Rain and Roadkill

Welcome to the Bible Belt!

While y'all are baking in the dry Utah heat, It's summertime here in Eastern Kentucky as well. You can tell by the frizziness of my hair and how I have a faint feeling like I might be underwater every time I walk out the door. But I love it  :)  There's nowhere else in the world

I would rather be. I wished so dang hard for an area just like this to spend my summer, and here I am! Not only in the perfect area, but with the best companion I could ask for!

#LifeIsGood

This week, we were running low on miles . . . so we walked. A ton. It made me realize what a spoiled missionary I am having not only a car, but a TRUCK! It was also REALLY rainy this week . . . we still walked. By the end of Tuesday we were jumping in puddles because our shoes were already soaked through anyway. We also made up a real fun game to keep us entertained while we walk. It's called "Name that Roadkill!" You have to guess what kind of animal is dead on the road, and if you get it wrong . . . you have to eat it. #WelcomeToTheWVCM

Since we've had to walk, we've done A TON of tracting this week. Two years ago I would have never guessed that I would be walking the streets of Pikeville, Kentucky and knocking on peoples’ doors telling them about the gospel, and the real weird part about it is . . . I

actually think it's pretty fun. But anyway, with all the tracting, we've found some pretty cool people! I know I shouldn't play favorites, but I do have a favorite person we met this week. His name is W------. He came out of his door to talk to us even before we knocked. We introduced the Book of Mormon to him and he was instantly captivated. We gave him a quick little restoration lesson and invited him to church and what not and invited him to read the Book of Mormon. His reply caught me off guard. He said, "Well, I don't read, but I have a buddy who will read it with me." The same feelings that hit me when I met the man at the food drive flooded back to me. As if I didn't already love W------- enough from his sweetness and gratitude, (he wouldn't stop thanking us for the Book of Mormon we gave him; I've never had anyone be that grateful) my love for the man deepened exponentially. I guess it just comes from the stories that people told me back home, people who had served in the WVCM, about having the chance to read the Book of Mormon with people who couldn't do it themselves, and from the stories of Sister Hunt from Ashland, telling about the man who taught her to truly love as she taught him and read to him the Book of Mormon. There's something about these humble Kentucky people that just.... they just get to me. Something about their soul, and my soul, something is the same, or maybe we just knew each other. I don't know exactly what it is, but I DO know that I'm supposed to be here with them, and that not only was I sent here for them, but they were sent here for me.

This week we also had a really great Zone Meeting in Paintsville, Kentucky. Our Zone Leaders, Elder Skidmore, from Idaho, and Elder Bowvie, from Kaysville, did a great job with that.

Saturday we finally got to see the W-------s family! It feels like a week without church or something when we don't get to see them for a week! The great news about that visit, is that J----- is now on date to be baptized on July 12th!!!! There's still an obstacle to overcome, but the ball is really rolling now! It's so exciting to see things falling into place! It just felt so good to see them this week. Their house feels in some ways like T---- and S----'s did in Lexington. You can't help but build family around you out here. People have such an incredible capacity to love. I've felt it so intensely on my mission. People are so good at loving, and we all have such an internal desire to love and be loved, and form those family bonds, whether blood

related or not.

The last cool thing that I wanted to mention, was the chance we had to go to M-------- S-----'s graduation. M------- was baptized in October last year, when I first got to the mission. We take her out to lessons with us a lot and she is such a light. I'm not sure I've talked much about her, but she's kind of a huge part of our lives here in Pikeville. She invited us to her graduation on Sunday, and we were able to go and support her. It was weird to sit in that graduation. I had weird flashbacks of my own graduation and it was so interesting to be in a graduation where I was on the other side of the stage. It kind of made me realize how old I am, and how far I've come. Elder Prince and Elder Quick also came to support her, and it was funny to stand next to Elder Prince, from Cardston, Canada, and realize that he doesn't know the Pledge of Allegiance, and have him be all confused when they play the pomp and circumstance song when the graduates walk in. 

#Canadians

It's been a great week, and I'm in such a great place. I love and miss you all to pieces.

#ILoveTheWVCM

#KentuckyKid

Hiking in Paintsville with Elders Banta and Olson

 

Sister Morgan taught me how to bake bread!

 

We back each other up.  Literally.  Every time we back the truck.