week 41: the garden of eagar

Monday, August 8th, 2016

hiiiiii.

I never know what to name the title of my emails, it's like trying to think of a caption for an Instagram pic. I feel like I just emailed. Well this week has been a bit odd. It's been good just not a normal week. It's the monsoon season here so it's been raining a lot! Literally thunder and lightening everyday but I LOVE it! And everything has been turning green! It's not as ugly ;)

Monday we had stake FHE. It was really good. We talked about callings and how if we have a willing and obedient heart then we can serve by the grace of Christ. Sometimes I think about all my inadequacies and compare myself to other missionaries. But I just can't do that. We all have different strengths. We then had a lesson with Gaylon. Paula Henrie came with us. He is still struggling with forgiving himself.

Tuesday we saw Donna, it had been so long since we had seen her because she was in the Dominican Republic. She is doing good, she is going to ASU soon so we only have one more lesson with her. She gets so into the scriptures and wants to know everything, she is cute. We then saw the Tisdells. Our lessons are so simple with them cause Sonny doesn't comprehend very much haha. We then saw Teri, Sister Ciminski came with us. I don't think she has the faith to stop smoking and that is the first step but she is doing well and has been coming to a little bit of church. We saw Amanda and taught her the restoration. She had a lot of questions but we felt like they needed to be answered so that made us late to all of our other apts. struggle. But Amanda said she would read the Book of Mormon and pray about it! We then met with the Riveras and it was really good. She really opened up. It's cool to see the change in them in just a short while. We then had dinner with the Davis family (LA). It was really good. I really like them. And their 11 year old son isn't baptized. We want to start teaching him. They are a really great family.

Wednesday we had to go to Luna, New Mexico to help the elders pack up and clean their house out there because they are only going to go there for a day once a week. Elder Dale and his wife came up so it was a party haha. So that took up most of our day. We contacted Sandyn finally! She was at girls camp and she wants to take the lessons! We are excited cause our teaching pool is going down.

Thursday we saw Cyndie. Love her. We then saw Chelsea. She is doing good. We are a little worried about her though because she is dating her ex again. We saw Sister Markley and she is doing well. We then saw Jessica, she hasn't been coming super often since she was endowed so we wanted to check on her, it was POURING out. Seriously it was raining so hard we got so wet just going from car to door. We had a lesson with Gaylon. We really want him to meet with the bishop cause we think it will help him. We will see. We had a good lesson with him though. The Spirit is always so strong in his lessons. We then had a lesson with Daryl and it was really good.

Friday was the start of Eagar days. We had a booth but it was Friday and raining so no one was there...haha but we got lots of free food so I'm okay with it. The elders had a baptism for Haylie's grandma so we went, it was really cool to see. We then saw Sheila. She is doing good. She is so cute and really wants to get to the temple.

Saturday we had Eagar days again and it was a lot better. It didn't rain once and there were so many people! We saw a lot of less-actives and talked to a lot of nonmembers. It was really fun. We didn't have any lessons that day cause we were so busy doing the booth. So that felt weird. It was a productive day but just a different kind of productive.

Sunday was good, I mean I almost passed out cause I was so hungry but it's all good. Oh fast Sundays. Lots of people came to church so it was great! We saw Dave Jr and Dakota came. He is doing well. We had a lesson with Matt Larue. He is less-active and we talked about getting the priesthood. He is having a baby soon and wants to bless his baby. We then had a lesson with Brylee. She was having a bad day. Her family life is pretty crazy I feel so bad.

I was reading in this month's Ensign and there is a talk called "Rooted in Christ" by Elder Clayton. It's really good, I probably like it so much cause I like trees. But anyways he says, "Because we don't know when or how our challenges will come, or how long our personal seasons of winter or summer will last, we should set down our roots as deeply as we can into the only true source of nourishment for our sounds, the Lord Jesus Christ." He talked about how if we never experience personal storms & drought our roots never have the chance to become strong. I thought that was interesting, we do needs these hard times to grow and to become stronger! Ironically I was reading Jacob 5 this week (luckily Ashleigh told me to pay attention to it as I read it!) about the allegory of the olive tree. While I was reading it I could feel God's love for me so strongly. He never gives up on us, He loves us unconditionally. It ceases to amaze me. Jacob 5:53 says, "I may preserve unto myself the roots thereof for mine own purpose." God does not was us to "perish" but He knows what trials we can handle for a specific purpose. It's hard to understand these purposes but that's where faith and trusting in God come in.

In the Ensign are these quotes about conversion & I just love them.

"Conversion is not an end, but a beginning of a new way of life." - Elder Perry

"My conversion process continues as I try a little harder to be a little better each day." - President Hinckley

I can never be too converted unto the Lord. I am grateful to become more converted each and everyday.

Thanks for being awesome! 

--xo: sista fisha

state signs

Ashton's birthday!

Eagar days // day 1

Eagar days // day 2

my talk!

Sunday, July 31st, 2016

My name is Sister Fisher. I'm from Seattle Washington and I've been out 9 months. Yes I am half way there and I can't believe it's gone that fast already. I'm grateful for the opportunity to serve a mission to learn and to grow, to meet all of you and to become more converted unto the Lord.

I haven't always wanted to serve a mission though. In fact a year ago I hadn't even decided that I wanted to go. It's cool though to look back and see how the Lord was preparing me to serve a mission. The experiences, trials and people I know have helped me to get where I am today. And of course I couldn't do it without my Savior.

But really I never thought about serving a mission too much growing up. Until Saturday October 6th 2012 morning session of general conference. I was 18 years old, a freshman in college. I was sitting in the conference room with my 5 other roommates. Everything seemed normal until the Prophet Thomas S Monson announced that sisters could go at age 19 now instead of 21. There was so much shock and excitement in the room. My jaw just kind of dropped and I didn't even know what to feel. I just started crying. I felt so confused because I felt right then that the Lord was telling me to go on a mission. But fear (aka Satan) was putting off that prompting.

The time passed and most of my friends left. I was excited for them and proud of the courage they had to go. I'm grateful for all of their examples. I just felt so much pressure to go. Every day I thought about it. Years went by always thinking of a mission. I was trying to convince myself I wasn't supposed to go. I told people I wasn't going. Of course if I told people I was going or even thinking about it, there was that much more pressure to serve.

I know that the experiences before my mission helped me get here and helped me be a better missionary today. I was in Africa for a couple months doing humanitarian work. I lived with all non-members and this was a really interesting experience for me. It was really the first time I had had to stand up for what I believed and answer questions about the gospel. I was talking to this one girl from Canada who didn't believe in God. She was saying how she doesn't understand how a world as beautiful as this could be created by anyone. When she said this, my heart broke. It really made me think of all the people who don't know God and Jesus Christ. After this experience I realized how much I want to share this gospel and how important it is to me. I don't know everything about the gospel but I do know that this gospel is true and that it makes me happiest.

I was reading a talk called "Cast Not Away Therefore Your Confidence" by Elder Holland. He says, "If it was right when you prayed about it and trusted it and lived for it, it is right now. Don’t give up when the pressure mounts. Certainly don’t give in to that being who is bent on the destruction of your happiness. Face your doubts. Master your fears. Stay the course and see the beauty of life unfold for you.“Fear ye not.” And when the second and third and fourth blows come, “fear ye not. … The Lord shall fight for you.” Cast not away therefore your confidence."

I read that and I knew I was supposed to go on a mission. Heavenly Father was telling me this whole time. So three years after the age changed I faced my fears. I decided to have faith and I talked to my Bishop. We got the paper work done in less than two weeks. I got my call three weeks later. I got my call to Arizona and left five weeks later. It all happened so fast. I know that God's timing is perfect though. I didn't know why I needed to come on a mission but I am slowly learning why. I have learned more in these 9 months about the gospel than I have my whole life. The people I have met have truly changed my life. Being a missionary isn't easy but it is one of the most rewarding things. I knew I made the right decision to come on a mission right when I entered the MTC. Truly the best decision I have ever made.

So enough about me, I want to talk about you. And I know you all probably hear enough from us about missionary work but I'm gonna talk about it any way because I was asked to. How can we be missionaries without the tag?

First I want to talk about what motivates us to share the gospel? Why do we do it?

Have you ever found a really good chocolate chip recipe and you just want to bake and share the cookies for everyone because they are so delicious? Or if you have found a really funny cat video on YouTube? What do you want to do?! Share it!

We know how much happiness this gospel brings to our lives so of course we want to share it with others!

Howard W. Hunter said "What does the Atonement have to do with missionary work? Any time we experience the blessings of the Atonement in our lives, we cannot help but have a concern for the welfare of others."

We have had experiences with the Atonement. We know the Atonement changes lives. Someone once said that we are the gatekeepers of the Atonement. We know how to access it.

So now that we have the desire to share it, how can we do it? There are many ways. I'll just list a few...being an example is the biggest one. In True to the Faith it says, "The most powerful missionary message you can send is your own example of living a happy Latter Day Saint life." Okay great so if we are living the gospel we are doing missionary work. Cool.

We can also study the gospel so we are prepared to answer questions that others have for us. That was one of my biggest concerns about coming out on the mission, what if someone asks me a question and I can't answer it?! Well if that happens I just say I'm not sure but I would love to study it and get back to you on that. But I have seen it so many times on my mission where I didn't know what to say but my mouth was filled. This is a promise He gives to us.

Talking to your friends about the gospel is another great way to do missionary work. Testify about what you believe. We can also invite our friends to ward parties, church, dinner with the missionaries, to read the Book of Mormon and so forth. I know inviting can be scary. Like really scary. Cause what if they say no?

One of my favorite scriptures is D&C 84:88 "And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up."

Elder Merrell said something about this scripture, he said, "Satan doesn't want us to ask, He doesn't want us to invite and he wants those who are invited to say no to the invitation to come unto Christ. But we have the promise of angels to support us as we open our mouths to share the gospel and we invite, Angels encourage all to say yes to obtaining the essential priesthood ordinances that they already decided before birth to accept here in mortality. The invitation is for every soul to say yes to that which each person born into this world has already decided. The veil of heaven will be penetrated tenderly and the Holy Spirit will whisper to the one invited to remember from heavenly days the truths you speak. Heavenly Father will help the person feel the earlier heavenly decision and encourage him or her to say yes to your invitation. We are not alone in this work. This is gods work. We are his servants. He is our master."

Angels are helping us! We are not alone in this work! If we don't invite them then they do not have the opportunity to say yes and then they are missing the blessings of the Atonement.

President Eyring said, "One of the ways he goes before your face is to prepare the heart of the person he has asked you to serve. He will prepare your heart as well."

So he prepares your heart as well! He will and can give you the courage! We don't always know who is prepared but I do know that everyone deserves the gospel so why not give everyone a chance. Not everyone will accept our invitation and that is fine, they aren't saying no to us, they are saying no to God.

When I experience rejection, it is an opportunity to prove our commitment to the Lord. It's an opportunity to prove to the person rejecting our message that we are truly servants of the Lord. Rejection of any kind is a sure sign of the fact that God lives.

So why is missionary work so hard? I think Elder Holland said it best, he says, "I am convinced that missionary work is not easy because salvation is not a cheap experience. Salvation never was easy." This is one of my favorite quotes I read often on my mission.

It's hard but the joy is so wonderful. I'm gonna read you some of my favorite scriptures.

In D&C 18:10 Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God;
11 For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him.
12 And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him, on conditions of repentance.
13 And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!
14 Wherefore, you are called to cry repentance unto this people.
15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!
16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!

I can testify that the joy is so real. Some of these joys include when someone prays for the first time, when someone cries when you tell them their family can be together forever, when you see a family being sealed for eternity in the temple, a grown man feeling the love of the Savior as he repents, or a woman who wanted her records removed earlier is now preparing for the temple. Being a missionary and serving others is so special because we can feel God's love for these people. God sees the full picture, He knows who we can become.

David O. McKay said, "True Christianity is love in action, there is no better way to manifest love for God than to show an unselfish love for your fellow men. This is the spirit of missionary work."

This is what missionary work is all about. It's about love. I know that even when we reach out in the smallest of ways, hearts are changed. And one of the hearts will be ours.

Elder Nelson said, "If a missionary has only one convert during the mission, I hope it would be herself. Teaching the gospel is sacred work." Even if I don't convert one person on my mission, I know that I have been converted to this gospel and am still working on becoming more converted.

Howard W. Hunter said, "a great indication of ones personal conversion is the desire to share the gospel with others."

And I want to close by reading one of my favorite quotes from Sheri L. Dew. She says, "He recommended you for now, when the stakes are so high. The simple fact is that our Father did not recommend Eve or Moses or Nephi or countless other magnificent exemplars for this dispensation - He recommended you and me. Do you think God would have left the last days to chance by sending men and women he couldn't count on? A common theme of patriarchal blessings given to men and women your age is that you were sent now because our Fathers most trustworthy children would be needed in the final decisive battle for righteousness. That is who you are, and it is who you have always been."

We have been sent in this last dispensation because we are the strong ones. God trusts us to build up his kingdom when Satan is as real and powerful as ever. I know that this is the Lord's work and that we can all be missionaries. We are all important in God's eyes because we are His children. He is the good shepherd who said feed my sheep. I know that this is the most important work on earth and that there are hearts ready to hear the good word. I love this gospel and the happiness & peace it brings to my life.

week 40: we're half way there, living on a prayer (literally)

Monday, August 1st, 2016

Hello everyone!!

Thank goodness it's pday because this week has just been nuts. We taught so many lessons. So many ups and downs. It feels like all of our investigators are struggling and we are trying to find new people to teach. Overall it's been a great week though long but good. I'm just so grateful for pdays. And holy cow it is August! How did that happen?! Also how am I already half way through my mission?! I'm so grateful for all that I have learned and how much I have grown.

Monday we saw Gaylon. Sister Schofield came with us. He was having a really hard time. We only saw him once last week cause he was having such a hard time. We are seeing him tonight though!! We then finally saw a less-active that we have been trying to see for forever. Her name is Peggy Mead.

Tuesday was a good and busy day. We saw Teri and she is doing a lot better. She has been coming to church just for sacrament which is good. We saw Sister Rivera and her daughters. They are really awesome and I like them lots. We saw the Tisdells and they came to church on Sunday! Well except Sonny. Sonny is getting really confused but he is always very entertaining.

We saw the Youngs. Holley is moving out but her dad and her son Quincy are staying there cause he is trying to adopt his grandson. I don't know it's all confusing. We saw the Bigalows and they are doing good.

Wednesday was good. We saw Cyndie, I just love her. We see her rig after we get ready every week so I'm always so tired in her lessons. We then saw Natasha. Sister Pulsipher came with us. We taught them the plan of salvation. It was really cute to watch the 7 yr old, Andrea, think as we taught it. You could tell she was thinking. I love teaching little kids! We saw Chelsea and she taught us a lesson. She is so awesome. We saw Sally. Her hand is hurting her a lot since the surgery. We go over every few days and change her bandages. Call me Doctor Nat. We had an apt with Dollie but she wasn't there. Her daughter and all of her friends were though. Dollie told her daughter Brittany to have us teach anyways so we did! Haha it was a lot of fun. They are all 16-20 and it was just fun. Some of them weren't members. The ones that were said they wanted to get back to church. There are sooo many less-actives here. We then had a really good lesson with Sheila. She told us more personal things and finally admitted to us that she still smokes!! Her house always smells like smoke and she would lie to us and say she doesn't. So she is going to wait to go through the temple in December. We then went craw dad fishing with 1st Ward yw. Haha it was so much fun. I sucked at it but I did catch one! It was so pretty I loved being outside. We then saw Daryl and he came to church on Sunday! Miracle!

Thursday ( h u m p d a y ) was good. We went out to lunch with bro Ayres. He is the best. We tried to see lots of people that day but no one was home!! I felt like I was in Scottsdale again. We went to the family history center for a bit, I found a family that I could seal their parents for. It's grandma Udell's grandma. So my great great grandma and her kids. We had a lesson with the Armijos but no one answered...we think they did that on purpose which is way sad. They never text us back. After kind of a hard long day of not seeing anyone we had a miracle! So the Ward council told us to go visit the Davis family. Their address wasn't in lds tools and so people tried to describe it to us. So we knocked on that door we thought it was for a couple weeks but no answer. So that night Sister Chausow said let's knock on the neighbors door and ask if they live there. I start walking towards a house with lights on and I guess later my comp told me this was not the house she was talking about going to. Anyways we knock and a women answers and is way nice and invites us in. We are like they have to be members...anyways luckily she introduces herself and says "I'm Jessica Davis but you already knew that." Internally were like no thanks for telling us!! Haha. But the Ward council says she needs her heart softened but she was way nice and we shared a message with her and some of her kids. She even invited us over for dinner tomorrow night and we are going to do some service for her cause she works at living hope. It's just cool cause God leads you to the people you need to see at the right time. It was such a tender mercy.

Friday morning we had a lesson with Haylie. She is so smart and is such a solid recent convert!! I love her. Her boyfriend Mark is leaving this week for his mission. Poor girl. We then helped paint the Pulsipher's fence red. They have a lot of teenagers so I felt like I was at home haha. I love that family. We had Ward correlation with the Shelton's, it had been so long since they were on a cruise to Alaska. Luckily dinner canceled cause we were just so tired. Some times it is just nice not having to socialize for an hour. Real talk. We had a lesson with the Eagar family. Love them! I love people that I can just be really bold with.

Saturday we went to DQ and they still have cotton candy blizzards, praise. Anyways we went to see the Johnson family and had a lesson with them. It was my first time teaching them. They were a bit awk at first but then we got to know them better and it was fine. Megan went to girls camp and is definitely the driving force for their family. They went to church on Sunday!! We then saw Sister Markley and she seems to be doing a lot better. We had a lesson with Brylee but no one was home... So then we went to see her mom (who is crazy) and we went to talk to her so she would even let Brylee get baptized. Basically she feels Brylee is too young and isn't ready. Idk it was just awk but I was confident and tried to share the gospel with them. They don't understand it at all and think you can't mess up at all after baptism and I was trying to explain repentance. Anyways basically Brylee won't be getting baptized anytime soon but we can still teach her. We then went to Nutrioso for a bbq. It was very cute. They had little shops and a band playing country music. We tried to talk to as many people as we could. We then went to try to see some less-actives but we went to the wrong house but that house ended up being a PMF house. She is a member but doesn't go to church because she is very sick with MS. It is very sad. We got to know them and shared a message. We then had our lesson with a referral from Elder Wilford W. Andersen of the seventy! We got a call from him on Tuesday about her. He has a cabin near here and Martha cleans it. Anyways Martha's husband passed away recently and Elder Andersen gave her a Book of Mormon in Spanish and said some things. Well we taught her the plan of salvation and it was really good. She and her two kids were there. I started talking and she just started crying. She is very prepared. It was hard cause she understands but sometimes has a hard time putting her words together in English. So we might have to pass her off to the other sisters cause Sister Kamalu speaks Spanish. It was just a beautiful lesson and she committed to baptism! I already love her a lot!

Sunday was a crazy day. Oh man. So we were asked to give talks in Third Ward. And we wrote them that morning cause that's the only time we had time to! We gave the talks, they had us speak on missionary work...haha go figure. Then we had to run to 1st Ward (different building) and caught the last half of sacrament meeting. And then we had to go back to 3rd Ward and taught sharing time in primary and then we had to go back to 1st Ward and teach their sharing time. Haha it was just nuts, and some people got mad cause they had brought us cookies and they couldn't find us, oh brother. But we have soooo many cookies in our freezer it is ridiculous. We can't hand them out fast enough. We saw Dave jr and had a fun object lesson with them haha. He is such a child. We then went to third ward's bishop youth discussion. We had dinner at the Nelsons who are less-actives. But are becoming active! So that's cool to see!! We then saw Dave and Haley. They are both working on reading their scriptures more.

Every Monday morning we do yoga, yes free yoga! It's the best. It reminds me of Wednesday night yoga at byui. Ah miss that.

This week I have been studying grace. The talk "His Grace is Sufficient" by Brad Wilcox is SO good. You should all read it. But it helped me understand it more. I think I have a hard time understanding grace because I don't fully understand the atonement. I don't know what quote I want to share because they are all so good. He says "Jesus doesn't make up the difference. Jesus makes all the difference. Grace is not about filling gaps. It is about filling us." The atonement is done, he paid our debt in full. He talks about how grace isn't about being saved, it is more about becoming like the Savior. We can live more abundantly be us self grace. He says "grace is not a booster engine that kicks you once our fuel supply is exhausted. Rather, it is our constant energy source." I love that. We can feel the enabling power, grace all the time in our life. He says "the miracle of the atonement is not just that we can go home but that - miraculously we can feel at home there". I love that. If we aren't worthy we are not going to want to live on God's presence because we won't be comfortable. Let us have God's grace transform us into something greater than we can imagine.

I was also on lds.org and read an article called "The Gift of Being Broken" by Ariel Szuch. It is really good. She says "our brokenness brings us to Christ. It is by bringing our broken hearts to Him that we are made whole." Being broken isn't a bad thing. It is a gift. When we have holes in our hearts, it is then that we have room for the Savior to fill our hearts. And then we recognize the need for a Savior.

I love my mission and my Savior. Have a blessed week!

Xoxo,

Sista fisha

Craw dad fishing

mid-mission crisis 

nutrioso, arizona

week 39: chasing cows

Monday, July 25th, 2016

HELLO EVERYONE. Great news! I'm not getting transferred! Yep I am staying in round valley for another 6 weeks! Praise. So President Robinson switched transfers that were on Friday to Tuesday and we find out our transfer news via call not email anymore. Also our district got smaller though and the Elders aren't in Lima anymore. Anyways this week was good!

Monday we had a lesson with Gaylon. The Cricks came with us. He is having a hard time and there is a lot going on in his life right now so trying to quit smoking is just that much harder. He is very emotional in lessons and said he didn't really want to come because he was so down on himself but he said this would make him feel better and he made this commitment. He has been reading his Book of Mormon!

Tuesday we had a lesson with Haylie about temples and eternal marriage. She is cute and wants that for herself. She went to the snowflake temple before girls camp and loved the peace the temple brought. We took Abby out (a laurel) and we saw Jerry. He is so funny, he doesn't know he is less-active so teaching him is difficult some times. Plus he talks a lot. We then saw Teri and she seems to be doing a lot better. Her and Kenny made it to sacrament yesterday! They sat in the foyer and left right after but that's so good for them! They both know they need the gospel in their life and this was a huge wake up call for them. We then had Sister McNeill come out with us and had a miracle! Seriously she is the best. We got to see the Williams (less-actives we have been trying to see for a while). It was very good and we got to share a message with them. They are a great family and have been sealed in the temple. It's just sad to see great families fall away.

Wednesday we saw Haylie again and had our last lesson with her before her baptism! Ah she is awesome. We then saw the Tisdells, Colin was there which was good. We then had a lesson with Gaylon and he was doing better. We read the talk from last conference called "He will place you on his shoulders and carry you home." It's a very comforting talk and was good for him. It brought a lot of hope. We then saw the Nelsons. They are so cute. We taught the church, pray, read. The dad says he wants to get to church which was great because was the only one who didn't come last week. They all came to church yesterday! We then had a lesson with Daryl. We taught them about spiritual gifts and patriarchal blessings. It was really good and everyone was there. He and his daughter decided to wait till winter break to get endowed for multiple reasons. Basically Daryl doesn't feel ready yet and wants to be at church more regularly.

Thursday we saw Cyndie. I just adore her. She is doing well. She keeps a lot of our commitments and I am really impressed. She loves personal progress. We then had our last district meeting! I'm gonna miss everyone that is going home. We then saw Chelsea, it has been forever since we had seen her. We then saw Tyric. We had a good lesson on the sacrament and blessing it. We committed him to come help prepare it but he didn't...sad. We then saw Sally and she just had a hand surgery done but she was still really preppy. Probably because her hand was still numb. We then finally saw Anna Davis and her family. Her husband is sick and not a member. But he was doing well that day. We then had two other appointments that night but of course they fell through. We had Chelsea with us and we felt like we should go to the Eagar family. Chelsea didn't recognize the name and then we get there and she is like I dated him! Haha. But it was a while ago and it wasn't awk at all. I was super bold with them and invited them back to the temple. They want that for themselves. They just feel like judged and such. We get that problem a lot with being in a small town. Everyone knows everyone's problems here. They are getting their baby blessed in September! It was really good having Chelsea there, she was perfect for them.

Friday morning we went to the Tisdells for like three hours and painted the trim on their house. It was pretty fun. We got to talk to their grandsons who aren't members and one is less- active so that was good. And we got banana pancakes   we then went to Luna, New Mexico! They were celebrating Pioneer Day all weekend so we got to go. No one we invited came but that's okay! Haha. I saw the Estradas in McDowell ward! I was so confused when I saw them. It was good seeing them! Now I can say I have been in New Mexico on my mission. How exciting. On our way home the HUGE elk ran across the road and that was a bit scary.

Saturday we saw Sister Markley. She is painting her kitchen and seems to being doing better. She has come to church the past couple weeks. We talked to her about getting back to the temple. We were in an apartment complex and decided to try to see some less-actives that never let us in. The door opens and our recent convert's daughter opens the door who isn't a member. I was super confused. Her name is Destiny and is 16. She was cleaning their house. Anyways she wasn't getting paid much and let's just say she needed LOTS of help. It was the messiest thing I had ever seen. So we randomly did service for her in a less-actives house. Winning. We then filled up the font and set up chairs for Haylie's baptism! The baptism went super well. Mark had to dunk her twice. I'm not really sure why but he did. We went back with her and got to be on the sides to watch her get baptized. It was a really great feeling to know she made those covenants with God. The Spirit was so strong and Haylie looked so happy. The talks were good and her choir sang a hymn. It was overall just a great baptism. I love that girl a lot! And SO many people came that we had to set out extra chairs. Haylie then had a dinner at her house afterwards. Her step mom Peggy and other family bought her a quad!! We then visited the Shupes. He can not hear so we have to yell the whole lesson. It's kind of hilarious.

Sunday (Pioneer Day!) Haylie got confirmed! I'm so happy for her!! We saw Dave Jr and Dakota (nonmember) came! He is ysa age but he comes to all of our lessons. He is awesome! And the Ericksons aren't moving yet! I'm so happy about it! We then saw Dave and Haley, they are the best.

We are watching 17 Miracles right now in celebration of Pioneer Day!! I wanna share this quote from President Monson that was in the Ensign. So you maybe have read it.

"To be a Latter-day Saint is to be a pioneer, for the definition of a pioneer is “one who goes before to prepare or open up the way for others to follow.” And to be a pioneer is to become acquainted with sacrifice. The path of a pioneer is not easy, but we follow in the footsteps of the ultimate Pioneer--even the Savior--who went before, showing us the way to follow."

I love this. Probably cause I can apply to it a lot as a missionary. There are lots of good things we sacrifice. But these sacrifices really do bless us. I'm so grateful to be a missionary.

Oh and this morning we helped heard a cow. These nonmembers asked us to get their cow from the woods, it got loose. They had been trying for days. So yes this morning we chased a cow. We did get him though. They are going to get horses this weekend to get the cow. Sounds cheesy but it made me think of going after the lost sheep. His cow had strayed and we needed a whole team (fellowshippers) to get him back. But it takes time and lots of trying. But to never give up. We are to feed his sheep and go after the one. 

Anyways I love you all! Sorry my emails are so long. Hope your summer is going good! ️

Xoxo

Sista Fisha

s u n s e t s

Nights as a missionary

Luna, New Mexico

Nights as a missionary

HAYLIE'S BAPTISM

Love that girl

Nights as a missionary

Free Hawaiian shaved ice