Email 6/30/14

Me and Sister Wheeler 

The members were so loving to me for my Birthday! :)
It was weird to think about me so much...don't try it at home kids! Symptoms are:
Swelling of the head
Less amount of self control (Specifically with sweets)
Day dreaming about yourself doing something awesome
Thinking far to much about ones self ;)
and...possible death...haha!

We have such a cool Investigator right now! He is the one we met while running in our parking lot in the mornings. We had given him some homework to do such as reading the Restoration & the Plan of Salvation pamphlets, 2 Nephi 2 plus the Pattern of Light video's by Elder Bednar and the Proclamation to the Family.  He told us he could handle it and he was leaving on a trip for about a week.
So that would give him enough time right... We get an email from him that said, "Hi Sisters! I read the Pamphlets and I took notes and wrote some questions that you can check out...but don't be alarmed these are basically my thoughts on paper."
...He sent us 15 pages on the Restoration pamphlet and another 15 for the Plan of Salvation...! Even though we would love to dive into every question he has, we know that as we address the top concerns and continue teaching the basics, he will grow to understand.
He is going to U-Mass for a degree in Music so he's pretty smart and logical but gets the whole Music thing and how it makes you feel and how it affects you.
We are helping him understand and recognize the Spirit and he is so close he can almost feel it!...haha! Punny!  He is super fun to teach and I start feeling the Spirit like an hour before the appt. ^^

We took our car last Monday to get some body work done and we are still without a car... We are hoping to get it back this Thursday....Cross your fingers!
It really hasn't been to bad. We are better located now that we moved and we have lots of buses thankfully. :) The members have been super awesome too with giving us rides. :)

I am really seeing the blessings of not having a car though like:
Meeting people that we never would have met other wise
Getting to ride on the fun bus with nice and crazy people ;)
Getting way buff!
The list goes on and on...haha! ^^

But really, we met this guy that was waiting for the bus too and we started talking to him and we asked him if he was religious and he said, "Yes! I am Christian"...We both could have hugged him right there right then!!! The things we hear allllllllll the time are, "I'm all set","I'm Catholic", "I'm Atheist","I'm Spiritual", "I've never really thought about it before".
Anyways, we were happy and we got his number. Then he saw the bus coming but I think because we weren't standing close enough to the bus stop sign and we just watched it zoom by......Oh, my goodness we are so sorry!!! He was really kind about it...thank goodness...haha! We walked home and it was long but so worth it!!!! I've been able to sleep so good with all the walking and contacting! You all should try contacting at least one person this week and tell me your story's next week! I challenge you!

Our District made a goal to find 8 new investigators by the 4th of July (2 per companionship) and so far the district is at 5!!! We are so close!!! :)

Oh, I got to contact this lady that looked like she was from Anne of Green Gables! She was so sweet and showed us her garden! We got her number and we hope to visit her soon! :)

Ahhh! Blessings are coming out of the woodwork!

I love you all a million new investigators!!!

P.S. I lost my tag today and it is the worst feeling ever!!! I have a spare one but I can order a new one! :) and who knows maybe the Lord needs my tag to help someone want to learn more about the church? :)
Well, love you lots of hot and humid days like today. :)

Oh and we played softball with Sasha and Sister Belle and a friend from school and we are pooped but we had fun! :)

Wow,  I think I have tried to end this letter 5 times now... now it's for real... Love ya'll

Sister Patterson AKA "Always the baby of the family no matter what"!!!!  Wow,  I'm glad that's not a real name! That would get tiring to say all the time! WOW! I am a really hyper typer..that rhymed haha!
Until next week!^^

Email 6/23/12

 Us with Ocen a member that we visit :) 

Us with Barbara 

Then us with the Pangs :)

This week has been Crazy! We are all moved into our new apt.!!! It is super nice and I just want to decorate it as if it was my own house...haha! someday! ;) but for now I deal with a desk that is 50,000 years old that has elders names scratched into it...oh dear! haha!

Well, a funny thing I realized..... remember I said I thought that Sister Scott was like Erin?... well Sister Wheeler is like Jessie Kate!... soooooo weird!!! haha!

Sister Wheeler is Awesome! She is really organized and excited about the work! We just barely taught our first lesson together yesterday because we have been overwhelmed with all the moving craziness!!! haha!

We are starting to get used to the changes :)

Oh, and our Car is going in the Shop today for who knows how long...sooooooo we are going to be taking the bus and having members help us a lot more until we get it back!!!!! I going nuts but I know that the Lord will help us through it!

I love you a Million things happening at once!!!

Love Sarah! aka (Sister Patterson)

...........................

Well I'm back again!!!

*Few* this new library is too busy and stressful! I can't handle it!! XP

Ahhh! sorry I am super spastic right now because I have like 20 million things going through my head plus there is a really nice girl next to me that I really want to talk to but waiting for the right moment!....suspense!!!

...Ok I just talked to her and she was really nice! It turns out that she is a Jehovah's Witness..aww man! but hopefully we will see her around more often now that we are close by. :)
I thanked her for her sweet smile :)

I have been really struggling emotionally with feeling like I am inconveniencing people when they have too wait for me to do something or that I am irritating and slow which in turn makes me more slow! I know that Satan is trying to get me but I will do my best to fight back and forget myself! That will help a lot but pray that I can have a sharp mind because I feel like my brain is really slowing down. Gold fish brain!!!

AHHHHHH! and I'm turning 20!!!!! I think my brain is going to explode! I'm getting older and older!!! It doesn't stop! haha! ^^

Love you all!!! :)

Love Sister Patterson :)

Email 6/16/14

 Us with the Isham's for Dinner on Sunday :) They are super awesome!!! :)Ok So!!! ..... 

Sister Scott is getting Transferred to Cambridge!!!!!!

I am Staying in Amherst!!!

My New Companion is going to be Sister Wheeler!!!!!

AND.......We are now the New Sister Training Leaders!!!!!!

AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

President Packard said that I had the ability to love people and that the Lord needed that.
How sweet is that right?! :)
I hope that I can live up to that!!

I have been going through a range of emotions with all that is happening! :)
I am sooooooo sad to loose Sister Scott but something cool that happened a few days before Transfer texts. We decided to use the bus to save miles and I just saw Sister Scott get this new gleam in her eye and her Boston roots/in-stinks kicked in! She was talking to everyone! I had a feeling that if she were to be transferred it would be back to the city. We even talked about how Cambridge would be cool! haha!
I had also been feeling like I was going to be doing something different...but that different I was sure was going to be Training turned out to be a Sister Training leader! I think my heart is on a roller coaster! ;) I am so excited and honored to have this opportunity. I am also excited to be Companions with Sister Wheeler! I have admired her from a far for quite a while :) I feel like I will learn a lot from her :) She has really cute Bangs...Like me;) haha!
and she is an Awesome Photographer! but those are just little things.  I have heard that she is an awesome Missionary and is really Diligent and Obedient! :)

We are working on moving as well from Sunderland to our new apartment in Amherst! It's kind of funny because there are a ton of families moving right now as well so a lot of things are changing. haha!

Just know that I will do all I can to live up to this new call to be a Sister Training leader and I hope I can make you all proud. :)

I don't have a ton of time to write.

We are going to a Zone Preparation Day to a park and are going to play ultimate Frisbee for the last time with this group of Missionaries! :'(
Who knows we may serve together again!? ;) Elder Fish was my District leader in Weston and then he came over here and is my District leader again! :)

I Loved all the Pictures of the Wedding and Grandma's Birthday!!!
It looks like a ton of fun! :D
I love the T-Shirts!!! I want one! ;)
I enjoyed all your letters and am glad to hear your all still alive ;)


Love you a million things to do!!! haha!

<3,
Sister Patterson :)

Email 6/9/14

Us having our 11 Month Mark Ice cream Sandwich's! :) 

Do you see that 2 Ice cream sandwich's next to each other looks like 11! haha! 

We have the craziest week!

We have been doing our best to talk to everyone, but not only that, we've been building more meaningful relationships with those we see often around where we live and visit often :) ...In fact, just a second ago I said hi to a lady that goes to the knitting club that they have here where we come to write letters. She came back and asked if I knew her.  I said,  "No we are just Missionaries and love to say hi to people".  She was very sweet and just like I was saying, now that we know that she goes to the knitting club we can start to build a relationship. :) 

We got a New Investigator from just opening our mouths! There is a little family that lives in the building right across from us. We met when we starting to jog around our parking lot and the husband was helping his wife leave to work with their little baby. Thank goodness for babies! They are the best ice breakers ever! ;) I commented on their baby and that was the starter! We asked if we could visit their family sometime and get to know them better and they were all for it! 

It turns out the husband was more interested in meeting with us then his wife.  She actually had a bunch of Mormon friends and they even sang at their wedding!!! They came here wanting to have a little church to go to but after a while they just decided on a little Baptist church. Her husband said that the reason she wasn't as open is because her friend tried to share the gospel with her and it got a little contentious so they decided to let it be and not talk about religion and have peace in their relationship. She also doesn't want someone to be her friend just to convert her.  We told him that that's sometimes hard for members because when we love our friends we naturally want to share the gospel with them. He understood and said that he would try to help his wife understand but for now it would just be him we would meet with. 

We brought a couple we us, the Starlipers, that are similar age to our him and his wife. Bro.Starliper and him hit it off perfectly! They were like two peas in a pot! He even asked for Bro. Starlipers Number! Then they got on the subject of Family History and then they really got into it! Flailing their arms in excitement! Who knew that Family History could make two grown men sound like two teenage girls. haha! It was a sight to see. :)

Something that was also exciting was just how receptive he was.  He kept saying things like, "I hope you don't mind me being so blunt and open" ..."I don't know why I'm being so open but..." He went on to tell us all about his questions and desires.  He told us how his prayers were going and how he didn't know how to discern if he was getting real answers. We told him that we would meet with him again to talk about all those things and that we were excited because we had so much to share! :) We are hoping to meet with him again tomorrow!

The Spirit makes people open up so much it's crazy! I love it :)

And that was just one part of the morning on Tuesday! that's just the beginning!!!

We are both mentally exhausted! but hanging in there! haha! :)

I have been having a hard time with my personal studies and having them be effective. I have a few things in mind but I feel like I have ADD!!! I hate it but I think I have so many things I want to do and so little time and I end up wasting it!!! Sometimes I find myself staring out the window or at the wall and then jumping out of my daze. Like I said I feel mentally dead sometimes! We have a lot to remember and do and I want to be better and am setting some goals and will report how they go next week. :) 

We had an amazing meal yesterday at a Sister's house! She is from the Dominican Republic or DR and she made the best and most healthy food I have ever had!!! It has inspired me to be a better cook and to eat healthy! The Pang's (say it like Pong) were there too! They are a little Japanese couple and they have the cutest little kids! OH MY GOODNESS!!! ^^

I think I could have kept eating forever! It was so healthy that I was waiting for the food to hit my stomach...but nothing! I have to be careful now because I could have eaten myself to death it was so good!  Bro. Pang was so excited. He is a food science major and told us all the cool facts about food. 

Love you all a million servings of amazing DR food!

Love ya!

Sister Patterson:)

Email 6/2/14

Tomorrow is Sister Scott and My 11 MONTH MARK!!!! AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
and on my 12 month mark I will be 20 years old!!!! ....I'm to young to be 20!!!! ><!!!

We have had a really good week! We had a last minute Zone Conference to follow up with what we learned from Elder Hollands visit and with what President talked about (personal revelation). My mind has expanded once again and it is amazing how much you can grow spiritually! I think us as a human race say, "Never", "I can't", 'I won't", far too much! Yeah ok,  I said those alot too but now I see a new perspective and when we get over ourselves and just do what The Lord needs us to do...suddenly every hour of every Day becomes that much more precious and there isn't enough time to do all the things we need to!!! haha!

I was too lazy and so I had Sister Scott send me her version of the Story. I'm so lazy!!! haha!

Me
We had our Relief Society president come out with us and the person that we went to see wasn't home so on our way back we were talking about some of the members that might need a visit when this one individual pops in her head. He is a Less-Active but the sweetest Guy you'll ever meet!

We decided to drop by and he was home!

We chit chatted for a little then we got down to business. I had been feeling the spirit telling me that I needed to say something but didn't have any clue as to what to say. Then comes Sister Scott to the rescue! with Mosiah 4:9-12... 

and here is the rest of the story from Sister Scott's perspective....

We brought out our Relief Society President with us and she took us to dinner and then she suggested we go out to this man ...... house. Sometimes he lets us in sometimes he turns us away, well this time he let us in. He and her were having a real great talk and then it came time to share the lesson and we shared Mosiah 4:9-12 and as we began reading the spirit just flooded the room. I read first and then Sister Patterson read the last 2 versus and she just got this look and I knew what ever she said was going to be good. She looks at him and says, "I'm going to be really bold with you right now. You know what this scripture says, I don't have to tell you." and He shook his head yes, and then she went on how God needed him, and how he needed to pray and read and after that it was just quiet. And he then said, "That must have been really scary for you but I needed it. It wasn't too harsh. Thank you". He then proceeded to tell us his needs and the Relief Society President and we were able to help him. The spirit was so strong you could cut it with a knife! It was so good.

Also we have been having our ward pray for us to find families and we have found the ........ family to teach, which is......, the less active I told you about in the previous paragraph, its his daughter in law and grandkids! The Lord really has a great plan in store for this family! We have seen a lot of miracles this week. The Lord will let us do so many as we are willing to obey his spiritual prompting. Why are we so afraid to follow them when so many miracles always come from them?

Oh, did it feel good to not beat around the bush and truly call someone back to what they truly know they should be doing and where they need to be.

I had a goal to follow my promptings more and I feel a new fire in me!! Look out because Sister Scott and I are going to talk to everyone!!! ;)

We are working together and refining the things we are doing so we are more efficient and effective in achieving our goals and keeping the trust of the Members. Our Ward has been praying that we will be able to Find Families and people that have been prepared by the Lord and....We have been finding them!!! The Lord is blessing us abundantly!

The next thing we are working on with the Bishop is the thought- Our ward being obedient brings blessings but exact obedience brings Miracles. :)

Love,

Sister Patterson