October 28, 2013

Hey everyone! 

It was another great week here in Ohio... except it snowed... but other than that it has been really good!

We were able to teach a ton of people this week! Like more than all of my other weeks combined. So it has been awesome! 

We are meeting with this one lady who has read the Book of Mormon and totally knows it is true and she believes in Joesph Smith and everything.. she just loves the people at her other church too much. And I totally get where she is coming from. It would be really hard to leave what has been such a great part of your life... but I dunno I feel like it is sorta like leaving on a mission. I mean I miss all of my friends and family everyday, but sometimes you have to sacrifice a little of what you love to do what God wants and then he can make up the difference. I have noticed that a lot already. When you are doing what God wants then he can help you. But anyways hopefully we can help her in anyway we can! We have tried to go "service tracting" where we ask people if we can rake their leaves and then do it and then talk to them about our church... but apparently people in Ohio are too good to have help raking their leaves... hahah seriously NO ONE will let us and it is so weird. 

We had a lesson with Joe on Wednesday... and you can bet that was really entertaining. We tried to teach him a little bit... but as soon as we started talking about prophets he went off about the Roman Empire for about 10 minutes haha. And then he was really confused as to why we don't baptize infants.. and luckily we finally just read some scriptures to him and he was like "Who wrote that?" and we were like "Moroni" and he said "Who the heck is Moroni?" And we were like "A PROHPET OF GOD" and he was like "Hmm.. okay. I like that." hahah then he made is Salami sandwhiches.. and they were good.. but he made SO MUCH and he was not satisfied until we took it all.. so we literally had these salami sandwhiches with peppers packed with us. It was just really funny. And his daughter was home and she was like drilling us.. I think she thought we were this weird cult or something.. so once we explained who we are and everything she was nice and was happy that her dad is going to our church! The funniest thing so he is basically deaf and he thinks using hearing aids is a "Cop out" so we have to talk really loud. And I was giving a prayer.. and all of a sudden he goes "YOU BETTER SPEAK UP GIRL." In the middle of my prayer and man it was so hard to not bust up laughing. Good times good times. He wasn't able to make it to church this Sunday because he got hurt. But he is really excited to speak at fast Sunday next week. He said he is going to speak "For 2 minutes about myself.. and then for 8 minutes about Cain and Able." SO... you all should probably pray for us that this all goes okay. Haha I am really excited and nervous to see what happens. There were a few other funny things he said yesterday when he called us. He was telling us about how they got rid of his cancer in his back and then he paused and went "cancer is cool." and we were like.. what. hahaha. And then he said "Megan you really better keep an eye on Cassidy... I am pretty sure that she works for the CIA." Hahahah. Always a good time with Joe. A few of my other favorite Joe quotes
"Who was this Joesph Smith guy?" .."A Prophet".." He was?? Oh. Okay. That's good. I like it." 

(We were talking about tracting) And he says "You guys need to change your angle. I will show you a better way to work." 

SO in other news besides Joe. We had a lesson with a lady named Barbara. We call her the Barbernator because it is more fun. She is like in her 60s.. and she is really cool. We also taught this guy named Jeffery who has recently recovered from a alcohol/drug addiction and has had a really cool experience coming closer to God! I am really excited to meet with him again! 

Thursday we were out running, we wake up at 6:15 every morning and we have been running about 3 miles a day.. and we were running and all of the sudden it was a huge blizzard. And then it snowed all day. And I cried because I am in no way ready for winter. AT ALL. I was up at Kirtland on Thursday/Friday. Friday was the coolest day ever. We took this tour and it was 2 missionaries and this guy they are teaching. And we got to the School of the Prophets and he knew nothing about it.. and he said "Whoa.. this room just feels different." and it so does! We had such a cool time talking about what had happened there. The guy has had the hardest life and he was telling us about how he has come to know that God loves him and it was just really neat. I love seeing how coming closer to God helps people, and I love being able to help people do that. I know that Heavenly Father loves everyone... and even when people don't care about what we believe or what we are trying to share.. I hope that they all at least know that they have a God who loves them. That's what it all comes down to in the end. So I try to keep that my goal as we meet people and talk with them. 

Anyways we had interviews with the mission president this week and that was great.. except he asked me if I had any scriptures memorized (which I DO) but I panicked and said "Yep John14:15 If you love me keep My commandments." .... hahaha classic pulled out the easiest scripture ever. The good news is I can only go up from here. And then these other missionaries in my ward were having a baptism and they couldn't find a musical number... so guess who got volunteered with NO notice. Yep you're right I DID. So let's just all be really thankful that I didn't ruin the baptism. Haha it went pretty well surprisingly and he was still baptized so counting that one as a success.  And then on Saturday I got a card from my whole speech team and that made my whole week! Thank you everyone for sending me cards and letters.. it is the funnest thing getting letters. Helps me not be quite as homesick! 

It really was such a great week. We have been so blessed to find people who need our help. I feel like Heavenly Father is really directing us so much and helping us to help other people. It is weird how like we teach people twice and I already love them.. I think it is because as a missionary you can feel a little bit of the love that God has for them. But it really motivates me to work my very hardest to do everything I can to help them. I feel truly blessed to be here and to be a missionary. Everyday I am learning more about the Gospel and everyday I learn more of its truthfulness.. and I truly love this Gospel and I love being able to have it as the center of my life.  I am so grateful for all of your love and support! Thank you for everything you do! I miss you!

Love Cassidy 

October 21, 2013

Well this week was probably the best/funniest/full of miracles week ever. Prepare yourselves. But really I am doing so good and I cannot believe that it is almost November! Didn't I just leave home like 10 minutes ago? It is crazy. I'm just gonna go through the days because there is so much to tell you! 

So we are teaching this lady named Inger, and she is so cool. We taught her last Monday about the Book of Mormon and the lesson was so great. We are teaching her again tonight and I am so excited! 

Tuesday we got frozen yogurt and I felt like a normal person for a minute. It was fun. Then we spent some time tracting and it was just funny because we are at this door, and the door is open and we can SEE the people... and right when we knock.. they turn on the vacuum and pretend that they can't here us. And this has happened multiple times and every time I laugh so hard because it is just hilarious

Wednesday.. we tracted..in the pouring rain. And it was freezing. I thought I was close to death and then I realized I needed to toughen up... especially because this is nothing compared to what it is going to be in the winter. I am most likely not going to survive but I sure will try. It was nice knowing you. I am reminded every single day why I moved to California for college. haha. We were walking and started talking to this guy and he said "Mormons.... I'm not a fan" and I just started laughing because it was funny. There is something really wrong with me because whenever people are like mean to us or chew us out or slam the doors, I never get sad. Like I laugh it off every time and it's getting weird. Maybe I should be more offended but I am like hey, whatever makes you happy I am just trying to help. So yeah either I am just really weird or it is God helping me not get upset. Either way I really enjoy tracting!  So we are out tracting in the rain and everyone is like not being nice.. and so I prayed that we would meet someone nice.. and then I felt prompted to go across the street to a different house.. and we met the nicest lady in the world and we talked to her for a little bit! It was a little miracle. Then we met.. a legend. He is basically going to take up the rest of my letter. But anyways so we tracted into this old guy named Joe. He's 80 something, used to be Catholic, and is the funniest person I have ever met in my entire life. I am seriously laughing at the computer thinking about it and people think I am weird. Oh well. So He starts talking to us for like 45 minutes.. and he is talking and talking and he is telling us all of these crazy stories that I wish I had time to write. But I will just say some of my favorite things he said. So he was telling us he is an artist and that his daughter framed one of his drawings because it will be "worth millions someday".. so he went upstairs to go get it.. and while he was walking he leaded back and said "I keep my house very clean. There are 4 bedrooms up there and I change all of the sheets twice a week. No one even lives here! But I do it. And I love it. " and we were laughing so hard. So then he comes back with this big frame.. and we are like expecting something like I don't even know but he turned it around and it was...... The 101 Dalmations. And it was the funniest thing ever. Like half was crayon half was pencil.. and then he says pointing at the parents "Let me tell you a story about those two dogs.... they had 99 puppies" I thought I was going to die. And he was telling us about how he used to be a fighter but not anymore.. he said "Now I just go up to people and say 'You would look good without kneecaps' or 'How long can you tread water'" hahah like literally he is this like 86 year old guy saying the funniest things ever. We invited him to church and wrote the address and then we left. So that was the beginning of Joe. 

Thursday we wake up and it is sunny and beautiful and we are like wow perfect it will be such a beautiful day to tract and find people to teach.... we get out tracting... and the sun disappears and it starts pouring ran and wind and it was like insane. But ya know the work must go on so on we went tracting in the rain. We met an another guy who told us to call him "Old man the Quaker" he was a hoot too. Then okay this is literally the coolest story EVER. I am still like sorta freaking out about it because it was awesome. So there is this lady Nicole that the missionaries were teaching 2 years ago.. but they put the wrong address for her house and it doesn't exist and so no one has been able to find her for 2 years. So we go to the street and it is the longest street ever. And I was secretly thinking that there is no way we will ever find her. My companion says "We will knock on every door until we find Nicole" and I was like fantastic. So we park the car at a random house and then prayed that we would be able to find where she lives and that we could be guided to her house. We get out of the car.. and the first house we see this kid working out in his garage. And so being the weird people that we are, we went up to him and asked him if he knew a Nicole and Danny.. and he goes "Yeah I know them. They live here." I LITERALLY almost had a heart attack. I stood there for like eh a good 4 minutes with my jaw dropped 2 feet.  AH it was so crazy! After 2 years of no success we found her at the first house. I am still blown away by it. Heavenly Father lead us right there and it was the coolest thing ever. She wasn't home but now we know how to find her! So cool! The rest of the day was rainy tracting. I almost got hit by a car but I am totally fine so don't even worry. And I haven't even been sprayed by a car in the rain yet.. but I am sure that will happen soon. I'm prepared. We had Chipotle for dinner because we deserved it so that was a good thing. Okay.. are you ready for miracle number two of this week? So when it was raining.. water somehow got into my bag... and my brand new scriptures got all warped and messed up and I was seriously SO depressed. Like it was the worst thing that has happened my whole mission (yeah my mission has been really good) anyways so I was sad and wanted to cry. So I put something heavy on them... and the next day they were still messed up. And I realize this is super dramatic but just go with it.. so I used different ones for a day because I was just really sad about it.. and then on Saturday when I pulled them out of my bag... they were perfect. Seriously perfect. No damage. None. WHAT THE HECK. He healed my scriptures and I do not know how but miracles are real. It was amazing. I can't even believe it. So that was miracle number two. 

Friday/Saturday I was at the Visitor Center! and It was super rainy so there weren't too many people. We had a few tours which were really fun! I really enjoy being able to be there. On Saturday Joe called us asking for directions for church.. and then he said "I knew the second I met you guys that you were church people. I could tell by how you dressed and acted that you weren't impostors" haha it was so funny. Then he said "Cassidy. STAY SOBER and don't drink too much Pop." It made my day because it was so funny. 

Sunday I gave a talk about Faith unto Repentance. I think it went really well! It was kinda hard writing a talk without the internet... I didn't realize how much I used the internet until I can't use it anymore. But anyways the talk was good and my ward is so awesome! Everyone is so nice! I love it already. SO... Joe came to church and it was literally the funniest day of my life. I wish I had like a video of him or something so you could understand. He is Italian so just picture this old Italian guy who forgot his hearing aids so he thought everyone was whispering.. and he used to be Catholic but he said he doesn't like them anymore because all they wanted was his money and when he had a stroke they didn't visit him. He is very bitter about the Catholics haha. So we walk in with him to Sunday School (and we were late because he was talking to people) and we walk in and he announces to everyone "These two girls are my daughters. And I love them." hahaha I died. And we were telling him how people are called brothers and sisters.. and he said " I love that. I have a lot of new brothers and sisters today." He talked to us for like an hour and some of my favorite things he said were "Wow... you are so cold I touched you and now I know what Hell feels like" and then he said "Heck! I said Heck! I am not swearing all week so I can take the sacrament next week." And then he told me that there is no one out there for me and that I will never get married. hahaha so that is promising. And when we are in class he starts telling everyone about his life and then he said "I used to go with the Catholics. But I go here now. I learned something. I didn't use to know God was there.. But he is always there. Don't just go to him when you are hurting.. go to him all the time. And that is just my theory." It was awesome haha. And he was a mayor for 12 years.. so he kept asking people why they didn't speak in church and then he would say "Next week I will make a motion. And then you can speak". It was literally the most entertaining church ever. When he was leaving he said, "I loved this day. I loved it so much. I will never forget it. Everyone was so nice to me. Not like the Catholics." It was actually the coolest thing ever. He called us like an hour ago and he said "I want to be a member of your church. And I want to be an active member. You guys changed my life and gave me a new beginning. I love it. " So basically Joe is my favorite person in the world. And I am sure you will be hearing a lot more about him. SO I will get a picture this week so you can know what the heck I am even talking about. 

Sunday night we were out tracting again... and we had another cool experience! So we were planning on tracting this one road.. and we got to it and it was super dark and sketchy and we thought hmm... better not.. so we kept going found a different road.. but we both felt like we shouldn't...so we drove for awhile and then we came to this road and we both felt like we should tract it. So we got out of this car and met this really cool girl who was walking her dog. She said her family didn't have a church and that we should talk to her mom. But she didn't tell us a house or anything so we just started going to doors. The first door we met this lady and it is7:15 at night by the way.. and the second I said the word Christ she was like.. "That's fine but you know what I am right in the middle of going to bed so bye" and I just stood there and looked at her like... how dumb do I look?! Haha you are like 25 in regular clothes you are NOT going to bed at 7:15... like we are missionaries and practically grandmas and we don't go to bed until 10. Hahah I am just amazed at the horrible excuses people give. It is always a hoot. So, next house we go to.. this lady comes out and at first she is chewing us out because it is dark and she said it's not safe (she was totally acting like a mom) and then she said "But I do have a Book of Mormon and  I do read it." And we were like.. wait what. And she went on to say that 20 years ago some Elders gave her the Book of Mormon and were teaching her.. and then they stopped coming. She still reads it because she thinks it and our church are really interesting. And then she said she wishes the missionaries would have kept in contact. And THEN she gave us her number and told us to call her and come back soon to meet with her! And then the girl we met earlier shows up and it was her mom! Seriously how cool is that. We made it to that street by being prompted there.. and second door.. was the most prepared person we have ever met. I have been smiling ever since because I am SO excited to teach and help her! Man being a missionary is probably the coolest thing ever. I love it. 

Well, sorry this email is so long. You probably fall asleep reading it... if you do then I'm glad you are getting a nap. Anyways, I miss you all so much and I think about you and pray for you everyday! I am reminded everyday about the amazing people I have in my life and I am so grateful. Thanks for your letters and prayers! Have a great week and remember that I love you!!

Love Cassidy 

PS. I am doing this cool thing where everyday I try to write about the ways I have seen God's hand in my life that day.. and it is incredible to see how much he helps me everyday! Do it and I promise that you will have better days because you will know that God is helping you through everything- even the small stuff! 

Pictures 10-14-13

October 14, 2013

Hey! 

I can't believe it is already Monday again. Time is going so fast. I will be home like like 5 minutes at this rate. But I had another great week this week! I was mostly at Kirtland this week but I was in my area for a couple days! 

So we went tracting again for a few days.. and it hasn't been super successful.. but it is always entertaining. So I have a few funny stories! The funniest was we went to teach this lady and she was like busy having a birthday party.. so we ran into these two guys. One's name was Dontez and one was Tristian.. and they were like sorta gangsta haha I dunno they were funny. And so we taught them a short lesson about what we believe about Jesus Christ.. and then we were like gonna say a prayer.. and they wanted to say it in a circle holding hands.. so we were on the side of a road.. in a circle holding hands with these gangsters. It was actually the funniest thing ever. And then one texted us and said "I really love learning about Jesus". It was a quality time. Then the next day we were tracting and we saw this lady outside this house and she was cussing at her little children. So I was like "hmm maybe we should skip her" cause she scared me haha... but my companion was like Nope we are doing it. So we went up.. and she was so nice to us and we are going back to teach her tomorrow! haha it was funny and I learned my lesson to not count anyone out.. even if they are scary. We had a lesson one night with a guy named Maximillion.. and it was really interesting. He knew a lot about religion so it was more like a discussion than a lesson. But I learned quite a bit. 

On Wednesday we went tracting some more and I am getting so much better at it. The first few times like I was just so awkward and people just stared at me like I had just escaped the petting zoo or something.. but it has been a lot better this week haha. We taught this one lady and she was just confusing us for the people on sister wives the pologimist show so that was interesting. haha I just always say "We have ONE mom and ONE dad". And whenever we ask people if they know any Mormons they always say "well I know Mitt" and I just shake my head. haha. We went to one door and I told him we were sharing a message about Jesus Christ and he said "Well that sucks I'm an Atheist" and I said "Yeah that does" haha it was so awkward. And then the next guy (it is like 7:15 at night) he says "Ya know it is getting really late I need to get to bed" and I was like seriously it is not even 8 do not lie to me. and then the next guy came out to talk to us and then he sighs and says "Can we do this another time? I need to get my wife dinner and my dog just locked me out of my house" haha his dog literally locked him out and I was laughing so hard. Classic times. 

Thursday, Friday, and Saturday we were up in Kirtland! 

We gave a ton of tours and I am finally really starting to get a hang of it. There is so much to learn but I am catching on. There was one tour where it was some older people.. and one was in a wheelchair so I was pushing him.. and part of the trail is like woodchips.. so I am trying to push this guy on wood chips and it is the hardest and heaviest thing ever.. and he says "If it is too heavy you don't have to do it" and I was like "No it's totally fine" but I was literally pushing with all my might. Just picture that scene. It was funny. But the tours are all so neat. They are all so different and It is really just incredible to be able to teach people about the incredible things that happened here.. and see them feel the spirit. It is really neat to be able to share my testimony in the School of the Prophets and every time I am just so grateful to be here and I am constantly amazed at the incredible feeling there. I can't really even describe it. SO Fridaynight Elder Ballard arrived! We got to meet him and he said that "American Falls is a great little town" haha I was suprised he knew what it was. He also said that we must have done something right to get our calls to this mission! So when an Apostle tells you that you can't help but be happy to be here.   Then there was  a reception with delicious food.. do you remember when Colin used to make buckeyes.. well those are like a really big deal here. There are buckeyes everywere and they are so good. I had buckeye ice cream the other day. Good times. Anyways so Friday night there was like a Commemoration for Kirtland and Elder Ballard just shared so many amazing things about this place. He said that Kirtland is one of the most spiritual, desirable, sought after places in the world. He said that everyone needs to take more time to learn about the events that happened here because they changed the world. He said that we are witnessing prophecies about Kirtland being fufilled. And was talking about missionaries and he said "There are 80,000 missionaries" and then he said "We just passed 80,000" and when he said that he looked right at me ( I was in the front right in front of him) and he said it directly to me and then he smiled at me. So yeah that was basically the coolest thing ever and I was SO happy that I am a missionary. So Friday night was so awesome!

Then Saturday there was a walk and breakfast around the Kirtalnd Temple which is just beautiful. And we spend the day giving more tours and honestly I never realized how hard/stressful tours are. Like people come from all over the world to see Kirtland and the experience they have depends on me. It is a lot of pressure! But it is good and I love it.Saturday night we got to hear from Elder Ballard again and then again on Sunday! He shared so many good things I like don't even have time to type them all. But he said a lot about following promptings even if they don't make sense or you don't want to. That applies a lot to us as missionaries because sometimes the things we feel prompted to do are sorta hard. But he promised that if we do that we will have more faith in our life and that the Savior will lead us to those who truly need our help. He shared a ton about Kirtland and how it is basically the best place ever.. and I obviously loved that. He said that "The most significant spiritual experiences in the history of the world happened here at Kirtland." And he talked about how the Same Savior who lived in Jerusalem and appeared in 3rd Nephi.. appeared here in Kirtland. I can't even comprehend how significant it is, but I know that as Elder Ballard was talking the spirit was so strong. Just hearing his testimony was the most amazing thing and it really helped me better realize how important and sacred Kirtland is. And I really feel honored to get to walk and sit where Joesph Smith lived and teach other people about the incredible things that happened here. It was just such a neat weekend that I really can't even describe over email. But I learned so much from Elder Ballard and I am just excited to become a better missionary. 

Yesterday we had 2 member meals... and mom you are going to be so happy. This one family made us the BIGGEST steaks ever. Like it covered my entire plate. and it was SO good. Maybe because I haven't had steak in like 4 years.. but it was delicious. I was in heaven. And it was hilarous because they had these two little kids and they were like 6 and 8 and this boy had a HUGE piece of steak and he was straight up holding it with his hand and using his other hand to cut it with a butter knife. I was trying not to laugh but it was hysterical. And the kids ate it all. They were seriously your dream children mom. Hahah. And then this morning we had a lesson and we were able to teach about the Restoration and it went really well! And we have another lesson tonight! So things are going really great!

Well I am about out of time. But I just want to say that I love you all and I am grateful for everything you do for me! I heard this quote and I love it.. so you know how people always say missions are such sacrifices.. well there is this quote that goes "The price we pay to come closer to God is a privilege to pay." And I truly believe that. I miss you guys and sometimes my mission is hard.. but I feel truly blessed and lucky to be able to come closer to God and help others do that too. It is such a fufilling thing to be doing, and my testimony about the Savior and about the Book of Mormon have grown so much. I am grateful every day that I get to have this gospel in my life and I love it so much. t Well, I will talk to you next Monday! I hope you have a great week! Thanks for your prayers and letters! I really appreciate it. 

Love Cassidy 

October 7, 2013 First Week in Ohio

Hello everyone! 

I am writing from good ol Twinsburg, OHIO! And man is it beautiful here! All of the leaves are changing and the weather this week was great, so I am loving it! I have had such an amazing week and I hope I have time to tell you all about it!  I miss you all! 

So on my first full day in Ohio we got to go to Kirtland. We first went to the Kirtland temple and we were able to have the coolest tour. So the Community of Christ church owns the temple now, so we had a guide named Ron from that church, but they also let Carl Anderson (who is the stake Patriarch, and he has written all of the church books about Kirtland- basically he knows everything) come and give us a tour as well. So we got to learn a lot about the temple from their church standpoint as well as ours which was really neat. We got to read from the scriptures the D &C revalations where they were receieved.. which was so cool. The feeling was incredible and it really just confirmed to me that Joesph Smith was a prophet and that this is Jesus Christ's church. My favorite part was when we were in the main part of the temple and we all stood and sang The Spirit of God, which has always been my favorite hymn, and it was written for the Kirtland Temple dedication. The spirit was so strong, and it was cool because the people from the Community of Christ church were singing with us.. and it just was really neat. I just felt so strongly that God loves all of us and we are all his children, regardless of what religion we are. It was such a cool experience. Then we went to the Historic Kirtland Visitor Center! And we went to the N.K. Whitney Store! Carl Anderson talked to us about how special our call to Kirtland is and how special and important Krirtland is. The last vision Joesph Smith had before he died was about Kirtland.. so that itself shows that it is a really important place. We got to go into the School of the Prophets and read the scriptures there. It was really cool to be learning where Joesph Smith taught and so many incredible people went to learn. The feeling in that room is so incredible I honestly like can't describe it. But it was a really neat experience. Then I got to meet my companion! Her name is Sister Derrick, she is from St. George. She is so nice! She has only been out 3 months, but she knows a ton. 

The first night we had dinner at a members home and she brought us Olive Garden so yeah that was awesome haha. She was really nice and she has 2 sons, one is 12 and he is austitic. He was so sweet though. The funniest part was half way through dinner he just casually walked through the room with just his underwear on and we all just laughed so hard. It was a classic.  Then we went out tracting. Guess what. The FIRST door I ever knocked on they let us in! We taught them a little but they were like "We have our church" and kept pointing at the door. Haha it was funny. Then we met this other guy Andre and we were able to teach a little bit and it was so cool. We prayed, and then he wanted to say a prayer so he did, and then he said "People always say that drinking solves your problems... it doesn't... this feeling right here, this solves your problems" and we were like YES it does! It was so neat. We have tried to go back and visit him but he hasn't been home. Hopefully we can soon!

I spent Thursday at Kirtland.. I gave a few tours but It is sorta hard because I don't know a lot yet. They practically gave me a textbook I have to read and learn. But I will get it eventually! Kirtland is so pretty though and I love being there. There is just such a good feeling and I really glad I have the opportunity to serve there. Oh so I will be there like 2/3 days a week, and the rest of the time in my area. Which is called Solon South. We have 2 other sets of missionaries in our ward... and in me and my companion's  we cover parts of 7 different cities... and then we drive to Kirtland on the days we are there. So there are a ton of people to teach! It is hard because we are supposed to have the same amount of lessons and investigators and do all of that on top of being at Kirtland. Haha they say that visitor center sisters do twice the work and I am really seeing that already! It is great though I love being able to do both. That reminds me... ELDER BALLARD IS COMING TO KIRTLAND THIS WEEKEND! Like Russel Ballard. The Apostle. So I am really excited for that because we will get to meet him and hear him speak and it is going to be so good. 

This weekend was great watching conference! I loved it! I learned a lot and I loved how much they talked about missionary work. My favorite thing is how they said that since we love this church and love the gospel.. we should want to share it. It should be natural to tell people about it. So just to look for opportunities to share what you believe and love... you don't have to like awkwardly call people or make it weird.. you can just share it in a natural way and people will want to know more. I also really liked Elder Uchdorf's talk.. and how he said "Doubt your doubts more than you doubt your faith". I know that sometimes I get caught up in what I think I can't do or what I don't understand.. But if I just have faith and stop worrying about every little thing I think I can't do, than those things don't matter and everything works out. I guess we need to remember to put faith over doubts and we will be happier and more successful in everything we do. 

We did a lot of tracting and it is actually really fun. It is HARD but I like it. Haha most people look at me like I am this crazy white girl... and well I am.. but it is fun. Most people don't let us in, but we have found a few people who have invited us back. We went to try to find this one ladies house, but she had moved.. and the neighbor told us to go try the next road over..  and it led us to another house miraculously and we met this lady Gloria and she said "I have been praying a lot lately for help and I think you two girls are the answer to my prayer" and I was like YES WE ARE! We are teaching her tonight and I am so excited! It was just crazy how we even ended up at her house.. we had no plan to even be on that street. It was amazing.  We met another lady named Elna who said we could come back. And a guy named Dana who said he has been searching for a church! There are just so many cool experiences. But anyways it is great. Some people are like "I am not a member of your church" and we are like yeah we know that is why we are here... hahah. It's just lots of awkward situations... like it is not normal to go knock on peoples door and immediately talk about religion... but it's good and I am learning how to talk to some really interesting people! haha one lady like yelled from an upstairs window and said "I don't open the door during the day because it isn't safe"........ I am still trying to figure that one out. And this other lady thought that we were searching for our Prophet.. not sure how she came to that conclusion.. haha.  But it is amazing how Heavenly Father will lead us to the people that need us. I am seeing that everyday and it is the coolest experience. 

BUT anywho it has been a great first few days here in Ohio! Thanks for all of your prayers and emails! It makes my day!  I love my mission and I feel so blessed to be in such an incredible place. I have learned so much already, and I have just felt how much Heavenly Father loves everyone I have met. It's weird how you can already love someone that you just meet. The Gospel is true and it brings so much happiness to me. I love you all SO much! I hope you have an incredible week! I'm praying for you always!

Love Sister Jensen 

First Week in Ohio

SLC Visitors Center

September 27, 2013

Hey guys! 

Well I feel like I just barely sent out an email so I don't have too much to say. But I have had a great week doing visitor center training! It is really weird to be in class with all girls though haha. I have 2 other girls going to Kirtland, then there are 3 going to LA visitor center, and one going to Independence. We have been learning how to take what we have learned about regular teaching and make it into visitor center teaching. Which is actually really easy haha. We have had a bunch of volunteers come into our like visitor center room which has a Christus, book of mormons, displays and stuff so we can practice teaching people.It's pretty fun! 

So on Wednesday morning we went to Temple Square. They took us on a tour and basically we were just like regular people. Then we met with this guy who is over like all of the visitor centers for the church and it was so cool. He told us a lot of really cool things about our calls. Like he said that only 2 percent of all missionaries called go to visitor centers.. so we really are special. And he said that we are chosen to be the face of the church and that it is a really important responsibility. And he told us just a bunch of cool opportunities we get and it was really neat. It made me even more excited that I get to be at a visitor center. He also told us that like when they are deciding where someone is going, the members of the 12 who are doing it will know right away that someone should be at a visitor center. And that they put them aside and come back to them. He said that the girls they call to a visitor center they say they can see the light of Christ in their smile, and the testimony of the Atonement in our eyes. So that was a really neat experience! And he also said a few things that I really liked... my favorite was "The Lord called you, to be you" and he said that it is so important that we keep our personalities because that is what they need. So it was just a cool reminder that I can be a good missionary and I can still be myself at the same time. Sometimes I think that if I am having too much fun or laughing a lot or being my sorta wierd self that I am not being a good missionary, but that's not true. If I am myself then I will be the best missionary I can be. It was a good reminder!  It was just a really good experience to meet with him!  After that meeting we came back to the MTC and just did more training. 

So part of the visitor center girls jobs is to do online stuff. So we chat with people onmormon.org and we also take phone calls. We got to start doing it on Wednesday and it has been so fun to actually help real people. There have already been lots of cool/weird experiences and I am sure I will have a lot more when I am out in Ohio. But it's cool because we get to talk to people from all over the world and just answer any questions, or just talk to them about the church. It's really fun! 

So last night we went to Temple Square again... and this time we were like paired with a temple square girl and we were like giving tours and meeting people and stuff. It was like the funnest thing ever. So it was just an interesting night. So first the van was an hour late to pick us up, and the 3 other girls didn't show up. So MTC security like had their pictures printed out like wanted poster size and they were searching the campus for them... and we were just waiting in the van.. and then this guard comes out and is like "We just realized they went to the hospital" and then my van driver was like "oh yeah I drove them that is why I was late". Hahaha and were like they just had to search for them and you knew all along? It was so funny. And our driver just got home from his mission like a month ago and he was like "I was just really freaked out that I had to pick up a sister missionary and put her in the car". We were laughing so hard. Anyways, so we get to Temple Square, and my temporary companion was tongan. She was really nice! So we got to talk to few different people around the square. and then I was on the phone. Haha this is where the funny stuff happened. So I was on the phone talking to this guy who is taking the missionary lessons and I was like "are you going to watch conference next weekend" and he was like "oh I guess they didn't tell you but I am actually completely blind" and I DIED and was like "ohhhhh so are ya gonna Listen to general conference?" hahah so awkward I almost had to crawl in a hole like that would only happen to me. Then he was telling me how he was a part of a barbershop quartet and that he liked to sing for the missionaries and give them caffine-free diet pepsi. And I was like "you are... so kind...?" haha it was funny. Then the next call I got the person YELLED at me "I need an exorcism my daughter is the devil" and there was like screaming and he was freaking out and I was like "Uh we don't do that here" and told him to have a nice night. It was the weirdest/funniest thing ever. haha but really it was a super interesting experience. I learned a lot being at temple square and it made me really excited to be at a visitor center! It's gonna be so great. The night ended with Cafe Rio and that was basically the best thing ever. 

Well I am out of time. But it was a really great week! I am sad that I am done with the MTC. It is so fun to be here and to be with so many missionaries. I will really miss it. But I am ready to get out to Ohio and start teaching! I leave SLC at 6:00 AM get into Minneapolis at 9:27 and then leave there at 10:15 and get to Ohio at 1:00! So I will be leaving the MTC at 2;30 AM and I will probably DIE. But I am really excited. Anyways I can't wait to call and talk to you then. I Love you all so much! I am doing great and I have had so many cool experiences here. I have felt the truth of what I am learning and teaching, and I know that this Gospel brings more happiness than anything else. I am so glad I get to be a part of bringing it to other people. 

Well I will talk to you soon! I love you and you are all in my prayers every day!

Love Cassidy