The first six weeks of my mission are finally complete! I'm staying in Hemet for another transfer with Sister Cozzens and Sister Roberts. Sister da Silva is heading to a lovely place called Norco, the horse capital of the United States. Both she and Sister Roberts are going to be training brand new missionaries, so that means we'll be getting a Sister straight out of the MTC living with us! It's been great being the new kid on the block these past few weeks, but it's time to hand the torch to another.
Lots of great things happened and some silly things happened. I'm still relatively innocent and naive when it comes to the goings on in California which has been the cause of many a funny thing to happen.
For instance: Sister Cozzens and I were coming home after a long day of trying to contact referrals. It was dark and we parked the car and walked up to our apartment. We hear, "Hey. Y'all are the Sisters that live here?" We look over and there's a man sitting on the curb holding something with a soda next to him. He lives in our complex and we see him every so often so we said, "Indeed we are!" We talked about what we do and what we teach and he put the small thing he was holding to his mouth. It looked like the bone of a chicken leg and I was confused when he said, "Is it alright if?..." I jumped in and said, "Oh, of course! You do what you gotta do!" Sister Cozzens gave me an odd look and then told Oshay, the man, that we'd run inside and give him some information about the Church. Well once we were inside, Sister Cozzens said, "He's rolling up a joint." "No he's not," I countered, "He's just nibbling on his dinner. I could go for some chicken right now too!" "No, Sister Turner. It's a joint." I was taken aback! People smoking weed in public?? Things like that don't happen! We headed back out to drop the information off with him and he was, indeed, taking a hit from the joint he had just lit up. I didn't want any chicken after that experience.
Good job, Sister Turner.
This Wednesday we went to the temple!! The Redlands temple is one of the smaller ones, but it is so breathtakingly gorgeous. I was able to do some ordinances for my family members and that was such a blessing. During my time in the temple, I was thinking about my ancestors and how grateful I was to be able to do their work. I was specifically "talking" to Mary Hanousek in my head, the ancestor for whom I was at the temple, and at one point I felt this warmth on my arm, as if someone was squeezing it. I'm sure it was Mary telling me that she was there with me. The temple is a place of peace, a place of worship, a place where the Spirit can dwell without hindrance. It was such a blessing to go and feel that peace. I have such a testimony of the temple and the sacred goings on that occur within its walls.
I can't wait for Sarah to go through the temple! She is such a blessing and has seriously been prepared for such a long time. She asked Sister Cozzens and me when she'd be able to go to the temple and if we'd be there to accompany her. Of course we'd be there! I have so much love for Sarah. She's a superstar.
Lots of great things happened and some silly things happened. I'm still relatively innocent and naive when it comes to the goings on in California which has been the cause of many a funny thing to happen.
For instance: Sister Cozzens and I were coming home after a long day of trying to contact referrals. It was dark and we parked the car and walked up to our apartment. We hear, "Hey. Y'all are the Sisters that live here?" We look over and there's a man sitting on the curb holding something with a soda next to him. He lives in our complex and we see him every so often so we said, "Indeed we are!" We talked about what we do and what we teach and he put the small thing he was holding to his mouth. It looked like the bone of a chicken leg and I was confused when he said, "Is it alright if?..." I jumped in and said, "Oh, of course! You do what you gotta do!" Sister Cozzens gave me an odd look and then told Oshay, the man, that we'd run inside and give him some information about the Church. Well once we were inside, Sister Cozzens said, "He's rolling up a joint." "No he's not," I countered, "He's just nibbling on his dinner. I could go for some chicken right now too!" "No, Sister Turner. It's a joint." I was taken aback! People smoking weed in public?? Things like that don't happen! We headed back out to drop the information off with him and he was, indeed, taking a hit from the joint he had just lit up. I didn't want any chicken after that experience.
Good job, Sister Turner.
This Wednesday we went to the temple!! The Redlands temple is one of the smaller ones, but it is so breathtakingly gorgeous. I was able to do some ordinances for my family members and that was such a blessing. During my time in the temple, I was thinking about my ancestors and how grateful I was to be able to do their work. I was specifically "talking" to Mary Hanousek in my head, the ancestor for whom I was at the temple, and at one point I felt this warmth on my arm, as if someone was squeezing it. I'm sure it was Mary telling me that she was there with me. The temple is a place of peace, a place of worship, a place where the Spirit can dwell without hindrance. It was such a blessing to go and feel that peace. I have such a testimony of the temple and the sacred goings on that occur within its walls.
I can't wait for Sarah to go through the temple! She is such a blessing and has seriously been prepared for such a long time. She asked Sister Cozzens and me when she'd be able to go to the temple and if we'd be there to accompany her. Of course we'd be there! I have so much love for Sarah. She's a superstar.
Can I just talk about how much I love my companion? Sister Cozzens is such an example to me. Her heart is so full of compassion for the people we teach and she is so focused on the work. Every week we plan for the upcoming week and do something super fun called "companion inventory." It's where we discuss the strengths of our companionship and also what we can do to improve individually and as a companionship. Normally I'm pretty stubborn and rationalize that I'm totally perfect in everything I do, but she points out what I can improve upon in the most loving ways. Because of her love I want to be the best I can be! I know even though I've made it through one transfer, I still have a lot to learn. I'm so grateful for Sister Cozzens and our totally rad companionship.
If you haven't seen/heard/read conference, I urge you to watch/hear/read it! It was utterly fanTASTIC. Russell M. Nelson's talk brought me to tears more than once. Also, always keep our prophet, Thomas S. Monson, in your prayers. He has a hefty job. I know that he is a prophet of God and that his words are the words that a loving Father in Heaven needs us to hear.
I love all of you!!!
Sister Turner
The kingdom of God is not and cannot be complete without women who make sacred covenants and then keep them. - Russell M. Nelson
If you haven't seen/heard/read conference, I urge you to watch/hear/read it! It was utterly fanTASTIC. Russell M. Nelson's talk brought me to tears more than once. Also, always keep our prophet, Thomas S. Monson, in your prayers. He has a hefty job. I know that he is a prophet of God and that his words are the words that a loving Father in Heaven needs us to hear.
I love all of you!!!
Sister Turner
The kingdom of God is not and cannot be complete without women who make sacred covenants and then keep them. - Russell M. Nelson