So here's the big news of the week--transfer calls were this Saturday
night and I am getting transferred! I am shotgunning (which, if you've
forgotten, means that both missionaries in the companionship are new to
the area) out Elders again (according to my sources) and my new
companion is named Sister Powell! Right now I am so so SO thankful for
the GPS my family sent me.
So I have been thinking about it and, for the record I have had all these companions and been all these places
Sister Torgersen (MTC)
Sister Pereira (MTC)
Sister Larsen (Springdale, AR)
Sister Smith (Springdale, AR)
Sister Andrew (Bartlesville, OK)
Sister Lowe (Henryette, OK)--Shotgunning
and now:
Sister Powell (Clarksville, AR)--Shotgunning
I have never had a companion for more than one transfer. The only
place I've been in two transfers was where I was trained. I am taking
that as a compliment to my ability to adjust.
Sidenote! In Henryetta we also cover a town called Okmulgee. (Yeah!
Fun name!) But since we can't say "Okmulgee" right we usually settle
for calling it "the Mug" or "Mugtown". Thank goodness for nicknames.
Stories! (the name of the investigator has been changed)
We had a miracle this week! We have this adorable member who is 19
and a recent convert. She LOVES to come out teaching with us, and, let's
face it, both Sister Lowe and I adore her so it works out perfectly.
Her testimony is awesome and she is willing to go and do anything--she
doesn't shy away or panic. She steps us and goes, does, and laughs. Her
name is Angel.
So we go pick up Angel. "We had four appointments but they all fell
through," Sister Lowe informs her. We don't panic--this happens. We can
always find work to do. So we start discussing who of those on our list
of people to see we should go see first. We ask Angel if she has any
preference.
"We need to go see Sister Mary." Angel pipes up clearly.
"We don't know a Sister Mary--who's Sister Mary?""
"I don't know," she laughs.
So we head off to some lessons, forgetting the silly conversation.
We work all day and then, after dinner, we get a clear impression to go
see a certain member of our ward. We had known she had family visiting,
but we had thought they had left. So we get there and (tadaaa!) they
hadn't! Well she hadn't--there was one woman visiting. So our member
invites her in and introduces her daughter--an ADORABLE, softspoken,
gentle woman--and proceeds to tell us that her daughter wants to get
baptized. Her daughter asks her mom if she had set this up--apparently
they had been talking during dinner and she had been talking about
having the missionaries over. We reasurred her that, no, it hadn't been
set up. We got talking again and it came up that we asked what she
wanted to be called (she had a longer name and nickname shorter version
and all that). She started explaining that she had a few names--first
and middle or changed (I'm not sure).
"Well, my name has bad memories...so I think I'd like to go by Mary if that's okay."
"Sister Mary?" Angel, shocked, asked.
"Yes I think I like that."
Angel was so excited that night about her miracle that she called us and talked to us on the phone as we drove home.
Sister Mary came to church Easter Sunday (yesterday) and sat with us and her mom. She is a very gentle soul, and a great blessing to us.
The Lord pulls through in mysterious ways sometimes. This was a
miracle--small, simple, and tender, but a miracle none the less. God is
mindfull. We are so blessed. We are so glad we listened to that gentle
tugging of the still, small voice.
Love you all!
~Sister Short
