Letter #10

Hola Familia!

Wow this week FLEW by.  I nhave some great stories to share with you all.  First story.  My first experience of being pooped on happened this week.  My companion and I were just walking along going knocking doors and I looked down and I bird had pooped right on my shirt!  I couldn't even beleive it.  IT was just a little poop but still pretty gross.  It reminded me of when we were camping up at warm river and that bird just splattered our campsite and I got the brunt of it.  I guess birds just are attracted to me or something. 

This week we had our first Book of Mormon. We are doing this to try to get members to bring their friends.  We had all kinds of great things(one of my pictures shows our set up).  We had a map to show where it was written as opposed to the bible.  One person showed up.  He is one of our investigators! It was such a cool experience.  We read the introduction with him and asked him to read the first chapter of 1 Nephi.  He then proceeded to tell us he would read the whole first book.  We have an appointment with him tomorrow so we will see how his reading went!  I hope it goes well:)  As we talked about the Book of Mormon and explained the story it was just a witness to me that the Book of Mormon really is true!  It just is!  This week we also had the opportunity to go to Ventura with two of our investigators this week to have their interview with the mission president for their baptisimal interview!  yep you read correctly we are having a baptism this very week on Wednesday!  It is a husband and wife.  They have to of the cutest little girls.  It is interesting because she speaks Spanish and he speaks Englsih so our lessons are half and half saying things in Spanish and English.  I havenoticed that alot here, that people marry people who don't speak the same language.  I know.  I guess they know enough to comunicate but it is just odd to me because they really don't understand eachother one hundred percent. 

Now here is a story for you all!  So me and my companion don't get fed alot by the members so we are always really excited when It happens.  Well the family didn't have time so they gave us some money.  We went to this deli and walked in and heared someone say "sisters".  We turned around because people knowing who we are rarely happens.  He offered to pay for our meal.  He kind of had to talk us into letting him pay for us, and so we decided and he didn't even get anything.  Apparantely he had just seen us thought I should pay for there food.  My companion and I thanked him profusely.  It was such a blessing and we thought to ourselves how we must be doing something right for getting so blessed.  That gave me comfort. 

Well mom asked me for some info on my companion.  She is wonderful and I love her.  We are very similar in the way we think.  Her dad is actually from Rexburg so she is familiar with Idaho.  She is from Spokane and she only has like two and a half months left on her mission.  I will probably be her last companion.  She speaks good spanish and is always will to answer all of my questions on, oh how would I say this and such.  We live with a family in the ward.  They are an older couple and have no kids at home. We actually had to move last P-Day because the people we were living with had there son coming home off of a mission.  We have a really big area here.  We don't even have a branch it is just called the Spanish Unit.  Yesterday there were probably about 20 people or so.  I play the hymns and my companions leads.  Yesterday I had to play a hymn that is only in spanish.  I had no idea how it went and neither did Hermana Burch, so I just followed the loudest singer who seemed like she knew what she was singing.  I wish you all could come and see this unit.  the people are SO wonderful, happy, and welcoming.  The one thing they are not so good at is singing, but they don't care, they still just sing and do as good as they can.  Yesterday I had my first try of Elado Loco.  It is corn on the cob slathered in mayonniase and parmesan cheese and chili powder.  It was surprisingy delicous and I am planning on making them for you when I get back!  They are from guatemala and apparantley there they put like ketchup and all kinds of things on them, hence the name Elado LOCO!  haha it was so fun. 

Well family my time is up.  I love writing these because I get to remember all of the good experiences I am having.  I also feel like I missed and on some HUGE news.  I had no idea Earl and Kathryn were going on a mission!!! Where are they going??

And now for a little spiritual thought from my studies this morning.  2 Nephi 4.  It is a wonderful chapter and one that I have never really payed attention to in the past.  I feel bad saying that because we should pay attention to all the scriptures.  I especially like the last four verses or so.  I now our Heavanly Father answers our prayers, and I think an even more comforting thought is that he is LISTENING!  Not just randomly sending us blessings but listening to our words and our hearts.  The church is true and whenever we have a question the scriputres have the answer.  Have a wonderful week and I love you all!

Les Amo

Hermana Clark

The First Week in the Field

Hola Familia!

Wow I don't think I have ever had such a long week in my entire life!  Missionary work is a lot different than I thought it would be.  That is probably a good people.  Here in California there is SO many interesting people to talk to.  They are usually really nice when objecting us, and others just want to get into big debates.  I really don't understand what people are saying to me so that might be a good thing.  I have been having a hard time staying motivated as I have been really struggling with having the courage to just go up to someone and tell them that we have a prophet today and the Book of Mormon! It is hard for me but we do TONS of declarations a day and so I am getting better at it little by little.  There are a lot of different religions here.  We found one guy that was pentacostal.  He proceeded to tell us that we looked very pretty because we were modest.  He was very nice and I was just like there are some interesting people here.  Well I am in a place called newberry park.  Part of our area is in LA county.  So that lets you know how close I am to LA.  It is a BEAUTIFUL AREA! The weather is really nice because we are about five miles from the coast.  That regulates the weather really well.  There are lots of palm trees and lots of bushes that have the prettiest flowers.  We are surrounded by some pretty big hills so that is good because it reminds me of home and all the mountains.  My companion is wonderful!  She is a very good example and she helps me with my spanish.  We try to only speak Spanish outside of the house.  That is helping me.  She is so good, she always knows what to say to people and how to catch there interest.  The work here is kind of slow because it is one of the areas in our mission that has money.  We just try all day to find neighborhoods that have spanish people.  There are quite a few.  We just try to find the poeple that speak spanish because we don't give any lessons in English.  We just give lessons in Spanish.  We are teaching an investigator, mom dad and two cute little kids.  they have a baptisimal date in about a week and a half.  They have ahd others so we are hoping it all works out.  Erica is the moms name.  She is so sweet and wonderful!  She surprises me with her comments and her knowledge in the gospel already.  Her husband has been struggling keeping the word of Wisdom, but he is doing good now so hopefully there is no slip ups.  The thing is here there is a high rate of baptism but people are just not coming back to church.  We do alot of trying to contact less actives, but they are just never home, or they are conveniently ignoring our knocking.  I have already had many of those experiences where people are home and you can like hear them talking but they don't answer the door, also people give us addresses that never exist.  HAHA it is just so funny to me, just tell us you are not interested.  We are just trying to give everyone the chance of hearing the gospel.  Also I have noticed usually when we are knocking streets because we have a less active or potential investigator on that street, usually the scariest house is the one that lets us in, or the one that has the person that we are looking for.  

Well family I am doing great and I am so grateful for the package of memories that i received the day I got here, and the letter full of WONDERFUL pictures.  It was the perfect welcome to California package.  I LOVE that you sent me a yellowstone shirt and I have been eating the swedish fish, it makes me feel like I had a part of the fun:)

I love you all, keep praying for me to learn this language.  I think it's going to have to take a miracle!  

Hermana Clark

Letter #8

Hola familia!!

This is officially my last email from the MTC! I GOT MY FLIGHT PLANS THIS WEEK!!! My whole district had a little party in the mail room when we realized that we only had about 12 days left at the MTC.  We have about 7 now.  Crazy to think.  So here is the run down I will be calling home at around 7 45 and then again because I have a lay over in Dallas at like 11 so I will call again.  I am SOOO excited to talk to you and here about all of the fun festivites that have been happening over the past couple of weeks.  It sounds like the reunion has been one big PARTY! I have sure missed warm river as I go out and it is so warm outside.  I just think, Oh to be floating the river right now!  Really that is just a passing thought and then I get back to doing and thinking the gospel.  It really is great and I am really enjoying my self here.  This past week was just wonderful.  My whole district had a slight freak out moment thinking that we didn't have very much time left at the MTC but our teacher sensed it and took us through some activites that calmed some of our nerves.  I really just love my teachers.  They have been such a blessing in my life.  They probably will never know How much they have impacted my life in such a big way. 

This week for the fourth of July the MTC put on a little program.  We had a speaker friday night and then a little program.  They made a powere point with all of the different missions there are in the world and then people began to cheer for where they are from and mostly where they will be serving.  The tongans got a little carried away when there country showed up on the map but it was so cool to think that alot of them are converts to the gospel.  It was so cool here and see everyone so excited to go serve and find people to bring them closer to Christ.  We were then able to go outside and watch the fireworks from the staduim of fire concert.  It was SO COOL!  It made me miss the fireworks at the rodeo, but one of my dreams was fulfilled.  they actually had fireworks shaped like things.  There were hearts and also a few smiley faces.  My companions thought it was so wierd that I had never seen one before but then they remembered I was from little Idaho so they understood. hehehe We actually got to stay up late so we were kind of living on the wild side.  We had fast sunday on sunday and we got to hear some great talkes about staying on the stragith and narrow path and alos about how important Christ was in the plan of salvation.  Without him and his mercy we could never hope to return to live with our father in heavan again.  I love and am so grateful for my savior Jesus Christ.  Each day I come to a better understanding of who he is and I pray the I can walk in his path.

Yesterday we had a great treat and had Elder oaks daughter come play the violin for us.  Jenny oaks baker is her name and she is like world renowned.  Here violin playing was AMAZING!  I was awed at the beauty of here music and also the spirit that I felt from the music.  You don{t even have to have words to feel the spirit touch your heart.  that gives me comfort as I realize that people will be depending on me to give them the most important message they will ever here in my broken spanish. It is a scary thought, but I have to do it because that is where the Lord has sent me.  so I am studying and preparing the best that I know how to. 

This past week we found out that we will be hosting again.  that is FOUR weeks in a row.  I am excited though becuase that means I can host Whitney.  If you see her,  Tell here I will be waiting to see her beautiful face and I will be her host!  We also have to do some other thing next week to welcome the new missionaries.  We have to miss class so that is such a bummer but I'm sure there are hidden blessings.  I'm trying to have a good attitude about missing that much class. 

So now for a funny story for everyone.  Last week I was talking to my companions and I was telling them about a time we went on a bike ride and Max drove his bike right in the borrow pit.  They stopped me and said, what in the world is a borrow pit.  I then tried to explain it to them.  So naturally the conversation moved to all of the weird words that I use and they don{t.  For example, jockey box, snow machine!  I couldn't beleive they were so flabergasted with these words.  they thoght a snow machine was a snowblower and they didn{t even know what a jockey box was.  I understand that they probably aren't used everywhere but I still thought it was funny.  so after this discovery I ofcourse had to go ask the other districts in our zone what words they use for things.  Every single person from Idaho, there is like three, automaticaclly said jockey box.  I loved that it was just an Idaho thing.  Needless to say, now my nickname here as gone from clarkbar to jockybox.  I hope that this story brightens your day because it sure has made me laugh over the last couple of weeks. 

I loved the cow booklet that you sent me!  It was such a great surprise.  My whole district looked at it and loved that there was a whole book on cows.  One of my companions was disgusted that there was actually a picture of a cow having a baby, but I just explained to here that it was part of life and she will have a baby one day so she needs to except it.  One of the Elders from my district actually is from by Twin Falls.  He knows Thales and Bonnie because he was big into wrestling.  His dad has a dairy so he especially loved the book. 

I fell like I have just told you everythinga bout the MTC that there is to know!  It is a pretty great place but I am excited to leave and enter the field, even though when I think about it my stomach drops to the floor and I feel slightly sick.  However, I am praying for a good trainer, and also for the help of the Lord at this time in my life.  It has been so crazy how fast time is going, but I am loving every minute of this journey that I am on.

Yesterday our teacher met us on the temple walk and introduced us to his wife.  She was cute and it was good to see someone outside of the MTC to realize that there really is life going on without us.

Yo se que la iglesia es verdadero.  Yo se que Jose Smit restaurado el Evangelio a traves de la autoridad de Dios.  Yo se que JesuCristo Expió por nuestros pecados.  Yo se que JesuCriso es me Salvador a que el me sabe individualmente.  Yo veo su mano in mi vida cada dia.  El nos ama mucho!  Yo amo este iglesia con todo de me corazon!  Yo se que a traves de la Expiacion de Jesucristo nuestro familia puede junto para siempre!  Este es me testimonio.

I love you all so much!  Never forget that the Saviors hand is outstretched and he is just waiting for us to ask for his help.  One of my new favorite scriptures Isaiah 41 10 It´s a great one, look it up:)

I love you!

Hermana Clark