"More Broccoli?"

Hello everyone!  It's a blustery day here in Ohio, and it's getting super humid, too!  Shout out to Lauren who has a birthday tomorrow!  Awwww yeahhhh!  We are all getting so old.  I can't believe all the young guys like Ryan B. and Dallin A. are getting their mission calls!  That's crazy!  A few great/funny experiences and observations this week:

We had a big meeting with the bishops and our stake president.  Our zone leaders were also there.  They informed us that Bishop was bragging about us; he calls us his Black Ops team.  He also referred to SMP yesterday in ward council.  It stands for Sister Missionary Power! :)

One of the many funny things that people do here is dress up these geese statues.  They are called "Medusa Gooses."  You see them everywhere.  Some are dressed up for the holidays, some in costumes. 

While we were tracting, a lady sang at us through her screen door: "No thank you!  I'm Buddhist!  Bye!"  We had a hard time not laughing ourselves silly, but we waited until we were out of earshot before it got the better of us.

I got to drive a 2013 Toyota Carolla brand-new off the lot for the Church.  No worries -- I got pictures.  It's probably the only time in my life that I'll drive a brand-new car off the lot! :)

It was Elder B.'s birthday; we couldn't light candles in the church so we took the cake outside, but then the matches the elders had brought didn't work.  Solution: try to light all the candles with the car's cigarette lighter.  Missionaries taking desperate action!

We stopped by the house of a potential that we met last week; he wasn't there but his wife was.  She basically told us that they want to investigate the Church but that she's too busy with nursing school.  She gave me a scarf because I looked cold.  It's a good scarf . . . and a great reason to go back and see her again! ;)

B. called us earlier this week for no apparent reason, and asked us to come see him.  We set up an appointment on Thursday.  He called us 15 minutes before the appointment, to see if we were still coming.  ?????  That hasn't happened before!  Anyways, I asked if C. was there and he was.  I've been wanting to send the elders from C.'s area to his house for a while, but we don't know his last name.  One of our goals for this appointment was to somehow find out C.'s last name without being weird.  Well, we knock on the door, B. and C. open it and come out.  I told them they both had "sweet kicks" because they are both proud of their new shoes.  C. says "Yeah, mine have my name on them."  We look down and there on C.'s shoes are labels with his first and last name.  Sister K. and I just looked at each other.  Heavenly Father is just too awesome!  It turned out that C.'s aunt and uncle had just died, and he was having a hard time.  I whipped out the Plan of Salvation puzzle that Mom sent me for Valentine's Day, and we taught him the Plan.  He loved it.  He said it made so much sense.  And when we asked him how it made him feel to know that he is a son of God, he said it made him feel happy and important.  Cool experience!

The zone leaders were having an awful day on Saturday.  They had been dropped by an investigator who was on date and was super solid.  So they came to blitz our area!  They only got a few return appointments, but they were really cheered up when they ate half of the Reeses Big Cups that a youth had given me.  :)  Love it!

We went to the equivalent of Kneaders here in Ohio.  It's called Panera Bread and there is no competition -- Kneaders is 100 times better!  That's all.

We presented our new FYZ idea to Bishop on Thursday night, and he asked us to perfect it and present it to the ward council and the stake presidency on Sunday (it was ward conference).  No pressure!  It was an adventure to say the least.  They were impressed, though, and seemed to really like it -- so that was cool!

The primary is super short on teachers at the moment, and one of the CTR 4 teachers hadn't found a substitute so they were desperate for some help.  Twelve 4-5 year old kids (only 3 of which are girls) + sister missionaries who aren't allowed to even touch them + no preparation time and no knowledge of how to teach primary in the first place = TOTAL CHAOS! :)  Seriously, though.  We were both drained afterward for the entire day.  Favorite moments from the experience:

     1) Their classroom was right next to the chapel and we had to have the classroom door open because we're not allowed to be alone with children.  It took us forever to get them to talk somewhat quietly!  Major problems and much telling them that they wouldn't get their snacks unless they whispered ensued.

     2) We acted out the story of Ammon and four of the little boys wanted to be sheep.  They all insisted on crawling under the table and saying "Baaah, baaah, baaah!" in unison.  This was especially hilarious because they were all whispering!

FYZ yesterday was great!  We role-played explaining why we live the standards that we do.  We told them that when you can say know from personal experience that living the standards = blessings from God, people respect you / can't argue with that.  They all practiced how they would explain that in their own words to their nonmember friends.  It was great!

Sister K's brother got his mission call and we just watched the video that they sent her.  I have been telling her for weeks that he's going to LA Spanish-speaking and that Elder B. is going to be his trainer!  I honestly wasn't even joking; I knew in my hear that it was going to happen.  Well . . . he got his call to LA Spanish-speaking!  Elder B., Elder K. is going into the MTC on September 5.  Expect him Novemberish in LA . . . he will be your trainee.  This I know!

Well, I've got to run!  I love you all!  My testimony has been strengthened this past week that the Lord knows us, and knows what we need to do to refine and improve ourselves.  Sometimes you have to just keep pushing through and have faith.  Easy to say, not so easy to do!  I know it's true, though.  Stay safe!

Now is not the time Kato!

Hey everyone! Greetings from rainy Ohio! We're excited for another week. I'm still on a spiritual high from Conference. I can't wait until the May Ensign comes out!

We had dinner at a member's home, and their college-aged daughter and her husband live with them. Somehow it came up that a bunch of my cousins came to OSU for school and they asked what their names are. It turns out that they know Dan Adair! They guy said, "Yeah, Dan's growing his hair out," while making a sweeping motion with his hand in a wing shape on the side of his head. I just laughed and thought, "That has to be Dan!" Only he (and my dad) can pull off wings like he does. :)

We arrived at the church on Tuesday night to talk with Bishop about a few things, and a member was playing the bagpipes in the parking lot. It was great! A few non-members in the neighborhood had come to check it out. Mom, I need to invest in a set of bagpipes. Whatever the cost!! ;)

We saw M. this week! It turned out that he watched conference, which was awesome! We have decided that he's seeking knowledge, not truth, but he loves us and is going to bring us a souvenir from his Chicago trip. Hehe . . . yep.

Guacamole par-tay! The elders in Marion wanted to have a guacamole party at zone meeting. Our assignment: to bring GOOD salsa. Redefined, good salsa = salsa from the refrigerator section. :) Good to know! Side note: there is nothing like standing in a circle with a bunch of elders, eating guacamole out of a single bowl. It was ridiculous how fast it went! Honestly, it looked like a baby blessing except there were sisters in the circle and the object in the center was a bowl of guac! Serious bonding!

We met Mormon this week while knocking doors! We were really confused because he said he wasn't a member, but then when we asked if he had heard of the Book of Mormon, he said, "I am a Mormon." It turns out his last name is MORMAN. He's Catholic so he wasn't super excited to find out that Mormon was one of our prophets. We thought it was cool, though!

Ahhh! I'm out of time! I love you all! Stay safe! Keep me posted on awesomeness in your lives!

P.S. Happy birthday to Adriane! Yaaaahoooo!

"Can we not prevent him? . . . Too late!"

Hey everyone! Wasn't conference amazing? I meant to bring my notes and share some of the insights I gained, but I forgot them at the apartment! Probably better that way. This email would be waaaay too long! I've got a lot of improving to do!

Anyways, a few things from conference. I am going to miss Julie B. Beck! I almost cried when they announced that she was being released; she looked like she was about to cry, as well. You can tell that she has given her all to her calling, and she was so forthright and blunt, which I love! Her talk was amazing; I can't wait to read it! Elder Evans' shout out to write to missionaries made me smile! I think every missionary is going to love him forever! :) Elder Holland, President Uchtdorf, and President Eyring's talks were also favorites. There were also a ton of talks addressed to parents, about teaching children. LOVED! I can't even start to explain how much I learned from this conference! We weren't able to get any of our investigators to attend; a few said they would watch it online, but no one watched it with us. We watched three sessions with members and one at the church.

I made Swedish pancakes for Sister K. and me on Sunday morning for breakfast . . . without a wire whisk, blender, electric skillet, or a pitcher for the batter. Quite a feat! I finally broke out the homemade applesauce you sent for Christmas and it's almost gone! Soooo good! Thanks for the treat!

A member named B. called and invited us to dinner. Her husband had a lot of questions about our beliefs, mostly about temples. We had a great time; we bonded over a love of mystery books, including Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, and Boxcar Children. Super awesome experience!

We had a cool tornado warning this past week, and got to drive through a crazy rain storm. The tornado sirens are pretty cool, too. The tornado never actually made it here, no worries!

We took one of our Fearless Youth of Zion out tracting with us between conference sessions. It was great! We had to get special permission from President to go out with her because she's under 18, but we had a grand time. She loved it, too, which was important! As we were walking down a street, someone shouted out their window, "I'm already saved!" It made me laugh.

We taught a fantastic lesson to some Hindu children yesterday between sessions, and I think they were easily the most intelligent, truth-seeking people I have ever taught. They were asking deep, thought-provoking questions, too. I learned a lot from them! They were probably also the most receptive people I have ever taught. You could tell that they were accepting/thinking about our answers and the Spirit was so strong. I hope they remember how they felt and that someday they will choose to be baptized into Christ's restored church!

Formal Speed Walking . . .

Hello everyone! I hope everything is going well. The work is progressing here in P. We've seen the Lord's hand in the work and some cool miracles this week. The weather has been quite rude, though. This past week was in the 80s but today it's high 30s. People joke about Utah weather being changeable! Doesn't compare to Ohio! Here are the highlights of the week (in no particular order -- no worries Dad!)

Sister K. had her 1-year-since-baptism mark and we called and sang her a congratulatory song. She was thrilled!

We tracted into a new investigator, J., and set up a return appointment. She seemed so solid and we had a member come back with us and everything. Stood up! Lame. Well, we felt prompted to tract down around that area later and as we passed by her apartment, we saw that her window was open and she was watching us. I waved and, of course, we knocked on her door! Taught her the first lesson and she was asking all the right questions! She committed to find out by April 28 if the Book of Mormon is true and, if she knows it is, she says she'll be baptized. Pray for her! She's hard to teach because she's working two jobs.

We also tracted into a guy named L. People were out doing yard work last week, so contacting them was fairly easy. Plus, people are so much happier when it's sunny and warm! Anyways, L. was edging his lawn. He is Baptist and happy to be Baptist! We talked with him about who we are and why we're here, which easily transitions into gospel principles.:) He was super nice! Every now and then he would throw in a controversial comment about not needing to work to be saved, or baptizing dead people . . . but we just let them roll off our shoulder and ended up having a really great conversation. As we left he asked if he could get us a soda. I asked if he had water and he came back with huge cups full of ice water. I'm talking 10" tall, with the top of the cup about 5" in diameter! He told us to keep the cups -- they were cool souvenirs! Awesome! We talked for a while longer, he filled our cups again and we headed out. Exposed L. to restored truths! Yeah!

Receiving a hilarious post card from Kelsey made me happy for days. I keep it visible in the apartment and it makes me laugh! Thanks Kelsey! Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa, too, for their frequent correspondence and the Wingfield newsletter, and everyone else who has written to me. I love it!

Sharing embarrassing stories with other missionaries should make them think less of you -- and Sister B. is eight billion embarrassing stories all rolled into one person's life. It's interesting how it creates friendships instead! Which embarrassing story, you ask? I suppose a better question would be . . . which door? :)

Mamma K. made black bottom cupcakes last night, which made me think of James Hilton. Yes . . . and Black Tooth! Good times! I was very careful as I ate the cupcakes so that I wouldn't create yet another embarrassing story for myself!

We knocked a lot of doors yesterday and one in particular stands out in my mind. R. is an older guy who reminds me of Dick Van Dyke. For some reason he found me hilarious. He was laughing so hard I thought he might die! Mother, I believe I inherited that ability of yours to charm old men . . . I hope it comes in handy again in the future!

We got a text from one of the ward youth, thanking us for helping him build his testimony. It had been a long, hard day and that was a tender mercy for me. The whole "bringing one soul to Christ" from D&C 18:15-16 really hit home. If that is the only thing I do here, my mission will be a success!

Why do we even have eyebrows? Does anyone know?

Hey everyone! Can you believe that today is my 5-month mark? I can't! Things are good here. Transfers were huge -- only three sister companionships stayed together -- but I am still here and Sister K. is still my companion. Hooray! We have lots of work left to do so I'm glad we're still together. We also have a lot more to learn from each other, as well. My top moments from this week (not in any particular order):

We had a great contact with a new family. We got a chapel tour arranged with them and it went great! We had brought a family from the ward as fellowshippers and it was completely inspired. The mother in the investigating family is a doctor, but she had a stroke while giving birth to their son and hasn't been able to practice since. She is the sweetest lady in the world and wants to come to church with her neighbors. Her son is also interested in primary. Well, it turns out that the father in the fellowshipping family is also a doctor, and that they both did their residency at IU the same year. Coincidence? I think NOT! Anyways, the fellowshipping family was stellar. I don't know what we would have done without them. It was a great chapel tour, and the best thing was that I could see Heavenly Father's help throughout the whole thing.

Wednesday morning Mamma K dropped by to share a treat with us in case we got transferred the next day. It was Grape Nuts and chocolate milk -- pretty darn good! Sister K. thinks it's crazy that it was my first time trying chocolate milk, but what can I say?

I had the Frito Bandito song stuck in my head all week; it made me think of Dad!

While everyone else was at transfers, we found a new investigator. She is very sweet. We found her tracting and set up a return appointment. We've been back several times since then, and she agreed to be baptized at the end of April. We're so excited! She's great. She's excited to read the Book of Mormon and wants to pray about it.

Sister C. came to train us on Friday. She's the best of the best! One thing I learned from her is why we do weekly planning. The Lord created everything spiritually before he created it physically (Abraham 4), which means that He plans. If He plans, it must be very important for us to plan, too!

About a week ago I wrote B. a letter to say hello. There was a lovely llama (thank you Kelsey J.) and a few Jedi llama protectors: B, Sister K., and myself. He called us a few days later to say he'd gotten it. We had a nice visit with his family; his older sister wants to come to YW. As we were leaving, we asked B. for a referral and he gave us one. We stopped by and they were super nice; we set up a return appointment for this Saturday!

We taught one of our neighbors because she approached us and asked us how we got sent to Ohio, of all places. It went really well; she seemed genuinely interested.

We made brownies for Bishop and dropped them by his house; we ended up reading scriptures with his family. . . and having a quote battle. His son quickly turned it into a Mulan quoting battle, which Sister K. and I won . . . obviously!

Our Fearless Youth of Zion meeting was great! We were worried because it's spring break and everyone in the Midwest goes to Florida for spring break, but we had at least 12 youth at the meeting. Awesome! I'm glad they want to come. We role-played the Word of Wisdom and talked about how awesome Preach My Gospel is. We gave them a brief overview of what it contains and how they can use it now, not just on their future missions.

I'm tracting in the rain!

Ohio weather is playing games with us! We get a few gorgeous warm days and then a few nasty, windy, rainy days. Sometimes snow! But I have cool boots that keep my feet warm and dry, so that all works out. Anywho . . . Highlights from this week:

Sister K. and I got to attend Zone Leader Council. It was super cool and we learned a lot. What with all the info we got there as well as from Elder Bednar last Saturday, our brains were pretty dead. So much dumped in there and no time to process any of it. It just kind of swirls around . . .

A little kid in the ward is trying to convince his parents to let us go to Florida with their family for spring break :) Awesome! We're just trying to work out the kinks with President!

Our investigator M is hilarious! He frequently tells us that he only answered the door when we knocked because he thought we were the Girl Scouts. Yay for cookie season! The other day we had a phone lesson with him and then tried unsuccessfully to set a return appointment; before I knew it, I heard myself saying "The next time we come, we're bringing cookies! We are your Girl Scouts after all!" He laughed and we ended the conversation. Fast forward to the next day. We helped a member clean her kitchen and she insisted on rewarding us with several boxes of Girl Scout cookies! We both immediately thought of M. We delivered the cookies to him with the couple that we wanted to introduce as fellowshippers! It went better than I could have ever hoped -- M was so excited about the cookies, he looked like a little kid. He came out and hugged me when I gave them to him!

We found out while eating dinner with a family that their 6-year-old daughter had insisted on doing missionary role-play the previous night for FHE. She wanted to be a missionary! So they practiced what they would say to their friends when they ask questions. It was really quite touching. It's little things like that that keep me going sometimes!

One day we felt like we were supposed to be somewhere, but couldn't figure out where. Finally we decided to go tract on this street that we'd seen a few days prior. A girl drove past us on her bike and her phone fell on the ground. When she stopped to pick it up, we had a 30-minute conversation about religion. She is super deep for her age (15-17 maybe) and seemed like she genuinely wanted to read the Book of Mormon. Well, any time we have a cool missionary experience we mass-text the Fearless Youth of Zion in our ward. We call it "zweeting." We zweeted to the youth about meeting this girl and got 20 texts back, asking for more details about who she was. Then they started looking for her at school! We didn't ask them to -- they did it all on their own! The next day we got 4 texts from different youth saying that they'd met the girl that day! The youth in this ward are SO AMAZING.

The ward had an RS birthday dinner with a service auction. We put in two "clean kitchen" auctions, and they were two of the most popular bidding items! I won a loaf of fresh whole wheat bread and a fresh blueberry pie!

Love you all! Stay safe! This gospel is true; Heavenly Father loves us and is helping us all to become the best we can be -- ultimately, just like Him! He knows what will make us happy in the end, even if the present isn't easy!

Please let this be a normal field trip!

This week was amazing! Mostly due to the fact that I got to sit at the feet of Elder Bednar and soak up the awesome spirit and knowledge that he has. It was so cool! I was given the assignment to lead the music at the meeting, which scared me to death. Silly, I know, but I'm a worrier . . . I inherited that from one of my parents! ;) Anyways, it all turned out well. He shook every missionary's hand after the meeting and I thanked him. It's always then that you wish you had something cool to say, but I suppose "thank you" was appropriate. I wish I could write about everything I learned but that would be impossible.

One of the principles that Elder Bednar focused on was being agents who act and are not acted upon, and to take it further, that we should allow our investigators to be so as well. He said "Get over yourselves" quite frequently, which was amusing and very true. I say that to myself quite often. Sometimes we get stuck in the "me" mentality -- "I have been working so hard, I deserve/have earned new investigators/baptisms" -- focusing on self. Another principle I liked was "Do all you can and then get out of the way." (In reference to being a conduit for the Spirit.) Isn't it interesting to think that we can get in the way of the Spirit through our own imperfections and mannerisms? Last favorite quote. A sister missionary had told him that they liked showing the members his quote about members being full-time finders. His response: "Be careful to give it with love, don't beat up on the members -- that's our job." Laughter and a look of consternation, "What! It is!" Followed by a mischievious grin. It was great!

We've found a new investigator, M., who is awesome. We tracted into him right before a meal appointment and set up a return appointment for the next day. We came back and he had done a ton of research on Mormon.org and lds.org. He knew where the church building was and what time sacrament meeting started. He had also filled out all the questions on the back of the Restoration pamphlet! I was thrown for a loop, truth be told!


A. got married this past week. I didn't know I'd be part of a wedding on my mission, but there you go! I'll forward some pictures to you.

The Fearless Youth of Zion meeting went really well this week -- we actually had 15 youth show up! It was fun and the youth seemed to like it. We got some texts from a few of them later, thanking us for including them.

I've got to run, but I love you all! Stay safe and keep me posted on new stuff!