Week 4- Packages and One-Sided Bible Bashing

Packages!! I got my halloween package! They just put the packages in front of our apartment and leave them there and some of the other sisters in our apartment complex have had packages stolen before so I was kind of freaking out that mine had gotten stolen but it showed up! But now the mission office is going to hold our packages so I don't have to have anymore panic attacks. This week we had another exchange and I went to the other side of Fontana and that was fun! That hermana loves to run so we went about 3 miles for exercise that morning and I don't even like running but it felt really good. This week was a lot of walking and not a ton of teaching. Pretty much every potential/investigator/less active gave us the slip this week.

I think we bible bashed twice this week but I'm not actually sure. The first time he just kept pointing to the Book of Mormon and then he would ask us a question but then keep talking in this weird language that could have been Spanish but honestly it kind of sounded like Chinese. Then the next day we went to teach an investigator and her husband came out and we were having nice conversation and then he started talking about the Libro de Mormon and how it scares all the latin people because it is confusing to have 2 books. We tried to explain that we sort of need the Book of Mormon... After a while we asked if we could just end with a prayer. You would think that there would be tension after that but he said amen, asked us if we wanted another water bottle, and he and his wife walked us out to our car.

So I practiced with the primary in church last week but then they told me that Karen would be able to play for the Saturday practice/actual program so I didn't practice anymore. Then on Saturday the president calls us and is like "aah Karen has pneumonia and didn't show up to practice, can you play tomorrow?" so I panicked and tried to practice some more but primary songs are hard. I was sitting on the stand pretty sure I was gonna ruin the whole thing when miraculously Karen walked in 2 minutes before Sacrament started and I didn't have to play after all!! But it was really fun to get to practice with them. I play in Relief Society and a couple of the members have asked me to play hymns on their pianos when we eat at their houses for dinner. I really love being able to play because I still am struggling to comment or have normal conversations so it lets me feel like I am contributing something!

The picture of us in the masks- we were teaching our recent convert in his driveway the other night but he lives right next to the chicken farm so when the wind blows that way it smells outrageous. We were struggling to breathe during our lesson and he runs to his car and pulls out his painting masks and we taught the lesson like that!

Love hearing about everything going on at home, I love you all so so much and every day I realize even more how lucky I am to have such an incredible family!

-Hermana Smith

Week 3 in Redlands!

This week flew by!!   My companion is a sister training leader so we get to do exchanges with all the companionships in our zone so this week was our first one and I went to the Rialto area which is pretty much West Valley but here in California.  A little sketchy but my temporary companion was really fun and we got to walk all over the place!  On Friday we had Elder Evans from the 70 come and talk to us in a mission conference and it was so cool!!  He spent the first hour talking about marriage which made everyone except me super trunky but then he talked the rest of the time about talking with people and not to people which is something I think all of us missionaries need help with.  At the very end he left us with an incredible promise that if we would choose to act in righteousness that we would have every spiritual gift given to us and that we could all have a perfect knowledge of this gospel and of our Savior.  Pretty cool.  One of the elders in our ward plays the piano for everything and somehow he found out that I play so guess who is playing for the primary program next week....yep it's me!  Church was super fun yesterday because we got to hang out in primary and they all speak English!  One of our recent converts just had her baby and she is adorable!!  They live in our same apartment complex so we go over a lot to visit and just stare at her because we aren't actually allowed to hold her:(  Everything is good and I really am loving Fontana California!  Love you all so much!

-Hermana Smith

Week 2 In Redlands

This is so different from what I expected and what they prepared us for at the MTC but I am learning to love it!!  This week was a lot of less active and member lessons.  I am getting to know all of our members a little better and I am beginning to be able to have conversations with them.  I usually just ask them about their chihuahua because everyone has at least one and they all love me.  This week the stake had a huge Latin Festival and they had over a thousand people show up!  It was the finding event of the year!  They had awesome food and dances from every Latin country and we helped serve all the drinks so we got to talk to everyone, it was sooo fun!!  This week we are back to normal schedule.  Yesterday we taught a lesson to a recent convert and my comp asked him who he wanted to say the opening prayer and of course he looks at me to do it and he goes "You know why? Because you need to learn more spanish!"  and then he had me teach him the whole lesson!!  It was hard but it definitely helped push me and yes I can teach!!  We went on a 'hike' yesterday for p-day.  Not much of a view compared to my Utah mountains but it was still fun to get out and get some exercise (I really love real Mexican food)!  We have a Seventy coming to our mission on Friday so that should be really good!   Love you tons!

-Hermana Katie Smith

First Week in Redlands!

Has it really only been 6 days here?   Ok so Tuesday was possibly the longest day of my whole life.  I flew into California with a bunch of other missionaries and went straight to the mission home in Redlands (which is beautiful).  We had some real food for lunch and then went to a whole bunch of training/meetings/interviews and such at the stake center right next to the Redlands temple!  We were all so incredibly tired but that night we watched the Meet the Mormons movie!  I somehow stayed awake and it was really really good so definitely go see it!  We slept in the mission home and the next morning we met our trainers and went out!  And now I know what real missionary work is!  I had mentally prepared myself for everything in Panama but this is a little different haha so I am adjusting to the idea of having a car and air conditioning and people who speak English but really trying not to get too adjusted.  I've met so many new people and I can't keep any of the names straight but I have loved hearing and (partially) understanding all of their stories!  A lot of the people speak English but a lot of them only speak Spanish to us!  I can understand and get the idea of pretty much everything they are saying but I pretty much just sit there and smile because I can't think fast enough to really respond.  But I always get a chance to speak a little Spanish because when it's time for the prayer my companion asks them who they would like to offer it and every single time, without fail, they smile at me and say "la nuevacita".  So I can pray really well in Spanish but if you want to have a normal conversation you're out of luck.  Also THE JUICE.  Every single house we walk into they hand us a giant glass of some kind of juice.  Who knew there were so many different kinds of juice?  But the people are incredible and we have some recent converts with crazy awesome testimonies so most of the time I feel like they are teaching me.  Conference was great and I got to watch it in English!!  loved loved loved it!  Last night I sang Frozen songs with one of our recent converts granddaughters and that's probably the highlight of my week haha.  Love you so much!:)

-Hermana Smith