Christmas Treats & the Gift (Week 16)

My study area -- across from my Sister Bernier's!

Hi Everyone,

Christmas was amazing.  I loved talking with my family on Skype, and I'm sure they loved it too.  I have to admit getting off Skype was the most homesick I've ever been on my mission.  Thankfully, it didn't last long.  I went and talked with Sister Holman until Sister Bernier was done with her Skype call.  She had some problems getting Skype working, so she started later than I did.

Brownies are ready to go!  (And, no, these are not Colorado "special" brownies.)

On the 23rd we made brownies (for Seanie, of course).  We planned to give them out to some investigators, less-active members, and recent converts on Christmas Eve and Christmas.  One of the pictures is of all the plates we prepared and another is the note we gave out with the brownies.

I want to thank everyone who sent me a gift or a card for Christmas.  Each of you made it a wonderful day.

Despite being the week of Christmas, we were able to make our goal of five lessons with a member present.  Yeah!!!

Even more treats to distribute!

We went to a baptism for a family in the Ocoee ward.  The baptism was great, but I think the service could have had more planning.  Sister Bernier and I agree that we are going to put more planning into Jason's baptism.  We want to make sure it is a good one.  Anyway, it is still planned for the 10th, but things can always move.  He needs to have his interview this week, since they need to have the interview about ten days beforehand.  I'll keep you updated next week about the baptism.

I've been thinking about eating healthier.  I need to stay away from milk.  I've been pretty good about staying away from dairy on big scales, but not so much on smaller ones.  I'll have butter here and there and chocolate a few times a week.  I've decided to go completely milk-free, and I'm hoping it will help me to feel better.  The reason I'm telling you this is because I need your help.  I love everything people send me.  However, I have been sent chocolate (which I absolutely love).  What I am asking of you is to not send me anything with milk in it.  If you could, that would be fantastic.

Non-dairy gifts for those we meet to remind all of the real gift of Christmas!

Miracle:  I think the highlight of this week was the Arald family.  Crowley said he read part of the chapter we gave them to read.  He didn't make it through the whole thing, but at least he was trying.  Also Crowley said he wanted to go to church.  However, their landlord was having someone deliver a fridge to their house, since the old one was broken.  Baron said Crowley could still go, but Crowley wanted to stay home to make sure he could help his dad when it came.  Baron is blind, so he needs a lot of help from his children.  Anyway, it was too bad he didn't come to church, but I admire Crowley for helping his dad.  Also Gundar said the opening prayer, and in it he thanked God for answering his prayer about the Book of Mormon.  After the prayer, I asked what the answer was.  He said it was that it was true and he knew because he had a good feeling come over him after he asked.  Crowley and Gundar are the youngest, but I hope they are good examples to their older siblings.

I love you all so very much, but I'm really happy to be a missionary.

-- 
~Sister Aurora Pack

Comics and Exaggerated Transfers (Week 15)

Soaked after biking in the rain... 

Merry Christmas!

My new companion is . . . (drum-roll) . . . Sister Bernier.  She is a super happy person.  She laughs when things get rough, which is really nice as it helps lighten the mood.  She is really awesome.  I am glad she is my companion.

Sister Bernier and I sport our Christmas Colors!

One day Sister Bernier called me "domestic" because I cooked split pea soup and beans using the crock pot.

My mini-crock pot brimming with Split Pea Soup

Another day she called me a tomboy because I love guns, archery, backpacking (without showers), and other things.

Anyway, she is so funny.  She is also very dramatic and likes to over-exaggerate all the time.  She even told me she'd be like this right away.  One day I commented about it, and then she was like, "What?!  When have I ever exaggerated?"  I replied, "I'll just let you think about it."  She then said something to the effect that we are going to get along great.

Saying goodbye to Sister Taylor at the Transfer Meeting

We had a awesome Christmas devotional last Friday.  I played the violin for a musical number.  We had lots of missionaries sing.  Sister Taylor sang the second verse in Chinese.  Elder Yates played the celo.  The song was "Oh, Come All Ye Faithful."  It was lots of fun to play the violin again.

Meeting my MTC companion, Sister Fairbanks, at the Transfer

We were able to see lots of our good friends, since all the missionaries where there.  There is a picture of me and my new companion, Sister Bernier; a picture of Sister Fairbanks and me; and another of Sister Burnette, Sister Lewis, Sister Fairbanks, and me (the MTC roommates).  Sister Taylor and I also got a picture.  I had a lot of fun that night.

My MTC Roommates:  Sisters Pack, Fairbanks, Burnette, and Lewis

You should all check out the video, "Good Tidings of Great Joy: the Birth of Jesus Christ."  You can find it on the Mormon Channel.  Anyway, we have showed it to some families if they have already watched "He Is the Gift."  I really like the video, because it combines the nativity and words from the First Presidency.

A week before transfers Elder Nakatsuka called us to find a phone number, so he could say goodbye, since he had served in Winter Garden.  He asked what he could do for us, so we told him to make a comic, and he asked the same of us.

Defensive driving with Sister Taylor

A nice caption to his comic by Elder Nakatsuka

Sister Taylor and I made a parody of "Love Is an Open Door" for Elder Nakatsuka, since he became obsessed with the songs from Frozen.  We gave it to him at the transfer meeting.  He is now off his mission and in Japan.

Our comic parody of "Love is an Open Door" for Elder Nakatsuka

The parody is --
Missionary: All my mission has been a series of doors in my face, but then, suddenly, I bumped into you.
Investigator: I've been searching my whole life to find my own faith.
Chorus: Christ is an open door.

Miracle: We were able to make contact with Gilan!  We set up a time to meet with him this week, because school is out he shouldn't have anything else come up.  Anyway, he said he has read all of 3 Nephi, and he wanted something else to read that would help him change from being Methodist to our religion.  I thought of the Joseph Smith pamphlet, so we gave one to him.  We also found out that he is moving, but he wanted to know where a chapel is in the city he is moving to.  He commented on how beautiful the temple is, and he knows the chapel won't be the same.  Anyway, I really am excited to meet with him this week.  I hope the other missionaries in his new area will be able to follow up.

P.S. Reminder to remember Christ on Christmas!

-- 
~Sister Aurora Pack

Day isn't Complete without Beardless John (Week 14)

One of the Walker girls, me, and Orman Morgarath

Hi Everyone,

Sister Taylor gets transferred tomorrow, and I'm staying.  I'm excited to no longer be training, but I am sad to say goodbye to a friend.  Anyway, I am also excited to get to know another great Sister.

A funny picture of my whole district

One of the things I love about Sister Taylor is that she makes me laugh.  She isn't too serious, but she is serious when she needs to be.  I think I really needed a trainer who likes to have a fun time.  Two of the fun things I've had good laughs about are "beardless John" and "the day isn't complete."

Our Christmas Tree!

Beardless John: In one Bible video, John is the only apostle who doesn't have a beard.  In two different artworks showing Joseph Smith getting the priesthood from Peter, James, and John one of the angels doesn't have a beard.  It must be John!  Also, we know it isn't Peter since the beardless one isn't in the middle.  Sorry, Dad, but I guess Johns just don't have beards.

The Day Isn't Complete: The day isn't complete in Winter Garden until we hear an ambulance or a police siren.  Almost every day we see or hear a siren.  Recently, when one goes by we say, "Sister, the day is complete."  It's been lots of fun.

Sister Taylor, Jason, and me

Jason is amazing.  We taught him tithing this morning, since Sister Taylor wanted to go over to say goodbye.  He was already planning on keeping the law, since he talked with his wife.  We need to teach him only a few more things before he can be baptized, but I think he needs to feel more ready.  Anyway, I love Jason, and I am thankful I have had the opportunity to teach him.

Sister Berrigan, her tree, and me

Oh, I almost forgot.  Christmas is coming up.  I am allowed to talk on the phone or use Skype for 30-40 minutes on Christmas.  We need to coordinate a time.  Let me know anything that doesn't work.  I'll talk with my companion, and we'll let you know what works for us next week.  Sister Berrigan has already offered to allow us to come over and use her phone.

Bishop Malcolm and his family

Miracle:  Our plans to help out the Baron family (that's the family with the single dad and five kids) fell through, because we couldn't find a female to come with us, so we tried to find something else to do.  We ended up going to see some people.  All four of the houses are right in a row.  Either they weren't home, or they didn't have time to talk.

Sister Ulf and me

We were feeling a little down, but as we walked back to the sidewalk, there were some of the people who we had tried to go see.  They are sisters and had just gotten home from visiting their husband's graves.  Anyway, both of them are sweet old ladies.  One of them is less-active, and the other is the ward librarian, so we get to talk to her often.  It was a miracle, because we needed our spirits boosted.

-- 
~Sister Aurora Pack

Christmas Party, Popcorn Balls, & Baptism for the Dead (Week 13)

Santa's Reindeer -- Donner and Blitzen?

Hi everyone,

Today, we had a white elephant gift exchange for district preparation day.  I got a mine-craft cow.  We did it before we emailed.

Transfers are next week, and we find out the details on Saturday or Sunday.  However, we already know Sister Taylor is getting transferred, because President Berry called and asked her to be a STL (Sister Training Leader).  She'll move to a STL area.  Our president asked her to come to MLC (I'm not sure what it stands for, but the STLs and Zone Leaders go to it).  [Dad:  If it follows convention, I suspect it means Mission Leaders' Council.]  We had to miss district meeting for her to go.  I think I'll stay in Winter Garden, but I'm not sure.  Since 20 Sisters are going home and only 5 are coming out, they need to shut some Sister areas down.

The stage decorations for the Ward Christmas Party.

The Ward Christmas party was extravagant.  I don't really know how to describe it.  They brought in a cupboard for a decoration.  Basically, there was way too much effort put in.  Mostly it was the Relief Society President and her family. We made rice crispy treats for it.

Our deluxe Rice Crispy treats -- eat your heart out, dad!

We also helped bring out the food, and we helped clean up afterwards.  Each table had it's own Thanksgiving meal.

The dining area for the Christmas Party

There were also lots of activities.  I'll send some pictures of it so you know what I'm talking about.  Anyway, it was nice, just too much effort.  I think it stressed out the RS president.

The dessert tables!

After the party, they gave the Elders and us these popcorn balls.  We didn't really want them, so we stuffed them in Elder Uber's backpack.  The next day, after church, we saw the popcorn balls on the hood of our car.  We visited a recent convert on the Elder's side to borrow a violin for me.  We saw that the Elders had left their bikes there, and decorated them with some of the popcorn balls.  After that, we found mormon.org cards on our car, so we took the cards and two popcorn balls and put them in their helmets.  It was fun.

I liked the singers.  They are really good; one is an opera singer.

This week we helped a family move from a hotel in Winter Garden to a house in Winter Garden.  We were able to teach them one lesson.  We have another appointment scheduled.  Arald is the father.  He is almost blind and is disabled.  He is a single parent.  Halt is 15, Mara is 14, Erak is 13, Crowley is 12, and Gundar is 11.  They all are very creative.  They play instruments, write, read, draw, and the boys play video games.  They are great.  I'm looking forward to going back, even though they are a bit of a handful.

Miracle: We had a lesson with Jason about baptisms for the dead.  He said he would do it for his brother, who passed away.  During the lesson his attitude about baptism changed.  He agreed to work towards January 10.

-- 
~Sister Aurora Pack

Miracles and Too Much Food (Week 12)

Okay, the best thing that happened this week was the Thanksgiving Miracle, but you'll have to wait until the end to read about it.

Sheets mom sent -- to list some of the things we're thankful for!

On Thanksgiving we went over to Hermie's house for her pie breakfast.  It is her tradition to invite her neighbors over on Thanksgiving morning to eat pie for breakfast.  One of her guests is this old man and his wife.  She has Alzheimer’s.  Anyway, I've meet him before.  When he heard I was from Colorado, he called it the "pot state."  When his wife needed to go home, since she was falling asleep, he went with her.  He then came back to give me and Sister Taylor Sacagawea necklaces (she's the Indian lady who went with Lewis and Clark on their expedition) .

We also ate lunch with Hermie.  She gave us most of her leftovers, since she doesn't have room in her fridge.  Sister Taylor and I were like, "what are we going to do with so much food?"  Anyway, we then went to our dinner appointment.  We had too much food on Thanksgiving.  Although I feel like we didn't eat too much at each meal, it was just the number of places we got food.

Hermie's extra food.  What will we do with it all?

I got the box you sent, mom.  I love the Chex Party Mix.  It was funny -- the day it came in, someone had asked us what was the thing we would miss most about Thanksgiving at home.  I said, "My family's Chex party mix."  I was secretly hoping you would send me some, so thanks.

I love "He Is The Gift."  If you haven't seen it go watch it at Christmas.mormon.org.

Could you pray for my toe?  It is fine right now, but it looks like the toe nail ripped in the middle.  I don't want it to catch on any skin.

Temple service was a blast.  It was raining, and we got to pull bushes out, so they can plant something new.  The lightning got close, so we took cover in the grounds crew building.  We had lunch early, waiting for the storm to pass.  Once we got in the building, we got a text with a tornado warning.  It was so much fun.

Thanksgiving with the Clarke Family

The Thanksgiving Miracle:  We knew no one would want us knocking on their door on Thanksgiving, so we tried to set up service and a lesson with the members.  We offered to wash the dishes after their meal.  Sister Clarke said we could come over the day before.  When we showed up on Thanksgiving, she said there were no dishes to wash.  At first, I thought she had already washed them, but then I saw a table set up.  She said her son threw up, so the person who was going to come over with the food decide not to, since she didn't want her children getting sick.  Sister Clarke was about to leave to go buy some food.  We were able to give her the food Hermie gave us.  We stayed for the dinner, and we were able to teach her friend who came over after we ate.  Sister Clarke said she had prayed a little before we came over, because she didn't want Thanksgiving to be a sad day.  I am so grateful that the Lord allowed me to be there for this miracle.

-Sister Aurora Pack
#sharethegift

The Clarkes and the Sisters!

Mac, Cheese, Salsa & Muslim beliefs in Christ (Week 11)

Happy Thanksgiving!

First off, just so you all know, we have a Thanksgiving meal with one of the members.  The family we ate with last night also offered to have us over, so I am well taken care of.  Mom, you would love the family from last night.  I think that every time we go over there.  Sister Haz'kam home-schools her children.  They have a bee farm, and they are just super amazing.

Yesterday, after church, Elder Uber says, "Hey, Sister Pack.  I have something from your aunt and uncle."  At first I thought he was talking about Sister Taylor since she has an aunt and uncle living in the mission, but, nope, he was talking about me.  He gave me salsa made by Grandma Pack.  Well, that was nice of my aunt and uncle.  I tried to figure out who it was.  My guess is Aunt Mary Lynn and Uncle Nathan, since Elder Uber says he had big glasses.  Elder Uber also said he felt like it was a drug exchange, since they just left right after the delivery to the mission home.  I'm grateful it was quick since I don't plan to bump into family members.

November Zone Conference (I'm in the yellow blouse)

Zone Conference!!!!  I loved it so much.  There are a few things I want to tell you about.  First, we are doing a 70-day challenge to read the New Testament.  When I came they were just finishing a 100-day challenge to read the Book of Mormon.  I've attached a picture of what we are reading when.  We are suppose to finish Matthew tomorrow.

Our 70 day plan to read the New Testament!

We are going to use My Family booklets.  We don't have them yet, but when we get them we are going to fill it out for ourselves first.  Mom could you send me more information about my ancestors?   Right now I only have their names and the years they were born and died?  I want exact birth and death dates.  Also I want the places where they died plus their children's names and birth and death dates.  Could you also send stories about them?  I just want to fill out the booklet as much as possible.  As a missionary, we are going to set a second baptismal date with investigators.  The second one is to get them to the temple to do baptisms for their ancestors.

The Christmas Initiative the church is planning is awesome.  It doesn't start until after Thanksgiving, so I don't want to tell you much.  However, I am really super excited to use it.

Miracle: I can't think of a super big one, but I think this is a small one.  We talked with a Muslim one night.  He goes by Ragnak.  I found it interesting to learn a little more about what Muslims believe concerning Christ.  They believe Jesus was a prophet but not the son of God.  One of their reasons for believing this is that it is obvious that Jesus was obeying his Father (or God) and wasn't Allah (God) himself.  We tried to explain that we believe that Christ was the Son of God but was not Heavenly Father.  We tried to explain that Christ, Heavenly Father, and the Holy Ghost are separate beings.  However, I'm not sure he got it.  Anyway, Ragnak says that Muslims are looking forward to the second coming of Jesus.  He also says Christ didn't die.  He says he is still alive, because he has never died.  He quoted the Bible where Jesus said the only sign that will be given is that of Jonas.  He said, since Jonas was alive throughout his 3-day experience in the whale, that Jesus is also alive through the whole process.  I think he is taking the comparison too far.  Anyway, the miracle is that the next morning, while reading the New Testament, we got to the place that Ragnak was talking about.  Anyway, in the next few chapters Jesus tells his disciples that he is going to die.  So if Muslims believe everything Christ says (which Ragnak made it sound like they do) then they can't believe Christ didn't die.

Just so I don't end with how Christ died, let me say Jesus Christ rose on the third day just like he said he would and that he still lives.  He is there to support us when we let him into our lives.  I know he has supported me throughout my life, especially while on my mission.

-- 
~Sister Aurora Pack

P.S.  Sorry I didn't have time to write about the investigators.  Just so you know, I'm really happy and impressed by Jason.  He came with his two-year-old twins and his newborn baby to church without his wife.  She had to work.

P.P.S.  By the way, I ate mac'n'cheese and liked it.  I know -- weird.  Hermie made it, and I hadn't told her about my milk allergy, so I just ate it.  She is such an fantastic cook, I wanted to try it.  Anyway, she made it with real cheese.  I don't know which kinds she used, but it was a few different ones.  It tasted really good.

Researching God and Meeting Goals (Week 10)

Hi everyone,

Each we visit Sister Ferris since she is in a nursing home and she was reactivated by a previous missionary.  The plate she is holding is something her mother found years ago.  Sister Ferris thinks it might be ancient.  I think it was made recently.

Elder Gouch is our new district leader.  He is a Portuguese missionary.  He didn't change areas; they just added his area to our district, which is now the Metrowest district.  Now we have five companionships in the district.

Investigators:

Pastor Trobar:  Things didn't go well.  I knew the conversation was going to take place sometime.  Pastor Trobar disagrees with us on the Godhead, and he doesn't like that we say our church is the only completely true church.  I believe the other churches have truth and are good, but they just don't have the fullness of the truth.  Anyway, I don't want to say more about what happened other than I am grateful that we had dinner with the Morgarath family afterwards, because they are fun and cheerful, which is something we both needed.

Jason: He canceled his lesson, but he came to church.

Pauline: Moved back into Ocoee, so the same Elders are teaching her again.  She is getting married to someone from that area.

Alyss & Will:  Tried calling, but no one answered.  We have plans to drop by their apartment to see if we can get in contact again.

Okay that was all the sad investigators. [Dad's Note: I'd consider Jason a big success!]  On to the happy ones:

Gilan: We were able to teach him a quick lesson, but he wants to read the Book of Mormon more before we really meet.  He asked which book would be best for him to read.  We told him 3 Nephi, so he plans on reading that before we meet up again.  We tried explaining that he doesn't need understand everything before we meet with him.

Madelyn:  The appointment fell through, but we were able to set up a time to meet with her this week. :)

George:  Our district leader, Elder Gouch, accidentally called us. We called him back to see what was up.  When I heard it was just an accident, I was a little flustered.  This was wasting our time: we could be talking to more people.  However, because we "wasted our time," we were able to see George pull into his driveway.  We had meet George before, and we had tried to visit him, but he wasn't home.  We then proceeded to have a great lesson with him.

Jennifer:  We were able to have two lessons with her this week. She agrees with most things we teach except the authority part. For her, the Bible is the authority.  Anyway, we are meeting with her and her friend, who wants to learn more about our church since her son is a member, this week.

Keren and Rosa:  They came to church a few weeks ago with the Haz'kams, because Brother Haz'kam is friends with Keren's dad.  Keren is taking a comparative religions class, so she came because she picked to research the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  We got to meet with Keren and her mother, Rosa, this week.  It turns out, as she researched, she became more interested.  Rosa is also interested in learning more, but she is very cautious about false prophets.  We are going to meet with them again after Keren has done her report, which shows she really is interested for herself and not just for her class.

This week we meet our goals for lessons with members present, other lessons taught, referrals contacted, and new investigators.  We were so exicted last night, since we got Keren and Rosa to schedule an appointment (making them investigators), thereby surpassing our goal by one.  We were able to have a lesson with Jennifer together with two of the young women, also one of our goals.  It was awesome!

Miracle:  This week on Thursday, during Zone Training Meeting, I somehow twisted my back.  If I stood up straight, it hurt.  It also hurt when I was sitting down.  Anyway, I got through the day, although it was hard to concentrate.  I prayed so much for Heavenly Father to help me.  I also laid on ice when I went to bed.  Each day the pain has been better.  Now my back is only sore and not painful.  I know the Lord has helped me.  I am/was worried about it, because if a missionary goes to a chiropractor five times (indicating a chronic problem), she gets sent home.  Anyway, I don't want my back to become a problem.  I have a great sense of peace about it.

-- 
~Sister Aurora Pack

Gobbling, a New Car, Stake Outs, and Miracles (Week 9)

Tom the Thankful Turkey -- Flyer for Gratitude Gobble

Hi everyone,

This week has been amazing.  Truly amazing.  I have seen so many miracles.  I'll try telling you as many as I can, but I know there will be some I leave out.

First, let me say today marks two months since I entered the MTC.  Time has flown by.

The Breakfast of Champions -- or, at least, of vegan-attempting missionaries!

We have a new car; it has about 200 miles on it.  The assistants came and swapped it with our car.  The car we had before had about 55,000 miles on it.  The church usually sells its cars at 50,000.

Our new wheels!

 

 

Investigators:

Jason:  He didn't come to church, because he was working.  We committed him to live the Word of Wisdom, so we'll see how that goes.

Pauline:  We weren't able to meet with her this week, since she was at her boyfriend's house.  He lives in another ward.  The Elders visited him, so they taught them both the first part of the Plan of Salvation.

Alyss and Will:  We haven't been able to meet with them this week.  We called a lot to try to set up an appointment.  She typically doesn't answer.

Madelyn: We were out with Sister Selethen to visit some other people, but they fell through.  We saw Madelyn outside, so we went to her place.  Sister Selethen and Madelyn clicked even though they are 30ish years apart.  We probably wouldn't have taken Sister Selethen to visit Madelyn, who we had met once before.  It was a  miracle the other appointments fell through, so they could meet.  Madelyn has 7 children, 5 of whom live with her.  She is working at nights and is working during the day to get her business up and running.

Pastor Trobar:  See Miracle.  He had a stoke a little bit ago and is recovering, so he is in a wheelchair.  He says it is God who helped him recover as much as he has.  He studies the Bible a lot.

Gilan:  He was the person we gave the Book of Mormon to who was smoking outside.  We have been trying to see him again, but every time we swing by he isn't there.  We went to try again.  Sister Taylor had the impression we should call people and update the iPad in the car for a little bit.  Later, we saw Gilan outside.  It was a miracle.  Sister Taylor said she felt like a creep  (#InvestigatorStakeOut).  We quickly got out of the car and went to talk to him.  He hasn't read the Book of Mormon yet, but he still wants to.  He said he had a lot of papers to grade which he just finished, and he planned to read it over the weekend.  We set up an appointment with him for later in the week.

Instruction Sheet for the Gratitude Gobble

We baked cookies this week for something we wanted to try with the ward members.  We are calling it the "Gratitude Gobble."  It's where, once someone has been Gobbled, then they pass it along to someone who hasn't been Gobbled.  They take the person a treat along with a message about something they are grateful for.  We don't want it to be a doorbell ditch--but a verbally passed message.  We shared our gratitude for the Restoration of the Gospel twice and, to another family, that we are grateful for Jesus Christ.  We encouraged the families to pass gratitude along to two people.  We also encouraged them to keep it something that truly matters, like family or the gospel--not something shallow like food.  I would give you all a treat, but I can't through email.  However, could you start the Gratitude Gobble in your area?  Mom and Dad, I expect you to do it.

Baking cookies for the Gratitude Gobble

Miracle: As I've said there were a lot, so it is hard to pick one.  I'll pick Pastor Trobar.  We were biking, going to some houses.  No one was home, or they didn't want to talk to us.  Anyway, we had some extra time to get to the library, so we decided to go a longer way and talk to people along the way.  We were about to pass some apartments, and Sister Taylor stops.  She asks me if we should go on to the library or knock in there.  I hate knocking, so my first reaction is no, let's go to the library.  However, I heard someone's voice, and I thought we should talk to him.  I told Sister Taylor that we needed to talk to someone in those apartments, so we went in.  We both kept walking forward.  I was going toward the person I heard, and Sister Taylor was going towards the person who she saw that she felt we should talk to.  That person was Pastor Trobar.  He knew we were sent by God to share a message with him.  The lesson was long since he likes to talk, but it was good.  I know the spirit was present when we shared with him a scripture from the Book of Mormon.  I know the spirit guided us to the passage to share, since it reminded him of a part of the Bible he really likes.

--
~Sister Aurora Pack

The Elders like to swap ties right before transfers.  This bucket belongs to one Elder!

Snow White and the Good Fairy (Week 8)

Hi everyone,

This week has not been the best.  We planned for more lessons with members present, but then most of the lessons this week cancelled.  We got two new investigators, but they cancelled their second lesson on Saturday; however, we have rescheduled to Tuesday.  Another way it is hard is that people sometimes give us fake phone numbers.  Why can't they just say they aren't interested?

Update on investigators

Jason:  We weren't able to get a lesson scheduled this week.  He had to work on Sunday, so he didn't come to church. :(

Cassandra and Horace:  We had a lesson with them.  They are really nice and polite people, for which I am grateful, but they are content in their own religion.  They said they might be interested in the future in having another discussion.  They were really caught up in the Godhead vs. Trinity and the end of revelations.

Alyss and Will:  These are our new investigators.  When we went over for our scheduled time, Alyss had to go into work, but we were able to teach them a quick lesson.  The spirit helped remind me to say a prayer before we left.  It wasn't a formal lesson, so it would have been hard to remember to do so.  Will thanked us for the prayer, so I know it helped a lot.  Later, they cancelled on us, because Alyss was at work and Will wasn't feeling well.

Pauline: She was living in Ocoee and going to the Ocoee ward, which goes to the same building as the Winter Garden Ward.  The Elders were sad to give her to us, but they had to since she is now living in our area.  Pauline found out the Book of Mormon was true six years ago when she did as Moroni directed [and asked God if it is true].  There were some complications that kept her from being baptized then, but she has been learning about the church on her own.  She has never taken the missionary discussions, which one needs to do if one wants to be baptized.  She has a deep desire to be baptized, so she is finally going to take the proper steps to do so.  The Elders said they thought she was a member already since she acted like one and came to church.  I'm not sure how they found out she isn't.  Sister Taylor has meet her before at an Ocoee and Winter Garden Wards service project, and she said she thought she was already a member.  Pauline is super awesome, and her personality is amazing as well.  Her age is mid-twenties; her personality matches mine a lot.

On Halloween, we meet with Pauline for the first time.  She came over to Sister Berrigan's house.  We had dinner, and then we had a lesson.  The lesson was like talking with a member about the gospel.  Pauline was dressed as a fairy.  Her costume was a mix of different things.  She said she got the wings a few Halloweens ago, the dress was one she wore to prom, and the shawl around her waist was part of her sister's costume a few years ago. 

I love dressing up, so I dressed up as Snow White.  I wore my hair in a bun.  I wore my light blue shirt with my yellow skirt.  I wore that shirt/skirt combination on my first day at the MTC, and Elder Pace said I reminded him of Snow White; other people agreed.  When I told Pauline who I was dressed up as, she said she was wondering if I did it on purpose.

Pauline as a fairy, Sister Pack as Snow White, and Sister Taylor in Halloween colors.

This week is transfer week.  Sister Taylor and I are both staying in Winter Garden South.  The only one from the Ocoee District that is leaving is Elder Nakatsuka.  He is our amazing district leader.  He is from Japan.  He is going to BYU-Hawaii for the spring semester (he goes home in December), so the Rackleys should look out for him.

Ocoee District before transfers

Mom:  Could you send me some vegan recipes, preferably healthy and fast to make?  A lot of my mail is coming in chunks, so just sent it all at once.

Mirth:  I love your costume.  Thanks for sending me the picture.

Dad:  The desert was good, and it was still soft enough.  Thanks for sending me the church music, but the disks are bad.  They won't play; I don't know why.  Maybe if I get the MP3s, I can burn it on my own CDs.  No, I am not having internet withdrawals.  I didn't in the MTC, and now I'm getting more time with Online Proselyting.  Hopefully, this week we will be able to teach someone online, since he is right now out-of-town for work.

Marie and Jacob:  I hope Jacob's leg gets better.

Miracle:  To be honest the miracle this week was having Pauline move into our area.  As I've already said, I was having a rough time.  We desperately need investigators.  Being able to teach Pauline and having her want to stay in our ward instead of the Young-Single-Adult ward lifted my spirits.  I have this extreme feeling that I am supposed to be here for Pauline.  There is something I'm suppose to do to help her prepare for baptism that no one else could do.

--
~Sister Aurora Pack

Asian Markets and Smoke Signals lead to Investigators (Week 7)

Sister Tayler and I in our car

 Hi Everyone,

First of all I want to say I love you all.

Next, I want to ask about the member lessons.  I think I want to try it in my area.  Winter Garden needs more enthusiasm for missionary work.  I want to know if it is just Clarke Farms doing it, or is it a mission thing?  How long do the lessons last?  Can I get an outline of the lessons from one of the missionaries?  Thanks, I think this could really help the members in my area.

The church has come out with a video about the temple garments and clothing.  It was well done, so I suggest looking it up.  And, for any non-member, if you have ever heard about the weird underwear that Mormons wear or wonder what happens in the Temple then I would also watch it.

Update on Investigators:

Jason: He's doing well.  He prayed at the end of a lesson for the first time this week.  We have been trying to get him to say a prayer for a while now.  He reads the assignments we give him, and he reads from the Book of Mormon with his wife and daughters each night.  He has also been praying with his family.  We have committed him to have an individual prayer.  Jason's one concren, that I see, is that he doesn't get that there is only one true church.  He accepts the church as true, but he also accepts the other Christian churches as true.  I believe it will come for him, when he prays on his own and reads on his own.

April and Mat: They dropped us.  :(  Sad.  We think April thinks we are trying to hit on Mat.  I think Mat dropped us, because April wants him to.

Ruth and her children: We haven't been able to contact them for a while, so we have reluctantly put those efforts on hold.

Cassandra: She is a new investigator.  We talked to her husband, Horace, last week.  They own a youth ministry and play in the band.  She says she has been friends with other sister Missionaries before, but that she has never taken the lessons.

We went to the Asian market to find some Chinese people that Sister Taylor can teach.  We found a couple, who want her to teach them English, and they said they'll teach her Chinese.  They are Christian, and she kept thanking the Lord that we had met.

We had president interviews this week.  President Berry is awesome.  He gave the council to be bold.  I am trying my best to obey that instruction.

Miracle:  Sorry for not including one last week.  I ran out of time.  Now I'm writing it first, even though I am putting it at the end.  We were out tracting yesterday.  Sister Taylor asked me to pick an apartment building out of two.  I tried to listen to the spirit as I chose one of them.  She then asked me second or first floor.  We would do one and then the other.  I choose the second floor.  We knocked on both the doors up there.  No one answered.  We then started down the stairs and, lo and behold, there was a man standing outside of his door smoking.  I didn't hear him come outside.  We started talking to him about families and, a little later, about temples.  We taught him most of the restoration on the spot.  My favorite question Gilan asked was, "what makes your church different?"  I was bold and told him, "we have the priesthood, and no other church does -- even though they are trying to do good."  We asked him if he wanted to go on a temple tour.  He said he would rather learn about the Book of Mormon first.  It was awesome!  He has a busy schedule, so we weren't able to set a return appointment.  I know if we had knocked on his door, he wouldn't have listened as much as he did.  It was a blessing that we went upstairs first while he came out to smoke.   That reminds me that he said what he knew about our church was that we were strict, but that he admires us for it.

Now for another picture...

Sisters Pike, Pack, Taylor, and Young enjoying a treat at Jeremiah's

--
~Sister Aurora Pack

Washing the Temple and Settling Catan (Week 6)

Here are some pictures from last week's activities.

The Orlando Temple's dirty roof [Dad: I wish anything in my house was that clean!]

A little hard mopping on a Preparation Day and, viola, the roof is as white as the rest of the Temple!

The world is on my side -- Catan will be mine!

What do you mean you don't have brick to trade?

Sweet victory -- Catan is ours!