Last week I had mentioned that there was a tornado here. Well I had HEARD there was a tornado and didn't think much of it, but once I had actually SEEN the damage it had done I was pretty surprised. It was a lot worse than what I thought! So Monday evening after Pday was over we went down the road to help out. Most of what we did was tell people where they can go for water and ice and a place to stay down the road. Almost everyone on Kent Island didn't have power for a couple of days which made things interesting in the middle of July. But it was amazing to see everyone come together. Mostly what we've been doing is hauling trees and branches into big piles near the road. It's been great getting to know the community better and serving with them. On Thursday night we were driving home after a long day in Easton and President Johnson called us. He told us that there were some sisters at the visitors center that needed an emergency transfer for different reasons and he wanted sister Rees and I to take one of the sisters for the next week and a half until transfers. We were planning on going to the visitors center the next day anyways for a lesson with Pal, so it worked out perfectly! On Friday we went to the visitors center with Pal and showed him the temple. I got permission to call the Meena family who I worked with in Bethesda and so Lokesh came to the visitors center for the lesson. He bore his testimony to Pal in Hindi and was such a great teacher for him. After the lesson we picked up sister Yang who is with us now. Sister Yang is from China and has been a member of the church for 8 years. She is SO funny and we've been having a blast being together. Her little accent makes some words sound funny. Yesterday we were walking down a street and she stops and points at the ground and says, "oh my gosh, crispy frog!!!!". Sister Rees and I busted up laughing and looked at what she was pointing at. There was a dead frog on the road and it was all dried up. She says the funniest things. Also, since sister Rees also speaks fluent Mandarin, they speak it all the time. So I never know what they're talking about! But they are both so happy to finally be with someone who speaks their language. AND I get to try the best Chinese food all the time. It has been a lot of fun he past couple of days in this trio. Sister Yang and her father have a really cool story. Her dad went to Hong Kong for a business trip and a young man who was preparing to serve a mission met him. They began talking and her dad soon learned that this young man was preparing for a mission for the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Her dad became interested and just a few weeks later was baptized there in Hong Kong. Since he was baptized there, he was allowed to go back to mainland China and teach his daughter (Sister Yang). She was baptized at the age of 14. They are the only members in their family and their little branch in China has been through a lot in order to meet and worship each week. Well this young man who was preparing for a mission ended up getting his call and was assigned to the Washington DC North mission! Years later Sister Yang decided to turn in mission papers to go on a mission and where did she get called....? The Washington DC North mission!!! Sister Yang is an example to me of how much Heavenly Father knows us each and has a plan for us. On Saturday night we got a call from a member of the branch presidency asking us if we would speak in church the next morning since everyone cancelled. We all talked about different aspects of sharing the gospel. I love giving talks, especially in the Kent Island branch. We are 90% sure that we will both be leaving this next transfer (next week) and so it was great to be able to speak one last time. We met with Zach after church and taught the last part of the commandments. His baptism is next Sunday and he is really excited for it. We can't wait. This week I read a talk that I really loved from President Uchtdorf called Forget Me Not. One quote I loved is, "Sometimes, in the routine of our lives, we unintentionally overlook a vital aspect of the gospel of Jesus Christ, much as one might overlook a beautiful, delicate forget-me-not. In our diligent efforts to fulfill all of the duties and obligations we take on as members of the Church, we sometimes see the gospel as a long list of tasks that we must add to our already impossibly long to-do list, as a block of time that we must somehow fit into our busy schedules. We focus on what the Lord wants us to do and how we might do it, but we sometimes forget why. The gospel of Jesus Christ is not an obligation; it is a pathway, marked by our loving Father in Heaven, leading to happiness and peace in this life and glory and inexpressible fulfillment in the life to come. The gospel is a light that penetrates mortality and illuminates the way before us". Love you all. Have a great week!!!!!
Love Sister Haertling
The Threesome
Pal at the temple
Tornado damage
No comments:
Post a Comment