You Might as Well just call me Hermana Alexander

 Hola Familia y amigos! Me llamo Hermana Alexander! Somos misioneras de la Iglesia de Jesucristo de Los Santos de Los Ultimos Dias! Sister Bruce and I ran into a lot of people who only spoke Spanish this week so now we are learning the basics to attempt a real conversation! One family was so sweet. They were so patient with us as we were trying to communicate who we were and who we were looking for. She spoke very little English and we know no Spanish so it's a great thing we have Google translate! After she understood that we were missionaries, she wanted to learn more! The Spanish missionaries are teaching them now and they want to prepare to be baptized!!! 

We were lucky enough to do lots of service this week! A less active member wanted us to help her pull the weeds in her backyard. These were massive weeds and plants! One grew into a tree! Right after that we drove to another members house to help him unpack. I was very tired after that day but it was lots of fun! 

We had Zone Conference this week! I was feeling stressed having to plan it and having to lead the part where we go over our goals as a zone and then revise them. Overall it went fine, Christ gave me a lot of support! 

Funny story:

A roach plopped onto Sister Bruce's plate while she was trying to clean it! 🤭

That's all I have time to write today💗

Please pray for 

Blake and Gage

Wayne 

Brendon

Chelsey 

Raymond 

Pictures

New Transfer, New Me

 Sent Sister Bertola home and picked up Sister Bruce on Friday! It's hard sending a companion home but it helps to tell myself that they are just being transferred to a new area... even if that new area is Disneyland. I'm stoked to be leading out this area and for Sister Bruce to be my companion! On our almost 3 hour drive back home from Columbia, we were talking about what we love about our missions. We talked about how a mission is a wonderful time to become! I love this word so much and sister bruce defined it perfectly: it's a word that captures a goal in a way to begin with the end in mind and understanding that it will be a process. That is what I am going to focus on this transfer. I know I can become patient, humble, kind, and charitable through Christ's Atonement. 

This week was also full of miracles! Brother and Sister Crapse took us to Miyabi, a hibachi restaurant! It was my first time going to a place where they cook the food right in front of you! It was sooo fancy and the food was delicious! There was another family sitting at our table that we started talking to. They noticed our name tags and asked what that was about. We shared with them what we do and how missions work and they were so sweet! Turns out they even had a lot in common with the Crapse! They knew a lot of the same people because they went to high school together! We all made great friends with them and they said God put us in each other's paths!

Sister Bruce and I were talking about how amazing it would be to have more service opportunities and it would be fun to be able to do a game night with a part member family. The very next day we stopped by a less active / part member family and she said that shed love for us to help her weed her yard and then she pulled out a board game and asked if we had ever played that game. When we said no she said we'll have to come over to play it some time! God answers prayers!!! 

On Sister Bruce's first day in the area, we joined the ward in cleaning out someone's house. She was a hoarder and breeds dogs... So that was fun. We were in charge of the laundry room. Our task was to fold up the doggy beds and and blankets and put them in a box. We worked on that for an hour but we finished! The owner of the house came to check on us and informed us that those "doggy beds" were actually their pee pads... and they still needed to be washed. So as we were fathoming what we had just folded, she began pulling them out of the box and putting them back on the floor.🤦‍♀️ When she looked behind the washer she said "OH! I found my cat! What are you doing back there cat?"  my reaction was: "There's a CAT back there?!? Is it alive??" poor thing has been back there for who knows how long!

Please pray for

juliana

allison

chelsey

Pictures

Cleaning 

Bishop made a makeshift railing and the house we cleaned up

Goodbye Sister Bertola 🛩

Me and sister Bruce 

Miyabi restaurant! 

Downtown Savannah GA

 This is sister Bertola's last few days of her mission! Transfers are Friday and it's weird knowing I'll be getting a knew companion and leading out the area. I'm excited though, especially to see what God has planned! 

Kylia, one of the members here, just got set apart as a full time missionary on yesterday and will leave for her mission, Phoenix AZ, next week! I loved her farewell as it reminded me of mine. I have really appreciated how, my whole mission, God has been showing me the ends and beginnings of a (full time) mission. Really, our mission lasts our whole lives, it doesn't end when we take off the tag. It's been a blessing to see the excitement and faith of a newly set apart missionary who has no idea what they're doing but giving their best and to see experienced missionaries endure to the end as they go home and continue the righteous habits they learned. 

Brendon came to church yesterday!! Brendon is someone we met a month ago. We were just in the Walmart check out line when he asked if we were missionaries. He told us how he was baptized a little over a year ago and stopped going to church because life got too busy. We gave him our number and invited him to church! He seemed stoked but hadn't come until yesterday! He told us he was debating whether or not he wanted to come back but decided he was all in and now wants to progress on the covenant path!! So excited for him! 

We got stuck in the church building with our district on Tuesday because of bad weather. We decided to brave the drive though haha. So we drove 45 min home in a tornado warning weather... lots of rain, wind, lightning, and thunder 🚗⛈️🌪 we were safe!! Still proselyted and got soaked! 

We went to a new part of our area to knock doors and this neighborhood is in the marsh! Its crazy to think there was just water out there. With the marsh and all the palmetto trees, I felt like we were on the set for an episode of Gilligan's Island! 

Some good news: we've been eating good this week. Had members taking us out to Texas Roadhouse, Chili's, Jalepeños, and a pizza place. We've been having back to back meals! 

Please pray for 

Margaret 

Chelsey 

Parrish 

Phelps 

Wayne 

Nae

Pictures  

Lego Dandelions! 

Went to downtown Savannah for P day!! 

Roman catholic cathedral 

                               

I love being a missionary

     This week was eventful and fabulous!!

We had our big MLC meeting again this week. As we were making our road trip of 2.5 hours there with Chick-fil-A breakfast in our laps, Mike texted us saying his daughter wants to be baptized! Mike recently got baptized himself and his daughter, Chelsey, recently moved back home. She wants the blessings of baptism! So excited for her and to teach her the restored gospel of Jesus Christ!! 

Other than that we've been knocking lots of doors and trying to get in contact with a lot of part member families. Families are such an important role in God's plan and we've been having a member focus in our zone to try to focus on uniting families for eternity! 

We've still been seeing a few cockroaches in the apartment. I can tell when my companion finds another one because of the shriek I hear in the other room. I have now become the designated bug killer. Shoutout to my dad who told me I had to kill the bugs I find at home to prepare for my mission because no one else will. I've had to use that skill a time or two haha! 

I've been reflecting on my mission today and all the things I've learned. Before my mission I was able to join the sisters for a day. We spent a few hours knocking on doors that didn't answer, had one lesson, and waited in the temple visitors center for a while. They apologized for not having the most exciting day for me to join for. I had no idea what they were talking about, I enjoyed every moment!! I told them if this was a bad day, I'd love everyday!! Just remembering that experience brought me so much joy and excitement for what I get to do every day! 

The gospel is true. It brings me so much joy and happiness and I love sharing it with others! 

Love y'all!

Please pray for 

Wayne 

Chelsey 

Blake + Gage

Pictures 

Our road-trip

Dandelions! 

Texas Roadhouse!! 

Chelsey and her family

Happy New Year!!🥳🎆

 Happy 2024!! Hope y'all make some good new years goals but also plan to accomplish those [check out Preach My Gospel Chapter 8]!! 

Sunday miracles! 

First of all, thank y'all for your prayers!! We had a lesson with Donovan and he told us how his prayer to feel God's spirit was answered! He felt the spirit so strongly but only for a moment. Donovan said he wants to have that feeling again and to always have it! Since he was baptized in August, just never received the Holy Ghost yet, he needed to do the baptismal interview again. That all went well and he was confirmed this last Sunday!!! He even brought his brother to church and he wants to learn more! 

Chelsea, a daughter of a recent convert, recently moved back in with her family and she came to church! In Sunday school we talked all about the Book of Mormon and Chelsea was so open to learning more. We set up a time to meet again!

God put Wayne, a less active member, in our path! We texted him but ghosted us after we said it's the missionaries haha. But we don't give up that easily! We stopped by his house and he let us in! He told us all about this trial he's going through right now and how he needs God. We invited him to church again (he hasn't gone in 20 years!) And he came on Sunday!! We were so happy to see him there. 

Funny story 

During our studies one morning, I heard a splash in our apartment. Come to find out, the apartment above us flooded! Water came onto our kitchen counters and soaked our toaster and somehow our microwave is ruined too. I guess I got to experience both sides of a flooded apartment😅

Please pray for 

Wayne 

David

Danny

Blake and Gage

Juliana