Week 22: A Turn for the Better

Well, this week sure did happen.

Out here in Columbia, the weather finally seems to be going in the direction the locals want, but don’t worry! We have lots of rain in this week's forecast! More on that next week.

Some evidence of how much I really do be loving Saints (ft. Bibble, the Columbia Quad mascot)

I tried to make last week's email as uplifting as possible, but truth be told, there were some points in the week where I was what some experts would describe as down in the dumps. I’m not quite sure why, since my physical copy of Saints: No Unhallowed Hand arrived on Thursday. If I’m anything, I’m a fan of Saints. Also, Hermana McConkie and Sister Brown from Spring Hill came here on exchanges. And they’re some of my favorite people!

Hermana Stevenson and me with Hermana McConkie (far left) and Sister Brown (far right). They are the coolest and I love them!

The real problem is that I have felt like none of the people we’re teaching are progressing, and as a missionary, it is really easy to get yourself to feel like that’s your fault. Obviously, we’re always trying to improve and to be better, but there is nothing we can do to persuade people to want the gospel. And that can really, really suck. Especially when you let yourself wallow, which I can be prone to do. Fortunately, as I was able to learn, there’s always hope.

The iconic Columbia B team at zone conference.

First case: Zone Conference!

I am blown away by how much more I love zone conference every time. This round, I wrote seven pages of notes! It is so fun to learn and grow and be edified. Seriously, I learned so much. Let’s try to  cover only a couple of those things.

1. God has a plan for us, and if we trust Him in it, we will help the people we need to help and be helped by the people who need to help us. This does not always go the way we envision it. It often never goes that way. But, even though there are times when I question, this is where I’m supposed to be.

2. We watched this video about David Whitmer’s involvement in the translation of the Book of Mormon. To summarize part of it: Oliver Cowdery and Joseph Smith asked if they could stay with David’s family to finish the translation of the plates. David’s parents were hesitant, feeling that David should wait until they finished plowing the fields before bringing these two extra mouths to feed into their home. Their sentiment was that if Joseph and Oliver were doing the work of the Lord, the Lord would find a way to make it happen. 

David went to work plowing, but the job was laborious. He constantly ran into rocks he had to toss aside, and as he looked out into the field he couldn’t seem to get close to finishing, he felt helpless. But the next morning, as David went out to work, the fields were completely plowed. He was able to start hastening the work of the Lord. It was a miracle. 

Missionary work is a lot like working that plow. Over and over again, a rock is in your way. It feels like all the odds are against you, and they will never swing in your favor. And even though the miracle does happen, you still have to be out there, working that field for hours on end. There will be moments when you feel helpless, and weak, and inadequate. You will only be able to see the obstacles. But you will find yourself on the other side. Which brings me to:

The Bartles gave us yummy food and we took this picture to thank them.

Second case: Literal Hope

We found someone new to teach whose name is Hope! Seriously! She is the kindest, most beautiful spirit. She’s gone through a lot of really hard trials in her family these last few months, but that doesn’t stop her from living up to her name. We’ve given her a Book of Mormon and extended a soft baptismal date, which she’s accepted! Her heart is so open, and she is eager and ready to commit. I am so excited for her and all of the joy this gospel has in store, if she only reaches out to receive it.

Me holding the beautiful cake made by Sister Bartle. I know I’m holding it as if I myself made it, but I wanted to clarify I am not that talented (surprisingly)

Third case: The Scripture of the Week

When it comes down to it, life is hard. But I know that it’s also unimaginably worth it. In 2 Nephi 31 (one of the best chapters ever, period), it says:

20 Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

—Here’s to hoping,

Hermana Newton

Week 21: March Forth

¡Bienvenidos a todos!

I hope everybody is enjoying the first week of March! February is only a couple of days shorter than a normal month, but those few days make so much difference. This Sunday, I’ll be celebrating five months as a missionary. Also, today marks three months until my birthday, so you should all start prepping for how you’re going to commemorate the end of my teenage years if you haven’t done so already.

The nights are beautiful in Tennessee.

Wouldn’t you know it? So are the mornings. 

I really love Hermana Stevenson so much! We talk and laugh and learn about each other from when we wake up at 6:30 to when we're going to bed at 10:30. What I love the most about Hermana Stevenson is probably how she’s very low-key and chill, but how she’ll come out and say the silliest things, and it totally cracks me up. Like on Sunday when she walked into the room and pointed to her hair (which was a little frizzy) and proclaimed, “See what this is? It’s the humidity! I hate it here!” Don’t worry, though, I promise she loves it here.

How are we liking Hermana Likes’ earrings? I think they’re a little too big to be mission approved, but at least they’re focused on our purpose.

I’m going to be real—I was not having a good time at certain points in the week. I love being a missionary, but a few days ago, I was being really hard on myself, and I just didn’t feel like I was good at getting the job done. Sometimes, as we try to improve, we can feel swallowed up by our inadequacies. Or I do, at the very least. Everything I listened to and learned about seemed to come back to the idea that I just wasn’t cut out to be enough of a missionary.

The other day, I knew I needed some guidance, but I wasn’t sure where to look. I decided that I was just going to open up my scriptures at random and read in the chapter I happened to turn to. And, ladies and gents, I literally landed on Alma 32.

For those who don't spend all of their time proselytizing, Alma 32 is basically one of the best explanations of faith in all of scripture, especially in The Book of Mormon. There are countless nuggets and bits of wisdom in it, and I would encourage you to read the whole thing because it’s the definition of powerful. What I love about Alma 32, though, was when I landed on the last verse. After Alma has described what faith is and how we can come to have and build it, he tells us the next step. It says:

43 Then, my brethren, ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you.

Faith is not about an immediate result. It is not about getting something in exchange, or selfish fulfillment. It is about understanding what God wants for us and accepting what he gives. I love earlier in chapter 32, when it says:

16 Therefore, blessed are they who humble themselves without being compelled to be humble.

I have learned so much in the time I’ve been out on a mission, and I’ve got a lot more to cover. One thing I am beginning to understand is grace. Huge stress on beginning. I’ve so often felt like I haven’t met enough to receive exaltation. Because in truth: no one has. That’s why we have a Savior. We wouldn’t call Him that if that weren’t the case.

Christ’s Atonement is ongoing. That sacrifice and the repercussions of it have not come to a halt. As long as we’re here, as long as we’re trying, as long as we believe, it evolves and covers everything we need it to. It is infinite, and it will never fail. The Atonement is the definition of charity; it’s the pure love of Christ.

I’m known to be artistic from time to time.

I have faith in His Atonement. For me. For you. For everyone. I hope you can keep on keeping on, and that you will see it work in your life.

— Ever faithful,

Hermana Newton

Week 20: Hot ’n’ Cold

Hi everybody!

This week has gone by in such a blur! I can’t believe we’ve already done two weeks in this transfer. That means Hermana Dabb only has four left before she’s sent off. Don’t worry, I’m sure she’ll get a proper burial.* The end of this transfer will also mean that I’ve basically been a missionary for six months. So we can wait to deal with that.

Here I am with a chunk of ice that we got off of our car.

Trust me, there was a lot more where that came from.

Hermana Stevenson and I have been working hard this week! We were stationed inside until Saturday because of the crazy weather. I’ve definitely seen much more snow in Utah, but the real problem was the solid layer of ice under it. But it seems like Tennessee has very willingly put all of that behind it, because the high for today is supposed to be 70°. I thought the climate here was supposed to be more temperate, but I guess nature has been trying to throw everybody curveballs.

Someone wanted to come to church, but because of the ice, our services were canceled, and they couldn’t figure out Zoom, so we called them on Messenger and filmed the screen. #innovation

We talked to a couple of entertaining characters this week! There was this old Southern woman whose accent sounded so thick I thought it had to be fake, but it wasn’t! People actually talk like that,  apparently! One of them was a New Yorker. Hermana Stevenson told him that his voice reminded her of “Cake Boss,” and he had never heard of it before, so we got to explain that show and the gospel. Covering all of our bases.

But the funniest was probably this rejection we had this week. We cold-called this old lady, and as soon as Hermana Stevenson started to say, “My name is Sister Stevenson,” this lady went (in typical Southern accent fashion):

“Oh, nooooooo.”

And then, before we could say anything else, she went:

“Please, don’t call me!”

And then she hung up! Hermanas Likes and Dabb heard it from the other room, and they started laughing so hard, because that’s the best thing you can do when faced with persecution.

I love Korea as much as the next person whose brother served a mission there, but last I checked, this was Franklin, Tennessee!

We also had a Book of Mormon drop-off at the Columbia Mall, which was such a test of patience. Basically, we were supposed to meet up with the person we were giving the Book of Mormon to at 12. We got there, and stood outside and waited for them to show up. We called them at 12:05, and they didn’t answer their phone. At 12:15, we called again, and again, no answer. I was beyond ready to leave, but Hermana Stevenson said, “Let’s wait until 12:20,” and at 12:19, I kid you not, the person showed up. And they really appreciated the Book of Mormon! It made me realize how important it is that everyone has as much of a chance as we can give them to partake of this gospel.

Last Wednesday I got to talk to Grandma Reese, and we had a lovely chat about her mission in England and her speedy recovery from a nasty fall she had recently. She’s a tough old bird! 

Since we’re in the Bible Belt, we get a lot of Bible Bashers and headstrong Christians in general. The other day, while we were cold-calling, we ran into this lady who was convinced that she knew what we believed, even though she’s never attended our church and we’re literally representatives of our religion. Pretty classic. But she said she knew she was getting into heaven and I couldn’t say the same. So I told her that I did know where I was going after this life, too. She huffed something about how we were just saying things to make it sound like we aligned with others’ beliefs more than we actually did, and how she would never read the Mormon Bible, blah blah blah. And shortly after, the call ended.

The thing is, though, we do know that we have salvation. And you want to know how I know that we do? It’s because of a verse in 2 Nephi 25:

23 … for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

We are saved, everyone! That doesn’t mean we stop growing and progressing. That doesn’t mean we stop trying, or that we point to a specific date in the ’80s when we were baptized so as not to worry about it. It means that every day, we get better, and every day, Christ’s Atonement covers for what we couldn’t manage to do ourselves. Don’t waste the Savior’s sacrifice by being a bad person, but learn to accept His grace as well! That’s the best gift we could ever give Him.

Speaking of birds, I’ve been crushing it on Duolingo, and the support from Duo the Owl was … unexpected.

You all are a gift to me, and I treasure your prayers, your support, your part of my life. I hope you have a great week, and you’ll be able to see the miracles all around you. I know they’re there.

— Gracias por tu tiempo,

Hermana Newton

* Missionaries frequently refer to completing missionary service as “dying.”

Week 19: The Weather Broke

Oh, hi there!

I know I made a very big deal about the end of the Franklin South District as we knew it. And if I’m being real … I still find it a big deal. All of the four missionaries who left had become some of my favorite people, especially Hermana Petersen. I’m super thankful for all that they’ve taught me about missionary work, and for just being some of the best friends a greenie could ever ask for. Now on to the crazy week!

One of the craziest texts I’ve ever seen.

So transfers were supposed to happen on Thursday, but due to weather reports of freezing rain, transfers were *postponed!* That entire day was so emotionally exhausting, because Hermanas Petersen and Harris knew their new areas, and Hermana Petersen especially just wanted to get started being a Clarksville missionary. I have to be real, though, it was kind of hilarious how the Franklin South District had all of these emotional goodbyes on P-Day, and then the next day we went on a district call like everything was totally normal (it wasn’t).

I need to be better at taking pictures now, because Hermana Petersen was really good at taking most of them.

Anyway, transfers for-real happened on Friday morning. The mood in the Columbia car as we drove to Brentwood: wack. We listened to all of these emotional goodbye songs, as well as the first song Hermana Petersen and I listened to together as she drove me to Columbia (Al Green’s “How Great Thou Art”). We cried and reminisced, and we also ended up driving next to the Linden Elders, so that was some levity as I dreaded the impending change.

I love Franklin South so much, and all people pictured are some of the best missionaries in the universe.

I gave one of my top five saddest goodbye hugs to Hermana Petersen before helping my new companion, Hermana Stevenson, get her luggage into our car. I then proceeded to start bawling if I spent too much time talking about Hermana Petersen, too much time being 0.5 seconds.

Hermana Likes is still in Columbia with me.

Here’s some good news: Hermana Stevenson is awesome! She’s a super talented illustrator and is  amazing about finding on Facebook. She has an awesome attitude about everything, and I feel like even mean people we run into during cold calling can’t help but be a little less mean when they talk to her.

I’ve really been able to get to know Hermana Stevenson this week because, some of you may have noticed, but … what is up with the weather?

It snowed and we got freezing rain on Saturday night, and subsequently, we were instructed not to drive until Wednesday night. Yesterday, we got told we should stay off the roads until Friday night at the earliest. The problem with that is that Hermanas Likes and Dabb (the other newbie here—who only has one transfer left in her mission) were going to go shopping for food on P-Day, and Hermana Stevenson and I stopped by the store during our dinner hour one night so that we had enough for her in the apartment, but I wouldn’t categorize that as stocking up. This is my way of saying we’re running low on food.† Hermanas Likes and Dabb were desperate enough to walk to Kroger in the bitter cold, but it was CLOSED! As is everywhere else in Columbia. So we’re basically snowed in without there being all that much snow on the ground.

I finished 2 Nephi in Spanish this week! So I guess I should be saying I finished 2 Nefi. I’m very proud of myself, even though it’s frustrating how long it takes me to read anything in Spanish, especially the scriptures. But as I read those final chapters these last few days, I realized how much I actually love 2 Nephi. Especially when I get past reading the Isaiah chapters in Spanish (those strained my brain). Chapter 26 is awesome, and the day I studied it, we ended up reading and discussing verses 23-33 in our missionwide Sunday night devotional. I love it when timing works out like that! Anyway, here’s one of my favorite parts:

28 Behold, hath the Lord commanded any that they should not partake of his goodness? Behold I say unto you, Nay; but all men are privileged the one like unto the other, and none are forbidden.

This is the reason I invite people unto Christ. Everyone deserves an equal opportunity to accept or reject the message of the gospel. The awesome and hard thing about that is their choice to say no, which they often utilize.

I’ve been thinking a lot about a missionary devotional we’ve had this past week with Elder and Sister Gong*. In it, Sister Gong discussed how we’re invited to “cry repentance” to people because “the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” A lot of the time, that phrase has an apocalyptic connotation—that people need to repent before it’s too late. But Sister Gong’s interpretation is that the process of repenting draws us closer to the kingdom. When we’re inviting people to repent, we’re inviting them to heaven. Repentance isn’t a fearful cry. It’s a joyous shout.

Enjoy this brief clip of me performing the opening number from “Beauty and the Beast” for Hermana Likes. If you want bonus content of the rap I wrote for the Franklin Zone this week, or me singing “Man or Muppet” with Elder Nelson in which he portrays Man and I portray Muppet, feel free to ask!

I love all of you, and I hope that you’re staying safe and healthy, and that you’ll pray for me, too. Because Tennesseans do not know how to drive in the snow.

¡Ten cuidado!

Hermana Newton

* Gerrit W. Gong is one of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Sunday’s messages from him and his wife, Susan Lindsay Gong, are available only to missionaries, but you can see another devotional at which they spoke here.

† Local church members delivered groceries to the apartment a couple of hours after Hermana Newton sent her email.

Week 18: Breaking (My Heart) News

Friends, Romans, Countrymen (and anyone else who doesn’t feel called to any of those three categories),

My second transfer is officially coming to an end tomorrow morning.* I’m sort of in denial about it, even though in 24 hours (as I’m writing this), I’ll be on my way to start switching up Columbia. But more on that later.

All of us hermanas in the Franklin Zone (while we were all still in the Franklin Zone). I get to work with the most beautiful women!

What a great week this has been! In so many regards. Hermana Petersen and I love the people we’re teaching. In all honesty, we’ve been having a bit of a finding drought, which can be frustrating, since so much missionary work begins with finding people who can progress. Especially when you work as hard as someone like Hermana Petersen does. I guess you can include me, but Hermana Petersen specifically is such a good and dedicated worker. But I’ve found myself being so indescribably happy.

Hermana Petersen is finally able to roll her R’s now! She's been practicing and trying, but it’s never clicked. Until we were walking in the park, and as she was practicing, she looked and me and asked, “Well, how do you do it?” I barely rolled my R, and she imitated the sound perfectly! As we drive, we’ll find words on signs with the letter R on them so she can practice. 

We also got Arby’s gift cards as a member dinner, so we went over for lunch and ordered gyros because word on the street was that they were surprisingly good. And somehow we ended up ordering three large curly fries when we only asked for one? No one in our quad was complaining, though.

And yesterday morning, I was making breakfast burritos for the apartment and we found *miracle* pico de gallo that no one had bought. Literally, it’s miraculous.

The world would not be the same without this candid shot of me enjoying some of the best tacos in the world.

We had interviews on Monday, which meant we had district council in Franklin, and that also meant we got to see the temple! I love talking with President and Sister Weaver. They are so loving. Another miracle: One of the senior couples in the mission gave our district $20 a companionship for lunch, and we used it at this taco shop in Franklin called Mojo’s Tacos. So good!

On Tuesday, we got transfer news. Like it sounds, that’s when all of the changes for the next transfer are announced. Since Hermanas Likes and Harris are STLs (Sister Training Leaders), they get access to the news earlier than other missionaries, so all of yesterday they knew something Hermana Petersen and I didn’t know. To distract ourselves, we had an early Valentine’s Day. A Galentine’s Day, if you will. I got some mood lighting using tissue paper, Hermana Petersen played romantic songs on the violin, and we had a veggie platter and fancy grilled cheese before the quad went around the table and said everything we love about each other! It was so wholesome, and I absolutely loved it.

I love the Columbia Squad with my whole heart. I’m going to miss having Hermanas Petersen and Harris around.

Now for the transfer news: I’m staying in Columbia, but Hermana Petersen is moving to Clarksville, and Hermana Harris is going to Nashville to serve in Providencia, the Spanish ward in the mission! I’m going to miss them so much, and I’m excited to get updates from them on P-Day! My new companion is Hermana Stevenson, and she was actually trained by Hermana Likes, so that’s going to be a fun reunion! You’ll hear more about her and Hermana Likes’ companion, Hermana Dabb, next week.

On Monday, as I was waiting for Hermana Petersen to finish up her interview with President Weaver, I felt guided to read section 6 of Doctrine and Covenants. There are so many impactful verses in it, and I felt spoken to directly by the Lord the entire time. I especially loved this part:

27 And now I command you, that if you have good desires—a desire to lay up treasures for yourself in heaven—then shall you assist in bringing to light, with your gift.

Hermana Petersen and I have talked a lot about our desires this week. And trust me, I have many. All of us do. I desire to get a college education, I desire to have a family, I desire to be in Guatemala. I desire to be with Hermana Petersen for the rest of my mission. Heavenly Father sees our desires. He wants us to be happy, and He values what we want and care about. If He didn’t, we’d be following Satan's plan. But He will never help us achieve something if it won’t help us in the long run. The point of being here is progress. Heavenly Father is nurturing us so that we can grow into the most beautiful souls that we can be! Trust in that! Wish on that in your heart, and I promise you, if you rely on God, it will happen.

Here I am with my beloved district leader, Elder Parkin. :’) Truly like a brother to me. Or maybe like a super funny cousin that you always vibe with at the family reunion? Anyway, even though I look awkward in this photo, love this elder.

I love you all, through all the changes, through all the highs and lows, and I hope you’ll remember that, and that you’ll find Heavenly Father blessing you as much as you deserve. And that’s so much.

— Good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight!

Hermana Newton

* Missionaries were scheduled to move to their new areas Thursday morning, but the mission president ended up pushing it back a day because of inclement weather. Safety first!

Week 17 Bonus: Scenes From the Home of James K. Polk

 The Polk Home in Columbia, Tennessee, is one of two surviving residences of President James K. Polk (the other being the White House). Built in 1916, it’s one of the best examples of Federal-style architecture in Tennessee!

Stroll around the grounds until you feel at home.

Sarah Polk's piano.

Before and after.

Presidential mirror selfie.

Touch the spindle! Touch it, I say!

Mom will try to learn more about this statue.

Presidential table.

Week 17: Presidential Email

Salutations!

Ladies and gentlemen, I have never been more excited to write an email to all of you, because the most exciting thing in the world happened this week. Something that I’ve been waiting to have happen ever since I first got to Columbia. It was something that I was sometimes unsure would ever even  happen, but through mercy and miracles, it did. I can’t believe that I get to share it with you all!

That’s right, I visited the Historic Home of James K. Polk right here in downtown Columbia!

I don’t know if this is a letdown for anyone reading this right now, but if you know me, this seems like the event that would excite me the most.

I now know lots of facts about the eleventh President of the United States, who died 100 days after leaving office. (See? That’s one of the facts I know now.) But a missionary email could not contain all of that, so for now, I leave you with fun pictures, included here and in a bonus blog post.

This week also included: referring someone to missionaries in Wisconsin; me realizing that Wisconsin is actually super close to me now that I’m out east; seeing a groundhog in the flesh on Groundhog Day; the elders re-enacting a scene from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince; getting Costa Vida for Hermana Harris’ birthday!; Hermana Petersen and I going to check the mail right when the postal worker came to deliver it.

¡Feliz cumpleaños!

This morning, I was reading in 2 Nephi 9 (in Spanish, naturally), and a verse really jumped out to me that I’d love to share with you all. It says:

42 And whoso knocketh, to him will he open; and the wise, and the learned, and they that are rich, who are puffed up because of their learning, and their wisdom, and their riches—yea, they are they whom he despiseth; and save they shall cast these things away, and consider themselves fools before God, and come down in the depths of humility, he will not open unto them.

I would characterize myself as a pretty knowledgeable person. I’ve always loved reading and school and learning, which is a blessing that I’m super lucky to have. I often have a problem with knowing that I’m right and feeling the need for vindication. But in reality, I’m a fool before God, just like everyone else. That can be a hard pill to swallow sometimes, but when you’re humble, you really are a lot more happy than when you choose pride. We all need to knock on His door sometimes, and as much as I feel like being correct matters the most, it doesn’t. We need to be kind to others and not take ourselves too seriously. Because that’s what mercy means.

— Happy February,

Hermana Newton