The Tale of Two Missionaries and Their Pet Spider 06/15/15

Morro Bay is great! We are finding lots of people to teach, and the members are starting to give us a lot of referrals. I am still trying to meet everyone and get used to the area, but so far everything is going really well! We have seen a lot of miracles and some people even just come up to us. We have been blessed! There was one family that stopped the Elders in the middle of the street and asked them where the church was. They told the Elders that they had been taking the discussions in Mexico and just moved here. So we went to go find them, and the lady they live with has a ton of potential as well! We haven't actually even found them yet because they are always working, but we are excited to find them this week.

Hermana Young is really fun to work with! We had a wonderful bonding experience this last week with our new pet, Silvestre. Don't worry, he is not our pet by choice. He is this huge hairy spider that comes back every night and sets up a trap to catch dinner right outside our front door. We called the Elders and asked if they could kill him, and they said they would the next day. (I'm normally not such a baby but this is a HUGE SPIDER PEOPLE!) SO we woke up the next day and he was GONE! We were so mad. And then there were spider webs everywhere..Hna. Young said, "AH! He made such a mess!" Then, that night he came back and set up his web again. We ended up seeing this moth fly straight into it, and Silvestre pounced on it, and it was the COOLEST THING EVER! So we decided that we needed to see it again and record it. So we got our cameras, and caught some moths, shook them up to knock their direction off, and threw them into the web. If I can figure out how, I will send you our video because we are hilarious geniuses.

We were also able to teach these two little kids, Alejandra and Luis, how to play the Ukulele at a park...so fun. We also taught them the song, "I Am a Child of God." When we went back later in the week and Luis (who is 6) was playing basketball with these 3 shirtless college guys. He was super excited to see us, so he ran over and was ready to learn more about the Ukulele. He said, "Look I remember the song!" And he started singing "I am a child of God..." and then he decided he wanted to sing it for his basketball buddies, so Hna. Young and I ended up singing to all of them in the middle of the park with Luis...hahaha :) 

Anyways, this week was awesome! My testimony is growing every single day of how true this gospel is! Nothing else could ever bring me so close to my savior. I am so grateful for the understanding I have of Him, and for the relationship I have with him. All I want is for it to grow even stronger. I love my brother, Jesus Christ, so much! I am so grateful to kneel down every night and thank my Father in Heaven for His Son. 

I know this is true! If you are lacking in happiness or hope, turn to Jesus Christ. He is the only one that understands you, and he is the only one that can help you. 

I love you all! 

<3 Hermana Ricks

Prepare to be Jealous 06/08/2015

HELLO EVERYONE!!

Oh man. Prepare to be jealous. So here in Morro Bay, the Hermana's apartment is right on the ocean. We are a little ways away, but we are out in the country, and nothing blocks the view of the ocean. We can see the Morro Rock perfectly, and we can hear the ocean clearly. It is also right next to a national park. so we are in the mountains (well, "mountains" compared to Idaho...") with lots of trees and horse trails as well. The apartment we live in is the basement of vacation home of some people that aren't members of the church. They have a tree orchard with grapefruits, oranges, cherries, tangerine thingies, apples, and lemons, and we are free to eat them! Everywhere we go is basically right around the bay, and it is SO PRETTY! I'm convinced it is the prettiest place I will ever live. The only problem with it was the beds...super uncomfortable. But luckily for Hermana Ricks, they closed down her last apartment that is only like 20 minutes away, so she called and asked if they could bring those beds to the Morro Bay apartment and they said yes! So come Wednesday, I will be sleeping in Paradise. 

 

So basically, I am loving Morro Bay! Besides the fact that is the most beautiful place I will ever live, the people are amazing. The ward is very supportive, and they seem to be very involved in missionary work! A lot of the youth bring friends to church, and many members come up to us and tell us their missionary experiences. I am excited to be able to use the members in this area to further the work! We were already able to have a lot of member present lessons, and our district leader, Elder Phillips, is having us all do power hours (an hour where the members come out with us and their family stays and prays/reads scriptures for an hour) at least once a week. So I am expecting to see lots of miracles!

Hermana Young is awesome! We got along right away. She is the first companion I have known before I was companions with her, so it wasn't as hard to adjust! She was Hermana Huey's back-up trainer, and I had talked to her a lot because she is really friendly. We have been using music a lot in our teaching as well. I am really excited to work with her. She is very observant and does a lot of little things to serve me, like filling up my water bottle and sticking it in the fridge while I'm in the shower. I need to be better about doing that for my companions! 

So you won't believe what I'm about to tell you, but I am going to tell you anyways. This week, I tried Fish and Chips for the first time in my life, and I wasn't even forced to. So there was a restaurant right on Morro Bay called Giovani's that had their 30th year anniversary last Wednesday, and they were giving out free fish and chips. I figured after that time in Oxnard that I was fed a bowl full of muscles, crab, shrimp, and oysters, and after all the other times I have been fed sea food so far, that I could try it. So there you have it. I guess I'm not as picky of an eater anymore... But I still wouldn't try the bag of crickets Hna. Young had in the car...that'll take me a few more months. 

Also last Thursday, we went to a member's house for dinner. They are the seminary teachers here, and they were throwing an end of the year party that they invited us to! It was so fun. They had sent the students on a scavenger hunt around town where they had to do things like take a picture with a biker, and give out a pass-along card. Seminary is the best! Hermana Young and I decided we should do missionary work like that...just tell everyone that we are on a scavenger hunt and we have to take a picture of us giving them a passalong card. haha! Anyways, the family lives right on the beach and their house is so pretty! They also said I could come back and stay at their house when I come back to visit, so I will keep that one in mind. 

Anyways, I love you all! I am excited for this transfer! 

<3 Hermana Ricks

Welcome to an emotional roller coaster! 06/01/2015

Oh maaaaaan what a week!

So first things first...

MARIA GOT BAPTIZED!!!!! Talk about biggest miracle I have ever witnessed in my life, preceded by lots of other miracles. Heavenly Father really must be in charge of this work, or that never would have happened! Thank you for all of your prayers for her, because holy cow. Best baptism ever. 

So how it all went down: We ended up using the bishop from Arroyo Grande 1st Pool! (He basically lives in a castle.) We sat her in a plastic wheelchair and then we got two missionaries, and two members of the ward to all dress up in white and baptize her! We had a member give a talk on Baptism and the Holy Ghost, and then Hermana Wallace and I sang. Shout out to mom! You know that song book you bought me before I left that had the CD accompaniment in it? We used that sense there wasn't a piano, and bishop had a sound system outside! We sang, "I Stand All Amazed" in a mixture of spanish and english. THEN MARIA WAS BAPTIZED!!! Her family didn't come, but her caretaker did! He is awesome. He wore basketball shorts incase he needed to jump in the pool and save her, but  he wore these super high socks and was like, "I wanted to cover up my tattoos to look nice for her baptism." aww. so sweet. And then after she was baptized, he jumped up out of his chair and yelled, "WOOHOO!!!" And started clapping, and then everyone else started clapping too cause it was just the most awesome baptism ever. Seriously, I wish I could have recorded it! 

On Sunday, Maria received the gift of the Holy Ghost, and afterwards she said, "I feel whole now." I love her so much. She calls us, "Hermana Rick and Hermana Wallet." :)

Sad part: I am being transferred. :( I totally got gypped! Only 6 weeks here. I am so sad. They are going to bring in a trio of spanish Elders to cover the english and spanish work, because there just isn't a lot of spanish work here. I know two of the Elders that are coming though, and they are awesome! Downfall: We have to have our apartment cleaned out because no other missionaries are moving in...and there was a TON OF STUFF. We're talkin 9 boxes of supplies and a whole car load to Goodwill. Oh and to top it off, Sister Felix called Saturday night and asked Hna Wallace and I to sing at transfer meeting. Great...

So funny story: Yesterday we were working on cleaning things out, and the zone leaders came over to get our 9 boxes of supplies. Well, right before they came, Hermana Wallace had thrown out this old broccoli and cauliflower...IT STUNK SO BAD. So the zone leaders came, knocked on the door, and the they went back to get there car and pull it up closer. While they were doing that, I ran and grabbed this perfume that had been in my closet for who knows how long. I have no idea who's it was. But it was like fermented or something. So now it smelt even worse. Luckily, the elders couldn't come inside - only to the porch where all the boxes were. Well, we were helping them take it to the car like 20 feet away, and I realized you could smell in all the way over by their car. So I figured, well, we better explain ourselves. So I told the elders what had happened. Elder Young said, "Oh man. I was wondering what that was. I thought it was like maybe a bush or something, but I wasn't sure. I'm really glad you explained yourself Hermanas, because I've corrected Elders on their apartments before but I just really wasn't sure how to correct you. Cause that was bad..." hahahahaha how embarrassing. Oh well. We ended up opening all the windows and doors and faced a fan outwards. We texted them 20 minutes later to report that it now smelled fantastic in our apartment and they said, "Well it couldn't have gotten any worse. That's for sure..." 

 Anyways, I don't have my next address yet, but I know I am going to Morro Bay with Hermana Young! She back-up trained Hermana Huey, and she also served in Oxnard at one point, so it'll be fun.

And the saddest news: I just found out the Hermana Price went home. She had been really sick and had gone to the ER a couple of times. I am glad she was able to serve with Hermana Brown through all of that, because I know she was well taken care of! But I am so sad that she had to go home. We had made a plan to be companions again! Hopefully she will be able to come back out.

Don't be E-sassy 05/25/2015

OH this week is CrAzY!!

First off, THANK YOU FOR THE PACKAGE!! It was everything I've been needing! Last week, this other super cute couple also gave each of us a package when we went to eat dinner with them. They gave us Burger King gift cards, popcorn, scissors, band aids, hair ties, candy, ...all sorts of awesome stuff!! It was the sweetest thing ever.  

So last week we had an FHE at one of the members of our spanish group. No one else ended up coming besides this family that the dad had served in Honduras and so he knows spanish. At the end, the family who was hosting was like, "We made refreshments!" And they bring out these huge plates of Spaghetti and garlic bread for each of us. Haha...1. This is full on dinner and 2. That's italian food! But they put green salsa on it so it was still Mexican. :) It was super fun though! And they two families bonded well together.

 Wednesday, we were teaching the Restoration to this other less active family, and the dad is SUPER SASSY! I always ask everyone from Mexico that can speak english what the word is for sassy, because I keep hoping there will be one. Well, the dad asked, "Que es e-sassy?" So Hna. Wallace explained to him that it was HIM. She then mimicked him the first time we met (and told him where we were from) telling me that I Idaho was famous for potatoes, but I shouldn't eat french fries. And she mimicked the time we accidentally said "Mormon" and he made a huge deal telling us that we aren't mormons, we are The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints! Anyways, it was super funny. And after she was done mimicking his sassiness, he just sat there with this guilty face, and his wife laughing histarically, knowing that he indeed was very sassy. When we left I said something to him about french fries and he said to me, (read it in a spanish accent) "Don't be e-sassy..."  jajaja One day I'll find a word.

Then on Thursday, President and Sister Felix surprised us all and came to District meeting! No one knew they were coming, and Sister Felix even brought cookies. Her cookies are THE BEST.  It was super fun to have them there! Especially because I didn't have to give a talk that week or anything...:) After district meeting, we went to visit Maria and she was super crazy that day. We were singing "The Spirit of God" and when we got to the part that said, "We'll sing and we'll shout" She goes, "AY!" Super loud. It scared the beejeebees out of me. I started laughing really hard and asked her why she would do that. She was like, "aahahaha because it said 'GRITEMOS!'" She thought she was hilarious.

On Friday, Maria had her baptismal interview!! An Elder from Santa Maria came down because he speaks spanish, and he said that he basically didn't even have to ask her the questions because she just said the answers before he asked them. She is SO excited about her baptism. We are still working on getting everything set up for it. We were planning on doing it at a members pool because she is wheelchair bound, but that ended up falling through. We are trying to see if there is someone else that has a pool. Pray that everything works out so we can do her baptism before the end of this transfer!!

THEN! On Sunday we got to teach Sunbeams. So fun. We even played ring around the rosie.

So during studies this week,, I realized that sometimes I get really caught up in all of the little aspects of missionary work. All of the small rules, and numbers, and trying to please everyone. However, I was reading about when Christ came to the Americas and how he interacted with the people. It made me realize that I did not come on a mission to impress anyone, or to receive any titles, or to prove anything to anyone. I came because Heavenly Father told me specifically that I needed to go on a mission, and because I love him, I came. And because I love him, I do what he asks me to. I follow the rules and serve the people and love the people because I love him. It reminded me of when Christ said the greatest commandment is to love God with all our heart, and the second commandment is to love our neighbors. I think that can be applied to missionary work in so many ways. Everything else falls into place when those are the two things that we worry about the most.

I can't believe this is the last week of the transfer already! Each one gets faster and faster. Next Monday I will know what is going on, and if I am able to stay here another transfer!

OH! I keep forgetting to tell you all!! Regina, who was my investigator in Oxnard (She was supposed to get baptized while I was there but crazy stuff happened) SHE GOT BAPTIZED!!!! I wish I could have gone. Hopefully someone will send me pictures so I can show you!

Anyways, have a great week! I love you all! And Happy Memorial Day!


<3 Hermana Ricks

Busy Week! 05/18/2015

Hello family!! What a week! There were lot's of fun things!

So last Monday, we were able to sing at the Christian Women's convention. It actually wasn't as terrible as I thought it was going to be. And they fed us lunch! Hna Wallace and I sang, "Love at Home" together, and I accompanied a member that sang a song called, "Joy in the Journey." We also went bowling with the district! That was super fun, and I totally got a strike.

Tuesday was the hike with President and Sister Felix! We did a lot of activities that had to do with following the spirit. We had blind folds and took turns being led by our companion up the trail.

Wednesday I went on exchanges to Santa Maria with Hermana Costilla! I have always wanted to be companions with her. She is super cute! She was Hna Brown's trainer. She goes home this transfer, so it was right in time! So while on exchanges, we went to do service at this Catholic Charity place. We were standing behind the counter, and helping people sign in. The charity had a ton of bread that week, so they told us to tell everyone that came in to take as much bread as they wanted. So everything was going great, and then this white viega (old lady) came in, and was rather on the sassy/snarky side. We of course, said, "Good morning! How are you today?" She said in a super cheery/snarky voice, "OH I'm just GREAT!" And then we told her about the bread and she signed her name on the paper. Well, she didn't put her birthday which was suppose to be on there, so we asked her to put it. She was like, "WHY! Would you need that." Hna Costilla explained that we were just volunteers and they told us to have people put it. So she angrily wrote her birthday and slammed the pen down. We then told her she was welcome to take as much bread as she wanted, to which she responded, "Whatever." And then she grabbed her bag, grabbed her bread, turned around, and totally biffed it over this crate on the floor. Now, ladies and gentleman, I know that I should be more charitable, but I totally thought that was the funniest thing ever. Perfect timing really. Don't worry, I waited until after she left to laugh. The rest of exchanges were awesome too! We did a lot of street contacting, and then we went and got ice cream to celebrate!

Thursday we had an awesome District Meeting where our district leader ended by holding up a Book of Mormon, telling us it was our weapon, and the floor was our battle field. He then slammed it down on the table and said, "Move me." The testimonies following it were so powerful. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God! I have felt the spirit tell me as I read it that it is. I have read it, and prayed about it, and there is no doubt in my mind that it is true. I invite you to give it a try as well if you do not already know for yourself! If you do already know, share it.

I hope you all have a great week! I love you!!!

<3 Hermana Ricks

Okay and the computer is being dumb and won't send any pictures..sorry. I'll try again next week!

PS HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEENAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

!!!

El Dia de las Madres!! Woot Woot 05/11/2015

Hello my wonderful family!!!!! It was SO FUN to talk to you yesterday!!! I think I told you just about everything yesterday, so I will try my best to think of something to tell you now. But no promises.

I did forget to tell you, this last week we were able to go help paint a water park!! There is a camp site near here called Lake Lopez, and deep inside of it is a little water park. A member of our ward is friends with this Australian guy that just bought it, and he is trying to re-open it on May 18th! The member has been wanting to introduce him to the church, so he thought that a good way to do that would be through service! I got blue paint all over my pants...but none on my Utah State shirt, or my volleyball shoes! Phew. Anyway, he was trying to figure out how to pay us, but the member friend told him we couldn't receive money. He then decided he would just give us water park passes. Hahaha. Can't do that either! People must think we're crazy. But we'll have to come back after my mission, cause it does look like a really fun little park!

Anyways, I was trying to think of a funny story at your request to tell more funny stories, but I really can't think of any. This week was weird. Not bad, but just weird. We met a lot of members. We are trying to gain the support of the english members for the spanish group, so we go around and share a lot of little messages with them - usually about the atonement. It's really fun! There are a lot of awesome people here.

Tomorrow we get to go on a hike with President and Sister Felix! That will be really fun! Speaking of hikes...I had Hna Brown and Hna Price send a box of stuff home including my chacos. Have you gotten it yet? I don't even know if they've had a chance to send it. But let me know when you get it! There's a bright orange hat with a bear on it for Keenan!

But...sorry this email is gonna be lame! I already told you everything yesterday! I'll close off with a spiritual thought. :)

This week I was studying the part in 3 Nephi where Christ comes to the Americas. I didn't necessarily learn anything new this time, but I did feel the spirit very strong. I know that Christ is living today, and I know He is the son of God. I know He died for me, and is our savior. I feel His grace helping me every single day. I could not do this without Him. He makes everything possible. I am so grateful for such a selfless brother who was willing to go through so much, so that I could have a chance at receiving eternal happiness. I know this is His true church, and I am so honored and humbled to be His servant. I love telling every single person I meet about this joyous message. It is such a humbling experience, and I continue to gain so much perspective of what really matters. I have grown so much more love for all of you, and I am so glad I get to be you with you crazy monkeys for eternity! Thank you for everything. I love you.

<3 Hermana Ricks

MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU!!! 05/04/15

"Hey, we should go to Jalisco's for Pico de Mayo!"

"You're so dumb, it's Cinco de Gallo...oh wait"

jajajaja I can't believe that was a year ago, and now here I am speaking spanish. If I were to hear ANYONE say "Pico de Mayo" or "Cinco de Gallo" now, I would think they were an idiot. Glad I'm not so dumb anymore. :)

Thank you SO MUCH! For my BUMP DAY package! I didn't even realize I was so old until I got that package! It's going so fast, and it's only getting faster...it needs to STAHP. 

So this area is AWESOME! We have spent a lot of our time this week trying to gain trust of the english ward members that speak spanish, so that they will have a desire to help us with the spanish group. We have been focusing a lot on them. We have made it a goal to call our dinner appointments two days in advance, ask them what they would like us to share a message about, and then we invite them to bring a less active family that they home or visit teach. We have seen so many miracles just in the last week of showing this little bit of added time and attention to our members. This week at sacrament meeting, we ended up having a few english members attend our group, and we also had all of our less actives attend, minus one. It was a true miracle that came from fasting, and from our efforts in strengthening the members! We have hope that this effort will result in many more miracles, and the members of our group will begin to reach out to others that need the gospel. A lot of this success is because of your inspired letter dad! Where you told me that it was when missionaries testified of Jesus Christ and helped you to strengthen your faith that you then wanted to be a part of this work. So thank you for sharing that with me! :) 

Hermana Wallace is such a good example to me! I love working with her. She is a wonderful companion and friend. We have a lot of unity in the work, and she's hilarious. 

It was also super fantastic to go to the beach this week!! SO PRETTY! 

So went to go visit a less active this week that we had never met before. We show up and he's up on a ladder taking apart his roof. When he found out that I was from Idaho he went off on how unhealthy french fries are and that I can't eat them anymore. I told him that I was going to anyways. :) He was super funny. And sassy.

Also, I do love this area a lot. But there are definitely some characters...this week we decided that our area is like a cake, and each member of our group completes the cake. You've got those members that are like the icing on the cake, but then there are some that are like the icing on the tinfoil that covers the cake... 

Anyways, happy Cinco De Mayo! Happy Mother's Day! (I AM SO EXCITED TO TALK TO YOU!!) And May the Fourth be with you. :D

<3 Hermana Ricks