Sendin love from the hood!

Oh my goodness I love my life!

 

I don't know why missionaries complain so much about how hard missions are. Sure it sucks waking up early every morning, not napping and being exhausted when you get home. But it just makes you sleep better and it's so much fun! I guess Garrison would complain because missions require you to talk to people and he doesn't know how to do that ;) haha jk jk but I seriously love it! And I love talking to everyone... people see your tag and automatically start confessing sins... great

 

So my comp, Sister Sumsion is way chill. She's from Utah and just a baller, we get along great.

 

I'M OPENING UP A NEW AREA! So this area has always been refferred to as the man-zone but we now have sisters in the branch, Bushwick english is SO excited. They are so great and I just love the members. Anywho, we are opening up this area so the work was slow the first few days because we knew absolutely no one but it has already picked up a ton!

 

I'm not going to tell you the specific areas i'm working in because dad will be on google maps and researching them tonight and might make me come home since he is scared of his own shadow...

 

I may or may not have taught a lesson in the apartment Jay-Z grew up in... just sayin.

 

I also may or may not be used to project housing/dry pee smell by now.

 

Oh you guys would seriously die, I am in the ghetto and absolutely love it. I do not feel like i'm in the U.S.

 

Is it bad that I will probably cry when my visa comes? Like I do not want to leave this place. People love God and Jesus here, so you mention that and they are your best friend!

 

So we don't get fed here, that sucks so lots of times we don't want to go all the way home just to eat so we just will skip meals sometimes... fingers crossed for losing weight. Don't worry I won't pull a Nate and starve myself haha

 

My mission pres, President Calderwood and his wife are the bomb. They are so chill. She grew up in Montrose and she has family that is from the Bluff/Blanding area from way back in the day when it was first settled, It wasn't a last name I recognized but he was a judge or something and his first name was George.

 

She is the coolest lady she was like, make lunch in the morning so you can eat in ten minutes and then take a 45 minute nap!  Haha we also don't have a time limit on e-mailing and Pres is way chill about music so we jam to Mumford and Sons, Imagine Dragons, Tangled soundtrack, anything that doesn't drive away the spirit. President Calderwood said he listened to Styx on his mish.

 

I could write a whole e-mail about the connections I have found here with Blanding. PS Dad how do I know the name Kyle Morrell? Who is that?

 

My comp's best friend is from Bicknell and so she has been there a lot and knows who Lance and Tyce are Sag... Small world.

 

So Pres is just a way smart guy... rumor is he's ridiculously wealthy, like even owns an amusement park? But that's just missionary gossip haha. Anyway like a year ago he implimented this open pool idea where all the missionaries work together a lot more and we have been crazy successful I guess. Now, more missions are starting to use the same plan he created.

 

There is an Elder Finlinson here from Delta who knows Denalli. He has got such a bad hick accent and has a lot of pride for Southern Utah so i'm trying to make it known we do not all sound like that!

 

K so I actually get to teach now and do something!!!

 

There is one girl, Saga (I know, I know) who is 18 and who has been being taught for a long time and hasn't progressed at all and hasn't come to church well I get along with her great and told her to get her butt to church because this week would be my first time here too and she actually came! During sacrament meeting she looked over and said she was emotional because she saw all these happy families and she wanted that. She had a huge change of heart last night and I think things are going to go very well with her.

 

I LOVE DOMINICANS! So everyone from my area is either black, dominican, from like the west indies and crazy places... no one is white haha. But Dominicans are seriously the bomb and they are so nice and chill, I am picking up on Spanish here already because everyone speaks it. I'm pleasantly surprised how much I can understand from Portugues. When I speak I just have to take things from English to Portugues and then to Spanish, so it's slow but coming along for sure even though i'm assigned english.

 

Best part about my mission: BERMUDA is in it! Except I can never be assigned there because I don't have my passport since it's wrapped up in visa crap... can I just tell them i'll stay here forever and get assigned to Bermuda?? I love it here.

Bermuda in our mish because JFK is the only airport that flies there and since JFK is in our boundaries... it's our mission!!

 

Cool story: So there is this recent convert who is awesome and I think is going to move to Utah soon to go to school and is thinking of going on a mission. Well he is totally solid. You would never guess but he used to be a hard core gang member. There are the Bloodes and Crypts and the Latin Kings. Well in the Latin Kings there is a king who is totally in charge and then a prince who is in charge of all the members 21 and younger. Well this guy who is such an awesome member now used to be the prince... I would have NEVER guessed when I met him. Isn't that so cool? Like such a life change. The elders became friends with him playing basketball one day with him. I guess there are a lot of people out to like kill him so I hope he gets to move to Utah.

 

Yes, I know all about the gangs now, don't worry though, we are safe and live in safe places?? No, its no different than DC. And we aren't allowed to be out on Halloween... gang initiation. I seriously love it here!

 

There is this Dominican fam who are all less active except the youngest daughter who is 16 and she is so strong and awesome. She totally holds her family together and has such a strong testimony like it is so humbling to talk to her and see her faith. She wants to go to college in Utah and is just gorgeous... Bronz?? Yeah I think so.

 

I have a lot of cool stories I could tell you know because we have found a lot of awesome people this week and started having a ton of success but... aint nobody got time for that.

 

Stetler said that they keep sisters in the nicer areas and give them the nicest apartments... FALSE! I just want you all to know that is 100% false and all the elders have sweet pads while I am living in the absolute ghetto. It's okay people have told me that Pres must already really like me and trust me to open up this area... but I think it's really just because I need to be humbled haha.

 

The branch is way cool... there are some very successful, wealthy people and then just straight out of the hood. They are all so open to new members... like the fellowshipping in this branch is so good. Those strong members, even though they are few are seriously just saints to this area to keep the church going.

 

K so the pics are from my first night here my comp took me out to the pier looking out to Manhattan while we drank Cherry Lime Rickys that are a Brooklyn original.

 

Oh it so helps that I like sports because I talk to everyone about the Nets, the Yankees, the Giants... it's so fun and then I just throw in something about the gospel and boom we get contact info. Friends first, investigators next, members last is my motto.

 

We take the Subway and bus everywhere, we get an ulimited pass which is nice. The Subway here is much harder to figure out than in DC, I still don't know where I'm going half the time.

 

Last thought... Jewish people are cray cray. There is such a strong Jewish community here and they hate us and say mean things and it's oh so funny... I'm also learning Jewish. They wear there "garments" and there hats and wigs and have their gnarly hair cuts and have like 80 billion kids... even more than mormons just thinking they are going to pop out Jesus here any second. Their baby's play out on the balconies by themselves. Like infants, not even walking yet and they just put them outside kind of caged in there and maybe I shouldn't say this and its offensive but it's freaking creepy walking down a street, looking up at a tall apartment building and just seeing baby's outside of windows 20 stories in the air. Freaking weird.

 

It was sad saying bye to my district, and everyone. Heather Bair got re-assigned to Las Vegas West... not sure if anyone lives there?

 

Well that's basically it. My new address is

85-69 60th Drive
Elmhurst, NY 11373

 

That's the mission office but they want all mail to go there and then they forward it to us. So the whole time i'm here that's where you will send it. Also, packages go there but they keep them until transfers so I will not get any package for like 5 more weeks if you send something. Ays will you update this on the blog? Thanks.

 

Sounds like Bry gets funnier and funnier. I only cried when I thought I wouldn't be able to talk to her. Other than that, i'll be honest, I don't really miss you guys.

 

Grams C hope your leg is okay and your feeling better... I miss eating all your food and watching tv with you... the time will fly though!

 

Well peace homies. Be good, I love you and God speed.

 

Sis Shum

 

PS the one pic is of me holding cheesecakes Creature sent that were so amazing and also notice my nice UVU shirt i'm wearing and the necklace she sent as well haha thank you and miss you tons!