Don't Mess With Sista P and Spicy D!

First and foremost, I SURVIVED THE 5K. HOLLLLLA ATCHA CHAMPION RIGHT HERE. Bum, Bum Bum Bum, Bum Bum Bum, Bum. Bum. Bum (That was Eye of the Tiger) STRAIGHT UP ROCKY STATUS! More on the 5K later.

The sisters from our apartment in our Fit for the Kingdom 5K shirts

 

On to my week!

We are teaching an active member from Twin Knoll's who is kind of in a faith slump right now. She feels stagnant and wants help building her faith and progressing. It is so rewarding to work with her because she does everything we ask her to do, she is trying so hard, and she is making amazing progress. I always leave her home knowing that I have such a special calling right now to help all people come closer to Christ.

We had another story time this week and it went really well! We told the same stories as last time because we figured our audience would be different (and it was) and added a children's Mormon Message and another song. The kids were all pretty young, but the moms and toddlers enjoyed it! They said that we need to make it a regular thing and that they'll all invite someone. I'm so happy that it is working.  I charged Sister D2 with carrying on the program after I leave. We had 7 total kids come and I know that it will only grow from here!

We received a referral for Thunder Mountain and we were so excited! We showed up to talk to the guy and he seemed kind of confused and said, "don't we have an appointment for tomorrow at one?" We said sure and figured that whoever sent the referral had told him that we would be able to meet then or something. We weren't really too hung up on it.  We went by the next day and as we were walking up to the door the single's ward sisters pulled up. Basically we were both sent the referral because he lives in our family ward, but is single's ward age. They had contacted him and set up the appointment, that's why he was confused. We were so mad and sad. We really got our hopes up and they were dashed. Plus the other sisters were kind of rude about it.  We went to Smashburger to console our feelings. #girlswhoeattheirfeelings

 

We had our first training for the Mesa Temple Christmas Lights and we are so excited! My first shift is on December 1st, and from there we serve every other night through New Year’s Eve. Because transfers are December 3rd, I don't know which shift or which schedule I'm on yet.

CHRISTMAS LIGHTS AT THE TEMPLE

As a warm up to the 5K, we participated in our stake's Fun Run on Saturday. I only did a mile; Sister D2 did two.

Harry quote of the week:

"I saw a lady with a veil and red dot right here (points to middle of forehead). She was a Lamanite. (Nods his head in self satisfaction)."-Harry

"Harry. That was a Hindu lady! Not a Lamanite."-Me

Hahahahahaha's had by all

"I'm glad I didn't tell her that her ancestors were wicked then...I was going to."-Harry

Sister D2 has started to become a little bit sassy. It's evidence to me that my training period is complete; she has become what she needed to become. Whenever we have correlation meetings in Thunder Mountain I always get more worked up than I should and my spicy side comes out.  Sister Dawson's spicy side FINALLY showed itself at our correlation meeting on Thursday and I was so pleased. I started calling her Spicy D and it has stuck. I think she enjoys it. She definitely likes it more than "the gazelle" which is what our TK ward mission leader now calls her. Hahahahaha. It makes me so happy.

We are experiencing a little drama with the missionaries in our stake currently. I know I'm supposed to write home uplifting things, but this is too good to pass up. We are the only missionaries in the stake that cover two buildings. Because of that we asked for a key to the family history center in the one building we didn't have one in. The other sisters asked for one too apparently and they were given our key and we were sharing it. It was working out well until one of their ward councils complained that we brought ants into the room and were using unauthorized websites. The ants were in the room before we had the key and we reported them, and the unauthorized website was BYU because one of the elders got permission from the mission president to work on a BYU application on P-Day for after his mission. Someone, please send that disobedient elder straight to where the sun don't shine. Unworthy swine, anyway. So the sisters took the key away and said that "until we gain their members' trust back no one was allowed to use the key". We thought that meant all of us, but we found out that their bishop didn't take the key, the sisters did and still have access to the room. We were already irate because it was our key to begin with and we didn't do anything to deserve it being taken away!  On top of that, the fact that they have the key enrages me even further. So we told our ward mission leader and he was furious as well and said he would take care of it. He confronted the sisters at church yesterday and demanded they give him the key or to put it back in the library where it was so we all had access to it again. They said they wouldn't because their bishop entrusted it to them. He said that buildings are a stake responsibility and that the stake didn't take it away, so their bishop doesn't have right to and further, we requested the key so it was never theirs to begin with. The high councilman who gave it to them only did because he knew sisters requested it, but didn't know which ones and he saw them before he saw us. The one sister still refused, so the WML took the issue to our bishopric and they said to take it to the stake and to get us a key because we need one and one other ward in the building doesn't have the right to bar our entrance. We are currently waiting on our WML to contact the appropriate stake representative and to get back to us. I will not let this die! Justice will be victorious. Don't mess with Sista P and Spicy D!

SATAN'S 5K OVER AND OUT: As you saw, I wrote a blogpost about Satan's 5K. The evening after I wrote it I received a text from Sister Jenkins that said, "Sister Poppy, I just read your post about training for Satan's 5K. :D :D :D! I had no idea how miserable this was making you feel. But I commend you for the turnaround and what you have learned!  I would call this a defining moment, wouldn't you? :)" I was so mortified that she actually read my blogpost! I figured that in the pile of 255 missionaries she would never see my post pop up on her newsfeed, let alone take the time to read it! I responded about it being a defining moment and reassured her that though this was her idea, I actually named the 5K after the one and only Satan and wasn't referring to her as Satan. That Friday at our Christmas lights training PKJ (AKA President Kirk Jenkins, AKA Prezzy J, AKA Prezzy K Jenks, AKA President) came up to me and said that Sister Jenkins made him read my blogpost and that he thought it was absolutely hilarious and written very well. He also apologized for filling the role of my middle school gym teacher. I was even more mortified that he had read it! During this conversation Sister Jenkins joined in to tell me that she also emailed a link to all of her children and told them to read it. She asked if I ran that morning and I told her I had. Somehow I think I've become the poster child for all the slow kids that have been stripped of their agency and forced to participate in this awful five kilometers of torture. The positive in all of this is that I know that my blog, though often unorthodox compared to other missionary blogs, is one hundred percent acceptable. A part of me always feared that PKJ would run across my blog and that I would get a phone call asking me to remove my less than ordinary blog from the web and to repent and think about what it means to be a respected female representative of Christ. Thank goodness Prezzy J appreciates humor and uniqueness!

At the 5K today I saw Prezzy J, of course, and he shook my hand and said, "I'm glad to see that no doctor’s appointments popped up to prevent you from being here!" This is never going to die! My goal was to run the first mile and then walk the rest. They said there would be mile markers, but I was starting to get tired and was convinced that someone forgot to put out the mile markers so I stopped running. Then, I looked up and saw the one mile sign and it was about 100 meters away. I was so annoyed at myself for stopping! I was so close to accomplishing my goal and I gave up too soon. It was okay though, I had caught up with my friend and we walked the next two miles and then ran the last 1/10 of a mile to the finish so that we could say we ran across the finish line. It was actually a really enjoyable event for the last 2 miles. Sister Moreton and I just talked and decided that we should probably be companions sometime before the end of our missions.

Sister Jenkins and I are practically besties now, so we took some celebratory

5K pics. NOTE: It was her idea to jump, not mine! That's a first!

 

I've met a lot of sisters that I love, but only a few that I LOVE and Sister Moreton is one that I LOVE. It took us 49 minutes to complete, which isn't terrible I guess. We could have probably pushed ourselves harder, but it was a pleasant morning and I thoroughly enjoyed spending some quality time with her. As we got close to the finish line Sister Jenkins ran out to meet me and said she wanted to run the last 100 or so feet with me.  She hugged me and congratulated me and then President Jenkins came up and shook my hand and did one of his terrifying combo side hug/shoulder shakes and said he was so proud of me for doing something hard. There were no medals though, so  I'm still a little upset about that. I am still going to run three mornings a week and am going to try to be at a point where I can run a 5K by the time I'm home. I have 36 weeks left, so I can just increase the distance I run by 1/8 of a mile a week and slowly work my way up to 3.1 miles! I did decide today that I would love to be one of those moms that just drops her kids off at school and then walks with her friend and chats for an hour. I could do a 5K every single day if I had someone entertaining to walk with like Sister Moreton.

Sister Moreton and I; 5K champions

 

You guys need to try Blue Bell's Christmas Cookie ice cream; it is so delicious. Also, read your scriptures! They're important too.

Happy Thanksgiving and Love you all!

Sister Poppe

 

Flamingos! We placed them in our first yard in Thunder Mountain. 

 

We had a stake fun run on Saturday. We went and ran as a warm up to our 5K.

I did a mile with Sister Dunn and Sisters Krueger and Dawson did 2 miles.

Spicy D and I

When I'm frustrated/angry/confused/or any other negative emotion, I just fall on the ground and exclaim something like, "I DON'T UNDERSTAND LIFE," or "UGGGGGGGHHHHHH WHY IS LIFE HARD," or my favorite, "FREAKING I DON'T EVEN KNOW. (followed by unintelligible noises of frustration)". Well, my legacy has continued with Sister D2. She fell over in frustration the other day and I loved it. Training=a success. #winning

 

Last P-day we got home after emailing and there was a fort in our living room!

We watched the Testaments in it and all fell asleep during the movie.

 It was actually a really great nap.

 

 

 

 

 

If We Get Bugs I Will Literally Put Them on Your Beds.

So I knocked over a Pringles display at Walmart on accident and that was kind of mortifying. Don't worry, I cleaned up my mess with the assistance of a kind employee named Shelly, another set of sisters that happened to be walking by, and my companion. If there is a spiritual gift to become less clumsy I have definitely not been blessed with it yet.

Sister Poppe's screwdriver strikes for the third time! A screw fell out of a chair at dinner the other night and I whipped out my trusty floral tool and fixed that stool in a jiffy.  I'd like to see people continue to mock me for bringing a screwdriver on a mission.

 

After I fixed the stool at our dinner appointment the family tried to force us to take left over waffles. We literally ran out of the house as the husband chased us with waffles and proceeded to put one under our windshield wiper. We drove to our next appointment with it securely in place and continued throughout our evening with our portable windshield snack. I left it on our windshield overnight in case a squirrel wanted it (now that I think of it, I don't even know if there are squirrels in Arizona, but maybe a roadrunner could have eaten it). No animals even nibbled on it, so I threw the rock hard carbohydrate on top of a bush before we drove off the next day; it was still uneaten that evening. The animals in our apartment complex are clearly snobs who don't appreciate breakfast food.

 

 

We were asked to plan a day in the life of a missionary activity for the Mia Maids and Beehives for Wednesday's mutual, so we did that and it was fun. We had the girls read the first lesson in Preach My Gospel and then they gave us a 10 minute lesson. It was an absolute train wreck, but they have a solid 4-7 years before they are old enough to serve so they'll figure it out. We then talked about the importance of companionship and unity, and talked about things we do to become closer. We played 2 truths and a lie with them as an example of what we do to get to know each other better. We had fun getting to know them and showing them that we are real people. I got a little sassy with them and I think they enjoyed it. One girl was mocking my age and said something about my pet dinosaur and so I asked if she had her training wheels taken off of her bike yet. Two can play that game!

Every other transfer we have one on one interviews with our mission president and his wife. As you may recall, I voluntarily forfeited mine last time we had them scheduled due to a time crunch. I haven't had an interview with president since the day I disembarked the plane in Phoenix, so I didn't really know what to expect. Naturally I was nervous, as I always am when I have to stare people of authority in the eye and talk about my performance, but my nerves were unwarranted.  We had a really good conversation. I realized he knows a lot more of what goes on in the mission than I originally believed. I figured I was lost in the crowd of 250 or so missionaries he is over, but I am not. He told me he is so proud of the missionary I am and he is so pleased with how much I have matured spiritually. He said there is a marked difference in the person I am now and that he hopes I have noticed that change in myself and am proud of it as well. When I came into the mission I had a high level of social maturity and I was just going through the mission, now he said the mission is going through me and I am socially and spiritually mature. I am not one of the missionaries that goes above and beyond to try and impress him when he is in my presence, and I don't suck up to him either, so I was shocked that he had noticed commendable qualities about me. It just goes to show that if you do what is expected of you for the right reasons and don't seek approval, you will still get positively affirmed and you won't annoy people with your brown nosing. We were instructed to read a 2006 BYU devotional called "Your Refined Heavenly Home" in preparation for our interview with Sister Jenkins. President and Sister Jenkins do something really cool that they call 10%. Basically 10% of all instruction they give us is dedicated to information that will be useful after our missions. This devotional was our 10% for interviews and we were going to talk about it with Sister J. I absolutely loved the devotional because it talked about the importance of refinement in appearance, educating ourselves in classical music and literature, using intelligent language, being well rounded and educated, being clean, and living true to the potential we have as spirit children of God by surrounding ourselves with wholesome things.  Basically the talk validated every tendency I have that Brandon and Bryce call snobby! When president asked me about it in passing I told him I loved it because a church official was telling us that we had to be classy. When Sister Jenkins asked if I liked the talk I told her I loved it and she responded with, "I figured you would like this one."  I'm glad that people know I appreciate class. You should read it! It's actually kind of interesting that we were asked to read it because just the day before we were given the assignment I told my companion that I don't want to marry someone that won't take me to the symphony and then we read this talk that told us that we shouldn't settle for spouses who won't do cultural things with us.

The Tony Hawk boys are finally home after their month away for the X-Games and a trip to Utah. We were so excited to see them and they were actually really excited to see us too. We showed up to their house before they did for our lesson because they were running late so we waited on their doorstep. When their car pulled in the youngest boy didn't even wait for it to fully stop before he jumped out and ran over and hugged us. We just really love them. They're growing so much too; they are much more involved in our lessons now and are gaining testimonies of basic gospel principles.

As you saw on Facebook, we went to Rubio's on Tuesday and it filled a hole in my heart that only gourmet chicken tacos could fill. It is the biggest tender mercy that the only area of our mission that dips across the 60 includes a Rubio's. I literally got teary-eyed I was so happy. It was such a stupid little thing, but it really did make me aware of Heavenly Father's love. Plus it was nice to socialize with some of our new friends. Sister Simmons and Moreton are as sassy as Sister D and I and we just really enjoy each other. We created a club called the Sassy Sisters Club and we are getting shirts made. We are quite literally the bluntest sisters in the mission and I'm still unsure how we were all four put in the same zone, but we love it!

Gourmet chicken tacos

                              Sassy Sisters Club                                  

 

In accordance with the Twin Knolls Ward Mission Plan goal, I finished indexing my 500 names this week!

We spent 3.5 hours at the Thunder Mountain Relief Society president's house on Saturday talking through a list of inactive people she had that she knew nothing about. As we sat there and I shared everything I knew I felt like a huge creeper. Simultaneously though, I realized how many people I've talked to in the last five months and it was nice to feel like I had valuable information to share. My companion was bored out of her mind, but it's good that she knows these things so that when I leave some of the information is with her.  #workingwithwardleadership

I couldn't handle the uncleanliness of our kitchen any longer and I am tired of doing the other sisters' dishes, so I wrote a long note encouraging them to clean up after themselves. The phrases "If we get bugs I will literally put them on your beds. Do not cross me," "I could care less if your bedroom looks like a hot mess hoarder disaster, but please keep the common areas clean" and my favorite, "The Spirit won't be here if the kitchen looks like an African slum," made an appearance. I also quoted scripture and posted the mission's standard for cleanliness to help support my case. I then took a leaf from Martin Luther's book and hung my letter and evidence on the outside of our front door so it would greet them when they got home; then it looked like rain so I moved it to the less dramatic refrigerator door.

Sacrament meeting ended a little early so we were called up to talk about being better member missionaries! How fitting since I just wrote a blog post about it.

The Hobbit Family and Harry are still doing well and progressing! We helped Harry with more indexing this week and it was just as comical as the first time. I don't think he will ever be tech savvy. He did surprise us with some Sonic shakes at our lesson on Thursday. If we were a church that gave salvation in exchange for bribes, Harry would be exalted already. He is always being so generous to us!

Generous amounts of love,

Sister Poppe

 

                                         Sister Simmons and I were matching

Nephites

Lamanites