This is the Hunger Games Spear

Hello!

I'm about to share with you a story about dreams coming true (it isn't as good as that one time I finally got to go to Disneyland at the age of 22, but it's still good). I brought this plaid shirt on my mission with the hope that I would be able to chop down a tree (or a cactus) in it and feel like a lumberjack. Dreams come true and prayers are answered! We helped the Memorial Day Gun family cut up a tree they knocked over in their backyard on Monday evening. I even used a hatchet to chop a branch off! We shared a message with them after our service and then somehow got off on a tangent about evil spirits.  Spirits terrify me. Sister D2 and I both had bad dreams that night.  From there we tried to contact some people from our area book that were previously contacted and uninterested. We knocked on a lesbian's door. She was polite, but not interested due to our stance on gay marriage. I complimented her sweater though.

I USED THAT HATCHET TO CHOP A BRANCH OFF #lumberjack

Little Memorial Day Daughter wanted in on a hatchet pic (also, sorry for the awful quality of the pictures.  The $400 iPad still struggles with taking pictures in low light situations).

     Never fear!  The Memorial Day Gun Family had another new weapon I could take a picture with.  This is the Hunger Games Spear.  Or just a spear if you're not me.

We had some cancellations this week and I decided we would use that time to drop by and share brief messages with members so Sister Dawson could get to know people more quickly. We had a good time doing that.  At the last family we visited on Tuesday evening I asked if we could pray with them before we left (as per usual) and the family asked Sister Dawson to pray. The dog, Bisquick, thought that prayer time was a good time to get all up in Sister D2's business. The youngest daughter (she is 12 or 13) saw this so she and Sister Dawson started cracking up as the dog sniffed around and then randomly bolted after peering into Sister D2's soul for a few seconds. Sister D2 struggled through another 15-20 seconds of praying before the mom stopped her because she thought she was getting chocked up and was homesick or something. When everyone was filled in on the dog story the wife told the husband to pray because he would be the only one who could keep a straight face. He prayed and we all giggled through the prayer. It was almost 9:30 so I think we were all just a little too tired. I told Sister D2 that the 8 months of mission blessings I had been storing up were all just taken away because we ruined family prayer. We had a good laugh about it a few times throughout the week though.

We got to watch Meet the Mormons on Wednesday and it was fabulous! I was really impressed with the way it was produced. It really is just an opportunity to "meet" six Mormon families. It isn't preachy at all.  I loved the opening in which people in NYC were interviewed and short clips from pop culture were shared to show the inaccuracies that are associated with Mormons. How many missionaries will be able to tell people that they watched a clip from South Park on their mission, with the mission president in the room, and didn't get in trouble? The best part was the brief bit of Tina Fey in 30 Rock they showed. I knew Tina would find a way into my mission somehow! We will be besties with Amy Poehler and J-Law in the CK lounge. #bestieblessings

The United Way does something called Project Connect in which they partner with local churches to create a fair for homeless people. This month it was in our area and many of the denominations got together to staff the event. They have booths set up for employment opportunities, free flu shots, showers, DES, a haircut, and many other things to help homeless people get back on their feet. Everybody gets a free lunch and a week's bus pass as well as a care package with some necessities.  It's pretty cool. We signed up to help and we were assigned two homeless men to guide through the process. The first guy only really seemed interested in the free lunch and we weren't with him long, but the second guy really took the fair seriously. We did the important things first, such as, talking to the employment specialist, and didn't get to less important things, such as the haircut. A lot of these people just enjoyed having humans to talk to, so we spent time talking to our second friend and he said that we were such a pleasure to spend time with. He just got out of jail for failure to pay child support; he lost his job after the 2008 housing bubble burst and wasn't able to make payments. It was good for me to see that there are homeless people who didn't ask for their situation. It was also nice to see that he isn't willing to settle for his position in life. I don't doubt that he will find a job and slowly get his life together.  It sure made me grateful though for my upbringing and my determination in life. It's sad that so many people are content to live in their circumstances as long as they have the very basic essentials. We weren't allowed to proselyte, but we got a referral anyway. We talked to one of the United Way employees just about real life and she invited us over, but we told her we couldn't come because she wasn't in our area, but that we would send some sisters over.

Good quotes from the library this week from our Friday helper friend who is slightly off:

"Other planets don't have to look like ours. They always show Mars with dirt like our deserts because they think other planets will look like ours. I bet they just take photos of our desert and tell us it's Mars."-Friend

"Is Sister Poppe a nickname, Amanda?"-Friend

"Kind of. Poppe is my last name."-me
"Oh. Poppies are dangerous, Amanda. Cocaine and heroine and stuff."-Friend

Harry told me this week that if he dies I have to take care of his dog, Paco. He said if I'm home and he dies I have to come back and get Paco. I definitely never thought someone would will me their dog while on my mission. #proudgodmother

We are getting closer to Harry possibly being baptized!  The bishop is talking with the stake president to see if they can come up with a solution to get him baptized in November!  This is even better news, because I found out on Saturday that I am staying in this area for one more transfer.  TRANSFER NUMBER SEVEN.  People keep telling me that they just need to transfer my records here because I've been here long enough to basically just be a member of the ward.  People were so kind and loving and excited when they found out I was staying for six more weeks. I really do believe this will be my last transfer here though.  By the end of the transfer I will have been here just shy of ten months.

TONY HAWK MOM IS ENGAGED! CRAZY! She is getting married on November 28th.  I can't even believe it.  I am so happy for her.  He isn't a member, but he has been sitting in on our discussions with the boys.

That about does it!

Love,

Sister Poppe

We made pumpkin pancakes for lunch on Saturday. I put Nutella and peanut butter on mine and added a layer of powdered sugar and a sprinkling of cinnamon and sugar.  The dish wasn't complete without some pumpkin spice nuts to garnish the dish (compliments of Brandon and Brianna). I almost died after I ate it and felt sick for an hour, but it was so delicious!