[*NOTE: This is Sister Ottley's FINAL LETTER! She'll be home in four days—LATE, THIS FRIDAY NIGHT, December 16th. Her homecoming talk will be NEXT Sunday, December 18th @1:00PM during Sacrament Meeting. Feel free to munch and mingle with her at our home later that afternoon.]
Highland 4th Ward
(LDS Avonmore Chapel)
5848 West 11000 North
Highland, Utah
Dear Family & Friends,
18 Months of my life has literally NEVER gone by SO FAST. As Sister Tauiliili and I walk from place to place (or mostly when we're walking home at night) I get caught up in thoughts of alllll the mission memories, and just start laughing to myself about so many different things.
Then Sister Tauiliili starts laughing at me 'cause to her it seems like I'm laughing at nothing! Hahaha.... Good times :)
This week has been grand though :) And resulted in miracles of 2 investigators coming to church, who hadn't been yet.
LAST MONDAY we played BUBBLE SOCCER for P-day. Seriously though, I could have played that for hours and been just fine with life :) Haha. I've never been so excited for a sport! We also had an exciting FHE with the Talavave's again... love our nights with them!
Skipping ahead to WEDNESDAY, because Wednesday was a trial day. #ForReals We had a lesson with one of our investigators, and it was going great! Talking about the Restoration. And then we met his older brother.... aka: Bible basher, with a lot of "I'm not trying to be rude, but..." in between each of his "questions." ...And that's where I willingly stopped the lesson. What did I learn here? When the Spirit is present, and when it is NOT. What else did I learn? ...Well, a lot. I could probably go on for DAYS. But I'll spare you all. Haha. But I've honestly never left a lesson so.... stressed. But it was okay. Because it brought up a lot of things that I continued to learn from over the next couple of days....
THURSDAY we had a most brilliant specialised training with President and Sister Balli and the assistants. Was it needed? YES. Was it a complete BLESSING? YES!! We talked about LIGHT. President Balli showed us two different torches and gave us this scenario: "You're walking home late at night on a dark, lonely road..."
Then President told us to choose between the two torches: one a big, hefty one, the other a small little hand-held one. Most of us, being the missionaries we are and liking small things, went with choosing the small one - 'cause we don't like carrying heavy things (ha). But then President pointed out to us that the big one could also give us protection.... haha.
But then he showed us the light between the two The smaller one was LED... aka: WAY brighter than the bigger torch. He then asked, "Elders and Sisters, WHICH LIGHT ARE YOU?"
...We all have light about us. But how BRIGHT that light is - is dependent on our willingness to follow what the Lord wants us to do.
It was a brilliant training. And gave me answers, and made me feel better about all the things. Haha. I just love President Balli and his counsel and... just greatness. Haha.
FRIDAY: ONE WEEK.
That was a weird moment for me! But it was a good day, getting to see some people we hadn't been able to get in the house of. :)
SATURDAY was a day of teaching! And also the day I realised just how much I'm going to MISS teaching. We taught three lessons to investigators this day, and a few to different members. I love teaching. So much. This was also the day we got PROMISES from certain investigators to come to church :)
SUNDAY: CHURCH. Also: My LAST NZ Sunday. Last time teaching our Gospel Principles class—all on Family Responsibilities. It was all very surreal for it being the last day. But so wonderful because of our brilliant members. I'm going to miss all my sweet members here in Tangaroa Ward! They've spoiled me with love and kindness - even with being the only palagi in the building! ;) Haha.
And the bit of this week left that I have before returning home, will continue to result in MORE TEACHING, MORE FINDING, MORE VISITING, and definitely MORE LEARNING :)
It's amazing how much can happen in a year and a half, and how quickly it can all pass by. I never truly realised in the beginning how much my New Zealand would actually become HOME to me. I honestly can't remember what it's like to not live here.... so that's going to be different. But it's time for a new adventure again. Like I was saying last week - it's always just when you start getting comfortable that you get transferred :P. But new adventures await. And for that - I'm actually excited for once (I think? Ha.)
I've been INSANELY blessed with beautiful people who have become family to me here in NZ, and I know they'll continue to be my family for all time. I'm grateful for this mission, I'm grateful for all my blessings. I'm grateful for all the family and friends I have and have gained. But most of all I'm grateful for this beautiful gospel we live in. For the blessings it brings, and the MIRACLES I have seen that come about because of it. It's true my friends. It's true :)
That's all, Folks! See you THIS WEEK!
Arohanui,
Alofa tele Atu,
Ofa Atu,
Love yous all HEAPS!
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Monday, December 12, 2016
Thursday, December 8, 2016
Comfort Zone
[*Note: Just ONE more letter after this one and she'll be home—FRIDAY, December 16th @9:56PM. Homecoming talk in Sacrament Meeting, @Highland 4th Ward LDS Avonmore Chapel, 5848 West 11000 North, Highland, Utah, on SUNDAY, December 18th @1:00pm. Please feel free to munch & mingle with her at our house afterwards.]
Dear Aiga,
Guess what! I think I've FINALLY found my comfort zone in Missionary Work..... haaaa!
There's no growth in the comfort zone, and no comfort in the growth zone.
TRUTH.
Aiga (aka: Samoan for "family"), there's literally 11 days until I leave. And it's weird. Ha. And pretty much everyone in the ward knows now. I bore my testimony yesterday in church. I was the last to get up, so as a result, Bishop got up before me to say I'd be the last to bear my testimony for the meeting... and that it was my LAST testimony meeting. And then afterwards and throughout the day everyone started coming up to me asking, "Wait, you're leaving? What DAY do you leave?" Even the kids that I didn't think really paid attention to us. Hahahaha.
It's weird.
BUT! It's been a GREAT week. Ending in the BEAUTIFUL BAPTISM of our dearest Jasmine :)
MONDAY: All the partying with the Johnstone Sisters. :) Love it.
TUESDAY: We had a brilliant lesson with our dear Skye and John, her partner, and MANY others throughout the day. It was my first MIRACLE DAY on the mission of literally just going from appointment to appointment, TEACHING, TEACHING, TEACHING! ...Even though they weren't all investigators, it was a brilliant and exciting day of just sharing testimony and things we've learnt in order to help our brothers and sisters (and, of course, to be strengthened ourselves). Skye—the brilliant one—even helped us IMPROVE our object lesson as we shared it with her. Hahahaha. And this is why she should be a member. ;)
WEDNESDAY: New investigator! His name is Cody. And he's great. We're excited to keep teaching him :) We met him a while back, and then he went and referred himself online!
THURSDAY: Zone "Training" aka: Service! We made meals. It was actually really exciting. A bunch of missionaries cooking together is pretty hilarious though. Mostly because it became super stereotypical of the elders all around the grill, making the meat, and the sisters together all baking the brownies and cookies for dessert. And then the potato salad and veggies were a combined effort. Loved it.
FRIDAY: A last lesson with Jasmine before her big day :) Love her. Love her mum too. Just love everything. Allllll the Aroha, Alofa, and Ofa [Love]!
SATURDAY: Baptism day :) Ha. And a day of runnning around like chickens with our heads cut off. We LITERALLY ran from the chapel (where we were finishing up the last touches on the baptism programme) to Jasmine's house, to make sure she and CJ were on their way, and then ran back to the chapel, to finish, and copy the programme, and to make sure the water in the font was turned off..... Hahahaha. All the excitement!! Everything with the baptism went smoothly though. Jasmine was so excited to be with friends for her baptism, and to be in the flash new white dress her mum found for her :)
SUNDAY: Confirmation :) Jasmine. The cute little thing. She was suddenly scared before, so I walked her up to the stand to be confirmed, and she was all good. All the happy, all the bouncy and excited after receiving the Holy Ghost :) A brand new member!
And TODAY. Today is Zone P-day. 'Cause.... both Elder Ruth and I leave next week. Crazy. Sauce. What are we doing? Playing BUBBLE SOCCER. Haaa... Should be an adventure :) I'm actually kind of excited. I'm sure there will be pictures.
I can't believe it's been as long as it has. A year and a half of my life has never gone so fast!
I've never been so happy, and I've also never been so sad.
I've never seen so many miracles, and I've also never been given so many examples of WHY we have to CONSTANTLY work to keep our faith and our Saviour a PART of our lives.
I also never realised how much you can learn, without truly realising it. Little by little, that's what it's all about. Basically.... I don't want it to end.
And I know it won't. I know it's just a new beginning. It's just... weird. Everything is werid lately. Ha. And I'm pretty sure my dear Sister Tauiliili just laughs at everything I say now as I freak out at the idea of leaving this home.
The gospel is TRUE, my friends. It always has been, and it always will be. It helps us in learning new things each and every day, and it always WILL.... IF YOU LET IT.
I hope you all have a beautiful week—lighting the world everywhere you go! Because, that's really what should be our goal in life—to be that example, help, serve, and love everyone in our path. #LighttheWorld
https://www.mormon.org.nz/
....LOL. I just realised the link goes to "NZ" here. Haaaa. Obvi you can just go to the normal one back home.
Okay. I must be off now. But I love you heaps. And I hope you have a brilliant week :) You're the best of best. Talk to you next week — and SEE YOU after that!!!! :D
Alofa tele atu!!!!
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Dear Aiga,
Guess what! I think I've FINALLY found my comfort zone in Missionary Work..... haaaa!
There's no growth in the comfort zone, and no comfort in the growth zone.
TRUTH.
Aiga (aka: Samoan for "family"), there's literally 11 days until I leave. And it's weird. Ha. And pretty much everyone in the ward knows now. I bore my testimony yesterday in church. I was the last to get up, so as a result, Bishop got up before me to say I'd be the last to bear my testimony for the meeting... and that it was my LAST testimony meeting. And then afterwards and throughout the day everyone started coming up to me asking, "Wait, you're leaving? What DAY do you leave?" Even the kids that I didn't think really paid attention to us. Hahahaha.
It's weird.
BUT! It's been a GREAT week. Ending in the BEAUTIFUL BAPTISM of our dearest Jasmine :)
MONDAY: All the partying with the Johnstone Sisters. :) Love it.
TUESDAY: We had a brilliant lesson with our dear Skye and John, her partner, and MANY others throughout the day. It was my first MIRACLE DAY on the mission of literally just going from appointment to appointment, TEACHING, TEACHING, TEACHING! ...Even though they weren't all investigators, it was a brilliant and exciting day of just sharing testimony and things we've learnt in order to help our brothers and sisters (and, of course, to be strengthened ourselves). Skye—the brilliant one—even helped us IMPROVE our object lesson as we shared it with her. Hahahaha. And this is why she should be a member. ;)
WEDNESDAY: New investigator! His name is Cody. And he's great. We're excited to keep teaching him :) We met him a while back, and then he went and referred himself online!
THURSDAY: Zone "Training" aka: Service! We made meals. It was actually really exciting. A bunch of missionaries cooking together is pretty hilarious though. Mostly because it became super stereotypical of the elders all around the grill, making the meat, and the sisters together all baking the brownies and cookies for dessert. And then the potato salad and veggies were a combined effort. Loved it.
FRIDAY: A last lesson with Jasmine before her big day :) Love her. Love her mum too. Just love everything. Allllll the Aroha, Alofa, and Ofa [Love]!
SATURDAY: Baptism day :) Ha. And a day of runnning around like chickens with our heads cut off. We LITERALLY ran from the chapel (where we were finishing up the last touches on the baptism programme) to Jasmine's house, to make sure she and CJ were on their way, and then ran back to the chapel, to finish, and copy the programme, and to make sure the water in the font was turned off..... Hahahaha. All the excitement!! Everything with the baptism went smoothly though. Jasmine was so excited to be with friends for her baptism, and to be in the flash new white dress her mum found for her :)
SUNDAY: Confirmation :) Jasmine. The cute little thing. She was suddenly scared before, so I walked her up to the stand to be confirmed, and she was all good. All the happy, all the bouncy and excited after receiving the Holy Ghost :) A brand new member!
And TODAY. Today is Zone P-day. 'Cause.... both Elder Ruth and I leave next week. Crazy. Sauce. What are we doing? Playing BUBBLE SOCCER. Haaa... Should be an adventure :) I'm actually kind of excited. I'm sure there will be pictures.
I can't believe it's been as long as it has. A year and a half of my life has never gone so fast!
I've never been so happy, and I've also never been so sad.
I've never seen so many miracles, and I've also never been given so many examples of WHY we have to CONSTANTLY work to keep our faith and our Saviour a PART of our lives.
I also never realised how much you can learn, without truly realising it. Little by little, that's what it's all about. Basically.... I don't want it to end.
And I know it won't. I know it's just a new beginning. It's just... weird. Everything is werid lately. Ha. And I'm pretty sure my dear Sister Tauiliili just laughs at everything I say now as I freak out at the idea of leaving this home.
The gospel is TRUE, my friends. It always has been, and it always will be. It helps us in learning new things each and every day, and it always WILL.... IF YOU LET IT.
I hope you all have a beautiful week—lighting the world everywhere you go! Because, that's really what should be our goal in life—to be that example, help, serve, and love everyone in our path. #LighttheWorld
https://www.mormon.org.nz/
....LOL. I just realised the link goes to "NZ" here. Haaaa. Obvi you can just go to the normal one back home.
Okay. I must be off now. But I love you heaps. And I hope you have a brilliant week :) You're the best of best. Talk to you next week — and SEE YOU after that!!!! :D
Alofa tele atu!!!!
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Monday, December 5, 2016
Grateful
WHERE HAS NOVEMBER GONE!??
Seriously though. I feel like it was just YESTERDAY that I was saying, "Yay! 18 days until my birthday!" And now I'm like, "HOW IS THERE ONLY 18 DAYS LEFT OF MY MISSION??" ......And then there's silence. 'Cause I don't know how to deal with that fact of life. I just want to keep finding and helping people here. I mean – EIGHTEEN DAYS!
It's truly true that at the end of your mission you realise just how fast everything goes. In the beginning you're praying every day to be able to MAKE IT to the end. And now.... it's like I BLINKED, and it's a year and a half later.
Time is TOO WEIRD.
There's been SO many things I've seen—especially in this area—that just make me insanely grateful for the life I grew up in. But seriously... this year has gone by just too fast! And I'm trying not to think about leaving all my islanders here in South.... 'cause it makes me sad.
Anyhoo. It's been a good week :)
TUESDAY was District Meeting—one that people kept freaking me out with saying it would be my last! (Because we won't have one for the next 2 weeks due to some training and things.) But I still have one more. No worries. Sister Stokes joined us for this particular district meeting, as the Tongan sisters were on trade-offs for the day. I've never actually served around Sister Stokes, but we're still friends somehow with like the... 2 or 3 times we've talked. Also: bonding through Sister Anitema. 'Cause S. Anitema knows us both.
Anyhoo. She leaves for back home THIS WEEK and I wish ALL THE BEST for her. (And we'll see one another in Provo!)
It was a grand day of miracles, ending up where we needed to be, even when it wasn't planned. We met some lovely people. Also a man who said, "I know what you do, and I don't like it," and closed the door. I laughed a little (...Does that sound bad? Ha.) Poor man. One day you'll learn :)
WEDNESDAY was a normal day, but we found some lovely potentials. And then our phone failed us and made it so we missed MCM...'cause no texts came through all day. Therefore, everything our WML said of, "Hey Sisters, yes, we're having MCM" and "Where are you?" and "Did you have an apointment?" never came through... until Thursday. Ha. #Struggles
THURSDAY. TRADE OFFS. I got to go out with my Sister Boiteux again :) (aka: my first baby/trainee). I MISSED HER. Seriously. All in her STL self ;) It's fun to be able to get back with old companions at the end of your missions and see how much you've both grown, and to share experiences and talk and just learn more from one another. So.... I was pretty lucky in my last 2 trade offs being with my "mum" and then my "daughter". LOVE. #BLESSED.
FRIDAY. MIRACLE.
So tired. Felt gross. Still made it out. Heavenly Father blesses. We met a man who, honestly, I was hesitant to stop at the house of - just 'cause he was on the phone, and had a beer in hand. (I should know by now that that doesn't change much in South Auckland. Ha. Life in general here would probably be rated R pretty much all the time for language issues. You even hear SMALL CHILDREN swearing.) But we waited patiently, and he told us how he had recently seen a new movie out about Christ teaching as a child ("The Young Messiah") and how watching it made him miss the feelings he felt when he was a kid—the feelings of the Holy Spirit around him.
And because of this film, he and his wife were looking into bringing their 5 kids to church, and getting themselves into a better environment. They were looking into going to a church with his wife's sister in Mangare, but we mentioned to him when and where our services were, and he said, "Ah! That's
much closer!" Blessings! Hopefully we'll see them again this week :) They weren't able to make it to church this weekend, but we're still in contact, so... good things :)
Blessings. Miracles. Little things to PICK YOU UP. Love it.
SATURDAY. This weekend we had a Stake RS weekend basically—Service, a "Cultural" Activity, and a Devotional on Sunday night. So Saturday afternoon was the main activity with each ward assigned a different place within the islands (Niue, Fiji, Tonga, Tahiti, Hawaii, Kiribus) and each brought a food item and did a dance.
BEAUTIFUL and exciting things!! And the best part? Our dear Puna (investigator) was super involved in all the things. Dancing with our RS and all. Love her. Heaps.
SUNDAY the RS devotional was beautiful too. Singing in different languages (I know how to sing "I Need Thee Every Hour" in Kiribati now!). The spirit teaches you brilliant things. I just love it.
Also, this weekend Tyler broke bread and Hohia passed the sacrament!!!! Why is this exciting? They were BOTH super less active 5 or so months ago—Tyler in the way of 5 or 6 months ago he was smoking and drinking every day....and now look where they're at!
THE GLORIES OF THE GOSPEL!!
So... another week, more knowledge gained, and more experiences had. And I know there are more miracles to come, more people to find, and exciting things to come as well.
Life is great in the NZ world. ...I kind of don't remember what life is like anywhere else. So that's different than what I expected. Ha. I love it. I'm blessed. And I'm grateful :)
I hope you all have a most beautiful week ahead.
ALOFA TELE ATU!
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Seriously though. I feel like it was just YESTERDAY that I was saying, "Yay! 18 days until my birthday!" And now I'm like, "HOW IS THERE ONLY 18 DAYS LEFT OF MY MISSION??" ......And then there's silence. 'Cause I don't know how to deal with that fact of life. I just want to keep finding and helping people here. I mean – EIGHTEEN DAYS!
It's truly true that at the end of your mission you realise just how fast everything goes. In the beginning you're praying every day to be able to MAKE IT to the end. And now.... it's like I BLINKED, and it's a year and a half later.
Time is TOO WEIRD.
There's been SO many things I've seen—especially in this area—that just make me insanely grateful for the life I grew up in. But seriously... this year has gone by just too fast! And I'm trying not to think about leaving all my islanders here in South.... 'cause it makes me sad.
Anyhoo. It's been a good week :)
TUESDAY was District Meeting—one that people kept freaking me out with saying it would be my last! (Because we won't have one for the next 2 weeks due to some training and things.) But I still have one more. No worries. Sister Stokes joined us for this particular district meeting, as the Tongan sisters were on trade-offs for the day. I've never actually served around Sister Stokes, but we're still friends somehow with like the... 2 or 3 times we've talked. Also: bonding through Sister Anitema. 'Cause S. Anitema knows us both.
Anyhoo. She leaves for back home THIS WEEK and I wish ALL THE BEST for her. (And we'll see one another in Provo!)
It was a grand day of miracles, ending up where we needed to be, even when it wasn't planned. We met some lovely people. Also a man who said, "I know what you do, and I don't like it," and closed the door. I laughed a little (...Does that sound bad? Ha.) Poor man. One day you'll learn :)
WEDNESDAY was a normal day, but we found some lovely potentials. And then our phone failed us and made it so we missed MCM...'cause no texts came through all day. Therefore, everything our WML said of, "Hey Sisters, yes, we're having MCM" and "Where are you?" and "Did you have an apointment?" never came through... until Thursday. Ha. #Struggles
THURSDAY. TRADE OFFS. I got to go out with my Sister Boiteux again :) (aka: my first baby/trainee). I MISSED HER. Seriously. All in her STL self ;) It's fun to be able to get back with old companions at the end of your missions and see how much you've both grown, and to share experiences and talk and just learn more from one another. So.... I was pretty lucky in my last 2 trade offs being with my "mum" and then my "daughter". LOVE. #BLESSED.
FRIDAY. MIRACLE.
So tired. Felt gross. Still made it out. Heavenly Father blesses. We met a man who, honestly, I was hesitant to stop at the house of - just 'cause he was on the phone, and had a beer in hand. (I should know by now that that doesn't change much in South Auckland. Ha. Life in general here would probably be rated R pretty much all the time for language issues. You even hear SMALL CHILDREN swearing.) But we waited patiently, and he told us how he had recently seen a new movie out about Christ teaching as a child ("The Young Messiah") and how watching it made him miss the feelings he felt when he was a kid—the feelings of the Holy Spirit around him.
And because of this film, he and his wife were looking into bringing their 5 kids to church, and getting themselves into a better environment. They were looking into going to a church with his wife's sister in Mangare, but we mentioned to him when and where our services were, and he said, "Ah! That's
much closer!" Blessings! Hopefully we'll see them again this week :) They weren't able to make it to church this weekend, but we're still in contact, so... good things :)
Blessings. Miracles. Little things to PICK YOU UP. Love it.
SATURDAY. This weekend we had a Stake RS weekend basically—Service, a "Cultural" Activity, and a Devotional on Sunday night. So Saturday afternoon was the main activity with each ward assigned a different place within the islands (Niue, Fiji, Tonga, Tahiti, Hawaii, Kiribus) and each brought a food item and did a dance.
BEAUTIFUL and exciting things!! And the best part? Our dear Puna (investigator) was super involved in all the things. Dancing with our RS and all. Love her. Heaps.
SUNDAY the RS devotional was beautiful too. Singing in different languages (I know how to sing "I Need Thee Every Hour" in Kiribati now!). The spirit teaches you brilliant things. I just love it.
Also, this weekend Tyler broke bread and Hohia passed the sacrament!!!! Why is this exciting? They were BOTH super less active 5 or so months ago—Tyler in the way of 5 or 6 months ago he was smoking and drinking every day....and now look where they're at!
THE GLORIES OF THE GOSPEL!!
So... another week, more knowledge gained, and more experiences had. And I know there are more miracles to come, more people to find, and exciting things to come as well.
Life is great in the NZ world. ...I kind of don't remember what life is like anywhere else. So that's different than what I expected. Ha. I love it. I'm blessed. And I'm grateful :)
I hope you all have a most beautiful week ahead.
ALOFA TELE ATU!
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
Love my Otara
Sounds like it's been an exciting week there! What with all the SNOW! I'm scared and excited for the cold all at the same time. Haha. Cutest nieces and nephews ever with their snowmen... hopefully they'll want to make one with me too when I get back! I
DEFINITELY want to play in that!
And my Earthquake! I know! We didn't feel it 'cause we were sleeping... but we found out later in the day that some of our members and investigators DID feel it! But Sister Tauiliili's family [on the South Island] is all good, and it sounds like there's lots of people all helping to get everything cleaned up. So that's good :)
How's it been with Trump in for a week? This is truly the main topic I get now... everyone wanting to know what's up in my country. Haha.
MONDAY we had our Zone all meet together to receive transfer news... Sister Tauiliili and I have STAYED! I'll be finishing off here in Tangaroa Ward, and I'm excited and grateful :) LOVE my Otara! Haha. Other than that, we had a grand Family Home Evening with the Talavave's, or rather a last lesson with them. So...it'll probably be weird to not go to their house tonight.
TUESDAY was District Meeting! Which was supposed to be Elder Brown's last one as a district leader before being transferred to a different area...but then he and the Tongan Elders all got food poisoning. #SadDay. So Elder Ruth, our brilliant zone leader, did an impromptu training. Grand things :) We're lucky to have him on our side! That afternoon we met some brilliant miracle people, that hopefully we'll get to see again soon!
WEDNESDAY. A lot of people weren't home/appointments cancelled... Ha. All part of the work sometimes. But it's okay, we still tried our best, and then were blessed with Elder and Sister Terry who finished going over the ward list to help us put faces to certain names, and telling us people to go visit. Good times. Grateful for the Terry's and all they do – in spite of their busy lives at the MTC as well!
THURSDAY was honestly kind of a hard day. Happy Birthday to my sweet, departed Lindsey. But there were also blessings that day, including an appointment that night with a sister who's just moved into our ward. Love her. Love her family.
Will continue seeing her :)
FRIDAY was a pretty normal day. Haha.
Weekly planning, a bit of tracting, and a lesson with Skye. She gave me a Snickers Brownie for my birthday, which...was delicious ;) Also: Thank you, dear whanau, for the lego advent calendar :)
Excitement? YES!!Also: I may have decided that I'm going to use it as a "countdown to when I leave" instead.
'Cause... 1) I don't want to wait until December. 2) Then I don't have to fit the box in my suitcase. and 3) Why not? Ha!
November has gone SO FAST. I wrote in my journal one night a couple weeks ago, that I am convinced that Heavenly Father is getting homesick for all of us to come back to Him – so He's slowly speeding up time!Haha.
SATURDAY we had a lesson with Gurman and Suk. :) And they're brilliant. So open and willing to learn. We taught the restoration, and it was a fun time. I love teaching. It's just exciting. We also had a lovely night with the Lakisa's, Jasmine, and Siu. We just have brilliant people in our area.
SUNDAY was COME AND SEE FIRESIDE. Jasmine came, and I lead the music (a sign to me of "Sister Ottley, start getting used to standing in front of more than 150 people at the most in a ward. Haaaa). I'm excited to see all of our ward members at home though :) I miss them heaps :) It's gonna be weird being with all palangi's and no islanders though. Ha.
Our ward here is just brilliant. Fay and Fa (2 of the 4 girls that were baptised in our ward 3 weeks ago) shared their testimonies at the fireside. They're just BRILLIANT. Love them heaps, and I'm so very grateful and fortunate to have them as part of my life :) Also: Elder Clark. He's serving in the YSA ward here in south now, so... he covers our area (and like a huge amount of south and into the Hamilton mission. Crazy.) So... all the excitement of "I got to see him again." (We started together! MTC. Airport. Alllll that jazz. And I miss him.)
It was honestly kind of a slow-ish week. A lot of people not home. A lot of attempted tracting. But... the Lord still blesses those who try! And this was shown to me again this week in the fact there's always someone in my life each transfer that lets me know "Heavenly Father is definitely watching over you." —This transfer? Our STL's are Sister Graham and Sister BOITEUX. Yup. My first trainee baby. And they make me happy. It's also helpful, because they've BOTH served in Tangaroa before, so they're able to give us little details on people and whatnot. So that's exciting.
ALSO. I GOT A LETTER FROM MARIANNE THIS WEEK AND... I GET MY BYU JOB BACK!! For reals. She told me herself. #EXCITEMENT
Life is grand. And it keeps getting grander. KEEP GOING, DO YOUR BEST, and ENDURE TO THE END. That's what it's about friends! ;)
Haa.
OFA ATU!
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
DEFINITELY want to play in that!
And my Earthquake! I know! We didn't feel it 'cause we were sleeping... but we found out later in the day that some of our members and investigators DID feel it! But Sister Tauiliili's family [on the South Island] is all good, and it sounds like there's lots of people all helping to get everything cleaned up. So that's good :)
How's it been with Trump in for a week? This is truly the main topic I get now... everyone wanting to know what's up in my country. Haha.
MONDAY we had our Zone all meet together to receive transfer news... Sister Tauiliili and I have STAYED! I'll be finishing off here in Tangaroa Ward, and I'm excited and grateful :) LOVE my Otara! Haha. Other than that, we had a grand Family Home Evening with the Talavave's, or rather a last lesson with them. So...it'll probably be weird to not go to their house tonight.
TUESDAY was District Meeting! Which was supposed to be Elder Brown's last one as a district leader before being transferred to a different area...but then he and the Tongan Elders all got food poisoning. #SadDay. So Elder Ruth, our brilliant zone leader, did an impromptu training. Grand things :) We're lucky to have him on our side! That afternoon we met some brilliant miracle people, that hopefully we'll get to see again soon!
WEDNESDAY. A lot of people weren't home/appointments cancelled... Ha. All part of the work sometimes. But it's okay, we still tried our best, and then were blessed with Elder and Sister Terry who finished going over the ward list to help us put faces to certain names, and telling us people to go visit. Good times. Grateful for the Terry's and all they do – in spite of their busy lives at the MTC as well!
THURSDAY was honestly kind of a hard day. Happy Birthday to my sweet, departed Lindsey. But there were also blessings that day, including an appointment that night with a sister who's just moved into our ward. Love her. Love her family.
Will continue seeing her :)
FRIDAY was a pretty normal day. Haha.
Weekly planning, a bit of tracting, and a lesson with Skye. She gave me a Snickers Brownie for my birthday, which...was delicious ;) Also: Thank you, dear whanau, for the lego advent calendar :)
Excitement? YES!!Also: I may have decided that I'm going to use it as a "countdown to when I leave" instead.
'Cause... 1) I don't want to wait until December. 2) Then I don't have to fit the box in my suitcase. and 3) Why not? Ha!
November has gone SO FAST. I wrote in my journal one night a couple weeks ago, that I am convinced that Heavenly Father is getting homesick for all of us to come back to Him – so He's slowly speeding up time!Haha.
SATURDAY we had a lesson with Gurman and Suk. :) And they're brilliant. So open and willing to learn. We taught the restoration, and it was a fun time. I love teaching. It's just exciting. We also had a lovely night with the Lakisa's, Jasmine, and Siu. We just have brilliant people in our area.
SUNDAY was COME AND SEE FIRESIDE. Jasmine came, and I lead the music (a sign to me of "Sister Ottley, start getting used to standing in front of more than 150 people at the most in a ward. Haaaa). I'm excited to see all of our ward members at home though :) I miss them heaps :) It's gonna be weird being with all palangi's and no islanders though. Ha.
Our ward here is just brilliant. Fay and Fa (2 of the 4 girls that were baptised in our ward 3 weeks ago) shared their testimonies at the fireside. They're just BRILLIANT. Love them heaps, and I'm so very grateful and fortunate to have them as part of my life :) Also: Elder Clark. He's serving in the YSA ward here in south now, so... he covers our area (and like a huge amount of south and into the Hamilton mission. Crazy.) So... all the excitement of "I got to see him again." (We started together! MTC. Airport. Alllll that jazz. And I miss him.)
It was honestly kind of a slow-ish week. A lot of people not home. A lot of attempted tracting. But... the Lord still blesses those who try! And this was shown to me again this week in the fact there's always someone in my life each transfer that lets me know "Heavenly Father is definitely watching over you." —This transfer? Our STL's are Sister Graham and Sister BOITEUX. Yup. My first trainee baby. And they make me happy. It's also helpful, because they've BOTH served in Tangaroa before, so they're able to give us little details on people and whatnot. So that's exciting.
ALSO. I GOT A LETTER FROM MARIANNE THIS WEEK AND... I GET MY BYU JOB BACK!! For reals. She told me herself. #EXCITEMENT
Life is grand. And it keeps getting grander. KEEP GOING, DO YOUR BEST, and ENDURE TO THE END. That's what it's about friends! ;)
Haa.
OFA ATU!
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Miracles in the Park
I'm great! I haven't actually heard anything about the earthquake on the South Island this morning that you all mentioned, nor have I felt anything! The South Island is a LOT farther away than it looks on the map. Haha. But it probably means we'll get aftershocks of storms this week or something.... but nothing more than that. ;)
I did hear about the elections though. People asking things like, "How do you like the idea of going back to your crazy country?" Haha. So how is life with Trump? Glad to hear he gave a gracious acceptance speech. The church's statement is definitely classy. I will be praying for our country along with the the rest of the church!
Wanna hear Sister Christiansen's election theory? She was saying that because she believes that Heavenly Father has a sense of humour (truth) that the Second Coming is coming soon—because of how in the scriptures it says that the Second Coming will happen "at the sound of a trump" ...Hahaha ;) ;)
TRANSFERS are this week!! Where did the last 6 weeks go? Have I really been south this long? Also: Watching other missionaries go home is sad when they live somewhere else and you just think, "But, how will I see you again?" #StruggleIsReal Haha.
My companion is good :) Her English is coming along nicely. She's still quiet but getting more out there. It's good for both of us. I definitely think we'll both stay.... it really doesn't sound like President to transfer me. Haha.
It's all good. 'Cause it's been a good week :) Also a week of learning patience, humility, and lots of prayer.
MONDAY. Zone P-day—Life-size Board Games. BEST EVER! Fuseball, Battleship, and Hungry Hungry Hippos. All human-size. HILARIOUS.
LOVE.
That night, due to our appointments cancelling, we were able to have FHE with the Elders at Norman's—which was exciting, because he always has questions that make you think! Elder Saulo also lovingly and sneekily texted the Tongan sisters toward the end of our lesson to save us from walking home in the rain... #HavingNoCarProbs But instead we were all dry and loving it when we got home :)
TUESDAY. Ha. This is how the beginning of District Meeting went:
"Elder! Why are you acting like I'm dying? You even have my name on the board for bearing my testimony!"
"Because Sister Ottley, it's your last District Meeting!"
"How is it my last District Meeting?"
"Because next week you and Elder Saulo will be at the Mission Office at exit orientation!"
"......Elder! I STILL HAVE A MONTH. Stop killing me before I actually die!"
Struggle is real. Haaaa. He LITERALLY thought I was leaving this transfer. In that moment, alllllll the comments he's made and all the questions of "how close the plane is" suddenly made sense. Haaaa. No worries. It was cleared up. I still have time ;)
We had a good day, but slow as, 'cause sickness and not really being able to breathe. But we got to know one of our members named
Angela better, who was actually given to us as a referral (ha), and come to find out she wants to prepare for a mission! Exciting! So we're hopefully going to get her to come out with us sometime.
CJ and Jasmine—also the lights of our life. Jasmine is excited to learn about the gospel, and brings more light into her Mum's life each day. And definitely brings light to us as well. All the excitement in her in learning!
WEDNESDAY... Tuesday morning, we also found out that we would be going on MTC TRADE OFFS! Meaning: the missionaries from the MTC who were going out into their missions this week came out with us for a couple hours to get a bit of hands-on experience! (Things I didn't get, due to only being in the MTC for 2 weeks instead of 3!) It was exciting though :) I was with Sister Jeik, from the Marshall Islands. She's the sweetest, and is going to be the best missionary! She was also a blessing, putting up with a sister who was still coughing her head off... Ha. The rest of the afternoon involved a bit of tracting, finding some great potentials, and then off to see Dr. Shepherd to figure out why I couldn't breathe.... Now I have new friends... called Paracetamol and Inhaler. Yeah. They gave me an inhaler! It makes me shake like there's no tomorrow, but it also makes it so I can breathe. So...perks! Ha. They also told me that I did, indeed, have a slight fever and that I should "probably stay in for a couple days and just rest" ...........I paused at that. Ha. And Sister Bath looked at me and said, "is that going to work?" ...And I said no. So she said to "try and rest when I could." So, we did a bit when we got home after the doctor. Had our dinner break, and went to MCM. Then—Tradeoffs with Sister O'Reilly and Christiansen began :) My dear trainer mum. Excited to be with her for her last trade-off in the mission? YES. YES. I WAS!
THURSDAY with Mum was grand. :)
We tracted, visited, met people.... and then went home and followed doctor's orders and actually slept and rested... because I was still exhausted, and the inhaler at first actually made me just feel weird and shakey and ...I had zero ability to focus. Ha. Fun times.
We still had our dinner with the Leha-uli's, and dropped in to see Angela again. All the bright lights in our lives. :) Sister O'Reilly is a blessing, and I'm OH SO VERY GRATEFUL for all I've been able to learn from her in the mission. I've been spoiled with GREAT SISTERS, EVERYWHERE.
FRIDAY: Planning. And so tired. But... the Lord blessed us this day with MANY MIGHTY MIRACLES for getting up, going out, and moving! It began with David. We were on our way to visit one of our investigators, going through the Park by Tupu Youth Library. There was this man that had just sat down on a bench, so as we were walking by, we said hi - and both of us just stopped. We started talking to him and he said, "I knew you were coming!" We asked how?, to which he responded, "Because God told me you were coming!" He said, "I was talking with Him, and he said, 'Here I come now' so I sat down ...and here you are!"
He told us how he wasn't part of any church or anything -but that he wanted to learn about the Bible and the Book of Mormon and everything. We shared a bit with him about Joseph Smith, gave him a Book of Mormon, and got his address to send missionaries his way! ...Hopefully they went! Ha. He lived out of our zone, but had come from Mangare to visit his nephew. But, seriously. SO PREPARED, and SO wonderful. It's moments like that where, even though you don't get to teach the person, your testimony is strengthened of this brilliant work we have. It's up to us to invite people to learn, even when they basically invite themselves! Haha.
And then the miracles continued.
After we had met David, and tried to visit some other people around the area, we were on our way back through that park, when we met 2 young girls walking home from school. We said hi and asked how school was—to which they said good, and the younger one piped up and asked us, "Have you ever tried OUR house?"
"Um...Where do you live?" "...Um... Just follow us!" We followed them home—their names are Latysha and Mirahkle (yes, her name was literally MIRAKHLE - pronounced, "miracle")—and fun fact: they're the daughters of one of our less actives that we've been trying to meet. BRILLIANT!!
The last miracle of the day came with our lesson with CJ and Jasmine. Why? Because Jasmine is SET FOR BAPTISM :) It was also pretty hilarious this day, because every time we had one of these miracles, the zone leaders happened to call us, or bump into us....so they got to hear about it all! By the end of the day, when they called JUST after we had set Jasmine, I said "Elder Ruth! Wanna hear another miracle?" He responded with, "Woah...I don't know! You've just had too many today!"
LOVE. LOVE THIS WORK.
SATURDAY was a highlight day, after learning for myself something that I wish I had thought of at the BEGINNING of my mission. Ha. (Better late than never, right?) And that's this: To START each day like you've already witnessed a miracle! (Or, in missionary life, to START each day like you've just found someone new, who's SUPER KEEN and PREPARED to teach.)
We had a lesson with Skye. And dinner with Skye. We had a visit with the Lakisa's. And a quick visit with Jasmine again, to remind her that we would be there to pick her up for church... Ha.
SUNDAY: Ward Council—early! But It's good. Love our council. Love our ward :) We picked Jasmine up for church. The Talavave's had us over for dinner, where we were able to have a grand conversation with Tyler, who's preparing to serve a mission soon. It's fun to talk to people who want to serve, and thinking back to when I was in that position. I can't believe how long ago it was now. So many things learnt, and so many more things to continue learning. We visited with Amelia and her kids, and challeneged them to place a Book of Mormon of their own, as well as Liz across the street.
I JUST LOVE THIS AREA :)
TODAY. This morning we had a Zone Devotional, as the last p-day of the transfer. STILL so weird. Also: it's sad watching Elders go home.... But we all have our time, and we all have things to continue learning as new adventures continue.
Thank you all for the Birthday wishes and the cute pics!!! I did, indeed, get my package :) Thank you much — LOVED the American lollies.... I didn't realise I actually missed certain lollies from home until I saw the cinnamon bears and gummies... Also: Leesha's Caramel. BEST. Also excited for the birthday present, which is currently hiding under my desk to not tempt me... Haha.
Life is crazy. Truly like a box of chocolates. Haha.
Hope you all have a brilliant week, and that many miracles abound ;)
Alofa tele atu,
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
I did hear about the elections though. People asking things like, "How do you like the idea of going back to your crazy country?" Haha. So how is life with Trump? Glad to hear he gave a gracious acceptance speech. The church's statement is definitely classy. I will be praying for our country along with the the rest of the church!
Wanna hear Sister Christiansen's election theory? She was saying that because she believes that Heavenly Father has a sense of humour (truth) that the Second Coming is coming soon—because of how in the scriptures it says that the Second Coming will happen "at the sound of a trump" ...Hahaha ;) ;)
TRANSFERS are this week!! Where did the last 6 weeks go? Have I really been south this long? Also: Watching other missionaries go home is sad when they live somewhere else and you just think, "But, how will I see you again?" #StruggleIsReal Haha.
My companion is good :) Her English is coming along nicely. She's still quiet but getting more out there. It's good for both of us. I definitely think we'll both stay.... it really doesn't sound like President to transfer me. Haha.
It's all good. 'Cause it's been a good week :) Also a week of learning patience, humility, and lots of prayer.
MONDAY. Zone P-day—Life-size Board Games. BEST EVER! Fuseball, Battleship, and Hungry Hungry Hippos. All human-size. HILARIOUS.
LOVE.
That night, due to our appointments cancelling, we were able to have FHE with the Elders at Norman's—which was exciting, because he always has questions that make you think! Elder Saulo also lovingly and sneekily texted the Tongan sisters toward the end of our lesson to save us from walking home in the rain... #HavingNoCarProbs But instead we were all dry and loving it when we got home :)
TUESDAY. Ha. This is how the beginning of District Meeting went:
"Elder! Why are you acting like I'm dying? You even have my name on the board for bearing my testimony!"
"Because Sister Ottley, it's your last District Meeting!"
"How is it my last District Meeting?"
"Because next week you and Elder Saulo will be at the Mission Office at exit orientation!"
"......Elder! I STILL HAVE A MONTH. Stop killing me before I actually die!"
Struggle is real. Haaaa. He LITERALLY thought I was leaving this transfer. In that moment, alllllll the comments he's made and all the questions of "how close the plane is" suddenly made sense. Haaaa. No worries. It was cleared up. I still have time ;)
We had a good day, but slow as, 'cause sickness and not really being able to breathe. But we got to know one of our members named
Angela better, who was actually given to us as a referral (ha), and come to find out she wants to prepare for a mission! Exciting! So we're hopefully going to get her to come out with us sometime.
CJ and Jasmine—also the lights of our life. Jasmine is excited to learn about the gospel, and brings more light into her Mum's life each day. And definitely brings light to us as well. All the excitement in her in learning!
WEDNESDAY... Tuesday morning, we also found out that we would be going on MTC TRADE OFFS! Meaning: the missionaries from the MTC who were going out into their missions this week came out with us for a couple hours to get a bit of hands-on experience! (Things I didn't get, due to only being in the MTC for 2 weeks instead of 3!) It was exciting though :) I was with Sister Jeik, from the Marshall Islands. She's the sweetest, and is going to be the best missionary! She was also a blessing, putting up with a sister who was still coughing her head off... Ha. The rest of the afternoon involved a bit of tracting, finding some great potentials, and then off to see Dr. Shepherd to figure out why I couldn't breathe.... Now I have new friends... called Paracetamol and Inhaler. Yeah. They gave me an inhaler! It makes me shake like there's no tomorrow, but it also makes it so I can breathe. So...perks! Ha. They also told me that I did, indeed, have a slight fever and that I should "probably stay in for a couple days and just rest" ...........I paused at that. Ha. And Sister Bath looked at me and said, "is that going to work?" ...And I said no. So she said to "try and rest when I could." So, we did a bit when we got home after the doctor. Had our dinner break, and went to MCM. Then—Tradeoffs with Sister O'Reilly and Christiansen began :) My dear trainer mum. Excited to be with her for her last trade-off in the mission? YES. YES. I WAS!
THURSDAY with Mum was grand. :)
We tracted, visited, met people.... and then went home and followed doctor's orders and actually slept and rested... because I was still exhausted, and the inhaler at first actually made me just feel weird and shakey and ...I had zero ability to focus. Ha. Fun times.
We still had our dinner with the Leha-uli's, and dropped in to see Angela again. All the bright lights in our lives. :) Sister O'Reilly is a blessing, and I'm OH SO VERY GRATEFUL for all I've been able to learn from her in the mission. I've been spoiled with GREAT SISTERS, EVERYWHERE.
FRIDAY: Planning. And so tired. But... the Lord blessed us this day with MANY MIGHTY MIRACLES for getting up, going out, and moving! It began with David. We were on our way to visit one of our investigators, going through the Park by Tupu Youth Library. There was this man that had just sat down on a bench, so as we were walking by, we said hi - and both of us just stopped. We started talking to him and he said, "I knew you were coming!" We asked how?, to which he responded, "Because God told me you were coming!" He said, "I was talking with Him, and he said, 'Here I come now' so I sat down ...and here you are!"
He told us how he wasn't part of any church or anything -but that he wanted to learn about the Bible and the Book of Mormon and everything. We shared a bit with him about Joseph Smith, gave him a Book of Mormon, and got his address to send missionaries his way! ...Hopefully they went! Ha. He lived out of our zone, but had come from Mangare to visit his nephew. But, seriously. SO PREPARED, and SO wonderful. It's moments like that where, even though you don't get to teach the person, your testimony is strengthened of this brilliant work we have. It's up to us to invite people to learn, even when they basically invite themselves! Haha.
And then the miracles continued.
After we had met David, and tried to visit some other people around the area, we were on our way back through that park, when we met 2 young girls walking home from school. We said hi and asked how school was—to which they said good, and the younger one piped up and asked us, "Have you ever tried OUR house?"
"Um...Where do you live?" "...Um... Just follow us!" We followed them home—their names are Latysha and Mirahkle (yes, her name was literally MIRAKHLE - pronounced, "miracle")—and fun fact: they're the daughters of one of our less actives that we've been trying to meet. BRILLIANT!!
The last miracle of the day came with our lesson with CJ and Jasmine. Why? Because Jasmine is SET FOR BAPTISM :) It was also pretty hilarious this day, because every time we had one of these miracles, the zone leaders happened to call us, or bump into us....so they got to hear about it all! By the end of the day, when they called JUST after we had set Jasmine, I said "Elder Ruth! Wanna hear another miracle?" He responded with, "Woah...I don't know! You've just had too many today!"
LOVE. LOVE THIS WORK.
SATURDAY was a highlight day, after learning for myself something that I wish I had thought of at the BEGINNING of my mission. Ha. (Better late than never, right?) And that's this: To START each day like you've already witnessed a miracle! (Or, in missionary life, to START each day like you've just found someone new, who's SUPER KEEN and PREPARED to teach.)
We had a lesson with Skye. And dinner with Skye. We had a visit with the Lakisa's. And a quick visit with Jasmine again, to remind her that we would be there to pick her up for church... Ha.
SUNDAY: Ward Council—early! But It's good. Love our council. Love our ward :) We picked Jasmine up for church. The Talavave's had us over for dinner, where we were able to have a grand conversation with Tyler, who's preparing to serve a mission soon. It's fun to talk to people who want to serve, and thinking back to when I was in that position. I can't believe how long ago it was now. So many things learnt, and so many more things to continue learning. We visited with Amelia and her kids, and challeneged them to place a Book of Mormon of their own, as well as Liz across the street.
I JUST LOVE THIS AREA :)
TODAY. This morning we had a Zone Devotional, as the last p-day of the transfer. STILL so weird. Also: it's sad watching Elders go home.... But we all have our time, and we all have things to continue learning as new adventures continue.
Thank you all for the Birthday wishes and the cute pics!!! I did, indeed, get my package :) Thank you much — LOVED the American lollies.... I didn't realise I actually missed certain lollies from home until I saw the cinnamon bears and gummies... Also: Leesha's Caramel. BEST. Also excited for the birthday present, which is currently hiding under my desk to not tempt me... Haha.
Life is crazy. Truly like a box of chocolates. Haha.
Hope you all have a brilliant week, and that many miracles abound ;)
Alofa tele atu,
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
When Satan Reminds You of Your Past
"The next time Satan reminds you of your past, remind him of his future —because he has none!" #BestQuote #True
Last MONDAY we had a wonderful Halloween 'Trunk or Treat' with our ward, and excitement with everyone playing games at each boot [NZ slang for trunk] of the cars. And ALL the sugar highs! Ha. We were even given lollies [NZ slang for "sweets"] from kids in the following days, because they all had bags and bags of treats!!
TUESDAY was our day for Interviews with President Balli —always a blessing. Council this time? To make a study plan, set goals, and adopt a thought process of "just for today" for the rest of my mission.
We also met some lovely people
tracting. Love the people who will take a minute to listen! It's also helpful when they have friends who are Mormon... ha ;)
WEDNESDAY we did a bit of service in the morning, helping to clean up a part of the community and paint fences! —No joke, this has actually been a "bucket list" thing for me on the mission. To paint a fence. Haha. #Excitement. And we met some lovely people as well :)
We got to meet Rovine! The sister of one of our other investigators, who seems to enjoy learning about... everything! So that's exciting.
We had a FHE with the Talavave family. Always an exciting time. Even when the boys just stare at you at times and don't say anything and Priscilla gives all the answers. It helped them pipe up this time though when I brought out chocolate... Sometimes I feel like people learn more when there's chocolate involved! Ha. ...But then I felt a little guilty as we went over the Word of Wisdom....and giving them chocolate. Haaaa.... #TheirChoice
THURSDAY was Zone Training—apparently my last one. ...Things I didn't realise until the Elders were asking for a volunteer for an activity, and Elder Brown piped up saying, "Sister Ottley! It's her last zone training!" ...Rude. #ThePlaneIsNotThatClose
That afternoon we got to have a lesson with Kyleigh and Raymond—baking scripture cookies and talking about the importance of scriptures—how we can find answers by reading our scriptures when we have questions. Love scripture cookies. (Even though they turned out more like... Scripture muffins, because... "self-rising flour" and no cookie pan, just a muffin tin.) Haha. They were still delicious though :)
And then my sickness came back (cough). All's well. We keep plowing through!
FRIDAY was teaching CJ and Jasmine. They're wonderful, and Jasmine's fun to teach. She's a young girl, CJ's daughter, and she's excited to learn more about Jesus and the Gospel. Love her questions, and how she has primary songs that pop into her head that have to do with our lesson. Brilliant.
SATURDAY. Mostly a day of Skye :) Haha. We did some service for her in her yard, and had a lesson. It's hard when your investigators all have insanely busy lives, especially when one—like Skye—is a full-time mum, and now has her full-time job back. #NoSleep #PoorGirl We're grateful to have her though :)
SUNDAY was church—a beautiful testimony meeting, we taught Gospel Principles on Tithing, and were able to teach Jasmine again that night. She's adorable in learning, and I love teaching the Plan of Salvation. I was pretty spent by the end of the night. Coughy sickness resulting in "if I breathe too fast then I cough again and it makes everything hurt." But! Then Elder Saulo and Elder Ruth came over to give us some teaching materials.
And I got a blessing. And Heavenly Father gives wonderful counsel. It's great :)
Ah. And the other thing about this week? Guy Fawkes Day (also known as Gunpowder Treason Day - with English history origins) was on Saturday. Therefore: fireworks! Allllll the time. Starting, I think... Wednesday? All the fireworks. All the "money to go up in fire" as Brother Faapuea puts it.
Hahaha. It was exciting though. And also made it difficult to sleep. But all's well :)
TODAY—my Monday, your Sunday—Zone P-day. We'll see how much I actually participate. Ha.
'Cause apparently we're doing ....I just forgot what it's called. Human/life-size games? I'm sure I can explain more next week. #SicknessIsAStruggle. But It'll be all good. Sister Bath is going to try and get me into see Dr. Shepherd this week (she's like...the main doctor that everyone goes to in the mission, except for those in Kaikohe, 'cause...too far. Ha.)
This week I've learnt mostly about how Satan knows our weaknesses, and how he will do everything to work on them. It's something we end up sharing with a lot of people that say they can't do something, or say they don't see how it will help. Thinking about how Satan tries to keep us from good things—things that will bring us closer to Heavenly Father—our perspective changes a bit. Learning to focus on what the Spirit wants us to do, rather than giving in to what we're comfortable with. ...Things I still learn everyyyyyy day. #TWE [Talk with everyone.] Just as President Monson said: 'Choose the harder right, instead of the easier wrong.'
Btw, have I mentioned that I found another Samoan version of our family? The Faapueas. The more we get to know them, the more I'm like "wow, this is my family!"
Hope you all have a grand week :)
Much love —
Alofa tele atu, [Love to you in Samoan]
Ofa atu, [I love you in Tongan]
Arohanui... [Big love in Maori]
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Last MONDAY we had a wonderful Halloween 'Trunk or Treat' with our ward, and excitement with everyone playing games at each boot [NZ slang for trunk] of the cars. And ALL the sugar highs! Ha. We were even given lollies [NZ slang for "sweets"] from kids in the following days, because they all had bags and bags of treats!!
TUESDAY was our day for Interviews with President Balli —always a blessing. Council this time? To make a study plan, set goals, and adopt a thought process of "just for today" for the rest of my mission.
We also met some lovely people
tracting. Love the people who will take a minute to listen! It's also helpful when they have friends who are Mormon... ha ;)
WEDNESDAY we did a bit of service in the morning, helping to clean up a part of the community and paint fences! —No joke, this has actually been a "bucket list" thing for me on the mission. To paint a fence. Haha. #Excitement. And we met some lovely people as well :)
We got to meet Rovine! The sister of one of our other investigators, who seems to enjoy learning about... everything! So that's exciting.
We had a FHE with the Talavave family. Always an exciting time. Even when the boys just stare at you at times and don't say anything and Priscilla gives all the answers. It helped them pipe up this time though when I brought out chocolate... Sometimes I feel like people learn more when there's chocolate involved! Ha. ...But then I felt a little guilty as we went over the Word of Wisdom....and giving them chocolate. Haaaa.... #TheirChoice
THURSDAY was Zone Training—apparently my last one. ...Things I didn't realise until the Elders were asking for a volunteer for an activity, and Elder Brown piped up saying, "Sister Ottley! It's her last zone training!" ...Rude. #ThePlaneIsNotThatClose
That afternoon we got to have a lesson with Kyleigh and Raymond—baking scripture cookies and talking about the importance of scriptures—how we can find answers by reading our scriptures when we have questions. Love scripture cookies. (Even though they turned out more like... Scripture muffins, because... "self-rising flour" and no cookie pan, just a muffin tin.) Haha. They were still delicious though :)
And then my sickness came back (cough). All's well. We keep plowing through!
FRIDAY was teaching CJ and Jasmine. They're wonderful, and Jasmine's fun to teach. She's a young girl, CJ's daughter, and she's excited to learn more about Jesus and the Gospel. Love her questions, and how she has primary songs that pop into her head that have to do with our lesson. Brilliant.
SATURDAY. Mostly a day of Skye :) Haha. We did some service for her in her yard, and had a lesson. It's hard when your investigators all have insanely busy lives, especially when one—like Skye—is a full-time mum, and now has her full-time job back. #NoSleep #PoorGirl We're grateful to have her though :)
SUNDAY was church—a beautiful testimony meeting, we taught Gospel Principles on Tithing, and were able to teach Jasmine again that night. She's adorable in learning, and I love teaching the Plan of Salvation. I was pretty spent by the end of the night. Coughy sickness resulting in "if I breathe too fast then I cough again and it makes everything hurt." But! Then Elder Saulo and Elder Ruth came over to give us some teaching materials.
And I got a blessing. And Heavenly Father gives wonderful counsel. It's great :)
Ah. And the other thing about this week? Guy Fawkes Day (also known as Gunpowder Treason Day - with English history origins) was on Saturday. Therefore: fireworks! Allllll the time. Starting, I think... Wednesday? All the fireworks. All the "money to go up in fire" as Brother Faapuea puts it.
Hahaha. It was exciting though. And also made it difficult to sleep. But all's well :)
TODAY—my Monday, your Sunday—Zone P-day. We'll see how much I actually participate. Ha.
'Cause apparently we're doing ....I just forgot what it's called. Human/life-size games? I'm sure I can explain more next week. #SicknessIsAStruggle. But It'll be all good. Sister Bath is going to try and get me into see Dr. Shepherd this week (she's like...the main doctor that everyone goes to in the mission, except for those in Kaikohe, 'cause...too far. Ha.)
This week I've learnt mostly about how Satan knows our weaknesses, and how he will do everything to work on them. It's something we end up sharing with a lot of people that say they can't do something, or say they don't see how it will help. Thinking about how Satan tries to keep us from good things—things that will bring us closer to Heavenly Father—our perspective changes a bit. Learning to focus on what the Spirit wants us to do, rather than giving in to what we're comfortable with. ...Things I still learn everyyyyyy day. #TWE [Talk with everyone.] Just as President Monson said: 'Choose the harder right, instead of the easier wrong.'
Btw, have I mentioned that I found another Samoan version of our family? The Faapueas. The more we get to know them, the more I'm like "wow, this is my family!"
Hope you all have a grand week :)
Much love —
Alofa tele atu, [Love to you in Samoan]
Ofa atu, [I love you in Tongan]
Arohanui... [Big love in Maori]
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
Friday, November 4, 2016
Learning, ALL THE TIME
Anyhoo. Good week. Also slowish - due to sickness. (Always.) But we still got out. Still got to teach our investigators, and still got to meet some lovely people, and gained a companion for a day—whose name is insanely similar to mine—who helped us in remembering how to tract effectively ;) Haha. Good times.
MONDAY: FHE with the Talavave's. Love them. Plan of Salvation day. And it's always fun when people have questions.
TUESDAY, District Meeting! Then a surprise lesson with an investigator—that we were just dropping in to see if we could set an appointment—that told us it was good right then! Haha. We also picked up a former investigator (who actually might just have the same questions/comments as he has had previously...but we'll see)! And we met many other former investigators. This has proved to be more helpful than just tracting at the moment, so we'll see how we continue with these investigators :) Ah, and this was also the day that my companion started getting this weird cough...which she referred to as "just a cough"....
WEDNESDAY: We went around, visiting, trying to find new people, and meeting one of our referrals who's just brilliant and lovely.
We'll see her again soon. And my companion's "just a cough" started getting worse... -- I should really know by now that nothing is really ever "just a cough." But she was all goods as we ran around all day whatever. But then (regardless of the fact that, yes, I did start taking vitamins and all the things) I started coughing........ My immune system here just isn't quite as strong as it used to be when around sick people - even if they "aren't really sick."
Anyhoo.
THURSDAY then became "Sister Ottley's sick day" and Sister Tauiliili is "still just coughing." So what was "just a cough" for my companion became something my body wouldn't take as that. Ha. I was all achy and tired and cold and my throat hurt like no other. So.... a call to Sister Bath, and another to the Elders to pick up some medicine for us, and a bit of sleep, we were golden. Still sick, but okay enough that when the Maifala's came to pick us up for our lesson with the girls we were okay (translation: I could stand up without wanting to just sit back down). We had a lesson on The Gospel of Jesus Christ with Vaituli, Kilika, and Fay – and it was grand! :) However, when we went out after that lesson I discovered I had zero energy. So... back home. Elder Brown called that night and reminded me of Sister Bath's saying of "If you don't rest now, you WILL rest later." Ha.... Truth. All good.
FRIDAY was still a bit slow, due to my body still not being fully happy. (Ha) But we still made it around a bit, 'cause I couldn't handle being in the flat long after our weekly planning. And... we came upon a few blessing people, who the Lord clearly put in our paths for us - as well as one for us to pass on to the Samoan Elders! :)
SATURDAY MORNING we got a call from a sister talking about coming out with us—apparently the zone leaders were supposed to mention this to us...but alas. They did not. Haha. But all good. Her name is Sister OBLEY and she had just returned from the London England Mission Friday night, but wouldn't be released until Saturday around 5pm, so she wanted to make the most of her time while she was sill a missionary. Haha. Anyhoo. She came out with us for the afternoon, helping us in a situation of a family that spoke better Samoan than English (she's Samoan), and was able to help Sister Tauiliili, when normally I would have just had to stand there, not understanding anything that's going on....ha. And, as I said above, she helped us in our tracting efforts. I've learned—coming here—that I'm not as "in tune" with tracting as I used to be - coming up with questions to ask people to peak interest and whatever. Why? 'Cause I got used to people just saying "NO" and closing the door in Harbour..... Hahahaha. Good times :) So it really was grand. The Lord truly does put people in your path for a reason.
We also had a fun moment Saturday night when I (pathetically) forgot my coat....even though I was sick....and it was a WINDY, and therefore a COLD, night. So, we decided to run over to the Faapuea's after our dinner to see if I could borrow a jumper from their daughter. When we got there we discovered 2 investigators from our book were there! So we got to meet them and get to know them, and even had a little lesson! :) Blessings of not taking my coat when I was already sick.... Haha.
SUNDAY was what Sister Tauiliili and I called "Maifala Day." 'Cause....we had 1 lesson with all the girls, and 2 with Fay (the oldest daughter), after church. We went to our dinner appointment, and then back to the chapel with the Maifala girls again so they could have their interviews with our District Leader for their BAPTISM THIS WEEK! Yes, it's this week! On Friday all our dear Maifala girls will be getting baptised! :) They're the sweetest, and we just love them to pieces.
So, my dear whanau. It's been a good week. Life moves insanely fast. But it's good. The learning never ends, so that makes it all the better!
I hope you have a brilliant week ahead :)
Love you and miss you all HEAPS!
Alofa Atu,
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
MONDAY: FHE with the Talavave's. Love them. Plan of Salvation day. And it's always fun when people have questions.
TUESDAY, District Meeting! Then a surprise lesson with an investigator—that we were just dropping in to see if we could set an appointment—that told us it was good right then! Haha. We also picked up a former investigator (who actually might just have the same questions/comments as he has had previously...but we'll see)! And we met many other former investigators. This has proved to be more helpful than just tracting at the moment, so we'll see how we continue with these investigators :) Ah, and this was also the day that my companion started getting this weird cough...which she referred to as "just a cough"....
WEDNESDAY: We went around, visiting, trying to find new people, and meeting one of our referrals who's just brilliant and lovely.
We'll see her again soon. And my companion's "just a cough" started getting worse... -- I should really know by now that nothing is really ever "just a cough." But she was all goods as we ran around all day whatever. But then (regardless of the fact that, yes, I did start taking vitamins and all the things) I started coughing........ My immune system here just isn't quite as strong as it used to be when around sick people - even if they "aren't really sick."
Anyhoo.
THURSDAY then became "Sister Ottley's sick day" and Sister Tauiliili is "still just coughing." So what was "just a cough" for my companion became something my body wouldn't take as that. Ha. I was all achy and tired and cold and my throat hurt like no other. So.... a call to Sister Bath, and another to the Elders to pick up some medicine for us, and a bit of sleep, we were golden. Still sick, but okay enough that when the Maifala's came to pick us up for our lesson with the girls we were okay (translation: I could stand up without wanting to just sit back down). We had a lesson on The Gospel of Jesus Christ with Vaituli, Kilika, and Fay – and it was grand! :) However, when we went out after that lesson I discovered I had zero energy. So... back home. Elder Brown called that night and reminded me of Sister Bath's saying of "If you don't rest now, you WILL rest later." Ha.... Truth. All good.
FRIDAY was still a bit slow, due to my body still not being fully happy. (Ha) But we still made it around a bit, 'cause I couldn't handle being in the flat long after our weekly planning. And... we came upon a few blessing people, who the Lord clearly put in our paths for us - as well as one for us to pass on to the Samoan Elders! :)
SATURDAY MORNING we got a call from a sister talking about coming out with us—apparently the zone leaders were supposed to mention this to us...but alas. They did not. Haha. But all good. Her name is Sister OBLEY and she had just returned from the London England Mission Friday night, but wouldn't be released until Saturday around 5pm, so she wanted to make the most of her time while she was sill a missionary. Haha. Anyhoo. She came out with us for the afternoon, helping us in a situation of a family that spoke better Samoan than English (she's Samoan), and was able to help Sister Tauiliili, when normally I would have just had to stand there, not understanding anything that's going on....ha. And, as I said above, she helped us in our tracting efforts. I've learned—coming here—that I'm not as "in tune" with tracting as I used to be - coming up with questions to ask people to peak interest and whatever. Why? 'Cause I got used to people just saying "NO" and closing the door in Harbour..... Hahahaha. Good times :) So it really was grand. The Lord truly does put people in your path for a reason.
We also had a fun moment Saturday night when I (pathetically) forgot my coat....even though I was sick....and it was a WINDY, and therefore a COLD, night. So, we decided to run over to the Faapuea's after our dinner to see if I could borrow a jumper from their daughter. When we got there we discovered 2 investigators from our book were there! So we got to meet them and get to know them, and even had a little lesson! :) Blessings of not taking my coat when I was already sick.... Haha.
SUNDAY was what Sister Tauiliili and I called "Maifala Day." 'Cause....we had 1 lesson with all the girls, and 2 with Fay (the oldest daughter), after church. We went to our dinner appointment, and then back to the chapel with the Maifala girls again so they could have their interviews with our District Leader for their BAPTISM THIS WEEK! Yes, it's this week! On Friday all our dear Maifala girls will be getting baptised! :) They're the sweetest, and we just love them to pieces.
So, my dear whanau. It's been a good week. Life moves insanely fast. But it's good. The learning never ends, so that makes it all the better!
I hope you have a brilliant week ahead :)
Love you and miss you all HEAPS!
Alofa Atu,
Sister Mckenzie Ann Ottley
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