Mar Vista: Transfer 11: Week 4 / April 25, 2011

Happy Easter!

I hope you all enjoyed Easter! We had a great morning in our ward and then afternoon at the Visitors' Center. We surprised our ward by giving all of the families a family home evening game activity that we made called the "Feed My Sheep Game," where they put the names of people they are working with on sheep game pieces and then move around the steps to track their progression for when they are ready to be taught by the missionaries. It also has a booklet with ideas of how to help them get to the next step. It was a fun project that Sister Olsen and I have been working on for the past month or so during slow times here at the Visitors' Center. Hopefully it will help people get involved in missionary work, and especially the families with young kids. Over half of our ward is made up of families in the UCLA family housing that is adjacent to the church building.

It has been an interesting week, to say the least. We've spent a lot of time finding, because a lot of the people we are working with haven't really been progressing, well, or at least it is just going to be a longer process. We tracted into a Hari Krishna spiritualist community in Venice that was pretty interesting. They told us that they were interested and open minded towards all religion, so they invited us in for a minute. There were seven of them, one family- A mom and dad and their two year old boy, and then four other men. They had one wall that was dedicated to being an altar, to which they added our pass along card picture of Christ that we had given them. They started talking to us about Hinduism, and basically trying to convert us, and I didn't really know what to do (Yes, I probably shouldn't have gone in in the first place, but one of them seemed really interested in the Book of Mormon), so as most of the situations where I don't know what to do as a missionary, I turned to my cop out and asked if we could sing something for them. They said yes so we sang them "I am a Child of God." We were just going to sing and leave, but then they wanted to sing us a song, and we didn't want to be rude, so they busted out a harmonium and drums and started singing a song in sanscript which basically just repeated "Rama rama" over and over again, and it went on for at least five minutes. I didn't know what to do. We couldn't escape. Then they finally stopped and they explained that "now they sing the song in double time, to have higher vibrations and more connection with God," so they went again for the next couple of minutes. They were such nice people, it was just an interesting kind of culture shock, especially for little miss Sister Olsen from Rigby Idaho. So that was kind of a fun experience. Only in Venice. :D

We also met some other really good potentials, one of them is a ten year old boy that is really interested in learning more, and the other is an Iranian woman that just walked in to church this Sunday, and we just happen to have another Iranian woman in our ward that is about her same age and that is the most incredible member missionary I have ever met. It was just another testimony that God does watch out for all of his children and have a plan for all of us, because it was just so perfect that she recently moved in our area and then just happened to come in to church.

Well, have a wonderful week! I love you all!

- Sister Dansie

Mar Vista: Transfer 11: Week 3‏ / April 18, 2011

Hi family!

Guess what? Steve was baptized! Remember how I told you about that guy from Scotland who had worked with Bear Grylls and who came in to the Visitors' Center with his member girlfriend? Well, she just came in a couple of days ago to let me know that Steve has been baptized! She said that he really felt the spirit at the Visitor's Center and he took the lessons in two weeks and was baptized! He's in Morocco now for the next couple of months leading outdoor excursions, which is part of the reason he decided to get baptized so quickly so that he could have the Holy Ghost with him before he went out there. I thought it was pretty crazy that he is going to be in Morocco at the same time as James. Wouldn't it be crazy if they met somehow? James, if you meet a Scottish guy named Steve, make sure you ask him if he knows me. It was so great to be able to see the end result of someone's conversion that I had a small role in initiating. He was obviously so ready and already seeking the truth, and then when he came in to the Visitors' Center for the first time he was ready to recognize it for what it was. It was interesting because he was already Christian, so I was trying to explain some things to him at first and talk a little about the Bible from a bit of a logical standpoint, considering I've been reading Jesus the Christ and learning a lot of really neat things, but then I could tell that it wasn't going anywhere and he was a little defensive, so I just took him in to the Christus statue and told him to push all of those things aside and just pay attention to how he felt, and what the spirit was trying to say to him, and the whole tour changed. It is amazing what the spirit can do, and another testimony to me that I can't convince anyone with my own knowledge that the gospel is true. They have to feel that testimony from the Holy Ghost, and all I can be is the messenger.

Caroline, the woman from India that came to church last week came to the Visitors' Center with her husband and little girl and another family from our ward that lives in their same complex. They loved it, and they went to church the next day and really enjoyed it as well. The culture in India is very different. They are accepting of all religion and everything good, so they still don't understand a lot of the spiritual aspect or even the concept of conversion and what that would imply, but they love the social aspect and the church organization and they can see how it will help their family. We're hoping that slowly we will be able to help them understand. They seemed a little confused even about why we want to come to their house, so we're trying to explain all of that as well. We invited them to be baptized and Caroline told us that she already has been baptized Christian, and the husband said that he would go to church and be involved but that he doesn't really want to commit to anything right now. So, it will probably be a slow process, but they are an amazing family, and they would do anything for their daughter, which is why they want to go to church, because they know that it is important to teach her about God.

We also got the information for a man named Sky that has been going to church in a ward close to the beach because it is only a couple of blocks away from he lives at a rehab center right on the ocean front. He had an amazing "Alma the younger" type conversion experience when he was in prison, and apparently met with missionaries there but is just waiting to get off of parole before he can be baptized. We went to go visit him, but the center has some pretty strict rules about visiting hours, so we can only go on Sunday afternoons, and before we could visit we had to go through an forty five minute orientation. We went with our Relief Society president who lives right by there as well in Venice. It was really interesting, because it put us directly into the heart of Babylon- right on the ocean front of Venice Beach. There are so many interesting people there. We actually didn't end up getting to meet Sky this Sunday, but I did find out the definition for "Tripping." It was in our information packet along with other helpful terms to know like "Jailing," and I can't remember the other ones. I especially remembered "Tripping" because the definition was "having your mind on anything but the here and now." So, some of you might be asking, have I been "tripping" about going home? Well, actually, not yet. It still hasn't really hit me. I'm sure it will eventually though. I'm just trying to do the opposite of "tripping" by focusing on the work and enjoying every day that I have left. I really do love my mission. I love being able to help people, and thinking about others before myself, and being able to be a representative of Jesus Christ for those that I meet. I hope that is something that I can take home with me and keep working on every day.

Well, I love you all very much! Don't be "Tripping"! I'll be home soon enough. :D

- Sister Dansie

Pictures:

1. So remember all of my friends that left me last transfer? Well, I saw three of them three days in a row, first Sister Cass, than Sister Tittle, and then Sister Garcia. I guess that Heavenly Father was trying to show me that life goes on just fine after the mission.

2-4 Pictures from our district activity this morning to the La Brea tar pits and the outside of the LACMA art museum. I went there last year too on my mission. Which again made me realize how long I've been a missionary for. And yes, my hair is foofy and out of control. I'm starting to feel like Carrot top. I'm just going to wait to cut it until I get back though. I've had too many traumatizing hair cuts here with the low price hair cuts I've been able to afford.

Mar Vista: Transfer 11: Week 2 April 11, 2011

Beach P-day!

We went to the beach for our annual beach p-day today. We had two hours where we played volleyball and ultimate frisbee on the beach. We couldn't touch the wet sand or get too close to the water, but it was so nice to just be on the beach and feel the sand on my bare feet. It was a beautiful sunny day, and wasn't too hot. It was so much fun!

It has been a great week. We've seen so many little miracles that show us how much Heavenly Father really has been guiding us. Diane and Ekambaram come to church on Sunday! They both really enjoy church. We had to leave after sacrament meeting to go serve in the Visitors' Center, but we found out when we were eating dinner with a family in our ward Sunday night that a woman named Caroline had come in to church with her husband and daughter. They had come late and missed sacrament meeting and were a little confused, but ended up going to Relief Society and taking their little girl to primary. Caroline is a woman from India who we met on the street about two weeks ago and she just let us in to her house and we had talked to her about going to church, but we hadn't been able to get ahold of her since that first time. We were really surprised to hear that they had come, so we decided to go over and visit them after dinner and they told us that they had loved it. They have an adorable five yr. old girl named Nitila who is severely autistic and they have really been wanting to teach her more about God. They went into Primary with all of the kids and there is only one little girl in the 4-5 year old class with a lot of little boys, so when she saw that there was another girl coming into the class she was so happy that she grabbed Nitila's hand and was a sweet friend for her. (If only we could all be so loving and friendly to anyone new that comes to visit church! That's something so amazing we can all learn from kids. I think that "Awkward" is something that adults invented.)

Caroline was so happy with everything that she told us "Yes, we will be members of this church." We are going to work to help them to understand the spiritual aspect and not just the social aspect of the church, but they really have great motivations and want to get involved with everything. Caroline is already Christian at least, so she has that background with Jesus Christ that we can build on. It is so interesting that we have found a family and a single man from India, all within this past month. I love meeting different people from different cultures and being able to learn from them and their point of view.

Well, I don't have as much time to write this week, but I hope you are all doing well! I love you all so much, and can't believe how fast summer is coming, and with it, well, lets just say a lot of big changes and new adventures for my life. I still don't know quite how to feel about it, but I'll figure it out and the Lord will be there for me, just like He has always been. :D Take care and have a great week!

- Sister Dansie

Mar Vista: Transfer 11: Week 1‏ / April 4, 2011

General Conference!!! Woo! Yeah! Wasn't it awesome?!

Ha Ha, yes, as missionaries we get pretty excited about conference. Its almost better than Christmas even. :D I loved hearing from the prophet and the apostles. The fact that God still speaks to us through his prophets has got to be one of my favorite things to share with people. Heavenly Father loves us, so of course he is still going to speak to us. Why wouldn't he? I loved the emphasis on charity, and really being true disciples of Christ. I felt like it was a call to action to be even more sincere in everything we do, and be motivated by true, Christlike love. I also love how it talked about sacrifice and suffering being part of our journey as disciples of Christ, and that it is what shapes and defines us. We can't expect life to be easy, or to have a quick fix for our problems. God is the Gardener! He wants us to learn and grow. It is so true! If our life were just cushy and comfortable, we wouldn't learn and grow, and Heavenly Father wouldn't really be showing his love to us, because he wouldn't be helping us to be better, happier people.

We had transfers this past week and my companion and I were blessed to stay together and in the same area, but it was still a really hard transfer for me. Three of my companions finished their missions and went home. I've been together with them for my whole mission, so we've become really great, close friends, and it was hard to see them leave, and also to realize how close the end is for me. It is a hard reality to face, and a very bittersweet thing to think about. My problem wasn't really trunkiness as much as it was feeling all of these doubts and fears about the future that Satan was trying to convince me to believe. I've been doing a lot better now as I've realized that I need to take President Monson's advice to "Fear not! The future is as bright as your faith."

I was feeling really down that morning in the Visitors' Center, but then we went out into our area that afternoon and saw some incredible miracles. We had received a referral for someone that had requested a Bible on mormon.org, and they had put the address for an apartment building but not an apartment number, so we said "ok, for some reason Heavenly Father wants us to go to this specific apartment building." We went and started knocking on doors and finally Maxine answered. At first she asked "Who are you? What do you want?" and we told her we were looking for someone who had ordered a Bible, and she told us that she hadn't requested one online but she had asked the Jehovah's witnesses for one but hadn't gotten it yet, so we told her "Well, this Bible must be for you!" She was so happy, and she told us that she had a mormon friend that had taken her to church a few times and she really enjoyed it. She told us that she had been taking care of her dad who is really sick and she apologized for being rude with us in the beginning, because it had just been hard for her to see her dad sick and she almost didn't answer the door. We gave her a "Together Forever DVD" and she told us "Oh, I'm sure I'm going to love it! I'm going to watch it tonight with me dad, and then I'm going to watch it again with my granddaughters. She thanked us for brightening her day by coming by, and really wanted us to visit with her this next week, so hopefully we'll see her again soon. It was an amazing miracle, and it reminded me of one of my favorite scriptures in Alma 31, where it talks about our afflictions being "swallowed up in the joy of Christ." Now matter how bad or how hard something is, God always gives us more joy and blessings than we could ever deserve and that far outweigh our sorrows and sufferings. We can't give him a crust without getting a loaf in return.

Have a great week!

Sister Dansie

Mar Vista: Transfer 10: Week 6‏ / March 28, 2011

Hello family!

My mission went from being a "Novella" to a "Bollywood" film this past week. We met a man from India named Ekambaran. His wife just left him and he was devastated. They had an arranged marriage in India and then she moved here with him while he's at UCLA doing research, and she hated it so she went back to India. We found him walking to a dinner appointment in the UCLA village family housing and he invited us to come over right after dinner, so we went by and he just broke down crying. We couldn't come into his apartment because he was there alone, so we said a prayer with him in the doorway and then sang "Where Can I Turn for Peace?" The next day he came to the Visitors' Center, because he felt something compelling him to be there. He felt peace. It is hard to teach him because he is still working on his English and has no Christian background, so we have to take a lot of baby steps. We taught him what baptism was and then asked him if he would be baptized if he knew it was true and he said yes. He really wants his wife back, and so that is all he prays for and what is motivating his seeking God in his life. We asked him if he was just looking for a quick fix or if he would be committed if he knew this was God's path for him, and he said that he would be. He came to church on Sunday and really seemed to enjoy it, so we'll see how that goes. We also found a 60 yr. old African American man named James Epps who wants to be baptized, so things are starting to pick up in Mar Vista. We don't know how serious they both are about it, but just the fact that we have started to find people that want to be baptized is such a miracle!

Things really are starting to bloom in Mar Vista! We always pass a fig tree on the way up to our apartment, and it has been bare for a long time because of the winter, and it is barely starting to get leafy again, so the other day I saw it and turned to Sister Olsen and exclaimed "We are like this fig tree!" She was really confused, as she often is, poor thing, but especially confused, so I had to explain to her how we were slowly starting to see things bloom and progress, and eventually we are going to see the fruits of our labor. It is funny because this week we decided that our companionship is like "Pinky and the Brain." I am always thinking and plotting. And as Sister Olsen said "You think too much. But I probably don't think enough." It balances out though and we make a good team.

I've started teaching a morning aerobics class for the sisters which is so fun! It has kept me motivated to exercise and helped me get those much needed endorphins to keep me going and to keep me happy. They all like to tease me for my enthusiasm in doing aerobics, but I don't care because I really like doing it.

I've been reading in Jesus the Christ and I found a really deep quote that I liked a lot. It says "Mere pleasure is at best but fleeting; happiness is abiding, for in the recollection thereof is joy renewed." -James Talmage. So that is my spiritual thought for you for the week. When we do good things the joy and happiness lasts because we can always look back on those memories and it gives us even more joy thinking about them.

I love you all! Have a great week!

Sister Dansie