First Week at NYC

 12/9/2024

Hello everyone,

Alot happened this past week and man there is a lot to tell you guys.

Dec 4: it was my last day at the MTC and it was exciting but sad at the same time. Had to say goodbye to my amazing district. They are such amazing people. They helped me adjust to this new life and i cant thank them enough. Especially my amazing companion Elder Talley!!! Man he was the best companion ever. Even tho I had only one so far. But i think he will be my favorite forever. He has been there since day one of MTC and has blessed me in so many ways. It was hard saying goodbye, but i know we'll see each other again. But i was lucky enough to have a sister missionary who is also serving in the same mission with me. So we both werent alone getting to NYC. After we arrived to the NYC airport we were greeted by other missionaries and the missions President and his wife! They are super sweet and kind. But they put you right to work haha. We literally were asking people if they wanted to come to church on sunday, at the aiport!! It was crazy. I didnt really say anything cause it was nerve racking. I was so happy that the bus came to pick us up cause i knew the missionaries were going to ask me to go and ask these people. We got to the church building and settle down for a bit and then had our interviews with the mission president. It went really good. Had food after and then packed our carry on cause we were gonna spend the night in Queens. 

Dec 5: The next morning we got back at the church and it was transfer day. Meaning that we get assigned our companion and some other companionships change to different areas in New York City. I got assigned to the Bronx area with my new companion Elder Yoshida. Hes kind and genuine still trying to figure him out. After the meeting we packed my bags in someone's car, and we took the subway!! It was cool!! And boom we started asking people to church. They were not kidding about just pushing you into the field lol. Got lunch from a deli. It was only 6$ for a huge sandwich. It was good too. Did 4 hours of walking, which was not to bad. But after it got dark around 5:30 it got super cold. I thought i was gonna be able to handle it but NO!! It gets cold  Super blessed to have a jacket. Went back to the church building in the bronx and had some lessons there. We have one person who is ready to get baptized which is super exciting. His name is Diawari. He speaks very little english but has a strong testimony of the church. After our lesson about baptism with him we gathered my suitcases and walked about 5 mins to our apartment. Got settled in and went to bed cause it was such an exhausting day.

Dec 6: woke up at 7:15 and started to get ready and then study. It was hard at first but you know you just got to get yourself out of bed and do the work. Didnt have breakfast cause i dont have food to make breakfast lol havent gotten grocery shopping. Have to wait until PDay. But my companion made himself breakfast lol. Got lunch tho at the same deli. Then called some of recent converts to ask if they were coming to church on sunday. Then went out at 1-6 spreading the love Christ. Then went back to the church to have another lesson/interview with Diawari. He is ready to get baptized this Sunday!!! Went back to the apartment but made a quick stop at another deli for burgers and fries for only 5$

Dec 7: nothing really happened today just exchanges and then tracked. It was a super long day of walking. I think i walked like 10 miles or more lol. Got 3 people to see if they wanted to come to church and i hope and pray they do. But thats about it today. Like i said nothing big. But loved working with Elder Alba. Hes a really cool guy. Had our last lesson with Diarawa and talked about enduring to the end. You can just see and know that he wants to keep following Gods plan for him. So proud of him and excited for him to be batized tomorrow.

Dec 8: Finally Sunday!!!!!! Super excited cause i needed this day for a long time. Been wanting it to come sooner. Called some people to see if they were coming to church. Super excited to meet the people in thw ward. We cover the Kingsbridge Family Ward and the YSA. They are so sweet and funny. The famiky ward were clapping after the chuldren program and got scolded. And the YSA is like the one in hawaii. Its small. Like 10 people were there. I also got to witness 3 baptisms one of them was Diawarai who was super excited and the other 2 were excited too. The water tho was cold so that part they didnt like but the other parts they enjoyed. Had 1 person come to church after asking them in the streets her name is Nakisha. Super friendly and kind. But that was about it. 

It has been hard still adjusting and at times i want to come home. My companion is a little difficult to deal with. Hes kinda a know it all but im just taking it one day at a time. Be very particular about certain things that need to be done around the house. The missionaries here are kinda more focused on how many baptism they can get this week and month which i was told to not worry about. So its a bit odd. I wasnt expecting that. Idk im still figuring it out. The people here are sweet and kind. Zoms are crazy which is funny to me. Heres a scripture that I would love to share with you:

Doctrine & Covenants 31:13 

"Be faithful unto the end, and lo, I am with you. These words are not of man nor of men, but of me, even Jesus Christ, your Redeemer, by the will of the Father. Amen."

Love you guys and hope everything is going well. Only 23 more months hahaha  but no seriously love you all, hope you guys have a wonderful week!!!!!!