Staying Put ...

Hello all!!!!

 This has been a pretty good week. Like always, I have bad days and good days, but all in all it was
pretty good. My Biggest accomplishment this week ... I wrote 2 or more pages in my journal everyday. I also wrote in my gratitude journal everyday. If your'e wondering, a gratitude journal is where I write down things I am grateful for every day. It has helped me become more positive. I'm sure most of you know I can be really negative and grumpy. My goal is to write 5 things that I am grateful for everyday. Plus, I get a bonus out of it, next thanksgiving I won't struggle to come with anything around the dinner table. I will have a huge list of things. This has been a huge accomplishment for me, I have always struggled writing in a journal.
Last Week was transfer week. We received the best news, Hermana Evans and I are staying together this transfer. How nice is that! We heard the wonderful news on Tuesday. When our district leader texted us,  Hermana Evans tackled me. 
Before that happened we had the most amazing Lesson with this one less active/ investigating
family. The mom has really opened up with us. She has been thinking about the changes she wants to see in her life and her families life.  I just love her. 
Wednesday we had zone training which is always fun. We broke off into groups and I was put into a
group with only elders. It was a awkward but fine. You guys will never believe this, but elders still act like teenage
boys. Except now they think all girls have cooties. After training we went to Michael's house to teach his friend a lesson (He is the one in the picture). HIs friend never showed up. Michael did agree to tract with us Saturday. It was so nice, he decided to come out on Friday and Saturday.
Other then that I can't really think of anything else to say. Oh well, maybe a couple more things... Friday we had a meeting, After the meeting a set of Elders, that live in our apartment complex, decided to race us home. They won, but they also totally cheated. They slowed down at a green light and waited until it turned turned yellow. We got stuck at the red light.... I was soooo mad.  Not really, because it was all for fun. For anyone who is
thinking of doing this please note that most missions are receiving a nifty little device called a teewee. This device records your speed, how fast you brake, take turns and accelerate. It pretty much does everything. It records what time you get home and where your car is at all times during the day. All this gets reported to the Mission President. If you brake to many of these violations, your driving privileges are revoked.
As of yet we have not received this, but we are at the end of May. I would advise everyone to not race the elders. 
I really can't think of anything else.
Have a Great Week!
Love, 
Hermana Atkinson

Spiritual thought. Be Still by Hilary Weeks It's a great song, I hope you take the time to listen to it.
Be Still by Hillary Weeks

Another Week

Ok, so let's start with last Monday. I went fishing and didn't catch a thing! But I did manage to lose a 10 dollar lure...... Yep I feel dumb. It was still a fun day.

Then on Tuesday we went to district meeting, then to a 1/2 mission conference. We talked about being bold. Which I absolutely loved. Then Tuesday night we went and taught eddy. It was so cute they made all these plans for Saturday, which fell through, but it was still nice.

Then on Wednesday we went and cleaned a house for service. I love the lady we went to help, but I hate teenage boys bedrooms. There was mold and lollipops on the ground. She asked me to get under a bed to clean it out and there was a used Q-tip...... I thought I was gonna throw up. But on the bright side I got some yummy tacos after I washed my hands....  And then I spent a lot of time this week at Tara and Jocelyn's  house. 

On Sunday I got to skype my family which is probably why I can't really think of anything to say. I got my nails done today. 

Food this week ...  Tacitus and tacos and causarellena which is like mashed potatoes with tuna. 

I finished a journal. Every page..... I was so proud and I have used up 2 pens. Life's small accomplishments.

Life is pretty much the same here in Springfield. There is traffic and busses are terrible. But I love it.

This coming up week is transfers week and I am  hopeful that my companion and I are staying together. Ok this is really the end of the the letter love you all.  

Love Hermana Atkinson Sent from my iPad

Spiritual thought for the week.

Yep, Life is Going Great !!!

I am way behind on getting Karlie's blogs out ... This is her blog from May 4, 2015

This week was good. It was long but good.  On Tuesday  we had a sisters conference, we spent the afternoon being trained. So that was fun. The lunch was amazing..... It was a spinach salad and it was quite amazing! Then on Wednesday we went on exchange, my sister training leaders are English speaking so I taught 5 lessons all by myself and translated what she wanted to say. It was sooooo hard.  I was sooooooooo happy to be back with Hermana Evans on Thursday. We spoke in Spanish the rest of the day. I love being in the Spanish program 

it is hard to learn a new language but I seriously love it.  I love that I can go up to someone and talk to them in their native tongue. They start to respect me more it is amazing. I love these people. With all of my heart. 

We went to a fireside for new and returning members and my recent converts Samantha and Vannessa bore their testimonies. It has been spiritually fulfilling to watch people over come their fears and really learn

more about this gospel. There are so many amazing things that happen as they start to change... 

We taught relief society and we gave everyone a Book of Mormon and told them they had to give it out..... Oh and we went knocking on doors, a 6 year old boy stole a sticker from us...... How rude right..... 

Yep that's about it for this week other then I found out that on Saturday I get to go to the temple with Vannessa and samantha. I am sooooooo exciting.

 love you all have a marvelous week! 

Oh I almost forgot I memorized the standard of truth this week it was pretty cool.

You guys should read it and memorize it because it is awesome.

“The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; … the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done.” 

Cute el Salvadorian in Little Honduras

Yep great title isn't it..... 

This week has been fun. We started This past week with a family home evening about the divinity of women. It was an all girl's night. We had a less active member come and join us. She actually talked. I know it doesn't seem like much but it was exciting. To make things even more exciting, we had a tornado warning, we had to stay at this members house till 10. We played a lot of UNO. 
The less active girl asked us to come to her house. She wanted us to come over the next day, we went over and made her breakfast... it was AMAZING.
Then on Wednesday we were knocking doors in this apartment complex and everyone was from Honduras. We were doing the missionary thing (talking and knocking) and showing a cool video called He Lives. If you have a couple of minutes, it is a very inspiring film and only 2 minutes long.
He Lives
It was a GREAT day.
I was talking to this lady and she said that she was from el Salvador. She was going back to visit and will be back in a couple of weeks. I said that I loved el Salvadorian food, she offered to make me some when she comes back from el Salvador. I hope I am not transferred in 2 weeks because she comes back the day of transfers...so yeah I could use your prayers with that. Other then that the food has been ok... I am not a big fan of Peruvian rice but it isn't bad I just don't like cilantro. But I will survive.

*** I am going to start putting my favorites talks or Scriptures that I have read during the week. I was reading through this talk and just loved it. The talk is called None Were with Him, By Elder Holland. If you have time you should read through the whole talk.
https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2009/04/none-were-with-him?lang=eng

"Thursday with its Paschal Lamb, atoning Friday with its cross, Resurrection Sunday with its empty tomb—may we declare ourselves to be more fully disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, not in word only and not only in the flush of comfortable times but in deed and in courage and in faith, including when the path is lonely and when our cross is difficult to bear. This Easter week and always, may we stand by Jesus Christ “at all times and in all things, and in all places that [we] may be in, even until death,” ²¹ for surely that is how He stood by us when it was unto death and when He had to stand entirely and utterly alone."  ------ Elder Holland

Love you all,
Hermana Atkinson

ext  monday