"Oh my Father --For a wise and glorious purpose, thou hast placed me here on earth."

As her mother I must say I am glad she was on exchanges even if she is sorry she missed the "excitement". And poor Sister Son. OH MY GOSH! This is lengthy but she knows all will enjoy it, (except maybe me, her mom). Thank you all for your support. Love, Dawn

 

"Oh my Father---For a wise and glorious purpose Thou hast placed me here on earth"
Hello hello hello everyone!

What a happy week.
We have lost a lot of random investigators the past week or so, so we need to do a lot of finding this week/hope that our efforts with our members will pan out this week.

Do you know the famous picture of the two missionaries in the field with their sickles trying to harvest the wheat one by one? Well one of our leaders drew this cool picture of the two missionaries dropping their sickles to go work on a rusty combine. It's supposed to represent our work through the members. And that's what we have been focusing on. It takes a lot of faith because it's one of those things that takes time to see the fruits of our efforts, but it's working! We have met with almost all of our precious branch members. Quite a few of them have brought their friends to church or fhe the past couple weeks so it's working! And we have taking a few huge leaps of faith in a few of them. It has been super good.
Oh my gosh two ladies just got in an argument at the computers across from me. One just got up and left the library. #ilovemylife #i'mtellingyouitisasoapopera

Okay anyways, love the branch. Except most of them take us out to eat instead of in their home. Which aka I've eaten out more in the past 3 weeks probably than in the past 6 months combined which can be hard. First world problems at its finest. (Note from Dawn : I do not think Sister A knows what 'aka' stands for but we will just let her continue to use it. Also I have made some explanations in the following paragraphs of her email/blog surrrounded by brackets [ ] that you will see).

Someone laid out everything for me that has happened the past couple decades leading up to the hastening of the work, most of which a lot of people have talked about before. but, it's cool to see it all laid out. So since 2004 Preach My Gospel [missionary guidebook] came out, mormon.org/ the 'I'm a Mormon' campaign came out, the red book (teaching missionaries other languages) came out, Duty to God came out for young men/changes in Personal Progress for young women, [ these are youth personal improvement programs] the 12 week training program for new missionaries came out, the age change for missionaries allowing elders to leave at 18 and sisters at 19 happened, almost 18 years after the Proclamation to the Family [an amazing document about the importance of families] came out which changed the way we were raised in our families, the Come Follow Me Sunday School program came out for the youth, the MTC time has been shortened, then the missionary broadcast of The Work of Salvation website launched (which you all need to look at and love..the video under members and missionaries about priesthood duty is about a kid named Hector and he's my hero), and soon to come is our use of technology in proselyting. Just imagine what more is still to come! Happy are we!

We had more exchanges this week! I got to go back to my old area. tender mercy? Yes, yes it was. Got to see Darrell! which was super good. It was good for me, because although I love those people and that place, I know that I'm supposed to be here in my new area :) Sister Son (my last companion) came to this area with Sister Jones. I call them on Tthursday morning to see what time we were going to meet and this is what Sister Jones says to me "All I have to say is I cannot wait to see you. I have a story that involves a bloody man, the police, calling President Weidman, Sister Son going in to full-fledged shock, and a priesthood blessing." I thought maybe I shouldn't tell you all the story, because I can hear mom yelling "Alexandra!" from here, but it is too good to not tell. I mean, I need to keep readers on the ol' bloggy-blog, you know? So don't freak out mom. [by the way, 'Mom' definitely freaked out when reading this story!] They were honestly in the nicest area and this could have happened anywhere! Even in Charleston. But obviously, Heavenly Father needed them there to save a man's life. and I was secretly/not so secretly super jealous I missed it. [again, 'Mom' was glad she had gone back to UCLA for the day!]

Anyways, the following is from Sister Jones, so please enjoy:

[This is what Sister Jones wrote to her mom and Alexandra copied it to share with us.]

Wednesday: We get home from splits and go on splits again right after with the UCLA sisters. So, I stay in my area and am with Sister Son (a sister from Korea, who also was Sister Atkinson's baby). [meaning Sister A trained Sister Son]
Anyway, I knew the split was going great when within the first hour, she said to me, "Sister Jones, I can't take anything you say seriously."

"What? Why?" I respond.

"You talk like a black person." #obviously,thatisthebestcomplimentIhaveeverreceived
Anyway, we had way too many adventures to write down, but at the end of the night, we went and had a lesson with Earnest at the library.

*okay, Mom--don't freak out at this story, okay?*

[this is what Sister Jones says to HER mom!]

So, we have a lesson. Super spiritual. Whatever. #well,notwhatever,but...whatever

Earnest leaves first, and we follow out behind him (we're about 30 seconds behind).

As we're leaving the library, we see Earnest on the side of the road, talking frantically on his phone, and there is a man DOWN on the ground!
So, naturally, Sister Son and I pull over, jump out of the car, and go see what is the matter. We run up and see that Earnest is on the phone with the police trying to tell them where we're at and there is a man, covered from head to toe in blood. He is just laying there, with his phone in his hand.
OH MY GOSH. Was he stabbed? Shot? Is he going to die?!
So, my pure Korean companion just starts praying out loud, right there and then.
Earnest is freaking on the phone, Sister Son is praying, and then all of a sudden, bloody man starts talking!

"Where am I?"

"Oh my gosh, you're at the Downey Public Library. What is your name?!" I frantically ask (#youknowhowIdoinpanicsituations...)

"I can't remember."

"Yes you can," I say.

Then, he starts passing in and out of consciousness. So, I'm kneeling on the ground, next to this bloody man, and E$ and Sister Son are in their own little worlds.

"WHAT IS YOUR NAME?!"

"Charlie," he mutters out.

"Charlie, what's your last name?! What's your last name?!"

"Kinnap." And then bloody man passes out.
Then he's back.

"Call my wife," he pleads.
So, I grab his bloody phone from his bloody hand and get blood ALL over me (#gag #mymissionstorytotallybeatsyourmissionstory) and ask, "What's your wife's name, Charlie?"

He starts to tell me, but he can't because he starts COUGHING UP BLOOD. What is going on?!

"Charlie! Stay with me! What's your wife's name?!"

"Priscilla," he says and then he's out.
So, I take his bloody phone to my ear (he has the cutest picture of his baby as his screen saver) and call Priscilla. I call once. Nothing. I call twice. Nothing.

PRISCILLA! YOUR HUSBAND IS DYING!

At this point, Earnest has gone to Charlie. Charlie starts saying, "I"m going to die. Tell my wife I love her." Earnest responds, "You're not going to die. You're going to be fine. You say with me. You a Christian?"

"Yes," says Charlie.

"The Mormon missionaries are here. Everything's going to be fine, alright?" says Earnest. #Ilovethisman

"Pray for me," says Charlie.
So, Earnest is just holding this bloody, dying man and is praying for him.

I am trying to get a hold of ANYONE! Priscilla doesn't pick up so I go through his recent calls and see someone named Chuck with the same last name.

"Call President Weidman right now!" I yell at Sister Son #sheisNOThandlingthissituationverywell
So, she runs off and starts calling.

I call Chuck.
Chuck picks up!

"Hello?" he says.

"Chuck! My name is Sister Jones. I am a missionary and I'm here with Charlie. He's down and bleeding. How do you know Charlie?!"

So nonchalant, he says, "He's a friend." OKAY, can you show a little concern here Chuck?!
All of a sudden, three people from Embassy Suites (the hotel across the street) run up. "We found him!" they say on their radio.

One of the security guys walks up to me and says, "Who are you calling?!"

"Chuck!" I respond (Chuck is still on the line).

"Who is Chuck," he asks.

"I don't know," I say.

"Hang up," he orders.

"Hang up on Chuck?!"

"Hang up."

"But...it's Chuck!"

"Hang up!"

"Sorry Chuck, I gotta go," I say into the phone.

*hang up*
I would totally hate me if I was Chuck.
Anyway, the three hotel people leave (I have no idea where they went) and then it's just the four of us again: Earnest, me, Sister Son, and bloody man Charlie.

The police call Earnest again and ask, "Is this the man from Embassy Suites?"

"I don't know," he says.

"Then ask!"

"Are you from Embassy Suites?!" Earnest asks the dying Charlie.

He just grunts.

"Are you from Embassy Suites?!"

"Yeah," Charlie responds.

"Alright, we'll have people there as soon as we can."

Then, Sister Son (who is FREAKING OUT #butwithgoodreason) hands me the phone. I have no idea who is on the other line.

"Hello?!"

"Sister Jones, this is Elder Davidson (our A.P.). What's going on?!"

"Um...there is a bloody man and he's dying and the police aren't coming..." at which point Earnest interrupts and says, "Sister Jones! Call 911 again! They're not getting here fast enough. We're going to lose Charlie!"
So, then I say, "...and I have to go. I'm so sorry, I'll call you when I can!"
Once again. I would hate me if I was Elder Davidson.

So, then I call 911.

"Hello, this is 911 Emergency Services. What's the situation?"

I bark back, "The situation is that there is a bloody man down on the corner of Brookshire and Firestone. He is losing blood fast and he is in and out of consciousness. You need to get her FAST!"

"Is he the man from Embassy Suites?"

I check with Earnest, and get an affirmative.

"Yes!"

"Personal are on their way. Please calm down ma'am." #DONOTTELLMETOCALMDOWN

So, we're waiting and FINALLY start hearing the sirens.

Then, the hotel people come back and they start talking to Earnest. Sister Son is who knows where (#yayexchanges) and then Charlie gets this sudden burst of energy and tries to stand up.
Yeah...that didn't go so well.
He stands up and then just collapses right on his face! He is just on the ground in the most awful position (okay?! Can the police get here already?!).

"Charlie," I plead, "STAY DOWN!"

"I see a light, Sister."

"CHARLIE! STAY AWAY FROM THE LIGHT! Don't you dare go toward that light! Help is coming, okay?!"

Then, they arrive. But, they are just taking their sweet ole time. Then, Charlie freaks out and tries to get up again and get away (#whoisthisguy?!)
So, this bloody man starts stumbling (he looks like a zombie) toward Sister Son. She literally starts screaming.

"Sister Son! Come over by me!"

*scream, scream, and more screams*

She was a little paralyzed by her fear.

"Sister SON! GET OVER HERE!"

I go over and get her out of the way.

And then Charlie just goes down!

The police and paramedics run around him. As they approach him they yell, "Does he have a gun?"

DOES CHARLIE HAVE A GUN?! OH MY GOSH, WE'RE GONNA DIE!

Then, Charlie loses is and starts going OFF on all of these officers. "'F' this" and "'F' that." Honestly, I couldn't have been more thrilled because I thought homeboy was going to die 10 minutes earlier.
They get him down and then start asking us all these questions.

"Did you see him jump out of the window of Embassy Suites?"

"HE JUMPED OUT OF THE WINDOW OF EMBASSY SUITES?!"

"Or did you see him jumping from balcony to balcony?"

"HE WAS JUMPING FROM BALCONY TO BALCONY?!"

Needless to say, they were a little frustrated with our lack of information.
They asked what happen. Earnest explained: "I was driving and stopped at the stop sign. I look to my right, see this man all covered in blood standing up. Then, Charlie looked at me, and said, 'Help.' And then he just collapsed to the floor."

"What were you doing here?" they interrogated.

I tried to explain to them that we were trying to teach Earnest about Jesus, but they were NOT believing me. #offended

Finally, a police officer comes up and says, "They really were," and then looks at me and says, "I'm LDS." #thankyouHeavenlyFather
So, after all of the questioning, I guess here's what happened:

Our friend Charlie suffers from PTSD. He had an episode and freaked out on his wife and baby. So, he broke a window, realized he was in trouble, and tried to hop from balcony to balcony. He only got about a block in a half before he collapsed due to blood loss (introduce Earnest).
So, mostly, God loves Charlie because had we not have found him, he would have died.
NUTS.
So, they finally tell us we can go home (it's about 9:35pm or so). We get in the car and respond to the millions of missed calls from the A.P.s. We respond, tell them we're all right.
But, fun fact is that we weren't alright. Sister Son legitimately went into shock. We get into the car. OBVIOUSLY, I'm like, "OH MY GOSH CAN YOU BELIEVE WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!" and she just looks at me and then BURSTS into tears. Like uncontrollable sobs and she can't control herself and she's having a hard time breathing.
We're driving home and I have NO idea what to do.

"Do you need ice cream? (#yes--thiswasthefirstthingIasked #probablybecausethat'swahtIneeded) Do you need to lie down?"

She's not responding, but just sobbing, sobbing, sobbing. Homegirl is hysterical. Finally she chokes out, "I need help Sister Jones!"

So, I call our Zone Leader and say, "Elder--we need a blessing. NOW."
They drive straight to our home and give her a blessing. And, Sister Son, who was completely hysterical, was just at peace.
Holy moly is the Priesthood power of God real.

Then, it was nearly 11pm and we went to bed. I talked to President and had to make a bunch of more calls (poor Sister Son).

Anyway, it was nuts. And I realized that the Preisthood power is the most amazing blessing. Earnest was in the army and knows his stuff, but honestly, he couldn't have done anything for Charlie. But, on the other hand, this little 19-year-old kid could have called him back from the dead.
Thank you Heavenly Father.
NUTS.
So, the next morning, we switch back and I barf this story to my companion. #sheisSOmadshemisseditbytheway

I love my life."

[We now switch back to Sister A's week's experiences]

 

You're welcome. Obviously, Sister Jones and I get along SO well. Like she knows pretty much everything about my life. And I am so grateful to be her companion. I just hold on for the ride.
Earnest is still waiting until December 22nd to be baptized. -_-
Sidney is awesome. She had a question at the beginning of our lesson but wanted to wait until the end to ask it. Then she said somehow it was answered during the lesson. #thechurchistrue Love her.

Two of our investigators are secretly (but not so secretly) dating. Did they meet at church? YES. We were at the girl's house this past Saturday, talking to her sister on her doorstep. In the middle of inviting her to be baptized who comes walking down the sidewalk? Our two investigators. Did we completely ruin any chance that they had of a doorstep moment? Yes. Why? Because we were literally on their doorstep. Whoopsies. Thank you Heavenly Father for letting us be there at that exact moment.

Oh we demolished the colony of ants living in our apartment this week, so that's good. But we have had a few awful spider experiences, haha. Sister Jones told some of our people "You think Sister Atkinson is always composed. But you just wait until she gets around a spider." It is so true. And it is so obvious to me why I didn't get sent to a foreign country. Heavenly Father knows me too well. Counting my blessings on that one.

I have just been so grateful this week. I'm trying to be more grateful in my prayers. I started doing that one night this week and then I accidentally fell asleep (woke up at 11 with my arms asleep). So obviously, there is just too much to be grateful for. A lot of people are living in some super humble circumstances. But the spirit in their home is unreal. It is so cool. I'm just so grateful. Just all the time.

The woman who got in to the argument with the other lady who stayed here at the library? The cops just came in and asked her to leave. and now they're arguing. I'M TELLING YOU IT IS A SOAP OPERA. AH, I LOVE IT.
This week I learned some cool things about the gospel that I've never thought about before. Gah, I just love learning. And I just love the gospel. It is so so so simple, yet there is always more to learn. Honestly, my biggest fear is going home and giving in to natural man habits that I had before. I read a blunt talk this morning about truly being converted to the Lord and what that looks like. I can see how much Heavenly Father has helped me change in the past 6 months and I just want to keep changing like this for the rest of my life. I know that God lives. And He loves us. And He wants us to be so happy. Pray! He IS there.

Make it a happy week!

So much love,
Sister Atkinson :)