October 21, 2013
Hello everyone!
Whew, another week is gone! Ah!
Sister Perry is so great!! Seriously, all of my companionships on
my mission have been so different, but equally hilarious and fun. My favorite
quote of the week from her:
"What is your favorite gift you've ever been
given?" -me
*without hesitation* "Pit." (the game) -S. Perry
"oh nice..
who gave it to you?"
"mmm maybe my mom.. no no I gave it to myself."
hahahaha
I don't know really what to say this week. We went on 3 back to
back exchanges! We were supposed to go on a 4th, but we rescheduled it. We were
just so exhausted and needed some quality time in our area, haha. I got to be
companions with two of my past companions (Sister Barney and Sister Jones) so
that was fun!
Best moment of the week? I discovered South Central
Los Angeles!! It is on the edge of our area and like I said last week, that half
of our area hasn't really been worked before. But it is a gold mine! We will be
spending most afternoons there if we can. I just loved testifying to kids there.
I remember just looking at this one kid, Jose. He's 18 and looking for a job.
His brother is in jail and his two sisters who are in their 20s are single moms.
We talked about God's path and our potential as children of God. I could just
see it in his eyes that he wanted a very different path then the one his
siblings and friends were on. Another one, Rufino, has a baptismal date for
November. So pray for Rufino; I really like him. (Every time I say his name I
think of Hook's Rufio and say "RU-FI-NOOO!")
This week was
quite a culture shock. I went from south central LA to exchanges in
Westwood/Beverly Hills area and went in some of the nicest homes I've been in on
my mission. Pre-mission I don't think I would have thought twice about being in
those homes. But I was surprised by how much it effected me. Like I really think
I was in shock for the first 10 minutes of being in those homes. Some days I
don't think I've changed much on my mission, but that helped me realize how much
I have changed, haha. I've just had a lot of humbling and growing experiences
that I am so grateful for.
When I was with Sister Jones in
Westwood, I had one of the coolest experiences so far on my mission. We went and
met this woman---middle-aged, from New Zealand, wealthy to say the least, and
referred herself to missionaries (not normal). She is a very influential
businesswoman and has traveled the world and has had a lot of experiences. She
just told us her unique experiences in the past few years with the Mormon
church/individuals who are Mormon and it was incredible. Like incredible. "I've
basically lived a Mormon lifestyle for the 5 years. I know it's right in my
mind. I'm just ready to know it in my heart. So tell me what I need to do to
know from God if your doctrine is correct." This is an awful explanation of it.
I only met her once, but I just know that my path will cross hers again. It was
just one of those moments where I knew God was SO aware of me and SO aware of
her. I really felt His encompassing love.
Lots of talking and lots of walking this week and I loved every minute of
it. I love this work and I love each of you! Make it a great week!
Love, Sister Atkinson :)
p.s. Sorry this is so short! I started to type out my talk I gave in church
yesterday, but it took too long and I'm almost out of time. I'll finish it next
week and email it then :) LOVE YOU ALL! THANKS FOR EVERYTHING!
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