Fatness and first world problems!

Time is short as always so I'll jump straight into it this week!

Diagon Alley or Bust!:

I'll admit, we have lots of weird jokes and we are absolutely pathetic because we think we are absolutely hilarious and laugh at our own jokes, but I genuinely think that this one is actually funny!

We decided that it would be so fun to go into town center one day, walk up to a wall, start tapping random bricks with our brollies, and then look all frustrated and ask a random passerby-er (in the thickest American accent possible): 

"Excuse me! Could you please tell me how to get to Diagon Alley?! This is how they did it in the movies but it's not working!"

Kids Say the Darnedest Things:

We taught the primary a couple weeks back and a teacher told us the cutest story this past week. The following Sunday after we had taught, the teachers asked the kids who had come to visit them last week and a little boy shouted out:

"The Mission-Mary's" 

So I am proud to say that I am a full time Mission Mary! 

Epiphany of the Week:

My poor companion has been dealing with some allergies-- meaning that she is sneezing all over the place! One day during a prayer she started sneezing like nobody's business and I had the greatest realization:

You get double blessings when you sneeze while saying a prayer! The Lord blesses you for talking to him AND your friend blesses you for sneezing!

So next time you find yourself in a pinch, skip the allergy medication, go kneel down in a field of pollen, and pray the day away! ;) 

Cheesy Quote of the Week: 

I don't even remember why, but something had really annoyed me earlier in the week and I was ranting about it to my companion. The rant went as follows:

"I'm a little cheesed right now....(*struggling to express myself in big girl words)...I don't know how else to put it!"

My companion suggestion:

"....like a little baby-belled or gouda'd??"

Isaiah for Dummies!:
So for the average Joe (understandably) the words of Isaiah are more than a little intimidating! However! There is one scripture that anyone can certainly appreciate and our entire congregation got to enjoy it this Sunday!

We had the greatest sacrament meeting! The entire program was open for members of the congregation to just get up and share their favourite scripture with everyone! One of the best sacrament meetings I've ever been too! Right before the meeting was over, one last person got up to share the following scripture from Isaiah:

Isaiah 55:2

 1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

 2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

This is a very popular scripture that missionaries love to joke about (just think about the number of tea appointments we go to as missionaries! Enough said!). 

The best part was our bishop afterwards. He was the scheduled to be the last one to share his favourite scripture. He gets up and goes: 

"Hey! What a coincidence! That's my favourite scripture too!!"

Bishop is a big man! And the best bishop I've ever had!  We literally call him the big boss!

So tip of the day anybody (and especially those in the church!) There is no better way to earn respect and love than to be able to have fun and laugh at yourself! Something I've definitely come to learn and love on my mission! 

Aussie/South African Lingo of the Week:

After having served with a couple of Aussies and spent a decent amount of time around South Africans, this lingo wasn't shocking to me but I still found it hilarious this past week.

Aussies and S. Africans will often use the following phrases to describe things:

"That was cool-as....that was weird-as....that was bad-as". They just put the word "as" after everything. 

I don't know where the saying came from, but you can probably imagine that when they talk too quickly and when they are telling you how cool-as or bad-as something was, it doesn't always sound quite right.

So you could imagine how hard it was for me to control myself when I was watching the reactions of some other members who were overhearing our conversation with another family who was describing something in church to us: "It was so bad-as". 

A funny bit of lingo I've come to find endearing about my Aussies and S. Africans, but safe to say probably not something I'll pick up and bring home with me :) 

#1stworldproblems: 

We have some friends visiting from Africa right now who we are sharing the gospel with. We joked that we are going to send them home with boxes of Books of Mormon and Bibles so they can go convert all their friends and start a ward within a week of them being home (the people in Africa are just so humble and receptive to the gospel of Jesus Christ). 

My companion and I were talking about Africa and then started talking about missions in smaller, more humble countries. We then started comparing our mission to those ones, which led to us coming up with the following phrases:

1st world missionary problems in 3rd world countries: (we've come up with the following so far)

- My feet are all pruny from standing and baptizing in the river for so long!

- I can't keep track of the ward because it get split every week!

- Our mud hut chapel fell down again because it was so over-filled with investigators! 

Each mission is really so unique, but after everything I've seen and heard, I've always been confident that each mission call truly is so perfect for that person who receives it! No doubt, England (even in all it's religious stubbornness) is the place I was meant to be! I love love love it!

The Classifications of Rejection: 

Speaking of religiously stubborn English people, my companion and I were having some fun the other week and came up with the following hierarchy: 

We started coming up with names for the different types of rejections that we receive every day! We came up with the following: 

The Classifications of Rejection:

1. Turrets: Person just has a random outburst of anger about how much they hate us, religion, our dogs, our mother's monkeys uncle and everything in-between, and then walks off. 

2. Sorry but not sorry: Fake smile and happy voice as they tell us how sorry they are that they are not interested. However all body language and words indicates they are not sorry at all: e.g.  "I am so sorry! I'm not interested. I think religion is a load of rubbish and you are the worst! *smilesmilesmile*"

3. Sushi (or the dead fish): Person opens their mouth open and closed repeatedly as they attempt to tell us an excuse why they cannot stop, but no words come out (because they cannot think of an excuse) so they just keep walking as they repeatedly open and close their mouths in mute silence. 

4. The Angry Hornet: Mutters under breath about religion (buzz buzz buzz) as they continue to walk and ignore us. 

5. Baking Cookies:Too stoned to know if they are alive or dead (let alone to know or care if there is a God)

6. Fake Busy: Meandering, peacefully and relaxed through the park or town, taking a nice slow stroll down the lane, but as soon as you start talking to them, they suddenly are incredible late for an appointment (in the park) and run away. 

7. The Proposal: Drunk, single, in 40's/50s. Wants to commit to you and not the gospel. 

Conclusion: Life is so much easier when we learn to find the humor in things and laugh at ourselves. Exhibit A? All of the above! Life is crazy so we might as well just smile and laugh through it all :) 

Our Key Indicators This Week:

We set goals each week for how many different types of lessons we teach people. We call them key indicators. After this past week, we came up with a new set of key indicators to keep track of this week:

- Fingers split: 1   (Sad story. We were dead to the world on Saturday night and had no energy to cook so we concluded that we were going to have the standard, lazy, English comfort-food meal: Beans on toast!! Yum! How can that go wrong? A monkey could make that meal, right?!...........apparently not! I managed to cut my finger really deeply on the can of beans and almost had to go the hospital to get stitches! Go me!)

- Chocolate bars eaten: infinity

- Tears of regret spilled over all the chocolate bars eaten: (1) (#kilos gained on mission)

- Wrecked brollies: 2

Message of the Week:
Do some family history!!! My name is (Sister) Erika Martin and I am addicted to family history! 

2 Nephi 25: 23 For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

The lives we live will have a powerful influence of those who come after us! We should be determined to leave a legacy behind so our children can find faith in the testimonies and trials of our lives! The light of Jesus Christ can be reflected in the lives that we live! We glorify our Heavenly Father by following the example of Jesus Christ every day! Our children will be blessed from these experiences we have! But if we fail to write down the precious experiences we have in our lives, they will be lost! There is an incredibly special spirit that can be felt as we go and search out our ancestors...and not just looking for their birth dates and locations! Find stories about them! Gather pictures! Take that name and turn it into a person! A person who had a life! Who had feelings! Who had successes and failures! That is what family history is all about! 

You will find yourself so motivated as you read of the triumphs and failures of your family who have come before you! The same spirit I have felt while sitting in a testimony meeting in church, I experienced while doing my family history (specifically while filling out my myfamily booklet). 

That is my challenge this week. Familysearch.org! Get started now! It is addicting, uplifting, and will bring the spirit of the Lord into your life!!

I love you all! Have a wonderful week and keep choosing the right!!!!

Until next week!

I hope the time goes quickly for you and slowly for me!

Sister Martin