Transfers and a Sick Week

Mom and Dad,

It was so great to have transfers and to meet my new companion Sister Blanchard! She honestly is amazing! She is 20 and from Roosevelt, Utah. I love her already and I think that she is the companion that is most similar to me so far. She is very shy at times, but she is sure a powerful teacher! She just has a way of looking straight into people's eyes and bearing her testimony about anything, and it is so sincere and powerful. I am really impressed with her and we have been getting along wonderfully together. 

My new companion Sister Blanchard and me

This week we had one of the best lessons with one of our investigators A. We met with him on Sister Blanchard's very first night here and it was incredibly powerful. We taught him The Restoration at the home of a family in our ward. It was great because the members helped us teach really well and the spirit was so strong. It was also great because the family we met with is really compatible with A and the husband works on base like he does. The husband was just really helpful and knowledgeable so it was great because A usually comes up with many really deep questions for us.
 

By far my favorite part was the closing prayer. We asked A to say it and it was his first time that he prayed with us. I actually started tearing up during it because it was one of the most sincere prayers I have ever heard. I am just really excited that he is just soaking up everything we teach him and he is at the point in his life where he is open to making the changes needed to come closer to Christ. He is an incredible person.
 

The only problem is that he has things going on in his life so he is not sure if he will be here or not starting Tuesday. We just hope everything works out for him so we can keep teaching him! He said that if he has to go away he still looks forward to reading The Book of Mormon so that is very promising.

Our strange family picture
It is crazy that all 4 of us have been companions with each other now!
Sister Higgins got transferred to Agoura Hills and is now
companions with Sister Mapa! How crazy is that?

We also had a great lesson with M this week! We usually meet with all the family but the kids were very busy this week so we just met with Morgan and her less-active mother. It was wonderful because the great Sister Terrazas came with us to the lesson and was very helpful! We taught M about the Gospel of Jesus Christ and invited her to be baptized. She said that she is still waiting to know if it is true for sure. She came to mutual and church this week so I have no doubt that if she keeps reading the Book of Mormon she will know and want to be baptized here shortly. She is such a wonderful young woman and I am so impressed how loving and welcoming the ward has been to her.

It is freezing here. 39 degrees is cold for an Arizona girl!

This week was a little bit of a bummer because I got sick. We had to stay in for two days while I recovered. It was actually a great bonding experience with Sister Blanchard. I slept most of the time but then we started decorating our apartment for Christmas. THANK YOU FOR MY CHRISTMAS PACKAGE!! I loved it! It was so convenient that it came this week. While we were at home we decorated our cute little Christmas tree and put together the foam nativity you sent me.
 

It was fun, but by the end of it we were starting to go crazy from being inside. We ended up going up and helping Sister Terrazas put up their Christmas tree and get out their Christmas decorations. We also raided their kitchen to find hot chocolate and decided to make cookies. So overall, I survived the torture of being sick and staying inside, and it turned out to be a neat little bonding and relaxation time.

Everyone is getting all Christmasy here! Some people have
definitely gone all out with their Christmas decoration.

This weekend was also our ward Christmas Party. Sister Blanchard and I have been looking forward to it all week because we had been passing out flyers and inviting everyone to come. We were surprised when one of our investigators texted us earlier this week and asked if there was anything going on in the ward. We told her that there was the ward Christmas party, the usual Sunday services, and the First Presidency Christmas Devotional. She came to the ward Christmas party with her little grandson.
 

She is not progressing but lately we have been doing service for her and she has really been warming up to us. She has been taught by missionaries in the past and had a lot of fellowshipping from the ward. I was really surprised that she already knew many of the ward members that came up and talked to her at the Christmas Party. It was a wonderful evening and during the program the spirit was so strong. I was impressed because at one point her grandson was throwing a big fit and wanted to leave but she told him that she wasn't going to take him home because she really wanted to stay. We are hoping that this has opened up the door so she will start progressing more and come to church again!

We met so many great people this week! We met so many random people on the streets that were wonderful. Even if they weren't completely interested, we planted some great seeds. I love Santa Maria, like I always tell you, because the people are so open and they surprise me every day. I love it when we talk to people and they don't seem interested at all, but then when we ask them if we could come back and teach them more they say "sure!" It is a new surprise every day and great things are happening here!

HAPPY SIX MONTHS TO ME!
A former investigator gave us a whole Costco
pumpkin pie so we had that to celebrate. Mmm!

This week was also my 6 month mark! I made it! I survived the first 6 months so now I think I can handle the next year ahead. It's crazy to think that I am a third of the way through my mission.

I still love it here in Santa Maria and I feel blessed every day to be here!

Much Much Love,

Sister Mason