I am ridiculously energetic today and I'm not sure why - March 30, 2015

Because I'm also really tired. Weird.

Anyway. So this week was pretty dang cool. On Wednesday, we were eating dinner with an older couple. Someone rang the doorbell, so Brother Robinson answered. The lady who rang was a travelling salesperson and started asking out of nowhere if he was a Mormon or if he knew any Mormons around. Who even does that? And what better people to have over when someone asks you that at your door! Anyway, he let her in. Her name was Brittney and she's from Alabama and she had never heard of Mormons before she started doing travelling sales. And she wanted to learn what we were all about because she had good friends that were traveling salespeople with her, and they were LDS and she really liked some of the stuff they believed in. So, we ended up teaching her the Restoration and it was AWESOME. She was so open and took everything we had to say really well. She promised she would read the Book of Mormon too, which was dang cool. But really, that was awesome. How often does that even happen? 

So I've been studying a lot about Christ this week in preparation for Easter. I've been skimming through the New Testament and looking for scriptures on who Christ is and stuff like that. Holy cow. It's amazing. I love reading about Him and what He did for us. It's...good. It's really good.

I ate my 200th banana this week! What a milestone. I have 300 to go!!!! I'm well on my way to meeting that goal. 

Goals

Love you!

Morgan

BTW - There were 2 sisters in Pocatello who were hit by a car on Monday, March 30.  Morgan and her companion, Sister Kolo, were not those sisters!!  Whew!  It was sure handy to have Aunt Karen there to text Morgan and get us a quick answer!!

Best Weekend Ever - March 23, 2015

Seriously, this weekend was so much fun. I laughed so hard, went on a crazy trip, and saw awesome people. It was the best.

Pokey West District

Anyway, we went to Rigby yesterday. It was totally legal, I promise! We had, for some reason, to find a ride for some other sisters who weren't even in our zone, and the sister that asked us to find them a ride said we could go with them. So we did. And we got there and I got to see like all my friends from my old zone! They kept asking me, "Why are you even here?!" I really had no idea...but it was so fun. I had like, the most fun ever. I even sang in the musical fireside there (because it was the exact same song we sang in the music fireside a few weeks ago). It was soooo so good to see all the missionaries I had served with for six months or so. On the way home, we just laughed and laughed and laughed. It was hilarious. I can't even really remember what we laughed at, but we laughed really hard.

Hanging out in Rigby

So, here's another funny story. I spoke in sacrament meeting yesterday, right? So, beforehand, I decided I was just going to go up there, not act like I'm nervous, and just take the bull by the horns and give an awesome talk. Here's a bit of background info, last week that ward was PACKED because a missionary was giving his farewell. So I get up there and say, "Brothers and sisters, I'm grateful for three things today. One, that I could come to church today, two, that I have the opportunity to give this talk, and three, that there isn't such a large crowd of people here as there was last week because I really don't like speaking in front of large people." As soon as I realized my mistake, I was so embarrassed. I covered my forehead in shock and embarrassment and tried to talk my way out of it. People laughed quite a bit though. It was funny.

We taught a lot this week, which was great. A lot of good stuff happened. I definitely like pocatello :)

Love you!

morgan

You Can Teach Yourself Harmonica! - March 16, 2015

The title of this email is in regards to a picture I'm sending. It was in our apartment.

The things she finds!!

It's been a good week! Some cool stuff happened.

So, last Sunday, one of our bishops gave us a referral for a girl that came and talked with him. She's not a member. So, this whole week, I had a strong feeling we needed to go see her. Then on Friday, I was like, "Ok. We need to go there and visit this girl." I also had the feeling that I needed to grab a Book of Mormon and some of the pamphlets we use to teach out of (which I dislike strongly. I hate all pamphlets, no matter what religion they're from). Anyway. So we went to visit her, and we see this guy walking into the house. So we knock anyway. He answers the door and we start to talk for a bit about believing in God and faith and stuff like that (he's this girls brother, by the way). We talked with him for a while. And it was a really good talk. But we had to go, and he said to come back later that evening when his sister was home. So we did. And we had the best lesson ever! Kendra and Josh are so humble and in a unique situation where they're looking for answers to life and stuff like that. It's so cool. They want to learn and know what's true. So, I was able to give them the Book of Mormon and the pamphlets we use (following promptings!!) and we're coming back this week. SO COOL!!! It was an awesome lesson. Like, the kind you hope to have on your mission. We brought the bishop with us and he testified and set us up so well for the lesson. Oh man. So cool.

Anyway. It was a good week. I enjoyed it a lot. We taught a lot, even though I had a nice cold this week. Which is weird because I just had a cold two weeks ago in Ucon. I even take my vitamins! Ugh. Annoying. But it was a good week.

And no dogs stuck their tongue in my mouth this week, so that was good.

We biked a lot this week. My legs are tired. But it's good. I like doing that. 

Anyway, have a good week! Love you!

Norgan

Yes, i hear from rachel. I emailed her last week and got her reply today. So that's good. Shes graduating in april and teaching in Honduras for a year. She's always doing something.

And remember sister Jones? She's already engaged and getting married in April to an elder from this mission. Crazy stuff.

No dog licked my mouth this week, so that was good. 

Yesterday at church, we sang a hymn, and a man sitting behind us was singing really loudly. We started the next verse, and he skipped the verse we were singing and sang the next one. He kept on going and didn't change verses. Hey, at least he was confident in his mistake! In band we were always told to be confident in our mistakes. 

It looks like Licky!!

The Pocatello West District!!

This Week - March 9, 2015

Ok, daylight savings? That idea is just the worst.

Bonus points for naming the movie where that's from.

Anyway, besides being pretty dang tired, we had a good week. 

I had an encounter with a dog last night. I was sitting on a couch, and this pug jumped up next to me....and stuck his tongue in my mouth. I was not happy about that.

But we found two new investigators this week! We had a referral that the spanish sisters had talked to earlier and they were iffy, but when we went over, the kids (a 7 and 9 year old) wanted us to come in and talk. So we did. And they wanted to learn more about the church and stuff. They even wanted to come to church with us! The parents aren't too into going themselves, but they are ok with their kids going and learning. Their mom said they can pick any religion, besides Jehovah's Witness. So, there you go. They came to church with us yesterday and had a complete blast. The bishop asked the 7 year old if he was coming to church next week, and the kid looked at him with a confused look and said, "Well of course!" So that's pretty great.

Seeing all the family was so awesome! It was really fun. I loved it. And dinner was delicious.

We were able to go to the temple for the last time before it closed. So that was cool. We went with the 53rd branch (the branch that's at the retirement home) so that was fun. Haha.

Anyway, have a good week!
Morgan

A snake

A cat

Idaho Falls Temple with Sister Kolo

Morgan with her Schiess cousins and Aunt Karen!!

Morgan with her Schiess cousins Savana and Brenn in the back, Paetan in the front, and Paetan's 2 girls, MaeSa (the baby) and Journey.  Also pictured is Morgan's new comp, Sister Kolo.  

What Are You Willing to Give Up? - March 2, 2015

Morgan found a kindred spirit in Sister Warren

Morgan is excited about missionary work 

Saying goodbye to friends from the Rigby Zone 

Saying goodbye to some of the kids she has gotten to know in Ucon

So! I LOVE POCATELLO. I love it here. It is so so so awesome. I'm serving in the Pocatello West stake and the wards I cover are the 29th, 41st, 52nd 53rd branch (it's the old folks home branch), and the Bannock Creek ward. That one is on the reservation. So we go out there on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Pokey West I (the name of my area) is a walking area and we also have bikes. We got out the bikes yesterday...ok. My butt hurts like no ones business today. We biked alllllll over. It was so much fun though. 

This week has been crazy. Trying to get everything done in Ucon before Wednesday was crazy. We had a huge list we needed to do and somehow we were able to get everything done! thank goodness. On Tuesday, we went and said goodbye to all our favorite people. It was...sad. To say the least. After we left one house, I cried like a baby. We went to Johanna and Kaiden's house for dinner on tuesday and they got us a cake that said "We will miss you" on it. Johanna drew me a picture that said "We already miss you" on it. Oh man. That was a hard place to leave. Really. Hard. 

So on Wednesday, we got up, finished packing, and then Sister Gregston picked us up and took us to Rexburg. We got on the transfer train and went down to Pocatello. That was a really fun ride. Then, we got off, and i met my new companion. Sister Kolo is awesome! She's from Tonga, but moved to California a few years ago. (No pictures yet.)

Anyway, I had to say bye to SWarren...and that was hard. I already miss that kid. It's crazy how someone can become your best friend in less than three months. I cried like a baby after that one too. Swarren taught me...really, everything I've learned and figured out the past three months. God loves me enough to send one of the best missionaries in the mission to help me grow to become the person I needed to be. I'm so completely grateful to have been her companion. 

So, we got to our area, and I've been in love with it ever since. It's a really good area. There's a lot of potential and I want to come and find it.

Here's some fun stories - so, on Friday night, we were in the trailer park walking home and we passed some people outside roasting smores on a fire. So we talked to them. And this drunk old guy came out and started arguing with us. He was just saying really, really weird stuff. He dropped the f bomb a few times. It was...yeah. It was interesting. Made for a good story, though. It was funny. I also awkwardly talked to people playing basketball yesterday. We went up to talk to them about the gospel and they completely ignored us after we said who we were. Awkward. But, we talked to them and did our part!

So, I've been having fantastic personal studies each morning the past few weeks. Like, really REALLY good. I read this verse in Matthew 16:24. It says, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." I think i spent about 20 minutes thinking and getting into that verse. But...I realized a few things. What am I willing to give up in order to more follow Christ? What am I willing to give up in order to have success in this area? What am I willing to do in order to become the best person that I can be? I need to absolutely and completely deny myself and the selfish things that I want right now, and take upon this calling with everything I have. This mission isn't about me. It's not. I'm here to serve God and that's all. I'm willing to give up everything in order to more fully serve and devote myself to this. I love this work. I really do. I love being here. Even though this is the hardest thing I've ever done, it's the best thing I've ever done. Seriously.

Anyway, hope you have a good week!
Love, Morgan