"I am eternally stoked out of my mind for this transfer"

Oh my! It sounds like you all had a sweet week with family! Sounds like Grandpa's funeral was an amazing experience! I am so happy to hear that! :) I can't wait to hear more about it!

This week was the bomb-dot-com :) Seriously.. so good! On Wednesday I was in the car for about 6 ours between traveling from Bennington to Utica, then from Utica to Norwood :) Transfers were way great! I got to see Sister Stephens :) She came up behind me, and i totally didn't even think that i might see her and so when i turned around i was so shocked and happy that i screamed and then started crying! It was a sweet reunion! :) She is training again, and I told her trainee that she is getting the best trainer in the mission! (it's true) :)

 

 

 

So, the trip to the land northward was long, and squishy! I got the back middle in the truck for 4 hours... my back was killing me! So miserable, but totally worth it! My new companion, Sister Langford is the greatest! I love her so much! I look up to her a lot (and not just because she is 5'11")! She is super hardworking and has such a solid testimony! And we have so much fun together! We are seriously laughing all the time! :) I love it! We are a lot alike :)

So we are in the Potsdam Branch, and the branch has 2 sets of Elders and us. Which is cool...there were like 20 people in gospel principles yesterday, compared to the 4-6 we would have in Bennington! The 3 main areas we cover are Norwood, Norfolk, and Madrid. Yup Tay, i am serving in Madrid too :) It's super cool!

We have a lot of people to teach here! Lots of investigators and Less actives :) It's awesome! I have already been able to meet so many of them, and have fallen in love with each and every one of them! It's so great :) They are awesome!

Oh, want to hear something gross? So went over to this investigators house, and they have a suuuper old dog. The dog apparently got too excited when we got there and pooped.. on their kitchen floor. This dog was so insanely huge and the poop was like the size of my head and it smelled sooooooo bad the whole HOUR we were there. It was painful.

One of my recent goals has been to "put 110% into the moment". So basically, if i am working out, put 110% into my workout. If I am studying, teaching, serving.. whatever it is, put my whole heart might mind and strength into what I am doing at that specific moment. Honestly, in 4 days of doing this i have seen straight up miracles. I have been able to stay so much more focused and enjoy every piece of the day so much more! It has been a great goal, one that i am keeping for the rest of my mission, actually the rest of my life! :)

Yesterday we went to dinner at the sweetest older couples house! They are the cutest members and when i walked into their house i just felt home. I didn't know what it was at first, but i kept thinking about Grandma and Grandpa and i realized that there house had the same smell as Grandma's! It made me happy :)

Oh, and i slipped twice on the pickin ice! It was so painful! and now i owe my district donuts!!! Ugh. lol. Whatever.

I seriously had a fantastic week and i am so insanely pumped to be serving here! I Hope you all have a great week!!!!!!! I love you all! Stay strong! Write letters :)

Love, Sister Davis :)

good quotes this week....

"I Don't know why people are always crying when people die. If anything, they should be crying when they are born, because they're entering into a cruel and suffering world.. when they die they are going to Heaven!" -Shirley (Recent Convert) She's so great :)

"Carolyn (investigator): well monkeys are 80% the same as humans so like 80% of the time i wouldn't be surprised if we just got the urge to fling poop at someone!

Carolyns mom (also investigator): That's a phone call i do not want to get from the school..."

"God be with you til we meet again"

Family and Friends!

What a week! This was a very special weekend for me, I have had some of the most amazing experiences so far of my mission, as well as my life, this weekend.

 

 

John and Jessica were both baptized. Saturday was a very stressful day for Sister Jo and I, but it ended on a fantastic note. :) Both John and Jessica I have been with since the beginning of their conversion process. Seeing the progress they have made and the strength in their testimonies has been one of the biggest blessings on my mission. The baptisms were beautiful, and everything went so well. On Sunday, President Murphy asked Jessica to share her testimony in sacrament meeting, and it was one of the most powerful testimonies I had ever heard. She told her conversion story, and how much the gospel had changed her life in the past 6 months and it was amazing. She made m cry, but I had her crying when I spoke as well, so it was all good ;)

 

 

 

 

On Saturday, my branch president called me and asked if I would give a talk on Charity. With the baptism and everything going on, I didn't have much time to think about it until Sunday morning. When I sat down at my desk to write my talk, the only thing I could think of was Grandma and Grandpa Goodman. Grandma and Grandpa are the most charitable people I know. In my talk I talked about Grandmother Goodman and how she responded to Grandpa Davis’ death. When he passed away, she didn't see her own loss, she saw the loss of many other people who had come to love and rely on him in many ways. She took them in and showed the most Christ-like love toward each of them. I talked about their examples to me and afterward I kind of felt like I was babbling on about my grandparents, but everyone was very touched by their strength and their Christ-like love for everyone. After church, the Young Women's president came up to me and was asking me all about my grandparents, and I continued to talk about how awesome they are and how much they have changed my life. She said that all of the young Women in the ward were touched by my grandmother's example and the Charity she has and that they talked about her for the majority of their lesson.

Last night I got a very sweet phone call from my mission president telling me that my Grandfather Goodman had passed away. I was very sad. Two days before I left on my mission, I had the strongest feeling that I would not see my grandpa again in this life, so I told my mom that I needed to see my grandparents again even though I had already said goodbye to them. They came over the night that I was set apart and I was able to see them one more time. In the past month that feeling that I would not see grandpa again had gotten stronger and stronger each week. And I was having a hard time with it. I wrote my mission president a few times about it and we came to the conclusion that this in between is the hardest part. Because I knew that he wouldn't be around much longer, and that thought of if I were home right now I could still give him one last hug kept crossing my mind- but I'm not, and I can't. We also came to the conclusion though that once he did pass, I would feel peace and comfort. That was our email conversation a couple of weeks ago, and so when he called me last night, he knew it would be tough for me at first. After I talked to him I had a short cry, but then felt better as I thought more and more about it. I thought about Grandpa and who he was, he was so Christ-like, always giving service and so selfless. He always was the greatest member missionary, and I know that he is now doing some awesome missionary work in the spirit world! When my mission president called me last night he said that for the rest of my mission, my grandfather will be walking beside me and that I would grow closer to him now more than ever. I am so grateful for the knowledge that I will see him again. I am grateful for the example that he has been to me and to so many others. I know that he had a testimony of the gospel, you could see it in his eyes and he had such a burning desire to share it with everyone he met.

I love you all and hope you have a fantastic week.

Love, Sister Davis

(Granddaughter of Roy Marvin Goodman)

Alma 40:12

OH! P.S. I am getting transferred to Potsdam, NY (which is wayyyyy colder than here) and I am going to be companions with sister Langford (when I first heard her name I thought they said Langseth-Brad-haha) And I am also going to be a sister training leader! I am so excited! :) LOVE YOU ALL!

 

note: Potsdam is close to where Kiera's Grandpa Bakow lives, I think she will be in the same district (stake), so she will most likely see him.

PIctures:

2 feet of snow on Valentines Day

John's baptism - finally

Jessica baptism

John and Ma "Ma will be baptized soon... by John"

OINK... (must be pig month - our nephew Jake sent pictures of pigs last week too)