Friday, July 26, 2013
Happy Birthday to Me from Kennewick
Hola Familia y Feliz Cumpleanos a mi!!!! hehehe.
You all know how much I love my birthday. I thought that birthdays would be really lame out here on a mission but I am loving it! These packages are so much fun! Thank you so so much for all of your sweet letters and packages. I am one spoiled hermanita! The family I now live with made me cake this morning and I opened my presents this morning too. I LOVED THEM ALL!!! I am planning on going ziplining today with the other english sisters and then going to play volleyball with our zone and then we are off to COSTA VIDA!!! Closest thing to cafe rio right now, and they give missionaries 75% off. SCORE! Then we are going to one of my favorite members house tonight. Its gonna be a good day!
Now for the craziness that happened this week. I got a call on Tuesday morning from President Ware that said that one of the Hermanas was going home for health reasons. So..I was Emergency Transferred to Kennewick 4 hours later. It was a very bittersweet thing because I have heard so many good things about Kennewick but I was so sad to leave Pasco so soon (and of course momma pierce).
Kennewick is only about 10 minutes from Pasco but it is over the river so it seems like another city over there haha. Kennewick is really cool. Lots and lots of apartment complexes and lots of mexicans :). I am now companions with Hermana Foster. She is from Orem UT and she is a powerhouse. She has only been out for 7 weeks but I swear she knows more than me. Either me or her will probably be transferred out of here in 3 weeks because of the 9 Hermanas coming in, but we are making the best of the time together. At first it was hard to adjust because I have been with Pierce and Jones my entire mission but I love hermana foster. She is a professional dancer and she is just legit.
When I got here to Kennewick she told me about this family that was going to be baptized THIS saturday. So basically I kinda got thrown into the wolves to help plan a baptism but it was so fun! The Ibarra family is SO LEGIT. You would never think they would be interested in this church but they have completely turned their lives around and they are so ready for the church it is unbelievable. I have been so blessed to know them and see them through this step in their lives. Juan is 28 and Lakisha is 23. They have 2 kids named Uvia and Ricky. They are so freaking cute and I love them.
The baptism planning was all going smoothly and then Saturday approached. We started off the day by going to a branch activity to hike Badger Mountain (not really a mountain). It was a pretty big hike and we did it with the Ibarra kids too. It was really hot outside but we had fun. After that we were running around like chickens with their heads cut off, trying to get everything done before 6pm. Everything went so well and smoothly and then people started to show up. And then more people. And then the AP's. And then President & Sister Ware. And we had about 30 people there. As Juan went to get into the font, the branch president looked up at me and said "The water is way too hot.." WHAT?!! We were so careful about making sure it wasn't too cold! And now it was too hot!? Me and Hermana Foster sang a duet and I shared my testimony on the spot to stall time. After about 15 minutes, everything went perfectly. Long story short is that it wasn't our fault. Someone messed with the temperature gages and they had to call a technician in. By the end of this week with all the changes in transfers, meeting new people, learning a new area, having a new companion, planning a baptism, and hiking a mountain...its safe to say that I AM EXHAUSTED. But a very productive exhausted.
I am loving Kennewick so far. I am scared to get close to anyone because I could be leaving in about 3 weeks though. Hermana Jones told me story after story about the members in Kennewick because she LOVES this place. So it has been really fun to see the people that I have heard so much about. I am always just tracting behind in my momma's footsteps :)
Funny Moment: Alright I am takin a big move with my funny moment this week..We love all the missionary's in the mission. But I will say that I know that their are only the special ones that are called spanish speaking ;). So me and Hermana Foster have a new slang word that we use. When we want to call someone odd or just a little bit different...we say.. "They are so English" or "They were so nice..just very English" haha. Use it. Good stuff. And for all those who have served spanish speaking..you know what I am saying. For those who didn't..don't be offended. hehe.
Spiritual Moment: After all was said and done during the madness of the baptism, watching these 2 people that I have only known for 4 days get into the waters of baptism was absolutely indescribable. The room got quiet and the spirit rushed in. I wish I could remember my special day a little better but it was a really strong reminder to me how important that day 12 years ago was.
I love you all so much. I am having such an amazing birthday. I am so blessed by so many incredible people in my life. I can't believe that I will be home in a year! Time to get to work! Love you all so much!
Smile Always.
Xoxo!
-Hermana McBride
Monday, June 24, 2013
Transferred to The Promised Land aka Pasco
Hola from Pasco Washington!!!
Welp I am here in what is called "The Promised Land" of the mission. Unfortunatley we are in the very white parts of the city because we are sisters (Although I would like to believe I could totally handle a gangbangin neighborhood). Just to give you an idea, I live in an apartment that has a gym and a tanning bed..yes i have utilized both already. Our apartment is a 3 bedroom apartment because we live with 2 of the English sisters. Hermana Ray is a cute gal from Mesa, AZ. Its weird adjusting to these Trio companionships especially because I have served with Hermana Pierce already but its going good I think. I jumped into Hma. Pierce's arms when I saw her. Love the girl. We are planning on living in Provo together after the mish. Hma Pierce and Ray opened this area only 4 weeks ago, so just like Yakima, we are kinda starting from square one but Its all good. We are having a good time and my spanish is doing so much better. So here I am in Pasco. I learned so much in Yakima and I really did love it there so much. I am going to miss Jonesy so much. I already do. It was sad saying bye to people too. Its crazy how close I get to know these people in such a short amount of time.
Before I got here to Pasco, we were knocking on some doors in Yakima and we asked this one white man if he had any spanish speaking neighbors that we could teach. Usually, they are always down to point out the neighbors..not this guy. He went off for about 5 minutes about how much he hated these mexicans and got into all of the political details. I was sick to my stomach. It was right then when I realized my love for these people. They are some of the most hard-working, humble, loveable people who just want a better life for their families. Sure, there is more to it than that..BUT my point being..I am so grateful to get to teach these people.
Hermana Pierce and Jones are now "Sister Training Leaders" AKA: Girl Zone Leaders. So that just proves how I really did get the best trainers on the block. Anyway, they had a meeting in Kennewick and so me and Hma. Ray just stayed behind. The phone wrang like 10 times and I had to try to figure out what these people were trying to say in spanish. EPIC FAIL. It was pretty hilarious though.
Temptation of the week: NBA FINALS. Walked into a house and they had a giant screen of the game. Game 7. 4th Quarter. 5 Minutes. ABORT MADISON MCBRIDE ABORT!!! Luckily, Hermana Pierce caught on and we peaced out pretty quickly. But dangggg...Missin the NBA. Glad the Heat won. Anything that will tick Kobe off is good news to me.
Funny Moment of the week: Now that I am out of Yakima we actually eat with the Branch. Mexican food for days. Lets just say my stomach was not ready for that. The 2nd day we went to this ladys house and had this shrimp (legs still attatched)/oyster/mussel/octupus soup with tortillas, white rice, and insanely hot salsa...yaaa. Pierce is like an anti-fish eater so it was very interesting. Then, to show our thanks we ask for more. Its been a rough go for my tummy. But I think Im handling it all pretty well (psych). I did miss some good mexican food though..now just trying to figure out the 2 huge servings. Please pray for my stomach to find more room for all of it haha.
Spiritual Moment: We went to try a less active but nobody lived there so we did a tryback to this lady. Ray and Pierce told me about this girl and how she lived with this very abusive guy. They have avoided him everytime they are over there because he is very loud and rude. Well at the door, She said that she didn't have time because she was sleeping. As we were walking away the man started getting loud and was saying "NO PLEASE COME IN...I WANNA HEAR WHAT YOU GUYS NEED TO SAY. COME ON. I HAVE 20 MINUTES". We were scared but we knew the lord would be with us. We went in and talked to him what we do as missionaries. He told us that he has felt very lost and doesn't know how to feel God. We had the coolest conversation with him. It was amazing to see his accountance change within minutes. He told us how much he desired to have a relationship with God. At the end of the 20 minutes we taught him how to pray and he brought his wife in and prayed. It was so amazing to see the work of the Lord and how much he can soften the hardest heart. I have never wanted hope for someone so much. Missionary work is amazing.
Te Amo Mucho Familia!!!
Que tenga buena semana.
XOXO!!
-Hermana McBride
Monday, June 10, 2013
Companionship Unity
Jesse the Preacher Man and Taladega Nights
Hello everyone! Happy Summer!
First of all...HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Cassidy, Hermana Jones (same day as cassidys..so yes i will celebrate for you while your at girls camp but Im not sure which is better girls camp or a mission..), Aimee Myers my bff, and Happy Fathers day daddykins!!!! Love you and think about you all the time guys! Enjoy your special day.
So summer has struck the Yakima Valley. It is really getting so beautiful here. All of the produce is getting ripe and its gorgeous. But with that, we have been having a hard time getting the hispanics to schedule appointments because of cherry season. EVERYONE and their dog is out working in the field. And because we don't have a lot of teaching appointments we are tracting A LOT. The average number of people we talk to a week has been around 75. The mission standard of excellence goal (which we haven't reached until now) is 84 people. This week our number was 112. Unreeaaaal. So ya its nice and toasty and Im getting some pretty attractive tan lines but we are having so much fun.
BREAKING NEWS: WE BROKE THE YAKIMA HERMANA CURSE!!!! We had investigators at church!!!! YAYYYY!!!! Nohemi and Natalia loved it and I was just so happy haha. Natalia and Nohemi are planning on getting baptized within the next week or so. We are sooo excited. I absolutley love them.
This week I reflected on my mission call. I remember being like welp...sure if thats where I am supposed to go? This week I recognized how my mission is better than any other (for me at least). Every missionary says their mission is the best but I think my points are pretty undebatable:
-Warm Showers
-We have a car (even though we aren't always using it haha)
-Regular food (for the most part)
-No culture shock
-Target
-I get to learn the 2nd most common language in america the way it is actually spoken here
-useful language
-I get to speak english when i can't express myself otherwise and they understand
-Mail is easy to send and recieve
-Pretty good weather
-I get to teach really humble people
GOD BLESS (the spanish missionaries) in AMERICA!!!!
Love my mission.
We said goodbye to my mission presidents this week. It was sad but Im excited to see how this transfer goes. We find out on Saturday. I am really hoping I stay on this side of the mission and im like 75% chance that I am but we will see..
Spiritual Thought: Hermana Jones shared a really cool thought at dinner this week. She talked about how after Jesus died the apostles (mainly peter) were under so much pressure. They didn't understand how they were going to carry on this work and how they were going to have miracles like Jesus performed. But Jesus told them to teach to every nation, kindred, and tongue. So they took a leap of faith and went. She compared this to me and the other young missionaries who dodin't really think about this whole mission thing before. But we heard the announcement at conference and we did what peter did and went forth to serve with faith. I wasn't the girl to think about a mission before but I absolutley love it here and I am seeing miracles every single day.
Funny thought: Alright I saved the best part for last. Buckle down and try to imagine this story in your head. We tracted into this house and this lady let us in to give us some water. We thought she was mexican but she wasn't after all. As we talked with her, she told us about her whole entire life story of drugs/living on the streets/alcohol etc. Then she decided to turn her life around through God. She moved to Yakima and met her husband at a church. Long story short they are super non-denomonational christians and her husband is planning on starting his own church in Moxee to be a minister. So naturally we taught the restoration right?..We obviously had disagreements but she listened and we had a very cool conversation. This lady is super nice and easy going. At the end before we left her husband walked in the door. Jessie..from yakima but has a very (fake) strong preacher from the south accent. Both such nice people. So we asked them if we could say a prayer at the end of the lesson and jessie says "OF COURSE we LOVE to pray". Jessie Sits down. Him and her both put their hands out to hold our hands. Not what I was expecting. At this point, all I can think of is the fact that Hermana Jones is holding hands with a guy. Then Jones starts to say the prayer. I was still holding it together. They yelled out a few AMEN's here and there. Still holding it together. Finally at the end, Jessie, in his preacher accent, yells "AMEN, OH AND MY DEAR GOD BLESS THESE DAUGHTERS OH PLEASE...(needless to say, he went off for a good 2 minutes". At this point I am doing everything in my power not to laugh because I felt like I was in the prayer scene of Taladega Nights. After that we walked out and I said..."if only my parents could see me in moments like that..hahaha" We laughed and laughed. Good times. Jessie the preachermannnn.
Love you all so much have a good week!!!!!
Smile Always.
XOXO!
-Hermana McBride
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Cows. Cows. Cows.
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