Tay and I when I opened my mission call!!!
Sunday, May 30
Invites
Hello Ya'll.
I just invited some people who I want to read my blog while I'm gone. I just thought I'd let you all in on this now, then once I'm gone I don't have to worry about it! It'll probably be kinda boring the next four months, but I promise it won't after that. I'll probably have some sweet stories involving guns to my head and stuff...(you think i'm joking)...so.... stay updated starting Sept 15th, 2010 :)
Love, Dani
I just invited some people who I want to read my blog while I'm gone. I just thought I'd let you all in on this now, then once I'm gone I don't have to worry about it! It'll probably be kinda boring the next four months, but I promise it won't after that. I'll probably have some sweet stories involving guns to my head and stuff...(you think i'm joking)...so.... stay updated starting Sept 15th, 2010 :)
Love, Dani
Books of Mormon
I just want to talk a little bit about my testimony of the Book of Mormon (and some other things). I love this thing. I think I said two posts ago how I have started re-reading the Book of Mormon. I'm also studying PMG and some other books, so I read 5 pages/day of the BOM which should last me till right before my mish! I have read the Book of Mormon all of the way through before...and I've read it every night for years...but it has been a while since I've really sat down to read it all the way through...since President Hinckley's challenge. But every single night so far, it has calmed my fears or answered my questions from that day.
Today I have been really thinking a lot about Taylor who leaves in a little over a week. I am so excited for him! And I know he'll bless the lives of so many people. He gave me a call today from the hospital telling me about a family emergency. Of course I'm a worrying freak. So I'm a nervous wreck for a little while. I was talking to my parents and they were telling me that everything should be okay and I hope it is. But then I start worrying about Tay! I'm already freaking out about going out into the mission field and he leaves in a week! Yeah....
So I open up my scriptures to read my five pages for the night. I was not concentrating very well cause I am thinking about so many things. But then I read 1 Nephi 11:31. It is during Nephi's vision. He sees the Savior healing every disease and affliction. The Savior can bring peace to me. He can bring peace to Tay and his family and can heal us of all of our afflictions. Even when we're in the middle of some foreign country having no idea what in the heck brought us to put ourselves in this situation, Christ is there to heal me and to comfort me. Not to mention the Comforter! The Holy Ghost! He is there and all we have to do is stay worthy of that. If we keep ourselves clean and pure we have a constant comfort available at all times. Not to mention a protector and a guide and a constant companion.
I am definitely rambling. Summary: I am grateful for the Spirit, our Savior, and the Book of Mormon.
Also...
Taylor is going to be a fantastic missionary. He is so strong and faithful. He is going to bless the lives of so many people and I can't wait to support him through that and to hear all about it. He is an amazing person and I am so blessed to have him in my life.
Today I have been really thinking a lot about Taylor who leaves in a little over a week. I am so excited for him! And I know he'll bless the lives of so many people. He gave me a call today from the hospital telling me about a family emergency. Of course I'm a worrying freak. So I'm a nervous wreck for a little while. I was talking to my parents and they were telling me that everything should be okay and I hope it is. But then I start worrying about Tay! I'm already freaking out about going out into the mission field and he leaves in a week! Yeah....
So I open up my scriptures to read my five pages for the night. I was not concentrating very well cause I am thinking about so many things. But then I read 1 Nephi 11:31. It is during Nephi's vision. He sees the Savior healing every disease and affliction. The Savior can bring peace to me. He can bring peace to Tay and his family and can heal us of all of our afflictions. Even when we're in the middle of some foreign country having no idea what in the heck brought us to put ourselves in this situation, Christ is there to heal me and to comfort me. Not to mention the Comforter! The Holy Ghost! He is there and all we have to do is stay worthy of that. If we keep ourselves clean and pure we have a constant comfort available at all times. Not to mention a protector and a guide and a constant companion.
I am definitely rambling. Summary: I am grateful for the Spirit, our Savior, and the Book of Mormon.
Also...
Taylor is going to be a fantastic missionary. He is so strong and faithful. He is going to bless the lives of so many people and I can't wait to support him through that and to hear all about it. He is an amazing person and I am so blessed to have him in my life.
Friday, May 28
Tracting Is A Weird Word.
I'm reading a book called "Becoming a great missionary" by Kevan Clawson during my breaks at work. Some things i learned today... "It is better to do the right thing for the wrong reason than not to do the right thing at all." It's always better to act than to just sit around and talk about it and if you make a mistake, it's just another learning experience. Also, he was talking about what happens if you get a mission president who you don't like or don't agree with? Obey. You will always be blessed by obedience no matter dumb or unnecessary the rules seem. I think that's good advice for us dealing with any of our leaders.
Tracting: i'm kinda nervous for this part. To be honest it sounds like it would be pretty fun and quite the adventure... Especially in jamaica haha. But most missionaries say they hate it. This is what i have learned from my friend, brother Clawson. You have to keep tracting simple. If you approach a door with some deep doctrine, they'll be like, "whaa? Want some marijuana?" Also, you can change up your approach so it doesn't become so repetitive. Ask a probing question like, "are you happy?" or "did you know that there are prophets on the earth today?" I'm really excited for this! It'll be fun to experiment and see what happens. I'm going to use music... I'm going to walk up to a door and give the "we are sisters from..." paragraph, then say, "can i sing a song for you?" sweet. I like singing.
Tracting: i'm kinda nervous for this part. To be honest it sounds like it would be pretty fun and quite the adventure... Especially in jamaica haha. But most missionaries say they hate it. This is what i have learned from my friend, brother Clawson. You have to keep tracting simple. If you approach a door with some deep doctrine, they'll be like, "whaa? Want some marijuana?" Also, you can change up your approach so it doesn't become so repetitive. Ask a probing question like, "are you happy?" or "did you know that there are prophets on the earth today?" I'm really excited for this! It'll be fun to experiment and see what happens. I'm going to use music... I'm going to walk up to a door and give the "we are sisters from..." paragraph, then say, "can i sing a song for you?" sweet. I like singing.
Thursday, May 27
I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go, Dear Lord
I am creating a new blog. This will be the blog that I have my parents post on for my mission. I am starting now so that I can go through all aspects of my mission...starting with PREPARATION. Mission Prep. I took that class once. My professor was a crazy old man who yelled a lot. I swear...true insanity. I didn't learn a single thing. Now I'm taking it from Brother Tamang and Brother Covey in my stake and they are AMAZING. Anywho...
I received my call yesterday. The post office usually calls between 6 and 8 in the morning to tell you that they have your call, but by 7:30 I was so anxious that I called them. I drove down immediately to go get it. I was SO anxious all day. But I knew my family would be disappointed if I opened it without them, so I waited :) Such a good person. I know. I K. That means, "I know." I'm cool like that.
By 7pm, Taylor, Bonnie, my grandma, cousin Amanda, and my immediate family were all there ready for me. We ate pizza. Just so you know. I sliced it open with a kitchen knife and was shaking. I pulled it out and since I've seen so many mission calls in my time, I knew exactly where to look on the letter and skipped the whole first paragraph. "KINGSTON, JAMAICA." Reporting Sept 15th, 2010. I read it out loud and there were a few seconds of complete silence, "is she joking?" Then some screaming and stuff. It was fantastic. I felt pure excitement. That is where the Lord wnats me and I KNOW it. It makes sense. It is my mission. I wanted to announce it to the world. And I did, thanks to our blessing of technology.
Today, I woke up again with that feeling of excitement. My friend Sam served his mission there, so I met him for lunch to learn as much as I could about the mission. It brought equal amounts of excitement and anxiety. I realized that Jamaica is not much different from Uganda. I loved Uganda, but it was very difficult for me. I was sick a lot and the living conditions were so hard. I definitely left a piece of my heart there and everything I do today still is based on what I learned there. It has had a huge impact on my life. But it was difficult. I was terrified of going to a place like Africa because a mission is already such a difficult thing and to be in a place with that poor of living conditions will make it that much harder.
I am so excited for the people though. God has a sense of humor. I told my mom a few weeks ago, "Since I am such an organizational, planning freak full of anxiety, I KNOW (I K) that I will get mainly companions who are procrastinators, chill, and laid-back." Instead of companions, I got a whole country full of the most chill people ever. I cannot WAIT for this. I hope I come back a little less anxious and a little less of a freak. Or maybe I'll just be a nervous wreck with a jamaican accent. That would be equally as cool.
Sam made me really excited about a lot of things, but a little nervous about a lot of things (maybe it was his stories of being held at gunpoint...multiple times, I don't know...). But everytime I think about something I'm nervous about, I just kind of get this breath of calm... I don't know how to explain it. I will just have to pray for peace and courage and a continuing feeling that this is where I am supposed to be.
A lot of people have brought up what is going on down there as well with the drugs and people burning down buildings and such. Wow, I don't know how to explain why I feel this way, but that is SO cool. It's not cool that this is all happening, but it's cool that I got called to pretty much THE most dangerous mission for Americans right now...especially white sister missionaries with nametags on their chests, haha. That's sweet! But...another reason to be nervous.
I got ready for bed and opened my scriptures. I decided that I was going to reread the entire Book of Mormon in the time between when I got my call and when I left, so I started my second section today. I just happened to land on 1 Nephi, chapter 3, verse 7. "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." If that isn't a direct answer, I don't know what is. I have felt that this is right. I AM supposed to go on a mission and I know that Jamaica is the place that I should go. I will go and do what the Lord wants me to do no matter how scary it may be.
After I read this, I go down to our office to talk to my parents. They are both on the computer and freaking out. "WHAT?" Of course I find out that my Mission President has been "honorably released" as of a few days ago and they have no leader right now in the mission. I guess the Area President is trying to get there but can't till Monday, so they are just in a bit of a limbo with transfers and everything. Crazy!! Then my dad starts trying to find out who the new mission president is and it's a man who is a former FBI agent, hahaha. Wow, I haven't even left on my mission and this is already an adventure.
I know that Heavenly Father has a plan for me. I know that He answers prayers and leads and guides us each by personal revelation today. I know that the Book of Mormon was written for many people, but especially for me and for you. It was written as another testament of Jesus Christ to bless our lives, answer our questions, and teach us about the past as well as the future. I am scared out of my mind but so excited to start this new adventure and my hand will be in the Lord's the entire time. He will lead me and be right beside me.
Love, Dani (can't sign as Sister Israelsen yet...111 more days)
P.S. The blog name: PATOIS IS NOT ENGLISH. They speak "Patois" or "Patwa" in Jamaica. It's english based but it is NOT english. Wikipedia it, I dare you. It is insane. They say it's an english speaking mission but it's not. It's patois.
ABOUT MY NEW MISSION PRESIDENT:
http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/59317/New-mission-presidents.html
ABOUT PATOIS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patois
ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN JAMAICA RIGHT NOW:
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/lead/
I received my call yesterday. The post office usually calls between 6 and 8 in the morning to tell you that they have your call, but by 7:30 I was so anxious that I called them. I drove down immediately to go get it. I was SO anxious all day. But I knew my family would be disappointed if I opened it without them, so I waited :) Such a good person. I know. I K. That means, "I know." I'm cool like that.
By 7pm, Taylor, Bonnie, my grandma, cousin Amanda, and my immediate family were all there ready for me. We ate pizza. Just so you know. I sliced it open with a kitchen knife and was shaking. I pulled it out and since I've seen so many mission calls in my time, I knew exactly where to look on the letter and skipped the whole first paragraph. "KINGSTON, JAMAICA." Reporting Sept 15th, 2010. I read it out loud and there were a few seconds of complete silence, "is she joking?" Then some screaming and stuff. It was fantastic. I felt pure excitement. That is where the Lord wnats me and I KNOW it. It makes sense. It is my mission. I wanted to announce it to the world. And I did, thanks to our blessing of technology.
Today, I woke up again with that feeling of excitement. My friend Sam served his mission there, so I met him for lunch to learn as much as I could about the mission. It brought equal amounts of excitement and anxiety. I realized that Jamaica is not much different from Uganda. I loved Uganda, but it was very difficult for me. I was sick a lot and the living conditions were so hard. I definitely left a piece of my heart there and everything I do today still is based on what I learned there. It has had a huge impact on my life. But it was difficult. I was terrified of going to a place like Africa because a mission is already such a difficult thing and to be in a place with that poor of living conditions will make it that much harder.
I am so excited for the people though. God has a sense of humor. I told my mom a few weeks ago, "Since I am such an organizational, planning freak full of anxiety, I KNOW (I K) that I will get mainly companions who are procrastinators, chill, and laid-back." Instead of companions, I got a whole country full of the most chill people ever. I cannot WAIT for this. I hope I come back a little less anxious and a little less of a freak. Or maybe I'll just be a nervous wreck with a jamaican accent. That would be equally as cool.
Sam made me really excited about a lot of things, but a little nervous about a lot of things (maybe it was his stories of being held at gunpoint...multiple times, I don't know...). But everytime I think about something I'm nervous about, I just kind of get this breath of calm... I don't know how to explain it. I will just have to pray for peace and courage and a continuing feeling that this is where I am supposed to be.
A lot of people have brought up what is going on down there as well with the drugs and people burning down buildings and such. Wow, I don't know how to explain why I feel this way, but that is SO cool. It's not cool that this is all happening, but it's cool that I got called to pretty much THE most dangerous mission for Americans right now...especially white sister missionaries with nametags on their chests, haha. That's sweet! But...another reason to be nervous.
I got ready for bed and opened my scriptures. I decided that I was going to reread the entire Book of Mormon in the time between when I got my call and when I left, so I started my second section today. I just happened to land on 1 Nephi, chapter 3, verse 7. "And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." If that isn't a direct answer, I don't know what is. I have felt that this is right. I AM supposed to go on a mission and I know that Jamaica is the place that I should go. I will go and do what the Lord wants me to do no matter how scary it may be.
After I read this, I go down to our office to talk to my parents. They are both on the computer and freaking out. "WHAT?" Of course I find out that my Mission President has been "honorably released" as of a few days ago and they have no leader right now in the mission. I guess the Area President is trying to get there but can't till Monday, so they are just in a bit of a limbo with transfers and everything. Crazy!! Then my dad starts trying to find out who the new mission president is and it's a man who is a former FBI agent, hahaha. Wow, I haven't even left on my mission and this is already an adventure.
I know that Heavenly Father has a plan for me. I know that He answers prayers and leads and guides us each by personal revelation today. I know that the Book of Mormon was written for many people, but especially for me and for you. It was written as another testament of Jesus Christ to bless our lives, answer our questions, and teach us about the past as well as the future. I am scared out of my mind but so excited to start this new adventure and my hand will be in the Lord's the entire time. He will lead me and be right beside me.
Love, Dani (can't sign as Sister Israelsen yet...111 more days)
P.S. The blog name: PATOIS IS NOT ENGLISH. They speak "Patois" or "Patwa" in Jamaica. It's english based but it is NOT english. Wikipedia it, I dare you. It is insane. They say it's an english speaking mission but it's not. It's patois.
ABOUT MY NEW MISSION PRESIDENT:
http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/59317/New-mission-presidents.html
ABOUT PATOIS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patois
ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN JAMAICA RIGHT NOW:
http://jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/lead/
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