Letter Dated 8/05/2013

Hello all! :) Wow!! I have so much to tell you!! I feel like I haven't talked to all of you in the longest time! And I guess I can start from the beginning...the crazy night that I left the MTC!! We got up at six am on Sunday to get ready for church and stuff cause we had to be in our class room a half our earlier on Sundays, so we had to get up a half hour earlier so that we could get ready on time...not to mention that we still had some last minute packing to do.  But anyways, we went through our personal and companion studies like we always do...everyday! :) and all that good stuff, and then we get to go to Music and the Spoken Word, and Relief Society, which is sooo awesome in the MTC. They broadcast the MOTAB playing from the conference center in Salt Lake, and then for Relief society all the sisters meet in this massive gym thing and listen to some really awesome guest speakers! probably one of my favorite parts of the week! and so that was awesome! then we got to go to lunch and then back to the room for more studies until sacrament meeting started. For sacrament we just meet in a room in the building that our zones classes are in, and the Elders bless and pass the Sacrament and the Branch President's wife or someone speaks and stuff....its pretty cool! But guess what else...President Terry (our branch president) just calls on people to give talks and you dont know its you until he announces your name at the pulpit...welp...guess who got selected to speak, THIS GIRL. Ahh I was soo nervous! not only did our zone have to sing in sacrament that week, but I also had to get up and give a talk that was hardly prepared...but it went okay! it was actually a neat experience to rely on the spirit so strongly! and so yeah! Then we get to go on temple walk and things like that, we  had dinner and two devotionals that night, right after the last one got out we had to run back to our dorms and grab all of our luggage and head over to the travel office at the MTC, we left the MTC at 9pm.  Then we made our way to the airport, which was sooo fun! it was bitter sweet to leave the MTC. I loved it sooooo much!! I was soo blessed to have been there! I had the most wonderful district, and the most amazing companion, and we all grew to be such good friends. ugh it was soo hard to leave them, I miss all of them sooo much! But anyways, then we got to the airport, went through security (which was actually a breeze because it was late on a Sunday night) and then we got to call our families!! YEAH! It was soo hard...I loved that I had the chance to call and talk to them...and you better believe that my eyes were very wet and red, accompanied with a swollen ugly cry face by the time I got done talking to them.  I miss them sooo much! Words cant describe...I miss my momma and my daddio, and my sweet cooper and hagen! the little buggers! Anyways we got on our plane at 1am and took off to Atlanta Georgia!  it was such a long flight! Luckily I got to sit by Elder Wells and Elder Trotman! so that made it really fun! I didn't get to sleep at all! I don't even know what time it was by the time we got to atlanta, but the sun was coming up! and that airport is HUGE!!! Holy cow it is sooo big! we got to ride a little train thing to our next gait! and then we got on our next flight to Pittsburgh Pennsylvania!! yeah!! I caught a few winks on that flight though! so that was nice! We finally made it and the weather was beautiful!! Its gorgeous here! sooo green! but...there are no mountains!! it is freaky!! I dont like that part! lol anyways then we got to go to the mission home, and sister hurdsman and I got to stay there that night with sister pugmire, and quite a few of the elders stayed there as well! it was a blast, we got to take a nap!! yay!! the mission home literally looks like a little cottage straight out of a disney movie! anyways, the rest of the day we just did a bunch more training! ohh and they have Glow Bugs here!!! thats soo awesome to see!! On Tuesday we received our assignments! yeah!! The anticipation was seriously like waiting for my mission call all over again! ugh! but, I got called to the lovely Elizabeth Town North area!! yeah! it is seriously as far east as the sister missionary areas go! So we spent all day in the car....it was probably about like driving from home to St. George...eh..well maybe a little further! but it was long, and we had a lot of assignments along the way, as far as driving other Elders to their areas and stuff. Sister Hurdsman got assigned to St. College area! man do I miss her! but I've got another amazing companion! Her name is Sister Walborn! She is amazing! we also have a lot in common! and she just is as sweet as can be! she's also only been out 6 weeks and she's me trainer! if that tells you how awesome she is! she is just so kind and loving and I love that I have the opportunity to work with her! We work hard, but we still have fun and joke around a lot!! It has been amazing here! My first actual day proselyting was awesome! In my very first lesson here we got Terrianna to commit to baptism!!!! WOOO!! :) Her date is set for August 31 hopefully she follows through!! she was supposed to be at church yesterday and she didn't end up making it, (probably because its freaking FOREVER away from E-Town!! It seriously takes us 40 minutes to get to church!). We also had a few more visits and we ended up doing some tracting, and that was an interesting experience! man there are some really interesting people around.  But we got a few Potentials and taught one quick message, and placed a couple Books of Mormon! all in all, it was a really awesome first day! we got a lot done! and things have been going really great since then! And I've only had the door shut right in my face once!! It's been great! most of the people here are soo sweet! It is soo awesome to be so close to the spirit! oh my lanta I love it!! I cant wait to feel it stronger as I grow stronger in the gospel! Oh! and I have to tell you the story of the first amazing miracle that I've had! So...thursday night, we stopped by the gas station, and we ended up running in and stuff and that was great! (I got me a Dr. Pepper! :) :)) and anyways, we didnt think much of it, finished our work and went back to the apartment. Well the next morning Sister Eggburt (a women from the ward) called us and said that on the ward facebook page a girl had commented and said that she  has been investigating the church off and on for a while and had ran into the sister missionaries at the gas station and took it as a sign from God that she needed to get in contact with the missionaries, so she had asked for our numbers.  Sister Eggburt said that a ton of people commented leaving our number and all that good stuff! so we were soo excited! hoping she would call us and get in contact with us! okay, well later that night we had decided to end with some tracting, so we picked a street that we felt good about, and just started knocking doors, we've been experimenting with a bunch of different door approaches and we had a few interesting experiences, but one of the strangest ones was right after we had this SUPER AWESOME talk with this guy who showed sincere interest in investigating our church and stuff, we placed a Book of Mormon and everything, we went along the way and saw this little duplex type thing clear in the way and it was kinda interesting...so we decided to go down the hidden driveway and tract the little house down there...and by the time we got there...we think it might have been the back door....it was the weirdest set up ever...they had patio furniture and stuff out there....but there was a doorbell, so we decided that it must be the front (the houses are weird here, there are a lot where its hard to tell which is the front and which is the back) but anyways we got to the door and there was a man sitting in the chair and a younger women sitting on the couch and the screen door was open...no one got up to talk to us or anything...it was super awkward! but we introduced ourselves and the man just said "we're not interested" and so we went on our way tracting....well then later that night we got a text from that girl saying "hey thanks so much for coming to find me so quickly! my parents dont know that I've been investigating the church, and I didnt get a chance to say anything before my parents just piped up and said that they werent interested. I"m soo sorry, I feel so bad." and Sister Walborn and I were so taken back...so we gave here a call and everything and had explained that we didn't have her address that we had just felt prompted to tract that street and what a miracle that was that it just happened to be her house!! It was amazing! seriously! The Lords hand is in all things!!! so we have an appointment set up for tomorrow night and I can't wait to meet her! How sweet is that!?!? I really hope that made sense!! haha!!! But yeah! That's my super great story for the week! I feel like I still have so much to tell you all and I'm soo out of time! but I love you all! I am sooo happy and soo blessed to be here! I know that this is the one true church on earth today, and that a 14 year old boy, Joseph Smith restored this gospel.  I know that he saw God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. I know that our Savior and Father in Heaven truly know each of us individually, and that they are so mindful of us and our needs, and the true intents of our hearts! I know that the Savior not only suffered for our sins, but for our pains and afflictions too, and that through him all things are possible. I know that because of the loving Atonement of Jesus Christ, we are never alone, he knows us, and wants to help us.  We just need to reach up and ask for the help that we need.  He loves us and wants to help us, and I am soo glad that as a missionary I am able to feel the love that the Savior and our Heavenly Father have for each of  my brothers and sisters! I am so blessed to be called to this work and look forward to growing more in this gospel! you all are great! oh...and write me real letters too!! my companion gets a thousand letters every week and its so fun!  

-Sister Thomas 

Her Address: 

6 Williamsburg 

Elizabeth Town PA 17022

(weird address I know)