Diane's Baptism!

 

Dear Family and Friends,

Man what a week it has been!!! So much has changed since the last time  wrote, I don't know if I can do any of it justice honestly.

I guess I'll start with the first bit of sad news, Sister Cotton got transferred! She is now serving in East Nashville, as a sister training leader, so she is on to bigger and better things! hahaha, its sad but true. I already miss her so very very much. That saying you never know what you had until it's gone applies....

So that means that I have a new companion, named Sister Masoe! She is from Samao, and had to learn English when she came here, which is really incredible. It's been a rough adjustment for the both of us, because she was in her lst area for 4 months, and leaving was really hard. We have been able to work out some problems already though, and I know I am going to learn a lot from her. She will probably finish her mission here because she only has 4 months to go!! It's really weird to have such a new companion and old one together, for me at least. But I know she is just what Hendersonville needs right now. It will be great!

Of course the most exciting thing about this week was Diane's baptism! Her whole family was there to see it, and it was wonderful. The spirit was very present. The only thing was that I was stressed out of my mind! Sister Masoe had a baptism in her previous area she was attending that day too, so I was supposed to be on exchanges with Sister Cotton. but then, Sister Cotton's ride broke down, and she wasn't able to make it to the baptism either! So, for my very first baptism on the mission, I was running it all alone! I was technically on a member split with the bishops wife who was playing the piano, but man was it a lot to take in. I also had to give a talk on baptism, and then skype Sister Cotton on my ipad so that she could still be a part of it! That was really awesome, because technology came in handy! We were so grateful she could be a part of it still. Then we asked one of our members to read the talk that Sister Cotton was supposed to give, she just emailed it to her. So altogether, a crazy day and we woke up super early because of Sister Masoe's ride getting there really early, so that she could drive 3 hours to her old area. It was a day I don't think I'll forget! But truly, seeing Diane get baptized was what helped me through the week. I was so grateful that I got to be a part of it, because she was so prepared for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ that it could have been anyone who knocked on her door, but Heavenly Father allowed me to be one of her missionaries. It is such a blessing.

I forgot too that I had a birthday on Friday! Which Sister Masoe forgot about, but that's ok, it was like da four together. It was a wonderful birthday! We went out to lunch with our sweet stake president's wife who takes care of the missionaries so well here, and was spoiled by the sisters in the other areas nearby! And mom, you did awesome on the skirts and scarves and earrings! And the photo book is so so awesome,  I love it! Also, thanks to all the kids, you rock for the present! it only got here one day late, which was even better. Baptism day was the best day! I love the scarves too, good pickings! Also, thanks to the Sale family for the sweet Easter treat!!

Its' been a crazy whirlwind of a week, and I'm not quite sure if I'm alive or not, but we just keep moving forward. Too many good things are happening here to mention them all, but I am so grateful I am here in Hendersonville, and a part of the lives of all these people. I miss you all, and I am so so grateful for the many emails and cards I received for my birthday! thank you so much!!  I'll try to write you first next week and be better :)

Love,

Sister Penrod

PS- It was AWESOME to hear from Mr. Camiling!!

A New Companion!

Hello Family and Friends!

Well the news is in and I am here in Hendersonville for another 6 weeks at least, and Sister Cotton is going to east Nashville, ie the ghetto.... Which is terrible! I am so sad, and I am going to miss her so so much, but she will be great there. She is going to be a sister training leader, which is basically a zone leader but for sisters. I am currently freaking out a little bit about taking over the area since there is so so much going on here, but I think it will be good for me. I think. We will see I guess? Haha....

My new companion will be Sister Masoe! I don't know really anything about her other than she is Samoan! And eats Samoan food- we asked before we went shopping today. :) she has been out for 14 months or so, so she is almost ready to go home! Everyone says she is really sweet, which is good because that's something I definitely need to learn more about. Sister Cotton was the sweet, I was the spice. And then some. So that's been the exciting and impending news all week. I am really sad to not be with Sister Cotton anymore, but I know that I'll learn and grow a lot from Sister Masoe. I have really no idea what to expect. Gah! It's nerve racking staying in an area. I am glad, because we probably have a baptism planned every weekend for the next month, and it's nice to be with those people that we have taught. Speaking of which, Diane is officially getting baptized on Saturday! We are so happy for her, and she is so ready for it! In fact, she told us that she has her calling picked out, she wants to be a family history missionary. But she doesn't have a record number yet, so she can't get started, haha! That made us pretty excited for her :) she is so wonderfully prepared for the gospel in her life. Her husband will be coming for the baptism too, and we've never met him so that will be exciting. He works in Indiana and comes home on the weekends sometimes.

All our other dates have been temporarily moved to May, all because of making sure family could come into town. I am most excited for Lauren because she had the most amazing experience with conference! When we met her, she told us she had taken the lessons for three years, and had gone to church, etc Etc. But all that she wasn't completely sure about was the modern day prophet. She said she knew there could definitely be one, but she didn't know if she believed that Thomas S. Monson was the one. So we challenged her to prepare herself for conference, and be in a place that she could feel the spirit. She watched all the sessions, but then she told us that she and her husband who is a member fell asleep during President Monsons talk in the Sunday morning session. She was really bummed, and waited until she was able to sit down and listen to it a few days later, but when she did, she could feel the spirit so strongly! She said it wasn't even necessarily an answer to a question or anything, but she just started crying over what he was saying, and how it made her feel. She waited a week to tell us this, but she said she is completely ready to be baptized now! So she has a date set for May 24.

As a missionary, we have so many different experiences. It's so difficult to write out a day in our life, or what's happened. And I realize as I share certain experiences that it might not seem like much, or that what happened wasn't a big deal. But I guess I've learned that when we know the bad, we cherish the good. And by that I mean, every single day, I see a lot of bad things about the world. Not bad people, but bad situations, or difficult trials, or pain and grief that it seems no one should have to suffer through. I've met some people who seem to be in the darkest part of life I've ever known, and never want to be in. But I've also seen joy as extreme as their pain. I've seen happiness in families that know they will be together for eternity, not just in this life, but in the next. And I've felt love from people I barely know, but show me kindness because I am a missionary for Jesus Christ . I've learned that we are supposed to be happy in this life, and that if we aren't happy, we can do something about it. In fact, we SHOULD do something about. Because our Heavenly Father intended for each of us to be happy here. Yes we will have bumps in the road, but we get to choose if we are driving an old Camry, or a jeep with shocks. I've learned that Heavenly Father is going to help us along that road, the whole way. I understand now more that I ever have that because Jesus Christ atoned and died for our sins, we can know that not only is there someone who knows what we feel, but that our personal paths to happiness have already been forged for us. All we have to do is choose to follow it.

Sorry for the tangent, but I just know that some of the experiences I write can't be read as powerfully as they were experienced. I pray that what I do write makes sense and is evidence of the power and truth of the gospel and Holy Ghost in my life.

Because it was Easter, we were sharing the Easter video called because of him, from the lds.org website. It's a really cool one. I suggest watching it two or three separate times, because it really changed for me each time. But Easter was great! We performed as a mission choir, and I played the violin with a violist and cellist. We did that in two sacraments and at a Presbyterian church too! There wasn't a great turn out, but it was still a cool thing to do! It was a great Easter, and we got spoiled with lots of candy. No more peeps!

I know next week I'll have a lot to write about my new companion! I forget if I have mentioned our new ward mission leader, but oh man. If I ever thought Sister Cotton was intense, I was so wrong. I think he is an ex marine, and was a previous bishop. He told us that he only gets callings when something is broken that needs fixing. So I am really excited, and slightly scared. He also told us that nothing is ever good enough, so that was encouraging! But it really was in a way, because we know he really cares and is already so involved, we know the work will move forward with his help!

I am so grateful for all of you, I hope everyone is doing well, and knows that I think about you all often! Sometimes the most random things pop into my head, when we meet people. I met someone with a nose ring and thought of Monica Ukah-write me please?- and then I met someone with long hair and thought of CJ Smith! At church yesterday, there was someone who looked just like Mrs. Obermeyer, and I just thought about her for a while! I miss everyone so much, and hope and pray that all is well in their lives! Happy belated Easter, talk to you next week!

Love,

Sister Penrod

1- in the Presbyterian church, with the soloist and instrumentalist
2- yummy...... Sister Cotton ate hers faster than I did! Obviously she has learned good things from me.
3- adorable family named the Nicholson's, dressing up as missionaries after dinner :) That now includes wearing a scarf for girls.... Right?

Hello from TN!

Hello friends and family!

Another good week here in Hendersonville! Unfortunately Sister Cotton and I think we are spending our last week together, as transfers are this coming week. She has been in this area for 6 months, so she will most likely be transferred. I hope not, because she's a wonderful companion!

This week was a strange one, with lots of unusual things occurring. We weren't able to see many of the people we are working with because of sickness, vacation, emergencies, etc. etc. but we still had a great week regardless. It's not that life here gets any less fun, but I think I am starting to get used to it, so the funny stories and accents aren't as blatantly obvious I guess.


We have had three really awesome referrals this week, but we are still working on sitting down and meeting all of them! In fact, just a few minutes ago we got a call from a lady who was telling us about her cousin who she wants us to go meet and teach! Really amazing things happening! And thank goodness for technology, like cell phones.

We had a fun meeting on Friday, called trainer/ trainee meeting. Every missionary who has been out for under three months is being trained by their companion, and at this meeting we talk about what's going well and that's not. It was funny, and refreshing. Basically, it's like marriage counseling for missionaries. We talk about  the bad, the good, and the ugly. Sister Cotton and I had already resolved our issues but it was still good to learn from other missionaries. Oh! I guess the funniest thing we did this week was to use our whiteboard! We have started bringing it to lessons, and having certain things for people to draw. We did the plan of salvation once and with an adorable family, we asked them to draw an Easter basket, and draw what they would give to Jesus for Easter. It was really fun and kept them entertained the whole time, which was really nice. But we did get some interesting answers, like candy, and their dog :)

Church was wonderful this week, because Sister Cotton and I were able to perform. We found a violin tuned like a viola, which was literally a miracle, and I played the violin I've had for a while . We spent probably and hour and a half total throughout the week arranging and practicing I Know That My Redeemer Lives. We were really nervous before, don't worry mom I gave her the usual pep talk, and we didn't have any time before church to practice in the chapel. But as we played, it went so incredibly well! We can't take any of the credit because we know that for the little preparation we were able to put into it, Heavenly Father sure helped us out. The spirit was so strong in the chapel, and it was one of the awesome moments when all the kids stopped crying and listened, just for a minute. Man I just love music so much!  I wish I could have you listen to it. But the pre recordings are just not that great.... Really. The picture was from later that night when I was playing in our missionary choir Easter fireside! It was a great music filled day!

Sorry for the short email, this week has been crazy busy with all sorts of different things! Too busy to remember it all! I hope everyone is doing well, and that everyone has a happy Easter! We have been trying to remind everyone we meet the real reason of Easter is Christi's resurrection, and I know that is real. Like the hymn says, I know that my redeemer loves, what comfort that sweet sentence gives! I love you all and miss you lots!

Sister Penrod

P.S. I never mentioned that the main highway here is called the Johnny Cash highway because he lived and is buried here. Fun fact!

P.P.S. Do you know the band Diamond Rio? One of the members is in our ward, and he was there on Sunday! Slightly intimidating, but he was really nice and told us we did well. Phew!

Dodges Fried Chicken...

Dear Family and Friends,

What a wonderful week we have had here in Hendersonville! Sister Cotton and I are enjoying all the time we have left together. We feel that she will get transferred next transfer because she has been in the area for 6 months! But I am praying that doesn't happen each day. Well, I am praying that the Lord will prepare me for whatever is going to happen. Because I don't think I can ask for Sister Cotton to stay here.

So exciting news is that we set Diane on a date! I forget all that I've written about Diane, but it's too cool of story for me to not write it again in case y'all don't know about it. Seriously. So she referred herself through family search, the coolest website. My love for family history has only increased since being on my mission, and now even more because of Diane! So she was doing family history and got some journals from her aunt, and as she was reading them she read that one of her ancestors named Mary joined the church back in the 1800s and was disowned from her family! Diane shared some of the journals with us this last week, and my mind was blown. Heavenly Father has prepared Diane so well to let her understand her importance in this life and in finding the true church. So Mary was disowned, and then moved to Nauvoo, where her husband worked on the temple. Her husband died before they crossed the plains, but along the way, with her three or four children, she met James Brown. They married and he later worked on the Salt Lake temple. Then, he heeded the call to serve in the Mormon Battalion, and was a captain in it! Mary was one of 22 women in the company, and they moved to Santa Fe from Salt Lake. Actually, I think Orem, because he was called to settle Orem? All around, just incredible facts in this first hand journal. As we tried to express to her the significance of having a first hand account of these things, the spirit was so strong! We knew she could understand a little, but the spirit just made things more clear. She then asked us how to join the church and what the steps were, and we set a date for her to get baptized! We still have more to teach her, but she watched conference this weekend and really loved it! She's awesome.

Also super fun part of this week, was my first time out on area exchange! An exchange is when you switch companions with the sister training leaders for 24 hours! It was so fun, and I had a great time with Hermana Rich! I went to the Goodletteseville area and experienced my first upscale trailer park! She is a Spanish speaking sister, so I wasn't to sure how it would all go, but with some sincere effort and a lot of prayer, I was able to follow the conversation pretty well! Take that Spanish 1. I could speak in English and most people would understand, and then follow their response, they just could speak in English, like I couldn't speak in Spanish. It was a really neat experience to have. I loved meeting people, and we contacted one woman who asked us to clean her house! But then as we talked, she really opened up to us, and we were able to teach her the plan of salvation. It was awesome, and I hope the sisters get to teach her! It was also nice to just change things up every once in a while. I love talking to older sisters, because they have so much unique advice to give! Hermana rich was really sweet and very friendly and willing to talk and give advice. It's hard to explain, but we make friends with the sisters and elders in our district and zone, as well as the surrounding areas. So we know the hermanas pretty well, and do things with them every week. It was nice to get to see a different style of missionary work and life as well too. But it also made me glad to not be speaking a language. :) We switched back at Dodges fried chicken/gas station, a popular meeting place in Hendersonville! No joke.

We were supposed to have a meeting called trainer trainee meeting this last Friday, but there was a tornado watch, so that didn't happen. The night before I heard thunder and lightning like I have never before in my life heard! It was literally like someone was turning on and off the lights!! I always thought movies were just exaggerating or something....no. Definitely not. It kept me up, but it was fun too! Sister Cotton slept right through it all.

And of course, general conference was this past weekend! I have never loved general conference like I have this past week. The whole thing was so incredible. While it's hard to admit, I think this was the first conference I didn't sleep at all!! I was proud of myself. We got fed a ton of good food from members, and we made banana bread, cookies, and s'mores bars to take around too! Definitely fed spiritually and physically. I don't think I had really ever valued conference as much as I do now as a missionary. My testimony in their words has increased immensely. This might just be missionary brain, but I just think to myself that if I had recognized that this was clear cut direction from Heavenly Father, I would have payed way more attention to it in the past! The apostles and church authorities don't leave us any room for interpretation. They state what needs to be said with boldness, and with love. I really loved so many talks, especially Elder Corbridge! He so clearly explained the gospel and how it is unmistakably true! It was so simple in the words he used, but it's such a complex idea to many of us. I also loved Elder Christensens talk, when he said that one word changed Mary's deepest agony to ecstatic joy, simply her name. As he explained the scene, describing how the Savior was behind her, I thought of myself, when I struggle with things. I thought of how quickly my joy would change if I could hear the Savior's voice say my name, and how in that one word, I would know who it was, that he knew who I was, and that he loves me unconditionally. It brings me great comfort to know that while one day I will be able to have that experience, in this life I can feel the exact same amount of love and comfort as I turn to Heavenly Father in all things, and utilize the power of the Atonement.

One members home that we watched conference at was the Lopez family. They are a young couple with a one year old baby boy! But the coolest thing about them is that they are in the music industry here, and are part of the Nashville tribute band! Before I left, I had looked up their music because it was on an approved list, but I was unsure. They just released a new cd, all dedicated to missionary work! So they gave us one, and we love it! It was a little hard to swallow at first, you know, country lds music isn't really a genre I am used to, but now I love it! And it's awesome that they are in our ward! Listen to the song named 'Daughters of the Promise', it's the one that she stars on. She has a great voice! And she said that as she was recording it, she was picturing sister missionaries, she was picturing us! Now, I don't think she actually knew me before she recorded it, but it was still cool for Sister Cotton :)

That's about it for this week! Thanks to everyone for the letters and emails! And a HUGE shout out to the Bennett family for their AWESOME packet of letters! They were so nice to receive, and I loved reading them! I think of y'all every week when we go shopping because we pass by the white shell macaroni we used to make when we babysat, so I always think of the family! Thanks for the words of encouragement :) And thanks Christi and Kassia for letters, I LOVE getting mail!

I hope everyone is having a great week, and if you aren't, then go watch a conference talk at Lds.org

Love,

Sister Penrod

PS That's Dodges fried chicken and the Nashville horizon! We were driving by it on our way to choir this morning!

We have a personal trainer!

How y'all doing?!

This phrase is now a part of my every day vocabulary. It started withy'all, and now anytime I sense the remotest trace of southern in a person, I go for it. It's pretty fun! This week has been great! Sorry for the lame short letter last week we just ran out of time. There were some awesome things that happened this week, the struggle is always to remember them all!

I guess the first thing was that we have set another baptismal date! I guess I should start off by saying that Dan and Mistie have been pushed back to the 26th, they still have some things to work out on their own, but they will get there. So we are teaching this sweet young lady named Lauren, in her mid 20s. She got married to a Mormon about two months ago, and has take a ll the lessons like five times over. She told us that she knows she is going to raise her kids Mormon, so she is just trying to make sure that she believes it herself before she joins. Which is awesome! So we set a date and she is going to watch conference and read and pray and all of that good stuff to prepare. She said she wants to have more of a testimony of the modern day prophets and apostles, and that she feels if she can gain that, then she will understand how she feels about the whole church together. We are just so excited for conference! And she took us up on the 30 day Book of Mormon challenge! I'll explain more in a minute. We are so excited for her and her husband!!

So we need Dan to read the Book of Mormon, he has listened to it before, but we need him to read it. And because we come across so many younger guys, we are beginning to understand things about them a little bit more. For example, we know that if a bunch of people are doing something, the they will join in too! So we have challenged about 20 families in our ward, all who have some connection to Dan, to read the Book of Mormon in 30 days. Which is crazy! That's like 18 pages a day!!! We are doing it too, and it's going to be hard to find time, but I am so excited. It's going to be a really cool experience for our ward and for us. And the plan is to meet each week to talk about what we've been reading! Dad, thanks for sending me the bookmark that our ward passed out, we made bookmarks too, and put the same quote on it. "Without reservation, I promise that regardless of how many times you previously may have read the Book of Mormon, there will come into your lives and into your homes an added measure of the Spirit of The Lord, a strengthened resolution to walk in obedience to His commandments, and a stronger testimony of the living reality of the Son of God."- President Gordon B. Hinckley. That's a big promise, from a prophet of God.

And what a great time to hear from our prophets! As we all begin this 30 day challenge! We talked about being prepared for general conference on Sunday, and it made me think back to the conference the age was changed. It's weird that I was alone in my dorm room. Jessie wasn't there for some reason, and Kylie wasn't over, and I wasn't at any of Annie or Erin's or Christi's or Jeremy's houses for some reason. I was totally alone. And I was totally unprepared for what the prophet was going to say! And I think of how it changed my life. Would it have been different if I had been prepared for conference? I try to remember that morning, and when that was announced. I'm pretty sure our family group message blew up and mom or someone said they knew I was going to serve a mission. I think I didn't admit it then, but I knew that I was going to as well. I'm pretty sure I said aloud, in my empty dorm room, 'I'm going to serve a mission. I can serve a mission.' And hey, I am! And then, I went outside and all the girls on my floor were screaming. This year, I want to be much more prepared for conference, and I think I will be. Not that any historical change will be announced, but who knows what might be said that will change our lives in a huge way?

We were also blessed to be able to go to the temple with Jane, as she participated in baptisms for the first time! It was so very neat, and so incredible to see the spirit she could feel at the temple. I love the temple, and families!

This week, I had one of the coolest experiences I have had on my mission yet. So we go to this adult daycare place each week, and they got a keyboard last week, so we said I would bring my violin and sister cotton would play a little on the keyboard- she plays one hand, just like me! We actually ended up going with our bishops wife Sister St.Onge, who does her hair just like mom it freaks me out, because she plays piano a little, and she was taking us out to lunch right before. So we went, and had them make shakers, so they could play some music along with us! It was fun, and we sang the song we always do, 'I am a child of god'. Normally this song feels a little old to me, but when you are singing it with adults who act like children, it has a new meaning. So we all sang it a few times, and I played and so did Sister St.Onge. We shared the verse about 'the song of the heart is a prayer unto me',  D and C 25:12? And talked about how singing can be like a prayer to Heavenly Father. Sister Cotton then had me play once alone while they listened and thought of the words, and something changed in the room. I wasn't sure if it was just me at first, but as I looked around, I could tell that every single one of the people who were sitting with us could feel something while listening, and we explained it was the Holy Ghost. We asked each of them what they felt. Etta, the dementia and dentures lady had stopped for a minute from her babbling, and had listened. She look at me when asked, and smiled with tears in her eyes, and said, 'I felt...here.' She said it in a way that I could just tell Heavenly Father was giving her a moment of peace, to remember who she was, and that she truly was a child of god. It's difficult to describe such a touching experience. As we went around the room, we were able to hear from each of them that they felt peace, and happiness, and love from listening to the violin. Sister St. Onge then shared a few neat experiences about music, and how it's touched her in her life. The Spirit was felt so very strongly by each of us in that room, and I played the song again. I have never seen music be as powerful as I did that day. I am grateful that Heavenly Father has blessed me to find a violin here, that I can use to help others feel the love he has for each of us. I hope I can continue to bear my testimony of the gospel through my playing for the rest of my life.

There were so many other neat things happening this week, but I can't write them all! And you probably don't want to read them all. But I love being here, and doing this work, even if Sister Cotton makes me eat twice as much food because she can only eat some of it. It's a struggle, but I'll survive. I love being a missionary!

Love,

Sister Penrod

PS Grandma Penrod, I have a card for your birthday, but I didn't have time to write it before last week, so it's going to be a bit late! I hope you know I was thinking of you all day!

PPS we also have the coolest ward members ever. Sister Butler is a personal trainer, and she is now waking up to come work out with us in the morning. Who knew I'd get a personal trainer as a missionary? Awesome..... And painful. Sister Cotton isn't even sore.

PPPS I got to play at zone conference, which is like 50 missionaries and president. They asked me at 10 pm the night before the 9 am meeting, so that was stressful. But it was still great to play! I'll send a recording home next week!


1- the beautiful blossoms in Tennessee! All over!
2-Our day with Jane at the temple.
3- this is our whole zone and president and his wife
4- this is the Saddleback [I think she's referring to Saddleback church by us, not the mountain by us:)]of Tennessee. It's called Long Hollow, the one we went to that one day about Mormons. It's huge! It's where they hold high school graduation.