11/29

Thanksgiving was truly a day to be grateful! With all the trips back and forth to Morristown, Sister Bluth and I ran out of miles and have been on our bikes every day since Wednesday. Thanksgiving day was cold and rainy, so as we pedalled against the wind from appointment to appointment I put my head down and thought of the many things I am grateful for: a car, so we don't have to ride our bikes all the time; bikes, so we don't have to walk and we can get from place to place faster when we don't have the car--AND so that I can burn off all the extra food we've had; good weather, which we've had in great abundance since I've been in this area; fewer dinner appointments, so I wouldn't have to eat 5 Thanksgiving dinners like I did last time and so I don't get too big for my clothes; good health and fitness, so I have the endurance to ride my bike all day; the gospel, which some people at both our appointments did't have; awesome ward members who invite their friends over when the missionaries are there, which means new investigators for us; Thanksgiving leftovers, so I don't have to cook, and also because my MSF is low; and a wonderful, loving family at home, another thing which is missing from so many people's lives these days.

I'm sorry it's going to be so short this week. Travel is longer on bikes, and there is much to be done today! I love you all so very, very much! I can't believe it's almost December. Next Monday we'll know if one of us being transfered. Sheesh.

Love, love, love,

Sister Black

11/22

I remember once telling a friend near the end of my senior year in highschool that I could see my life before me like a rollercoaster just before you go over that first drop. The anticipation is agonizing getting all the way to the top, then you go over the edge--and before you know it, the ride is over. This week felt like I was going over the edge of my mission. After this week there is only one week left of the transfer, and with so much packed into the next month I know it is going to fly by. We spent three days in Morristown at Leadership Training, which was pure inspiration. The curriculum did not vary in the least from last time, but I feel like I took a whole different course. I particularly enjoyed the roleplays this time. I really put my heart and soul into it and found a lot of answers as to how to help some of our investigators. Our numbers took a huge dive due to our absence, which for me produces a sensation similar to that of nails on a chalkboard. BUT I feel very blessed to have been able to attend again, and Sister Bluth and I have noticed a positive difference in our teaching and the way that the message has been received by our investigators over the last couple days.

Last night we taught Lenore and Tom and found, to our great pleasure, that they had done their homework! They both seemed to have enjoyed the assignment that we gave them, and after a very short, extremely barebones lesson we watched the Restoration video with them. Tom, who usually sits quietly in a corner and only grins and nods when you speak to him, seemed particularly captivated. Afterward we asked him what he thought and how he felt. "Seems pretty true," he said, shrugging. Sister Bluth and I didn't know exactly how to respond to that, so we asked him if he believed that Joseph Smith had seen Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. He nodded and said, "Seems pretty plausible." We couldn't get a more definitive answer out of him than that, so we asked him to pray that night to know if the Book of Mormon was true, and if Joseph Smith was a prophet. he accepted wholeheartedly and said the closing prayer before we left. In his prayer he said, "Please help me to realize that the Book of Mormon is true." He and Lenore both asked when we were coming back, and we scheduled another appointment for tonight! We are planning to set Tom with a date to join his wife, who is preparing to be baptized in January.

In other wonderful news--we had our last choir practice today for the Missionary Christmas Fireside this Sunday, and I got to see Sister Cope. CAROLYN AND CYNTHIA ARE GETTING BAPTIZED ON SATURDAY!!!!!!! I almost passed out. They got tired of waiting for Felix to come around and asked Sister Cope and Sister Child one day, "Is it ok if we get baptized?" My heart aches to be there and see them. I still remember contacting them on the street and teaching them for the first time back in April, and I am so grateful to know that they are finally taking this step. I wish there was a way I could stow away to Jersey City, but preparing people to be baptized by other missionaries is a common occurance in a missionary's life that I suppose I must accept.

Well, that's about all, folks. I am doing my best to prepare for perpetual stomach expansion this week. We had an early Thanksgiving dinner last night, actually, turkey, ham, stuffing, potatoes and all. AND THEY GAVE ME SOUTHERN COMFORT EGG NOG. Naturally they ascended to the top of my favorite people list pretty much instantly. Sister Sosa is another Osmond fan--Donny looks back at you from all over her apartment. So far we have only one appointment for Thanksgiving, so maybe it won't be too bad, after all.

I love you all! Happy Thanksgiving! Think of me when you get full, because I'll STILL be eating! :)

With thanks,

Sister Black

11/15

What a wonderful week! Tuesday we received awesome training from the Zone Leaders and an official introduction of the mission theme and goals for this month: Thanks.Giving Month--all about giving thanks and giving the gospel. The goals are high and challenging, but I have felt a great difference already, just the last few days, in the way I feel about the work and my place in it. As emphasized by President Monson in the last Conference, gratitude really does bring joy. We've been writing a lot of thank-you notes, recording blessings of the day in our journals, offering prayers of gratitude, searching for verses in the scriptures about giving thanks and sharing the gospel--the list goes on. It's good to be busy and happy.

Bill dropped us. He needs help with transportation, and even after assuring him that there are plenty of members who live nearby who would be more than happy to give him a ride--and also reminding him of the Spirit that he felt as he visited the website, spoke with us, and read the Book of Mormon--he dropped us in favor of another church just around the corner from him. It kills me every time this happens, which is all too often. But the work goes on. We got another media referral, sent by a member living in PA, to visit Bob. Gotta love the 3-letter B-names. We got to teach him and his wife the other day. They've been church hopping for a while, searching for the church that feels right and agrees with what they've learned from their extensive study of the Bible. I love telling such people about Joseph Smith. They positively light up to hear that there was someone else like them, looking for answers, who found what they were looking for--and it proved to be the same for them. After every couple sentences of Joseph Smith's story he would interject, "That's what I do!" We have a return appointment Tuesday. My hopes are high! Missionaries foam at the mouth to teach couples and families.

Which reminds me of Alicia and Chris. Alicia has been meeting with the sisters sporatically for a couple months now. She loves Joseph Smith, has been reading the Book of Mormon and praying, and REALLY wants to come to church. However, she hesitates because her husband, Chris, is not interested at all, and she is afraid to make the journey into membership alone. We met with the two of them and a member for the first time the other night, and he just wouldn't bite. He has no religious background at all, and dislikes organized religion. We left the Restoration video for them to watch together. Hopefully that will spark some more interest in the future!

Going to Leadership Training in Morristown again this week, and I can't wait. It was one of the best experiences of my mission, and I'm looking forward to a repeat. It will be different this time, though. Both Sister Bluth and I will be attending, and with the distance we have no choice but to stay with sisters in the area all three days, which means no work will be done in our area during that time! Lots of preparing to do the next couple days.

Had missionary choir practice after Zone Meeting for the Christmas fireside--really ambitious this year, TONS of music, and some of it challenging. Nervous about finding the time to practice it all. Praying that a concert pianist will be sent to take over for me soon, or at least lighten the load. However I do love the massive collection of music I've accumulated over the past year.

I love you all! I'm grateful for you and pray for you all the time.

Sister Black

11/8

It's cold.

Hard to believe it's that time of year again! As evidenced by the FEAST we were fed at a member's house yesterday, I have great reason to fear the next couple of months. We have dinner appointments almost every day this week, and Thanksgiving is filling up. As well as our fridge. I plan not to buy any food until January. Maybe I'll ask special permission to spend my funds on skirts with elastic waistbands. And I'll really have to maximize those thirty minutes of exercise every morning. Sheesh.

However, this is definitely the best time to be a missionary. The holidays are the best when you're serving the Lord. We get to join our voices with the angels in declaring glad tidings of great joy to everyone around us! My mind is all aflurry with images of the snow, the lights, the carols, and the thought of bringing someone more cheer than they've ever had at Christmas--what better time to invite people to come unto Christ and experience greater joy than they have ever had? I'm excited. I hope the Christmas spirit will soften people's hearts as well. As excited as I am, I remember well the long hours spent tracting in the snow, making puppy eyes at people only to have them shout, "Whadya stupid? Get outta the cold!" :) Makes for some good laughs, if nothing else.

Got a text from the MTC this week to deliver a Book of Mormon to Bill. During our appointment with him he said that he wants to "walk with God", and that after a conversation with a member friend and a visit to mormon.org, he felt that this was the place to learn how to do that. He said that, while looking at the website, he was overcome with a wonderful feeling of peace and joy that he's never experienced before. When we invited him to read and pray about the Book of Mormon, he said, "I will because you've asked me to, but I have no doubt that this is true." Near the end of the lesson I was about to invite him to baptism, but he beat me to it. "What do I need to do to prepare to be baptized?" he asked. Sister Bluth and I had to pick our jaws up off the floor to answer him. Our next appointment with him is Wednesday. I can't wait!!!

Forgot to mention last week that I met a certain Brother Geschwandtner my first Sunday here. Got to speak in German for a whole five minutes! And I found a small Buch Mormon in our apartment. Don't know if I'll ever have the opportunity to place it, but I'm grateful for the opportunity to use my German skills, however limited.

Love you all!

Schwester Schwarz

11/1 - November 4th marks a year down, 6 months to go!

Goooooooood Morning!

It is a BEAUTIFUL fall day in Toms River! Sister Bluth and I are the only missionaries in our ward, covering Ocean County, the largest county in New Jersey. This is the Jersey Shore I've heard so much about. It's a far cry from the hustle and bustle of Jersey City and Hoboken. I was thrilled to see grass and trees, especially at this time of year--the colors are absolutely gorgeous. But it definitely gives a sense of distance and isolation. We are in Cherry Hill territory, and it took an hour and a half to get here from Morristown. Sister Greenwood is the only missionary in our district that I know, and we only see other missionaries at our meetings on Tuesday. Sacrament meeting was quiet yesterday--very few students, newlyweds or young families here. The first counselor in the Bishopric recently celebrated his 80th birthday.

So! Lots to get used to here, but I'm loving it already. Tuesday night we drove directly from transfer conference to meet with Bishop Barton. He is a big, growly Jersey man who knows how to run the work in this ward. His goal is to replace full-time missionaries in his ward with...the members! He has a detailed, written ward mission plan with lots of member involvement. This is the first time I have arrived in a unit and felt like the Bishop ran the work, not the missionaries--which is the way it should be! He invited us to speak in Sacrament yesterday, took 20 minutes at the end of the meeting to talk about missionary work, and also taught the third hour--all about missionary work. And the members are all on board as well. We spent a lot of time this week teaching them how to use Preach My Gospel. We assigned every member we taught to memorize the principles of the first three lessons so that they could participate in teaching on team-ups and be prepared to teach their friends and families when approached with questions. Sister Card came up to me all excited on Sunday to report that she had found her copy of Preach My Gospel and already begun her memorization. As expected, the work in this area reflects the involvement of its members. Two recent converts passed the sacrament for the first time yesterday; we have three people set with baptismal dates as well as a decent number who are progressing and ready to be set with dates--one, Tracey, will be baptized this Sunday!

Sister Bluth is one of the gentlest souls I have ever met. She is from New Mexico and is the fifth child in her family to serve a mission. I met her back in February, when I was still with Sister Picard. She was the only missionary to arrive that transfer, and Sister Picard and I went street contacting with her in Newark her first night here--it's called Fear Buster. If talking to people in Newark doesn't cure you of a hesitancy to talk to strangers, I don't know what will. As it is suburban we do a lot of knocking here in Toms River, and I am definitely rusty! Sister Bluth is very determined and persistent and gets her message in before the door closes. Over the course of the last year I have found ONE investigator by knocking. Sister Bluth has found many, so I have a lot to learn from her! We've a lot of fun this week. This area is HUGE and there's no rhyme or reason to the roads--that's just Jersey, though--so getting around has been interesting. Our apartment is in the basement of a member's home. I can touch the ceiling! WithOUT standing on my toes! I can easily see over the fridge. And the kitchen counter reaches between my knee and hip. I call it the Hobbit apartment. I think all of you would actually have to duck in some areas. But it's very nicely put together and decorated.

Well, that's about all the news I have for today. I'm hoping if we get our errands done quickly we can go to the Shore! I haven't seen the ocean in a long time.

Love you!

Sister Black