may 21

i can't get enough of stockton!

looks like i get to soak it up for another six weeks :] sister jenson, our youngest asl sister, will be coming down. so excited to serve with her.

 

so really one incident sticks out in my mind from this week and it nails stockton almost perfectly. now most of the time these kind of stories i tend to hold to not scare my mother but this one wasnt too bad and i just count hold back.

 

so there we were sitting at red light, when we see on the opposite side of the road a police car plowing through the grass, over a few curbs, and around a tree or two. uh well thats a little strange... whats going on.... oh wait.... yes yes thats is a man running. fugitive. running for his life across a few yards and a police officer in pursuit. well it didnt last long cause the police officer cornered him pretty soon. he had him on the ground, put on some handcuffs, escorted him to his car, and drove away. and then we got a green light. i think the best part about the whole thing was that all the stand by watchers whether in car or just walking by acted like it was no big deal!  a few pedestrians in the area barely even shifted positions to get a better view. apparently its not a big deal here that that kind of thing goes down often. i love stockton.

 

well we were at st jospehs hospital this week a bit. two woman in the ward had strokes and were admitted the same night. they ended up neighbors in their hospital rooms too. perfect for keeping each other company haha. small tender mercies :]

 

we had the chance to attend the addiction recovery class again. hopefully we will be going a bit more often to encourage a few investigators to go. wow that is such an inspired class. really the class manual can be used for any weakness. it breaks down how we can apply the gospel of jesus christ and use his atonement in our lives. such a great tool. will some one go to addiction recovery classes with me when i come home?

 

we went to the temple this morning. oh what a wonderful place that is. the early session was over flowing so we ended up waiting for the next session. we had about an hour to kill. the best place to kill time is on a pday in the temple. awww joy. got to do some sealings and just sit. and sit. and relax. and feel the spirit. and think. it has been way too long since i had last been in there. temple tours are great but its nothing compared to whats inside.

 

oh did i tell you i got a hair cut/ kind of color. it doesnt look that much different. but enough that my extra short bangs bother me. bangs shouldnt exist. blah.

 

this week i learned the word "try" is a crutch. dont tell yourself try. tell yourself you will. determination plays a huge factor in results.

 

Fue is moving to Alaska. what?! yeah appearently soon. not sure if hes running from us or not haha. ahhhhhhhh why? why?

 

Maria has set a baptism day for June 15th!!!!! And since shes paralyzed we are most likely going to do it in Bishops pool. At ward council we were playing around with the idea of just having a ward BBQ while we are at it. hahaha have i told you i think the brookside ward has one of the best bishoprics. love them all so much. perfect balance and they keep us all laughing.

 

Lorenzo and Brianna came to a baptism this week. Lorenzo also made it to cub scouts. he is so close to becoming a member. teaching kids is a whole new world. way different game. but im loving it. we are praying and fasting for soon, so very soon.

 

Saturday the stake had a "Mormon Helping Hands" service project. i ended up on the "lets make straw and mud african huts." no not for the stockton homeless, it was a vegetable storage house for a community garden. but we got super muddy and i had the time of my life. why is getting super dirty so enjoyable?

 

for kicks: google "RUN FOR YOUR LIFE" would love to sign up and do that one time. maybe better than a dirty dash?

 

Well its bitter sweet transfer. Will be hard to say goodbye to sister repman after being together since january. we've gone through so much together and experiences like that bond people. love her and will miss much. Sister repman is heading to carmichael to be with sister acker for 3 short weeks until the new asl sister comes (sister abbott). so excited for sister repman to train. she will do great! ive taught her everything i know and its been neat to see her grow and become an even more amazing missionary. Serving with sister jensen will be great! its her first time in stockton and im stoked to be there for all of the experiences to come.

 

life is good. life is great.

being a missionary is way too much fun.

maybe ill never come home.

 

love,

sister oliphant