Buenas!

Hi family and friends! This week has been CRAZY and amazing! I went on 3 exchanges and I really got to see what the mission is like for other language programs! I've been with 2 Samoan sisters and man are they FUN! The highlight of my week was being on exchange with sister Hendersen in down-town San Fransisco! yay CHINA-TOWN! We got to teach English Class and I taught the alphabet at the beginning of the class and it was so FUN! I love how now matter how I say the letters and the words they would copy the way I said it because in Chinese it's all about tones! The people were so kind to me, even though I don't speak a lick of Chinese! and WOW going up and down those narrow steep narrow streets in the busses and street cars was NUTS! I'm so grateful for Dramamine. I just feel a little bad for our area here in San Mateo, with sister Hewett and I always being switched around it's kind-of taking its toll, but we're doing our best! Our investigators are plateauing and not putting in their part to make it to the next step, whether it's coming to church, making time to meet with us, GETTING MARRIED! We've been doing a lot of praying, fasting, and FINDING, and the Lord has blessed us with miracles! We suddenly have tons of referrlas and potentials that we're so excited to be working with! As for me, I'm doing great, I'm so blessed to have a great companion like sister Hewett and I can feel Heavenly Father's love for those around me more and more every day!

Love you all, have a WONDERFUL week!

HI!

Buenas tardes mi familia!!! I love being a missionary! It was exactly 11 months ago today that I first walked into the MTC! Goodness how time how FLOWN! Being a Sister Training Leader is still crazy, and I'm sure always will be! We go on several exchanges with the sisters, we'll have 3 this week, and 3 more next week! We're over about 26 sisters all together, and we need to go on exchanges with every one of them this transfer! We've already gone with 10 of them, and half the transfer's over already! So basically an exchange is when my companion and I split up with another companion and we go to each others areas and learn lots of new things together, make sure the sisters are being obedient and having uplifting and spiritual experiences! And honestly, I feel like the other sisters in the mission have been training me! Sister Hewett and I are continually seeing miracles! We have 2 investigators with a baptismal date and we're working on more, the Lord is truley hastening His work! I'm already out of time today for my emails---so sorry! so much to do & so little time! but remember that Heavenly Father loves each and every one of us, He has given us the ability to improve and change by giving us His Son to help us all come back to Him. I love you all so much! Have a wonderful week! Pray for missionary experiences!

Hermana Mitchell

Hola hola!

Bueeeeeenas!!!! I'm so happy to be back in Spanish land! It is BEATIFUL and amazing and full of potential here in San Mateo! I love the Spanish ward! I love being 15 minutes from San Francisco! We went to the Golden Gate bridge and it was SO PRETTY and we found this amazing ice-cream place called "Mitchell's Ice-cream" and it's the best ice-cream I've EVER HAD! It must be for the name... I'll send pictures next week :) We are teaching a few women who want to be baptized so badly but can't because their "esposos" (loooooong time boyfriend/father of their children) won't commit to marriage! It's so frustrating. but we're praying and fasting and working hard with them, I know that the Lord will provide a way. We started teaching this boy named Byron and he's GREAT! he's from Guatemala and wants to learn more about God, He's reading and praying about the Book of Mormon and he feels like this is the right path for him :) we met and taught a new Investigator yesterday named Perla and she is INCREDIBLY golden, she doesn't even really know anything about God, but can feel His love, she wants to change and be obedient with all her heart! The Lord is placing amazing people in our path! Sister Hewett and I taught 16 lessons last week, which is the closest we've got to the standard of excellence this transfer (which is 20) So I KNOW we can do it! We're working hard and staying busy, and so happy! We had an exchange this week and I got to spend 24 hours in the Tongan program! It was SOOOO cool! Tongan is sucha beautiful language. I loved it. I'm learning so much from being the leader in these exchanges, I really have to remind myself of the example I'm leading for those around me and It's really truly refining me, pointing out my weaknesses and helping me rely on the Lord to make them strengths! Ether 12:27 has been one of my favorite scriptures on my mission, and I'm sure it will be for the rest of my life.. which will just be a continuation of my mission ;) I LOVE YOU AAAAALLLLLL! have a beautiful week.

Besos y abrazos!

Hermana Mitchell

wow!

Hi friends and family! What a crazy week! First off, I miss the rolling farmland and orchards of Brentwood, but 'm LOVING being in the city! We're gong to San Francisco today--FIRST TIME--and I'm so stinkin' excited! Sister Hewett is an amazing missionary! She's an incredible example to me and I'm so grateful to have her as a companion right now--I'm learning SO MUCH! Her Spanish is perfecto and she has such a strong testimony, she's the only member in her family and they were not supportive of a mission. It has been so humbling and I've realized how I am so incredibly blessed to have you all supporting me, praying for me, and sending your love. San Mateo is incredible, and full of potential! we already have a few new investigators just from this week and I can see amazing things happening already! Last night we had to recent converts speak at "Por que yo Creo" which is a fireside for recently baptized members of the church, Jenny (8yrs old) and Itzel (15) are sisters and they gave such amazing testimonies and I already feel like part of a family here in San Mateo. Itzel & Jenny's mom, Rocio isn't a member, though she really really wants to be! She has the strongest sweetest testimony and desire to be baptized, she just needs to get married first. Her esposo (the father of Jenny) is the macho "I'm not tying myself down to marriage" type, but he is starting to soften his heart and listen to us--we are praying so hard for him to have the desire to get married. I didn't get to meet the ward yesterday because it was a little different due to the 1st presidency broadcast (Which was SOOOO exciting, we're seeing such amazing things happening in missionary work! some missions have already instilled ipads with an on-line area book and incredible teaching resources! It's just a matter of time before it hits us here in California). So as a Sister Training Leader I get to go on exchanges with other sisters and either go to their area or have them come to mine, so this last Friday (only 2 days in my new area) we went on an exchange and I brought a brand-new to the feild sister from Hong-Kong here to San Mateo! Her name sister Tsan, and even though she didn'n't speak Spanish, her spirit and excitement for missionary work was incredible! I learned so much from our experience together, and we have some amazing member-missionaries here who were with me to help me teach (oh me and my rusty Spanish). But after 5 months of English, I'm amazed that I remember as much as I do--and I've got a long way to go still :) I love you all, I'm so grateful for you encouragement! I know Heavenly Father loves us all individually and knows us personally. Jesus Christ is our Savior and perfect example. Life is a trial to become like him, so stay on the path! and if you're off the path, it's okay--it's still there! so get back on! Have an amazing week!

Hermana Mitchell

Guess what?!

Hello dear family and friends!!! It is another GORGEOUS day in Brentwood, California. It's actually my last GORGEOUS day here. I got a call on Saturday night... I'm being transferred to San Mateo! Spanish again!! YAY! It's on the other side of the Bay, close to San Francisco! I have spent the last 10 months on the East side of the Bay! I've never once crossed a bridge, so I am SO excited to be going over to the city! I'm bummed because I've loved it here SO MUCH, the ward has become as close to me as my family and I'm so grateful for the time I've spent here. I've only been with sister Dorff for 10 days (that's a new record for the shortest time with a companion!) and I'll miss her a lot, she's only 1 month into the mission and she'll be training a new missionary already! She is so great, I know she'll be amazing!! We have 30 new missionaries coming in this transfer and only 8 of them are elders!

So I'm getting a new calling too, and I feel totally inadequate to fill it. I've been given the assignment of "Sister Training Leader" for the sisters in my area, which is basically the Zone Leader role, So my new companion (Sister Hewett, who is an incredible missionary--she trained MY trainer!) and I will be conducting companion exchanges in which we will teach and advise the sisters! I'm freaking out. We will also participate in trainings with the Mission President and his assistants. So... Pray for me please!!! I need all the help I can get. I know that the Lord has something big for me to learn, so tomorrow morning I'll be on my way to go learn it! I love being a missionary, filled with change and excitement and challenges.

That's all I have time to say, I've got to go pack, but I love you all!

I'm so grateful for the love and support you all send my way.

Have a BEAUTIFUL week and remember that walking by faith will bless you every hour!

Hermana Mitchell

Hello Family and Friends! This week has been quite the crazy one! for starters, Sister Woodruff went home :( She's been battling some things for a long time and received a medical release and flew on Friday, the day before our  Baptism on Saturday! It was so sad that she wasn't there for it, but she was still a big part of teaching Sis. Judd and I'll never forget the time we spent together teaching her. My new companion is Sister Dorff. She's from Japan! Her dad is American and her mom's Japanese, they served in the same mission (but not at the same time) and it's an adorable story.She has been in the misison field for 3 weeks now and jumped in here where she was needed with full-hearted excitement! Her energy is contageous! Saturday morning we had a fun service project at the local highschool cleaning up after their all-night graduation party! Our whole district was part of it--I'll send some pictures, It was so fun! We then were treated to breakfast and that was great! then we changed and got ready for Baptism! It was amazing to feel the spirit there, her family coming  together and making this promise to Heavenly Father together. I gave a little talk on the Holy Ghost and I feel so blessed to have been a part of everything. I know that the Lord gives us new opportunities and lets us decide what to do with them, and I'm trying to love the Lord and serve Him the very best I can.

Have a wonderful week, I love you all dearly!

Hermana Mitchell

Think cool!

It's finally P-day! Brentwood is HOT. Have I said that before? haha, well, It's getting hotter, and it won't cool off till Halloween from what we've heard--it's going to be a fun ride! We have members taking good care of us, we're all decked out with a cooler and freezer packs and otter-pops! so life's good :) Sad news though--I have to get an English name-tag since I'm serving in English, so I gues there goes my unique conversation starter that I can speak Spanish... but it'll be better so the people in my area can understand my tag and know that I'm a representative of Jesus Christ. As you know we've been working hard with the Less-Active members of our ward (there's about 200) and how we can help the ward members help fellowship and bring back these lost sheep. The less-active members like us, but we're only temporary, It's the members who need to go consistently devote just a little bit of their tiem to seeing, serving, loving, iniviting these members to come back because those relationships aren't temporary like ours! So Sister Woodruff and I had this brillliant idea to do a "Reactivation Attack" where we can go on team-ups with Visiting Teachers and have a designated day when the ward goes and meets/visits/serves/fellowships the less-actives they have been assigned to! We're going to have a Fireside and get the ward pumped up about it! This idea is still in the works, but the wheels are turnin'! we're excited about it :) Everything about being a missionary is AWESOME and I love it! I love the people we're teaching, I love the Ward, I love our Zone and District of missionaries! Time is flying by on wings of lightning! that makes me think of a hymn---can you name it?  

"Time flies on wings of lightning

we cannot call it back.

It comes, then passes forward,

along its onward thack.

And if we are not mindful,

the chance will fade away,

For life is quick in passing.

'Tis as a sinle day"

Its so true! Don't let those important little moments pass you by! that makes me think of my favorite Mormon Message, called Moments that Matter Most with President Uchtdorf. He said, "Digilently doing the things that matter most, will bring us to the Savior of the world."

Love you all,

have an AMAZING week!

Hermana Mitchell