once again...an email from ME!

Dearest Familia!!

What a wonderful week it was.... we just got back from a place called Petit Jean where we hiked to a waterfall!! It brought back great memories from home when we would go hiking!!

Some of the highlights for the week,

I had my last interview with President Peterson.(sad day) He is so inspiring and I'll miss him and his wife. 

We received a referencia from a member in the ward this past week and then contacted it. It is this lady with 3 kids. Her kids attend a catholic school here in Russellville and the 10 year old has been begging his mom to be baptized but she has just felt it wasn't right. Well, we invited them to be baptized during the first lesson and they said yes! The mom and 10 year old son!! The sons face was so cute!! He is so excited! This family has gone through a lot and I know the gospel is going to help them. 

We also had one of the Conway investigators move up from there who is super solid!! she had a baptism date with them for this last weekend, but moved, so we are now teaching her and hope to prepare her for baptism in the near future! 

We are also starting to teach the Koster Family. I don't know if i ever told ya'll about them. Their mom is a member. The 3 boy have not be baptized. (19,15 and 11) They already consider themselves members, but just haven't  been baptized! We are super excited to be teaching them!!

Other than that 'mission work' news I did run 2 miles STRAIGHT this past week, one morning. I had to slow down the last lap because I about threw-up... back to the good ole days of throwing-up.. except it was much slower... so I have no excuse. It was the longest I have run consecutively for 10 months now...(my whole mission) I was pretty proud of myself! Did it under 16 minutes. ;) 

I found out Sunday that my neighbor across the street passed away. He was in a car accident and never recovered. I talked with his sisters who came to clean his apartment. He was a nice man who I talked with almost every day. I miss him. Also found out this other man was hit by a car while riding his bike and passed away. He had cerebral palsy and worked at the little ceasers right across from my apartments where he would hold up one of those signs. I saw him all the time too. Super sad, but so grateful for the plan of salvation and I know they are in a better place!! 

This week we got to go with the relief society president and visit her friend who trains people and their horses for racing. Too bad we couldn't ride them!  

I think that's about it! I'm doing great!! 

I love you all,

From my home, RUSSELLVILLE,

Hermana Warner

Last week my companion and I went down to Danville!!

Great times

Family!!

Friday Elder Merideth and Elder Kopischke of the 70 came to our mission and talked with us. They had us ask questions and then they responded. One Elder asked "what is your advice to new missionaries?"  He said that everything we experience in the mission field will prepare us for life. (for example: living with a companion, living within a budget, learning to love and serve others) This is completely true. I have learned so many things about myself that I can work on, and that I can improve on to be a better person. I love the scripture Ether 12:27. As we draw closer to the Savior, we will be exposed to our weaknesses. This will only help us improve!! His next advice was to keep a "Book of Evidence" and every night right down How I have seen the hand of the Lord in my life. This will help me always remember that the Lord is actively involved in my life. 

Walking into the Chapel we saw 3 difference less-active families we have been working with in church! With love and patience things happen!

Seeing our food calender fill up so quickly and then realizing that we have member/less active members feeding us dinner for the next 17 days straight is great.

Oh am I so grateful for the opportunity to serve the Lord. I know that God lives and that He loves us! As we leave everything in the hands of the Lord, and trust in him, we will see the tiny miracles that occur multiple times a day! 

I love you all, ya'll are such a blessing in my life! I couldn't do this without yall. 

Hermana Warner  

Family email!

FAMILY!!!

There really isn't much to tell ya'll because I told you everything yesterday!!! Talking with ya'll was amazing!!! It's crazy that the next time we talk I will have less than 3 weeks left on my mission. 

I am happier than I have ever been and I am so grateful to be studying more about the Savior, and then helping others enjoy the blessings of this gospel as well. 

Extra bonuses: my amazing companion Sister Durfee, the Spanish and English members, the food, and the people we get to serve!!  LIFE REALLY IS THIS GOOD!

I LOVE YOU ALL!!!   

Hermana Warner

ps. This is a picture of me in a restaurant bathroom during the unexpected tornado warnings Thursday night. I had my Book of Mormon and phone in my hands so I was set for anything! But really, I pulled out the Book of Mormon to try and read it to keep me calm. :) Fortunately only heavy rain and wind hit town, and a tornado didn't touch down till about 5 miles north of us... (only an F1, that knocked a trailer on its side and a few trees) WE ARE SAFE!! 

Time to celebrate!!

First off... transfer calls came this morning... and we are both staying here in Russellville.

This week went by super, super fast, but the highlight was that we got to go down to Vilonia and help clean up the damage from the tornado that hit last Sunday. We first stopped at the Conway church building and there we got our HELPING HANDS T-shirts!!! We also had a short instruction meeting. We were assigned an area to go help clean-up/sort the damaged things. AH... this has been my dream since I was young! It was so surreal. It was so crazy that as we were pulling up some homes were perfectly fine, others had a little damage, (maybe a few lost shingles, broken window, or tree) and then others were completely gone. The first area we went to we mainly picked up wood and stacked them in a pile to burn. We also got in a long straight line in this huge cow pasture and picked up all the little small debris. (That way cows won't eat it and die) Then after lunch we went to a different area, maybe .4 miles away.. Here is where there wasn't much organization so a lot of us were standing around. There was a huge hole dug for all the biodegradable stuff that could be buried and then already sorted piles of everything else.. there was a large tractor that kept bringing these old, destroyed cars over into ta section more convenient for trucks to put on their trailer and hall them away. This area we later found out that we were cleaning up what used to be a junk yard. The last area we went to...again within 300 yards...is where we picked up everything from a completely destroyed home. There was absolutely nothing left. Apparently the family only wanted to save pictures and bibles. I found about 20 pictures stuck into the ground and I took them to the pile of saving. A little while later a lady came up to us and said the section we were cleaning up in was most of her stuff from her shed nearby. That's when someone realized those pictures I found could be hers. So we went back and go them and took them to her. Her face was priceless. A sense of relief. Her husband started looking through them and saying... "that's my dad, (next picture) that's my sister." Ah......it was so neat! We talked with her for a little bit and she said this is the 3rd time she has been hit in 8 years. The first time she lost like 50 trees, the 2nd time, part of her house was destroyed so they build a storm shelter after, and also got a big pod(like a storing shed) for all the retrievable items to put in... (this was 3 years ago) Well... on Sunday she said she was watching the news and the storm didn't look like it was coming toward them, however, on someones phone it did, so they took pre-cautions and went around telling their neighbors and most of them listened, and they all got into their storm shelter. There was one man that said, not to worry and didn't go. Well after the tornado came through they got out, and looked around and that house where that man was, was completely destroyed. They ended up finding his body a little ways away. The things these people have gone through, and the pain they are experiencing are indescribable. She told us she was moving to Conway. This whole experience I will never forget. The last part of cleaning up we were cleaning up the kitchen debris of someones home. I could go on and on about everything I saw and did, but most importantly I learned that materialistic things don't matter. It's our faith in Jesus Christ and our families! There were so many people out here volunteering. There were dark blue, light blue, red, orange, and our yellow shirts all representing different organizations or church groups. There were people coming around bringing us food and water. There was one man in my ward that was stationed down there that was cooking enough  hamburger and hot dogs to feed 3,000 people. There were SOO many people like that. Everyone's faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ is what is helping people through this. I loved when that family only wanted to save pictures and their bibles. The south is truly amazing! So fitting is Helaman 5:12! It's Christ, without a doubt that is helping us all through this time. If a tornado were to touch down, why not the south-where the communities will unite together, thank Heavenly Father for their lives and then help those in need. This place is so loving and charitable! That's something I can definitely work on! I'm so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the enabling power of the Atonement. I'm so grateful for the the hope and happiness it brings me daily!! I'm also so grateful for my family!! I CAN"T WAIT to talk to ya'll on Sunday!!!!   

ALSO, yesterday was fast and testimony meeting. I was sitting next to Diana (recent convert) and I did the whole, 'if you go I will go.' She immediately said "yes,  I have something to share." It was the most powerful testimony that our Heavenly Father lives. I was sitting up on the stand, just looking out at everyone's eyes crying. Her mom came up to me afterwards crying and gave me a hug and then said, "You are God's miracle, thank you so much!" 

What a wonderful weekend!

Love you all!! Thanks for everything! I'm so grateful for all of ya'll! 

Hermana Warner