Phone call home: April 12, 2021

Kaitlyn has officially been moved to Pawtucket Rhode Island. And I won't lie, I am a little jealous. The East Coast is so pretty and I think I would enjoy spending some more time there. Just to explore and see what it all has to offer. Right now, she is still under Covid restrictions so she can't go see it all but I am hopeful she will be out and about in no time. Kaitlyn is now in a 2 Sister apartment with Sister Pearson. She was a little nervous about that because she has enjoyed the 'buffer' that the 4 Sister has provided and she has made some great friends with the 3 Sisters she has been living with. I imagine it would be tricky but if anyone can figure it out, I know it will be Kaitlyn for sure. 

Kaitlyn is going to miss Sister Hull and Sister Farnsworth so very much. She has loved having the apartment with 4 Sisters and has created such fun memories with them. She is thrilled that she will get to reunite with them at the end of the month to get her second dose of the Covid vaccine. She said she is already counting the days. :) 

Kaitlyn has sadly learned what it is like to deal with a 'trunky' missionary. Sister Womack is in her final stages of her mission and has pretty much checked out. It also doesn't help that she is going to be in a new area as well so she hasn't put a ton of effort into the work that needs to be done. That has been really hard for Kaitlyn. She is a do-er and a finisher and she knows that they will be handing off their contacts/friends to the Sisters who will take their area and she does not want to leave them hanging. I hope that she will learn from this and do her best to not get trunky herself as she sees things coming to a close on her own mission. I imagine it is a lot harder to do out in the field than it is for me to type it up here on a computer and think about it. 

Today we talked a lot about Sister Pearson and the transition that it was for Kaitlyn to go from 4 to 2 Sisters in an apartment. Kaitlyn said she was feeling shy at the beginning which was wild for me to hear but then again, I cannot comprehend what it would be like to be thrown into a living situation with someone new at each transfer. That would be hard. Sister Pearson and Kaitlyn will be great. They just need some time to get to know one another and see how the flow of the new environment will go. Kaitlyn also recognized that Sister Womack had maybe checked out earlier than she thought. She feels as though the training she received was maybe not as great as it could have been. But she is determined to get it figured out and put in as much work as she needs in order to make it successful. There are some potential baptisms in this new area that Kaitlyn may get an opportunity to be a part of as well so there is some 'good' that she can see already. 

They are working with this sweet sister named Elba. She is in a hard spot with putting in the time and the work with the missionaries but only because the rest of her family is super Catholic. She has been feeling the pressure of the Adversary and recognizes that it is her own family that is being used as the catalyst for him. Kaitlyn was able to draw on her own experience with wanting baptism and having a parent whose belief didn't line up and so it kept her from that from an early on stage in her life. She was able to share with Elba the struggles she dealt with but mostly she was able to share her own testimony of the Gospel and the good that it has brought to her life. She said that she was super nervous when she started talking with Elba but somehow she said "I knew just what to say and my nerves settled". She also said that Elba responded well and they were able to extend to her a baptism date! Kaitlyn said she doesn't feel like this is really her baptism because she didn't lay the foundation for Elba, but I tried real hard to let her know that she is finishing the planting process by putting the topsoil on for her to start to bloom in the Gospel with the acceptance of baptism. I am so thrilled for her and will keep all of them in my prayers so that Elba can remain faithful and diligent in her work she has done thus far and that she will have the courage and strength to go up against the Adversary as he works doubts into her mind and heart. 

Kaitlyn also carries a brand new shiny calling in her new ward/branch in Rhode Island.....ready for it? Relief Society Secretary! Whaaaattt??? And Sister Pearson is working with the Young Women. So crazy but the entire branch is a branch of converts so they don't really know what the auxiliaries are  supposed to look like, how to run them, etc so her sweet Bishop has called on the missionaries to get things going. Things like a youth program, ministering, etc. It is a LOT but I know that both Kaitlyn and Sister Pearson are up for the task. 

Kaitlyn's tender spirit and faith also clearly shined through as she attended her first Sunday at her new branch because she said that as soon as she walked in she had this overwhelming feeling that they were going to ask her to bear her testimony. And sure enough....she did just that. In Portuguese might I add! She says that she pretty much faked it all and ran with it but I know better. I know that she spoke straight from her heart and she shared something that someone needed to hear at that very moment. I wish I had been there. I miss hearing her speak in this foreign language and being able to feel her love as she rolls out words I don't even understand! 

I miss this girl and I love my Monday calls with her. 3 months tomorrow .... crazy how fast (at least in my opinion) this time is going by. I hope the next 15 months go just as quick!

I love you for forever,

Missionary Momma