Ok so first things first: New companion! Sister Szuch is from Boise, Idaho. She is one of NINE kids. Needless to say she is patient :) Also, she is a rockstar. By that I mean she really doesn't need training. She's been training me! Good thing too because we have too much to do for us to slow down too much. She catches on quick and is willing to work. It helps that she's intelligent haha we've had some refreshing discussions and she was an English major at BYU so we can relate on a lot of the same curriculum levels I couldn't ask for more in a companion! We live on the Peter Whitmer Farm with two Sisters that serve in Seneca Falls. The Peter Whitmer farm is where the church was organized in 1830. There is the Whitmer house, and then a visitors' center attached to the chapel, and then to the right of that is our house.
There are pictures and some information on this site:
http://www.lds.org/locations/
The Seneca Falls Sisters (Adams and Earl) have been SO fun to live with! I'm really grateful for them. There is also a senior couple that lives in the other side of our house, so we are well taken care of! Quite the adventure.
The first few days were full of trainings to get Sister Szuch used to missionary work and especially to working the historic sites, so we got to spend a lot of time with other 3 new sisters as well. They are great! And funny! Thank goodness. One in particular got up one meeting to introduce herself and she said. "what do you say up here? I'm a Mormon..." Hahaha. Perhaps you had to be there. Anyways! This week I've felt especially grateful to be serving around such wonderful people and to have the privilege of being a missionary. I don't have much time left! I really want to make the most of it. Leaving all of this will be difficult.
So as with every other time I've opened an area, the first few days can be a little confusing. I was a little worried about Sister Szuch because entering the mission field is crazy enough- especially when your trainer knows just as much about the area as you do! We've been trying to make the most of our time and we've already been able to meet a few people in the area and be involved in some good lessons.
Last night we also had the opportunity to watch a broadcast of President Dieter F. Uchtdorf and honestly I think it's one of my favorites of all time. He talked about three things specifically:
1. What is truth?
2. Is it really possible to know the truth?
3. How should we react to contradiction?
President Uchtdorf defined truth as existing beyond belief. It exists even if no one else believes it. He said, "Absolute truth is not dependent on public opinion or popularity." We are encouraged to seek truth wherever it may be! Rather than looking for things that disagree, we should have our hearts open to learning from others and trying to find things that will enrich and improve our understanding of life. Just be aware of all of those partials truths. President Uchtdorf reminded us of those who were sure that the Earth was flat, or those that believe the moon is a hologram. I thought of those who don't believe the Holocaust ever happened. You can believe that north is actually south and south is actually north, but if you want to get to New York from North Carolina, the truth is that north is north. Here's the link to watch the devotional:
http://www.lds.org/broadcasts/
I would highly recommend that you all watch it. So good. Just skip ahead to when President Uchtdorf starts speaking.
That's probably all for now. I hope you are all well. I welcome news as always :)
Love,
Sister Raines
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