World record longest baptism:), 10-25-23

 Hey everyone!! Hope you're doing great I miss you all!

This week we had more exchanges and I was with Sister Fuller on Friday! She's new like me and she's an english-speaking sister. I was in charge of planning our day and taking her with me to all our friends and lessons. I was pretty nervous because I'd have to do all the talking since she didn't speak Spanish! I was worried that I wouldn't fully understand what people were saying and wouldn't have Hermana Silva to help me. But I said lots of prayers, and the gift of tongues is real! Throughout the day as we handed out pass-along cards and taught lessons, I understood almost everything being said and felt like I was able to have good conversations! It helped me build my confidence in the language AND more importantly, my confidence in Heavenly Father and His hand in my missionary-work :)

This past Sunday some of the other Sister missionaries in our district had a baptism for their friends Lluvia and Luis. They're siblings and both still pretty young. Luis got baptized first and his feet kept coming up, so they had to repeat it four times. Lluvia is pretty scared of water and seeing her brother's experience didn't help, so long story short, we waited like 30 minutes while her mom and ward members tried to convince her to change into the baptism clothes in the bathroom. I was supposed to play the interlude music and basically played the whole hymnbook with how long it took hahaha. Longest baptism I've been to. Anyways, she didn't end up getting baptized and is still working up the courage!

Hermana Silva and I had dinner with a member yesterday who everyone says is an amazing cook. I was saying I was excited to try her Mexican food, and then Hermana Silva and I knocked on wood and said we shouldn't count on Mexican food because maybe she'd feed us Aisan food or something. It was a joke but turns out we jinxed it because when we got to dinner she made us sushi! Definitely not the food I was expecting haha but I love sushi so it all worked out!

We have a few baptisms coming up this Sunday and I'm so excited for our friends! I can't wait to share more but I'll get to it next week!

SPIRITUAL THOUGHT:

Sorry this is a little long... but read it I promise it's good!! This week, in my scripture study, I was reading in Alma 60 and 61.

In chapter 60, Moroni (leader of the Nephite army) writes to Pahoran (governer of the land), and basically chastens Pahoran on the government's lack in support for his armies. Moroni's armies are low on food and supplies, and he's angry that Pahoran hasn't sent them more to work with. His armies are suffering and a lot of people have lost their lives because they aren't fighting the best they can. Moroni tells Pahoran that his armies are going to come fight against the government to get more supplies soon if they don't hurry up and help.

BUT Moroni doesn't realize that Pahoran is actually doing the best he can to help the armies. In chapter 61, Pahoran writes back to Moroni and explains that the government is under attack by people rebelling in the city, and they aren't able to send supplies.

The reason I'm sharing this story is because I am really impressed by Pahoran's HUMILITY in deciding not to take offense. Moroni has good intentions, but he's really bold with Pahoran and basically tells him that the Lord is NOT happy with him. But Pahoran responds to the threats and warnings with love. He says, "...in your epistle you have censured me, but it mattereth not; I am not angry, but do rejoice in the greatness of your heart."

This week my challenge is for everyone to try to be more like Pahoran!!! When people attack us with words or don't seem to understand where we're coming from, we'll be happiest if we respond with love and understanding. Assume the best in everyone's intentions.

Love you all!!

Hermana DeMordaunt

PICTURES:

-pumpkin carving with the districttt!

-comp picture yay

-our dresses matched with the other Hermanas and we didn't even plan it

-one of our amigos makes homemade ice cream and keeps giving it to us for free! it's kinda melted in the picture haha but I promise it's good

-Hermana Silva covering the peephole because that's the only way these people will answer the door

-exchanges + drinks with Sister Fuller!

I wouldn't survive without Google maps! October 18, 2023

 Hi everyone!! I hope you're all doing amazingg! Here are my week updates..

We had zone conference this week and it was so good! We got a ride with the other Hermanas because it was an hour away (so I don't think biking would've worked out too well). The Hermanas had to go through the car wash which was funn! Kind of unnecessary to include in this email and I honestly don't know if I'm just super entertainment-deprived, but I just love going through the car wash hahaha

Anyways, one of my favorite parts of zone conference was the focus on being accountable. We hold the friends we teach accountable by giving them certain goals and expectations we hope they'll follow through with. In the same way, we need to hold ourselves accountable to the Lord through goals in our morning and nightly prayers!

The dinners that members feed us are literally the best. I've learned that I need to go to those meals starving because they feed us so much! It's so sweet but there was one day I had a snack before we went to a member's house and that was a baddd idea. She fed us so well and I was soo full when she brought out dessert. Luckily Hermana Silva saved me and let me put a little of my dessert on her plate while she was in the other room because I couldn't fit anything else in my stomach haha

Soo turns out Hermana Silva had to go to the doctor this week because she was actually pretty hurt from the bike wreck! We couldn't bike for a few days so we got rides. But she's all better now!

We put two people on date this week for baptism!!! Fidelina and Raul. They're from different households. So excited for them both and we hope they can be good examples for the rest of their families.

I understood a few more words than normal in the Mixteco sacrament meeting so hopefully that means I'm making a little progress! It can be hard not to get discouraged with the languages sometimes but I also love having the challenge and hope I can see more growth soon!

STORY TIME:

Last Friday, we had exchanges. I was with one of our Sister Training Leaders, Hermana Rhees! This was my first exchange and I was in charge of leading area (so basically taking Hermana Rhees through my day and getting us to appointments on time). I was kind of nervous because I didn't really feel like I knew what I was doing. After language class, we lost track of time and I realized we were running a little late to a lesson! We hopped on our bikes, I checked the directions super quick on my phone because I figured I knew the direction the house was in, and starting leading Hermana Rhees to the lesson.

Okay this is the part where we talk about the fact that I get so turned-around haha. I think the Lord knew that I needed to be born into the era of technology, because without maps, I would probably get lost and die in the wilderness. Survival-of-the-fittest would not be in my favor.

We had biked a ways and I was a little unsure where to go next, but I told Hermana Rhees I'd check real quick and I knew we were at least headed in the right direction. Turns out we had actually been biking the complete opposite direction. I was sooo embarrassed and we were running so so late to this lesson, and we had back-to-back lessons so I didn't know what to do!

Thankfully everything ended up working out with lessons even though we were super late because one of our friends had still been at work and couldn't make it. But the during the bikeride over, I was frustrated with myself and just embarrassed. After a few minutes just feeling sorry for myself, I realized how being negative wasn't fixing anything, it was just adding to the stress. I wondered what would be different if I could just laugh it off.

As I tried to focus more on just joking around about the situation with Hermana Rhees, I felt better. Things ended up working out, and I'd just wasted a bunch of energy feeling upset about it. Humor and gratitude can't fix everything, but it can fix a lot.

My challenge for you all this week is to find the humor in a less-than-ideal situation! When we show gratitude and stay positive the Lord will bless us. Sometimes when something is going wrong I like to tell myself it'll be a funny story someday. For a church talk or something, right?!

I love you all!

Hermana DeMordaunt

PICTURES:

-sand dunes with the district!

-hermana silva and I at the doctor

-cute pumpkins our apartment gave out

-zone conference group!

-someone gave Hermana Silva and I free homemade ice cream at Cassia:))

-recent church convert Ventura took us out for food!

-Hermana Rhees and I the day of exchanges!

-comp selfie with pretty sky

-our friends gave us yummy bread during a lesson!

Ashley and Irving's baptism week October 11, 2023

 Hellooo friends and family! This week's taught me so much I can't wait to share!

This week, there have been moments I wonder how I'm going to do this! The days can get repetitive! Those days, we end our evening with lessons and as we teach others, the Spirit very clearly reminds me why I'm here. There is power in the gospel and in sharing it with others. The feelings that come from a lesson are SO powerful and I feel so lucky to be a part of this work!

Ashley and Irving (Liz's younger siblings) got baptized this last Sunday!! It was so special to see their excitement and I'm so grateful for their constant desire to learn! One thing that has been so important for Hermana Silva and I to reiterate to all recent converts and people we teach is that baptism isn't the end! Not even close! It opens the door to a lifelong relationship with our Savior.

With Liz, Ashley, and Irving all being members of the church now, we're hoping to strengthen the youth group. There are not a lot of spanish-speaking youth and we're praying to see that grow so they can have that support system.

President and Sister Rodriguez visited Santa Maria, which is 2 hours away from the mission home and they brought pizza and it was soo good.

Hermana Silva and I give a spiritual thought at the end of each English class at the church (for the spanish-speakers). I still have so much to learn and there have been a few times I've turned to Hermana Silva to ask her how to say a word in Spanish. There was one time I turned to her to ask and the spanish-speakers understood and all helped give me the right word at once. It was actually so sweet and warmed my heart haha, I'm glad that they're there to help and support me as I learn the language.

Hermana Silva crashed her bike yesterday on the road and it was actually so sad. We keep joking about her and her luck with bikes hahaha:) Last week her seat got stolen, this week she crashed. She's feeling a little better today though!

SPIRITUAL:

This week I was reading the Book of Mormon and came across a verse I really liked. It's near the end of the book of Alma, and at this point in the scriptures, the Nephites are choosing to follow the Lord and the Lamanites aren't. There's a Nephite named Amalickiah who ends up rebelling and turning a lot of people against the Church. The rebellious Nephites follow Amalickiah and join the Lamanites.

Alma 47:36 says, "Now these dissenters [rebellious Nephites], having the same instruction and the same information as the Nephites; yea, having been instructeed in the same knowledge of the Lord, nevertheless, it is strange to relate, not long after their dissensions they became more hardened and impenitent, and more wicked... than the Lamanites..."

This verse really stood out to me.

"Having the SAME instruction... the SAME information." Why did the dissenters turn out so different?

We can all go to church and do what everyone else is doing. We can all listen to the same speakers in sacrament meeting. We can all read the same verses of scripture, but how much are we getting out of it? I know I can personally do better at this, and I think we all can! This week, I challenge everyone to have a WHY. Read the scriptures with a question in mind. Try saying prayers without just repeating the muscle-memory phrases. Make a daily goal!

We can all do the same things, but having a WHY will help us get the right things out of it.

FUN FACT:

-Mixteco originated in Guerrero and Oaxaca Mexico. These areas are near where people believe a lot of Book of Mormon stories took place. It's cool to think that it was an ancient dialect spoken around the time frame of the Book of Mormon, and even though it might not be exactly what they spoke, knowing that helps me feel a little more connected to the scriptures!

Love you all!

-Hermana DeMordaunt

PICTURES:

-I got my Mixteco name tag!

-Night comp selfie

-Ashley and Irving's baptism!

-Comp selfie

-Planning lessons on the church floor after Hermana Silva's bike crash :(

-More people at the baptism!

-Biking yayyy

I lost my Voice!! September 27th 2023

 Hellooo friends and family!! I am IN CALIFORNIA now! This week has been such an adventure. Lost my voice, got to be part of an amazing baptism, got called to speak another language besides Spanish.. I can't wait to share everything!

First off, my P-days here are pretty busy so I just want to thank everyone for the emails and let you know I read all of them, even if I can't respond every P-day! They mean so much to me and I'll get back to you each whenever I can I just haven't had a lot of extra time!

Last Thursday both my companions left in the morning for their missions. Shoutout to Hermana Zarco and Hermana Judd I miss you both sooo much!! I didn't have a companion that day because I was just supposed to pack and prep to leave, so that felt super weird. I'm so used to having comps 24/7 that I can only imagine how weird it will feel being alone when I get back home after my mission.

Friday morning I left the MTC at 4:30am. We were bussed over to the airport and I was EXHAUSTED but thankfully Hermana Buhrley (a friend of mine from before the mission - we met at AFY a few years ago!) has the exact same mission call and had the same travel plans as me so she and I got to talk on the bus ride and flight!

When we got here the mission president and his wife, President and Sister Rodriguez, were at the airport to pick us all up. They are the nicest people and I'm so excited to be working with them!

That night we stayed at one of the Senior missionary couple's homes and the next day I met my trainer, Hermana Silva!!! I LOVE her!!! She's so outgoing and fun! She's really on top of our schedule too, and whenever we're going anywhere she never passes up an opportunity to stop and hand out a pass-along card or share the gospel. Literally if I can be like Hermana Silva I know I'll be a good missionary. She moved to Utah from Brazil when she was 12 so her first language was Portuguese. Spanish and Portuguese aren't the same but they have a lot of similarities and she speaks amazing Spanish. I hope one day I can have the same kind of casual conversation she has with natives, but right now I'm just doing my best to understand what they're saying half the time.

So I hear a lot of missionaries struggle communicating in their new assigned language when they get to the field. I struggled with that but I ALSO couldn't even communicate in English for a while! The day I got here my voice was a little raspy and I wasn’t feeling great, but the next day I woke up and it was GONE. I tried to talk and the only thing I could do was whisper. I've never lost my voice that bad before. It was pretty frustrating because I knew I had a lot of first impressions to make that day. It was the day I met my companion and my district and I knew we'd possibly be teaching lessons that evening. Thankfully everyone was understanding, it was just funny because each person I talked to would look at me weird as I tried to push out a whisper that I lost my voice. Some people would laugh, others would start whispering back. It's hard to describe how rough it was not to have a voice those first couple days, but I guess the Lord was just trying to help me feel EXTRA grateful for my voice! And now that I have it back I should be shouting the gospel from the rooftops! haha

BIG NEWS: Hermana Silva and I are some of the few Sisters in our mission that have actually been called to speak a second language. The mission president called me into his office after we were assigned and asked me if I would be okay learning Mixteco as well. It's a dialect, so it's not a written or read language, only spoken. It's nothing like Spanish. I am seriously only going to be able to learn it through the gift of tongues. I am super excited to learn but it's also a lot to take in! I can explain more about the language and why it's so important to learn here in Santa Maria in next week's email, but basically a lot of the people we're teaching here are field workers that came from a certain part of Mexico that spoke Mixteco. Some of them have learned Spanish, but many family members speak only a little Spanish. Thankfully Hermana Silva speaks Mixteco pretty well. I have so much more to explain but it will have to wait until next week!

SPIRITUAL:

So I was blessed with opportunity to be part of a baptism this last Sunday! Our new convert is named Liz, she is 15, and although I didn't get to teach her before baptism, I am so excited to help her as a new member! She is the greatest example of faith! When she was found by the Sister missionaries (Hermana Silva and Hermana Woolley, the missionary who came before me), she told them she had a dream the night before that two angels came to her, and they were baptizing people with water and fire. Hermana Silva explained that that's exactly what happens in our church! We baptize by water and then the baptism by fire represents receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost! Liz said that they were the angels from her dream and started taking lessons, but her mom only speaks Mixteco and wanted her to stop. A few weeks ago, her mom started allowing her to have lessons again and get baptized, so we were able to baptize her this Sunday! Her mom didn't come to the baptism but her younger siblings did, and now they want to follow her example and be baptized in two weeks (Ashley and Irving)!

Liz has such faith and I am so grateful for her example, to both Hermana Silva and I and her siblings. This week I challenge each of you to pray for the ability to be an example in your lives! Treat each person as if you are representing Christ!

FUN FACTS:

-I am in a biking area! I love getting to bike everywhere but biking with a skirt is a serious hazard

-Santa Maria doesn't smell the greatest all the time because there are so many broccoli fields here

I love you all so much! I could tell a million other stories! Can't wait to share next week :)

-Hermana DeMordaunt

PICTURES:

-P-day tacos with my district!

-Weekly planning and strawberries with Hermana Silva (our apartment complex is the best!)

-Nighttime comp selfie after teaching lessons

-Last picture with part of my MTC district right before we left

-Getting off the plane in California!

-Airport selfie with all the new missionaries headed to Ventura!

-Cute sister missionaries in Santa Maria

-District picture!

-Liz's baptism!!!!!!!!

-Selfie with a bunch of the Ventura Sisters

-Picture with Sister Rodriguez (mission president's wife)! She is the sweetest!

-Street contacting with Sister Ashtown! This was my first time tracting the day I got to California :)