Week 76: "Start Everyday With a Grateful Heart"

Hello to all!
  It's crazy to think that another week has come and gone so quickly! This week was full of meetings, lots of lessons that fell through, and miracles strewn through it all!
  I just gotta say, I love the Goldens! They are such special people and I'm forever grateful to have them as a part of my life. I got to see them many a times this week and I'm grateful for every interaction with them! They imparted loads of wisdom upon us departing missionaries and we ate it up! Everything from gospel habits to finances. President Golden even said he could make us our own personalized mortgage chart when we buy a home in the future! What a blessing!
  Lots of promising appointments fell through this week: Rosa got in a car accident and her phone is broken, so communication has been rough. Kelly had a lot of visitors in town so hopefully this week! And the Spanish lady we were supposed to pass off as well. I find myself feeling frustrated in these moments, but I realize that this is testing my patience and gives me a small glimpse into what Heavenly Father must feel with ALL of us. I just want people to know this gospel is true and embrace it. That's honestly what I want for all of my brothers and sisters here. Sometimes it just takes time, which I'm realizing a lot more recently.
  We did get to have a little lesson with a sweet lady, Sister Murphy, who has been inactive for many years. She has had many excuses(she admits) as to why she doesn't come to church. It broke our hearts when she said she wants to settle for a lower kingdom because she doesn't think she's worthy to live with God again. We tried to convey to her that she IS worthy and that we all should aim higher! We made a goal for her to come to church early in December so we're hoping to help her make that!

  Random, Miracles:

* We were walking the streets one day and a guy was approaching. I looked a little closer and noticed he had a cochlear implant. Sister Steele freaked out and started signing to him and he was ecstatic to be able to communicate back to her. I've run into 1 other deaf person on my mission, before I had Sister Steele as my companion. Now, we've run into about 3 or 4 in the past 7 weeks! Divinely inspired!

*Last night made up for a lot of the hardships this week. Like I've said before, it can be challenging finding people after dark. People get a bit skeptical when people knock on their doors. In fact, earlier this week, a man threatened to pull out his pistol because it was so late(I checked my watch and it was 6:05). BUT, we did have miracles of finding the people that need us.
   Last night we met a man, Robert, who LOVED to talk about Jesus Christ. He asked us how we envisioned God and Jesus Christ and we had such a spiritually powerful conversation with him. He mentioned how busy he was that it would make it difficult to meet, but he said that he would remember us this week, as he goes about his work. He testified to us of how important the work is that we're doing and told us not to be discouraged. It was just so sweet to meet even just one person that notices the goodness of this message. It was very refreshing to hear!
   THEN, as we were walking back towards our car, we noticed 2 distinct white, fluffy Huskies. We stopped in our path and realized we KNEW those dogs(and their owner)! DAVID! Flashback to the first week in October. We met this YSA aged guy that was super interested and Sister Thompson got his info. and was planning to send the YSA Elders over, but apparently that never happened.
  Well, we approached him and said, "David!!" He remembered us too! He then said, "I've been waiting for someone to come by, but no one has shown up."  We told him we could fix that! He said he's been studying The Book of Mormon and the Bible and has been receiving a lot of answers. YAY! Our hearts were so happy! David even walked us back to our car(which was a good 10 min walk) and we kept talking about the questions he's been trying to answer for the past 2 years. We set up a time to teach him this week....and then we'll pass him to YSA, so nothing gets lost in the translation.

  I've been doing an awful lot of reflecting the past week or so. My heart is just so full! President told us how this is probably the point of our missions where we'll have the most mixed emotions, compared to other times during our missions. I've been realizing the growth that has occurred and the friendships that have developed, especially my relationship with my Savior. As I go into this Thanksgiving week, I have SO much to be grateful for!

ALSO, y'all should check out mormon.org
  The new Light the World initiative is up and running! Check it out, share it, and commit to DO IT this Holiday season!

Love you all! Keep being awesome and have a Happy Thanksgiving!


Sister Burton
2500 N. Bristol St.
Santa Ana, CA 92706

So grateful for the Goldens!

AND these Sisters!!!

This sweet old man gave me a flower one night. Feat. my precious companion.

Sister Steele caught the tiniest lizard I've ever seen. 

Chalking.

Chalking with Ava, a Laurel from our ward. It was a blast.

DAD, you'll never believe what I saw today! A unicyle!!!

Some Elders on bikes this week! President's post.!!!

Week 75: Cookies Will Get You in Any Door!

HAPPY NOVEMBER! Hard to believe the Holidays are approaching us! Sister Steele and I had a really long week. 98% of our plans and appointments fell through this week, but that usually means Heavenly Father is preparing us for a week of miracles, right? Things always get better :)
  We did have a cool moment last Monday night. As we were driving to tract a complex, I just had the thought and said, "Sister Steele, we're going to get into someone's house tonight." Lo and behold, a little while into knocking, we met this YSA aged girl, Francesca. We began having a solid conversation with her and it got to the point where we asked if we could come in. She told us, "Sure, but I'm pretty sure I already know the message." Little did she know that she really DIDN'T know this message we were sharing. We taught a simple, short Restoration lesson and were able to leave her with a Book of Mormon. She thought it was a cool message and said she'd like us to come back next week so she could share some of her beliefs(she's a 7th Day Adventist). Even though it didn't seem too promising, I was reminded of how no effort is wasted and our part is to be there and to teach restored truth, it's up to them to accept it! It sure was a cool moment though!
   We did lots of finding and just really had a struggle finding people home or people out and about. We kept chugging along though! We just had to laugh about things falling through and random things happening to us. One of the Hermanas got sick on Friday(with a random rash that they thought was shingles...until they found out yesterday that it wasn't.) ANYWAYS, so we had to go on a little mini exchange with them so they could get to their lesson. I went with the healthy Hermana to the lesson and it was just so cool! I love all of the different cultures here and all the different kinds of people we meet!
  Another positive highlight of the week was meeting a person formally being taught, Ellgyra. She knows tons of members in the area and has had missionaries coming back for years. We have been trying to get a hold of her since we got here and haven't had any luck. BUT, we made cookies this week to give to people so we asked if we could stop by with some and she finally said YES! Cookies can get you so far in life ;)
  Its been several months since the Elders have met with her, but she said she's still been reading the Book of Mormon! YAY! We're planning to go back this next week and meet with her. It was hard for her to meet with the Elders because her husband was never home, but since we're Sisters, we can be in her home anytime of day. Again, another reason it was inspired for Sisters to be here ;)
 
  My spiritual thought today comes from a kind, older gentleman at church yesterday! His name is Brother Frutos(he was actually the Bishop of the Esplanade ward when Cassity's Grandpa was active! Connections!) Just after introducing ourselves he said, "Sisters, whenever you get discouraged, remember, the gospel is true." It was just so sweet that he would randomly say that to us, especially after our challenging week. I've pondered on his words and realized that they're applicable to us ALL! Whenever life gets us down, we feel like Heavenly Father abandoned us, we must remember THE CHURH IS STILL TRUE! Jesus Christ is still our Savior! And no matter how crumby of a day we might have, Jesus still loves us! I invite YOU to try to make that your way of thinking(and I'm gonna work on it too).
  Shrug things off and realize, "I still have a testimony".
   
  Here we are, heading into the last week of the transfer! We have lots of stuff to do this week, including 3 exchanges...which is kinda nuts, but we're gonna do it!

  Love you all! Thanks for ALL that you do! Keep letting those lights shine!

Sister Burton
2500 N. Bristol St.
Santa Ana, CA 92706

We decorated for the Trunk or Treat at the Ronald McDonald house.

I got 2 jars of peanut butter for my birthday. Thanks Shayla and Sister Brooks!!!

Knocking doors does have its perks...getting to scope out the Halloween Decorations

We went to Baskin Robbins on the 31st for cheap ice cream.

The Tustin Meadows Sisters came over for treats and games.

Nothing beats these sunsets!!!

Got some pretzels from Hanover, PA

Week 74: Halloween Came Early

BOO to you! Happy Halloween this week! Although, I know all the people back in PA already had most of their shindigs!
  In reference to the title of my email, Halloween really DID come early this year! We kept scaring people as we were out and about knocking doors. At this one house, we knocked twice and then waited. We saw a shadow walking towards the door and then a lady with a big ole bandage on her nose looks at us and screams!! She then said, "Hey, there are 2 girls at the door!" They were super friendly, opened the door, and she(later found out her name was Cathy) had just had surgery earlier that morning on her nose and she nearly popped her 50 stiches when she screamed at us. haha. But wait, there's more. The man's response was, "Hey, there are raccoons in our backyard, come check it out!" Sure enough there were 2 raccoons scaling their palm tree in their backyard. We had a nice little chat with these people, not interested in learning more, but nonetheless, a fun and exciting experience. Planting seeds and scaring them! Gotta love it! Later that night, again after knocking twice, a little girl came and opened the door, not realizing that we were there, and then gasped, walked away, and said, "Mommy, there are people at the door!" I've never unintentionally scared this many people back to back before! We have been chuckling about it all week!
   This week we had 2 exchanges! I got to stay in my area with Hermana Hinton, who is a brand spanking new missionary and she is awesome! We got along so very well and had a great day as companions! We worked really hard and were able to have some great conversations! We even went and did some chalking at a nearby park! We started writing down scripture verses and were able to talk with others as they walked by about THEIR favorite verses. We even had a friend write down his favorite Bible verse! Chalking is so much fun!
   I also got to go on exchanges with Sister Evali and Sister Koivisto in their area! Sister Koivisto is a Temple Square missionary so she is here for 12 weeks to gain the full proselyting mission experience! She is from Finland so I got to learn a lot of cool facts about our Fin friends! We saw miracle after miracle that day! We were able to get in touch with a few of the people they've been teaching and were able to meet others along the way that wanted to learn more too! I've missed being in a trio so it was fun to be in one for a day! It was so fun to learn from them!

  As for Sister Steele and myself, we've been continually finding and finding, looking for those who are ready! We've been meeting lots of amazing people, but not too many of them are ready at this time or don't want to make time for it....which is an utter shame. And we've been meeting some people who...don't particularly agree with our beliefs. BUT, while on exchanges, Sister Steele met this guy, Erone, who IS searching! They had a great lesson with him and we'll be going back in a few days to teach him more! Wahoo!
  We've also been trying to get to know the members and get them out with us! It's such an awesome ward and we want to help them SOAR in their missionary labors!

  Yesterday, the 4 of us missionaries got to be special guests in Primary! We filled out some basic questions ahead of time and as the Primary President read out the answers, the kids had to guess who said it. I got nearly emotional as I talked about people who influenced me to go on a mission(my Dad...among many others), the best thing about my mission(meeting amazing people and seeing them change), and how my relationship with my Savior has changed(IMMENSELY). I could feel tears welling up in my eyes as I shared these answers with the precious little kids! It hit me then that, wow, I really will always have fond memories of my mission. I mean, I always knew that I would talk about this for the rest of my life, but during your mission, it can be hard to see the whole perspective. But I really did catch a glimpse yesterday of just how much my mission really DOES mean to me and how it will continue to influence me for the rest of my life.
   My relationship with my Savior has grown so very much! I've had to rely on Him in everything and as I'm striving to love my brothers and sisters, I'm becoming like Him. And for that, I'm forever grateful!

Love you all! Thank you constantly for the love and support, near and far ;) Have a spooky Halloween! Talk to y'all next month!

Sister Burton
2500 N. Bristol St.
Santa Ana, CA 92706

Trio Life!

Pancake Brunch with the other Sisters in our Complex.

Chalking With Hermana Hinton.

More chalking adventures.

Last week Exchanges with Sister Akers!

Dinner with Cassity Last night!!!

Week 73: 23, say whaaaaat?

What a great full week! Full of all sorts of surprises!
  On Tuesday, Sister Steele was plagued with the flu, so we spent the day letting her recover! Which gave me lots and lots of study time, so that was great!
   Wednesday was my birthday! What better way to spend the day than doing missionary work! We actually got together with a member and her non-member friend, Barbara, to talk about family history and get her more involved in that. She had some cool stories of her family and has a desire to know more about them. The member friend is hoping to move it more into a gospel focused discussion soon, but still a great opportunity!
Also, MAEVE is back in Tustin!! Due to some unforeseen circumstances, she is here for a few weeks. Sister Steele and I had already planned to go to Cafe Rio for dinner and Maeve loves Cafe Rio, so she was able to join us! It was great to catch up with her and hear about life. She's been going through some rough stuff recently, but her faith is stronger than ever. Her mom found out she got baptized and was pretty upset. But she has been softening up and is supporting Maeve in what makes her happy! I was SO glad that it went over okay, compared to the last time they talked about the church! I love Maeve!!
   This past week I got to go on an exchange with my "granddaughter," Sister Akers! She is a stellar missionary! We had a miracle Thursday night! We went to try and see a guy the Elders tracted into a few weeks ago. He wasn't home but his girlfriend, Sara, was. She mentioned how she really has no background in religion, but has been wanting to get involved in preparation for her future family. We asked if we could share more and she invited us right in! We taught a few principles of the Restoration, but she doesn't have too much of an understanding about Jesus Christ, so we didn't want to overwhelm her. She is really interested in learning more! We were supposed to have a lesson yesterday but she got engaged Saturday night, so they've been celebrating! We should be getting in contact soon!

 SATURDAY FINDS: We had a day full of finding on Saturday, and saw some amazing little miracles! We ran into PETER, who is a homeless guy we met a few weeks ago. We talked to him then and gave him a Book of Mormon and he said he would read it. Well, while we were out and about on Saturday, we passed him on the street and he recognized us too! He said he's been reading the Book of Mormon and was drawing similarities between Nephi and his own situation. He said he just felt so much peace from it and was even considering changing religions. He said he would be moving in with his brother this next week, so hopefully once he gets settled, some missionaries can teach him more! The Lord's timing is so perfect! No effort is wasted!
  Also, as we were tracting in Santa Ana, we knocked into this guy who wasn't too religious or interested. He then said, "My brother is a leader in your church." His brother is Elder Acosta, the Area Seventy here!! Small world! He knew a lot about our beliefs because of his brother, but we introduced the "For the Strength of Youth" pamphlet to him and he was eager to read it! Wowzers!

  CELEBRATION: Also, in the past 2 weeks, 2 important dates in history! October 14th was Nolan's 1 year baptismal anniversary! I need to give him a call to catch up!
  AND on October 21st was the Juarezs' 1 year baptismal anniversary. Such fond memories of both, which I have reflected on recently.
 
 I'm so thankful for this gospel! It's truly such a blessing in my life! I've been reflecting a lot lately on the blessings I've already seen from being on my mission! The people are unforgettable and the memories of seeing the gospel change people's lives is amazing! The scriptures are right, there really is no greater joy!!
  There are quite a few "older" women(aka, not of our generation) in this ward that have served missions and I've LOVED getting to talk with them about the blessings they've seen from it! Many say that there's not a day that goes by they don't think about it. And they have seen how it has helped them raise their family!
  I'm going to be candid, serving a mission is hard. But worthwhile things are never easy! The blessings and the joy far outweigh the disappointments and frustrations(although at times, those two things seem unmanageable).

  I love you all! Thank you for all the birthday love and well-wishes! It meant the world!!! I felt an outpouring of love, from people here and people from all over the country!

 Until next time, stay golden.

Sister Burton

2500 N. Bristol St.

Santa Ana, CA 92706

Sick day calls for Skip-Bo!

Cute little Sisters made ma a brownie cake!

Cafe Rio with my girl, Maeve!

My family sent me delicious edible arrangement!!!

Maeve!

We even got attacked by sticky notes!

Cool writing in the sky...promoting some club in the area!

No soliciting sign, for religious type people. Strange.

Haircut with Sister Juarez. So good to catch up with her.

Sister Gibson, a member we met to share family history with her friend.

Barbara lives in the hills. Behind us, the ocean and Catalina Island, on a clear day.