Sister Melly - Exchanges and Trail Center Marathon

Dear Family,
Love you!
This week has been another week of . . . . You guessed it, exchanges! Tuesday was P-day, Wednesday we were only together for a couple of hours and then in the Trail Center at night. Wednesday I went on exchanges with Sister Monson, who had just gotten transferred in from Grand Island and was disappointed to say the least about not getting to spend the evening in the Trail Center. Thursday, I went on exchanges with Sister Pinchak (my MTC companion). Because we have been out the same amount of time, which meant that I got to be the Senior Companion for the day! Really all that this meant was that I got to drive, which was awesome! I was a little bit worried that I had forgotten how, but it was no problem and I found out that I actually know my way around our area pretty well. It was really nice to be back with Sister Pinchak. We work really well together, so that was nice. Saturday, I spent thirteen and a half hours at the Trail Center while Sister Kusnerik was doing training for the new sisters. That was a really long day. Everyone keeps telling me that the reason I keep going on so many exchanges is to prepare me to be a trainer next transfer. Yikes. That’s pretty scary but a definite possibility. This past week (transfer week) we got four new sisters: Sister Baker, Sister Arnold, Sister Graham, and Sister Davis. Three of them are being trained by sisters who just finished their twelve weeks of training. Sister Kusnerik and I will be staying together in the Oakview Ward for another transfer, which will be her last. So, I know that for sure I will be getting a new companion after this transfer.
This last week, we went to lunch with a family in our ward, the Piercys. They work/ live at Boy's town, which is in the boundaries of our area. Boy's Town is like its own little community except the only people that live there are troubled teenagers and the adults that take care of them. The Piercys are parents to these kids and live in a home with them inside of the Boy's Town boundaries. They often have to sacrifice coming to church so that their kids can go to their own churches. We talked a lot about how their jobs have a lot to do with the Atonement, repentance, forgiveness, change, etc. I really respect them for the work they are doing and for the difference they are making in the lives of these kids. Then, I started to realize how what they are doing is a lot like what we are doing as missionaries, just in a slightly different setting. That's pretty awesome. Go! Go change lives.
The other day, I got to have a really amazing experience at the Trail Center. A young family with a 3-year old boy and 1-year old girl came in with the wife’s mother. When I asked what had brought them into the Trail Center, they quickly responded “Oh, just the bathroom.” As we continued talking, they mentioned that they had an ancestor buried in the cemetery that they had come to see. I guess that they were just planning on going over by themselves, but I offered my help. I showed them the map of the cemetery and explained how to find the grave. They were about to leave when I felt like I should go with them. As we walked across the street, the wife seemed very hesitant to answer any of my questions. All of a sudden, she just opened up to me. She told me that about a month ago, they lost a daughter, the twin of their 1-year-old, because of heart failure. As they were dealing with this loss, she had found a copy of the journal of her ancestor whom she had been named after. As she read the journal, she discovered that the ancestor had also lost a child, Don Carlos, while in Winter Quarters. The ancestor had two other children, one named Lucy. Lucy was also the name of the 1-year old that just died. While reading the journal, she had developed a strong connection to her ancestor and was now coming to pay homage to her and the son that died here. I helped them plot out where the grave would have been and we sat and talked about the strength and sacrifice of our ancestors for us to have the gospel today. We also talked about the temple and eternal families. The Spirit was so strong. It was amazing.
Ok love you!
We are going to be spending the rest of the day today just writing letters and catching up on journal writing, so you can expect to hear more from me later this week. (Although maybe I shouldn't be saying this in case something happens! Ha ha!)
Ok love you again!
Love,
Sister Melly