Sister Fluegel: Getting to know Layton

Hello everyone!

I've had a wonderful time this week becoming more familiar with my area, the people I'm working with, and my trainer. We've had some fantastic lessons and I'm becoming better and more comfortable at teaching. Sister Wright says I came "pre-trained" and she feels like she isn't even training me! I don't know about that, but those appointments with the Sisters in Belvidere and YSA really did help, as well as the MTC of course. I am loving teaching and getting to know real people, and I find that I learn the most when I teach a lesson than when I study for it!

We are teaching this 16-yr old girl named Nicole and she is amazing! She loves to learn and is so intune with the Spirit that she pretty much teaches US the lesson instead of the other way around! She is really good friends with a member boy and we have the discussions at his house with his parents (who are amazing) and she already wants to be baptized, it's just a matter of her parents allowing it. Her desire to learn and to change her life for the better is so inspiring, I am so privileged to be a missionary to her right now! Also, something I've found as I've listened to the sad stories of so many less-actives and non-members, is that I try to relate with them and think back to any trials that I've gone through that could help me understand what they're going through. I can't believe how great I've had it growing up compared to these people I've met! I am so grateful for the trials I've had so far in my life that have helped me be able to relate to and therefore better help these people through their issues. I've had my faith and the gospel to rely on through every hard time--whereas these people did not--so I have that perspective to give to them and it gives them hope, which is such a rewarding experience.

My companion and I have had some really fun and crazy experiences this week. We went to the Bountiful temple, which was gorgeous beyond words, and Sister Wright and I were allowed by President Hansen to go there early before our session to do Initiatories for my family file names I brought with me, so I could have my own family file for the Endowment session. It was a lovely day! We went there on Thursday, because they switched our Preparation day to then because we aren't allowed to leave our apartments after 6pm on Halloween. After planning, we had a movie marathon of The Testaments, Legacy, and 17 Miracles, and we had tons of candy from the lady upstairs who we live with and random members who throw us handfuls of candy when we go to their houses for dinner. Dinner appointments this week were really interesting...we've had some really strange Hawaiian haystacks (nothing like Mom's) and we were asked to teach a missionary lesson by one family who just wanted to see how we taught. We politely declined but shared a missionary miracle instead. Sister Wright and I were getting worried because we seem to be taking in way more calories than we are burning at these 5-course dinners every night, so we decided to start running in the mornings. It feels so good to get fresh air and my heart actually pumping at 6:30am every morning! All is going pretty well here and the work is picking up every day, especially with some good referrals we're getting. Hope all is well with everyone back home.

-Sister Fluegel

P.S. Write more letters please!

Pictures!