Heeeyyyyy ya'll!!
This is Sister Carlson reporting from Kill Devil Hills in
the Outer Banks of North Carolina!...I think! Haha there are a lot of different
cities on the Outer Banks but I am on the little Island outside of North
Carolina. Kill devil hills is kind of a weird name but it was founded by
pirates so that is pretty cool! I can't believe that I am in the mission
field. I'm still in shock. The biggest lesson I have learned since being here
is that its okay to cry. Haha I am already an emotional.....VERY emotional person
and there is a lot of adjusting to do on a mission. I understand now why people
say that a mission is hard. I never really understood that but I learn every
day how much Heavenly Father loves us and expects us to have faith through our
trials and I am so grateful for that. On Wednesday of last week is when we left
the MTC. We flew from SLC to Atlanta, and then to Norfolk Virginia. Our mission
president, President Baker and his wife along with the assistant to the
president missionaries were there to greet us and help us with our bags and
they took us to a church where dinner was waiting for us. THANK GOODNESS. We
had dinner, interviews with the president, and then drove like an hour and a
half to a hotel where we spent the night. The best part is that we each got a
queen bed to sleep in for the night. That was the best thing that could have
ever happened. I slept sooo good...which was much needed after waking up at 2
am! We woke up Thursday morning and went back to the church for transfer
meeting, which is where we meet our companions and my companion is Sister
Garvin! She is from Provo, UT. She has been out for 15 1/2 months....so a lot
longer than me haha but it has been good because she pretty much knows the
ins and outs of missionary work. And she is okay with the fact that I cry a lot
so I am grateful for that haha!!! After meeting our companions, we had a member
that drove us back to our house and the drive from the church in Chesapeake was
2 hours away from my area so I definitely fell asleep on that car ride!!
Everything on the island is very coastal which I love. We had a dinner appt.
with a less active family on Friday night and they took us to this place called
Winks...its this little hole in the wall place and it was SO GOOD! its in the
back of this like super market thing and they have fresh shrimp and really
yummy desserts and we ate it right on the beach road over looking the ocean. I
currently have 9 mosquito bites.... so that's fun haha! I am going to get some
good repellant today. The place where we live is a dentist office on one half,
and then our house is in the other half. My comp said it was the 3rd dirtiest
house she has ever lived in when she got there but they got it all cleaned up
in the transfer before me so I was thankful for that :))) anyone who knows me
knows that I struggle with bugs and so im SUPER glad they got that taken care
of. We drive a Chevy Cruze which is great. It has good A/C so that has been
great. The weather has actually been really nice. It is starting to get more
humid as the days go on though and my comp said that August is the hottest
month of the year! So giddy up! ;) Haha in all honestly everything really is
good. It's strange how much I have been learning about/thinking about the
pioneers unconsciously this week. I knew that it was the 24th, but I have just
been thinking about so many people who have gone before us and who have
provided a way and that had it SO much worse. It is so important to endure to
the end and to trust in God's will for us. We have to be willing to accept what
he has in store for us even if it is hard. The church, although not as known
here on the Outer Banks, is still just is true and I love it so much. It can
get us through any trial or struggle or concern. I hope that everyone can have
a missionary moment this week and remember to be bold and never be afraid to
stand up for who you are, and what you believe in! We have a quote on our
fridge by Elder Holland that says something to the effect of: "Missionary
work is not easy because Salvation is not a cheap experience. If it was never
easy for Jesus Christ, how could we ever expect it to be easy for us?" I
think that is so great to think about and really can be applied to anything in
our lives. I love you all so much and love hearing from you each week! I'm
sorry if I don't email everyone back but know how much I love, miss and care
about all of ya'll!!
Take care!
Love, Sister C :)
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