Baby, it's COLD out there!

Dec. 5, 2016

Greetings, Family!

My name is Sister Pullan. I am a teacher, sister, daughter, and Harry Potter nut; I am a full-time missionary; and I'm a Mormon. I am also freezing my tail end off.

The whole state of North Dakota--nay, the whole Midwestern region--is covered in white right now. It stormed hard until Wednesday, with the snow blowing sideways and piling into huge drifts on the sides of the road, some up to five or six feet high. You walk out into that kind of weather and your face gets windburn instantly, the wind whipping around little pieces of snow and ice that chafe your cheeks and sting your eyes. It "stings the toes and bites the nose" like nothing I've ever experienced. The freeway was closed from here to Fargo and the government declared a state of emergency because the snow was drifting on the road up to people's windows. A whole truck was buried in snow on the road outside our apartment. The zone leaders sent out a text telling us to stay in if we didn't have specific appointments, and also announcing a new key indicator goal for the week--people shoveled out. We dug out a few driveways and helped a few people with spinning tires push their cars out of the snow.

Also, as it turns out, the city of Dickinson is pretty lousy about plowing. They didn't make it to our subdivision until Wednesday afternoon. Fortunately, Sister Harrington and I have a Nissan Rogue with four wheel drive, so we were able to get in and out to appointments without too much trouble and/or mortal peril. On Tuesday we basically stayed in all evening just to be safe. We went on a split with the STLs, with Sisters Harrington and Luker tracting the building while Sister Sever and I taught a lesson over the phone to an investigator named Nick who is from--of all places--May Pen, Jamaica.

It continues to snow off and on, though nothing as bad as last week. Sister Harrington and I usually leave home bundled in three to five layers of clothing and our big down coats and snow boots. As long as no skin is exposed, the cold is bearable. It makes me look like a marshmallow, but I try to stay cute.

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Snow day selfie:

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The forecast says that the temperature is going to drop well below zero this week. If you haven't heard from me by sundown next Monday, you may need to send someone to find me in this North Dakota freezer and thaw me out with a hair dryer. In case I get swallowed by a snow drift somewhere, my will is as follows: Matthew can turn my room into a theatre and Lydia can have my books. Nathan should name a dinosaur find after me as well, if that's possible. :)

In other weather-related news, Sister Harrington got stuck while trying to climb a snow drift outside our apartment. It was very entertaining. I took this picture and a video (which I will send) before I went and helped her out.

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With all this white on the ground, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. The city of Dickinson has put out some cute Christmas decor on their light posts somewhat like Heber City's, and there is a tree on the main square. We have a tree at our place, too:

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Friday night was the ward Christmas party. The theme was "A Night in Bethlehem." The whole thingw as coordinated by our very own primary counselor Sister Tippets, party planner extraordinaire. The decorations were quite impressive, with marquees set up like vendors and seating on blankets on the floor. We had delicious meat and cucumber yogurt dip and hummus on pitas for dinner, and the kids did a sweet little nativity pageant. Our investigator Frank and his family came, as well as several less actives we weren't expecting at all.

This is Sister Banks (the queen of fellowshipping and member missionary work) with her kids, Ophie (short for Ophelia) and Virgil.

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Me with Ronda, one of my favorite members:

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Sister Harrington and me with Bishop Hill, the Roman guard, photo bombed by one of the Hughs daughters:

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​The crowning event of the week, though, was a baptism on Saturday for Tom Robidoux (pronounced roe-bi-dough). He and his wife Ambyre (variant on Amber) were found by some tracting elders 11 weeks ago and started taking the discussions. What those Elders didn't know until later was that four days before they knocked, Ambyre had been depressed and contemplating suicide. Her marriage with Tom was falling apart and she didn't know what to do for herself or him or her kids. She prayed that day that God would give her a sign, and four days later the missionaries came and she let them in. Tom was baptized Saturday, and she will be baptized by him on the 31st. The service was beautiful. Ambyre gave the most moving prayer I've ever heard to close, thanking God for saving her family and saving her marriage and for giving them the blessings of the gospel. Their family was in the 1st ward but recently moved across the boundary into ours, and we have adopted them as our own. Truly, as I watched Tom make that step, I was as overjoyed as if he had been my own convert. When I asked him how he felt, he simply beamed at me. It was incredible to see the joy and peace he felt at being washed clean. President and Sister Hess came, stopping in on their way to a zone conference in Glenndive, Montana. I had the privilege of leading the music. Elder Samplina was assigned to lead, and when she heard that, Sister Hess leaned over and whispered to me, "Do you think he knows how?" She got his attention and whispered that I could do it if he wanted, and he gratefully accepted. :)

Sunday was our open house, and it was a great success. We had a lot of people come (considering that they all had the option of watching it at home in their pajamas). We didn't have any investigators come, sadly, but the other missionaries did. The Robidouxs were there, though, and when I walked in, Ambyre walked up and hugged me and said, "I am so happy to see your face." The broadcast was just beautiful. I sat there, listening to the speakers, and felt the happiest I have felt in a long time. Sister Harrington was beside me, the Robidouxs in front of me, and the Farnsworths behind me, with some of the little Robidoux and Farnsworth daugthers braiding my hair over the bench, and the choir was singing... It was like I was surrounded by family. I felt such joy in that moment.

I would pose the same question Ammon asked his brethren: "Have we not great reason to rejoice?" Yes! We have the most reason to rejoice that anyone can possibly have. We have the Savior and the gospel and the plan of salvation. We have God and we have each other. We have so much reason to rejoice, this season and always.

I love you all so much. Enjoy the holidays and pray that I will stay warm. Thank you for all your love and prayers on my behalf. It means the world.

Love always,

Sister Pullan

It's a Marshmallow World in the NoDak

Nov. 28, 2016

Greetings, everyone!

So this happened:

​The Sisters woke us up at 5:30 this morning to show us that North Dakota had dumped on us in the night, and was dumping still. It's still going now. Hell hath no fury like a North Dakota blizzard. I know you can't tell very well from this picture, but the snow literally falls sideways because the wind is blowing it so hard. Every time you walk near a house, it's like an extra little blizzard right there because the wind is blowing the snow off the roof.

This was Sister Harrington's response:

And this was mine:

We spent the whole morning shoveling people's driveways, then went home to clean up and have some hot cocoa and lunch. When we left the apartment this afternoon, there was already a snow drift a foot and a half high on  our balcony and getting deeper all the time.

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​This concludes our Dickinson, North Dakota weather report.

Thanksgiving was amazing. The Hollis were so good to us. Sister Holli had made a gorgeous Thanksgiving spread and had set out her beautiful china. Two of the Holli children were there as well--Peter and Elaine. They are such a smart and funny family. I spent a long time comparing favorite books and poems with both of them, which made me miss reading. We played Scum with Skip Bo cards (at which I excelled) and the game of Life (at which I didn't. It was too close to reality for me--I was a teacher with a $30,000 salary and no husband for about a third of the game). We enjoyed food and pie and each other's company all afternoon. It felt like home. I know Brother Holli sent some pictures, but here's one of the whole group:

We spent the weekend showing the #LighttheWorld video to anyone who would listen and handing out #LighttheWorld pass along cards to anyone who would keep the door open long enough for us the get it through the crack. We are really excited about it. Also, we are having an open house for the 1st Presidency broadcast on Sunday night. We (that is, us and the ward mission people) printed invitations and have handed them out to any member we could talk to, encouraging them to give them to their friends and ask them to come. The members are bringing treats, and there will hot chocolate and a nativity display and a church tour. We are really excited about it.

In other good news, we had an investigator come to church Sunday! His name is Frank. He recently married one of our less actives, Lori. One of Lori's older sons was kicked out on the street in Washington last month and was homeless for a few days. She called us frantically, and we called the right people who got in touch with the transient welfare bishop out there who got her son here. She's had some warmer feelings toward the church as a result, and is eager for her new husband to take the discussions and for her 7 year old twins to be baptized. Frank enjoyed church. He really listened intently and asked great questions. We are going to extend a baptismal invitation to him this weekend. Fingers crossed!

I am now a backup ward pianist as well as district and mission pianist. I played as a sub for Primary last minute yesterday. Thanks, Mom, for keeping me in piano lessons.

I am doing well. The mission is not easy, but I am OK. Sister Harrington struggles sometimes with her depression, and we found out that one of the medicines she has been on for her headaches and neck pain has been making that worse. We are hoping to find some better solutions for her. It just kills me sometimes to see her having such a hard time and not be able to help. I am doing my best, though. It really is a blessing to be her companion. She told me the other day that I have helped her more than any companion she has ever had.

I love you all so much. Thank you so much for all your love and support. I could do this without you. I know I say that every week, but it's as true this Monday as it was last. I love you and miss you with all my heart.

Love always,

Sister Pullan

Attached are two pictures I thought you'd like--my Thanksgiving decor. :) The wreath I made for a Relief Society activity. The turkeys are not finished.  I didn't have time, so I am pretending that they donated their feathers for the wreath. Feathers not pictured should include leggings, boots, down coats, and hot chocolate.​

You know you're in North Dakota when...

Nov. 21, 2016

Hi, everyone!

This week's email will be (at least partially) in list format.

When you're in North Dakota...

1) Even though there are blizzards in South Dakota, Montana, Minnesota, and half the rest of the United States, AND it's 10-20 degrees with windchill, it still looks like this outside:

​Sister Harrington is not happy about it, and neither am I. If it's going to be this cold, it might as well be white.

2) You meet all sorts, especially when talking religion. We taught a man this week--the husband of a part-member family--who is Pentacostal. We are going to need to talk to him about how to pray. Pentacostals are very loud and shouty and emotional in their prayers. We also met a father and son both called Juan who are working here while their families are in Arizona. AND a part-member family that we didn't know existed. That one was a miracle for me. We walked in and immediately I registered the presence of two cats, a dog, and a whole bunch of cigarette smoke and thought, "Great. I'm doomed." Incredibly, though, my asthma didn't react at all through the whole lesson. Either I'm getting used to the allergens, or the Lord was blessing me. Maybe both. We also met a man on the street who was doing some amazing martial arts type moves with a baton that was lit on fire on both ends. He did a special performance just for us, right there on the sidewalk. Definitely a highlight of the week.

3) Sometimes you get to hold baby bunnies during a lesson with a member. And it crawls up your shirt to snuggle on your shoulder. (This particular member owned four of these bunnies, plus two adult bunnies, two cats, a big dog, and a whole bunch of chickens and ducks. Welcome to farm country. :)

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3) You go outside wearing tights, wool socks, fleece-lined leggings, a wool underskirt, normal dress clothes, mittens, a down overcoat, winter boots and a hat--and still the wind manages to get in there somewhere and make your legs cold. I am so incredibly grateful for winter clothing. Also hot chocolate.

4) Because you have no hills, you put your town name and logo on water towers.

5) Sometimes you try everyone you can think of and NO ONE IS HOME. I don't know how it is possible, but everyone seems to go to the grocery store or something right during our contacting time. Ah, well...

6) And sometimes you have pizza parties at the apartment during lunch hour. :)

​7) Santa comes to do charity appearances at your local shopping center (in this case, the Prairie Hills Mall--an oxymoron if I ever heard one) and has Mormon missionaries be his elves. 

​We had a ton of fun being Santa's helpers for a day. We didn't get to do as much contacting as we would have liked--Santa distracts a little from the gospel message, I suppose. Even so, the missionaries have done this for the last five or so years, and the volunteers think very highly of us and enjoy working with us. This is our Dickinson 2nd Ward family Christmas picture:

8) Sometimes you meet people who are not very kind. We got our first actual slammed door this week from a woman who did not look very happy that we rang her doorbell. Just an example.

9) And then sometimes you get to meet incredible people who make life a delight. For instance, Sister Pemberton. She was transferred this week to Detroit Lakes, the area Sister Harrington used to serve in. She has been such a good friend to me, and I miss her dearly. Taking her place in the 1st ward is Sister Luker, who used to be Sister Harrington's companion in Detroit Lakes, and she is just a blast. She makes me laugh every time we talk and is always ready to talk after a long day. Sister Severe as well--she has apparently decided that I am going to marry her brother. She decided this when I first arrived, it seems, but only told me this last week. I would not be opposed to this course of action. :) Sister Harrington continues to brighten and bless my every day. The more we talk, the more we have realized that we have had similar challenges in the past--though much worse on her part. Because she has experienced those things, though, she has been able to support and help me in a way no one else could. It's a lot like the Atonement in that sense. Because Christ suffered our pains He knows how to help us, and because Sister Harrington suffered what she did, she knows how to help me--and many others besides. In addition to these amazing sisters, there is also every member of the Dickinson 2nd Ward. They are incredible people, and I am so honored to be able to be one of them for a while.

That is my report for the week. The temperature is dropping. Every morning when I go out, there is a part of my brain thinking, "It's cold out there!" (Name the movie). I am bundling up and gaining more and more appreciation for my handcart pioneer ancestors. I will be spending Thanksgiving this week with the Hollis, the family that had us over for Halloween, and I can't wait. We are also having a ward Turkey bowl that morning, so I'll be right at home. I will make my Thankful Turkey this afternoon and send you pictures next week, along with documentation of the holiday festivities.

Also, a side note/shameless plug: Check out the 25 Days in 25 Ways challenge on lds.org. All I can say is DO IT. Every day has a different theme ("Jesus helped others bear their burdens, and so can you" or "Jesus prayed for others and so can you," etc.) and suggestions for acts of service you can do that day. Get started on December 1st, and please share with me those missionary and service experiences! I would love to hear all about it.

I love you all so much. Especially at this Thanksgiving time, I need to tell you all how grateful I am for you. I love you all so much. I couldn't do this without you. Your letters and emails and prayers have kept me going on my hardest days. I am going to miss you all this week especially, but I know that I am where I need to be. I will be with you in spirit. :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Love always,

Sister Pullan, reporting live from the NoDak :)

week 6 - end of transfer report #1

Nov. 14, 2016

Hi, all!

Today marks the beginning of a new planner, and almost the beginning of a new transfer. Transfer calls are tomorrow. We will probably be losing Sister Pemberton or Sister Severe, which makes me very sad. They have both been amazing examples and great friends to me. I'm not sure how much I told you about them, so I'll write a little here. Sister Severe is the oldest in the apartment in mission age, meaning she's been out the longest. She'll actually be going home at the end of this transfer (or maybe next--I can't remember). She is a flaming redheaded ray of sunshine--she could say literally anything with a smile on her face ("We have no new investigators and this lesson went horribly and my shoe strap is broken--but it's fine!"). She is also a great-grandmother--the sister she trained became a trainer and her trainee became a trainer. Sister Pemberton is the next oldest in mission age and the only sister I've met so far who is shorter than me. She reminds me a lot of Amanda in her demeanor and dry sense of humor. Sister Severe called being my godmother before I even got in the field. We have decided that Sister Pemberton can be my fairy godmother. :)

This is our district at our last district meeting (last Friday):

Top row, right to left: Elders Samplina (District Leader) and Ackerman, both 1st ward, and Elders Campbell and Nay, 2nd ward

Bottom row: Sisters Severe, Pemberton (1st ward), Harrington, and myself (2nd ward)

And a funny one, just because:

And now...

SISTER PULLAN'S END-OF-TRANSFER STATISTICAL REPORT (10/16-11/16)

• Area: Dickinson, North Dakota--Dickinson 2nd Ward
• Companion: Sister Harrington
• Baptisms/Confirmations: 0
• Lessons taught to investigators: 40
• Lessons taught to LARCS: 27
• Total Lessons: 67
• # of meals with members: 30 (all wonderful--in Sister Harrington's words, the members here feed us like we are starving Russian orphans).
• Average # of prayers prayed personally per day: 11
• Average # of prayers per day total (solo, w/companion, in groups, lessons, etc.): 28
• Miles driven: Around 1,900, give or take. 
• # of Book of Mormons handed out: Heaven only knows.

That sums up the transfer in numbers, but it is hard to truly sum up the experience it has been. There have been so many ups and downs, and I have learned and grown so much. I have laughed and loved and cried. I've made dear friends and had my heart broken. All in all, we have been successful. Our work is to invite and to allow God to work through us through His spirit. We may not have baptized yet, but we have had success even so. We are seed planters here in North Dakota, and we have been planting our hearts out.

A few experiences from this past week I would like to share with you:

- I made Butternut Squash Soup. I was quite proud of myself.

- I have received a lot of love in the mail this week. I got a wonderful fall package from home, a card from Grandma Molen, and this treasure trove from Uncle Dave and Aunt Crystal. WOW!

- Our Spanish speaking investigators dropped us like a bad habit, as Elder Nay would say. It was really upsetting. We worked SO HARD for our Plan of Salvation lesson last Monday. We made a visual labeled in both languages, practiced sentences and questions over and over again for every section, practiced for an hour with Sister Rogers, coordinated with our interpreters... The lesson itself even went pretty smoothly and stayed on topic, which has been a challenge in the past. But Alba, the wife, kept insisting over and over again that we show her where our teachings were in the Bible, and we did our best. The real sting, though, was went she said flat out (in Spanish): "If it isn't in the Bible, you've invented it." That hurt. I was so upset. Then Brother Hall, our interpreter, shared this scripture: "It is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." That really hit me. We did all that we could do, and the Lord would have to take care of the rest. I cried into Sister Harrington's shoulder for a while when we got to the car, and then I was OK. I know that the Lord will bless us for our efforts and will watch over Zacharias and Alba for us.

- In our weekly planning session we decided to look at our potential investigators list and pray to identify three names we could visit. We both thought of the same name--a woman named Lisa and her husband. When we went to visit Lisa, she was trying to rake leaves out of her small yard near her trailer home and watch her two little boys at the same time. We asked if we could help, and she said she was sure we had better things to do. We insisted that we didn't, and she gratefully accepted our assistance. She told us a while later that she had just been wishing and praying that someone could come by and help her, and at that moment we drove up. We will be teaching her later this week. She was raised in a polygamist family in Mexico (apparently some Mormon polygamist families moved to Mexico and Canada before the Manifesto so they could practice without breaking the law--hers is one of those). We have been praying and studying hard to know how best to teach her and help her gain a testimony of the gospel.

- We went to part of a Lutheran church service this Sunday. We came with the Elders, and they were coming to support a lady they volunteered with (it was a swap deal--we'll go to your church if you'll come to ours). It was interesting, no question. There was a lot of singing--some of it hymns, some Christian pop-type stuff. Very "praise Jesus." There were passages of scripture read, and there was a small puppet show. The puppets sang patriotic songs, since it was recently Veterans Day (Lana, the lady the Elders were there to see, is in charge of the puppet ministry). It was good, but no matter how I tried, I couldn't feel right. It just didn't have the spirit there--a small part of it maybe, but not the real thing. When we walked back into our own meetinghouse half an hour later, the difference was night and day. It was as though I had been thirsty all morning and finally got to drink. The other missionaries sighed with relief along with me. It was a real testimony builder for me. It reminded me that the power and Spirit of God really are in this church. I think I will be able to go out teaching a little more confidently now, remembering that although many people claim to be happy with their faith in Christ, we really do have something to offer.

- One last experience. At the beginning of the week we made a goal that we would have three investigators in sacrament meeting. By the end of the week it seemed that our goal would be impossible. Our teaching pool had slumped horribly with our Bolivian couple dropping us, potentials not opening the door, and another investigator hospitalized. We went to church, hoping to do our best to strengthen the ward but not expecting any new arrivals. To our shock and delight, however, a family we taught some weeks ago and had put down as not progressing walked into sacrament, without our having invited them or even talked to them for days. They said they just wanted to check it out and see what it was all about. Another investigator we hadn't seen in weeks and similarly hadn't invited also attended. It really is true, what the Lord says in Doctrine and Covenants: "I will do mine own work." He really does. We are just along for the ride, to do our best and hopefully be converted ourselves along the way.

- Also, as it turns out, boxed water really is better. :)

And now, in conclusion, a thought:

Please, everyone, invite your friends to church. Pray for missionary opportunities and then act when you get an answer. We need your help. According to church statistical reports, of investigators found and taught by missionaries alone, 1/28 will be baptized and stay faithful. For investigators found and fellowshipped by members and taught in members' homes, the number jumps to 2/3. I can attest from my own experience that lesson always inevitably go better when a member is present. You have no idea the influence you can have. Please, everyone, work with the  missionaries. Pray for those opportunities. Seek those lost sheep one by one. The Lord will bless you and the work will accelerate. As our ward mission leader says, "We can't be two churches--the church of the members and the church of the missionaries." He is right. We have to be one church so the Gospel can reach everyone.

[Preview of upcoming attractions: Speaking of member missionary work, get excited for the Christmas initiative! We got a sneak peek at it at our Zone Training Meeting, and it is going to be awesome. The theme is "Light the World," and there is going to be a big service and member missionary work push with it. It's going to be amazing!]

I love you all so much. Thank you for your love, support, letters, packages, and prayers. The mission is tough, but I know I can do it. I feel so blessed to have so many angels on my side.

More next week!

Love from the NoDak,

Sister Pullan

Your Skyscape for the week:

week 5 - Summer?...

Nov. 7, 2016

Hi, everyone!

The weather is beautiful here in Dickinson. The sky is blue, the breeze is gentle, the sun is shining, and it's a balmy 70 degrees or so every day. Sister Harrington hates it. She is a California girl who had almost never seen snow until last year, and now she is anxious to enjoy it again. We are looking forward to a white Christmas. :)

We had a marvelous Halloween last week with the Hollis, as I'm sure you saw. They made a wonderful dinner, complete with a loaf of bread shaped like a spider and a cauldron of homemade root beer. They had pumpkins for us to carve, and Brother Holli read us a story about skeletons scaring each other. Sister Holli made a beautiful cake with black icing and a white icing moon and cookie bats on top, with candy corn colors inside. They really spoiled us, and I was so grateful. It felt like being at Grandma's Halloween party. It was a little taste of home, and I could not begin to express to them how much it meant to me.

The week was about average. We visited with Ramon, the man with the baby from a couple weeks ago, on his doorstep. He promised to talk to his wife and call us, but we haven't heard from him yet. We have 2 new investigators--Jessica, who is the non-member wife of an inactive husband and the mother of two adorable kiddos--and Nate, who we met street contacting and who seems genuinely interested. We also had a fantastic lesson with a part-member couple in our ward. Brother Huitt joined the church two years ago, and the missionaries have been working with his wife off and on ever since. We were over to their house for dinner and taught the restoration, as we've been asked to teach our discussions to the members we visit. We expected to just give the quick version to both of them and call it a day. To our surprise, Meldene started firing off questions at us and sharing experiences as we taught. I felt strongly impressed to ask her if she wanted to be with her husband forever. She said that she did. Sister Harrington asked if she believed that her husband held the priesthood power, and she said yes again. I testified to her that the priesthood power to bind families forever has been restored and asked her if she would read the Book of Mormon, and she said YES! She even suggested herself that she and Brother Huitt could read together that night, to which he happily agreed. He told us Sunday that they read 1 Nephi 1 together, and we couldn't have been more thrilled. Sister Harrington told me that in her experience with teaching them, Meldene had never been that inquisitive or so definite in her acceptance to read. We have high hopes.

I can't tell you how strong the spirit is in this work. We pray all the time--in our planning, in our tracting, at member houses, with investigators, with people on the street, and basically any time we aren't sure what to do. We had an incredible weekly planning session this last week (every week we take about four hours or so to plan the next week). We felt the spirit guiding us so strongly. We decided to pray about choosing three names from our list of past investigators to go find and visit again--and we thought of the same name. It was incredible. The Lord really does guide his work and his missionaries.

We went to Bismarck this week for zone training meeting again. The meeting was very good. We went to get burgers with the elders afterward and then... to the temple! What a blessing it is to be in the house of the Lord again! I can't even describe it. Sister Harrington and I did initiatory, then had the privilege of sitting in the celestial room for half an hour. We had the entire room to ourselves. I couldn't even bring myself to read from the scriptures--I just wanted to sit and drink in the spirit I felt there. After a while we went to the baptistry and had the honor of doing baptisms with some of our less-actives. We have one member of the ward, Rodney, who has come out teaching with us a few times--he is an early 20s hispanic young man who is working on preparing for the temple and the Melchizedek priesthood. He hadn't planned on coming and told us that he couldn't get a temple recommend. Imagine our joy, then, when we went to the baptistry, and there was Rodney! I don't think I've ever been so elated in my life. I could have just floated away with excitement, and my grin stayed on my face all night.

Sister Harrington had kind of a rough time this last weekend. She endures daily pain in her back and neck from whiplash from a car accident she was in years ago. She also deals with anxiety (we support each other on that one). She amazes me every day--it is so much harder for her to be out here than it is for most people, but here she is anyway, because the work matters that much to her. She had a really hard time with some things over the weekend, and I was able to comfort and encourage her and help her feel better about things. It was a sacred privilege to be able to serve my companion when she was in need, and it meant to world to me that she felt she could reach out to me.

We had a fantastic regional broadcast yesterday. Elder Rasband spoke and talked about how everything we do in this church is done "one by one." It reminded me of our stake mission statement. I am out here to help rescue my brothers and sisters one by one--or at least to extend the invitation. :)

I love you all so much. Please write to me! I love getting your emails and your letters. Sorry for the dearth of pictures--I left my camera in the car. Please enjoy those attached--the Bismarck zone after ZTM, and the sisters doing an awkward pregnancy picture because we can. :)  The sisters in the back are trainers, or "moms," and the girls in the front are the trainees. We have four mom and daughter sets in our zone! :)

I love you all. Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Sister Pullan

The Bismarck Zone after zone training meeting in front of the Bismarck temple.

An awkward "pregnancy picture" because we can.  The sisters in the back are trainers and the sisters in front are trainees.  (But I want to know - who is the elder in the back?)

A surprise Halloween email!

We had Sister Pullan over for P-day and Halloween today.

We enjoy having her in Dickinson.

She has a way of making quick connections with people and we can feel of her sincerity in serving a mission.

We know she will do well.

We carved pumpkins and Sister Pullan's pumpkin was a wand with many stars.

Have a Happy Halloween.

Brother Holli

Dickinson, ND - week 4

Happy Halloween!  Oct 31, 2016

Hi, everyone!

Today is a rare treat for the missionaries of the North Dakota Bismarck mission. Halloween is not a safe night for missionaries sometimes, because there are a lot of people out in the streets, not all looking for Halloween candy, and also because sometimes people dress up like us and make mischief and get the mission in trouble. So today we get a FULL P-day--ending at 9pm instead of 6! It is going to be amazing. This morning we got up early and attended the early morning seminary Halloween party. We are going to carve pumpkins this afternoon and go to dinner at the Hollis and play games with members this evening. Sister Harrington and I are going to do missionary version of Halloween costumes--which means we will switch nametags and see if anyone notices. I am going to do bedtime stories with the sisters tonight after planning--we've decided to make it a slumber party. It is going to be a blast!

A few more fun facts about North Dakota:

- There are a TON of people up here of Scandinavian descent. The names Schuetzler and Kostelecky up here are as common as Giles and Bonner and Ritchie in Heber City. That is also where the awesome accent comes from (think of those two moose from Brother Bear--that's basically it).

- When you fill up with gas around here, you have to enter your vehicle's VIN number and the number of miles on your odometer. Sister Harrington and I have no idea why this is.

- There are roughly 1 million people in our mission. 

- Everyone said it was going to snow before Halloween. It hasn't. Sister Harrington is disappointed. I am absolutely thrilled.

We had exchanges this week. I don't think I ever told you about the other sisters in my apartment. Sister Severe is a darling redhead who will say or do almost anything with a smile on her face. Seriously, ANYTHING. She is absolutely adorable and has declared herself to be my godmother. Sister Pemberton is even shorter than I am and is whitty and good-natured and fun. She reminds me a lot of Amanda in her manner and dry sense of humor. They are our STLs, or Sister Training Leaders--basically the same thing as a zone leader, but for the sisters. They did a one-day exchange with us starting Tuesday night, and since we live in the same apartment, that means that Sister Severe and I switched rooms. I washed my sheets and cleaned the room and packed an overnight bag and everything--then found out that in this case, it is OK to go back and forth between rooms to get clothes and things. I was just really nervous and wanted to get it right. They thought I was adorable. Seriously, the whole "mom" jargon out here is appropriate--I feel like such a little kid sometimes. Anyway, Sister Pemberton and I were companions for a day. We did studies, including some great role play, and did some of my training. Then we got lunch at a Thai restaurant and ate outside, talking about her experience teaching English in Russia and my experiences in Israel. We then volunteered at the House of Manna, did some tracting, ate at a member's house, and had ward coordination in her ward before going home. It was an amazing experience, and I learned so much from her. Part way through the House of Manna, she looked at me and said, "I would like to be friends with you for a long time." I couldn't agree more. I was so tickled I walked around collecting hangers with a grin on my face like I'd just won the lottery. That day was also my 5 week mark, and that night all the sisters insisted on putting a candle in a cupcake for me and singing "Happy Birthday." I love them all so much--my mom and my aunt and my godmother. :)

The really funny thing is that we managed to meet more crazy, argumentative people in that one day than I've met my whole mission. Highlights include:

- A man who asked us if we were 7th Day adventist, then proceeded to tell us that the finding of the Book of Mormon is ridiculous and that there is no Godhead and telling us to "read our book" (the Bible) and see if he was right--and all this without us having said ANYTHING about religion.

- A woman who insisted adamantly that BYU had carbon dated some document (I assume the Doctrine and Covenants, but she wasn't sure) and had found that it was newer than everyone thought, which meant the Word of Wisdom wasn't really sent from God, and that Mormons everywhere were now flooding Starbucks locations to drink coffee for the first time.

- A man who leaned in way too close to me and started telling me what he thought of a girl in the other room--and it was NOT nice.

- A man who started scoffing and laughing at Sister Pemberton while she was in the middle of reciting the first vision. She just ploughed on through, which made me proud. This same man said that we could stop by his business to teach him, but insisted (when we told him that Sister Severe would be there because he was in the 1st ward area) that he wanted to hear the lessons from me. I thought he was impressed with my testimony. Sister Pemberton thought he was flirting with me.

People are crazy. I am going to have SO MANY stories when I get home. Every day brings something, whether the good, the bad, or the crazy.

We had a ward Halloween party on Friday night. Brother Farnsworth was dressed as Kermit the Frog--he is the biggest Muppet fan I ever met. Sister Hart, who is pregnant, had cut a hole in her shirt and put some black felt with eyes on it there, so that it looked like something was staring out from her stomach. We had a lot of people bring non-member and less active friends, which was amazing. The bishopric made funnel cakes and the YM/YW did games and trick or treat for the kids. Sister Harrington was in a lot of pain while we were there--she gets horrible neck pain and migraines because of whiplash from a car accident some years ago. When some of the members realized she was not OK, they went all out to make sure that she got a blessing and anything else that would help. They all told me to look after her, which I do try to do--whenever she lets me, anyway. I just love this ward so much. They are such good people and are so willing to reach out an help others in any way they can. I am so grateful I get to be here to serve alongside them.

I bore my testimony in church yesterday. I said that I know the church is true and that I am excited to serve the ward. I also invited anyone who didn't know me to introduce themselves to me so I could get to know them better, and several of them did! We helped out in Gospel Principles like we do every week. We are trying to get some less actives and new converts together to do an adult baptisms for the dead trip on Friday. We will be in Bismarck anyway for Zone training meeting, so Sister Harrington and I will get the spend the whole afternoon at the temple. I cannot wait. I haven't been this excited about a temple trip since I got endowed. It has been a reminder to me that the final goal for every member and investigator is the temple. It is the place where we receive the highest of all our Heavenly Father's blessings. I am so excited to be there again and renew my covenants, and remember what that goal is for everyone I teach.

That is about it this week. I am well. The Lord is providing. North Dakota The wind is blowing. The sky is gorgeous. The hay bales are cylinders. The oil is pumping. The people are friendly (usually). The churches are Lutheran (Catholic/Presbyterian/Pentecostal/7thDay/Baptist/You-Name-It). The fields are endless. The work rolls forward. All is well.

I love you all so much. Please keep writing. Also, a selfish request--nothing makes me happier than to get something in the mailbox, so if you ever have a minute, I would love a note by hand. Thank you all again for your love and support.

Love always,

Sister Pullan

Dickinson, ND - week 3

October 24, 2016

Hi everyone-

What a week it has been. I can hardly believe it is P-Day again already! This email may be a little scatterbrained because I have so much to tell you and can't think of a coherent way to arrange it. Here it goes anyway!

First off, the companionship segment. Sister Harrington is still amazing. She is actually from Browns Valley, CA--I didn't hear her right when she told me the first time. I was really confused when I first met her, because she said the word "bag" with an "ay" vowel (like "ape") like they do up here, so at first I thought she was from Minnesota. She has also dealt with anxiety and is a chronic perfectionist like myself, so we support each other on that. She looks after me and is a daily and hourly example and blessing. She is obedient and dedicated and faithful and loving and committed to the work, even when it would be very easy to do otherwise. She deals with daily pain in her back and neck from a car accident and often gets migraines, but she keeps going anyway. She is a true pioneer, though she doesn't always see it herself. I try to remind her whenever I can.

Companionship selfie/tribute to Elder Jernigan. :)

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A little tidbit of mission jargon: Sister Harrington is my trainer, so she is my "mom". I am, then, her daughter (or sometimes her baby--she said she watched the choir at general conference, looking at every sister and thinking, "I wonder if my baby's up there!"). My grandma is Sister Baadsgaard, who trained sister Harrington. We have a three generation picture from my first night in the mission home. I'll send it to you when Sister Harrington gets it to me.

We've been teaching a lot. We've also been trying to teach without it actually happening--that is, we would teach a lot more if people would keep their appointments or be at home when we stop by. We went from 4 progressing investigators last week to 0 this week because none of our investigators kept their appointments and/or were keeping commitments. Justin, our on-date investigator, was unable to come to either of our two scheduled lessons. I'm not sure if this is coincidental or if he is avoiding it. We also have a new family--Justin and Cassidy and their daughter Shyla. Problem: they love talking to the missionaries because of the spiritual and emotional lift it gives them, but they are absolutely adamant that they don't want to be baptized, which means we probably can't teach them. We both felt like their lesson didn't go anywhere and that we can't go on with them if they really don't want to progress. Our Hispanic investigators cancelled as well. I am not discouraged, though, because I know we did our best. We will just have to see what this week brings.

Some fun happenings:

Last week I got to watch Beauty and the Beast with Sister Harrington for P-Day. My life was complete in that moment.

Brother Huitt, a new convert to the ward, took us to lunch at Mandy's Bagel Bar last week with a non-member friend of his. The conversation was good, but the bagels... wow. Twenty different kinds of bagels and as many different kinds of cream cheese to pick from. I had a cheddar bagel with spinach artichoke. SO GOOD. We will definitely be returning soon if I have anything to say about it.

Sister Harrington had a birthday yesterday! The other sisters who share our apartment--Sister Severe and Sister Pemberton--came into our room at midnight to wish her a happy birthday. We also decorated the apartment with balloons and streamers while Sister Harrington was in the room writing in her journal (at Sister Severe's adamant insistence that she go away and do something productive). The Coopers from the first ward had us over and made a beautiful dinner--gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches and kneffla soup, which is a regional specialty--it's a Scandinavian version of chicken and dumpling soup, and it is lovely. If you want to try something from my mission, look it up. :) They also made her a birthday cake. Their teenage daughter Nicole taught me how to make frosting roses, and their nine-year-old girl Tylee adopted me as a friend immediately and even quoted Shakespeare with me as I left ("Goodnight, goodnight, parting is such sweet sorrow..." etc.). My gift to her was a card and a box of Welches fruit snacks, which she loves.

This morning we played Pod Ball and Chair Soccer at the church with the Elders. Pod Ball is one-ball dodge ball--if you get hit you sit down and become a "pod," and those that are "in" can throw the ball to you and have you throw it back to them so they can move (if you have the ball you can only move one step). If the person who tagged you gets out, you're back in. In Chair Soccer, everyone defends a chair. If your chair gets hit, you have to stay in contact with it. You get back in my hitting someone else's chair with the ball from where you are, or by shooting it into one of the basketball hoops. It was a blast.

I have been appointed the unofficial district pianist. Elder Samplina, our district leader, just asked me one Sunday if I could play the hymns for every district meeting. I seem to have become an unofficial mission pianist as well, as I was asked to play for Zone Training meeting and also played all the hymns when we were at the mission home. Thanks, mom, for keeping me in lessons all those years. :)

Now I need to take a spiritual note. I want to share an experience we had tracting the other night. As a preface, you should know that I do not enjoy tracting at all. It gives me anxiety to no end because I just don't like getting the door slammed in my face. Just to give you an idea...

Reactions to the door approach: ("Hi, we're missionaries from the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints... etc.")

- "I'm not interested, I'm Catholic."

- "I'm not interested, I'm Lutheran."

- "I'm not interested, I'm Methodist."

- "I'm not interested, I'm a Christian." (And your point is...?)

Or this one from a couple nights ago:

Us: Hi, we're missionaries...

Old man: JEHOVAHS?

Us: No, Mormons!

Old man: What's the difference? (beat) Not interested! (door shut)

That's tracting for you. The other night (Saturday), we were having that kind of night. Lots of people not interested, they have religion already, thank you very much, etc. It was really starting to get me down. I wanted to yell out, "I've give up 18 months of my life and family and career to be here on your doorstep. The least you can do is let me finish my sentence!" We didn't have a lot of time to tract, and I was ready to just take it in and call it a night. Sister Harrington felt that we ought to try one more door. We said a prayer and looked around. There was a house on that street next door to the Huitts, where a family lived that he had been meaning to introduce us to but hadn't. Sister Harrington felt we ought to knock there, and we did. A man came to the door with a baby in his arms. We told him that Brother Huitt had told us about them and that we wanted to meet them and give them a Book of Mormon. He expressed sincere interest. He said that he wanted us to come again and that he would talk to his wife about coming to church. It was more interest than we had seen all week.

I know that the Lord is looking out for me and is guiding this work. I am trying to be an Ammon, preaching in a land where people don't always want to accept the Gospel. Even so, I know that somewhere, behind one of those closed doors, there is a Lamoni waiting, needing this message desperately, even if they don't know it yet. I also know that sometimes I am not Ammon--sometimes I am Abinadi, sowing seeds that I will not see coming to fruition in my mission or even in this life. Truly "we are sowing, daily sowing," as the hymn says. I haven't found that person yet, but I know that somewhere, there is someone I can touch. And they are waiting for me.

I love you all so much. I wish I could be there at the Halloween party next week. I will be here, dressing up like a missionary and inviting people to our ward Halloween party on Friday. Send me pictures! Thank you all again for your love and support. I could do this without you. 

Love always,

Sister Pullan

I didn't get the sky today, and it was mostly gray anyway. This is a STUNNING sunrise from earlier in the week. The picture doesn't do it justice. The sky is AMAZING here.

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Me in the "mission field." Ha ha! That is Sister Harrington's shadow beside me. And yes, Dad, before you say it, "I am out-standing in my field." :)

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Dickinson, ND - week 2

                 October 17, 2016

Hi, Everyone! 

I am doing well. The weather continues cool but pleasant, except for a freak snow shower last week that had me bundled up in all my woolens and my big down coat and which had Sister Harrington in her light suit jacket laughing at me all day. Better safe than sorry, I say! Everyone keeps saying that last year was mild and this year will be bad, so I am bracing myself to suit up.

Sister Harrington is amazing. I realized that I didn't tell you much about her last week, so I'll do it now before I forget. She is almost 21 (this Sunday!) and has a great laugh and a beautiful singing voice. She is from Bronze Valley, California--North of Sacramento. She loves cats, music, percussion, and the Gospel. She has sacrificed a lot to be here and is a daily inspiration to me. We get along really well. She seems kind of nervous about being a trainer. And about being MY trainer. She joked with President Hess that I came "pre-trained," though it isn't true at all. She is a kind, patient, and dedicated person, and I love her already.

And now, for your educational enlightenment and viewing pleasure...

Fun Facts about North Dakota, Dickinson, etc.

1. Dickinson is a town with a population of around 15,000 people, give or take. It is populated chiefly by people who have moved here for work of one kind or another, with a few golden oldies who have been here for decades. Dickinson has a dinosaur museum, a chamber of commerce, a Walmart, a few charities, and more churches than anybody knows what to do with, one of which is Mormon. The town slogan is "The Western Edge," though neither Sister Harrington nor I can make heads or tails of what that means. If they are saying that Dickinson is the "Western Edge" of civilization, then what are they saying about Utah and California?

2. The oil industry is a big deal out here. There was a big boom a while back where tons of people came in for work, but now that things have slumped again there's not as much employment. The industry still remains a strong part of the area. You see oil derricks occasionally out in the fields as you drive by.

3. The Bismarck temple is TINY. It is seriously about the size of our home stake center. I remembered that again when we went to Bismarck for Zone Training Meeting and saw it by the church we were meeting at.

4. President and Sister Hess are amazing. We saw them at ZTM. They love all the missionaries so much. Also, a random side note I forgot in my earlier letter--they have a soft serve ice cream machine in their basement. The missionaries help themselves when they come in for meetings, and Sister Hess keeps toppings handy. :)

5. I bought a bedspread for myself last week. After much consideration of my personal preference and budget, this was the result.

​I am in love with it. As a side note, the elephant pillow pet does not belong to me. It belonged to the sister before me, and I adopted it.

6. The members here are AMAZING. We are fed almost every night, and they are so willing to come out to lessons with us. They take really good care of us. After having a normal church meeting yesterday (as opposed to stake conference) as well as attending ward council and Souper Saturday, I feel like I am starting to get to know people and become part of the ward. I am getting to know the non-members in the area as well. We moved furniture for a Catholic lady in our boundaries known to anyone who knows her well as Grandma Ann. She has worked at McDonalds for almost 40 years (she is 83) and is possibly the feistiest person I've ever met. She kept insisting, "This isn't a house, it's a home." I feel that way about a lot of houses here now.

7. Some places have boxed water. I have yet to find out if it really is better--this one belongs to Sister Harrington. I will let you know when I get my hands on one.

8. We missionaries here in Dickinson are assigned to wards rather than areas. It allows us to keep track of whose investigators are whose and to know when we are in our own prosyliting territory. Ours is the Dickinson 2nd ward. It stretches 40 miles to Killdeer in one direction, 40 miles to Richardton the other way, and clear out to Amadon an hour away. Most of the members are here in Dickinson, but we do travel a lot.

9. We have a car, which we drive almost everywhere we go. I was going to note the make and model, but now I can't remember. It's white. I tell you what it is next week. I am the designated driver, and Sister Harrington is my human GPS until such time as I can find my way on my own.

10. Guess what other town is in my area? MEDORA! It is an hour away from me! The fake town where we locked our keys in the car all those years ago! We are hoping to go visit next week if it isn't closed down for the season yet.

11. My district is great, and sometimes we play soccer on P-day.

12. Fact: EVERYONE in Dickinson owns a dog or a cat.

Fact: Cats make me stop breathing. I wanted to die during a 90-minute long appointment last week where a cat was present. Sister Harrington said she couldn't hear me wheezing, and I can't believe it--I thought I was wheezing loud enough to be heard from Medora. I had to time my sentences so that I could take time to breathe between phrases.

Additional fact: Taking Zyrtec before an appointment makes me NOT REACT to the CATS! I tried it at an appointment yesterday at that same residence, and it worked! NO ASTHMA! Hallelujah and praise heaven! I just wish I'd known about this sooner so I could've used it at Grandma Glenn's place.

13. I have a desk with a really great chair. (PS: Lydia, I hung your pictures on my wall!) 

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14. Our ward has a great many Spanish speakers. We know because we are attempting to teach a couple from Bolivia who speak almost no English, so we have enlisted anyone we can think of in the ward to help us teach and fellowship them. We had our first lesson last Saturday, with a brother from our ward interpreting. Sister Harrington and I worked hard to be able to say a few phrases in Spanish. It was mostly just "Yo se el Libro de Mormon es verdado," or "I know the Book of Mormon is true," but it was truly remarkable how powerful that one sentence can be. The spirit was so strong. The husband came to church yesterday and received a royal welcome from anyone who spoke a word of Spanish.

15. North Dakota is the nation's #1 producer of sunflowers. They are harvested for their seeds and for use as a fuel source. Right now it is too cold for them to grow, so the fields are just dead brown heads. I can't wait for next summer--it is going to be stunning. I love to imagine those deadhead fields as miles and miles of gold.

I am working on seeing my investigators in the same way. They may not look like much now, but every single one has the potential to be a sunflower. For example, Sister Harrington and I went to a trailer park last week to visit a less active member, but ended up tracting there instead because the LA wans't home. I was nervous because the area was run down and night was coming on. The first door we knocked on was answered by a tall, rough-looking man with a beard who told us his name was Justin. I was nervous about him, too for similar reasons. He listened to our message and agreed that we could come back to teach him the next day (we have to have another member with us to teach a single man). We came back the next night and he welcomed us. We taught the restoration and the Atonement to him and one of his roommates, and he said we could come back Sunday. We went back yesterday, gave him a Book of Mormon, and taught him to pray. I cannot express what a privilege and blessing it is to hear someone pray for the first time. We basically had to prompt him like you do with a small child, but he did it--he talked to His heavenly Father for the first time in his life. Better yet, we extended the invitation to baptism, and he ACCEPTED!!!!!!! He is now on date to be baptized in November. I am so grateful that we went tracting that night. I just saw the dead heads, but God saw the sunflowers and lead us right.

This gospel is true. Think about all the ways it has blessed your life, and then offer those blessings to everybody around you. The missionaries cannot do this work without your help. According to recent data from church headquarters, an investigator found and taught solely by the missionaries has a 1/26 chance of being baptized and staying true to the faith, while for those introduced to the church by and taught with a member friend is 2/3. We need your help. Share the word, hasten the work! As President Brigham Young said, "There is neither man or woman in this Church who is not on a mission." It is true--you have a mission! And the Lord is with you. In the words of President Eyring, "We never need feel alone in the Lord's service because we never are."

I know that is true. I have already been watched over and protected. Sister Harrington and I have felt the guidance of the spirit on where to go and what to do, and have felt his restraining influence when we needed to go somewhere else. The Lord is watching over me, and I pray every day that He will continue to watch over all of you. 

I love you all and miss you so much every day. Thank you for your support and prayers. I couldn't do this without you. Hugs and kisses! Hurrah for Israel! 

Love,

Sister Pullan

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