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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Dickinson, ND - Week 1

October 10, 2016

Greetings, everyone!

I am writing from the Dickinson Area Public Library on P-Day #1 of my mission. It can't believe it has only been five days since I arrived. It has been quite the ride already!

Sister Harrington and I drove out to Dickinson last Thursday afternoon. We went to the apartment (pictures included) and got me mostly moved in, then we took off for dinner with the Banks family. They are some of the most selfless, missionary-minded people I know. They are busy trying to move into a new house. My first meal with a member family was pizza and cold cereal because that's all they had in all the chaos and they wanted to make sure we had something. They have two adorable kids, Ophelia and Virgil, with another coming in the next month or so.

Every day we get up at 6:30 and exercise. We then have an hour of personal study and an hour of companionship study. We then get out and do whatever we can--teaching lessons, making appointments, knocking doors, doing service.

I enjoy the service opportunities. We volunteer once every other week at the House of Manna, which is a donation-run thrift store where the homeless or poor can come get clothing and things for free. The ladies who run it are absolutely adorable. They love the sister missionaries and speak with some fantastic Midwestern accents (think the two moose from Brother Bear). We also volunteer at the food pantry, which is essentially a non-LDS version of the Bishop's storehouse. There are some fantastic ladies working there as well. I especially love Patty, a black lady with a smile as big as all outdoors who calls everybody "Sugar."

Dickinson is a whole new world to me. It's been interesting getting used to the work here. We have only a couple solid investigators and a good half a dozen potentials (that is, they seem really interested but aren't keeping commitments or haven't received the lessons yet). Our list of less actives, on the other hand, is about a mile long. So. Many. Less actives. The abbreviation we use for that category is LARC--less active/recent convert. A lot of our work is with LARCs. For example, last week we taught a woman from the ward who has been addicted to cigarettes for years and is trying to quit smoking. She's been clean for about a week and a half now. We went to a little pizza party in her honor with a family in the ward to celebrate her being off smoking for one week. We've been praying for her a lot. A lot of what we do is getting in with less actives and knocking on doors, sharing on the street, talking to anybody who will listen in the hope that we can find a potential investigator.

Outside the church, Dickinson is a medium size town with many smaller towns out and around it. The fields stretch for miles and miles in every direction (mission fields--ha ha!). :) A ton of the people who live here came for work on the oil fields, and the rest were born here. There is everything from trailer parks (and we tract and teach in a lot of those) all the way up to CEO business owners. There are people from all over the world, too. We have a potential investigator who is Muslim and speaks Arabic. We have tracted into Hispanics, Hatians, and people from every part of the United States. The diversity is staggering. The religious scene, however, is basically the same all the way across the board.

Good news: EVERYONE in North Dakota is Christian.

Bad news: EVERYONE in North Dakota is Christian.

That about sums it up, really. Essentially everyone we talk to says that they are not interested because they are [insert religion here]. We've met a good bunch of Catholics, at least one Muslim, and a TON of Lutherans. Very few of the Lutherans actually seem to know what Lutherans believe, however. Lutheran is another way of saying "Christian-not-Catholic." Everyone is very comfortable in the religion of their choosing, whatever it may be. My favorite response to our knock: "No thanks, I'm a Christian." (And your point is...?) :) It is a little discouraging having so many people shut the door on us, and it's been rough getting used to that. I am trying to have more faith that Heavenly Father will lead us to those who really need the gospel, even if it takes a hundred "Not interested" contacts to get there.

Thought of the week: MEMBER MISSIONARY WORK! Invite your friends! We can't do this work without you. I had no idea until now what a godsend member fellowshippers are. Help the missionaries!

Also, the sky is huge. I cannot believe the sunrises and sunsets. See the pictures below!

That is all this week. I love you all so much and miss you terribly.

Please keep writing! This is my street address:

2641 Dakota Blvd.  Apt 302
Dickinson, ND   58601

Love,

Sister Pullan
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The sisters in our apartment--me and Sister Harrington in the middle, Sister Severe and Sister Pemberton on the outside.

  Our apartment

I'm Alive!!! (and have arrived in North Dakota)

October 5, 2016

Hi, Fam!

President Hess said that this email is simply to tell you that I got here safe. The plane landed alright in spite of the worst turbulence I have ever felt, and I haven't yet been blown away across the prairie. I placed a Book of Mormon on the plane here and two more tracting with my NEW COMPANION, Sister Harrington! She is incredible and I love her already. She and I picked each other as temporary tracting companions without knowing that we were assigned to each other as trainer and trainee. We tracted together for 45 minutes and in that time placed two Book of Mormons, told one person that we no longer practice polygamy, and had a door shut in our faces with a declaration that the homeowner in question had no interest in Mormonism because she was Christian (Sister Harrington tells me that happens a lot up here).

We will be serving together in the Dickinson 2nd Ward, which she says is just amazing and so missionary minded. In mission jargon, this makes her my mom and Sister Baadsgaard, Sister Harrington's trainer, my grandmother. I got to meet both tonight and we took a three generation picture. :) President and Sister Hess are incredible. They love us like sons and daughters, and I love them right back. The work is growing here, and I can't wait to jump in and be part of it.

More on Monday! Love you!

Rachel

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Hello!

We wanted to let you know that your beautiful daughter, Sister Pullan, has arrived safely in Bismarck.  We love her already!  Thank you for sharing her with us!

Sincerely,

President and Sister Hess

Rachel with Pres. & Sis. Hess at the mission home.

Welcome to Bismarck, North Dakota!

Week 3 at the MTC

September 29, 2016

Hi, everyone!

Updates on General Conference. I am going to be sitting in the VERY FRONT ROW of the Soprano section, so the far left if you're facing the choir loft. I will be wearing a mulberry colored shirt with a lace collar (Mom, the one we got at Sister Missionary Mall that you sent me in the mail) and a black skirt. There are only three of us on that row, so it shouldn't be hard to spot me. The other girls are wearing sky blue and bright coral. I am not allowed to look at the camera, but I will be mentally saying hi whenever it gets close. :)

The MTC is amazing. I don't know how to tell you about everything, but I'll try.

Fun things:

- We practice for choir every morning. Still being told when to breathe. :) Brother Egget, who conducts the choir, is amazing. He adds spiritual thoughts and funny stories between songs all the time. He tells us that we are teaching and bearing our testimonies through song, and that no one else can do it like we can because we have been given the authority to preach this message. He also told us that after Saturday, when can top anyone's mission numbers. ("I taught 200 people on my mission." "Yeah? I taught 10 million people... at the same time.")

- Classes are fun and the elders always keep us laughing. The other day, we were all doing role plays with our companions about discerning investigator's concerns and needs. Sister Gabler and I were in the middle of ours when we looked over to see Elder Taysom taking Elder Cook's face in his hands and saying "Open your HEAAAAAAAAAAAAAART!!!" I about died laughing. The really funny part is that I definitely feel exactly that way every time I meet a new investigator.

- Favorite quote from an investigator this last week, upon being asked if she knew of Jesus: "Jesus? Oh yeah, I love Jesus. Definitely someone you want on your squad." :) Yes--I definitely want Jesus on my squad.

- Elder Taysom has given the district a new catch phrase: "Fill up the tub." He says it (and now we do, too) whenever a lesson has gone exceptionally well. It basically means, "Find me a bathtub and get me a priesthood holder, this person is ready to baptized right now!" We know that's not how it works, but it's become our code for getting excited about a progressing investigator.

- I have a nickname: Mother Goose (or Sister Mother Goose). I think it's hilarious. Sister Gabler gave it to me and it has stuck with everyone. The fun thing is that I really feel like the district mom. Everyone comes to me when they have a scripture question or need to know how to spell a word or have trouble with day to day things, like Sister Weaver bursting into my room the other night and asking me what to do about an iron-scorched blouse. (The answer, sadly, is scrub it and then give up if it doesn't come out, and I only know that from scorching too many blouses myself). I think it really started when Elder Taysom and Elder Cook had a cold and I took their Dayquil bottle and told them when they should take their next dosage. That night, when we were doing group study, I announced the page number we were at in PMG and Elder Cook declared, "Mother Goose has spoken. Let us go." :) It makes me happy that they feel they can look up to me and rely on me, though really I rely on them just as much.

- I met a young man from Daniel's mission the other day, Elder Marcel Robinson. He was excited to learn that I know Daniel. He said he spoke with him just before coming into the MTC. It was really neat to get a little glimpse of Daniel's mission while I was here.

- We often play volleyball at exercise time, but lately I have gotten into Four Square. It is SO much fun! I have advanced to the King square three times now. If Four Square had been a competition sport at Wasatch, I might have gotten into athletics.

- Sister Gabler continues to be amazing. We are completely different in some ways, but we have become close even so. We've been teaching really well together. We set goals to switch off talking every two sentences, to bring the lessons back to Christ as often as possible, and to commit investigators to baptism in the first two discussions, and with every goal our teaching has improved. We also just have a blast. Today we went up to the temple together (the second time for her, since the rest of the district went while I was at choir--amazingly kind of her to go again with me), then got sack lunches and picnicked outside. Just now we finished doing our laundry and enjoying Twix ice cream bars from the laundry room vending machines in the warm sunlight. I seriously have the best companion.

Spiritual things:

- We have had some incredible lessons this week. One was with Meg, who wanted to know what she needed to do to be saved. She felt like she knew Jesus, but didn't have a good relationship with God because she had done things she knew she shouldn't have and felt that God was angry with her for it. She said it would be different if she didn't know God and sinned, but that it was worse since she did know him and she had. It was absolutely incredible to teach her about repentance, to promise her that God did love her and always would, and that her sins could be washed away. It was a truly moving lesson. We invited her to be baptized and she said YES!!!!!!! We also invited her to pray at the end and she did! It was one of our best lessons ever, and it was all being observed by our classmates through a two-way mirror. It was incredible.

- This week at TRC (the teaching resource center) we taught Lucie and Linda. (As another fun note, last week we taught Lucia, and with all the Ls flying around, we were worried we would slip up and pray for the wrong person in a discussion--"Please bless Lind--I mean Lucie!"). They were both incredible. 

Lucie is from Germany and was just taking in everything. We taught her the whole restoration and the whole plan of salvation, and she drank it all in. When we started talking about the Pre-mortal existence and said that God had a body and we didn't, she stopped us and asked, "How did God get his body?" Wow. Second discussion and we're already getting into some of the great doctrinal mysteries of the church. We told her the basics of what we knew on the subject, and she accepted it without question. We were totally ready to invite her to be baptized yesterday, but she was gone sick. We were so disappointed. 

We then taught Linda, who is from Arizona and in Utah for school. The last couple days we've felt like the lessons were successful (she tentatively said yes to baptism and has been reading everything we asked her to in the Book of Mormon and has loved it), but she was also very quiet and reserved, and we weren't sure whether she was really feeling the spirit or connecting with the doctrine. Then yesterday, as we taught the plan of salvation, the whole dynamic changed. We got to the spirit world and the resurrection, then stopped to check for understanding. I asked her if she had any questions, then changed tack halfway and asked her what she was thinking and feeling right then. I don't know if that was a prompting, but it worked. She sat quietly for a long time, and we waited for her to be ready to speak. After a minute she said that it made her think of something that had happened to her, and that she had only ever told her mother. She then related a very personal experience of receiving divine comfort after her father's death ten years ago. She was crying and I was nearly there, too, as we testified boldly and joyfully that her feeling that her father was alright and well was true, and that because of the Atonement she would see Him again. It was incredible. As we left, Sister Gabler and I looked at each other and just said, "Wow." There was no better word for what had just happened.

Because it is General Conference this weekend, we won't get to teach our TRC investigators again (usually our next appointment would have been Saturday, but for obvious reasons that won't work). When we got back to the classroom and I started writing my thoughts from the appointment, I had the most overwhelming feeling of love for Linda. She may be a member playing and replaying her conversion (most members in the TRC are recent converts) or she may truly be an investigator, I'm not sure, and it doesn't really matter. In that moment I wanted so desperately for her to know what I know, to know for sure that she can be with her dad again and that there is happiness ahead for her, in this life and the next. I suddenly could imagine how our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ feel watching us, knowing the potential we have, the blessings we could receive, the future that is ours, and praying that we use our agency to take hold of it for ourselves. I imagine that when I cheer for and investigator's first words of prayer or commitment to baptism, God and hosts of angels cheer with me.

I know that this work is true. I know it more and more every day, and I feel so blessed to be part of it. The gospel is restored, and we each have the chance to give that immeasurable gift to everyone around us. I love my Savior and my Heavenly Father. They take care of me and help me along every day. My anxiety has been calmed and my heart comforted numerous times this last week by the spirit, which brings "peace which passeth all understanding." I know that I am in the Lord's hands, and that I will be alright.

I depart in the wee hours of Wednesday morning--4 AM. You probably won't hear from me until a week from Monday, my next P-day. In the meantime, keep me and my North Dakota sisters in your prayers. I have felt their support already.

I love you all so much! Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Sister Pullan

Rachel was on the bottom row, far left, in a burgundy blouse.  Apparently, the cameramen don't zoom in on the bottom left corner!  It sounded like a football game at our home during the hymns as we hoped the camera would zoom in on Rachel's seat.  It was an amazing opportunity for Rachel and the perfect window of time for her to be able to participate.

After general conference Rachel saw our good family friends, the Wilcoxes!

Week 2 at the MTC

September 22, 2016

Hi, everyone!

Thank you for all the support and prayers and Dear Elder letters the last few days. It has been a long and hard week, and your support has helped me get through. It is an immeasurable blessing to have such an amazing family behind me through this journey.

Before anything else can be said, I have an announcement to make. I am very excited about it, so forgive the excessive capitals and punctuation:

I HAVE BEEN INVITED TO SING WITH THE MTC CHOIR FOR GENERAL CONFERENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HOORAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!

That's right! I am going to conference! I can hardly wait. Our director Brother Eggert tells us that usually conference choirs have a few months to get ready, while we have ten days. It is going to be an intense regime of rehearsals, but I think it will be an amazing experience. I will let you know next week roughly where I'll be standing. I should be towards the front since I am short. Let's see who can win at "I Spy Sister Pullan!" :) Brother Eggert is very strict about where we can and can't breathe. He said we should write home and say "Dear Mom: They already tells us when to eat and sleep, now they're telling us when to breathe!"

Alright. Announcement over. We now return to our usual programming.

I have an amazing companion, Sister Gabler. She is 19 years old, a cheerleader/rock climber/wake boarder/sky diver/all around amazing person. She is my opposite in almost every respect, but she is the perfect companion for me. Her flexibility and energy compliment my organization and intensity. We do really well together. We are in district 37A. We are short one Elder (Elder Taysom's companion never turned up), so there are 11 of us. Elder Butler calls us "District 37, the eleven from heaven!" I LOVE my district. So much. SO much. They are quickly becoming family to me. The sisters are all going to North Dakota as well, and the elders to Washington. They all keep me laughing. The elders are so respectful of us. Every now and then we hear comments like, "Why are the sisters so much better than us?" and "What would we do without the sisters?" They make life fun and meaningful for me. We have already had some powerful spiritual experiences together. Elder Finley, our district leader, and Sister Lawrence will be in the conference choir with me. We've got some great teachers, too--Sister Spence and Sister Robinson. They are fantastic.

Every morning we get up at 6:30 in the morning and pray, then get ready for the day. We eat breakfast (and every meal, as it happens) as a district. It is easy to eat badly here when they have donuts every morning and chocolate milk (aka the nectar of the Gods) all the time. I've been eating pretty decent, though. After breakfast we go to our classroom and study as directed on our schedule. Sometimes we have exercise time first, which is always fun. I have never loved exercising so much! After so much time sitting and studying, it is so amazing to just move. We run, do exercise machines, stretch, and occasionally organize a volleyball or four-square game with the district. Then back to the classroom.We have our teachers come in throughout the day, usually one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Our teachers stand in as investigators for us, usually portraying investigators they have taught in the past. We teach several lessons throughout the day, to them and to our TRC investigator (so someone who comes to volunteer, maybe a member or maybe not--we don't know). We also go to workshops and bigger group meetings. We eat lunch and dinner together as a district as well. I enjoy wraps--they have a bar that makes them like at the Cougar Eat, and you can pick whatever you want on them. They also do ice cream on Sunday and Wednesday, and we all look forward to it. On Sunday we have church and a walk to the temple at 3, and on Sundays and Tuesdays there is devotional. On Tuesday this week we heard from L. Whitney Clayton of the presidency of the 70. He talked about how our church has a powerful position. We don't accept in-between ideas or compromise--either the church is true, or it isn't. That's it. It was a great talk. After evening things we study as a district (we're reading the Pearl of Great Price together) and sometimes have other lessons. We retire at 9:30.

We are teaching three investigators now. Heather and Meg are our teacher's characters. Meg is my favorite. She is from New Jersey and just makes us laugh. When asked if she knew Jesus, she said, "Oh yeah, I love Jesus. He's a really cool guy. Definitely someone you want on your squad." She feels like she has a great relationship with Jesus but not a great relationship with God, which I find fascinating. She feels that God doesn't love her anymore because she's made mistakes. We are teaching her about repentence and hope to commit her to baptism this week. We are teaching Lucia in the TRC. She is not very open and it's taken some coaxing to get her to confide in us. Amazingly enough, though, she agreed to pray with us the other day, and we were able to be with her when she talked to God for the first time. It went something like this:

Us: Would you be willing to pray with us?

Lucia: ....Sure. I could try that.

Us, externally: That's wonderful! Here's how you do it...

Us, internally: WOOOHOOOOOOOOO!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!! [Insert confetti, trumpet fanfare, balloons, dancing, etc.]

It reminded me of a verse from "Prayer is the Soul's Sincere Desire": "Prayer is the sinner's contrite voice returning from his ways / as angels in the heavens rejoice and cry 'Behold, he prays!'" Angels and missionaries, too. :)

That is all I have time for this week, I am afraid. Please email me and keep sending those Dear Elders! I love getting mail. :) I love and miss you all so much. Sister Gabler and I are going to go do our laundry and spend some time reading and taking a nap. P-day is the best! Thank you again for all your prayers. I feel our presence with me every minute of every day.

I will talk to you all soon. Hurrah for Israel!

Love,

Sister Pullan

My District - "The eleven sent from heaven"

Sis. Gabler in her hammock

Day 1 at the MTC

September 15, 2016

Greetings, everyone!

I have been told to email you and let you know that I am here safe and sound--though as you dropped me off, you know that already. :) After you dropped me off, I was whisked off to get my packet and books and go to drop things off at my room, and I feel like I've been running ever since.

I am doing well. I have a fantastic district of 11 people, one elder companionship, one elder trio (we had a missionary not turn up yesterday) and three sister companionships. All of us sisters are going to the Dakotas--Sisters Johnson, Lawrence, Weaver, Young (who we met at the temple), and Gabler. We all love each other already and laugh every time we're together, Elders and Sisters. My district is quickly becoming close.

Sister Gabler is my companion. She is 19 years old, a dancer and improv pianist, and one of the most fantastic people I've ever met. All of yesterday, every time someone mentioned companions we nudged each other or bumped fists. We bonded immediately at dinner over our mutual love (nerdiness) of Harry Potter and Star Wars (yes, Lydia, my companion is a Potterhead. It's the best). :) We are getting along great. We taught our first discussion today to our teacher (Sister Spence--a wonderful person) playing one of her past investigators, Shelby. Considering that it was our first shot, it went really well.

It hasn't all been easy. I feel like I've been drinking out of a firehose for the last two days. There are so many standards and rules and guidelines and doctrines and scriptures and ideas to remember that I can hardly take it all in. I miss you all more than I can say. Even so, I know I am supposed to be here. Yesterday when I first arrived, I was directed to a sister who pinned a badge onto my chest--Sister Pullan. I broke down crying all over again. I am a missionary. I am Sister Pullan. I still can't quite believe it. It is hard and I have a long way to go, but I am in good hands and I think I can get there.I love you all so much. I have felt your prayers. I will write again on Thursday. Hurrah for Israel!

Yours ever, 
Sister Pullan 😊

We all said good-bye to Rachel on the lawn in front of the Provo temple.  This is Rachel with Lydia, Nathan and Matthew. (Daniel is in Jerusalem studying at the BYU Jerusalem Center.)

Good-bye Mom & Dad.  We all cried a lot, but they were happy tears.
There is no place better for your kids to be than serving a mission.

Rachel was welcomed to the MTC by this cute sister missionary (heading for Italy in a few weeks).