...and then we all said, "WHO IS THIS INCREDIBLE ELDER?!"

I'm going to be honest I'm not sure what to say because I just saw your beautiful faces 3 days ago. But I will do my best!

So this week was fun.(: We had Zone Conference last Wednesday and it was excellent. President gave the most interesting/inspiring instruction on the Holy Ghost. We also were so lucky to have some folks from the missionary department come to give us training. That is one thing I just love about being at headquarters is that it's no trouble to get those instructors to get on an elevator to come visit us! We had a lot of training about how to be more effecting in the teaching centers (where we teach our investigators online around the world). We also listened to a couple of recorded phone calls from people who had called in to get either a free Book of Mormon or a free Finding Faith in Christ DVD. The first recording was a young Elder who had just entered the MTC and we all listened as this women who sounded in desperate need of some help called in asking for a DVD. It was SO effective to listen to their conversation and then discuss what better steps could be taking in not just sending people materials, but helping them to know that there is hope and healing in Jesus Christ. The last phone call we listened to was STELLAR. I'm pretty sure I know EXACTLY what I want my future husband to be like, just based off of this phone call haha! To sum it all up, this lady called in asking about our church because she felt like she was missing something in her religion. Well this fantastic Elder got so excited and taught her about the Book of Mormon and the restoration in 5 minutes and not only THAT but as he was bearing his testimony to her about how he knew it was true he started to CRY! And then the old lady on the other end of the phone started to cry! And then she said she wanted missionaries and a Book of Mormon! And then he said that he loved her and asked if he could keep it touch to see how it all went and she said yes! And then she hung up the phone and the Elder gave a little sniffle and said, "Wow..." AH! All the sisters in the room were almost crying just listening to it and Sister Tiritilli looked at me and was like "Who IS this Elder?!" And I was like, "I know, right!?" It was amazing. The spirit was so strong. And every girl was in love with this Elder's testimony. Haha(:

The last part of Zone Conference president asked us to each bear our testimony and include the experience of when we knew we had a testimony of this church. I talked a lot about my experience in Nauvoo..which I should share with others sometime. But today is not that time. (:

My birthday was a really good day! We had a FULL schedule and we were running all over the place teaching teaching teaching! My roommates were very cute and stuck an awkward picture of me around the mission offices that said Happy Birthday in several languages so I felt very loved and embarrassed. (: And Saturday was very wonderful! We have a new investigator from Germany! She came on chat and expressed to us that she really wants to learn more. Her father is a member as well as some friends and she felt like there was something to what they all believe. It was a good way to start off a Saturday!(:

I'm not going to lie, the last 20 minutes before y'all showed up to visit I was SO nervous! Ask my companion. I was pacing back and forth and talking to her about how I was worried y'all would think I was old and not as dainty and cute! Haha oh I was so nervous! But then it was just wonderful to eat food and talk and see Kallie!!!! I think the best was watching her stick her hand in my water as she fished for ice cubes. And listening to her sing Justin Bieber to me...and making faces with her. It was just so good to hold a baby! We see adorable babies on a daily basis and we can't even hold them. :( So I just so enjoyed talking with my good friend Kallie Kay.

On Sunday we called our dear investigator in Ireland to follow up on how church went. Of course, he's doing just wonderful as ever! We talked a lot about baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost. Before we could even invite him he began telling us that baptism is his goal right now because he knows how much peace and happiness he will gain by having a fresh start. He's so fantastic! Every time we get off the phone with him Sister Merrill gets this adorable look on her face and she says in a high pitched voice, "I just love him so much!" Hahaha(:

We're looking forward to the coming week and we're looking out for the coming cold weather! I have this feeling in my gut that this winter is going to be colder than the last...gah! But at least I'll be more prepared this time. I won't die. The work will carry on...etc etc. Well, I love you all! Have a wonderful week!

Sister Davis

Sometimes when you're a missionary...you have bad days...so you grab your friend Sister Sherratt and you walk to the mall where they have delicious peanut butter cookies...and then you eat it hoping that tomorrow...will be a better day than today...

 

I'm not going to be a teenager anymore! :O

Time is moving too quickly...I really need it to slow down...I'm not sure how I feel about my birthday being this week...I'll be 20.... Having your 20th birthday come up literally forces you to think about where you've been the past few years and where you will be within the next few years. I think the most peculiar thing about it is seeing how different you are. Even in just the 11 months I've been out, I'm so different. I would say in what ways but then this entire letter would go on forever about things that others would probably be surprised to learn have changed about me. Missions are SO HARD. They force you to understand all of your weaknesses at an immense level. There's no hiding from them, you just have to learn how to overcome them and the ONLY way to overcome them is by relying completely on Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. I have absolutely no idea what is going to happen in the future, I just know that if I rely on God then He will help me discover what goals I have that are important for my growth.

As for our news this week, we have a new investigator in Ireland! He came onto Mormon.org chat and told us that he has been attending church there in his home town and he feels the spirit testifying so strongly to him that he's doing the right things. He's already begun the Book of Mormon and feels that it is true as well. The more we chatted with him the more it became clear that God has been working in his life to prepare him to learn about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. He gave us all of his information so we could begin teaching him, and we invited him to be baptized once he has learned all we believe and knows that it is true. He said, "Of course I will." We called him on the phone this morning (evening in Ireland) and talked with him about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon. He has SO much faith in the Lord. Any time we would ask if he had questions he would say, "Well no I understand this all makes sense!" And then he would proceed to review what we had just taught him! Haha! He's such a sweet heart. Before calling I was a little nervous that if his Irish accent was too strong we would have a hard time understanding, but (even though it is pretty strong) we were able to understand all he said, such a blessing! I think I need to start practicing an Irish accent now that I've got my British one down...

So I'm extremely suspicious of President Poulsen right now because of a strange phone call we got last week! We were walking through the Beehive House one afternoon when the phone rang and it was President on the line! He then started to ask me about what day I was planning on going home from the mission and was naming these days in early January! So I said, "Um...president I think you have the wrong sister..." Then he paused and said, "Oh! Yes! I do have the wrong sister! I'm sorry Sister Davis! I was just thinking about you because you were on my mind about the....uh....(clears his throat)...yeah! Well! Carry on with the work Sister Davis!" Hahaha imagine me with an incredibly suspicious look on my face...that's what my face looked like. So when I saw him in church on Sunday I told him, "President I am so suspicious of you!" And he gave me this embarrassed smile and was like, "Oh Sister Davis no need to be suspicious!" Yeah. I'm still suspicious.

Oh and we took the best tour in the Beehive House on Saturday! There was a large group of men and women in their late 50's on a bus trip around the west and they stopped in to see the sights! Well as they began filing in I started to notice all the Bama clothing items so I said to them, "Are y'all from Alabama!?" And they said, "Yes!" I responded, "Roll Tide!" and as soon as I did half of the crowd started shouting, "Roll Tide Roll!!!" and the other half were cheering for Auburn! Hahaha! So I started saying, "Alright now lets not start a riot in here!" Oh it was sooo funny! As I was talking to the bus driver afterwards he told me, "Well you'll be excited to know that I'm the bus driver for the Alabama football team and as soon as I get home from this trip I'll be driving them up to the opening game in Georgia!" I almost died! I was jealous (but not jealous of course because I'm a missionary.) But yes, then he bragged about how amazing his job is and I was in shock. As a missionary on Temple Square you automatically meet some of the coolest people! Ah! It's ridiculous.

To start of the week of my birthday my companion and I went to Music and The Spoken Word on Sunday morning. (: (: They sang "The Sound of Music." I know! I know...it was just for my birthday, I know. Haha! Then this morning we went to the temple and that was so wonderful as always. For pday we will be going with Sister Sherratt (from California) and Klein (from Brazil) to a really tasty ice cream place! And then we'll probably make a fort out of pillows and blankets and color in a coloring book so that we will still feel like kids and I won't have to feel like I'm getting old. I am so looking forward to seeing the family this Saturday! That will be a very exciting/weird/awkward/wonderful/interesting/intense experience. (:

I hope you're all having tremendous fun with your last few days of summer! To my dear friends going back to school next week...have fun but not too much fun! :D

Have a wonderful week!

Sister Davis

The lovely sight from Music and The Spoken Word this week. (: (: So beautiful! Oh and the Bells on Temple Square were there this week as well! They played the Theme from Le Nozze di Figaro! AH! My favorite Italian opera ever!

While exploring the top "empty" floor of Brigham Young's Home we discovered a kitchen with a working fridge and a bathroom with a fully functioning shower...SO weird. This is me being astonished by the working shower in a home that was built in the early 1850's.

 

I'm telling you this is crazy stuff... (August 11th)

Hello everyone!

Wow it's been quite the interesting week that is for sure! We've been running to and fro all over the valley on the Lord's errands and it's been fantastic! All of it was really last minute, but that's usually how things run on Temple Square. (:

On Thursday night when on our way to gather our things to leave, I was stopped by the sacrament meeting coordinators and they asked if I would be willing to go speak in a ward in the valley that Sunday, again! And once again I would not be speaking with my companion, they wanted me to go with Sister Sherratt, again! Sooo funny haha! So we didn't have time to put together a fancy musical number but we felt that we should just sing a hymn and stick with that. The exciting part about it, though, was that we would not be speaking in a family ward. We were speaking in a ward of women who are currently in the Orange County Women's Correctional Facility here in Salt Lake. When we showed up to the services it was a really small room with almost 20 chairs. It was an extremely spiritual environment and I really felt like I was on sacred ground. The women there were so welcoming and it was really fun to be able to just sit and talk with a lot of them before the meeting started. The topic I was given to speak on was the Savior's earthly ministry and I'll be honest I wasn't sure what I was going to say until right before going over to their services. I was sitting in our own sacrament meeting when, randomly, the story of Jesus healing the woman who had an issue of blood came into my head. I decided to base my talk off of that and I could feel that it was what the Lord wanted. I think a lot of those women I met are closer to the Savoir than most people I meet on Temple Square. I know that He is close to them because I could feel it when I was with them. For the musical number, the bishop had asked one of the women there if she wanted to sing with us, and she did! We sang "I Know That My Redeemer Lives." I hope that we will be invited back again sometime because I really enjoyed that experience.

Sunday night was very eventful as well! On Saturday night I got a call from guest services informing us that some elders from the Salt Lake City South Mission wanted me and Sister Fuentes (my former companion) to attend a baptism of one of their investigators! We were super confused at first and didn't even recognize the names of the Elders hahaha but when we heard who the investigator was we remembered her instantly! The Elders had brought her here on a tour 3 transfers ago and Sister Fuentes and I were the ones who had taken them around! So we got permission from the A.P.'s and went on exchanges to attend the baptism. After the baptism one of the Elders (from Spain) was telling us about how things had been going teaching them the last 2 months and their story was such a miracle! In short, she finally had received an answer to her prayer and realized that she wanted so bad to be baptized and she did everything she needed to be prepared in less than a week! When we were talking to her afterwards she was just so happy and she just glowed with the spirit of the Lord! We didn't have our camera but one of the Elders (from Chicago) took lots of pictures of us with her (that's another awkward story for another awkward day) but they promised they'd send them to us so hopefully we will get copies of those soon so I can send them home to show y'all. (: (Oh and the baptism wasn't even in Salt Lake so on our way there we kinda got lost in the vast waste land that is Kearns, Utah but we eventually found it haha!)

Scary story right here

Last night was probably the most interesting experience of the week. In the back of our apartment building there is a cute little park-like area with grass and trees and such, so we were going to have our companion study (our studies are in the evenings #onlyontemplesquare) on a huge blanket out on the grass to have an uplifting companion study in the fresh air! But it didn't last very long.. We began to open our scriptures when we noticed an interesting man over in the corner of the park kinda in the bushes who looked like he had a twitch or something...? So he was acting really weird and at first I just thought "Oh great someone is high and he's having weird hallucinations that's nice." But then it went from looking like he had a twitch or scratch or something to some really interesting arm movements and yeah-i-don't-really-wanna-get-into-it... But it suddenly occurred to me what was going on on the other side of the park and once it finally clicked in my head the spirit made it very clear that if we did not leave now that man would notice us and he would not like a righteous spirit in his range of sight SO! We grabbed our things and ran like dainty, righteous, terrified missionaries into the apartment and called security! Security, in turn, connected us with the police and we reported him buuuut police here must not like missionaries because they said they would see if there was anyone able to go check it out. Ha. So we called security on the square and told them that the sisters who would be walking home that night would either need to go a different way or have an escort. So our dear security officer, Michael from Melbourne Australia, walked the sisters home and we know he was going to take care of that guy but we don't know what happened but...all is well in Zion! Oh and I forgot to mention that the man doing creepy rituals was about... 15 feet from our bedroom window! AH! Sketchy!

So after all that was said and done Sister Merrill and I were not feeling very well, just because of what we had seen and the not good feeling that came along with it. We called a senior couple in our mission but they were not in Salt Lake but they told us where we could go to find more senior couples to obtain a priesthood blessing. So we went to the floor above us and knocked on a random door and to our happiness there was a senior couple there who would be willing to come give us a blessing(: They were a senior couple serving in the Family History mission and they were from Ireland actually! So the blessing helped us feel SO much better and we were able to sleep well AND I now know how cool my full name sounds in a Irish accent! :D I'm so grateful for worthy priesthood holders that are always there and so willing to give us help when we need it. It seems that every blessing I've received on my mission have been some of the most powerful I've received in my life. I feel so blessed.

Well anyways, those are my exciting stories from this week! They're starting to put Christmas lights on the trees so you know what that means...only 3 more months until Christmas season on Temple Square! AH! SO EXCITED! SO MANY LIGHTS!

I love you all and pray for you all! Have a wonderful week and enjoy the last bits of summer!(:

Sister Davis

Sorry it's short! (August 5th)

So please don't be upset with me if this email is very short and simple, I haven't been feeling well yesterday and today so right now all I have on my mind is that I want to go buy Gatorade at Walmart after this so I can drink that until my body turns into Gatorade. Ahha. (:

But don't worry this week has been excellent! Transfer conference was yesterday morning and I'll be staying with Sister Merrill to finish training yipppeeee!!!!! So that's good(: We're happy about that. Good stuff. Good stuff. The only thing that's really changing is we're moving to the East 1 zone which means I'm headed back to serve in the Brigham's house! WOO! I'm excited, I've missed Brigham and his daughters creepy wedding dress that we're almost positive roams the halls of the house at night. Not saying her dress is ugly, I mean, it's got lots of lace so it's all in my favour, it's just old...old stuff is scary.

Our amazing investigator in England texted us at 3AM this morning to tell us that she finished reading the Book of Mormon today! I wasn't sleeping well because of my illness so when I heard the phone vibrate and I read the text and I thought I was dreaming because it was such exciting news! Then I looked at the clock and was super confused that she would text at 3 in the morning but then I realized they're 7 hours ahead of us in England so it's actually 10am where she is so then I thought maybe I'm not dreaming... So I fell back asleep and checked the phone again when we woke up and it turned out I wasn't dreaming and we were very excited! It was just a funny experience. #onlyontemplesquare

It rained a lot in July. I was so confused.

This month is the month I was BORN in! :O It's also the month that MOM is born in AND the month that the prophet Thomas S. Monson was born in! This is a good month. And I Iook forward to seeing the family the day after my birthday, that will be an interesting experience! I tried talking to my friend Elder Holland to see if he can make it to dinner with us but he's been so busy in meetings lately I haven't gotten through. So we'll see if the fellow St. George..ian...apostle can make it out to say hello. Haha! You all thought I was serious. (:

I'm really sorry but I can't think of anything that happened this week and I keep getting a headache trying to remember everything so I'll read back through my journal and when I find the awesome stories from this week then I will put them in next week's email. (: Ok! Well... love yous! Happy August! Yay!

Sister Davis

We didn't take any pictures this week! Haha so we took one just now so that we wouldn't have to email home without any pictures hahaha enjoy(:

 

Hello all you Lovely People! (July 29th)

This happens every week! I sit down at the computer and I can't remember a single thing that has taken place in the last week. Ahaha! Such is missionary life!

There is one thing that I do remember, and possibly will never forget... We have this wonderful investigator in England, and we've been teaching her for about 5 months now. Her biggest struggle is being able to have faith and know that God really is there and really does love her. Because of her family background, she is uncomfortable with religion and has fear of connecting herself with any specific type of religion. Well, she gave us her phone number this last week and aloud us to call her! We were SO happy! We called her a second time later in the week and it is just so neat to see and hear how faith is growing faster now because this is becoming more real to her. When we arrived at the computers on Sunday afternoon, we noticed we had an email from her informing us that she decided, on a whim, to GO TO CHURCH!!!! We were is shock!! But a happy shock! She went and was there for the full 3 hours! She even met the missionaries there and they gave her a tour of the church and introduced her to so many people! AH! When I was reading that email I wanted to cry I was so happy! We have been praying soo long and soo hard that the Lord would help us find a way so that she would feel comfortable enough to go to church, and our prayers were answered just as we were starting to get to the point where we didn't know what else to do. That alone, was the best part of our week. (:

On the 24th we all got to wake up early and go to the DAYS OF '47 PARADE!!! All of the Temple Square sister missionaries were given a prime spot on the blanket covered grass haha! The best part though was when the prophet Thomas S. Monson was in the parade! We were so excited and we were waving to him and cheering and his adorable little face had this expression of "Awe look at those cute sister missionaries." Haha! It was fun to watch the sisters from foreign countries watch the parade because many of them had never been to something like that before. One of our sisters from Norway came up to me after and said, "That was so weird! I had never seen real cheerleaders before...they look just like they do in the movies!" Hahahaha! It was so fun though because I remember watching that parade on tv all growing up and it was fun to finally be there! Sister Merrill and I both agree that the best part of the entire thing: Marching Bands. So fun! (:

On Sunday morning I was comps with Sister Sherratt and we went with Sisters Esquivel and Isakson to speak in a family ward in Bountiful! They told us they wouldn't be needing a musical number but the day before they changed their minds and said they wanted us to do something. Luckily, Sister Sherratt, Esquivel and I are all singers so we were able to arrange up an acapella version of "Israel Israel God is Calling" in one day. It went really well and I so much enjoyed speaking in a family ward! On the way home Sister Sherratt took a detour so she could drive past all the massive houses in the mountains. We laughed until our guts hurt as we watched her scream and covet when we went by homes that looked like the massive ones you find in St. George. Haha she's a crack up!

On Sunday night the square was covered by former TSQ missionaries and all of us got to attend a concert in the Assembly Hall. The performer was concert pianist Josh Write and ooooohhh it was sooo amazing! Hey dad remember that piano piece that is the hardest classical piano solo that you would listen to almost every day before my mission? Well he did that song and, of course, made it look like it was nothing! He also talked to us about experiences on his mission and different things that it had taught him. His last piece was an original arrangement of Claire deLune and the hymn How Great Thou Art (grandaddy's favourite). It was such an enjoyable evening.

Ok last story I promise! Yesterday morning as we were running in the canyon I turned around to say something to my companion and out of the bushes sprang a DEER!!!! It walked right across our path and up into the trees just giving us this look that said, "What? What you want? I'm just chillin.." It was so cool and not more than 10 feet away from us! DEER! :D

Welp those are the highlights of this week! It's been good, it's been real...it's been real good. I cannot believe the transfer is at an end next Wednesday! Sister Merrill's first transfer will be complete.. sooo weird! :D

Have a wonderful week! Love yous!

Sister Davis

This dinosaur on the float...his mouth is open because he can actually rawr!!! :O

Sister Lytle and I at the Days of '47 parade! We are the only two in the mission from Utah and we're both from St. George! Yippee!!

 

Week #43...I think? I'm not even sure I know anymore! (July 22nd)

Soooo this week was crazy.

Zone Activity was last p-day and that was a hoot! We went to the home of our mission secretaries and had a BBQ! Then they showed us photos from when they served missions in South Africa! Hey y'all...remember when I said I wanted to serve my mission in South Africa? Well...I understand now why the Lord didn't send me there. 1. I would have spent way too much time trying to learn a million different languages that I wouldn't have had time to be a real missionary. 2. I probably would given all of my possessions away. Or (and most likely) --> 3. I probably would have disappeared running around with elephants, tigers, and/or penguins. Yes. They have penguins in Africa. :D

And then of course the amazing event happened where MY ENTIRE STAKE YOUTH CONFERENCE CAME TO TEMPLE SQUARE!!! Little did they know, my companion and I were put in charge of planning the activities they would do with sister missionaries. (: (: (: They arrived on the square Thursday but we were not going to be doing activities with them until Friday morning so we had to travel underground everywhere on Thursday because so many of them were looking for me haha! It had some perks though! When we were at the conference center we saw a group of them and had to run into the tunnels which took us backstage where we were able to hear the guest singer for MOTAB rehearsing on stage. Were I not a missionary I would tell you how much I loved his voice...

Sooo, about two days before they came we sat down in the mission office, said a prayer, and began planning. We immediately had ideas just start coming and we could feel that they were inspired. Since they were the largest youth conference that's come to Temple Square all summer (way to represent!) we couldn't take them out of the theatre 5 like the other groups would. We decided to put colours under everyone's chair and that would be what determined how each of the youth would participate. We had so many fun activities that we started with, which we all connected back to missionary work. The last two activities were the best, though. We asked two women we talked to on the square to be investigators for these youth who were preparing to go on missions. The first young lady's name was Kayla and she was just traveling through on her way to California with her boyfriend. The youth who participated in teaching her were given the chance to ask her a questions that would help us teach her and/or determine her needs (spiritually). As missionaries, we want to ask inspired questions, of course. The youth were sooo nervous but once they started the spirit was sooo strong. I've never seen a group of youth pay such close attention to listening to the spirit in my entire life! When they had asked her questions, I told them that if any of them were feeling inspired to share something in particular with Kayla, they could now do so. It was amazing to see the responses. The second young lady's name was Emily, she was in Salt Lake visiting friends who are members of the church. This group wasn't required to ask questions, just to get to know her and teach according to how the spirit directs. In fact, as they were talking to her about the spirit, she asked them how they knew they had the spirit in their life. They were sooo scared to be asked a question so they decided to use one of their "life-lines", ask a leader. It was so neat to see our Stake President, President Doty, jump up to answer the question! During the entire thing the youth were just so involved and you could tell that even those in the audience wanted to speak so bad!

After the youth had finished with us we talked to the two girls about their experience and thanked them for their willingness to let us do this with them. Well, these two young ladies told us that even after the teaching practices were over, some of the youth in our stake invited them to sit next to them to listen to the youth speaker! Not only that, but as the youth speaker was talking, some of the youth sitting next to them were explaining what different things were so that they could understand everything going on. They also said that many members of the stake came up to them after to share their testimony and that they were daughters of God. We were sooo happy and impressed to hear that the missionary experiences we wanted to create lasted far beyond what we expected. I hope those youth don't forget about it, and I hope they all have a stronger desire to serve missions.

Only 1 more week until Debbie's baptism!!! MAH!!! We're so excited that we've been starting to turn blue from holding our breath! I am almost positive that there isn't a soul in the world who has been more excited to be baptized than Debbie. Each time we talk she sounds as if she's going to explode with joy! Just another living example that the gospel brings happiness that nothing else can.

This Sunday I have been asked to speak with some other sisters in a home ward in the north side of the Salt Lake City Valley. It's going to be so weird attending a sacrament meeting with families and babies and...noise. I'm pretty excited. (: I'll be speaking with Sister Sherratt, Esquivel (my follow-up trainer), and Issacson (from Norway). It'll be a neat experience and I'm stoked because I just LOVE speaking to large groups of people about the gospel! Which is crazy because when I got my call I was so nervous that I would have to speak instead of sing to large groups of people. But hey, even a turkey can fly, so I'm pretty excited that the grace of God has granted me to have some wings. (:

Exactly one month from today is my birthday...I feel so awkward. As I was talking with Cierra and Kelton (while they were here for youth conference) I told them that I would be turning 20 next month...and I'm pretty sure that was the first time they felt uncomfortable being around me...which made me feel uncomfortable...which was kinda sad. Haha(: I'm getting so old.

I can't think of anything else to write now soooo... But I do want to say that email time each week is soo entertaining because we're always sitting her next to Sisters Sherratt, Cheng, Hansen, and Richardson and half of our time we're laughing because all of us are sooo dramatic while reading emails from home. But hey, as mom would say, it's all about the drama.

Ok I love you all have a wonderful week and share the gospel with everyone!!!!!

Love,
Sister Davis

In the home we visited they had a music room so we spent a little bit in there. I'm pretty sure this picture describes the relationship between Sister Merrill and I perfectly haha(:

UTAH!!!! (During Zone Activity last week)

At the Lion House Pantry...my whipped cream was being freaky...

Such an exciting week! (July 15th)

My companion is amazing! This week she passed off in giving tours, AND she passed of with Fleet driving cars! She is working so hard and it's wonderful how quickly she is absorbing, learning, and adjusting. It's also neat to see how much the gospel means to her in her life and how it's affected her choice to serve a mission. We are almost constantly talking about every gospel topic you can imagine. Although new missionary experiences can be scary, she's always willing to try. Sometimes we have awkward moments...but honestly we just walk away and laugh. It's also funny to see how willing she is to talk with antis. Many sisters here get scared very easily with talking to those people who come trying to argue with us, but Sister Merrill loves to give simple answers, testify, and move on. Any fear she has, she does her best to not let is show. All-in-all she's doing very well!

We have a wonderful new investigator from California. She has known members of the church before but never had a good chance to really look into it. We taught her for the first time yesterday and she is just so golden. She has so much trust in the Lord and as she explained to us her personal beliefs we were able to connect them so simply to all of the things we know to be true. It's so exciting to know that when we are diligent the Lord leads us to people who are looking for the truth, and even those who already understand truth but just need to be shown what to do with it!

On Saturday morning we woke up early and loaded the bus for Brighton Girl's Camp!!! Brighton is the oldest girls camp in the history of the church. There were several activities available including slack-lining, a zip-line, repelling, rope courses, etc. Ah it was so fun! It was so weird to go repelling as a missionary though because (it's like driving a car for the first time as a missionary) you just don't ever expect that you would ever being doing that! But it was SO fun! It was Sister Merrill's first time and she did really well! Sister Sherratt and I had a ball just jumping down the cliff-side! Many of the foreign sisters hadn't done it before so they were pretty scared, but it's like anyone else, once you get over the edge of the cliff it's pretty smooth sailing! One of the slack-lines was one that you had to have a partner to do it with, so obviously my companion and I did it. In a nutshell you just have to put all your weight on the person on the line across from you because the ropes get further and further apart. Just as Sister Merrill and I were getting ready to go, President walked up and decided to watch us. It was the ultimate test of companionship unity but we were surprised at how quickly and easily we did it! President congratulated us. :D Woo! After camp they fed us lunch and we came back to the square, changed and went back to missionary work! It was a great day!

Sunday morning was exciting because I got to be one of the English sisters announcing tours after Music and The Spoken Word! We had a good sized crowd and after announcing we were able to take a tour with some wonderful folks! In every single tour we've taken this last week we were able to teach The Restoration (about the prophet Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon). In fact, just an hour ago we met the sweetest newly-married couple in the North Visitors' Center and they had some wonderful questions! We taught them the restoration and they accepted a Book of Mormon as well. It's such a testimony building experience to watch as people from all parts of the world come to Temple Square, feel the spirit, and have an interest in learning more about the gospel. It's so clear to see that this is not an American religion. God isn't wanting to give these things to one group of people, He wants this to go to all the human race.

Well we really have to run. Zone Activity is later today and we have much to do. I love yous a lot and I pray for you daily. It's crazy to think how time is going so fast and how it's bound to only move faster. Continue to enjoy your summer!

Love,
Sister Davis

​Woo!

On our way to Brighton Girls Camp!!! So fun!

Me with Sister Rhodes from Las Vegas

My companion and I at Brighton!

My companion and I doing some slack-line crazy trust exercise thing..and we did it perfectly. :D

Our group at one of the ropes courses(: so fun!

Me with Sister Brock from Oregon and Sister Esikia from American Samoa

​All of us who announced that morning! Woo!

This is me. I speak English. Haha(:

With the Asian sisters and Sister Esikia from American Samoa

Happy Birthday AMERICA!!!! (July 8th)

Oh my goodness I don't know how I'm going to fit all of the things from this week into this email that my heart desires but I'm sure going to try! But first I have to remember them all...

So for America's birthday we had a mission-wide BBQ at the Brigham Young park. It was delicious, to say the least. Although it was a holiday, President Poulsen had us keep the square open so we could accommodate all of the non-American tourists in town. Which was fantastic because the time is far spent and closing Temple Square is a little like denying people a chance to receive salvation. (Ok, maybe I'm a little dramatic but honestly, the time is far spent...there is little remaining...)

My companion and I have been trying to find some pretty creative ways to find people to teach! Like we've really been trying to think outside the box...haha! Today we reserved one of the large theaters in the North Visitor Center under our names and just had Mormon messages and short videos from the church going continuously for about an hour. We spent our time in front of the theater contacting people, inviting them to go inside and watch, answering questions, etc etc. It was so cool! We're excited to do it again later this week on an even busier day to see how many people we can strike up a conversation with. We also spent some of our time just standing inside the gates of Temple Square holding lots of maps because we realized that people don't really want to talk to missionaries because they're afraid we'll try to shove religion down their throats. So whenever people came in, we offered a map and asked if they needed directions anywhere. Of course, they'd say yes (because being offered a map is not threatening at all) and it was fantastic because it gave us a change to give them an overview to all the buildings on the square. Now I know what you're thinking, we sound like tour guides, but you'd be surprised how easy it is to get people talking about religion when you say, "This building is the Tabernacle. The early members built it so they could gather and listen to the living prophet speak." It's exciting how many people are so shocked to discover that we have a living prophet! In fact, a couple weeks ago, we told this guy (that we met at one of the desks) that we have a living prophet today and he said, "Wait...what? A living prophet? What's his name!?" We answered Thomas S. Monson and he threw his hands up and said, "I'm taking the tour!!! I am taking the tour!" Haha! I love being a Temple Square missionary!!!

So the Salt Lake Temple is going to be closed all transfer long:( So President Poulsen gave us permission to travel to the Bountiful Temple this morning!!!! It was SO beautiful! It's also the temple they show in the presentation God's Plan for His Families (which each temple square sister watches on average 500 times during her mission) so it was exciting to be there! We took lots of pictures and the temple workers were so excited because they don't get many missionaries coming to that temple. (: It was such a special treat!

We've been taking several motor coaches lately! I LOVE motor coaches! Well I mean, you know me, I love a good crowd! And taking motor coaches is way better than acting or singing because what you're sharing with these people is going to change their lives forever! My companion and I have talked a lot about how interesting it is that people enjoy our tours on Temple Square so much. They always tell us how much they enjoyed it and how wonderful it was, and they just seem so happy! The reality is: nothing that my companion and I do or say is the factor to their rapid increase of happiness from the beginning to end of a tour. It's ALL the spirit. These people are walking away soo happy because they have felt the spirit of the Lord have influence and power in their hearts. And just imagine how long their spirit has been waiting for this! Their spirit has been waiting for years and years to hear the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. THAT is why these people love coming to Temple Square so much. Us missionaries are simply the means by which they get to hear the message! We are SO lucky!

I know the 4th of July was last week, but my companion and I have been discussing our country so much lately that I can't help but just feel so much excitement and happiness for the establishment of this country, and this mission! Temple Square is amazing and it is the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In Relief Society they spoke about how 56 men represented 2.5 million people when they created and signed The Declaration of Independence. Then, they drew the parallel to our role here as missionaries. On this 35 acre land that make up the headquarters of the church, there are only 220 sister missionaries who represent over 15 million people world-wide; we are from over 50 countries and speaking over 40 languages.  It's a small ratio to a lot of people but it's such an exciting call. And really, each missionary around the world is doing the same thing! There are 85,000 missionaries who represent over 15 million members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. That is not something to be taken lightly. But it is something to take joyfully. (:

Alright so I can't think of anything else to write right now...so I suppose this is all the most important things to share this week. I just love being a missionary on Temple Square! AH! I love being able to teach constantly and watch how the people change when they hear about the restored gospel! It's so amazing! I'm so happy!

Ok, I'll stop. I love you all, you're all fantastic and beautiful and handsome and funny and smart. (: Keep it up.

Love yous,
Sister Davis

President and Sister Poulsen THEY ARE THE CUTEST COUPLE TO EVER LIVE!

Sister Merrill and I celebrating how much we love our country. (:

I took this at the Bountiful Temple! AH!

Me at the Bountiful Temple!

My companion and I at the Bountiful Temple!

Our Zone at the Bountiful Temple! Yay!

 

No, I'm not outbound I'm still on the square! Haha(: (July 1st)

I know! It's been like 5 years since you all last heard from me right?! Did you miss my letter? I hope so... :P

So I'm not outbound now, I'm still on Temple Square! :D :D My companion is Sister Merrill from Northern Idaho and she arrived from the MTC last Wednesday! Oh I just love her so much! She is such a hard worker and she's so willing to do anything scary and she's got the best attitude! I LOVE her! She was a percussionist in high school so, obviously, it wasn't hard to automatically become best friends. (:

Since the beginning of the transfer we have already had so many fantastic, spiritual experiences. Just this morning as we were walking past the Seagull Monument there was a girl sitting on a bench with a long board, and she seemed like someone who had been through some rough patches in life. While looking at her, the spirit just said we should go talk with her so we stopped and said hi. The first thing she said to us was, "Hey, so I have a question! I joined in a tour going on yesterday and I came back today because I was wondering if it would be possible to get a Book of Mormon?" So we took her in the to South VC, got her a copy, shared a scripture, and shared the promise of the Book of Mormon! She said she'll be in town all week and will be back so we plan on talking with her more while she's here and visiting the square. :D So cool!

Although Sister Merrill has been here less than a week, we've already taken several large group motor coach tours! She's such a good sport and she did SO well! In fact, in our first English tour we had about 35 guests that we took around and they asked so many questions that we didn't get to take them to all the places they wanted to see! Haha(: But we gave out several Book of Mormons! In fact, these two men came up to us afterwards and said, "I get it now! Those boys that play basketball with us back home are missionaries! They sacrifice so much! Wow...we're going to talk to them more!" Those two men were from the Philippines so if you hear any stories of two converts from there who had visited Temple Square then that would be cool haha(:

Sometimes we have very awkward experiences with tours though. Some things, you'd think I'd be used to by now...but I still feel extremely awkward when these Asian men are standing in front of me just trying to take pictures of me. I think they just assume I'll like it and start posing or something...? But it's awkward because I have to put my hand in front of my face and say in broken mandarin "Sorry, no picture. You must be in picture." A couple of days ago we were taking a tour and as everyone was sitting down in the Assembly Hall an Asian man on the front row said, "Sister Davis!" (then gave me a thumbs up.) I was like, "What?" And he said, "You are very beautiful." It was cute...but also kinda awkward haha

We have an investigator in Texas whom we just love so much! We found her on Mormon.org chat and she immediately accepted local missionaries into her home! Yesterday she texted us and said that she now has a baptism date for August 2nd!!! We're so happy for her! She has a very thick Texan accent so it'll be fun to chat with her on the phone this week and hear how excited she is(:

Family you are so funny! The sisters that saw mom and dad in the North Visitor Center were talking to me about 45 minutes later and said, "Oh hey you're parents are here, we just saw them 45 minutes ago." That was an awkward, shocking moment.. But then they told me that when you found out I wasn't outbound you immediately started to walk quickly out of the building hahahaha! I laughed so hard. (: And it was SO good to see Thomas!!! Wow, I was so happy to see him! We were in the teaching center about to wrap up when we got the text, "Sister Davis your brother is here at the flag pole!" So my companion and I just booked it out there!

Well, all-in-all, things are just so good. I just LOVE being a missionary on Temple Square.... Every time I watch any church movie that has Temple Square (or the pioneers coming here) in it I always just cry because I feel so lucky to be a missionary here. I wish I really could express how much love being a missionary here..and I wish I could tell you everything I've learned about all the sacrifice of the early members of the church. This place is where the prophet Isaiah talked about when he said that in the last days the mountain of the Lord would be established in the top of the mountains. Do you know what Utah mean? It means in the top of the mountains... Ah I just love this place so much!!

I love you all. Mom and dad, I'm glad that you hid from me while you were here. (: Thomas, I'm glad I saw you while you were here. Oh and I'm sorry the Temple is closed. :( I would have warned you if I could have! When it opens again I'll let you know haha! I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Love you more than Sister Merrill loves airplanes!!!

Sister Davis

On transfer day, Sister Mathias (from England/Germany) and I were matching. This was not planned:P

Giving my new companion a tour of the conference center! Her name is Sister Merrill and she is from Northern Idaho! Woo!(:

We already have immense companionship love and unity as you can see haha(:
(This is in the church history museum)

 

This week was quite epic... (June 18th)

So much went on this week and we had so many testimony building experiences! I can't remember the exact days each thing happened so they may or may not be out of order(:

A few days ago we were assigned to take a large tour with about 30 teenagers. When we received the tour report and saw who we were taking, we immediately knew that they were anti-mormon (because of the name of the church). So we showed up for this tour and began to take these youth around. We overheard their leader mention that they were here to do some ministry in the city, which confirmed to us that they were anti. They were super nice and asked lots of questions about the history and seemed very interested! The last place we took them to was the Tabernacle. We took them to one of the observation rooms and talked about the Tabernacle and the purpose of a living day prophet. I suppose it was because we were in a small enclosed space, but this was when they decided to start firing away with the anti questions. We weren't nervous at all though, seeing as every anti asks the same questions and we know the answers to each one. We could tell that they were still in training because they struggled with trying to trip us up and/or catch us in our wording. Finally, one of the young boys said, "Well what is even the purpose of having a Savoir?" Now, keep in mind that these youth are Christian but they believe very different things that we do, especially concerning how we receive salvation. Nonetheless, the question really surprised me! I knew I could have answered him the way Abinadi did when he said, "Are you priests, and pretend to teach this people, and to understand the spirit of prophesying, and yet desire to know of me what these things mean?" But I didn't. Although I was tempted. Instead we took a different route and began to testify of Jesus Christ, His life, ministry, and His role in the Plan of Salvation. As I stood there bearing solemn testimony that I knew Jesus Christ atoned for the sins of the world, these youth suddenly became dead silent. None of them even moved a muscle, they simply sat still with their eyes zoned and focused on every word. The spirit came with such power into the room that we knew all could feel it, especially because we noticed some felt uncomfortable recognizing the Holy Ghost there testifying. After that, we ended the tour and left. The entire time we were taking the tour I had the feeling in my mind that said, "Someone in that group of youth is going to be touched by something you said and they will be baptized." I turned to Sister Fuentes and told her what I had been feeling. She looked back at me and said, "Sister Davis, I was feeling the same way." I don't know which of those youth is going to be baptized, but I know that one of them will be.

We've been very fortunate to take several youth conference groups in the last week! It's amazing watching the youth come and go, to hear their testimonies and to see how much potential and power that they have. The youth can be such a force for good in the world, if they choose to do so. This morning, we took a group of youth around and ended with a guest speaker. Well that guest speaker was JOHN BYTHEWAY!!! That's right, brothers and sisters, we heard from John Bytheway this morning. He's still just as insightful and just as funny as always! After his fireside and all the youth cleared the room, I went up and introduced myself to him and asked him for some advice for someone like me who wants to be able to do what he does for the youth. Man, it was so cool to be able to talk to him! When he asked where my home was, I told him St. George and his faced was (as he would put it) "exceedingly astonished!" Haha but he's awesome and it's so cool to finally have been able to talk to him! (I've been waiting to talk to him since I was like...12.) (:

Yesterday was an excellent day as well! While on shift at the Beehive House (Brigham Young's home) one of the historians that works for the church came to visit us. She wrote the historical sight guides for Temple Square, the Beehive House, AND the historical guides they use in the St. George Mission! WOOO!!!! So I got to spend like half an hour talking to her about the history of the St. George Temple, Tablernacle, and Brigham Young's Winter Home. Oh it was so awesome! She, seriously, knows EVERYTHING about church history. She drew and described the foundation process of building the SLC temple, and let us look at the blueprints for the Beehive House. Oh man, it was so cool. She also talked with us about some things in church history that anti-mormons try to question us about. She gave so much useful information that I almost want anti's to come take a tour now! Almost. Haha(:

We also took quite a fun tour yesterday in the Beehive House as well. Two men from Alabama came in! One of them sounded JUST LIKE my cousin Josh and I said to him, "This sounds weird, but every time you talk you sound just like my cousin." When I told him that the family is in Gadsden the other man said, "No way! I'm from Gadsden!" It was so awesome! They said they live like...a block from the falls!! So cool! Thankfully, they were Bama fans, not Auburn fans. At the end of the tour as they were walking out of the house they said, "Bye now! ROLL TIDE!" When Sister Fuentes closed the door I jumped up and was like "Roll tide roll!" She looked at me like I was a strange creature so I explained what that meant. (:

Anyways, this letter is getting a little long so I'm going to wrap things up. Tomorrow morning we find out who will be going outbound. A week ago I was thinking I wouldn't be going out yet, but then we heard that 16 sisters are going so my chances are kind of high...so I will find out in the morning if I'm leaving. If I don't email next week, that means I'm outbound. Ha!

Well, I love you all! I hope you're continuing to enjoy the hot summer weather! :D

Sister Davis

Some awesome socks that our roomate (Sister Rhodes from Las Veags) gave to us! Top feet: Sister Bennett from Tahiti. Left socks: Sister Fuentes from Chile Right Socks: Sister Rhodes from LV and bottom socks me(:

Us..in the teaching center...teaching/being really awkward

 

Another Wonderful Week (June 11th)

It's been such a fun week, lots of interesting experiences! On Thursday was exchanges with my district leader, Sister Perez. Well that morning some sisters were not able to take their youth conference group so they asked us to cover for them! So Sister Perez and I took a youth conference group that morning and it was SO FUN! Sister Perez was an efy counselor before the mission and I told her about doing bys, so we just worked together so well and had just the best time with those kids! Sadly, later in the day (after youth conference) Sister Perez was starting to feel very very sick so we spent the rest of our day trying to figure out what to do to help with her symptoms.

On Saturday we took a large group motor coach of 55 English-speaking guests. It's funny how the adversary always tries to get in the way of others learning more about the gospel because this was yet another tour that the guide requested be made short, so we had about half the time we normally would. BUT it didn't deter us! The wonderful people had SO many questions and we jammed as much teaching as we possibly could into the short time we had. As we walked the folks back to their bus we discovered that one of the ladies in the group has been meeting with missionaries for a while now and she said thank you so much for answer those questions because they were part of concerns that she had been having and we were able to resolve them for her! Yay!!! We were so happy!!!

On Sunday night we got some really sad news, our district leader Sister Perez would be going home the next morning. :( So on Tuesday morning the district went down the hall to her apartment and we had breakfast together. It was really sad but it was neat to hear how she had felt a lot of peace and that the Lord's hand was involved with everything that was going on. It just kind of reminded me of the many times in my life when things happened that I wasn't sure of, and how I just had to put complete and full faith in the Lord. I think that happens to everyone a lot throughout life, it keeps us in check of making sure we are doing what the Lord would have us do.

This morning we were able to take another youth conference group. This time I was with my companion Sister Fuentes. We had such a great time talking with these youth, sharing with them our experiences and answering their questions. We brought with us our mission calls and a copy of the White Handbook to show them. For the last part of the youth conference each company had to prepare a "testimony" of sorts with each of the youth involved. We had each of them share a teaching of the gospel that they knew to be true. As they stood up to share it with all the kids in the youth conference, I held the mic going from each of them as they would speak. I was surprised and happy to see, that as I was passing these youth, several of them had tears in their eyes as they testified of what they knew to be true. I hope those youth remember that. I wish the youth of the church, and really just everyone member or not, knew how much potential they have. God doesn't give gifts and abilities to just some people, He gives them to everyone. There is something great that anyone can accomplish. It's just a matter of discovering our personal purpose, trusting in the Lord, and fulfilling it. John Bytheway was going to be the youth speaker today but unfortunately he canceled last minute. :( But they had another incredible women come and speak instead. All in all it was a great experience.

Oh my goodness I almost forgot! The most exciting news of the week.....our recent convert Alan got married!!!! (To his girlfriend who is a member, they've been dating for a while now.) They were married on Sunday which means a year from now they will be sealed in the temple!!!! AH! Families can be forever!!! Haha(:

Well I hope you all have a good week. I hope you're loving the St. George heat(: The weather is sooo mellow here it's crazy...but kinda nice! I love you all!

Sister Davis

 

Companionship unity at it's finest! I gave myself and Sister Fuentes matching pedicures (: haha

Our district leader Sister Perez who is now home:( This was the morning she left for home. I'm really gonna miss her...

 

This week! (June 4th)

Wow there are so many miracles on Temple Square every day!

Last week we were struggling committing people to be baptized! We were praying and praying and resolving every concern you could imagine but everyone we were teaching was just so unreceptive to actually making the commitment of baptism. We weren't sure if we were doing something wrong or if there was something in the food...of every single country we're teaching in right now...it was just madness. But this last morning things just flipped around! We called our investigator Lidia (in Texas) on Monday morning to find that she HAD been baptized the day before! She said she didn't tell us until after because she didn't want us to be sad if she changed her mind. Haha so that was exciting! We also called our investigator in Columbia (who we've been playing phone-tag with for a while). Well he told us he's still been reading the Book of Mormon and praying and he really feels that he needs to be baptized! He now has a baptism date for June 22nd! Then our investigator in California texted us and said that he too is getting baptized this month, on June 21st! We were sitting there at the computers in total and utter shock staring at each other saying, "Well, great! Our diligence is working!" Haha(: In other good news: our sweet investigator in Canada went to church on Sunday! She was sooo sooo nervous but when she got there she met so many friendly people and lots of missionaries (it was Stake Conference) and she was so glad she went!!! When we talked with her yesterday she told us that she felt so happy while she was at church and she knew the Holy Spirit was helping her to feel that way. (: We are so happy!!!!

Yesterday we had quite the terrifying experience at the Beehive House! We were in the front room talking with some folks that we were about to take on a tour when President Poulsen (the mission president) just came walking on in! He stood there and watched us as we talked and then we started to take the couple in to the next room to begin the tour. I knew that President likes to watch sisters teach so as we were going I turned to him and said, "Do you want to come?" (I know, that's like signing away my own death, right?) But he just said, "No no that's ok." Then he all of the sudden pauses for a second and then turns back to me and says, "Actually, yes! I'd like to come." I know...me and my big mouth. Hahaha(: So our mission president joined us on the tour...it was probably the most nerve-racking tour of my life! (Yes, even more nerve racking than when David Archuleta was watching us teach that Spanish couple a few weeks ago.) But no worries, the tour was great and president gave us a thumbs up at the end. A thumbs up from president is like a high-five from a 6-year-old; the best stamp of approval.

Just this morning we had another one of the teaching-the-restoration-in-five-minutes-to-random-people experiences. It's something that happens so often but yet something that never ceases to amaze me. No matter where we are on the square, when we meet someone who asks, "So what is the story behind how the Mormons started, anyway?" the area we are in suddenly becomes empty of other people and super quiet and reverent. This morning it was outside of the Assembly Hall. There was a cute couple sitting on a bench who we said hello to. They turned out to be from England, just visiting on holiday. The husband said, "So, there were so many religions in New England why did those people just pick up and leave everything? What was so different about Mormonism that they just decided to pick up and go to the desert?!" Isn't that just the best question anyone could ever ask?(: We taught the restoration in 5 minutes and, once again, there was suddenly nobody nearby, no cars wizzing through the streets, no children screaming or laughing, nothing! It went totally quiet as we explained the first vision. The Lord is so gracious to create such reverent environments for teaching. We are the luckiest.

We went to the temple this morning. Oh how I love the Temple!!! This morning I was thinking about how blessed I have been in my life to always be so close to a temple. In St. George the temple was 10 minutes away! In Idaho is was 15 minutes away! Here it's...like 3 minutes away. Haha(: I feel so blessed, but I don't think I'll really understand how blessed I am until I live in a place that isn't close to a temple (if that does happen someday).

Last week for Relief Society three amazing women came to speak to us! They are the founders of Eyes for Zimbabwe, a project that works to provide thousands of people with a simple surgery that allows them to have full vision restored in just 10 minutes! These 3 women are professional golfers and some of the most accomplished members of the church. They were sooo amazing! They follow the spirit in everything they do and they said so much that really helped me receive personal revelation. It was such a neat experience to be able to hear their testimonies and know that the Lord wants us to accomplish great things to serve His children. We just need to pray, listen for the spirit, and then go and do good!

We're really excited for this coming week because we get to participate in hosting some Youth Conferences here on the square! I'M SO EXCITED!!! I have been anticipating the chance to do youth conferences ever since I got here :D eep! We have one next Wednesday that we'll be in charge of. At the end of each one we take them to one of the large theaters to hear from a youth speaker and we are also invited to stay and listen to the youth speaker. Well guess who we get to hear from next Wednesday? That's right...John Bytheway!!!! AH!!!! Oh my goodness. I just love working with youth. They're so lucky. And they're so amazing! The youth of the church just have SO much ahead of them I wish they just knew how much potential that God sees in them! Anyways...so yes that's very exciting. (:

Well, I believe that is the bulk of the news for this week. I'll probably think of more stories I could have told when I leave but that's ok!(: Thank you for the love and prayers and support! I hope ya'll have a great week and continue to enjoy the summer sun!!!

Love yous,

Sister Davis

Our mission with the founders of Eye's for Zimbabwe!(: I'm right above Sister Poulsen (she's on the first row wearing a green shirt.)

All the Asians keep pointing at my hair! (May 28th)

I always sit down to write and then my mind just goes blank! Ah! Life is so difficult! (I'm only joking, just being dramatic because I can.)

This last week was wonderful! Last Thursday was Pine View's Graduation! Yay for all my friends who have finally escaped high school! That morning I was thinking about how strange it is that a year ago from that day I was graduating high school and now I'm halfway finished with my mission, wow! For our morning work out we decided to run up to the capital building and kill ourselves running up and down the forever long steps up the front. As I was running I couldn't help but feel like my life is going somewhere, considering the fact that a year prior I was leaving high school. Ha! (:

So the Temple Square Mission is piloting a new pass-along card! WOO! Now that may not sound like a big deal but I'm sure the other visitor center missionaries will be stoked when they send them out! The card is a digital copy of The Book of Mormon with a QR code to scan to any apple or android device, AND (drum roll please) it's available in 33 languages!!! That's almost as many languages that are spoken here on the square! It's so exciting and since receiving the first batch we've used them a TON!

We've seen a lot of great miracles this week, finding new investigators and sharing the gospel with people who have been so prepared! I really felt that there was someone who would be coming to the Beehive House this week who was prepared to learn about the gospel. Well, we found her yesterday! She was here with her sister and we took them on a tour with a cute British couple. As we showed them one of the original Book of Mormons she asked us about where it originated from. We taught the Restoration in about 5 minutes and she was so excited/surprised! At the end of the tour we asked her if she would be interested in reading the Book of Mormon and she said yes! We gave her one of the new pass-along cards, which was perfect. She was fantastic and we're excited for her to read!

We have a darling investigator in Canada who was referred to us by her boyfriend! (We just love member missionaries!) We weren't sure how deep her interest was in the church-we thought that perhaps she was feeling pressure from her boyfriend-but we invited her to be baptized this week and she started telling us about how she feels like something is missing in her life and she really feels that this could be it! So she said yes! Her boyfriend texted us afterwards and was telling us how excited he was! He wasn't sure how interested she was either so he was just as surprised as we were! Wow! The church is so true!

Well, I love you all so so much! I love hearing about how things are going back home and all the stories you share! Thank you so much for your prayers in my behalf, they really do mean the world to me and I can feel their power in my day to day work. Enjoy the hot sun, I'm so jealous! It's been 91/92 degrees the last couple of days and my companion has been dying! Haha! I'm loving it though it's warm but not hot so it's just great! I wonder how hot it gets up here in Salt Lake...anyways! I love you tons! Have a wonderful week!!!!

Sister Davis

The capital this morning! We run those steps rocky-status.

At Sette Bello eating real pizza! Ah so good!

Visited This is The Place Monument as part of Sister Fuentes' birthday!(:

Don't judge us in our missionary happiness bubble.