What a mission is about.

I feel like the other sisters and I just celebrated the new year and now it is February. I still cannot believe it. So since Sister Weakley has been out of the hospital she has been very tired. We have been managing her sugar and she has stayed consistent the past few days. But she has been really tired. The past few months her sugars have been really high and now since it is at a reasonable number her body is just trying to adjust back to normal. She has been told to take it easy until she gets back to normal. So that is what has happened the past few days. Last night though we were able to go out and have an experience that has helped to realize how much Heavenly Father and our Savior love each of us.

While Sister Weakley was in the hospital I went to visit her once or even twice a day. As I did so, I realized an elderly woman who was a patient next to Sister Weakley's. I noticed that every time I went to visit Sister Weakley that this woman never had anyone visit her. The other four people in the room, and Sister Weakley got visited but this woman never did. So I decided to talk to her as I visited Sister Weakley.Her name is Majorie. She has been a widow for sometime now. She has no siblings, no children, and not many friends. We talked about her life and laughed. One day I decided to bring her flowers. You should have seen the smile on her face. The more I got to know her the more I began to feel Christlike love for her.  A few days ago after Sister Weakley was released from the hospital we had a feeling to go and visit her. The spirit came over me and testified to me that this is what Christ would have done. I love visiting Marjorie. So much that we are going to continue to visit her and plant a seed in her so that one day she will accept the Gospel.

The past few weeks I have noticed myself grow spiritually. I have been feeling so grateful for the many blessings that I have. Being able to be on a mission has helped me grow in ways that I have never imagined. I thought by going on a mission I would be able to help many people, which has been the case, but I have been surprised to see that I have been helped along the way. That is what the Gospel provides for us, help along the journey of life. I have met so many people on my mission and have taken them by the hand and lead them to Jesus Christ. I have come to realize

that not only have I helped someone come closer to the Savior but I have also come closer to Him myself.

I have tried to learn more of Him by reading the scriptures, specifically the Book of Mormon. I have learned so much the past few weeks. I have been studying the Book of Mormon along with the Institute manual (which I encourage you all to do) and I have received so much insight. One day I came across Omni 1:26 which reads:

"And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and offer your whole souls as an offering unto him, and continue in fasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved." 

Elder Neal A. Maxwell said to this scripture, "As you submit your wills to God, you are giving Him the only thing you can actually give Him that is really yours to give." (April 2004) I have notice the change in myself as I have committed to come closer to the Savior. I am striving to make my will His and I am noticing the blessings. I love this Gospel and I love Jesus Christ. He wants us to come unto him "and be transformed." (Elder David A. Bednar) Come closer to Him. You can start now. I love you all so very much! Make the most of every moment and enjoy life.

Your friend in England,

Sister Garrett

What a week....

So sorry family and friends for writing so late. This week has been crazy. Let me explain. Two Saturdays ago (16 Jan.) Sister Weakley was having really bad back pains, so we made an appointment at the A&E. Within just an hour she found out she had a urinary tract infection. The doctor prescribed her some medication and said the pain should be gone within three days. Three days passed and the pain was still there. It did not hurt as bad but I could tell she was still in pain. I told her that she needed to call Sister Pilkington (President's wife) and make another appointment. After some time she finally called Sister Pilkington and we made an appointment to see the doctor within 30 minutes. At 3:40 we were at the hospital and the doctor asked to test her urine. After they tested it they said that she has a lot of sugar in her urine and that she needed to take a blood test.

After the blood test we were told to wait an hour and a half for the results. At 7:30 we were taken into see a doctor and he told her that she has type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is hereditary. The doctor then said to Sister Weakley that she needed to stay overnight for treatment. I freaked out. The night without a companion was long. For the past year I have never been without one. 

To cut the story short, Sister Weakley has been in the hospital and was released yesterday. S

o that is why I am emailing today. The health system here in England is different then it is in America. You are only allowed to visit within certain hours which are 2-4 and 7-8. I went on exchanges with members and with the other sisters in our flat. It was a long interesting week but I am glad to have my companion again and to get back to work. Sorry this is a short email but hope you all have a good week!

With love,

Sister Garrett

A New Year for New Beginnings!

Wow. I cannot believe it is 2016. Where did 2015 go? It has been a great year though. Full of many miracles and memories.The year 2015 for me, was dedicated completely to the Lord and his work. I have loved every minute of it. I am so grateful I have been able to serve a mission. Of course because it is a new year we as individuals make new years resolutions. I have pondered on what I personally need to improve upon and what I can do is to become a better servant of the Lord. I would recommend that each of you do the same. I love this quote by President Monson: "It is not enough to want to make the effort and to say we'll make the effort... It's in the doing, not just the thinking, that we accomplish our goals. If we constantly put our goals off, we will never see them fulfilled." Set goals and achieve them. With the Lord's help you can do all things!

On New Year's Eve Sister Weakley and I watched a film. Which we enjoyed every much. On New Year's day itself we went to the beach and took lovely pictures. We also watched some more films at the chapel and had a very enjoyable day.

Here in South Shields we have had a lot of rain. I have never seen so much rain in my life! I understand why England is so green. Other then the weather things here are going well. Sister Weakley and I have been getting to know the ward even

more. We have been trying by members and less-actives to introduce ourselves and to teach them.

Sister Weakley and I have been doing a lot of finding as well. Which seems to have little success as of now but during weekly planning we discussed on how we can find those individuals who are prepared. We have plans this week to try by all of our potentials and former investigators we found in the area book. We are keeping our heads up and working hard. I am sorry my emails have been so short lately but nothing much has happened. Hope everyone is doing well! Keep your heads up and have a great week!!

That missionary in England,

Sister Garrett

P.S. Our ceiling is not fixed yet but it is getting there

New Year for new beginnings

You mates alright? I am fitting in here in South Shields. The accent here is harder to understand then in my past areas. It sounds more Scottish then anything. I love this area though. The ward here is amazing and so friendly. Christmas was simple this year. I loved focusing more on the saviour and his birth.

Christmas Eve Sister Weakley and I went to a members home. The Cawthornes fed us and we watched Polar Express. Christmas Day we got to sleep in till 8. It was amazing! Even though my natural instinct was to wake up at 6:30. We had a great breakfast and had fun as sisters.

We had Christmas lunch at the Powers (an older couple in the ward).

They feel like my grandparents. I love them. We watched a movie with them and that completed our Christmas. It was so lovely!

Here in England after Christmas is a holiday called Boxing Day. Our Boxing Day was eventful... Sister Weakley and I traveled to Newcastle to shop. Boxing Day is like Black Friday back home. Not as big,

but a lot of the shops have sales. We got tired and went back to our flat to rest. We were watching a film then heard a massive noise. We rewrote a song to explain what happened next. (To the tune "The Wise Man and the Foolish Man")

We were sitting on the coach and heard a CRASH, We were sitting on the coach and heard a crash, We were sitting on the coach and heard a crash, And we were all freaking out.

The ceiling came down and the sisters cleaned up, The ceiling came down and the sisters cleaned up, The ceiling came down and the sisters cleaned up, And it took our boxing day away.

Yes you read that right. Our bathroom ceiling fell down. It has been raining a lot here in England. There seems to be a leak in the roof and the ceiling couldn't take it anymore. Sister Weakley and I cleaned it up and called the mission office. Because it was a holiday we couldn't get someone to fix it right away. So Sister Weakley and I took down some of the ceiling ourself. Part of the ceiling was still falling down. So we got a knife and cut it down. We pulled all the instillation out and cleaned it all up. Mission's teach you life skills. Love it!! Cannot believe this week will start a new year. Make the most of it!! Talk to you guys later. Love you all!

Until next week, Sister Garrett

Snowing in South Shields.

Hello family and friends,

Well two days ago I received a welcome from South Shields... it was snowing. Which was ok for the first thirty minutes until the cold moisture settled into your bones. Snow here is not the same as Utah snow. Here it is wet and slushy. The next day it turned to ice. I was almost fell walking to church. It was great though! :) Other then the weather South Shields is pretty great! We have gotten to know a lot of the ward already. Thursday night we had a Relief Society activity, where we got to meet a lot of the sisters. I still have trouble remembering their names but that is normal. Days here in South Shields are made up of finding, visiting less-actives, and trying by members. We are starting completely from scratch.

As for my companion, (this is to please my parents)😉 her name is Sister Weakley. She is from Pleasant Grove, Utah. She has been out for 13 months now. This is her fourth area like me. She is 20 years old. I interviewed her knowing people would like to know her, so here are her responses...

Birthday: 16 August

Siblings:6

Favorite color: sunset orange

Favorite animal: wolf

If she was an animal a horse would best describe her.

Favorite food: shepherds pie

favorite snack: blueberry muffins

Favorite drink: strawberry lemonade (Not milk? There must be a problem.)

Hobbies: scarpbooking and water aerobics

If you had a day out what would you do? Go to Disneyland with my sister

Dream holiday

: Hawaii

Before her mission she was a nanny and she went to Dixie University in St. George.

After her mission she plans to be a teacher.

Hopefully that pleases people. 😊 Well hope everyone has a fantastic week! This week for us is the mission Christmas party. I am so stoked! Anyway, until next week.

With much love,

Sister Garrett 󾓪

​

Silent Night. Holy Night

Hello family and friends!!!

So sorry that I haven't emailed in so long. These past few p-days have
been hectic. We have been traveling to have zone P-Day in a city
called York. It is an amazing city but it takes an hour and a half by
train so we have been cutting emailing time down. But I will quickly
catch you guys up:

The past few weeks have been the same as my whole mission. Finding. We
have been putting the hours of finding in but it hasn't seemed like we
have had any results. The only person we have found who is solid is
Chelsey who I talked about last week. She has been very busy because
of Christmas so we haven't been able to teach her. The work goes on.
We will find those who are prepared.

The less activities we have been working with are Rose and Anita. Rose
is still smoking but she is trying to quit down. She has been reading
her scriptures from a scripture jar we made her. She absolutely loves
it! I am not sure if I have mentioned Anita before but Anita is so
sweet! I love her so much. I have been able to connected with her. She
is a very sad woman. There are a lot of things from the past that
trouble her. When we first met her she was very closed off. Members
have told us that she doesn't answer the door normally but she did for
us. She has opened up so much to us and the Gospel.

Wednesday our flat was sick. Sister Hart, Sister Jesse, and I were
throwing up. Poor Sister Froerer just had to stay in the flat and look
after us. It was great. The next day I felt a little weak but we went
out and worked. On Thursday night the Pontefract ward went to a
nursing home and sang carols.

Since the First Presidency has wanted the church to improve our
sacrament services, the ward has been coming up with ideas to invite
the spirit. One Sunday, fifteen minutes before the service was going
to start, the Relief Society President came and asked us to sing
before sacrament meeting started. Since then the ward has been coming
on time to hear us sing. Every week they come up to us and ask us if
we are singing. Especially the old members of the ward love it! This
Sunday we sang Silent Night a capella. I felt like tearing up. The
spirit was so strong!!

Well transfer calls were yesterday. And the news is.... Sister Jessee
is staying. Sister Froerer is staying. Sister Hart is leaving. She is
staying in the stake but moving to York. And I am leaving as well. I
am headed more up North. (So in other words it is going to colder.
Yay! 😬) I will opening up a completely new area. Seems like they
really like me area booking. I will be serving with a sister named
Sister Weakley. I am excited!!! Talk to you guys next week.

Much love, Sister Garrett

It is almost December... where has time gone?

Sorry everyone for not writing the past few weeks. I have not had very long to email these past weeks and it looks like it has happened again. I will quickly update you about my week and send some photos to make up. Finding is all that Sister Hart and I have really done this week. All the investigators we have are all busy. It is hard to see them. We have appointments that I hope will go well. From last week's finding we found potentials but one solid one that we have an appointment with. I really think Sister Hart and I can help her. She is a single parent with a 3 month old. She has been praying to God for help. Strange that we knocked on her door.... I know God puts missionaries in the path of those who need the Gospel. Sister Hart and I need to just continue to work hard and have the faith to find others who are prepared.

Hope you all have a good week! Love you all!!

Sister Garrett

Making Christmas wreaths with Relief Society