Week 15: If You See Old People With Nice Teeth Don't Comment On Them

Dear You,

My eye.  The scar is the little white
thing at the bottom of my pupil.
It's getting smaller!  Yay.

I feel like there was such a big build up to Christmas, but then it never actually happened. Or it did, but it only lasted for about 5 minutes. It just went by so fast, ya know? So fun getting to see/speak with all of you though. Loved it.

The rest of this week has been good, very slow. Holidays tend to do that around here. After we skyped, we went over to a family's house in our ward for dinner. Then we went to the Visitors' Center and basically just hung out until we had a talent show with all of the VC sisters/senior couples. Let me just tell you, the people serving here are HILARIOUS. For the most part. Every once in awhile you run into a Sister Livingston who's just odd. But that's okay, because I'm still a child of God. And I just wrote you a two lined poem. You're welcome. 

We went caroling some more and it was wonderful, yet again. Except for the first house we went to didn't start out too good. We saw them looking at us through the windows, so we smiled and kept walking up to their door, then this lady opened the door (very abruptly, might I add) and said, "Jehovah Witness? Tonight? Seriously?!" Oh, it was scary. I just wanted to hide my face in my jacket and slowly back away. But then we told her we just wanted to sing some carols, and she completely changed. She invited us in and we sang for the party she was having. Then they offered us money. We didn't accept. I think if we accepted the money we've been offered, we could have earned about $100. People are so nice around Christmas time.   

Also, get this. Meet the Mormons is coming to the Visitors' Center. And we'll get to show it to people who come in for free. How cool is that? I feel spoiled. Serving at the VC is great for not only the Visitors' Center aspect of missionary work, but also for proselyting purposes. We always have something to invite them to, whether it be a tour, nativities, or now, Meet the Mormons. And it's fabulous. Kirtland is fabulous. "Kirtland is my home, Phoebe!" - Ann Whitney, Kirtland movie. #historickirtland (<-- that's a real thing)

25 pounds later

I've learned a lot of different things thus far, but I want to share something with you. I notice peoples' teeth apparently. And if someone has good teeth, I tell them. Probably a weird/creepy compliment, but whatevs. My advice: If you see old people with nice teeth, don't comment on them. They're most likely fake. I've had too many times where I say, "You have such nice teeth!" And they reply, "Yeah, if only they were real." And then I just feel uncomfortable. Then end.

Now, lets talk about prayer. It's real. A lot of times we may feel like our prayers aren't answered, but they always are. It may not be in a way/at the time that you expect/want your answers to come, but they always come. I've heard it said this way: Why would Heavenly Father give you a floodlight, when a flashlight is all you need? We can't expect to just be told every single little thing that we should be doing. That's where faith and growth come
in. Heavenly Father is so aware of each and everyone of us. He knows our needs, he knows our concerns and he knows how to best help us. He's listening, so talk to him. You are His child, after all. 

I love you all and hope you have the happiest of all New Years. 

Love,

Me

Week 14: It wasn't just Christ's birth that was a gift; it was his entire life!

Hello! Greetings, season's greetings. How are you? 

You guys, I think my memory is going. I don't really remember this week. We just spent some time at the Visitor's Center watching the nativities. Classic winter at the HKVC (<--that's a gross looking abbreviation). I have to admit, it can be rough at times. Our job is to sit in a chair and make sure no one touches the nativities. Then we rotate to different rooms every hour. And we're not allowed to proselyte. That's the hard part, especially when you're talking to someone who is in your area. We're supposed to study while on duty, but after about 4 hours of it, you start to loose your mind and get a headache. And sometimes the AC and heater don't work so it's 84 degrees inside. But that's okay. 

I'm really taking the nativities for granted though, and I'm a little mad at myself for it. People come from all over northern Ohio to see them, and when they finally make it to the sites, they are in tears because of the beauty of it all and the spirit that is felt so strongly. And here I am, living in this beautiful place, complaining about the extensive heat. I'm spoiled. And disgusted with myself. The lady who runs the bible study that we've been attending came to the sites to see the nativities! It was really cool. We showed her the He is the Gift video and afterwards, she was like, "I just have this energy running throughout my body!" That, my friend, is the spirit. I've watched that video a lot of times. The first time I watched it, I must say, I wasn't too impressed. But I love it more and more with each viewing. I love it so much. The music, as well as everything else about it, is just perfect. 

Oh we went caroling the other night! It was a huge success. It really softened peoples' hearts and we came across so many kind people/families. And we were able to share the He is the Gift video with everyone we came in contact with. I just love it. So much. We caroled at this one house and a little boy answered the door. He just stared at us and you could tell he was a little uncomfortable and didn't know what to do, but we kept singing. Then he went and got his brother, who also stood there and stared at us. About half way through the song, they just walked way, leaving the door open. Inside I was chuckling. But, we are very persistent carolers and we did not cease! Once we finished, they came back and shut the door. So maybe that one wasn't a success, but it sure was funny.

Last night the Community of Christ had a Hymn Sing in the temple that we went to. The VC Sisters sang Prelude music. It's always such a neat experience singing in the temple. The spirit is always so strong. 3 other sisters and I sang a quartet called, "My son, My King" and it is seriously the most beautiful song. It's from Mary's perspective. Here's a little, very little, taste of it: 

"I hold this tiny hand in mine, these hand will cause the blind to see. And bless the children one by one, as they gather round His knee."

That's all I remember, so that's all you get. I really wish I could remember it better. See what I mean? Memory=nonexistent. But it is so pretty! And so touching. Maybe I can send it to you guys or something. President was there. For some reason I always get really nervous to sing at things whenever he's there. Maybe because I completely butchered it at Zone Conference? I don't know.

I just love Christmas. Focusing on Christ is such a blessing. We are all so loved by Heavenly Father--each and every one of us. We are personally known and loved by Him. And that is why He sent His son, the first gift. What I love so much about it is the fact that it wasn't just Christ's birth that was a gift. It was his entire life. He spent every minute of every day of his life selflessly serving, loving, healing and giving. It is because of the gift of His life that we are able to be healed, have fresh starts, experience true forgiveness, and ultimately return to our Heavenly Father again. I'm so grateful for all that is possible through Christ. As a very inadequate servant of the Lord, I have grown to rely heavily on the Atonement. I know that it is real and that it is powerful. I know that it is for every single one of us, no matter how far gone we are. There is nothing that the Atonement can't reach. What greater gift is there? May we remember Christ not only this Christmas season, but always.

I love you all. I hope you have a wonderful week, and I'll speak with  you on Thursday! Wait, is this real life? 

Love,

Sister Livingston

1.  Hello

2. We've been going around to all the members
 in our ward and asking them how they
can share the gift of Christ. Here are the results. Love.

3. <3<3<3 Meet Rosie, the 96 year old lady. Don't mind my cheesy face and lack of eyes.

Week 13: The Spirit is Powerful

Yes! I know the Sisters in Alta Sierra. They came into Schoolhouse a few times while I was working and I'd always talk to them at church and different activities. Not the elders though. Gross. 

Thank you for getting the sandals for Sister de Kock! She's not expecting much for Christmas because her family is all the way in South Africa so hopefully she'll actually like those. I think she will. Maybe. So thank you. Don't worry about gift cards, I don't go shopping all that much and we hardly ever go out to eat. I don't have any other requests, thank you though. As for speaking to you on Christmas, we'll be at the Decker's to Skype you guys. How does 12 my time work for you guys? That'd be 9am for you. Sorry if that's too early, we have to find a time that works for Sister de Kock's family too. I just can't believe that I'll be talking to you guys in a WEEK. So crazy. Time is flying by. It's weird. 

That story about Jett just makes me want to give him a big fat hug. So sad. But also so touching. So I don't know if the feeling I get when thinking about it is happy or sad. Probably sad. Definitely sad. (Phyllis here--Jett got left at the church by a carpool group.  It was a confusing night.  All ended up well, but he was sad and scared for a bit, so he went and stood by Jayne's plaque in the hall.  Being with her picture comforted him.)

We haven't seen Ricky since church last week, he's been sick I guess. We're both a little nervous about him though. He's made some interesting comments so we're not sure if he's doing this for the right reasons. And the guy who admitted to staring? No idea who he was or where he came from. Yesterday though, something similar happened. It was really funny. We were sitting, monitoring the nativities and this man come running up to us and says, "You're missionaries? I need to take a picture!" Then he whips out his phone and takes individual pictures of us and says, "Now, I may never see you again, but at least I will always remember you." I had to try extremely hard to refrain from laughing. I guess he has like 8,000 pictures of missionaries. Interesting. 

Madame M is progressing slowly, very slowly, but surely. She doesn't have a phone or anything so it's hard to get solid appointments with her. We usually just go over on Monday and Friday nights and hope she'll be there. Sometimes she is, sometimes she isn't. We're hoping for January now, but it all depends on how often we can see her. So we'll see! Oh, her bird died. We're not sure how. But don't worry, Pepperoni is still alive and well. 

It was Sister de Kock's birthday this weeknon Wednesday! It was fun. Except I realized how little my ward actually likes me because they all LOVE her so much. She's been here for about 7 months so she knows everyone really well. It's kind of hard at times actually. But we had SO many member meals this week because everyone wanted to celebrate with her. During one dinner, they told us each to sit at then ends of the table. So I sat and one and she sat at one. The rest of the family all crowded around her and I was left to enjoy some soup on my own way down at the other end of the able. And that's where they were keeping all of the breadsticks! But it's okay, I'm over it.

We went on exchanges this week! It was a really good experience. I was with Sister Derrick, Sister de Kock's ex-companion. And we were in her area so I left my area for the first time! I really liked it. We went and saw a recent convert and it was just crazy. We were winterizing her house, putting plastic over all the windows, and she was just giving out demands all over the place. "Move, I'll do it." "Hammer!" "Ah crud, there's no nails." Oh, it was great. And all the while, her sicknasty dog was barking for days and climbing all over me. Didn't love it. We went into her room to do her windows, and guess what! She, too, has the same bed that Lucy and Madame M have. I think it's time to get rid of that bed. Apparently it's the bed of the crazies in Ohio. I thought that was pretty funny.

So while we were doing service for her, she was yelling, very demanding and not the most pleasant. But then after we finished, we showed her the "He is the Gift" video and everything totally changed. She was quiet and happy. Even the dog was quite and just laid down. The spirit is powerful! It really does change people. That's what I love about being a missionary. The change that comes over people when they feel the spirit is just an amazing sight to see, and we get the opportunity to see that more than usual. It's such a blessing to me. I really do love this work and I love you all. 

I don't really remember this week at all, so the end. 

Love,

Jayne

A letter about Jayne from her first companion, Sis. de Kock

Dearest Sister and Brother Livingston :) 

It's Sister de Kock :) I just had to email to tell you how much I love your daughter! I am so grateful to President for allowing me to train her! She is an amazing missionary! She is hardworking, obedient, dedicated and enthusiastic about this work!! 

We have so much fun together! Too much fun I think! :) She makes me laugh so much! Being her companion has been such a blessing and I am already dreading when our companionship ends! 

She speaks of you all so often! I love hearing the stories of your family! Hearing the cute things Laker says and how funny Lucy is and seeing all her cute nephews and nieces! Also Sister Livingston I am extremely impressed by your amazing yoga skills! :)

 

You have raised a wonderful daughter! I love her and hope we will be friends for a very long time!! I I will have to come visit you all in California one day, maybe for Jayne's wedding to Chancey :P! 

I promise to take care of her for you! She is doing really well! And we love serving the Lord together especially in this amazing place!! 

I hope you are having a wonderful Christmas Season! 

Lots of Love, 

Sister de Kock 

Week 12: "If You Don't Christmas Carol, you are dumb"

This week was so good! It was basically Christmas yesterday. We had 2 investigators at church, our recent convert, and several less active members that we've been working with. I was pleased when we saw Madame M waddle on in, but that was to be expected. She's only missed 2 times in the last 6 months. Then Sister S came in after not being able to get ahold of her all week and oh, what sweet relief that was! Then Ricky. He's our new investigator. I'll explain him later. Then our less-actives came in and they just kept coming! Manna. From heaven.

So Ricky: We were walking in a parking lot and we saw this guy parked off to the side just sitting there, so we went and talked to him and told him about "He is the Gift". (You guys better be sharing that with everyone! Don't take it for granted. Please. Such a great opportunity to share the message of Christ with others.) He started asking a lot questions so we asked if we could see him later in the week and speak with him more, and he accepted! Then he said, "Maybe I can find a wife hanging around you two." NO RICKY. It was a little creepy. But oh well. He came to church, and we'll be seeing him later this week. Cross your fingers. Speaking of creepy comments though, yesterday we were at the visitors center and this random guy came up to me. I had no idea who he was, I'd never even seen him. But he was like, "If you feel like I've been staring at you for awhile, it's because I have been." Um. Who are you? Weird.

Madame M update: She has a new dog. Pepperoni. And a bird, Snow. Oh boy. Where'd she get them? No idea. But I fear the day when we find a deceased dog behind her couch. Just kidding. I should give her more credit than that. She's great. We're hoping to have her baptized on the 20th or 27th of December, so we're working really hard with her so that she can be fully prepared! She's great though. She came to the sites to see all the nativities, and she walked out with a fat stack of pass along cards. We saw them and asked what she was going to do with them, thinking she'd just store them in her house or something, but she said she was going to leave them at some desk for people to take! And she's given us referrals. She's just too sweet. 

We also had Mission Conference on Tuesday and it was amaaazing. I guess not many missions get to all gather together at one time, let alone in the Kirtland Temple. But it was so good! Let me tell you, there aren't many things that can beat the sound of 200+ missionaries singing "The Spirit of God" in that building. Ahh! I loved it so much! So amazing. The Spirit was so strong and I just didn't want to leave. But unfortunately I had to. Except it wasn't that unfortunate because then we got to go do other great things that missionaries get to do. Seriously, being a missionary is the best. I've learned that I need to be way nicer of a person. So I'll be working on that. Oh and we got another fun President quote: "If you don't Christmas carol, you are dumb." So go sing your neighbors a little carol or two.

Also, I received a wedding announcement from Matthew Chamber and Rachel Hermann. I have no idea who they are, but I appreciate it! Congrats, you two. It was also addressed to Janee Livingston in Provo, Utah. Then forwarded to Ohio. So I was all sorts of confused. I framed it and put it on my wall. Just kidding. 

Yesterday in church, one of the recent converts in our ward made a comment during Gospel Principles. We were talking about how we can all be missionaries and he threw up his hand to tell a story. I guess there was some guy who was Christian and believed in Christ, but was always judging people and just kind of treated people unkindly based off of their looks. Then Paul explained, "If you believe in Christ, you have to believe in the way he sees others." How true is that? Oh my goodness I loved it. We can't just say we believe in Christ. We have to let that belief lead to action in every aspect of life. One of those actions needs to be seeing others as Christ see's them and treating them as children of God. Because that's what we all are. And no one can ever take that away. 

Also during mission conference, our Stake President bore his testimony and spoke about inconveniences. It was very interesting. Here are a few questions to ponder:

Was it convenient for Emma to have to travel from New York to Ohio, 7 months pregnant with twins, after being bed-ridden for months in the dead of winter? No. But because of that sacrifice, the gospel was able to more fully develop and eventually become what it is today.

Was it convenient for Christ to suffer and die for us? No. But because of His sacrifice, we are all able to change and better our selves. We can be comforted because of the fact that there is always someone who knows exactly how we are feeling and is aware of us at all times. 

Is it convenient for missionaries to leave their lives at home for 18-24 months? No. They could be going to school, making money or starting a family. But because of that sacrifice, others are benefited and are given the change to learn about the best message there is: the message of Christ's infinite and perfect love for them.

And so it seems, that nothing of great importance comes without inconveniences or sacrifices. But the great thing about that, is the fact that we really don't have to sacrifice all that much. We are blessed far more than we can ever imagine. I love the perspective this gospel gives in life. It's such a bright, hopeful and happy one. But not only that, it's a real and incredibly possible perspective. 

Now I have a few selfish requests. Mom, could you please send the Savior music to me? It's just too pretty to not have. And also, I'd like to make a wish list for Christmas. I'm in need of a watch or two. The one I bought before I left doesn't work anymore. Preferably Rose gold? If not, that's fine. :) Whatever works. And also maybe some warm headbands. We've been in kind of a warm spell, but it's about to get real cold here. And last but not least, Sister de Kock really wants some of those sandals from Hawaii. I know they can be ordered online, but I can't do that. So could you please? I'd like to give them to her for Christmas. Shes' a size 9. Thank you! You're the best.

I love you guys! Have a great week. Love each other like never before. Also I'm sorry these are always so long. I'll try to cut them down a bit.

Love,

Jayne

Comps that laugh way too much together.

The Kirtland sisters.

We sang at the Temple Open House!

Week 11: Another Kiss!

Hello, all!

It was another great week! Kind of. It was weird. But good, nonetheless. We had P-Day, 3 days at the sites, then Thanksgiving. So we really only had 2 days out in our area and no one wanted to see us on Friday because they were recovering from Thanksgiving. So it was a slower week. But that's okay! We'll make up for it this week. Don't you worry. 

1. Sister Smith, Holyoak and me.
We played in the temple together.

So on Tuesday, Community of Christ held a Thanksgiving service in the Kirtland Temple that we went to. That's when I got to play violin in the temple! Such a neat experience. The spirit was so strong. I've also been asked to play at the Visitor's Center for the next two weekends for the nativities. There are over 750 nativities on display in the VC and SO many people come to see them. It's pretty cool. I feel bad though because I've been borrowing this lady's violin for about my entire mission now. But I keep getting asked to play, so I just don't know what to do.

Oh well.

2.  Nativity Opening Night

Thanksgiving Day we had DOUBLE MEMBER MEALS. That was rough. We were actually invited to 3, but couldn't make it to the last one. We first ate at the Wolfley's, then we ate with the Deckers, the ward mission leader's family. It was all delicious. We were kind of stranded at the Decker's for 4 hours though because the other sister in our ward had our car. It was weird just sitting around, but also nice. We weren't allowed to proselyte or set up appointments unless we were invited over. So we just got to play with their kids! Audrey, 9 months old, kept climbing up onto my lap to play with me, and her dad was like, "Should we be stopping this?" and I just thought to myself, "NOOOO!" Because I just really want to hold a baby. Right now please. 

3.  Meet Issac.  Or Diego.  He's our buddy.

4. #selfiesunday

Speaking of kids, though, I got kissed again this week by another little girl. We were in the Kirtland Temple again for a fireside and these two girls were sitting in front of us, then when we left the younger one was like, "Can I come stay at your house? Can I come over? Next time I'm sitting by you. When we get outside, I'm holding your hand." Soooo cute. Then we were saying goodbye and she got me. Right on the cheek. Precious.

Also the other night we decided to buy Madame M some hot chocolate before we met with her, so we're in the drive through and I order it, pay for it, pick it up and start driving away. Then Sister de Kock was like, "Give him a card!" So I stopped, looked around in my bag, couldn't find any.  So she gave me one of her cards to give to the guy. I was just laughing at this point because it was so awkward, and words didn't come out of my mouth. So here's what I said, while laughing: "You wanna have this?" So embarrassing. He started blushing and giggling.  We think he thought we were giving him our number. Little does he know, we were giving him a card with a website on it that can change his life. You're welcome.

But here's the Madame M update: SHE'S GETTING BAPTIZED! We taught her the gospel of Jesus Christ and she said, "I've been thinking about that, and I want to be baptized in December. I'm just afraid of the water." So, she's getting baptized. She's been investigating for so long and wasn't progressing! But things changed recently. Not sure why. I love it though. But while we were in her house, I was looking for a pamphlet that we had given her and I found a stack of about 50 tithing slips, and basically the entire church library on her table. It made me feel weird. Why does she think she needs all of that? Sheesh. That's the things with hoarders--If it's free, they take it. Even if they don't need it. So, you guys, I will never be a hoarder. Also, I've concluded that I will never have inside pets. We vacuumed for this one family in our ward and literally, there was a solid layer of dog hair covering all the carpet. The gray rug is actually black underneath all of the hair. Sick nasty.

Okay back to Madame M. Everytime we go over, we have our assigned seats, so to speak. I sit on the foot rest while she and Sister de Kock sit on the couch. Well, ladies and gentlemen, last time we were over there, she decided to use the foot rest while I was sitting on it. Mind you, it's not the biggest foot rest. But her toenails, on the other hand, ARE the biggest toenails. And they touched me. She kept wiggling her toes and they kept touching me. It wasn't my favorite thing ever, so I then moved to the floor. She also gave me a new wardrobe of things that she had. Where she found them? No clue. But I had to take it all just to be nice. I wore one skirt she gave to me (8 sizes too big) to church on Sunday. The first thing she said to me: "Where's the matching top? Does it not fit?" Well, you'll just have to take a look at the pictures to find out why I really didn't wear it. I had a photo shoot. Enjoy. 

I love the weirdos I run into. I love the normal people I run into. I love Kirtland. I love this gospel, I love my Savior. I love missionary work.

I love you all! Have a great week, please.

Love always,

Jayne
Madam M Fashion Show!
FABULOUS!