How do you hug a porcupine?

One day at a time.

Yup, that makes sense, right? One of the speakers on Sunday said that. Words of Wisdom from Brother Dickenson!

The house that makes you feel like
your long-lost relative is going to
take you on a magical adventure
(according to Sister Taylor, and
she's not wrong!)

Something missionaries do every morning is go "exercise" after they wake up every morning. It's in quotations because depending on who it is, it's not enough to actually get your heart rate up. Fun Fact: stretching for 30 minutes isn't exercise.

HEALTHY LIVING. Sister Taylor and I go out every morning to walk/jog and it's at 4000 feet elevation, so I'm still feeling the effects of going up from 200 feet elevation in Roseville. But the thing that's kept me the most entertained every morning, aside from Sister Taylor's stories, is the acorns. There are literally thousands and they provide the desired kicking targets, or something to pick up and toss gently at your companion. It's the little things ok?

sometimes you gotta throw a few markers
during weekly planning

STAYING WARM. Another thing, I don't know if I mentioned this or not, but the apartment here has a sub-par heating system. I'm fine but Sister Taylor tends to be in a sweater most of the time. When we got here, it was 61 in the apartment for a few days, then when we turned on the heater Monday, it finally got up to 68 on Friday. I've never had a slower heater but if anything, it makes it entertaining to see what layers will come out next!

And Sister Johnson kindly gave me a gift to combat the cold. I got a box from her, not quite sure what to expect. And in it were, I kid you not, EIGHT pairs of fuzzy socks! Mom, I think I'm all set for the winter here :)

the smoke came back for a bit

FROM THE SKY. Speaking of winter, I would like to share the most magical of things that happened here. I learned what it's like to live in the town of Shasta instead of Mount Shasta. On Saturday, dark clouds rolled in and covered the mountain, as well as dropping some rain on us which was much needed! Well, about 24 hours later the clouds rolled away and uncovered the most glorious thing I've seen yet: there was SNOW on Mount Shasta!!! I'm so excited to see if there's more, once today's clouds move on!

Kilroy was here, and clearly
he read a bit while he was

POSITIVITY BACKFIRE. With all the tender mercies going on, I decided to try something different on Friday: I changed my verbal attitude to only vocalize positive things. Yes, reading that sentence sounds good and all but Sister Taylor didn't know what to do with me. It took about 30 minutes for her to ask for the "old Sister Whitesell" back! Guess we'll just have to stick with sarcasm and dry humor in this companionship!

As promised, socks from
Sister Johnson

TRUE-TO-LIFE DOCUMENTARY. We had the opportunity this week to teach the Young Women's night, and share a bit more about missionary work and what we do on missions. In preparation, Sister Taylor and I actually created a video that depicted missionary routines from waking up, getting ready, exercising, planning, studying, contacting, an online lesson, navigating, and the like. The moms found it hysterical.

purple dinos from my childhood!

But it did give a good idea of how things work! And it was ridiculous to make, so we had fun with it. The girls had some really good questions though, including
"Why did you go on a mission?"
"How do you know someone is prepared to hear the gospel?" and

proving how
amazing Cale is

"Is the presence of Heavenly Father strong on your mission?"
That gave us the opportunity to bear testimony of how we've discovered and been taught these things.

The most important answer we were able to give, to almost any questions regarding the gospel, was telling them to pray. Believe it or not, prayer is the best resource we have. The God of the universe, who knows all things and can strengthen us with a single thought or feeling, has asked us to talk to Him. His hand is outstretched, and he wants us so badly to build a relationship with him. I've seen so many miracles that have come from prayer! He is there, and wants us to strive to come closer to Him always because He knows what will bring us the most joy in this life and in the eternities. We just have to trust Him.

LOOK AT THE SNOW

PRINCESS MATERIAL. According to the girls there, I fit the qualifications for a "Disney princess." I sing (I didn't say sing well, but the shower makes it sound better), I wear a dress, and I have an animal sidekick. Funny story...since I got here I've been training the blue jays outside. I put out nuts every morning and according to them it needs to be by 8:30, or there are a few that will just sit there on the railing. It happened 3 days in a row where they flew in and just stayed, when I forgot! Mt. Shasta is so great!

Mount Shasta, featuring smoke

STAR GAZING. Another miracle this week was the opportunity to see something I haven't in a long time: The Milky Way. The last time I remember seeing it was when I was serving in Foresthill last fall. It's amazing that He loves us enough to put us in a world where even when it's dark, He's given us something to look for. He loves you enough, that even though there are so many people and so many stars, He knows you personally and wants to hear from you.

dinner with me, myself and my companion

To some people, seeing a few stars might not seem like much, but for me it's one of those tender mercies that helps me remember how well He knows me and loves me. He wants us back to live with Him so badly! The gospel that I've spent the last year or so sharing is a gospel of love. It's a message divinely created to fit perfectly the life of anyone who's looking for it.

clouds, need I say more?

SEED ONLY. Because of Him I've found not only peace and strength, but also who I am. Missions are hard, but nothing worth fighting for comes easy. Missions strip you down to your core, and take away everything you were before, because Heavenly Father wants you to figure out who you are. He takes the apple you were before and cuts away at it until all that's left is a seed that He can, if we plant it, strengthen and grow into the person He knows will make us the happiest, that fulfills the potential He sees in us.

Keep looking for the ridiculous moments! Mt. Shasta has hundreds, so if you feel like you need a few, let me know and I'll share some other stories.

Welcome to the place where heaven meets earth

Remember who you are, don't let it get you down ;)

Sister Whitesell
teresa.whitesell@myldsmail.net

311 Old McCloud Rd. Apt B
Mt. Shasta, CA 96067