May 26 - I AM TRAINING AGAIN

Dear family and friends,

Hi there! Breaking news: I am being transferred! I will miss the beautiful Napa valley, but I'm excited for the change.

I will be serving in Vallejo in da ghetto. I am PUMPED. Not only that, but I am also with child...again! I will be training a new missionary.
And whitewashing Napa 4th YSA. It's in the Napa Stake, still, but we live and work mostly in Vallejo.

Interesting story about this:
I had prayed to Heavenly Father last Monday evening, and as I was praying, I was thinking about how I feel I need to progress more. And with that, I asked for something I haven't asked for before. I asked for a challenge!

So. Then on Thursday, I got an answer! Sis. Alba called and told me that I am training again, but also whitewashing an area where elders have been serving. So! I have my challenge! Haha God really does answer prayers. I am really nervous to go into an area and train a new missionary when I myself don't know what's going on, but I am excited and looking forward to the challenge. "The greater the struggle, the more glorious the triumph" (The Butterfly Circus).

I am so excited for Sis. Petersen to move on and be amazing, too! She already is, but she is such an incredible missionary and I can't wait to see where she goes on the rest of her mission. She has grown SO much. This last week we have been bickering like an old married couple, though, so it's a healthy thing that we're moving on haha.

Funny story about the bickering:
One day we were driving to Napa and it looked really hazy outside, so I said, "Man, it must be really dusty outside!"
Sis. Petersen said, "Nah, I'm pretty sure it's smoke from the fires in San Diego."
Me: "What?! Those are so far away from here! It must be dust."
Sis. P: "Well, it looks like it does in St. George when fires go on."
Me: "It also looks like Arizona in the summertime when it hasn't rained for a while."
Sis. P: "Pretty sure it's smoke."
Me: "Alright, this is stupid. It's probably a combination of smoke AND dust."
Sis. P: "Yeah, probably."

So funny. It reminds me of when Alicia Ferrin and I used to argue over the dumbest things haha. I sure love Sis. Petersen and will miss her very much.

I've also noticed how much I have grown these past 3 months with Sister Petersen!
1. Grown in patience 2. Grown in love - everyone has worth in the sight of God 3. Grown in selflessness 4. Grown in self-confidence 5. Grown in my ability to lead 6. Grown in positive thoughts 7. Grown in purity 8. Grown in ability to see others through God's eyes 9. Grown in sense of humor 10. Grown in my love for nature 11. Grown in my appreciation for the simple things 12. Grown in my knowledge of the Gospel 13. Grown in my testimony of the Savior and His Atonement.

I love it. I feel so close to God.

I am going to miss our investigators! We had a neat lesson with Nestor this week, and I will miss him, but am so proud of him for the changes he is making in his life. We found out earlier this week that Nestor went to court and turned himself in because he broke his probation, so he was in the Napa County Jail.

Which now makes sense why he wasn't answering his phone or showing up to appointments! So we went to visit him during visiting hours on Wednesday and it was so good to see him! It was also rather heart wrenching. I have never taught anyone in jail before, but it was just like the movie! They brought him out and he was in handcuffs, and the guards chained him to the chair. He picked up the phone and we talked through the plexi-glass on the phone. We taught about faith in Jesus Christ and repentance, and he told us the neatest story of how his faith grew in God when he went to court.

He knew he needed to do what was right, so he went into court, and knew that his officer would try to give him 4 1/2 more months in jail.  He said broke probation before we started teaching him and that he is trying to change, but people just won't let him. :( Sad day. So before he went into court, that day he said 5 prayers asking God to please help him not have to stay in jail that long. Instead of getting 4 1/2 months, he got 30 days of jail time for having good behavior thus far.  He teared up and said he just knows God listens to him. At the end of the lesson he gave the sweetest, most sincere prayer :) Gonna miss him a lot!

I'm going to miss Teresa, too. She is so sweet...well, and sassy! Love her to death :)

One more miracle: we were walking down the street across the road from the high school and a Calistoga Police car pulled up beside us. Sis. Petersen and I were afraid he was going to tell us we couldn't contact people or something, but instead he rolled down his window and said, "Excuse me, do you have any literature I can read?" We gave him a Book of Mormon and briefly introduced it. Then he looked around and asked us, "Can I pull over and talk to you both for a few minutes?"

We were so surprised! That NEVER happens in Calistoga haha. He got out and ended up asking is SO many questions about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. What we believed about smoking and drinking, tattoos, etc. He also asked us what parts of the Book of Mormon were good for people to read when they go through troubled times, because as a police officer, work is very demanding and sad at times. He told us he wants to go to church, too! We found out he lives in Middletown, so we got a solid referral for the sisters.

We taught him about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ right there and he was stoked! He told us his grandpa was a member and had recently passed away. He has been praying to God to find the right church and now he keeps running into LDS missionaries or members of the Church! His name is Mark, and it was such a privilege to talk to him :) He has a wife and 2 kids - a 17-year-old son and a 10-month-old surprise baby daughter. I am excited to see what happens there. He seems so ready for the Gospel. Miracles happen :)

And to end my e-mail this week, I wanted to share a song Sis. Petersen and I wrote! It's called, for lack of a more creative title, "The Yountville Song."

We wrote a song! It was so cool. We were driving home from Yountville last week and I just had these lyrics from the chorus pop into my head! It's an original tune...so...sorry you won't know how it goes, but here are the lyrics:

Yountville Song

Verse 1:
Woke up this morning and there was no milk Hopped in the shower, the hot water broke Walk down the street, and people just stare Fill me with self doubt, loathing, despair

I look up above me, see the birds flying high Yell to the birdies, I want to try

Chorus 1:
Oh
Birdy in the sky-y-y
How do you fly-y-y
Cuz I just wanna be up there
Where I can feel the wind in my hair
Oh
Birdy in the sky-y-y
Can you hear my cry-y-y
Cuz I need someone to listen
Everyone else feels distant

Verse 2:
I continue through my day, things still look real gray They ask me paper or plastic, the paper bags rip My groceries spill out all over the floor I gather them quickly and head out the door

I look up above me, see the birds flying high Yell to the birdies, I want to try

Chorus 2:
Oh
Birdy in the sky-y-y
How do you fly-y-y
Cuz I just wanna be up there
Where I can feel the wind in my hair
Oh
Birdy in the sky-y-y
Why can't I fly-y-y
I feel stuck on the ground now
Glued to the floor and I don't know how

Verse 3:
Got home this evening, choose to do a good deed Make a homeless man dinner, pull my neighbor's weeds Smile at someone who looks even more sad And slowly my day didn't seem all too bad

I look up above me see the stars in the sky Smile to the heavens, I want to try

Chorus 3:
Oh
Daddy in the sky-y-y
I'm glad I didn't die-e-e
Today was hard but it's okay
Cuz tomorrow will be a better day
Oh
Daddy in the sky-y-y
Please help me to fly-y-y
All things are possible with you
Oh Daddy how I lo-o-ove you
Oh Daddy how I lo-o-ove you

Let me know what you think!

Well, I love you fambam and amigos! Choose the right this week and remember that life isn't so much about the number of breaths you take, but the moments that take your breath away. :)

Love,

Sister Kolee Decker