Hello family! How are you all?
I am sorry this is so late! Due to service, Veterans Day,
weird library hours, and things taking unexpectedly long today.....this is
coming later than usual.
I just got your letter Stephen! Wow was it good to hear from
you and wow can you make me laugh, I miss your humor so thank you :). Mom I
also got your package and turkeys and both were perfect. I am going to say to
hold off on the rain slicker. I was thinking about asking for it and I might
regret it, but honestly it would just get ruined and getting wet with rain
water can't be as bad as the sewage water we play in these basements ha-ha.
Also, a very kind stake sent in an entire church gym full of clothes that we
were able to search through. I didn't take a lot cause I am pretty set with
your package and the couple things that I bought (a $7 jacket and some rain
boots.) The best find was a winter coat that I can trash! And it's blue! Your
sending my winter coat was not in vain though. This past snow storm was
FREEZING (and I rarely complain about it being cold outside) and so I am
grateful to have the liner to layer with. Thank you so much again! ----Oh and
the knee pads are just what I needed too!
Well I will try to answer some questions :). At first we
were just going house to house asking for help, but now they have a
"referral" or "work order" system. (The first title was
getting too confusing!). Essentially we handed out a bunch of flyers with one
of the APs phone numbers on it and people call in for help. We are trying to
limit the help to members, first responders, elderly and other people who
really cannot do it themselves. The APs and president then organize everyone in
groups and send us there. This past weekend, over 1000 members bused into the
area and also helped us out. We do everything from hauling stuff out to tearing
apart dry wall and taking out insulation and floors. I really wasn't expecting
this part of being a missionary, but I am learning quickly how to use hammers,
razors and crow-bars. Some of the elders consider me the "dry-wall
master", and I often feel like the "insulation queen" because
that is usually what my jobs entail. (Side note, pumped insulation is nasty
stuff!). When you do it all day almost everyday, it isn't tricky to figure out.
Also it doesn't take much skill to tear things apart.
It is very messy and nasty work. The other day I was pulling
soaking wet insulation out of the ceiling above me. there was so much water, it
was just pouring out of the ceiling. It also is pretty dangerous and I know the
Lord is protecting each of us. I have felt the spirit guide me and protect me.
We all have masks and gloves and even though I often find myself surrounded by
rusty nails and swinging hammers, I feel safe :) and the work is very
rewarding.
My back and leg are miraculously not even a problem. I do
try to be careful and leave the big jobs to the Elders, but I really have been
able to lift and move close to how I used to. At one of the houses, I helped a
man who was a good friend of the family we were helping carry some big boards
to the beach where they were piling the trash. He told me that he was impressed
and that I was a "strong woman," and later he let me teach him about
the restoration and was really interested. Amazing how the Lord can heal us and
can use all of our talents, even a strong body, to open doors to the gospel :).
I have had so many touching experiences this past week I
wish I had time to share them all. One in particular, we helped an elderly
couple, Mary Ellen and Andrew this past weekend. They both had lived in the
Rockaways for over 70 years and had never seen such devastation occur. They
both lived in their basement and so lost everything in the storm. When we got
there, Mary Ellen told us their horrific story of how they survived the storm.
Like everyone else, they didn't evacuate. When the water came in they ran to
the top floor with their daughter where their tenant lived. There they tied
themselves together with electrical cords so that if they got swept away, they
would be found together. They literally just lied on the floor like that and
waited to die. I guess the water was really scary when it came. Many of the
firefighters and cops that we have helped have stated that it was probably the
single scariest moment of their lives (and many of them were at the world trade
center when it fell). Crazy stuff. Anyway, we helped them finish up their clean
up. When we said a "closing prayer" with them (we begin and end each
home with a prayer), Andrew cried. When I went up to shake his hand, he looked
me in the eye and said, "Thank you so much, I was so depressed this
morning and for lifting my spirits I can never repay you." to which I
replied, " You are very welcome sir, we are happy that we could help. Some
jobs are a lot easier with an army. To which he looked me in the eye again and
said, "Yes, especially when it is God's Army." When we all got
outside we took pictures with him and his wife. She wanted the picture because
she wanted to remember what angels look like.
Andrew's comment really got me thinking. I even shared that
experience and talked about it in the short talk I had to give at our small
missionary zone service sacrament meeting. That was another amazing experience.
I only was given about 45 minutes notice and so I prayed that the spirit would
be clear and direct in what I should share. I opened my preach my gospel and
scriptures and was taught a powerful truth. Very similar to the one you shared
your email Dad :). I wanted to answer the question, "Who is God's
Army?" When I gave the talk, The spirit bore powerful witness to me, and
everyone in the room that God's army are those that make covenants with God to
become like His son Jesus Christ. And when they do this, others can recognize
their Savior in His army’s countenances and works.
I love you all! Till next week! Thanks for everything and
the prayers!
The following is a beautiful video depicting the work done by the missionaries and other members in the area: http://vimeo.com/joshuabrown/hurricanesandy
The group that did the video also setup a facebook page dedicated to the cleanup efforts along with some pictures there also: http://www.facebook.com/groups/mormonhelpinghandsnyc/
The following is a recent article about the clean up efforts done by the missionaries: http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/new-round-of-cleanup-projects-scheduled-by-mormon-helping-hands
The following are some pictures from the article as well as sent by the mission. Megan is pictured in the first two.
No comments:
Post a Comment