Grounded!!

December 29, 2015

Hello Family and Friends!!

I know I am emailing you on a Tuesday, but I will explain that why in a little bit. For now, I want to talk about my Christmas Eve and Christmas!!!!

I already told some of my family about my Christmas Eve, but not everyone. It was kind of crazy!! It snowed a whole bunch, and we don't have the best car.. So, we weren't able to get out of the parking lot of our apartment (the exit is a hill). We had Zone Conference, but we obviously couldn't get there ourselves. So, we called some other sister missionaries to give us a lift! They came and picked us up, and we headed to the mission office. The mission office/church building is on a pretty steep hill too, and THEIR car isn't the best in snow either. We decided to take another route through a neighborhood, and the driver took a turn that was a little too quick.. (keep in mind, this is the first time this particular sister has ever driven in snow). We slid, almost in slow motion, went right over a curb and hit a huge rock. Everyone was fine, but the car was definitely stuck and our bumper was definitely off. We called our Zone Leaders and them and a few elders in our district came out to help us. After about 20 minutes of trying to get the car off of the curb we managed to do it. Lets just say our district meeting was fairly quick after that. An Elder looked at our car and gave us the OK, and so we were off to the Trail Center. It was about 4:20 and dinner was at 5! So we start driving and keep hearing this grinding sound and soon as we get on the freeway. We pull over and one of the sisters gets out and holds up the broken-off hubcap! We start to drive again and the sound continues, so we get off the freeway and pull into a random parking lot. We were stranded there for a while.. The sister that crashed the car was taking stress-laps around the parking lot, the other one was just ticked-off, Sister Brower was calling people to come help us, and I was napping. We then decided to read in the Book of Mormon together to calm everyone down. Finally we were saved and taken to the Trail Center (at about 7:00). Everyone slow clapped when we walked in, it was funny. Then we ate, and the Senior Couples put on a Christmas Program for all of us. :) It all ended well. (ps. I was super sick too)

Christmas was fantastic!!! We had a lovely breakfast at the TC President's house to start off the day. Then, we went back to do our studies, opened presents, and then took a Christmas nap!! After that, I GOT TO FACETIME MY FAMILY. It was the best Christmas present in the world being able to see them. It was exactly what I needed. Dinner that night was great too! Sister Christiansen, member that fed us, made foods that our own moms would make! It was so nice and homey!! Then, she totally surprised my by playing "Uncle Jean", a tradition my family does. I just about died. I am pretty sure my abs were sore the next day because I laughed so hard. It was such a good Christmas.

The reason I didn't email yesterday was because our cars were grounded. It snowed all day, and there were about 4 accidents on Christmas eve, so the mission president didn't want to risk it. Long story short, we didn't leave our apartments once yesterday... We cleaned, watched 17 Miracles, slept, did facials, and just did busy work in our area book.

Our cars were grounded for a little bit today, but it cleared up, thankfully!!

I love you all so much. Thank you for all that you have done for me and for making this Christmas so wonderful. Happy New Year!!!!

Love,
Sister Hutchison

ps. Prepare for lots of pictures.

The Elders helping us un-stick our car. It reminds me of the pioneers pulling their handcarts out of the mud. 

Me and Sister Brower at the crime scene. You can see the rock in the corner.

Christmas pj's!!!!!

Me and Sister Brower at Christmas dinner

My Family's in Utah, and I'm in New York? (Nebraska)

December 21, 2015

Hellllllllooo from NE,

If you didn't understand the subject of my email today, shame on you. Just kidding, it's from Home Alone 2. So my family better have gotten my reference.

This week has been a good week, like usual. It was transfer week! Sister Brower and I were not changed though, so I am very happy :) But, we received new missionaries last week! I am not the newest anymore! Woot woot!! It was fun, Sister Brower and I got to take two of the new sisters out proselyting for their first time. We split up in a neighborhood and tracted. It was fun teaching someone how to do it, because that was me about 7 weeks ago!

Another fun thing with transfers... Since it is Sister Brower's very last transfer, she isn't allowed to drive. It is a weird mission rule. They think if it's your last transfer you might get a little rebellious on the road. But I get to drive now!! It was weird being behind the wheel again, but I love it! It's fun and weird driving in a different state.

Last week was full of tender mercies. Want to know why? I SAW 4 GOLDEN DOODLES. None of them are as cute as Charlie, but my heart ached a little bit when I saw them. I may have seen 4 of them, but sadly, I only got to play with 2 of them. That's okay though, I got my puppy-love fill for the week. (One of them was a black golden doodle. It was so cute!)

This week Sister Brower and I haven't had a lot of people to teach, so it became kind of discouraging. But, we called one of the Senior Couples and asked for blessings of comfort. Those blessings were so sweet, and exactly what we needed.

Christmas is this week! AHHH! The members have already given us so many presents and treats. So don't worry, I am being treated well. We will be spending Christmas Eve at the Trail Center having a dinner and a program that the Senior Couples came up with. Then on Christmas, we are spending pretty much all day at different members' homes. (For my family: I emailed mom the time I will be facetiming, so you can all figure it out from her)

I love you all so much. Thanks for all of the love I receive in my inbox each week!!!! I can't wait to hear how all of your Christmas's went!! AND I CANT WAIT TO SEE MY FAMILY THIS WEEK. IM FREAKING OUT HERE.

Love,
Sister Hutchison

The new missionaries we took out. The one next to me, Sister Parcens, is the one I took out! She is also going to the Trail Center. 

We did service at a member's home :) we made homemade donuts! 

We had another ward party. I am definitely in a party ward!

Music, Rain, and Miracles

December 14, 2015

Hello Friends and Family!!

This week was a long, but pretty great week!! Lets start with Zone Conference that was on Tuesday. So, me, Sister Brower, and a few other Trail Center sisters were the lucky ones chosen to go to the Sioux City Zone conference on Tuesday. They have to have people go to that one because if we didn't, they wouldn't have anyone on shift on the day of our actual Zone Conference. So we had to be at the mission office at 6 in the morning.. Woof. The drive was about an hour and a half long, but it was fun. We took the transfer van and it was a party. But it was an awesome Zone Conference all about the Savior. After that, there was a mini-Christmas talent show! Me and all of the Trail Center sisters did a dance where we taped glow sticks in the shape of a stick figure on our bodies, then turned off all of the lights. It was so fun, and it wasn't embarrassing because nobody knew us in Sioux City anyways!! But, Sister Brower and I did do a musical number as well. She is an amazing pianist, so she played and I sang "O, Holy Night". It was so fun.

Wednesday we were on shift at the Trail Center ALL DAY. But it was okay!! It wasn't bad at all. I actually got to sing for a tour that I took, and that was one of my goals that day! Sometimes music can bring the spirit on a tour when nothing else can.

Sister Brower and I actually set someone for baptism this week! It is this woman named Mel, and we gave her a church tour. As we were in the Chapel, Sister Brower out of the blue said "Sister Hutchison is going to sing Nearer My God To Thee for you, and I am going to play." That wasn't part of the lesson plan, but it worked out so wonderfully. The spirit was so strong as we started talking about the Sacrament. Then, Sister Brower gave me a look that said "go ahead, ask her". So, I looked at Mel and asked her if she would be baptized. SHE SAID YES. Man, it was such a cool experience.

We almost hit a dog this week... It just kind of ran in front of our car. After both of Sister Brower and I were done screaming I kind of jumped out of the car and scooped the dog up. I told Sister Brower I wouldn't be able to sleep or eat for the rest of my mission if I let that dog keep roaming, not knowing what would happen to it. So, we walked around to all the houses on the block, and luckily we found where it belonged. PHEW.

The ward Christmas party was on Saturday, and it was so much fun. It was a breakfast thing, and the food was so good. Santa even showed up too!!! But then on Sunday, Sister Brower did our musical number for Sacrament meeting. So it was definitely a week full of singing, but I wish every week was like that!!!

Some of the Trail Center sisters are going home this week. It makes me so sad!!!! I have gotten close to everyone so much already. But, I know that they will be doing amazing things when they get home :)

It has seriously been raining for like 3 days straight. It's crazy!!!

Alright, I think I talked your ear off a little too much. I miss and love you all so much. Thanks for everything!!! God be with you till we meet again!

Love,
Sister Hutchison

pic 1: Santa. duh.

pic 2: Our favorite Elder in our ward that is leaving this week. SO bummed about it. He's awesome.

pic 3: A cool tour Sister Brower and I took this week. They weren't members, but agreed that if they knew the Book of Mormon was true, they'd be baptized!

It's December??

December 7, 2015

Hello Family and Friends!!!

Another great week here in NE. I hope you all are doing well. I am still here, happy, and healthy (a little too healthy. They feed us too much, I'm going to be 400 pounds when I get home. Health tips are appreciated.) Also, if someone could come explain to my mission that my last name is HUTCHISON not HUTCHINSON, I would appreciate it... Just kidding. I'm used to it here now. I just act like it's my name. My companion gets a kick out of it every time someone calls me it. I just smile and act like I didn't notice.

This week started off kind of sad, but it ended up pretty great. I will start with the sad thing! Luca, the 9 year old boy that was going to get baptized last Saturday, wasn't able to get full parental consent. So, he was not able to be baptized. Sister Brower and I were sad. But, we knew that Satan was just letting us know that we were going to see miracles soon, so we didn't become discouraged.

That next day, actually, we received a call from the Assistants. When Elder Martino (of the 70) trained us a few weeks ago, he went teaching with the Assistants. They got a member referral and taught her in the member's home. Long story short, they set her for baptism the first lesson and the investigator is in our area!!! So she is ours to teach now!!!! We were so excited. Her name is Angie and she is a prime investigator. She LOVES the Book of Mormon, and has so many questions. The cool thing is, her husband is Less-active, but this is activating him as well. Angie is getting baptized on December 19th!

It was Sister Browers birthday on Saturday! I sneakily bought her a cute $10 watch at Walmart because she needed one, and decorated her desk for when she woke up that morning. A senior couple at the Trail Center took us to Village Inn for breakfast, and then a member took us to Famous Daves for dinner. It was so good!!!!!!

We were tracting one night and decided to Christmas Carol instead of start right off with our message. It worked!!!! Mostly everyone let us sing for them, and let us into their homes. We got 2 new investigators by doing it. :)

I also was able to hand out a Book of Mormon at the Trail Center this week. This woman LOVED the tour I took her on, and was so interested. I started talking about Moroni and she freaked out about his name and said "MY NEXT BABY BOY IS GOING TO BE NAMED MORONI NOW!" Then she took the Book of Mormon and said she would be done with it in 13 hours. I have her information, so I am excited to follow up with her.

Tomorrow is our Christmas Zone Conference. Sister Brower is amazing at the piano, so we are doing a musical number at it. I am singing "O' Holy Night". I am so excited to finally sing somewhere again!!!

Before I forget, I received a package this week with no return address. It was a kind of expensive yellow umbrella! Its adorable, so thank you! I just don't know who to thank!

I love you all, and I hope you have a good week!!

-Sister Hutchison

ps: The pic is when we had Zone Training this week. So this is our Zone after!!

"Today Has Been a Good Morning"

November 30, 2015

Hello Family and Friends!!

I know my subject doesn't make sense, so I will explain..... Well, Sister Brower and I have problems with our neighbors that live above us. They are constantly partying and smoking weed/doing other drugs, and so we get to hear it all and smell it all. Don't worry, President Gardner is trying to move us out of there as soon as he can. But we were up most of the night because they were so loud. This morning at 6 we heard continuous honking right outside our apartment. This lasted until 6:45....... I'm not kidding, someone just kept honking over and over again. We could see the person out of our window and it was some crazy lady that was laughing hysterically. She was probably on drugs.. Anyways, the  lady gave us THE CREEPIEST feeling, so we called the police because the honking wasn't stopping and we definitely didn't feel comfortable going outside to tell her to stop. Long story short, I was so loopy this morning because I was so tired and I said "Well, today has been a good morning." And my companion laughed so hard at me. So that is the story behind the subject line. :)

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!! I sure did! I had Thanksgiving lunch at a member's house. His name is Brother Washington, and he always is looking out for the missionaries! Then, we had Thanksgiving dinner at the Trail Center with all of the Sisters. It was so fun!! We got to watch The Best Two Years, and it is so much funnier watching it as a missionary! Oh, and there was an ice storm. So that was crazy!!

On Friday we were able to go to the Temple to do a session! IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL. I loved every second of it.

Saturday we had our first baptism as a companionship!! We have been teaching a 9 year old girl named Eileen. Her family was less-active, but since we started teaching her they all started going to church and now her mom has a calling! The baptism was so special, and the spirit was so strong. Sister Brower and I taught the Restoration while Eileen and two other 8 year old boys who got baptized were changing.

We have been teaching 9 year old boy named Luca. He is getting baptized this Saturday!!! His birth mom was LDS, but she is super nuts and lost custody of him. So, he lives with his dad and his dad's wife. He remembered Primary though, and wanted to be baptized. His step mom, Courtney, listens in and loves all of our lessons, so we are hoping she will have to desire to be baptized soon as well. :) She is so sweet. I can already see her being a primary president one day!!

Just to make things easier, if you want to send me a letter, please send it to the Trail Center!! I don't know the address... But, I'm sure you can find it if you look up "Mormon Trail Center" on the internet. I am telling you this because I never know where or when I will be moved, but I do know I will always be at the Trail Center during the week. So that would be easiest!! Send packages to either the Trail Center or the mission office. Don't send anything to my apartment, it is sketchy!

I love you all so much, and I love my mission. Every day I am so reassured that I am doing what the Lord wants me to. I love this gospel with all of my heart. If you have 3 minutes, go onto the church website and watch the new church Christmas video called "A Savior is Born"! We show it at the TC and it gives me chills every time :)

Love,
Sister Hutchison

ps. There are going to be lots of pictures this week. Be prepared. I can only send 2 at a time. The first 2 are of Thanksgiving.

These are of our temple day :)

here is a picture of the baptisms that were this Saturday! We have been working with the two boys' family, the Keers. They are so amazing!!! The girl is Eileen, and we love her as well and have been teaching her the past 3 weeks.

PS

November 23, 2015

SHOOT I FORGOT!

I had dinner at a members house this week. She fed us steak and let me tell ya.. It looked and smelled amazing. I took a big bite and the inside of it was purple. It was seriously so raw. But, we were in a hurry and I felt bad asking her to cook it longer..... So I acted like it was amazing, closed my eyes and finished it, and then prayed I wouldn't get sick. Her exact quote was "If the outside is done, that's all that matters! The bacteria is gone!" mmmmmmm probably not..... I felt like the Nephite woman in 1 Nephi 17:2 (please read, it will make you laugh). Although my companion and I kind of felt sick the next day, it went away after about an hour. So the Lord truly blessed us that day, haha. Just thought that might make a couple of you laugh.

Get That Corn Outta My Face!!!

November 23, 2015

Hello Family and Friends!!

Another great week in the wonderful Ol' NE!! Before I forget... Here are some things I forgot to mention last week in my email : I got to go to a sealing in the temple!!!! It was a senior couple in our mission, and it was so sweet. I cried... I also saw a shooting star!! It reminded me of Lake Powell, so it made me smile. :)

So, I am getting used to the area now. At first it was a little cray cray, but now its great. I have met almost everyone in the ward, and I love them. They are all so sweet to the missionaries.

Nebraska has black squirrels. Literally black. It scared me, but they are every where!!!! Also, everyone in Nebraska has dogs... It makes me miss Charlie!!! But I am not kidding. If I went to 10 houses, probably 9 of them would have a dog start barking as soon as I knock. Except, one lady had two big cats... We went into her house and I just saw cat hair every where. My nose got all stuffy and I got a headache. So this week I discovered I have a minor cat allergy. My 7 year old dreams are now shattered. (Family joke)

It is super cold here, and since everyone here is used to the cold ALL OF THEIR HOUSES ARE COLD. My toes are going to be frozen off by the time I get home!! I seriously have gained so much respect for the Pioneers. I can't imagine pulling a handcart in 18 degree weather. (That was the temperature on Saturday, but it's warm today so I really shouldn't be complaining.)

I didn't talk about the Trail Center much last week, so I'll expand on it today!! I LOVE IT SO MUCH THERE. It makes me so happy being there, and I'm learning all of the history really fast. I actually gave a non-member family a tour all by myself last week, and I was able to teach the restoration along the way. The spirit was so strong when I recited the first vision, and you could tell that family felt something that day. I am at the Trail Center twice a week, but I wish I was there more!! There is constantly a sweet spirit there.

On Thanksgiving we are having dinner at a members house, AND at the Trail Center. So two Thanksgiving dinners!! So excited. I don't know what I'll do without my mom's Yams though...

I have officially been out a month!! Missionary work is hard, but rewarding. I received 2 packages last week. From Ashley and Ross, and from Aunt Deb. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.

I love you all so much, and you are all in my prayers!!! Have a happy Thanksgiving. I'm thankful for all of you.

Love,
Sister Hutchison

pic 1: a diagram of the Salt Lake Temple in the TC! My home!!!

pic 2: A member, Brother Washington, made us such good bean soup and sunny D!

There Isn't NE Place Better

November 16, 2015

Well Team, I made it to Nebraska!! WOOT WOOT!!!!

Let me explain my first impressions... Well, I looked out the plane window and what did I see? Cornfields. Regardless, I was excited! My Mission President and his wife picked us up, and I love them so much!! But the amazing part was when I was in the car. Nebraska isn't what I thought. It is soooo green, with hills, beautiful scenery, trees with falling leaves, and random squirrels and bunnies running around. I'm not kidding, it's a fairytale here! It is not at all what I expected. It exceeded all expectations :) It also has the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. (Ps. The first night I was here it rained, snowed, and there was a tornado) As I was enjoying the scenery, I felt so at peace. I also heard a still small voice that told me I was exactly where I needed to be. I know God needs me here.

The first couple of days were just training at the mission office, which was fine. We spent the first two nights at a hotel, and the beds were pretty great. On Thursday night we had dinner at President Gardner's house. It is such a good feeling eating home cooked meals. Sorry MTC, but your food is the worst.. Anyways, after dinner we had a testimony meeting and then we received our areas and companions. My companion's name is Sister Brower, and she is amazing. She is one of the most Christ-like people I know and always goes out of her way to make me feel good. I love her, and am so blessed to have a trainer like her. Our apartment is cute too! It's little, but hey, I get my own bathroom!

I am in Rockbrook, Nebraska. It is a cute town, and I love it. Everyone is so nice. When we go tracting, everyone rejects us so nicely!! It's great!! But the members here are amazing. We just had Stake Conference yesterday so I was able to meet tons of people. I met a woman whose son is serving in Murray for his mission.. So if you meet an Elder Gill, feed him!! The members feed us like there is no tomorrow. We were fed spaghetti for lunch, and THAI FOOD for dinner. Awe man, it was a dream come true.

It gets cold here. But, it's a humid coldness. Trust me when I say the humid cold is the worst, because it is. In Utah you get the dry kind of cold where it just burns your skin. Here, the cold goes right through you and burns your soul. A member told me it is supposed to get to 18 degrees on Saturday. Youch. The humidity is doing wonders for my complexion though, so can't complain!

On my first night with my companion, we met Julie. She is less-active, but kind of crazy. She has been living in a sketchy hotel for months. We went over to her house with our Ward Mission Leader(Brother Conda). We knocked on her door and then she opens it just a crack, and all of the lights are off. Bro Conda started being so nice and talking to her, then all of the sudden her eyes rolled to the back of her head, her door shuts, and you hear a thud. She passed out!! We got the hotel manager and called the ambulance because when we went back in her room she was really shaky and taking all these pills with a gash on her head (from the fall). It was insane! What a good first night, right??

Last night was great though. We taught an amazing lesson to a girl named Natalia, who is less-active. We taught her about the Sabbath Day, and the lesson was guided by the spirit the whole time. The spirit was so strong, and everyone felt it. My companion and I teach really well together.

I love this great work, and love being a missionary. Nebraska sure feels like home, and I love it so much.

Love,
Sister Hutchison

ps. The picture of me in front of the blue door is me in front of my apartment. Its so cute!
pss. the first time I drove past a corn field was yesterday. I feel fulfilled now.

 Tuesday November 10, 2015

DON'T WORRY
Before you are curious about me emailing not on my P-day, let me explain :) We do not know when our P-day in the field will be, so we are able to email a little while doing our laundry. I LEAVE TOMORROW. WOOT WOOT!!

I thought I would just send a short group email to talk about my past few days. On Saturday I was able to go to Temple Square! It was such a cool experience to teach REAL people!! Most of the people I talked to were already members, but it really showed me that no matter what, everyone needs to feel the love of Jesus Christ. We stopped to talk to this one woman, and just confirmed to her that the temple is a wonderful place where we can find peace and comfort. She cried and just hugged me and my temporary TS companion (Sis. Lysie). She said she knew we were inspired by God about what to say to her.

Me and Sis. Irwin got to talk on the phone with an investigator today over chat. She was trying to find answers to serious life questions, and we were able to teach her about the Plan of Salvation. She found comfort in our words and agreed to meet with her local missionaries in Florida, and we are sending her a copy of the Book of Mormon. She is now considered one of my investigators, so I am able to keep in contact with her. I am excited to her how her discussions go.

Well, I love you all. I can't wait to leave tomorrow and be in the real world!! I know there are people in Nebraska waiting for me. 

Love,

Sister Hutchison

This picture of me making a sad face is when the Front-Runner stopped in Murray on the way to Temple Square.

This is Sister Lysie, she was my Temple Square companion on Saturday.

Last MTC P Day!!!!!

November 6, 2015

Well, this is my last P day in the MTC!!! Crazy, right? I leave on Wednesday!! I have to be at the MTC Travel Office at 2:30 am that morning.... BARF. It's okay though, it will be a party.

My week was wonderful, as usual. I actually started visitor center training this week! It is so much fun!! We role-play taking tours a lot, and it is actually pretty fun! I know that I have been called to a visitor center for a reason :) Another fun thing about visitor center training is online chats! My companion and I are able to both be on a computer and chat with people who have questions about Mormonism. It's actually pretty neat! If you ever go on Mormon.org and press "chat with a mormon", and it's "Missy" and "Stephanie" are talking to you, that's us!!! We go by our first names to make it seem more casual, and less like a missionary discussion. Most of the time people are unaware it is missionaries speaking to them. So it is really fun!! Except for the occasional prankers.. Haha!

Speaking of Visitor Center Training, tomorrow (Saturday) we get to spend half of the day at Temple Square!!!!!!!! Oh my gosh, I am so excited to be a little closer to home. It will be really weird to be so close, but so far.. If that sounds cheesy, I apologize. But I am so stoked. We should be there in the afternoon around 3ish, until maybe 7:30.

Speaking of feeling close to home, I see Ross and Dorothy Davis just about everyday at the MTC. It is a little tender mercy for me to see ward members and be able to hug them!! Every time I see them I say "Make sure to tell my parents I love them when you see them!!". So it is directly from me if they tell you that.

It snowed in Provo this week!!! I'm sure it did in Salt Lake too, but it was so fun!! It wasn't thick, but it was just so pretty! Some of the girls in VC training are from really exotic places, so they have never seen snow before! It was awesome to experience it with them. I also added a picture of the Nebrasquad by the MTC Christmas lights! I can't believe they already have Christmas lights up, but hey, I'm not complaining. Christmas is the bomb and it just makes me more excited for it.

The Elders in our Zone left this week.. Man, all of the sisters were bawling. We have grown to love them soo soooooo much. We quickly turned into a family and our testimonies strengthened each other so much. I know they will do so amazing in the field, and I am so blessed to have gotten to know them.  The picture of our district at the temple is attached, as well!

I have to teach relief society this week, speak at sacrament meeting, AND sing for a musical number. So prayers are needed these next couple days!!! Lots of responsibility, but lots of blessings too :)

My challenge of the week is to read Ether 12, and count how many times it uses the word "faith". Being in the MTC has made me realize how important faith is, and I'm hoping all of you can realize it too!!

I love you all so much, and I'm sorry if I didn't get a chance to email you back today. I literally logged on and had 27 emails! WOW! I feel so loved!! Also, sorry if I did email you back and it was short and not very detailed.

God be with you till we meet again!!

Love,
Sister Hutchison

Sister Orton and I during the first snow!!!!

Sister O'Brian and I became great friends here at the MTC. She left for the Honolulu Visitor Center this week, and I miss her so much!! The second pic is just a cute selfie we took at the temple :)

PS

 I FORGOT TO MENTION SOMETHING IN MY LONG EMAIL. My companion and I raced a random Elder to get the last piece of cheesecake in the cafeteria.. We lost.. But it turned out alright because 10 minutes later they were serving them again. It just made me laugh that we literally raced an Elder to get it.

My First Week is Complete!!

October 30, 2015

Hello Everybody!!! (The guy from The Simpsons voice)

Man, I have had one of the best weeks ever. I truly mean it when I say I love the MTC. I have made so many friends here, and I feel so at home. So to start off my week since I've emailed last, I met my Branch President!! His name is President Laney, and he is one of the best guys I have ever met. He knows his scriptures like the back of his hand, he could give Uncle Rich a run for his money!!! I could say something random and he will know a scripture reference within half a second! It is so insane!!!

Sunday was amazing though. It was the quickest Sacrament meeting I have ever been to. It literally felt like 20 minutes because I was so happy to be there the whole time. All of the talks were amazing and there was a constant feeling of the spirit. I am excited for this Sunday because it is fast and testimony meeting. I cannot wait to share my testimony. It's one of my favorite things to do now!

Also on Sunday, we did a temple walk. Those are what the pics are from!!! This morning, since it is P day, we were able to do a session at the temple as well. It was so amazing. It was the first time I had ever felt home-sick though.. I was sitting in the celestial room just thinking about my amazing family and started to cry. But, after praying so hard for comfort, I looked up and saw a picture of Christ with his arms opened wide. There was immediate peace in my heart, and in that moment I knew everything was going to be okay. In that moment I knew I was doing exactly what I was supposed to.

So I experienced my first missionary miracle this week. Gosh, it was incredible. So.. I got pretty dang sick. Don't be alarmed, I'm fine. But for most of the week I had a really bad cold and ended up losing my voice completely and just feeling so dang miserable. My companion and I have trc's a few nights a week, and this is when the MTC hires non-members to be our investigators and we teach them. So I was stressing because I didn't want Sister Irwin to be doing all of the teaching. But right before the lesson we sat and had a prayer together. We got  into the discussion and my voice was back. I taught Ivy (our investigator) about the Restoration and recited the first vision all by myself, and there was such a special spirit in the room. As soon as we said goodbye and walked out the door, my voice was gone again. God truly works in mysterious ways. I asked my lovely Zone Leaders for a blessing and the next day I literally felt perfect. This church is so true, guys.

Tuesday was incredible. I got to participate in the MTC choir, and we sang at the devotional that night. The devotional was live-broadcasted to all of the MTC's IN. THE WORLD. Obviously some watched it the next day, but still. It was pretty sweet. Want to know why it was live??? ELDER ANDERSEN SPOKE!!!!!!!!!! I WAS ABLE TO HEAR AN APOSTLE OF GOD ON TUESDAY NIGHT, GUYS! His talk was so great. It was about sacrifice, opposition, the adversary and deliverance. It was inspiring. The moment we all stood up for him to enter the room, I saw him and my eyes filled with tears. It's crazy how the spirit so strongly testified to me that he is truly an apostle.

I have never laughed so hard in one day than I did on Wednesday. The girls in my room (Sis. Irwin, Orton, and Chappell) are quickly becoming my best friends. We call ourselves the "Nebrasquad"(thats the gang sign we are throwing out in our pic) or the "Omahomies", and we get along so great. We all are so freaking funny. I don't even know what was so funny on Wednesday, all I know is we were dying from laughter at lunch, all the way until we were in bed that night. I cannot explain how much I love every single one of them, and the Elders in our District. We are family. I will be so bummed when the elders leave next Wednesday.

It is so funny, some of the elders in our classroom building are teaching us different things in the languages they are speaking. I know a little Japanese, French, Korean and Sign Language!!

We met with Ivy again this week. She moved here a year ago from Taiwan, and she is going to UVU. She was able to move here because she won the green card lottery or something like that! Pretty sweet, right?? we talked to her about the Holy Ghost. I shared a personal experience and taught her how God is truly our Father in Heaven and she can feel comfort when she prays. She agreed to pray with us and when she was done, there were tears in her eyes. There were tears in my eyes as well. The spirit was so strong. The next lesson she told us how she is starting to have faith in mormonism and a belief in God (she was originally buddhist). She agreed to read some of the Book of Mormon, and we have our last lesson with her tonight. We are going to invite her to baptism. She even told us she argued with her sister about how our church is true. Her faith is incredible. I love Ivy.

Well, I think I talked your ear off enough.. I love you all so much. Thanks for the many many emails and letters I received this week. I feel so blessed. This church is so true, and I love serving the Lord. Missionary work is truly incredible, and I wouldn't want to be anywhere else than here right now. I'm truly doing what I need to be doing.

Love,
Sister Hutchison

ps. I know I should be smiling in the pic in front of the temple. Believe me when I say I was happy to be there.

pss. I challenge you all to read the First Vision. Pray before, of course, to feel the spirit while reading. It truly will touch your heart.  Joseph Smith History 1: 16-17

Its Official!!


October 23, 2015
Hello Everyone!

Congrats, you made it into my weekly emails! If you know anyone that is DYING to receive these, let me know and I will add them.. But, if you know someone that would like to see my weekly emails that doesn't care about receiving them, tell them to check the blog my mother is running while I am out here on the mish, because my weekly emails will be posted there as well.  sistermissyhutchison.blogspot.com 

After months of waiting, I managed to finally make it to the MTC! I have only been here a few days, but I love being here so much already. It is fantastic. Everyone here is so nice and willing to help. I am pretty sure I have never had to open my own door (except to my building) because the elders are all such gentlemen! It's awesome!! 

I LOVE my companion. Her name is Sister Irwin, and she will be serving in my same mission with me. We have similar personalities and she is already turning into a dear friend of mine. We have some fun together :) We constantly receiving the same prompting as we study together, and it is truly amazing. I added some pics of me and her together. Being here keeps me so in tuned with the spirit. We also share a room with 4 other sisters. Two of them (Sister Orton and Sister Chappell) will be in my mission. The other two (Sister Costly and Sister Moulten) are going to a visitor center somewhere else. 

I have only been here a few days but the spirit has already touched me in so many ways. The first day I got here was a little overwhelming.. But its getting better! Something that really hit me was on the first day all of the new missionaries had a devotional. We starting singing "We'll bring the world his truth" and as we sang, the words changed from "We will be the Lords Missionaries" to "We are now the Lords missionaries". I don't know why, but in that moment I felt so inspired and I almost felt unstoppable. Because its so true! I am now the Lord's missionary!! 

My district is awesome! Im already so close to the sisters and elders. But... Our classroom is on the 5th floor!! Mom, I'd get you so many steps on your fitbit.. Its a workout!  

We are able to work out every other day, and something they have yoga and kick boxing for sisters early in the morning!! I AM SORE. But I'm not about to come home chubby..... 

I see people I know and its hard to call them "Sister" or "Elder"! So that will take some getting used to. Its hard getting out of the habit of saying "HEY GUYS". Any slang is frowned upon haha. 

I am so happy here and I know it is where I need to be. The spirit here is so strong, and every day it is revealed to me even more that this church is true. 

I have a challenge! Take time tonight to pray about this church. Pray about its truth and just pray to be inspired by the spirit. I can promise that if you do this, you will feel God's love. I know I have.

I love you all so very much! Sorry if you got a super short email, I dont get a lot of time. Thank you for all of the love and support I have received though!! It will be better once im out in the field! Don't worry about me because I am having the time of my life. THE MTC RULES. You will be in my prayers!! :)

Love,

Sister Hutchison

ps. im repping the Dealthy Hallows Shirt today

Sister Hutchison's MTC Address

Sister Melissa Kay Hutchison
NOV11  NE-OMA
2005 N 900 E Unit 181
Provo UT 84602