December surprise TEXT and FB entries

Pam Hermana Autumn Twitchell was able to have dinner with her Mia Maid teacher, she loved Sister Pam Skavang Garvin, I'm so glad they could get together. Love love love the picture

Autumn called Dec 23 from this families home.  Surprised TEXT

We got these cute pictures today from a member. Haciendo papusas they are making papusas from el salvador

Surprise TEXT with Autumn and her companion. 

Fun times with Hermana Griffith Autumn's trainer

Hermana Autumn Twitchell - Hermana Morgan Griffith  --  Hermana Brianna Burke
1st companion ship in Sacramento  --  Hermana Griffith is her trainer

FELIZ NAVIDAD!!!

We got to Skype Hermana Autumn Twitchell for Christmas  (I'm trying to get a video but it's not working)

Amber and her family came over to Skype with Autumn, Alicia was on Avram's computer but couldn't really hear.  

Hermana Autumn Twitchell is very Happy to be serving the Lord!!

Feliz Navidad!!!

December 15, 2014

Hola Mamacita!

Well, come July 1st, I don't know if I'm going to be serving in the Sacramento mission anymore... because I might be in the new California Modesto mission! What! What! Yep our mission is going to be split. They're taking part of Fresno mission and the Lodi, Manteca, and Stockton stakes from our mission to create the Modesto mission. It's going to be crazy! That's more than half of our mission area and our mission is already a pretty small area. We had a mission-wide conference call with the mission president yesterday where we learned of this. It will be interesting to see what will happen because there are a lot of spanish missionaries in those areas. 

About skype... I have no idea, I actually did not think that far. But I will find out what time and I will find a way to communicate it to you! I just know that our next P-day isn't until Christmas... I think I'm going to be using a member's skype or Hna. Burke's skype: _Hermana_burke, but we'll see. 

Oh thank you thank you thank you for the stamps! I was just about to go buy some and then I got your card!

The temple was super fun! Sister Tullis was working there, so I gave her a big hug! The temple was so beautiful! I loved every minute of it! And I still have everything memorized before you go to the celestial room, so I was pretty excited about that! Haha I also saw Sister Twitchell! I met her the first day I was in Sacramento, but this time we took a picture! (sorry I forgot my camera...) and she says that there's an Ephraim Twitchell in her lineage... so I'm pretty sure we're related :P Haha she's super nice, but she only has one or two transfers before she's home. 

If everything goes well, we should be having a baptism on Friday, a wedding on Saturday an hour before our branch Christmas party, and a baptism next Saturday! It's going to be a great couple of weeks!

Well, we were supposed to have a "storm" on Thursday, but it wasn't that bad. It was just constant rain. Thank goodness everyone cleaned their gutters from last week, so there wasn't a flood :)  On Wednesday, Hna. Griffith came to visit! and we visited a few members with her and she gave everyone Idaho Spuds because she's from Idaho :P Haha it was great!

On Saturday and Sunday, we volunteered to help out at a nativity event at our stake center in Elk Grove. There were hundreds of nativities set up on display from members in the stake and people from all over came to see them. It was a lot of fun talking with people! There were some Polynesians from the Marshallese branch that came up to us and asked if they could take a picture with us. Haha I felt famous there with all the members. They make my day.

On Sunday I was talking with one of the members in our branch who is Vietnamese. He says he is the only Vietnamese member in Sacramento and whenever there is a Vietnamese investigator, they talk with him. Haha It's funny talking with him because he doesn't speak the best of English, and yet he attends the Spanish congregation. He says he doesn't understand it, but he just loves the spirit here. I'd have to agree with him. The spirit of our members are so powerful!

...hmmm something funny. Well, today for zone sports we played Gatorball, a super fun game that's a mix between soccer, basketball,... really everything. When someone has the ball if a person from the other team tags them with two hands, then they have to drop it right at the spot and someone has to kick it, catch it, throw it, and/or run with it. It's a lot of fun! But it's sometimes awkward because Hna. Burke and I are the only sisters in our zone. Haha so whenever Hna B has the ball I always try and get her out. Well, she had the ball, so I started running towards her. And I tackled her, while forgetting how to run... and how to stop. So I fell over and slid across the gym floor. Haha Well I stopped the other team from getting the ball. So it was a success! Haha I'm also getting pretty good at throwing a rugby ball because an Elder in our zone brings one every week and we just toss it around. Come 18 months I'm going to be a pro at every single sport! Just Wait! :P  

I love you so much and I am super excited to see you on Christmas! I will definitely get a time for you.

Para Siempre Dios este con Vos!

Con Amor,

Hermana Twitchell

Christmas Temple Conference!!!

Autumn is in the 1st row sitting on chairs the second Sister missionary.  

THE FLOOD

December 8, 2014

Hola Mamacita!

This week has been awesome! Last week it rained so hard that the streets were flooded. There was a point where I was in mid-calf deep water and I had to get in the car! Haha it was a lot of fun! I felt bad for the Elders in our zone though that have to ride bikes...

I am so excited for the temple tomorrow! It's going to be great! It's kind of scary how much you know that I don't even tell you :P I know we're going to have a Christmas program tomorrow, but I don't know what it is... But I do know that we have to wake up extra early tomorrow to be there by 7:30 tomorrow morning, fun! We'll be with the Rancho Cordova and Folsom zone for the session, so I'll have to ask how everyone in my hometown is doing. We did get to watch the 1st Presidency message yesterday as a zone. We just watched it in one of the chapels and the Elders brought candy and other fun stuff. It was really good, I loved those talks! Two Elders in our zone went to Pam Garvin's house for dinner before they came to watch the devotional and they came with a bunch of treats and said that they gave her my phone number so that she could call me later... ummm :) Haha the last companionship before them ate dinner with her and they told them the story of when Dad forgot Avram's name during his baby blessing. It's funny being so close and yet so far from home. :P I'm always hearing about people from Folsom or the missionaries that serve there.

Yesterday I had the great opportunity to translate during Sacrament meeting! Hna. Burke and Elder Hatch were tired of being the only ones translating, so yesterday was my turn. I wasn't too bad I hope. I only had to translate for the Branch President's wife so I just sat on the side and spoke into a mic and she wore headphones. It was fun because it was testimony meeting. Haha I love testimony meeting! There was a woman that started her testimony, then started crying and her words were very hard to hear... then she started mumbling a prayer at the pulpit. I wasn't quite sure what to say! Haha Then there are others where when they get nervous or emotional they just talk faster and faster until I can't even hear what they're saying either! Haha but I tried my best and I was excited to see how much I actually know... and realize how much I still don't know. :P 

An awesome thing is that we had two investigators come to church this week, Odalis and her sister Joanny. We've been teaching them for 3 weeks, but they've never been able to come to church because they like sleep. We have church at 11 am and sleep is by far our biggest enemy for investigators. Next year it will be at 9! So yesterday we went over to their house around 9:30am just to wake them up. Haha every Sunday morning we have a list of all the people we have to call to wake up on Sunday. :P But they came to church and it was so awesome! 

This week our branch president gave us a CD of a bunch of conference talks in Spanish and that's all we've been listening to all week. It's been great! 

We do get to skype for Christmas, but I'm not sure where I'm doing it yet. You'll have to tell me all your skype info or something... I'm pretty sure it's an hour.

I love this work and I am so blessed to be a part of it! Our branch is so awesome! They emphasize visiting and home teaching every single Sunday and last month they had 90% compared to our stakes number of about 33%. They are so awesome at helping one another and helping out those that are fallen. 

Para Siempre Dios este con Vos

Con Amor,

Hermana Twitchell

PS I love the Christmas Tree

El Es El Dadiva He is the Gift!!

December 1, 2014

Service Project helping clean rec center

Hola Mamacita!

Today I think I have come to a conclusion: white people scare me. Haha no, I'm just super comfortable with the Latinos and the Black people that when I ever see a white person that's not an Elder, I freak out :P.

Thanksgiving was great! We ate at Christina and Samuel's house and they had turkey and Pumpkin pie!!! I was praying so hard for pumpkin pie because I thought for sure they wouldn't have it and they did! Haha then we also had rice, beans, cucumbers, and confetti cake. It was a pretty good feast.

So there's the video "He is the Gift" or "El es el Dadiva" and because it's supposed to be super big, we as missionaries are given 10 pass-along cards each day about this video. It's been pretty awesome! Hna. Burke and I have been getting a lot better at our contacting skills! We're trying our hardest to contact everyone we see! Haha it has really been a blessing in our work. The other day we had a guy that actually contacted us and asked, "Are you from a church?" so we talked to him for a little bit and he told us he wanted to go back to a church. Then he told us to pray for him that he might be able to quit smoking. Sure! It was a cool experience.

We've been talking with Franko and Norma and we have a set date for their wedding on the 19th of December. I'm super excited for them! I'll have two weddings under my belt before I even get a baptism! It'll be great!

Hna. Burke and I have had a pretty awesome week. We've met a lot of different people and we've been having a great time teaching our investigators. No matter how many times I read it, watch it, hear it, or say it, the first vision always gets to me. This fourteen year old boy saw God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. I know it, God knows it, and I cannot deny it. Every time we teach the first vision to an investigator, whether it's in English or Spanish, the spirit is there and the spirit is strong. It always makes me so sad when people don't want to open their hearts and listen! Because this message is so beautiful! 

Today we were in the Walmart parking lot and I was going to give a "He is the Gift" card to a man that was getting out of his car. All I asked him was, "Hi! Can I give you a card about Jesus?" and he firmly and flat out said no. I was almost in shock, How could he say no to Jesus! Usually people will at least say, "oh no thank you" or "sure" and take it and run. It made me so sad! 

The longer I'm out on my mission, the more I get excited about telling people about this gospel. It is such a huge blessing in my life and I've realized that I can't stop after the mission. I might not be telling everyone I lay eyes on about the gospel, but I've started thinking that something this important in my life that has helped my life so much, could help anyone else in their lives as well, as long as they are willing to listen. I think right now the thing that is hardest for me is telling people about the gospel and knowing that they aren't willing to open up and listen or that they won't put in the effort to say a read the Book of Mormon and having a meaningful and real conversation with their Heavenly Father as to whether it is true or not. But then I have to remember that I can't force anyone to do anything! and I can't convince anyone of anything, especially with my poor Spanish! It is all the spirit and I am so grateful that it is!

I got the primary book and the Christmas countdown last Monday and we were so excited to start it today! Thank you so much mom! Hna. Kaaa and Hna. Burke are also very grateful for the cards you gave them. Mom you are the best mom ever! Everyone is so jealous of all the letters I get haha. During transfer week we had to get our mail from the zone leaders and I got four letters and the other sisters got 2 English ensigns. :P You don't have to worry about sending me a package because I already know that you're the best mom in the world and just having your support me is all I need. I love you the most!

Para Siempre Dios este con Vos

Con Amor,

Hermana Twitchell