Sickside Sisters

Sickside Sister Belyea

Sickside Sister Stolworthy

Love that Brother Bailey

Sickside Sisters heading to Zone Training Meeting

ZTM

Murrells Inlet

Dinner with Brother and Sister Miller

 at Murrells Inlet

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY FAVORITE LITTLE BROTHER TODAY!! I CANT BELIEVE YOU’RE 19 YEARS OLD! There’s a massive rainstorm here in Surfside on behalf of you! I guess. I LOVE YOU, BRIDGER!

I have not wanted to email home all week. In fact, I’ve even shed a couple of tears over the matter. I feel like I’m just letting my family and friends down so much! I feel like I’m wasting their time, their love, their support.. as well as my Father in Heaven’s time and support. (Yes.. I did want to receive emails from home.. but, like I said.. I just really don’t want to write home right now.)

This week; we all got sick. And when I say “all” I mean “all four of us.” Sister Wellman, Sister Stolworthy, Sister McNeece, and I. When I say “sick” I mean a virus of some sort.

On Wednesday night, we all got Priesthood blessings.

Since then, we’ve been in bed.

We had to cancel a lot of appointments throughout the week.. then we kept pushing them towards later in the week. However, we then would cancel them again- and (most likely) loose people’s trust.

 It’s been hard when nobody wants to progress in the gospel! I know this message is true- but I feel like nothing good is happening if/when people are not accepting or listening to the message.

Ugh.

On Saturday we gained enough energy to go and sit in front of the computers so we could do our “mormon.org” time for the week. As we were sitting there- I decided to look through some videos that were taking up space on my SD card. As I was going through them.. I soon came to realize that they were videos from back home  years ago! Most of them were boring nothingness.. but.. then I came across some swim team videos from my Junior year. There was a video of me doing the 100 freestyle. I was on the very edge of the pool (lane 6.) As I began my race, I had mom (who was recording) cheering me on. Also, Katie Jowers was walking up and down the side of my lane with me, getting in my face and cheering me on to go faster. Then, when I would come in to do a flip turn, Jordan Greenburg and Bailee Stecklor were right there in my face cheering me on and calling me by name. Do I remember swimming this race?! Nope. At the end of the race I was neck to neck with this girl right to the side of me.. and she beat me by 4 tenths of a second. Seriously? I just looked at myself and I kinda got upset at myself for not just pushing myself a LITTLE BIT harder. Anyway.. as I was watching this home video.. I BURST into tears. GO AHEAD AND CALL ME A BAWL BABY.  I think I just came to realize that I’m loved and supported by more people than I know. (once again.. I feel guilty because I feel like I let you all down again, this week.) But.. I just love my friends and family back home. Who knows. Maybe it was just home sickness.

I got an awesome “letter” from Bryson Bailey this past week. Actually it was just a pass along card that he wrote on. It said “Bryson Bailey Endowment. Saturday September 13^th 2:30pm” Then it said, “Be there or I will go back to being a Lutheran!” HAHAHA! I LOVE THAT MAN! Looks like Sister McNeece and I are headed to the temple this Saturday for a very special event! YAY! And we even got a ride. Sister Ballard, a recent convert in this ward.. and a cute lady that just went through the temple for the first time in July, has offered to take us. WHOOP-DE-DO. I need the temple more than ever right now. Also.. because of the fact that I just got an email saying that John Drummond has apparently left the church. 

“Serenity now.”

On Saturday evening we mustered enough strength to go to dinner with Brother and Sister Miller. They took us to this super fancy place called “The Wicked Tuna” down in Murrells Inlet. It was fun, and we sat right on the water front! I SERVE IN THEE MOST BEAUTIFUL AREA!!! Seriously? How many missionaries/people in the world get to just hang out on the marsh all day? SO BLESSED!

My September 2^nd package was a book from Mom and some cute necklaces! The 100 day countdown has begun! Thanks mom!!!

Oh. Last Monday night, Sister McNeece and I got in some “trouble” with H.O.A. LONGGGG STORYYYY SHORTTTTTT; This one lady thought we were solicitating. We nicely told her were not.. and then went on our way trying to share the message of the Restoration (even though nobody would listen to us.) Well. Apparently she was not happy with that answer.. and she found out what church we represented. She must have gone online or something.. but she ended up calling our Bishop and telling him that we were very rude to her and that we were screaming at her and leaving “pass-along cards” on people’s cars and stuff. SUCH A LIE! Then Tuesday night, when we got home.. President Turner called us and said he’d received word from the county saying we were not representing the church very well.

:/

Seriously?

 We told him exactly what happened. And his advice was just to not go into that area anymore.

Cool.

Sister McNeece and I played a trick on the other sisters. We (mostly she) put googly eyes all over the apartment. On the mirrors.. toothbrushes.. lotions.. pictures.. peanut butter.. the microwave.. etc. Haha.. it was pretty funny. Much needed relief from being glued together this whole past week.

On Thursday we had ZTM in Florence. Mind you.. this was probably at the height of ALL of our sickness. We were advised from the ward to stay home.. but.. we felt like we really needed to go. SO.. I volunteered to drive. Mostly, because I didn’t trust anybody else to drive. We took the 2 hour trip into Florence.. and we were all pretty miserable. HAHAHA, I can look back at it now and laugh, because it’s practically a miracle we made it there. During the whole “Zone Training Meeting” the 4 of us looked completely dead. I hope we didn’t get anybody else sick! Sister Wellman pretty much just had her head on the table the whole time, passed out asleep. Then Sister McNeece just had her eyes half closed and was slowly taking notes. I was just looking at our current situation and laughing my head off while sneezing every 2 minutes.. and then Sister Stolworthy was just my trusty BFF that was always trying to bring the spirit and be the perfect person she is.

Such is the life.

Of a sick missionary.

One day, a member of the ward, The Hill Family, called us to see if we had any dinner appointments. This was on Friday.. and.. since we were still stuck inside sick.. we told them we did not. (no, we didn’t tell them we were sick.. because OBVIOSULY we’re too prideful for that.) Well…. They said they had made soup for dinner and were wondering if we wanted any.. and if we would mind if they just dropped it by. TENDER MERCY FROM THE LORD! Yet again. I had tears. WHY IS THE HILL FAMILY SOO INTUNE WITH THE SPIRIT?! Answer to our prayers.

Transfer calls are this Saturday. At this point.. I have no idea what will be happening. I’m mostly just trying to trust Heavenly Father and know that whatever President Turner says.. will happen. Either that be that I stay here in Surfside with Sister McNeece.. or wither that be that I go someplace else for my last two transfers. I have SUPER mixed emotions about the whole thing. A part of me thinks I still have a lot to learn from not having anybody to teach.. and that I still need to better understand where Sister McNeece is coming from; and the other part of me feels like I really need to move on someplace else and receive a new enthusiasm with working with new people.

 But… I still love the beach.

Nobody is progressing in Surfside.

Please just keep President Turner in your prayers.. that he may be in tune with the spirit to know where the Lord would have me go! Only two transfers left.. plus a week.

The Myrtle Beach sisters have (ANOTHER) baptism this Saturday! Unfortunately we won't be able to be there.. but I’m beyond pumped and excited for Bryson to receive his endowment. Plus, how cool is it that it’ll be Sister Derrick’s last Saturday in the mission field? She goes home next Wednesday!

Sister Stolworthy and I read a lot of scriptures, both together, and separately this past week. Even though we may have been on bed rest.. I did spend a lot of time in prayer with God.. and I’m just trying to get some of my crazy mind/life in order to better help this important work progress. Nope, in case you’re wondering.. I still have no idea what I’m doing with the rest of my life. Let alone who the next person is that I’ll share my testimony with here in Surfside.

I know that this gospel is true and I know that it’s beyond important to make these things known to the world. (2 Nephi 2:8) I know that the only way we can strengthen our own testimonies of our savior and of this work is through continual prayer and scriptures study.

The Atonement is real.

I love you all. Thank you for all that you do. I do not deserve such praise and support from back home. I’m so grateful for this beautiful part of the vineyard that I’m blessed to serve in and for all that I’m learning. I’m grateful for prayer. I’m grateful for the Book of Mormon. I’m grateful for latter-day prophets and apostles.

Please, everybody, have a good and safe week! Don’t let my negative attitude bring any of you down!

XOXOXOXXOXOXXO, (your drugged up missionary that's living off of Tylonal PM)

Sister Belyea

Mosiah 5