Please. Call the police. I dare you.

Family!

We had Zone and Stake Conference this week, but still managed to find 10 new investigators. We also went on exchanges with the English sisters, that was way fun...

We met a very angry man while knocking an apartment building where a member had sent us to find her friend to teach. He threatened to call the police if we didn't leave the complex immediately. We tried to talk with him for a minute about Jesus Christ, but he was seriously hostile, so in the end we just went to go try and contact the referral (nobody was home) so we left a note and then slowly left the apartment complex. Poor little Sister Smith was kind of freaking out and really scared that the police would come and arrest us. Sister Hoskins and I took a more insolent view of things.

If the police want to arrest us for trying to spread the gospel, than great. Lots of cool people have been arrested for preaching. I'll be in good company: Joseph Smith. Martin Luther. Alma. Paul. Jesus...

Chances are, the police are Mormon. And if not, I'd probably just say something along the lines of, “Hey. Man. I know that Houston is the third largest city in the country and that you've got a staggering crime rate... isn't there something else you'd rather be doing right now than dealing with a couple of little girls trying to talk to people about Jesus? Like actually protecting people from real dangers? I know, I know... It's been a long week. Would you like a card to receive a free copy of the book of Mormon? How're the kids? Do you go to church sir?”

Probably the police wouldn't even come. They'd just recommend that the apartment staff ask us to leave. They didn't though. Just the guy.

The family that e-mailed you is a family I met while in Tomball for the day. They were VERY nice and made us breakfast for dinner. Very sweet family, they asked if we should write you and I said absolutely, since most of the people I teach and know don't really speak English, so they can't as such... communicate. They also don't really have the Internet, more often than not.

I actually sent valentines for mommy and daddy tambien, but I just got the letter back and it was all damaged. What a waste of postage... I'm almost out too, I'll have to go to the post office. I still haven't managed to get my license. I received the copy of it, but I can't use it, because it's the copy of the license I had when I was sixteen, so it's expired by a number of months. I DID renew my license before I left, but nobody seems to have a copy of that one? The mission gave me a copy of my old one two. But it's starting to look like they can't find the copy that I KNOW they have, of my newer license. I know they have it because, they made me come into the office to specially make a copy of it when they were renting a new apartment for the sisters back in Louetta. But no. I still can't drive. I'm going to send you the paper work today. Sorry about that, I've just been so busy, but I really need to get that license.

The only other bit I have to tell you, I think, is that we were kicked out of the adult session of Stake Conference. Pretty hilarious, actually. See—we were told we should come and bring our investigators/recent converts. So... we did! We were also told that we should get rides with members so we didn't waste miles. So... we did! Then, the general authority who was presiding, came up to President Hansen as they were preparing to start the meeting and told him that “The Missionaries shouldn't be here. They need to be teaching right now. Please invite them to leave.”

I love it when they use the word 'invite' like that, when really he meant, “Get. Them. OUT!”

So, President Hansen told Elder Porter, zone leader, and he came and gathered all of us and we had an emergency 'What the heck do we do for the next hour and a half?' meeting.
None of us have cars, we all came with members, as we were attempting to be obedient.
We're 40 miles away from our area, and 15 miles outside of our mission.
It's dark. Sisters aren't technically supposed to do any tracting after dark in our mission.
In the end we just decided to go knock some doors anyway, as we had no other option, really.
President Hansen apologized profusely after the meeting.
Nothing much came out of it. Elder Frost and Elder Lang met someone who sounds pretty awesome. His Mormon friend has been trying to get him to come to church with her for years—that was really cool. And the Zone Leaders met someone who prayed for their souls not to go to hell and for their eyes to be opened to the error of their ways. That's always interesting. Aside form that, it was just a fun, funny night. I tried to be a comedian about it and get everybody else to look on the hilarious side of life, because it was looking like a few people were going to come over all depressed about getting kicked out of our own church meeting. I started to compose an Opera in Spanish on the spot about the experience and spread cheer and funzies por todos lados. I don't remember the music anymore, and for the most part the lyrics are just exactly what I've written but in Spanish, which is much easier to rhyme in.

We've been finding people like crazy recently, but we've also been losing them like crazy. I don't think I've ever been dropped or shoved off so much in my whole mission. This area is a little tough. But it's okay, because, like I said, we are finding people like crazy. Maybe this is just a violent sifting process here... we're bound to find the elect if we continue like this.

You also say that the week was normal, but it always sounds way interesting to me... All the little things that happen to you guys and important to me. Thank you so much for sending my debit card. I still haven't activated it. I'm not sure how. That stupid answering system leads you in all kinds of irrelevant circles. I think I'm just going to pound buttons until I can talk to a human being.

All these natural disasters are pretty serious then? We don't know much about it. Just what we here from the members. It's so sad—but I guess we have to come to expect it in these days. I'm so sorry about little Ben! Poor thing... Does George miss his brother? Little Bellatrix sounds like a doll.

Yeah, there's a couple of Elders who are like, “Your sister should write me.” to which my typical response is, “Fat chance. She won't even write me!”

I LOVE you all so very, very much. MWAH! Thank you again for my card and for all the funny comics. Me and my companion read them and giggled incessantly.

Love, Hermana Lillywhite