idk how to start this but it was a good week

A friend told me she didnt realize I had a google photos album (even tho I put it at the end of every post), but I'll add it at the top too today just in case

https://photos.app.goo.gl/K8riSQGsCa65xx9u6

Oh also I didn't add photos cuz i had to write this email more quickly, sorry!

Okay onto the weekly rundown!

January 6, 26

Our weekly planning was so long😵‍💫

We went to the Douglas county library to to our weekly planning and we were there from 1:30pm to 6:20pm. For reference, daily planning is supposed to take two hours.

We planned for our dots, put in the travel time and whatnot for the national western stockshow parade, planned for the baptism on Sunday, and then filled in our day with finding time. So it was all worth it but it took a long time to get done lol.

We also were there for longer because we printed out test flyers to see if they were good enough to pass out at the western national stockshow parade

Then we had dinner, and then stopped by someone we want to teach, and fixed some stuff in pmg (preach my gospel, our digital areabook) then kinda sorta did a phone audit then went home

Once we got home, I did my dishes and sister finch got in the shower. Sister mkaknie tho gave me some of the cake she made!! I've started to like her tbh but I think she doesnt think im very funny so our interactions are pretty brief.

January 7, 26

So we tried to do comp study today while printing some flyers for the parade tomorrow and it fell through haha

But our flyers look good! Im excited to use them tomorrow 

I also enjoyed being on the computer designing things, I felt like I was doing something normal for a chance

Then we did a stop by and drove to dutchbros to buy a small drink to get a sticker then we had my mentoring session.

We had lunch from 1:10pm-2:10pm then got gas and tried to stop by a member with no info but the gate that lead to his driveway was closed so we drove around and knocked at some houses in the boonies. While we were driving, we stopped to knock at a house that didnt have a gate and sister finch looked literally the happiest I've ever seen her😂 she saw horses! And then she asked me to take a photo of her in front of them. We didn't find success from going around doing that but it was fun!

Then we drove to the Hawkins house and picked up food they made us for dinner. Sister Hawkins is a yapper but she gave us some names of people to contact! 

We had an early dinner from 4:50pm to 5:50pm then did some stop bys before our split with the STLs

We have a Grey dot that we found before the new year and she asked us to come back on the new year because her life was busy at that time (understandable!). The next two times we went to her house (2 weeks ago, and today), her husband answered. Hes an exmoron and told us both times shes not interested but sister finch and I dont believe him. Hes very passive aggressive to us and we havent seen her since our first interaction so I dont buy it. I also noticed I won't take no for an answer unless its someone telling me no to my face. If they dont answer the door, thats not a no to me. So shes not checked off yet to me.

We also stopped by Isreal, one of the people the Hawkins told us to check on. He was super nice but said hes got the Hawkins checking in on him and his family is not interested in returning to church. Oh well, we tried tho!

For the split, I was with sister fowles!

We stopped by some members and Grey dots and knocked around their houses.

And I love getting to know sister fowles! She told me she reads my emails haha but im being honest in what im about to say.😁

 I think we are quite different in interests but that's why I like learning about her! She grew up in rural Utah with a father who puts horseshoes on horses for a living so shes spent her whole life on horses. She told me she was one when she first was on a horse! Sister fowles was also telling me what she likes about horses and I think her perspective is so cool! She likes to ride horses to kind of escape her life for a bit and think and process. It makes sense to me, being able to be active and also seclude yourself for a while seems like great opportunities to process things. She was also telling me about how shes learned lessons on patience and teaching by training horses. I think its so cool shes able to learn her own life lessons by having horses! 

I also noticed she just seems happy all the time; and all of her experiences shes lived she has used as an opportunity to learn and grow. I think that's super mature and admirable. 

Anywho, shes awesome and anyone is lucky to know sister fowles.

After our split, sister finch and I talk about what each of us did during our split as we drive back home. 

At home, we had a zone call and then sister finch and I wrestle for her phone lol. We are now at the stage where we play fight but she keeps holding having sim over me so I half wrestled her for her phone to turn on the mobile Hotspot. Our quadmates probly thought we were so weird but its fine. Let the white people have fun!

January 8, 26

Big news today!

We hope on a mission call and receive the following information 

Our mission is changing from Colorado Denver North Mission to the Colorado Denver East Mission

Because of the new Cheyenne Wyoming mission, its taking zones from the Fort Collins Mission, which means the Fort Collins Mission is taking three zones from us! And we gain one zone on the south of the mission

Some missionaries will be in the Denver East Mission, some missionaries will be moved to the Fort Collins Mission

All of this is effective July 1st

Oh and also our mission is under attack by satan😭 Becasue we are on the cusp of greatness and great progress, satan is working extra hard to attack us while we are not being as obedient as we should, not being as diligent as we should, and attacking us with feelings of inadequacy or laziness. President Clawson counseled us to actively be fighting back against satan by reading scriptures (especially the war chapters in the Book of Mormon), work on your feelings of inadequacy and lack of motivation. He counseled us to pray for desire and as we act, motivation will come.

President also said next transfer he wants us to not use ear buds at all unless we are talking to family, President Clawson, or a therapist. Everything else you listen to should be on your phone's speaker. This includes while working out and during pstudy. I'm cooked😭 I get bothered by noises very easily so I dont know how I'm going to do this. Well, yes I do. I will do it with God.

After this zoom call, we drive to a parking lot before the parade. We pay for parking, walk to the spot and find out we complety missed it😭 It was worth it tho because I saw sister graham and got to gather! 

Sister graham catches up with me and she can see im struggling. She gives me words of encouragement I needed and her companion does too. They said that the Lord sees my efforts. I also asked them about some finding ideas and they had some good ones! Trail finding early in the morning or late at night, and flower finding! I asked how those labors would show fruit basically and sister Wright said it wont but we can just plant seeds until the person we interact with is ready to receive the gospel. I think I need to work on that. I think my job might be to just plant seeds or set other missionaries up for baptisms and I want to be okay with that.

Sister graham also told me that she saw my sticker idea in my google photos and made me a sticker of it😭 Shes so nice and I miss her so much.

I also talk to sister Nordstrom, other sister Wright, sister barenaba (my mission celebrity), and sister finch talks to sister Duncan while her comp and me lowkey just stand there lol.

After our gathering sesh, we trek (it was a 15 minute walk) back to the car, drive home to let sister finch change her shoes (because they got soaked from the snow), and then we drove to the bayou Gulch building to do comp study.

After comp study and dinner, we try to go to a lesson but the lady literally doesnt answer the door despite the fact that we can see the light is on. We then stop by a house to confirm our lesson with them tomorrow and the wife answers the door to tell us that they're all “sick”. So both our lessons fell through in the span of 30 minutes lol.

We go to another house in pinery and knock on their townhome then knock the rest of the houses nearby till 8:30pm. We post an Instagram story then go home.

January 9, 26

Im trying to find how to have joy during this transfer and president clawson encouraged me to “live for others”. Im not sure what that means but I intend to find out. 

I also thought about what trait that sister Graham and Wright have that I want, and I think they truly have submitted their will to the lord. I like joked I guess to sister Wright that since its her last transfer next transfer, that she can pick who she wants to be her comp. Shes very sweet and used it as a teaching opportunity for me to tell me that its up to the Lord so shes not going to ask for that reason. Sister graham chimed in too that the Lord knows our desires and he puts that into account. It wasn't the answer I wanted, but its the answer I needed. I want to submit my will to the Lord so badly. It's just so hard. What do I need to give up to fully submit my will? Im praying and studying the scriptures as much as I can until I can find that answer.

Man, I still miss sister Graham so badly. I just look up to her so much (physically and spiritually). I wish I could see just how Christlike she is while I was with her. She seems so content with her situation no matter what and I think she really has submitted her will to the Lord. 

I think maybe it could help me to have a slow areas next transfer. Like id probly go insane, but then id regain myself and be better than ever.

Anywho, our day went as follows:

We did comp study at the bayou Gulch building and I'm improving my memorization of the first lesson! We also were there from 11 to 3pm because I made flyers to give to members for passing out and inviting their friends to church. I think we were productive but sister finch was stressed over the fact that it had to take so long.

We stopped by dollar tree to try and find a paper cutter (they didn't have one), then we went to McDonald's to hold ourselves over till dinner since we had “lunch” at 3pm.

We went knocking out in 25 degree weather😭

We found a dot tho! She said shes interested in coming to church next week, not this week because she and her kids are going skiing

We had dinner at a members house and we showed them a video about a little girl inviting her friend to her baptism and then we have them those flyers and encouraged the kids to invite their friends to church like how the girl invited her friend to her baptism! Idk how well it will work out tho because the kids are homeschooling and the parents don't seem very social either.

After that we went to a less active members house then got a notification that we got a referral from the same dot from last week!

So we knocked then left for her house! Sadly, no answer but we used this as a reason to knock nearly half her neighborhood😵‍💫 We only knocked the houses with lights on, but no success. What was cool tho is that the street name that splits the neighborhood in half is called Milagros Drive. From my understanding, milagros means miracles! I thought that was pretty cool.

Then we went to main street to go finding (but mainly take pictures on the Parker chair), and we found a lady within 5 minutes! She seemed super nice and walked up to us very quickly! Lowkey thats elect behavior so I hope we can get in contact with her.

Then we went home and i journaled then went to bed😴

January 10, 26

I finished 1st nephi in pstudy today!

My mission is doing a 90 book of mormon reading challenge and im proud of myself for keeping up😁

We did comp study then got lunch at a place called freddys. It's basically steak n shake but its steak and custard. I got a kids meal and it filled me up pretty decently! I feel skinnier just saying that.

Then we had a cdc (combined district council) and we watched a movie called The Ultimate Gift. The movie is as such: a man with a lot of kids and a lot of money dies. They are all eager to hear what their inheritance will be. They hear it then leave the room, each son and daughter do this until the ungrateful grandson is left. His inheritance has to be earned! He almost denies it but last minute agrees. In order to recieve this inheritance, he has to complete tasks that his grandfather set up for him and there's a lawyer he hired to make sure this actually happens. For his first gift, he goes to Texas and puts in posts for a fence on someones giant property. Being a brat, he doesnt do it initially, then he does it poorly, then he does it well. He starts to take pride in his work and at the end of the month, he goes back home to report to the lawyer. He finds out that gift was the gift of hard work. His next task is to find a true friend. After going back home, he finds that his cars, his apartment and all the things inside are gone! He is now homeless and his cell service was canceled. He tries to move in with his girlfriend but find out that she only liked him for his money. Hes homeless on the street and almost fails at his task because of a 1 month deadline until he meets a Gothic little girl who he gets to agree to be his best friend. He also meets her mom too. 

Anywho, he goes through a bunch of experiences that his grandfather sets up that are really hard but teach him how to become a better person. His grandfather's plan worked so well that he ends up using all the money from his inheritance to pay for a hospital named after the little girl he meets.

The reason we watched it is because president clawson wanted us to relate it to having a growth mindset and to missionary work. What I got out of it is that we are asked to do hard things without the specific goal in mind but that it will help us. I like seeing the end in mind before pursuing a goal but I haven't been able to have that on my mission so far. This movie has motivated me to improve and work hard without knowing how it will benefit me because I know the Lord will provide

Another sister also compared the fencing that the main character put together is like our missionary work. He was putting up so many fences that he ran out of wood before he ran out of property. The sister said that's like our missionary efforts. We will mostly not see the fruits of our labors but we know that its a good thing and we can still take pride in the work that we do. I like that because I have a hard time working without seeing the goal (but you already knew that). So it was a good reminder to shut up and freaking work.

After the cdc we had dinner then did one stop by before our split.

I had my split with sister weber and sister vaughn!! Sister Vaughn was put here for the mid transfer transfers for whatever reason but shes super sweet! I can barely hear her most of the time because she so quiet lol but shes from georgia!! I love that she is from the south like me.

We just did walmart finding then went to crumbl and sister fowles and finch were there too😂 they arrived like 5 minutes after us.

January 11, 26

We woke up, got ready, did daily planning, then left to church at 8:15ish. We didnt stop by anyone bcuz sister finch and fowles did the night prior while on a split.

We sat thru half of our first sacrament meeting then Lucy, the girl sister finch put on date, was calling. So we rushed out to answer the call.

For context, Lucy was put on date by sister finch and her last companion in Boulder. We were planning on going to her baptism all the way in Boulder (an hour's drive) just to be there for her. Saturday night tho, Lucy calls the missionaries in Boulder to tell them that she's calling it off for now. She got cold feet and has a shaky testimony about Joseph Smith but fully believes in our modern prophets today (weird imo). When sister Finch found out about this, she was absolutely heartbroken and I felt so bad for her. Sister finch ended up asking president Clawson for permission to call her on the sim card to talk to Lucy and try to help her. She called her that morning with no answer then texted her letting her know who we were lol. So her call back in the middle of Sacrament was awesome!

We go to this area where its like the space before you really go inside the building. Its kind of like the place at publix where you can step on the scale before actually going into Publix. Anywho, basically for the rest of Sacrament meeting sister finch is on the phone with Lucy debriefing and trying to understand why she called it off. The reason she called it off is also because she realized her non member mom might want to be there when she gets baptized but Lucy's mom lives all the way in Washington and shes planning on visiting Lucy in March😵‍💫 Thats way too far out so sister finch had the genius idea to say “okay how about we get baptized in January then you can go to the temple with your mom in march?” That was genius imo because she still gets to share a spiritual experience with her mom without pushing back her baptism so far.

We went back for a bit then ended up calling her last companion to break the bad news. She took it pretty well and went straight to how the missionaries can help Lucy and encouraging us to have faith in this time. I think it made sister finch feel a little better.

We also skipped the second half of our second relief society because we met up with Alison again! She still is coming at 12pm and since the time changed for the wards, so she doesnt attend our Sacrament meeting anymore so we warned the elders in the castle wood canyon ward about Alison and Jay. I think they didn't believe us because when they came in, Jay immediately ran to the chapel doors to try and run in while the Sacrament was being passed. They found it hilarious💀 Anywho, we basically made a missionary barricade for Jay by standing on both sides of the hallway in church while we simultaneously talked to Alison. We gave her a book of mormon in russian and she read it! Within like 15 minutes, she read the introduction, and all the testimonies of the book of mormon! Sister finch and i were super impressed by her reading speed. They ended up going after Jay realized he couldn't run around, but we hope Alison can read more this week!

After church, we had lunch, personal study, comp study, then dinner with our ward mission leader and his family in the trails ward, the Greens!

They remind me of my family because they dont take themselves seriously and joke a bunch! Their 5 yr old boy Ty at some point ended up singing “let the bodies hit the floor” and it was so funny😭 

Then we did some proselyting and called it a day!

January 12, 26

Today was litty

I called my mom and she helped me get more music to listen to while we also caught up.

Then I had my first haircut in the mission field!

I was lowkey nervous because I've had the same hairstylist for as long as I can remember so I made sure to find the best pictures of my hair freshly cut so they would do me right. The place I went was a cosmetology school run by a member, so missionaries get haircuts for free! The lady who was cutting my hair had an instructor with her while she cut my hair so I wasn't nervous once I realized she was receiving help the whole time. She also ended up telling me that she has 500 hours out of 1,500 completed for her schooling so I also felt better about that. I wasn't used to describing my hair so much and also hearing my hair described to me so that was pretty cool. The girl who cut my hair commented on my hair that it has so much volume and its so healthy, so I was pretty flattered.😁 After my hair was cut, she asked if I wanted a blowout and I was like “sure!”. Little did I know that it took another 30 minutes lol. I've never had a blowout but it was cool! It was like she straightened my hair just to curl it again which was funny but my hair still slays.

It's 3:00pm at this point and we get Chipotle because we are both hungry. I lowkey found a new hack for Chipotle too. They have a new option where you can buy literally just chicken for $4 and it was so goated. It was in a queso cup and I asked the worker to STUFF the container and he did!😁 I didnt even eat all of it because we have a dinner at 6pm today lol. So I have more food waiting for me at home still! 

I hope yall have a great week!

Love ya!

Sister Moghimi

1250 Main Street, Broomfield, CO

https://photos.app.goo.gl/K8riSQGsCa65xx9u6