I am typing this while tornado sirens are going off outside. We are at the tiny local library and I have just a few minutes to write you guys!
First things first: I love my new companion Sister Kelly. She's from Salt Lake City, Utah (surprise, surprise) but she is super sweet! She has bright red hair and she is going home in two transfers. I will probably be her last companion! She has only been here in Richton for 6 weeks so she really didn't know the area when I got here. We spent a lot of time lost out on the dirt roads this last week. Thankfully we have a JEEP because we have to go off-roading a lot! An example of how small this town is and how everyone is related to each other, we got lost on the way to the church (40 minutes away) and stopped to ask for directions. We went up to some people sitting in rocking chairs on the porch in front of their log cabin house and were asking them for directions. We eventually made it to the church just in time for our meeting. On Sunday everyone in the branch knew about us getting lost because they were all related to the person we were talking to. In fact, one of the members saw us talking to their cousin because they were fishing in a pond next door. Anyway, they have nicknamed us "Columbus" because "ya thought ya knew exactly where ya was, but ya were actually really lost" like Columbus was.
The people are all really old and cute. They have super thick accents and were born and raised in this town. In fact, they have retired in the exact house they were raised in themselves! Their kids buy double wide trailers and move right down the dirt road from their parents! Because everyone is related and it takes 30 minutes for us to drive between appointments, we spent our first week trying to find everyone and figure out their family trees. I had several mini panic attacks my first couple of days here because I had no idea what we were going to do with ourselves. It's an easy area to get discouraged in and give up on the work. I called President McDonough multiple times to just talk with him and understand WHY I'm here! I told him that he sent me to a foreign country because the food is weird, I can't understand anyone, and the bugs are huge! We had a good laugh about that. Basically he told me that he put me here to determine whether or not this area will stay open, or if they are going to pull missionaries out. We spent equal parts of the last week visiting members and getting lost. It was really stressful but we can laugh about it now! We have kind of figured out what we are doing since then and are really happy to put all of our energy in to a direction! We're going to work on getting to know the people really well and get their less active family back to church. So tons of reactivating! President told us that the work here is "one of a kind" and "not like missionary work we have done anywhere else."
Some more highlights about Richton:
-The bugs are HUGE and plentiful!
-The people here are very sweet and kind. They feed us multiple FEASTS a day! I can honestly say I have gained 5 pounds in just one week. Then they give us leftovers to put in our refrigerator! We usually don't eat the left overs because we're still full from the night before! We come home at the end of the day and just lay on the couch and describe how much food we ate and how badly our stomachs hurt. Some local food favorites: fried green tomatoes. homemade mac n' cheese. fried chicken. various varieties of tater tot casserole. creamed corn. homegrown turnip greens. homegrown squash. Black eyed peas. Fresh tomatoes from the garden (my favorite) And pies and cakes galore!
-We wake up each morning to a rooster crowing.
-I heard a member use the word "renege" at church on Sunday. (Dad, I thought of you!)
Anyway, I'm fat and happy down here! I experienced some severe culture shock, but I'm fitting right in here! They can't say my name so I'm "Sister Mac!" and they love that I am from Arkansas.
I've learned how important it is to consistently live the gospel. It's so sad to hear the remorse these members feel because they didn't teach their kids to live the gospel. It's really disheartening to feel the lack of hope in these members as they watch their branch die. We're going to restore it and get this area going! I want to come back and visit this branch in 10 years and see how much it has grown. We just have to stop it from declining first!
I love you guys and love hearing from you! Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers!
Sister Mac- from Arkansas
P.S. President McDonough called and said that I've been advised to be reassigned here to the Mississippi Jackson Mission. The wait is over! I will not be going to Brazil during my mission.
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