This week.......I saw a lot of white people. Which is unusual for me unless I'm looking in the mirror. Even my other American companion is half Thai, so I'm definitely the biggest whitie in town. Anyway, the reason I saw so many white people is because I got to conduct an exchange in Siem Reap!!! Huzzah! The Sister training leader in Battambang is also over Siem Reap too, in case I didnt explain that one earlier, so I go to go on an exchange with Sister Hem and Sister Rin (there are only two sisters in Siem Reap right now). And seriously....white people. Everywhere. And its a total tourist trap (if you're not biking into the slums on the outside of the city). I was biking past all these nice hotels an restaurants and shops.....it was nicer than anything I'd ever seen in Phnom Penh. And obiously not in the other provinces either. IT WAS SO COOL. I want to serve in Siem Reap so badly now. It was also DANG beautiful and the members there are fantastic. Siem Reap is really booming right now with baptisms and church attendance. They are just flying. So happy I got to go there for a few days.
Anyway, while Sister Ky and I were on the bus to Siem Reap, there were a lot of white people (backpackers, hippies, random germans, the like) getting on too, and every single time someone got on, Sister Ky was like. "Oh my gosh. oh my gosh. OH my gosh. OH MY GOSH ANOTHER ONE. one, two, three, four, five, six, seven barrangs (french person) PLUS YOU MAKES EIGHT!!!" I dont know if she has ever seen that many white people in one setting before. Sidenote: those seven white people were shortly followed by single monk who was hitching a ride on the coach bus......? #
******this bus ride was also filled with 80s-90s pop love ballads like "me Heart Will go on" and that song that goes "Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be right here waiting for you." and sister Ky knew em all.
SO anyway, this is more important: We just got transfer calls last night!!!!!! (I swear I just told you guys about transfers last time. Seriously the transfers are starting to fly by) SOOOOO BIG NEWS!!!!!!!
I'M STILL IN BATTAMBANG THROW A PARTY FOR ME!!!!!!!1 I know its not a big deal to you guys, cause im just staying the same, but its a big deal to me and heres why: I have NEVER been in an area for more than two transfers. I get bumped around all the time, so im really happy to finally be in an area for a significant amount of time. this is when you really feel like you know what youre doing and where youre going. The other news is that the trio is getting split up (which was expected - trios never stay for long). Sister Ky is going to Battambang third branch, so she'll still be around (like we'll probably still be living together), but I AM STILL WITH SISTER FIFE!!! this is also huge news because in case you guys hadnt noticed......I have not had a companion for more than one transfer. Ever. my whole mission. Sister Fife is my 9TH companion. Thats ridiculous. But anyway, we'll be in first branch, which im also really happy about. I really didnt want to leave my branch, and it needs some more attention. and im also happy to not be in two branches anymore. even though i love third branch too, its just that battambang is not meant to be organized that way, and i always knew it would be temporary. so yep. transfer calls.
Sister Homer is training again and I'm really unhappy about it. I dont know if you guys know this, but the mission lingo here is interesting. Your trainer is your mom, and you are their "koon" (means child, pronounced like "groan" without the "r"). So now, I will have a baby sister. And guess what? I DONT WANT ONE. I'm gonna be the jealous older child and I'm seriously giving Phoebe props right now. There's a reason I'm the youngest, because I'm super jealous and I don't want my mommy to love her more than me!!!! I'm being a real brat about it haha and SIster Homer is just like.."you need to calm down! I tell everyone that my transfer in Kampong Cham with Sister Davis was probably the best transfer of my whole mission." Soooo I'm still mulling over that. I'll be nice I swear.
And shoutout to McKenna: I will not try to smother my new baby sister with a pillow. No matter how much I want to. #
In other news: I got tricked into being in a wedding...but thats SUPER against the rules for this mission, so sister fife and i booked it out of there, consequently offended our investigator, I went home and inadvertantly started a rumor that elder garrow was really mad at me for being an idiot and now its probably one of battambang's funniest/ most foolish stories. Its wayyyy longer than that but im too lazy to write. tell you guys some other day probably.
Also, this week, I organized all the binders and paperwork and CBRs for first branch, and came across a DVD from a church leadership conference from last year. One of those big, worldwide conferences they do and they broadcast it to all the leaders in the church. For some reason we had a copy, so we watched it. And the missionaries from the MTC performed a choir number in it. So as a joke, Sister Fife and I were like "look for your friends!!" like as if either of us are going to find anyone we know in a massive group of hundreds of missionaries. And literally four seconds later i was like "SHUT UP WAIT PAUSE IT GO BACK." ------> totes saw Caitlin Fischetti. what are the chances?
Also, last week I contacted someone at a store. Sister Fife and I were just innocently buying stuff, and this guys looks at our nametags and goes "Jesus Church! I learned with two boys from your church two years ago but never got baptized! I'm going back to church this week!" (okay, so i may have shortened the conversation a little bit). and guess what?? HE TOTALLY CAME! Contacting is NOT dead, you guys. God prepares people every day, and we just have to go out and do our job. He'll put them right in your path. It was cool. He came to church, brought his girlfriend too, asked about the Book of Mormon, and when I asked him what days and times were best for him to meet he said, "You call me and tell me. God only asks me to give ONE day to him, so whatever time you want to meet, I will do it. It doesnt matter whatever else I have going on. What matters is I give time to God." And then he started quoting the Bible and then I think I blacked out. In case you didnt know.......on a pretty average day, people here dont exactly read the Bible. they're all Buddhist (shhhhh dont tell). HE'S GOLDEN. I'm super excited to start teaching him. His name is Sun Aan, so keep an eye out for that name in my next few emails.
Okay, thats all I've got for this week. Shoutout to all of my cousins that are getting married/got married already! The fam seems to be doing GREAT! I miss all you guys a ton! Considering how fast the transfers are going these days, I'll be home in no time. Which is awful because I still have SOOO much to learn. #stillafool
Love, Sister Davis
Spiritual thought for this week:
I was in a lesson with a less active, and she was asking me questions about the Book of Mormon, and so I opened up to 2 Nephi 28:30 with her, and told her about how, if we have the desire to learn more, God will help us to do that. But then as I shared that, I had my own personal brain blast about the last line: If we think we have learned "enough" then God will take what little knowledge we have away from us. The point is, we must be HUMBLE if we want to learn. being humble means being teachable, and not getting cocky and thinking you already know everything. Dont ever stop reading the scriptures, dont ever stop searching. If you are humble, then your study of the gospel will SKYROCKET I promise (the reason it was a brain blast for me is becuase I feel like I havent been learning as much as I sued to in my personal studies and I think its because ive been getting a little prideful and a little lazy with it....me? prideful? lazy? never.) But if you act like you dont need to learn, then you will stop progressing. And we all have so much progressing in this life to do! thats our whole purpose is progression! When I was in the MTC, Lookruu Oleson told us "For me, damnation means you stop progressing." So dont stop learning and dont stop seeking knowledge! Heavenly Father will help you get there!
Accompanying scriptures: Doctrine and Covenants 50:24, 2 Nephi 31:3
A lesson with some of the young women in the church.
This is Ming Sokim. One of my favorite less-actives to visit. Since we started seeing her she comes every week. she is such a sweetheart, but shes going to Siem Reap for a few months so I took a picture w her before she left.
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