This is Elder Hagler's first transfer as a Zone Leader. He started his mission in Menifee and then went to Temescal Valley and then to Moreno Valley. He will hit his year mark this Friday. Elder Hagler covers my weaknesses really well. He loves to go street contacting and is willing to talk with everyone. So we have been doing that a lot more and it has been quite enjoyable and successful as well. He's really goofy which always makes it easier to get along and to get to know someone. So things are going great!
To be honest, having 3 companions in 3 transfers hasn't been too bad. Partly because Elder Hagler and I have been able to find a bunch of solid new investigators this week, but also just that people don't really mind when they see a new missionary. With exchanges and bringing ward members along, they get used to meeting new people all the time and if their intentions are right it's not an issue. The only thing I don't like about switching companions every transfer is that it places most of the planning responsibility on me for Week #1. Because a companion that is new to an area doesn't really know who is who and what times you meet with them and where the investigators and members live. So I see the rest of this transfer going even better now that we are into Week #2. Elder Hagler is the designated driver now, so that might be a sign I'm on the way out at the end of this transfer (which would make me really sad). I'd love to do two transfers with Elder Hagler, and that would also mean I'd be here until the end of the semester pretty much. I love working with the YSA Ward.
Some of the successes from this week are that we started teaching Nick's sister. She is super awesome, and it's funny to see how similar they are sometimes, especially the way they talk. We were on the phone with Nick one night, and he said she was around. So we asked if she was interested in taking the lessons, so he just asked her right there and she said sure. So we've met with her a couple of times and she came to church and everything, so things are going really well with her and she's set a date for Oct. 23rd.
We met with a YSA couple. Christopher is a returning member, he kind of fell away for a while and he wants to go through the discussions just to see what it's like and to get him more involved in church. His girlfriend isn't a member though, so we've been teaching her and working with her to see if she wants to be baptized. I don't think he's forcing her to get baptized which is really good so that she doesn't feel any pressure. That way we know that she's doing it for herself if she does decide to get baptized. They came to volleyball with us last week and that was pretty fun. She has a baptismal date set for Nov. 6th.
We also had an awesome lesson with Vanessa and her mom. We took a couple YSA members who could speak Spanish and they pretty much talked to the mom and every 5 minutes they filled us in on what they said and asked if we had anything we wanted to say. It sounds like Vanessa's mom is really supportive, but her dad isn't. Her dad doesn't even know she comes to church, apparently she's been telling him he's dropping her off for a club meeting on Sundays. So we have to get that out of the way or we can't baptize her. Or at least we shouldn't because that might create problems, even if she is legally old enough to make that decision herself.
One last new person I want to talk about. There was a girl named Sasha at church. Apparently she was investigating the church back home before she came down here to attend UCR. She has pretty much taught everything by other missionaries, but the thing that is holding her back the most is her parents. But Bishop was telling us that there was a similar situation last year with a girl named Isabel (who just received her mission call a month ago), so he said we just need to handle the situation carefully. I guess that happens more often than you'd think. But we're excited to help her integrate into the Ward and the institute and help her figure out what will be best for her.
The work here is great right now. I love the area and the people! I can't wait to see how the rest of the transfer unfolds.
See you soon,
Elder Cornaby
Some of the successes from this week are that we started teaching Nick's sister. She is super awesome, and it's funny to see how similar they are sometimes, especially the way they talk. We were on the phone with Nick one night, and he said she was around. So we asked if she was interested in taking the lessons, so he just asked her right there and she said sure. So we've met with her a couple of times and she came to church and everything, so things are going really well with her and she's set a date for Oct. 23rd.
We met with a YSA couple. Christopher is a returning member, he kind of fell away for a while and he wants to go through the discussions just to see what it's like and to get him more involved in church. His girlfriend isn't a member though, so we've been teaching her and working with her to see if she wants to be baptized. I don't think he's forcing her to get baptized which is really good so that she doesn't feel any pressure. That way we know that she's doing it for herself if she does decide to get baptized. They came to volleyball with us last week and that was pretty fun. She has a baptismal date set for Nov. 6th.
We also had an awesome lesson with Vanessa and her mom. We took a couple YSA members who could speak Spanish and they pretty much talked to the mom and every 5 minutes they filled us in on what they said and asked if we had anything we wanted to say. It sounds like Vanessa's mom is really supportive, but her dad isn't. Her dad doesn't even know she comes to church, apparently she's been telling him he's dropping her off for a club meeting on Sundays. So we have to get that out of the way or we can't baptize her. Or at least we shouldn't because that might create problems, even if she is legally old enough to make that decision herself.
One last new person I want to talk about. There was a girl named Sasha at church. Apparently she was investigating the church back home before she came down here to attend UCR. She has pretty much taught everything by other missionaries, but the thing that is holding her back the most is her parents. But Bishop was telling us that there was a similar situation last year with a girl named Isabel (who just received her mission call a month ago), so he said we just need to handle the situation carefully. I guess that happens more often than you'd think. But we're excited to help her integrate into the Ward and the institute and help her figure out what will be best for her.
The work here is great right now. I love the area and the people! I can't wait to see how the rest of the transfer unfolds.
See you soon,
Elder Cornaby