So pretty much I have become the mission's resident English tutor :)

Sis. Kate Summers - neighbor friend from home serving in New Jersey -  sent this picture to Marysa.  A Kit Kat with a quote from Marysa on it!!

Thank you for the barfuss funny again :) (message Mary's Mom if you want to hear 2 more funny stories from Marysa's childhood) Yeah, and i really don't know what to do about my future life... bahhhhhhh. I don't want to think about it, but i have to eventually. And i don't have any money and it's really expensive, so pretty much i'm just going to let Heavenly Father help me not stress about it. I'm going to think about the options you looked up for me (THANK YOU!!) and see what feels right. I don't know, but recently I've been really wanting to do hair school and live my dreams. The mission has taught me how to be more aggressive and how to receive help from Heavenly Father, so i want to do things that He knows I can be successful at! You know what i mean!? here we go...

And the news about the parrish family pretty much just broke my heart. i honestly feel kind of numb right now. i have NO idea how jensen and ian are handling all of it, because that news is horrifying. I want to do something for them, but right now prayer is the best option. sometimes i take people and things for granted and i don't want to be like that anymore. the only thing i can honestly think to type right now is "In the strength of the Lord, I can do all things."

I KNOW that jensen and ian are loved by Heavenly Father.

well this week has been the craziest week of my life BECAUSE... i got whitewashed into a new area!! which means that my companion and i are both brand new to the area. and just to make everything a little more crazy, my companion (sister huang) normally serves at the mormon battalion and this is her first transfer going full proselyting AND 

she is 1 of 3 Mandarin speaking sisters in our mission AND she's from Taiwan!!! So pretty much everything is brand new for her and most everything is brand new for me. I think President Clayton pulled her out for full proselyting so her English could get stronger and so she could study for the full 3 hours everyday. 

So pretty much I have become the mission's resident English tutor :) since this is two companions in a row for me that i got to help with english!  I'm all about foreign companions and them teaching me their language and i teach them English! So here is what is really exciting!! My new zone was the only zone that didn't have sisters in it yet, so 

we broke the last "elders only zone"!!!  :D I WAS PUMPED when President Clayton announced us!! Everyone in the stake is excited to have some sisters since it's been 20 plus years :) so my new zone is literally called the 

"San Diego Zone" because it's right smack in downtown san diego. We serve just a tad inland, but old town, down town, and the airport are in our zone! and check this out... SDSU IS IN OUR AREA!!!! So basically our life is crazy. we've spent every single day organizing our ward list, seeing who lives where, figuring out where in the world we are (thank goodness for my GPS!!), and trying to meet people! I've felt a little overwhelmed and sister huang is very quiet and kind, so I've had to put on my "big girl panties" and get stuff done. Who would have ever guessed I would be brave when i got older!!? haha Our ward name is the San Diego 8th ward. woot woot!

FUN FACT:

1. Elder Birch from pocatello is my district dad!!! (see the picture!) elder birch and i both were freaking out when we realized who each other were! haha

2. Another missionary showed up to the mission! sister baker! she was in my seminary class! so i think that means there are 5 missionaries here that went to Highland High School! bahaha i was the first and then they just kept coming!

3. President Clayton called two more elders that were english speaking to learn Arabic! WHHHAAAAT!!!!?? Can yo even imagine that happening to you!? (knock on wood)

4. i make a fruit smoothie every morning and i decided to start blending it on the "milkshake" setting rather than the "smoothie" setting so i could feel like i was eating a treat :) yeah buddy.

5  aunt leslie and cousin kellie are in my new ward... like seriously.... it's creepy..... they might have twins they never knew about

6 i go over on average 31 speed bumps a day. truth.

7.i slept talked the other night and made sister huang sooooooo scared. but i remember nothing. she had to tell me. hahahahha!

8 our fleet coordinator told me that i'm going to get a new license today from idaho!! waahoo!!

well the best story i have this week was when we went out our first night to proselyte... we were driving in the dark trying to find the apartment of a guy and all the sudden three or four cops coming flying up behind us and pull over this car in front of us... well all the sudden a helicopter with a spot light shines down on us and the cops next to us pull out a gun! well i'm freaking out because i'm driving and i don't know what to do, but sister huang is freaking out because she has never seen a gun!!! BAHHH!! whaaaaaaaaaat theeeeeeeeeeeeeeee heck? so basically we just sat there and said a little prayer and then watched it all unfold. the guy got arrested. 

so cheers to another week in san diego! :D bahaha 

my life is SO not boring at all.

i love you guys. so so so much. thank you for your prayers and support, i felt them this week. 

FOR SURE.

sister barfuss

Oh my lanta I'm laughing so hard right now!! Hahaha! I would get all mad over a bra... hehehe. PLEASE keep telling me more funnies like that, because they make me crack up! (if you want to read the bra story you'll have to message Marysa's Mom). Are you kidding me about dad and Elder Bednar!?? Man, I would have loved to sit in on that meeting. And he was at your table!?? So if you trace the hand you shook his hand with on a piece of paper and then send it to me in the mail and then I shake that  paper hand, i technically shook Elder Bednar's hand? NICE! let's do it ;) Moomoo is a bride!!!(Emily tried out for 7 Brides for 7 Brothers) :D GO MOO!!! She is going to be so great :) remember when brennan missed katelyn in les mis because he was going on his mission... same thing here. i wish i could watch it so bad! AND KATELYN AND TODD ARE MOVING BACK TO PROVO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :) :) OH. MY. GOODNESS. Heavenly Father knew that i would really miss peter on my mission... but since i went on a mission I'll still be in provo when they get there! Tender mercy. Not an accident people. 

Mom I got the strawberries! :D They were so beautiful! And yumma-lumma :) you always make me feel special! The scented stickers, funny valentine jokes, straw glasses, and planes were the bomb. Thank you for always helping me smile! HAPPY VALENTINES DAY! And Peter sent me a hand made valentine!!! That was the first piece of artwork I've received from him :) i put it up on my wall! I maybe cried a little bit okay!?

Well i got a call this morning and i'm being transferred! I'm really bummed to leave my family here, because honestly they are. But i also know that i need to be pushed some more and life was WAY too easy for me in Spring Valley. So pretty much i can tell Heavenly Father has new lessons to teach me, which makes me excited! I love the feeling of knowing that President Clayton listened to exactly what God told him to do with me. So here we go!! Spring Valley is going to be ticked because they all thought i would stay for sure since sister bauro left... but a good whitewash every once in a while is good. Who ever gets transfered here is going to LOOOOVE it. (and our apartment is DANG clean!) I will love Spring Valley for ever and ever and ever. You better believe I'm coming back one day! So the question is where will I go? Who is my new companion? What in the world is going to happen to me tomorrow? i have no idea. hehehe. 

FUN FACTS:

1. The April 2011 Sunday Morning session of General Conference is the best 2 hours of noise your ears could ever listen to. Whether you are "busy" this week or not, LISTEN TO IT! You won't regret it. Heavenly Father wants you to listen to it too. I seriously had my mind blown 87 times.

2. One of the families we taught this week had the TV on and it was the Spongebob Squarepants Movie (or whatever it's called). It was at the part when the monsters help them get out of the trench and into shell city. so i laughed really hard inside. Then later my mind started thinking of my very favorite part when spongebob and patrick think they are never going to get to shell city and they are crying, but then David Hasselhoff shows up and gives them a ride on his back! Hahahaha! And then when they need to get from the surface down to the sand and he puts them in between his pecs and launches them down! HAHA! I seriously was laughing SO hard to myself. (pretty much only me, moo, and maybe brennan will think this is funny :) hehehe). Good times, good times.

3. I had to go to a liquor store twice this week. My companion needed money from the Western Union and that was the only one in our area... Talk about not avoiding the appearance of evil. It was so sad to see everyone coming in there and feeding their addictions. The cashier knew all of their names because they come in everyday. Don't do it! Not even once. 

4. This week I got to be "Hermana Barfuss" for 3 days! The first was on Valentines day and Hermana Hughes (my new Spanish companion from IDAHO!!) taught me just a few phrases. Then she said "Okay! you're in charge of praying all day!" My response was, "Uhhhhhhh.................." And guess what!? I prayed in Spanish 3 different times! I almost wet my skirt 3 different times too. But the people we were teaching were so nice to me :) haha! Hermana Hughes also made me read el libro de mormon when we read it with a part member family. BAHHHAHAHAA! Oh man that was rough. But i learned a lot... that i should definitely be an English missionary! :D Nothing like a little reassurance!!

Well i had an experience this week. I don't really want to talk all about it because it just makes me mad. (like century volleyball. HAHAHAHA)(Marysa could never beat Century). But a really rude man said some things to me that upset me. They were all complete lies and garbage. But here is what I learned... You will NEVER know if the Book of Mormon is true unless you read it. You have to read it. It really is that simple. And being someone that read it with real intent to know if Nephi is a real person, and if King Benjamin is a real person, and if Alma is a real person, I can say that THEY ARE! I know it and I know that God knows that I know. I'll tell anybody anywhere! it's true and i LOVE it! And the best part about the Book of Mormon being true is that it automatically means I know Joseph Smith is a true prophet because he translated it! Isn't that so great!? Combo pack. When i give people a copy of the Book of Mormon I always say "hey, be careful. if you read it, you'll absolutely love it." :) hermana hughes gave me a copy of it in spanish and said i should read it. hehehehe. baffffffff.

We've been to the airport twice in 24 hours (that=trunky), we've slept in other peoples' beds, we haven't exercised in 3 days because we've been getting up so early to take people places, we don't think we've ever thrown away so much of other people's garbage from an apartment in our whole entire life, and my world is going to be flipped upside down tomorrow. So i would really appreciate some prayers :) haha. And with that being said, I think Hermana Hughes and I are going to play some sports for the next few hours :D thank stinkin goodness. SOCCER!

I LOVE YOU. i love my life :)

sister barfuss 

ps- the pictures are my reaction to katelyn coming to BYU :D

"what is the definition of illegal?" "a sick bird!!" get it? an "ill eagle"

Thank you for the updating letter mamas! I loved getting some pictures and updates in the mail!! I loved how you had "barfuss memory time" so i included my favorite memory of when katelyn told us she was pregnant with Peter! Remember how i cried and cried and cried because i was so excited!!?? I'm going to be honest, i completely do not remember holding Emily down on the couch until she agreed to eat the Brazil nut that we told her was a monkey tongue. what!? I'm glad that you liked my fence story... i was wondering if it was kind of a stretch, but whatever, apparently someone needed it along with me! Heavenly Father works in mysterious ways! I'm glad that you included in your talk that i have struggled with anxiety, because guess what!? I DO! I STILL DO! I think it's pretty easy for people to think that "sister barfuss has it together. she can talk to anyone! she's got it all in the bag!" NOPE. boink! I still have to decide to do missionary work every morning and i still have things i'm trying to be better at that i've been working on for 10 months! (ps- i hit 10 months this week.) i emailed brennan and he said he was "trunky" haha! he's so excited to see us again :) i know how that is! it's HARD to be away from poke-a-fellow. (Pocatello) Dad gets to go to WIS!? have so much fun okay!? and those pictures of katelyn and peter are adorable. STOP THE CUTENESS! 

 

Yay for all the valentines fun stuff!! I can't wait! :D Guess what I get to do on valentines day!? Well because sister bauro is leaving on Monday she gets to go with all the other missionaries that are leaving to the temple on friday and have a " fun day with the clayton's day" which means I don't have a companion. SO i get to go out with another sister who won't have a companion either and guess what!?? She's in spanish work!! So I get to be in spanish work on Friday, Monday, Tuesday, and a little bit of Wednesday because she'll be my companion. "Me casa es su casa!" that's about all i've got! haha! I'll drop sister bauro off on monday morning at the airport with two other sisters and they will take me home to their apartment. then i'll pick up my new companion on wednesday morning... BUT!! i could get transferred and they would white wash spring valley! Who knows!? i've been here for 4 transfers now and if you stay for 6 tranfers it's WAAAY long, like 9 months. You join the "sixers" club which is hard club to get into in the mission :) haha!

 

Grandpa Ted's memorial went great! Here were my favorite parts... they said he was an optimist, he never complained, he always said "we're heading in the right direction!", and then my favorite, one of his jokes- "what is the definition of illegal?" "a sick bird!!" hahaha! get it? an "ill eagle" NOOOW you get it don't you!? hahaha!

 

FUN FACTS:

1. a sister from my old zone is on American Idol. no biggy. her name is Raylene Riggs! GO SISTER RIGGS!!!

2. jessica barfuss' sister that's in the same mission as me, now covers the same area as me! she takes care of the spanish and we take care of the english! we're friends! her name is sister benfield!

3. president said finger nail polish was okay this week!! so i went wild and painted them bright pink. but then they chipped in like 3 hours so i said "Yeah right i'm never doing that again!" too high maintenance.

4. when i sign papers i write "s. barfuss" on them. well to me that says "s. barfuss" as in "scott barfuss" so i feel weird. but whatever! reminds me of my favorite daddy.

5. i had navajo tacos with a for realzies man that is navajo. they were AWESOME. he spoke some navajo to us and it was insane.

6. i met a guy this week from idaho! he was one of the investigators that helped bust some of the KKK leaders in northern idaho... i could not BELIEVE what he was telling me.

7. president clayton cracked down on using "f words" this week. like your classic "freakin, fetchin, flippin, fargin." good thing i already had parents that cracked down on that my whole freakin life! (hahahaha joke WAS intended there! don't hate me mom!!)

8. we get to have a special missionary fireside with Clayton Christensen tonight! Remember how you gave me that book dad!?? it's going to be awesome.

 

So we've been listening to general conference right!? well this week we were listening and all the sudden Cecil O. Samuelson spoke! (the president of BYU) well then it dawned on me...  "I'VE CLEANED YOUR CONDO!!!"  I listened intently to see if he would share a story about the day he learned something from the BYU MTC custodians that cleaned his condo... but there was nothing mentioned. he must have forgotten to bring us up. hate it when that happens! haha

 

Favorite quotes of the week...

1. "Establish celestial traditions." -general conference somebody

2. "I've discovered that doing the things that scare you the most, end up changing your life." -moomoo

 

Well in honor of valentines day, I LOVE YOU!! but i loved you before this week too! this next week will be full of adventures... who knows what weird things i'll email you about next week! haha!

loves,

s. barfuss

 

"I don't need a new coat of paint. I'm fine the way I am! Leave me alone."

The Super Bowl?

I didn't even know it was happening until I was teaching Gospel Principles this week and somebody raised their hand talking about it. I thought to myself "what has happened to me!? Am I not even on this planet!!??"

I got your package!! Turns out my zone leaders left it in their car for a whole week.... ... come on sillies! But the audio talks have been so perfect. When my mind wants to get trunky I turn on a talk! We've listened to all of October 2010! Hollah! I LOVED so many of them. My note book has some great notes in it from them! The spanish book was great! (we sent her a "Spanish Phrases for Dummies" booklet). The cinnamon bears don't have sugar!?? I've worn the earrings everyday since I got the packy (they are "M's" for Marysa but she tells people the "M's" stand for MORMON!)

I also got a package from The Hansens :) Malia sent me a BoM to give out with her testimony inside, a little chocolate, and then parts of a book Kayloni is reading and they were MIND BLOWING! I'm going to send them a nice piece of mail this week. Grandma Preece sent me a letter that was long and lovely... she always makes sure that my p-days are full of love :) i got a letter from moomoo and I'll be responding to that promptly, love her stinkin guts. And then Sarah sent me a letter with her and Greg Fajita's engagment story! Now she's going to be Sarah Fajita :) hehehe

If you get on my "marysabarfuss.hhs@gmail.com" email there is an email there from Sister Martin with a video of us and Grandpa Ted they day before he passed away. Check it out! I have NOOO idea what my password is :) hehehe. His memorial is Friday night, it will be fun to celebrate him!

FUN FACTS:

1. One of the trailer parks we do a lot of work in got taken under control by a bunch of homeland security investgators... they cleaned out a whole trailer and then left like it was nobody's business. Uhhhhhh.......

2. The gas stations here are starting to get TVs installed where you get gas! Like right next to the screen where you push all the buttons and such. No even joking. So now we can't even get gas with out being tempted by worldly garbage. sheesh.

3. I have a question for the general public... Everything in the Book of Mormon is extremely important right? So I want to know what God wants us to learn from all of the war chapters? I know they are very valuable, but what is your person opinion on them?

4. I think I should be a PE teacher when I grow up. Pday sports gives me a high for like 6 days!

5. We helped set up a wedding this week! It was in our member's back yard. It was sunny, warm, and beautiful :) They are going to get married in the temple when she has been a member for a year! I was in charge of putting the clote on the arch where they were getting married and making it pretty. I literally had to channel my "inner mom" because I KNOW she would make that thing look so stinkin good! I was so scared to ruin all their pictures!!

STORY: This week an elderly couple asked us to paint their fence. Of course we said yes. When we showed up I looked at the fence and said in my head "this isn't even bad at all! It's still white!" We painted it anyway. While I was painting I was kind of bored so Heavenly Father took a moment to teach me something. He showed me the there really was a BIG difference between the unpainted and painted side, but before I started painting I would have never guessed it could look so good. So what of that?? Well, I learned that a lot of the time I say "I'm still pretty pure. I'm good. I don't need to refresh myself and change." Aka- "I don't need a new coat of paint. I'm fine the way I am! Leave me alone." Too often I don't realize how much better life could be because I choose to just stay where I'm at, but life could be so much better! So much richer! Jesus Christ is ALWAYS standing by with a bucket of white paint to help us repaint our fence, but He's not going to paint it for us! We have to spend the time and energy, but He supplies the paint... pure, white, THICK paint. Paint that covers everything up COMPLETELY. I just have to get my paintbrush out and get working.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is real and it's true. Jesus Christ made a promise to me that He would suffer for my sins and I KNEW that He would keep it! He suffered. He kept His promise! Heavenly Father is currently keeping His promise to me that He would never leave me alone. They will NEVER let me down. They love me too much.

I love you and I know that Heavenly Father loves you. Unconditionally. Isn't that the coolest thing ever? :)

Sister Barfuss