"HAPPY EASTER" From Jamaica!

Alright. You know it's a good week when you get things for free. We have received three watermelons, two cantaloupes, five mangoes, four heads of lettuce, and spice bun and cheese. Not to mention random meals given to us. You know you're loved in Jamaica when people give you food. Also a guy who we are teaching works at a big sports park, and he is going to let us play tennis for free next week monday. I look at all of these things as blessings. haha

Btw, did anyone know that raspberries grow in Jamaica in the mountains? I didn't but I feasted on those the other day. YUM.

Man, so much has happened this week, it's hard to explain all the good stuff. I guess I'll kinda explain what easter is like in Jamaica. Well, all our investigators went to their own church, you know, because it's easter... Everyone eats spice bun and cheese. It's kinda gross, but we endured it. The cheese isn't like good cheese, it's like processed cheese. And that is about all they do. It's not super special out here or anything, but lots of parties going on, especially on Good Friday. I'm not sure if people are trying to draw nearer to Christ or further from him. But, today is a holiday as well, everything is closed down. 

Easter Sunday was really special to me this year. The whole story starts a few days earlier though. So, we borrowed President Gayles keys to his office, because we had to complete the Preach My Gospel survey on the internet. Sister Llewellyn had his keys and the sister training leaders came down to do splits with us. Sister Llewellyn accidentally left the keys in the sister training leaders truck, and they drove back to Kingston. Anyways, Sunday morning came around, and I asked Sister Llewellyn for the branch presidents keys so that we could go and open up the office for the boys to set up the sacrament. She couldn't find them anywhere. We had a panic attack, thinking that we wouldn't be able to do the sacrament, because we didn't have anything to do it with. Elder and Sister Vance saved the day, and we found sacrament cups. We had the sacrament with a white sheet, white plates and little sacrament cups. It was a great lesson to me, and it was very memorable. At first I felt terrible because I was thinking we wouldn't be able to have the sacrament, especially on such a special day, where we are supposed to be thinking about Christ's sacrifice and resurrection. But, it doesn't matter, as long as you have the priesthood, it can be done. When I took the bread and water, I was filled with the spirit. I wasn't scheduled to speak in sacrament, but I texted President Gayle asking if I could bear my testimony. I don't really know why I asked, but if I had ignored the prompting, I would have felt terrible. I got up at the end, when he announced that I would be bearing my testimony, and I bore testimony of the Savior. I felt really good. I don't know why the spirit prompted me to do that, because it wasn't testimony Sunday, but I acted on the prompting, and I feel so much peace because of it. It was a really special Easter Sunday for me. The spirit was strong, and I know that Jesus is the Christ.

Shakarah came to church! What a blessing. Also a homeless man came, and he was reading a book the entire time. I went to go look at what the book was and it was "Winnie the Pooh." I am still laughing about that. 

I got proposed to, again, this week. Nothing new.

But, all is well in Jamaica. Life is good. I love it here. I took a ton of pictures this week. I had to make up for my lack of photo taking lately.

I LOVE YOU ALL

-Sister Pitt

Long Hair Don't Care!

COMPARISON!

Tucks It Into His Pocket!

LOVING Jamaica!

Sister Barlow And I!

FIND OUT FOR YOURSELF!

Something that many people in Jamaica do like about our message is that we always say, "We want you to find out FOR YOURSELF if this is true." or "We want you to ask God YOURSELF, just like how Joseph Smith did." A lot of missionaries from other churches try to prove everything to these people from the Bible and from their own understanding. Our message is so simple and clear. If you pray, Heavenly Father will manifest the truth unto by the power of the Holy Ghost. Ask and ye shall receive. If you lack wisdom, ask of God. We were telling a guy about the restoration, and we told him all sorts of things, but what really stood out to him was, "Don't believe what we say, find out for yourself." He was so impressed by that, that he desires to learn more. I'm not sure he will go anywhere, but that is why our message is so unique to the world. I just love this Gospel, and I just love sharing it. I have asked, and I have found truth. 

I did have a one year celebration. We bought a large pizza, baked cookies and watched a church movie. Nothing too exciting. But, man, crazy.

This week we watched the Joseph Smith Prophet of the Restoration movie with Shakarah and Collito. THEY LOVED IT. My goodness, they were like, "That was so good." and "It makes so much sense." We asked them why they think Joseph Smith faced so much trials, and they both talked about how sometimes God gives a person hard times to make them stronger. They also recognized that there are wicked men who were inspired by Satan to do all manner of wickedness towards Joseph Smith. We told them that as they learn about the Gospel, they will face trials, some will be from God, some will be from Satan, but if you have faith, just like Joseph Smith, you can overcome all things. They are doing great. It's a slow process, but miracles are working. Especially because Shakarah's mom has a steady ride each week to Junction, so now they will be able to make it to church! :) I'm just going to continue to pray for them and hopefully teach them with the spirit. 

I just love Sister Barlow. Man, she is awesome. She is so easy to get along with, I really admire her. She is two years younger than me, but I told her, I couldn't even tell, she seems like she was born to be a missionary. She is adjusting so well to everything. 

Oh the best news is... JAMAICA IS GETTING ITS FIRST STAKE IN JUNE! It will be in Kingston or Spanish Town or something. I'm so excited and happy about this! It is not just a rumor, it is legit happening! I love that the work of the Lord is progressing, even here in Babylon... EHEM Jamaica :) 

Family, I thought about you a ton this week. I really miss you and I really think of you all the time. I wish I could explain my weeks better, but it is so hard to put a whole week of things in an email. I just really love it out here. I really love Jamaica. I really love being a missionary. It's amazing!

One Love JAH Rastafari,
Sister Pitt

Sister Barlow And I

Bulgarian Book of Mormon In Jamaica!

Guess Who Made My Planner!

MANGO SEASON'1

My ONE YEAR Pizza Celebration!

Yummy Jamaican Red Pea Soup

"Let It Go, And Let God"

Conference weekend was amazing. Can you say V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N? Crazy to think that a year ago I was in Salt Lake, set apart, anticipating going to the MTC. That feels like it was just yesterday. I know I probably always talk about how fast time is going, but it's so crazy. 

There is a saying here in Jamaica that I absolutely love. It doesn't make much sense, grammatically, but it sounds nice, "Let go, and let God." So that is what I have been doing. I am letting go of self doubts, worries, and just letting God do His thing. I can't control people, everyone has agency, so I will at least control how I look at each situation. I can control my learning, my thoughts, my actions. I know as a missionary I am not supposed to be selfish, but each of us have a huge responsibility for our own eternal progression. Nobody will get us a free ticket into heaven. We determine our destiny, individually. I am just doing my best to be a mouthpiece for the Lord. I am not the teacher, the spirit is. I am not here to convince anyone, the spirit will do that. I am simply a vessel. If I am worthy and obedient, the spirit will manifest itself to our investigators. 

This last week I had an amazing spiritual experience while teaching the restoration of the gospel to two young people. One is Shakarah, and the others name is Collito. They are both amazingly intelligent. I love them so much. Anyways, while we were teaching, they just understood everything. It all made sense to them. The highlight of the lesson was when we talked about modern day prophets, and the Book of Mormon. Shakarah was so excited that we have a prophet on the earth today. She wanted to know everything about him and the kind of things he teaches, we told her about conference. Collito was especially impressed by the Book of Mormon. When we had him read the introduction, he said with a smile on his face, "That makes so much sense. Of course God would do something like this. Of course he would have another testimony of Christ, so that on judgement day nobody can say that they didn't hear about him." When he said that, I started to cry. It was really embarrassing... I just was so happy that he understood. Nobody understands. Nobody actually cares, and finally someone comes along and it just makes so much sense to him. I really hope and pray that he reads and prays about this. It might make sense to him, but if he doesn't ask God if it's true, he will never know for himself. 

After the lesson Shakarah and Collito (who both attend the anglican church), said to us, "You know, we go to our church and we don't really learn anything, but when you guys come we can't stop thinking about the lesson." Wow. That was awesome. We committed them to baptism. They said if God told them to do it they would. I know God will tell them to do that, if they are sincerely seeking truth. 

There were many talks that touched my heart this conference. I especially loved Elder Eyrings talk this year. It made me really want to develop a legacy of hope and faith. I don't need to make a big mark on the world, I don't need money or fame, I just want people to remember me by my faithfulness and my diligence in following after my Savior.

I also loved Elder Hollands talk, and Elder Utchdorf, and Elder Steveson, ALL OF THEM. They were all so good. If you didn't watch them all, go back and watch them! It will fill you spiritually. 

Here are some statements made that really stood out to me:

"In His plan there are no true endings, only everlasting beginnings."

"Wrong is never right."

"I would have never asked for this trial, but I would never ask for it to be taken away."

"You can become like God, if you follow Him." (Notice how conditional that statement is).

"Do you sense the urgency?"

"There may not be second chances to be kind."

I feel spiritually filled and happy. All is well.

Love always,

Sister Pitt

Peekaboo!

Beautiful!

New Study Area!

Sisters!

Where We Watched Conference

Street View

Evening Sky

What A View

MORE Sisters!

Welcome Sister Barlow!

Ah, so I have the sweetest little trainee, everrrrrr. Her name is Sister Barlow, she is from Idaho. She is tiny and so cute. She was born to be a missionary. She is so amazing, and she has only been in Jamaica for a few days now. Man, it's so much easier to train the second time around. It is so funny to watch Sister Barlow react to Jamaica. She has a little bit of culture shock, but it's so funny because she is going through exactly what I went through when I first got here. I just forgot that there was a time that all of this was completely foreign to me. Now I'm so used to it, that I forget that certain things might be weird for her. haha It's all good though, she handles it like she is a pro. But, I've been able to go back in my mind to a year ago when I first got to Jamaica and tell her about all my funny experiences and getting used to the culture and the people. It's more fun to train an American, because Jamaicans are already used to all of this. 

Well, I just hate bad news, but sadly Martel (our investigator) is "in love" (white skin attraction) with me, and I told him that there is no way anything will ever happen between us. I also explained that as a missionary I am here to serve the Lord, and not pursue personal relationships. Poor guy. Why has God cursed me with my perfect body and ridiculously good looking face? hahahha I'm joking. Man, I'm really sick of this. I just want to teach a nice guy, who is interested in the Gospel and not in us as missionaries. Is that really too much to ask? 

Well we had another wonderful lesson in Treasure Beach. The lady, Sister Gayle, from Canada is on fire with missionary work. She is amazing. She invites so many people to hear about the Gospel, we are going to be busy, busy, busy with all of her referrals. People are way more receptive to hear about the Gospel down there. It's so weird, they are further away, yet they are more open to it. I really hope some of the elect few will find it in their hearts to make the 45 minute journey to church. I know it's not far, but transportation is extremely difficult on Sundays. They would have to pay extra to come. But, Sister Barlow and I taught a lesson to a big group of people about developing faith in Jesus Christ. The spirit was so strong. These family home evenings have been the highlight of my teaching on my mission, and I can't wait to do more of them. They are going to get better as we pray, plan, and prepare for them. We are also going to go around individually to these people to share more about the restoration and the Book of Mormon. I'm so excited about it. I really am. I fasted yesterday for success in that area. Another cool thing though is that Sister Gayle finally came to church yesterday! Oh man, it was awesome. When the sacrament was being passed, she had tears on her face, it must have been a long time since she has been in church. She understands the blessings, and now she is striving her hardest to be back in all of it. She is also super friendly towards everyone. She would walk up to everyone and just start talking, she is a social butterfly. She said when she was active in her ward in Canada, she was a Ward Missionary. It really shows. I'm so grateful for this experience. I really hope good comes out of this. 

I have learned a lot this last week. I have learned that faith means trusting in advance what will only make sense in reverse. I was a bit discouraged about staying in this area for three more months, especially because the results have been so minimum, but I know that I will push out as hard as I can the next three months so that I can look back and realize how using faith helped me and these people. I know sometimes things just don't make sense in the moment, but somewhere down the road, we will look back at our trails and smile. 

I'm grateful to have Sister Barlow, she has the spirit with her, and that is exactly something I need more. I've already been learning from her. She is humble and is willing to learn. We get along so well, I have no complaints. haha I'm excited to see how she grows in these next two transfers and especially how I grow as missionary as well. 

Love you all

Sister Pitt

P.S. Four girls, one bathroom=disaster.

Meet Sister Barlow!

Our Apartment Complex!

I Just Know I'm Here For A Reason!

Well, transfer calls are in. Looks like I have another baby on the way! A nice brand new baby sister missionary. Funny thing is, my mother (Sister Woolf) and I are both having babies (trainees) at the same time. Only in Jamaica, am I right, or am I right? haha WELL, I'll be in Junction for another 3 months, to do her training. Just praying that maybe some success will be just around the corner. I am excited to train, I've learned so much since the last time I trained, so here is another adventure coming along. Sister Llewellyn will also be training, so we will have a four woman house. I guess the only thing I worry about is that we are sharing a bathroom... Yikes.

I guess I'll start with the crazy stuff. First off, I met a man who has 17 children, and 14 baby mothers... That is ridiculous. If there was some sort of competition going on, I think he won. It's so funny too, because this man is so fat, has boobs bigger than mine, and has no teeth. I'm not judging his looks or anything, but it was just so funny how proud he was of that. I didn't even know what to say. I just sat there speechless.

So a few weeks ago I was talking about, "Thriving in the Awkward." Well, nothing is more awkward than being at an investigators house and he comes out in a towel... Maybe I just have my missionary mind on, but I just had to turn around and look up at the sky awkwardly while he was talking to me... haha 

We have this awesome kid investigating the church right now. His name is Martel. He is great. He read the entire restoration pamphlet and he texts us saying, "I want to know more about Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon." He has been praying and reading, so hopefully something good will come of it. He lives kinda far away out in the middle of nowhere, so getting to church is a problem, but he told us as soon as he gets shoes and he fixes his motorcycle, he will come to church. I really hope that is soon! He is so cool. He is 21, has dreads, is a singer, and is extremely intelligent. He is so hilarious as well. He was like, "I'm a virgin to this whole religion thing, so be patient with me." Sister Llewellyn and I were laughing forever about that. I think he really enjoys our lessons, and he understands, which is so amazing. 

We had another amazing thing happen this last week. There is a lady named Sister Gayle, who lived in Canada for 10 years. She joined the church there, and she moved back to Jamaica a few months ago. She moved out to Treasure Beach, which is about 45 minutes away from Junction. She is in our area. Anyways, we met up with her a couple weeks ago, and she told us that she would invite all her friends and family to hear about the gospel. (She hasn't been able to make it to church because she doesn't have enough money). But, on Saturday, she invited a big group of people to listen to our message! Oh man, it was amazing. She told us half of the people couldn't make it. This was one of the most spiritual lessons I have had on my mission. It was crazy because when we came, everyone was talking, and this crazy old lady started talking about hypocrites and calling Christians hypocrites. She was going on and on... There was so much contention in the room, the younger people were annoyed with the old lady. It was a weird situation. I was thinking in my head that this was a disaster. Sister Llewellyn stood up and was like, "Alright, alright, let's sit down. We are going to begin with a prayer." I stood up after that and explained that we as missionaries do not like contention or arguing. I explained that when we offer a prayer, that it is to invite the spirit. I said the prayer, I don't remember what I said, but as I was praying, you could literally feel the atmosphere change. When I said Amen, everyone was looking at Sister Llewellyn and I, in silence, waiting for us to begin. We spoke about Heavenly Father and His love for all His children. We also taught them about prayer. In one night we got seven new investigators! I think that is a miracle. I really hope it goes somewhere. Sister Gayle is a great lady. She is going to need a lot of help getting back into the church, but she loves it, and desires to bring her family into it. But seriously, it was just so amazing how quickly things changed as soon as a prayer was offered to invite the spirit. The spirit came, and it didn't leave. 

Okay so, many good things have been happening. The other day, I was in a taxi, reggae music was playing, a rasta taxi man was driving and talking to his friend in the back in patios. They were going on about Vybz Kartel getting put in prison. (He is some dance hall artist out here). Anyways, I looked out the window, with the wind blowing in my face and the sunset was so beautiful. In this moment I felt so much joy. My surroundings were loud and chaotic, but I felt this huge love for Jamaica and it's people. I felt a big love for this small island in the Caribbean. I felt content. I just know I'm here for a reason. I've already proved many times that reason, but I still have so much more to accomplish here in Jamaica. Whether it be to baptize someone, or to comfort someone in need. It doesn't really matter, but I will do what the Lord called me here to do.

"Faithful missionaries are their own best converts." Food for thought. 

Proverbs 28:25 (Read it with my complaints about gaining weight in mind)

I have to finish this up. I love you all so much. I think about you often. I pray for my family always. Be good, do good.

Blessed Jah Rastafari YUTE,

Sista Pet

P.S. Jerked fish is the best kind of fish.

TITANIC!

Delicious!

Loving The Vibe Of This Place!

The Most Yummiest Fish EVERRRRR!

Sweet Eating Place!

THE Beach!

Chilling At The Top Of The Hill

Fun Sand Hill

FACE PLANT!

Jamaica Kingston Mission JKM!

Sister Wolff And I

Being Blown Away!

Cowboy In Jamaica

President Gayle, Jesus and I

We Got Bikes!

Bike Riding NO Helmet Rebel!

Read It! Ponder It! Live It!

So, I think we have a winner for the best excuse as to why we can't go to someones house to teach them:  "I just got stabbed..."

Anyways, this was a great week. So much happened. Sometimes I can't believe how we do so much in a week, because back at home my greatest accomplishment would be watching an entire season of Doctor Who, in a week. The week didn't start fantastic. It actually started with a very sick stomach, but after much dehydration salts and sitting upon my throne for a few hours, all was well. (Haha, I'll probably regret writing that later in life).

Well, I found out I'm training again next transfer. (Most likely). I will probably be here in Junction. So that means three more months. Seven and a half months in Junction. Oh boy, I hope I can do this. haha I just really don't want to leave this place without making a difference in some way. But, this I do know, people here know I love them, and that is all that matters to me. I will do my best being a trainer, if the Lord calls me to that position. I learned so much from being a trainer last time, I hope I can do it again, but better. 

We had splits with the sister training leaders. It went well. I don't know, it's weird to me when you have been out longer than your leader, because they tell you things you already know. I guess that is where humility comes in, something that I will probably struggle with for the rest of my life. BUT, it was great. We found a bunch of new people to teach from Brother Collins. He just takes us everywhere. And he is blind. So if you ever have a dumb excuse not to do member missionary work, just remember that Brother Collins does it, and he is blind. We found some cool new guys to teach. Our teaching pool is mainly males. I enjoyed the tradeoff, because we got a lot done.

We had Zone Meeting again this week. It was awesome. It made me reflect on my personal prayers, and how absolutely terrible I am at them... Haha, see, I pray all the time, but I'm not too sure if they are 100 percent sincere. I need to work on that. I just get so distracted and tired as I pray, I bet God is up there thinking, "Oh boy, here we go again..." But, prayer is so essential for us as a missionary. Well, as human beings in general. An Elder shared a poem called, "He's Been There Before," by Elder Whittle. Look it up and read it, it was wonderful. It really touched my heart. It basically is about a missionary who is complaining, and then he receives a vision of the Savior and all that He went through. To me, the work isn't the hard part of the mission. The hard part is always having the spirit with you. I just don't get it, but I think as I improve my personal prayers, I will receive the spirit with more force. I've started saying vocal prayers in the bathroom at a whisper. It really helps me focus more. 

I know there are lots of questions and arguments about the validity of the Book of Mormon, but if you open it up, read it, and pray about it, you will find out of its truthfulness. I know with my whole soul that it is true. It becomes even more true as you act upon its teachings. I've been devouring the Book of Mormon lately. Sister Llewellyn was like, how did you get from Enos to Alma in like less than a week?! haha I read fast. I just love it. I feel so good as I read it. It makes so much sense. If you haven't read it, read it! I beg of you. Ponder it. Live it. Then all your doubts about God, about life, about everything will disappear.

Love you all, 

Sister Pitt

P.S. Sister Llewellyn washes her mouth out with soap. I told her that in America that is a form of punishment when we say a bad word. "Ohhhhhh fudgggeeeee." (A Christmas Story). She says it tastes good. Idk. hahaha

With My Homies!

Scripture Study!

Zone Meeting!

Breathtaking!

Brother Collins, Abby And Sister Llewellyn

Cake For Theo and Sister Llewellyn's 7 Months! 

FLOURED!

Trail of Flour!

Closeup!

Theo Got Floured!

For The Beauty Of The Earth!

Creepy Man Blowing Up Our Phone

Chicken Head

Found An Awesome Backroad!

I Make These For People!

 

Sister Hudson And I!

 

The Precious Baby

Us And The Sister Training Leaders