Monday December 30, 2013

 It was so good talking to most of you on Christmas.  It seemed like you were all having a really good time there at Elise's house, I hope that you all had a really good Christmas and that you will have an amazing New Years as well.  It was so good to see you all.  Thank you all so much for the gifts that you sent me, i received way to much this year, but I will put it all to good use I promise! Overall it was a really good day for me, we saw a lot of members, I seriously love them here in this area so much! They take such good care of me and are really generous.  They family we had breakfast with that morning gave us all 50 dollars to Walmart each!!  I wanted to cry with all the gifts members have been giving us this week! We ate a lot of meals and snacked a lot and got to play games with the members as well which was a ton of fun.  I was surrounded by little kids so it felt like the Christmas I could of had with all my nieces and nephews. I might of eaten way to much this week and people kept sending us home with food and treats.  I got to kick it into high gear this week with no sweets and working out harder in the morning. 

   This week was slower than usual due to the Holiday season with trying to meet with our investigators as well as find new investigators as well.  But it is pushing me to go out guns blazing this week to help the mission reach that goal of having 500 new investigators by January 7th.  We meant with one of the over aged youth that we have began teaching and we already set him on a Baptismal date which was awesome.  He knows so much already of the gospel and is just so excited to be baptized.  We had a cool experience this week with a less active, part member family.  I have visited them before and they are such an awesome family, the dad is not a member,but loves the missionaries and helping them out whenever he can.  He is an internal investigator, deep down he knows that it is true, but we are trying to help him realize that.  He has a few hang ups that I am trying to figure out how to address.  One of them is that he doesn't understand why we spend so much on temples when in olden times it use to be a tent.  Anyways so years ago 4 of his sons got baptized and only one of them is still active.  They were all here for the Holiday season and the husband was the one that encouraged his grandchildren to be blessed.  So 5 of them got blessed this week at his house and we were there for that.  It was such a cool experience, little by little I hope that the spirit continues to soften his heart and work on him.

   Nothing too exciting going on over here, know that I love you all and hope that you are all doing well.  Double training is even more draining. Sorry my letter is so short this week but I know Megan's will be great with her Baptism.  This months Ensign is awesome, I found this story in there and I was wondering if someone could print it out for me and give it to Grandpa, that would be greatly appreciated.  I have been thinking about him a lot and hope that he is doing well. 

  I love you all so much! http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=910930409001&cid=HPTH122613304&im=true Love this video, set some goals for the new year and forget about everything and the mistakes from last year!  I feel so blessed to have the knowledge of the atonement in my life.  Just like new years we can forget about the past and move forward.

Love

Sister Metcalf

 http://www.lds.org/ensign/2014/01/the-healing-power-of-grief?lang=eng&query=  

December 23, 2013

Can you believe how quickly time has gone by?!! I still can't believe that I will be Skype-ing with you all in just a few days!!!!  Life here has been going pretty good.  We picked up two new investigators this week which was awesome.  We have reach as of last night 217 of our 500 new investigator goal as a mission.  We have two more weeks to try and reach this goal.  We are going to be pushing hard to try and find at least 4 more these next few weeks.  This week the Lord has shown us a little miracle as I see it.  Since I have been in this area we haven't really received any referrals.  This week we received 6 which was just amazing.  Maybe it is because that it is Christmas time that people are more willing to let us see their friends and neighbors.  We have contacted most of them, not much success but one person said we could come back and wasn't home when she gave us a time.  I am not giving up hope yet though because we still have a couple more we have to contact.  Can I just tell you though how much more people are receptive to us when we use their neighbors names or their friends.  They seem more friendly and are more willing to talk to us.  Tracting(I got it right this time hahaha I can't telling you how many emails I got about me saying tracking instead of tracting) Anyway it is so not the most effective way to find people but I am continually doing it and showing the Lord my willingness to do so.  I am constantly building up the member trust which has been going well.  Since we are just over two wards we are going more to the activities for Relief Society, Primary, and Young Women' and Men.  Last week the Bishop in the Summerset ward in ward council told me how grateful he was for me serving in his ward.  He says he has seen me make great strides with the members and that I have a great influence on the youth that I might not ever be able to see the fruits of it.  He says that he feels that I am truly apart of their ward.  They really meant a lot to me because I know working with members is where the real success is at.  I continually look for the small miracles everyday.  Although I may never see baptisms while I am here, (I am not giving up hope) I know that I have been successful with less actives and active members as well.  I seriously love the people here, I feel as if they are my home ward.  I know that it will be a hard day when I leave, I hope that the Lord keeps me in this area for another transfer.  But I will have to rely and trust in him that He will do what is best for me.

   Training two new missionaries is going well, they both are great(shot out to Sister Pecjak's family).  My new companion's name is Sister Moncada, she is the 3rd of 5 children and her family is a convert to the church for 4 years now.  Her English is really good, just trying to help her gain her confidence a little more with speaking to people. Sometimes her and sister Pecjak will talk in Spanish for a few minutes and I can pick out a few words here and there but that is it.  High School Spanish is worthless.  I am grateful though that I am English speaking, I wouldn't want it any other way and the Lord knew what I could handle.  I found out this week that apparently people have be reading my blog hahaha A sister who came into the mission this last transfer told me how she stocked my blog before she came up.  Such a small world.  I am tired and drained all the time though and I don't like the responsibility of feeling like the success of the area rides on my shoulders.  Times are difficult at times, but I have learned that this is how I am going to learn and grow the most of my mission.  I hope that Megan will train next transfer, she will learn so much and grow so much more as a missionary.  As much as I love training, I do not want to be doing it the rest of my mission, but obviously I will do whatever the Lord needs me to do.  I have been reading talks on how to become more of a consecrated missionary.  I just need to sacrifice everything on the alter, fear and all.  I am trying to more fully align my will with the Lord's will.

   We had our Mission Christmas party this week and it was really good.  Half the mission got together one day and the other the next.  We watched Ephraims' Rescue, it you have not seen it yet I highly recommend it!!! I cried so much during that movie it was so good, I feel like I am so spiritually sensitive to everything.  Anytime I watch Mormon messages or heart warming video clips I start tearing up, I think I got that from Dad.  Anyways you all should watch that movie.  We had a talent show and since I heard that Megan did a rap I thought I would do one with my companion.  It isn't the greatest but people loved it.  Even the mission President and the couple missionaries came up to me after wards to complimented me on it.  It was a ton of fun, I will have to do a better one next year though, maybe that one that you sent me Nathan.  Overall it was really good and we had an awesome dinner as well and then a really good spiritual devotional.  

   Funny story for the week is that they lost our dinner list for this week so I have no clue who is feeding us when.  People signed up but I do not know who.  Don't worry about me though because we have been invited ouver to a ton of places for Christmas Eve and Christmas and have plenty of options.  The members here really look out for me and I love the friendships and bonds that I have built with these wonderful people here.  Jensa or Elise if you haven't done so thus far invite the Missionaries over to stop by and to visit on Christmas or Christmas eve.  It is always nice for us missionaries to have options to stop by at places.  They might not even come, but I think that would be awesome. Even if the house is full, they might not even come and eat.  I just think of how well I am taken care of here in this area and just hope that my family takes care of the missionaries in theirs.  Give the missionaries referrals, pray about your friends and neighbors you never know who is ready to accept the gospel.  Oh and Elise I saw the two missionaries that ate at your home and they said they were grateful that they had soup.  Elder Birk and Henderson are super awesome.  Ask Elder Henderson to use a German accent next time.  He lived there for a year and when he goes on exchanges he talks in a German accent, apparently he has more success getting into peoples homes that way hahaha Oh and by the way next time you see Elder Birk tell him Happy Belated Birthday, it was his bday when he went to your house, but he didn't want people to know.

      Thank you everyone for the packages that you sent me, I have been thinking things over and I think I am going to open them on Christmas eve, as lame as that sounds.  But I figured that if I am already sacrificing a year and a half on my mission I can sacrifice not opening any presents on Christmas.  I know this sounds cheesy but I really want to try and just focus on the Savior even more this holiday season.  As for talking with you on Christmas, I was thinking of doing it 2 pm Boise time since Megan was going to do it 3 pm Boise time.  I thought you were going to send me your Skype information so I will just have to call your cell phone mom to get that info on Christmas.  We have forty five minutes to talk, but I want to try and save 5 of that for Megan at the end.  I am so excited to see you all and talk to all of you!!!! I love you so much and I hope that you all remember to keep Christ in Christmas.  Sorry there are no pictures this week, I lost my camera case and SD card reader at the mission party.  Oh well I will find it or get a new one.  

   Share the gospel with at least one person by Christmas!!!! Don't forget that today is Joseph Smiths Birthday! I love you all!!!!

There would be no Christmas without the Atonement.  There would be no significance in Bethlehem without Calvary.  May we always have Christ in our heart each and everyday, not just on the day that we celebrate his birth.

Love

Sister Metcalf

P.S. Don't forget 2pm on Christmas, I will call you around then to get whose ever sign on information to talk to

Monday December 16, 2013

Dear Family and Friends,

      Let me start off by saying that I am freezing my Rastafarian nee-nees off hahaha if you don't understand that quote you should go watch cool running.  But honestly I am doing pretty good with keeping warm, I am truly blessed to have a car.  That helps a ton.  It is pretty cold here, you can ask Jensa and Elise that.  Usually snow is suppose to melt the next day or a few days after here, but that isn't happening.  We still have snow on the ground from over a week ago, but now most of it has turned into ice.  I haven't fallen....yet.  I love the winter time though, it looks so pretty, I just wish that it didn't have to be so chilly, it warmed up to the 30s this weekend which was really nice.  Mom you better pack warm clothes for your trip hahaha  Thank you so much for the boots, I seriously have worn them everyday since I have gotten them and they have come in handy a ton!

    So there are a lot of big changes here going on in our mission or at least it feels that way.  We had Zone meeting on Friday and there are few changes going on with our key indicators.  We use to count active members as a lesson(RC/LA), but now they are totally cutting that out.  We only count less actives and recent converts now.  Its hard to explain over email, maybe Nathan can explain it to you all.  So basically have the lessons we would teach are not being counted, but we are still expected to reach a goal of 20 lessons a week.  Meaning I am going to have to start working even harder to reach those goals because we still are encouraged to visit with active members and work with them to receive referrals. Also our mission President has felt inspired to set a goal for the mission as a whole to find 500 new investigators by January 7th, 2014!  That is so crazy to me, but I have faith that we can achieve that goal.  We have already found 128 last week so I totally feel like it is possible.  We had ward council in one of the wards yesterday and I told them about this and how us missionaries are going to need their help.  I told them how I have faith that we can achieve this and that I can not wait to see the plans that the Lord has in-stored for this area.  I told them how our mission is the smallest mission in the church geographically and that we still have tons of missionaries coming out each transfer.  The Lord is preparing this area for something big, I mean he is building another temple here just ten minutes away from the Boise one.  It gives me chills every time I tell members this, I feel like it is a ticking time bomb here in our mission.  

    I feel that way about my area as well.  Things are progressing here, but not as much as I would like.  I know that I am just planting the seeds for the next missionaries that come along, there is so much potential and some many people just right there and ready but are holding back.  I know that when things start happening in this area that it is going to be big.  We are picking up a new investigator this week, he is an over age youth in the ward.  We talked to the parents about teaching him and they have agreed and so we just need to start teaching him.  There are a few other older people in the ward that want us to start teaching a couple of their grandchildren that they bring to church with them because their parents are not active, that won't happen until the beginning of the year though.  Still trying to get our investigators now to be progressing but I have a feeling that with one or two of them I am just going to have to drop them.  Hopefully they will begin to gain that desire on their own and want to meet with the missionaries again. I have planted all my seeds for them but if they aren't going to nourish them they will not grow.  I still am praying for the two kids that we are working with whose dads don't want them to get baptized.  They want to make that commitment, but they have to wait for both parents approval.

    Right now I am trying to find that balance with finding new investigators.  I love my new companion, don't get me wrong, but she just wants to track 24/7.  I am trying to help her understand that tracking is good, but we shouldn't be focusing our time on that sorely.  There are more effective ways to find people to teach.  Working with the less actives and part member families are just as important and she doesn't see that yet so I am trying to find that balance as well as helping her find that balance as well.  I know working with members is the best way to go,but nothing we haven't been receiving referrals or meeting their friends.  They want to help us out but they are scared to take that next step with their neighbors or friends.  I don't want to give up on working with them, but I need to figure out how to get the ball rolling with them because I truly believe that is the best possible ways to find people to teach who are ready to be taught.

    So it seems the Lord was giving me a little break from trios or something because my mission president talked to me last week about getting a third companion.  She was kept in the MTC a little bit longer because she didn't know English very well, no this isn't the Samoan.  She is from Honduras and was suppose to come in last transfer.  Apparently the Lord and my Mission President still think I am capable of training two missionaries at the same time and  with one that doesn't speak English very well.  We are picking her up from the mission office tomorrow.  I am kind of excited because I love Trios, I have been in them for most of my mission. 

    Funny story from the week. So the first day that we decided to begin tracking I was driving down a street and saw this older man walking so I decided to pull down a near by street and we were going to "walk into him".  By the time we had got out of the car and got back on the street the man had turned around to start heading home.  My companion and I followed him for a block and a half trying to catch up to him.  When he got to his house and by his front door we called out to him and tried talking to him.  When we told him who we were he said "so your missionaries..." we said yes and he just said have a good day and went inside.  My companion and I just started laughing at what had happened.  Us following him for a block and a half isn't the funny story.  Two days later we were at our ward Christmas party and that same old man came up to me!  He talked to me how we saw him the other day and he told us how he thought we were Jehovah witnesses and that we were trying to hit on him(im pretty sure that last comment was a joke) Anyways turns out he is a member but was visiting his daughter, who we haven't met yet, that lives in the ward for the holidays.  Well at least I am trying.  No success yet with knocking on doors, if any of you return missionaries know any good door or street approaches be sure to let me know.  I have tried them all.  My companion wants to go caroling, I said we would, but I am not looking forward to that hahaha

    Know that things are going well, yes there is struggles and difficult times, but that is all part of the missionary life.  If everything was so easy and perfect that I wouldn't be learning and growing.  I hope you are all working with the missionaries and helping them find someone to teach.  I love you all and miss you all so much.  I haven't really figured out when I am going to Skype yet or not, but I promise to get you all those details later.  Make sure to send me the information of who you are wanting me to call to Skype with.

    Slow down this holiday season and don't focus on the gifts you want to give or receive this year.  Although we should be thinking of our Savior year round.  I hope that you take more time this season to think about the importance our Savior has played in your life.  I am so grateful for this time of year to remember our saviors birth.  I know that He Lives and that through Him we can find peace and joy in our trials in life. This time of year is a great opportunity to talk to those around you about their beliefs and why they celebrate Christmas.  Find opportunities to give good gifts to our Savior. D&C 19:29.Christmastime is the perfect season to study and learn more about the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, who promises, “Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you” (D&C 88:63).

Love

Sister Metcalf

 Breanne enjoying the cold!

 Mom sent another package- boots!

 And another package- Christmas tree!

Thanks Mom!

Monday December 9, 2013

Hello to all from the cold,

       I can't believe how cold it is here right now, I am keeping pretty warm and hearing that it will be in the 40s on Saturday keeps me excited.  You ever thought I would be excited for it to be 40 degrees.  It snowed a few days ago which was super exciting and fun to play in for a few minutes, the only thing is that it hasn't left.  People told me that snow only stays for a day or two and then melts, but apparently this snow storm came here to stay.  But Its okay because I have been doing well with staying warm, fleece tights are a big help!  Mom did you ever get my letter that I mailed to Jensa's during Thanksgiving week? It had some list of things for you to mail up or small items you can get.

     So the Lord answered my prayers, I only am training one new missionary jk jk.  I promise you I wasn't praying for this, I was actually really excited to be in a trio, I love trios.  Apparently a sister was suppose to come in from Samoa, she is staying at the MTC a little longer.  They had put her in the 2 week program and apparently she didn't know english as well as they hoped so she will be coming out in January for the next transfer.  The easiest solution to this problem with having one less sister come out was just to have me train one since I was the only one that was double training.  My new companion is Sister Pecjak (pronounced like p-jak the c is silent), she is from Henderson, Las Vegas and just turned 19 a few months ago.  We get a long pretty great and it has been good thus far.  She is the oldest of 3 kids and is half Venezuelan.  Spanish is actually her first language, but you can't even tell.  I have a feeling that President will probably put her as a Spanish speaking missionary.  She is super awesome.  This week a lot of the things have been on me which is expected since she is new and I am the only one that knows the people and the area.  I love training don't get me wrong but I am kind of burnt out of it, I would love just a short break, maybe a transfer or two.  The renewed stress of being in charge of everything and how the day goes and leading the area isn't the funniest thing to deal with.  I really hope that she will be outgoing and help me in being bold.  I can do it on my own but it is a lot easier when you have a companion that is bold as well.

   I am still over the same two wards which I am excited about, I have been trying to hold on to two wards for as long as I can.  We were suppose to get a new set of missionaries in but housing feel through.  Next transfer we will be getting two new sets of missionaries no matter what.  They want one of the wards that I am over to go down to one set of missionaries and they want it to be sisters.  So If I am here next transfer I will be over just 1 ward.  Which is scary, but I know that overall it is for the best.

    Things in our area are going.....well its flat lined.  I don't know what is going on, I feel like there is so much potential and nothing is really happening.  We dropped and got dropped by a few investigators this week and all our other investigators are not progressing still.  We work a lot with less actives and part member families and don't get me wrong I love them and love it when I see them come to church.  But I miss teaching people about the gospel, there is just something that is amazing when you are teaching someone the restoration for the first time.  I love seeing people progress and it is hard when they are not.  I always wonder what I am doing wrong.  I get discouraged for a minute, but don't worry i am continually staying positive .  Sister Pecjak and I have sat down and talked about how we can progress this work along and how we can find new investigators.  Relying solely on the members is not going as well as we would hope.  Looks like we are probably going to start tracking, we will see how that goes.  I am not a fan of tracking, but if that is the only way to start finding new investigators I will have to start doing more of it.

    I saw Alex, one of our investigators who wants to get baptized but her dad won't let her, at church yesterday.  We talked for a little bit and it was really good.  I continually pray that she will get the courage to talk to her dad with at least meeting with us or with someone else in the ward about talking about her getting baptized.  I am not worried about her, her testimony is strong, but I can tell that she is getting pressured from home to go to her dads church.  Anyways I know that I just need to keep giving it my all and that is all that matters to the Lord.  Even if I do not see the fruits of my labors I know that I am carving the path for future missionaries that serve in this area.

   Some funny stories this week is that I had finally set up an appointment with a less active that I have been trying to pin down to meet up with since seriously day 1.  She has always been busy, but we met with her Thursday

 at 4.  Apparently there was mis-communication because when we showed up she asked us if we were hungry and we said we were good.  We walked around the table to see it set and food on the table, she just said "oh, well I prepared dinner for you".  I just looked at my companion and said okay we would love to eat with you.  It was a good dinner, at the end of our meeting I talked to her about why she doesn't come to church.  She said how she felt we were to busy like, and she feels like she had grown closer to God since being inactive.  I talked to her about the importance of church attendance about partaking of the Sacrament and she feels like that won't keep her out of heaven.  I didn't know what else to say to her, I didn't want to get into a debate about things so I just asked her if my companion and I could practice the lessons on her and she agreed.  Hopefully the spirit will be able to touch her heart as we teach her.  After that we headed to our actual dinner appointment which was at 5.  I said a prayer that my companion and I would be able to eat here and my prayer was answered.  Funny how I was good about not over eating or eating at every ones houses we went to on thanksgiving, but how it caught up to me exactly a week later.  So know that I am being taken care of..... too taken care of.

    The next night we showed up to our dinner appointment and apparently they forgot, it was quite a funny encounter.  I could tell they weren't expecting us so I just said we had stopped by to visit with the family, but they said they were busy.  Kind of funny because that has never happened to me before on my mission.  We ended up going to the Ward Christmas party with the people we live with so it all worked out.  Other than that nothing really new exciting happening here.

     I hope all is well back at home.  Know that I love you and miss you all!  I can't wait to talk to you all in just a few weeks!  Work with the missionaries in your ward, accept Elder Ballards Challenge and invite just 1 person to meet with the missionaries by Christmas, even if they say no.  I saw the missionaries serving in your ward Jensa, keep working with them, invite your friends over for a FHE lesson.  This is the perfect time of year to invite others to feel the spirit of Christ(mas).  Continually look for those around you to speak with.  How great was the Christmas Devotional last night?  I hope you all are finding opportunities to love and serve those around you!“There is a way for everyone … to participate in this great work. We can each find a way to use our own particular talents and interests in support of the great work of filling the world with light and truth.” —President Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Love 

Sister Metcalf

Monday December 2, 2013

Mi Familia!

    This week has been a crazy world-wind of a week, I will try to keep my thoughts focus as I type to you.  Thanksgiving week was tough for us missionary work wise, a lot of families going out of town as well as people having families over, we did the best we could.  The schools up here had a whole week off of school which is just nuts to me!!!!  Thanksgiving was a really good day for us, lots on invites, but we made sure to keep everything down to just 3 meals hahaha.  We had breakfast with a family in our ward who is super awesome, the husband use to be a engineer.  He is retired and is the one that we rode in a train with on Halloween.  We went and played on his zip line, trampoline, and air stopper chair(apparently if you Google that his is the first one that comes up).  It was a ton of fun.  We then had lunch with the people we live with you had their whole family over!  It was really their Thanksgiving meal, it was good to sit and visit with them, one of their sons is less active so I talked with him a little bit.  We then had dinner with a family in my old area, the Cluffs.  They are super awesome, we didn't have dinner till 6 so that was nice to have time for food to digest and what not.  I was well taken care of for thanksgiving, don't worry mom I watched my portions and ate healthy, only had 2 small slices of pie.  I kind of laughed when I got that package in the mail from you.  We visited some other members in our area as well as the people that I use to live with.  Luckily they had smoked their turkey so Brother Dalling gave me some, so I got my filling of smoked turkey that I missed out on.  You had just emailed me about eating good this holiday season and then I got all this junk food.  I ended up sharing it with my companions and I left it out for the Andrus'(the people we live with) granddaughters who were there.  Can I just tell you how appreciative I am of the people we live with.  I heard of missionaries who had to stay at other places because their family was coming into town for the holidays.  The Andrus' let us stay there even with a lot of their family staying there, they made the kids squish together in the rooms.  The are seriously an awesome family, I am being well taken care of with them.  I always go down and chat with them after we plan at night and they always have lunch for us in between our church sessions.  They are just amazing, I fell apart of their family.  People have already started inviting us over for Christmas and Christmas eve which I am relieved about because I am worried about not having places to go for those days, but the Lord is taking good care of me.  The rest of the week nothing too exciting happened.  I ended up dropping off Sister Dickey Saturday morning for her to head home.  Aaron or Nathan, did you ever have a companion that went home?  She finished off her mission and it was so hard for me to say goodbye to her.  She was such an awesome trainer and I loved being companions with her, she is just so similar to me.  I got emotional and cried when I dropped her off, I like this was the first time that I have felt homesick as well! Saturday was a tough day for me.  I am good now, don't worry.  I think everything just hit me with the Holiday season, losing a good friend in the mission, and then transfer calls were on Saturday as well.  So you want to know what is happening with me with transfers.....drum roll please....... I am staying!!! and double training :(  Meaning that this transfer I will be training two new missionaries!!! I am the only missionary that is doing that! There are so companions that will be in a trio as well training but two of the trainers have been out for a while now.  Sister Roberson got transferred to two other sisters, they will be good for her.  I am sure that they will still be loving and understanding with her.  Can I just tell you how scared I am to be training two missionaries at once.  To be honest I cried when I heard that, my emotions were running high from dropping Sister Dickey off, do judge me!  I feel like the Lord is pushing me to trust and rely on him more and more.  I know that training is more for my growth then the two new missionaries.  I know that this is going to push me to grow so much more so quickly as a missionary.  I just hope and pray that I get good companions, I trust the Lord and my mission President with the decision that is best for me.  There are so many other Sister missionaries that are training this transfer that I think are way more capable then me to double train, but Sister Winder assured me today that she felt like I was the best one for the job!  Its a lot to handle and I am getting a little stressed out, but that is normal.  Things will die down in a few days and everything will be good.  One a good note I am keeping my two wards!!!! Which I am super stoked about, I have been trying to hang out to two wards for as long as I can.  Going down to one ward won't be bad I just didn't want to give up my wards.  We were suppose to get another set of missionaries in our stake, but the housing fell through so nothing changed.  Mom and Dad are they looking for housing for missionaries in Simi? If so I would say to house them, it is such a blessing to the missionaries!  I'm not pushing it, just a suggestion hahaha Also yesterday I found out that we will be picking up a new investigator.  A less active family that has been coming back to church the last few months, their son just turned 9 so he has to be taught by the missionaries.  Kind of funny, but hey I will take it!  I am still trying to figure out how to contain all this potential work in my area and get it rolling.  We are working with a lot of less actives and part member families, our investigators aren't progressing which is tough but I am not giving up hope on them.  I might have to drop a couple, but if they aren't going to keep their commitments than there is nothing I can do to help them.  They got to have that desire, I can't force it.  Weird side note, today I got some mail from the mission office.  There is no return address, but it says that it was mailed from Salt Lake.  All that was inside was some papers inside, pretty much looks like anti stuff.  I kind of laughed at it.  There is an e-mail address and website written down.  I almost wanted to email them and say thanks but no thanks.  I am not going to, I am just gonna toss the papers out and not even read them.  That is best, Satan is working hard!  I can't tell if I recognize the persons hand writing or not, but if it is not someone I know that is funny to me that people are looking up missionaries and sending them things to their mission office hahaha  Don't you ever look at any anti-Mormon stuff!!! YOU ALL BETTER PROMISE ME THAT!!! No matter how strong you think your testimony is!!! Satan knows how to desensitize us and knows how to get to us.  I am working with a lady who got into some anti literature, and she is struggling trying to figure out what is true.  She is a mess trying to figure out her testimony and about life.  Hold on to your testimonies and keep strengthening them! They need to be nourished daily!!!!  Read your scriptures and pray always!  I love you all so much! And whoever is sending me anti stuff, it's not working.  I know that this gospel is true and this is Christ true church.  I just finished the Book of Mormon once again, and let me tell you that that it is the greatest books that we have access to!  Joseph Smith is a true prophet and restored Christ church once again!  I know that this is all true and God knows that I know that it is true so I can not deny it!  Reach out to those less actives, if they don't come to realize that all of this is true, they will be judged harshly by God by knowing that it is true and then denying it. 

"The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the Great Jehovah shall say the work is done"- Joseph Smith Jr.

This work is going to progress whether we are helping or not.  Satan is building up his armies and we need to be spiritually prepared.  I love you all so much!!!! I can't wait to talk to all of you in 23 days!!!! Thank you for all your letters and packages they are much appreciated.  Pray for Megan and I and our areas!  No that even though that their are hard times out here in the mission, I never for a second regret serving a mission.  I have learned and grown so much and have come to know a little more who I am and my relationship with my Father in Heaven!!! Thank you all, especially mom and dad for the sacrifices you are making to have two daughters on a mission.  I will be forever indebted to you!  I love you all and pray for each of you individual every night! 

Love 

Sister Metcalf

P.S. Is it flying by as quickly for you as it is for me?!

 50 lbs of potatoes for $10.  I love Idaho!

 Boise West District

 Dropping off Sister Dickey

 So many packages for me!

 Family we live with

 Way to many treats from Mom!