Greetings from stockton!!

July 12, 2022

Greetings from stockton!!

Hola a todos! I am so so so sorry that I haven't written an email in like 3 weeks! Things have been crazy but REALLY good!! We had transfers a couple weeks ago and I've been transferred to Stockton!! It is kinda ghetto here but I am loving it and it is an absolute party down here! My new companions name is Hermana Benton and she is so nice and so amazing!! This is her last transfer which is SUPER sad but we have been living it up!! I also live with Sister Fife and Sister Lebaron! I love them all so much!!!

My first day in stockton was WILD! It was almost a 2 hour drive and then when we got there we were super hungry so we ate a pretty big lunch and ate cake and ice cream too! Then we had a member lesson right after and she offered us food and we tried to tell her we had already eaten and she didn't believe us haha! She fed us two really thick hot dogs and then popsicles and it was really good but it was SOO much food! She is so sweet though! She's getting ready to go through the temple and we're super excited for her! So then after that I had to buy a new pillow that day because I forgot mine in rancho so that's really embarrassing... At least it was cheap! Then we had this really cool lesson with someone we just barely started teaching named Eudeth! Her name is so unique that she's literally never met anyone with the same name as her! She is so cool though! She's just started reading in the Book of Mormon and she loves meeting with us!

So then the rest of my first week in stockton was pretty fun too! Dreams came true! We helped paint a house, we had breakfast at the stake presidents house, some lady said she wanted to adopt my companion and I, we ate the best tacos ever while accidentally crashing a wedding, and it was the fourth of July!!!! The fourth of July was probably one of my most favorite days ever! So we woke up and made the most patriotic breakfast ever and it was like pancakes with blueberries and strawberries! Then we color coordinated our outfits to be super patriotic and took "family photos"! Then we had the best comp study ever and listened to the one general conference talk about the constitution and then we sang America the Beautiful with the other sisters in the apartment and it was the most patriotic experience of our lives! We then did a service project and we helped someone move and she was so humble and so grateful that we took time out of the holiday to come help her! It was so sweet and we all felt the spirit so strong around her! Then my companion and I called a ton of people and tried to go out and talk to people but it was super awkward because everyone was celebrating with their families... so it was rough. It's okay though because we at least tried! Then we had the most american dinner ever with like barbeque chicken and homemade biscuits and that made everything better! We live by a lake (idk if it's a lake but it's some body of water) but we went out to the docks at our apartment complex and watched the fireworks and it was absolutely magical!

Then the next day was p-day and also my companion's birthday! We went to some Mexican stores around the area and got huaraches and mexican pottery and tamales and then a chocolate flan as a birthday cake for her and got froyo! It was so fun!

Then this week was pretty hype too!! So ghd night of my companions birthday after we were done celebrating and everything we had this lesson with this man and he had a ton a ton of questions and it was kinda draining but we made it through and he at least has a desire to learn but it was kind of a lot. So then my comp had this prompting to visit this one inactive member and it made her night! She had been feeling lonely and she was so grateful we came over to talk to her. She also gave us these beautiful candles from El Salvador! It was so sweet! So then the next day was good too and we made a sheet tent with the other sisters we live with and that was super fun!

So then we had exchanges too!! I got to go over to the English area with Sister Fineangonofo and it was a party and a half! We talked to so many people and I learned so much from her! She is such a spiritually strong and powerful missionary and I learned so much from her story and from the love that she has for everyone she's around! We also gave not one, not two, not three, not four, but FIVE books of mormon!! It was awesome!!

Another thing that happened this week is we had dinner at our mission president's house! It was so fun but also so spiritually uplifting! We talked about the general conference talk Safety for the Soul by Jeffrey R Holland and if you haven't read that one yet, I invite you to give it a read! It was so good and I felt the spirit so strong! I know without a doubt that the Book of Mormon is true and I feel so grateful that I get to share it and the message it contains every single day!

Yesterday was kinda rough because my companion was feeling really sick and we couldn't go out and do anything really and it was hard because we wanted to be out there talking to people but we had to stay inside and call a bunch of people instead. It got kind of tiring calling person after person so we decided to just have some study time instead and we both studied in the Book of Mormon. It ended up being more productive because we ended up getting the strength we needed physically and spiritually to keep going and visit people and that really testified to me how reading that book can strengthen and heal us. I ended up finishing the book for the first time on my mission and it felt really good! My companion finished 3 Nephi and felt a lot better! None of the people we visited were home and that was sad but we tried! Anyways so then it was 7/11 so we went to get free slurpees and it was definitely an experience and it honestly was not it but it's okay we had fun! We learned from that day that the Lord doesn't expect perfection and just wants our best!

Anywaysss I am SO sorry that this is so long! I will try to be better at sending these more often but things get so busy and p-days go by sooo fast so I'm sooo sorry that it's been like a month! I also have a ton of pictures so I will probably send another email with them! I love you and miss you you so much!! I hope that you all have the most amazing week ever! Please reach out to me if you need anything or just want to talk and I promise I'll respond whenever I can! I will update y'all soon! Like actually soon!! Bye!!

Love,

Hermana Clayton

Here are the pictures:

1- pov we're home makeover pros

2- sisters lunch at the canes

3&4- family pics

5&6- the super american dinner we had

7- we're prepped for the fireworks

8- watching the fireworks

9- some cute mural we found by the hispanic store

10- the froyo shop

11- the candles!