Merry Christmas

Erin with her advent calendar we made for her.

December 16, 2013

Thanks so much for the calendar by the way, I really love opening something every day. I love hearing everyone's testimonies of our Savior. It builds my faith and brings me comfort. The chocolate is nice too.

Only one Christmas away from home. This time next year, I will have been home for AT LEAST a week :) I will mail some pictures today with my testimony. I would love to send presents home for Christmas, but this year it will have to just be my testimony and pictures. Please know that I love you all dearly and pray that you have an enjoyable Christmas. I can't wait to talk to you all next week, have a safe week! :)

Merry Christmas

 This week was awesome :) Charlene got baptized yesterday! It was an amazing service. Her son (a recent convert of 1 year) baptized and confirmed her. It was really special. She has such a strong testimony, I am so grateful for her example and the time I have been able to teach her.

Caroling

This week we have had the chance to go caroling quite a bit! Which was amazing, because we went with members who introduced us to less active members and all of their friends, so that was great. We are planning on doing more caroling this week to less active members and to some friends of people that members referred us to.

On Christmas we will be having lunch with really nice lady we met who will be alone for Christmas and then we will have dinner that night with some members from the Church.

This week was also the Christmas Devotional! That was amazing, we had missionaries performing lots of different numbers on various instruments. We really are given our talents to bless others!

This week was exchanges too! Sister Stoker came!! She was my first companion when I arrived in California...AHHH!! I didn't get to go with her, BUT it was awesome to see her again! We got to talk some and we actually made one of the gingerbread houses that you (family) sent me during lunch!  It was fun :) I am so grateful to be serving here. I love this area and I love this work. I am very rooted and committed to this work. Nothing can shake my spirits! :) I'm excited to talk to family this week, I love you all! :)

Phone Call

Erin called on Christmas Day and we had a wonderful conversation with her.  She sounds really happy to be serving and has learned so much in the short 7 months she has been gone.  She says she is challenged by her experiences but is loving the opportunities she is having to learn more about the gospel, about herself and about serving others.  

Email

Erin wanted us to let everyone know that she can receive email from family and friends would love to hear from everyone.  Her email address is erin.cusick@myldsmail.net. 

 

Merry Christmas! Almost..

Hello!!! How is everyone doing? I am awesome. This ward is awesome.

 Goodness, I love being a missionary. I really do. So the Sister we are teaching currently is really progressing and is planning on being baptized next Sunday! She is amazing and she has such a strong testimony :) her son is coming home for the holidays and is going to be able to baptize her! Hooray! So we have been meeting with her like every other day to get all of the lessons in.

 We are really working on finding new investigators here, so, any return missionaries who by some chance read this letter, send me your finding techniques! I know there are lots of different ways of finding people to teach, I'm just not as creative! Ha Ha

 My new companion was pretty sick this week, which wasn't fun, but she is better now! There is something going around this area. I hope I don't get it! California is beautiful, this area is really pretty except I am not exactly sure where I am. I'm in Newbury Park in (or right next to? Maybe?) Thousand Oaks, CA. But I don't really have a map, we can't see the ocean, and we are surrounded by mountains so I don't know exactly where I am just that I am really close to LA. Not that it really matters, missionary work is the same :) But besides all of that, nothing else interesting has been going on! Just keep on keeping on.

I know this gospel is true and that it is only through Jesus Christ that we can experience true happiness in this life and the next. I have grown so much closer to my Savior on my mission and I am eternally grateful for his sacrifice for me. I know that our Heavenly Father lives and loves each and every one of us. He cares about us and our trials and wants us to be happy, and that is why he gave us this plan. I hope everyone has a really great week! :) I'll be praying for you!

Hot Dog!

Parent Note:

Seems I'm always apologizing!  So here I go again. Erin emails weekly and often those emails are short with the primary part of her letter being her report to the Mission President.  As I have said before they include people she is teaching and accounts of her work with them.  Needless to say she is busy and teaching a great many people. She appreciates everyone's support. She was transferred from San Luis Obsipo to Newbury Park.  Her address for mail does not change, it gets forwarded from the mission home.

It's a small world

OH! I ran into Ashley, Holly Romaniec's friend, from California.  We ran into her in Costco during lunch time.  She's going to Cal Poly.  It's amazing how small the world is.  It was good to see her.

 We have zone conference this week!!! YAY!!! Zone conference is when the whole zone (and actually a couple other zones too) all get together and President Castro speaks and we get some sort of training too. It's all day long, and it is a great time to try to receive revelation for our investigators. I am doing well, don't worry. The ward feeds us, and we feed ourselves haha. We have way too much food in our apartment right now. But! it's a blessing :) and I love blessings. So I hope everyone has a good week! I haven't been able to hear much about what happened in the Philippines recently, but if you aren't already make sure to include them in your prayers.

 This week we had exchanges and I was with Sister Kiyotani! She is from Kyoto, Japan and is super super sweet.

Hot Dog

Last Sunday, an older gentleman(91) walked into sacrament meeting and wanted to know more about the church.  He had recently lost his wife and wanted to know what we believe about where she is and life after death.  It was so funny when they introduced him to Sister Kemp and I as the people who would be teaching him he said, "These are my teachers?" Hot Dog!"  He was so funny!

Transfer This Week (Newbury Park, CA)

Holy Moly this week has been CRAZY. In like 17 zillion good ways though! So I am PINKwash(Sisters taking over an area where Elders use to be) training a new Sister! Her name is Sister Hardman and she is so sweet. She has a lot of love for everyone and such a positive attitude, so we are getting along great :)

Baptism 

We have a baptism in two weeks!!!!!  Her son joined the church about a year ago and that prompted her to start coming to church and investigate the church. She has been attending one of the wards here in Newbury Park and she lives in our area! She hasn't been taught any of the lessons officially (but knows and has been living the gospel) so we have A LOT to teach in less than two weeks!! So pray for us!!  We are so excited though. Our first lesson is tonight :)

Apartment and New Area

My new area is really condensed. There are a lot of families here and a lot of less active members.  We are working hard to meet them and work with them. We have already knocked into quite a few members of our ward (oops!) but that's what happens when you are new. I will admit, I do miss San Luis and I was sad to leave Peggie!! :( she bore her testimony at church last week by the way) but there is so much potential here. OH OH OH and our apartment has a DISHWASHER, our very own WASHER AND DRYER, and a FIRE PLACE. We feel spoiled.

Things are going well though, we are slowly but surely finding the Elders investigators (many of whom have been taught for several years) and are working to see where they are at in their conversion. So we have a lot of work to do!

 We have a car too! But is shakes like no other. It really scared us when we first started driving but then we realized that that was just how the car ran. I am happy here and learning a lot. I love being a missionary and I know that this work is real and that we can accomplish great things when we let ourselves be instruments in the hands of the Lord. Love you all, have a great week! :) OH! And Happy six months!! :) To me!!

We all have great potential

Something I really realized this week was the potential that every single person has. Something neat that really set in for me on Wednesday was that I can literally become and do anything that I want. I have the potential to baptize monthly. I have the potential to be the best trainer. I can teach with power and authority. I can know this area and remember the names of all the ward members. The only thing that is holding anyone back is their own uncertainty. I know that this is something everyone knows and hears all the time, but for me I came to the conclusion that I am going to become the best missionary I can possibly be. I will be effective and hardworking. I can and will try my hardest to develop those Christ-like attributes that we study is the scriptures . But I will also make sure not to take on too many goals at once. I am just so grateful for the drive and motivation that I am developing to do this work. I am working hard to let Heavenly Father mold me into the missionary he knows I can become.

It's Been Awhile, I'm Sorry but here it is!

Always cooking something good

I have to apologize, for being lax in posting Erin's emails and pictures.

A quick update: 

Erin has had four companions since June of 2013!  Her first trained her, her second was Sister Anderson, (her MTC companion), her third was Sister Marchant (the Anderson's niece, from Frankfort KY), and her current companion, Sister Kemp.

Sister Marchant and Sister Cusick

Thanks Whales

                                                                                                                        August 12, 2013

                                                      Sister Cusick & Sister Andersen 

                                                       

This week has been...so so so funny.  I can't even explain it.

The Law of Chastity

Wednesday we had a lesson with a less active member. We had this big lesson about the Law of Chastity planned, but when we got to her apartment we found out that she had invited her boyfriend over for the lesson too!!!!   We ended up reviewing the restoration with them (he wasn't a member, but was very interested!). We were panicking for a minute there!  It was kind of really funny!! Ha-ha

.

Hurry Hurry

-So something that I didn't imagine myself doing on my mission was all the running in church clothes. When we are running late, we run. I feel like sometimes we look super funny because we are in church clothes and are carrying a Book of Mormon and all kinds of bags. It's just super funny! Ha-ha

Thanks Whales

-So on Saturday is this big ward cook-out called the corn feed! The whole ward goes to the beach and they take a huge pot of salt water and they boil a ton of corn in it and just have a cook out. When we were talking to the Bishop about it he said that there might be a problem getting a fire pit because of the” whale celebration” going on.

Sister Anderson and I were like....what...? Apparently every year there is a big celebration for the whales on the beach. The people go out to the water and yell, "thanks whales!" and then they have a party celebrating whales in all of their glory. I'm not sure why but we thought it was hilarious, and it has been a running joke all week. Ha-ha

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY.

Just a little about a couple of the 8 or so people we are teaching. 

One of my favorite investigators came to church this week again!!! We were so happy for her :) she was in pain but really wanted to come and was so glad that she did, I seriously love her to pieces.

We also taught another friend about prayer this week.  He has been reading every day from the the Book of Mormon and has seen a significant change in his life. He feels more patient, caring, loving, and just in a better mood.  Brother Pearson was at this lesson with us and gave great contributions to the lesson. At the end of the lesson our big invitation was going to be to invite him to say the closing prayer, because in the past he would never pray in front of us. So we invited him and he said yes! He said a great closing prayer, the spirit was really strong. We invited him to talk to his wife about praying together at least once a day and to continue reading.

  

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!  I love it.  I am so happy here.  It's hard, but I wouldn't trade any of it for the world.  Seeing people accept the gospel, receive answers to their prayers, and have it bless their lives has brought me the most joy that I have ever felt.  I cannot explain it.

Sister Anderson and I are so excited and happy to be serving here in San Luis Obispo, we are both so motivated and are excited to see the work moving! 

I love you all!!! Have a great week :)

-Sister Cusick

Slack Lining and Temple Trip

July 5, 2013


Hello! 

This week has been AMAZING :) !!

Sister Stoker & Sister Cusick

Picture taken after dinner at the Bishop's Home

TEACHING

 Almost all of our investigators are progressing!!!! We went from having none to having them all keep their commitments! It's been so great :) I love the people here! Here are some interesting things that have happenned:

-One family we have been teaching for a while are beginning to read the scriptures :) they have been meeting with missionaries for 3 years and they are finally starting to keep commitments. It's been amazing watching them get answers and learn more from reading on their own!!! Yay!!!

-We met a new family! They live on a 'ranch' out in the country behind acres of groves of lemon and orange trees. They gave us fresh eggs from their farm and were super awesome! The story of how they met and got married is CRAZY. Basically he was on his mission in Australia and they both saw each other one day at church and knew they were going to get married. Crazy!

SLACK LINING

-So we were visiting some potential investigators when we starting talking about slack lining. Slack lining is basically like walking on a tight rope (SCARY) (Sister Stoker had tried it at school) and all of a sudden we see a big group of college students doing it in their yard! So we start to watch and they invite us to come over and watch. We are all watching when they are all like, "Try it! I'll hold your Bible or whatever!" And so after a lot of coaxing and reassurance I agreed to do it!! It was so cool!! They made sure there were people holding my arms but it was awesome! Sister Stoker did it too, we made sure to talk to them about the gospel and missionary work but it was just really cool :) Sister Stoker got a picture of it that I will get to you sometime! We invited them all to come to church :)

-We met a guy who kept calling us the "Church of Saturday's Today's Saints." It was really funny, ha ha, he couldn't get it right.

FOOD

-Has anyone ever had chicken pillows? We had them for dinner at a members house one day and they were AMAZING :) so I suggest looking them up ha ha.

TEMPLE TRIP

-WE ARE GOING TO THE TEMPLE! Its official! We are taking the Temple bus on Wednesday and going to the temple! We will be doing two sessions. Ah!!! :D

-Tomorrow is zone conference!! hooray!!

-I am feeling better, I am still sort of sick but I am slowly getting there!

 Thanks for all the love :)

Avocados, Oranges and Country Music

Dear Family,

I love you!! How was the cruise? I love the pictures! Dolphins are awesome ha-ha.  How was your birthday mom? What did you guys do? How was the 4th of July?!  Thank for sending the cables, I will try it next week.

 Mom!!!!! There are like four women in my ward from Holland!  Do you know any cool phrases in Dutch that I could show off? Ha-ha.

 And YES SEND MUSIC. We can listen to anything that brings our thoughts back to the work and Jesus Christ, which is mostly hymns and country/acoustic.  I never thought in a million years that I would be listening to Christian Country in the car but here I am!  So feel free to send music! By the way, the CD "The Work" is really great. I love you! :) 

This week:

-I am getting bolder! I knew that I was kind of shy before I came on my mission but holy cow did being here make me realize it.  But, I am getting more confident and bold in talking to people every day, which is a huge blessing :)

-I am sick!  I have a pretty bad cold that I got on July 3rd; I'm mostly just been kind of in a fog.  But I am slowly getting better! It just isn't fun.

-On the 4th of July Sister Stoker and I wanted to make Rice Crispy treats and deliver them to the people that were teaching BUT we couldn't find Rice Crispy’s anywhere!  So we made them out of honey nut cheerios.  Then we used Sister Stoker's blue and red marshmallows so they looked really funny but they still tasted yummy! :) 

-A lot of people here have fruit trees in their backyards so guess what that means!?  We get LOTS of fruit :) especially avocados!  A lot of people have avocado trees here so we have like 4 avocados in our kitchen right now.  Some of the ward gave us oranges also, and these are the good oranges!  The oranges that we have in Florida are mainly for their juice but these are the kind that you can peel and eat. They are really good :)

-I met a Jehovah's Witness!!! Apparently they are really common in California, so I was kind of excited to get to talk with them a little about what they believe.  Everyone was really surprised that I had never met one before ha-ha.  That's one of my favorite parts about missionary work though, being able to talk to so many different people and learn about all kinds of different beliefs.  It's really cool!

-Each week we write a letter to the mission president talking about what we did this week and what we have been studying, so I am going to send that to you so that you can know what I'm up to! :)

Afterward from Erin's Mom- She asked us not to include any information about people she is teaching because she doesn't want them to come across themselves on the internet, so we won't be sharing those things in the blog. That's what was in the letter to the mission president.

Learning More Myself

Hello Family!!

 Thanks for all the letters, getting mail is really exciting ha ha, I can't explain it. I love hearing about what is going on there! Emails are great and I love reading them :) Just keep me updated!

One thing: I want to send you guys photos but I need the camera cable to be able to do that, so if you could send that it would be great :) I have the black Sony cyber-shot. If we don't have a cable for it I can just send you guys the SD card. And I'm alright on cardigans right now, there is a mall nearby so if there is anything I need I can probably buy it. Thank you!

This week has been interesting! We met a lot of interesting people and talked to a lot of people of different faiths. One of the cool things about being a missionary is that you get to learn a lot about what other people believe! It's been really interesting :) we are hoping that we can get the members more involved at church with befriending people that we visit. Mom, did you watch the broadcast by any chance? Missionary work is changing! Its crazy, they are going to be on the internet so much more. Much less knocking hopefully!!! Being a missionary is really hard, but the blessings SERIOUSLY outweigh the sacrifices :)

 Some interesting things that happened:

-We have been doing A LOT of knocking. Like a lot.

-A woman that we were doing service for gave me a TEMPLE DRESS!!! We were helping her move and she had just bought a new one so she gave me me one that she didn't really use. It was so nice of her!!

-We met a guy who has seen all kinds of visions.

-Sister Stoker and I try to stay focused on the work, but sometimes it is hard! So we made up a game. Whenever we see a random person walking or doing something we make up a story about how the gospel entered their life or something. It is hilarious, I highly recommend it :)

-Sister Stoker and I taught Relief Society this week! It went really well, we are trying to get the members more involved in missionary work. Our lesson was on the broadcast.

-We get to go to the temple next week!!!!! We are sooooo excited and cannot wait!!

This week we have been working hard to find new investigators. We have been knocking on doors, contacting people on the streets and asking for referrals.

 

This week we met with the seven different families and individuals. We taught them about modern day prophets, the plan of salvation, another the restoration, one family committed to read the Book of Mormon, we referred one girl to the young single adult ward and she is meeting with the Elders.  Some visits go better than others but all in all we are excited to be teaching the gospel to these wonderful and interesting people.

Learning More Myself 

I have been learning a lot this week about how the lessons should be taught and how to try and bring the investigators attention back to what we are trying to focus on. Sister Stoker has been extremely patient with me as I make mistakes and learn from them. I am trying to remember everything that I learn and the people that I meet but it's kind of hard to. I have been forgetting a lot of little things lately, but I'm sure that is just how being a new missionary is. You are having a lot of information thrown at you.

This week I have been studying a lot about recognizing the spirit and the Light of Christ. The Light of Christ was something that I had heard of before but never knew exactly what it was and learning about it has been so interesting. It is the desire to learn and do good because of Jesus Christ. Since I have been learning about it I have been trying to notice the Light of Christ or that desire to know when we start to teach people about Jesus Christ and his gospel. I have loved learning more about it.

 I thought that I knew a lot about the gospel before I came out on my mission but there is so much I didn't know and can learn! I am constantly learning. It has been exciting learning new things and receiving revelation about this gospel through scripture study and prayer. The more that I learn and study the more I realize just how perfect this gospel is and how much it can bless the lives of the people that accept it. It just motivates me more to share what I know. I am so grateful for this gospel and the Book of Mormon, everything that I study just builds my testimony stronger and stronger. 

This next week should be a great one, I am excited to see how our lessons go and who we meet! 

I love you guys so much!!

-Sister Cusick

A Letter From Erin's Mission President

We received a letter from Erin's Mission President and a Photo

Made It To California

My First Area and Companion

Hello and welcome to San Luis Obispo, CA. This is my first area!  Luckily I’m not training with another new sister. My first companion is Sister Stoker! She is from Burley, ID and is actually one of my teachers from the MTC's sister! She is amazing. She has taught me so much this week so far.

So we flew to Santa Barbara and then drove on a bus to Ventura. There the traveling sisters (head trainers...?) told us some about the area, rules, and what to expect. That day was kind of a blur. But I was put with Sister Dixon for the night and we stayed at a member’s house! They were so nice. We met the Castro family and they are so amazing. President and Sister Castro are so nice and loving. They knew almost all of us by name before we arrived. The next day went to TRANFER MEETING!! Ahhhh. President Castro spoke and the Elders who were leaving the mission shared their testimonies then we were assigned to our new companions and areas.

 As you know, I am serving with Sister Stoker in the San Luis Obispo 1st Ward. After I met Sister Stoker, we rode with a member family up to SLO. It was a long and beautiful drive up the coast. We live in an apartment.

Missionary Work

This past week we have been meeting with investigators that Sister Stoker has had for a while and we have been knocking on doors!! It's kind of hard to talk to people like that, but I am learning and trying to apply what I learn every day. I just can't be shy! It's been hard finding new people to teach, and we have only taught 2 or 3 sit down lessons this week. But man have I met some interesting people.

 There was one guy who was riding his bike and saw us walking and yelled, "HEY! Are you the Mormons?!" and we were like yes we are! And he said, "I want to know more about your church." We were just like whhaaat?! Easiest street contacting ever.  Turns out his baby’s mama is Mormon, and he wanted to know more. He doesn't live in SLO but we gave him a card.

Sister Stoker has been teaching a woman named Lee for a couple months now and she AMAZING. She is set to be baptized on July 13th. She is 55 and used to be a chef. Her husband died a few years ago and she is amazing. I can't wait to see how she progresses.

Dinner

Yesterday I had a green dinner. One of the families in the ward had Sister Stoker and me over for dinner and because I'm a new missionary they made it green! Lots of green food. They said if they had more time they would have dyed the mashed potatoes green, and our drinks green. By the way, we eat dinner with members almost every night! I have tried lots of foods I didn't think I liked!

Message of Love

So how about that broadcast yesterday? Pretty amazing right! They really want members to be helping the missionaries with the work. One thing that I really took from the broadcast was that love needs to be the driving force behind everything we do. We need to love the gospel, love the people, and love what we are doing. Without love there is no motivation! I will write home and send some things! I love you guys so much! I am learning so much and loving the work and people out here!

BY THE WAY, if you want to send me a letter/package, send it to the mission office! Everything gets mailed there and then they forward it to us! That’s how it works.

Sister Erin V. Cusick

3301 West Gonzales Road

Oxnard, CA 93036.

 I love you! :) TELL TARA HAPPY BIRTHDAY FOR ME

-Sister Cusick

It's Finally P-Day!!

June 13, 2013

Our First Email from Erin

She sounds busy and happy!

 

ITS FINALLY P-DAY

 

Oh my goodness I am on a COMPUTER. I miss you guys and I love you lots!!

 

How are things going at home? Tell me!!

 

Okay so after mom, Aunt Linda, and Kristin dropped me off my host took me to a  building where I got my name tag and MTC ID card. Then I met up with her again and she took me to my room. At the dorms there are 6 girls to a room! In my room are Sister Anderson, Sister Hegstrom, Sister Mason, and Sister Snow. We have one less person in our district so guess who is a part of a trio instead of a companionship?! This girl :)

My companions are Sister Anderson and Sister Hegstrom! They are awesome and super amazing teachers. So after I dropped my stuff off at the dorms my host took me to my classroom and left me there. There I met my teacher Sister De Arton and one of my companions, Sister Anderson. Sister Anderson is hilarious. She was a dancer for the Utah Jazz. She is gorgeous and really passionate about the gospel. She pounds things with her fists and yells about how the gospel is true, she is great. Sister Hegstrom is my other companion. At first she was more quiet, but she is so funny too. She is more sarcastic. She went to BYU this past year and knows her scriptures like the back of her hand. She can explain any doctrine with ease, I'm hoping some of that will rub off on me!! Sister Mason and Sister Snow are in my district as well as Elder Spencer, Elder Howe, Elder Hill, and Elder Collard. Sister Snow was actually the girl in a bunch of the BYU Prank videos ( BYU mistletoe prank, bad breath) and she is so so so funny. Sister Mason is really sweet, we all get along. On that first day we had a lot of meetings and met a lot of people.

The food here is great. Its exactly like you said mom, there's a line where they just hand you a plate. But there are also wraps and salads and TONS of fresh fruit and deserts, so the food is pretty great. But don't drink the orange juice, one of the Elders in our district did and he got really sick!!

We have class twice a day, study twice a day at least, gym, and planning. We practice teaching investigators (our teacher and volunteers) everyday. Its really scary to teach people about the gospel actually. I'm working on my confidence right now. The lessons that we have in class are about the gospel, but they are sometimes about other things. Like Sister De Arton taught a class about stress management and she made us skip around the MTC and we had to "park our __" on every bench we saw. I'm pretty sure we disrupted a bunch of scripture study but it was so fun and funny :)

 

The first three days felt like WEEKS. We were talking about teaching our investigator Alec (our teacher) and how we thought the last time we taught him was two days ago when it was actually just that morning! Crazy. But after Sunday the days have FLOWN by. On Sunday Sister Anne Clegg came and spoke to the Relief Society. It was awesome. Oh and we have Sunday movie night!! Would you rather watch a movie about the restoration of the gospel, or a conference talk? ;) ha ha no 'real' movies but we did watch the restoration with part of our zone who was about to leave for Albuquerque , NM. They were awesome and I'm sure they are doing awesome! This Tuesday was devotional and we went to the Marriott Center on BYU campus for the first time ever. Three thousand missionaries were all on BYU campus at once. There were camera crews and people stopping their cars to take pictures of us. Elder Mervyn Arnold came and spoke to us (they thought the prophet was going to come) and it was amazing. First off we got pulled out of line to get in because 'they needed more sisters sitting in front of the podium' so we sat on the second row on the floor. It was amazing. Elder Arnold came and shook our hands and Sister Arnold gave us all hugs. One of my favorite parts was turning around to look behind me at all the missionaries.

 

TODAY IS P-DAY. We went to the temple and ate there! The guy serving food was giving the missionaries extra servings, it was nice :) so far today I have written letters, started laundry,\ (that's going right now), and laid on my bed and just sat there. Not having to worry about being anywhere at the time being. It was great.

 

I have already grown so much. I am learning doctrine and scriptures at a crazy rate and I can't express to you how happy I am. Sure I get frustrated and scared, but it is beyond worth it. I am so glad that I am here. I love you all and I miss you to pieces. I actually just started crying ha ha. I'm writing letters when I have the time and I appreciate everything you guys have sent me. My friends say thank you for the cupcakes and I loved the snacks you sent me! I am typing frantically because we only have 30 minutes. I will email next week!!! I LOVE YOU :) <3

 

-Sister Cusick

Cream Soda Trees
Received June 10. 2013

A Missionary Parade!

June 5, 2013
    I haven't heard from Erin yet but want to share what an exciting day Wednesday was.  Of course Erin was up early packing and repacking.  Deciding what to wear also took some time.  We made a trip to the store for a couple of last minute items, then to kill time we had an early lunch.  Since that didn't kill enough time went to a discount bookstore, a fabric store, and finally Michael's. It seemed like 12:45 pm would never come!!

     When it finally did the anticipation was unbearable.  The drive down University Parkway took about five minutes and we knew we had reached our destination we we pulled up in line to turn onto 900 East.  As we turn the corner onto 900 east we could see the long line of cars waiting to enter the Missionary Training Center gate.  The roads were lined with an army of helpers, greeters and hosts. Friendly traffic directors, people smiling and waving.  It was as if  we had joined a missionary parade.  The sidewalks were lined with Elders and Sisters from the entrance and around down the walk ways for as far as we could see.  It was a truly joyful sight to see and experience.  There was waving, shouts of greeting in different languages, smiles everywhere, hugs and luggage to rival a cruise.

     Before we found a spot to pull up to the curb where we could drop Erin off, she caught the eye of a Sister Missionary who was a Host standing on the sidewalk and they waved at each other. The Sister Missionary came up to the car and greeted Erin as though she knew her.  Erin got out of the car and they hugged each other.  What a wonderful way to start this journey of service.  I helped her get her luggage out of the car and before you knew it she was shaking hands with other  missionaries and I could tell she wanted to be on her way.  We hugged and she turned to join the others pulling their luggage up the sidewalk.

     She didn't want to be in tears as she went in so we decided to say our goodbye quickly and that's what we did.  Pulling away from the curb we had our windows down so we could continue to enjoy the spirit of the occasion.  There was no sadness just an overwhelming joy and pride in the group she was joining and the service she would give.

                                             Erin is pulling her red suitcase in the picture below

Welcome to my mission blog!

Hey guys!

This is Erin. Tomorrow I get set apart as a full time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I have been called to serve in the Ventura, California Mission! I'm so excited! My mother will be updating and running this blog with things that I'm doing and with my new addresses. For now, here are my MTC and Mission Office addresses in case you want to send me anything! Love you guys :)

My Provo MTC address:

Sister Erin Valarie Cusick
JUN17 CA-VEN
2009 N 900 E Unit 125
Provo UT 84602

Send other letters to the mission office until I find out where my first assignment is going to be:

Sister Erin Valarie Cusick
California Ventura Mission
3301 West Gonzales Road
Oxnard, CA 93036
United States