Sorry guys the last 3 post are backwards so read them accordingly again sorry

Hello humans of another dimension! 

Kind of how life has felt on the mission. I feel like I've been ploped outside of my home realm and into another. Crazy! Anyways here's another week update for you. 

Last p day was a bit crazy with getting my week before email out. Did some shopping and just got some stuff done. Watched my brothers game which I love being able to do. He makes me so proud to be his sister. 

Tuesday and the first day of my favorite month. October! Yay! We had district council which is always good. I dont think I've ever explained district council but it's when the other missionaries in our spring Creek area get together and have trainings. It's really good. After we checked the mail and then walked the marina. We visited the deremiahs who I always love visiting. They give amazing advice and tell some cool stories. We got a call from Jenny as we were walking back home and she told us about some family history her daughter had done. Her grandfather was a stake president and shes wondering if maybe this is a sign from God on where she should be. We're so to see where this goes. Picture 1 is of the cute ghosts a lady were teaching gave us that we painted. 

Oof Wednesday was a crazy day. We started the morning with some crazy service. We moved over 2000 bags of clothes, each weighing about 10-20 pounds, into a 50 foot semi truck top to bottom. Picture 2 is of all the missionaries that helped.  Least to say I was sore. We got fizz and then showered off at a members house so we could go right out to work. Picture 3 is of smudge the kitty. So cute. We were able to visit with two people were teaching and helped one of then clean up their house a bit. Had dinner at Jenny's and she made us homemade chili and corn bread. So good. We then had the chance go do a Q&A with the young men of our ward. It was really fun. 

Thursday we started the morning off with a bit of service again. Just helped Jenny's husband put tin on his shed. Picture 4 is of sister Garris helping out on one of the sides. Didn't get a picture of me helping on the other side. Came back and did weekly planning. Went out and visited abby who is going to be moving soon so that's sad. Tried to go see another referral who wasn't home. Came back and just rested from being so sore. 

Friday was honestly a major growth point for me. We started the morning helping sister rangel clean her house again for someone to view it. Luckily they got it sold so that's awesome. Had lunch and then walked about two miles to some apartments in our area that we tried. Met a family who are not members but go with their in laws who are members. Well see how things go with them. Met an inactive family who are working to come back to the church. Super cute. Had dinner at kalen's house. She makes the most amazing homemade soups. So good. Watched the book of mormon video which was really good. Sister Garris and I then had a great talk. I came to realize that I have a hard time addressing problems or voicing how I'm feeling. I was able to find the root of why that is and I'm glad I'm able to work to fix it and better Express myself. The mission is a major growing time and it helps so much to make you a better person. I love who I'm becoming and how strong I'm getting. 

Saturday! General conference weekend! I took so many notes and it would take me forever to write and for you go read. I will just pick on favorite thing from each session but please go read, listen, or watch it. This general conference was so good. For the Saturday morning session we went to the hammers home. They had crepes for breakfast and then awesome snack bags. That session there was a lot of focus on joy and how to have enduring joy. There were a lot of funny moments too. One of my new favorite scriptures was mentioned alma 29:9. Go look it up. ;) we came home after and ate some lunch then delivered some jams that we got from Jenny. We did a cute jam out to conference hand out. We spent the Saturday afternoon session at the Morrill's. I loved elder bednars talk a lot on being alert of the advances of the adversary. There were so many good quotes from that one and the cool changes of the youth organizations. We then went and helped sister rangel help set up for her baby Seth's first birthday party. So cute. We went to the windous's for the general women's session. So so so good! I'm in love with the new young women's theme. I loved how they stressed the importance of women in the church and how we can help fulfill our callings. President Nelson encouraged us to study parts of the doctrine and covenants which I've started to do. He also announced 8 new temples! AH! I can't believe they're putting one in orem! Someone let me know where in the world theyre putting that because sister Garris and I dont know. Ha. Anyways It was really good. We had some delicious soup there and then went to the rangels for some leftovers from the party. We ended up having some really great spiritual conversations with them. When we got home sister Garris and I had a huge bonding moment. I'm grateful for the things I've been through and how strong I am now. 

Sunday was another awesome general conference moment. We went to the hadleys for the Sunday morning session. Sadly no one we invited to watch joined us. Sister Hadley made delicious cinnamon rolls. During that session was my favorite talk. Elder uchtdorf talked about the story of the hobbit. He expressed how we are all on our own adventures of there and back again. It made my nerdy heart so happy. We then tried a few people after and got to visit with felicia. Was good to see how she's doing. Went over to the church's house for the Sunday afternoon session. I love how they emphasized our personal search for happiness and how to overcome the adversary. I'm super excited for next conference though! President Nelson hinted at some awesome things to come. We then went out and tried to teach two lessons but were able to. Knocked a few doors. We then had dinner at the church's. They made crepes and other breakfast food. Super yummy. We then walked the marina which was a bit chilly. Picture 5 is of some new benches they put around the marina. The lighting was just amazing. 

I'm so grateful to be on this adventure of a mission. Thank you so much for all your love and support! I hope you have a most fantastic week! 

Love,

Sister Sydney Hanks ❤

Ps. Write me! I love to hear from people! Also if anyone would like to send letters or goodies here's the address. P.O. Box #249 Elko Nevada 89803

Hello wonderful souls! 

This week. Man this week has been one of my favorites. Last week of my training and transfer with Sister Garris so hold on to your pants this update is gonna be long and amazing. 

Last p day was really good. Pictures 1-4 are of some awesome murals in elko. Had a zone activity where we almost got killed by bees. Was a good p day though. 

Tuesdays always seem to be interesting. We had district council and then service. Not much time in between and then we had dinner. Walked the marina and then we painted our little pumpkins while relistening to conference talks. Picture 5 is mine and sister Garris's pumpkins. Mine is no face from spirited away. 😁

Wednesday was a cold day. We bundled up and went out to the north section of our area which is where the mobile homes are. Tried to visit a few people and ended up finding a new guy named norman. Visited an older couple which their last name is butts. They have a cat that's huge and fluffy. Sadly no pictures of him. Came back to our apartment and then walked around a bit. Tries some people were teaching but no luck. Had dinner at the hammers which is great since we've built a great connection with them. Got to see maddy and teach her a bit. Her brother even listened in. Ended the night making some brownies as we did companionship study. 

Thursday was a great day. I started the morning reading The Struggle for The soul by Melvin J Ballard. Here is the link for it. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/liahona/1984/09/the-struggle-for-the-soul. This talk speaks so much of what I've learned on the mission and has helped me become so strong. He talks about our war with Satan and ourselves and how to best fortify ourselves. It made me really intrigued and more excited about this gospel. I love how much my creativity has been flowing lately and I so look forward to writing my books. I've already started writing snippets on my mission and I just love it so much. After that great personal study we went and helped sister rangel clean her new house. After we did some weekly planning which hopefully we can get some people progressing more. Went and tried a few people but no luck. Our lesson canceled so we had dinner and then went out again. It was so cold! We ended up walking and visiting sister martindale to borrow some nutmeg to make more pumpkin cookies. Sister martindale is an amazing seamstress and picture 5 is of the awesome focus pocus quilt she made. Picture 6 is of her cute dogs duckie and fang. Great day.

Friday marked the beginning of an amazing weekend. Friday morning I work up feeling a bit sick and worn out. I took time to rest but during that time we recieved a call from our mission president. He asked to speak with me privately. I took the call and I am beyond thrilled to announce that I have been called to train. I just completed my own training so I'm super excited to show someone else the ropes. This means I will be staying in spring Creek for a bit longer. I adore this area so much so I'm super excited. It was hard though because I couldn't tell anyone until we got our calls Sunday night. We helped someone in our ward with some packing and then had dinner at kalens house. She got two new games and one of them is called stupid deaths. It's pretty great. Picture 7 is of me with Kalen. 

Saturday was another good day. Got to see a lot of people. Not too much to report with those visits but I love the people here so much. We tried an address and picture 8 shows where the address led us. Super funny.  We had dinner at the elmores and had tacos. So good. We came home and watched the book of mormon video because we were having technical issues Friday. 

Sunday was so so good. Very spiritual day. The morning was slow not much to report. We went to church and I just love how many connections we've made with this area. It makes me so happy. Well Chris and his whole family came to church and Julie even invited her friend Merlinda to come. We've started to teach Julie ever since faith was baptized and she's making such amazing progress. We taught her the first lesson and really felt the spirit. Picture 9 is of me with Faith and Julie. We then had a really great spiritual moment with a less active member. After we went to dinner at the bells where we celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving because sister Garris's mom is Canadian. It was really good and fun fact all vegan. Loved it. We then went and visited president and sister lloyd. They're awesome. We came home and anxiously awaited transfer calls. I will be staying in spring Creek where I will train my new companion. I find out tomorrow who that will be. Sister Garris is off to sparks Nevada in a new area. Ah! Were both so excited. 

I have never loved this work so much in my life than I do now. I'm seeing the changes so vividly as I serve out here and the blessings happening back home. I can say wholeheartedly that this gospel really does bless individuals and families. It brings enduring joy and helps us all get through life. It has in my life. 

I love every one of you. Thank you for your continued support. Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Sydney Hanks ❤

Hello my favorite people! 

This week has been a rough one to say the least. I'll explain more below. 

Last p day was a bit of a mess. Was able to talk to a lot of family and email friends so that made my heart happy. Walmart was closed all day because of a power outage so had to try Smith's for a few essentials I needed till my new companion arrived later in the week. 

Tuesday was an extremely busy crazy day. It was sister Garris last day in spring Creek but were still missionaries so we had a full day. Started the morning helping the elmores in our ward paint their deck which I actually loved doing. Hurried home after, changed, then sat closer to the house so we could get good wifi for calling in to the meeting in Reno. I discovered my companion was not there. She would be arriving from temple square the following day. I'll tell more about here shortly. We then rushed over to have a lesson with David. Hopefully we can put him on date for baptism soon. Had dinner with the picketts. Super cute family. Got a few more things done and then sister Garris finished packing up. 

Wednesday was not one of my favorite days. I packed an overnight bag because I would be staying with some sisters till my companion arrived. Picture 1 is mine and sister Garris's last picture together. We got a ride into town and I cried a bit saying goodbye to sister Garris. I was then with the YSA(young single adults) sisters in a temporary trio. The live with the sweetest lady who they call grandma. She made us lunch of grilled cheese and tomato soup. So good. We then did some tracting and contacted a few people. Had dinner with sister Robinson. Got to meet a few more people in the ysa ward. Had a lesson with a less active which was really good. Dealt with getting things situated for transfers and got a bit stressed from it all. 

Thursday started out a bit rocky. I was still super stressed so my mood wasn't the best. I fought a lot of feelings of wanting to give up and just go home. During my personal study I ended up reading Roman 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. 

I then went to the footnotes and read Alma 36:3 and replaced o my son helaman with oh my daughter Sydney.  And now, O my son Helaman, behold, thou art in thy youth, and therefore, I beseech of thee that thou wilt hear my words and learn of me; for I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day.

Even though I was still stressed I tried my best to put my trust in heavenly father. Grandma made us breakfast of eggs, sausage, hashbrowns and toast. Really good. We did a bit of tracting not too much to report. We then had a lesson with a girl the sisters are teaching. She's amazing and loves the gospel. We had lunch of fried rice back at grandma's. Tried a few people on the sisters list. Had a lesson with a family in my ward who are working to go to the temple to have their son sealed to them. So awesome. Did some tracting in spring Creek. Had dinner at teriyaki madness. Super yummy. We went and tried some apartments and ended up sitting down with this older gentleman who isn't a member but had some pretty cool spiritual insights. We thought it was going to be a bible bash but luckily it wasn't. Went back to the apartment and did some studies before meeting up to get things situated so my new companion and I could get home. So crazy. Picture 2 is of me with sister viekoso and sister paveldakes. 

So thanks to stress Thursday night I didn't sleep well dealing with an upset stomach. Luckily didn't throw up so yay. Friday was a bit of a busy day. We went to a training meeting in town then stopped at Walmart for supplies. We went out to teach a lesson but the person wasn't home. Visited glenda then went to dinner at kalens. Came home and did some companionship studies. 

I feel like most of the last week was meetings and being in town. Saturday morning we went back into town for a special meeting with bishop waddell and his wife. This email is already pretty long so I'll just mention a few short things. They both focused on finding christ at the center of our lives and how important that is. It was really good. We then bundled up and went out to trailer. Picture 3 is of my new companion and I! Her name is sister Galvez. She's from Georgia but she's currently on outbound from her home mission at temple square! Yay! We have a lot in common so we get along really well. I love how much I get a long with all my companions. We were able to have another amazing lesson with Julie and shes growing so much in the gospel it makes me so happy. Visited with sister Robinson who made us some hot chocolate and herbal tea to warm up. It was pretty cold with wind and rain that day. We then went out again and tried a few people. Had dinner with glenna which was really good. Got to visit Jenny. Love the people in this area so much. 

Sunday was a super good day. Finally back to normal. Went to stake conference which I will be honest when I was home I never attended. Shame on me because man was it amazing. Its pretty much a mini general conference. I took a lot of notes. My favorite was when the stake president spoke. He spoke of the importance of turning back to christ. To follow Peter's example. Others spoke of the importance of temples. I miss going to the temple so much. I encourage all who can to go! Picture 4 is one I took as we were driving home. I really liked it. After that we had a lesson with a girl who loves the gospel and has been looking for peace in her life. I'm excited to keep teaching her. We came home and walked around our area and tried a few people. Picture 5 is of a black cat we saw. Wish I got a better picture but he looked like a black Panther. Picture 6 is of the view. Got to visit abby and see how she's doing. Had dinner at the church's house. Yummy soup. We then went over our notes from the weekend for companion study and just really bonded. I'm so excited to serve with sister galvez. Shes got a lot of spirit. 

Anyways that was my week. It was crazy and I saw my faith tried a lot. I'm grateful for my strength and being able to push through. I love my mission and this gospel more every day. I hope you all have a great week! Love you! 

Love,

Sister Sydney Hanks ❤

Hello fantastic people! 

So there was a complication and my email last week never sent which is slightly frustrating. I will try to rewrite that email but first I'll send this one about this week. 

So last p day was really good. Got some good shopping done. We got the chance to paint with a lady named bonnie in our ward. Picture 1 is of my painting. We used Bob Ross paints and one of his techniques so that was cool. Got to talk to my family which I always love. Had ward mission correlation where we talk about the people were teaching with the bishop and ward mission leaders. We ended up finding a new person to teach named maddy and shes awesome. 

Tuesday was good. I had the scripture immersion for our district council and I focused on alma 5:14. I love this scripture so much. I've been focusing on these questions quite a bit on my mission and highly encourage others too as well. Went to the assisted living and visited with a sweet lady named joy. Went to sister Robinson's and rested. My knees started to hurt since we've been doing a ton of walking. Iced them for a bit then went back to work. Visited a few people and tried others who weren't home. Had pizza for dinner then headed home. Picture 2 is of me with sister Robinson's kitty smudge. 

Wednesday was great. We helped a lady, sister miller, in the other sister missionaries ward. Shes completely remodeling her house so we helped with some painting. She bought us subway after which was super nice of her. We tried to see so many people but everyone was either not home or busy. Had dinner with the rangels which we always love. Their one of my favorite families in the area. Went to book of mormon class where we read helamen 9 and had a great discussion about it. 

Thursday was a really good day. We got to visit felicia and joy. I tried this easy bake potato which was pretty good. We did our weekly planning which helped us plan out some new tactics to try for the coming week. Hopefully we can get some balls rolling. We did another exchange. I got to be with sister Christensen this time. She awesome. Picture 3 is of us together. We had dinner at the other rangels house. Their twin brothers who both live in our ward. We shared the book of mormon videos which I HIGHLY recommend watching. They are so awesome. Sister Christensen and I ended the night walking the marina. Picture 4 is of the view that night. 

Friday was a really good day. I started the day reading the talk Try, Try, Try by President Henry B Eyring. Extremely powerful talk that I suggest reading. Most today our day was filled with service. We helped sister Rangel get her house cleaned up and ready to view. They're trying to get it sold before they move into their new house. Had lunch which consisted of mac and cheese and ice cream. I'm an adult I promise. 😂 Met up with the other sisters and helped sister Miller with her house again. Picture 5 is of us with a toilet they ripped out. Super funny. Ended exchanges. Had dinner with the loremans who have the sweetest German shepherd ever. Should have taken a picture of her. Her name is arlie. I got to finally meet the mission mom sister wanlass. She travels around Nevada a lot so she always brings the missionaries goodies. Picture 6 is of us with our breakfast goodies. Ended the night watching the newest episode of the book of mormon videos. So good!

Saturday was a crazy day. It dawned on me that were in October already and there's only 3 months left of this year! When I was told back in January through a priesthood blessing that I'd go on a mission I dont think I realized just how fast the time would go. I'm 1/6 of the way through my mission which is crazy. The time has just flown by and I've loved it so much. It was raining pretty good here and the temperatures have dropped drastically. We bundled up and went out to trailer. Got to see a few people. Had dinner at the hadleys. They're an awesome elderly couple in the ward and they're out go tos for information on people. It's great. 

Sunday. Oh boy Sunday. It was so cold that day. We drove around instead of walking to invite people to church. We got a ride to church and it. Was. SNOWING! AH! We got to church just as a blizzard hit. The snow didn't stick to the ground but man did it get chilly here. I got up and bore my testimony in church which was really good. I'm pushing myself out of my comfort zone a lot lately which is great. We learned about the new youth program and I'm so excited for it. Sister Garris and I realized this is the program we'll raise our children in. It's crazy to think about. Had dinner at the Morrill's house. Walked the marina even with it being chilly a bunch of people were out. Finally got to see David again and teach him more. We invited their family to watch conference and they seemed pretty excited about it. I'm super excited for conference. 

Picture 7 is of me with my book of mormon in my area. I do not remember if I mentioned it much but when I recieved my call I was not excited to go to Nevada. I cannot imagine myself being anywhere else though. The connections I've made here and the people I've met have changed me forever. Heavenly Father has shown me all the potential I have and everything I still have to learn. I am so excited for the future. I am so proud of myself for choosing to serve a mission. I love this gospel more than ever. I've been on both sides of the fence and I know that this side is where I belong. We are in a constant battle with satan. He will not give up on trying to get us down. I will never stop fighting again. My faith is stronger than ever and I cannot wait to see how I am when I complete my mission. 

I love you all so much. I am forever grateful for all your support and love. Have a most amazing week. 

Love,

Sister Sydney Hanks ❤

09/30/2019

Hello people I love! 

Sorry for two emails this week. For some reason last weeks email never sent so here's a run down for that week. 

P day was really good. I might have splurged a bit and spoiled myself. Picture 1 is the new sweatshirt I got. Love it. Got to call my family and watch part of Matthew's game. My cousins were there so I got to say hi to them. So cute. 

Tuesday was good. We had district council then went out to trailer. We walked around a ton. Tried to visit people but a lot didn't answer. Had dinner at sister Robinson's and she made chicken roll ups which is one of my favorites. Nothing like my mom's but still so good. Was able to get my package from the Elders. Picture 2 is of my package. So crazy. Picture 3 is of the gorgeous sunset. I recieved my hardback book of mormon in my package and it really touched my heart. A few markings are in it from one of my low points in life and I love how far I've come from then. 

Wednesday was a really productive day. During personal study I read president nelsons address to the youth. Here is the link for that https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/president-nelson-byu-transcript-september-2019. It was really good and I enjoyed it. President Nelson has so much love and it makes me so happy. It was a beautiful day so we walked to felicia's. We offered to come back the next day to help her clean her house a bit. We had lunch then went out again. We got to see abby who I think I've mentioned but shes a teenager we've been kind of teaching. She loves coming to activities but her parents won't let her get baptized which is sad. Went and saw a bunch of people briefly. Had dinner at the church's and it was quiet for once because no one was home. They have a big family so it was pretty crazy for it to be quiet. Went to book of mormon class which was really good. 

Thursday we spent the morning doing service. Helped at felicia's. She put on some German classical music and it was just so nice. Went over and helped sister rangel clean up as they are preparing to move and trying to sell their house. Her daughter davyn was watching inside out and I was having a hard time not quoting it. A part came on and the music that played is what they play in Disneyland on the Pixar pier. Made me miss it a bit. We had lunch and did some weekly planning. We went out again and picture 4 is of me. We got some snow on the mountains. Yikes. Visited with abby again and helped her with homework. Visited with the hadleys. Sister bailey was awesome and ordered us a pizza for dinner. Ended the night starting exchanges. 

Friday was an extremely great day. Probably one of my favorite exchanges so far. I was with sister Dickson in her area which is just neighbor to our area. It was raining pretty good but we went out and walked. Got to know sister Dickson as we walked which was great. Visited a few people in their area. Met a lady who we shared the hope of God's light video with. Here's the link https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/video/inspirational-messages/2014-07-006-the-hope-of-gods-light. This video really hit home for me because I've had some similar experiences. I definitely know of God's light and how much it can help our lives. It really touched the lady and she thanked us for sharing it. We went back to the apartment and had soup for lunch. We then went out to the mobile section and I got to meet a girl named Alexandria. She's got so much energy and no fear. She's not a member and she asked if she could come out with us. Our next lesson canceled so we knocked doors and she seriously changed my outlook on knocking doors. She had no fear doing so. We dropped her off and than went to a lesson. Picture 5 is of me when I walked in the family had just gotten a new kitten. The kids brought it over and handed her to me. Least to say I was pretty happy. As we taught the lesson I just got to hold the kitten. Pictures 6 and 7 are just so cute. We then went to dinner at the nelsons and picture 8 is of their adorable puppy. We visited another member after dinner then went back to the apartment. It was an amazing day and I loved it so much. We then exchanged back. 

Saturday was a bit of a rough and to be honest I can't go into much details about it. We visited the billats a super sweet older couple in our ward. We then went out to trailer. We had so many visits fall through and were walking around a bunch. We recieved a text from someone we've been teaching asking if we could come over. We were able to and my heart hurts so much. She ended up telling us her life story of the past several months and what's been going on. We gained a strong connection with her and reassurance from the spirit that what she told us was true. I have not been out long on the mission but I can tell you that I have seen so much heart ache and sorrow. I am not unfamiliar with it as my people close to me have had hard times. It's still hard though and I do what I can to help people know how much heavenly father loves them and is there for them. Sister Garris and I left the house with heavy hearts. We visited the hadleys who helped us feel better. We then had dinner at Kalen's  house. She had made homemade gnocchi soup and bread sticks. It was just what we needed. We were able to go home and take a deep breath. We roleplayed some new contact attempts and then watched the new book of mormon videos. Their the best. 

Sunday was kind of a meh day. Had ward council which was good to see the support of the ward. We went over the talk Abounding in Blessings by Elder Renlund. Super amazing talk. We then went to sister Robinson's and had lunch. Went and visited with Jenny a bit. Had dinner at a members and he made spaghetti. Was really good. Came home and tried to visit a few people but no luck. Oh I totally forgot. I was able to get my honor bee! Picture 9 is of it. Made me super happy. 

Anyways that's what happened that week. Sorry this email didn't send before and might have been a bit all over. Hope everyone has a great week! 

Love

Sister Sydney Hanks ❤

Ps. The photo pdf is our picture of our whole mission with president Ballard. 😍🤩 hopefully you can find me! I'm in the back row of girls and you can barely see me. Oops.