Monday, October 28, 2013

Transfer 1.3: Sweets Paradise Sickness

Well, this week has been more than a little crazy,
 
So we went to Sweets Paradise last P-Day, right? And it was awesome and delicious and everything. Not so awesome is the fact that the next morning, Sister Hathaway, Sister Imano and Sister Wells all woke up feeling very sick the next morning. Let's just say that I got a loooot of studying done on Tuesday and Wednesday. Hathaway Shimai is still not feeling 100%. Because of the Sweets Paradise Sickness, I don't have much to report on.
 
On Thursday, we had zone conference with our zone and another zone. In this conference, we had some training, some more training, some practicing and then more training. Let's just say that it went from 9 AM to 6 PM. It also included testimonies of those who are leaving this next transfer or the transfer after.
 
Some of my favorite (paraphrased quotes):
- "Sometimes we just have to wait on the Lord's time"
- "There is happiness to be found and is in the gospel"
- "Find yourself in order to find others"
 
It was a really great conference.
 
Also this week, there was an earthquake... Like, one you can actually feel and the room was shaking and it was a tad bit scary, desho. It was in the middle of the night and we all woke up, though we were all half asleep. It went something a long the lines of: Sister Wells- "Is this an...?" Sister Hathway- "Earthquake." We were all pretty calm about it. I remember opening my eyes and watching the room shake. We all fell asleep rather quickly and Hathway Shimai and I didn't even remember about it until Wells Shimai brought it up again later that day.
 
There was also another typhoon. This is just typically Japan, now, I suppose.
 
On Sunday, we had one of the best sacrament meetings EVER. AKA It was the primary program and there was soooo much adorableness going on that I couldn't even handle it. They even sung it English! TALENT! I may have cried a lot because it may or may not have reminded me about that I might actually miss my family and my cute little nieces and nephews or whatever. No big deal.
 
I didn't really take any pictures this week... Whoops. Next week. Next week there will be more picures. I promise. I will even write it as a goal in my planner. That way you know it is a super real promise, yo.
 
Scriptural Phrase from this past week:
 
"Know ye not that ye are in the hands of God?" Mormon 5:23
 
Stay strong everyone. If you hand in there, so will I, haha. I keep getting frustrated with myself and then I recall that it is only my 3rd week in Japan. No need to hurry. NO need to rush. I just need to have a little more patience. That's all. :)
 
Yours truly,
Sister Teagan Clark
feel free to email me at clark.kathryn@myLDSmail.net

Monday, October 21, 2013

Transfer 1.2 Pictures


Shibua, biggest intersection in the world. 

Sister Teagan Clark

Transfer 1.2 Pictures

-Sister Wells and Sister Hathaway. Typical, haha.
- Sister Hathaway looking dramatically over Kanagawa. 
Sister Teagan Clark

Transfer 1.2: Sister Clark, Typhoon of Awkward

Hello everyone!

There was a typhoon at the beginning of this week! My first typhoon ever, what memories. It was a tad bit scary considering that our house was shaking quite a bit. Lots of wind and rain and lots of riding our bikes in the pouring rain. 

I have determined that I am not very good at riding bikes. It is scary! Especially in the rain, because it becomes a lot harder to see. Also, Kanagawa has a LOT of hills and I feel bad because I always have to walk up them. Sister Hathaway is like Super Women, she can power up the hills. I'm afraid that my legs are going to break, haha. 

I have discovered that in Japanese, I become about 300% more awkward than I am in English. The Japanese people are masters at ignoring. I will literally be dancing around, trying to give someone a flyer for Free English Class and they just don't even acknowledge me. Crazy skilled! But then I just feel even more awkward. One day I stopped these three girls that I thought were wearing really cute clothes, but I swear it was the most awkward conversation ever in the history of Japanese. 

"Excuse me. Really cute. EVERYTHING cute." is basically what I said and Hathaway Shimai was just dying of laughter. Oh well. A lot of people laugh at me. Most groups of college buys who think they are hilarious. Surprisingly enough, groups of college boys in Japan and in America are very similar. They all think they are the coolest thing to ever walk this earth.

We also saw a lot of miracles this week. Once we were just talking with this older lady and these two other woman came up and was like "Hi, I want you to teach my friend about God." LIKE WHAT! How does that even happen? Totally miraculous. Also once we were going to be late getting home and so we were literally running and we live on a HUGE hill. I am talking HUMONGOUS and right before we got to the really steep part, a member saw us and gave us a ride and gave us some sushi. Crazy amazing!!

I gave a short testimony in sacrament meeting which is good, I think. Everyone said it was good, but they could also just have been being really nice. I have eaten persimmons for the first time and surprisingly I eat a lot of persimmons. They grow here really well. 

I also taught my first lesson to a wonderful woman named Dakko-san. She is really amazing and the spirit was really strong. Sister Hathaway is truly an amazing teacher and I am just thankful that I was able to say a couple of things. 

Something that is different from America v. Japan is Japan has A LOT of random vending machines all over the place. Also, they have hardly any garbage cans, and yet you hardly see any garbage anywhere... They are so good at recycling and it is really impressive. America could definitely take that example.

I hope I get more used to bike riding and less terrified of dying... Haha. I am a big wimp, I admit it! I will try harder!

With Love, always,


Sister Teagan Clark
Japan Tokyo South Mission
1-7-7 Kichijoji Higashi-Cho
Musashino-Shi, Tokyo
180-0002
JAPAN

Transfer 1.2 Pictures

- I was a tiny bit shocked after riding home on my bike with the wind and the rain.
- Sister Wells, Sister Imano, Sister Hathaway and I, party rocking every night and day.


Sister Teagan Clark

Monday, October 14, 2013

Transfer 1.1 Pictures

This is Sister Imano and Sister Wells, who lives in the same house as us. Also, I am being eaten alive by mosquitos, haha. I have 11 bites, last time I counted. WHOO! Definitely worth it :)
 

Transfer 1.1 Pictures

Feist Shimai and I went out and got food.... by ourselves... Luckily, the man was very nice and pointed at things and used very simple Japanese to help us order our food.

Transfer 1.1 Pictures

Feist Shimai and I went out and got food.... by ourselves... Luckily, the man was very nice and pointed at things and used very simple Japanese to help us order our food.

Transfer 1.1 Pictures

Sunset in Kichijogi

Transfer 1.1 Pictures

First picture in Japan!

Transfer 1.1 Pictures

At the airport

Transfer 1.1 Pictures

My best friend, Alyssa, and I in the MTC. Lucky, eh?

Transfer 1.1: The Party District

Hi. I'm in Japan. Wut.
 
I'm trying to decide what would be best to decide! I've got to write this as quick as I can and so I'll do my best to include as much info as you might what to know!
 
I left for Japan at 8:30 AM on Oct 7th and arrived at 4:30 PM on Oct 8th. My mission president is PRESIDENT WADA and he's only the best, no big deal. We stand a couple of nights in the beautiful mission home in Kichijogi and recieved some training. And then did streeting..... With Feist Shimai.... AKA neither of us knew what we were doing. BUT! It went well. The first 3 people we talked to didn't speak Japanese but spoke English, so everything went alright.
 
My trainer is Hathaway Shimai and I feel so very blessed to get to be with her. She's a great example and she's really patient with all of my folley's.
 
We live in a two story house with two other sisters (Imano Shimai and Wells Shimai) and it's very very Japanese. Small and adorable with tatami floors and we sleep on futons and everything is so so so so cool I can hardly stand how amazing everything is. I'll try really hard to upload some pictures.
This computer is going a tad crazy on me as of right now. Haha. Normal.
 
Language folley for this week is the time that I said "Green English Class" instead of "Free English Class" while I was trying to hand out flyers. Whoops. Hathaway Shimai was pretty entertained by it though, haha.
 
Everything has been going really really well. Maybe next week I'll tell you all the cool stories! But for now, I will bid you adieue!
 
Stay safe everyone! I love you a lot!
 
Sister Teagan Clark
Japan Tokyo South Mission
1-7-7 Kichijoji Higashi-Cho
Musashino-Shi, Tokyo
180-0002
JAPAN

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Week 8 Pictures

- Elder Zachary Powell and I (from the same high school, going to the same country, on the same day, weeee)
-Classic missionary + BIG MAP picture. CLASSIC.

--
Sister Teagan Clark
OCT 07 JPN-TOKS
2007 N. 900 E. Unit 46 
Provo, UT 84602

Week 8 Pictures

-Elder Robinson and I (he's reassigned to Kansas!)
-Oh, and I forgot to mention that I got 5-6 inches cut off my hair.

--
Sister Teagan Clark
OCT 07 JPN-TOKS
2007 N. 900 E. Unit 46 
Provo, UT 84602

Week 8 Pictures

Pictures at the temple
- My whole district
- Two districts!

--
Sister Teagan Clark
OCT 07 JPN-TOKS
2007 N. 900 E. Unit 46 
Provo, UT 84602

Week 8 Pictures



--
Sister Teagan Clark
OCT 07 JPN-TOKS
2007 N. 900 E. Unit 46 
Provo, UT 84602

Week 8 Pictures

1- All the missionaries in our branch departing on Monday!
2- All the Sisters departing on Monday, including the too sweet sweet Sisters from Japan

--
Sister Teagan Clark
OCT 07 JPN-TOKS
2007 N. 900 E. Unit 46 
Provo, UT 84602

Week 8: UHM LAST WEEK IN THE MTC, MAYBE

Good morning, my darlings fans!

And by fans, I means friends, of course. 

Last Tuesday was our last Tuesday having devotionals in the Marriott Center. It has been an honor to be a part of that. This last week has mostly been crazy. Jones Shimai and the other Sisters all had choir practices in the mornings and I had to do exchanged with a Sister Southworth in a different district. There are some fine missionaries in that district, but they just aren't MY missionaries, you know?

This week, I really wanted to start sharing some scriptures that I wrote down during the week. These are scriptures/phrases that really suck out to me and when I read them, my heart was sincerely touched by the spirit and it caused me to ponder. I hope that perhaps you might be caused to ponder as well.

"God has entrusted you with these things" Alma 37:14

"Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?" Matt 8:26

"BE MERCIFUL. DEAL JUSTLY. JUDGE RIGHTEOUSLY. DO GOOD CONTINUALLY. Then shall ye receive your reward." Alma 41:14

"ARISE and be not afraid" Matt 17:7

"If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed...nothing shall be impossible unto you." Matt 17:20

"yeah, I will keep thy commandments WILL ALL MY HEART" Alma 45:7

"But behold to [Satan's] astonishment [the soft spots in Sister Clark's testimony] which had hitherto been a weak place, had now, by the means of [the Spirit of the Lord]. BECOME STRONG. Yeah, even to exceed the strength of [the adversary]" Alma 49:14

"Truly this was the Son of God" Matt 27:54 (Believed on Him after it was too late)

Alma 53:9- INIQUITY puts us in the most DANGEROUS CIRCUMSTANCES

Those are just a few things. The MTC is amazing. The work is amazing. I promise that if you study the scriptures with all your heart that the spirit will speak to you and testify of the truth of Christ. 

The best language follie of this week when me. I accidentally said "saiko" instead of "seiko" one meaning success, and the other meaning awesome. Not too bad. BUT THEN I said said "shinpai" instead of " shinpo" one meaning anxiety or concern and the other meaning progression. My poor investigator was very confused. 

Picture to come! With lots of love!!

--
Sister Teagan Clark