As many of you know, a giant
hurricane hit our mission and caused SO much destruction. Hurricane Michael
was a category 4 hurricane (only 2 MPH winds away from a category 5)! Some wind
speeds were recorded going up to 156 MPH. The eye of the storm passed right
over my area and caused so many trees to fall, hitting cars, power-lines, and
houses. Power is out all over and many roads are still blocked. Because of
this, the mission president is shutting down our area for at least a transfer,
if not two. That means I'm being transferred this Wednesday to a new area for
the final 6 weeks of my mission!
I received news this morning
that I am white-washing to Tallahassee 4th Ward with Sister Bench! I've served
around her and she's awesome :). She just finished her training. Sister
Caldwell is going to Gulf Breeze, and Sister Wilson is going to Dothan. There
have been so many changes throughout the entire mission. Sorry in advance that
this will be the longest email of my life, but so much craziness has happened
this past week! Let's just take it one day at a time:
Tuesday
We woke this morning with notifications that we had to evacuate ASAP. We were going to the Milton church building. We hurried and threw together a suitcase and some food to take with us that would last us a few days, then off we went! That day, there were 27 sisters camping out in the gym from all the areas most targeted! It was so cool because I got to see a lot of the Pace members again! Countless members came by to drop off food and bedding for all of us. Everyone was so impressed by the amount of food they brought (enough to feed an army for sure) and that they provided enough air mattresses for all 27 of us to have one! (Too bad my leaked and went flat in the middle of the night). That afternoon, we were recruited to go to Bishop Welty's neighborhood to help people put up hurricane window covers. I was so happy all day seeing everyone that I love so very much! Bishop also took us by so we could see Brother Tom again! It made him so happy to see all of us, and sitting on his table among other letters were the letters I had written him months before. Sister Weingartner and so many other members remembered my food allergies and brought special food and treats just for me. I felt so loved!
We woke this morning with notifications that we had to evacuate ASAP. We were going to the Milton church building. We hurried and threw together a suitcase and some food to take with us that would last us a few days, then off we went! That day, there were 27 sisters camping out in the gym from all the areas most targeted! It was so cool because I got to see a lot of the Pace members again! Countless members came by to drop off food and bedding for all of us. Everyone was so impressed by the amount of food they brought (enough to feed an army for sure) and that they provided enough air mattresses for all 27 of us to have one! (Too bad my leaked and went flat in the middle of the night). That afternoon, we were recruited to go to Bishop Welty's neighborhood to help people put up hurricane window covers. I was so happy all day seeing everyone that I love so very much! Bishop also took us by so we could see Brother Tom again! It made him so happy to see all of us, and sitting on his table among other letters were the letters I had written him months before. Sister Weingartner and so many other members remembered my food allergies and brought special food and treats just for me. I felt so loved!
Wednesday
Happy 17 month mark, Sister Burnham! To celebrate, let's have the biggest hurricane the pan handle has ever seen in the past 100 years! Haha, yeah... so that was my running joke of the day. We stayed inside all day to avoid the rain and slight wind that were carried over from the hurricane. We had trainings and studies all day long. A lot of sisters were freaking out about their homes being completely destroyed, so there was just a sad feeling in the room all day. None of our calls would go through to members, which was super concerning.
ThursdayHappy 17 month mark, Sister Burnham! To celebrate, let's have the biggest hurricane the pan handle has ever seen in the past 100 years! Haha, yeah... so that was my running joke of the day. We stayed inside all day to avoid the rain and slight wind that were carried over from the hurricane. We had trainings and studies all day long. A lot of sisters were freaking out about their homes being completely destroyed, so there was just a sad feeling in the room all day. None of our calls would go through to members, which was super concerning.
We got to shower! Members
opened up their homes for us to come shower and do laundry, since we were
staying at the church much longer than we'd anticipated. I got to go to Sister
Peterson's home, and she is so generous and funny! My companions absolutely
loved her and now want to serve in Pace because of how awesome the ward has
been. She also gave us some items to surprise Sister Benson with for her
birthday tomorrow! We got to go out to lunch with Brother and Sister Kranz at
La Hacienda, and seeing them made me so happy. I didn't lose a beat talking and
joking with them. For the rest of the afternoon, we went out finding around
Milton and had some miracle contacts. With 27 sisters out working that day,
Milton is fixin' to be flooded with lots of referrals!
Friday
I started to have a slight breakdown from being stuck in the church for 4 days, but fortunately they gave us the clearance to go stay with our Sister Training Leaders in Dothan after driving back to Marianna to pick up some more personal items. It was a long day of packing up, transporting food, luggage, sisters, and then driving 2 hours to Marianna, then 2 hours to Troy, AL. Driving through Marianna was surreal. Everything looked so different, and the atmosphere was eerie, depressed, and humbled. Trees were EVERYWHERE. Buildings were broken up. Power-lines littered the roads. People had been trapped in their houses by trees for a couple of days. The biggest miracle that happened was that our house was completely untouched. We had this huge tree hanging over our house that we were worried about, and it did fall, but away from the house. And it fell just perfectly diagonal between the other two houses adjacent to us as to not hit anyone's house! God's hand was definitely in that! All of our clothes inside were slightly damp and smelled weird from the hurricane, which was so weird, but everything was fine! Also, God's timing is perfect because right when we were fixin' to head off to Troy, a member drove by to check on our house and see if there was any damage. We were able to give her a big hug and it made her day to see us. Another moment that night was after an hour of driving, we decided to go to Chick-Fil-A for dinner. I had neglected to eat very much and we were all starving. But I accidentally missed the turn, so after a slight detour, we got into the drive-thru line... and realized there was another missionary car in front of us, and they turned out to be our Zone Leaders! We were able to talk with them through the car window and update them about everything that went on.
I started to have a slight breakdown from being stuck in the church for 4 days, but fortunately they gave us the clearance to go stay with our Sister Training Leaders in Dothan after driving back to Marianna to pick up some more personal items. It was a long day of packing up, transporting food, luggage, sisters, and then driving 2 hours to Marianna, then 2 hours to Troy, AL. Driving through Marianna was surreal. Everything looked so different, and the atmosphere was eerie, depressed, and humbled. Trees were EVERYWHERE. Buildings were broken up. Power-lines littered the roads. People had been trapped in their houses by trees for a couple of days. The biggest miracle that happened was that our house was completely untouched. We had this huge tree hanging over our house that we were worried about, and it did fall, but away from the house. And it fell just perfectly diagonal between the other two houses adjacent to us as to not hit anyone's house! God's hand was definitely in that! All of our clothes inside were slightly damp and smelled weird from the hurricane, which was so weird, but everything was fine! Also, God's timing is perfect because right when we were fixin' to head off to Troy, a member drove by to check on our house and see if there was any damage. We were able to give her a big hug and it made her day to see us. Another moment that night was after an hour of driving, we decided to go to Chick-Fil-A for dinner. I had neglected to eat very much and we were all starving. But I accidentally missed the turn, so after a slight detour, we got into the drive-thru line... and realized there was another missionary car in front of us, and they turned out to be our Zone Leaders! We were able to talk with them through the car window and update them about everything that went on.
Saturday
Troy is such a cute little town! I'm so happy to be staying here with Sister Strong and Sister Black. They have been such tender mercies to me and have helped me face the emotional roller-coaster that I've been on. We got to help out with a Habitat for Humanity service project where we worked on building a home. It really put my skills to the test, and I looked like a minion in the gear they had for me to wear! We pretended that we were practicing so we could go rebuild Marianna, one hammer and nail at a time. Then we took advantage of the hurricane to start to call every single person on the ward roster to see if they were okay and if they needed any help or supplies. I testify that a lot of people that wouldn't have talked to us before did because their heart was softened from this trial. I know that God is in the details, and as hard as this hurricane has been, God is more interested in the eternal salvation of His children than in their personal comfort.
Troy is such a cute little town! I'm so happy to be staying here with Sister Strong and Sister Black. They have been such tender mercies to me and have helped me face the emotional roller-coaster that I've been on. We got to help out with a Habitat for Humanity service project where we worked on building a home. It really put my skills to the test, and I looked like a minion in the gear they had for me to wear! We pretended that we were practicing so we could go rebuild Marianna, one hammer and nail at a time. Then we took advantage of the hurricane to start to call every single person on the ward roster to see if they were okay and if they needed any help or supplies. I testify that a lot of people that wouldn't have talked to us before did because their heart was softened from this trial. I know that God is in the details, and as hard as this hurricane has been, God is more interested in the eternal salvation of His children than in their personal comfort.
Sunday
Today is what I called, "Practice what you preach day." We had a fifteen minute sacrament meeting at 7:30am in the Troy Branch... in jeans and t-shirts... and then off we went as a large group to MARIANNA to help clear up people's yards! I know that if the Savior were on earth right now, He wouldn't be sitting in a church building, but He would be out saving lives. So that's what we got to do. I know angels were with us all day because I was hauling trees and branches that were bigger than me all day long, and we cleared out three people's yards! With only 12 of us. Those we helped were grateful and wanted to get pictures with us. They called us their yellow angels. What a neat experience to take part in. I know this is the church of Jesus Christ. There were boxes and boxes of food and supplies for us to hand out, and lots of brand new chain saws read for us to use! He knows His sheep, and they are numbered. A small town like Marianna was not forgotten or forsaken. Heavenly Father knows you and is aware of your every need. He loves you so much. You are not forgotten, either!
Today is what I called, "Practice what you preach day." We had a fifteen minute sacrament meeting at 7:30am in the Troy Branch... in jeans and t-shirts... and then off we went as a large group to MARIANNA to help clear up people's yards! I know that if the Savior were on earth right now, He wouldn't be sitting in a church building, but He would be out saving lives. So that's what we got to do. I know angels were with us all day because I was hauling trees and branches that were bigger than me all day long, and we cleared out three people's yards! With only 12 of us. Those we helped were grateful and wanted to get pictures with us. They called us their yellow angels. What a neat experience to take part in. I know this is the church of Jesus Christ. There were boxes and boxes of food and supplies for us to hand out, and lots of brand new chain saws read for us to use! He knows His sheep, and they are numbered. A small town like Marianna was not forgotten or forsaken. Heavenly Father knows you and is aware of your every need. He loves you so much. You are not forgotten, either!
I am exhausted physically,
emotionally, and spiritually, but I was able to receive a blessing this week
that gave me a lot of comfort and strength. I know I couldn't have handled this
past week alone. I'm grateful for my Heavenly Father and my Savior because They
have truly carried me through this trial and are still carrying me onto my next
adventure in Tallahassee! Even though it seems crazy to be leaving Marianna
after such a short time, it also feels right, and I know it's where God needs
me next. Plus, if I'm going to serve in the Florida Tallahassee Mission, I got
to at least serve within Tallahassee, right?
Thank you for your thoughts and
prayers! I love each of you and wanted to share a quick personal study insight
I had this week:
When something crazy, exciting,
depressing, or sad happens in life, as soon as you possibly can, you call a
friend or a family member to tell them what has happened. And you seek advice
or comfort. Do you schedule in a time at the very end of your day to call them?
Is it a set appointment? No! And so it should be with God. We should be talking
with Him throughout the day, whenever is feasibly possible. It's not just a
routine, allotted time at the beginning and end of our day. It is a
conversation throughout the day. Now think about your prayers and\ your
relationship with your Heavenly Father. A few weeks ago I talked about praying
more, but now I want to also emphasize improving the quality of your prayers as well. I
testify that Heavenly Father wants to hear even more sincerely from you. He has
more blessings waiting to pour down upon you, and all you need to do is
ask.
Much love,
Sister Burnham
Sister Burnham
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