Thursday, August 18, 2016

Second to last Transfer. Woot, woot! - Week 68 (Transfer 11, Week 6) - 15 August, 2016

Transfer news:

Sister Osman is starting her second to last transfer. She will be home in 3 months.

Her companion Sister Allred got transferred and Sister Osman is staying put. She will be companions with Sister Bailey Wilson, who is from Alpine and who went to high school with Mikkia and graduated with her: old friends, come missionary companions. What a wonderful small world!

Her "letter":

Hey everyone!!!!!

One miracle from this week: R* and B* accepted to live the Word of Wisdom! Hurrah.

Here are some pictures from the week because I'm too lazy to write.  :)

It was P-day. :)


Exchanges with Sister Leishman. My fave. Life long friends from here on out. She was trained by Sister Anthony.


Tape, the new plastic surgery!





This is exchanges in STAYNER!!! With Sister Giles. We got to see N* and M*. N* got baptized a week after I left Stayner and now he is dating a member named M* who is coming pack to church!!!! Haha...Stayner is like The Office, but in real life.



This is Brother Giddy. Pretty much the most adorable old man in the whole of Barrie. We had dinner with them last night.

We had second dinner with D* and S* last night. S* is a recently re-activated member and D* is coming back! He went to church for the 2nd time this week and is working towards the temple! He gave us duck. :) And this melon that grows in the desert. Partay with the YSA.

This is R*. We taught her the Law of Chastity this morning. LOL. She'll be baptized in a couple weeks. Love her. 

 Me and Sister Allred this morning. Our last day together. :( BUT my new companion will be Sister Wilson!!! We went to highschool together!!!!! hahahaha



Monday, August 1, 2016

This week was magic - Week 65 (Transfer 11, Week 3) - 25 July, 2016


Sister Allred & Sister Osman
Love these girls!

Hey everyone!

Man, this week was magic. I love this week.

This week I started off feeling really frustrated. I felt like I wasn't getting any answers in my studies as to how to help the people we are working with. Which of course means I wasn't putting in enough effort or studying in the right way. God has promised, ask and ye shall receive.

So clearly, I wasn't doing my part to ask. So I sat down Tuesday morning with a determination to make my studies count in the morning so I could be super prepared. At first nothing was coming. I didn't know what to study. I was bored of everything. I've read the whole Book of Mormon, the Bible, the Doctrine and Covenant, Peal of Great Price, Jesus the Christ twice now, and Our Search for Happiness about 1 and a half times and a ton of the church Ensigns and other talks that we've been given to read. So pretty much my studies haven't been doing great because I'm dying for something new.

But ANYWAY, I sat down and I was reading Jesus the Christ when a thought came to me: all the doctrine in the world and scriptures and blah blah blah won't help anyone if they don't feel God's love. So then for the last 45 minutes of my studies, I spent the time making lists of things we could do to serve each of our new converts, returning members, and investigators. I was amazed at how well I know them and how the Spirit just kept bringing to mind so many little things I could do for them.

So, we did it. This week we served in every possible way we could think of. In every lesson we planned a way to serve. At every door we tried to compliment. We just tried to help people feel so loved. And it worked! The Lord blessed us so much!

By the end of the week we had found 9 new people who are interested in learning the gospel and had had sooooo many more opportunities to teach than the week before. People were so much more willing to meet with us. And then on Sunday, we come out of ward council to see our investigator B*. She is so cute. 7 months pregnant. And who did she bring? Her friend C*. About 5 minutes later our other investigator named N* came to the door. He reminds me so much of my dad. He is 18 now and has just been "moved" out of his group home. aka they kick you out when you are 18. When we met him earlier this week I told him about my dad's conversion story and how he went through similar things. It felt like we were best friends with N* already in that first meeting. Then, about 10 minutes after N* arived at church, A* shows up! We were stoked! And then about 10 minutes after that Am* showed up. :)

It was a great day. I felt like all of these people who I've come to love so much were exactly in the place that would make them happiest. It was great. It was so cool to see how all of our hard work and prayers that week had been answered by the Lord.

Anyway, got to go.

Love,

Mikkia

From another email:

About her foot:

Don't worry about my foot. Haha I swear that's all anyone ever asks me. It's first question at every door, from everyone in the hallway at church, everyone we pass on the sidewalk, every cashier, everyone. Hahahaha

My foot's actually doing a lot better. I can walk on it now with the boot. The bruising is almost completely gone except a little on the bottom of my foot and the sides of my toes, and the swelling is gone. It's only a little sore in the mornings when I wake up and I've never taken pain killers for it and I refuse to do so. You taught me well. ;) But it's honestly never been that painful. The first night after it happened was a little uncomfortable but since then I've been fine. Sleeping well. :) I honestly think I could probably go without the boot next week. I feel like my foot has healed monumentally fast. I know that is in large part to the blessings I've received. Thank the good heavens for the priesthood. But it's not that badly broken anyway. It just looked pretty bad. Haha. I think I popped one of the major blood vessels in my foot and that's why it filled up with blood like that.

Question of the week:

Tell me something encouraging that happened to you in the last week or the last little while. So in other words is there anything that gives wings to your feet, that gives you hope and that makes you feel like you want to press on?


Something encouraging? All I need is a companion who encourages me to do better and then supports me in doing my best. That gives my feet wings. I currently have a companion who does that for me. :) So I am full of hope. One thing I love that she always says, is whenever we are having a hard day or something goes wrong, she just smiles and says, "And yet, all is well." I love it. She helps me to have a fantastic attitude. She really understands the atonement.

Note from the editor: We love Sister Allred :)








Sister Osman in the News! - 21 July, 2016

Sister Osman in the news, well sort of :)

Check out picture#5. Caption is wrong, she broke her foot not sprained it, but I love that face. Haha. Too funny!

Thanks to the amazing medical staff in all the missions, to keep these awesome missionaries safe and well taken care of. We are so grateful to you!

http://www.mormonnewsroom.ca/article/nurses-care-for-those-who-serve

Elder Z’Thomas Cannon wraps Sister Mikkia Osman’s very painful sprained ankle.
Missionaries can quickly get the help they need from a mission nurse specialist so they can return to their work after an illness or injury.
Picture courtesy of Marsha Cannon.



Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Foot is broken, Life is Good! - Week 64 (Transfer 11, Week 2) - 18 July, 2016

Mikkia makes a ride-on shopping cart look good!

Hey everyone!

Another incredible week. Busy busy busy. I'm so grateful to the Lord for keeping me busy. I honestly think I would go crazy if He didn't. When I'm not actively involved in doing the work, I get sad. No need for sadness! Just do what you're supposed to, focus on other people, and all is well. :)

Monday:
Went on exchanges with Sister Johnson in Orangeville. It was an interesting exchange. I learned a lot about the Spirit and that sometimes missionary work isn't about the people you are teaching, but sometimes it's about your companion. That's something Sister Turley taught me too. She was really good at serving her companions and turning outwards.

Tuesday: Still in Orangeville. Met two nice members of the ward who's children are struggling. We talked with them over lunch about faith and how to help their children who are far away on missions or far away in other ways. It amazes me how much mothers love their children. :) Then we exchanged back and I went on exchanges with the Aurora Hermanas that night. They are in a trio so I was with two of them here in Barrie. I was with Hermana Meyer and Hermana Rowley. We taught the most prepared investigators in the world named R* and T*. R* is in her 20's and was raised Sikh. We taught her how to pray and afterwards she had the biggest smile on her face. She  told us she wants to meet with us because she's heard about Jesus Christ and that he's died for us  and she "feels something". *cough cough the spirit*. Then we taught T* who accepted to be baptized and LOVED learning about the Restoration. We have been working hard to find those with humble hearts and to turn those who aren't ready to keep commitments over to the Lord. Haha that's what I love about Sister Allred: she's not afraid to let people go. I LOVE IT.

Wednesday. Still on exchanges with Aurora. The heat was intense. Really humid. My foot was throbbing and swollen and we were tracting and I was on crutches and I thought I was going to die. But we did it anyway, and sang lots of songs, and pretended it was awesome and all turned out well.
That night we exchanged back for 2 hours so I was with Sister Allred again. We went to a dinner appointment and taught our investigator Iris who's husband recently passed. She is the cutest.
Then we exchanged with the Bracebridge sisters. Sister Kehrer and Sister Detlor!

Thursday: On exchanges with Sister Kehrer and Sister Detlor! Sister Kehrer is my baby and Sister Detlor is her baby!!!! So it was like...grandma on exchanges with mom and grandaughter. LOVE IT. Posterity here in the mission now. We saw lots of miracles! I LOVE THEM. I miss Sister Kehrer and Sister Brown. But they are both doing great.
That night we exchanged back. The zone leaders called and informed us that we were giving an instruction the next morning for skills and interviews and that I was doing the musical number. LOL I love it.

Friday: Skills and interviews with President Shields! We gave an instruction on planning and got TONS of revelation about how to help our area/sisters/zone. LOVED it. Then, FINALLY when skills and interviews was over I finally had the time to go to the doctor. So we went. Got it x-rayed. Found out it's broken. I got a boot. We hurried home to our dinner appointment. Taught the Restoration. Went to coordination with the zone leaders that night. Got home 2 minutes late. Planned for the next day until 10:15. Made some calls. Updated the areabook. 10:30 came around. Time for bed. Turned off the lights and brushed our teeth in the dark.

Saturday: Taught lots of awesome lessons. Did weekly planning finally because it was our first day together as companions.

Sunday: Church. Taught lots of investigators. Visited Sister Reeve in the hospital. Followed up with all the Sisters on exchange commitments. Talked to the zone leaders and district leader. Went and taught a bunch with Sister Lofters and tracted with her. She is the bomb. She gave us lemonade.

That's all.

I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!! This week I learned a lot about diligence and never giving up. I was reminded that the Lord loves me.
On other cool news and miracles, do you remember P*?!?! (The Attorney from Pakistan) He was finally baptized this week. And guess what?! My former companion Sister Anthony is serving where he is now in Etobicoke and is the one who got to help him get there. I love this mission. It has changed me life. I'm so grateful to be here.

Love you,

Sister Mikkia Osman

From another email:

Questions for the week?

How has Heavenly Father been speaking to you lately?
Um....the usual way? I don't know. That's a good question. I have been wondering that myself! I don't know, usually when he does it's through thoughts. Like when we are knocking doors I will just know in my head that I need to knock on a certain one or that I need to talk to a certain person. Usually it's at a very inconvenient time so it makes it harder for me to follow it, but if I don't then he doesn't give me anymore. So I've learned to follow every impression or else I'll be in the dark and that's no fun. I've gotten really good at following the spirit in lessons. I honestly feel like I just open my mouth an it's filled. I just know what to say. Not perfectly 100% of the time, but I feel like I've practiced enough now that I know when the spirit is telling me to speak and what he's telling me to say, and when he gives me the answers to their questions in my head but tells me not to say them. There are often times when the spirit tell me not to answer their questions or speak, because I know they wouldn't value the answer and it wouldn't be good enough for them. There would be no use in teaching them what they won't learn. So sometimes the spirit just stops my lips and stays my mouth and forbids me to speak. I'm always grateful during those times. Sometimes I wish everyone would just stop talking for two seconds and be quiet. My mission has taught me a lot of patience...but in some ways I think it's also made me way more frustrated. I wish everyone would just stop talking and LISTEN. If they would just do that, then they would get there answers. But that's how the spirit works: he won't talk or let God's servants talk if you won't listen.

What have you been asking Heavenly Father?
Who is supposed to be baptized? What am I missing? What do you need me to do to help our sisters feel more successful and be more obedient? How can we help people get to church. Pretty much I had a big long conversation with him last night begging him to just please help us get people to church. So yeah. Those things that I just listed are what I pray for the most often. Then usually I say thanks for my family at the end of the prayer and ask him to keep you all safe.

Are you good friends with Him?  I love Him and He is one of my best friends! I chat with Him ALL DAY LONG! :) (And mostly I thank Him for my amazing life and You and everyone else who means the world to me!)
Haha yeah. Way good friends. Well actually, maybe not so much good friends as like he's like the only mentore I have on earth that I can tell anything to and that understands everything I say. Sometimes I get really annoyed because no one understands what my mission is like, because straight up no one is me. But he always does. And he always finds some way to call me to repentance and keep me on the straight and narrow. ;) Something I've been wondering lately is how I can know what he thinks about me...Like I feel like I know what he thinks of me, but I want more specifics so that I can know where to improve and what I'm doing well. specifically.




"Osman Family defensive measures against the great Canadian postal strike."
The Canada Post office has been striking, thus no letters could be sent for a while, but we found a kind soul who was traveling to Toronto and took Sister Osman's letters and some treats directly to her.
We love kind people! Thank you!






Monday, July 11, 2016

Ouch!!! - Week 63 (Transfer 11, Week 1) - 11 July, 2016



OUCH!!!
Quick updated: Sister Osman decided she was too busy to go the doctor and went teaching instead. Oh, my! I talked to the mission office tonight, they called me and told me, which was so, so kind of them. The office staff  (senior missionaries) in the CTM is amazing!!!. They will keep encouraging her to go. :)  Pray that she gets better soon. What a girl, she sure is one tough cookie!

Hey Everyone,

This week was a fantastic week. SO MUCH HAPPENED. So I'll just go day by day.

Monday: We taught a couple lessons. Sister Anthony came up from Bracebridge to stay at our apartment for the night because transfers were on Tuesday. Both her companion and my companion were going home. So Sister Anthony and I went and taught a bunch of people while they stayed home and packed and then they went out and did work and it was awesome. We taught this guy named Cody who is super frustrated about God because he feels like he never gets answers to his prayers. He's a law student. So that was sad. But we are seeing him again today and he's been reading his scriptures so that's cool.

Tuesday. Transfers. I got my new companion Sister Allred. She's a pretty new missionary so it's super cool that she's already been called to be an STL. I got to see Sister Gousse and Sister Brown and my other "baby" Sister Kehrer is training this transfer! And I'm her STL! Going on exchanges with her this Friday so I'm so excited for that. I cried when I saw them out of pure joy. I seriously am so emotional. Anytime I'm happy I cry. Any time I feel the spirit I cry. So pretty much my eyes are watery all the time.

Wednesday. We went and taught an investigator named A*. The same one who bore her testimony in church last week. She told us she is ordained to the Melchizedek Priesthood so that was strange.
We walked out of there like, "what just happened?" And then I tripped on a brick and did something to my foot....I'll send pictures. It's pretty bad.

Thursday. Missionary Leadership Council. We met the new mission president. He's cool but super different from President Clayton. He has no idea what he's dong yet so that was pretty funny. And he's super chill. He was a YSA (young single adult) stake president before this so he accidentally kept calling us "guys and gals" and told us a bout all these court cases he is in charge of. He was in charge of the Warren Jeffs case and has been trying to get him locked up in jail for YEARS. Like 15 years. Crazy.

Friday: Super annoying. I've been on crutches since MLC at this point but Heavenly Father has sure been helping me out A LOT. MIRACLE AFTER MIRACLE.

Saturday: Same story as Friday.

Sunday: Same story as Saturday.

I have the biggest testimony of Heavenly Father and that He loves me. This week has been such an amazing week. I love my companion. I love my area. I love our sisters. We saw so many miracles this week. I got to sing at Angel's baptism. It was awesome. No we are going on 3 exchanges this week and the week after and then 2 exchanges every other week after that. So super pumped.

K sorry this was a long one. I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!! Thanks for your emails. :)

P.S. Our investigator S* from my last area gave me a roll up piano. It's the best thing in the world.

P.P.S We set L* and K* with baptismal dates this week!

P.P.P.S. I think I'm going to go to the doctor today.







Answers to a few questions from another email:

How are you holding up? I'm good!

How was your week? Lots of miracles. We tracted into tons of less actives that no one had names or numbers for, found some really cool investigators by the spirit. And we totally had the most spirit filled lessons that really helped our investigators to work towards baptismal dates! And those lessons were all based on instruction given from the new mission president. So cool!

How is life with your new companion? Great. I love her. She is so innocent and cute. I love her. She is just so funny and so sweet and just so kind. I love it.

Question for the week: What do you love about being a STL, what is challenging?
I love being allowed to talk to all the sisters whenever I want and the zone leaders. I LOVE having friends. I'm a people person. I just like to talk to people! When you are in a normal area you have to get permission in order to call any other missionary. So even though you are friends with the members and your investigators etc its not the same because they just don't understand what it's like to be a missionary and you have to always be an example to them and be teaching them in every conversation and contact. But with missionaries, you can just be yourself. You don't have to teach them every second you see them. It's fun. I love just being able to be there for the sisters. I love it when they call us for advice. hahaha secretly it makes me feel cool. Like I've learned something.

What's hard about being an STL? All the exchanges. Our areas are supposed to be model areas that other sisters come to to see how the work gets done, but when you are out of your area so much and with different companions so much, it makes doing the work that much harder. It requires a lot of concentration and consecration. Which is great, I love it, but sometimes can be really frustrating when you are doing your best but have a hard time getting know the members and the area and your companion and help  and change it all and have an exemplary area when half the time you don't even have control over it. And I am very protective over my areas. Lol. They become a  mini home for me. So yeah, its hard sometimes to trust the other sisters with my investigators and stuff and companion and everything.

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

I just love everything - Week 62 (Transfer 10, Week 6) - 4 July, 2016

So I took like no pictures this week. So this is all. Pretty sweet. It rained all day Canada day. Probably one of the most miserable days of my mission. Super funny. 






Hey Everyone,

This week was...incredible. I'm just so full of love right now! Everything is so good. Everything is amazing. I love Canada. I love America. I love my family and all of ya'll. I just love everything.

Cool story:

We have been working lots with the members so this week Sister Reeve brought us an investigator to church that she had met at the bus stop. She was so touched by fast and testimony meeting that she got up and bore her testimony. For her work she goes around to different churches to network or something and so she told us how the spirit in our church is different: it's stronger. The whole congregation was on their seats. I swear, the whole building was going to be taken into heaven because the Spirit was so strong. SO FUNNY! Pretty much the coolest thing ever. 
Then we sang Oh Canada and I started to cry because I love Canada so much. And she was like, "I love your voice sister Osman. A song of the heart is a prayer unto me." And I was just like yussss be baptized.  And then today we are having a barbecue as a zone for Murica Day. I love our zone. My companion Sister Turley is done with her mission so I'm getting a new companion named Sister Allred! Super stoked. And guess what?! My companion Sister Kehrer (one of my "babies"that I trained) is going to be back in my zone in Bracebridge where Sister Anthony was! So sister Anthony is going to Etobicoke (my last area) and my baby Sister Kehrer is coming here so we can go on exchanges!!! JOY JOY JOY. Also, we found the coolest investigator named K*. He's accepted a baptismal date for July 23rd! Stoked.

AMERICA RULES. 


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AMERICA AMERICA OUR HOME AND NATIVE LANDDDDDDMultiple musical notesMusical note

New Mission Presidents

Sadly, Sister and President Clayton left the Canada, Toronto Mission to take on a new assignment. President Clayton was called to the seventies where he will be serving in the Pacific North West Area Presidency.
Mikkia has loved and admire President and Sister Clayton so much! They will be sorely missed by all! Still, we are very excited for their new assignment and wish them the best of luck!

Gladly, Sister Osman got new mission presidents:

Jeffrey L. and Patricia H. Shields





Jeffrey Lane Shields, 63, and Patricia Hawkins Shields, seven children, Colonial Hills Ward, Salt Lake Hillside Stake; Canada Toronto Mission, succeeding President Weatherford T. Clayton and Sister Lisa T. Clayton. Brother Shields serves as a YSA stake president and is a former stake presidency counselor, bishop, high councilor, stake and ward Young Men president, and missionary in the Japan East Mission. Attorney, Callister, Nebeker & McCullough. Born in Salt Lake City to Leland Grant Shields and Anna Louine Brown Shields.

Sister Shields serves as a stake young single adult adviser and is a former stake Primary president, ward Young Women president, ward Relief Society and Primary presidency counselor, Cub Scout leader, and nursery leader. Born in Melbourne, Florida, to David Henry Hawkins and Vela Washburn Hawkins.

Today's Canada Toroto Missio Facebook Entry (5Jul16)