Ready Set Go!

This is Sister Poulsen's mom:
I got a quick email from her this morning telling us her Itinerary for tomorrow's flight to Virginia. Yay! What a fun surprise!  It was just a business letter with times and such for her flight and financial needs for the baggage, etc.   She leaves the MTC at 3:30am.  Yep! That is an early start to a long ol' day so pray for her.
I spoke with the Mission Office this morning, to get an idea about when we will find out her new location.  The sweet office secretary recognized the caller ID and expressed enthusiasm about Sister Poulsen's arrival.  She loves her calling and has a tiny accent.  I think that Tara, *ehem* I mean, Sister Poulsen, won't notice the southern accent as much because the drawl sounds a little like folks from Lewiston.  *laugh*
This neat sister explained that Sister Poulsen will arrive tomorrow afternoon and be picked up at the airport with her fellow MTC companions.  They will be driven to a nearby chapel and fed dinner.  They will each have an interview with the Mission President and then have a teaching opportunity.  They will stay the night there at the Mission Home and then they will get their first assignments and meet their trainer companions and travel to their new areas.
We will hear from her next on Monday, March 7th.  I will get an email from the office staff by the end of the week, with the information about her new area and photos of her with President and Sister Baker and her new companion. *big smiles*
Also  here is a neat tidbit. She found the very skirt that we looked and looked everywhere to find in the months of shopping. We tried to find a tan colored skirt everywhere, but all we could find in January were black and gray winter clearance things. Ugh.  And then she found one today. It was right there in the MTC gift shop on the day before she leaves.  My first thought was that the Lord provides at the very moment of our need.  Right?  Trust in Him, after all that you can do.  *grin* Who knew that a sermon could be preached from shopping trips, huh?
At the very end of her quick note, she added this:

So, I'll share something cool. 
With one of our investigators, the one that was so sad.  Well, for the first few lessons, she didn't want to pray at the end. She just didn't feel like she was very good at it. But by the 3rd lesson, she finally mustered up the courage to do it. WOW! When an investigator prays, the room just fills with the spirit. It is so cool! "The spirit of God like a fire is burning" is pretty much an exact description of the feeling. You could feel the love from Heavenly Father just poor over us.
So there is my cool story for the day.
 I don't have a ton of time to write, I've gotta go pack! 
Getting pretty scared. But also excited! I just have no idea what to expect! 
Peace and blessings. Write me soon, 
Loves, Sista Poulsen

Awesome.  In the actual sense of the word.
Tomorrow she will be standing in Virginia.
~ Lisa

Contact Sister Poulsen

Contact Sister Poulsen in Virginia:

tara.poulsen@myldsmail.net

Sister Tara Nicole Poulsen
Virginia Chesapeake Mission Office
1115 Cherokee Road
Portsmouth, VA 23701

First P Day

Hello! It is finally P-day - feels like we've been here for a month! But, wow, it's been quite the ride! Thanks for all of your updating emails and dear elders! I assure you I'm not sick of them :)
So I'll try to just answer questions that mom has sent me. Then I'll try to answer your individual emails as well :)
First off, my companion. Her name is Sister Pickett. She is hangry, hates chocolate Twizzlers, and is a total crazy human sometimes... But I love her :) She's from Gilbert Arizona. So when it snowed, she was in awe. She seriously has never seen snow fall from the sky before! We went out and danced in it. Glad I was able to experience that with her :)
I live in a room with another companionship, so there are 4 of us total in a 6 person room. Their names are Sister Frame (Beautiful red hair and crazy fun attitude, from Orem) and Sister Black (A shy, but sassy little girl, from Provo). Super fun girls! We are all going to the very same mission, so we are gonna all be going through the same things!
Now as for the Elders in our district... There are also 2 companionship's. Elder Douglas (District leader) and Elder Alberts (sacrament guy). And the other two, Elder Minson (Zone leader) and Elder Johnson (Also zone leader). Sister Frame and Black are the sister training leaders. Sis Pickett is the computer lady and I'm the music coordinator (didn't see that one coming) If you're a little confused at this point, welcome to the last 7 days of my life. Hehe yeah, confusion and awkwardness is pretty much our lives. If you're confused about zones and districts and what not, let me know and I'll try to explain. Maybe Dad can tell ya too.
Classes are cool, lots of role plays. Our teachers are super cool! Sister Brock is way fun, and super spiritual. We basically learn how to simply teach principles and lessons. And sharpening social skills.
So that first night was super hard. Cried when I wrote you. Cried when ever the word family or home came up. Pretty much cried all day, all night, and then was sick the next day probably because of the dehydration. But thankfully, I felt a lot better the end of the second day and fabulous the third! Don't get me wrong, I still miss ya'll with all my heart, but learning how to teach and diving into the gospel is super super cool! Night 3, I didn't even want to go to sleep because I just wanted to learn more! A thought from one of our classes, "Your purpose is to invite and help others to come unto Christ, not to preach and teach them."
Our sister training leaders kept saying "Just get to Sunday! You'll feel so much better!" Honestly, I felt the same. But yeah, Sundays are different. You start with RS. Then we had personal study. Then Sacrament meeting. To choose the speakers, we all prepare a talk, and then are called up on the spot to say it... SCARY! They called up an Elder and Sister from the other district. But this next Sunday it will probs be one of us. Then there is was a devotional. This one was a church history lady. Basically learned about the beginning of missionary work. Then her husband got up and said something I really liked. "You don't have to have self confidence, you have Christ's confidence." No pressure!

So, we practice teaching our teachers who pretend to be investigators. So no pressure to convert right? Wrong. Starting this week, we begin TRC's. This stands for Training Resourse Center. There are people who volunteer to be taught. You have a 50/50 chance of having that person being a real investigator who is wanting to learn more about the gospel. WOW! It's pretty scary, but at the same time, easy. You just talk to them about their concerns, and either teach the lesson we have planned, or go wherever the spirit tells ya to go. That's hard for me - to rely on the spirit to tell me what to say. But I just gotta have faith, and that's funny cuz this is basically everything we have been teaching our investigators about - Faith. One girl we teach is way sweet and had prayed and felt the spirit. So we are excited to see where she goes. When we invited her to be baptized, she said maybe! But, we are kinda guessing that she is a member. Our second lady is kinda depressed about life, and feels like she's not going anywhere. So we are gonna teach her the Plan and hopefully lighten her understanding of her purpose as a Child of God. Please pray for them, as well as us!
The Tuesday devo was way cool! Sister Wixom (the primary general president) came and spoke. One of my fav quotes was "What have you learned from a child today?" Reminded me to be as a little child and remember to love.
Now kinda talking about the schedule, yeah it's a ton! And they expect us to do daily planning, but our day is already planned so we, like, never do it. It's pretty much stake girls camp on steroids. The food is come and go. It's basically glorified school cafeteria food. I really liked the turkey sandwich and the orange chicken. So, it really depends on the day. There was taco bell one night and (no joke!) one of the Elders in our Zone ate 5 tacos and 2 burritos in one sitting. He's not even fat. Boys are crazy...
Hope those were all of your logistical questions! Send me back the ones I didn't answer.
Some funny stories are how me and Sis Frame got so mad at the girls who were staying up till 3 in the morning keeping us up. We walked over to the emergency phones that go directly to the front desk and told them what was going on. 30 seconds later a security guard comes into the commons and tells all of them to go to bed. It's been good sleeping since then :)
Thought for the week: "Missionary work is scary because of Satan. He wants to strike fear into you to make you doubt. He does this because missionaries are bringing people unto Christ. He will try to destroy you and your investigators. Be strong." This is so true. I have felt it. I have learned so much about God, but also about Satan. Sometimes I have that shred of doubt. And question the whole church, if it's true and why I'm even here. But I will continue to press forward in faith, relying on the teachings of the scriptures and the prophet. We went to the temple today, that was wonderful and helped me a lot. Satan is real, but just as he has the power to bruise our heal, but we have the power to crush his head, through Faith in Christ.
Thank you so much again for your letters and packages! If you would maybe in the next package, send me my belt? Totes forgot that. I'll let you know if I need anything else. I'll try to send my pics today, but the computers are weird and some won't allow us to download. So keep an eye our for that.
Anything else?
LOVE YOU GUYS!! Thanks for the updates and stuff. Really really! Keep up all the good habits you are doing. Lots of love! The next time I will talk to you guys will be from Virginia, so be excited!!
Love ya, God bless.
Love, Sista Poulsen

About the MTC

At the MTC

Sup guys! We only have like a second to write, but I'm here! It's pretty intense, but cool as well!  It's scary, and fun, and sad, and exciting all at once! :) P-day is Wednesday, so you will hear from me then!  My companion's name is Sister Picket, pretty cool gal! I'll send pics next week! Love ya!!
~ Sister Poulsen

Tara's MTC Address for letters and packages:

Sister Tara Nicole Poulsen
MAR01 VA-CHSP
2005 N 900 E Unit 36
Provo UT 84602

For faster and free letters www.dearelder.com info can be taken from the above also.

Geronimo

Goodbye!

Peace out homies.
Here I go! It came so fast, I can't believe it! I'm excited, but I have to admit that I'm also pretty scared, and I will miss home. But there is work to be done. I'm sure that when Christ left our heavenly home to come down to earth, we were probably pretty sad. But aren't we so grateful for the miracles He performed, and above all, the atonement? I won't be doing anything that amazing, but I sure will try to do some great things :)
This blog will be updated weekly by my ma with pics and letters. I hope you visit often!
So farewell ya'll! I hope your life is wonderful while I'm away! I know God loves you and has a plan for all. I'm so thankful for the Savior, and I pray each day that I may come closer to Him so I can teach more effectively. Thank you so much for your support and love! Love you all! Geronimo!
-Love, Sister Poulsen

1st thought of the week:
It the song "I know that my Redeemer lives" There is a line that says "He lives and loves me to the end." I had this thought after hearing that. He doesn't only love you till eternity and beyond, he loves you to the end of your rope. To the end of the dead end. The end of something or someone good in your life. All the ends, he is there. Always.

About Virginia Chesapeake Mission

VIRGINIA - CHESAPEAKE MISSION 

MISSION PRESIDENT: President Alan J. Baker

CREATED: July 1, 2013

AREA:  This mission includes East coast portions of Virginia, North Carolina and a part of Maryland. It includes the Outer Banks, Norfolk Naval Base, and port areas of Chesapeake Bay.

LANGUAGES: English, Spanish

POPULATION: 1.7 million in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, which comprises much of the mission area.

DOMINANT RELIGIONS: Roman Catholic, Southern Baptist, United Methodist Church

CLIMATE: Hot and humid during the summer, with temperatures generally reaching around 90 degrees F. Spring and summer are especially rainy. Winters are milder, with snowfall being infrequent.

MAJOR CITIES: Virginia Beach, Newport News, Norfolk, Williamsburg (VA), Greenville, Beaufort, Goldsboro (NC)

THE CHURCH

There are 5 stakes located within the Virginia Chesapeake Mission, some of which also contain YSA and Spanish-language wards or branches, as well as FamilySearch centers.  Church growth in the region has led to the recent creation of this mission.

TEMPLES
The Closest Temples are located in Washington, DC (3 1/2 hours from Mission home) and Raleigh, North Carolina (3 hours from Mission home.)

FOOD

Missionaries can expect to find similar food to other areas in the United States while serving in the Virginia Chesapeake mission.  Fish and seafood restaurants are popular thanks to the areas coastal location.  Another distinct food of the region is Eastern Carolina-style barbecue.  Eastern Carolina barbecue is made from slow-cooked pork and then usually served as pulled pork sandwiches with coleslaw, though ribs are also popular.  Eastern Carolina barbecue is distinct in that its sauce is vinegar-based, whereas most American barbecue sauces are tomato-based.  Cheerwine, a cherry soda, is also unique to the region.

TRANSPORTATION

Like most stateside missions, missionaries will mostly use either cars or bikes in their areas.  Designations are generally based on the size of the area and leadership positions. The region also has intercity bus services that travel between Norfolk, Newport News, and Hampton. Trains connect major East Coast cities, including some within the Chesapeake Mission. Norfolk also has its own light rail train system, called the Tide.

LOCAL LINGO

The Tidewater accent is unique to the region.  The “r” sound is often dropped if it appears before a consonant in a word, and the “l” is also sometimes dropped.  For example, the r and l sounds are often dropped when pronouncing the name of the city Norfolk.  Some speakers replace “ou” sounds (such as in about or mouse) with a long “o” sound (like in the word code).

Some examples of slang include:

“Make groceries” = Buy Groceries

“Over yonder” = Over there

“The park/parks” = Projects/slum areas