Guess Who's Back?

Mommy Time--May 12

Hello, hello! Wow... what a great day yesterday! HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all of the fabulous women that I love and adore, but especially to my #1 (MOMMY!) Dearest Mom, you are the greatest. Thank you for the love, light, and encouragement you give me daily. A girl could not have asked for a foxier mama than you! Truly, my mom is the best mom in the universe. Don't let anybody ever tell you otherwise! I love you!

So yesterday was a dream! It was crazy to see that my family is actually real and existing and living and breathing in some part of the world. WOW! It really won't be long at all till I'm back in your arms. What a glorious, weepy day that will be! I can't wait! But until then, I feel so sustained by our little chat on the phone. I'm glad that missionaries don't have to go complete gypsy like in the times of old and sever their family relationships completely to serve haha. It's nice to be permitted a phone call every once in awhile. ;)

Well, the saddest thing ever happened moments ago. I was just sitting here starting my emails when suddenly I received a call from the mission office. It was the call of all calls... they asked me which airport I would like to fly to when I go home. Gaaaaaaaah. WORST DAY EVER! It's REAL. They want me to LEAVE! Luckily though I'm about to have the best three months ever because....

WE GOT OUR TRANSFER CALLS! And get this... I'm a prophetess. So a few days before I was like... Yeah, Soeur Orozco is going to be my companion again. And then my companion was like, "I think Soeur Orozco is about to come replace me here in LaSalle." And I was like, "I didn't want to say anything, but yeah, it's happening." And oh guess what. IT HAPPENED!!!! Sister Orozco is going to kill me! I could not be HAPPIER! I love LaSalle and there are a million amazing things going on here right now. What better way to end things than with one of the best mamacitas in the CMM?! It's going to be a PARTAY!!! I may in fact see you all earlier than August ;) hee hee. No, we'll be good. I spent my summer with her a year ago, and I'm spending it with her again! What more could a girl possibly want? I am so terribly blessed.

This week was incredible. Good things are happening here! This Thursday I'm going to the TEMPLE to watch our less active who has been coming back to church receive her endowments! Such a beautiful, proud moment. She is amazing. Missionary work is the most rewarding, delightful thing on this planet. Everyone needs to be a missionary! You're missing out if you're not. ;)

In other news... SPRING IS HERE TO STAY! Saturday was the first legitimate day of spring. It has been a glorious weekend! We try to have all of our lessons outside if we can convince people haha. This week our bestie Jordan Morales practiced a Jenn Blosil EFY song on his guitar for us and then he and I sang it together alongside the St. Laurent river. Someone needs to get us a record deal! We are so flipping phenomenal. I'm going to TRY to send a video by Myldsmail might not be up to speed. You'll just have to wait till I get home to watch it. But my goodness was it ever a treat. The members here are just so COOL. I can't even explain. I wish I could make this my permanent home ward. But don't worry PV 4th, I still love you too. With ALL of my heart! Can't my heart just be big enough to embrace all of the wards that I love?

On Saturday we went and helped our amazing new investigator do yard work and we got to meet all of her kids! Including her son that lives far, far away that she hadn't seen since Christmas, and he showed up and surprised her in the middle of our visit. ....Awkward? I hate crashing beautiful family moments. Missionaries kind of have a knack for that, and since we're horribly awkward we make the awkward situation even worse. Haha... but it was fun. She's so cool, and it was nice to get to know her and her kids better.

Well, that was really the week that was! Not too much else to share, other than the fact that I miss you little ones like CRAYYYYZAYYY!!!! Don't worry, it won't be long now. My mission is giving me the boot in like twelve more weeks. It just doesn't seem real. We're going to have a big epluchette de ble d'Inde (that's Quebecois for barbeque) when I get back! Whooo! But until then, I love you all sooo very, very much. And miss the heck outta all of yous! Smooches and loves! Bises!

Love,

Sylvie Bear

Guess Who's Back--May 19

Back again... Cut-Co's back.... tell a friend! The dream team is back! And it is oh. so. GLORIOUS! My baby Hermana Orozco is back in my arms and my goodness... what a week it has been! I am one grateful child of God. So much gratitude in my heart right now. There's nothing better than serving with your best friend! It's going to be a great two transfers until the bitter end. I can feel it! Good things are happening in LaSalle, as always. :)

Last Monday I finally went and tried some of that FABULOUS Montreal smoked meat that everyone talks about with the elders and Jordan Morales. It was super fun. It's at a restaurant called Schwartz's. I felt like I was in New York City, Jews yelling at each other, mustard all over my hands. Haha. It was nice. A good cultural experience, at the very least. We all sat and talked about night terrors and Sister Sherwood embarrassed me by letting everyone know that I woke up screaming nearly ever night this transfer haha.

This week was transfer week, which meant STRESS to the max for the first three days. We are currently driving a rental car and are in fact the only team on the island of Montreal with a car besides the APs. So since our click limit is non-existent during this rental phase, we found ourselves literally driving the ENTIRE island of Montreal as a luggage service for transfers. NOT how I wanted to spend my last morning with Sister Sherwood, but we made it work. It was just such a GLORIOUS moment when Sister Orozco walked into the doors of the mission office and into my life again. We had a weepy goodbye with Sister Sherwood at the bus station (gonna miss that foxy one) and then... TROUBLE began. The girls are back! It's so great. I've been loving every dang minute of it.

On Thursday we went to the temple with our dear less active member's endowments. WOW. What a beautiful experience that was! I am so proud of her. She has made so many incredible changes in her life in less than a year. It has been amazing to watch the atonement work in the lives of the people I love and serve here. We drove with the LaHaches, one of my favorite families in the ward. We got out of our session SUPER late, and I found myself driving through downtown with their family late into the night. It was such a glorious experience, looking around and seeing all of the beautiful lights, out past my curfew, not a care in the world. A moment that I will never forget. The mission makes me feel indescribable happiness literally every single day.

Spring is HERE! It has been a beautiful week. We try to be outside as much as we can. Today for our P-Day we went to the annual interfaith service/community clean up again! I can't it has been a year since I was there last. A year ago Sister Varela and I were the only ones that attended. This year TONS of missionaries were there! It was just a huge trash clean up party. I always love going and serving in the community of Montreal. There are so many wonderful people from other faiths and backgrounds. The diversity is truly thrilling to me. I love getting to know people from all walks of life, serving together and taking care of the beautiful earth we have been entrusted with. It was just a MAGNIFICENTLY lovely day. I really can't put words to how I feel about Montreal in the spring. It has been a positive, happy week.

I think the real reason I'm so happy is because I was FINALLY able to get my eyebrows threaded... alright, so the truth comes out. I just feel like a new woman right now. Gah. Gotta love those Indian ladies. They do a great job. No more frumpster sister until August! I'll be a hairy, fat mess when I come back haha.

So that was the week that was! I'm truly happy right now, even if I'm hiding the fact that I'm jealous about my family being in Paris and London without me. No comment on the Paris trip... I'm sure you all made great memories together! I'm happy for you all. Truly. ...... Anyway. I love you all and miss you to DEATH! But it really won't be long, my friends. Not. Long. At. ALL! Time is hastening by. I'm making the most of EVERY moment, I assure you. Have a beautiful week, everyone! 

Love,

Syl

There's Nothing That the Road Cannot Heal

April 28, 2014

There's Nothing That the Road Cannot Heal

Hello, my little cute newts! How are you all doing during this beautiful spring season? I hope you're all having a grand time soaking in the sun, hiking, dancing in the rain, and ... oh, bashing around London? No comment, other than the fact that I am sick with jealousy of my family leaving for London without ME this week. Never mind that I'm only the biggest Anglophile on the planet, bawling my eyes out over the royal wedding, spending countless hours reading Austen novels, convulsively weeping over every single dang episode of Downton Abbey and BBC Masterpiece on the PLANET! I hope the trip is WORTH IT. For SHAME....

Alright, the rant is over. This week was just plain fabulous! We are seeing miracles GALORE out here! I don't really know what to do with myself at this point. My mission just keeps getting better and better, and I keep getting closer and closer to its grand finale. YIKES! Gotta make every moment count, eh? So this week we went on a sister exchange fiesta. Lots of driving, but it was SO worth it because we saved some of the best sisters for last. Well, they're all the best sisters, but these exchanges were especially exciting. Congratulations to ME, I got my International Drivers Permit renewed, which meant that I was able to DRIVE again for the first time in months! On Monday the dear sisters of Cornwall, Sister Rios and my grand baby Sister Gonzalez, drove down to Montreal to spend P-Day with us bashing around Vieux-Montreal, the closest I'm going to get to bashing around London. It was SO fun! We went to Chinatown and got *Mormon* bubble tea, and then spent the rest of a breezy, pleasant evening walking the streets of our historical city. Not as great as Vieux-Quebec, but I still love Montreal with all of my heart.

That night I got to cruise into Ontario and get to know my mission granddaughter. It turns out we're the same person! Good road trip conversations the whole way down. I got to spend the next day in Cornwall, which is so English that it frightens me. Not sure what I'm going to do when I get back and there are absolutely NO signs in French? Weird.

THEN on Thursday I had just about the most exciting exchange of my life. Sister Rebecca Smith of Vancouver Island came to LaSalle to spend the day with me, and oh my heavens. Did we ever have a riotous time! We may or may not have stayed up till 3 in the morning talking. She's pretty much the Canadian version of my best friend Ellie Parker, so you can imagine the glee and the joy and the sheer insanity that ensued when we were put together for twenty-four hours on an exchange. This is why I LOVE exchanges! Sometimes it's stressful hopping in and out of our area with new companions, but I have gotten to know so many fantastic girls that are serving around me. Biggest blessing of my mission by far!

Friday we had a big mission leadership council with some of the brethren from the missionary department. They talked about how we need to help people when we invite them to do something, not just hope that a miracle will happen. We've been stepping up our game now, trying to help people keep their commitments, but there's only so much you can do when personal agency comes into play. Still, it's a great way to love and serve others, and let's be honest... we all need a little (or in my case A LOT) of help enduring to the end.

Saturday we Zumba'd it up and now I am too sore/tired to even function, what with shimmying around and not getting any sleep this week, but I have had a wonderful April and am now looking forward to the glamorous month of MAY! It should be fabulous. Also.... speaking of April coming to a close... HAPPY 21st BIRTHDAY to my dearest, loveliest. most fabulous, cheetah-licious BEST FRIEND CHRISTINE! I hope you know I love you with ALL of my heart and desperately wish I could be there to PARTAYYYYYY on your 21st! You are truly a ray of sunshine in my life, and I honestly have NO idea where I would be without you. Thank you for being a fantastic friend. SEE YOU SOON! Birthday rain check. We'll all be celebrating in just a few more months there!

Well, Have a great week, yous guys! I love you all infinitely and MISS you to the point of pain, but that's to be expected. Take care, stay safe, don't do anything I wouldn't do! :) Peace and blessings!

Love,

Sister Syl

May 5, 2014

Drowning in My Tears

Hello, beautiful family! The natural woman side of me was debating whether or not I should even write you today after reading about your fabulous first week in London. Luckily my companion didn't notice the sob fest I had moments ago sitting here reading my weekly emails. No comment. Just shear jealousy currently being unleashed in my heart like an untamed beast. Pure havoc to my soul, I tell you. Enjoy your stay!

Alright, let's talk about MY fabulous week. I may not be trouncing around London but I AM seeing miracles galore. It's a great time to be a missionary in Montreal! We have some sweet new investigators who have been so prepared to hear the message of the restored gospel. I have to remind myself daily that I am privileged to have spent the last fifteen, yes, FIFTEEN months of my life being a missionary.

So for starters... Sister Sherwood and I had to give a bunch of trainings this week as part of our sister training leader calling. We talked about the importance of helping people. We often think our job is to invite, which is true, but the second part of the missionary purpose is to actually help people do what we invite them to do. Aren't we all in need of a little help? Basically the missionary department came to the mission last week and told us plainly, "The reason people in your mission aren't getting baptized is because you're not HELPING them enough." OUCH? Don't people have free agency? Haha no, it was good to hear. We've been keeping ourselves plenty busy now as we've creatively searched for ways to "help" people honor their commitments. Missionary FUN!

On Tuesday we went on member exchanges, which are always fun because I separate from my companion and spend the evening with one of the groovy sisters in the LaSalle ward. I was with the Bishop's wife, Sister May, who was the perfect companion, because she is from London and mourned with me about my family being in London without me. It was nice to have someone sympathize with me. We had a fun night and I pretended that perhaps I too was in London as I let her talk the night away with her beautiful British accent. It's the closest thing I'll ever have to a real London experience, I suppose. Gah. I thought I had control over my vicious envyings... I'll stop now.

We went on exchanges this week as well. I FINALLY got to go with Sister Berry, a sister I knew in the MTC but haven't been able to serve with yet. She. Is. So. COOL! I found out that she too is a feminist, and so... we had long, heated, rants/discussions about everything that I love. Haha. It was a super fun day. I think they shipped all of those feminist Mormons out to the Canada Montreal mission. She was telling me about who all of the other underground Mormon feminists were in the mission, which is like half of the sisters here. Too great. This really is the mission meant for me!

On Friday we had TWO fabulous lessons with member referrals! Gotta love LaSalle. One was a sweet 17 year old girl that is friends with one of the young men in our ward. He courageously invited her to take the discussions, and she was FLOORED. I recited the first vision to her and she CRIED! It was a great experience for us all. She reminds me a lot of my sweet cousin Jessica. Super cool, super smart. She lives kind of far away from our area so we won't get to teach her for long, but it was great to meet a youth who had such a personal testimony of Heavenly Father's love for her and His willingness to answer prayer.

Our next lesson was with our investigator that we've been seeing for a few weeks now. We watched the #BecauseofHim video and invited her to be baptized! It was just a beautiful, powerful experience. She is an amazing woman and would be an incredible member of the church. Keep praying for these people! It's not easy to join the church. I'm amazed when people are able to give up everything they once knew and start a new life as a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Pray that these people will feel accepted, that their testimonies will grow, and that their faith will overcome doubts.

Well, that was the week that was! The APs told us that sisters and elders can't have P-Day activities together anymore... hmmm... wonder why that happened. So mad. BUT. After our training on Wednesday our zone leaders decided that "going out to lunch with our zone after a training meeting" was not a P-Day activity, so we went with a big gang of missionaries to Thai Express. Ha ha. Gotta love those zone leaders for bending the rules to their own liking. Then again with our other zone our other zone leader decided to treat us all to Wendy's because he has over $500 saved on his mission card. And even President got a Double and joined us for the event, so I say it's okay. ;)

Anyway, have a GREAT week! I love you all so much and miss you terribly. More than I can describe. We'll SEE if I decide to call on Mother's Day.... I'm a little sad right now. Meh. You won't notice. You're all having tons of fun without me. Well, take care! Bisou bisou!

Love,
Syl the Pill

Miracle Time

Hello, my beloved, fabulous, precious ones! I hope you all had a joyous Easter weekend. My goodness. What a great time! The Easter holiday is best spent with family members, but I made it a good one nonetheless. I hope you're all enjoying a beautiful spring! We had a couple warm days pop up this week. Still trying to figure out when spring is going to hit... so far no real sign of it. Oh Canada! 

Alright, so this week was just one of the best of my existence. Okay, this Saturday was the best day of my existence. But I'll get to that later. On Tuesday I was able to go back to my old area again on exchanges! Good old Montreal West. I just LOVE it there! It's fun to run around the bus and metros talking to people I used to be terrified of talking to. Now I'm just like, "Meh." Haha no, it's still just as terrifying, but I've grown to love talking to random strangers more and more the longer I've been out on a mission. I went on the exchange with my great-granddaughter Sister Gutierrez. I'm starting to realize more and more that I'm just one of those OLD missionaries. I'm usually referred to as Big Mama Cutler or Grandma Cutler. Sheesh. Too many babies. In the evening we unexchanged at the BYU-I Sinfonietta concert! I thought for sure that this would be the highlight of my week. It was definitely the second highlight of my week, but I had something better happen. But back to the concert. I chatted up a bunch of girls from BYU-I, and I realized that I too would soon be back on that student track again. GULP! It was a fun experience though. We went to the concert with one of our less active members, a Trinidadian woman who is a joy and a half to be around. I just felt overjoyed to listen to something other than EFY soundtracks and to spend the night with members and a few other missionaries. 

MIRACLE TIME! Another great highlight of the week. We have this super cool couple in our ward. The husband used to be a drummer for a living and is just one of the coolest people you will ever meet. (Seriously, get these people an I'm a Mormon video or something.) Anyway, he invited a woman that he works with to take the missionary discussions! And she totally AGREED! Member-missionary work at its FINEST! It turns out this woman is seriously AMAZING and totally needs the Gospel in her life right now. At first he was afraid to ask her to take the discussions, but like all great member missionaries, he found the courage to just do it! This woman was asking all the right questions and sharing all the right experiences. We had a hard time not sharing everything we knew right then and there. She was so intrigued when we gave her the Book of Mormon that she asked why more people don't know about this amazing book. Please pray for her this week that she will be protected from all those nay-sayers and those weird anti-Mormon websites. Hopefully all goes well!

Alright, now to the big news of my life. Geez Louise. So on Saturday morning I woke up at 6:30am like a good girl and started doing my yoga with Shiva Rea. So there I am in the middle of my shakra namaskar when suddenly Soeur Sherwood rolls in and is like... "Who's Guy?" And I'm like, "What do you mean, 'Who's Guy?'" And she's like, "We just got a text saying that Guy is going to do baptisms for the dead at the temple this morning at 10." Oh my HEAVENS. If I wasn't already on the floor, I totally would have been! In case you don't remember, Guy is my beloved, favorite, amazing recent convert from Quebec City. The next hour was spent in a tizzy, me frantically pacing the house, PRAYING that President Patrick would give me permission to go to the temple in a moment's notice. I have never had so much anxiety in my LIFE! He wasn't answering or texting back, and time was running out! Finally we called up our boyfriends... I mean.. the APs.. and we were like, "Hey, WHY isn't President answering his phone?!?!" Turns out he wasn't even in the same COUNTRY as us, but was at a mission president's seminar in DC. And I'm just like... WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?! THIS IS URGENT! Luckily Sister Patrick was with him AND had her phone. I got the okay after an hour of sheer turmoil, and we were OFF to the temple! Sister Landeen, my fabulous MTC companion, also taught Guy before I came in and replaced her in Quebec City. She's one of the sisters in my zone now, so we did an exchange that morning and both got to go to the temple together! And then get THIS. Turns out it was Quebec City and Ste Foy's ward/branch temple trip. This day seriously could not have gotten any better. Not only did I get to see Guy, but I was also greeted and hugged and loved by my favorite Quebec ward! Aaaaaah! I never ever thought I would see these people again! Words cannot describe the joy that was flooding, gushing, shining from my heart. I may or may not be a *little* obsessed with Quebec City... ha ha. It was just so great to see these people. And they even said I hadn't lost my French! That was a great comfort. 

Okay, so now we get to the temple. I have dreamed of the day I would get to see Guy take his family names to the temple and perform baptisms. He is super into genealogy. In fact, that was a large pull in him joining the church. It was such an incredible, indescribable feeling to see him sitting there in the temple, dressed in white, so much peace and joy in his countenance. I wish I could show you all the mental picture I took of him sitting in front of that baptismal font. One of the most beautiful parts of all was that he asked me to do the baptism for his mother. I have done a few family names of my own before, but never before have I felt such a sweet spirit as when I was baptized for his mother. Truly, Saturday was one of the most spiritual days of my mission. That morning as I lay in bed trying to motivate myself to start my day, I never would have DREAMED that I would be in the temple with Guy, my first mission companion, and so many of my cherished, beloved members from the Quebec ward. I am so grateful Heavenly Father allowed me this opportunity before I go home. I have been so overwhelmingly blessed on my mission. These are experiences you just can't have in any other setting or context of your life. I'll say this for the millionth time, but going on a mission is and will be the best decision I will ever make in this life. :)

Lest you think this perfect day ended with my temple trip, this is only the first half. Somehow I got roped into singing in our Stake's Easter Cantata. I was asked to sing a ridiculously high song called, "Pie Jesu," which I was fairly certain I wouldn't be capable of doing after months and months of not having vocal practice. To make a long story short... I nailed it! Haha! It was so great to sing again. Everyone was just like... "What? Sis Cut can sing?" And I was like, "Yeah, Sis Cut can sing." HA! Bragging, I know! But yeah, I was awesome. ;) The whole concert was fabulous. It was nice to participate, and... well. You know how I love my compliments... VANITY! My worst enemy. And oh, how I love it. 

Well, that was the incredible week that was! It probably won't be that exciting from here on out. It's like everything on my mission is coming full circle... YIKES! It terrifies me that it all seems to be coming to an end so rapidly. I plan on making every moment count! Anyway, I hope you are all enduring finals with peace and hope in your hearts. Praying for you always! Have a radiant, joyous week! I'm bursting at the seams with happiness right now if you can't tell haha. Love you and miss you all! Happy Easter!

Love,

Soeur Cutler

Date with the APs

Bonjour! Aaaah! Qu'est-ce qu'il fait beau! Spring is in the air! I've been rocking my styling rain coat from Simon's, the crisp breeze tangling my silken hair into tiny knots. Montreal is slowly coming back to life! It has been a fabulous, fabulous week. I just don't even know where to begin because my heart is so filled with gratitude for being a missionary and seeing all of these blessed, blessed miracles. How was everyone's week? How are things on the home front? I hear finals week is in your midst... ick. Good luck with that! Special missionary prayers are coming your way!

Alright, so let me first explain the title of this letter lest any of you fear that I will be coming home much sooner than expected. Haha. So. This week one of the zones Sister Sherwood and I are over had a big zone activity up at Mont Royal. Their goal was to take a zone picture together on Montreal's famous montagne (...hill...), and obviously the Sister Training Leaders needed to be in this picture too. Well. No one in this zone has a car except the APs, and then we of course have a car because we travel all over the mission and have to go to Ontario every few weeks. But that's not important. All of the missionaries were running late because they were traveling by bus, whereas us and the APs had no need of public transportation. So we get to the meeting spot. So do the APs. No one else is in sight. I'm just like... uh... well, since I'm like a SUPER awkward sister missionary right now, I'm just going to wait in the car. Unfortunately, my companion had already gotten out of the car and was chatting with the APs. We're just like, "Ehh. The rest of them should be here soon. We'll just stop and chat." Well, twenty minutes go by. NO SIGN of these flippin missionaries. Just us on our double date with the assistants. SCANDAL! Then one of them is like, "Well, should we just start hiking to the look-out spot?" And I'm thinking to myself.... "Hiking... the four of us... look-out spot... windy day... my jacket isn't going to be enough...." Hmmmm. Yeah. NO. I had a mini panic attack. So we all just kind of stood there awkwardly, and I realized that I forget how to make eye contact with boys. FORTUNATELY everyone showed up like ten minutes later, but I'll tell you what. I am going to be THE MOST awkward RM EVER. Oh gosh. Prepare yourselves.

So that was fun! In more spiritual news... One of our returning less active members just received her temple recommend for her ENDOWMENTS! I am BEYOND happy. We scheduled an interview with her and the bishop so that she could receive a recommend to do baptisms, and that night she came out with a recommend for her own endowment! Praise the heavens! We were screaming and crying and so excited! Truly, one of the happiest moments of my mission. This woman is AWESOME! She is coming back SO STRONG! Part of the missionary purpose besides baptism is helping people endure to the end. I'm more of an "endure to the end" missionary. Haha. Temple blessings over baptisms? Yeah, I'm all for it. 

Speaking of temple blessings... I got to go to the temple this week! There is a recent convert of about two years in our ward who went to the temple to receive her endowment on Thursday. Even though we don't really work with her (besides her helping us come out to teach), I just felt this strong impression that missionaries needed to be at her endowment. Her whole conversion story involved missionaries since the very beginning, and I thought, "This woman is seriously the coolest member to have ever joined the church. She can't NOT have missionaries at her endowment." So I told this to the mission president. And miracle of miracles... HE LET US GO! And we had permission to stay out past curfew! What?! It was the happiest day of my life. We drove to the temple with my FAVORITE member family of the ward (the Morales fam) and had a beautiful, special night at the temple with Lawanda and the whole ward! When Lawanda saw us in the temple she was overcome with joy to have missionaries there, and we just hugged and cried and tried not to be irreverent in the temple! Ahhh... mission memories that will warm my soul for a lifetime. After our temple trip it was SUPER late, but the Morales family really, really wanted to take us to McDonald's. Haha. No worries, we went straight home. But... there was a special McDonald's delivery on our doorstep that night at a an hour I won't disclose for fear of exposing my disobedience... haha. It was seriously the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. Don't worry, I received my punishment the next morning after my body reminded me that it is DEFINITELY not a good idea to eat Big Macs and fries and root beer past bedtime. ;)

THEN on Sunday all of the missionaries gave talks! And they were SO good! Gosh, this email is full of bragging! But I'm practically at the end of my mission, so I've earned my bragging rights. We were like celebrities up there, people waving to us on the stand, taking photos, posting them on Twitter! Haha only joking. We just got waved at. Still, I felt so loved. My mission is the BEST! Nothing tops the CMM. I used to be jealous of all of those missionaries in Paris, but I've come to love my Quebecois roots, and I wouldn't trade these blessed days for anything in the world!

Well, I hope you all have a dazzling week. I hope you all shrivel up in the heat! Booo. We'll probably be getting another snow storm tomorrow. Reeeerrr. CANADA! Alright, well, I'll let you all get back to studying and grading and working and everything else that normal people do. But remember! I love you all SO much and pray for you daily! Bisou bisou! Take care!

Love,

Syl

The Church is True! #LDSConf

March 31, 2014

Hello, my sweet ones! How is everything in the beautiful mountain paradise of Utah? Before you all tell me about how wonderful your spring is right now, just know that we were hit with three massive snowstorms this week and chilling winds. HAPPY SPRING! The locals are going crazy. Haha. It's sad to watch, but more so for me because I feel as if I'm suffering more than anyone. If I don't see the grass by the end of April I'm LEAVING! Meh. Or maybe I'll just stay. It's only an extra couple months anyway.

Alright, enough of my chat about the weather. That's basically all we talk about in Canada because there is an unexpected snowstorm like every five seconds. But I digress. Can you tell I'm bitter about the snow? MOVING ON! This week really was exceptional in every other aspect, besides the fact that I had a near death experience. Pull up a chair! This story is nuts. Okay. So on Tuesday the day was going just splendidly. We spent part of the afternoon with a sister who has been recovering from breast cancer. Because the chemo makes her hands numb, the doctor told her to try to find ways to keep them moving to strengthen them. So there's this mommy/craft craze sweeping the nation right now. Maybe you've heard of it. I certainly hadn't, and probably never would have because I'm horrible at crafts, but this was life changing. This amazing sister invited us over to teach us how to hand-knit infinity scarves! I have never finished a crochet or knitted creation in my life. I've started many a scarf, but have never been able to finish. Well. I will have you know that I, Sylvia Cutler, finished an infinity scarf. In ONE HOUR! BY HAND! No needles. :) It was maybe one of the most fulfilling moments of my life. All those times at Young Women and Girl's Camp and Activity Days when I was looked down upon for my lack of homemaking knowledge... NO MORE! I feel like I conquered that beast. I am so proud of myself!

Okay, but me getting the scarf made is not the near death experience. Let me tell you what happened. So as missionaries we have lots of highly specific rules, one of which is to have someone back you if you EVER put your car in reverse. Well. During our little knitting session, someone had decided to wedge their car behind ours. Great! My companion is 200% obedient, so I still had to back her. The only problem though was that there was maybe like two feet in between us and the car. So I shimmied myself in between the two cars, hoping to back us a TAD so that we could be obedient and get the car out safely. Well. There was also a pile of snow behind the car. My companion pushed the pedal with ALL of her might to get over the pile. BUT WAIT! Guess who was wedged in between two cars. ME! I'll tell you what. I don't think I've ever screamed so loud in ALL of my life! The pain and the fear were excruciating! And as if that wasn't enough, my companion didn't hear me! So she backed the car up even MORE! All the while I'm screaming and my legs are breaking. Finally she saw what was happening and unleashed me. She ran to see if I was okay. I would have crumpled to the ground but I was stuck between the cars! And she LAUGHED at me! SHE LAUGHED! And I was bawling my eyes out, thinking I would be coming home from my mission early for having broken two legs and popping open my kidneys! I have never been so horrified in my life. After the adrenaline wore off, I discovered that my knees were swollen and big fat blood vessels popped, but since I could walk we decided no real damage was done. Still. I've greatly enjoyed telling every person we see this story, and now I can laugh along with Sister Sherwood. But seriously. I could have died!

Alright, moving on. This Saturday was WOMEN'S CONFERENCE!!!! Literally the best thing of my LIFE! The minute that cute little group of 8-year-old girls started singing I unleashed thousands of tears and wails and sobs! And I wish I was exaggerating. It just made me realize that I miss my little sister and that I haven't been there for some important milestones in her life, like baptism. So sad. I cried throughout the whole thing. Literally. Ever talk, every segment. TEARS! What a great conference. I'm so incredibly proud to be a woman, and I have learned so much about the value of sister unity in the church since serving a mission. We should all celebrate our differences as, but we can still be friends and we all have a contribution to make! Love it. Sister power. We had a sister come who hasn't been to church in fifteen years, and she is my favorite, favorite, favorite woman that we visit. I was so happy to see her there, but I was especially happy to see the outpouring of love she received from sisters who have greatly missed her. Love one another! That's basically all we need to know.

Well, I hope you all have an amazing, amazing week! In case anyone was wondering, I'm staying in LaSalle this transfer! With my same companion, Sister Sherwood. THREE TRANSFERS!!!!!!!!!! WHOOOO!!!! I'm super happy we're staying together. We have tons and tons of fun at all hours of the day and night. I'll most likely finish my mission here. It's a great ward! I'll be happy about whatever happens. I just love being a missionary, so I'm happy to serve wherever I'm needed. Anyway, I hope you all have a WONDERFUL day! Enjoy your spring weather. Missing everyone TERRIBLY!

Love,

Soeur Cutler


April 7, 2014
The Church is True! #LDSconf

Hello dear ones of the Great Wild West! How is everyone enjoying their lovely spring? Although we are still notquite to spring yet, I am enjoying myself immensely, if not a little too immensely... out here in the Great, still very White North! Conference weekend was sensational. Gotta love that three-day P-day weekend! I have been so inspired in the past 48 hours that I don't even know if I'm the same person anymore. But more about conference in a minute. Let me tell you about my week!

This Wednesday we went to visit our dear 85-year-old friend Sister Ross. This woman really is my favorite person on the planet. She's just so feisty! Thanks to her I have this very pressing desire in my heart to marry a New Zealander and NEVER return! It could happen. I just really love visiting the elderly people in my ward. Since I'm not up in Quebec City with my sweet little eternigator Lucie anymore, I have to get my fix somehow, and Sister Ross definitely does the job. I've been so incredibly blessed by the people I've met as a missionary. It's nice to hear people's stories and get to know what makes them tick and what makes them ticked. Haha. Montreal is full of the world's finest!

On Thursday we had to coordinate the ward list with the elders, so we totally took them on a date to Subway. Technically we're allowed to be with the four of us in public if we're doing missionary work, which we totally were. Our big, lovable, sweet Tahitian elder was just replaced by a kind, innocent elder who has never served with sisters before. Poor thing getting sent to Sister Cutler's ward... haha. Elders love me. Anyway, our meeting was fun. Although it was definitely NOT a date (I promise we went over the ward list and had an effective meeting) it reminded me that I will be going on actual dates all too soon. Meh. I forgot what that was like. Not sure if I want to remember again. I guess I'll know in another four months. Which reminds me...

HAPPY FOURTEEN MONTH MARK to me! Can you believe it? Provo better get ready. I'm about to turn the whole town UPSIDE DOWN!

Back to my story about Thursday. So after we were leaving Subway Sister Sherwood and I went to contact a man on the street. He was super nice but wasn't interested. Kind of kooky. THEN as we're walking away, he's like, "Girls, I need to tell you something." And we're like, "Yes?" In our sweet sister missionary voices. And he says, "I don't think you two really have a conviction of your beliefs. I don't feel like you actually believe what you're telling me. You should ask yourselves if you're really doing this for the right reasons or if you're just phony." And I was like, "EXCUSE ME?!?!?" But I couldn't because I'm a sister missionary. But really, if I didn't have full and complete confidence in my beliefs, that God is my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ lives, why would I go up to a complete stranger on the street and testify that I believe? Grrr. People are irksome. But it was a good opportunity to reflect about why I'm here, and I was just blown away by the fact that I do know these things to be true, and I have loved every minute of being a missionary. I'm never going to let anyone tell me ever again that I'm being coerced or manipulated into being a missionary and sharing my beliefs. Interesting experience. Anyway, thought I'd share.

This weekend was, of course, completely and utterly fantastic! We started our morning with a wonderful less active woman and the Relief Society President. This inactive woman is remarkable, and our visits always bring such a sweet spirit to my heart the rest of the day. After the visit we went and had brunch at our Ward Mission Leader/Relief Society President's house. He made us Sea Food Crepes, which were, in all honesty, the best thing I've ever eaten. I nearly spit out my food though as I was getting a spiritual slap in the face from Elder Holland. Haha! He is excellent! I loved every minute of that conference. Afterward we went to the church in the middle of the first session to see if any of our investigators or less actives were there. We were invited to go to an all-you-can-eat buffet across the street by one of our dear single members, and older man who is just as cute as a button and has a wicked stamp collection. So in between sessions we went out with him, even though I was already stuffed from sea food crepes. It was so fun to spend time with him though! Haha. We're trying desperately to set him up with one of our returning members, but she isn't seeing the light. One day she'll get there. Well, the day got even better. ANOTHER single man in the ward (the one who gave us flowers and chocolates for Valentine's Day) invited us to go to the SAME buffet for dinner after the next session. I was like, "Four months to sexy....? ....Nah. Okay! We'll go!" Haha these men just love us. Well, our friend from the previous date saw us leaving with our new date at the end of the second session, and he was like, "Where are you going with Brother Bowden?" And I felt as if I was being disloyal to a boyfriend or something.... haha. We sheepishly told him the truth, which resulted in him coming along AGAIN. And then another older brother decided to come with us! Can you imagine? Two cute sister missionaries with an escort of three of the cutest old men you ever did see. Haha. It was definitely one of the highlights of my mission, and I'll have the pounds to help me remember it for years to come. 

Conference was exceptional! I especially enjoyed Elder Uchtdorf''s talk, but that's no surprise. He will always, ALWAYS be my favorite. I also really enjoyed Elder Hallstrom's talk from the Priesthood Session. He spoke to us a couple weeks ago, so he has a beloved place in my heart too now. I would have to say though, that of all the talks, I LOVED the prophet's message the most on Sunday. Really, this is a gospel of love. Let's not let anything else get in the way of that. Gosh, I love being a member of this church, and I especially love being a missionary. I wish I could go on like this forever!

Well, I better be going. I've regaled you all with stories for long enough. I hope everyone is doing exceptionally well. BIG FAT SHOUT OUT AND CONGRATULATIONS TO KARENNA TROUTNER for getting ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!! And not getting married before I get home. :) EVEN BETTER! YAY!!!! I love you and Austin and I KNOW you will be so joyously happy together! See you this summer! I cannot wait! Anyway, have a beautiful week, my loves! Miss you to the stars and beyond. LOVE YOU ALL!

Love,

Sylvia

Snow is Falling All Around

HAPPY, HAPPY SPRING! We are currently enjoying breezy wind chillls and virbrant bursts of fresh, white snow. Spring is here! At least that's what the calendar tells me, anyway. But I'll stop complaining for the millionth time about how cold I am. How are you all? My babes! I miss everyone terribly. Quoi de neuf?! Is it spring yet in the Wasatch Front? You lucky ones. I hope you get a surprise snow storm!

So I know I say this a lot, but this really was the BEST WEEK of my mission! Oh my. I am still gracefully floating down from the heavens. As I mentioned last week, we had a little visit from Salt Lake! Among the party was Elder Neil L. Andersen of the douze, Donald L. Hallstrom of the Presidency of the soixante-dix (FAVE!), and Gérald Caussé of the Presiding Épiscopat (DOUBLE FAVE)! But more on that later. I have a lot to say about my week!

On Tuesday we went to the Montréal temple to spiritually prepare for our mission conference. Aah! I absolutely adore the temple. It's closing for a year this May, so we're allowed to go once a transfer since we won't get our temple day when I go home in August. On Thursday I went on exchanges with my granddaughter, Sister Godfrey, but THIS time I was able to go back and work in my first area! My goodness. What a blessed treat! We started off the day by seeing my little recent convert's family, the Espindolas. I have missed them SO MUCH! It has been a year since I first met them, and the changes that have taken place in their lives have been so amazing. Sam is even planning on going on a mission! In like... nine years haha. Gosh, I love them to death. His mom is preparing to go to the temple too! She expressed her gratitude to me for pulling them out of the dark a year ago and for being THEIR missionary. I honestly feel like I did nothing, but that family is completely precious and will ALWAYS hold a very special place in my heart. Missions are spectacular! There is no reward greater than seeing just how much the gospel blesses families. After visiting them we went and had lunch with a Filipina sister! THE BEST! Something I desperately miss about Montréal ward haha. I ate blood pudding for the first time in my life and wanted to DIE. I took pictures of this event, but I won't be sending them because I don't want anyone to see how many chins I have acquired. Ha. But really. After our lunch we went to visit the most AMAZING recent convert named Mary-Lynne, who Sister Varela and I began teaching before I left for Quebec City. Now she's a ward missionary and OH-SO FABULOUS! I feel blessed to have had the chance to come back and see all of these incredible people again. Later that evening we went to track down a woman that Sister Foniciello and I had taught nearly a year ago. It was actually planned by the member who found her with us last year, and she had no idea that I would be there that evening. When we arrived at her home, she remembered me completely, and told me that she thinks of me often. She begged me to come back and see her another time, but unfortunately I'm assigned to the neighboring area! So sad. But I felt touched that she remembered me. The whole day was like flash-back city. It was fun to run around the metros and buses talking to all of the interesting people in the city. Aaah! Such a great day! I love being a missionary in Montréal.

Alright. The next day was just fantastic! We had mission leadership council in the morning, which is always a treat. We were discussing modesty, particularly how some of the sisters' skirts were too tight. And I'm just sitting there like.... uh... GUILTY! That poutine has to belong somewhere. Afterward we picked up my main boo and best friend on the mission, SISTER OROZCO!!!!! She and her amazing companion, Sister Garcia, came down from Quebec to spend the night with us. HEAVEN!!!! We went to a Venezuelan restaurant for dinner, and then Orozco and I proceeded to talk the night away and cry because we miss each other so much. It was so incredibly fun. We pushed all of our beds together in the kitchen and just had the best girls night I've had in a long time. 

Then came... MISSION CONFERENCE! Can you imagine the joy of seeing every single companion and mission friend you've ever had in the past 14 months? It was beautiful!!! I have never felt such happiness in all of my life. I imagine that my homecoming will be like that, but ten times more beautiful. Get excited! The speakers were absolutely excellent. I was so spiritually edified that I feel as if I have become a new person. We are so blessed in our mission! Bishop Caussé even gave his talk in French. I felt so special. They treated us as if we were Paris missionaries! Little do they know we only speak Quebecois. But that's okay! It was a fantastic day. Later that evening les elders had a baptism of two sweet young boys in our ward whose mom joined the church a few years ago. Their dad finally allowed them to get baptized, and it was just the most precious event I have ever attended. I was asked to play the piano, which was a big mistake, but hey, I pulled it off. At the end I was playing Families Can Be Together Forever, and after one verse Sister Sherwood stopped conducting and turned around to sit down, but I just kept plunking along. Everyone was laughing, including me, which made it nearly impossible to play. Spirit ruined. But hey, it was a great day!

THEN on Sunday we had a special stake conference with Elder Hallstrom, an event that also changed my life. We sang in the most powerful missionary/youth choir, and there was literally not a dry eye in the chapel. The church is so true! No doubt about it. What a beautiful opportunity that I have to be a Mormon and share the gospel. I never want it to end sometimes! Every member a missionary, I guess. Keep preaching!

Alright, so there's my piece. Sorry for such a long email! This was just such a fantastic week. The rest of the weeks of my mission are going to be awful compared to what I just experienced. Meh. Oh well. Anyway, I hope you all have a glorious first full week of spring! Enjoy the warm sunshine! I'm freezing my toonkie off. No big deal. I love you and miss you ALL! Lots and lots and lots. Thinking of you always!

Love,

Soeur Cutler

C'est la vie tho

FAM! How are you all doing? What's the hott gossip? What are the cool jams? Oh how I miss you ALL! I hope everyone is having a fantastic March, flying kites in my honor! Before I forget... HAPPY St. Patrick's Day! Please pray that the drunk revelers will stay faaaaar away from me today. Compy and I went and got some SHAMROCK SHAKES from McDo's to celebrate! It has been a great day. :)

First things first.... I do believe someone has a B-DAY coming up... SHOUT-OUT to Taralyn Clark and her 21st YEAR! Whoooooo! I love you more than words can describe, and I hope your birthday is full of pure joy and pure mischief! Thank you for being the world's most fabulous friend these many years. Were I not a missionary, we would DEFINITELY be going to The Chocolate and Spark and Denny's and McDonald's to eat our feelings this Wednesday! Rain check for next year when we're 22, OLD, single and REALLY have a reason to go eat our feelings. ;) I LOVE YOU! :) You are my favorite, best, and NUMBER ONE BOO! Love you eternally! Live life to the fullest, my love. 

Alright, so this week was just a non-stop miracle shop. Not a day goes by in LaSalle that I don't see a miracle or two or even three! Being a missionary is just about the greatest thing that will ever happen to me. I'm convinced. On Tuesday our day got off to a rocky start. All of our plans kept falling through, which was frustrating beyond belief but soon turned the day into one of the greatest on my mission. We were able to pay an unexpected, lovely visit to a less active sister in the ward who is from Jersey (of the Jersey cow make), and her adorable, feisty best friend, a 93-year-old woman from Scotland named Lily. (Obviously it took her no time at all to become my favorite person in the world.) Even though the day wasn't going as planned, that little visit gave me so much joy that I felt I would truly be able to conquer the world for the rest of the day. AND WE DID! Since literally every appointment fell through that afternoon, we made ourselves useful by running around LaChine tracking down unknowns that the Bishop asked us to see. We arrived at one name that didn't have an appartment number, so we decided we would just knock his whole dang apartment buidling! If Marvin Martin's neighbors didn't know him before, they do now! Hee hee. Our mission president doesn't want us to knock doors too much anymore, but my goodness did we have fun stalking less actives and preaching the gospel from door to door like the good old days! And yes, we had a MIRACLE! We found this amazing woman who let us in immediately the minute I said we were here to prêche l'evangile. Later that day we had to cross one of the world's sketchiest bridges to go to the Indian Reservation, and there we were able to visit the world's most adorable Kiwi. She's 87 and loads of fun, and quite possibly more feisty than my dear Lucie up in Quebec City. She fed us dinner and even tried to convince a super attractive door-to-door salesman to take the missionary discussions when he showed up at her house. Haha! He was cute. I wish he would have joined the church so that I could have married him. Oh well... next life I guess. Later that evening we went on a member exchange, and I got to go visit my favorite less active in the world with the Stake President's wife. It was a touching visit, tears and hugs and talk of the atonement. I can truly say that this was one of the best days of my entire mission. And to top it off, the St. Laurent river was glistening and glowing under a beautiful blue, sunny sky all day. It just doesn't get better than that!

The rest of the week was full of snow and viciously cold winds, but I feel that springtime will be here soon enough. Crossing my fingers! On Friday we went teaching with our Stake President, and he gave a beautiful blessing to one of our members that is returning to activity. This woman is seriously the funniest person on the planet. I imagine that I will probably be like her one day when I'm sixty and less active. Minus the less active part. This week she recounted the story of when she was a barista and flirted a man into buying cheesecake whilst wearing her most scandalous tank top. Haha. I just lover her. The week before that she told this story about how she was running through Chinatown in a rage when a kind, soft-spoken Chinese man took her in as her anger management coach for three years. But then one day he was killed in a drive-by shooting on his way out of an herbal shop. Hmm... alas, these things happen, you know? Ha ha I just love the people here to death and am having the time of my life!

Well, that's all for now! Tomorrow we're going to the TEMPLE! Whooo hooo! I cannot WAIT! Oh, and before I forget to mention... Elder Niel L. Andersen is coming to the mission this week! With three other general authorities! We're going to have a special mission conference. I've known about this for a few months but I keep forgetting to mention. I'll let you know how it is! It should be fantastic! Anyway, I hope you are all doing well! I love you to the heavens. Ahhh. But seriously. I miss you all terribly. I'm not going to let everyone know how trunky I am but... for now, try not to have too much fun without me! I will be home before you know it, and then the party can resume! Until then, be good! Have a fabulous week! Love you all forever.

Soeur Cutler