I am alive! Hello! It was loooooong getting here. But I did so safely, and with little complications.
Where am I you ask? I am in a place called Miri, in East Malaysia.
The people here are SO nice, I just have NO idea what they are saying. What even is Malay?
I guess I should start at the begining though. So, I left the MTC early Monday morning. I said goodbye to my roommates, Sister Aluesi and Sister Katepu. I am going to miss them!
We flew from Salt Lake to LA where we had a NINE hour layover, ( this was honestly the hardest part) I think we all died a little on the inside. We then had a 14 hour flight to Hong Kong. a two hour layover there, then a three hour flight to Singapore. I sat by other missionaries on the flight, so it wasn't that eventful.
After arriving we were met by President Rowley and a few missionaries. They were all so happy, and we all looked like we had been hit by a truck. But it's okay. Because, after almost 20 hours of flying in two days, and a total of 5 hours of sleep, what better time to give out a Book of Mormon?
It was rough ladies and gentleman. We split up and on the MRT (Like the subway, but in Singapore) on the way to the church we were supposed to hand out a Book of Mormon. The first person I talked to thought I was trying to buy her shoes... So that's a pretty good summary of where my missionary skills are at, at the moment. On the way to the church, the sister I was with got lost. So that means I got to do extra contacting. Whoo hoo. Extra blessings right?
I spent two days in Singapore. It reminded me a lot of London, but that might just be because London is the only other big city I have been in. Singapore is awesome. Very busy, and I realized I can see the top of most of other peoples heads. But that's okay!
On Friday I said goodbye to Sister Dayley, and I flew another two hours, by myself for the first time, in one of the largest and fanciest airports in the world, to Miri! It was exciting.
My new companion, and the Chinese speaking Sisters picked me up from the airport. My trainers name is Sister Thackeray, but goes by Sister Ray because people here can't say Thackeray. She is amazing! She literally is straight out of her first 12 week training too, but she is doing good. She is super supportive and patient. I am so grateful for her.
The first lesson I taught was to a nine year old girl. She had just gotten baptized and we were giving her a lesson on temples. All I could think of was my sister Bethany. I am not sure if she understood me, because I couldn't understand her. But I will always remember my first lesson.
It is custom here to sit in a circle on the floor, and the host will give the visitors drinks, and you must finish them before you leave. But the most popular drink here is Milo. Which kind of like chocolate milk, at least I think so. But basically I am drinking chocolate milk all day. So I am pretty much living my dreams.
Miri is interesting, because while I am biking, we will pass these really nice houses with big windows, and then some wooden houses on stilts all crammed together. and then I am biking by the jungle, and THEN I am biking by the fancy mall. Biking in general has been interesting. The hardest part has been learning to bike with a dress on. I blame my parents for not letting me ride my bike on Sundays as a child. I'm figuring it out though. The trick is, to just sweat a lot so that your skirt sticks to your skin. So far I have only only been honked at three times, and had one dog chase me. I'm making good time!
Fun fact! The word for 'good' in Malay is 'baik', which sounds like 'bike'. So I have been making A LOT of puns this week. I am sure Sister Ray has heard them all. But she's a good sport.
On Sunday, they asked me right before Sacrament meeting just to come up and introduce myself. It's hard because the Sister who was here before me was from West Malaysia, and had been in Miri for 5 transfers. So when the members see me with Sister Ray the immediately ask where Sister Tahu, the previous Sister, is. It's a lot to live up to.
I was feeling way discouraged. But when I got up to speak, I felt their love, and their gratitude. There was so many encouraging smiles. I am so grateful for the members in this branch. I just wish I could talk with them better.
Two things I have learned, when you cant speak, a genuine smile goes a long way. I just smile even when I feel frustrated and discouraged. The next is don't settle for a handshake! Lots of the members will give Sister Ray a huge hug and then offer me a handshake. No way am I taking that! I will be the first to tell you I am not a hug person. But I love these people! And I want them to know it! If I can't speak I will show them!
Holy cow. Pray for me please? It's going to be a lot to adjust to.
Thank you for all your love and support. Thank you for your prayers already. I love you all. I hope you all are doing amazing.
Sister Skinner
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