Richardson, Olivia PT

Sister Richardson's Super Split Seconds HELLOOO! It dumped rain this week—so much so that, at one point, water was pouring off my face and rain jacket right into my pants, making it look as though I had a serious bathroom accident. We meet so many characters every week. One thing I've definitely learned over the past (almost) 18 months is to laugh at things. I love serving in such a diverse area because you see EVERYTHING. And I mean EVERYTHING. For example, many people think pants are optional when opening the door, others think getting arrested is classy, and some are inclined to force-feed girls stinky treats that taste like spicy sand. See what I mean by EVERYTHING? Oh, and yes, we encountered all of that this week. I've said it before and I'll say it again: the members in Virginia are next-level AWESOME! Seeing how they live the gospel in their thoughts, words, and actions has literally changed my life forever. I'm so thankful for their examples of light and lo...

Sister Richardson's Super Split Seconds Hello lovely people! Life is busy but good here! It's officially fall, and I just can't say enough good things about VA in the fall. It's GORGEOUS. A definite highlight from the week was having the chance to spend the day back in Annandale with the lovely Sister Barney! She's an absolute ray of sunshine, and she's helped me so much to grow in my understanding of who the Savior is and how He operates. Everyone needs a Sister Barney in their life! A sweet member took us to tour his office today, which also happens to be the Pentagon. It was so rad. I wish I could accurately put into words the energy present in the Pentagon because it was truly invigorating. As I'm sure you can imagine, there were quite a few tributes to the victims of 9/11 around the Pentagon. All of them were very moving, but one in particular got me thinking. It said something along the lines of, "The enemy tried to divide us, but in doing so made...

Sister Richardson's Super Split Seconds Hello lovely people! We had ourselves a week! I'm officially in my last transfer, and it just feels surreal. Transfer news... SISTER WALLIN AND I ARE STAYING TOGETHER! I'm so pumped to spend my last six weeks in Spring/Roll with Sister Wallin. Stay tuned for some amazing miracles. Here's a scripture I've been loving recently: "Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 8:39 A few weeks ago, a woman named Amy was speaking in church. She was sharing her personal testimony, and one specific line has stuck with me ever since. Amy said: "Life is so hard, and you know, most of the time I pray and I wonder if my microphone is even on. Like, God, are you even listening to me?" She paused for a second and then tearfully and simply stated: "I know He hears me." This really struck me because I was feeling the ...

Sister Richardson's Super Split Seconds Pretty standard week around here! We have transfers this week, and I pray Sister Wallin and I stay together! The odds don't look great, but come what may, I know it will be for our good. This week was a week of love! We were able to visit and serve so many people who needed some love. We may not see numerical success every day, but I know we are successful in God's eyes because my head hits the pillow every night, and I feel nothing but peace about the work we put in. I'm at the point in my mission where, anytime someone asks how long I've been out, they respond with something like, "Oh shoot, so you're almost done. How does it feel?" The only word I've been able to come up with is bittersweet. It feels like just yesterday that I was sitting in my kitchen, scraping together my first round of split seconds—feeling excited but also so incredibly scared for the journey ahead. Here we are, almost 18 months later,...

Sister Richardson's Super Split Seconds Virginia is just so beautiful! Little hints of fall are peeking out, and it's just stunning! In need of some entertainment? Venture out to the Springfield McD's, and I promise you'll come out feeling real good. In the span of one hour, we witnessed three adult men (from the same group, I might add) sit at different tables and have a loud conversation across said tables, a homeless lady nearly take off her pants (thank goodness for underwear), and to top it all off, a man miss the trash can and leave all the damage from his breakfast on the floor of the entrance. Fine dining, am I right? Let's just say not much studying was done because we simply couldn't take our eyes away from the madness all around us. Humbling moment: Our friend wouldn't open the door for our lesson, but we could hear that he was home. So, we proceeded to call said friend and heard him decline our call through the door to his apartment. The icing on...