Friendly Competition

Last night we had an Enrichment activity at the branch. It was fun, even though only six sisters showed up. Don't ask me how we got on the topic, but one girl mentioned that she used to have specialized competitions in some of her former wards. As she explained the rules of this competition we decided that we would try it out today during church.

Here are the rules:
1) A topic, word or phrase is selected and each sister is supposed to somehow incorporate this topic, word or phrase into her comments during Sunday School and Relief Society.

2) The comments must be applicable.

3) You must not get caught.

4) Score will be kept by one sister and a winner will be determined at the end of church.

Our topic today was sports, so our comments had to somehow relate to sports. Within the first few minutes of Sunday School I had come up with a comment. I had the hardest time actually saying it without laughing. The sister teaching Sunday School (who by the way had no idea what was going on, and didn't even notice, not even after we asked her after class) was asking why missionaries have investigators read 3 Nephi 11 as one of their first assignments. Since the Elders were there they put in their two cents, which gave me time to incorporate a sporting reference into my comment. I talked about how chapter 11 is the climax of The Book of Mormon; it is what everyone in the book has been waiting and preparing for. Then I said something about it being like the homerun of The Book of Mormon. I was so glad the teacher made a comment just then because I almost lost it. It took all that I had to compose myself enough to respond back to her comment on my comment. I couldn't look at any of the girls in the competition, and I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. I even laughed a little, silently of course.

As each sister eventually put in her comments and sports references I laughed silently to myself. I was shocked that the older married sister who hosted Enrichment last night joined in. In fact, she almost beat me. One sister had a really hard time making her sports reference applicable to her scriptural comment. In fact, once she said, "It's like a touchdown," without explaining herself. It was funny to watch other people look at her in disbelief. Applying the gospel to everyday life is one of my favorite things to do, so this was a lot of fun for me. I won with three Sports references during Sunday School, but another sister beat me out during Relief Society, and so she won overall. She even had three references in one comment, and they were each applicable.

Next week's topic is gardening. Easy. Too bad I'll be in CA.

Although this may seem like a huge distraction during the time when I ought to be learning more about the gospel, it was actually a great way for me to participate, stay focused on the lesson and actually hear what people around me were saying. So, if you find yourself getting bored with Sunday School or Relief Society join with us next week and see how many comments you can make about gardens.