Thanksgiving here was so great :)
That morning My companion and I went to the ward turkey bowl. We
had every intention of just watching until we got there. We didn't even
have a chance to sit down before the recruited us onto teams that were
already too small. I don't mind playing sports... but playing with guys
is always a bad idea for me because even if I can be competitive enough,
nothing can change the fact that I am small and often overlooked. It
was just touch football, but it still didn't take much to throw me to
the ground. I was dizzy and super sore when I crawled off the ground.
Then I decided that I wasn't going to play anymore. It's not worth it if
I know I'll end up getting hurt. But it was fun up until then! lol
We were asked not to do any proselyting that day because it is a
day for families and everyone is so busy. So it was like a super-long
P-day for us. I missed you all a lot on Thursday. Probably because we
weren't really allowed to do anything but relax and that gave me a lot
of time to just sit and think about thanksgiving. I wish I could have
been at home for it and seen all of your happy faces. (and teach Hannah
and Faith how to make a homemade pie :P). But it was also very neat to
be with the Shumways and their extended family. It always warms my heart
to be with a family - any family! It strengthens my testimony of the
Savior's plan for us because I can feel so strongly how important
families really are; and not just my own, but all families. Their family
has a thanksgiving tradition where they put three dry corn kernels on
everyone's plate, and before we even served any of the food we went
around the table and everyone said something they were thankful for for
each of those kernels. It took awhile because there were 13 or 14 of
us, but it was so neat. Everyone, including me, got teary eyed as
everyone expressed how thankful they were for families and the temple
where families are sealed together.
After that we spent a lot of time with the other missionaries in
the area. It was so much fun. We played a nerf war game in the church's
gym. We set up the game with round tables turned on their sides and
strategically placed around the room. Then we divided into two teams,
six on six, and played capture the flag. We didn't have nerf guns,
because we're missionaries and are on a tight budget. But pvc pipe is
cheap! So one of the elders bought a container of 100 nerfs and we all
had a short piece of pvc pipe to launch nerfs. It actually works really
well (Christmas gift idea hint ;) nerf darts are cheap I think and you
could paint several pieces of pvc pipe and it would be a great gift for
Caleb! He could play with all of his friends)
The game was so much fun... but I was SO sore the next day! All of
us were really, but we were still able to work so it was worth it :) On
Friday my comapnion woke up practically voiceless. That was an
interesting day. I did alot of talking lol.
Lately my companion and I have been doing a lot of tracting
(meaning knocking on doors of people we don't even know) and inviting
anyone and everyone to the creche... which is this week!! A lot of our
efforts right now are focused on that. We really believe that if we can
just get people to come to the Creche and feel of the spirit there that
they will have the desire to learn more about Christ.
We haven't been able to teach too many lessons these past few weeks
(which can be so heartbreaking, because honestly that is what I want to
be doing! I want to have so many investigators that we don't have
enough time to teach them all ourselves. But we've been struggling
finding a small handful. Right now we have two children that we are
teaching (and I love them both so much! I am definitely blessed to have
the opportunity to still work with kids even though I am on a mission
now). We really need more ward support here. Well I guess support isn't
the right word because they definitely all support us and I love the
ward here, but we need them to help us more with the missionary efforts
here. We cannot find, teach and retain converts without them. We need
referrals, and investigators need member support! So right now we're
also focusing on strengthening the members. We need them to have the
confidence to talk to their friends and neighbors and to invite them.
But people are naturally scared. They believe that if they invite their
friends and they decline then they will lose their friends. But that
isn't true. When we talk to people out of love - they can tell! Why
would our friends turn against us because we are trying to love them
even more by sharing the greatest joy that we have?
I still love meeting with our Tongan family :D. This week we talked about the
Family proclamation. They loved it :) I know that that proclamation is
divine revelation. The family is so important. All families are! Do you
have a copy of it mom? I mean I know you've read it before but do we
have a copy that can be framed and put on the wall somewhere so that our
whole family can remember it. I think that that is such a great thing
to do, because not only does it remind us of what the Lord has told us
about the family but it also is a great opportunity to share what we
believe with those around us. Because when people see that on our walls
they will want to know what it is. And when they read it, they will feel
the spirit because it is the words of God :) Haha... not that I can
think of any of our walls at home that have room for another picture
frame, but still, it's a thought :)
Oh oh! I spoke in Sacrament on Sunday and it was great. I've
actually come to really love speaking or singing in Sacrament. I
remember I used to be so shy with things like that but now I love the
opportunity. I still get nervous, but I grow so much by sharing my
talents and testimonies. My companion and our ward mission leader
also spoke and we all talked about missionary work. I focused on
Christ-like attributes in mine though. Because it is so important that
we are first like Christ before we can try to bring people to Christ.
You cannot lift somebody until you are standing on higher ground
yourself. I'll eventually get a copy of it sent to you because I typed
the whole thing up. I think that it is a great idea to keep copies of
all of my talks in detail so that I can pull them out if I am ever
called last minute to speak.
I also just got a new personal progress book. It has been so many
years since I finished my personal progress! I don't even remember the
things I did or what I learned from it. Honestly, I think that when I
finished it in young women's I just went through it as fast as I could. I
want to do it again while I'm on my mission, but I really want to learn
as much as I can from it and strengthen my testimony. Super excited!
Well I hope you are all doing great. I am excited to report next week all about the creche! :)
Love you lots!
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