May 7, 2018 -- Two Halves of One Whole Geek!
Hey Friends!!!
So, this week has been incredible! Last Monday our whole district went to Brewton, Alabama! It was really fun, and we enjoyed exploring the Elder's area a little bit. It is a really small town, and it reminded me a lot of Madison. That was really touching, because in case you didn't know, my year mark is this week! I'm such an old missionary now. So here I am, about to cross a pretty major mission landmark, and I got to go back to a place that reminded me of the very beginning of all of this. Dirt roads and small towns and tractor stores- that's where I learned to love being a missionary, and I've loved it every day since. Even when things have been hard, or when I have felt like giving up, or when I thought that no one was listening-- it was all worth it. I will forever be grateful to God for my mission. I'm especially grateful this week for my trainer, Sister Hulstine. (I am sure you all remember many an email entailing our adventures together). She went home this week. I now have four companions at home and three companions still out. So that's pretty cool.
I had to say goodbye to Sister Burnham on Wednesday. It was really sad and bitter-sweet. I am going to really miss working with her, but it's okay because I know at the end of all of this, Sister Burnham will be my very last companion. We are going to go home together! So really this was just a "bye for now". I am really grateful for everything she taught me and all the good times we had together. I also met my new companion, Sister Shumway, on Wednesday, and let me tell you...WE ARE THE SAME PERSON! Oh my goodness it is so incredible! She loves all the same stuff I do, even the really weird left field stuff (like Welcome to Nightvale, Sweeny Todd, and Button Poetry)! It already feels like we have known each other for our whole lives, and it hasn't even been a week. We spend almost all of our time just laughing our heads off and singing songs and telling stories and it has been a blast. She reminds me a lot of Sister Adams actually! She also came out on the mission when Sister Kitchen did, which is very sweet. The subject line of my email is actually a quote from her. She said that we are "two halves of one whole geek", and she is beyond right. We are having so much fun together!!
Besides that, we have had a very eventful week! We met with Brother Tom again and taught him about the Word of Wisdom. He went from drinking two cups of coffee a day to only half a cup! He thinks by the end of this week he will be able to quit completely. Both he and Hayley (Sarah's friend) have picked who they would like to baptize them. Hayley asked a recent convert in the ward, JR, and Brother Tom asked a returned missionary named Blake. On Saturday we went with the Milton Sisters and the Brewton Elders to Century, Florida, and helped with a booth at a sawmill festival. It was really fun, and hot (which is my favorite thing in the world). It was great to get to work with the other missionaries for a while. It reminded me of Fox Run, and working with the Elders. I really miss that! I wish we had another set of missionaries serving in our ward with us. It makes everything much more exciting.
With my year mark coming up, I have really been contemplating what I am doing with my life right now. Why am I here? Why am I doing this? I have had many thoughts and come to many conclusions, but the biggest thing I keep coming back to is how much my understanding of love has changed these past 12 months. Before I became a missionary, I thought I understood what love was. I thought I felt love for people, and I did, to a certain degree. But since putting on a nametag, I have learned so much about what love actually is, and how it can change us. I have realized that love is the only way that we all get through this life. We must love each other without reservation or doubt. We have to love each other, even if sometimes our hearts break because of it. Nothing in this world is worth it without love. It isn't until you lose yourself in loving someone else that you find out who you really are. I am excited to keep learning this lesson for the rest of my time here, and when I go home.
I am really excited to talk to my family on Sunday! So by the time I write next, I will have talked to my parents and siblings again. It's been so long- I bet I'm going to cry.
It's been a blessed year friends. For those of you who still read these, I am beyond grateful to be able to share this journey with you. In 6 short months I will tell you about it in person. Until then, know that I love you! And hey- read the Book of Mormon?
So, this week has been incredible! Last Monday our whole district went to Brewton, Alabama! It was really fun, and we enjoyed exploring the Elder's area a little bit. It is a really small town, and it reminded me a lot of Madison. That was really touching, because in case you didn't know, my year mark is this week! I'm such an old missionary now. So here I am, about to cross a pretty major mission landmark, and I got to go back to a place that reminded me of the very beginning of all of this. Dirt roads and small towns and tractor stores- that's where I learned to love being a missionary, and I've loved it every day since. Even when things have been hard, or when I have felt like giving up, or when I thought that no one was listening-- it was all worth it. I will forever be grateful to God for my mission. I'm especially grateful this week for my trainer, Sister Hulstine. (I am sure you all remember many an email entailing our adventures together). She went home this week. I now have four companions at home and three companions still out. So that's pretty cool.
I had to say goodbye to Sister Burnham on Wednesday. It was really sad and bitter-sweet. I am going to really miss working with her, but it's okay because I know at the end of all of this, Sister Burnham will be my very last companion. We are going to go home together! So really this was just a "bye for now". I am really grateful for everything she taught me and all the good times we had together. I also met my new companion, Sister Shumway, on Wednesday, and let me tell you...WE ARE THE SAME PERSON! Oh my goodness it is so incredible! She loves all the same stuff I do, even the really weird left field stuff (like Welcome to Nightvale, Sweeny Todd, and Button Poetry)! It already feels like we have known each other for our whole lives, and it hasn't even been a week. We spend almost all of our time just laughing our heads off and singing songs and telling stories and it has been a blast. She reminds me a lot of Sister Adams actually! She also came out on the mission when Sister Kitchen did, which is very sweet. The subject line of my email is actually a quote from her. She said that we are "two halves of one whole geek", and she is beyond right. We are having so much fun together!!
Besides that, we have had a very eventful week! We met with Brother Tom again and taught him about the Word of Wisdom. He went from drinking two cups of coffee a day to only half a cup! He thinks by the end of this week he will be able to quit completely. Both he and Hayley (Sarah's friend) have picked who they would like to baptize them. Hayley asked a recent convert in the ward, JR, and Brother Tom asked a returned missionary named Blake. On Saturday we went with the Milton Sisters and the Brewton Elders to Century, Florida, and helped with a booth at a sawmill festival. It was really fun, and hot (which is my favorite thing in the world). It was great to get to work with the other missionaries for a while. It reminded me of Fox Run, and working with the Elders. I really miss that! I wish we had another set of missionaries serving in our ward with us. It makes everything much more exciting.
With my year mark coming up, I have really been contemplating what I am doing with my life right now. Why am I here? Why am I doing this? I have had many thoughts and come to many conclusions, but the biggest thing I keep coming back to is how much my understanding of love has changed these past 12 months. Before I became a missionary, I thought I understood what love was. I thought I felt love for people, and I did, to a certain degree. But since putting on a nametag, I have learned so much about what love actually is, and how it can change us. I have realized that love is the only way that we all get through this life. We must love each other without reservation or doubt. We have to love each other, even if sometimes our hearts break because of it. Nothing in this world is worth it without love. It isn't until you lose yourself in loving someone else that you find out who you really are. I am excited to keep learning this lesson for the rest of my time here, and when I go home.
I am really excited to talk to my family on Sunday! So by the time I write next, I will have talked to my parents and siblings again. It's been so long- I bet I'm going to cry.
It's been a blessed year friends. For those of you who still read these, I am beyond grateful to be able to share this journey with you. In 6 short months I will tell you about it in person. Until then, know that I love you! And hey- read the Book of Mormon?
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