Well, first and foremost, darling friends and family.. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!! :) I want you to each know how eternally grateful I am to have you all in my life and to have been able to continually learn and grow from your sweet examples and Christ-like love. I truly have been blessed for having known you.
So, I officially finished training (a 12 week workbook that our trainers teach to help us become better missionaries) last week, so it feels super weird to have one less hour of studies each day.. I will forever be training though, in my heart if not in that booklet.. :) So, my new companion is Sister Schmidt! She is super cool and is from Loomis, California. She has been out only 6 weeks longer than I have (one transfer), so we are still super shocked that we're companions.. Normally two missionaries who have been out as short of a time as we have are not companions, but hey, we have fun and we preach the gospel, so there's no complaints here! :) My new District is super cool too! One of my favorite Sisters from the MTC is in the district with all of us, so this will be a fun transfer for sure. Our District leader is a funny Elder too, so we're all pretty excited to learn and serve with/from one another.
On Tuesday, we had a super interesting day.. I'm sure that you all probably heard about it in one way or another, but what it boils down to is that Washington was placed in a State of Emergency this past week.. super crazy experience. So, Tuesday morning started like any other transfer day. Sister Blauer's companion was leaving too, and so all four of us left early in the morning to go take our companions to the stake center where they met their new companions. It was super bittersweet to say goodbye to Sister Finau, but her work here was done, and Sister Schmidt was called here for a reason, so it's all okay. :) Then, Sister Blauer and I studied together, and then left to go to a different Stake Center in Spokane (right next door to the Temple, so pretty!) to pick up Sister Lott and Sister Schmidt, our new companions. So, on the way there, Sister Blauer was telling me how they had forecasted 40-60 mph winds later in the day.. so, once our new companions were there, we were about to leave to drive back to our area when the winds were getting SUPER bad.. like, we probably could have done a little Mary Poppins flying action if we had an umbrella or two. So, we get this text from the Assistants to the President saying that it is unsafe to drive and to stay in for the rest of the night.. well, obviously we weren't going to stay the night at the Stake Center, so the Elders drove to Walmart and bought some tiedowns for the back of the truck so the luggage could be in there safely while us Sisters stayed and helped the ward in the building set up for Young Women's Evening in Excellence that was supposed to happen on Tuesday night.. so, to make a long story a little bit longer, we ended up staying at the Stake Center for 2 and half hours while we got everything ready to head back in the middle of this crazy storm. It was super neat, though, because in the midst of these treacherous winds, power was going out everywhere and the church house would go out for a second, and us missionaries would start singing, and it came right back.. it was a really cool experience. That, and the Temple was perfectly lit the entire time. Heavenly Father truly is the ruler of all, and His house stayed bright in the midst of a world of darkness. Such a tender mercy.
Anyway, so eventually we got home at night only to find out that our power was off, so we bundled up, stayed warm, and didn't open our fridge. Cookies and Goldfish for dinner is good for the soul. ;) So, driving around the next couple of days, there were trees down everywhere, houses damaged and ruined, people freezing and without food, and it was just all a very humbling and growing experience. We were without power for a couple of days, so our sweet Relief Society president let us stay with her, so that was a tender mercy as well. Never once during all of this, though, was I ever scared. It was such a testimony builder to me that a loving Heavenly Father directs this work and will protect His people as they continually follow Him. I know that we were kept safe from harm throughout this whole storm, and I am just so grateful. Everything works according tot the timing of the Lord, and we can find continued comfort that there is light (sometimes literally, even) at the end of the tunnel, if we but endure to the end!
On Friday, we finally got to go back home, and we went shopping that day because all of our food had spoiled throughout the course of the storm and plus Sister Schmidt didn't have anything because she just gotten here. :) On Friday afternoon, we finally went out teaching for a full day (with the storm, we had a lot of other things we had to do this week), and we went to a less-active, Kayla's, house and one of her roommates who is deaf was talking to us on the doorstep.. now this is where a super cool miracle comes in.. So, both Sister Schmidt and I just so conveniently studied American Sign Language in High School!! So, we were signing to him and asking him if he would want to learn more about the gospel and he wasn't interested right now, but his wife is deaf and so is our less-active's boyfriend!! So, we were talking to our mission President about this, and he actually said that Sister Schmidt and I have permission to study ASL 3-4 nights a week to learn how to sign the discussions to them so we can teach this household!! HOW COOL IS THAT!? I finally get to use that Sign Language!! So exciting! I'm super nervous though, because I haven't signed a lot since High School, but hopefully it will come back and we'll be able to help these beautiful children of God come closer to Him and His Son. I'll keep you posted on that! :)
We also saw Stephanie this week again (the one who cried during her prayer and asked Heavenly Father to let us come teach her again) and she is moving to Montana soon, but wants missionaries to keep teaching her there. How cool is that!? We taught her the Plan of Salvation, and she agreed to come to church this week. So AWESOME! :)
Anyway, sorry this email has been so long, but this whole missionary life truly is such an amazing blessing. I know that my Heavenly Father lives. That He stands ready at any time of the night or the day to our prayers, and that He wants to bless us. I know that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and that it truly is another testament of Jesus Christ. Does Christ love everyone? Do you think that He would visit more than just the people in the Middle East as documented in the Bible? ..and if He did indeed visit those people, do you think that He would want them to write that down and make a record of what He taught them? I testify that this truly is the case. Christ loves all people. He visited the people of the ancient Americas and taught them His gospel and let them feel the nail prints in His had and the wound in His side. Those people recorded that experience - in a Book called The Book of Mormon. Read it, and you will feel an even greater Divine love for Jesus Christ and a greater light come into your life. Of this I promise.
Well, I hope that you each have a beautiful Thanksgiving and start to the holiday season. This truly is the most wonderful time of the year. Love you all! Stay strong and make this week better than last week! :)
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