Hello, everyone! Courtney wrote me something in her last email - she said, "Now I can understand why you always always say how much you love your family in your emails. Its like, go on a mission = YOU LOVE YOUR FAMILY 74,747,474,747 THOUSAND TIMES MORE THAN YOU DID BEFORE!" Ha ha! Yes! That is exactly why I just ramble on forever every single week about love you, love you, love you, stuff. Bingo, Courtles.
Okay, Amelia is going to Brazil. Oh, Nelly. Millzie, that's so amazing! You must feel so weird. If I was there next to you, I would sing you a song in a warbley old hobbit voice that goes like this: "The greeeeatest adventuuuuure is the one that lies ahead..." Mill, you just remember to pray. You are going to experience the most beautiful, toughest, rewarding, draining, important experiences of your life. You're gonna have a little culture shock for awhile, but these people will become your dear friends. Remember that language is just words, but they really are your brothers and sisters. Hurrah! Millzie, I'm SO excited for you! I love you with all my heart, Mill. You can do anything. And you can eat anything. Just chew and swallow. Don't think about it. And if you do a good job, when you get home I will make you one of those chocolate gold medals from the picture book.
Here's a little mission lesson I've learned. I will teach this lesson by sharing a little story that happened this morning. Scene: Soeur Mann sitting on her bed. Soeur Dagnillo sitting on her bed across from Soeur Mann. The room is full of tension so tangible you can almost taste it in the air. The two missionaries have just attempted to "evaluate some areas that need improvement" in their companionship. Neither one of them is feeling very cheery. Plus it's raining outside. Finally Soeur Dagnillo blurts out, "Soeur, I love you so much, but I just don't want to be with you twenty-four-seven!"
Ha ha! It was like a huge rock was lifted off my chest, and I just said, "I know! I don't want to be with you either!" And then we laughed and laughed, and we are still happy companions. Ya know what? We're all just people! And no matter how good of a missionary you are, or how strong your testimony is, or how well you and your companion get along, we are all just people, and we all have moments of weakness. It's okay. It's okay if the people around you aren't perfect. Its often best to laugh it off and move on. And forgiveness is essential. Its the only way any us are ever going to make it to heaven, and it really is the only thing that allows us to progress. I'm learning more and more that there are very few things worth arguing over, but there is always, always reason to forgive. Sometimes people irritate us, let us down, sometimes they straight up do the wrong thing, but we are all just people.
Alright, the FHE we had last week with President Hinckley's daugher was not only lovely, but truly unforgettable. Guess who else came with her? Hilary Weeks and her husband! It was so, so odd. Sometimes life is so bizarre. Like you are just sitting there in a living room listening to Hilary Weeks sing while your Tahitian investigators are sitting next to you... the world is so small. Apparently they were in Australia for a Time Out for Women conference, and they made a pit stop in Tahiti for a week. Hilary sang a song that touched my heart, that I will love for ever and ever. It must be called something like, "He Loves Us Still," and she said it will be on iTunes in September. The message of the song is that Christ loves us still, no matter what we do. My family, I love the Savior. Thank heavens we have a Savior, Someone who is constant. He does love us still, no matter what. I have felt it, and I know we can always approach Him, no matter where we stand. I was also delighted to see how perfectly normal the prophet's daughter is. She's just like her parents-so funny and down to earth. You can just eat some Doritos and banana bread and talk to her about whatever you want. Cuz that's what I did.
Yesterday in Sacrament Meeting, Michel got up and bore his testimony. There's really no way to describe how good it feels to be a missionary and hear a newly converted member get up and share his testimony. It feels like you actually did something, like there is actually a point to you being here. While I was sitting there, I thought, seriously, if he just stays faithful and happy til the end of his life, this will all be worth it. And then I had this horrible thought- what if he didn't? I started thinking about these people that I love, that I really have worked for and sacrificed for and cried over, all so they can just be happy. I realized that if I ever heard that one of these people lost their faith or started being disobedient and fell into old habits that bring them down, I would be heartbroken. It would feel like all this work was for nothing. And that brought me some really insightful thoughts about the Savior. The sacrifices of a missionary are absolutely nothing in comparison to His. But it gives you a tiny taste of what the Atonement means. I thought about how Christ must about us, Him being the One who created this earth and then descended below all things. And He did it because of one reason- He loves us and He wants us to be happy. And I thought how horrible He must feel when He sees someone He loves infinitely, for whom He suffered the worst kind of pain, just stuck, not reaching the joy and peace He wants for them. It must feel like it was for nothing. But then I had an even more important thought- How must He feel when someone repents? It was like a light went on in my spirit. What relief and joy He must feel! Of course he asks us to repent! Of course, of course! That is all He wants. Because repentance is the free, endless, perfect way for everyone to get back on track. He's not standing there angry at us, holding our sins over our heads. He suffered for these sins. He paid for them, and it was terrible, but He did it so we don't have to. So all he really wants is for us to just repent and come back, and of course he's going to accept us and welcome us and let us be happy again. That's the point. That is why He came and did what He did.
I love you all with all my heart,
Soeur Mann
