October 9, 2011
This has been a wonderful, busy, spiritual week for my companion, Sister Harper and me. Our District Leader, Elder Noel called and asked if he needed to worry about us being in by 10:30 and I laughed and said that we were usually in bed by 9:30. This is really strange for me because you know that I usually burn the midnight oil.
We started calling on sisters in the White Plains 1st Ward this week, and made it through twelve on the list. The area we drive through is beautiful--it's like we would consider being in the country only with millions of trees along the road too. As we were going to one house, a deer walked right in front of our car. One sister in her first trimester of pregnancy is really sick and is already having post-partum depression, so we visited with her for awhile and went with a walk with her, the children (4), her mom and sister. She left the next day for Alabama for a month to stay with her mom (her husband is in Arizona right now on active duty), so I'm sure as soon as she gets home we'll be called on to help more. (She home schools, so who knows, we may become school teachers while we're here ).
Another sister we called on I told you about last week. She is about 30 years old and has stage 3 or 4 stage non-smokers lung cancer. She has one-year old twins and one other pre-schooler. Her mom and mother-in-law have been caring for the family, but now the mother-in-law has gone to Spokane because another daughter is having a baby and the mom needs cataract surgery. She keeps trying to put it off, but it's got to the point where she has to use a huge magnifying glass to see to read. Alison (the girl) was sleeping when we went because she has just gone through her fourth session of chemotherapy, but they were really encouraged because her blood count was down from 600 the week before to 70 this week. (That's in terms of the bad cancer cells being the high number.) So Alison is feeling a little better, but extremely tired, and her mom is going to have cataract surgery, which means we will begin helping with the children. Oh, one minor detail--they aren't members of the church, but there is going to be a HUGE fundraiser for them in Nov. that we will also be involved in...I'll keep you informed.
Tuesday was a day I won't ever forget! We met with Pres.Tingey, the Washington DC Temple President, in the morning and were set apart as ordinance workers in the temple every Wednesday, starting this week. I am so excited and honored to have the priveledge to perform this service! While we were there, we were able to take a tour of the temple. It has seven stories (we went on five) and it took 2 1/2 hours!!! (not going into every room, of course)
The temple has a distribution center downstairs (where you can buy temple clothes, etc,). We went down after and bought some things, then got directions on a "quick" way to come home---NOT!!!!! We ended in downtown DC during rush traffic; around DuPont circle (where all the embassy's are), past the zoo, the Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, the War Memorial, and every other monument you could think of...we finally got on the state road home (dark, no lights on the road by now) going 55 mph and all of a sudden my lane ended without warning and there was a semi in the lane next to me. I've never been so scared in my life! I said a quick prayer, accelerated, swerved out and around him and somehow missed getting hit. I know that the Lord was watching over me and took over the wheel for that split second--I could feel a force other than my own driving the car. I am so grateful for answers to prayer, and know that the Lord is watching over us at all times. (all-in-all it took us 3 1/2 hours to get home from the temple!!!)
We feel like we are settled into our apartment now--a sister in the ward gave us an antique round table (kind of like the one you used to have Dave and Kath) for our tv, and we got our cable hooked up on Wednesday. It's nice to kick up our feet and relax and watch tv again at the end of a long day...
I love and miss all of you!!! The work is going well here--there are a lot of potential baptisms, tons of part-member families, and fellowshipping galore to do. A sister said to us today that she really hopes our mission is a success so that the church will want to utilize it world-wide, in that way she can go on a mission just like us--pretty neat! (kinda pressury though).
I love my Heavenly Father and I know He loves me and is here as my companion and protector while I am on my mission. This was proved in a most real way on the way home from the temple Wednesday.
I love and miss all of you, but I know should be here right now, doing what I am doing.
Christy, one of the girls from the 2nd ward just called and asked if we are okay. We said that we were but that we had gone to the 1st ward this week and that we would be to her ward next week. She said, "Oh good, we didn't see you there today and were worried that you were sick or something." Isn't that wonderful that she would care so much? She's the girl who's husband is on his third deployment and has three boys 10, 12, & 14. It was cute because even the boys noticed that we weren't there.
"if in the end you have not chosen Jesus Christ, it will not matter what you have chosen"
