Dear Family,
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| Skyping with the Family |
Hello!!!! It was so amazing skyping with you guys yesterday!!!!! What a blessing!!! I love you all soo much. I hope you know that and that you can feel the love I have for you all through my letters and emails. Words really just can't describe how grateful I am for all of you. I would not be here without you. So thank you for everything. It's amazing how family works, I haven't seen or talked to you guys in a few months, but it still just felt the same. We all just slipped back into place :) Eugenie's announcement is sooooo cute! I approve :) Sammm!!!!! I am soooo happy that you are going on a mission!! holy cow!!!!!! Yayayayayayayyyy I am writing you a letter today :)
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| Christmas PJ's and Presents |
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| After Christmas Dinner |
So the best part of my Christmas day besides talking to all of you was going and visiting families. We went to families who are having family troubles, struggling with life, less actives, potential investigators, and part member families. We went in and shared scriptures about our Savior Jesus Christ and bore testimony that He lives. That is what brought me the greatest happiness. It is so interesting to see how the mission is changing me and my views. The family my companion and I live with invited us to come up and have Christmas morning with them. It was really sweet of them, but it was really weird at the same time. This whole Christmas season I have been blessed to be working at the visitors center and just be testifying up and down of Jesus Christ and what we can give to Him this season. It is so interesting how the world has taken this holiday celebrating the birth of our Savior and made it into something kind of selfish and materialistic. I just felt kind of out of it. I don't know I feel like I want to find a new way to celebrate Christmas instead of sitting around a tree ripping open packages. And sorry I'm really speaking my mind right now- everyone has their right to celebrate Christmas in any way that they want, but I am going to make a more conscious effort to give gifts for the Savior. To be more like Jesus Christ, and to go out of my way to help people feel the love that the Savior has for each of them. So anyways, after eating dinner with a member family we went back to the VC for Christmas night! We had so many miracles! We had about 50 people come in and have a desire to change their lives, to meet with missionaries, and learn more about how they can follow the example of our Savior Jesus Christ. Our Sister missionary choir sang at the concert last night! It was really cool! And remember my comp form the MTC- sister Valladares from Honduras? She sang a solo and ya the whole program was really cool! Last night was the last night for concerts and all of the rest of the Christmas stuff will just be up till January 1st.
So I have an embarrassing funny story. Sister Marand and I went caroling Christmas eve with our district. It was super fun! But anyways, so we went and stopped by this one less active families home and I picked to sing Away in a Manger.... I started everyone off, and it only took about 10 seconds into the song before I realized that I had no idea what I was singing. Seriously I was just making stuff up! But, everybody just kept following my lead! hahaha So yeah we only sang one verse of that song and called it quits on away in a manger haha oh boy... So ya caroling was fun! Also Sister Marand and I had a really cool experience contacting a referral this week. The referral came from a member at the visitors center for his friends. So we went over to see them- Sister Marand and Sister Gordon (previous comp) had already gone and seen her once and told her that her friend Bob had referred them. She seemed kind of confused and asked who.. They repeated the name again, and the lady then went on to tell them that Bob had just died the night before from a heart attack. woah.- Anyways so we go back over to talk to her again and to see if we can get a return appointment. We were just planning on sharing a little message, but the spirit was just so strong when were talking with her and we ended up teaching her the whole first lesson! She wants us to come back and teach her and her whole family! We are going back over next week :)
Anyways, wow I can't believe Jody is home!!!! Those 2 years just flew by!!! Tell him to write me! I want to hear all about his awesome mission!
I love you all sooo much! I can't believe I have less than one week with Sister Marand before she goes back to Temple Square! Ah I have no idea what's going to happen to me! But it will be good. I have learned that change is a good thing. In just one week of being in this new area I feel like I have learned so much and been stretched.
I love you all soooo much!!
Love,
Sister Hamstead
