Sister Lily keeps a mini-diary of sentence-long synopses of every day, and after reviewing this week's details, we have decided our email theme today is : awesome. A sad little beach-bum sort of word, I know, but it seems to carry with it the enthusiasm and, yes, awe, that we've felt these past seven days.
First, right after my last email we walked up to the temple, where we do endowment sessions every week as a District. Always great, but this time in particular because Sister J had brought us all Indonesian names from friends and family in Jakarta. .......
Second, we taught another lesson to another "investigator." It would have been cool enough just having him there -- he was one of the first Elders ever to serve in Indonesia and helped translate the BoM -- but our lesson was stunning. WE weren't necessarily stunning, but the Spirit working through us most definitely was. I find a strength and steadiness in preaching this Gospel that disquiets every fear my naturally shy self harbors, and that is truly, truly a miracle.
But we returned home from our triumph to find what we fondly call "The Black Spot" on our apartment door-- the announcement that FOUR new sisters would be moving in on Wednesday and, in effect, our solo suite days were over. After the proper period of mourning, however, we girded up our loins (SisL loves saying this to make me squirm) and set to make the most of it -- in the form of maybe the most awesome fort the MTC has ever seen.
Plus, we shared it. We had new sisters arrive last week and settle in our branch -- six girls off to Mongolia after a long three months here trying to get the crazy language down. This is much happiness, especially since only a few nights before their arrival Elder G asked us, none too tactfully, "So . . .do you Sisters have any . . .friends?" It's a very good thing he has Elder M around to set things straight ("Other than us, of course," he said, all too hurriedly.)
But yes, we do have friends. . .we had a pajama party from 9:30 to 10:15 . . .It was quite the success, and such good fun that this tradition carried over until this Tuesday, when we finally had to take down the fort in anticipation of the new sisters' arrival. ........
So, pretty awesome, right? Except for yesterday, when life decided to be hard and I had one whopper of a migraine that simply wouldn't go away. I was in bed all day and, compounded with a sinus-y thing going around these days, could barely lift my head up to talk with SisL who, bless her heart, didn't leave me all day (not that she actually could, but you know. the gesture's nice.) But don't worry a bit about me -- remember the awesome part of this theme? Well, the Elders are awesome. Because just after dinner, after having missed every meal that day and not seen a single one of them at all, a sister knocked on our door with instructions to find the Indonesian Sister-Sister and deliver a care package all eight of them had put together for us, complete with candy, notes and all our mail from the day. We really don't deserve them.
So, everything else that happened that I didn't manage to say: SisL's birthday was the most incredible success . . .she wore her flashing tiara and also the tie that the Elders had so lovingly signed and wrapped for her in paper towels and duct tape. ....... Thank you for all the letters, the packages, even the smallest bits of news from home; I love it all.
kasihlah,
E
First, right after my last email we walked up to the temple, where we do endowment sessions every week as a District. Always great, but this time in particular because Sister J had brought us all Indonesian names from friends and family in Jakarta. .......
Second, we taught another lesson to another "investigator." It would have been cool enough just having him there -- he was one of the first Elders ever to serve in Indonesia and helped translate the BoM -- but our lesson was stunning. WE weren't necessarily stunning, but the Spirit working through us most definitely was. I find a strength and steadiness in preaching this Gospel that disquiets every fear my naturally shy self harbors, and that is truly, truly a miracle.
But we returned home from our triumph to find what we fondly call "The Black Spot" on our apartment door-- the announcement that FOUR new sisters would be moving in on Wednesday and, in effect, our solo suite days were over. After the proper period of mourning, however, we girded up our loins (SisL loves saying this to make me squirm) and set to make the most of it -- in the form of maybe the most awesome fort the MTC has ever seen.
Plus, we shared it. We had new sisters arrive last week and settle in our branch -- six girls off to Mongolia after a long three months here trying to get the crazy language down. This is much happiness, especially since only a few nights before their arrival Elder G asked us, none too tactfully, "So . . .do you Sisters have any . . .friends?" It's a very good thing he has Elder M around to set things straight ("Other than us, of course," he said, all too hurriedly.)
But yes, we do have friends. . .we had a pajama party from 9:30 to 10:15 . . .It was quite the success, and such good fun that this tradition carried over until this Tuesday, when we finally had to take down the fort in anticipation of the new sisters' arrival. ........
So, pretty awesome, right? Except for yesterday, when life decided to be hard and I had one whopper of a migraine that simply wouldn't go away. I was in bed all day and, compounded with a sinus-y thing going around these days, could barely lift my head up to talk with SisL who, bless her heart, didn't leave me all day (not that she actually could, but you know. the gesture's nice.) But don't worry a bit about me -- remember the awesome part of this theme? Well, the Elders are awesome. Because just after dinner, after having missed every meal that day and not seen a single one of them at all, a sister knocked on our door with instructions to find the Indonesian Sister-Sister and deliver a care package all eight of them had put together for us, complete with candy, notes and all our mail from the day. We really don't deserve them.
So, everything else that happened that I didn't manage to say: SisL's birthday was the most incredible success . . .she wore her flashing tiara and also the tie that the Elders had so lovingly signed and wrapped for her in paper towels and duct tape. ....... Thank you for all the letters, the packages, even the smallest bits of news from home; I love it all.
kasihlah,
E
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