HOLA FAMILIA Y AMIGOS!!!
Oh my goddness I do not have a lot of time. I will type soo fast and then maybe come back later if I can to finish or write more. But it is SO great here. The spirit is everywhere! We pray at least 50 times day! Over food, before personal study, before lessons, after lessons, before choir practice(which is fantastic! We are singing at some devotional or event or something in 2 weeks at the marriot center! So if you can go you should because you will be SO close to me!) after choir practice, before bed, when you wake up! there is so much praying! Even when we just feel like we can't focus in class or during study time you say a prayer and then you feel great again and can focus! Almost EVERY time. That is something that was hard for me on Saturday. But after Sunday I was doing absolutely great! So I made a promise to God that I would wake up the exact second the alarm went off and that I would be HAPPY about it which I totally wasn't before and guess what! It's a miracle! Those days that I woke up right on the dot or before I was able to concentrate and study much more effectively and focus! God is great everybody. :) Also another really cool thing that has happened to me while I have been here..
I SAW LEANN!!!!! BEST THING EVER! I have only seen her twice and I didn't see her until Saturday. But this is what was going on. I kept searching for her everywhere! Everyone kept telling me that I would see her.. I would see her but I WASN'T SEEING her. So I was getting really upset but I tried to stay positive then Saturday morning rolls around and I have lost all hope. I am walking out of our residence hall my head down questioning everything.. Getting down on myself because of the lesson(I will tell you later) and just wondering if this is really where I needed to be. If I could really do all of this every day for 18 months. I lift my head up for a second and out of the corner of my eye guess who I see??? LEANN ELIZABETH ALLRED! I am not kidding I told my hermanas (i'm in a trio by the way super cool) That's her! And I RAN to her. Actually sprinted. She was going the other way and everyone was watching me run through the courtyard and it was a little embarrassing (You know how I get embarrassed) But I didn't care! I practically tackled her. It was really great. We both cried and hugged for a really long time but we couldn't really talk too much because I had to go and she had to go (our schedules are strict and very busy) but it was so worth the wait. All the sudden I felt soo good! I was happy and positive and ready to get to work! It was a miracle. The next time I saw Leann same thing! We went to the mail room after waiting all weekend including Monday because no mail on memorial day! And I was just dying to recieve mail and there was nada. I was feeling so bad and angry(which was stupid because later that night I got letters...) and then I could feel tears welling in my eyes when I see Leann's beautiful face walking towards me! We run to each other again and all is well. The lord knows what I need and he knows exactly when I need it. I have been able to see his hand in my life this past week soo many times I can't even count. It's fantastic. Like the praying thing where I prayed to be awake. I just had to promise him something. I had to prove that it was important to me. He rewards us when we do what He asks. Kind of like Mark giving me his computer and I didn't use it for months. Finally he said the same thing he always says, "If you don't use that then I am going to give it to someone else!" I think oh my gosh.. What a jerk. But he is not a jerk! He just wants to see his gifts being used! God is like that too. So if we don't use our gifts from him enough times he probably isn't as excited to give us more gifts. (BTW MARK WRITE ME I need your positive vibes)
Okay I already love everyone. Our district is like my family. We got along literally from the FIRST DAY. It has been amazing. I don't really get annoyed every. I have like 2 times and you guys all now that I usually do not last that long with the same people for more than 48 hours with them. But it's not even like that here! It doesn't even feel like I am putting up with anything! I love them all! It's like I can feel my love growing for everyone and everything. Also something I coudln't do before but now I can is sitting in class for 3 hours straight twice a day then studying scriptures for 1 hour then studying language for another hour(really all day but one specific time set for that) and then more of companionship study.. I don't know if you can tell but there is SO much learning. Constantly. All day every day. At college I could hardly stay in a 50 minute class without falling asleep, getting distracted, and wishing I was doing something else(especially math). Obviously this is so much different than regular school but still! It's a miracle! The Lord really is here and is able to help me every step of the way. He leads me, He guides me, and walks beside me. :) I know it. I can see the improvement that I have made in just one week. It's fantastic! I don't want to stop! Sometimes it's hard and a little overwhelming but like I said literally every time I feel frustrated or overwhelmed in the slightest, the Lord finds a way to lift me up! I have never experienced something like this in all my life.
Let's see... what else. My Pday is always Thursday and I can write at 7 in the morning till 8 ish depending on laundry and stuff. So everyone be awake and write me back fast so I can here from you maybe a little. It's hard waiting a whole week to write to everyone. :( But it's worth it. I know I couldn't concentrate as well if I could do this everyday. But everyone keep writing me! I love all your letters!
Nate and Gigi! Thanks for your letters I loved them! Nathan your letter made me cry! I am so happy that you experienced that. Prayer is amazing! I testify of the truthfullness of that. If you ask in faith knowing that God will help you, MIRACLES can happen. You just have to have faith. And even without faith the Lord blesses us. Without even realizing it the Lord does so much for all of us. Like for example, I decided to work on charity this week... Our topic for ALL SPIRITUAL THOUGHTS just happened to be charity.. Coincidence? No way. And we taught a lesson to our investigator Jose about some really great stuff and the devotional on Tuesday night... Exactly what I had been studying for my lesson! The Lord is constantly preparing me and shaping me and molding me into the best person I can possibly be. And I need all the help I can get so I am so grateful!
Oh yeah we have taught 4 lessons in SPANISH now! Our frst was on Friday and it has been such a wonderful experience. I have learned so much about the gospel, the language, how to study. Gotta go but I love you all! Don't stop writing me!!!
Hermana Garret
