Hola familia!
I am still in denial that these are my last moments at the Fallbrook library and my last moments e-mailing you as a full-time missionary. How did 18 months go by so quickly!? Man. I LOVE mission life and I'm gonna miss it (well, maybe not a few parts.) And I'm also looking forward to totally different experiences with a whole new outlook.
PS Is it possible that some of you will see me before you read this e-mail? That would be super funny :D
So Hna Stratton asked me: "Was your mission a turning point in your life?"
My response: "No. More like a setting point."
I now KNOW that God, our loving Heavenly Father, has given us the Gospel of Jesus Christ for our benefit and that it is the only true way to happiness. Hna Stratton and I talked semi-long (after she was fed up with loving me and then went to her room to make a list of all my strengths. he he All's well.) about how we are now firmly on the path to happiness. And it's great!!
D & C 28:16 touched me (spanglish?) in our district meeting this week: declare the gospel with the sound of rejoicing. That's right! I do need to rejoice more. This is the best news ever. I just love it. Are you guys pumped and ready to keep sharing? What can you tell me about the full-time missionaries in our ward?! And how is the gospel principles class going with JJ as a teacher? Seems like it would be great. (oh bummer. I won't even read the answers to these questions. Ah well. Maybe I'll remember to ask them again...eventually.)
Did I mention yet that I'm still kind of in denial? Even though my bags are packed (fingers crossed the weight is ok. Questionable scale makes it hard to know.) and I'm basically out of here. Man, I'm leaving behind so many beloved friends (many of whom have offered their homes...and beans ;D ) and so many memories. It's incredible how serving others can help us form such strong bonds. I think I'm going to be on the phone lots keeping in touch -- it's great because I can practice my Spanish!!
So yeah. Yesterday was great. We had some long visits with some beloved people. And FOOD. Heavenly Father is so merciful! He often gives us the desires of our hearts. Hna Maria Reyes invited us over to learn how to make 'gorditas' her way. (They are more like sopes....) and then we made them and chatted long with her and her friend about families, prophets, Adam and Eve, etc. It was entertaining and delicious. And we were protected from the very cold weather.
Then we had a very neat moment where we answered the sweet, humble prayer of Hna Maria Rodriguez. As she finished preparing her food she thought/prayed "I would love for las hermanas to come over and join us in this meal." She went and sat down, opening her triple to read some...and we knocked on the door. She was super surprised. For the next 10 minutes. And she was super excited too. She basically quoted a scripture in 3 Nephi 18:19 about God giving us our righteous desires if we ask in Jesus' name. So then we talked and shared about faith and miracles. And then we ate enchiladas, rice, and.... beans! It was a really neat experience. I felt Heavenly Father was also showing me His love and mercy by giving us neat experiences on my very last day. I am grateful.
Well then. We also had a good lesson with Hna Torres and Hno Romero. They seem sad I'm going and offered their home and a couch (I couldn't remember how to spell that word!!) if I want to return and visit. Guess I'd better.... We had a good visit and Hna stepped on a cockroach in the middle and then it became an example to be used in the lesson. It was pretty great. We talked of how we never know when the end will come "and so we'll talk about what we need to do now to prepare ourselves! " says Hna Green to re-direct the lesson. "The gospel!" He he he. It was fun.
Well, I'm zoning off a little and it does honestly feel a touch weird to be writing to you when I'll be seeing you so soon. Are we all sure about this?! Should I stay a touch longer? Just kidding. Heavenly Father has a timeline for each of His children. The key is accepting His timing - on a big and little scale. I finally realized how to do it better on a little scale as a missionary (be less impatient and go with the flow) and now I get to re-learn and apply in a new situation.
Dude, I can't believe I'll be home so soon. Eek! Well, I love you all. Sending hugs from sunny SoCal. And I guess I'll just give you some later. ja ja ja
Hey Shantaye - would you be willing to be my companion for my talk on Sunday and talk with me? Maybe just for a little part of it? Thanks, that'd be so awesome.
I love you all! I know God lives and is our Father. I KNOW Jesus Christ lives and is our Savior and Redeemer. I know He loves us unconditionally and the Book of Mormon and the Bible teach us of Him so that we can improve ourselves and those around us and achieve the incredible goal of having all our Father has to give us. WOW. The knowledge we have is truly incredible and liberating. Let's go share it with the sound of rejoicing!
Love,
Hermana Green
PS I'm super glad I can use my same title even when I'm no longer a missionary :D I'll sure I'll miss my plaque though. Just this week I summed it up well "This little black tag has power." It's crazy. I love it and loved it.
Thanks to everyone for your support and love throughout this incredible experience. I can't wait to see you all!! (And let's have a reunion in the temple where everything culminates and begins. How does that sound?)
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