ten months = ten missionary pins :)
so what has come of this passing month? of course, december is full of joy and love as we celebrated the Christ-mas season. our family's Christmas was beautiful. we spent the day visiting family mostly and enjoying our time with each other. i mainly got clothes and shoes as presents. my major present(s) was a family trip to disneyland this week and my Fiji HEFY Experience in june. i'm so excited for that to come up.
i must tell you about the wonderful event that happened on Christmas morning (besides family time and great presents!) right before my family was about to leave to visit my grandparents, my phone started ringing. i checked and it was joe's mom calling. i almost didn't answer the phone because i was too scared. ha! then i figured maybe it was joe's younger sister, heather (one of my best friends) calling to see what i got for Christmas. so i answered. i am so happy that i did. it was actually joe's mom calling to INVITE ME TO THE CHRISTMAS MORNING SKYPE CALL!!!!:) the invite was seriously a Christmas miracle in and of itself. his mother has always made me really nervous and she didn't like the idea of us dating before he left on his mission. she just wants him to be focused while he's gone. when she called me, i think i was silent on the phone for at least 10 seconds before finally asking, "are you suuuuure?" hahaha:)
i wasn't nervous to see or talk to my man, but to be there in front of his mom even though she invited me was a little strange. it's kind of a crazy thing, but it all works out in the end every time. when i first got there, his family was having troubles connecting to the skype call. whenever joe would call, he could see and hear us but we couldn't see or hear him. after almost 30 minutes of trying over and over, it just wouldn't work. the skype call stayed that way. he could see and hear us but we couldn't see or here him :( he would listen to what we would say and then have to type back on the skype system. i was so looking forward to seeing my missionary and hearing his voice, but in a way, i guess it was a blessing in disguise. it might have been harder on me seeing him. i would have missed him more after getting off the call. i sent him an email after asking him how he felt about it and he made me laugh so hard! he said when he saw me, he started punching the wall because he was so excited ;) i wish i could have seen him though. GAH! maybe mothers day or next Christmas?;)
this month has also brought much relaxation and more family time. i was so grateful for the break! i found out that i got a 4.0 my first semester of college! yay! i was so so so so excited. over the break, during our family time, we went to movies such as the hobbit, frozen, and catching fire (again). We also went to see some ice castles in midway, went to family parties, did a secret service, had nasty JCW's sandwiches (side note... there was a dead FLY in my sandwich. um, GROSS!) i was so sickened. just recently, my mom took me to the salt lake city wedding expo. it was so fun! i met with a lot of people about photography, wedding dresses, invitations...etc... i'm planning a wedding a year in advance? why, yes i am! thank you very much :)
we also had a bit of a scare during this last month. like i mentioned in my previous post, my dad was rushed to the hospital for severe pains in his stomach. after a million and one scans and being told it was many different things, the final outcome for dad's pain was his gallbladder. the doctors surgically removed it through his belly-button (WEIRD!) and it had over 200 stones in it. he also had a cyst on his pancreas that we didn't know for sure was cancerous or not, but again after tests and a biopsy, it came back benign. we were soooo grateful. truly a Christmas miracle. so many people prayed for us and the Lord answered our prayers. i'm so glad my dad gets to stay on earth, he has to much to do!
something crazy happened on Facebook a while ago. a beautiful girl added me as a friend but i had no idea who she was. later, as i was looking over joe's facebook (managed by his brother) i had seen the same girl was just added to joe's friends list. i started freaking out as i realized that this girl trying to add me was in joe's mission. she was from Brazil! i immediately added her and she sent me a message:) we began to talk about joe and how she met him. she told me that he taught her and her friends in english. she told me that joe told her about me which is how she found me on facebook. she said that he said i was his girlfriend, very beautiful and funny. my heart stopped! i was dying. she made my whole week! we've been messaging back and forth ever since. she asks me ways to say certain things in english (ex: in Brazil they write "kkkk" to get a smile, so in english, it's like "hahaha") and i ask her about portuguese words, the language joe is speaking:) i absolutely adore her and the whole situation. it's so fun!
emails this month back and forth with joe were adorable:) he wrote me a ton of cute things and even a poem about coming home to marry me. i wanted to cry. he makes me SO HAPPY! i couldn't imagine this life without him. he also emailed with my mom and he said the CUTEST thing today! he said, "i pray for your family too always. (well my future family maybe if you'll have me ;)) DUHHH WE WILL HAVE YOU!!!! hahah! i love him!
i've been working on a poem myself and i finally finished it a few days ago. i want to share it with you:
The Reason:
Not a day passes where I don't see your face
Every night and morning, you're my saving grace
Thoughts enter into my mind as I begin to kneel and pray
I then ask God if He will lead and guide your way
I wonder where you are and what you might be doing
I try to cope and understand with-out fully knowing
I see your smile and I see a man
I imagine you offer an outstretched hand
You invite him to listen to the words you feel to speak
And begin to express the feelings etched so deep
The gospel of Christ, the full and restored truth
With a prophet of God, called to bear the proof
Of two Heavenly beings appearing in the wood
Calling him by name, proclaiming that he should
Join no other church's, for in fact, none were true
Rather, each had a missing part and piece - or two
The Father of us all, that holy and celestial being
Gave direction unto man, and to those who were believing
Of a plan and a way, which comes only through (Jesus) Christ
And requires some effort so here's some advice:
The words of the prophets tell us what we should do
They're here to help - not only me and you
But everyone in this world can be part of something glorious
And must strive to give up the temptations laid before us
After sharing what you know and bearing testimony of the word
The process then starts and he begins to know the Lord
With each passing moment his eyes fill with tears
He tells you he feels something, a special feeling here
He points to his heart then looks up at you and smiles
You explain what it means and forget all your trials
Up until this point, some have seemed so near
Now in this moment they've all disappeared
The look on his face was the moment that you knew
That this was the reason you were called to do
The work of the Lord, to bring souls unto Christ
And to help others realize the Lord's eternal price
I continue to imagine what would possibly happen next
Knowing that you'd help this man because who you are reflects
Who you are serving and loving each and every day
Giving your all to the people God has sent your way
The experiences you will have will change you for the better
And the people that you meet will love you for forever
But don't let a moment pass without realizing where you are
Because everything that you learn will lead and guide you far
the poem was my way of imagining what my elder joseph cook is out there doing as a servant of God. he is helping and teaching everyone he meets. this poem gives an example of the reason he is out there. to find someone who needs the gospel in their life.
i am so proud of the man he is becoming through Jesus Christ. i know he is growing into someone much better than i and i only pray to be able to grow as spiritually as he is. i've been studying the scriptures longer and harder. i have also been searching and studying Preach My Gospel. i love it! i take many notes and ponder the words i read. i love learning about Christ's church and how it truly is fully restored to this day. Joseph Smith saw what he saw. The Lord appeared and told him what needed to be done. i believe that and know that to be true. when the spirit testifies to you of the truthfulness, there is no way to deny it. i have felt that. i have felt the love of my Savior and the truth born unto me by the power of the holy ghost. i love my church. i love this gospel. being a part of such an organized church is a blessing to me. people of this faith, to me, are constantly striving to help and serve others. i love the love we have for each other. yes, i know we are all still human and we all make mistakes. sometimes people rub off on us the wrong way, but through this church, we are taught not to judge and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. i am trying my very hardest to help everyone and serve everyone and love everyone around me. no matter what their circumstance. i am trying to be like Jesus Christ :)
i got this idea from another missionary girlfriend! i thought it was the cutest thing. i made this all by hand:) (well, on the computer obviously - but by hand)
my cute boy:) i miss him very much
serving and loving everyone
my family at the midway ice castles
No comments:
Post a Comment