Another email from Emily. I just don't know how she is handling the heat! I looked on the internet today and it said it was 99 degrees in Baytown, Texas but it felt like 108 degrees! And the sad thing is that there is no relief in site! I certainly can't complain about our warm days here in Idaho!
Monday, August 15, 2011
Dear Mom,
Well it's been a really long week and it's really HOT here in Texas! We got to ride our bikes for the first time in Baytown and boy, let me tell you, that was so scary!! I have no idea why here in Texas they don't believe in having sidewalks, but they don’t, so we have to ride our bikes either on the grass which is hard, or we ride on the road! So we tried the grass and unfortunately it doesn't work to well when you have a skirt on because you really can't do tricks to lift your bike onto the curb. So we road our bikes on the road! And well, let’s just say I felt the breeze of a car really close to me! Like this car was so close that if I had moved to the left, uh I would have gotten hit by a car! Yeah pretty scary! We are trying to save miles and it's pretty tough when there are five weeks in month! Then we have to be really smart of not using too many car miles! So it's been tough to be on track for miles! They made a new rule that if you are 20 miles away from going over, well the district leader is gonna take your car keys away! That is how serious they are about not going over miles, so we have to report our miles on Sundays! So it's gonna be interesting if that is gonna happen to us! But we will see ya know!
Well this week has been tough. We have been trying to visit a lot of the less actives in the ward and let’s just say they aren't home or they don't answer the door or that they just don't want us to come over! So ya! It's been frustrating! We had an investigator that Sister Hatch and Sister Tanner had been working with dropped us this week and that was sad. We talked for a bit with her, a really nice lady, but she still believes in her faith and just doesn't want to learn anymore, so that was sad. She was really cool! She has a turtle that is going to get really big like the one in the zoo back home and she also has a lizard. It is not a normal lizard but a really big lizard like the ones that stick out there tongues and eat fruit and dog food and just human food that is healthy! So ya I saw it! It was just really big. I couldn't take a picture because we were focusing on her! But Sister Hatch did talk with her about having it because this lady wants to get rid of it so Sister Hatch told her that she would have it. So I guess after her mission she is going to call up this lady and get a lizard … who knows what her parents are going to say! But you never know!
Well part of this last week was awesome because it was “Sister's Day!” I just love Sister's Day, because all the Sister's get together to have a good time visiting and to have some girl time! It was a very powerful meeting. We learned about how to have the Faith of Ammon and how to be missionaries like him! So that was neat. For me it was powerful because it really humbled me and showed me how to be a better missionary! I am struggling right now because of just the way some things are and trying to learn a new area and I am feeling lost a lot! But this meeting taught me to really have faith and to really study and to use the scriptures in our teaching! They want us to make a “Member Area Book” just like our investigators book so we can start teaching the members the lessons so we can better perfect our teaching skills and become better teachers and also to have the members learn more about the gospel. It's like how when I came out here and I did my studies to teach the lessons, I just learned so much, so President wants us to start teaching the members lessons and to not just go in a share scriptures like we normally do! So I'm excited to do that but I will say it will be hard for some homes because they have kids and so Sister Hatch and I need to come up with ways to teach kids and to make it fun and interesting and to not lose the kids during the lesson, so we will see how that goes!
Also at Sister's Day Sister Crawford taught us about eating healthy which was pretty sweet! I don't think I told you that she has put me on a special diet because I still am having pains. I have been doing good with the diet and eating healthy and learning what I can eat. So during the presentation I told Sister Crawford and all the Sisters that the smoothies that I drink are really good! Oh mom did I tell you that I can't drink milk anymore as it upsets my stomach? So I get Almond Milk because for one it's good and yummy and two it's healthy for ya too! But I can have ice cream but just a bit though or it will upset my stomach! But anyways, after we talked a bit, all the Sisters went into the kitchen and we had fun making all kinds of healthy foods! I made this really good healthy dip and I just love it and it's so good for ya too! I will have to send ya the recipe for you and dad to try … it's so good! Love it! But we had a really great time! I loved seeing Sister Lundgren, Sister Kinikini, Sister Black and Sister Henson! And can I say that Sister Henson is just doing so well! She just has been doing awesome! Sister Kinikini says she is just doing so good and she is just progressing so much which just makes me so happy!
We had Zone Meeting this last Friday and I saw Sister Henson again and she and I were talking and just having a good time visiting! She is starting to blossom and she is just gonna grow so much like I did! :) Sister Kinikini told me that I helped Sister Henson a lot! It's just so neat how the Lord really knows us so much and who we need to be companions with even though sometimes it can be a struggle.
Hmm what else can I tell you about my area? Oh I was at a members wedding that I really didn't know too well but I had memory flash backs because the mom was giving a toast and she talked about how she just cried a lot when she saw all her kids and their spouses together in the temple and how wonderful and special that was and it made me think of the day that Rachel and I went to the temple and how all of us were there together. I never thought that I would have my sisters and brother and my parents all in the temple at once! It made me feel the spirit a lot and made me homesick but then it made me excited for when I come home that it will happen again to have my whole family inside the temple! Mom what a wonderful blessing to have the whole family so strong in the Gospel and how all of us go to the temple to do the Lord’s work and most people don't realize what blessings they are missing out on! That is why I am serving a mission so I can find my brothers and sisters and teach them the gospel and have them come unto Christ and be baptized and then have them work towards the temple so that their families can be together forever!!!!!!! It's just the neatest thing ever!
But it was really cool because at the wedding I got to see some people from La Porte! I got to see the Prigmores, the Dorecy's, the Berges and an investigator that I was helping before I left and it was great to see some La Porte people!
Well there is not much I can tell you about this last week, it was just long and hard because I am still learning a new area but it's a working process. It was so cute last night; I was talking to Sister Henson on the phone because I thought of people they should go try and while we were talking she asked how I was doing. I told her not to good and then the next thing she said was, “Sister Hawkins, you need to rely on the Lord. I learned that a whole lot from my first companion; she kept telling me to Rely On The Lord!” It just made me smile that she was giving me back my own advice I had given her! :) I told her I know and thanked her for the reminder! It was just so cool!
Well I'm gonna bounce because I have to write President and some other people but I thank you for the awesome package with the “One Year” book! That was the coolest thing ever! I can't believe all those things that I did over the last year! That was pretty crazy I must say! Just wow! But also thanks for the shoes too. I was going to write to you today and ask you to send me a pair because the ones I have are getting pretty warn down! So thanks a bunch! Well I love you lots and I hope to hear from you soon! Lots of Love!
Sister Hawkins!
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