8 Decembeer 2013

Aloha everyone!

This truly has been one of the busiest weeks of my mission!  Transfers happened, we completed all of the Christmas schedules for all of the sister missionaries - including the Christmas assignments.  We had a few hiccups but overall everything worked out nicely. The weeks are going by way too fast.

 Last Wednesday I said goodbye to my companion Sister Vach.  Thursday we had Thanksgiving at Noah's Ark and I didn't think it was possible, but I thought this years Thanksgiving celebration was even better than last years!!!!  We all came together and performed a thanksgiving skit, sang karaoke, had a HUGE feast, made Christmas ornaments - with our pictures and flags - while we watched the movie, "Monsters University!"  That movie was hilarious!!!  I was so happy we got to watch it because I think I laughed the whole time.  It was so good.  Mum, I hope you have that movie at home because I so want to watch it again.  We also did some line dancing and played Wallyball with President Seppi.  It is one of his favorite games at Noah's Ark so I texted a few of the keen players to bring either a black or white shirt and the players in a white shirt were part of, "Team Seppi's"  group.  Heaps of fun!  On the roof top of Noah's is an ice-skating rink where we all hung out and enjoyed ourselves too.  So, it was pretty much the best thanksgiving/mission activity EVER.  So much fun!  I was so exhausted the next day but we had much to do because the Christmas lights were due to be switched on that night.  We are the, "behind the scenes crew" on Temple Square so we had to find a mission microphone, fix a movie that had stopped working, teach the sisters how to effectively control the mobs at the Christus Statue (located in the North Visitor's Centre) which kept us busy for the entire night.  

Friday morning was awesome because I got to take Uncle TC, Aunty Cerian, Caleb and Lauren Chadderton on a tour.  It was so sweet catching up with everyone and Lauren said to me that she could only remember meeting me like twice in her life.  It was an awesome tour and it made me so grateful for the things I learnt from the parental's - like gaining a testimony for ourselves when we were little.  I loved seeing Uncle & Aunty and the cousins again.  Thanks for coming!  

Well, the Lord has been helping us with our assignments especially with that missing microphone.  We went to the North Visitor's Centre where the Christus Statue is located to try and find the microphone and the AV guy that is in charge of all the Visitor Center equipment was taking photos of his children.  Yay!  I was like, "Hey thats the guy we need to talk to!" So crazy!  He told us which microphone we needed but that we could also use a wired microphone as well, so we went and found one of those.  I am so grateful for the Lord's help otherwise nothing would've worked out for us.  Saturday was another hectic day but we are doing good at balancing our missionary work and office work.  

Our investigators are still progressing even if we aren't able to talk to them as often as we'd like to. I called Brian a few times and he is still working on quitting his addictions, he's almost there!

We had a cool experience with a Korean guy this week just after we had opened Temple Square.  We asked him if he needed help and then talked about some of the research he had done about the Church, showed him the model of the Salt Lake City Temple in the South Visitor's Centre, gave him a Book of Mormon and then referred him to have the local missionaries teach him in Korea when he goes home!  So incredible and this all happened in less than 15 minutes.  Miracles!  I love it.  Heavenly Father is great!  On Saturday the Sisters in their last transfer - like me - and those in there first and second transfer had the opportunity to attend the, "Celebration of the Christ Interfaith Concert" as there weren't enough tickets for the whole mission to attend.  It meant that I missed the Tabernacle Choir's Christmas concert but I wasn't too upset. The interfaith concert was amazing! Jenny Oaks Baker, BYU Vocal Point, Kevin - a beat-boxing cellist from Pentatonic - and some Baptist and Catholic Church Choirs performed.  I loved the Baptist Church's choir number! They were from Georgia so I was missing my people in the South.  BYU Vocal Point was definitely one of my favourites. Did you know that Jenny Oaks Baker is Elder Dallin H. Oaks' daughter? She is a very talented lady and Elder Oak's and his wife were at the concert.  So cool!

We still have a few trainings left to do this week but it won't be as demanding as the previous week.  We have to work until 10:00 p.m. two nights a week during the Christmas season and we can sleep in and be up and ready to study by 8:00 a.m.  We got to sleep in today and I was so grateful for that because it made a huge difference to my day and I feel ready to work late tonight!  My companion's goal is to drag me off the Square at night and take me home as I just love being on the Square talking to the thousands of people that visit.  It just makes me so happy to be here and that I still have a few more weeks left as a missionary.  We are having a mission tour by Elder Clark next week so that should be heaps of fun.

Thanks for all your prayers and love.  I fasted for strength to make it through this transfer and the Lord is answering my prayers!

Love you all, Sister Chadderton xoxo