Sunday March 12th

I've been thinking about hope, and what it means to me. Hope means that I can try again and there might be a better result. Hope is like optimism, but towards the future. This church gives me so much hope.
As you can expect, the young church service missionaries are kids with diseases, disorders, or other disabilities. The challenges of their life did not extinguish their desire to serve, and with that desire, God has provided a way for them to serve.
Doctrine and Covenants 4:3 says "Therefore, if ye have desires to serve God ye are called to the work."
All you need is desire to serve. It seems too good to be true compared to the many different challenges that stand in the way.  There's a missionary in a wheelchair, a missionary with bipolar disorder, a missionary with autism, several missionaries with back problems, and so many more problems that aren't things that we asked for. But none of this stops anyone from serving others, because He provides a way.

Anyway, I'll stop preaching to talk about the week.
Sister Reid went in for her first surgery in a long string of surgeries over the next few months on her jaw. Please pray for her. Her last day was Wednesday. She will work on answering emails from home, but it's all up to me now.
I will have help from Sister Henrie, on the repair side, and Gary (Brother Christensen), but I'm anxious about being so responsible already.

I finally moved into the basement apartment that includes a bedroom, a bathroom, laundry machines, a sitting room, and a kitchen. I can't wait to start getting into a routine and cooking for myself. I was previously in a guestroom while Uncle David and Aunt Teishi and the girls were staying here visiting from France. Speaking of them, I really enjoyed having them here and I'm encouraged to practice my French after seeing how fluent the older daughter is.

I joined the mission choir and that's that. Now there's 3 in every section, so clearly I was meant to join.

The missionaries had a pi day party on Saturday the 11th, so you can tell we're not that good at math. Nana helped me make a Key Lime Pie and it was so excitingly easy. I'm really falling in love with my mission and the people I am getting to know. As I always say, missions make you love things.

Today was my second Sunday at the YSA (Young Single Adult) ward. It was a lot better than last week because I was crazy nervous last week. I'm teaching people about church service missions. "I'm a part-time missionary, like a hybrid normal person and missionary. No, I don't have a companion. I actually live with my grandparents. Yes, I can use technology. Yes, I wear my tag on Sundays. No, I don't wear it all the time."
Everyone at this building seems to think that maybe I lost my companion in this old building, but I explain and they think it's interesting, which it is. I hope someday church service missionaries will be as well-known as proselyting missionaries, but that's why the other YCSMs and I are trail-blazers.

Love you all. I might not be posting Fridays because my off-day is changing. I'll update when I can and when I'm in a better routine.