Highs and Lows

So, Melissa didn't provide a creative Post Title for me today so I had to make one up.  It's not as good as what she would usually come up with, but it's better than "Weekly Update" which is all we got this time!  :-)

Hello all!

This week was quite bipolar. I had a conversation once with a friend who had a theory that women can experience a higher range of emotions than men. He was trying to decide whether it was worth it. He was all for the being able to experience higher highs, but wasn't so sure it the lower lows would be too much to negate the effects of the highs. Well. I'm here to tell you that nothing can make the highs not worth it, and that the sores of the lows are soon forgotten but that the soaring highs never could be.

So we had two investigator lessons with member present this week. Usually we're lucky to get one (not for lack of willing members, just the standard lack of available/interested investigators) a week so we were really grateful. First of all, Su* is great! Wait, I just realized I don't think I told you about Su* last week. I'll tell you first about our favorite Dutch pharmacist, S*, and then tell the story of Su*.

So we had a lesson with S* on Wednesday. It went so well! We wanted a member to be present, and since we're in a trio, we thought it might be a little overwhelming to have 4-on-1 so we went on splits where M* taught with me, and the other two did other missionary business without me. The lesson was great (M* is a really good teacher) and S* told us that she feels God has often placed people in her life at particular moments to help her, and that it wasn't a coincidence that I sat by her on the bus. She was intrigued by the idea of the Book of Mormon, and agreed to meet with us again, and pray to find answers for herself in the meantime. She is just wonderful - her answers are thoughtful and I can tell God has been preparing her for this her whole life. Here comes one of the bipolar moments, though, she is not in our age group. Just by a year. But that means that we'll have to pass her on to our roommates, who already have 6 progressing investigators. We have none. So that will be hard, but I know it's just a selfish sadness because *I* want to be the one teaching her. When I focus on the fact that she will still be learning and that she can have the amazing change in her life that can only come from learning and living the gospel of Jesus Christ, I feel better. It's just a big bummer, you know?

Now to Su*. She is from Nepal and wants to go to BYU for her masters, so she called up the mission and asked for some help with all her forms. They called around 'til they found someone in her area who went to BYU and I was the lucky duck that got to help her. So I was on the phone with BYU admissions office a bit, getting details on the ecclesiastical endorsement, and then helped her set up an appointment with the Bishop in LP2. We met with her before her interview and taught a first lesson. OH MY. It was the best first lesson I've EVER taught, and definitely the best lesson we've taught together as a tripanionship. Her response was awesome, too! She said she agrees with a lot of the doctrine already. That she's always thought she could have a close relationship with God, and almost started crying as she realized that He truly is our FATHER. It was a really sweet moment. She is taking the GMAT this Saturday, and then will be more free to meet with us. So that is just lovely news. We are so blessed to have found her and to get to teach her. Now we've got to see if we can get our hands on a Nepalese copy of the Book of Mormon! :)

Church yesterday was good, despite the fact that I was doubly tired (woke up early to finish our progress record and prepare a training AND lost an hour. Flipping, fetching Daylight Savings Time. Why did we listen to Benjamin Franklin??) Last week we had a big meeting with our assistant Ward Mission Leader about how we can improve the trust between the members and the missionaries, and he suggested that if we don't have any investigators come to church, we should go out contacting for the last two hours instead of going to SS and RS. Ugh. I hate contacting because I suck at it. I don't like doing things that I'm bad at. I only like doing things that I am good at. Judging from Andrew's e-mail this week, it sounds like I should get some tips from him in this department! But I want to be better at contacting, and the weather was FANTASTIC (seriously - we heard it was 60 degrees yesterday and is supposed to be 65 today!) so it wasn't too bad. Aside from the fact that I don't know how to contact and I'm bad at it and the few people I DID talk to were uninterested. But it was an interesting experience and hopefully shows the ward even more how much we are willing to work.

Now we are going to move on to some less spiritual things. But don't worry, cause they're funny.

-This week, at M*'s house for a dinner appointment, I had the opportunity to video the world premiere of, "My Best Friend Huck...My Dog" music, lyrics, vocals, and guitar by Sister Edwards. It is a HOOT and I can't wait to send off this SD within the next couple of weeks so you can experience the next worldwide phenomena.

-At another dinner appointment, the hostess bought a ton of sushi rolls for dinner. They were the most BEAUTIFUL sushi rolls I've ever beheld (besides yours, of course, Papa) and I had a famous (though I'd never heard of it before) Boston Lobster roll. OOOOH man. If you thought lobster was good, and you thought sushi was good, and you thought that they'd probably be pretty good together, then you thought RIGHT! Probably like 20 bucks a roll. But we're getting some when you come visit me in grad school ;)

-This week we have been into saying things in limerick form. We say whatever we would normally say, but force the pentameter and vocal intonations of a lovely little poem. It's hilarious. We have full conversations like this. One time, Sister Edwards couldn't think of a response to my suggestion (which was, of course, proposed in the explained fashion) so she said,

Great.....
I think that is.....
great.

hahaha it was so funny. Even though it doesn't really sound like it now that I'm rereading the story.... I promise it was.

-Do you want to know what builds self confidence faster than just about anything else? Being whistled at by 2 drunk construction workers every day for a month and then have them one day run over to you and hit on you until you flash your nametag and an overly enthusiastic smile and have them recoil in horror and call you a nun. We politely gave them a passalong card :D

Well family, I love you. Thanks so much for always e-mailing and thinking of me. As the weather warms up I've been a bit more homesick for beautiful Utah. I bet your crocuses are just lovely, and that your daffodils and tulips are starting to bud. But I know I'm here for a reason, and I am determined to not only survive, but to thrive.

Love you,

Sister "I'm not looking forward to the thousands of drunks I'll get to interact with all next weekend" Broekhuijsen