Merry Christmas!

"Merry Christmas everyone!  And Happy Boxing Day!  I'm probably going to be one of those obnoxious people when I get back who compares everything Americans do to what people in her mission country do; I will forever be contrasting Canada and the States.  Sorry.  (Pronounced as it looks: sORry, not sARry.)

This was my second Christmas in Canada.  I started out in Edmonton, went up to St. Albert, traveled to Spruce Grove, and ended back in Edmonton with some familiar faces.  No accidents on the icy roads either.  

To be honest it didn't feel like Christmas, and it did at the same time.  I wasn't with my own family; that was a big hindrance.  I could open my presents with my matchy-matchy sweater, belt, scarf, tights combo which is so my mom it's-not-even-funny, but I wasn't actually opening it at my house with our real tree in the living room.  (At least, that better have been a real Christmas tree!)  But I did feel privileged to be a spectator for everyone else's Christmas and to see their traditions and the love they had for their families.     

It did feel like Christmas because in a small way I seemed to get it a little more this year.  Christmas is about Jesus Christ.  "Yeah, yeah, yeah..." I can hear you all chime it now.  But really, Christmas is about Jesus Christ.  And it's about God, our Heavenly Father who knew how to give the perfect gift long ago.  It's about Jesus Christ who chose to give his will to the Father and offer Himself a ransom for our infinite mistakes and heartaches and shortcomings and weaknesses and pains and trials.  It's because of this gift thatevery good thing comes through Christ.  If we learn to give as Christ gives, we will experience the joy and peace beyond our imagination.  I know that's true.

Merry Christmas everyone and Happy New Year.  Make a change that counts this year.  "

Hello to all those who still check this every once in awhile!  It's Thanksgiving in America this week!  I feel like it's redundant to say Happy Thanksgiving because giving thanks always produces happiness.  Always.  If you are in a bad mood, and you ask: "What am I grateful for?"  It's an instant Prozac.  I firmly believe in having a grateful heart.  Life is a test.  There's no way around it.  There will be hard times and sorrows even when we are making all the right choices.  This isn't because God forgets us or picks on us; it's because he wants us to be strong and to grow and to progress.  Living with gratitude helps us see things as they really are, that life is good, and that God is kind--overwhelmingly kind.  If I were to pick one thing that I am grateful for this season, it would be that: A magnificently kind and generous God. "God our Father has offered us everything he has and asks only that we give him all we have to give. That is an exchange so imbalanced in our favor that no effort would be too much and no hours too long in service to him, to the Savior, and to our Father's children."  

Think about it.  :)

(To the famous Bon Jovi tune) "Whooooooaa I'm half-way the-re....WhooOOOAA livin' on a pra-yer!!" That's right. Guess who has less time in the mission than time she's been out? Me! I know when elders (guy missionaries) reach their half-way they celebrate and burn things, but I feel like sisters (girl missionaries) just freak out with introspective questions like, "Who am I? Am I the person I want to be yet?? Why not??? Have I done all that I could???? Am I perfect yet?????" And then on the brink of implosion with the mounting pressure of questions, all you can do is eat some blended frozen *banana "ice cream" because you're on a meat-dairy-egg-soy-corn-flour-sugar-free diet because you share food with your allergic companion, and it's the closest thing to junk food that you have. Is anyone else feeling the anxiety??!!??

To be honest, I have had a couple of those rocky, soul-searching moments. Then I am reminded that I am (and YOU are) a person in process. (pronounced PRO-cess--like the Canadians say :) ) Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, an apostle of Jesus Christ, summed it up perfectly when he said:

"Oh, it is wonderful to know that our Heavenly Father loves us—even with all our flaws! His love is such that even should we give up on ourselves, He never will.We see ourselves in terms of yesterday and today. Our Heavenly Father sees us in terms of forever. Although we might settle for less, Heavenly Father won’t, for He sees us as the glorious beings we are capable of becoming.The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of transformation. It takes us as men and women of the earth and refines us into men and women for the eternities."

I believe in this.

Everything is still awesome in the city! I've been around to witness groups of people congregating for anime conventions (lots of people in furry costumes), Folk Fest (calling all hipsters!), Heritage Days (Jai Ho! and lots of good food!). Edmonton really is a diverse and beautiful city. You should visit sometime.

*Banana ice cream is just frozen bananas blended up to a soft-serve consistency. It's delicious!

Love you all!

Hello world! I'm in Edmonton now! Like, Wayne Gretzky's stomping ground Edmonton. Did you know that Canadian money has hockey players on it? Oh yeah, and Canada actually gets warm too...sometimes.


I really love being in the downtown area. I get to talk to strangers all day about the gospel of Jesus Christ and what that can mean for their lives. I'm sure to some people I just look like a peddler or a fanatic, but I actually really care about the message that I share with people because I know it's true. People can and do change when they feel God's love more abundantly in their lives. People change their actions when they know there is a plan for them and that they have a purpose in this life. People give up bad habits to addictions when they know that Jesus Christ overcame all so that they could as well overcome obstacles and challenges placed before them. I'm not the source of change for these people, but at most I hope to be an instrument to assist people in the greatest changes of their lives.

While we are on this topic of change, I read a talk by Jeffrey R. Holland about this topic. I am heavily paraphrasing, but I hope the idea is the same. People think that change takes years and eons to do. But it doesn't. Change can come quickly if we want it to. It takes as long to change as it does to say, "I'm going to change," and mean it. No one has to be stuck with excuses like, "that's just the way I am," or "I've always been like this." We have the beautiful gift of agency--the ability to make choices and to become people who "act, and are not acted upon."

I can change. You can change. Think about it.

"So, I realize it has been awhile since this has been updated, but I just want you all to know that I'm still alive in Canadia Land. I'm still in Lacombe, Alberta, and my missionary companion is Sister Heo (sounds like Ha) from Korea! I'm really having a lot of fun with Sister Heo. I've been so blessed to have really great companions that I get along with. We eat Korean food almost every day for lunch. Gotta love kimchi! I'm really addicted to spicy food now. The spicier, the better. One time we made miso* soup with a whole green chile in it for the two of us, and it was so hot we were crying all through lunch. But it was soooo good. Now when we eat at other places I wish I could add cayenne or green chile or red pepper paste to everything. It's kind of a problem...

*For all you culture snobs, I know miso is a Japanese word. The Korean word for miso is "taenjang." I just thought miso was a more familiar term to use.

Mucho love! Be kind and work hard!"

Alberta is for [cat] lovers

People love their pets in Alberta...especially cats. The record I've seen so far is 16 cats in one house. Right now we're taking care of two crazy cats while the people we live with are gone. They fight and make noises all night, and they rattle our door to let them in. Then they roll all over our freshly vacuumed maroon carpet. I hate cats. I hate every kind of cat.

On to missionary things... Rejection gets you down sometimes, but I've learned that no matter how badly things are going, you're not alone. I know God cares about all the details in our lives, and he wants to hear from us every day.

So don't give up! Have a great week!

Mission Week #9

As I think about New Year resolutions, I am drawn to this quotation:

“I am so thoroughly convinced that if we don’t set goals in our life and learn how to master the techniques of living to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age
and look back on our life only to see that we reached but a small part of our full potential. When one learns to master the principles of setting a goal, he will then be able to make a great difference in the results he attains in this life.”
– Elder M. Russel Ballard

Couldn't have said it better myself. So I guess my goal this year is to learn how to achieve goals. There are lots of goals I have, but a phrase that could sum them all up is one that I got from my missionary companion: "LOVE MORE, eat less."

Sounds good to me!