Aloha!
Yes, looks like I am still alive !! This letter might seem a little sporadic , but I have so many things to say. Where to start? Well, first off, Thank you everyone for the letters!!!! You have no idea how much they mean to me. Seriously, they make my day so amazing and great. It is my P-day today, so I will make sure to write as many as you back as I can. I also want to thank everyone for your prayers, they have made all the difference, and I can truly feel them everyday. Mom, thank you for the Allegra, I am sleeping much better at night now!
I don't know how to put everything into words, I guess I'll first tell you all how much I LOVE my companion, Sister Garner. She helps me be a better person every single day; she is so patient with me, and has seriously become my best friend. We are able to laugh at each other when we do dumb things, and every day our ability to teach the gospel increases as we put the Lord first. I know that as we have focused ourselves on the Lord, we have been able to draw closer to each other. We have started counting as to how many people tell us or ask us if we are twins or related in some way, and that total is now 9! We don't really see it, except our blondness and shortness, but we think it's pretty funny.
I know I mentioned how I have been able to feel your prayers, but I truly have. The first couple of days here were really hard for me. For some reason this has been a really difficult change; especially feeling tired ALL the time!!! But I am happy to say, I am back to my old self, energetic and happy ;) and couldn' t be feeling better! Haha, in fact, Sister Garner and I were getting food for lunch in the cafeteria, and this Elder walks up to me, and says,"You look like a very happy person!" It was kind of weird, but pretty funny. Then when the ZL's and I were training the new district, Sister Garner and I were asked to demonstrate a companionship inventory. When we were talking about challenges or conflicts, Sister Garner just said, "I don't knowwww! I seriously can't think of anything!..."(don't worry she did eventually). And then one of the Elders in the new district said, "Well, I can understand why, she hasn't stopped smiling since she walked in the room!" Haha, Heavenly Father has blessed me soooooooo much since I have been here; so much, that apparently I am smiling all the time. This is because as I have done as President Hinckley has said, "Forget yourselves, and get to work," how can you not be smiling when you have the knowledge of the true and everlasting gospel! To know that I get to be with my family forever; to know that as I am living in accordance to what we have been asked of, we can do ANYTHING! God, our Heavenly Father, wants to bless us, and wants us to know how much He loves us, so let us be happy, and rejoice that we know that our Savior lives. Let us rejoice in our trials, as they help us become stronger and help us gain an eternal perspective!
This week has been the most humbling week of my life! Elder D. Todd Christofferson, of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles, spoke to us at our Tuesday devotional, and what hit me hard was when he spoke briefly on repentance. The whole devotional was focused on Jesus Christ, and the purpose of His life on this earth. When he began talking about the Atonement, then speaking about Repentance, he said, "Repentance is turning your whole being to God." I loved that. Jesus Christ suffered for our sins, so that we can repent and return to our Father in Heaven; we are to become perfect. In order to do this, we must, as Elder Christofferson said, turn our whole beings to God. How blessed are we to have God's promise, that if we are willing to do those things He asks of us, the blessings are infinite. They are not to hold us back. My favorite analogy: Try flying a kite without something or someone holding down the string...The kite will fall .But, if there is someone to hold that string down, the kite has the ability to fly until the string is let go of. The commandments and covenants we make are to hold us up, to let us fly high, to reach our potential. When we follow those guidelines and commandments, we are submitting our will to God's and He will never let go of our string!
On a different note, let me tell you a little bit about some general things. So my voice is completely shot, and is always hoarse from teaching investigators all the time, and probably more from laughing so much. The Elders and Sisters in my district and zone are HILARIOUS, and definitely have become my family! I love them so much!! The Elders are so solid and I continue to learn from them constantly, even though they do dumb things like have 25 minute staring contests!! Haha, true story. I have been able to see Elder Luther Gill a ton, and that is so fun! I get to see a lot of friends who work here from my BYU ward, and it is seriously a tender mercy. Every time, it is always when I go the wrong way, or I have to go back somewhere because I forget something, but then I always end up getting to see someone I know, and it helps me realize that I am still on earth, and not in a different world! Haha, it is so weird being at the MTC. Of course my whole life I have known about it, and what it is, but I feel like it is ten times bigger than I ever would have imagined it to be, and I love it so much. It is going to be sad on Monday, because Sister Garner leaves to do here Visiting Center Training, and so I will become a trio with the other sisters in my district. But ttttthen my whole district leaves next Tuesday, and I am still here by myself for Visitor Center training. It's okay, though, I'm sure I'll meet a ton of new Sisters...soo I'm not too terribly worried. It is just hard losing my companion. If we ever have to be separated for whatever reason, it feels so weird. I'm already having signs of companion withdrawals, haha.
I have never been so emotionally, spiritually, and physically drained in my whole life, but I go to bed feeling so good and so accomplished in knowing how much I am growing already and learning. Sister Garner and I have been teaching so far, four investigators, and one older couple who are less active. The couple who is less active are hilarious, because they aren't very good actors, hahaha. If Sister Garner and I ever get stuck, they say something like, "Oh don't worry about answering that. How about you teach us this?" Yeah not really helping us, but that's okay. It's the experience that matters. Alright, well I am probably boring all of you, I am just in love with this work! So I guess I will leave it at that. Thank you everyone for your love, support, and prayers, I know I wouldn't be able to do this without you! Love you All, and hope to hear from y'all soon.
Lots and lots of love,
Sister Annie Moyes
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