Sundays are Good Days

Last summer my family and I went out East for our family vacation. We spent most of our time in New Jersey with my aunt and she had a mantra the entire time we were running from place to place: Vacations are like scout camp; they're only really fun after you're home and you're well-rested and looking at pictures. You can then look back and say, "Oh that was so fun!" She was right. I remember that there were times on that trip that I was annoyed or grumpy, but I look back on that trip with only fondness.

The same applies to travel here. By yesterday night I was so done. I was ready to pack up my things and come home and call it a good experience. However, my plane ticket has already been purchased and I'm not coming home until the 24th of next month. Also, I do love it here and I would hate to leave my awesome classes.

Looking back on the pictures and reading what I wrote this past week reminds me of all the good things that happened in all the places we visited. I'm sure the sleep I got last night and today helped in that regard, but it really was a wonderful trip. Our next big trip is Scotland and that's coming up in a few weeks. And next Wednesday we're going to Stratford so I'm stoked for that. I've wanted to go to Stratford since my tenth-grade English course.

I love this ward here! It's a small ward, and shrinking because people are moving away, but the spirits and testimonies of the people there more than make up for the small numbers. As I mentioned before, many of the people are converts of a few years, and hearing their conversion stories strengthens my testimony so much!

There were a lot of girls this time around (I guess they're accustomed to having four or five girls, not ten), so only half of the girls were given callings. The rest of us were assigned to attend Relief Society. Having a calling would certainly be nice, but I also love these sisters already, and I can't wait to spend the next few weeks learning with them.

We talked about The Book of Mormon in Relief Society today and some of the sisters shared stories about how it changed their lives. One woman from Africa talked about how she started having questions about the religion she was in and that the Spirit was encouraging her to ask those questions. She felt like she was supposed to look for "the book," but she didn't know what that book was. Then, two years later she met the missionaries and they handed her The Book of Mormon. She said that, immediately, the Spirit confirmed the truth to her and that the light of the gospel entered her heart and changed her for the better. I was so touched by her testimony. The people here are so good.

After church I fell asleep (girls in the program are getting sick and I think I might be fighting whatever is going around because I am so tired) and woke up before dinner. After dinner I got to Skype my family and that was a wonderful thing. Sundays are good days, and life is good.