the love story: OUR FIRST DATE

Yours Truly:
I'd been home for about a week and a half and life was a bit insane. Cole and I had talked on the phone some and texted a bit (this seemed SUPER weird after being on a mission. I kept trying to tell my sister everything he was saying to me because it felt inappropriate to have a private conversation.) We planned to do something chill so we could get to know the non-missionary side of each other. I was really excited. I had been on several dates since I'd been home and they all were great guys, but Cole was one of the ones I was most excited about.

Cole:
Boy oh boy, I can honestly say that I was so excited all summer to finally go on a date with Annie. She wasn't really thinking about it because she was still on her mission, but I was so excited. A few weeks before she arrived home, I sent a message to Kevin and Michelle on Facebook discussing the best plan of action. Of course Kevin came up with something brilliant. It was a few days after she got home from her cabin, and I called the Tanner's home phone. As soon as Daken answered the phone, I said, "Does the goose fly at midnight?" and he responded, "Only in Nantuckett" At this moment, everyone in the home knew that I was calling. Daken gave the phone to Annie and we had a wonderful two hour conversation. It was so weird talking to her not as a missionary, but the conversation didn't feel awkward at all! We planned on going on a date the next Monday after I got home from Washington DC.

Yours Truly:
The day finally came and he came to my house to pick me up. It was so strange seeing him dressed in normal clothes and especially without a companion at his side. I couldn't help but notice that he was looking at me differently than he ever did while we were on our missions. Our first hug was a little weird because it was in front of my whole family, but not too bad. We went to cold stone first and had a great chat over ice cream. I think I said, "wow, this is weird" several times throughout the night.


Cole:
The day FINALLY came! Up to that point, I was SO excited. But then the dreaded drive up to Centerville was the longest drive of my entire life. My heart was pounding and I could feel myself breaking into a nervous sweat. My stomach began to turn and I felt a little bit queazy. I finally made it up to Centerville, but instead of going to the Tanner home, I went to Carls Jr. to use the restroom. I looked myself in the mirror, gave myself a little pep talk, and mustered up the courage to finally drive up. I said a little prayer in my heart and walked up to the front door, just to see Annie for the first time in regular human clothes looking as beautiful as ever. I was anticipating a really big hug straightaway and it would be the most magical thing in the world! But it wasn't. We kind of gave each other a little side hug and I was introduced to her lovely parents, ready to start a wonderful evening.


Yours Truly:
Then we went on a little hike/walk above the Bountiful temple. As we walked up the mountain he grabbed my hand. I was a little taken off guard. I hadn't been home very long and I wasn't sure how I felt about that, but I enjoyed it. When we got to the top we were having a great chat and we had such a good hug. Not awkward like our first. It made me feel all happy and excited inside. Hugging was something I really missed on my mission.

Cole:
We went to Cold Stone and had really naturally flowing, jovial conversation (which apparently she thought was awkward at first? what the?) But I could tell that she was happy, and I was having the time of my life. We drove up past the Bountiful Temple to enjoy the beautiful view. We got out of the car and began to walk up the hill behind the temple. For about two minutes, my heart was thumping and I just stared at her hand, then finally, yoink! I grabbed her hand! I was so proud of myself. Finally, when we got up the hill our magical hug finally happened. It was perfect! We hugged for probably an entire minute overlooking the sunset and Temple, pretty magical right?? I loved it.

Yours Truly:
Then we went to a park to go star gazing since we both love that. We were having a great chat and then we saw a shooting star. Immediately we both made a wish... to be honest I don't even remember what mine was, but then Cole was telling me to stand up. He got that look in his eye. Then he told me that kissing me was his wish and he kissed me. I remember him asking me if it was ok and I said yes. I didn't want to make it awkward. I liked him. I wanted to keep going on dates, but when I kiss I like it to mean that I am exclusively dating that person.

So fairly quickly I pulled away and explained that to him. He took it well. It lead to some great conversation. I liked him a lot after that date. I was very excited about what it could maybe bring. I wished we wouldn't have kissed, but it didn't scare me off. At all. And that's saying something for me because I normally would have run the other way. Especially, when I was so fresh off of my mission.

Cole:
Originally, I had never planned on kissing Annie our first date. I had been pressured jokingly by a few of my friends, but I really didn't plan on kissing her. We both expressed our love for star gazing, so we decided that would be a fun way to wrap up the night. We went to a park nearby her house and gazed at the stars. After a bit of time, I was feeling a righteous urge to kiss her, but I kept telling myself that it was too soon. As we were looking at the sky, however, God sent us a bright gleaming shooting star straight across the sky, which was a clear signal to me that I needed to kiss her. No witness until after the trial of your faith, right??? I told her to stand up, then I looked her in the eye and said, this is my wish, and I slowly went in and kissed her. Apparently, Annie thought that I ASKED her permission to kiss her??? Not my style. The kiss lasted probably about .8 seconds before she pulled away and while smiling said, "You punk! I don't kiss on the first date!" Ha. While feeling a little guilty and embarrassed inside, I was certain that she enjoyed it because of the way the night had already been going, even though she doesn't like to admit that. We established that we would only kiss when we were officially dating. We continued to talk and laugh and I felt strongly inside that Annie would be a great option for me to pursue.

the love story: HOW WE MET

Yours Truly:

The first day I met Cole I didn't even know his name was Cole. All I knew him by was Elder Gardner. It was my second day in Australia. I was extremely jet lagged, although I was in denial and I thought I was fine, wrong. I was feeling overly tired and a bit strange being a new place and my companion was sick to top it all off. I was FREEZING so I already had my pajamas on under my skirt and had a huge blanket wrapped around me.

Elder Gardner and Elder Jordan were my first zone leaders. They came to welcome me to the zone and say hello. They are both very enthusiastic people... I was a bit overwhelmed... I thought to myself, "Wow, these Elders are waaaay too peppy for my taste." Again, I was jet lagged and easily irritated. It ended up being one of my favorite things about their companionship.

Cole:

I remember the first time I met Sister Tanner! Not because anything special happened. There were no sparks or anything even remotely close to that. I was a young Zone Leader and more into my mission than ever at that point, being completely focused on the Lord and His work. Elder Jordan and I were excited to have another sister in our Zone, because sisters typically have a strong work ethic and bring a strong fire into missionary work. Let me tell you, Sister Tanner did just that! She and Sister Vinck were some of the hardest working missionaries in our zone and we loved being able to work closely with them. At this point, I felt no real attraction to Sister Tanner, although she was beautiful.

My first transfer in Australia with Elder Gardner

Yours Truly:

I quickly grew to love (in a friendly way) both of these Elders. My companion and I were both brand new missionaries and we really didn't know what we were doing, so essentially they trained us. I think we called them with at least one question everyday. They were SO patient and kind to us. All four of us became fast friends and I didn't think much of it. 

I always stayed good friends with both of them. They were assistants together as well and I had the opportunity to serve in places and positions that caused us to see them quite a bit and I got to know Elders Jordan and Gardner very well. I always knew that they were outstanding Elders and I was very excited that we could all be friends at BYU. 

I noticed quickly that Elder Gardner and I got along really well. He was a great leader to me. He was kind, fun, and thoughtful. The more I got to know him the more I realized how GOOD he is. Cole is just good to the core.

Cole:

As my mission went on, I continued to get to know Sister Tanner on more of a missionary level, but as a friend as well. The more I got to know her as a friend, the more attracted I became to her, and therefore, the further I wanted to stay away from her! I prayed and fasted multiple times that I would be able to stay focused and do the Lord's work with a clear mind. I sincerely did my very best to never ever flirt with her and to only speak to her like two missionaries do with each other.

Yours Truly:

Cole finished his mission 3 months before I did and when he went home he left a letter for me. It was very appropriate and kind. He told me that he loved serving around me and hoped we could write until I got home. We did. 

We started writing every week. I noticed that he would wait up until quite late (his time) so that he could get my email before he went to sleep. I found myself greatly anticipating his emails and seeing him in a less "missionary-type" way. I loved the advice he gave me and he helped me to push hard until the end of my mission.

Cole:

When I finished my last transfer, I decided that I would write her a letter telling her how grateful I was for her example of faith and hard work. She really was such an incredible missionary. I always looked up to her as one of the most obedient sisters in the mission. As I worked hard the summer I got home in Washington DC, I would look forward to emails from her every Sunday night. We wrote more as friends, but I still encouraged her to remain faithful and stay focused to the end, which I had no question that she would anyways.

HIS divine purposes, not mine.

Being home from a mission for two months now has proved to be an interesting time in my life. I have been so blessed and happy, but there has also been some stressors involved. I know that for me it was right to come home a bit early so that I could start school right away. It felt great to jump right into an awesome job and a full schedule with lots of challenging classes. I still love all of my classes but sometime I feel like I can't quite catch my breath. I'm happy, but at the same time I feel like I'm drowning.

This past week was one of those weeks. I've had a lot of good and exciting things happening in my life, but professors at BYU don't schedule "big life decision" into the syllabus. I'm also taking a lot of classes that aren't in my comfort zone of school. I absolutely LOVE what I'm learning, but that doesn't mean I can always do well on the test... In fact, tests this semester have proved to be more frustrating than ever before.

This week I had a lot of things to do and a lot of tests to take and study for. I thought I would get one of the easy tests out of the way so I could have more time to study for my more challenging classes. I studied as much as I could and took it. I felt pretty good about it, but it was different than I had expected. I thought I would still do ok.... nope. It was fine, but not for how easy of a test it should have been. I mean this should have been a 100%. Let me tell you, it wasn't.

I went home feeling discouraged. I had a blessing at the beginning of the school year from my dad that made it sound like I would do well in school this semester. This isn't exactly what I would consider "doing well." (I thought I'd learned my lesson in trying to decide exactly what God means in my blessings.) I also have the stress of not being accepted into my major yet, so therefore, I need good grades to get in.

Sooooo all of this lead me to call my mum and my sister. They're both always really good to listen and talking me through it. They helped give me some great council, but the thing I wanted more than anything was a father's blessing. It wasn't an option because my dad and mum were out of town for the weekend.

I knew I could pray so I did that. I knelt down and poured my heart out to my Heavenly Father. The tears were flowing and as I prayed I felt His love. I also felt an impression to listen to my father's blessing from the beginning of the year (I always record them on my phone.) As I listened to it at first I was just frustrated because it was saying all the things I didn't feel were happening. Then, there was a part of the blessing that I don't think I had ever really heard before. Heavenly Father told me that there would be changes in my life, but that I would feel peace and that He would quickly reach out to me and bless me and He would be with me.

I felt His love surround me. I felt a very clear impression that Heavenly Father didn't say that at the beginning of the year for me to feel comfort then, but that He said that then knowing that what I would want most right at that instant would be a father's blessing. He knew it wouldn't be possible so He gave me a piece of, what I believe was, what I would have heard if I had gotten a father's blessing that very day. It is incredible to me that God loves me so much that He thinks of all the details. He knows it all and has made plans to help us all along the way.

It didn't stop there either. That night when I came home my beautiful roommate Faith (who had overheard my phone conversations and crying) gave me one of the most inspired and beautiful letters I have ever received. I knew again that God was watching out for me. There were things that she said that put my mind at ease like nothing else could. I feel so blessed to have such a fabulous and inspired roommate who could be an answer to my prayers.

Then it didn't even stop there. The next morning I was doing my gospel studies and I was watching a Mormon Message called Daily Bread: Experience and it was just what I needed to hear. Elder Christofferson says,

"Though I suffered then, as I look back now, I am grateful that there was not a quick solution to my problem. The fact that I was forced to turn to God for help almost daily over an extended period of years taught me truly how to pray and get answers to prayer and taught me in a very practical way to have faith in God. I came to know my Savior and my Heavenly Father in a way and to a degree that might not have happened otherwise or that might have taken me much longer to achieve."

I have felt that, especially with school. School has never come easy to me. I have always had to work hard and even then, I still don't get the grades that some people do to whom it just comes naturally. It can be frustrating and challenging, but I don't mind because it's teaching me to rely on God. I could never even pretend for a minute that any success that I have, especially in school, is because of me. When I do well, it's a gift from God and it's through His goodness that He has blessed me to do well because it fits into His divine purposes.

This doesn't mean that I don't have to work hard and do my part. What it really means is that I am going to work hard and do my part even if it doesn't result in the miracle of a good test score or ultimately getting into my program. I know that when I do my part it doesn't guarantee the results that I want, but that it always results in what HE knows is best for my eternal progression and when it really comes down to it, that's what I care about.

I'm thankful for a loving Heavenly Father that cares about me enough to let me have these challenges because they help me to rely on Him and whenever we do that we can't help but become more like Him and that's the ultimate goal.

letter.seventy.two: 08.11.14 LAST LETTER "He's not finished with me yet."

I LOVE AUSTRALIA!

I can't believe it. I can't believe it's here. It's the time you never think will come, but here it is staring me in the face. My last full week of missionary service was great. So many appointments fell through and we didn't meet our goals, but that's not what matters. What matters is that even though it didn't go the way we planned, we kept pushing through and because of it we had a great week.

This week I have been reflecting on my missionary service. It has been rewarding, to say the least, to reflect on the many lessons learned and blessing that have come to me through my service as a full time missionary. Here are a few of the main ones.

*God is good. All of the blessings that have come to me on my mission and the miracles I have seen are not because of me, but because God has been good to me and blessed me with them. 

*God really is our LOVING Heavenly Father. There have been times of overflowing joy and times of deep sorrow on my mission. In both of those emotions it was evident to me that God loves me and has a plan for me. He knows just what I need and He lovingly guides me there. He isn't just waiting to condemn our every move, but rather to help us accept the mercy that comes through His son, Jesus Christ. 

*Faith is in Jesus Christ, not results. True faith is leaving the results to handle themselves. I've found that the true measure of faith is when you keep going even when the results that you want aren't coming. You know that through Christ anything is possible, but that even if the desired miracle doesn't come you keep going and moving forward because He knows a better plan for you.

*"Perfect love casteth out fear." As I have prayed to be filled with the Savior's love for others and myself it is the way I can make it through without any fear. If you just concentrate on loving, then that pure love will help the Spirit to guide you because that is what the Spirit is all about. Love.

*The power of personal prayer. As I have striven to make my personal prayers more meaningful it has changed my relationship with God to be a much more real and personal relationship.

*Humility is the secret to happiness. True humility is what brings the most happiness in every part of life. Holding onto pride is never worth it. 

*Anyone can change. It's the most amazing thing that you get to witness on a mission. It doesn't matter where they came from, anyone can change if they choose it. Myself included.

*"Judge not, that ye be not judged." You never know where people have come from. You can't always understand the way that they are and just because someone lives differently than you doesn't mean that it's wrong. Even when it is against church standards, you have to try to see where they are coming from before you try to help them or they'll just feel judged. 

These are but a few of the priceless gems I have learned on my mission. It has been a beautiful journey. As I studied on Saturday I was reading about how to know if you're a successful missionary and about the power and authority of our calling. Then I also read my setting apart blessing. As I read I carefully considered my mission and the missionary and person I have become. I felt as I read them that I have done my best. I have never been perfect, but I have given my full effort. As I read I felt an overwhelming peace that God has truly accepted my service and is proud of who I am, but more importantly He is proud of who I'm becoming. 

There is a song we listen to as missionaries that I think is perfect. It says, "There is hope for me yet, because God won't forget all the plans He's made for me. I'll just have to wait and see. He's not finished with me yet."

I know that God isn't finished with me yet. I know that this time as a full-time missionary was just a springboard into a life of changing and progressing. I am eternally grateful for God steering my path in this direction. Especially when I was so fixed in another direction. I have been blessed beyond what I ever could have imagined while being here and I'm so thankful for that. 

I know that missionary work changes people because it's changed me. I know that this isn't just a nice church, but the only true church on the earth and I am so thankful to be a member of it. I wouldn't trade that for anything. 

I love you all. I can't believe I get to see my family in just a few days. I love you with all my heart and never could have done it without your love and support. 

Heaps of love from down unda,

letter.seventy.one 08.04.14 All in the Lord's time.

Wow. This is getting a bit outrageous. I cannot believe how fast this week went. I think every morning I've turned to my companion and said, "I can't believe it's Wednesday." Or whatever day it was. Time is just slipping through my fingers, but we had a great week.

This week we were able to teach a lot and it was perfect weather so we were even able to walk to some places and find new investigators from walking from place to place. It was delightful. 

There were so many people that we were able to teach and testify to. I am trying to really make the most of my time here and take advantage of the unique privileged that it is to tell people that I know with a badge over my heart. I love it. I feel like I don't know any other life now. We have been so blessed with incredible spirit-filled lessons. 

One of the best was with S. She is amazing. She is so ready for baptism, but she was just struggling to commit to a day. She's been coming to church the whole time I've been here and is even going to seminary every morning. She's awesome. We've been studying all week to know how we can help her make that leap of faith. So on Sunday during Sunday school we took her and a few of the girls that are her fellowship and we had an amazing lesson. The spirit was so strong. We actually showed the first bit of the John Tanner movie. I felt so much gratitude for such an incredible example from someone who is my forefather.

We talked about the sacrifices people make to be baptized and why they make them. We talked about the promised blessings of baptism, especially the Holy Ghost. We talked for a long time about the gift of the Holy Ghost and the amazing blessings that come with it. 

We also showed her "Your potential, your privilege" of Elder Utchdorf's and helped her see the blessings that are waiting for her when she lives up to her full potential by being baptized. Then we asked her if we all could kneel together and pray to pick a date. We first looked at the calendar and looked at days. First she was looking for some time in September. Then we pointed out to her that if she got baptized this week she would be able to do temple baptisms when they go down to Perth. That's what changed it all. It was amazing to see all the girls there supporting her and encouraging her. Not in an overbearing, pushy way, but it helping her realize that she can do this and that she is ready. It was awesome. She is the bomb. She picked this Thursday, so it can replace mutual. Then we all knelt in prayer and she prayed the most sincere prayer to Heavenly Father asking if this was His will. The spirit was so strong. I thought I was going to cry. I felt so overjoyed! She did it. I love those moments. It makes it all worth it.

The last step was for her to check the date with her parents. Her parents have already said that they don't mind if she's baptized and they even think it's a good thing, we just had to see how they felt about this date. 

This morning we talked with S and she said she talked with her mum and that her mum is ok with her getting baptized but she wants her to wait because she wants to make sure S is really committed. She doesn't want her to just get baptized and fall away. When she first told us that I felt a peace enter my heart. I knew that it was all going to work out that was best for S and her family. It would have been amazing to have her baptism before I left and knowledge and commitment wise she was very prepared, more than a lot of people I've taught. I know that God has a plan for her though. Who knows? This could be the way that her family starts to accept the gospel. All I know is that God has a plan and that He knows what will help her to progress to exaltation and I'm just happy that I got to be a part of it. She'll get baptized, but in His timing, not mine and that's just fine with me.

God has been so good to me and I thank Him every day that He lead me to be on a mission and to be here in Kalgoorlie. I have loved every minute of it and I plan to give it every last bit of my heart and soul in my last week. I love this work too much to do it any other way.

I love you all. 

 so much love from down unda, 

letter seventy 07.28.14 "sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy..."

This week has been great! I think the sunshine made everything much better. I love warm spring days! Sunshine on my shoulders really does make me happy, especially after such a cold week last week.

This week started off to be a bit of a challenge. We had heaps of appointments set up for Tuesday and Wednesday and almost all of them cancelled, but we found other very meaningful things to do so it was great regardless. I think I'm really starting understand better how much joy is in the effort and commitment. We still had a great week and we taught heaps, but it wasn't the way we planned it. A lot of our member present lessons fell through, but at the end of the week we still ended up having quite of few. That was such a blessing. 

We have had some powerful lessons this week. I love being a missionary! I'm trying to live up every opportunity that I get to teach and testify. I have been bolder than ever. I am really trying to "leave it all on the stage." It feels great. It's not even that I'm doing anything too different from the beginning of my mission, but it feels good to do it faithfully to the end. I just love teaching and testifying!

Some of our most powerful lessons this week have been those with less-active members. God has been steering our lessons 100%. In one instance, there is a girl, not too much older than us, that has been less active for quite sometime. Sister K and I started to develop a relationship with her. She's awesome and has a solid testimony of the fundamentals. She just needed a push in the right direction. This week we had a lesson with her about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Heavenly Father guided the lesson. By the end she was committed to speak with the Bishop this Sunday so she could fully heal and repent. It was powerful. I felt so much love for her. I know that she is part of the reason that we needed to be here. It's amazing to be able to connect on a spiritual level. We were able to talk about her divine nature. As we did tears came to my eyes. I love her so much. I feel so blessed to be able to have watched her progress to where she is now. She's coming to church every week. I love watching and being a part of people's progress. It's one of the greatest blessings of missionary work. 

We also had a great lesson with an investigator. We hadn't been able to have a proper lesson with him ever really, but we had two this weekend and it was a blessing. He has recently been through some hard things that have caused him to turn to God, even though he's from China and that's not his culture. He has been so prepared. He is asking all the right questions. He wants to know and he wants to be a part of the gospel. He said that he wants to be baptized after he learns more. I've very rarely met people more real intent that he has. It's amazing. I feel so blessed to be working with him. God is so good to us!

We have also been trying to work with and teach the members more as well. It has been great! The members here are awesome! They are all so keen to help us in our missionary work. They're helping us to fellowship and we're working with them to help us to find as well. It's been so good. I love the relationships you are able to develop with members on a mission. Ok, so basically I just love everything about being a missionary... I'm going to miss it so much. That's why I am going to keep giving all my heart and soul to it. 

I think one of the things God really has blessed me with this week is to feel loved, by Him and by others. I feel His love surrounding me. I love the people that He has put me here to serve and I feel their love too. I know that a lot of these people may not ever remember me, but I will remember them. The people of Western Australia have written their names in my heart forever. I am so thankful for this opportunity to serve the Lord here. It's a unique and special opportunity that I wouldn't trade for the world. 

I love you. Thank you for your prayers. I feel them. I feel your love and I feel so blessed to have such an incredibly supportive and encouraging family. 

Heaps of love,

letter sixty.nine 07.21.14 member friend lessons :)

Ann got to spend this last P-day in "the bush with her district and a family in the ward.

We had a great week! It has flown by! It started off looking like it might be slow. All of our appointments on Tuesday cancelled. Even the people that never cancel…cancelled. But, we still went out and did our best and were blessed to find a new investigator.

But then, Wednesday was epic! We had four member present lessons! That is how many we had total last week! It was such a blessing. Lessons with members are the best. It makes all the difference. 

One of the people we saw was the partner of a less active member. She was amazing. She has such a sincere desire to learn and to do what it takes to find out. With the help of the Spirit we were able to teach a very powerful lesson about the restoration.

That day we went to another part member family with the ward mission leader and had an amazing restoration lesson as well. I have really been feeling the spirit and power of the restoration. The kids were soaking it in! The ward mission leader was the perfect fellowship as well. He helped them feel so comfortable. They had us all stay for dinner as well. The ward mission leader actually ended up staying for 45 minutes after we left talking with them. It really was a member friend lesson more than a member present and that made all the difference! What a blessing. They are such an awesome family. They have so much potential!

We also have had many lessons with our golden investigator this week as well. They were also, all member friend lessons. She is progressing so much because of it. She's 15 and she is changing so much. She has been coming to church steadily for the whole time I've been in Kalgoorlie. She is close with a lot of the girls, but bringing a member had made all the difference. She is really living the gospel. 

One of the lessons we had with her at the beginning we showed us that she had memorized Moroni 10:32-33 that we had shared with her because she liked it so much. She showed us how she'd been highlighting all the verses she loved. Then we were talking about enduring to the end and she opened up to 2 Nephi 31:20 and read it to us. She said it was her favorite one that she had read about enduring to the end. She is AMAZING!!! I can't get over it. She's looking to get baptized on the 2nd August.

She is incredible. She even went down to Perth with the youth this weekend to youth conference. She also told us that she has seen a change in her life since she has been coming to church and living this life style. She noticed that she's much happier and her life is going in a better direction than other friends who are taking a bad path. I feel so blessed to be teaching someone who is so prepared!

I think the best part of this week was when President and Sister Lindsay came. It was sooo amazing to have them here. They came just for the day, but it was so uplifting. I remembered again how much I love them. They came and gave us the training that they did in zone conference and it was so good. 

My favorite part was Sister Lindsay's. She talked about change. She talked about how we all change when we're here on a mission and invited us to reflect on the ways that we've changed. As I sat there reflecting on the many ways that I have changed I felt overwhelmed by how much I have changed. I am amazed by how God has molded me and shaped me into something much better than I have ever been before. I am so grateful for that. 

We were also able to spend a lot of alone time with Sister Lindsay. She came with us to a lesson and it was another beautiful lesson on the Restoration and teaching with her was delightful. Then she did a flat inspection and we went shopping for a few things. It felt like being with our mum. She just praised us and made us feel uplifted and loved the entire time. It was such a tender mercy. 

Just before they left President did interviews with each of us. I went last of everyone and their flight was leaving soon so mine was very short, but it was so powerful and uplifting. As we sat together he told me how much he loved me and appreciated the things I have done over the course of my mission. He told me how thankful he was for me. Again, I felt like I was with my own dad for a minute there, he even teared up just like dad would have. I felt so much love for he and Sister Lindsay. I love them so much. I have learnt so much from them, and it was so nice to feel so much love for them. It was just what I needed to feel even more motivated to keep going strong to the end of my mission.

And one last tender mercy; we have become good friends with a member who is going through a really hard time. He's come with us to many lessons and has always been a bit closed off. On Sunday we were at another members for dinner and he was there. We shared a message and the spirit was so strong. I looked over and he was getting a bit teary. That is so completely not like him. A while after the lesson he texted us and told us that that was the first time he's felt the spirit in a long time. I thought I was going to cry. That is not like him at all to text something like that. I felt so blessed to be able to be a part of something that finally was able to touch him because he's such a good person, he just needs more of the spirit in his life. God softened his heart. God is good. 

I love being a part of this work, a work that changes lives. It a work that is continually changing mine and I know it will continue to do so even after I'm done being a full time missionary. I am so thankful that God knew better than me and that He guided me here to Western Australia as a missionary. I love it! I love you all!