Approximately One More Year!

I think we figured out a while ago that the transfer I go home on ends on December 5th next year!!!! Kind of scary because I still feel like a super new missionary, but the reality is, I ONLY HAVE ONE YEAR LEFT! Weird... let's forget that I mentioned that. Life in Japan is great. This past week, my companion and I kind of hit a wall though. Because we were both trained by the Lyles Shimai, and we've never been companions with anyone else, so basically we've realized that we just don't have anything new to teach each other. And we both know pretty much the same words and phrases in Japanese. So talking to people on the streets has gotten really repetitive feeling because we just don't know how to come up with new ideas! However, we're just trying to get creative and asking other missionaries their methods and ways so that we can improve! My real Thanksgiving day was spent in Sasebo for a Zone Training Meeting and then that night all of the Nagasaki Missionaries went out to dinner together and talked about things we're grateful for. It rocked. Not saying Thanksgiving in America isn't wonderful, because it definitely is, but I'm just saying that fake Thanksgiving in a small Udon restaurant in Japan with 7 American missionaries and 1 Brazilian missionary is an experience I wouldn't trade for anything. This coming Thursday, Nagasaki is having another baptism as I mentioned before! We're meeting with Yamamoto-San this morning actually to help prepare her for her interview tomorrow and make sure she understands everything. Let me just tell you, this woman has some of the strongest faith I've ever seen. She knows that this is all happening fast and she knows that she still doesn't understand everything perfectly, but she just keeps reassuring us that she knows God wants her to get baptized because it tells her to in the Book of Mormon and everytime she prays to God she gets an answer. This is coming from a woman who only 2 months ago told us that she doesn't really have interest in our message because she's super Buddhist. I'm telling you people, this gospel changes lives! This past week, we met with our Korean investigator two times. We went over the law of fasting with her and tried to help her understand how fasting can truly bring miracles and answers to our prayers. At the first meeing, she told us that fasting was going to be imopssible because she has to make meals for her husband and he'll be upset if she just doesn't eat. We told her that God always provides a way for us to obey the commandments that He gives us and asked her to just pray about it and think more about it. The second time we met she just straight up told us that "Oh, it's just two meals, and it's not like my husband doesn't have to eat, it's just me. So I'll be able to fast this Sunday." Wait what? We didn't even have to say anything about it! I swear this woman is just teaching herself sometimes. Anyway, yesterday, she didn't end up coming to church which we were a little concerned about her because lately her husband has been more and more bothered by her meeting with us so much. But after church we texted her and guess who still fasted?! Our investigator. Yea, that's right. She couldn't come to church, but she totally fasted still! I can't tell you how proud I am of her. And to top things off, this week we get to go to her apartment to have lunch together and meet her 2 baby kittens!!! I'm probably way more excited about that than I should be, but I just haven't held a cat in nearly 6 months! You can probably expect like 10 pictures of just cats with next weeks email. Don't say I didn't warn you. Anyway, Japan is great. Japanese is quite the adventure. This gospel is changing peoples lives every day for the better. I am SO GRATEFUL to all of my wonderful friends and family who have helped me get to the point I am today! Remember to be 100 percent thankful because if you're going to be 99 percent thankful, you might as well be 0 percent (Words of the oh so wise Yamamoto San). I'll see you all in about a year! (I can't believe I just said that. Barf) Crazy Cat Lady Wells Shimai