Here's my letter to President Murphy:
Hi President Murphy,
Well, I'm back! I have to admit, I was worried about readjusting to missionary life when I came back, and the first night was hard because we came back and just got ready for bed, and I just didn't feel like myself. It was hard saying goodbye to my family again, and I was so worried about coming back and not being a good missionary. When we headed out the next day, I was so grateful to feel that sense of peace and calm that comes from being a missionary. It's such a beautiful calling because you are called to focus on other people and their needs, and it helped me forget my anxiety and worry, and it helped me feel at peace about coming back. I thought it was going to be so easy to come back, President, but leaving my family again was hard, and I think Satan was really trying to make me doubt myself, but throughout the week, it's gotten so much better, and I'm starting to feel like my old missionary self again. The transition into a trio has been a little tricky, just because we are trying to blend three different styles of teaching, and three different personalities, but we are trying to help each other, and we are praying a lot to have more unity as a companionship.
We currently have one investigator with a fecha bautismal. His name is Paco Michilena. His wife and sons are members of the church, but Paco has always been a little hesitant to listen to the lessons, but he's been coming to church, so other hermanas have been teaching him, and I am actually super grateful for Paco. Coming back in the missionary life, I felt like my teaching had suffered while I was gone. I was out of practice, and it felt choppy, and it didn't feel like the Spirit was really there helping me in the lessons, and I was getting a little discouraged. But yesterday, we were teaching Paco, and I can tell that his wife wants him to accept this Gospel so much, and so I knew that this lesson was extra important. We decided to reteach him the Restoration, because he still doesn't have a testimony of the Book of Mormon or Joseph Smith, and he heard Lesson One a while ago, so we taught him again yesterday. Hermana Franco and Hermana Hartzog started the lesson, teaching about prophets and Jesus' ministry on the earth, and the grand apostasy, but they turned it over to me for the Restoration. I started out explaining Joseph Smith and his prayer, and I told him the First Vision, and after I just kept going. I felt the Spirit guiding me to what to say, and I felt the missionary mojo come back :-) My teaching was more fluid and I explained and made connections that I never had before. I've been praying hard this past week for Heavenly Father to please help me feel that coming back was the right choice, and I hadn't really felt it until that lesson with Paco. He is why I am here. He and every other person that is searching for the light of Christ in their lives. Honestly, there were times while I was home that I debated not coming back because this way of living is so difficult. But I could never bear to think of all the people that might go without the Gospel in their lives if I chose to stay home. How could I face them someday, knowing that I could have helped them, but instead I chose to stay home in a comfortable and easy life? The way of a missionary isn't easy, President, and unfortunately Satan uses that to deter some people from coming back, but I'm so incredibly grateful to my loving Heavenly Father for giving me the strength to come back here, because I love being a missionary. I love teaching, and I love seeing how the Gospel blesses the lives of the people I teach. It has blessed my life so much, and I am grateful to use this time as a missionary to thank Heavenly Father for those blessings by helping more of His children find the truth. I know that this church is true. We wouldn't be here if it wasn't. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, and how wonderful it is that we get to teach about him and his faith, and especially, the Book of Mormon. That book is full of so much light and evidence of God's love for us, and I am so blessed to have its guidance in my life. Thank you for supporting me throughout this whole time with my ankle. You and Hermana Murphy both are an inspiration and a motivation for me, and I am so grateful for your examples of love and hard work. I hope you have a wonderful week, and I'll see you tomorrow at zone conference.
Hermana Kennedy
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| The fog in our sector can get super crazy cuz, ya know, we are up in the mountains and all :-) |
I have to admit that first night when I arrived, I started asking myself why in the world I was crazy enough to come back here. I had a hard time feeling happy to be back, especially since I'm not in San Pablo anymore. I didn't realize how much I truly loved that area and those people until I was sent here. I'm in a sector called Pusuqui, but it's better knows as the Middle of the World, because the actual middle of the world is in my sector. Yep, I'm serving on the equator. We have the Mitad del Mundo monument and museum in our sector, but turns out, it's actually a lie, because the monument isn't the middle of the world (IT'S A TRAP!)! From the monument, you can see this mountain with a big pole on it, and it turns out that that is actually the middle of the world. But only a few select people know that, and couple of the members told us, so we are planning as a companionship to go there on a future P-day to stand in the middle of the world. Pretty cool, eh? I'm not actually in Quito. I'm about an hour outside of it which is close enough to enjoy the fruits of city life without actually having to live there. And one of those fruits is Baskin Robbins. Yes, it exists here! Oh my goodness gracious, how happy I was when Hermana Franco told me that it was here. Like, how can anyone be sad when they have Baskin Robbins?
So, I'm in a trio. My companions are Hermana Hartzog and Hermana Franco. Hermana Hartzog is from Colorado and comes from a family of six kids, and she's studying computer science at BYU-Idaho. Hermana Franco is from Chicago, but she grew up with Mexican parents so she speaks fluent Spanish and English and what I wouldn't give to have her accent. Ugh, #goals.
My ankle is actually doing really well though. It starts to tire out around 7:30 or 8:00 each night, but we come home an hour early each day to do companionship study (since everyone around here goes to bed at 8:00). We leave an hour earlier in the morning to compensate (which I love) so I can go home at night, put some ice on my ankle, and elevate it. I know Heavenly Father is helping me though, because we've walked about 6-8 miles every day, but each day, with my exercises, my ankle is getting more flexible. I can almost go down stairs normally now without my boot which is super exciting!
Also, oh my gosh, THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR ALL OF THE BIRTHDAY WISHES!! Seriously, what an outpouring of love from you. It made my day to open up my Inbox and see forty emails, all with the subject line of HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I will be celebrating my birthday with the four large Reese's peanut butter cups that I brought from the States and have been saving :-) Also, Hermana Franco says there's an investigator from Colombia who sells delicious cakes, so we think we are going to buy one from her. She's also a drug dealer, so maybe that's why her cakes are so good :-)
Anyway, I'm sorry I can't thank you all personally, but unfortunately, there just isn't time. But I love you also much, and thank you for your support and love as I've come back to the mission. Also, I do NOT have a washer. Still washing my clothes on a rock. Our rock in San Pablo was actually nicer than the one we have here, but oh well :-)
Family, I love you so much, and I loved being home so I could see all of you. Be kind and loving to each other. I pray for you guys every day. I miss you like crazy. Love you lots.
Love,
Hermana Kennedy (the second :-))
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