WOW there are SO many people here right now. Because of Christmas. Everyone just wants to be here for Christmas!! Haha it's wonderful. There are always so many visitors at church on Sunday. which is fun. There are especially a lot at this time of year!! It's awesome. People are always so nice to us missionaries. (Well the members) hahaha most people in the streets just stare at us. I'm like smiling and "Whatchu know bout me!!" Hahah!
SO we have an investigator named Richie. He is RICH. So filthy rich. His name fits him perfectly. He works on Wall Street and is one of those high class confident people. Haha he likes very expensive clothes and just your average rich person. So this was cool. He totally just walked into the temple one day and asked if he could learn more!!! So we were like YES. We have taught him 3 times in the hallway of the church because a lot of times the members can't come to lessons because they are busy... (Which is realllly difficult because we have a lot of times where we can't teach just one male.) Like you know the missionary rule. Two sisters can't be alone with one male. So anyways we have been teaching him in the "lobby thing" of the church. I LOVE teaching him because I feel like I'm changing his mind about "the Mormons." Something I LOVED.. One time Richie said something along the lines of "you guys are so inexperienced. You live in a bubble and you're so young and probably just brainwashed." Hahahah!!! (Do you even know how many people think the same thing as him?) (KILLS me) When he said that I just got so fired up inside. But not in a bad way haha. I somehow explained (with the help of the spirit) that I AM NOT brainwashed. I am not out here because my parents told me to come here. I am not here because it's something "we Mormons do" I am not here because I had nothing else to do. I'm not here to impress anyone. I didn't just leave all my family, my home, all my music, dating, all my clothes, my friends, my job, because I am brainwashed. For crying out loud I am a 19 year old girl. WHY ON EARTH would I do this for any other reason than to share TRUTH and peace and happiness with others. If I really wanted, I could go home. But NO not till my 18 months is up. I looked at Richie and said "Richie... Do you honestly think I'm that silly? Do you think I haven't thought this through in my head? Because I TOTALLY have. Believe me. I have wondered MANY times why I am doing what I am doing. And I. Am. Not. Brainwashed." I told him how hard the mission can be. And the things I've had to sacrifice. I explained to him some of the things I've had to go through to gain the testimony that I have. I told him more about myself. I think he really started to see that I am NORMAL. Haha I'm not this robot Mormon girl. I kinda sorta explained to Richie that he is the one living in a bubble :) haha!!! He said "wow it's nice to see it from your view!!!" I wish I could just have recorded that lesson for you. But all you have to know is that I LOVE teaching him. Because I feel like Heavenly Father has prepared me for certain people here. I love when I can be bold and confident while teaching. And since Richie is so bold with us, I have every right to be bold back to him. I LOVE when I can be bold with people.
We had the most WONDERFUL Christmas devotional on Friday with THE
WHOLE MISSION. The ONLY time the WHOLE mission gets together is forChristmas!!! And I was in heaven. I really can't explain the spirit that I feel when I am surrounded with other missionaries doing the same thing that I am doing. And oh. My. Heavens. The Christmas spirit was SO strong. President and Sister Morgan spoke and there was a wonderful choir of missionaries. Seriously they sounded like angels. And then we had a big meal that was catered and so good. We sat as a whole mission (all 270 somethin of us) and ate a meal together. A very delicious one. It was so fun. I LOVED seeing my favorite missionaries from my last area. And so many of the other missionaries that I have made friends with. It was super fun to ride upstate on the train with alllll the city missionaries. So everyone from Manhattan and Harlem and The Bronx rode up on the metro north train which was so fun. We got a lot of people staring at us haha!! Definitely a Christmas memory to remember forever!!!!
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| My dear Sister Amorim! I miss her lots! |
We did an activity with my district in time square!! Something we call an APF (area proselyting focus) so my companion and I were in charge because it's in our area. Basically we just gather a bunch of
missionaries to try to help out in our area. It's always a good time. For this one we gave out free candy canes with "he is the gift" pass along cards tied to them. And we wrapped Book of Mormons and gave those out like Christmas presents. We sang Christmas carols and got a lot of stares. Haha. It was really cool. There are even more ads in time square now!! They are everywhere!!!! Like 6 of them!!! And I just can't even imagine the cost of that... Haha. It's amazing. I showed the video so many times that my iPad battery died! Too good.
I LOVE my ward. Ah. Why am I in such an amazing part of the world with such amazing people!?! I am learning from such good people. Too many good examples to follow here in NYNY North. Every prayer that I say is literally just THANK YOU thaaaaank you thank you. Thankful for the trials Im having. Thankful for the area I'm in. Thankful for my apartment. Thankful for my ward. For my mission president. For this opportunity. For my FAMILY. For ME. I'm so thankful. FOR EVERYTHING.
Christ is Christmas. He is!!! He is he is he is. Can we all PLEASE just remember how amazing he is especially these last few days of December. Christ is a gift for all of us. So go on and open that gift.. :) Discover him. Embrace him. Use the gift. SHARE it.
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| Our teeny Christmas Tree I chose |
I LOVE YOU fam fam and friends.
MERRY CHRISTMAS.
(Next P day is Christmas Eve) hehe partay!!! Can't wait to talk to you fam!! Good tidings xoxoxo xox
Sister ABBs Dunford
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