Week 10: I have my first breakup :((

One of our members wanted to take our pictures because
he does photography and for some reason I look like
I am gonna cry. We'll go with that's the Spirit!?

We all know that I love to tell Long and Dramatic stories, so buckle down! It all begins last month when the bishopric was taking an awful long time getting to ward council, so I was messing around on the piano, and when they FINALLY came out of their meeting they heard and were SO excited. "Sister Willis, can you play the piano? We LOVE having sister missionaries who can play the piano! It's a lifesaver!" They were honestly thrilled. The first counsellor gave me a side hug and asked if I could play in sacrament meeting in an emergency, and I said I could, because, well, technically I can. This was a Mistake. On Friday the ward music coordinator texted us and asked if I could play the piano on Sunday in sacrament meeting! And I said I could, because we love that service life! So I spent a couple hours over the weekend choosing and practicing hymns, which was actually a great time. Playing the piano is good for my soul. 

On Saturday night, an investigator from my companion's former area texted us saying that he wanted to stop meeting with missionaries until he got a bunch of questions resolved (the usual ones, about the priesthood and about Joseph Smith and the like). The thing is, his name is Adam, and so I thought it was the Adam we're teaching! I nearly had a heart attack! I was very distressed! He was progressing so well! But we got it all cleared up and were fine until Sunday morning, when I was playing prelude music for sacrament meeting and Sister Bangura came up to me at the piano and showed me a text from .... Adam! Our Adam! Saying that he wouldn't be at church today and that he didn't think we should meet anymore! This was my Worst Nightmare! People have dropped us before, but usually after, like, one lesson. We thought it was serious! He said he was thinking about being baptized! I was heartbroken! And the prelude music was much more somber from that point on. 

But at least I didn't make too too many piano mistakes! Which was my second-worst fear!

Comps after church! In the cold!

We went running yesterday morning, which was GREAT because we love endorphins, but there was frost on the cars. It felt very foreboding. We also started listening to Christmas music this week! It's that time of year!

Speaking of foreboding, one of the guys at the botanical gardens was asking us if members of the church vote and I was telling him that "the church encourages its members to be civically engaged" and he was like wow! Did you do good in English? And all of the other sisters were like "yeah she just talks like that, we have no idea what she's saying half the time". But they never told me that! I looked kind of stupid just standing there!

Two different men have now told me that I have a very firm handshake and must be a very hardworking girl. It made my day. 

On Sunday night, I heard the biggest crack of thunder in my life! It shook the house and made my ears ring, and a couple of minutes later I heard sirens. It turns out that lightning struck a house a couple of miles away and went straight through the roof! We went to visit one of our members and he lives four houses up the street from where the lightning hit, so we went to see it and there was a hole in the roof! The lightning blew out the windows and tore up the grass. The craziest thing is that the kid who lives in that room was sleeping at his friend's house that night, so no one was hurt. It was crazy!

Last night, we planned to teach our friend Milad about reading the scriptures, praying, and keeping the Sabbath day holy, but he had read the law of chastity pamphlet so we talked about the law of chastity instead! Good times!

We had a lesson with the family ward sisters and one of the people we're teaching and one of them told him that Abby would talk about the Book of Mormon! It was so funny because she's never even known me as Abby, just as Sister Willis. The guy we were teaching didn't understand what we were all laughing about.

Gardening!

A couple of times each week, we weed this lady named Debbie's garden, and every time we come back, baby weeds are already growing where we weeded! It's very frustrating! Mitosis is very upsetting sometimes, but I guess that's the price you pay for a body that heals itself.

In 1 Corinthians 15:19 (look who's doing her Come, Follow Me!) it says "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." I love this scripture! While our hope in Christ certainly includes finding joy and peace in this life, it also extends to the reality that we will live and be with our families again! Which is such a joyful truth!

I hope you all are having a great week! And a great back-to-school season! Color code some notebooks for me!

Love,
Sister Willis