Anne 9-14-13

OHMYGASH. You shouldn't have. No I'm serious. RASBERRY HONEYBUTTER!?!? I mean. When I opened up that package and say that rolls I was like, "Heck ya!" and I didn't realize til later that their was a little surprise at the bottom of my package. When we were in our room later that night I said, "WAIT, THERE IS MORE." All of the sisters in my district cautiously peered into the package and I scooped the holy tubberware out of the package and cracked it open. We literally swooned. People come from all around to see mom's packages.



Ashley!....I think it was you that put it together......YOU DID BOMB ON THE SCRAPBOOK. I love it so much! All of my favorite people are in it! Thank you so much! You rock. Why do my siblings rock so much? I don't know, but I'm not going to question it any further.


Okay! Well I'm going to Tokyo kids. 2 districts are all flying together all the way to Tokyo! We are all nervous, anxious, excited, terrified, and ridiculously happy to be going to japan!! I will probably wake up at 3 o clock monday morning to make sure everything is peachy and that I can get to the travel office early. Don't you worry mama. I'm Jana's daughter and everything will work out. To answer your questions...Chinese people and Japanese people are very different. Japanese people don't have as squinty as chinese and korean. They have almond shaped eyes. They are alot like mine and Emily's shaped. Ashley has rounder shaped eyes. So just look at emmy's eyes and make her squint a tiny bit and BOOM. YA GOT A JAPANESE IN THE FAMILY. But the way the Japanese look does depend on where in japan they live. If you go to southern japan they have rounder faces and squinter eyes. More like chinese.


Dah!! I'm dying to open up the letters from everyone. I'm tempted. So tempted. Oh and thank you Tye Tye for taking care of my mom and dad! You are the best! I hope you have fun living next to the firehouse in kaysville. It's gunna be fun! Tell Keri that I love her and hope that her surgery goes or went well! Give McCally a squeeze from me. She is so OOOOLLLLLLDDDD.


This week was one heck of a whirlwind. But wicked awesome!


PAUSE! Jordan I just saw an Elder walk by with a Haiti t-shirt on and I freaked out and yelled, "THEY REOPENED HAITI!?!" I might of grabbed him by the neck. Who knows. But he whimpered, "No I'm just speaking Haitian." I said, "No. No. It's Creole!" (Iknowispeltthatwrong)


Anyway. This week has been really good! I pulled out all of my fall clothes cuz it is chilly outside! Man! Missionary work is booming! I am so grateful that I can be apart of this wonderful work! We had a very important Japanese man come to the MTC on thursday. I have no idea who he is but he is important. haha. But he spoke to us about his conversion story. I want to give you a little summary of it. When he was a young man the missionaries came to him and began teaching him the gospel he wanted to to be baptized so badly! He went to his parents and asked them if he could be baptized, his father was so upset that he went to the kitchen and got a knife and kinda threatened him to not join the church, they were big time buddhists. I don't think that his dad would of hurt him but he was making a very CLEAR point. Anyway, his dad told him to go to the Buddhist monk so that the monk could convince him not to get baptized. So he went to the buddhist monk and bore his testimony of the gospel and how important it was to him to join this church. The buddhist monk said this, "I would encourage you to research all the religions of the world and then join the one that you think is true." He said, "But I know without a doubt that this church is true." The buddhist priest then said, "If you have a sure witness, then go ahead and be baptized!" YES. The buddhist monks are helping us out!! WOOOOOO! He did eventually get baptized and his brother got baptized years later. I just thought that it was way cool how God works. God helped him prepare for baptism through a buddhist monk.


Know I want to emphasize to you the importance of member missionary work. I know they had the big broadcast about member missionary work but I just want to let you all know how happy I am that you are helping the work move forward. But I would highly suggest you go help the missionaries out. The missionaries only usually get 18 year olds and 80 year olds helping them with their lessons. But there are so many people out there in the world that desperately need the gospel that you can befriend them and help them move closer to the light of Christ. Their are women out there who are struggling with motherhood and with their families that you women could go bear witness of the fact that this gospel blesses families and blesses you as mothers. Their are men out there who are having a hard time making a living or are struggling with temptations that you men can help them see how the grace of Christ makes things easier. There are teenage boys and girls how are waiting for someone to reach out them. I encourage you to go with the missionaries to teach someone who you know or someone that you can relate to, to help them see the light of Christ. People have a hard time seeing us missionaries as normal and that they can't really relate to us. MEMBERS ARE SO IMPORTANT. Please help the missionaries. Please please. I know I'm not out in the field yet, but I have learned how important it really is to have members present in lessons this last week. Just take my word for it. Thank you all for your examples to me.


Yesterday we had in-field orientation. 9 hours guys. Wooof. But it was so good! One of the teachers was from France. I got really excited to use my French. You know I am. He asked if anyone spoke French in the room and I raised my hand. And he said, "Give it to me sista!"


"BONJOUR, JE MAPPLE SOEUR STAPLES. JE PARLE FRANCAISE. JE N'AIME PAS ETUDIE. MERCI BEAUCOUP! "


Maha. Tanner. I'm sorry if I shamed the family with my french. But I just can't help it. Anywayyyyy. We practiced street contacting. I was put with an Elder who was terribly awkward. Haha.
He said, "Sister, I'm going to be completely honest with you. We don't have any sisters in my district and I haven't talked to a girl in 6 weeks. I'm terrified right now. "
Me, "Elder. I'm a missionary. CALM DOWN."
Elder: "I think I'm gunna cry."
Me: "Elder, keep yourself together now, we don't want that."


Oh boy. But I am so gratefully for all the things I learned in in-filed orientation. It was a great experiences. I learned that I shouldn't look at my mission as a hard mission to get baptisms and that I won't have a lot of people to teach. Look up about President Monson when he was mission president of canada and the story of the area of kingston, canada. It's really good!!


Read Moroni 7:26-29. Miracles have never ceased. God is has the power here.


I love you all!!!! I will talk to ya when I am in tokyo!! DAAAAHHHH!!!


Love, Staples Shimai!