A *BIG* change in plans!

So, I'm sure you've all heard the big news by now. Wow, weird, huh? I was pretty bummed about it at first...REALLY bummed, just because I was so excited to fly out with my district of awesome Elders and my amazing companion. Oh, in case for some crazy reason someone DOESN'T know what's going on...here's the story. I had to have X-rays for my visa to Taiwan. But my X-ray kept coming back as having "nodules" or whatever that means. They finally did a CT scan and found that it was just a false alarm. Unfortunately that held up my visa by several weeks, along with another sister heading to Taiwan named Sister Peterson. I cried, of course, because I think out of my whole district I was most excited for our first 2 days in Taiwan. I already know a bit about the culture and stuff, so I REALLY just wanted to see my district and how they liked it and stuff. WAHHH!!! But anyway, the travel office didn't want us rotting in the MTC any longer than we had to, so they got us a temporary reassignment to...

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Salt Lake City South!! Wahoo!! Haha, it's funny because it covers everything between point of the mountain and south Bountiful. So essentially the same mission as most of my family, the Eastdell Ward, the Harmony Park ward, etc. So...ha, I'm wondering the likelihood of serving in any one of those areas. Kind of hoping to go to South Salt Lake. Go back to the ghetto, haha. It would be so awkward to serve in the Sandy Ward! "Yes...I didn't go very far." I'm afraid of running into someone I know and them thinking I didn't really go on a mission. Haha. So weird!

Hey, so this week has been really good! Actually, it was really bad. But it was bad for a good reason, so it was good. :) I have a firm testimony that right before something awesome happens, really cruddy stuff happens. So my companion and I were having a really horrid week just with alot of anxiety and stress and emotions that we couldn't explain. Oh, some other background. I've felt really impressed to get in contact with a good friend from BYU who's from Beijing. He's way cool, but I haven't talked to him in quite a while, so I thought it was interesting that I felt so compelled to contact him and share my testimony with him or something. Then, out of the BLUE, HE wrote ME a birthday card! It was perfect because then I had his address and asked him to come to MTC to be a "pretend" (but not-so-pretend) investigator at the TRC. So I wrote him and my teacher knows him as well so he called him and he finally came this last Saturday! I've been praying for him SO hard for the past 8-9 weeks and thought about him alot. He is an Atheist. Before the lesson, Sister Hintze and I were just not feeling adequate to teach him about God, so we prayed that God would make up for our weaknesses and the lesson would go well. All I will say, is that the Spirit was SO strong! Sister Hintze felt prompted to talk about Joseph Smith and I quoted the 1st vision from memory. One thing I've learned is that whenever that story is quoted word-for-word in whatever language, the Spirit will be there also. And it really was. We asked him how he felt after we said it and he said, "warm, peaceful, warm in my chest, very cozy." WOW!! He recognized the feeling of the Spirit and it was incredible. We committed him to pray about God. It was another proof to me that God lives and loves His children. I'd prayed the night before to know how I know that God lives, and a flood of memories of how God has answered my prayers. From the Charlotte smoking story, to losing my wallet and praying then having the thought "it's in the fridge" come to my mind and actually have my wallet be IN THE FRIDGE! Haha. It's amazing.

Anyway, I love you all. Pray for missionary opportunities. Continue to be worthy of God's blessings. God and Jesus Christ live and love us. Pray for the people of Taiwan, for China to open up to the Gospel, for Salt Lakians to be open to the gospel, and for your non-member friends/neighbors/coworkers/family. God answers our prayers. I have already seen miracles here.

Love you all! I'll have more time to write in the field. Wahhoo!!!

Love Poohface.