52 Things I Have Learned
Hello family and friends!
It has been a crazy last few days here in Taiwan. I am grateful for every day I have here in Taiwan. I realize how short my time is with each day. As my year mark on a mission is coming up I can't believe it. It seems so long ago but also so close. I can still remember being dropped off at the MTC and thinking the time will be so slow. However, I feel as if time is faster here on a mission. I love the phrase my trainer has which is " It just gets better and better!" I really do like that because it is so true!! Each day, week, transfer gets better!!!
This past Saturday we were the Temple tour sisters!! That is always one of my favorite days because you see SO SO SO many miracles! It was true for this past Saturday. Originally there were no tours planned but we ended up having 6 tours! A lot of them were member tours.
We decided beforehand that with members we wanted to focus of member/missionary work. We ended up showing them the believe video! They all LOVED LOVED it. In our first tour it was going good but they were crunched on time. We told them we would stop it and then when they needed to go we would stop it. They did not want to stop it. You could see by their faces how into it they were. I always love and excuse to see that movie. It is so good. :)
We went around afterwards and offered to give tours to members. This one teenage girl was willing to give a tour with us. She is so STRONG in the gospel. I was uplifted by her testimony. After watching the believe video we just talked with her. She told us her story. It turns out that she lived in Beijing while growing up. She talked about how for a time they were not able to meet as a ward so every Sunday her mom, brother and her would have they own church. The sad part is they did not have any priesthood holder to give them the sacrament meeting. She talked about how grateful she is for this gospel. She wants to go on a mission but has to wait a couple of years. She will be such a powerful missionary. I loved hearing hear testimony because it lit up my fire for missionary work more.
Sunday we meet with Charise and Yanita! They were busy last Sunday and had to cancel last minute. We has a great lesson with them yesterday. It is really cool to see them grow. It is weird to teach in English all these Chinese words kept coming out. Oops! :) We planned to teach them the 3rd lesson the gospel of Jesus Christ but as we asked our follow up questions we found out that they were having a hard time reading the BOM. They told us that they were confused and were a little hesitant to read it. We backed up and reintroduced the BOM. we then decided to read with them the 1st chapter. They were confused and so we explained some parts to them.
Yanita always has such good questions. She is such a seeker of truth. She asked us can you tell me a chapter in the Bible where it tells me I need to be baptized our member was like it's John something. It was the perfect scripture!! Yanita was like ok.
Charise is quiet but I believe she is soaking in more than she lets on. As we were reading out loud she was mouthing the words along with us.
We were getting ready to leave and Yanita asked us "How do you stay happy in a world like this?" I just wanted to hug her!! We all told her different things but the core thread was the gospel. I told her the gospel but I also included happiness is a choice. I expressed to her how every day I can decide whether or not I am happy. Choosing happiness is the best decision though!
Sister Jasperson is awesome! One thing I am really learning to appreciate about her is her strength in planning. I have never been that good of a planner and it is something I have been trying to be better at on a mission. She is a really good planner. I have really been learning to be better at it with her by my side. Another thing I love is she always is setting goals. Every day she is asking me, “What do you think we could be doing better? It has really made me reflect and see bigger changes in myself and the way I do missionary work. I love this quality because it helps me get out of self-pity. Instead just expressing my feelings I am forced to think of a plan of action to make it better. One night I was really discouraged about certain things. After I was done talking to her she looked at me and said, “What goals do you think you can set to overcome this challenge? It was the first time a companion of mine has ever had that reaction. I was a little caught off guard but I thought and then was like, “I want to do these 2 things better.” I want to take this attribute and use it the rest of my life!
I wanted this letter to be special because it is my 52nd letter and so I decided to write 52 things I have learned:
1. Always take your shoes off before entering a home
2. Always eat all the food on your plate
3. Always carry a water bottle with you
4. Always look both ways before crossing the road
5. Don't sit down until the host tells you where to sit
6. Don't compliment something too much or else they might give it to you
7. The best time to nap is from 1-3 pm
8. Bicycling is a really fun way to travel
9. My MTC teachers were the best!
10. Each area is AMAZING
11. Using the subways is fun
12. I love long hair!! (My goal is not to cut my hair until I get home. I have trimmed it for health sake.)
13. Taiwanese women are gorgeous!
14. Chinese New year you will just have to stuff your waist
15. TONES are very important
16. They might just stare if you have a foreigner companion
17. Bread stores!! That is all that needs to be said
18. I still love my mom's beef noodle soup (niu rou mian)
19. Cockroaches FLY!!!
20. Learn the word adopted
21. Have the beauty of America but customs of Taiwan ( I am still trying to figure out what exactly that means)
22. NEVER EVER BE LATE
23. I love the mornings! My inner morning person is coming out!
24. Wear a smile( one in your heart)
25. CHOOSE to be happy
26. Don't forget to change the water filter
27. just because the light is green does not mean that you can go
28. I am a chopstick PRO!!
29. Look on the bright side of things
30. God has called you to be you not anyone else
31. Laughter can heal the soul. Laugh even when it feels that nothing is funny. It lightens the mood and helps you think clearer to find a solution
32. Stroke order matters
33. I am lucky!
34. God really does exist (How did I forget this story! Last Thursday there was an earthquake. We actually were in the middle of a lesson. We were singing “A Child's Prayer” in English. We were singing the line “Heavenly Father are you really there?” and then BAM the earthquake starts.)
35. When you fall pick yourself back up again
36. Take a minute to enjoy the view
37. It's OK to tell them you do not understand because you are not a native
38. Look people in the eyes
39. Act confident
40. Tell your companion you love them every day
41. Don't act shy in church
42. Take a minute to see how far you've come but also look ahead to the future and make plans to improve.
43. Low ponytails are the best way to go
44. The BOM is true
45. Joseph Smith really is a prophet of God. All the people that followed him are all called of God.
46. God loves all his children
47. Look at people and imagine all the potential they have
48. Don't let your fears get the best of you
49. With God on your side all things are possible
50. I am in Taiwan!! More importantly I am a missionary in the Taiwan, Taipei Mission!!!
51. I have a great family
52. I get to share the Gospel every day
I love you all more than words can describe!
Hurrah for Israel!!
Sister Latimer
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