Week 32

Dear Minasan (everyone),

Happy January!  I hear rumors of a bitter cold in the U.S. of A. so I'm sorry for you all.  It's cold here too but I think I probably have nothing to complain about.  

It's been a miracle filled week.  Some of the notable:

OLD HIPSTER JAPANESE DOCTOR-TURNED NOVELIST: Sister Legge and I have been on a bit of a housing blitz this week, which is always fun because you find some people who might not ordinarily be walking around in public.  Dr. Sakai is a novelist who wanted to pay us for the Book of Mormon we wanted to give him and gave us one of his books, a novel about psychopaths in America with a creepy Surrealist painting of a screaming child on the cover.  Saving that read for when I get home.  Gave him so homework on faith (Alma 32) and referred him to the elders.  He looked straight out of an Urban Outfitters catalogue except he was 60 years old and was Japanese. 

COLD-CALLING ALL OF CHIBA: I temporarily put aside my dislike for the telephone and began calling random former investigators from 10 years ago (which always yields some interesting results), and was pleasantly surprised to find a lady who was recently feeling like she should be reading the scriptures more (shouldn't we all?) and said she listens to the Primary Children's CD that the sisters gave her years ago quite often.  We set up a lesson, and she said her parents are Christian and would love to hear our message too.  She was the sweetest lady.  3 investigators in one phone call, KISEKI.

MTC TEACHER'S FACE STILL BRINGING INVESTIGATORS 5 YEARS LATER: Back story: my MTC teacher, who served in Tokyo several years ago, is the face of the eikaiwa chirashi.  Present story: On Wednesday, we had the cutest lady walk in and give us a huge hug, and say "Hi I got your eikaiwa chirashi five years ago from the man on the flyer, and found it a month ago and decided to come to eikaiwa.  Isn't that the best Christmas present?"  I couldn't have said it any better.  She's so excited to learn English AND the gospel.  We have high hopes! It's so inspiring seeing how the effects of missionary efforts extend further than we might ever know.

Transfer calls are next week, so stay tuned.  I will probably be leaving Chiba, but I thought that last transfer too so I should probably just stop trying to guess.  This whole age-change thing has made transfers completely unpredictable. 

Today we went to the temple, and I was just thinking.  The temple is the tiniest glimpse of what heaven will be like.  And considering how wonderful the temple is, I'm pretty darn excited for what heaven will be like.  It was just a very happy thought I had today.  If there's anything that I've learned, it's that GOD LIVES and LOVES YOU.  Even when investigators drop, we don't teach any lessons that day, the apartment is disaster, my hair is a disaster, I face plant while riding my bike, the gospel is still
true and real, and He's there every bit of the way.

Okay.  I'm done dumping my thoughts now.  I love you all.

Love, Sister Margaret Willden

  

PS. I got some emails about my current address (which is the mission home's address), so here it is:

Sister Margaret Willden

Japan Tokyo Mission

4-25-12 Nishi-ochiai

Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo-to

161-0031 

JAPAN

(Monday, January 13, 2014)

Pic 1: If Monet came to Tokyo, this is probably something he would paint.

Pic 2: Obligatory temple pic 4 of 12

Pic 3: Sister Nagamine--she's going home next week! Bawl my eyes out.