Dear family and friends.
This letter is brought to you from the refuge of the Togane church
building as we sit in a horrendous typhoon (see pic for details). We
are throughly soaked but nevertheless happy. So there's that.
A list of a few random, probably unrelated thoughts:
1. I have a new companion from Idaho. Her name is Sister Dopp. She's
majoring in peacemaking at BYU (no, really). So if anything, I will
come out of this transfer trained to be a professional mediator.
2. Yes, it's cliché, but Christmas comes faster and faster every year.
This past Friday we had a zone meeting about our goals for the
Christmas season (it's going to be GRRRREAT!) and something felt a
little strange about having a Christmas tree already decorating the
church (a Christmas tree decorated with pictures of temples and Joseph
Smith--well done, Chiba elders!) But to be even more cliché, here's
just something so MAGICAL about Christmas, and I love the feeling of
focusing everything on the birth of the Savior.
3. Halloween is a bigger deal in Japan than in America, at least
amongst the 18-30 year-old female population. We had a relief society
activity this week making pumpkin tarts out of kabocha (better than
American pumpkin pie, if I dare say), ghosts out of mashed potatoes
and green peas, sandwiches shaped like dragons. Thanks, Pinterest. It
was pretty great. Plus, it was a great opportunity for friends to come
and see that the LDS folk are somewhat normal people (if dragon
sandwiches qualify us as such ... ).
4. Did you watch General Conference this week? I felt like a little
kid on Christmas Eve when I saw the download for the talks pop on my
Gospel Library app. #thejoysofbeingamissionary I took it for granted
before my mission, being able to watch it in English in the comfort of
my sweats and own living room as my father made some delicious French
toast, but I realize now that a chance to hear from a LIVING PROPHET
is a bigger deal than I sometimes realize. (If none of this is making
sense, see lds.org for details (^_^)
5. A quote from an email I received this week: "The future is always
bright with the gospel of Jesus Christ." Whether you accept it or not,
it's always there, and He's always waiting for you.
Have a splendid week, friends.
Love, Sister Margaret Willden
(Monday, October 6)
Pic 1: Pinterest-y food.
Pic 2: Pinterest-y food continued.
Pic 3: A pretty accurate depiction of our apartment.
Pic 4: Sister Dopp and I, having just walked through a typhoon.
Margaret's thank-you postcard written to her grandmother. Margaret is so lucky - she receives care packages often!
Dear fellow friends and family,
Sometimes being a missionary is (mostly) happy, but this is assuming
that you are sometimes okay with looking like a 100% goob. Today, in
the words of my dear companion, I share with you the most awkward
moment of my missionary career thus far to hopefully brighten your
day.
It's an interesting truth that many relationships that missionaries
form can be easily paralleled to dating, even though we spend eighteen
months (or two years) thinking, "Single, single, single."
------
In the words of Sister Sticht:
"The crowning event...the most awkward scenario of my mission,
explodes before my horrified and entertained eyes this week. Quick
back story: we met a Spanish girl on the bike path a few weeks ago.
She never accepted my Facebook request, even after I messaged her.
Then we got a referral from the elders to go to this apartment to find
a Filipina girl but they couldn't remember the apartment number, so we
ended up housing this Canadian guy--the one who was too busy Skyping
with his mum (Okay, we know we aren't cute sister missionaries, thank
you...)
Then. In a culmination of all these events, I found out how it feels
to be the awkward ex-boyfriend who discovers his former girlfriend
with a bunch of new friends...
We ride up one evening to the apartment with the Filipina, but upon
getting close saw a huge group of not-Japanese college kids milling.
Huge meaning maybe 7. Anyway. We stopped short, pulled out our phone
and pretended to be having a really important consultation while we
tried to decide whether just to go knock on the apartment's doors in
front of them, ride past, talk to them, or just flee. Usually trying
to spread the gospel to big groups is very ineffective and awkward.
But I hate being afraid of people. So we decided after a really
lengthy (2 minutes, tops) phone conversation with a fake person, to
just ride past and scope it out. (Classic ex-boyfriend already)
So we ride past slowly, just the ex-boyfriend and his wing man,
and...there she is. The Spanish girl! Me, being the classic
ex-boyfriend, should just ride past, but can't. Something bigger than
me, dumber than me, compels me to pull to a stop, with a huge cheesy
"Hey! N----! How are you? Long time no see!"
Classic ex girlfriend looks awkwardly at her friends, who are just
STARING, and kinda shrugs..."uh..."
Dumb ex-boyfriend is undeterred. "Don't you remember me? We met you on
the bike path!"
My comp, the wing man, is silently staring on in horror. N---- shrugs,
looks shiftily around, pretends to struggle to remember us ("Don't you
remember all the good times?") and then with a really terribly
unconvincing perplexed look, says "oh,..yeah..."
At this point, I realize that these kids are just still staring
silently, watching the exchange in curiosity and disdain. So I
acknowledge them with a hey. As I look from condescending face to
face, I see him. Canada guy. The guy we just housed. For some reason,
it was just the cherry on top. The new boyfriend. With that, I lost
all bravado and said oh so lamely, "Well...I can see you're with your
friends..." (Seriously, when did we break up?!) and wave half
heartedly, and then, just to make it perfect in its awkwardness, I
follow my comp, who had been the silent muscle in the back, as we
wheeled our bikes around, GOING BACK IN THE SAME DIRECTION WE CAME
FROM. IT WAS ALLLL OVER. I muttered some half audible, "Yeah I don't
think we have time to visit that other person," so that maybe they
would think we didn't just ride up to see them, but...it was just
allll over."
------
Perhaps a sort-of worldly interpretation, but all-too painfully accurate.
Let your life be not as awkward as ours.
On the bright side, many happier moments and miracles. One of our
less-actives, deciding not go to a party because "I know if I go I
will drink," in spite of all her friends being not-so-understanding.
Attending a meeting at the mission home with the zone leaders and
President and Sister Budge and eating a meal straight out of Costco
catalog. One of our friends telling us she has begun to pray and feels
it's power. Meeting a Chinese girl who moved to Japan and recently
found God and now wears a cross around her neck "because I believe."
In other news, we had transfer calls this week. Sister Sticht is
leaving me for Niigata, which means I will probably never see her
again. Who will fuel me with witty jokes and sarcasm?However, the
church is still true, and no matter what comes our way, God is in the
details; thus, there is no need to fear. Have a superb week.
Love, Sister Margaret
(Monday, September 29)
Pic 1: My poor Vans, breathing their last breath.
Pic 2: Lunch with two of my dear friends from the ward, along with
some homemade cotton candy.
Hello everyone,
There are some times ... many times, when I look back at the week and
feel like it was all just a really weird dream. Good thing I'm a
really avid journal-writer to remember all these weird, great dreams.
The other day we met a couple of Norwegian girls. We saw them probably
three more times that same week. It was like God really wanted us to
meet them. Or maybe it was just that we happen to pass somewhere in
the general vicinity of their apartment on a regular basis. Either
way, both of them believe in a higher being but don't really like
church, but I don't think I would either if I didn't know what it was
for. Good thing the missionaries live real close by.
We also met a Jamaican lady on the train. Except we didn't know if she
was from Jamaica, and neither Sister Sticht nor I wanted to be
presumptuous. So I started speaking to her in Japanese, she looks up
at me, pulls her earbuds out, and says, "Honeyyyyyy, do you speak
English? Also, why aren't you on a bicycle?" She was kind of sassy but
great. I guess that is what we get for trying to be politically
correct.
Here's the miracle of the week. Sister Sticht met a college-age girl
on the street months ago when she was here on an exchange, but our
friend, who had significant interest in the gospel, fell out of touch
with the missionaries after the exchange. Sister Sticht, thanks to the
miracle of Facebook, gets back in contact and we meet for dinner. She
brings along her friend (which is usually kind of scary to me, because
it's like this weird first date times two). However, all my fears were
appeased when her friend tells us how she went to Utah for three weeks
and went to church with the family there. "Totemo kandoushimashita."
("I was way impressed," she says). I have never seen someone squeal
with so much delight upon receiving the Book of Mormon. WHOO.
My favorite other moment. We also set a baptismal date with one of our
friends. The lesson in itself was pretty wildly anti-climactic, in
spite of it being a huge miracle. We were short on time, but Sister
Sticht and I just sort of looked at each other with those "knowing
missionary eyes," and Sister Sticht says, "Well, when you know this
message is true, would you like to be baptized?" It was pretty much as
calm as asking someone if they want ice or no ice in their glass of
water. She says, "Yeah, sure." And then we looked at each other and
said, "Okay, great. How about the end of October." And then we went to
eikaiwa.
And then we went in the bathroom and squealed with joy.
Missionary work is pretty great.
During one of our little bicycle rides this week, Sister Sticht and I
were discussing how to reconcile the fact that NONE of us will ever be
perfect, yet we are constantly striving for perfection. We are always
talking about those "mysteries of the kingdom" to occupy ourselves,
but here's what we decided:
Perfect love loves imperfection.
God loves you, your imperfections, and so should you. I'm still
working on that, but I just remember that perfect love that the Savior
has for me and suddenly it doesn't seem that hard anymore. (2
Corinthians 12:9)
Have a great week.
Love, Sister Margaret Willden
(Monday, September 22)
Pics: Our glam pics from our day in Shibuya last week. Causing a
ruckus in the biggest intersection in Japan.
Hey friends, family.
I'm sitting on a wooden stool in a 7-Eleven in the middle to Shibuya
and it's a beautiful thing. (Also, 7-Eleven's soundtrack consists of
"Girls just wanna have fun" and "Under the Sea." It really sort of
weird). Sister Sticht and I may have grown up around more cows than
skyscrapers, but I love the city in spite of not actually liking to
talk to people that much. Sister Sticht and I did some venturing into
the city and a bit of retail therapy at H&M and Zara, and I think I
felt more at home than I should have. Not exactly culturally
enriching, but entirely satisfying.
Speaking of feeling at home, this morning we went to the Tokyo temple
for our once-a-transfer trip and it was glorious. I always walk out
feeling like I can do a little better, but not in a down-in-the-dumps
sort of way. More like, we all have a lot of potential and it's pretty
much great when you remember you've got God on your side. Yes.
On Thursday Sister Sticht and left Togane for the day and did a little
blitz-ing in Chosei. We arrived early in the morning and set a goal to
find ten new people interested in learning more. We said a lot of
prayers, and I headed out the door with my old MTC companion, Sister
Cheney. It was strange because throughout the day I didn't feel like a
whole lot was being accomplished, but when we took a look at the day,
we realized we had run into exactly ten people who were interested in
the gospel. WHOA. It was one of those moments where I realized that
Heavenly Father is probably dumping a lot more miracles and blessings
in our laps than we realize, and we're just too dim-witted to pick up
on it. So I'm going to work on that.
Also, on a side note, we have a pretty great zone. We told the zone
leaders we liked avocados and ice cream and they put it in our bike
baskets the next day to give us a little pick-me-up as we headed out
for Chosei. If everyone walked around putting avocados and ice cream
in each other's baskets, it would be a pretty fantastic world.
Also, on another very unrelated side note, Sister Sticht and I like to
compare the mosquito bites on our legs. I think I won this week.
This week I was just feeling very humbled and so grateful for the
incredible faith of people everywhere. Yesterday we went to go visit a
member and prayed with her before we went housing in the area, and as
soon as we say "AMEN" she gasps and says, "Oh my gosh I have some
friends down the street I want you to meet." She proceeded to go put
on a frilly cute blouse and hobble down the street with us for the
next two hours introducing us to the entire neighborhood and telling
them they should listen to us. It was kind of great. She had recently
injured her leg and couldn't really walk but her desire to share
something that was so precious to her overrode the pain. Sister Sticht
and I wanted to cry (oh wait, we do that a lot anyway, ha).
I never know how to end these letters. Due to my lack of creativity
I'll just end it with someone else's words (though I'm not sure who
that someone is). "If today, you are a little better than you were
yesterday, then that's enough."
Wise words. The Atonement is real.
Until next week. Farewell. LOVE YOU ALL. Yes, you too.
Love, Sister Margaret Willden
(Monday, September 15)
Pic 1: Possibly one of the last times I go to the Tokyo Temple before
I head back to America ... Rumors swirling ... I hope I'm wrong.
Pic 2: Old friends. Longer hair, probably wider waistlines, but just
as happy as ever.
Pic 3: Avocados and ice cream. Blessings of the gospel.
Hello dear friends and family.
It was a wild week with lots of great moments.
Like on Tuesday, when we went housing and no one was home in the
entire apartment building except for the very corner door. Sister
Sticht was telling me about her father's doctorly profession when the
door swings open and we find ourselves standing in front of a large,
shirtless Chinese man covered in tattoos with some crazy facial hair.
#noshame We didn't really know what to say, but I guess it didn't
matter because he just glared at us and shut the door.
Good times.
I also learned the meaning of "consecrated time." When Sister Sticht
and I reflected on the past week, we realized we had two days of
"normal missionary work," and the rest was spent running to meetings,
planning meetings, and exchanges. (I'm not asking for pity--I know
there are busier people and I actually enjoy meetings in a strange
sort of way, but it was all such a miracle to us). But somehow, we
found more people interested in learning about the church this week
than we did the entire transfer. People who've wondered about the
purpose of life, who God is where do you find true peace, etc. just
being prominently place inour path. It was like magic. Only way
better.
We were headed home from a meeting at the mission home in Tokyo and
were trying to cram in our weekly planning session on the train
(future note: packed like sardines between thousands of Japanese
businessmen, so inefficient for planning). We were so engrossed in our
weekly planning that we missed our stop and had to backtrack which was
kind of ... really annoying. But we hopped on another train and just
sort of collapsed out of tiredness on two empty seats. This girl
sitting in front of us looks at us kind of weird, so we naturally
start talking to her, and she gives us her phone number and says she
would like to meet again and learn about the gospel. We felt like it
was Heavenly Father saying, "Hey you two silly grumbly sister
missionaries, stop your grumbling and get to work." We felt very
humbled.
Anyways. Hitomi got confirmed in sacrament meeting yesterday. Also,
one of our very dear friends came home from China this week and told
us she taught her parents back home how to pray. Miracles of miracles,
they gave her permission to join the church if she felt like it was
what she needed in her life. Being a missionary is one big, crazy,
beautiful adventure, and every day I marvel at how incredible it is to
be part of a work that is a little bit bigger than all of us.
It was a week of miracles.
But I guess that is every week.
Stay tuned for more next week.
I know you can't wait.
Thanks also for all the emails. I felt so loved when I saw the email
count in my inbox. I suppose this has nothing to do with the fact that
school is back in session, haha. LOVE YOU ALL. And don't forget to
pray.
Love, Sister Margaret Willden
"Though we live in a failing world, have not been sent here to fail."
-Elder Neal A. Maxwell
(Monday, September 8)
Pic 1: Sister Teruya and Murdock spreading the love via bike helmets.
Pic 2: Missionary work at its finest.
Hi dear friends and family.
Happy September First. We welcomed in fall with a nice round of muddy
dodgeball this morning with the zone. We panicked when we arrived and
found 50 old people at the park next door playing croquet together,
but we figured they would get tired soon so we just waited it out and
they left pretty quick. I guess 20 foreigners standing around is kind
of scary. And then I ate some tofu and avocado. It was delicious.
Anyway. That was this morning.
In other news ...
Let's start with yesterday. Oh yeah, there was a baptism! Hitomi is
our longtime friend who overcame all sorts of hurdles to make it, BUT
SHE MADE IT. It was a great baptismal service, and the ward was
already handing her her new visiting teaching and home teaching
assignments before sacrament meeting even started. I was proud of our
barbershop quartet-esque musical number.
Post-baptism, Sister Sticht and I were sitting there feeling TERRIBLE,
like we had been hit by a train we were so tired. One of our lessons
fell through and we didn't know where we should go, so we said a
little prayer to know where to go (and a little energy boost) and got
out the door. We started pedaling to a referral's house, when all of a
sudden we spot one of our Filipina friends on the street talking to
her friend. "HEYYYYY SISTERRRRRS! Come over here and meet my friend!"
Turns out her friend is the sweetest lady in the world (and happens to
think the same about us, haha) and volunteered to come to church
without us hardly even asking. We felt like it was Heavenly Father's
little answer to two grumbling sister missionaries who needed a little
help.
We were also about to give up on another investigator (it had been two
months since anyone had heard from her ... ) when we showed up on her
doorstep one last time. She's home, opens the door, and asks us to
come in and feeds us some vegetable juice and talks to us about
prayer. It was one of those "I feel like a real missionary out of a
movie or something" moments because it just felt too miraculous to be
true. But it is.
Missionary work is great. But it's only great because the gospel is
true. This old man stopped us the other day and says, "Why do you do
this? You talking to people is not going to change anyone's mind."
With all the sweetness we could muster (which I am sometimes lacking),
we invited him to church and asked him to try it out for himself.
Haters gonna hate, as we sometimes say, but it's not any less true.
You Mormon Message junkies (that's me) may be familiar with this, but
if not, click below for a little boost of inspiration. And then watch
it again. It's strangely artistic for being a Mormon Message.
https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2014-07-006-the-hope-of-gods-light?lang=eng
Sometimes the answers are right in front of us. We just don't want /
try / accept it.
I will get off my soapbox and let you think about it now.
Loves, Sister Margaret Willden
(Monday, September 1)
