Strange Transfer 9: Week 6

this transfer has gone by ridiculously fast. i really don't know where it has all gone. looking back i can see that a lot has happened and that i've learned loads. i feel really strange about it. i feel like some of the lessons i'm learning are really solidified in my mind. i feel like i'm making some of the same mistakes over and over.

as far as investigators go, things have been strange lately. we've gone through so many investigators this move. we have some good ones, but a lot that we can't seem to get our hands on and others that we can't seem to get progressing. i'm at a loss as to what to do. we'll get move calls friday or saturday. i would love to stay here in jiayi. i feel obligated to repair the places that are lacking. but i fear that my inadequacies are the reason that our teaching pool appears to be a small, murky pond and the third ward relief society president still won't tell us anything about the sisters we should be helping.  the biggest news to report about investigators are as follows (from happiest to saddest)-
-qianrong was baptized on sunday and will be confirmed this sunday. her understanding amazes me, and the changes her mom has made recently amaze me even more. last week we went to their house. it felt different inside, it was cleaner and happier and brighter. the spirit is there. i love that. i want my home, whether it is the caseda in vegas, the basement on federal heights or my dream home in seattle, to be filled with the spirit of the lord and a devotion to serve him.
-wang sirong, kitty (i still laugh every time i see/say her name.)- she's good! she came to our fireside on saturday. afterwards she said that she loved every part, but that she has a lot of questions. she also told us that she's worried about her parents. they still don't know that she's meeting with us to talk about the gospel. her mom is under the impression that each time she brings sirong to the church it is for english help (at least she likes us because she thinks we're offering free tutoring!). this week we're going to have to work on overcoming this problem.
-yu peizhen seems to be the apostasy in action. there are simple principles that she still doesn't grasp. she reads the book of mormon, but explains it with her own thoughts. she's working so that she can move out of her boyfriend's apartment, but works on sundays. we're going to try a new approach, teaching principle by principle purely from the book of mormon. she needs a testimony of the restoration and of the savior.
-li luo yiling was doing really well. she has so much faith!  but she doesn't know how to face her husband. during interviews president hsu told us to go to her house (uninvited) and meet her husband. we planned to do it this thursday. yesterday our lesson with yiling went well and we better understand their home situation. she said that this week she will write a letter to her husband and committed to getting a priesthood blessing on thursday. last night she called our house and said that she feels like she's not doing her part to the extent that she should be and that she's going to work on building up her courage. until then she doesn't think she should meet with us. my heart broke. like for real, it still hurts. she's so great. she has faith. she uses the gospel. i don't understand why things aren't working out. i'm baffled. i'm praying for understanding. why is jiayi falling apart these days?

on thursday this week i received a dreaded phone call... i have my departure date. june 26. i told the office that i'd be flying into mccarran. if that needs to be different let me know.
friday we had president's interviews. i cannot tell you how much i love the hsus. i love their love. this move i had such a good conversation with sister hsu while my companion was being interviewed. it didn't have much to do with the work, but i felt close to her for the first time ever. president was as hilarious and random as ever. i'm sure his advise will make sense somewhere down the road. for now i'm still trying to figure it out. ha.
saturday night we had a big fireside, planned by us missionaries. the turnout was good, a lot better than we expected, and many non-members came. we have an amazing new member in third ward. he's a college student and invited all of his friends to come. they did! the church was full of non-member men, the elders were in heaven! at one point brother he, our ward mission correlator in first, asked for 18 copies of the book of mormon because 18 of the guys that came wanted it! the elders have started teaching some of them, and we received some referrals ourselves! member referrals are gold to us. give the missionaries in your neighborhood referrals!

this week my thoughts keep falling back on love, and how essential it is to do this work. (my companion laughed at me this morning because earlier this move my study always seemed to fall back to judgement and now it's all about love.) i love taiwan. i love jiayi. i hope i love them enough. this morning i read president hickley's talk "the need for greater kindness". at one point he mentions that miracles are brought to pass by love, respect and kindness. i feel like my testimony is living proof of that. this week i'm going to focus on using kindness to bring miracles to this area!

oh no! time is up, i haven't talked about ether 6! next week. i promise.
remember next week i'll email on monday!!
oh really quick... good news... my bike is black, gold and flashy! and i haven't been bitten by a mosquito in 2 weeks! i owe it to drinking a glass of fruit vinegar each day for the last month!

i love you all. you are spectacular and you are my family. i am so blessed.

love,
sister jade