"like an awkward dancer"

This week we found an old Church video from the 80's in the ward library, and so we watched it in Chinese for Language study (actually very effective practice) and then kept watching it in English during dinner. The awesome part is that the video was 20% interview by disembodied voice, and 80% montage with 80's music. And oh the music!! At one point, the lyrics were literally "maybe we just might find the answers, that will carry me like an awkward dancer" we laughed SOOOO HARD!!!!!! 

This week my trainee sister Leung got her visa, and so she's in the MTC now.Which means that I'm in a trio with the other sisters in my apartment. I love being in a trio, but I also really miss Sister Leung.

Since we are in a trio covering 2 areas, we are VERY busy. I went to the Po Fu Lam ward, and they are SOO SWEET!! I copied some characters from the Book of Mormon on the board for ward FHE and they were all so excited. soo cute!!

We had a "Throwback" activity on Saturday that was super fun. It was basically just the adults teaching the kids old games, and songs, and sharing old candy and stuff. So much fun!! 

Found this book (Utah on my mind) and it was a little too true. 

This week was a good week. I feel like I say that every week, but it really was! ESPECIALLY because we got to go to the temple!! For a little while I've been wondering if I've been progressing personally, and it's been a little bit frustrating. But in the temple, I just got this little feeling of "No. You're doing good. You are right where I need you to be. Good job" It honestly wasn't a super big experience, but it was enough. I am always being reminded of the fact that no matter how frustrated I get with myself, my Heavenly Father and Savior are never frustrated. They have the vision that I don't, that there are no "points of no return", no "make it or break it" moments, and that every stumbling block can be turned into a stepping stone. And I think that's something that we could all use a reminder of. 

--

Love

Sister Hugo

Yiu Ji Muih

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JOY!!

This week was Easter. In Chinese, Easter is "Resurrection Day". My native companion told me that Hong Kong people don't really say happy Easter, but I decided I wanted to anyway. One of our favorite members heard me and thought it was the funniest thing in the world. "Happy resurrection!? Have you resurrected yet?!" LOL I love Brother Jyu. 

--WARNING I MAY HAVE ALREADY SHARED THE FOLLOWING STORY--

One time I was chatting with him, and he used a word I didn't know. I asked him to explain it and he said "it's like serving someone. It's like, you just listen to them, and you are completely obedient, and you really admire them....." 

"OH! Are missionaries like Jesus's [enter mysterious chinese word here]?"

HYSTERICAL LAUGHTER from everyone within sound range

so I'm taking that it doesn't mean that?

Nope. It means "henchmen", mostly used when talking about gangs. I basically said that missionaries are Jesus' "boys".

Eh, as long as a get a cool leather jacket.

Sister Leung, my native trainee, got her visa last week. Which means she's leaving for the MTC this week. MY BAAABY!! It's really bittersweet. I'm 100% sure that I'm more emotional about it than she is. So once she's gone, I'll be a in a trio with the other 2 sisters in the apartment, and we'll cover both areas. WE WILL BE SO BUSY IT WILL SO MUCH FUN!! It'll just last for 2 weeks though, just till transfers. 

This week I was filling in my old notes, and I ran across this entry in the Guide to the Scriptures "Joy is a condition of great happiness coming from righteous living. The purpose of mortal life is for all people to have joy. A full joy will come only through Jesus Christ"  I love that, for SOO many reasons. There are so many words for happiness. Happy, pleasure, content, at peace, and joy (to name just a few). I love all of the them, but I've been thinking a lot about Joy lately. Joy is more of a loud smiley kind of happy. Peace is AMAZING, and contentment can be so filling, but sometimes I just need some JOY! You know? Too often I meet people who think that following christ is just hard, that the whole purpose of it is to be hard, no more. Or that maybe being Christian brings peace, but "that's just not my thing. too quiet. too boring." 

Well. Imma say no. The gospel is JOY!! How great is that!! And how perfect for Easter. Yes. Jesus lives! And because He lives, so will we!! And because of Him, we can ALL, ALWAYS have a fresh start!!

That's (one) of the reasons I LOVE being a missionary. I have a JOYFUL message to share. And there are so any people who need that. 

Anyway, that was a little long winded, but I'm just a little too excited for any real logic. WOOOOO!!!!!

See y'all next week :)

--

Love

Sister Hugo

Yiu Ji Muih

Your favorite

Come on. Get up. We've got work to do.

SO. This is gonna be a story email. 3 if I have time, but at least 2. 

FLASHBACK!

I've been in Hong Kong for less than 3 months. And we are doing 5-8 hours of street finding a day. In Chinese. In weather so hot It felt like it should be against the law to be outside (that's dramatic, but accurate to the way I felt). And it was HARD! REALLY HARD! After one particular day, we came home for dinner, I put water in the microwave for ramen, and then went to the office for a good heart to heart with Heavenly Father. Prayed for probably 45 minutes just explaining that I was really tired, and a bit angry, and not sure of a lot of things. After a long time, I was finally ready to listen to what he had to said. I took a deep breath and then had to let it out all of a sudden. It was like I caught up in a whirlpool of love. One of the best feelings of my life. After soaking in that feeling for about 5 minutes, I got up and scarfed down my ramen, and finished off the day on cloud nine. 

The next day we had another huge chunk of finding time. Again, I had a really long prayers and again the same feeling of love overwhelmed me. 

The third day, finding was still pretty hard. Not as killer, but still really hard.I thought "That tornado of love would be really awesome right now. I nice pick me up. Isn't it nice that Heavenly Loves me so much". So I went to go pray. But this time there were no swirling overwhelming comforts. It kinds felt like a nice little pat on the head. Like he was saying "Yeah. That is hard, huh." I thought "where is the comfort that you promised! Come on!! I need it!! This is hard!!" and I told Heavenly Father that that was how I felt. He listened to me, and as I prayed I got more and more down-trodden. Would I have to go my whole mission without those feelings? I couldn't do it! I needed it! After I was done, all I got was "Daughter. Come on. Get up. We've got work to do." And that was it.

 When I started my mission, I was so excited to have all these "mission stories". The kind that I would use over and over again in my sacrament meeting talks for the rest of my life. I was so excited for those stories of "-- and after that my whole mission changed!!"  But  all of those cool moments like that, I never realized till they were long past. But this was one of them. Just the idea that "Yes. I love you. Let's take a break..................Okay that was long enough. Come on. Your strong. I'm right here with you. Get up. We've got work to do" It was a good experience to draw on this week. Nothing really wrong happened. Just one of those hard-for-no-reason days. And as I came to God at the end of the day, just telling him that "Ya know, today was HARD!" The same thing happened. He comforted me. And then after letting me breathe for a sec he said "Okay. Come on. Get up. We've got work to do" 

Something that I've learned in my mission is how to REALLY use the grace of God every day. And this is basically it. He's not gonna spare me the storms, in fact, sometimes he's gonna send them my way. And in one of the seeming paradoxes of the gospel, it's BECAUSE He loves me! Isn't that great! I gotta go now, but I love y'all. So does God.

Life is good :)

--

Love

Sister Hugo

Yiu Ji Muih

Your favorite