Happy Easter!!
I was reflecting on Easters past today...and I couldn't help but remember when I brought in a whole bunch of marshmallow Peeps to Willow Street with stickers on them that said, "Hoppy Easter. To my Willow Street Peeps". Love the Willow Street.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY NICOLIOLIO!! I don't think I actually wrote Happy Birthday on the cupcake card. After I send it, I was re-thinking and not too sure. Oops. Implied. Eh, but cupcakes are really a year-round delight. You got the idea. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
This has been a week of miracles. Maybe it's God's way of celebrating Easter with us missionaries. Here are a few of the miracles Sister Douglas and I got to meet:
•We met a guy on the Square a few weeks ago from Texas. When we told him we could call any of his friends and share a free gift with them, he thought of a good friend of his from high school. Well, I haven't really been able to get in touch with her. But hey-she answered this week. I wish she hadn't. She was on her honeymoon. Oops! Sorry! Try back in two weeks.
•We met a group of 4 people from Bejing, China. They were so hilarious. Wonderful. They were taking lots of pictures and laughing a lot. Sister Douglas and I struck up a conversation. They are studying in the U.S. for a while. As you can never assume, I asked them what their faith background was. One of them replied, "Well, we are not religious. But we read the Bible, because we want to know who God is". We told them about the Book of Mormon. Oh my gosh...you should have seen their faces when they saw the Book of Mormon in Chinese!! They were so excited. Wu cracked it open and started reading random sentences. All the others started praising his Chinese annunciation. (Mind you, this is all in Chinese. So Sister Douglas and I are just smiling and nodding. With the occasional chuckle). I loved the opportunity we had to promise them that any question they had about who God and Jesus Christ were could be answered in the Book of Mormon.
•We met a wonderful family from Spain. Parents and their college-aged daughter. The three were visiting. Seriously--loved them. So sweet. Catholic. Really respectful. We walked around with them for about an hour. They felt so much love here at Temple Square and really knew that we cared about them. We invited them to learn more about the Book of Mormon or a living prophet back home, which they respectfully declined. Our last spot was the statue of Jesus Christ. They loved when played the narration in Spanish for them. Warmly, they went on their way. But before they left, they mentioned their other daughter....yep. The one living in Layton, Utah. She is a high school exchange student. Apparently, she has mentioned to her family that there are missionaries in her area in Spain. We left, and I couldn't help but think about how much Heavenly Father loves that family.
•My haircut looks fabulous. And the girl who cut it=AWESOME. Not mormon. But has crushes on all the single returned missionaries in her town. Loved her. She was a mix between Nicole, Tiffany, Lauren and Lisa.
•MISS YOU
•Ddddddddaaaaaainiiiisshh!!! Hoooorray!! Oh my gosh. Seriously, I don't know when the allure of Denmark will dim. I don't think it ever will. Sister Douglas and I were in the South Visitor's Center when two very Danish travelers just walked in. Trina og Laura. Well--when they said Denmark, I said, "Hold op!Er det rigtig?". From Copenhagen too. Of course they knew about Raadhusplasen. Of course they knew about Netto. Of course they knew it was the Queen's birthday this week. :) Loved them. We very naturally walked around Temple Square together. When we got to a painting from Carl Bloch, they smiled.
•Me: Carl Bloch var ikke Mormon.
•Trina og Laura: Nej. Han var ikke. Det er rigtig.
•Me: Jeg, men han at vil at Jesus var special. Han var vos frelser.
•Trina og Laura: Ja. Det er saa rigtig.
•I loved what Laura said---she said that even though she doesn't go to church other than Easter and Christmas usually, she knows how special the Savior is. She told us that even though He doesn't play a big role in her life, she'd knows that no matter what, He's always there. She left Temple Square wanting to learn more. We told her that missionaries, like us, could share more with her and help her explore. She loved that idea. Trina and Laura are traveling for a few weeks, so if the missionaries went to her house in the meantime, she simply asked that they water the garden. :)
China, Spain, Denmark oh my. And I didn't even start with the random Polish people from New York. Or the Taiwanese family from Australian. Temple Square.
My biggest hope is that through it all, people know what and who we represent:
"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." John 13:34-35
Thank you all so much for everything!!!!!!
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!
Sister Amerilla
I was reflecting on Easters past today...and I couldn't help but remember when I brought in a whole bunch of marshmallow Peeps to Willow Street with stickers on them that said, "Hoppy Easter. To my Willow Street Peeps". Love the Willow Street.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY NICOLIOLIO!! I don't think I actually wrote Happy Birthday on the cupcake card. After I send it, I was re-thinking and not too sure. Oops. Implied. Eh, but cupcakes are really a year-round delight. You got the idea. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
This has been a week of miracles. Maybe it's God's way of celebrating Easter with us missionaries. Here are a few of the miracles Sister Douglas and I got to meet:
•We met a guy on the Square a few weeks ago from Texas. When we told him we could call any of his friends and share a free gift with them, he thought of a good friend of his from high school. Well, I haven't really been able to get in touch with her. But hey-she answered this week. I wish she hadn't. She was on her honeymoon. Oops! Sorry! Try back in two weeks.
•We met a group of 4 people from Bejing, China. They were so hilarious. Wonderful. They were taking lots of pictures and laughing a lot. Sister Douglas and I struck up a conversation. They are studying in the U.S. for a while. As you can never assume, I asked them what their faith background was. One of them replied, "Well, we are not religious. But we read the Bible, because we want to know who God is". We told them about the Book of Mormon. Oh my gosh...you should have seen their faces when they saw the Book of Mormon in Chinese!! They were so excited. Wu cracked it open and started reading random sentences. All the others started praising his Chinese annunciation. (Mind you, this is all in Chinese. So Sister Douglas and I are just smiling and nodding. With the occasional chuckle). I loved the opportunity we had to promise them that any question they had about who God and Jesus Christ were could be answered in the Book of Mormon.
•We met a wonderful family from Spain. Parents and their college-aged daughter. The three were visiting. Seriously--loved them. So sweet. Catholic. Really respectful. We walked around with them for about an hour. They felt so much love here at Temple Square and really knew that we cared about them. We invited them to learn more about the Book of Mormon or a living prophet back home, which they respectfully declined. Our last spot was the statue of Jesus Christ. They loved when played the narration in Spanish for them. Warmly, they went on their way. But before they left, they mentioned their other daughter....yep. The one living in Layton, Utah. She is a high school exchange student. Apparently, she has mentioned to her family that there are missionaries in her area in Spain. We left, and I couldn't help but think about how much Heavenly Father loves that family.
•My haircut looks fabulous. And the girl who cut it=AWESOME. Not mormon. But has crushes on all the single returned missionaries in her town. Loved her. She was a mix between Nicole, Tiffany, Lauren and Lisa.
•MISS YOU
•Ddddddddaaaaaainiiiisshh!!! Hoooorray!! Oh my gosh. Seriously, I don't know when the allure of Denmark will dim. I don't think it ever will. Sister Douglas and I were in the South Visitor's Center when two very Danish travelers just walked in. Trina og Laura. Well--when they said Denmark, I said, "Hold op!Er det rigtig?". From Copenhagen too. Of course they knew about Raadhusplasen. Of course they knew about Netto. Of course they knew it was the Queen's birthday this week. :) Loved them. We very naturally walked around Temple Square together. When we got to a painting from Carl Bloch, they smiled.
•Me: Carl Bloch var ikke Mormon.
•Trina og Laura: Nej. Han var ikke. Det er rigtig.
•Me: Jeg, men han at vil at Jesus var special. Han var vos frelser.
•Trina og Laura: Ja. Det er saa rigtig.
•I loved what Laura said---she said that even though she doesn't go to church other than Easter and Christmas usually, she knows how special the Savior is. She told us that even though He doesn't play a big role in her life, she'd knows that no matter what, He's always there. She left Temple Square wanting to learn more. We told her that missionaries, like us, could share more with her and help her explore. She loved that idea. Trina and Laura are traveling for a few weeks, so if the missionaries went to her house in the meantime, she simply asked that they water the garden. :)
China, Spain, Denmark oh my. And I didn't even start with the random Polish people from New York. Or the Taiwanese family from Australian. Temple Square.
My biggest hope is that through it all, people know what and who we represent:
"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." John 13:34-35
Thank you all so much for everything!!!!!!
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!
Sister Amerilla
