The Worth of Seoul: Week 13

My dearest loved ones,

Holy cow. I know I say this in every stinking letter home.. but I seriously can't fathom time. It makes zero sense. Sometimes I feel like I've been in korea my whole life and its barely been a month, and other times I feel like I just barely left on my mission like a week ago.. and its been 3 months. Its just nuts. We do so much every day.. the weeks just fly by! I feel like it was just p-day yesterday! Oh goly. I will never understand time. ANYWAYS, technically its not even p-day today, but we still email. tomorrow is TEMPLE DAY!!! I'm so excited. We only get to go the temple one time in each transfer (even though I live 2 seconds away from it dang it). So I'm super stoked. It will be an experience to go through a Korean session haha.. Hopefully the last time I go to the temple for my last transfer, I will be able to understand it :)

Well, I'd be lying if I didn't say this week was a hard one. And I'd also be lying if I said it wasn't amazing! Holy cow. Long but GREAT week! So many wonderful things happened. Tuesday was such a fun day, Sis. Lawrence had a leadership training meeting, so I got to go on splits with Sis. Haynie!! One of my mtc besties (pics to come). It was great. I was so nervous because she came to Shinchon.. so I had to be the smart one who got us around places. and guess what we actually survived! I'm starting to actually know my way around this crazy place! I'm still trying to figure out the subway system.. I don't know if that will ever happen haha. But yeah it was way fun! That night (when sis. lawrence came back) we had our plan of salvation lesson with Jong Tai Young at the temple. We taught her in the little waiting room area. It could not have gone any better. She is honestly an angel. She hasn't had the gospel in her life simple because she "knew not where to find it". One of those people. She is so ready for baptism. We even taught her the word of wisdom, and committed her to live it! She drinks tea and coffee, and sometimes alcohol socially with friends, but she willingly wanted to give it all up. She is amazing. Yesterday she came to church, right before sacrament started but she made it thank goodness! After church we had a ward lunch thing, and she was off on her own, making a bunch of new friends in the ward already.. things could not be any better with her! I am so blessed to have an investigator like her.. in my first transfer! She's setting the bar pretty high haha.. they better all be like this.. ;) We have another lesson with her tonight about more commandments at a member's house! I can't wait!

Wednesday was zone conference, which was dang awesome. I seriously love all the missionaries here in Korea! And the craziest thing, like 90 percent of them go to byu haha. Crazy right? so we're gonna all be hanging out speaking korean together when we're home. Its great. Most of all I love President and Sister Christensen. They are so amazing. So caring, pure and hard working. They love each of us here and you can see that in all they do. I'm so grateful for them. As a zone, we have a goal to hand out 1,500 copies of the Book of Mormon this month.. We did the math and that's about 100 per companionship. a minimum of 4-5 books a day. How nuts is that haha? But we're all trying our best to accomplish that goal! At first I was like oh man there is NO way.. but since then I've been trying to have the mindset of trying to give a book of mormon to every person I talk to. It is so much better than just a pass along card because you are giving them solid truth and evidence to know for themselves! Even though most people don't accept it, when you find someone who will, it is the most amazing feeling. I love the book of mormon, and I'm growing to love it more and more.. each time I give away a book of mormon, my testimony grows. I love being a missionary :) I love having this one purpose.

Kim dong hee was confirmed yesterday :) It was so wonderful and the spirit was so strong. We started meeting with her sister, Kim Tae Hee, this week as well.. She is amazing and has a desire to be baptized, but she just isn't really sure yet. we haven't set a date, but she wants to be baptized before Sis. Lawrence leaves on feb. 6th!! So lets pray that a miracle happens and she gets baptized soon!! I think she will as she learns more about the gospel. Yesterday we had a lesson with her after church. It was actually a huge lesson.. Kim dong hee came, 3 members were present and our other investigator Shin song hee was there haha. It was like a whole class of people but it was such an amazing experience. At the end I bore my testimony, and I talked about how much I love my family and how hard it is to be away from them, but God has given me strength! I was crying.. and then everyone started crying haha. and Kim tae hee was like "Okay okay I'll be baptized! stop crying!" hahahaha it was hilarious. But so spiritual. I love these people so much. When times get hard I just think about my amazing investigators and how sad I would be if I never came here and met them. There are some days when you would rather be deathly ill than get out of bed haha (like literally..) but when I think of these people I have the strength to get going. I feel that same strength thinking of all the love and support I have from home. :) I am truly so so blessed.

I love you with all my heart. Hope this week brings happiness for all of you! Peace out!

Holmes 자매

This is a pic from the plane ride over, right before we landed in Korea! (sis. Jacobson and Haynie) I love them so much.

Not a very good pic haha but whateva. We went to dinner with one of our less active/recent converts, Ca Jin Young. She is hilarious, I love her so much. She's going to BYU in the fall to study english! Anyways, this food, I don't remember what it is called...this chicken noodle stir fry stuff...HOTTEST THING I'VE EVER EATEN. I literally though there were fireworks going off inside of me. I thought I was gonna die. After I was talking to Sis. Lawrence about it and she's like, "umm that is not even hot...you're gonna die." Well shoot.