Missions are Great

August 9, 2015

Mom and Dad! You are sooo cute!!! I thought about you 2 a lot this week. Maybe I’m a bit partial, but I’m pretty sure my mom and dad are the best parents in the world! And I’m so proud of you! You spent your anniversary looking at cars?? Mom, you must really love dad ;) haha. He better have taken you out to a REALLY nice dinner ;) And Dad,

Wow, you really are one lucky duck! Mom was a good sport and went to all those car shows for you!! She must really love you :) Or maybe its making up for all the times she has gone out to eat these past 30 years ;) haha. You two are just the best parents ever! I thought about you two a lot this last week! I don’t know if its because I’m getting trunky or what but I’ve been thinking about marriage a lot these last few weeks. And I can honestly say that I hope my marriage is as good and stable as yours has been. You 2 have been great examples :) 

Wow, our family has really been unlucky with car accidents huh?? I am soooo grateful that you have all been ok! The Lord really does answer prayers!!! Thanks for your insights on the plan of salvation. It truly is a wonderful plan! Probably one of my favorite things about missionary work is teaching this lesson. Because in Mongolia there is nothing to answer these questions. There is no real religion that gives any sort of peace for the next life. People don’t know about life after death. Whenever I ask my investigators, they tell me that they just try not to think about it. And then, we teach them this beautiful plan of happiness and they finally find peace. It’s a beautiful experience each time I teach it :) 

I had a really amazing experience this week! So, I don’t know if I’ve ever said anything to you before, but I was pretty scared to come back to Darkhan because a former companion was here. I was with her for only 6 weeks before, but it was the hardest, saddest, coldest 6 weeks of my life. And then she went to the countryside and I just felt like I’d never see her again. And I was ok with that. I used to think "How could President Benson send me back here with her?!" And now, I’ve spent 6 weeks with her again. I see her on a pretty regular basis and slowly, we have really become friends. I have seen how much she's grown and changed these past 6 months. And I have grown and changed also. And now she’s going home this week. Yesterday, we had a surprise going away party for her. I made yummy baked chicken and mashed potatoes and salad. And as we ate together, she was sharing her experiences and the things she learned while on her mission. And she told me how sorry she was for the time we had together. She started crying and told me how much she had learned from me and how I will be her forever friend. And I realized in that moment why I was supposed to come back. It was for us. Because I truly love her! I want the best for her and am sooo grateful for the time I had with her because I really did learn so much! And then I realized how grateful I am to be here on a mission. And now that my mission is coming to a close, I can see all the little blessings in disguise. Because missions are hard. And you want to go home a lot. And you are soooo tired and stressed. But you learn so much. And you have so much fun! And you laugh so hard. And you meet people that change your life forever and you change peoples lives forever. I love these people. All of them. It’s not hard anymore. I just want to do all I can to help them. I want to give them everything I have just so they can be happy. Yesterday, we had 7 investigators come to church! 7!!! and we had inactive members who haven’t come in years come to church. This last week, we met with this lady who stopped coming to church because she was offended. She is pretty poor and her son, who is an active member in the church and planning on going on a mission, is their only source of income. This last week she told me, "I will NEVER come back to church" But even as she said it, I saw the pain and hurt in her eyes and I knew that there was something in her. That she still had faith. Mom, I’ve never prayed so hard for that lady and her family. And guess what, they ALL came to church this week!!! Ahhh, there is just nothing better than this work mom! I've never been so happy and tired and exhausted in my life :) 

MIssions are the best!!! Thank you for raising me in a way where I could be worthy to go on a mission :) Please share this email with the rest of the fam :) But you can take out names if you want :) haha. I love you! Have a safe trip home!! 

xoxoxoxoxox 

Sister Royal 

Pictures:

1.) Yup... That’s Russia! It was a beautiful spot! My mission is the best :) 

2.) We went to a countryside spot up by Russia for our last zone conference! It was so fun :) This is Sister A and a member from my ward named D. I love these people :) 

3.) Missionary splits with the STL’s! I got to be with Sister A again! It was so fun :)