conference=love

You know the highlight of this past week had to be general conference! What could be better than hearing from our sweet prophet and the apostles?! NOTHING, that's the answer.

It was sooo good. I had quite a few favorites...but I think the one that topped them all was Carl B. Cook's talk. I really appreciated and LOVED the story about him in the elevator and President Monson saying, "It's better to look up!" Life can be really discouraging. REALLY! This week has been like that for me.

On Tuesday, my throat started hurting a bit and then I got this really bad headache. I lay down at sites while my companions were working and rested. Wednesday morning, my throat hurt SO badly I could barely talk. It was terrible!! My comps looked in my throat and saw streaks which apparently might be strep. So, Dr. Mikesell called me in an antibiotic and Sister Edman took me and Sister Decker to pick it up while Sister Esser went into our area with Sister Tokunaga. CRAZY. Then Thursday, my throat didn't hurt as badly but I was really congested and just had junk in my sinuses and was pretty tired.

 

 

I started to go to sites and then when I called Sister Sorensen to let her know that I hadn't kept the morning schedule, she was like "DO NOT GO THERE! You'll get everyone else sick and you haven't been on that antibiotic for 24 hours yet!" So...Sister Decker & Sister Esser went to sites and I was passed off from companionship to companionship to be babysat. The Painesville sisters "babysat" me first, then the Willowick sisters, and then the Solon sisters. When I say babysat, I mean they just were in the house so that I wasn't by myself. They were weekly planning and doing studies and stuff like that.

Anywho, I was really hoping that Friday we'd all be able to go back into our area. FALSE. I still felt really crappy. So, Sister Edman was my babysitter that day. I tried to sleep on a bed in her house, then the recliner, then the couch. It's really hard to sleep when you can't breathe! She ended up making me a DELICIOUS dinner. Or what would have been delicious, if I had the sense of taste!!!! Man.

 

 

Saturday, I was still pretty exhausted but we made it up to sites. We actually got called on tour right at the beginning of the first session of conference. Elder and Sister Kloepfer's son came to visit them, and since I worked with them at the Johnson Home and in the Rootstown ward, they wanted him to have the tour from me. Sweet, huh? Needless to say I'm really grateful for the internet so that we could go back and watch the first few talks that we missed during the first session right after that session ended! What a blessing.

 

 

Yesterday was the worst though. This stupid cold moved down into my chest! I woke up coughing and was like "ohhhhhhhh nooooooooooooo". Yesterday's second session was really hard for me to concentrate on because I was trying to focus getting oxygen to my brain. I was feeling SO discouraged because I've been inside ALL WEEK! And I still feel like crap! I only have 2 months left in Ohio. I don't have a week to just throw away, laying around inside!!!!!!

 

 

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. It's been really frustrating. But, on the note of LOOKING UP, I'm so thankful that 1) I'm in a triple-up so that even if I am sick and can't go out, work can still be done in Chardon. 2) That I live on sites in Kirtland so that the Edmans are right there and the VC is right there and there are sisters that can babysit me! 3) That I have wonderful companions who are so understanding. They rock.

my companionship! our district leader made us those shirts.
 you can't really tell but they all say "chardon" on them in orange puff paint.

Anyway, that's enough complaining about how I don't feel well and how frustrating it is to be a missionary (nearing the end of your mission!) and be sick. I know there is something I have to learn from this (that apparently I didn't learn when I had this same sickness in Ravenna). Argh. I'm just trying to figure out what the heck that is. I'm starting at faith & more meaningful prayer though because in conference and in the scrips they say that is how miracles are wrought. I could use one of those miracles myself....

 

 

The good news about yesterday was that Sarah  came to conference! She stayed for both sessions and the potluck in between, even though it was her 18th birthday! I LOVE THAT GIRL!! We taught her about scripture study which she's already doing and which she really looks forward to every evening. We set a baptismal date with her of November 12!!! I better not be transferred from Chardon, that's all I have to say.

 

 

Did you hear them mention Kirtland a couple times during conference? I sure did!!! :) Man, I love this place.

Other confernce talks/ nuggets that I really loved:

-In Sister Dalton's talk, she said that the manner of happiness is found in the Temple. I agree!

-President Monson's story about announcing a speaker who he knew for a fact was not in the Temple. Wow! Way to follow the spirit. I want to be more like that.

-Elder Oaks: There is no middle ground! Our citizenship is in Christ's church. We should NOT use a visa to visit Babylon. <3

-The talk by Elder Yamashita that was directed to missionaries. Yep, he was talking to me! He was adorable.

-Lastly, in Elder Cornish's talk he said, we must not only say our prayers; we must LIVE them.

It's amazing how truth just like flows into your soul. How grateful I am for the Holy Ghost which confirms the truth of all things. I know that the words spoken over the last 2 days were the words of God. I am grateful for a loving Heavenly Father. And even though this week was pretty L-A-M-E, I know that He loves me.

Oh something else that's really exciting...Allie, who I was teaching in Ravenna, is getting baptized on SATURDAY!!! :) We are trying to see if Sarah can go so that we can have permission to go down there so I can see it. I just love her so much!

sister tating and i!
sister mcalister was transferred to her in lorain
when she left me. sister tating is super cute!

I love my mission. I loved Elder Richardson's statement: "Even though you leave your mission, your mission doesn't have to leave you." It shouldn't, I would say. And it won't! I know that. I have learned so much in "the Ohio", it's not even funny. I am grateful for the time that I have left here. Not being able to go out this week has made me love my purpose even more because it's so amazing! I just want to go out and rescue lost souls. I love it. I love my Savior. He lives.

 Sister Webb

P.S. Pics to come....