Last Email. "Let the Unbelieving Hold Their Lips"

Many miracles this week:

1. Shanon/Sister Cappo, was able to get her kids back!!!!!  That seriously feels like a lifetime ago but it was just Tuesday.  She only had them part time until that day.  We went with her to court to support her when she heard the news.  So many changes are happening.  They also moved into the Sunrise Ward on Saturday, and members from both of the wards came to help.  I know that both the gospel and the church are the best things that could have happened to Shanon at this point in her life.  She was already repentant when we met her.  She was so ready.  I am so grateful to have been a part of this time in her life.  This Sunday, Shanon and I bore our testimonies in the Sunrise Ward.  She is so strong.  She has opposition, but with the Lord she will succeed.

2. Marcus was able to get baptized!!!!  He is the cutest.  It was a little nerve-racking when they forgot to say his last name the first time and I had to be the one to "speak now or forever hold my peace" so that he could get it done right, but it happened and now he has the Gift of the Holy Ghost too.

 

3. Sister Smith and I were able to finish and record the song that we have been working on during random break times all transfer.  Thanks to Elder Wallace's skills it got videoed and then he was able to take the audio off and put it into a separate file.  Enjoy!

Now, for my testimony.  I know that God not only lives, but that He LOVES me.  I can feel it.  I have learned that that knowledge brings more peace and assurance than anything else can.  I know that He wants to bless us.  I have learned that the Plan of Salvation is so much more than just a graph with lines and circles--it is the context by which the Atonement makes sense.  I have learned that to have confidence in the Atonement is to have confidence in ourselves.  God does not make Junk.  Because of the Atonement, we can ALWAYS change.  I have learned more about the unique roles of Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, and how each have a part in allowing us to access the Atonement.  I have learned that conversion happens line upon line until the day we die, and beyond.  Just like the infinite Atonement, conversion never stops.

It's been a long, short, hard, easy, slow, fast, mission.  All of the above.  I don't think I will fully comprehend the experience until this life is over, but I know that it has shaped me FOREVER.  #mapleleafonmyheart #CanadaWinnipegMission

So much LOVE,

Sister Heidi Hill

<3

Marcus' Baptism @ Carry-The-Kettle Branch

Saskatchewan Open Sky

More Saskatchewan sky

Final Supper at the McKeowns

Riddle Me This...

How is it that on my Second to last week here, my 18th month mark to be exact, that I ate Moose and Baloot!!! (Baloot is a Filipino food if you don't know.  It is a duck egg that has it's little embryo grown to a full fetus.  It is hard boiled, but the fetus for the most part is soft and squishy, except for the bones: those are crunchy.)

We ate Moose at Shanon's.  Her cousin/uncle or maybe her uncle's cousin... I'm not sure... killed it and gave her some of the meat.  She made a gravy with it, and it was surprisingly good.  I never thought I would actually try Moose, but there you go.

We ate the Baloot at the Macarana's, and Nikki, another Lewvan Filipino came and showed us how it was done, eating three herself that night. :)  I was pretty upset at first when I found out that the elders requested it for this meal appointment because I had tried to go my entire mission without having it, but alas, it wasn't as bad as I thought (minus the crunch and the pops and the weird taste that goes with the squish... but it didn't last too long.  Most of it was yolk which was ok.)

The weirdest was getting my exit interview about 10 days too early.  Because there are 19 of us going home this transfer, President is making a tour around the mission to say goodbye to everybody.  The interview was really good.  President was able to offer a lot of great advice on things that have been on my mind.  The weird part was when the tears started to come.  I have been doing really good about being here and not really being worried or nervous about the transition, but it was great.  The rest of Sunday was really weird, and kind of hard to focus, but I think I'm getting into the swing of things.

We were blessed enough to hit our goal of one new investigator this week at the VERY LAST appointment Sunday night.  We had tried and tried and tried a million stop-by's and potentials.  Everyone kept bailing.  On Saturday we literally went to ten stop-by's in a row with no success.  It was humbling, and it made me grateful for the success I've been able to see at other times.  At the very end, our last stop-by before our set appointment, I decided that all of my prayers (because you pray before every possible thing you do pretty much), were too focused on what I wanted to happen.  I expressed this after that prayer before the last stop-by, so I told this to Sister Smith, and we said another prayer on the spot, just for gratitude.  It really helped.  I realized how blessed I was, and I was able to better feel the Spirit and God's love. :)

So there you go.  Don't be afraid to try new things and always be grateful, even when you feel like there is little to be grateful for!

Love you lots!!! Thank you <3

Sister Heidi Hill

Saskatchewan: Land of the Living Skies (This picture was taken from our parking lot.)

Conredge with Ketchup on the Moose Meat...

Sister Smith and I in CANADA!!!!

Nikki, Nephi, and my baloot

Here we go!!!

"I can't believe I'm doing this."