Emily, 5.21.12 Almost Winter

Hola mi familia!
Thats crazy, everyone is getting married! Hna Thorpe wrote one of the sisters here, and she said she feels like everyone is married and she has fallen behind and she just has to hurry and get married as fast as she can! I think i might understand that. Who did Dewey marry? and April? I can`t believe all those kids are graduating this week. Thats crazy! And where is Preston Pace headed on his mission? Thanks for checkin and Feleicia, I thought she should be getting home soon. There is an elder here who went home in the last transfer and lives in her mission. I told him to look for her. Hopefully he did! Did you ride in the hot air balloon? A ride in a hot air balloon is on my bucket list. Someday! 

Hna Ramirez and i had to go to the office this week, and we swang by the distribution center and... they had the conference ensign in English! We both bought us a copy and have enjoyed reading it in every spare moment we find --- which are few, but during breakfast we can usually read a little. 

Before i forget - what souvenirs do you want?? Theres soccer jerseys or bolivian t shirts - fi you want some i need sizes! or... nativity sets, or stufff. haha i don`t know, maybe a painting or something? I`ve only got a few mondays left... like 8 so let me know if you have any requests. 

I also received a dear elder from Hna Broome. She told me she was looking for our mission blog and couldn`t find it. Maybe someone (natalie....) could find her on facebook and help her find the blog?? Her name is CHelsy Broome. Thanks! 

Mom, thanks for sharing your study insights. In the ensign i found a list of the scriptures most often referred to during conference and one of them was John 13:35. Its the one that says by this ye may know if ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another  - or somethin like that. But in my reading i have felt that a lot. Its all about LOVE! Thats why if we don`t have charity, we are nothing. I was reading in Alma, when Ammon and King Lamoni go to free Ammon`s brothers. They ran into King Lamoni`s dad on the way and he was angry! He was about to kill Lamoni, he called ammon a son of a liar, and was what we could see, out of control. He may of had some anger management problems. Ammon steps in and defends King Lamoni. The dad is humbled, and offers to give him up to half of his kingdom (materialist haha), Ammon only asks that his brothers are made free, and that King Lamoni can keep his kingdom. And then comes the part I love. The dad is shocked. He sees the LOVE that Ammon has for his son, and it completely changes his heart. He goes from wanting to kill Ammon, to asking him to "please come and visit, i want to hear your message." All because of love. Charity, the pure of love of Christ. We need to love our enemy, forgive everyone (including ourselve) don`t envy, but be happy for the successes of other people. Just love, like Jesus did. I guess its true what the sing... all you need is love!

OH! I got the RS package this week, with a bunch of balloons and sweet notes from my relief society sisters. I have officially decided that I belong to the best relief society in the world! I hope you can thank them all for me. And mom... i am excited to help you eat your door prize of lindt truffles ;) 

Oh... and I made another connection in this small world. One of the assistants is named Elder Frost, and hes from montecello - when i heard i thought i better ask if he knows Kyle Curtis and his family. Turns out he grew up around the corner from them. And is friends with his brothers. Crazy. Small world. 

Well... last week right before we went home to talk to ya`ll for mothers day we did a contact. We met a girl named K Flores. She mentioned that she wasn`t sure if God existed or why Christ came to the earth. We testified that God exists, that He loves her, and that Christ is her Savior. We taught her how to pray and she said a prayer before we left. We scheduled a return appointment. Tuesday we went back and she was there waiting for us. She is twenty years old, lives alone, is studying and working and she has had some friends that haven`t been the greatest. It was crazy how she opened up to us. We told her we were there to baptize her and she accepted a baptismal date for June 16! We headed back and taught her the restoration. She was a little shocked, but she agreed to pray about it. She said she did and she feels good, like its true, and she wants to keep learning. We took her to the institute and she signed up for class, met the director, and several young adults from the ward, and is really excited. She went to the ward activity and loved it. It was so neat because we talked to her and she said she feels good, happier, and everything is going better for her in work and school. She can feel the gospel changing her life, and helping her. and we can see the difference. It has been amazing to teach her. We called her Saturday to make sure she was planning on going to church. She said of course hermanas, and i`ll be there on the first row! and she went! I truly feel like she is prepared, excited, and she really is gonna be baptized. And it makes me so happy to see the gospel changing and blessing her.  One of he elect. One of the chosen. Hurrah for Israel!

Well, I know that this is the Lord`s work. I know that when we are diligent, God blesses, when we are exactly obediente, we can witness miracles. The gospel changes lives, its changing me. I am happy. I love you all. Have a wonderful week. Tell Whitney hi for me! 

Love, 
Hermana Olsen