In honor of my 20th birthday (Is that for real?! P.S. This doesn't mean I'll be growing up so don't get any funny ideas.) I've made a list of 20 things that I love about the mission!
1. We have literally one thing to think about. 18 months, 72 weeks, 504 days - day in and day out we think, study, practice, converse, dream, teach, and have meetings about one thing - the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.
2. Going to bed exhausted after you know you did everything you could that day.
3. Learning a new language and culture.
4. I get to wear sandals for 18 months straight. Just go ahead and let that sink in for a minute.
5. I love talking to everyone. In our mission, we have a goal to meet 30 new people every day. If it all works out, I'll meet over 15,000 people over the course of the next few months.
6. Study time. Everyone says this, but it's true - 4 hours of Gospel/language study every day is priceless.
7. Living with lots of girls. There's always someone to share a conversation, share ideas, or share clothes. (:
8. I love going in and out of homes and watching how people in and out of the gospel raise and keep their families.
9. Responsibility. I love the sacred trust that has been put into the hands of a bunch of kids who soon realize that they don't know a butt load of crap about the gospel. I've always loved it but especially now that I'm training and we're opening the area, it's just fascinating.
10. Having a mission president.
11. The schedule, planning, and organizing. I love always having a plan for where I need to be and what I need to be doing.
12. We're always changing companions, Sisters in the house (speaking of which, there was an emergency transfer and Sister L Silva was switched with a Sister Dutra, FYI. So glad we were sick together so I could learn all her secrets!), district and zone leaders, and people in the district and zone - we get the opportunity to learn from so many missionaries.
13. I love the rules.
14. Learning about myself - who I am and who I'm going to be.
15. Hakuna matata. We don't have a worry in the world, just the welfare of others.
16. I love being a face behind a name tag. It doesn't matter what I did in high school or what I'm studying at BYU; These people probably won't even remember my name (because they can't say it). But they'll remember what I represent.
17. The food. I love lunch with the members of the church, trying new things, and trading recipes.
18. I love getting to know ya'll through letters and emails. (:
19. I love knowing that I 50ish of my friends are either now serving or are preparing to do the same exact thing that I'm doing.
20. I love being a small part of a big deal for lots of people. Even if we never see the visual results, we're planting seeds. I got a letter from Sister Davis this week and she told me someone we taught in Jackson was baptized in August. Sister Tavares told me that Saturday, Fatima will be baptized.
And yesterday, Vitoria was baptized! (I know I haven't told ya'll about any of the people we're teaching yet! Next week I will for sure!) Her mom's name was passed to us from the other Sisters as someone they met on the street. Sister Santos and I went there to meet them and they had been completely prepared for us. Vitoria is 12 and is so excited about Young Women's and Personal Progress. She told me last night after her baptism that she's going to start studying English so that when she's 19 she can serve a mission in my city. IS THIS REAL LIFE?!
So this is life at 20. (:
Here's a quick thought:
"Strong timber doesn't grow with ease;
The stronger the wind, the stronger the trees."
- Quoted by President Monson
I love ya'll! Thanks for all the birthday wishes! (And the package Mom! I loved it! It was perfect! I opened it early because I could smell the Reese's. (: It was gone in about 12 seconds! haha) I hope ya'll have a happy my birthday, too!
Love, love, love,
Sister Vaughn
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