#64 "Your Heart Will Lead You Home"

Merry Christmas 2014 from Sister Johnson

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, mine was just fantastic! 

I don't know if I talked about it last year (is it weird to think that I was a missionary last year too? it sure is for me!) but I've realized that Christmas never really came last year. I put up some decorations, wrote some Christmas letters, and listened to Christmas songs, but as I held my breath for Christmas Day, nothing happened. It felt just like a normal day to me. I figured that was just how Christmas was for a missionary, but then this year caught me completely off guard. 

I wasn't even looking for the spirit of Christmas, but on Christmas morning, I found my heart was overfilled with love. I had opened the presents that my parents had carefully wrapped and sent to me a couple of days ago, I was listening to the music my dad had collected to send me months ago, I was wearing the socks and neck-warmer that the members of Yokkaichi ward had given me, and I just felt...love. 

In the Tigger movie, there's a song that says;

"If you feel lost, and on your own, 

And far from home,

You're never alone, you know. 

Just think of your friends,

The ones who care,

They all will be waiting there,

And your heart will lead you home."

Sometimes, to be perfectly honest, I do feel that way; I do feel lost, on my own, and far from home. But in that one hour in the morning, of opening presents and just feeling the love that my family had sent with them, and I remembered something that Thomas S. Monson said;

"The spirit of Christmas illuminates the picture window of the soul, and we look out upon the world’s busy life and become more interested in people than things. To catch the real meaning of the spirit of Christmas, we need only drop the last syllable and it becomes the Spirit of Christ." 

As I sat wrapped in the warm clothing that I received and looked on my wall at all the pictures of my friends and family that I taped up, I was filled with the spirit of Christmas, the spirit of Christ. In other words, I was filled with love. 

 I have learned that the spirit of Christ is the sweetest, and most incredible of all loves. Sometimes, if I ask God, I can have a taste or glimpse of this love. 

It is a wondrous love. 

May you feel the spirit of Christ at this beautiful time of year, as well as my love that I send from Nagoya, Japan.

#63 "Human Again"

For the first week, we were busy, in and out of conferences, going on companion exchanges and then I got sick, things were just crazy! But we finally made it through. Haha sickness-wise, I no longer have any idea what goes on with my body anymore. They say that when you finish your mission, you 'die', but then your body also literally falls apart. I've watched old missionaries just exchange all the problems with their bodies like a bunch of grandmas, and instead of just listening, now I'm joining in the conversation! Oh well, my body can rest later, I want to work!!

 In the second week, we were just busy with preparations for Christmas parties, missionary conferences and all sorts of caroling. I honestly get so tired by the end of the day, I just love the last thirty minutes of my day, when I get to relax and talk to my companion, the other sisters, and lay in my futon. 

So recently I was thinking about Disney's Beauty and the Beast (they're posters are everywhere in Japan, apparently they're doing the Musical in Nagoya right now) and I remembered a song from the extended version of the movie, that is actually in the musical, but it's called "Human Again". All the characters, the clock, candlestick, tea pot, and others sing about how they think the spell they're under will be broken soon, and they day dream about how nice it will be to become human again.

The clock, Cogsworth, sings;

"When I'm human again, when I'm human again, 

when the world finally starts making sense,

I'll unwind for a change...

...Wouldn't that be strange!"(The candlestick, Lumiere, cuts in)

(Cogsworth continues...)

"I can't help it if I'm t-t-tense!"

I may not be as tightly wound as Cogsworth, but when I hit up the real world again I can't wait to be able to relax some and see if I can also be human again!

Haha sorry it's short, but I promise more details next week! I love you all! 

 

 

(The picture is of, from right to left; Sister Yamashita, the wife of my mission president, ME, the strangest missionary you ever did meet, and Sister Ringwood, the wife of President Ringwood who came for a tour of our mission! It was good to see people from my home ward again)

#62 "Go the Distance"

 

New Companion in Yokkaichi, December 2014

 

So if Hercules is willing to 'go the distance', I should probably be too. Instead, I'm very tired and found myself at the end of this week just wanting to stay for two nights in a row in the same apartment...

In other words, my week was busy.

On Monday I was spending my last day in Fukutoku, with a long-time-no-see companion, Sister Abe! She came from Suwa (her companion was ending her mission, so she needed a place to stay until she received her next companion) and spent the day with me! We laughed at all of our old jokes and even made a couple more. She's already going on transfer 5! My baby is growing up!! 

On Tuesday, I headed to Nagoya station to be transferred to Yokkaichi! I spent the day getting to know my new companion and area, getting my luggage from the shipping company and trying to visit a couple members. 

On Wednesday we did as much visiting members as we could, but by the evening I was in Meito, to spend the night nearby for a conference the next day.

All of Thursday I was at the Missionary Leadership Council, which despite its necessity, is very long. But I was able to finally make it back to Yokkaichi for the night!! 

Friday we had to make more plans for the upcoming week and for the transfer. I did my best to finally start unpacking and cleaning and putting away (cleaning this apartment is high up in my life's ambitions: it needs some help...). We were able meet with the elders of our area and learn that the next day, a senior missionary couple were coming to use our baptismal font, and needed us to set everything up and do all the music (my companion can play the piano...SCORE!). 

So that"s what we did on Saturday! We helped someone get baptized. She was so cute; she was so nervous and couldn't stop smiling. So so precious. 

Sunday I finally got to meet all the members, but everything was crazy because we had a certain Mr. Kobayashi come to church. He is one of our investigators, and is hands down the nicest guy you will ever have the pleasure of meeting. He was just so humble and kind, he even brought us lunch! (He didn't know it was fast Sunday, and I didn't have the heart to tell him haha). We were able to talk to him about the commandments, and how when we try them, we can learn that they're really from God. He's been pretty stressed about baptism recently, so we're trying not to talk so much about that right now, but every single person who has met him and talked to me about him knows that it is only a matter of time - he wants to be baptized, he just wants some time to think about it all. 

And now it's finally Monday, and my feet are so tired from all the traveling. I think I've gone 'the distance', and I think I know that I just want to belong to Yokkaichi for now! 

#61 "Under the Sea"

So Sebastian tells Ariel that "the seaweed is always greener in somebody else's lake". He tells her that there are plenty of things around her and that she should be happy where she is. All she would need to do so was to "look at the world around [her]".

Well with this week being Thanksgiving, I did just that. I am so grateful for the area I've been in, for the wonderful people I'm surrounded with, and for the many miracles I see on a daily basis.

At the same time, I just got a transfer call to Yokkaichi! I'll be companions with a half-trained Greenie (her companion is going home this transfer) so I will be training her, and I will still be an STL, but now for Yokkaichi zone! I'm just so so thrilled, that was my dream transfer call that I got. I've only heard amazing things about this area, so I can't wait to move!!

But...I'm going to miss Nagoya. It's been so fun to work here! I will really miss all the friends I've made.

Heavenly Father is sure funny, make it Thanksgiving the week that He makes me say goodbye! Gotta love Him!!