La Felicidad del Santa Rosa: Second 9 - Letter 43

A New Novato!

Well, Buenos Dias! So this week has been crazy! How awesome was the meeting yesterday! The work of salvation is hastening and we all have such a great role to play in it!

So we received our transfer information and........ (drum roll please)..... I will be opening up a new area in Saint Helena. This is one of the most beautiful areas in the entire mission! It is in the Napa area and it has been covered by the Hermanas that also cover Napa but they have not spent that much time up there because it is a little bit of a drive from Napa. So it will be interesting to see how much work is going on there. I will also be training again! Third time in a row! Yikes! It is kind of scary and I am almost 100 percent sure that I will get a gringa (someone who is white). I shouldn't talk because I am a gringa too but it will be different to train some who is learning Spanish and to be in a duo again. I know that whatever happens is the will of God and I am ready and willing to do His will.

I have been in Novato for 6 months which is a long time.

It is weird packing up all of my stuff. I have so much stinking stuff it is kind of gross! I am trying to organize all of it so I can pack it all. Today's P-day is supposed to be spent packing and everything and then I will go to Santa Rosa tomorrow for the training meetings and everything.

Oh and the news about my companions: Hermana Zurita is staying in Novato and will be training TWO new missionaries and Hermana Lybbert will be going to Rohnert Park which is still in the same stake but a different zone to continue to wait for her visa. It is crazy because she will be serving with an Hermana who came out at the same time as her. So my kids are growing up and I am becoming a grandma of twins. It is just amazing how much responsibility is being put on all of us as the work is hastening.

So we are all excited for all of the changes but is really going to be different but it is going to be great! We have all learned so much from each other and we have been talking about how we can take all of those things and apply them to our new situations.

When Hermana Lybbert first got here for some reason we finally decided to look up what the word Novato means in Spanish. We discovered that it is a word for freshmen or for a new beginning. I have decided that even though I will no longer be serving in Novato this new area will be a new novato. It will be a chance to start basically from scratch.... new area, new companion, new training experience, new members, new investigators, new everything. It could be scary but I am just ready to embrace it. I am looking forward to all of it. I am ready to pray harder than I ever have for he confidence to not be afraid to soak up the opportunity to set a really good first impression.

I have been doing a lot of soul searching or evaluating lately and have gone back to my time at BYU. I have thought about how scared I was as I was preparing to leave and then Bishop Sandstrom helped me think of all the positive things that were going to happen. Then I continued to remember all of the good things that were going to come out of this experience and it helped me be motivated to go. Then I went to BYU and I was a different person I was able to put aside my fears and really have fun and have such a positive experience that ended up preparing me to be here on the mission. I have been keeping a list of the good things about this new change and I hope for the same results.

Also with this change I have realized that I don't want to make a huge deal about leaving I just want to continue to work super hard and enjoy the little moments. We have had some great events happen this week. We had a awesome zone car wash that was an awesome finding activity and we went to dinner at an amazing Guatemalan restuarant, and then the meeting yesterday!

We are not sure how the meeting yesterday will affect our mission but the changes are going to be GREAT! I know that they are inspired and will help complete the Lord's work. Members are the best tools we truly have so please be willing to help the missionaries. I am hoping that members here will jump on board and help us out because it will help solidify the work.

I invite all of you to check out the new website and figure out what role you can play in missionary work. I testify that the Lord has a specific role for you!

Thank you for all of your support! Good luck in your missionary efforts!

Love,

Hermana Hillary