So....I have 15 minutes left. I've been sending pictures and stuff...and walking around the library talking to Sister Claspell who's on Computer 8 and I'm on 23 and she um, was never taught how to report key indicators to President, something I discovered a few weeks ago and thought was HILARIOUS, and RIDICULOUS, and so I just went and finally showed her where to do it online...ahhaha.
ANYWAYS....
The fireside was so great. I will make a copy at some point of the program and send it home. I'm sorry I'm bad at writing letters home. I find I am losing motivation to write letters. I will try and get it back. Oh my heck, so many people showed up. So we made it go STAKE, so ALL of Eagle River and Chugiak was invited, and a few missionaries and Norman Thompson the Hawaiian came up from Anchorage, and it was awesome. Stake president was there, Pres Beesley was there. About 200 people perhaps. The whole chapel completely filled up and then they opened the first overflow, and that completely filled up so they opened it up to the cultural hall and set up several rows of chairs.
So Sister Claspell and I were behind all the planning, I played piano for a lot of the numbers, we got mostly members to sing, there were a few small speaking parts. We had 18 youth involved, about 30 people total, including who was saying opening and closing prayers and who was playing prelude (a youth) and postlude (another youth). We named the fireside The Love of God in honor of Valentine's Day (you don't need a date for this one!!) and had it divided into 3 segments-- "He Loves those who are lost", "He loves those who share his love" and "He loves me to the end" a line taken from hymn #136 ("I know that my redeemer lives").
People were crying all OVER the place... Sister Claspell shed a few tears, and a woman who was baptized a coupla years ago, who we meet with twice a week, was crying through most of it, and of course Sister Hatfield was (she sang a solo), and I saw so many people wiping their eyes, and Sister Claspell said she thought she saw a woman sobbing. My heck. Well, the Spirit was so very strong, it was wonderful. Sister Claspell said it was all worth it when MacKenzie, a senior in high school, started crying in the middle of her song, "I stand all Amazed." Afterwards MacKenzie told Sister Claspell that because she looks up to us so much she has now decided that she IS gonna go on a mission. Holy cow.
It was neat also to see people, non-members even, show up that I was least expecting to see there.
It was awesome.
A great way to end the transfer. Transfer calls came--- Sister Claspell is gonna go white-wash in the city of Juneau with the other Sister Peterson, spelled O-N not E-N like my MTC companion Sister Petersen aka Sister Pete-pete, and she's gonna share a ward with a set of elders. There are two other wards in Juneau. And I am training hahahaa. Oh dear. There are 3 sisters coming out, one is 19 years old, but Sister Hatfield, who has ALSO been called to be a trainer, REALLY wants the 19-yr-old cuz she WROTE Sister hatfield about two months ago saying she'd found her blog and wants to know what to bring to Alaska. I'm gonna FREAK if I get the 19-year-old. Obviously, I don't know who I'm training yet. PRes Beesley might assign them and then have to SWITCH them, hahah, so he's avoiding that. (That's what happened to me--- I was supposed to be trained in Kenai with Sis.Smith and Sis.Watson but at the last minute Pres Beesley knew by the Spirit that he needed to switch us so I ended up getting trained in Palmer by Sister Brown and Sis Pete-pete went to Kenai.)
So, my greenie and I might um, tract a lot. Miss Reincarnation cancelled her last lesson with us. Sigh. We will try and contact her soon.
I LOVE YOU ALL
Sister Ashbrook
No comments:
Post a Comment