One Month!

I DID REMEMBER MY CAMERA THING SO HOPEFULLY I GET YOU SOME PICS TODAY YAY! :)  I can't shut up about my wonderful family to sister smith haha! I'm sure she is way bugged by how much I talk about all yall :) she is particularly excited to meet my mom and dad because I've told her funny stories about the both of you and just all kinds of wonderful things hahaha!

I am going to answer the questions from up there and then share a brief description of my week and then send pics! :) LOVE YOU MOM CAN'T WAIT FOR MOTHERS DAY!

1) brown sandals, chocolate (from megee), no sweats I guess unless I get sent to the big island then i'll probly want them :) ummm other than that, just love in a package :) haha!

2) either way, since I will be here a while :) but the mission likes for you to send it thru them first just in case I have moved areas since you've sent it haha either way tho :)

3) Sister Smith is from Minersville, UT! She went to Beaver High School like whaaat?? Crazy. She's the greatest trainer anybody could ever ask for :)

4) We are serving in the Aliamanu Ward in the Hon-West Zone :) the most amazing ward ever.

5) the apartment is super nice! a nice kitchen with lots of leftover food from other sisters and elders, and a descent bathroom and bedroom! We even have a couch and a small dining table!! And we have a nice view of the mountains so we can always see when there's a "storm" coming! (I use "storm" cuz it's just light mist or rain but no thunder or lightning and just light wind haha) By the way, I live in Salt Lake hahahaha dead serious. that is the name of this city/town/neighborhood :)

6) I don't remember what my first experience was teaching .... whoops ... but we have taught a bunch of people and perhaps the coolest experience so far was inviting one of our investigators to be baptized. We walked into the lesson thinking we would just get to know her a bit more and ask her about her background with religion, etc. the spirit totally led the lesson and brought to my remembrance a couple different scriptures that I shared with her and then before you know it, I was asking this sweet woman to be baptized!! Like what? :) she didn't fully accept, but I think the spirit really touched her that day and hopefully we can get a commitment and date for her soon :)

7) YES! P day is always Monday in the Hawaii Honolulu Mission, unless something crazy happens haha!

8) I heard there are 47 sister missionaries in the mission, but only 17 of those are proselyting. the rest are in the VC ... Sister Smith and I are the only sisters in the Hon-West and Honolulu Zones. .... kinda sucks but hey! Some people feel bad for us and make us goodies :) We are the only missionaries serving in the Aliamanu Ward. As for Elders and sisters combined, I think it's about 170 or something... but I could be totally wrong :P

So this week was totally amazing! Our car was being fixed for half the week so we walked around a lot! Which means we met a lot of new people and we actually met 3 new investigators this week which is HUGE! We are getting really excited about a number of different individuals and families we are teaching! EVERYONE IS JUST INCREDIBLE HERE AHHH :) one thing that was really interesting to me this week was hearing different women tell their conversion stories! One sister we were talking to was raised anti-Mormon and told us people like her were the reason that so many missions in the south had to shut down for a bit years ago. She started dating this really great guy and after two or three months he invited her to church... she freaked when she found out he was Mormon, but eventually (and I mean after a lot of things made her to decide this) she decided to read First Nephi and pray about it. The spirit told her SO STRONGLY that what she had read was true... and after a long road to join the church, she was baptized and was sealed in the temple and she now has 7 children. They are an amazing family.

The members of the Aliamanu Ward are SO MUCH HELP to us as missionaries. The work would not progress without them. I would invite you all to do whatever missionary work you can! Serve! Share your testimony! Love others! Invite people to learn more and do more! And help the missionaries in your area because I am serious that member missionary work does SO MUCH. Remember to email me any cool experiences you have :)

funny story... there's a three year old kid in our ward that's obsessed with... LEGS. yep. no joke. he will sit under your skirt or lean up against your knee and stroke your leg with his hands or his cheek!! Haha it's hilarious. He is adorable. We went and had dinner with his family this week and he sat there the entire time stroking Sister Smith's legs and holy crap I just about died laughing.

sad story... the other day we were studying in the front entry way of the stake building.. I was sorta out of it (no surprise) and I was kinda staring off out the window when BAM! a little bird hit the window and fell dead on the ground ah :/ it scared me so bad. I think it was sorta God's way of saying "stay focused! It's your fault that bird died.. cuz you weren't focused on your studies." jk I don't think God works like that.

I came to realize this week that time is flying by. It's like just yesterday I was dropped off at the MTC. Now i'm hitting a month mark! Only 17 more of those and I'll be home :/ bittersweet I guess! I also came to realize this week that being a missionary means so much more than preaching the gospel... after a long evening of tracting and door after door being shut in our faces, I felt a little bit of what the Savior felt I guess. I feel so deeply the love He has for each of those people behind those doors. I feel his pain when they don't let Him (us) in. It's crazy and wonderful and horrible but most of all it's inspiring and it makes me a better missionary and a more effective follower of Christ. 

I love you all! Have an incredible week!

Aloha,

Sister Judkins

S/O to my Aunt Colenda, Cammi Miller, Emalee Tate, Tyson Palmer, and Elder Matt Stringham ... HAPPY BIRTHDAY YALL!