It has been quite the week, and it appears the British summer may finally be here. I have decided that summer simply means there are more hours of sun than rain during the day, or it is warm when it rains. Anyway, the rain seemed to have gotten the worst of us this week since it was a cold and rainy day when we hiked Mount Snowden. Let me tell you about the experience.
When it started off, there were clouds but no rain. However, by the time we got about a half hour into a six hour hike it began to sprinkle. By the time we were about an hour to an hour and half into the hike, the rain came down and did not leave until we reached the bottom of the mountain. We literally were hiking in the clouds. [To give you an idea, the cafe wasn't open on the summit because the train couldn't get up the mountain because it was not safe with the winds...] It made for quite the experience, and I was grateful to have brought my North Face rain jacket on the mission. It kept me dry, well as dry as I could be considering my t-shirt was already wet from when it was sprinkling. I will have to admit, I felt a whole lot more like the pioneers than I ever did on trek. The fact the my hands were numb and we were all completely drenched seemed a bit more pioneer-like. Not to mention, we even stopped to sing along the way to cheer up our spirits and wait for the entire company (which was half of the missionaries in the mission). I have a new appreciation for the pioneers and was grateful for some hot water once hiking down the mountain. We all survived and are stronger for the experience. The weather appears to have united us and definitely shows our commitment to missionary work (since the whole idea of the hike was to recommit ourselves). I will admit it was probably one of the hardest physically challenging things I have done in the last year. You'll have to look at the pictures attached to get more of an idea.
As part of my re-commitment to missionary work, I decided to focus on reacquainting myself with Preach My Gospel. It definitely was inspired by the Lord. On Saturday, I started my study of Chapter 13: Ward and Stake Members. The ward has assigned us five sisters to go visit teach and reading this section reconfirmed to me why. Preach My Gospel teaches that we should assist with home and visiting teaching as needed, especially with part-member and less-active families. All five of the sisters we visit teach fit into those categories. Furthermore, Preach My Gospel includes additional responsibilities in these roles. We are there not only to strengthen the members, but also to increase our abilities to teach and receive referrals. Understanding these additional roles helped me to know why we were called as visiting teachers and exactly how we should be impacting these sisters’ lives. Preach My Gospel is inspired and blesses missionary work in so many different ways! It is great to be learning new things as well as relearning that which I already know.
We are continuing to teach Chinese. Most of the people we teach are from China and are studying here for University (usually their masters). They are wonderful people, and as one of the elders told me, "The Chinese will love you because you'll probably be their first American friend with blonde hair." We are still seeing if he is right, but I do have one funny lesson that shows the truth of that statement. We went to teach two university students that were friends. When we were there, the girl told me that I looked that one of the actresses on desperate housewives. Then the best part of the lesson is when her friend came, he was wearing a monkey onesie. It was complete with a hood and tail! It honestly made my night, and I couldn't stop smiling. There is always excitement in missionary work and good friendships to be formed.
That is all for now. Hope you all have a good week. Know that I am thinking about you often and praying for you.
Love, Becca
Photo descriptions:
1. This is how it looked when we started. The mountain we are hiking is the one in the middle, set farther back.
2. Gathered singing.
3. Me at the summit.
4. A view from the hike.
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