Surprise!!!

FAMILY!!!

Moved got moved to Tuesday instead of Wednesday so I actually am e-mailing today! SURPRISE!!!! Thank you all for your letters this week! I LOVED THEM and love hearing from you so much! Hope you had the very best week and that everyone is happy and healthy! Im keeping you all in my prayers!

This week was great!! So busy and working our very hardest! Fun adventures this week was I went on exchanges! It was a good learning experience but the best is that it made me appreciate Sister Barnes EVEN MORE after! I just love her! Dad - it made me nervous for next transfer when it wont even be an option to stay with her! AH PANIC! But its okay! i know i'll love other missionaries as well I am just so grateful for her and that we have another transfer together!

Besides that this week has been pretty normal - not too much to report. Just a lot of contacting - we are working on finding people that are genuinely wanting to hear about the gospel. Something that we run into a lot are people that will meet with us but it seems like they are trying to convert me to what they believe. Ha silly people... its the other way around! :) Another thing that I got to practice a lot this week was patience. HOLY SMOKES ENGLISH AND AFRICANS TALK SO MUCH! We will be sitting in a teach and I swear they just never stop talking. Oh I know i need to work on being more patient and I realize that it is important to listen but they just dont stop. and then once they finally do I'll say something that will remind them of something else and then it starts all over again... haha oh my. I know its a problem because when I let them keep talking then I get frustrated then the spirit is NOT there and no one benefits so Im working on it! Patience is always a good thing to learn, right?

Something that I have LOVED and have noticed especially the past couple of weeks is the blessing of feeling the Saviors love for others SO STRONGLY. It has been with very specific people as well. Last week Sister Barnes and I went a visited a member of the ward who is in the hospital - for being mentally unstable - we walked in and there was one of the other patients walking around the halls. She was this sweet old lady who I immediately felt this INCREDIBLE amount of love for. Even though she had so many struggles in this life and truly was not all the way there I loved her so much. I could feel how much the savior loved her and felt it was important that I reminded her of that. I talked to her for a minute and it really was just so great. Another time was Last week when Sister Barnes and I were checking out of the grocery store there was lady who was behind us in line. The lady was obviously on some serious drugs. She was very dirty, hair all matted and clothes needed to be washed, she had sores all over her body and she couldn't stop moving. Just pacing back and forth and all jittery. She was in line buyin this tiny thing of food which I am sure was all that she could afford. I feel like just a couple months I would have seen that and wanted to move away but as I saw that sweet lady I just wanted to go and give her a hug. I just felt SO MUCH LOVE FOR HER and knew that if the Savior were there all of her hard times and challenges she had wouldn't have made any difference to him. He would love her and I have no doubt heal her. It has just been incredible for me and I am so grateful Heavenly Father has blessed me with these glimpses of his love. I am so grateful to be a missionary and have the power to be able to step in his place for a little bit and help people realize his love for them. His love is SO REAL and so powerful. 

So that has probably been the highlight of the week!! I love being a missionary. It is SO HARD. Really so hard and so many long days but I love it. Just becuase of moments like that, I have never been happier and never felt closer to my Savior than I have these past couple of weeks and I am just so grateful to be here. 

I also want you all to know i am a GREEN BEAN AND SALMON EATING MACHINE. A lady this week set a nice big peice of salmon in front of me and I actually LIKED IT!! Oh the miracle of a mission! :)

Dad, I am a push up master! You would be So proud of me!! this morning I did 60! Are you impressed or what?? And update on walking... Sister Barnes and I walked over 20,000!! Oh my goodness it was the worst. We were supposed to be taking a bus that day so we werent supposed to walk very far and it got all messed up - I wore my sparkly flats. The ones with NO SUPPORT WHATSOEVER! Haha! It was great.But yeah! Doing my best to stay healthy and be strong! :)

You asked about transfers! In the mission we all move on the same day - so like for example today all the sisters and elders moving travel and meet at a specific chapel. It is usually The staines chapel. Lunch is served and usually there is a little talk with everyone and then people grab their new companions and leave! We definitely don't ever travel alone! Sister barnes and I thought it was crazy when you said you had to do that!! People who are training actually do a session with President Gubler so trainers and their new missionaries stay over night at the temple accommodations. This is a new thing that President Gubler just started this transfer - sister Barnes was pretty bummed she missed it! How cool would it be to do a session with President Gubler! Hopefully someday I'll train and be able to! :) 

I love you all!! Hope you have the BEST WEEK! Keeping you all in my prayers!! 

Love yoU!

Sister Gwilliam 

I was also going to tell you I have found this week some awesome bruises on my knees! HOW GREAT IS THAT!? Bruises from praying so much! Oh i love being a missionary! :)