Fwd: Rain Rain go away

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Begin forwarded message:

From: Megan Gwilliam <megan.gwilliam@myldsmail.net>
Date: January 5, 2016 at 5:09:20 AM MST
To: Denise Gwilliam <denisegwilliam@outlook.com>, Bruce Gwilliam <brucegwilliam@yahoo.com>, Kyle Gwilliam <kylegwilliam@gmail.com>, Lindsey Gwilliam <lindseygwilliam@outlook.com>
Subject: Rain Rain go away

Hello Family!!

It has been the most wonderful RAINY week here in England! So excited to get to tell you ALL ABOUT IT!!

First off, with transfers... drum roll please... I AM STAYING! And so Is sister steve! We are both staying here in Aldershot as STLs. Its crazy! At the end of this transfer sister steve will have spent half of her mission in Aldershot. The Zone Leaders have told us that apparently President likes to keep companionships together as long as possible. So as long as things are good we will probably stay! So its really exciting! Im not going to lie... we have had a couple issues. simple silly things but sill just little problems like Ive told you about and after I found out we were going to stay I kinda had that moment like you talked about dad with that one companion you had where you just didn't say anything and didn't really know what to do. BUT we had the worlds greatest companion inventory ( you do it everyweek after weekly planning - talk about everything going on with each other and how you can be better friends) and we talked FOR AGES and oh my goodness. We just got it all out. I told her how I was feeling and what my thoughts were and things that were hard for me and she opened up about things and we were just able to lay it all out and I can't tell you how much better the past couple of days have been. Life is just so great. There were so many things that were happening that were hard for her that I just didn't even know! And I have realized that I am not good at opening up to people - I feel like I have always been a people pleaser - I want to say things that make them happy but I have realized that I need to be honest because I want to be happy too! So we just talked it all out and life is just SO good and I am SO excited and so grateful for this next transfer we will have together! SO MORAL OF THE STORY - Ky when you are with a companion on your mission... always express what you are thinking. and be honest about it! It just helps the whole situation and then you both will be happy! :) So yes! I will still be here in aldershot! Get ready for a whole lot of miracles that are coming our way! We have 4 people on date for baptism too which is SO EXCITING! Jake and Luke - the boys:) and then Jose - the portugese man and then Rob!! We finally got him to commit this week and he is just SO EXCITED NOW! He has already asked a man in our ward to baptise him and he is just giddy about it all. It is SO NEAT TO SEE! I think my favorite part of it all is just how much I can see a change in him. He is just happier and more friendly and less worried about everything - I think one of the neatest things about being a missionary is being privledged enough to see that the gospel does change people for the better. They become different people when they really accept Christ. OH ITS SO GREAT! Being a missionary is such a blessing. I am so grateful for it!

Speaking of that... on this saturday I will have been a missionary for 6 months!! oh my goodness.. I DID IT!!!!!!!!! haha! I have always thought that if I can do 6 months I can do it all. So saturday will be an exciting day! Go get cafe rio or something to celebrate for me! :) It really is crazy to me that I have been here this long. I still wake up some mornings and can't believe that I am actually here and doing it. I don't know if it will ever really sink in... but I am so happy that I am! 6 months down... see you in a year! :) Including you Ky! I am still set that I will somehow sneak into your mission and we can be the best brother and sister companionship there ever was. The lucky people wherever you are called wont even know what hit them when Elder and Sister Gwilliam pray with them all! ;)

Im so glad that you got the package and so sad about the ornament! haha! OH man! It happends though! :) Im glad you had it on for a little bit! I will definitely look around and try and get another one or we will have to order one online. I think it would be fun to have every christmas too so we will do it!:) And I hope you like the shirts! We definitely will all wear them when we come back and visit before we go tour wherever ky serves! It will be the BEST!

I was going to tell you too that the christmas presents you sent have been SUCH a blessing this week as it has been FREEZING! Before christmas the weather was actually really nice - it was still cold but it was only cold! It wasn't very rainy. But ohh.... its been rainy now. And its still freezing. And rain and the freezing cold are NOT the best combo! I always thought I loved the rain, and I still do... when I can cuddle up in my warm house in a blanket and watch a hallmark! Not as fun when I have to be out trying to get people to talk to me! :) But thats okay! I still love it here!

and It sounds like you all had a great new years eve! SOunds like it was laid back but that is the best in my book! I love that you celebrated our time too in a way with dinner!:) I thought about it that day of how crazy it when it was midnight for you It was the next morning for me and I had already finished exercise. The time difference is so crazy. But we had dinner with a family here and then ran over to the chapel and played games with some of the youth and Holly jack and fern and their family! So it was a lot of fun! We still were in bed by 10:30 but I could hear the fireworks going off outside! So crazy to me that it is 2016!

I have thought a lot this week about goals that I have for this year - It will be the year of being a missionary!!! How neat is that? So I really wanted to set some good goals that will help me stretch myself so that i can grow as much as possible this next year!!! I want to allow heavenly father to really mold me into the person I need to be. Im still trying to come up with all of them but I have a couple that I think would be fun to do as a family if you will do it with me... :) The first one is that I want to read Jesus the Christ by Talmadge. I have figured it out that if we read 3 pages a day then it will be done by next year. I am SUPER excited about it too! What better thing to do than spend 2016 studdying about our saviour everyday and with that growing closer to him! So are you in? I also want to read all of the standard works on my mission. DO IT WITH ME!! I will figure out page numbers and everything but I think it would be neat to do it as a family... so let me know! :)

I have also decided that my last one is that I want to BE HAPPY and just enjoy life! Enjoy being a missionary! I know that this is missionary work... and that It is hard and can be crazy but it is also the most incredible thing that I can be doing. And it is supposed to be FUN! I think a lot of missionaries get in the trap of thinking of it too much as work. It is an incredible blessing to be here so I am going to have fun while I do it! I am going to work hard but laugh a lot, try and bless people a lot, enjoy the crazy adventures, and instead of stressing over being better and working harder and feeling really inadequate I am just going to turn it all over to the Lord and have more faith in him. Realize that what I do will never be enough, even though I am going to work like crazy and do all I can to further His work, but that bottom line at the end of the day I need him and so im going to do better and recognizing that and putting the load on him. So i hope you all will join in that too! Really just try and be happy. Let all the craziness and stress with school and work and anything else going on roll of as you pray to your Heavenly Father and have greater faith in him. I have LOVED your emails mom and dad about with struggling about worrying about the family. I feel like i have had a slap in the face moment of just realizing I was not having enough faith. I LOVED the quote you sent mom - I was worrying about something that doesn't need to be worried about. I just need to have faith in my Saviour and then like you said dad - just get to work. Everything will work out when we put him First so this year I am really going to strive to do that! So excited about it too!

I also sent a letter in the mail last week! Sister steve was still sick on Pday so I had time to write a proper letter to you! YAY!! So hopefully that gets to you soon and you enjoy it!:)

Sister Steve and I are also going to 5 guys after this. Thats right. THey have 5 guys here. TENDER MERCY!

But i love you all SO MUCH!!!!! I miss you a lot too! But KNOW that my Heavenly Father is watching over you and will keep you safe! Keep being happy and never forget how much I love you!

I LOVE YOU!!!

Sister Gwilliam