I'm Scared to Death!

Hey, Family:

So this week has been interesting.  I'm meeting more and more people and doing my best to keep them all straight.  We even met one lady who threatened to slap my hands every time I bit my nails.  Maybe I needed that though...Lol.

Ok, So the big news.  If you don't die when you hear this, then just imagine me dying because I think I'm going to...I am performing at the Christmas Lights.  I mean, all of the missionaries are singing, and Sister Davenport is singing in a double quartet.  But I am playing the flute during a piece.  Yup.  You read it right.  Me and a flute.  AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Yeah, there's a sister named Sister Brown, whom I LOVE and adore, and she was asked to play and then she found out that I used to play (ALMOST 8 YEARS AGO!!) and I got dragged into it.  But it's going to be fun.  I'm SCARED TO DEATH!  But it's going to be fun.  I have to keep telling myself that at least....The first time I looked at the music I was like "Oh, this isn't so bad!" and then i looked at the last 4 pages (there are 13 pages total of this song) and about died.  There are like 3 key changes and it's all runs or all quarter notes over and over and over lol.  So yeah.  I'm practicing...But you might want to keep me in your prayers.  Well, I know that you already do pray for me every night, but I wouldn't agrue if you wanted to add in an extra line about this performance on the 31st.  Sister Brown could use the prayers too.  She hasn't played for 4 years.

Other than that, life is somewhat normal.  We have a baptism on Christmas day night.  And we're working hard to find more people to teach.  We're also trying to clean things up and organize everything for this coming year - cleaning out folders, helping ward mission leaders write ward mission plans and all kinds of fun stuff. 

We also found out on Wednesday that there have been a few changes in our mission culture.  The  main one and more shocking of the few changes made is that we're not allowed to use object lessons anymore.  The mission leaders have decided that physical presentations like that are meant more to make people agree with what we're saying than inviting the spirit onto the lessons.  I can see what they're saying, but I still will miss all of the awesome object lessons I've learned so far.

Mom- Thanks for the package!  I am so excited for Christmas! WOOT!  WOOT!  Sister Davenport is being a good guard of the gifts so that I'm not tempted to open them.  I haven't heard anything about the phone call home yet.  I'm still waiting to hear about it.  I suspect President will talk to uson Thursday about it.  Our mission gets to to go the temple this week with Pres. and Sis. Ellsworth.  Oh, will you please tell the RS that I said hi and Thanks for the card?

Dad - I overheard someone say something about a shower.  A man last night saw a shooting star as I was talking to him.  It was pretty cool.

Eric - the baptism for Christmas was our commitment this week.  We're meeting with a lot of less actives and recent converts these days, but we're diligently searching for more people to commit to baptism.  We tried to arrange a time we could do an activity with the youth like you suggested, but the stake is doing roadshows and practicing on Wednesday nights, so we're gonna have to wait 'til later in like March to approach the idea again.

Lynz - I GOT YOUR LETTER! YAY!  I'm gonna try to write to  you today.

Sister D'Addabbo - This is your SHOUT OUT!  I love you.  And don't worry - no one has left us out standing on the porch in the cold ;-)

Ok. Well, that's about it for now.  I still have to write my weekly email to Pres. Ellsworth, so I must need leave to do so.  I love you all.  BEAR HUGS FOR ALLL!!!!

Love,
me