Surprise!!! Transferred

Dear Family,

Ribfest!

Well, in speaking of this week, I am going kind of backwards. I'll start off with the biggest shock of my whole mission!!! (I don't know if it's THE biggest, but it was pretty surprising). 

So Saturday was a pretty busy day, we had seen Lashaya, and went to visit some people, found a new investigator, and all day I felt like "Wow, I am just so happy being here. I am so grateful!" I was riding my bike and just looking around and I felt like the luckiest girl in the world! Of course, having biked all day, we were pretty gross by the end of the night, so after planning, I took a shower. Still thinking how happy I was, and also what a miracle it is that we have met Lashaya and how well she is doing (I'll talk more about that later). Then I get out of the shower and Sister Carter was on the phone with our district leader and I thought "That's weird! It's not our call-in day" Then just a few minutes later she said "Sister Adams... you're leaving" I thought she certainly must be joking, but Sister Carter really is not the type to just say something like that for fun....

 *cue the crying* 

Ok, I promise I don't cry THAT much on my mission... except for recently.. But as soon as it really sunk in I just cried and cried and cried!! The biggest reason being that Lashaya is going to get baptized in 2 weeks!! And we still don't have someone that can communicate with her! I just kept saying "what are we going to do!!" while grabbing a blanket, tissues, etc. whatever I could dry my tears with as fast as they were coming down! It was pitiful :) I couldn't sleep very well that night either. I just was not expecting being transferred AT ALL! Like I always get a little nervous around the weekend before transfers, but this one I was 100% sure I would stay. I didn't even think about transfers one bit, until I found out I was leaving!! Wow. So many questions going through my mind. When I got transferred from Colfax, I definitely felt like it was time to move on, and I was fully expecting it. I had started to feel my heart going somewhere else. But my heart was still fully planted in Winston-Salem!! Every transfer is different though :) So I prayed a lot and I feel a lot better about it now.

Yesterday in church I sang "I Know that My Redeemer Lives" - the exact same arrangement that I sang at my farewell almost exactly this time last year! Neat, huh?? It went really well! It was a crazy sacrament meeting, interpreting, getting up and singing, and then right back to interpreting. We also had another investigator come to see me sing, and then an investigator we met several weeks ago but he hadn't contacted us back. He just showed up! 

Sister Carter and I joked that this transfer for me started out with crying and a huge surprise (me losing my iPad, and then getting to be companions with Sister Carter again) and ended the same way! (being transferred. Oh and I also lost my scriptures. But I am getting them back today. I am usually a very responsible person.... I promise.) 

Telling people I was leaving was sad, but I also felt so grateful too. I have been able to work with some AMAZING people. Earlier this week I was just so emotional thinking about the gratitude for the ward members. The things they do, whether they seem big or small, really is a sacrifice for them. We do this full-time, with no distractions, but when they take time out of their already busy lives, it just amazes me. In Relief Society I had the chance to thank the sisters for all their help and then went on to say that we now need all the help we can get with Lashaya getting ready to be baptized. (This is said all with tears) and Sis. Faulkner was so sweet and thanked me for helping them feel like they could all really be a part of missionary work. I was surprised at some of the teary goodbyes that ward members gave me and for the comments they made to me! (Several people were really upset and even wanting to call the mission president! All of us are just wondering "what are we going to do with Lashaya??") We called President Craven after church to just ask if he had any suggestions as to what to do with me being transferred, and before he said anything else he said that he is fully aware of the situation and the Lord is as well, and that me being transferred is completely what Heavenly Father wants, no question about it. 

So I've decided this - Heavenly Father loves Lashaya infinitely. So so much. So I know for a fact that He truly needs me elsewhere, or else He would have left me here to help her. Sometimes on your mission you just want so badly for things to happen a certain way because you love the people you are working with, and I think I get into this mind-frame sometimes like we are the only ones pulling for them. But that couldn't be more wrong! He is pulling for them more than all of us combined! So I know things will work out. I told Lashaya that I was leaving on Tuesday and she said that she is really sad, and I asked her if she is still going to go to church and be baptized without me here, and she said "YES! Don't worry about me at all! I WILL be getting baptized on June 21st!" So that's good enough for me :) Of course, they'll have to keep making sure that we figure out solutions for her and the communication, but she is willing so the Lord will find a way. 

Whew. It's been a whirlwind, that's for sure. Last night we also got a call from the Assistants, and I didn't recognize the voice of the Elder I was talking to, because a new one had been called since the last time. He asked if I could sing at transfers, and went on to explain that he remembered me in high school singing, so he thought it would be a good idea to ask me. I was thinking "Who in the world is this???" Trying to think of all the people from Herriman and Riverton in the mission. Haha. It was Elder Keegan Call. So anyway, I'm singing at transfers tomorrow the same song I sang yesterday! Hopefully I can hold it together as well as I did yesterday! 

Wow. I am just so happy I have had the chance to serve here. It was SO hard for me at first here. So hard. It still is a challenge, but I have been able to see so many miracles happen in 4 months! Things with missionary work in the ward really have changed. I owe it all to the Savior and Heavenly Father, because I had zero ideas of what to do when I got here. They gave me ALL the ideas :) 

Hahaha. I am such a dramatic person sometimes. I always tell Sister Carter it must be obvious that I did drama in high school ;) 

Other less-dramatic things from this week:

-I got TERRIBLE allergies on Wednesday and Thursday. So so bad. We ended up staying in most of Wednesday. It was disgusting... 

-We went to a RIB-FEST!! Haha. We had dinner with the Wilson's (one of my favorite families in the ward) and they took us to a rib-fest. People come from around the U.S. and compete. They were super good!!

-Tuesday was a busy day: we walked and rode the bus everywhere. It makes me feel like such a city-slicker, being able to get myself around without a car ;) We walked to an appointment, walked to the bus stop, rode to down town and had an early dinner with an investigator at the "Mellow Mushroom" (such a hip name ;) and then rode the bus to try and help some members with moving, and then walked to visit a less-active couple, who drove us home. I think that all the walking that day made me have terrible allergies the next day. And because there were 3 cats that were around at 2 of the appointments -_-

-Also, I am sending home some things today. A few scarves, the pink skirt mom sent, and the old grey one, and a few other random things :) I really should try and find something cute I can send that is North Carolina-ish! 

Alright. I'll think of more to say later probably. I am off to go get my scriptures back...

I know that this really is Heavenly Father's work! He truly is in charge, even when things appear to us to not make sense. I am confident that He will help me wherever I go! Yay for Heather graduating!! I kept thinking about her this week :) Did you all read the Book of Mormon this week? I read in Alma 19 this morning about Abish running house to house, trying to do the Lord's work, and then everything seems to go wrong and so she cries, but she keeps persevering and continues to work miracles! I hope I can be like Abish! :)

Love you!! Thank you for the prayers! 

Sister Adams