HOLY COW!!!!

I was laughing when I signed on today. I got more e-mails today than almost the last 9 months combined. If I would have known that coming home would produce mail...I would have threatened a long time ago! :)

Well, this week has been a good one. Actually these last 2 days have been rockin! We found a family! They are great! But we are a little worried because we are being shotgunned out! I am obviously going home, but Sister Huddleston is being sent to Norfolk to be with Sis. Harsh! They are going to be sooooo great there! I have had the feeling that this area would be better for elders for a while now. The vast majority to those we are working with are single men. It will really be good for the ward too. I have loved the Innsbrook ward. They really are amazing people. They remind me a lot of the old 10th ward...I don't remember what the new name is...

It has been very strange to spend my last transfer in a well-off area. The streets are so clean and nice. It was a little foreign. I have loved all of my areas. Yesterday, President asked me if I were extending and could choose any area to go to, where would I choose? I asked him if that was an offer...but I really had the HARDEST time trying to pick between EC, H'Burg, and Salem. It has been very interesting for me on the mission. I just LOVE where I am and would be totally content never leaving. But the Lord has other plans...which I am very grateful for. If I were in charge, I would have spent my entire mission with Sis. Thomas up in H'Burg. And I would have missed out on being companions with some of the most amazing women I have ever met in my life! I have been so grateful for Katelyn, Chaliece, Alicia, Megan, Sis. Moss, Sis. Hopoate, Sarah, Sis. Phillips, and Sis. Huddleston and I claim Sis. Sowards and Sis. Orawiec (They are part of the family!). The greatest lessons I've learned on my mission about myself were from my companions. The greatest lessons I learned on my mission about the gospel has been from investigators! I have loved my mission! By golly, I love being a missionary! So as I come home, I am just trying to keep in mind what the Lord has taught me about transfers...it is HIS work! And HE knows what is best for me. If he wanted me to be on my mission now, he would have called me later. I just love this work! Hermana Ribera has a quote that says, "the mission field is where the Lord gets to know you." I think it's a little different. I think the mission field is where you get to know how much the Lord knows you and what He sees in you. I have often seen RMs be really cocky. I thought it was a little strange, but now I think I understand that it wasn't confidence in themselves, it is the confidence that comes from knowing WHO you are and WHAT the Lord expects from you. I love the part in the Bible Dictionary under Prayer where it says that once we understand our relationship with God, our prayers change. I think that is what the mission has done. It has helped me better understand my relationship with God. And because of that...nothing about me is the same!...well, except for my striking blue eyes :)

As far as what else is going on with transfers...I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited! Sis. Miller, Sis. Sowards, and Sis. James are training! Yes, that is right...my grandbaby is training!!!! Sis. James has fulfilled my deepest desire! I get to meet my great grandbaby tomorrow! Because Sis. Huddleston is riding the transfer van, I get to see all the people training and meet the new missionaries. There is an Elder Abbott coming in this transfer that I'm excited to meet. He's from Rigby, ID, so I doubt there is any connection unless it's through Abigail Smith Abbott back in the day. Anyway, Sis. Hopoate is also riding the transfer van, SO Sis. Orawiec and I get to be comps for the day!!! How sweet is that?! But I was told that I have to report a couple hours early to the mission home, so we get 2 hours less than we would have! Oh, and Sister Phillips and Sister Moss are going to be companions!!!!! That is going to be SOOOO good for both of them! Out of all of my comps, if I had to pick the two with the most fire and zeal for the work, it would be them. I don't think Newport News will know what to do with all that amazingness that will be happening! And quite frankly, it really isn't fair to the adversary! But that is ok! The only bummer is that Sis. Phillips won't be at the Salem ward when i am there on Sunday. I'm pretty sad about that, but I can write her in a couple weeks, so I'm not crying!

This week the weather has been perfect! And by perfect I mean it is great because it is sooooooo different than AZ. It has been raining, snowing, and freezing rain for the last 3 days! My companion has been laughing so hard at me. But I JUST LOVE IT!!! I love VA! And it is going to be in 30-40s all this week. So dress warm mom and dad! I know that I didn't used to have blood but I think it thickened up! Although, I have been getting these burns on my hands that my comp calls "dry rashes"...but I still claim I was burned!

Oh, I can't believe I almost forgot! I have gone almost 19 months on my mission and this last Sunday was the very first time that I heard the, "Oh, Sister Abbott...we had a speaker cancel. Can you speak in about an hour..." I had to laugh! It was so perfect! I ended up not really even speaking although I thought of about 17 different talks to give throughout the meeting. It ended up that I only had about 2 min...just enough time to bear my testimony! I am excited to go back to EC and Salem for fast and testimony meeting. You just never know what to expect with those, ya know?! It'll be great!

I love you all and will write again next week...probably NOT on a Wednesday!

Love,
Sister Abbott