The Last Email!

Well this is bittersweet. I have a mixture of emotions but  even though I´m a little nervous I have faith in the future and know that this new chapter of my life will be a marvelous one. I am excited to put into practice all of the things I´ve learned while on my mission and to keep progressing to become more and more like Christ. 

Sunday I was able to bear my farewell testimony to the ward and I was able to keep in together until I sat back down in my seat, then the tears came. I can´t believe that was my last Sunday. This is my last Pday and that it is all coming to an end. It still hasn´t dawned on me yet. As I pack my bags it feels more like I am just being transferred like usual, nothing out of the ordinary. I am calm and at peace and I think that is an answer to my many prayers. 

I have seen a lot of miracles and trials, I have cried and laughed more than ever before, I have been exhausted, excited, on the point of throwing in the towel. When people tell you that missions are like a roller coaster, they are exactly right. But it´s a ride that has taken me to greater heights and I hope to never come down. Actually, I will never come down, I will work to just keep going up from here.

Enduring to the end, I have learned, is probably the hardest concept to actually live in the gospel but it makes all the difference. I have learned that in moments of trials and crisis, when we feel like all is lost is when God works miracles. But we have to hold on to our faith during those trials. I have learned that God blesses us for every act of obedience, for every good choice we make. Obedience always always always brings blessings. I have learned that love is the most important principle of the gospel, that people, souls, are the most important thing and that God is aware of each and every one of us. 

I have learned thousands of things but most importantly I have learned that Jesus Christ is my personal Savior, that he LIVES, and that the atonement is REAL. It has worked in my mission and in my life. I am a better person because he lives, all the change that I have made has been possible because of Him. I have learned to rely on him in ways that I never have experienced before and I know that each and every time I have taken the sacrament he has given me a part of His grace to accomplish his will and plan for me. 

I love this gospel, I love Joseph Smith, and I love the Savior. I loved the trials and experiences I have been given here in Spain because they have helped me grow. I truly feel like I am coming home a woman and a disciple of my Lord Jesus Christ. 

Thank you for all your support, letters, packages, prayers, encouragement, love, and faith in me. You have all helped me along my journey and I am forever grateful for you. See you all soon! I love you!

Hermana Thompson

 

Pepi

      

Sara

Cloti

 

ward mission leader, Antonio

Jorge and Olga

Valvi and Manolito

2nd to last email! :O

As my time here in the mission is coming to an end it seems to get more and more difficult. In the sense that everyone talks to you about home and asks you about your plans and so it´s a constant battle to bring you mind back into focus and to keep the range of your emotions to a minimum. It´s all very strange and it barely seems real. My life for the past year and a half has been the mission and it´s hard to imagine that it will go on afterwards. I am excited, nervous, scared, happy, sad- a mixture that is hard to describe. I have been getting updates from the sisters from my group that have all gone home and they are all doing well so it puts my mind at ease (if not a little bit more Trunkey hahaha jk). 

This week we had my last zone meeting (weird) and I, along with 3 elders, had to give my "dying" testimony. Talk about hard. I have been thinking about the day I would have to do that in front of everyone with dread, but it wasn´t so bad after all and now it´s all over :) but it hit me even harder that this is real and it was kind of a sad day for me. I will share what I said in my testimony in my last email next week. 

Isi and Cloti are both doing really well. Isi has been working in the primary and Cloti has found her niche among some of the older ladies in the ward. Right now we need new investigators. We have been working mostly with less actives and found some new ones this week so that was one of our mini miracles. All of our plans continue to fall through so we are walking a lot lately. (As if I wasn´t tired enough haha, the last trial before I finish I suppose). 

Sunday, Jorge´s (the 2nd counselor) son got baptized, so us 4 missionaries did a musical number and it was a pretty baptismal service and made me think of Hailey and Nate since they have both gotten baptized during this year and a half. Time is seriously flying.

Well I love you all! Keep praying for me please! I´ll need it this week :) 

Hermana Thompson

ps- photos! 

me with my sister training leaders

Hermana Camacho

Hermana Cameron

 

Double Baptism!

Well from the title you can tell that Cloti got baptized and one of the elders investigators as well, Ana. This week we had interviews with the president and then later a zone training with him, I absolutely love Pres. Deere, I´m convinced he´s the best mission president in the world. Wed-Thurs we had exchanges with the sister training leaders and Thursday night was the baptism, and afterwards there was a ward BBQ. It´s been quite an awesome week actually. Sunday they both got confirmed and everyone is happy and healthy! 

When we did weekly planning this week I was writing down the dates and it hit me that this weeks ends on the 7th and that only leaves me 10 days! I don´t know what came over me but I couldn´t help it, I started to cry a bit and inside I was freaking out. Hna. Volpe is so sweet, she was all worried like , "are you okay Hermana?" I just told her that I guess I´m a bit weird and that she should prepare herself for more emotional mood swings as the time winds down. It´s altogether a mixture of feelings. 

The baptism didn´t have a much people as Isi´s (but I think that would be impossible) but it was a success! Cloti is so cute, she always is prepared and says funny little things. It was a quite the complication moving it to Thursday though. The bishop and RS pres. thought it would be better to do it before the BBQ so we had to do a lot of last minutes changes. And Ana didn´t officially decide to get baptized until the day before so you can imagine the rush. 

LOVE YOU ALL!

Hermana Thompson

                   Added this photo as a request from the Mission Blog

The Hermanas of San Fernando:  Hermanas Bangerter, Flanders, Perez, Thompson, Johnson, Volpe, Camacho, Cameron, Giler and Brown.

 

ps- photos!

*Hna. Volpe, Cloti, Me

*Elder Queirolo, Elder Richardson, Ana, Cloti, me, Hna. Volpe

 

 Love the White….