Wow! I love this!!

Hello FAM! and FRIENDS! and all of you that i LOVE!

I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I really do. I can't believe that time is flying by so fast. Weeks feel like days, and days feel like weeks. That's how it works. Macau is the best place on earth, I'm convinced. I'm really loving the people and loving the work that I'm doing. Despite all these challenges, I can look back on my life before and see how much I've already grown. I hope and pray that I'll continue to grow and that when I get back, I won't be the same person! (as Jeffrey R. Holland tells us missionaries, we CAN'T be the same person!) I will be a much, much better version of myself.

Daddy, I have the BEST story for you! It was the most wonderful tender mercy the Lord gave me this week. You know that framed picture of Jesus Christ I have that Shauna Jensen's mom gave to me in Primary? I've kept it all these years, i love it. I took it to college with me and now it's on my desk here in Macau, halfway across the world. Anyway, there is "The Living Christ" in the back of the picture and I decided one morning for personal study I would read that. I got it out from behind my picture and saw a piece of paper that said "PRIVATE" on it in little kid red marker. I got it out and you know what it was?..... a Valentine's note from you, Dad, from when i was 10! Oh man, it was the sweetest little note! You said, "Shay, I can't believe you are TEN! Where have the years gone! You are such a beautiful young lady inside and out. I am so proud of who you are becoming. You are really trying to help me and Mom in a lot of ways. I love how you love to read. That is such a good thing for you to do. Always quest after knowledge. Shaylee, I love you so much. I hope you will always want to share your feelings with me. I am here whenever you want to talk. Please be my Valentine! Love you. Love, Dad." I cried. Not because I was sad or because I missed you, but because that is SO sweet. The note is so sweet, and it's so sweet that I held it so dear at 10 years old that I wrote "private" on it and stashed it behind my picture of the Savior. It was a very tender moment and one that I won't ever forget. Dad, I love you so much. Thanks for everything you do for me.

Mom, your questions! I LOVED that email, by the way. Thank you for sending me stuff. That is so nice. I feel so bad it was so expensive. I sure love you. Thank you for supporting me! I love you, I love you, I love you!!

1. The lice are coming okay. I feel like they're getting less and less. I'm not combing bugs out anymore, just eggs, and I'm excited to get your pkg so I can get rid of the eggs too!

2. 6 girls, yep. Before I came there were only 4 girls in this apartment, so yes it's VERY crowded. But we do okay! Haha. We don't really eat together, we're all busy doing different things and have dinner at different times/different places. Sometimes if we're all at the church we have lunch together and watch cheesy 90's Mormon movies (What is Real, On the Way Home, Together Forever) during lunch. Those times are the best :) Other times we're eating with investigators. We LIVE at the church. You don't really knock doors here (but you can in Macau - only place in HK you can knock doors) so we mostly teach lessons at the church.

3. My mission pres and wife are the most amazing people in the world. I love them SO much and look up to both of them. They are endlessly patient, kind, and understanding. They have so many good insights and so many good things to say! This week was Branch Conf for our little branch and so we got to see Pres and Sis Hawks yesterday! it was awesome. Pres Hawks spoke about his vision for Macau in 10 years - 2 stakes! Right now Macau only has 2 branches. Oh man, he pumped us up so much! Idk about the members, but us missionaries, whooo! We have so much work to do! :) it's AWESOME!

4. My branch is awesome! They kind of have been having some difficulties with unity in the branch, but I'm hoping that I can help in some way. this week has been really good for me. I feel like I know everyone's name (only 70ish active members) and I can start up a conversation! Not as many people speak English as I thought before I came. But through body language we can communicate haha :) I really love the members. They're awesome. This week we're getting ready for a BIG exhibition about the church! We've been getting ready for it this whole time, I think I just forgot to tell you. We have all these banners about the Church and we're going on Saturday to this park and staying there from 1-6pm. The missionaries will be doing to Plan of Salvation display. We're excited about it! I hope a lot of members show up. They need to get fired up about missionary work here. The branch president is AWESOME, though. He's maybe 25? He's so nice and speaks really good English so that's good. He has a little baby girl. the whole branch presidency is really young with young families. I think they're good for the branch though. President Chan (BP) is so good about helping us missionaries. He remembers well what missionary life is like and he's always good about asking me how I'm doing. He really cares. I like him a lot.

5. Cantonese is..... coming. I feel like it's coming better and better but it's still really hard. I write down all new words in a little notebook that I keep in my bag all the time. that helps. My companion is good about helping me learn new things. I feel pretty comfortable (usually) in lessons, it's just during finding that I don't know what anyone's saying. It's funny... well, not funny. I'll say "Leih hou!" and people will look at me, look at my nametag, shake their head, say "Msai" (no need), and walk away. I want to say, "Msai what? All i said was hi!"

We have increased our number of investigators from one to six this week! MIRACLE! Seriously. Sister Lau is always telling me how she can't believe how fast the work is progressing. It's not us, either. It's the Lord, hastening His work! It's absolutely INCREDIBLE to be a part of it.

This week we found C. in our book of former investigators and gave her a call. She agreed to come meet us at the church. She was a really nice woman, middle aged, and right away asked us about our conversion stories. I started to say that I've grown up in the church, and she interrupted and said, "You've never questioned? Never been to another church?" I said no. I started to bear my testimony that doing the little things my whole life, like reading my scriptures and praying and attending church, has helped me to know without a doubt that this church is true, and she wouldn't hear it. I didn't understand what she was saying but I could tell that she thought I was naive. I felt really bad. I brought it up to Sister Lau later and she said, "yeah, I wanted her to realize that it's a process that everyone goes through, and you made it sound like you just grew up in the church and never had to find out." Wow, that made me feel really bad. So for a few days after that, I was questioning myself. Is my testimony as valid as other people's, who have had crazy awesome experiences where they BOOOM, all of a sudden, knew it was true? Do I need to kneel down and ask Heavenly Father if it's true? I don't think I ever have. Well, this went on for a few days. It was really bothering me. One personal study, I knelt and prayed, "Heavenly Father, I know this church is true. I don't think I need to ask you. But please help me feel comfort in this. Please help me to know that I am okay." And I started reading the BOM. {PS. If anyone wonders whether or not the BOM is true, oh my goodness. Read it. It will answer any and every question you have. I know that.} I was reading in Alma 32 and it talks about whoever is compelled to be humble is good, but who humbles themselves without having to be compelled is better. And it also says whosoever knows the word of God without having to be compelled is better off that he who has to be compelled to know. (something like that, i can't remember exactly, it's like verse 16). Direct answer to my prayer. Then I got thinking about D&C 6 when the Lord is telling Oliver Cowdery, "Remember that night when you inquired of me? Why do you want a further witness? Did I not speak peace to your mind concerning the matter?" I am like Oliver Cowdery. I have never needed to ask the Lord whether this church is true, because I've come to know that it is through reading my scriptures, learning the gospel, praying, attneding church.... all these little things have added up. I know the church is true with all my heart, and it's okay that I haven't had a huge Alma the Younger-like experience. I don't need it. The Lord is satisfied with my efforts :) I'm okay. That was such a miraculous experience for me. I'm so grateful for the scriptures and how the Lord comforts us through the scriptures.

Some things I have learned:

- how to change sheets like a PRO. I change them every single night! I can do it with my eyes closed.

- Cockroach in my cereal? No big deal. pick it out and keep eating. Didn't even freak out.

- Showering twice a day is necessary. At the end of the day you're so sweaty that if you don't shower, you'll wake up really itchy because of your sweat.

- ALWAYS carry around tissues. Not for crying. Not for runny noses. For wiping the sweat off your face, neck, arms..... everyone carries tissues here. Crazy.

- The people here carry umbrellas, rain or shine. My companion thinks i'm crazy because I don't "protect my skin from the sun." Well I like the sun!! Even though it's hot, it rains a lot here and I really miss the blue sky. When it's blue, I'm gonna enjoy it! :)

- Keep our bedroom door open during the day or mold will grow on the walls. Yuck.

- There is no such thing as too many prayers. I pray probably 100 times a day.

I have the best family on the earth. I love you so much. You wouldn't believe how many other sister missionaries have asked me, "did your family actually have family prayer and scripture study?" I'm so proud to say yes! So many times I think of you and what a blessing you are to me. I love you all so, so, so much. Xoxoxoxoxoxo FOREVER!

Love,
Shay

PS. Write me letters! Like real ones. They're fun to get :)