Love thy neighbor

So it really is to funny when you need to get a message in your head and then Sunday talks are exactly what you need to hear. Saturday I was commenting to some of my husband's family how I feel thankful that I don't know my neighbors and I don't have them bothering me. We don't have a relationship. But then again deep down a hello or two would be nice.
Today the Sunday lesson had bits about loving thy neighbor. Even the pain in the butt ones who ha be wronged us. That's what Heavenly Father wants from us. As hard as it is to do a smile can go a long way.
I moved into the house my papa raised his family in and myself in some ways. Most of these neighbors have not moved or changed. Since moving no one has really gotten to know us except some people on another street while we shopped at a garage sale. They were nice but since it's just Andrew and I in The home no one has paid much attention. So it's hard to put yourself out there and be like "hello! I am supposed to love you my wonderful neighbor!" How do we bridge the gaps? Well for us we will be trying to meet more people this weekend at our annual neighborhood picnic. There are many ways we can say hello, help a neighbor, and show compassion for others.

Keeping the HOPE

This week in relief society it was a lesson all about keeping the hope just when you do not think you can. Or defying the odds and still remaining hopeful. These are two big things. there are many times in my life where I have honestly felt hopeless. And there have been times where I still have remained to keep some ounce of hope alive.  If you have read other posts you can see I write a lot about my loss of Matthew and I had a more recent loss this past april. After I lost Matthew two years ago I had lost all hope. I turned away from my faith a little bit and wasn't sure what to do. This time around(I was now a member of the LDS church) I felt like ok this is a bump in the road but it was just not my time yet. I remained hopeful because I had scriptures to turn to. I had Ensign (A church magazine) articles to turn to for hope. And most of all my family and church friends. The elders knew about the loss and Elder Kelly was able to give me a beautiful blessing. This loss happened to be during the time I planned a trip out to Buffalo to see him. Heavenly Father knew I needed to see my good friend and needed his helpful words of comfort through a blessing. I am not saying for everyone church helps get throughout tough times...but for me and many others out there...its the best thing. I didn't turn my back on Heavenly Father this time around. I knew he was there right with me. I have seen many blessings come after these losses and have been so grateful.

We all have battles we are facing that no other person can truly understand what you are going through. This point really rings true with me in the sense of my studies and passion for human rights. I studied a lot about the Holocaust and have interviewed many many survivors. No two stories are ever the same.  They could have been from the same family, yet they felt things differently and experienced many differences. I am always humbled by these survivors and their sense of continued hope. It really makes me put my life into perspective.

It was great to hear so many sisters share stories of hope. One sister had a husband who was very ill a couple of years ago, and she struggled. However knowing in her heart that they would be reunited again in the future in the kingdom of Heaven made her mind have some ease.
This made me think of my two babies in heaven. I will be reunited with them and I will be the mom to Matthew that I was supposed to be. That gives me such a sense of hope that I do need to continue my everyday life. I know when I have kids in the future they will be blessed with the best guardian angels around.

The sisters in the church are so strong and are such great examples to me. I once was in a lesson about baptism and I just thought of my big day coming up in the temple. I will be having Elder Kelly step in for Matthew and he will be sealed to Andrew and myself. I left the room that day balling because the emotions were so real and it was a struggle to keep my emotions quiet. Two sisters, one of them who taught the lesson soon came to find me to ease my thoughts and make sure I was ok. They are so sweet and really think about others. I love feeling loved and cared about , especially by fellow church members. So a big thank you to those two beautiful sisters who came to check on me that day. I keep my hope strong today because of moments like that.

By Now

By now I should be used to saying goodbye at transfer time. But this week in particular I have one friend going home from his mission, another transferring to a new area, and two friends from out of the area heading back home tomorrow. Stress is something I do not need right now...does anyone really need stress? I guess I am not alone. But these people have changed my life. I stated tonight that the worst part of being a Mormon was saying goodbye to amazing friends who are missionaries. I really give so much credit to families of missionaries. Or even our troops. I dislike change and letting them leave for so long is difficult. I love my faith and I know without this big piece of me I would not have met these wonderful people. Especially Bre and Yessi, and their friendship. We met only a couple short months ago but have created a great bond. Having them here even for a short time is such a great thing. It is nice having younger members in our ward.

Speaking of the ward there has been much change. I was actually given a new calling. (Calling is basically your job within the church to help make it better.) My new calling is in the relief society(one of the oldest female organizations who help others and are active in their communities) and I will be the secretary and sit on the presidency. This is a great  honor. I was so humbled to be asked. I know I am being guided to such great roles in my church.

Last week too my sister was able to attend camp for young women. She really enjoyed herself and ever wants to go next year! She continues to read her scriptures and seek for herself if this is the right path for her. It is beautiful to share this. Even if its not really for her the fact that she will learn more about it and check it out is great. She shows great tolerance of others, and compassion.


This week is also filled with many hellos. We say hello to our new exchange student tomorrow evening. This marks a great new beginning! And we had our final walk through with our home study to become foster parents.

Never goodbye

Saying goodbye can be one of the hardest things to do. Whether a friend's or family member. Or even perhaps someone you met recently and still want around. I had to say goodbye(or rather a see ya later) to Mathieu my previous exchange student two weeks ago as he headed back home. It was a great experience catching up and seeing New parts of the US and even Niagra Falls Canada together. Friends can come and go like bus boys in a restaurant(if you name the movie you are forever a friend) but those who come back or stick around are worth it.

We got invited to our second Mormon wedding out in Utah! One of the sister missionaries who served at my ward went back home and the love of her life proposed. I really hope we can share in their happy day! That's one hello anyone can live with.