Dear Momma,
We went down to the Copenhagen temple with the ward on Friday. I'm really glad you and I were able to go together, in a way. That was really nice. It did help my spirit feel rested and fed. It's the most peaceful I've felt for a long time. I don fell like it lifted me up a little bit. Them we walked all over Copenhagen for the afternoon. I showed Sister V The Kristus and the Little Mermaid. We ate at KFC, and it was heavenly it have real American food (even if they did charge us for the ketchup). I think we walked a hundred blocks down there (and ran between 10 and 15 because were were late getting back to the group). Not kidding. I counted them on the map afterward. I'm so sore and stiff, and Sister V's got huge blisters. Speaking of soreness - we had apartment inspections last week, and when the couple saw that I was sleeping on a box spring (yes, I've been sleeping on a box spring for the last 5 months), they decided that just wouldn't do. So they got me a little pad to put on top of it. I'm actually surprised at how much better it feels now. I think I've slept a little better with it.
How're things going there? I'm getting along. We had a conversation with a member last week that gave me some food for thought. She was talking about how important it is that we don't just know truths, but that we feel them. She said it's not enough to have an intellectual testimony. Without feeling our testimonies in our hearts, we don't want to share it with others, and we don't really have anything to give. And I realized that, whether she knew it or not, she was talking about me. I finally understood what's been wrong with me. We all know that before my mission, I was a pure, undiluted bundle of emotions running wild. Highs, lows, and everything in between; I wore it all out on my sleeve for the world to see. I think my emotions started dying last December, and it's been a slow process. When I got the news that Casey had died, I was told I would go back to work the next day, and I should just do the work and do my best to act like nothing was wrong. "It's best that no one knows about this," he said. I've been hiding what I think and feel ever since. "You and your companion are a team. You have to work together an make everyone believe you get along, even though you hate each other. It's not about you, so on one should know you're having a bad day. You can't be upset because everyone who sees you has to see how happy the gospel makes you. You don't have time to be upset anyway. That's just going to have to wait until next year, along with everything you care about..." Nate's been telling me all year not to bottle up my emotions. I wish it could've been easier advice to follow. This just wasn't the time and place to let them show. Now I don't feel much at all, except the negative that's built up for long. The feelings are gone, and my testimony's going with them. I'm trying to get it back. I'm doing my best to pray for it and study, nut I don't know how to make myself feel. I guess it's going to take some time. In the mean time, I'm just trying my best to do what I'm told. Do the work. Make the time go faster. Resist the negative thoughts. I gave a talk yesterday in church, based off of Elder Holland's talk "The Peaceable Things of the Kingdom." (It's a very good talk.) I really am looking for peace and help. I'm doing my best.
I'm glad you can see from Lyle's experience that getting revenge won't make anything even. It won't really help. God's the only one who can really make things fair, and He will.
I don't want to wait a week after I'm home to get released. I don't want to have a babysitter, and I don't want to feel guilty about listening to music or talking to friends online or watching movies or whatever. And, yes, go ahead and make appointment. That place that Stephen Mallow said was going to be a problem before I left has gotten pretty bad, and I've got other bad spots too. Can we just pull out all my teeth and get pretty new ones screwed in instead?
Coat size... No idea. I'm a dress size 6, I think. Sometimes an 8, depending on the dress. You know they vary a little. Are coats the same? You also asked about length a while ago. Between the hips and the knees somewhere. I just want it to cover my bum.
One last thing, yesterday was Swedish Father's Day, so tell Rich "Grattis Fars Gag!" for me. Also tell him I said "Jag alskar dig jattemycket!" (That means "Happy Father's Day!" and "I love you very much!") Jag alskar dig oksa, Mamma. :) Have a great week.
Love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Re: Momma
Dear Momma,
Well, if I had been allowed to come home as I requested, I would be flying home this week. I'm trying to think that nine more weeks will be over soon. I've had a few other requests denied this week. I asked the travel office to fly me into Charlottesville, VA instead of DC when I go home. That flopped. I'm still flying into DC on the 12th of January, and I'll get there just in time to hit rush-hour traffic, so we should be on the road for several hours getting home, then several more getting down to President Carter. I'm going to bite Amanda Jeffrey (the travel office worker I spoke with) if I ever meet her.
I talked to mission president's wife about some of the things that have been bothering me physically. She told me to go see a dentist and go get the spot on my back checked at a health clinic (she said it's better to know that it's nothing than wonder). Mission finances don't cover dental stuff, so I guess that's really up to you. I did go to a health clinic about the spot. Before they'd let me set up an appointment or anything, they had a nurse take a look at the spot. She looked at it for about 3 seconds, then said 'Don't worry about it. You've got lots of other moles.' To which I said, 'I know, but that one looks different.' Her response: 'Yes, well... It's nothing. By the way have it checked when you're back in the United States.' ........I hate socialist healthcare. Just so you know, if I die of untreated melanoma, you'll want to sue a nurse named Justina, who works in Viktoria Kliniken in Halmstad.
I've been feeling a little cranky this morning. Okay, I've been feeling cranky for most of my life, but I have just been especially down lately. I'm just tired and homesick, and my companion irritates the crap out of me. She just skips around singing about sunshine and yammering about how wonderful and 'meant to be' everything is. It just makes me want to throw a big stick in front of her bike and watch her go flying or pour paint in her hair when we're doing service projects. I know. I'm a jerk. I do appreciate your uplifting thoughts. Keep sending them, as much as you can. I need them.
I can tell you about one positive thing that happened this week. We had All Saints Day. Swedes (and maybe Europeans too, I don't know) have the most wonderful tradition - they go out to the cemeteries on All Saints Day and light candles on the graves of their loved ones. It's the most beautiful thing, and Halmstad happens to have the prettiest cemetery I've ever been in. We spent about an hour just walking around the cemetery, looking at the candles. It was very soothing. It felt like I was sharing a few moments with Casey. I'm glad his stone has finally come and that it looks so nice.
My companion wants to go now, so I need to get off. I love you bunches, Mom. I hope you have a great week. I'll be praying hard, and I hope you'll be doing the same. I love you.
Love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
Well, if I had been allowed to come home as I requested, I would be flying home this week. I'm trying to think that nine more weeks will be over soon. I've had a few other requests denied this week. I asked the travel office to fly me into Charlottesville, VA instead of DC when I go home. That flopped. I'm still flying into DC on the 12th of January, and I'll get there just in time to hit rush-hour traffic, so we should be on the road for several hours getting home, then several more getting down to President Carter. I'm going to bite Amanda Jeffrey (the travel office worker I spoke with) if I ever meet her.
I talked to mission president's wife about some of the things that have been bothering me physically. She told me to go see a dentist and go get the spot on my back checked at a health clinic (she said it's better to know that it's nothing than wonder). Mission finances don't cover dental stuff, so I guess that's really up to you. I did go to a health clinic about the spot. Before they'd let me set up an appointment or anything, they had a nurse take a look at the spot. She looked at it for about 3 seconds, then said 'Don't worry about it. You've got lots of other moles.' To which I said, 'I know, but that one looks different.' Her response: 'Yes, well... It's nothing. By the way have it checked when you're back in the United States.' ........I hate socialist healthcare. Just so you know, if I die of untreated melanoma, you'll want to sue a nurse named Justina, who works in Viktoria Kliniken in Halmstad.
I've been feeling a little cranky this morning. Okay, I've been feeling cranky for most of my life, but I have just been especially down lately. I'm just tired and homesick, and my companion irritates the crap out of me. She just skips around singing about sunshine and yammering about how wonderful and 'meant to be' everything is. It just makes me want to throw a big stick in front of her bike and watch her go flying or pour paint in her hair when we're doing service projects. I know. I'm a jerk. I do appreciate your uplifting thoughts. Keep sending them, as much as you can. I need them.
I can tell you about one positive thing that happened this week. We had All Saints Day. Swedes (and maybe Europeans too, I don't know) have the most wonderful tradition - they go out to the cemeteries on All Saints Day and light candles on the graves of their loved ones. It's the most beautiful thing, and Halmstad happens to have the prettiest cemetery I've ever been in. We spent about an hour just walking around the cemetery, looking at the candles. It was very soothing. It felt like I was sharing a few moments with Casey. I'm glad his stone has finally come and that it looks so nice.
My companion wants to go now, so I need to get off. I love you bunches, Mom. I hope you have a great week. I'll be praying hard, and I hope you'll be doing the same. I love you.
Love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
Re: Momma
Dear Momma,
Happy Halloween!
Thanks for sending me some good news. I really appreciate it. Pass on my congratulations to Chynna and Zachary. We really do have such a talented family. I'm glad my mission had done something good for you and the rest of the family. It's just been hard to see that sometimes. I think stress is a trigger for depression for me. I'm trying not to be so down. Nate said all he wanted for his birthday was for me to be happy. (His birthday is on Saturday.) It's really been a tough couple of months here as far as missionary work goes. I've been getting cranky and you know I'm ready to come home. I've been a missionary long enough. Now I just want to hug some babies and listen to music. Doesn't help that I'm just plain sick too. I've been fighting with a cold for over a week, and I'm pretty much aching all over. All the ward members are trying to bully me into staying home in bed, but we've just got too much to do for that. (I did did sleep in a few hours this morning,though and that seems to have helped for now.) These last two weeks, we've gone hiking and seen some benches. We've also been painting apartments, cleaning houses, washing windows, stacking wood, decorating for parties... It feels really nice to be doing active work. Stacking wood's a lot more fun than beating investigators over the head with scriptures. ...Hmm, maybe I should just beat them with wood instead. ;-) All the service projects have been helping me feel better.
We're going to Stockholm for a training meeting tomorrow, and we'll be there until Wednesday. We'll be going to the Copenhagen Temple with the ward on the 12th as well, so we'll be at the temple together. And yes, as far as I know, I am still flying home on January 12th. I'm going to talk to the secretaries about my travel plans, though. I want to ask them to change my flight plans so that I'll come into Charlottesville instead of DC. That's just way more time in the car than I need, and it would be much nicer to be released right away.
My companion wants to go shopping, and I've got a little Christmas list together, and some of the things on it are on sale, so I'm thinking we'll head out and do that today. My checking account's pretty much empty, so I'm thinking I'll put it on credit card, and then just pay if off with the Christmas money you'll be sending later. (Or you could just pay it off and never mind sending me Christmas money.) I have a payment due on the credit card soon. (There's about $100 sitting on it at the moment.)
One last thing - could you pass on my love to Jeremiah? Let him know that I'm very proud of him. I think I know better than anyone else in the family how hard missionary work is, and he's done a fantastic job with it. He's done so much good for the people in his mission, and he's done the right thing between himself and the Lord too. I think he's very brave, and I'm proud of him. I hope he plans and prepares to go back and finish the work he started, but even if he doesn't, he can proudly say that he's served a fantastic mission. I thinks he's done wonderfully and I know the Lord does too. (You can share those thoughts with anyone else in the family who might need to hear them too.)
I love you, Momma. I hope you have a great week, and I'm going to try my best to do the same.
Love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
Happy Halloween!
Thanks for sending me some good news. I really appreciate it. Pass on my congratulations to Chynna and Zachary. We really do have such a talented family. I'm glad my mission had done something good for you and the rest of the family. It's just been hard to see that sometimes. I think stress is a trigger for depression for me. I'm trying not to be so down. Nate said all he wanted for his birthday was for me to be happy. (His birthday is on Saturday.) It's really been a tough couple of months here as far as missionary work goes. I've been getting cranky and you know I'm ready to come home. I've been a missionary long enough. Now I just want to hug some babies and listen to music. Doesn't help that I'm just plain sick too. I've been fighting with a cold for over a week, and I'm pretty much aching all over. All the ward members are trying to bully me into staying home in bed, but we've just got too much to do for that. (I did did sleep in a few hours this morning,though and that seems to have helped for now.) These last two weeks, we've gone hiking and seen some benches. We've also been painting apartments, cleaning houses, washing windows, stacking wood, decorating for parties... It feels really nice to be doing active work. Stacking wood's a lot more fun than beating investigators over the head with scriptures. ...Hmm, maybe I should just beat them with wood instead. ;-) All the service projects have been helping me feel better.
We're going to Stockholm for a training meeting tomorrow, and we'll be there until Wednesday. We'll be going to the Copenhagen Temple with the ward on the 12th as well, so we'll be at the temple together. And yes, as far as I know, I am still flying home on January 12th. I'm going to talk to the secretaries about my travel plans, though. I want to ask them to change my flight plans so that I'll come into Charlottesville instead of DC. That's just way more time in the car than I need, and it would be much nicer to be released right away.
My companion wants to go shopping, and I've got a little Christmas list together, and some of the things on it are on sale, so I'm thinking we'll head out and do that today. My checking account's pretty much empty, so I'm thinking I'll put it on credit card, and then just pay if off with the Christmas money you'll be sending later. (Or you could just pay it off and never mind sending me Christmas money.) I have a payment due on the credit card soon. (There's about $100 sitting on it at the moment.)
One last thing - could you pass on my love to Jeremiah? Let him know that I'm very proud of him. I think I know better than anyone else in the family how hard missionary work is, and he's done a fantastic job with it. He's done so much good for the people in his mission, and he's done the right thing between himself and the Lord too. I think he's very brave, and I'm proud of him. I hope he plans and prepares to go back and finish the work he started, but even if he doesn't, he can proudly say that he's served a fantastic mission. I thinks he's done wonderfully and I know the Lord does too. (You can share those thoughts with anyone else in the family who might need to hear them too.)
I love you, Momma. I hope you have a great week, and I'm going to try my best to do the same.
Love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
Re: Momma
Dear Momma,
I'm here pretty early today, so I don't think we'll get to chat. Sorry. The elders in our zone have put together another activity for today. Apparently there's some kind of Dr. Seuss park down in Malmo they want us all to come see. Last Monday we went for a hike and played around on a really cool, strange beach. It's hard to describe. There's a huge driftwood fort thing that some guy just started putting together a piece at a time like 20 years ago, and he's still adding to it. My companion says it's like something from The Goonies, but I only saw it once and don't remember a lot.
As for me being so upset lately... The mission is the most stressful thing I've ever done in my life, and it feels like I've had nothing but constant bad news from home ever since it started. All I've hoped would come from my missionary service was that my family would be blessed for it, but no matter what I've tried to do for the Lord, it seems like no one at home wants to be happy. I just can't take anymore bad news or conflict. I'm exhausted. I've been whipped to death by this work. Every hour and minute of my day, I'm driven by the clock and a rule book that's impossible to live up to. I can't slow down, I can't stop, and I have nothing left to give. My right eye twitched for three weeks straight until I melted down last week, cried for 3 days and then slept for a few extra hours. I don't feel like myself anymore. I don't play I don't sing I don't create or imagine. There's no time for that. I'm trapped with no control over my own life, and I'm losing control of myself. I've had melt downs and temper flares for weeks now, and no one's listening to me when I say I'm not okay.
Nate finally figured it out last week, and he's trying to do everything he can to help me calm down. Whatever he says or asks of you, he's trying to help me. he's trying to take whatever he can off my shoulders and off my mind because I just can't deal with anything right now.
I have been starting to feel a little calmer each day this week. I don't know if it was just that I needed to cry it out or get more sleep or Nate's letters, or if I'm just too tired to care anymore. We'll see if it lasts or not.
I think I'm getting sick. I woke up this morning with my throat on fire, and I'm loaded up on drugs now. I'm not convinced that I won't throw up before the morning's over. No, I don't think I need any medicine. I should have plenty. I did get the pills. Thank you very much. And the beef jerky's already gone. ;-) I've looked around here this week and found a few things for my Christmas list. I wonder if you could send about $200 (my bank account's low now) for me to have a little shopping spree and maybe some extra so I can bring some gifts home for everyone else?
Momma, I do hope you have a good week. Maybe you could do something to help us both feel better now. Could you look for something happy to tell me about each day and send them to me in little messages throughout the week? I love you very much, Momma. And I want you to be happy. Give my love to Rich and Keira. (And let Rich know I did appreciate he email last week. I wish he and I would talk more. I just haven't hat time to respond to everyone's emails these last few weeks.)
Love you!
Syster Hillary Kiser
I'm here pretty early today, so I don't think we'll get to chat. Sorry. The elders in our zone have put together another activity for today. Apparently there's some kind of Dr. Seuss park down in Malmo they want us all to come see. Last Monday we went for a hike and played around on a really cool, strange beach. It's hard to describe. There's a huge driftwood fort thing that some guy just started putting together a piece at a time like 20 years ago, and he's still adding to it. My companion says it's like something from The Goonies, but I only saw it once and don't remember a lot.
As for me being so upset lately... The mission is the most stressful thing I've ever done in my life, and it feels like I've had nothing but constant bad news from home ever since it started. All I've hoped would come from my missionary service was that my family would be blessed for it, but no matter what I've tried to do for the Lord, it seems like no one at home wants to be happy. I just can't take anymore bad news or conflict. I'm exhausted. I've been whipped to death by this work. Every hour and minute of my day, I'm driven by the clock and a rule book that's impossible to live up to. I can't slow down, I can't stop, and I have nothing left to give. My right eye twitched for three weeks straight until I melted down last week, cried for 3 days and then slept for a few extra hours. I don't feel like myself anymore. I don't play I don't sing I don't create or imagine. There's no time for that. I'm trapped with no control over my own life, and I'm losing control of myself. I've had melt downs and temper flares for weeks now, and no one's listening to me when I say I'm not okay.
Nate finally figured it out last week, and he's trying to do everything he can to help me calm down. Whatever he says or asks of you, he's trying to help me. he's trying to take whatever he can off my shoulders and off my mind because I just can't deal with anything right now.
I have been starting to feel a little calmer each day this week. I don't know if it was just that I needed to cry it out or get more sleep or Nate's letters, or if I'm just too tired to care anymore. We'll see if it lasts or not.
I think I'm getting sick. I woke up this morning with my throat on fire, and I'm loaded up on drugs now. I'm not convinced that I won't throw up before the morning's over. No, I don't think I need any medicine. I should have plenty. I did get the pills. Thank you very much. And the beef jerky's already gone. ;-) I've looked around here this week and found a few things for my Christmas list. I wonder if you could send about $200 (my bank account's low now) for me to have a little shopping spree and maybe some extra so I can bring some gifts home for everyone else?
Momma, I do hope you have a good week. Maybe you could do something to help us both feel better now. Could you look for something happy to tell me about each day and send them to me in little messages throughout the week? I love you very much, Momma. And I want you to be happy. Give my love to Rich and Keira. (And let Rich know I did appreciate he email last week. I wish he and I would talk more. I just haven't hat time to respond to everyone's emails these last few weeks.)
Love you!
Syster Hillary Kiser
Re: Momma
Well Momma,
My inbox is flooded this morning. I've got about ten emails to go through from you and everyone else at home, and I only have a few minutes before I have to catch a train. I hope I can come back to this later this evening.
I've been so emotional all week. Angry and frustrated and sad and lonely and I've just cried so much... We had zone conference on Friday. I spent about an hour in an interview with President Newell just talking about how I'm feeling. I do think the blessing he gave me helped me calm down a bit. My new companion was a guidance counselor before she came on a mission. I guess I'm her new project. Half the time, I thinks it's a good thing that she wants to help me cheer up and destress and all that, and the other half, she's spouting out these chipper little motivational one-liners that make me want to bite her.
I hope I can come back and write more later. I only got a few lines off to Nate and now you (you both got pretty much the same few lines too). There's still Rich, Dad, the mission president, Jeremiah, I've got so much more to say to you and Nate... If I can't get back to write more, let's just suffice it to say I love you. The most.
Love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
My inbox is flooded this morning. I've got about ten emails to go through from you and everyone else at home, and I only have a few minutes before I have to catch a train. I hope I can come back to this later this evening.
I've been so emotional all week. Angry and frustrated and sad and lonely and I've just cried so much... We had zone conference on Friday. I spent about an hour in an interview with President Newell just talking about how I'm feeling. I do think the blessing he gave me helped me calm down a bit. My new companion was a guidance counselor before she came on a mission. I guess I'm her new project. Half the time, I thinks it's a good thing that she wants to help me cheer up and destress and all that, and the other half, she's spouting out these chipper little motivational one-liners that make me want to bite her.
I hope I can come back and write more later. I only got a few lines off to Nate and now you (you both got pretty much the same few lines too). There's still Rich, Dad, the mission president, Jeremiah, I've got so much more to say to you and Nate... If I can't get back to write more, let's just suffice it to say I love you. The most.
Love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Re: Momma
Dear Momma,
I'm glad you and Rich got to have a little fun this week. The concert sounds like it was really cool, and it's neat that you got in for free.
Thanks for sending the package. I hope it arrives before I fun out of pills. I'll be watching for it. I'm excited for the beef jerky. ;-) For souvenirs, I can work with however much you want to send. I guess just send whatever you would otherwise spend on Christmas gifts.
As for how Nate and I have done things... I don't have any regrets. I don't know if I'd have made it this far without knowing I have a future with him to come home to. With everyone else pushing and pushing at me, I may have buckled and run the other way if I didn't have Nate to be good for. The fact is, we're commanded not to delay getting married, and we've already had to wait a long time. There's a reason why church policy allows women to come home from missions and get married. If the Lord wasn't okay with it, that wouldn't be the policy. I'm not really convinced that the Lord wants me to stay in the mission field more than he wants me to get married. And yes, there is time for both, but unless we figure some things out, there's going to be a LOT of frustration and time wasted. Nate and I don't have a long list of demands. But one thing we really are set on is our wish to be married in Utah. At the same time, it is so important for me to at least have my parents and my sisters there, and MomMom, is possible. Getting married without you is NOT an option. From what I can tell, you have exactly three times when you have time off from work and are available to come to a wedding: Christmas break, spring break, and summer. Nate is scheduled to work the week of March 6th and his sister is due to have a baby that week. (I'm also guessing that Rich, Chynna, and Keira don't have that week of with you.) So that one's out. So we either get married over Christmas, or we wait until summer just so you can be there. And during those six months, I will have no job, no school, no money, and nowhere to live, so I'll be 3,000 miles away from my finance with nothing to do but catch up on my reading list FOR SIX MONTHS. I am absolutely not okay with that in any way, and I don't think that's what God wants either. If I'm not mistaken about your availability, let me know. Because that's really what me maybe coming home was and still is about. 0In Fact, just give me dates on all of these... (Really. I need to know the specific dates so I know whether or not Christmas and summer really are our only options.)
When is Chynna's Christmas break? When is Keira's? Does Rich get time off? When is your spring break? When is Chynna's? Do Keira and Rich have time off? If so, when? When do each of your summer vacations start? Are there any times off for you that I don't know about? Are there any times that MomMom wouldn't be free? This is really important right now. So please get me the dates on these things as soon as you can.
Now as for the mission - Anette's baptism was on Saturday, and it was lovely. She was a little stress basket right up until the service started, but the speakers brought a really strong spirit, and she relaxed as they spoke. The music also helped. It was really neat - when we got up Saturday morning, Sister Sprauge looked out the window and saw a huge rainbow. The really neat thing was - the rainbow landed right on Anette's house. (She only lives about 2-3 blocks away from us.) We told her about it when she got to the church, and then we put together a quick musical number with the primary song about rainbows and baptism. She loved it. Her confirmation went really well (nowhere near as eventful as Pontus's was... no 90-year old crazies jumping into it or anything like that)... We also had a baby blessing in the same meeting, which was especially nice because the baby belongs to a less-active member we've been visiting for the last 3 months, and she just started coming to church again last week. President called us Saturday night with transfer assignments. Sister Sprague's moving to Goteborg to be with my old companion Sister Jenson. I'm really going to miss her. She's quickly become a best friend for me.
I'm glad you and Rich got to have a little fun this week. The concert sounds like it was really cool, and it's neat that you got in for free.
Thanks for sending the package. I hope it arrives before I fun out of pills. I'll be watching for it. I'm excited for the beef jerky. ;-) For souvenirs, I can work with however much you want to send. I guess just send whatever you would otherwise spend on Christmas gifts.
As for how Nate and I have done things... I don't have any regrets. I don't know if I'd have made it this far without knowing I have a future with him to come home to. With everyone else pushing and pushing at me, I may have buckled and run the other way if I didn't have Nate to be good for. The fact is, we're commanded not to delay getting married, and we've already had to wait a long time. There's a reason why church policy allows women to come home from missions and get married. If the Lord wasn't okay with it, that wouldn't be the policy. I'm not really convinced that the Lord wants me to stay in the mission field more than he wants me to get married. And yes, there is time for both, but unless we figure some things out, there's going to be a LOT of frustration and time wasted. Nate and I don't have a long list of demands. But one thing we really are set on is our wish to be married in Utah. At the same time, it is so important for me to at least have my parents and my sisters there, and MomMom, is possible. Getting married without you is NOT an option. From what I can tell, you have exactly three times when you have time off from work and are available to come to a wedding: Christmas break, spring break, and summer. Nate is scheduled to work the week of March 6th and his sister is due to have a baby that week. (I'm also guessing that Rich, Chynna, and Keira don't have that week of with you.) So that one's out. So we either get married over Christmas, or we wait until summer just so you can be there. And during those six months, I will have no job, no school, no money, and nowhere to live, so I'll be 3,000 miles away from my finance with nothing to do but catch up on my reading list FOR SIX MONTHS. I am absolutely not okay with that in any way, and I don't think that's what God wants either. If I'm not mistaken about your availability, let me know. Because that's really what me maybe coming home was and still is about. 0In Fact, just give me dates on all of these... (Really. I need to know the specific dates so I know whether or not Christmas and summer really are our only options.)
When is Chynna's Christmas break? When is Keira's? Does Rich get time off? When is your spring break? When is Chynna's? Do Keira and Rich have time off? If so, when? When do each of your summer vacations start? Are there any times off for you that I don't know about? Are there any times that MomMom wouldn't be free? This is really important right now. So please get me the dates on these things as soon as you can.
Now as for the mission - Anette's baptism was on Saturday, and it was lovely. She was a little stress basket right up until the service started, but the speakers brought a really strong spirit, and she relaxed as they spoke. The music also helped. It was really neat - when we got up Saturday morning, Sister Sprauge looked out the window and saw a huge rainbow. The really neat thing was - the rainbow landed right on Anette's house. (She only lives about 2-3 blocks away from us.) We told her about it when she got to the church, and then we put together a quick musical number with the primary song about rainbows and baptism. She loved it. Her confirmation went really well (nowhere near as eventful as Pontus's was... no 90-year old crazies jumping into it or anything like that)... We also had a baby blessing in the same meeting, which was especially nice because the baby belongs to a less-active member we've been visiting for the last 3 months, and she just started coming to church again last week. President called us Saturday night with transfer assignments. Sister Sprague's moving to Goteborg to be with my old companion Sister Jenson. I'm really going to miss her. She's quickly become a best friend for me.
Re: Momma
Dear Momma, I'm late getting this out today because we had a meeting scheduled in the middle of our p-day time. So I don't have a lot of time to write today. I'd best just jump into it.
I just told Sister Mortimer that her letter came when I was having a bad day. Which I was. It was very nice of her, and it turned out to be a ray of sunshine on a rainy day (literally. I swear, it's never going to stop raining).
I just hope the pills get here before I run out. Thanks a bunch for taking care of that. I can't think of anything else I really need, besides beef jerky. ;-) Sister Sprauge and I have just discovered a new favorite perfume. It's called Wild Rose by Avril Lavigne (yes, the punk singer I used to listen to. Weird, I know, but it smells amazing!). You know I don't have any pearl jewelry anymore. That would be nice. Aside from that... I'd just love to have some souvenirs from Sweden, so money for that would be great.
As for how things have gone this week, there's a whole book I could write on it. General Conference was fantastic. Did you get to listen to all of it? We still haven't been able to hear the last session, but we'll fit in it sometime this week.
As I prayed and asked whether or not I had done my part and could go home, the thought of being married over Christmas break came to mind. I thought it through, wrote out a calendar, and all the things we've been trying to figure out (getting everyone back and forth across the country over and over through work and school and whatever else) worked out. No one's tied up during Christmas break, and I'm only missing it by three weeks, so I called the mission president and talked with him about it. I suggested going home one transfer early (which would have put me home on the 10th of November) so that I would have time to put things together. So he then talked it over with the area presidency. And the answer that came back was surprizing. They said I could leave at any time to get married and I would have an honorable release, but they didn't like it because Nate and I getting engaged during the mission is so unusual. The president offered to let me and Nate speak over the phone about it, which we did. And it was AMAZING just to hear him! In the end, we decided that we don't really like it (he and I would both prefer that we get married over Christmas break), but we're going to try to follow the advice of the leaders and see what happens. So at this point, I'm planning on staying until January 12th, but I'm kind of hoping the mission president changes his mind or receives some new insight into the matter because getting married in December would just make everything fit so much better. So there you have it. Nate and I have agreed that if I keep trying to think about wedding things when I KNOW I could just come home and take care of it any time I wish, I'm going to lose my mind completely. So as of this weekend, all plans and concerns for the wedding are a forbidden topic. I wish I were free to pay attention to the things I really care about right now, but I'm not. So they're just going to have to go in a box. Grr.
Ending on a happy note: we just got Anette through her baptismal interview, and everything's looking good! We've finished putting the programs together as well, so now we just get to be excited and wait. Keep praying for her! ;-)
I love you, Momma. I hope you all have a great week, filled with the spirit that comes with hearing the words of the prophets.
With love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
I just told Sister Mortimer that her letter came when I was having a bad day. Which I was. It was very nice of her, and it turned out to be a ray of sunshine on a rainy day (literally. I swear, it's never going to stop raining).
I just hope the pills get here before I run out. Thanks a bunch for taking care of that. I can't think of anything else I really need, besides beef jerky. ;-) Sister Sprauge and I have just discovered a new favorite perfume. It's called Wild Rose by Avril Lavigne (yes, the punk singer I used to listen to. Weird, I know, but it smells amazing!). You know I don't have any pearl jewelry anymore. That would be nice. Aside from that... I'd just love to have some souvenirs from Sweden, so money for that would be great.
As for how things have gone this week, there's a whole book I could write on it. General Conference was fantastic. Did you get to listen to all of it? We still haven't been able to hear the last session, but we'll fit in it sometime this week.
As I prayed and asked whether or not I had done my part and could go home, the thought of being married over Christmas break came to mind. I thought it through, wrote out a calendar, and all the things we've been trying to figure out (getting everyone back and forth across the country over and over through work and school and whatever else) worked out. No one's tied up during Christmas break, and I'm only missing it by three weeks, so I called the mission president and talked with him about it. I suggested going home one transfer early (which would have put me home on the 10th of November) so that I would have time to put things together. So he then talked it over with the area presidency. And the answer that came back was surprizing. They said I could leave at any time to get married and I would have an honorable release, but they didn't like it because Nate and I getting engaged during the mission is so unusual. The president offered to let me and Nate speak over the phone about it, which we did. And it was AMAZING just to hear him! In the end, we decided that we don't really like it (he and I would both prefer that we get married over Christmas break), but we're going to try to follow the advice of the leaders and see what happens. So at this point, I'm planning on staying until January 12th, but I'm kind of hoping the mission president changes his mind or receives some new insight into the matter because getting married in December would just make everything fit so much better. So there you have it. Nate and I have agreed that if I keep trying to think about wedding things when I KNOW I could just come home and take care of it any time I wish, I'm going to lose my mind completely. So as of this weekend, all plans and concerns for the wedding are a forbidden topic. I wish I were free to pay attention to the things I really care about right now, but I'm not. So they're just going to have to go in a box. Grr.
Ending on a happy note: we just got Anette through her baptismal interview, and everything's looking good! We've finished putting the programs together as well, so now we just get to be excited and wait. Keep praying for her! ;-)
I love you, Momma. I hope you all have a great week, filled with the spirit that comes with hearing the words of the prophets.
With love,
Syster Hillary Kiser
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