A letter from me to you.

I right now very open heart have opportunity hit email give you all. In order to start I will use chinese kind of grammar write words. I very feel thanks you all all already hit email give me. I hope older sister and older sister husband have opportunity to write letter give me. I also want see in completion my two younger brother kind of email. We this week saw in completion very many miracle. I right now will write give you look. 

Okay that's enough of that. It's really hard to do. THIS IS WHY WE NEED THE GIFT OF TONGUES. That is Chinese grammar for ya! I made a list throughout the week of things I want to mention in the email so I apologize if it seems like it is all just kind of everywhere. Eek!

First of all-- I am totally picking up the Taiwanese accent. It scares me when I hear myself sometimes. I was determined not to have that happen to me. No chance of stopping it. I don't know how to describe it to you. It's very feminine, but kind of hard to understand...

Next, we have an investigator JM (JM means JieMei--sister). She is so great. She is well on her way to baptism. I'm amazed everytime we meet with her. The Lord is so aware of her needs. She needs everything explained simply and clearly, but she has great faith. I know that the Lord is so aware of all my investigators. He loves them so much. I wish words could explain how much I love them all. It's because I know how important they are to God. You all are important too. I can feel it.

We have a keyboard in our apartment that plays music that is pre-recorded. Mostly classical stuff, but it is all changed to have a pretty sick beat. We have a GREAT time playing with everything that keyboard can do. Especially jammin out to Eine Kleine Nacht Musik. And my heart will go on--which we sing the words of D&C 14:7 to as we dance around our living room. I taught sister Daye how to moon walk yesterday. Don't get me wrong, we work very hard. But we laugh hard too. This tends to be a fairly regular 10:15pm getting ready for bed occurance. The moral of the story is that I get nutty when I'm so tired!

The other day we went to Taibei to hear from Elder Evans of the seventy. It was great! I wish I could explain the spirit that was felt there. The things he said touched my heart. There were moments when we all cried a lot. We also heard from Elder Watson of the seventy (i think). He served his mission in Taiwan. Some of the stories he shared really touched me. One of them had to do with seeing the results of his missionary service years and years later. Sometimes I feel like I'm not being effective at all, but he's right. And also this is something that my best friend Sarah wrote to me. The fruits of our labors are not always obvious right away, but what I'm doing is looking at this huge vineyard. This is so much to be done. I can't do it all and there are different jobs to do. I spend a lot of my time weeding and throwing out seeds. I get to harvest too, but regardless of what I am doing--it is all going towards the same vineyard. Maybe I'll quote Sarah--I hope this is okay, best friend. 

"And remember - success is never measured by the number of people you convert or the baptisms you have - you won't even recognize the bulk of the effect you have had on the people you associate with on a daily basis out there until years and years later. Just plant those little seeds, Micae. That's all you need to do. Sometimes you'll strike gold right away, and there'll be a flower just WAITING to burst through the dirt and muck you've planted the seeds in. But other seeds take time, pruning, watering, and an extreme amount of care and attention. Sometimes beyond what you can provide. Recognize that. Don't forget it. Your job isn't to convert every soul - it's simply to plant those seeds and do what you feel prompted to do."

She's brilliant. (:

On our way home from the conference, we took the MRT back to Xin Zhuang then grabbed a taxi. We started to talk to our driver who opened up quite a bit. He says he isn't religious because he's had two divorces that he blames on religion. We shared with him what makes our church different from others. The spirit was very strong. We ended up having a great talk with him. He said he would maybe come to church. We offered our phone number but he wouldn't take it. I don't know what will happen, but I feel confident that we did some good there.

We had Mexican food the other day. IT WAS SO AMAZING AND WE DIED OF HAPPINESS!

Some random facts of information that you might find interesting: I officially don't have to wear my foot brace anymore! My bike tire popped and I had to get it replaced. I have many many misquito bites that are not happy. I met Sister Croft from St. George. The Taiwanese people love fireworks. We hear them randomly during the day and the night. I had a moon pie for the first time two days ago and I loved it. It had fig and an egg yolk in it. I can't really describe it, but it was DELICIOUS! We also often eat Biandan. I think I could live off of this stuff. That and dumplings. Mmm! LET ME GET FAT! I love the food here.

Last night, about twenty minutes after going to bed (i found this out this morning from sister Daye), I rolled over and exclaimed "I just had a dream about bugs. And it woke me up. And now I'm completely awake!" Then I rolled back over and slept peacefully again. I said more last night apparently about a referral we need to contact, but that's the funny one.

I got letters from Bishop Clark and Brother Gore today. I really really appreciated them. I feel so supported by the ward. I can feel your prayers. It really does a lot to lift me. I hope all the kids in the ward know how important they are. Heavenly Father knows them all individually. The ones who are thinking/preparing for missions-- keep going. I have faith in your abilities to follow the spirit.

I was talking to someone the other day about how our church is one that really respects our anscestors. That is really important for the people here who are Buddhist. Families are important to them. Temple work is important to us. It's a great way to share the gospel.

I also know something else--when you express love, whether for others, for anyone in the Godhead, or their love for us and others, the spirit comes immediately. Don't be afraid to let people know how important they are. We all need that.

This week I've been working on humility. Here is what I learned are the keys to humility: Obedience, Gratitude, and Repentance. I'm going to work on doing those things more completely. I also decided that I need to seek more opportunities to lift people up and tell them how much they mean to me and the Lord. I know that as I do this I will become more humble and more charitable. The key is though, that we must act. 

Speaking of acting. Here's a lesson on commandments. The Lord can't force us to do anything, but he wants to bless us. All blessings come from our choices to get them. Here is the way sister daye puts it. The Lord shows us a piece of candy. He wants to give it to us, but since we have agency he can't force us to take it. He won't unwrap it and put it in our mouth. Instead he puts it on the table or somewhere else in the room and says you can have this blessing. All you need to do is take five steps over there, pick it up, unwrap it and enjoy. Those are the commandments. That is where our agency comes in. 2 Nephi 2:16. We have to be enticed by good and evil. Then we choose the consequences we want and the means to reach those. What a great thing to know!

I also want to invite everyone to read Mosiah 3:3-12. Christ's role in our lives is so essential. King Benjamin puts it so beautifully. I absolutely love this chapter. I know that Christ is my Savior. I know that through Him, all of our sins and pains can be taken from us. This is a very literal thing. I also know that there is only ONE way to access the atonement of Christ. That is through His restored Gospel. Restored through the prophet Joseph Smith. I want everyone to enjoy the blessings of the Gospel. That is why I am on a mission. That is also why I am inviting everyone right now to pray about and think of someone who is ready for this great message. Share it with them. Invite them to meet in your home with the missionaries. This isn't just a matter of sharing joy. It's a matter of giving them something that they need and will find no where else. I can't express enough how much I know this to be true and how important this is. Go and do!

I've been reading conference talks recently and I want to share a few things from those.

First of all. I hope that everyone who is a member of the church is taking the steps to really be converted to Christ. I hope you know this to be true. I hope that people can see that you know it by your actions. And I hope that you love this so much. If you don't yet, keep working hard for it. It will come and you'll appreciate the effort you put in to make this the center of your life.

I want to share a quote from Neal A. Maxwell. "Satan need not get everyone to be like Cain or Judas. He needs only to get able men to see themselves as sophisticated neutrals." DO NOT be that guy. I see this everywhere and I can testify that we are in the latter days. The outcome has been determined. Pick a side. If you don't pick a side, that puts you on the wrong one.

Maybe I'm being too bold in my speaking, but it's because I feel very strongly about the matter. I hope you all know that the things I am saying are because I love this Gospel too much to not let people know what matters most in this world. Go and be a missionary. You will not regret telling someone these important truths.

This is my favorite story from this week. H JM. A while ago some missionaries briefly mentioned to her in passing that our church was up there and she should come sometime to see it. She decided eventually that she would. She picked this past Saturday at 7:00 pm of all times! Perfect timing. She was able to see a baptism. We sat by her. She was clearly very touched. During the closing hymn "Dearest Children God is Near You." She even started crying. After we talked to her briefly. Then someone pulled us over for a picture that we couldn't get out of. She left. NOT OKAY! Sister Daye and I ran out of the church to chase her down. We found her just outside by the gate and started to talk to her again about her experience. She walked back in the church with us. She told us she thought it was amazing that all of her sins could be washed away clean. We bore testimony to her that this was true and invited her to meet with us. We're meeting tonight! I love her already. 

When we came into the computer place to write emails, the two boys that work here said oh it's the Mormons! One of them asked a question to the other that I didn't understand. The boy who responded said they are different from other churches. We asked how he knew. He said that his friend is Mormon. I invited him to come to church. Before we leave I will definitely invite him again or get his contact information.

I want to share with you an experience we had last night that amazed me. We had dinner at the bishops house with his wife. It was just us three girls. I understood all of the dinner conversation even though I wasn't actively speaking (because I wasn't quite sure what to say), but towards the end of dinner I started really taking part. Then during the spiritual thought I was all in. I was participating in a full conversation as an equal part. I could feel myself being edified. We ended up leaving that night with a referral that I feel really good about. I feel so blessed to have seen my language blossom so much in one evening. I loved that experience!

We had a baptism on Saturday. It was a great experience. She is so sweet (: The Lord loves her very much.

Okay that's all I have time for. There is a package on it's way. HAPPY BIRTHDAY GARRETT!

I love you family!

Love Micaela

Hi Family (and friends)

Hey Family!                                                  

First of all, I want to encourage you all to make a Mormon.org profile. Not only so that you can share it with you friends (and I can share it with people out here), but also so I can read them (: K thanks!

This week has been great. I have a lot to say so I'm just gonna start typing and hope I have time to finish everything. I have a little less than an hour to crank this out!

Last week we saw so many miracles and I had some good experiences, but first, to answer your question, Mom. I think they celebrate valentines day? I saw some decorations in stores, but it's the same time as Chinese New Year (which is a 9 day holiday), so it's not that big.

Also, last week I found out why the Lord has asked all his missionaries to wear helmets. I TOTALLY biffed it on my bike. We were riding back home and on this thin road that we travel often. There are scooters parked on either side of the street. My handle bar hit a scooter and my front wheel turned 180 degrees around. There was not stopping me from falling over. It hurt pretty bad. My knee was all cut up and I'm still kind of bruised all over. I just laughed the whole time. The miracle is that when I took of my helmet, my hair still looked SO GOOD! Also, there's a huge crack in my helmet now. BLESSING. That could've been my head! That was a week ago. I'm perfectly fine now. I still have some gnarly looking bruises, but they don't hurt at all. Lol.

On our way to one of our member meals (we had 8 last week) we saw a girl who was crying. We turned around. I asked her if she wanted any help. She said no. I didn't feel like my work was done there. I just started bearing testimony that she is a daughter of God and He loves her and she can overcome anything through Him and Christ's atonement. As I testified, she slowly turned around and listened. She probably won't remember much of what I said because she was pretty drunk, but she told us that she was Christian once and quit going and some other stuff that I didn't understand. She was just talking and crying. I really didn't know what to do or say.The thought popped into my head to hug her. I opened my arms and she just melted. I hugged her for a minute while she cried. We wrote down our number on a restoration tract for her and told her to call us sometime. She's not actually gonna remember the interaction. She may remember the hug, but she will find the number. We really hope she calls. It was a really spiritual experience for me that really tested my charity.

So yes, 8 meals with members in the last week. That equals a LOT of crazy food. Actually it wasn't too bad. They all feel bad for us so we ate a lot of pizza. The pizza's here are crazy too. A lot of seafood pizzas. They're really good actually. Last Monday for lunch we also went to IKEA with a family. It was stellar fun! They are so great and afterwards the mom was really willing to help us fellowship one of the sisters that lives in her area that is investigating the church. That evening we went to the home of a mixed couple. White and Taiwanese. We had steaks. SO GOOD! It was awesome to speak English.

We also went to a Korean restaurant with a family. The interesting part about that is that there was a little girl running around in just her undies and a shirt. So random. I'm pretty sure I've seen that in America too. Things aren't too different here!

After this week I'm stuffed to the brim. It's exhausting eating as much food as we did. You have to finish everything they give you. And they just keep going. I pace myself, but I get full quickly and they all still eat. I'm amazed by how much I've eaten. On Saturday I had to eat stinky tofu. I was NOT looking forward to it because I don't even like regular tofu. It kind of tasted like the zoo. I couldn't swallow. I felt terrible for having to leave and spit it out. Later I realized that I didn't have a piece covered in sauce, I just had straight tofu. I'll probably have to try it again sometime. Eek.

Something we do here for the missionaries is we have phases of language study. We periodically test our language study during these phases. There are three. Phase one focuses on teaching skills and teaching the lessons, vocabulary for the lessons, phrases for the lessons, commitments, questions etc. Phase two is just a set of 2000 words to memorize. And Phase three is targeted on characters and reading the Book of Mormon in characters. My goal is to pass of phase one by March 19th. That means I'm getting tested on my language skills twice a week. Its hard, but I'm doing well. Yesterday I passed off the second lesson. I only have 3 more to pass off. I also want to try to pass off phase 2 by the time Sister Daye leaves. That will give me 5 weeks to learn 2000 words. We'll see!

Something that just makes me laugh about being here is our district/zone meetings. It's just a bunch of white people sitting around speaking Chinese. HOW HILARIOUS IS THAT?! Maybe its not, but I just get so tickled watching everyone have a discussion all in a second language. So funny.

Oh stop! I have to tell you about food again. Wow! We ate this fruit. I honestly don't remember the name. It smells like a pumpkin. It tastes like a sweet pumpkin. SO SO SO DELICIOUS! I will find out what it is so you can look it up online. It is seriously the greatest thing in the world. We had it for breakfast with toast. We don't put butter on out toast. We eat it with this AMAZING coconut spread that literally makes me want to die of happiness. I'll send some home. We're obsessed with it.

Okay let me brag about my companion for a minute. She's so amazing. I can't even tell you enough how much she helps me with everything. Her language is REALLY good and she is so helpful to me. We click well. We're always singing and laughing and singing some more. We are obsessed with this little Chinese folk song that we learned from the children's songbook. It's called Molihua. We sing it while we ride around and people always look at us and smile.

Speaking of Sister Daye. She is so good at following the spirit. I was looking through a list of former investigators and I picked one that I felt like we should visit. I told her. She agreed and felt like 4:00 was the time to visit her. (This was Saturday). We made plans and went to this girls apartment complex a few minutes to 4:00. We ran into a HUGE family and were able to talk to them a little about the church. They don't all live in Xin Zhuang, but they were really open to talking to us (especially about English classes). We ended up giving and English tract to them and also a Restoration tract. I committed the mom to go to Mormon.org that night. She said she definitely would. Then we went to our former investigators home. She wasn't there so we sat on a bench to finish up the language study that we didn't have time to do that morning. While we sat there, a woman came out and started to talk to us. She and her husband invited us in. We talked a lot and really got to know them. They are definitely being prepared. They are pretty buddhist, but the husband was originally atheist. We taught the first lesson. The spirit was very strong during the part about Joseph Smith. After we were finished we committed him to looking up Mormon.org and also checking out the family history website. They told us to come back anytime. They aren't quite ready for all the lessons, but they live right by a recent convert/new investigator's home so we will probably go back. I guess that was our 4:00 appointment!

Then right after that we stopped by the home of the recent convert that lives close by. We started teaching her sister. Yesterday we went back and taught her sister the whole first lesson. It was so great! She committed to being baptized once she gains a testimony. She's already well on her way. She said she likes the Book of Mormon and loves how she's seen this church change her sister's life. They are probably two of my favorite people in the world!

At some point this week (I can't remember when) we were home ten minutes earlier than we had intended to be. We decided to bike around our street for a minute and see who we could find. I felt like we should go visit this man who we had contacted a week or so previous. Mr. X. As we were turning the street to the road in the direction of his house, he was right there on the street. We immediately started talking to him. He is very smart and knows a lot about God and religion. He is buddhist, but he said that he alters his beliefs as he encounters more truth. There are so many churches out there, so he said he just tries his best and hopes he finds the right one. Until then he rethinks everything once he encounters truth. We told him a little about Joseph Smith. He is very good about praying and he seems to have a really good understanding about his relationship with God. We told him that we would love to talk to him about our church. He said he wasn't sure. I felt like I should ask him if he feels like he gets answers to his prayers. He said he knows he can. Then I said, "Okay, when you pray tonight before bed, I want you to ask God specifically if you should meet with us and learn about our message." He said he would start praying about that. He has our phone number.

This past Wednesday I made an awesome plan for our Advanced English class. I planned to teach them about plot structure and the different parts that make up a story then split them into groups to write a 10-15 sentence story. I did the same thing myself and wrote the story of the 2000 stripling warriors in 12 sentences to give them an example. Then for the spiritual thought, I intended to read with them the story in the scriptures about the warriors. I planned it all out and was so excited! Only one person showed up to English class. Our investigator (name a). I told her we would still have class so we went and sat down. Sister Daye stayed out in the hall where I could see her welcoming newcomers. (name a) and I said a prayer to start our class. I told her we would first answer any questions she has. Before we started, one of our investigators with a baptismal date (she's really just waiting on permission from her mom) came in to give me a cookie. I introduced them. She told (name b) that she is excited to serve a mission someday. When she left I asked (name a) what her questions were. She must have had a change of thought because she asked how people come unto God at a young age--before they know how much they need him. I shared with her how I gained my own testimony and bore testimony of the atonement. She asked why Christ atoned for us. I beckoned Sister Daye to come in. We taught her the Plan of Salvation. At the end, I bore testimony that the Lord knows her. He knows her hopes and her fears. She started to cry. The spirit was so strong and she is starting to feel her worth in the world. We just hugged her a lot. When the time was right, we invited her to be baptized. She said she already has been, but she'll pray to know if she should. She is really so open to the gospel. She really knows the Book of Mormon is true. She doesn't even question it. The key will be helping her realize the Book of Mormon's role in her conversion and baptism into the Lord's church. I absolutely love her so much. We're teaching her again tomorrow evening after we get home.

^^I don't want to share people's names for the sake of privacy.

I set a goal to start making more phone calls. The other night, I just started calling referrals. Sister Daye was using the bathroom, so I just decided now is the time. The first three people I called either set up a time to meet with us or told us a better time to call them. I was so pleased. I really felt like I was doing my job as a missionary. I was amazed by the fact that I had an entire conversation on the phone without bailing on the plan and handing it to Sister Daye.

We have a girl who is 16 and wants to get baptized. Her mom won't let her. We felt like we should use the planner with her and have her set goals of things she will do to try to get her mom's permission (ie, read the scriptures everyday, pray for permission to be baptized, fast, ask her moms permission on specific days). When we taught her about goal setting from preach my gospel (which is perfect because she wants to serve a mission), she was really excited. She picked a day that she thought she could get baptized. March 23. Then she started to fill out the planner. She committed to ask the Lord in prayer every morning and night and before every meal for permission to be baptized. She also picked seven or so specific days to ask her mom. She picked two days to fast, and she decided that she would read two chapters in the Book of Mormon every day instead of one. As I watched her fill out her planner, her faith was evident. She just kept adding more and more plans. Afterwards she prayed with us for help from the Lord. She told Him her goal and plans and asked for His support. I could feel His love. He is so proud of her. In every prayer we say, we also pray that she'll have permission. We are also going to fast with her. I feel very good about this. We also have specific times that she wants us to get in contact with her mom. This girl is on FIRE! She will be a great missionary someday. (She's the same girl that gave me a cookie on Wednesday night).

Anyway I'm running out of time. I wish I could say more. I love this work. I want to share everything I'm learning from my studies but   I only have two minutes. I don't have any pictures this week. Sorry!

I hope you all know how much I love the Book of Mormon. I love reading it. Talking about it. Writing about it. I know absolutely that it is true. READ IT! LOVE IT! SHARE IT WITH ALL YOUR FRIENDS!

Love always,

Cae

Let's laugh together, Let's cry together

This week has been CRAZY! I've started keeping a notebook and as something happens I write it down to email home about.

First, binggan and binglang are VERY different. When speaking, do not confuse them. Binggan means cracker. Binglang is a nut that they chew here. It's filled with opium and fiber glass so that when you chew it your mouth gets cut up and you immediately get high. It's super addicting and so many people chew it. It's really nasty. People chewing it always have bloody mouths and red teeth. They spit all over the ground so there are blood stains on the road. It really is so sad. I want to cry everytime I see someone chewing binglang. However, chewing binggan is quite good.

I went to the zoo last Monday with my companion, some other missionaries, and some members/investigators. As it turns out 16 year old girls love hearing me make Monkey noises (:

Also, busses are crazy here. You really have to watch out for them.

Whenever I stop by someone on my bike and start talking to them, they always laugh at me. I don't know what is so funny about a white girl speaking broken Chinese. I just laugh too.

Okay time for the food parade. You will not believe what they make me eat out here. First of all, I do NOT like tofu. Not one bit. It really is a NASTY NASTY consistency. It takes everything I have to force it down in members homes. I also tried dried durian the other day. I don't know what the non dried stuff tastes like, but it's not so bad dried. And everyone wants me to eat stinky tofu. I'll cry. So much for not eating the two things I'd been warned about!

On Friday we went to do temple tours and before we started, we got lunch. I ordered a curry and there were these huge maroon brick-like things. I asked if it was tofu. Sister Daye said, "Oh, it's something like that!." After I ate it, she told me I had cuagulated duck blood! WHY WHY WHY?! So nasty. It tasted like metallic rubber.

On Saturday night we went to dinner at a nonmembers home. The mom is very buddhist, but that is beside the point. THEY MADE ME EAT A PIGFOOT! There was skin on it and everything! And it was still on the bone. The bottom of the bone was all black because it was the toe and had walked around in a lot of mud. Does that even make sense?! It was so grody! It took a lot to get down. Just thinking about it makes me want to hurl. I would suggest it for everyone (:

Yesterday we went to a member's home for lunch. I had cow stomach. It's actually not that bad. It tastes like the rest of the cow. The only weird thing is knowing the name.

I did discover that I love quail eggs though. The yoke is really good.

Also shark. That's also not too bad (in meatball form). In fact, it was really good.

You may be wondering why I'm eating so much. Well because it's Chinese New Year (Guo Nian) and that's what they do out here. I AM SO FAT RIGHT NOW AND SO FULL! In the last few days we had dinner at a member's home on Thursday. Lunch at a members home on Saturday. Dinner at a members home on Saturday. Dinner also at a nonmembers home on Saturday. Lunch at a members on Sunday. Dinner at a member's on Sunday. The rest of this week looks about the same. They feed you a TON! If you bowl gets empty they give you more rice. Then after we all finish that they give you soup (that usually has weird chewy things in it). Then they give you fruit. I always have room for fruit, but the rest of the time I just want to die. I AM SO FULL, BUT THEY JUST KEEP GIVING ME MORE! I'm still full from the first meal! They also send you home with bags and bags of food.

I taught some kids in a part-member family how to play moose moose. They love it! I think I'll teach it to more people. (:

The other day an elevator closed on my head. They really don't watch out for you here. It kinda hurt, but I'm better now (:

I know how to say one thing in Taiwanese. "Kan bo dei." It basically means I'm going to stick a blanket on you and beat you up. I wouldn't suggest saying it.

The trash works really funny out here. They just drive around playing fur elise and some other song I don't know. People chase after them with their trash, through it in and go home. It's a cute little system!

Twice last week we had to bike to Tuchung. I don't know how far it is but it takes 40 minutes up and down hills. IT IS A BEAST!

Needless to say, I'm super super worn out and I will be taking a nap today.

Okay spiritual stuff then pictures.

We have an investigator (A), whose friend has started meeting with us (B). This Saturday we went to dinner at A's mom's house. Her mom is VERY buddhist, but was still so excited to have us in her home. She said we were the first foreigners that have ever been in her home. A had separated food out for us before it had been BaiBai'd because she wasn't sure what our rules were. That was sweet of her. At the beginning of the meal they joined with us in a blessing over the food. It was cool. We ate some WEIRD things at dinner; A's mom was an amazing host. The conversation was good and uplifting and I know that we brought the spirit into their home. After dinner, A told us that her sister C wants to start meeting with us! We asked to share a message. A's mom didn't want to be part of it, but we did talk to A and C. I feel very confident that their mom will open up someday. Beside being buddhist, she is the perfect Mormon mom/housewife. She is such a darling lady and I absolutely adore her. Sister Daye and I feel so blessed to have experienced that. Also I feel honored that I could bear the name of Christ on my tag being the first foreigners in this home. Because of that fact, I really didn't feel so foreign. I know that the Lord knows them. It was a cool experience. 

Last Monday we had another cool experience. We were English boarding (which is my favorite part of my week because we talk to so many people). First, we taught a 5 minute first lesson to a boy who showed interest in coming to English class. He's not super open now, but I could feel the spirit and I know he will open up to the gospel in the future. Next we ran into two girls who LOVE white girls. It was kind of hilarious, but they said they'd definitely come to English class. I believe they will. Maybe their reason isn't correct yet, but hey whatever gets them to our class where we can help them have a spiritual experience is great! It was amazing that despite their obvious problem with the word of wisdom, I could still see how important they are to Heavenly Father. Another thing from that night is that we ran into a woman. I asked her if she was waiting for a friend and we just started talking. She asked why we were there and I started to share bits of the gospel. She has never had any contact with Christ, she said. We just started to teach her. I think our message astounded her. The more and more we talked, the more and more interested she became. We exchanged information and she said we would definitely be in touch after the New Year. I'm so excited!

I loved doing temple tours this past Friday! We got to teach a less active that the elders found on the street. It was really cool to see him grow. We also taught a member from our ward. She was in a car accident before she joined the church and is not completely there, but we were finally able to take the concept of prayer and really help her understand the gratitude part in a concrete way. It was cool. I also had prayed that day to teach someone who speaks English. I wanted to be completely involved in a lesson instead of hindered by my language. PRAYERS ARE ANSWERED! We taught two American Born Chinese. We taught them in Chinglish. The lesson went well. The spirit was very strong. By the end of the lesson, they were both really willing to take a Book of Mormon. The girl gave us a referral for a friend. She also told us that the more she hears, the more she is interested. She came into the lesson hoping to learn more Chinese, and she left with interest in the church. It was a really cool experience to see someone change so much in just an hour.

Okay that's basically it.

Well actually there is so much more!

I love you all so much!

The church is true (:

I love you again!

First full week in Taiwan

Dear Family,

I'm not sure how to describe this week. It has been thrilling and I'm excited to share with you some of the miracles I've seen!

We have been teaching a sweet lady recently (well I've only taught her once). She loves the bible and is very Christian. She was interested in the church because of the Book of Mormon, but she has been really skeptical since beginning to meet with missionaries. Sister Daye and I prayed a lot about her and what we should do. We didn't want to bomb our lesson and scare her away because we know the Gospel will help her so much. We prayed a lot in preparation for her lesson and made sure we were in the right setting for the spirit to freely be there. The great thing about Ong Jie Mei is that before she even met with us she had a really strong testimony of prayer. Our lesson was AMAZINGLY powerful. All of us had tears in our eyes at something and I felt the spirit the entire time. We taught her a bit from Moroni 7 about discerning what is right and what is wrong and encouraged her to read that whole chapter and pray to know if the Book of Mormon is true. I wish I could adequately describe the lesson and how incredible it was. We felt prompted to extend the baptismal invite. She didn't accept but she did tell us that she wants to know if this is true. I know she will find an answer and she will join the church someday. This woman is so prepared for the gospel. Her relationship with God is very strong and I'm amazed by her determination to follow Him. Anyway, during the lesson, I didn't understand a story that Ong Jie Mei shared with us so Sister Daye translated for me after the story was over. While she was translating, our Peike (member accompanying our lesson) talked to Ong Jie Mei one on one for a few minutes. I heard a little bit of what she said (about her testimony of the Book of Mormon), but I was only paying attention enough to feel the spirit very strongly. Using the members is an invitation inspired by God and I am so happy to be in a ward where the members are jumping out of their seats to share the Gospel.

We had another interesting experience one day when we just biked down a random street. There were a couple people out that we started talking to (two men and a woman). One man and one woman were NOT interested at all. They thought we were crazy and were actually very rude and kept laughing when I didn't understand what they were saying (which surprised me because Taiwanese people are usually so gentle with us). We stayed a couple minutes longer and bore testimony and really kind of moved on to talking to the other man (Xie Xian Sheng). According to his verbal response, he sounded uninterested. Before we left, I just said to him that I'm giving up everything I have right now to be in Taiwan on a mission. I said I know I don't speak much Chinese, but I know how to say one thing. I bore my testimony that the Book of Mormon is the word of God and that anyone who reads it will find themselves and gain purpose in this life. I felt the spirit when I spoke. Sister Daye and I, when talking about it later, both saw something in his eyes and feel very strongly about going back sometime when his neighbor isn't home. We drove by another day and just kept going because of the neighbor. Then we went back again the next day and he saw us on our way but he was on his bike leaving. He called are names and waved (excited to see us). We left a note for him at home. I feel strongly that this man is looking for what we have and we need to catch him away from his neighbor. He really is a sweet man.

I know that the Lord protects His missionaries and gives us experiences that will help us teach. One of our lessons at the church fell through so Sister Daye and I decided to go up to the park and proselyte there. We said a prayer and told the Lord of our plan and our goal. We both felt the spirit saying that it was good. When we got to the base of the stairs to walk up to the park we still both felt the spirit even though the stairs were dark and it was kind of daunting. After taking 3 or 4 steps up I just felt like I was going to throw up. We stopped and very quickly said a prayer because the spirit had LEFT! After the prayer we ran back down those stairs and away from that situation quickly. As soon as we started running away, the spirit came back. We didn't know why that happened. We're not sure what we were being protected from, but I do know I was being protected. We were a little confused because we felt fine all up until we started taking that step. The next day we realized why the Lord allowed us to have that experience. We learned something very important there. The Lord will NOT let any of His children take the wrong path. We tell that to our investigators when they are scared about the church because they want an answer before they try it out. We tell them that we had to walk up three steps and the Lord then made it very clear to us what path we ought to be taking. Of course we know that once they try out the Gospel they will gain a testimony of it, but it's comforting for them to here that we have a testimony that the Lord WILL NOT ALLOW US to take the wrong path without a very clear warning that it is wrong.

I've discovered the blessing of being a Waiguoren (foreigner). It's hilarious how many people approach me because I have blonde hair instead of me approaching them. We were on a busy street looking for dinner one night and we ended up having a 30 minute conversation with a woman from China who wants to meet with us because she came to me and talked to me first. We also recently got a referral from a woman whose sister is Christian. She's in China right now for Guo Nian but we will get in touch with her when she returns. That all happened because on our way to find dinner on a busy street, and street vendor stopped me to talk (so we asked for referrals of course!). The most amazing thing that happened because I am a Waiguoren happened yesterday on my way to church. A man came over on his scooter. He read my name tag, told me I was a foreigner, and asked where I was going. I said, "I'm going to church. It starts at 9:00. Wanna come?" He said yes! He had to run home first so he didn't show up until Sunday School, but he stayed for the last two hours and I think he may have met with Elder Beck and Elder Huang afterwards. SO HILARIOUS! I think he has strong potential. The moral of the story is the the Lord uses EVERY aspect of our lives to do the work. Whether it is our background and history or our looks and how much we stand out, He will use it. I love being an instrument in the work. I feel so blessed to be entrusted with this incredible opportunity!

We stopped by an investigators home the other day. She wasn't there, but we had the chance to sit down with her parents. They are Buddhist and probably wouldn't be interested in the church if we had just come up and asked to share a message, but they talked to us because we were there to visit their daughter. Eventually we were able to lead our conversation into the first lesson. We taught the entire thing and left them with a Book of Mormon and an invitation to read it. It was obvious that they both felt the spirit. Sister Daye and I agree that it will take some time for them, but we look forward to going back sometime and seeing how they are doing.

There really have been many miracles in Xin Zhuang. We work hard. We laugh hard too. But I think people notice how happy we are. I'm happy to tell them that all my happiness comes from the Lord and they can have it too. The people are READY for the Gospel. Sister Daye and I are READY to share it with them. I have such a testimony of the studies that we do in the morning. It takes up a good chunk of the day, but it prepares us spiritually. I'm amazed by how much I feel the spirit testify as we share what we learned in personal study and discuss our investigators and potentials.

I love being part of something much bigger than myself. I know that this Gospel is true and that the work I am doing is worth the time away from you all.

Okay time for some hilarious stories. First, I have a sleep talking problem... BUT SO DOES SISTER DAYE! The other night we woke up confused. It turns out we were sleep talking to each other! Weird. I had asked her how to say some word in Chinese (or something like that). We woke up mid conversation and were trying to figure out why we were talking. Hilarious. Also, the next morning I woke up and went into my bathroom just to see that there was water all over the floor. Sister Daye told me later that she did hear me in the bathroom for a long time with water from my shower running and was a little confused. Whoopsies! (Oh ps, I don't have a separate shower... it just hangs from the ceiling in the corner of the bathroom. Everything on the floor gets wet. I just laugh and laugh. I love my bathroom!)

I painted my bike this week. It's orange. That's probably a good thing because the  traffic here is ridiculous. Sister Daye puts it well-- Traffic in Taiwan isn't about laws and guidelines, It's about who fits in that space. I do know that I am protected by the Lord though.

Chinese is coming along interestingly. In lessons I am very comfortable teaching and listening, but outside of lessons can be very overwhelming. Basically, I pray a lot for the gift of tongues and interpretation of tongues. I appreciate all your prayers on my behalf.

I had my first experience with a cockroach this week. While I gagged over the toilet like a baby, my brave companion massacred it with a large knife. His small mangled corpse is in our freezer now. I hope to avoid these types of experiences in the future.

We laugh a lot. A LOT! But I can't think of every story now and my time is running low.

I love you all. The Church is true!

Love,

Cae

PS. Sarah Elizabeth Kron, write to me (: