Life Is Easy

Helloa Hello Familia! 

Well it has been a fun week of ups and downs once more, Yay! Luckily today I am happy and encouraged with a brighter perspective for the week and for life. Last night we had an awesome thunder and lightening storm which is something I absolutely love about Florida. Lightening storms here are crazy and I'm not kidding when I say they light up the WHOLE sky. It is an incredible sight and leaves you in awe at the beauty of it all but also the danger.  I love it.  It's possibly one of  my favorite things about Florida. The thunder was LOUD last night, it was cool but hard to sleep. When I say loud I'm talking about rattling our dishes in our dish washer loud - we could hear them rattling from our bedroom!  It was Booming! It helped me feel that God loves me, I know that sounds strange, but I really was happy. 

I did have a hard day yesterday at church. However, a good thing was that two of our investigators with the baptismal date for came to church, Robert and Chrissy Janjanin with their 2 kids Maria and Luke. It was great to have them come but very hard. Chrissy kept leaving to go outside to smoke and it was just embarrassing to be sitting next to them during sacrament meeting when all of the sudden Chrissy pulls out a plastic bag with a sandwich wrapped in tinfoil and hands it to her 3 year old (Luke). I just sat there stunned not positive what to do as she loudly moved the crinkly tinfoil with the sandwich and I got more mortified as she pulled out one for Maria and I saw that there were 2 more in the bag. The whole time in my head I just kept saying, "Just love, just love, just love," and prayed that the people in the branch would as well and luckily they did, I think. :) I whispered to Chrissy it'd probably be better next time to bring a cup of Cherrios instead but not to worry since she didn't know. But how can a person not know,especially since she had grown up Catholic, pretty sure they don't bring picnics to church during communion either. Argggg!  It is really hard though to deal with the lack of etiquette here. People are just rude,have a lack of manners and basic common courtesy does not exist here. It amazes me. As aggravating and frustrating as it can be, it is also hilarious. For example, some of the excuses we get from people when we ask to pray or teach about Christ are... "Oh, I can't I'm really busy, I need to take my pills," or "I can't, I'm changing clothes, I'm busy," or one of the best, "I'm in my underwear." In my head I'm saying, "Why yes, we can see that.  Remind me again why you answered the door then old man?" Oh America, we are proud of our citizens :) 

I find it is much better to laugh and find humor in things then to get discourage as I did yesterday. I was having a hard time because I was discouraged from Robert and Chrissy. I am thrilled because Robert knows it's all true and really wants to be baptized, but Chrissy isn't so sure and she has only gone 3 days without drinking before she gives in again and it's so sad because they aren't married so if Robert wants to get baptized then he needs to get married, but I don't blame him for debating about marriage when his partner is really not showing the effort with her drinking and smoking. I have prayed many times that Chrissy won't desire them any longer.  It is hard as we try to help her with 12 Step Addiction Recovery Program, she's struggling with the desire to change and doesn't love herself. We have tried a lot and I'm glad they are starting to pray together and read scriptures together as a family and I am really looking forward to see it start to take effect and change their lives. And before I go on, I'm just giving a warning to all you parents who might be reading this email out loud to the little ones, I'll be sharing some stories that are a little intense and I don't think that'd be best for the kiddos to hear. It's sad to see and teach in the Janjanin's home, it is a wreck and stinks of all sorts of smells. It's been super frustrating to go over and teach when Chrissy is drunk.  The situation is getting better and Robert is great to teach, but it is ridiculous how he doesn't really do anything to clean and he's retired already. Anywho it's a slow progress, but there is progress. It just breaks my heart to see Maria and Luke living in an apartment like that. I would say home but I can't use the sacred word of home to describe the way they're living and the environment the kids are being raised in. 

That's probably one of the hardest things here that I see a lot of.  It's hard to see a sweet little toddler just sobbing at the park and their mom tells them to shut up among other not so choice words. The basic mother instincts I have within me wants to run over and pick up the sobbing child wipe their tears and just hold them, let them know they are loved and God loves them  and just hold them. I see a lot of hard things out here, a lot of unhealthy family environments and many other unfortunate things. I don't mean to be a downer or to be negative but to express my deep love for the gospel, for the good in life and for my parents and family. Please celebrate the upcoming holiday full of love and joy! Tell your friends and family how much you love and appreciate them. Be grateful for states like Utah, yes it's not perfect but the majority of the neighborhoods are clean and safe. I don't know why people give Utah such a hard time, they wouldn't if they saw St. Pete, ha ha. Anywho, if anything be grateful for freedom that living the word of wisdom brings and what true freedom is. True freedom will come when Christ comes again. I look forward to the freedom that will come for the Janjanin's when they apply prayer and scriptures to their lives. 

So one more story, Barry Vrable has a baptism date for and he's our deaf investigator and is incredible and has had a very hard life and yet is such a delightful sweet soul. The first time we met him, he opened up to us a ton, his son died (I think at a young age), he hasn't seen his daughter for years and pays child support.  He's barely making getting by and has had many times in his life where he's gone without food for 3 days or longer. (Warning for this next part) He showed us the scars on his stomach where he shot himself 6 times in an attempt to kill himself and he survived. That was a moment for him when he realized more fully that God wants him alive for a reason. It was intense but beautiful for us to testify to him that God does indeed love him and has a specific plan for  him. I'm so grateful Sister Jenkin signs and we're teaching him the plan of salvation right now and he loves it. He also loved the restoration. I don't know much sign but I pray and hope we all take time to learn ASL more, it is greatly needed. I really loved how Barry related the Atonement to an oil spill in our last lesson. He talked/signed and compared us to the birds affected by the oil spill and how they can't clean themselves. We too must be cleaned from sin, like the birds we cannot do it ourselves. Just like them we need to be cleaned off and purified from the gross oil and poison of sin and mistakes in life. Allow the Savior to hold you in His arms and heal, clean, and purify what we cannnot. Allow Him to mend the broken heart. It is so much easier! And it really can be easy, it doesn't have to be hard. 

At our zone district meeting 2 weeks ago, our zone leader, Elder Prigmore shared an awesome thought. He talked about how he hates the quote, "I never said it would be easy, I only said it'd be worth it." He hates it because he said, "No where in the scriptures can you find Christ saying that." He then talked about that Christ said the way would be made easy and the burden light for us when we turn unto Christ. And that can be found in Matthew 11:28-30. Where Christ invites us to come unto Him and He'll give us rest and in verse 30, "For my yoke is easy and my burden light." And I can testify that I personally know that is true. I got very stressed yesterday and started having heart palpitations from it, Sister Jenkins was understanding and kind and let me lay down during studies. I was exhausted and I thought the sleep would help and it did but when I awoke I soon realized I was wiped out emotionally as well. I am so grateful for our branch president who we visited and were able to get blessings from and it helped immensely. I was just stressed from being discouraged and overwhelmed from it all and just missed home and just wanted to be home and be an awesome member who could help the missionaries out like they described from the worldwide training, which we still haven't yet finished because the internet connection that failed at the branch :( oh cool side note, Sister Jenkins was serving there when the 32 Priesthood holders stood up from that awesome story, Sorry Dad, they filmed that just barely before I came :) Anywho, I was fine after a good cry and talk and a Priesthood blessing (which are the best) and although it's hard at times, I am grateful that the Lord called and chose me to serve a mission and it can be made easy and light. I know that God loves me and you and I know that this mission was to help find me. I know that I was that one lost sheep brought back to the fold. That now I have the privilege to bring the 99 back as well. We all are, in a sense, the one lost sheep and we can only be found and truly converted when we turn to Christ, give our thanks to God, and then when we are found we are to focus on Christ and get to work on the 99. I am thrilled to hear Mom and Dad are already getting to work! woot! The time is now, Zion is here! 

I'm writing too much but I love you all and you are in my prayers,. Please continue to pray for Chrissy Janjanin to overcome her addictions, the devil is working on her hard but we can work even more with God. Keep up the missionary work in your lives, I love you all so much.  On a random happy note, I tried a mango recently to see if I am allergic and guess what? I didn't die! I can eat mangos again, ha ha!!!!

Love you,

Sister Tasha Cosette Bush