Email address: lauren.fullmer@myldsmail.net

Tuesday, January 5, 2016

Jan 4, 2016 - First sunrise of 2016 🌅

Happy New Years everyone! I hope everyone had a blast and got to celebrate with their families. The holidays are busy busy busy, good and bad because people come home for the holidays bad because people are gone during the holidays.

So so this week was crazy weird, you would think that everyone was staying up late with fireworks and celebrating like we do in America. For some odd reason everyone wakes up at 6:00-6:30ish to watch the first sunrise. Well we were up anyways.. But we didn't have time to go watch the sunrise, we had to go to fukuchiyama for district meeting, so we did like normal and then we headed to the store to grab food because we were going to make nabe as a zone. Well unlucky for us.. The grocery store wasn't open... Almost nothing was open on New Year's Day because it was a holiday. So as we were going to fukuchiyama.. No one was on the trains and no one was out. I'm not kidding and just saying no one was out like a few people.. I mean absolutely no one was out. I asked sugimoto and he said that its because everyone was sleeping and they wouldn't be awake until around 9:00-10:00. New Years is the only day people really have off from work so everyone just stays home and relaxes. Wow.. Quiet the opposite in America. I was not expecting that. We had a really good meeting, it was all in Japanese ,but man it was so good we talked a lot about the atonement and about why we need Jesus Christ and how to teach people of the importance of the atonement. The poor trainees didn't understand a lot of it. No one felt like translating for them, so they just had to try their best , to understand... My trainee said she got like maybe 15%. Yay she's learning! 

When we came home we biked over to the Tada's house with the elders because we were invited to have dinner with them and share a message, we got there a little early so we planned out a bit of a lesson with them and while we were doing so , Tada kaicho (president Tada.. The branch president) pulled up in his car and we freaked out and hid behind another car. He walked up to his door and then he turned around and walked towards the car and we were still hiding, he gestured to the door and walked to the side of the car we were hiding behind and we just scooted over when he came. Windows are clear so there is no doubt he saw us ,but in our minds he didn't see us ,but we refused to be seen.. Finally he kinda just gave up and walked inside and then we all went to the door about 5 minutes later, his wife said she could see us from upstairs. So ya no point of even hiding! So we had dinner and then randomly Tada kaicho set up this projecter and he showed us videos he had put together for missionaries who end their mission here. It was really cool to see and then after we had seen quite a few.. He turned to elder dale and he said "you are next... Send me pictures" we all got a good laugh, but the older missionaries will never say they are going home soon and if you joke about it with them, they sometimes get mad! We taught them about hope today, and about when you have hope you hope for better times even if right now is hard, but it's true when you have hope, you have faith that even though right now is hard or something will be hard it won't be forever.

I believe life is made up of little moments. Those moments are the sweet times that we will look back on and sigh "life was good". Life is good. Life is to short to worry about the small things. Actually I think it's too short to worry. 

I read this the other day and it made me rethink life. 

"So much in life depends on our attitude. The way we choose to see things and respond to others makes all the difference. To do the best we can and then to choose to be happy about our circumstances, whatever they may be, can bring peace and contentment. … We can’t direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails. For maximum happiness, peace, and contentment, may we choose a positive attitude.” (President Thomas S. Monson, “Living the Abundant Life,” Liahona, Jan. 2012, 4)

Oh and I like this one a lot too

Elder Richard G. Scott (1928–2015) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said, “I witness that with faith in the Savior and obedience to His teachings, happiness never ends, but sadness does.”("finding joy in life" general conference 1996)

Oh and also here's a scripture too: 
"Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33)

I feel like they say things better than I do ,but I know that we are meant to be happy in this life, b if we didn't experience sadness we wouldn't really understand joy. The trials are blessings because they teach us that Heavenly Father trusts us and knows we are strong enough to handle  trials. Don't get me wrong trials are not my favorite ,but I know because of them we become stronger spiritually and we become closer to God. Remember , we are never alone in this world and we will never be alone because God loves you more than you can even imagine ,so because he loves you so much he gave you a savior. And you know what else is amazing? Jesus Christ loves you too. He gave his life for you, that is truly the purest act of love. I know that he lives and I know he will always help us. I love you guys! 

Love,
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Here's some pictures for you people who just scroll to the bottom to look at pictures.. You know who you are! 





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