April 26: Letter to Thompsons

Hello Grandma and Grandpa,

Happy Spring! Did I tell you about the apricot tree outside my window? Did I tell you that it really looks like popcorn? Well, soon we will have apricots, and I'm excited! Did you here about the temple? We finally have a date, and my birthday will be right in the middle of it! Yesterday, one of my favorite people in Khelmnitsky said she would get baptized! Her name is Marina, and I absolutley love her. Oh, she has a twin sister! And she is an amazing artist. She is probably 21. She wants to serve a mission and get married in the temple and partake of all of the wonderful blessings the gospel has to offer. Don't you love this church? Where else can you have confidence in marriage, hear the words of a prophet and see the evidence so clearly that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever! This week has been full of miracles and blessings, and I am so full of love and gratitude!

Well, this was the fastest 6 weeks of my mission, probably because I have had 4 companions and have worked in two different cities. On Thursday I will receive a new companion. Change is always interesting. But, I am so happy that I am staying in this fantastic city with these fantastic people. I love it!

What was your theme from conference? Please share my love with Joyce and Kevin and thank them for their wonderful examples and just that they are who they are! They are super! I am sure you ate well.

Do you have any questions? I love you. The food is great. My Companion made green borsh. It was smachno. (delicious!) Don't think that we are fed here. We only have maybe 10 active members. However, most people (if we visit them in their home it's rare) will brew some tea and we'll eat cookie biscuits or crackers. I love tea! Crazy how much can change in one year. We have one amazing investigator who always prepares us some homemade cream and we eat it with chocolate. Everyone here has a cottage home. It's potato planting time, so we'll be doing a lot of serving.

Hey, I'm a celebrity now! I gave an interview during a service project. It was higly intimidating, but now I am the face of the church here in Kmelnetsky! Okay, it really wasn't that big of a deal, but it was fun!

Well, I'm out of time...I love you!

Sister Murphy!