One planner left (6 septembre 2010)

Bonjour tout le monde,
This is French first-words-at-the-pulpit classic. Getting up to the stand during sacrament meeting and not saying "bonjour" to everyone is going to be a difficult habit to break - or a new habit to install?
Well, today is officially the first day of my last planner. For those who are unfamiliar, missionary life is not lived so much hour-to-hour, day-to-day, or even month-to-month. It is a bubble of time divided into six week periods, dotted with weekly preparation days, district meetings, weekly planning sessions, and church meetings. I am in the last of these six week periods, and it is a time of reflection and goal setting. I plan to sprint to the end. This work is too great and too grand to be carried on by walkers. I love a citation by President Monson when he said, "do not pray to have a calling that meets your capacities, pray to be given the capacities that meet your calling." I am surer than ever of the fulfillment of this in my life. I see how Heavenly Father has refined my capacities and enlargened my abilities to meet the demands of my calling, yet I see that I have quite a distance to go. However, the more that I study the Gospel and the life of Christ the more sure I am that Christ's grace "sufficeth" me. What optimism this inspires! Of course, qualifying for His grace requires more than a cheap effort, but I am grateful to make those efforts so that I may one day "be like unto Him."
This week has seen all sorts of adventures. We have been finding new amis left and right. We had a lesson in the squats near Tindu. It was a hiking adventure to get there (and my companion doesn't have fond sentiments for the bush), but the lesson went great. The two people we taught there are Victoria and Roger. They are humble and seeking the truth. We also had a lesson with an amie that was invited to take the lessons by another one of our amis. Investigators finding new investigators. Wow.
I don't have much time left on the computer, but here is a run-down of the week:
· my companion got sick but all is well now (and I was able to use the time she spent sleeping to catch up in my journal)
· car wash with all the missionaries – and I was kissed on the cheeks by a drunk man that came up from behind! Aouh! The count is now at three.
· district conference with all the branches – our branch sang, and we sang well too.
· President Ostler's arrival
· Sisters’ night with all the sister missionaries – spaghetti dinner that involved Soeur Chugg eating butter straight from the butter plate.
I love you all.
Love,
Soeur Cummins

victoria and rogerat district conference with Fabianne and Irenemy companion asked me to iron her hair. this was a first for me. no head injuries ensued.