Going slow and steady, but I will finish.
From August 4, 2011
Oh my goodness! Sister
Valentine and I have been so busy this week! We feel truly blessed. It has been
a week unique to any other on my mission. It starts with no GPS, so we are now
reliant on the ancient art of maps. Then it goes to a ton of people we had at
church on Sunday- ten
nonmembers! We have had teaching appointment after scheduled member visit after
teaching appointments all week! We have a few times double booked our days
because Sister Valentine writes something in her planner to see someone and
then I schedule something else...
This week is one that I have never forgotten on my mission. It was at the time of so many miracles flowing out of Heaven! Overbooked teaching appointments, people just walking into church asking where to go, there was a baptism the following weekend... this is every missionary's dream! It was wonderful. I am so grateful that I had a companion that was diligent and obedient and taught me to work hard, because I learned right at the start of my mission that it was by those things that the blessings would come, and it is so true!
Being busy with positive things is one of the greatest feelings in the world. I knew that it would be so essential for me to maintain a positive attitude and busy schedule when I came home from my mission. I admit that is is so incredibly hard to not fall back into old habits, and I am sad to say that on a few occasions I have, but I am SO GRATEFUL for repentance, knowing that I can change anything in my life to become more like the Savior. It is such a joyful blessing to my life.
I miss being a busy missionary though. I was in contact with President McKee recently (I still love that man and his amazing family!!) and I told him that I want to add my testimony to the returned Elders and Sisters that have gone before me, that although life might seem easier outside of the full-time mission life, I would trade places with them in an instant. I miss the people that I love so much, I miss what I was able to do every day. Tonight I even thought to myself, "If I could just go to sleep tonight and wake up in Tennessee in the morning...."
My dear Tennessee and Kentucky friends, I miss y'all. I wish that I had more time to spend with you. There is so much more that I know I could learn from you. I'm grateful for the snippets of time that I did have.
Aside from that mushy stuff though, I do want to say that I am so blessed to have the life that I do now! And it is crazy. Just so that some of you might get a better idea of why I might not be in as close of contact as I would like, it's because Heaven has blessed me with this life:
Story for another time, I turned down the option to go to BYU. Big change in plans. Not expected. Heaven told me loud and clear that it's not time to go back yet. To this day, I am still thinking, "WHAT??!!" As a result of that, I needed to figure out what I WAS going to do with this time. My loving parents mentioned my predicament to my dear sweet grandparents who shared their experience when my aunt returned home from her mission. I suppose that there wasn't much opportunity for her at the time, so they lovingly loaded up her car and sent her to find a job and a place to live. I guess she just packed up and left, and landed in Provo, Utah, and found a great job, got accepted into BYU, and later met her husband and all that great stuff.
Well, wanna know what my parents helped me do next?
Loaded up my car, drove to a town in Utah that I had never been to before to live with a dear sweet sister that I barely knew (my two sisters do know her well) who offered to let me stay for as long or short as I like and has a spare room for me to rent. She has been my angel in more ways than one. I couldn't ask for a better roommate. I'm grateful that I at least had that to go on.
Next few weeks was job hunting. I had some GREAT leads. Unfortunately, and surprisingly, I didn't feel right on the first few offers that I had. Finally I was to the point where I was in need of a paycheck, and I got a call back from one place a friend told me to apply- Good Earth Natural Foods. I love that job. I also went in and took a job at Five Guys because I worked there before my mission and knew I could get hired on easily. People tell me that my two jobs are conflicting. That may be true, but they're not conflicting to my bank account.
In the middle of all of this, I was attending a singles ward where I didn't know a single soul. I think that one of the most surprising things to happen in my life occurred when I was called and sustained to be in one of the the Relief Society presidencies (there are two) of that singles ward. I knew the RS president and maybe one other girl I could call by name, and the bishop who was actually released to fulfill a stake calling that day. I guess God knows best. Strike that. I KNOW God knows best. Still trying to figure out His sneaky plan for me though.
Also, the first Sunday I attended was coincidentally ward conference. The stake leaders were there and brought a stack of applications for us young'uns to work in the temple. I knew that this would be a great way to keep the temple in my life a priority, so I took one. A couple of weeks later, I was interviewed, and a month later, I began my shifts as an ordinance worker. It's quite the daunting task, but I love it. If you hold a current temple recommend, and the thought just came to you that you could work in the temple, DO IT. At lease meet with your bishop about it. You will be amazed at the blessings that will come.
And on top of that, I am dating like crazy, and I'm having a party with it. I average one date a week. Sometimes more, sometimes less. I've lost count on how many different guys... I'm enjoying it while I can because I don't know how long it will last.
So, between two jobs, relief society meetings, working in the temple, dating, and trying to keep my life somewhat organized... My book is full. I usually work four days a week 8am-11pm with an hour break between the two jobs, and on the days I don't work at both places, I am at the temple, in a RS meeting, or squeezing in some time for a date. Sundays are amazing. I get to sleep in. Meetings start at 1 and then my night is full with family and friends and church firesides. I live for Sundays.
I love it that way.
So, just a shout out to my friends, no matter where you are: I have not forgotten you. I pray for you, and I hope you are doing well, and that we can talk soon :)
The other purpose is to say that I know that filling life with the most important things makes most of the difficult or seemingly impossible things easy.
Say "yes" to doing something good that you didn't think you had time for.
I love you all!
Sister Kimberlee Franson
