Jacob 5:61 Wherefore, go to, and call servants, that we may labor diligently with our might in the vineyard, that we may prepare the way, that I may bring forth again the natural fruit, which natural fruit is good and the most precious above all other fruit.
Whelp you heard it here first, folks! I've officially finished my missionary training and just arrived in Edinburgh...to pick up my new companion...because I'm training! Technically I've already been training all day-- because I rode a train from Irvine to Glasgow...then Glasgow to Edinburgh...
But all nonsense aside, I'M SO EXCITED!
First and foremost, thank you for all your beautiful poems! They brought such a big smile to my face that Sister Wood probably thought I had taken too much cold medication. Without even being bribed, our friend Jordan gave us a poem about prayer when we met with him again this week! I included pictures of it below because his handwriting deserves to be marveled at from continents far and wide, but here's a particularly touching stanza:
And I cannot teach you the prayer of the seas
and the forests and the mountains
But you who are born of the mountains
and the forests and the seas can find their prayer in your heart
And if you but listen in the stillness of the night
you shall hear them saying in silence:
Our God, who art our winged self, it is thy will in us that willleth
It's thy desire in us that desireth
It's thy urge in us that would turn our nights
which are thine, into days, which are thine also
We cannot ask thee for aught, for thou knowest
our needs before they are born in us;
"Thou art our need; and in giving us more of thyself thou givest us all."
Even though Thanksgiving isn't celebrated here, this is my testimony of gratitude! I'm so grateful for a heavenly father that knows our needs before we do, just like Jordan's poem says! I'm so grateful for his Son Jesus Christ, who He sent to fulfill those needs. I know that the closer we come to Him the closer we come to our best selves. He is the source of all beauty and truth, and the answer to every question. The fruit of the gospel is most sweet, and brings more joy than anything else on Earth. I'm grateful for my family who taught me to listen for and heed these truths. I'm grateful for this STINKIN BEAUTIFUL Earth that testifies of a divine creator and whispers prayers rustling through the leaves if we're still enough to listen.
I'm so grateful for this past transfer with Sister Wood and the blessing she has been to me for the past 6 weeks and Irvine for the past 6 months! She is off to do great things in Bangor, Northern Ireland! I'm so grateful for everything God has taught me through her and our experiences this transfer. And I'm so so grateful for Jordan, our BFF that we've been teaching!
To rewind: (I didn't tell you about him earlier because I didn't want to hype it up and then have him drop us 48 hours later) We knocked on his door one frigid morning and he said, "HI! How are you doing?" ...Thus earning himself the nicest person I've met in three months. He then asked if the Book of Mormon was the Native American book, to which we replied yes and proceeded to tell him more about it! We gave him a copy and he got really excited and said he wanted to give us a book in return that he thought we'd enjoy by Dulce Efsky (spelled wrong) but we had to politely decline, thus earning him the title of most generous person I've met so far in Scotland! After having the most thought provoking, physics filled first lesson of my entire existence, we invited him to be baptized, and the conversation went something like this:
Sister Allen: "So you wanna to be baptized?"
Jordan: "You know when helium drops to -200 degrees Fahrenheit but it isn't quite liquid but not quite solid the molecules are vibrating at the same frequency as if they're one molecule?"
Sister Wood: "One faith, one Lord, one baptism*?"
Jordan: "Exactly!"
Sister Allen: "Exactly!"
Sister Wood: "So does December 14th work for you?"
Jordan: "That's perfect!"
...Thus earning him the title of Most Golden Friend I've met in my entire life.
*Ephesians 4:5
He's THE COOLEST! He studied physics and maths at Uni of Glasgow and went from being an atheist to wanting to become a James E. Talmage level Christian author because he loves! Christ! so! much! He asked if we had any book recommendations for him besides the Book of Mormon because he's plowing through it at a very fast rate and luckily for him we had packed a copy of Jesus The Christ just for him that he's probably already halfway finished with. Our lessons are always a good time! He is brilliant and relates every gospel principle back to a physics concept. With words like "melchizedek" and "mitochondria" and everything in between flying around the last time we met at the local library we probably confused the knitting club that was sitting next to us just a wee bit...
Jacob 5:72 And it came to pass that the servants did go and labor with their mights; and the Lord of the vineyard labored also with them; and they did obey the commandments of the Lord of the vineyard in all things.
The Lord is laboring right alongside us all in this great work! He is standing beside you as you climb your mountains and share your joy and do your thing! Therefore, go to, my friends! You can do hard things! If I think about it too long I get a little psyched out about this upcoming transfer which is why I'm just not going to think about it and just get to it!
In conclusion, here are a few stanzas from a poem my Grandma Jones wrote this week. She puts it better than I ever could :)
The message is clear and can’t be beat
“Jump those puddles”
“Kick those feet”
You’ve got goats to pet and people to meet
Like “Jack and Jill” trod up that hill
Hold your banners to the sky
Exclaim to all your message and the reason why
Proclaim the truths you hold so dear “The gospels true, ‘it’s true, ‘it’s true And that is why I’m here” Happy Thanksgiving, wherever you are! LOVE LOVE LOVE AND MOUNTAINS OF GRATITUDE, Sister Allen bailee.allen@missionary.org
