Wow!  What a week.  I feel like I'm constantly moving, and it's very tiring, but really fun.  I LOVE it here but this week has been insane!  To start with I will explain a few things.  First there are about 35 people in our ward, which is very small. I love the bishopric but they really love to tease me, especially about the food.  Our apartment is huge.  We have our own office and study room, which I really like.  It's really interesting because everything is on the ground here, the mats for sleeping, and even the meals.  I eat with chopsticks of course, and like I have said we usually cook our own food.  We steam carrots, onions, and sprouts,…and it's so good.  I eat veggies all the time and I eat super healthy here.  It's crazy mother, you would just freak out on how many vegetables there are.  I have never seen so many in my life!  My companion and I either run every morning or we do P90X that she brought.  At night when I finally lay down to go to sleep on my mat, I think about how CRAZY it is that I'm living here in KOREA.  I Never see a mountain and can only see about one star in the sky at night, maybe because of the haze or pollution?  I am so exhausted every night, that I fall asleep pretty fast though. I think when I get home I just want to sleep for a week straight. haha
      It's fall here and the people really get in to their seasons.  No one wears bright colors because it's fall, and if you do it's super weird. Also, the little kids here love to play at the parks and they often run up to me and ask me where I'm from.  They stare and ask us all kinds of questions.  The cities official name where I am living is Boopyoung which is actually right next to Inchon.  It is very old and dirty, but I still love it here.  There are beautiful flowers everywhere and market places.
     A few days ago there was one man who kept following us who we met in the market.  He just kept smiling and wanted to help us.  We got to this food place and he said to me, "What do you like to eat?"  I caught on quick what he was trying to do and I said, "No, it's o.k."  He wanted to buy me food and so he asked again, "What do you want?"  I said,  "Nothing, it's o.k."  He persisted and said again really concerned, "Please…..what do you want?"  I finally pointed to some tangerine oranges and he said, "Sorry…those are too cheap!"  He grabbed me by the arm and pulled me over to the watermelon and said, "Yes?"  I said no thank you again. Watermelon is very expensive here but he insisted and bought it anyway plus lots of other fruit for us.  He told us his son moved to America and didn't know the language and people helped him.  He wanted so badly to do the same for us, which was so sweet.  I love the people here.
     My companion is an o.k. decent singer, so after I bought the guitar we practiced a few songs.  We went down to the subway last week and just started singing in front of everyone.  We sang, "Home" by Phillip Phillips who won American Idol a couple of years ago, and the song "Gone Gone Gone." We sang many other songs as well as some primary songs.  People were pulling out their camera's and filming us.  We passed out cards and explained who we were.  It was so fun and we are auditioning this week to perform on the big stage in the subway with mics and everything.  I AM SO EXCITED!!!  We get to sing American and Korean songs.  The people just smile and clap and gather around us to hear these two American sister missionaries singing.  I feel like I'm performing once again, just like I did before my mission, but this time it's in Korea and no tips.  One huge regret I have is that at the MTC  I accidentally sent home the black song book you put together for me to use for performing when I got here mother.  I need it so bad now, and it had like 50 songs in it.  Please sent it to me as soon as possible ok?
     Last week we were so busy.  We woke up and did our studies and then we had to leave and go teach the bishop's daughter who is not active in the church.  We talked to her about patriarchal blessings and it went very well.  We showed the video, "Because of Him." and it really brought the spirit, but sadly she could not feel these things.  Then we went to another investigator's house that day.  She made this HUGE lunch for us . After I ate my food she took her hand and started stuffing my mouth with more food.  I told her I was really full, but thank you.  She again tried to stuff my mouth with more food.  I just couldn't do it.  It was crazy and my companion and I were trying to hold back laughter. After we ate she asked us to go play badminton with her and we almost threw up, seriously. Afterwards we needed to all go back to another persons apartment where we were going to all meet together, and she told us to walk the flight of stairs instead of taking the elevator.  We thought she was right behind us, and when we were about to pass out from lack of oxygen from climbing many flights of stairs, we realized she took the elevator. haha  We got off on the seventh floor and couldn't find the apartment. Then after 30 minutes and knocking on many doors, and climbing 14 flights of stairs to find this person's apartment, we finally realized the lady said floor 17 not 7.  That was one crazy day. She laughed  and laughed at us.
     We also have been teaching these sisters who we call the Kim sisters.  Anyways…..they are so precious.  We taught them about the word of wisdom, and invited them to live the W.O.W.  They thought about it and when we asked them if they would agree to this I prayed so hard in my mind as they considered it, and they actually agreed to try doing it.  They are working towards baptism.  They all feel the spirit of God when we teach them, and it's so beautiful to see it in their eyes.  My companion and I just danced our whole way home.  In korea it's really really hard to have ANY baptism, and Koreans know who you are and don't want anything to do with you. Right now there are 80,000 members but only 9,000 active.  It is really sad.  In my ward right now there have been only 2 baptisms in the past 2 years.  It's a huge amazing thing to baptize someone.
      I love the people here, and I love sharing the message we have.  I have been learning so much in this language, and I have been picking up on many interesting habits that I will probably carry on when I get home.  Like I say we sit on the ground for everything, eating, lessons, and sleeping.  It's really hard for our backs to sit that long but I am starting to like it.  It gets harder and harder for me to wake up in the morning but it's because the mat is so hard and I am so exhausted from the night before.  I am always tired but life goes on right?
     I love this mission and especially these humble kind people.  I love all of you back home and I hope all is well for you. I love you mother and dad, and all of my family!


        Love Michelle