Dear fam and friends,

     Well this week has come and gone too fast.  I loved the attempt at Korean from your letter, mom and dad.  You said, "How are you doing?"  I can't wait to teach you Korean. haha  It sounds like everyone is doing great.  I love to hear about all of your stories.  Dad you are amazing!  Way to give your friend a Book of Mormon!  That book changes lives.  I challenge all of you to do something to help missionary work proceed forward.  This work is so important and all that people need is an invitation.

     I want to tell you of a small miracle that happened last night.  So our goal for the mission is to get 10 lessons taught every week for every companionship.  We had an appointment last night 30 minutes away, and she was our 10th lesson.  WHOOHOO!!!  We walked to the bus stop and the bus wasn't going to be there for another 30 minutes.  We were FREEZING, so we decided to walk into a shop to just stay warm.  We decided to leave earlier than we wanted to and started to walk back to the bus stop.  We were on the other side waiting at the light when all of a sudden we saw the bus coming, and we were stuck on the other side of the intersection.  Our faces just dropped.  The next bus wouldn't come for 50 minutes and we had to be home in 45 minutes.  We were both freaking out, and all of a sudden our stop light that JUST turned red suddenly turned green.  We sprinted and the bus driver stayed and waited for us.  He opened his door even though he wasn't supposed to.  It probably sounds so silly and not important, but it was a miracle personal to us.  We knew in our hearts that we were doing the right thing and our goal was to finish that 10th lesson before the week was done.  We had worked so hard to achieve that goal and had done our best.  We were grateful for the Lord's tender mercy!

     Every morning we still go running, even though it's freezing cold. I drink the green smoothie  every morning for breakfast.  Even though my health is good, I am very exhausted,  and my body seems to crack and pop all over the place. haha

     Last week we took a cooking class from one of the members, and we learned how to cook a very famous Korean food called "mandou."  Also we learned how to make "japay." I will teach you when I get home but I will send a picture of it to you.  After we made it the member who taught it to us insisted that we eat.  Later we got so sick from eating so much!!  Anyways, I'm just tired of eating so much food here all the time. haha  That's why my companion and I are trying really hard to lose weight and we both lost 3 pounds just since last week!!  It's kind of hard because we only have 30 minutes to work out and do cardio.

     The people here are really humble and so kind, but the city is very run down and dirty.  I don't mind though.  I really get along with my companion very well and she's still so hilarious.  We both are always laughing together and she makes me laugh every day.  My companion MADE me try to eat a silkworm (larva) but I put it in my mouth and almost threw up, so I spit it out!  She was laughing so hard the entire time. haha. Real funny!

     In two weeks I am singing in Stake Conference, and they actually asked me to play my guitar and sing a solo.  The people here LOVE the singer John Denver.  In the English class which I help teach weekly, the people in the class asked me to sing John Denver's famous song, "Country Roads."  I played it on the guitar and suddenly everyone started singing at the chorus.  The elders in my district said they got chills. haha  It was amazing though to see these people all sit around singing this song together as best as they could in English.  I loved it!!  What a great experience it is for me to teach these humble people.

     Today for p day we are going shopping and doing some cleaning.  I forgot to tell you something.  A couple of weeks ago when I first arrived in this area, we were sitting in our house and this guy named Harry (his English name) called us.  He told us he had a present for us and he explained how to get to his place.  We traveled for an hour looking for his house.  When I met him I just couldn't help smile because he looked JUST like a TURTLE!  He was such a cute little old man about the age of 75 or 80.  He brought us into a store and bought us Korean food, just because he wanted to give something to us .  It was all about caring and giving to others.  awww…..I love Koreans!!

     A few days ago we watched some bible videos during dinner.  I watched as Christ taught the people.  It was interesting because He was the perfect example of a teacher.  When he needed to be strict and bold, he was always just enough, and he never let himself get out of control.  He never lost his temper but controlled himself in all things. He is such a perfect example to me.

     I love you all and I am having so much fun here!  The reason I say I don't want to come home is because I love the people here so much!!  I love my surroundings and being a missionary, and I know I will never get a moment like this again.  I now have less than a year and my time is winding down.  I love these people so much more than I ever thought I could, and I love every part about missionary work.  It is definitely hard and tiring but it is so worth it.  It's crazy to think about all the things in my life that have happened.  All the guys that I dated that never worked out, was probably because it wasn't the right timing for me so I could fulfill this special mission.  I never thought I would be here but I am…….and I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father for these amazing experiences and guiding me here.

     I love you all so much and look forward to the day that I get to hug you and see you again!!  Just know you are ALL in my prayers.  I LOVE YOU!!!

                   Love, Michelle