Sunshine Sentiments: SISTER DeGOOYER

'I am asked sometimes, "Why don't we have any great literature now?" And we don't, you know; we may kid ourselves or other people may try to kid us that we do, but we don't. There were Homer, Virgil, Dante, Shakespeare, and Goethe; and there it seems to have stopped. There seems to have been no supreme figure since then. But I tell you there was one: Joseph Smith....' -Arthur Henry King

This is a gem I was given at a members home this week. Of couse, as all or most of you are accustomed to, we missionaries get asked a very particular set of questions at every meal appointment. One of those questions is what do you want to do with your life/go to school for? I've decided that though my aspirations may seem ambitious, it does not hurt to state them. I want to be an English Professor, Scholar, and Writer. So I told this family that, and the husband got really excited, especially when I said I was considering minoring in philosophy. He took me to his library and it was the most beautiful thing I have ever seen (not counting the temple and my baby nephew). It was a huge room lined with books, and not just books; good books! It was so incredibly inspiring! He wanted to give me a whole book of Arthur Henry King's essays, but settled for just a brief essay that I of course took home and have been disecting ever since. He also showed me some great resources on churchofjesuschrist.org, which I am excited to check out! :)

This quote spoke powerfully to me, especially with President Nelson's invitation to us last conference. I have read the story of the first vision several times since then, and there are not many things more powerful than that honest account.

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Yesterday we attended a Primary Program for one of the wards that we cover. We like to make it to those meetings because attending 3-6 Sacrament Meetings gets pretty repetitve, and a good primary program changes things up a bit. This one, I think, was the last one of the season. It was a fun program, with a great big Primary group. I swear every kid knew the words to every song, and each of their speaking parts was heartfelt and true to what they've been learning. Putting all of that aside, the last song they sang is one that as a missionary I have grown to love "Peace in Christ." As I listened to and watched the kids sing, my attention was drawn to a little girl in the second or third row. She stood out from the rest of the children because as she sang, she was crying. I watched as she sang every word, inturrupting only to wipe her cheeks with the tail end of her jacket. It was clear that she felt what she was singing. I paid special attention to the words of the song, and found myself crying along with her. I looked over and my companion was right with me. It was so good, and so sweet. I encourage you all to listen to this song, and pay special attention to the words. I testify that there is "peace in christ!"

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NANOWRIMO!!! I am so freakin' excited! My companion admitted to me yesterday that my excitement for the month of November scares her a little bit. Haha, she hates writing, but luckily she is indulging me and is supporting me in my endeavor! When I came on my mission I had to give up a lot of things. My family, my friends, my dog, the first year of my nephews life, my computer, my music, my job, my schooling, my books, BUT I decided that I wouldn't give up my writing. I have given up my stories, but not my writing. I write about Pocatello, I write about missionary work, and of course I journal about my days as a missionary. I decided when coming on a mission that no matter where I went I would try to still do NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). After coming on a mission though, I began to wonder at the sense behind that choice. I want to focus on the work, on the people we are teaching, and on the area that I am serving in; I want to focus on my purpose: my Savior. So, I have made the decision to still do NaNoWriMo, but without the "No" (novel). This is what we NaNoWriMo-ers call a rebel. Last p-day we went to deseret book store and I bought 4 packages of small pictures of christ, the tree of life, and other sacred depictions. I then went home and with Sister Done's help picked out 30 cards that I would like to write about. Each card has a story waiting to be told and in the month of November I will work on 1 card a day during my free hour right before bed. It will not be my normal 1,667 words a day, nor will it be a full story; rather, it will be a collection of Christ centered stories. I'm excited and needless to say can't wait for November. Today Sister Done and I went to walmart and bought me a 2 Liter of Dr. Pepper; it's tradition, so i insisted. Haha, my plan is to send one of the essays/entires/pictures in my weekly, so hopefully that won't bug y'all.

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This week went by way to fast! We have started team teaching a guy named Eric, who I don't know really well yet, so hopefully more on that next week! Oh, and we also finished our new member lessons with Shiloh!

She's the best!