Madie

Friends and family,

Words cannot express how incredibly proud I am of Madie. Literally (used correctly) every e-mail I got today spoke of her maturity and the power of her farewell talk. Let me just talk to her for a second.

Madie, through the years, you and I have "got" each other like no one else has. Though our interests are different, I have no doubt that we were put in the same family for a divine purpose. It kills me that I wasn't able to see your farewell or see you off, but I will be the first to hug you when you return. There was a time in my junior year of college that I was feeling overwhelmed and alone. You lived in the flat below me. I called to see if I could come over, only to find that you were at work. I sat in my room, wanting to talk to someone, but all my roommates were gone. A few minutes later, you walked in. You had left work early to come be with me. I even found out later that you'd ditched a date to spend time with a poor pathetic sister. You probably don't remember this, but I do. I love you, girl. You have a great capacity to love. You have an incredible desire to serve. You are stronger than any girl (or boy) I know. You are my best friend. You will never understand the impact that you have made on my life. I am proud of you. A mission will be hard, and you will feel alone. But I know you can do it, because I've seen you overcome hard things. Don't give up, okay? We're in this together! A success for you is a success for me. Work hard and be obedient. You're going to the second best mission (next to mine) in the world. Though each day brings its own challenges, for some reason happiness always prevails. Let the Lord be the centre of your mission! Pray harder than you ever have. You are never going to have some of these feelings again, so make sure you write them down so I can read them later. Remember that your sister in the middle of nowhere in Wales is rooting for you and thinking of you.  

Wassermellon.

Anyway, I had a really good week. We're working on finding new people to teach, and have been involved in quite a few service projects. I'm really loving the area, though it's still not the same as Cardiff. The people I've met and associated with are incredible. I am so lucky to have the opportunity to go out and talk to these people every day about something that makes me undeniably happy. I love you!

Sister Kate

Alma 36:27