3/28/2022
Let me start of this email by saying I am full of gratitude and love. I can’t express to all of you how much love I have for the people I’m teaching and the pure joy I feel watching them turn to Christ. This week has been a very amazing week! We have worked very hard, been exhausted by the end of each day but seen God’s had in big miracles. Stay tuned to find out what happened!
On Tuesday morning Sister Schmidt and I had an amazing opportunity to go to the Temple with the youth. We got up at 4:45 and made it to the Boise temple by 5:45. We weren’t even tried! It has been so long since I have done baptisms, gee saying that makes me feel old 
, but it was so fun! It was a true blessing to me, I love my companion and im having a hard time knowing I have to say goodbye in 4 ish weeks. I was telling her how I wish I could experience going to the temple with her one more time! God read my mind and my heart, he blessed us with that opportunity! He not only blessed us with that 1 opportunity but he gave us another one. We get to go with a family in the Elders ward. They want to do baptisms, endowments and sealings all in one day! They invited us to go with them! I’m so excited I can’t wait.
Our goal this transfer is to really work with the youth, that’s why we took the time to go with them to the temple. Afterward we got to go to a big beautiful farm house and make waffles with them. I sat down and felt like I was home. I really enjoyed talking with them. Afterward Sister Schmidt told me she admires how well I can talk to people and how amazing I am just getting to really know them. 
God teaches us patience and sacrifice. After this amazing, spiritual morning we had to make packes for Sisters Conference. We spent 5 hours on a computer! Both of us were mentally and physically exhausted! That was definitely the worst! To make it all better we got to have breakfast food for dinner! A huge bird ran into a window at dinner and sure scared us! 
Uggg that poor bird lol.
Talking about patience I’d like to share how God has tested my patience. I’m sure in a few emails ago you could tell how bummed I was about my area. I simply wanted a friend to teach and I wanted it right now. I was sad that other missionaries were having so much success but yet I couldn’t even get into peoples homes. I was bummed! I even asked my mission president if I needed to change something I was doing. I know I am a new missionary and I’m still learning and progressing each day but I’m ready to teach. Not even two weeks ago our area was quiet and dead. But this week we have close to 9 potentials! 9! We really worked hard last week to gain these people and now we can finally see the rewards of the work. It doesn’t always happen fast, it’s been at least six weeks but I can say I can finally see potentials and I am excited to jump into teaching them.
Anthony is one of these people I had to exercize patience with. Anthony is is a really tough spot and he need love. I’m so greatful we waited and we pushed through. Anthony is now someone we are a actively teaching. We don’t know his circumstances for baptism yet or if he will be able to be back soon but all I do know is God needs us to be in his home teaching him. He needs the gospel and he needs to take the steps to get there.
Oh boy let me tell you though Anthony’s mom is so fun but kinda crazy 
. During our hour at their house she tried to teach me how to crochet in 30 seconds. She showed me once( while I was talking to Anthony) and then said, ” your turn!” I was like uhhhh what lol. Melody I need your skills! I will sat I still can’t crochet and she probably thinks I’m crazy. We ended up leaving her house with our bags packed full of random things such as: a fiver year olds painting, yarn, bent crochet needles, dollar store scarfs and a big drink of some sort.
Sisters Conference! Wow what a special day for us! Sisters Conference was a success. The countless hours of planning and meetings paid off. We arrived at the building at 8:30 to set it all up, I am not going to lie I was nervous about how it was all going to work out when we were setting up. Despite the group Leaders getting all messed up right in the beginning the Conference was so good. We were able to make a rice pack Sister Oliphant LOVES. It’s always in our microwave lol. We made lunch all together, and did 4 different service projects. I was able to help out in a rose garden getting it ready for spring. I got attacked by a bush a few times though. It’s a beautiful rose garden, I wish it would have been bloomed. We enjoyed a few workshops that consisted of communication skills, self-reliant toolkit and a emotional resilience speaker. The speaker had to be my favorite part. I got to introduce him, but overall he was amazing! At the end everyone clapped for us and we personally got a lot of thank you. It all worked out! So much stress was relieved when we looked back on the day and saw how it worked out.
I saw God working through Peggy this week. It was a miracle! This week we had an amazing opportunity to go out to lunch with a member and Peggy to celebrate her birthday. It was so fun! Than the next day we took Peggy to a special session of stake conference. This session was made for Peggy! It was focused on making Covenants and temple work. At the end of this session Peggy pulled us aside and asked, “How can I work in the temple?” Awww our hearts melted. Peggy has such a tender heart. The next day was the Sunday session of stake conference where Peggy sat with a member. This conference was absolutely amazing and the spirt was truly there. At the end of this conference we went to give Peggy a hug and ask her how it went. She held up a tissue and said I used thus a lot! She said I have never attended anything like this. As we were saying our goodbyes she said WAIT! She grabs Sister Schmidt and my arm and pulled us in as close as she could. Our heads were basically touching. She then said, “I had to look up a word this morning. Revelation. I can recieve revelation! I took what you girls said to heart and I asked God what he wanted me to do.. and just maybe God will help me stop smoking!” I looked up and I have never seen Peggy’s smile so wide and tears rolling down her face. I was bursting with pure joy. I had tears in my eyes. A week ago she said I have NO desire to stop smoking! And she now does! God works miracles.
On the topic of miracles, besides all of the potentials I have already mentioned and our area really picking up. I’d like to share a small tender mercy. We were riding our bikes down a little bit of a hill trying to make it to out next appointment on time. I tend to be a little bit better at directions so I’m usually in charge of leading us in where to go. Sooo. I had my phone in my fingers and one finger wrapped around the handle of my bike. We came to the edge of the sidewalk and Sister Schmidt was in front of me and there was a car approaching the corner. I got too close to Sister Schmidt and didn’t want to go out infront of the car so I drove over the curve. No big deal we do it all the time. Expect this time my phone slipped out of my hand tumbled 4 times and landed in the perfect spot for me to run it right over! We both could hear the crunch! Uggg! To make it even worse the car watched the whole thing 
. Sister Schmidt picked up my phone and said oh no Sister Howick. Long story short glass was coming pit of my phone it was that cracked. This is the tender mercy, I got back to the apartment and took of the screen protector. Not one scratch on my phone. HOW!? I ran it over. I’m so grateful, I don’t need another phone issue.
This week has been a very spirit filled week. I love my mission and love our gospel. We had the best district council of my entire mission this Friday. We got a new district leader at transfers and he’s been great for us. This quote he shared really touched many of us and I wanted to share.
“That night in Gethsemane Jesus became you an became me, he became every single one of us. He experienced every single terrible moment of our lives. That night he went through the agony of chemotherapy, that night he was a victim of assault, that night he came out of the closet and was kicked out of his house, that night he didn’t know how he was going to feed his family, that night he over dosed, that night he battled anxiety and depression, that night he lost a child. That night he felt hopless, terrified, and abandoned by his friends and his God. What ever you have felt, he’s felt it to. All the pain, anger, sadness, and loneliness that you have ever felt. He knows everything you’ve done God everything people have done to. He knows you perfectly, and he still loves you. Infact he loves you inspite of knowing you perfectly, HE DOES know you perfectly. He loves you more than you can imagine even when you don’t love yourself, especially when you don’t love yourself. He loves you, his love will never change or fade away, just as your worth will never change or fade away. You are a literall child of heavely parents the king and queen of the universe that makes you precious, your worth is infinite.” – unknown
– Sisters Conference
– twin day
