December 8th

Christmas time is here! yay! We had our Zone conference Christmas party on Monday and it was a blast! President and Sister Simpson were there and we had a white elephant gift exchange and a talent show. I did 2 talents. One was Sis. Peaden and I playing a medley of Christmas songs. I played the piano and she played the recorder. And then our district did a mini play. One of the Elders wrote up this spoof of a Christmas Carol. He played scrooge and I played the narrator. Which I have to say was the best role ever. It turned out pretty well, especially considering that we had never practiced it before hand and it was a musical so we all sang this song he had made up and that none of us knew the tune to. You could say it was a hit. :) Our white elephant gift exchange was pretty fun too. Sister Peaden and I found a bunch of junk that Elders had left in the apartment before us. We gave away a hockey skate and some half burned out lights. We were happy to get them off our hands. The assistants dressed up like Santa Claus and his elf and handed out letters that the office had kept for like a month that were from our families. I thought it was a good idea so that everyone had a letter to open.
We also got to see the 1st Presidency Christmas devotional! It was actually pretty funny because their not going to play it for the whole branch till the 19th but Sister Peaden and I really wanted to see it on Sunday. We had a meeting with 2 of the women in our branch (Sister Macinnis and Sister Wentzell) that night to discuss the Christmas program for sacrament meeting. They found out we wanted to watch it and so we found a way to do it by watching it in the mini library they have on the small TV that hooks up to the satelite. So here we were the 4 of us crammed into this closet of a library eating pringles and watching the devo. It was a blast. I loved it. Sister Macinnis at one point was talking about all of the musical talent that there must be in our wards and then she looked at us and said, "you must feel bad for our branch some times" I said " oh no! I don't! you get so many opportunities here to be leaders and serve in so many callings" And I meant it. Yes more musical talent would be nice. But it's better this way, people who wouldn't normally get the chance to shine in a big ward get the chance to in the small branch here.
Matt is still doing good. He's smoke free and we're having a small celebration for him on Friday. He has come a long way and we are so excited for him and the changes he is making. Casey is still on date, she was on vacation so haven't seen her for over a week, which is eternity in the mission world. We're excited to see her and see how she's doing. We have a few other investigators but they are all so busy at this holiday season that it's hard to see them on a regular basis. Which totally stinks. We are constantly setting up appointments with people that we meet knocking but they have literally ALL fallen through this week. It can be frustrating. But you just keep trying. I think it's just a true testimony builder for me that when missionary work is through members it's successful, and when it's through knocking...well it's just harder to see the success right away. So we've been doing more member visits and finally got a referral yesterday! yahoo! I love referrals. Seriously they are the best because they are pretty much an automatic open door.
Well transfers are next week and who knows what will happen. My guess is we are both staying. And if we do we get to go to the mission home for Christmas Eve and I'll get to spend the night over at Sister Hudson's place because she's serving near there. I really hope it doesn't change for that reason...but change is also welcomed. I love Sister Peaden and Truro and we both want to stay here, but we both like change too. :) It's weird you can love something so much but also want a bit of change to make things exciting. I know that no matter what happens, it is exactly what the Lord wants and that is what matters most. I feel so grateful for a Loving Father in Heaven who answers prayers. And in particularly this week I am very grateful for the guidance of the Holy Ghost. I don't ever want to take for granted that special gift again. This week the Holy Ghost has warned me of danger, has comforted me, and has prompted me to do things that have led to us having success. I feel so grateful for that special gift we each can have. What a huge blessing. I know the gospel is true with all of my heart. It is, and it is a priviledge to wear this name tag and share the message of the restoration with the people of Truro. I am so grateful for the adundance of things that we have, so many are in need and do not have what we have. I don't know why I've been so blessed, but I am so grateful for it. Thank you for your prayers and letters!

love,
Sister Crane