What a small world!!!

MOM. DAD. GUESS WHAT?

DO YOU REMEMBER AN ELDER RYDER WHO SERVED IN INDIANA??

HE'S HERE. AS IN HE LIVES HERE. HE GOES TO THE YSA I SERVE IN.

We were at break the fast with the YSA yesterday and this guy stopped me and was like "hey are you from Indiana?" And I was like "yes indeed I am." And then he said, "do you have an older brother and a younger brother and a younger sister?" And I was like "...yes what the flipadoodle?"

And then he said " I served in your home ward with Elder Uthaichai.

We carved pumpkins at your house." And then the whole "image of a missionary" thing went out the window as I freaked out. It's a small world. 

Elder Anderson came to the mission this week.

He talked a lot about how faith can propel things to happen that need to happen.

We had an experience with that idea just yesterday when we knocked on the door of a less active family. We have been trying to contact this family the entire transfer. Their son loves church and wants to be baptized. So, we have been trying to meet with them, naturally. Well for the last 5 weeks we haven't been able to catch this sister at home. There was literally nothing more that we could do to meet her.

Yesterday we said a prayer of the "we can’t do anything else to help this family unless God makes something happen" kind of faith before we knocked on the door.  And VOILA, there she stood. Now we have a return appointment with them.

We had a similar experience earlier this week. It was with a different less active family that the bishop had asked us to check in on. We hadn't been able to catch them at home for the last couple of weeks. We said a prayer with as much faith as we could muster, knocked on the door, and then shuffled back to the car after who knows how long of no answer. We were about to drive away when we saw one of them waving us back over.  It was a happy experience. 

Ice cream money & mission accomplished!

This is a sad little email, but I must go. I have an untalent show to perform in. Forgive me for the lack of information about my week. I'd stay to inform but alas, the stage calls my name. 

Love, Sister Barlow

One heck of a large avocado.

Ps. I have added to my missionary version of Dancing Through Life:

"What's the most sanctified place in town? That would be the LDS temple! Sounds eternal!" 

hahaha I am a genius.