November 30th

Hello! So... We get transfer calls today but I'm emailing before the
call so... I have no idea what's happening!! Maybe I'll get it while
I'm typing this email :)
Here's the update from my week of trying to get back into the swing of
things! Sister Gappmayer came from Kichijoji last Saturday night and
stayed with me until this Saturday morning so the other sisters could
work as usual and we could take things slow.
Wednesday: We did our usual study schedule and then made cards for
investigators and members. Then we rested until the evening and took
the long walk to the church to teach English class. I hadn't been
there in a few weeks and there were just 2 students in our class but
we enjoyed it and we were able to talk to/invite people during the
walk to and from the church. It felt good to get out and do missionary
things again!
Thursday: Thanksgiving! We studied and planned a message and made
cards and handouts for our thanksgiving dinner. The Yokota Air Base is
in our zone so... All the Musashino North Zone missionaries got to
spend time with American members for thanksgiving. We didn't actually
get to go to America (the base) but we had dinner with 2 member
families and 1 non-member family at the non-member family's house.
They were all very relaxed and it was just perfect. We felt so spoiled
and lucky to eat such delicious food. American food!! It had so much
flavor. Haha We shared a message about gratitude and a cute mormon
message about living in thanksgiving and bore our testimonies about
the principles of the gospel we are most grateful for. It was so fun
to almost be in America for a couple hours! Also, the train ride there
and back was really long with about a million transfers so we had lots
of opportunity to talk to people and invite them! My favorite
conversation happened when I asked a lady if she had a family. She
hesitated and said it was a hard question... Probably meaning she
doesn't have one or her family relationships are complicated. I
immediately testified of our identity as God's children and our part in
God's family. I told her I was really grateful for this special time I
have in Japan to meet my Japanese brothers and sisters. It was silent
for a little bit and then we kept the conversation going, but it felt
good to testify and give her an opportunity to feel the spirit. We
also met this girl who is interested in church and learning about
Christ! Got her number and called her last night and we have an
appointment to meet this Saturday!! Woohoo!
Friday: Remember my friend Misako? Well she got really busy and fell
off the face of the earth and told us she couldn't meet until February
but still really wanted to take lessons and come to church when she
has time again. Well, I've been trying to contact her just to say hey
but I think she feels bad when I do because she literally can't meet
us. So I had this great idea! I had the missionaries who had taught
her with me and the members she had gotten to know at church and in
her lessons each write her a letter of encouragement and I delivered
them on Friday! We put a huge packet of letters in her mailbox! I
found out on Sunday that she had emailed one of the members and said
she was excited to get the letters and would contact the missionaries
again when her schedule clears up. Keep her in your prayers! We love
Misako!
Then we did the cleaning check for our apartment, contacted
investigators, and wrote more cards and thank you's to members and
friends.
In the evening we had dinner and a lesson at Asada shimai's house.
Asada Kyoudai was there for a lot more of the evening this time! He
spoke a lot more. He is really adorable. When asked what gift he has
received from God, he said "marriage". He loves English and likes
talking to us in English more than in Japanese. Asada Shimai is so
sweet and she makes the best food! It was really fun :)
Saturday: I became a three person companionship with Funakura Shimai
and eyring Shimai. We went to the church after study time to do a deep
cleaning with the members. So really cool.... I hadn't been to church
in a couple weeks and hadn't met with Choi for lessons or really
communicated with her that much in a while... Well, she must have just
heard about the cleaning assignment at church and showed up without
invitation from the missionaries! So cool. She told me on Sunday that
she was nervous when she was baptized and confirmed but recently she
has felt a lot of peace and is becoming familiar and getting used to
things at church. So good! Anyway we weeded the plants behind the
church and organized the missionary closet and it all looks so much
better!
We met the other sister's potential investigator, Ayame for lunch. She
is really cool and pretty and works for nu-skin. I think she wanted to
help us with our skin haha. We felt ugly and American next to her but
she was really awesome. She had texted earlier saying she didn't
really want to meet to talk about church. She mostly wanted to become
friends. Well, we ended up talking mostly about church and she said
she may have interest in coming to the church and meeting again and
learning more about Christ when she has time again. She didn't really
know anything about Jesus or Christmas so we taught her a little bit
and testified of Him.
We went housing for a little bit inviting people to the Christmas
party. Then we took the bus to Kichijoji. We met Yuko, the other
sister's sort of kind of investigator, for dinner and then went to the
Kichijoji music night. It was a way cool event. Lots of investigators,
missionaries, recent converts, and friends performed and the focus was
Christ, gifts from God, and Christmas. Lots of way talented people and
a really good spirit. I was able to see old investigators and less
actives from Kichijoji. It was so fun! One less active in particular,
Sakaguchi Shimai, was way excited to see me! It felt really good that
I had been able to make even a small difference and a friendship even
when my Japanese was not so good and I mostly never knew what she was
saying when we visited her before!
Sunday: So many members asked about our health! It was cool that they
noticed and cared! Miller Shimai is STILL in the hospital. Probably
comes back tomorrow. Church was cool! Three really new converts in
gospel principles. 3 converts in our ward this transfer! After church
there was a pot luck lunch. We don't have a gym or anything like it so
it was in the chapel. So weird! The theme of our conversations was
talking about our ancestors and stories about our grandparents. Sister
Eyring got to stand up and talk about her grandpa!! He goes to their
house every night for dinner and always shares spiritual stories and
funny stories!
We visited a referral, delivered birthday cards, housed, and shared a
message with a member family and their non-member dad. Also we biked a
lot!
I have been extremely tired these last couple days trying to keep up
with normal life! But it's fun!
Favorite quote from today's study. President Uchtdorf's talk from
October 2010 conference.
"Brothers and sisters, indeed we have great reason to rejoice. If life
and its rushed pace and many stresses have made it difficult for you
to feel like rejoicing, then perhaps now is a good time to refocus on
what matters most.
Strength comes not from frantic activity but from being settled on a
firm foundation of truth and light. It comes from placing our
attention and efforts on the basics of the restored gospel of Jesus
Christ. It comes from paying attention to the divine things that
matter most.
Let us simplify our lives a little. Let us make the changes necessary
to refocus our lives on the sublime beauty of the simple, humble path
of Christian discipleship--the path that leads always toward a life of
meaning, gladness, and peace."
Of Things That Matter Most
http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2010/10/of-things-that-matter-most?lang=eng
Happy December! This is a perfect time to simplify and focus on what
matters most. Christ is the real meaning of this season. This is the
perfect time to share your faith, love others, and serve! This is the
perfect time to testify of Christ and what his gospel means to you.
Christ is the gift that God has given to us. He's the gift that allows
us to return to God again!
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life.
John 3:16 http://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/john/3?lang=eng
I love y'all a lot! Miss you.
Transfer calls STILL haven't come. I'll let ya know!
Love,
Kinz

Sakaguchi Shimai

Sister Gappmayer, Sister Asada, Sister Funakura, Sister Eyring 

 
Thanksgiving leftovers with Gappy 

Tomato ramen with Yuko San

CHRISTMAS TREE with Sister Gappmayer

SOS. BOM. 

EIKAIWA

Sister Funakura

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Study time 

Cooking Night

 
THANKSGIVING 

November 25th

Hello Everyone!! 

I know you probably weren't worried, but just in case you were... I'M ALIVE! And here's why you might have been worried... ALL the details ;) TMI? Oops. 

Where to begin..... 

November 14th. Friday night: Sister Miller got up a few times in the night to puke. 

Saturday morning: I told my companion to rest and we could call Sister Wada after I got ready. I was feeling sort of sick but didn't really question it and went on with the normal things. Worked out, showered, ate breakfast and started studying. I went in to the other sisters study room when it was time for companion study and suggested that one of them work with me that day because we had 3 lessons to teach and my companion certainly wasn't coming with me! It was beginning to become complicated trying to make a decision of who should stay with Sister Miller and who should come with me because I still needed to exchange with Sister Funakura but she had pneumonia! so I called Sister Wada and explained the situation. Then she asked me the real problem and I admitted I felt sick too. She convinced me to cancel the lessons and stay home. Good thing cause within an hour or two I was vomiting, too! 

For three days it was the same story. Lay in misery with a fever. Puke. Get up and go to the bathroom a lot. It felt as frequent as every 5 minutes but I'm not sure. And try to drink water and sports drink because I knew I was dying. 

The elders came and gave us blessings on Sunday night. 

Monday night I knew I was not getting better and I was concerned because we weren't getting help. So I called and everyone felt like we needed to wait to go to the doctor in the morning if we could get an appointment. But... With a number of calls between several different people and confusion about what everyone wanted everyone else to do... I end up calling 119, the emergency number! Sister Wada said they would speak to me in English but that was not true. They asked for our address and then said a bunch of things I didn't understand at all and then 3 men and an ambulance showed up at our house. We decided to go with them because I wanted help! The other sisters cancelled their lesson and came with us. 

And this is my adventure in an ambulance and a Japanese hospital!! 

So no one speaks English... And we are too sick to want to talk but I used my best Japanese and also learned lots of new vocabulary about my symptoms. First time in an ambulance. It was cool I guess. I felt horrible. And my companion was doing wayyy worse than I was. We sit in the ambulance in front of our house for forever while they call around to find a hospital and explain that we are 2 sick Americans who are okay at Japanese, and our roommates, a Japanese girl who doesn't speak English, and another American who doesn't speak Japanese. Then we finally leave and get there in like 10 minutes! 

At the hospital they have me sit in the tiniest wheelchair ever. I'm seriously confused about what they do with the fat people. Then... They ask me if its okay to give me an IV and I was strangely not terrified of anything even though I was in a hospital! In a foreign country where they don't speak my language! I hate doctors in America and this should have been worse! But I wanted to feel better that bad that I was willing to go and do whatever it took. Anyway I'm sitting there in a wheelchair, wanting to vomit and go to the bathroom and feeling really hot and faint but they start sticking needles in me and taking my blood and asking me a lot of questions and getting my blood everywhere in the process. I finally ask them if I can lie down and then I puked. And then they took me to a bed where I could lay and have an IV. Blood test results came back and I was fine! They were guessing that I must have gotten a poison or toxin of some kind... They took a stool sample and had me go home after the IV. 

Sister Miller didn't mention until we got to the hospital that she has acid reflux disease. Turns out that made it really hard for her to drink during all those days of vomiting. So she got super dehydrated and her kidney stopped working the way it should. So they kept her!! 

I got home at 3 in the morning, still feeling bad but a tiny bit better. 

Stayed in bed for several more days. Each day a tiny bit better. Stopped the vomiting, but kept the fever and the diarrhea. 

Finally get the results from the lab and we got SALMONELLA food poisoning!!! No wonder!! 

My stomach would kill anything I put inside... Water, food, anything. I would feel terrible and have to go to the bathroom immediately. Lost tons of weight I think. 

Friday night I went back to the hospital for them to check on me and they gave me some antibiotics. I think they are magic because I really am improving tons each day now! My goal is to feel good enough to eat like a sort of almost maybe normal person on thanksgiving! 

Sister Miller is still in the hospital... Keep her in your prayers!! 

I think I will get out of bed and slowly do some normal things these next few days. I'm really weak and my stomach is still really sensitive and it moves around a ton, but I feel like a new human! I'm so grateful!!! I've been dreaming about all the food I want when I feel good again. And it's mostly American. I'll go on a search for something that tastes like America. Like carbs and cheese. Hahaha 

We get transfer calls next week. Don't know what will happen!! President Wada told me to concentrate on getting healthy right now and worry about the work after that. He knows me well. Today is temple P day. Didn't feel up to traveling that far :( But maybe they will let the sick people from our zone go next week if we are feeling better! A good percent of the mission is sick right now. 2 are currently hospitalized. :( 

I can now say I'm a survivor of Salmonella! Yuck. It really takes the life out of you. Don't eat chicken. Ever. Or eggs. 

Each experience we have is a blessing. I've been blessed with wonderful roommate sisters who have showed patience and love. It is lonely and weird to have my companion away from me, but I guess we bonded over our strange symptoms and miserable experience. Sister Wada told me this was my time to receive revelation and I thought she was crazy at first. I couldn't think of anything but making it to the toilet on time and I had heard that sick people can't feel the spirit. Well they are wrong and sister Wada of course is right. I guess God really isn't about efficiency if he allows his missionaries to sit out for several days... It was interesting to really try to understand what God's work is about and why he would let me lay on the ground and puke my guts out when there were souls to save and I was willing to help him invite! And that's what it's about. It's a willing heart. It's not perfect statistics or service, perfect lessons or golden investigators, the largest teaching pool, or most SOS invitations. It's my heart. And for days while I lay on the ground with no energy in me to serve him, at least my heart wanted to. And he was fine with that. And he showed me that he loved me and he didn't leave me alone. It's important for me to know these things so I can testify of these things. He loves me and he loves us all. Pain and sickness is part of that road to glory. Let's keep on traveling! Also, everything is a miracle. 

I've learned a lot this past week and a half. Learning to find joy in the journey. make the most of the TIME I have here. To build real human relationships. To love. To love each moment and not worry or stress about what others might expect. Just do what God wants me to do when he wants me to do it. Be satisfied with my best. Receive revelation. Be genuinely happy. Not work harder than is necessary. This work is work but it can feel like fun. Make this into a memory I will feel happy about. Christ is the REASON. He is the reason I'm here. He is the way. Because of Him, we can endure and overcome hard things. Because of Him, we can return to our Heavenly Home. I love Him. 

I love being a missionary. This is the longest shortest best worst most amazing difficult incredible experience ever. I love my testimony. I love the message I share. I love the people. I love learning about God. He has given me so much. All that I am is because of Him. Forever grateful, forever indebted. 

I love you all. Write me :) Oh. And happy thanksgiving! Eat a big American meal for me :) I'm thankful for many things. YOU. Eternal Families. The gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm grateful for love. 

Love, 

Sister McKenzie Reeves

Feeling a little better and eating a mc flurry with gappmayer Shimai!