Halo-halo Just a Mix, Like Life

Written April 6, 2014
Dear errybody,

The picture is of me eating halo-halo (probably the most famous Filipino dessert) at mine and Sister Disoloila's favorite Filipino food chain.  Halo halo is a mix of everything... beans, bananas, ube ice cream, flan, tapioca balls, other stuff, ice, cream... etc.  It's so delicious, and exciting because you never really know what's going to be in each bite.

I figure my mission is a lot like that too.  And life, but I'll apply it specifically to my mission.  There's a ton of new situations and experiences here for me, some good, some not so good (as in, difficult), some super amazingly supremely awesome.  However, even though some bites in the halo halo are more delicious than others, it's still over all really delicious.  I figure that's where I'm at right now.  Yeah, my mission is super masarap - delicious - and I need to take the time to think about that and enjoy it in the grander picture even though at moments not every bite is gonna be as delicious as the bite that had the leche flan in it.  Sometimes you'll get beans, sometimes the flan, but overall that sweet taste of cream and ice and deliciousness is still underneath.  Rather than focusing on the beans, I'm learning more and more to focus on the delicious sweetness underneath it all.  The Gospel of Jesus Christ.  The Restoration of sacred covenants and ordinances, the same ones that were here on the earth at the time of Abraham and Moses and Noah.  My purpose as a missionary is to bring others unto Christ and recognize the fullness of joy they can achieve in this life, even if sometimes it's hard, even if sometimes it seems impossible.  I've been re-aligning my attitudes and perceptions this week with Heavenly Father's help, and it's really helped me to overcome trials physical and spiritual. 

From "True to the Faith" under the topic of "Adversity" - Rather than asking ourselves "Why is this happening to me?  What have I done to deserve this?"  We should instead ask those productive questions of, "What am I to do?  What am I to learn from this experience?  What am I to change?  Whom am I to help?  How can I remember my many blessing in this time of trial?"  I'm still adding more answers to those questions every day, but it's coming and I'm finding greater joy every day because of it.  I hope we all apply and answer those questions.  We'll be happier, and realize God's plan for us (and our neighbors) as we stay positively constructive in our self evaluations and become stronger through Christ's Atonement.  In Tagalog, the word for "atonement" is "pagbabayad-sala."  It literally means "the payment" for *something.*  Regardless of our shortcomings or obstacles, Christ will help us when we seek Him first in our life.

Love you all.

Sister Larsen            

[From her Mom--After I told her about  how I had seen a good example of considerateness and responsibility, I asked Marinda about good examples she had seen.  Here is her reply]
  
    I see about 3000000000000000000000000000 bad examples every day, and the misery that comes from sin and also the poverty from it.  However, at Church,, sometimes I do see good examples, especially in marriages and such.  Mostly though, I learn from people's bad examples here... sometimes that's just life though.