MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!! 聖誕快樂~!!!! (sing daan faai lohk!!!)
(Thanks to my companion, i'm slowly learning how to write chinese characters on the computer. It's a slow, slow process let me tell you....:) but there you have it!)
Something chinese:
The Chinese don't really know why we celebrate christmas. they know it's kind of an american holiday and that they get school and work off for a few days and get to rest a little. They also know that there are lots of parties and gifts and food and money to be made from it all. i ask people on the street if they know why we celebrate christmas and they have no idea, but they love the lights and the music and the thrill of it all. It has been a pleasure to look back over the last year of being a missionary and look at all the people the Lord has led me to and how,in a small way, i have helped them to understand why we celebrate christmas. I love the chinese people so much and their sometimes surprising ignorance about simple christian things, like why we celebrate christmas, helps me realize how blessed i am to have the knowledge i have. These people mean everything to me and hopefully for the next 6 months i can, with the lord's help, find even more of them to truly understand why we celebrate christmas.
Something of a family shout-out:
I just have to say a few things about how amazing ya'll are. everytime i flip open my picture book and show people my family, they are amazed. they always mention how young mom and dad look, how big our family is and how we are so "hang fuk!"....blessed/happy. they think it is way cool that my sister in law is from tai wan and i have "mixey" neices, that i have little brothers that are twins and as tall as giants, that my little sister looks like a model (your senior pic shelley...:), and that most have served or are serving missions. they look at all of you and see the perfect family. i look at you and see heaven. even though we are not all together right now (from south america to connecticut to Georgia to Utah to Washington to china) and may not be for some time, you are my heaven on earth. and if that is true, can you just imagine what it will be like to be in heaven together? i'm so grateful to know that we have the knowledge of eternal families and if we all keep helping each other along and having faith in Christ, we can all make it to heaven someday....together. it sounds funny, but can you all just see us in heaven? it's gonna be the biggest party/family reunion ever and it'll be like watching all those funniest home videos of all our best and worst...:) memories....anyways, it just brings me so much comfort to know that you are all so strong in the gospel and pressing forward wherever you are. I have felt the power of your prayers and they have helped me some days just to keep walking and sharing my testimony, even when i was exhausted or didn't have the power within myself to keep going. your examples are priceless and the greatest gift my havenly father has given me at this point in my life. I hope you are all able to find peace this christmas, whether you are in a busy city like hong kong, the comforts of home in washington or the heat and ruralness of south america. you are the best family ever!!!!!!!!!!! (as quoted from The Incredibles) Cheers and merry christmas!
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