I just have to say how much it made my entire day week and LIFE to read your email today!! Everything about it just made me smile all day :) We actually read our emails when we go shopping in the morning (shout out to grocery stores with wifi!) and then write them later. It is a little hard to remember everything though, so I have to keep looking back!
We got transfer calls on Saturday! Sister Grisham and I are staying together in Zwickau WHOOP WHOOPPPP1!!! I'm excited, I have new goals and I know this new transfer is going to bring so much success to Zwickau!!!
Thank you for the anniversary wish!! How exciting is that, I've gotten to be a missionary for a whopping 4 months?!?! What in the world, I am just so lucky. On the other hand, I feel like time is just slipping through my finger tips... I don't know the language well enough and yes, every day brings some success but it's not always big giant things to wow my family back home! But I took the time on Sunday while we watched conference for the 3rd time (haha I'll explain later), I looked through my old journal entries over the past 4 months. It's amazing to see how much I've changed in just this small amount of time. I've struggled and seen the hand of God in my life almost constantly. I'm just so happy to be here, there is nothing that I would rather be doing right now other than serving this beautiful country!
That's so so so so cute to hear that you and Dad go on walks together- I love that you two love each other and still act like young sicko teenagers. I'm beyond grateful for the example that you've set for me... I just hope I will have half of the marriage that you have! But yeahh that's a long way away we are just not going to think about that.
Eeeek yay you got my package!!!!! That was SO cute to see the pictures of everyone holding the goodies! What did you think of the nimm2's? Those are my favorites. They say to "take 2" but I definitely "take 3 or 4 or the whole bag". I love sending packages home, I will for sure send one home for Christmas! P.S. with all of the Christmas markets here that are already starting up this month, I definitely will be able to find a nativity set. Just let me know kind and what you would like for size. I'll start looking toward the end of the transfer, this is like the Christmas country of the world! I'm so excited to go finding during Christmas time, we have some exciting ideas to give gifts, ask people what makes them happy, and even SING!!! EEEEKKKK!! I better start practicing because I'm not a solo singer...
Wasn't conference just amazing? I've heard that listening to GC as a missionary is even more fun and I totally agree! It was such a tender mercy to hear Heavenly Father speaking to us through His servants, and in ENGLISH! German is literally so awesome, but I love being able to understand everything. I totally noticed themes in GC as well - service, humility and social media! I thought the social media ones were especially good. As an online missionary, I have to filter out soooo much trash. How I am training to use facebook now is such a good help for social media use for the rest of my life, I sure hope that I can master it.
I wrote down some questions, especially the hard ones that investigators ask me. The most common one is that they are angry at God for letting bad things happen to good people. Why? They want to know. It's really a sensitive subject for a lot of people, and a lot of times I haven't been able to give good answers. President Uchtdorfs Saturday morning talk answered it- completely and fully! He restated what the scriptures and I have felt: the rain falls upon the just and the injust. Everyone is going to experience hard times. The difference is between those that just wallow in self pity and say oh man, why ME?! and the other, the righteous, they fall 7 times and still get up again. This life is not in any way meant to be easy. That talk linked really well with Dallin H. Oaks talk, when he said to make use of adversity, we can use knowledge gained from trials to help others. I've done stupid things and also gone through hard times, and I'm actually grateful for them now. I see the world with a softer heart, and there's no use thinking I'm any better than the person next to me. I can relate to them, I can cry with them, I can love them. All because Christ has opened my heart to understanding. I love that guy. Ah man, I could just go on and on about conference. Highlights though: Bonnie Oscarson (she always slays) said that "some of the greatest needs may be right in front of you". It feels wonderful to serve a mission in Germany, but I hope and pray I have the same inclination to serve those in Minnesota and at BYU and wherever life takes me. Elder Holland: just drop the mic and walk away. I thought a lot about Brad Wilcox's His Grace is Sufficient talk while he was giving his. We are going to stumble and fall short and walk in a zigzagged, drunken walk toward God. Nevertheless, it is toward God. That is what matters. :) I only got to see 2 sessions because of the time difference, but I'm putting them onto a USB today to listen to them later! I'm so excited, and even from just what I've heard, I've been so uplifted and I hope that you have too! The plan of God is so great and wonderful and happy and exciting!!! P.S. I totally hope we can dance in heaven because we have the best dance parties together!!
Okay, a little bit about my week. We had a lesson with a cute older lady named Helga on Tuesday. She talked our ear off for about 50 minutes again and we quick tried to squeeze in a bit of a lesson. She's a stinker, she knows we want to share something with her, but she really just likes talking. I just love her though! Her eyes crinkle up really tight when she smiles and she's just about 4 foot 9, I just want to cuddle up next to her like you or Sara or Grandma hehe. But most of the rest of our lessons fell out for the week for really strange reasons (one investigator got her phone stolen right before :( ). It was a miracle though, because we rang her doorbell and she wasn't there so we were like, let's just sit here for 10 minutes because we still haven't reported like 4 lessons on our Area Book (it's a busy place in Zwickau!) and I wanted to write her a little note. 8 minutes later she showed up!! We talked for a bit and comforted her a bit, and were able to create a bit of a better bond! But now this week is crazy jam packed because we have lots of appointments this week ahhhh!!! Hopefully they go well, pray for us! :)
Random thoughts of the week that I wrote down for you:
Did you see those purple MOTAB choir robes?! GORGEOUS color!! Big fan. Big fan.
I woke up this morning and we were getting ready and I started singing a "good morning" song to Sister Grisham, just like you always did to me! It was nonsense and funny, but hey, it rhymed and that's what's important! It made me smile to remember that little thing that you always did that brought so much sunshine into my day. I miss those! :)
Answering your questions: (when you put your questions all together, they are easier to answer :))
I always get your pictures and download them to look at later! I hope you still love me after I tell you this, but I don't let myself look at any of them except for Sunday and Monday. It's just how I deal with leaving home behind and not letting myself get homesick. Even though, I love and miss my crazy wonderful family so much!!! (you and Dad are still my screensaver on my tablet though, it makes me smile every time that I open it)
Yes, I did get the message that you put money in my account! Thank you so much, that was so thoughtful!! We shopped all day, yet I didn't actually get anything... I'm my mothers child apparently, I don't want to impulsively buy anything. Sister Grisham couldn't believe that I could shop all day and not buy anything! If only she knew me in high school, my mom had to bring me snacks to keep me entertained at the mall haha! [That is true! I also had to give her a reward afterwards if she was good the whole time, even when she was 16, 17 and 18 years old! No lie! MOM]
Yes, I took pictures of the Wohnung, we live on the first floor (second floor according to Americans) on the right side of what you can see in the picture. I made sure to get the balcony in it so you can laugh a second time imagining me climbing that thing in a dress! In German, we say ZonenKonferenz, so yes it is ZoKo muahaha :)
I just love getting to write you. I miss you. I'm looking forward to getting to talk to my wonderful, happy, loving, smiley parents and family on Christmas (woohoo Christmas is just over 2 months away!) Thank you for everything you do for me. Sometimes I wish I didn't like you so much so then I wouldn't miss you... But oh well, I guess I can survive :)
I love you a million General Conference sessions!!!
Love, Sister Macey Ingalls
P.S. I took my time writing to you lol (and I didn't even get to tell you everything, wah!) so please deliver some of these messages to the rest of the fam:
Gma: loved your email, youre so cute!!! That's awesome that you and my mom are putting together this fair. I wish I would have gotten some of the creative genes in the family... Let me know how it goes, I just KNOW that your hard work is going to pay off!! This is an awesome way to get friends of members to come, its lowkey church activity and very relevant to the states right now. Make sure that the sisters come, make sure they are working hard over there :) I love you, and yes we did make cookies but they were about 40% as good as yours. I didn't over bake them though :))))
Sara: What did you think of the pico balls (gummy bears)?! Their my fav. Do you have a bump at all yet? I don't think you want any of the names from Germany unless you like Detlef or Jörg....
Boys: I love you so much!!!! Keep having fam dinners together!
Emily: Hope the new apartment and school are treating you well! I went into this store today and everything was pink and cute. Made me think of ya. Give Brittney the biggest hug for me, she's ENGAGED!!
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