The Yellow Canary

 SWARMA! My new love. I love, love, love Lebanese food!

 Organic ice cream. This was a foodie dream of a P-day!

 Old Montreal, it's kind of like being in Europe:)

Bonjour! 

I can't believe I'm getting older. How did that happen? I was supposed to stay 19 forever. In my head I'm still 19. I think nearly a year of being around 19 year old boys will do that to you. Actually they are very kind. My district leader is planning a birthday fete for me this Thursday for our District study. And my birthday is going to be a very interesting day because it's transfers AGAIN! Crazy, huh? six weeks is like nothing in the mission. So, it will be sad and happy. Sad because Sister Sandoval is going home, but happy because drum roll.......I will be companions with SISTER CHADBURN again! It's like the Lord gave me a big birthday present. I'm pretty excited:) I love that little coconut head. I've decided that I'm going to go knocking and tell everyone we knock into that it's my birthday.....guilt is the second best tool for conversion. The spirit is the first. I'm also going to run around and yell "C'EST MA FETE!" This is probably only funny if your name is Lindy Pace and you were one of the people at Oula's birthday party. Best birthday EVERRRRR!

So last week was kind of like BLAH! Which is okay, because that's life. So let me tell you about it;) It was a rough one. We were supposed to have a baptism....but then an hour before the mother of our investigator said it was a no go. We were crushed, but more than us SHE was crushed. It was pretty devestating to see her like that. But she promised us that as soon as she gets the green light she's going to get baptized. So not the weekend we had planned, but hey c'est la vie. 

We're teaching this less active members daughter and her best friend (they are 11) and they're pretty much amazing. The last time we were there we watched the Restoration DVD and they both said that they wanted their own BOM. We went back yesterday and they had both read and watched the Restoration film "like 8 or 9 times". Crazy, crazy. Especially because that movie is only like 20 minutes long. I'm really excited to see what the Lord has in store for our area this transfer:)

In other news fall is coming!!! I'm so excited! Fall is beautiful here! I like to walk through the leaves and hear the leaves crunching. I love that you can almost smell fall when you walk outside in the morning. It's so beautiful! I've been collecting leaves like some crazy person. They're just so stinking beautiful! I'm a sucker for this place.

This week we visited this really beautiful sister in our ward. She's an RM and the mother of a beautiful little boy. I love talking to her. This week we talked about beauty and the miracles we've seen. It made me so grateful. A year ago I was really not the same person (you'll probably hear me say that a lot now). I feel like this change has taken place in me and I just love things differently. I love me more. That's been a hard process for me. But I can honestly say I've learned that lesson on my mission. When I was talking to this Sister I shared an experience I haven't told anyone until well Sister Chadburn. There was a time before my mission when I doubted a lot of things, myself, my beliefs, my life. I didn't get it. I let other bad experiences make me go bitter. But I found a ray of sunshine in my day through a talk given by Elder Uchtdorf (I think I quote him every email now), but this talk literally saved me from spriritual ruin. It's a talk called "Your Happily Ever After". I remember listening to this talk nearly every day for months. I actually had parts memorized, but it gave me hope. His words helped me overcome the things that I couldn't say.  And helped me hope for my happily ever after. This quote in particular helped me feel peace,

“You are a beloved daughter of Heavenly Father, prepared to come to the earth at this particular time for a sacred and glorious purpose.” Sisters, those words are true! They are not made up in a fairy tale! Isn’t it remarkable to know that our eternal Heavenly Father knows you, hears you, watches over you, and loves you with an infinite love? In fact, His love for you is so great that He has granted you this earthly life as a precious gift of “once upon a time,” complete with your own true story of adventure, trial, and opportunities for greatness, nobility, courage, and love. And, most glorious of all, He offers you a gift beyond price and comprehension. Heavenly Father offers to you the greatest gift of all—eternal life—and the opportunity and infinite blessing of your own “happily ever after.”

Yes. I am getting older. But I do know that it's going to be a great year. I can feel it. I know that there is an amazing year a head of me. Yes. there will be hard days and weeks, but I just can't help but hope that it will all be happy in the end. Thank you for your wishes! Thank you for your love! Thank you for being a part of my life. I'm so glad that you exist! 23 never sounded so sweet:) C'EST MA FETE!

Bisous Bisous! 

Sister Perkins