Lessons of Love

So it's Valentine's Day and it made me reflect back to my mission. I spent two years not worrying about this holiday because I was otherwise "occupied" so to say. But I realized going through my journal that around the holiday of love I learned the greatest lesson of love around this time.

I remember on Valentine's Day I was on splits with a sister, one who I had gone on nine consecutive splits with, well practically. So this sweet sister and I had become confidants and great friends and I love her heart. She surprised us. She made me and my trainee a valentine! I was so touched. It was this little heart card that opened up to a cat saying, "Ты суперь!" meaning "You're great!" She wrote on the inside, "You are doing so great this last cycle- in fact, you are making it the best yet. I think you rock. I love you! Happy Valentine's Day!"

She of course didn't know the impact of her words. Our splits were at the very beginning of the cycle, right after the news was delivered that we, my trainee and I, wouldn't be serving in the same branch that we loved and felt so loved. We would still be in the same building, the same apartment seeing the same people except we would be in another ward. All of our progressing "friends" had to be passed to the Elders. The ones we had put sweat and tears into. No blood, unless you count random bloody noses by this girl here. I'm pointing to myself in case you didn't get it. 

To make matters worse the bishop was intimidating. Very intimidating. Snake charmer going up against a snake intimidating. Not to compare him to a snake because he is nothing of the sort. He's a stellar human being.

After one meeting with him it took me an hour to stop shaking. Oh, he also told us he didn't need us. Oh and he told us he never wanted to hear us use the word "try". This is where you gulp in fear. It was off to a crazy rough start, and it was also the beginning of the end for me. I was so sad to leave the ward that was amazing at helping us in every aspect and loving us as if their own. I had only been with them for two cycles. It was worse than pulling of duct tape from hairy legs. 

Well, this new ward needed help. They hadn't had sisters in three years or so. But boy was the relief society excited to have us. Not to mention an incredible member who was a ward missionary who came to our rescue in more ways than we knew. They helped us through the rough patches, and I learned a powerful lesson on the impact of love. From their examples, and from our challenge with the bishop. 

For the next four weeks we did EVERYTHING that sweetly intimidating bishop asked, and more just to give him a smile. We prayed for him in every prayer. We also prayed to make him see that we loved him. We made him food often, even gave him an expensive volleyball, and did other acts of service.

We came to the realization that he definitely had a hard life and he was only trying to lose his life in the work, as Christ asked of us. He was only doing his best. So we did our best to love him and the people he told us to visit and the members of that ward.

Goodbyes are never easy. On that last day with that ward many tears were shed. I don't think that bishop knew, but the goodbye to him was a difficult one. It was short and sweet, but I could barely keep myself together. I think of that man often and pray for him just as often. He was a porquepine when I met him, like a lot of Russians, but really he is as mushy as a browning banana on the inside. 

Love we showed to him melted his heart, and ours. He has a good heart. It's a little rough looking and seemingly hard, but it contains loads of charity and compassion. He, like many others I have met and came to love will always be stamped on my heart, never to be erased. 

Also who could forget his killer spikes in volleyball. He's a madman when it comes volleyball. You have to make sure your on his team to not get hit. 

This goes back to that sweet sister who I love immensely. Her kind words is what helped encourage me to give my all my last cycle, and to show this man love and compassion. It paid off. Kind words will do it, and actions of christ-like love will do it too. Love is the key to all secrets of this life, both eternal and temporal.