God's Hand Is In It

A mission is something else. It's this amazing opportunity to give just a little bit back to God. It's this exciting experience that cannot be replicated by anything else. It's this special period of time that is unique for each and every missionary.
And my mission experience has been no exception to the unique rule.

I arrived back into the United States yesterday and was released as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I had to return home from Brazil due to health problems.

After just under four months out, I'm now home. And there are no words to describe how this feels. When I was heading off so few months ago, the idea that I'd be coming home before my 18 months were up never came to my mind. It wouldn't happen to me... so why even bother entertaining the possibility.
I was ready to lose myself in the work and serve my Father, giving back just a mere fraction of what He's given me. I was ready for that year and a half to be my mission experience. I was ready to grow and learn. I was ready to be a missionary.
But sometimes... our plan for our life isn't the plan that God has for us. This is the case for me. Now,  there is nothing to do but trust in God. That is all one can do when they are pulled away from the dream they thought was right for them. I remember... I remember so well how much I wanted to serve... I can remember that so well. And it kills me to be sitting here. My heart has broken. I feel cut down. Cut back. Rejected. How did this happen? Is this really even happening? When will I wake up and everything will be back to normal... back to how it's supposed to be?
It's that thought... the thought of how it's supposed to be... that gets us. It's getting me that's for sure. It's this thought which makes it crucial to look to God in times like this because He knows what's happening even if we don't. It's faith in Him that will pull us through. It's faith in Him that will pull me through.

Plus He understands. He understands perfectly. Everything I can't explain, every emotion that I can't express, every pain this situation gives me -He understands. And I will rely on that because I have nothing else I can do at this point.
I don't know if more mission is waiting for me or not. Frankly, I'm kind of confused on what God wants from me. All I know is that He loves me and it'll all be okay. And for now when nothing actually feels okay that's all I need to know.

I'm thankful for that knowledge. I'm thankful that through the confusion I can have the peace to know that God is aware of me and has a plan for me. Maybe those three and a half months was all He needed from me. And if that's so, then I am honored to have been able to give that to Him.
He is the author of a perfect plan for me and for that I am eternally thankful because He can lead me better than I can lead myself. It's hard and it hurts. But the things I learned have come home with me. I have learned so much and grown so much. My testimony has grown and I know more than ever that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is true. It's true. It has to be. Nothing else could give me peace in such a hard time. Nothing else could make so much sense to me. Nothing else could feel so right. My life has been forever changed and is continuously shaped by Christ and His love for me.

Missions are hard. Coming home is hard, especially as early as I did. But God's hand is in it, this I know.

-Carrie Damstedt

A LONG WEEK

This week has felt quite long.

We'll go with I've been sick and not been able to do much of anything. On that account, my email will not be very long. I don't have any stories or any pictures. I'm just kind of truggin' through right now.

But I know that God is with me. He has a plan for me and for every one of His children. The trick is figuring out this plan and aligning our will with His. Sometimes all we can do is trust in Him and His will and His timing. And regardless of how we feel or what we think, His love is ALWAYS there for us to hold onto. And what a blessing that is. Even when everything else seems impossible and wrong, God loves us. He always has and always will. I take great comfort in that.

Best wishes to all of you.

-Sister Damstedt

FRUITY Carrie

Hello from Brazil!

It's a busy place being here. It's fun to see people that actually will talk to you. I like that about here. It's hard though in other ways because LOTS of people like to say they are never at home and busy and stuff but we'll walk by again and they'll be there. It's their way of rejecting us. Which is fine. Rejection with a smile is better than and angry rejection.

I'm pretty short on time right now and there isn't much to tell other than we walk everywhere and already in 2 weeks, one of my pairs of shoes have holes and probably won't last much longer. But oh well, what can ya do? 

There are SO muny kinds of fruits here. and this is one that I had never seen or heard of before. It's called jabuticaba and is sort of kind of like a large circle grape with a giant seed in the middle. I can't decide if I like them or not. Anyway We were walking down the street and they were all over the ground. I asked my companion what they were and kind of slowed down to look and whatnot. She didn't know and we kind of puzzled over them for a second. Then some men across the street who were sitting by a building yelled to us what they were and were like "we'll get you some to try!" So we went over and started talking with one of them while the other ran off and eventually come back with a bag of them. We then had a lesson thing with them on the street and talked a little bit. It was very cool and I'm very good at sharing scriptures in Portuguese. That happens here. Strangers will just sit there and listen to you and pray with you on the street. It is amazing. We are trying to get with them again and teach a real life lesson soon. But it's hard to refind people or contact them when you don't have a phone. But we'll find them again if God needs it to happen. It was a very cool experience.

Hope you all have a great week! Remember to see God in your lives everyday because he is there.

-Sister Damstedt

What is Optional and What is Not

I'm going to apologize right up front for this email and all that will come from now on. I'm kind of in Brazil and the key boards are very different. So spelling is going to be rough I think. And that`s just your heads up. Plus it`ll only be getting worse as I use Portuguese more. Ha... Portuguese.

Portuguese is way hard. Ha. It`s so pathetic how much I don`t know about this languauage. I have the ability to communicate semi well, but that means absolutely nothing when you don`t know what anyone is saying and so you can`t respond because you don`t know what the conversation is about. It`s so pathetic, it`s funny. But I am learning. I`ve almost been here a week and already I can tell I`m understanding more and more. I can tell words apart form the others I just have a very limited vocabulary so I can`t understand them. Which is fine. I`m pretty used to it. It`s weird how not being able to communicate or understand because so normal so quickly. I`m very used to it... I just try to pick up what I can and go from there.

Let`s talk for a second how different it is here than in New York. We can literally go up to people, tell them flat out that we are missionaries, tell them we want to go talk to them about Jesus at their house another day, ask for the address, AND they give it to us. The first day was the WEIRDEST thing ever. I am used to up front flat out rejection and now nearly every person we talk to tells us we can come to their house and talk to them about God. We have yet to find anyone at home (we have only tried 3 or 4 people) but the fact that they say we could come back and they don`t say ``don`t come back`` is a miracle to me. I`ve talked to a single person that flat out told us their religion and that she wasn`t interested and wouldn`t let us talk at all to her. My companion was like ``what the`` and I was like ``ok whatever. that`s normal``. It was funny be cause she was ALL caught up on this. But that was my life the previous six weeks.

Here is very different. Here is a small list of them: stop signs are optional. Cross walks are optional -I'm pretty sure I could die every time I cross the road- Lanes are optional. Ends of redlughts are very optional. If you are a motorcycle, everything is VERY optional. |Showering is NOT optional -it is so hot and we walk around a lot so we get gross- Everything here is great in a very different kind of way. Like the juice. I will never be able to drink the juice in the US again. Oh my goodness. It is heavenly here.

I love my mission presedent and his wife. THey are very sweet. In the car ride from the airport to the mission office, they gave me a phone that had a picture and they were like "do you know him?" And I was like no. I don''t. But apparently I will never get away from being in an area where I am related to people. Because their daughter married someone in my family. I don"t even know how we are related, But even in Brazil I"m finding family.

Well. Last week I was is New York... and now I'm in Brazil. I don't really know what happened there. But here I am and here I go, learning Portuguese and talking to more strangers than I ever have in my whole life. I hope all is well with you all there in the States. All is well in Brasil! HOpe all have a great day! 

For my poictures- One is of my district. We have 6 sisters and 2 elders. Which I find to be a bit weird but Tudo Bem. And the other is of the veiw from my bedroom. It`s wonderfully beautiful here. But it is HOT. And we walk A LOT. Which is fine. I know both would be coming with being in Brazil. 

She Made It

Last New York Email

Well the next email I send will be from Brazil! Isn't that superb?  (BY THE WAY, WE DID HEAR FROM CARRIE AND SHE GOT TO BRAZIL SAFELY). 

I really don't have much to talk about though. The other sisters that we live with had a baptism this weekend. And that was INCREDIBLE. I love that. This man was so in love with the church. He was a miracle that they found. 

It's sad saying goodbye to New York. This really was part of my mission and I met so many people and learned so many things here that I wouldn't have had the opportunity to experience had I gone to Brazil right away. I'm surprised that I'm leaving this soon but it's slowly sunk in that it's time. Even if it doesn't feel like I'm really leaving the continent today. It's a new and exciting time in my life to be going to Brazil. I don't even know Portuguese. Ha! It's great. I'm so excited for that experience. Well... the fun of it will probably wear of real quick, but it's one thing I'm looking forward to as of right now. 

This is a leaf the size of my face. Literally. We found it in the Sacred Grove when we were at the Temple last week. 

This is the guy who was baptized yesterday. He is a hoot. and we all had a jolly grand time eating at his house all the time. He is the gourmet chef. He is great! 

Well I hope all is well where you are. It's all well in NY and I'm sure it will be in Brazil too! 

Have a magnificent day! 

-Sister Damstedt

VISA: Here I come Brazil!

Well this is the email that I'm sure everyone was thinking would never come, because I sure didn't think I'd ever be sending it. But I'm pleased to announce that my visa has come and I will be going to Brazil next Monday! Yay! I will finally be able to use all that Portuguese! It's going to be a fun and exciting new part of my mission and I'm overjoyed that I will be going. But man-oh-man does it feel crumby to know I have to say goodbye to EVERYONE. I don't like that part. But so it goes... 

Anyway... This week was grand. Lots of fun things happened. I went on exchanges and had ice cream and went to Niagra Falls and ate pizza and taught the gospel. I can't really ask for a better week. I'm excited for this week as well because I finally feel like we have a full busy week! And that makes me happy. I hate having time that I don't know what to do with. AND on Wednesday I get to go to the temple! Oh I'm overjoyed. The Palmyra temple looks really similar to the one we have in the Tri-cities. And man are we so blessed to have one so close. Go as often as you can because we are SO BLESSED. It's a beautiful place to be and I'm super excited to go this week. 

I don't really have much to say about the week other than that my visa came. I can't decide if I believe them yet or not.. but apparently it actually did come. After basically 10 months, IT CAME! (: The Falls! I would sure say this is a cool place to go. If you ever have the chance, I recommend it. But go to the Canada side, everyone says it's much better over there. I wouldn't know... but rumor has it. Either way it's pretty much the coolest.   So I got myself a sweater... just in time to leave ha, naturally. But I also influenced my companion for the better and got her in on the ways that sweaters make life better. And of course nothing is better than cookies in a sweater. That was a great day! 

Well I hope everyone is doing alright. Things are great up here in New York, but not for long! Hope everyone has a marvelous week!