Hip? Not!

My new companion - Elder Barrett!

    How are you all doing??! I have officially left the island. It was a quick trip but now I am serving in my 6th area in my 13 transfer with my 13th companion! What an adventure this mission has been. I am now serving in Sakado! I am back in Saitama Zone and I am back to my old district with Kawagoe! I am neighboring my old area and I seriously love love those people! Literally my favorite area of my mission! But we will see if this area beats it... maybe. 

     But it was a crazy week. We took the ferry from Sado to the mainland and then we slept the night Sunday night, woke up at 5 to run and take the early morning bullet train (which was pretty sweet by the way. So fast and so smooth and so quiet. But 100 bucks so that was a bummer!) across Japan to get to a city called Omiya where we switched to take 3 different trains to get to Abiko to go to the hospital for my hip. They were not able to do the MRI on that day which really was hard for me but they will do it this week on the 14th and then I will get my results on the 16th. It is crazy and kind of annoying but I have lost all faith that they will find the problem so I am just going to fight through it til the end because I am not going to let my stupid little hip stop me from doing the Lord's work! No unhallowed hip will stop the work from progressing! I will go to the end. It will take pain pills, no cardio, my new used previous sister's electric powered bike oh ya baby, and a lot of patience. 

     But the love I feel for these people and this work is 10 times stronger than any pain I feel in my hip:) Shall we not go on in so great a cause brothers and sisters! I love this work. 

     What an amazing week it was to be able to meet new people. I have found on my mission that that is my favorite thing ever. Meeting new people and cheering them up through laughter, the spirit, or through helping them feel loved. Almost everyone is Japan is more quiet and calm in public because that is the culture. So when they see my loud, too energetic, beyond positive attitude when I talk to them they just light up and just laugh. They love it. They think it is so funny because it is a fresh dose of something they do not get every day. If that is all I can bring to the table here in Japan that is enough for me. I love these people. If I could just bring them home with me it would make life so much easier. 

     But I treasure the time I have being back in an area now where I can go to the temple each transfer and feel of the spirit there. I will be going there next week so I will not email until Tuesday fair warning fam. 

     But lastly just about my companion!! He is transfer 3. Just finished training and he is the best. He is from Eagle Mountain Utah but has moved a few times within Utah. He is half Japanese and his name is Elder Barrett! What an amazing elder! I was in this district 2 transfers ago so I already knew him so it has been a quick transition. He is a great elder. He has such a desire to work and to see miracles! And so we will! I have faith!🤗

     So my only message is this. Unless they somehow find the problem this week at the hospital, I am staying until the end! I will never quit. I will finish the race. I will be a Finisher. The thought I have is from a talk my dad recommended me to read.

“Stick to your task ’til it sticks to you;

Beginners are many, but enders are few.

Honor, power, place and praise

Will always come to the one who stays.

“Stick to your task ’til it sticks to you;

Bend at it, sweat at it, smile at it, too;

For out of the bend and the sweat and the smile

Will come life’s victories after a while.”

And...

“To dream the impossible dream;

To fight the unbeatable foe;

To bear with unbearable sorrow:

To run where the brave dare not go.

“To right the unrightable wrong;

To love, pure and chaste, from afar;

To try when your arms are too weary

To reach the unreachable star.”

—and you will thus become a finisher.

Have a great week!

Love,

Elder Trevor Aiken