Missionary email

Recently Deb mentioned in a post how much she enjoyed her time with the YW and how they were always teaching her. I found the same thing to be true when I served in a YW calling. I grew to love those girls like my own daughters...still do. One of them is currently serving a Spanish mission in the Boston, Mass area. She is having amazing exeriences and it's been fun to hear of them and see how she is growing from them. I wanted to share this latest email of hers because I thought it was so touching and uplifting. I hope you will think so too. It touched me so much that I still have it on my phone so I can reread it when I have a moment of self-pity or forget who daughter I am and how much He loves me. It also touches me because I remember this young woman as a Beehive who was struggling with her testimony. It makes me all warm and fuzzy to see how it has gotten stronger.

So this week has probably been one of the most amazing weeks of my mission and

has totally changed my perspective on things. I've learned that when we ask for things from Heavenly Father he

answers them and usually gives us even more than what we've asked for. My answer

came last week in the form of a 6 year old girl named Reine . . . When Reine was

younger she suffered from a horrible burn accident that left her poor little

face deformed and in need of a lot of medical attention. Being in a south

American country they couldn't get the care that she needed and what they could

do was super expensive . . . because of this her mother disowned her and left

her in the care of her aunt. They came to America to try to get help.

She has now grown but her face it totally scarred and deformed. She has no eyelids or

lips and now has a growth the size of a soft ball growing on the side of her

head.

Her Aunt married a man that she currently wishes she never would have and is

going through problems . . . When she talks about Reine sometimes she blames her

for the situation that she is in and talks about how she is always having to

stay home and take care of her. But Reine . . . is the most beautiful person I

have ever met.The reason why she is beautiful is because she knows who she

is and shes perfectly content in her situation. She has so much love for

everyone even her Aunt that complains about her. In fact she even sticks up for

her Aunt when her husband is saying mean things to her.

Despite everything that's going on around her she is perfectly in balance and happy. Sitting by her and

listening to her read me a book while her aunt and husband work things out made

me realize what beauty really is and what it means to Heavenly Father.

Its nothing physical at all. Beauty to God is knowing who you are and

loving the person that's inside of you. Beauty is being in balance with yourself

and being content with exactly the way you are because all that really matters

is that we are children of God and that he loves us and to him . . . we are

beautiful because we are who we are. I can't even begin to tell you the

difference that little girl has made in my life and she didn't have to do anything but be herself.
Thats how we make a difference . . . by being ourselves

and being exactly how Heavenly Father created us - as beautiful. As we were

leaving she gave us both a huge hug and when Sister Skinner told her she loved

her without holding anything back she said "I love you guys too!" as we walked

out the door. I feel completely changed.