Week 25: Virgin Hair

So, I just have to confess something to you right now: this long hair thing? I tried it, and I made it a good 6 months without cutting my hair while on my mission. But, my love for short hair resurfaced, and, while Sister Smith and Sister Medina were at their departing temple trip, I had to stay in Paris with the other sisters (one of who was a cosmetologist before her mission), So now my hair mayyyy be short again. It may also have a few highlights in it now too (Sister Pressley said it was super dark in the back, what was I supposed to do??). I literally told myself I wasn't going go do this, that I wasn't going to cut my hair again until after the mission. Even when cleaning out my Facebook a few weeks ago, I was like "wow, I didn't look that great with super short hair after all", but here we are. So yeah, I no longer have virgin hair and that explains the title of my email for this week. 

Okay this week has been just absolutely CRAZY as I've been helping Sister Smith and Sister Medina get ready to leave. We've had to set aside a lot of time so that they can pack, visit all their favorite people one last time, and also still somehow get missionary work done this week. Every day I think I've just come home and collapsed on the floor, no joke. Sister Medina was also sick on Tuesday, so we were all trapped inside not doing anything for an entire day. Me and Sister Smith finally put our entire area book online though, and I baked a cake, so some good came out of that day! And, on Thursday, I had to go to a special training meeting up in Pokey, so our whole day was spent road tripping up to Pocatello and back. I guess some good that came out of that day was 1. I feel more prepared to train a new missionary now 2. We got Cafe Rio out of our trip so it ultimately became a good day. 

My cake!

This week has been a very stressful week of my mission you guys, I'm not going to lie. With both of my companions going home, and trying to prepare for a brand new one straight from the MTC, I've just become very frazzled. There were plenty of times this week where I thought to myself "Can I...even do this? Can I keep doing this missionary thing?" I love being a missionary, so I think that just goes to show you how stressed I have been. One of my favorite lines from the hymn I'll Go Where You Want Me to Go is: 

"So trusting my all to thy tender care,

And knowing thou lovest me,

I’ll do thy will with a heart sincere:

I’ll be what you want me to be."

Us and li'l baby Hannah (and kitty!)  

There have been so many times in my life where I have had to put my will into the Lord's hands. So many times where I have had to learn that His plan for me is not the plan that I have for me, and that's okay. Heavenly Father knows me and loves me perfectly, and anything He has in store for me is so much greater than anything I could have in store for myself. 1st Corinthians 2:9 says, "eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him". I love my Heavenly Father so much, and I know that no matter what happens in my life, my reliance on Him will help me overcome anything and everything -and I just want to make a simple promise to you, that, as you put your will in the Lord's hands, you will see so many great things come from it. That's kind of the whole reason why I'm out here on a mission. I love you all so much, and I hope you all have a wonderful week. 

- Hermana Peterson 

Before, during, and after

Our district tried to take a High School Musical picture

My plan

So, I think I've already said this before, but every single week Sister Smith and Sister Medina have had to do something called My Plan, which is where missionaries in the final transfer of their mission have to plan what they are going to do once they go home. So, while they were doing that each week, I took these ugly/sad photos, and I finally want to share them with you. Enjoy!