"Think Less + Love More"

Dear Family and Friends,

I'm sorry that I won't have the time to email you all back individually. I am actually headed to Niagra Falls shortly - I am so excited! Oh, and transfers are this coming week soooo hold the mail until I give you the go for next week. I tend to get transferred a lot eh???

I got a letter from my dear Grandma Shirley this week and the front of the card said - 

"Imagine yourself doing what you LOVE and LOVING what you do. Being happy from the inside out, experiencing your dreams wide awake, being creative, being unique, being you - changing the things to the way you know they can be - living the life you always imagined." 

I love that so much! It was super uplifting - so thank you Grandma :) As for the rest of you - feel free to write me a letter whenever!

I have to tell you all about the Julian family. They are amazing! Brother Julian works for the church - he does maintenance on the church buildings, so he travels to Salt Lake a lot. Anyways, they had us over for dinner last week and it was so much fun. They had this HUGE nutella container (see picture) and I about died. They said they would buy me one next time they went to Costco...

We have been working with so many Less Actives here. It is awesome. We saw Liz Hughes again this week and took Sister Watson. They were friends from another ward way back in the day, haha. They spent about an hour catching up while Sister P and I just sat there enjoying their conversation. :) Did I mention that Sister Watson looks like you mom?? I'll send some pictures. I love hanging out with her because it's like being with you - I LOVE YOU! We also went and got sushi with Becky this week. It was so dang good. I even used the chopsticks, which I knew would make you proud Dad. :) Also, another Less Active - Pat Jackett came to church yesterday. Her favorite saying now is "Doubt your doubt before you doubt your faith". Thank you General Conference....

So, in my email last week I mentioned a girl that just showed up to church that we are now teaching. Well her name is Kerry, and she is doing well. She came to church again yesterday and stayed for the baptism of one of the people that the Elders were teaching. She is working towards her baptism on November 24th.

Cleveland is doing pretty well. We gave him the week to think things through, so we aren't sure what is going to happen with him. Agency...

Okay. So picture this. Imagine a mix between Katie and Ciera. Doesn't that sound like the funnest person ever? Well, I met her this week. She is another less active's daughter, Stephanie. She is SO dang funny. She laughs like Katie and tells stories like Ciera. I haven't laughed that hard in the longest time. She is about 28, and I told her she should go on a mission because she'd be the greatest companion ever. Ahh, man I love meeting funny people. 

Miracle time - we were out walking the streets in the BITTER COLD CANADIAN WEATHER - when we started talking to this lady at the bus stop. It started off as small talk, then she said - "So how are all the people at the church doing?" It totally caught me off guard, but turns out she is a member! She is supppper inactive, and hasn't been to church in many many years, but she recognized the name tags. :) She told us her address, and we went to see her a few days ago. She is the sweetest thing. It was so amazing to run into her and to now be teaching her...

Another miracle this week. A member gave me a winter coat. We went to her house for dinner and as I was putting on my black coat she said - "That won't keep you warm out there." She went and got this coat that she has been meaning to give away, and now it's mine. :) It should be perfect for the winter. 

Brother Gillett gave us this huge box of chocolates just because he loves us - the members take such good care of us here!

You're probably wondering why this email is titled "Think Less + Love More." Well, those are wise words from the one and only Dallin Hardcastle. They have stuck with me ever since I read them several months ago. It has been the best advice to get me through. It is so true though. Think less about myself and love those around me more. So thank you, Dallin, for that profound statement. :)

We had the Ward Trunk or Treat this past week. I dressed up as a missionary. Best costume ever! Haha, it was fun though. I hope that everyone has a safe and enjoyable Halloween! Don't eat too much candy....

Oh, and I know you're all wondering about the weather here. It's freezing. Enough said.

Love you all forever!

Love,

Sister Hardcastle

"Have Faith, Have Hope, Live Like His Son, Help Others On Their Way"

HOLY NUTELLA!!!!!!!

Mom's twin - Sister Watson

Sushi with Becky!

Yum :)

Life is like a box of chocolates....

Baby, it's cold outside!!

Sister Watson as a firefly...

Sister Nantais - funniest costume ever.

Mckayla - My favorite little girl in the whole world :)

I can't think of a good subject for this email.

Greetings to my favorite people, 

It was so great to get a letter from Grandma Ida this week, as well as my soon-to-be sister Hannah. :) Thank you so much! 

There isn't much to say this week, considering I wrote just a few short days ago. I've come to realize that everyday feels like P-day. The weeks go by SO quick. This week I got the flu. I couldn't keep anything down for a good two days. Why do I get sick so much? Grrr.

We are still working with the amazing Healy family. I love them so much! There is such a sweet spirit in their home, and I love going over there.

We are also still working with Cleveland, and he came to church again yesterday! Woot woot! He is working towards his baptism in a few weeks.

Brother Gillett is an older member who gave us the most amazing treat bag this week. It was full of skittles and starbursts. Booyaa!

We saw a less active family yesterday, the Sepper's. Brother Sepper served his mission in Pocatello, Idaho, and he even served in Island Park and Idaho Falls! We were talking about it for a long time. He said that when he was staying up in Island Park he would just stay with members at their cabin and go talk to people who were fishing or something like that. Can you imagine?! Haha, it was so fun to talk with him about Idaho because it's one of my favorite places!

Yesterday, a member brought her non-member friend to church and we are now teaching her. Miracles!

I am really excited for this week coming up. We have a dinner appointment every single night (Hasn't happened since Ajax). We also have the Ward Halloween Party this Saturday night and it should be really great. Apparently it's super well attended and a lot of non-members come. :) Missionary work at its finest. 

Well, my dear friends, I realize that this is a short and lame email. I just finished the Doctrine and Covenants this morning. I loved reading it so much, and I'm sad it has come to an end. Starting tomorrow I will be reading the Old Testament. I wonder how long that will take. Haha!

I don't even have any pictures to attach this week. Fail! Next week will be epic, I promise.

Thank you so much for all the support that you all give me. I am truly so blessed. I love what I get to do each day. It is an honor and a privilege. I came here to invite others to come unto Christ, and in return, my life has changed. I thank my Heavenly Father every single day for entrusting this calling to me. I love you all, have a great week.

Sister Hardcastle

"Have Faith, Have Hope, Live Like His Son, Help Others On Their Way"

Thanksgiving....Canadian Style :)

Hello Family and Friends, 

I have to give a shout out to my Mommy and Momma Barb for sending me letter this week. MADE MY DAY! 

I have quite a bit to say this week because it's been awhile since I emailed last...

Last week I went to Brampton on an exchange with Sister Tuia. She goes home in three weeks, and she is possibly my favorite sister missionary ever. Next to Sister Belyea. It was so much fun to be in Brampton. We drove by the temple probably 20 times. It was a day full of laughter. Sister Tuia has the same sense of humor as me, so when you put the two of us together --- there is trouble. She is actually going to come stay with us next year when I get home, so you will all be able to meet her.  :)

Cleveland. Ahhhh so much to say. If I had a dollar for every time he said "I'll try" when we leave him commitments, I'd be rich. Seriously. Every time he says that, I say "Okay, one more dollar in the jar." We get quite the kick out of it. He is going so well though. He came to church, got a Priesthood blessing and is listening to the Book of Mormon every day. After he got the blessing and we asked him how he felt he said, "I feel light." You can honestly see the changes in his life and it is amazing to witness it. We make daily contact with him, so he's probably my best friend. Haha. We even spent part of our Thanksgiving painting doors for him. :)

We had Zone Training Meeting this past week. Oh, I may have mentioned this already. But, one of my ZL's Elder Kenning is from Bountiful. He goes home at the end of this transfer so he will be hand delivering a letter to you all.  :) Woot woot!

We finally made contact with the greatest Less-Active of all time. We call her Sister Liz and she calls Sister P and I "Sisters HP." She is a returned missionary, and she actually served in Indianapolis, Indiana. We talked to her for quite some time, and she is working on coming back to church. As we were leaving her home, she yelled out the door - "Pray Hard and Work Hard." So motivating. I love her!

Ready for the greatest miracle of my time in Hamilton so far?? Ya'll should be on the edge of your seats....The Healy Family.  :) Sister Healy is less-active, and missionaries have been trying to work with her for months and months. Well, last Friday we were supposed to go blitz the area next to us, but nothing was working out. We got lost, we were running super late and had NO gas in our car. I didn't have a good feeling about going to the blitz at all, so we turned around and went to the Healy's. Thank goodness we did that. Her husband, who is only home every other weekend, was home. We talked with them and their two kids for well over an hour. They invited us back the next day to help do some work around their yard. We took things slow, trying to build trust, and it went so well. When we went back the next day, we talked to the husband for a long time. He told us how he has listened to the whole Book of Mormon as he drives (he's a truck driver). After we worked in their yard, we went in and talked to them for awhile. Laura expressed how she wants to be retaught everything. With tears running down her face she told us that she wants this for her family and her children. So therefore, we are teaching her, her husband and her two kids. Such a miracle. God softens hearts. God's timing is perfect.

Sis P and I got a call Friday night asking us if we would speak in Sacrament on Sunday. Suuuree why not. Haha, I wrote my talk the morning of. It was on chapter 4 of PMG, the commandments. I spoke on keeping the sabbath day holy and tithing. It went well. Did I mention how much I love the ward here? There is a rumor that this ward is the best ward to be in around Christmas time. The Bishop has already asked us for our "Wish Lists."

Sooooo let's talk about Thanksgiving. Thank you for the cute package first of all. :) Thanksgiving was spent trying to be productive. HAHA! No one wanted much to do with us because they were with family. Anyways, we had a wonderful turkey dinner at the Cantlon's (see picture). I was so full after. It was weird to not lay down and take a nap....Apparently Thanksgiving is celebrated in Canada because of the harvest...people get really into it. It was a great day though. Oh! As we were eating at the Cantlon's, I suggested that we all go around and say what we are thankful for, and I felt like I was home.  :)

Yesterday was Skills and Interviews with President Scott. He is so funny. The first thing he asked me when I sat down with him was - "So Sister Hardcastle, how long have you been out? Almost a year right?" I started laughing. I told him that I only came out in May, and he didn't believe me. Funny, funny man. It was a much needed interview and of course it was amazing to see Sister Scott.

I'm working on memorizing The Living Christ again. I'm almost done. :) I carry around flash cards with the first letter of each word everywhere. If we're walking on the street, I just recite it and it's so great.

The weather is starting to get nippier and nippier. Winter is on it's way.............

The other night, the fire alarm went off at 2:30 in the morning. We had to go outside and tons of firetrucks were there. FALSE ALARM...someone just pulled it to be funny. It wasn't funny.

"I want my life to be like a pair of shoes, worn out in the service of my God."

I guess that is all for now. I hope everyone who is going to the cabin gets there safe and sound! I won't be mad if any of you write me a letter. I promise.  :)

LOVE YOU.

Sister Hardcastle

"Have Faith, Have Hope, Live Like His Son, Help Others On Their Way"

No...I didn't buy them...

Sister Tuia :)

Happy 5 months last week :)

Mommy's letter :) :) :) :)

Me :)

I bought this one in Woodstock...the smaller the cuter :)

Thanksgiving :)

GREAT WEEK. 5 Months...

Dearest Family and Friends,

I have to start off by wishing my Daddio the GREATEST AND HAPPIEST 53rd BIRTHDAY on Saturday! I will be thinking of you. I hope that everyone is super nice and lets you watch Forest Gump or Cast Away or ELF. Haha, I love you Dad. Thanks for being my best friend.

I have so much to say this week - But let's start off with General Conference. 

General Conference takes a whole new spin when you're a missionary. Along with listening and taking notes, you're constantly praying that your investigators will feel the Spirit and gain a witness of the Restored Gospel. It was incredible. I can add my words to President Monson's that this past Conference was one of the most inspiring to date. I'll just highlight my favorite parts. :)

M Russell Ballard - "If EVERY member will reach out to ONE person from now until Christmas, MILLIONS will feel the love of God." Take this as a challenge my friends. DO IT. Reach out to at least one person from now until Christmas. Please.

Richard J. Maynes - "You must become the rock the river cannot wash away." I loved this talk, because it was all about endurance. One of my favorite things, which I stole from my sweet sister Jaclyn, is ETTE. Endure to the End. Spiritual endurance takes dedication, perverseness and self-disciple. RUN THIS RACE WITH ENDURANCE.

David M. McConkie - God Speaks. He spoke anciently, He spoke to Joseph, He will speak to YOU.

So what does this mean to us?

1. We are on the LORD'S errand. We are his agent, therefore entitled to HIS help.

2. We are called to Preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you wear a name tag, that is your calling. 

3. We are commanded to teach the principles of the Gospel. Not only teach them, but LIVE them. 

In that case, where do we begin?

1. Live in a manner to have the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.

2. Obtain the word before you declare the word. STUDY.

3. LEARN TO LISTEN.

4. Stand as a Witness of the things you teach. 

We are all entitled to teach with the power and authority of God.

I loved this talk so much because he wasn't speaking to the missionaries. He was speaking to every single member of the church. I don't know about you all, but I think that the leaders of the church are trying to stress the importance of sharing the Gospel....

The last talk I'll highlight was given by Terence M. Vinson -

We need to love God the same way He loves us. When trials come our way, do we turn towards God or away?? We need to use ALL of our strength to endure trials. ALL of our strength includes the help of God. With His help, ALL things can be lifted. "The more I learn of Him, the less I want to leave Him." May we all return the love of our Savior to Him by giving Him our hearts.

General Conference was simply so inspiring and so motivating! Can you believe it was one year ago when President Monson announced the age change for missionaries. Look at me now, who would've thought that at 19 and a half, I'd be living in Hamilton Ontario. AH I love it.

There's another exciting event that took place this week - WE HIT THE STANDARDS OF EXCELLENCE. The area of Hamilton Mountain West is a fairly new area. It was opened in March, and has never reached Standards. Haha, not anymore! We were so blessed this week. Investigators are coming to church and progressing. Prayer works my friends. Also, hard work works too.

Let's talk about the investigators. Our teaching pool is small, but that's okay. We're working on that. Haha, but we had the most amazing lesson with Cleveland this past week. He has been taught by the missionaries for about 4 months now. He finally decided to quit smoking this week! However, he still wouldn't set a baptismal date. We went to see him on Saturday evening and I felt so prompted to read 2 Nephi 31 with him. We did, and my friends, Cleveland is being baptized on November 10. The Spirit was SO strong. Sister Puruganan bore the most amazing testimony and I just sat there in tears. It was one of those times when I truly felt the love that God has for me and all of His children. When Cleveland was saying the closing prayer, all I could things was "Wow, I'm never going home." It was one of the most memorable experiences that I've had so far on my mission. Cleveland also came to a session of General Conference and loved it. SOLID!

Sam, we've been having a hard time meeting with her. Unfortunately - she probably won't be able to be baptized next week, but miracles happen! She is so great, and hopefully we can start meeting with her soon. Brittany is dating a less active, Andrew. We do service for them a lot, but they keep every single commitment that we leave them. :) They're awesome and Brittany loves having us over.  We are teaching a sweet single mom named Rebecca. She also keeps every single commitment that we leave with her, but she refuses to be baptized... we'll see about that. :)

I had a very special experience this week. I don't think I mentioned this in my last email, but I pulled my lower back last weekend. It was so painful, to the point that I couldn't even stand up straight. Every single morning I felt like I had been hit by a bus, because my body wouldn't move. Last district meeting, I was able to receive a blessing. My friends, Priesthood Power is real. Within seconds of that blessing, the pain subsided. The next morning, my back didn't even hurt anymore. In that amazing blessing, I was promised that I would be able to physically handle every obstacle that came my way. Such a miracle. I am so thankful for the Priesthood and for worthy men who carry that Priesthood. I am so thankful that I was raised in a home with a Father who honors his Priesthood, with brothers as well. I am so blessed!

Canadians like to celebrate Thanksgiving in October. Weirdos. So next Mondayis Thanksgiving, therefore, the next time I email it will be the 16th (Wednesday).

Also, I mentioned the Relief Society President (Sister Gallacher) here that my top retainer has fallen off. That was last Monday, and the next day she had me in to the place that she works to get it fixed. The orthodontist fixed everything, and ordered me a nice retainer on a killer deal... blessings.... Also, Sister Gallacher had been emailing Mom and Dad and next time I saw her she came and gave me huge hug and said - "This is from your mom and dad." It was the best!

This coming week should be fantastic. I get to go on an exchange this evening in Brampton with Sister Tuia. Sister Tuia is perhaps my favorite sister missionary in this mission. We then have Zone Training Meeting. Hey, one of my ZL's, Elder Kenning is from Bountiful..... We will also be able to see Patrick and Serena this week (The best member referrals ever).

I hope that you all have an amazing week. I love you all more than you will ever know. I love my Savior and I pray that we can all strive to be more like Him every single day.

Love,

Sister Hardcastle

"Have Faith, Have Hope, Live Like His Son, Help Others on Their Way"

P.S. Here is my current address:
Sister Corinne Hardcastle
Canada Toronto Mission
11 Kendale Court #504
Hamilton, Ontario
L9C 2T7
Canada

The front of the apartment

Picture of a picture :)

Sooo much to say!!

Dear Family and Friends,

Let's take care of business -

Happy Birthday to Karlee Vail tomorrow! I remember attending her birthday party last year. :) I hope it's great again this year!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO DALPAL ON WEDNESDAY! Woot woot! I love you.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BRYNNY ON THURSDAY! You're the sassiest, cutest littliest sister ever.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY FAVORITE MISSIONARY SISTER BELYEA ON FRIDAY! I hope that birthdays in the mission field rock. I miss you!

Alright, so here I am in a new area with a new companion. I'll start with my companion -

Her name is Sister Puruganan and she is from the Phillipines. She has been out for just over three months and she is 27 years old. She is a hard worker and the most humble person in the world. She was a school teacher back home, teaching English. So her English is pretty amazing, but it's fun doing language study with her. :) I love when she asks me what a word means, and I don't know the answer... OOPS. It's pretty funny.

So here I am in Hamilton Mountain West. There are two Elders on the East side of the "mountain." (It isn't a mountain, it's more like a tiny little hill). Hahaha, these Canadians are crazy. It is MUCH more populated than Woodstock, so it's a lot like Ajax. The apartment is pretty nice, but there isn't a washer and dryer.  :(  We did our laundry this morning and it was pretty pricey - so that's going to take some getting used to. I'm the designated driver, and oh boy it is so fun. We drive a nice 2012 Chevy Malibu and I love it. However, this last week we have had basically 0 k's for the month, so we've been doing a lot of walking. The weather is cooling down though, so walking isn't bad at all. Oh, one of the Elders here, Elder Lasley is from Idaho Falls and he played football at Skyline High School, just like you Dad!

We are working with a solid amazing investigator, Samantha. She is the girlfriend of a less active member, Cody, who is trying to come back to church. His whole family is active, and he started coming back when Samantha started asking him questions. She had only been taught once before we taught her last week. We went and planning to teach her the restoration, but we focused a lot on how much God loves her. She has had no religious background and had so many questions - which I love! We also talked a lot about baptism, and the Spirit was so strong. Cody was able to bear his testimony of the Holy Ghost, and there wasn't a dry eye in the whole room. We committed Samantha to be baptized on October 13th, and she accepted. After she said yes, she mentioned how a warm tingly feeling went through her whole body, then she started crying. You guys, it was one of the most powerful lessons I have ever been in. It is truly amazing to witness FIRST HAND the Spirit work in people. Ahhh I love it so much. We are going to see her and Cody again this evening, and I can't wait!

There are a few other investigators here, but we are really going to focus on gaining a solid promising teaching pool. Unfortunately, this ward hasn't seen a convert baptism in almost 2 years. Well, my friends, that is going to change. We were able to visit several members and gain their trust. I love the members here. Oh, and the ward is so huge. Yesterday I felt like I was sitting in the Sterling Heights Ward back in Utah, there were so many members. This ward has SO much potential, so things are going to change. :)

There are a few miracles that happened this week - I'll start with the biggest one -

I WAS ABLE TO GO TO THE TORONTO CANADA TEMPLE! We were barely in the Temple range, and it was such a tender mercy. It was so great to see President and Sister Scott, and all of my other missionary friends. It was the most calming beautiful thing to see almost 50 missionaries in the celestial room together. The Toronto Canada Temple is breathtaking, and I can't wait to go back soon. God answered my prayers, and He knew that I needed to go to the Temple. I was even able to see a couple from Ajax. I felt so refreshed and so full of peace. It was a beautiful day indeed, because that night was the Relief Society Broadcast. I always get chills when President Monson talks about his time as a Mission President in the exact mission that I am in!

The other miracle is a referral from a member that lives in a different city. We got the referral on my first full day here, Wednesday. But we didn't have time to contact it until Friday evening. The only thing we knew was that their names were Patrick and Serena, and that we should teach them the Plan of Salvation. Well we showed up on Friday night, and Patrick immediately let us in. We told him that Charity has told us to stop by, and apparently Serena and Charity are really close. Patrick and Serena just had a baby girl, Lyla back in May. They are the cutest/best couple ever (besides everyone in my family). Haha. Patrick has a strong belief in God, but doesn't like organized religion. Serena has a HUGE faith in God and so badly wants more in her life. We talked to them for about an hour and a half and taught the whole plan of salvation. The Spirit was so strong, and I can't wait to go back there. Patrick's heart was softened throughout the lesson and I could see him listening intently and feeling the Spirit. Serena bore her testimony on how much Jesus Christ has helped her in her life, and you could not deny the presence of the Holy Ghost. Serena texted Charity the next morning, and Charity forwarded it to us. Basically it said how amazing it was to visit with the missionaries and how she felt the most calm feeling that whole time. She also said that she can't wait for us to come back! Booya! We will be seeing them this week. :) Miracles miracles miracles.

Well friends, it's time to start another week of the great work of all time. The longer that I'm out here on a mission, the more I fall completely in love with it. I'm learning more about my Savior, Jesus Christ and my Heavenly Father. I'm learning more about who I am, as a daughter of God, and who all of God's children are. They are precious in His sight, and it's humbling to feel that love. I love you all so very much. I think and pray for you often. Have a great week.

I would just like to share this scripture that I found this morning -  

D&C 112:14 - "Now, I say unto you, and what I say unto you, I say unto all the Twelve: Arise and gird up your loins, take up your cross, and feed my sheep."

Sister Hardcastle

"Have Faith, Have Hope, Live Like His Son, Help Others On Their Way"

Andrea and her fam :) hardest goodbye!

Woodstock - the dairy capitol of Canada

Tranfers! All of Sister Stats' "Trainees"

Sister Puruganan and I

Saying goodbye to Suzanne and Jade 

Beautiful Day!

Goodbye Woodstock...

Dear Family and Friends, 

CONGRATS TO LANDON AND HANNAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Holy Hannah this is exciting! I think that this is the most exciting news in the whole world. I'm excited to have you as a sister Hannah. :)  I would love a detailed email of the whole story asap....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO GRANDMA SHIRLEY ON SATURDAY!  I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!  You're the truest example of a Christlike person, and I hope you have the best day.

Well, the title of this email is true. Woodstock is being whitewashed. With Elders. Both Sister Anderson and I will be leaving tomorrow morning. Crazy eh? I had a slight feeling that I would be leaving, and it is so bittersweet. I feel SOgood about it. But I am going to miss Woodstock. I am going to miss the amazing investigators and members here. I was only here for a short time, but I fell in love. When does it get easier to say goodbye???

My new companion is Sister Puruganan from the Phillipines! That's right - isn't that sweet?! She has been out one transfer less than me, so she just finished training. :) We will be serving in the Hamilton Mountain West area. If I'm not mistaken, that is right on the water, just like Ajax! Also - I will be driving a car! Say what?! I don't think I remember how to drive. I'm excited/nervous/anxious.

I got the suitcase! Woohoo!!! It's going to be hilarious trying to fit four suitcases plus Sister Anderson's things in our car. Man, this will be awesome. I called the DL last night and asked him if it would be a problem to have four suitcases for transfers, and he said that Sisters can get away with anything. :) Thank you for the suitcase!!! I love everything, that I was allowed to open! Sister Anderson and I had the delicious Mac and Cheese - that was so yummy! Best mac and cheese I've ever made. Also, that chocolate milk was an answer to my prayers! 

We are super rushed today, and so I won't have much time to email everyone back individually. I just want to say thank you for all the prayers and support. I am so blessed!

Tonight we are going to drop by lots of people, and the tears will be there. Especially with Andrea. We haven't told her that we are both leaving yet, and it's going to be really hard. The one thing that she said she didn't want was for Elders to come in, hahah and look what happened! But, I know that this is for the best. I trust Heavenly Father, and the Elders will take care of her. 

We had a great week. We saw miracle after miracle. We even had a random lady show up at church, and is now a new investigator. We work lots with less-actives here in Woodstock, and it's become my favorite thing. I don't have much else to say. Haha 

Andrea came to church yesterday yet again, and has stopped smoking. We were going through some of the baptism interview questions with her, and when I asked her why she wanted to be baptized she said - "Because I know it's a positive thing that will draw me closer to God." Best answer ever! She rocks.  :)

We had an exchange this past week where on of the Sister Training Leaders, Sister Tuia, came to Woodstock and we had a tripanionship. It was so much fun. :) She is from Samoa and is such a hard worker. She was with us the day that Grandma and Grandpa dropped the suitcase off. It was really hard when I called and they were at Sister Dyment's house. It was SO hard not to talk to them on the phone, and obviously very emotional. Sister Tuia later told me how I was her hero for being so obedient, and that I would be blessed. I guess I was blessed with a huge suitcase from home.  ;)

My thoughts are all over the place right now. We have to go clean our apartment, pack and start saying our goodbyes. I hope that everyone has an amazing week. I love you all so much. 

Sister Hardcastle

"Have Faith, Have Hope, Live Like His Son, Help Others On Their Way"

:)

"And it came to pass..."

Dear Family and Friends, 

Another week has come and gone and I can hardly believe it. Before I begin - 

Happy Birthday to my young and hip Grandma Ida! I sure do love you!!! Have the best day - and enjoy your travels to Canada this week! When you drive through Woodstock, be careful. It's a creepy and crazy little town. :) 

Today is my companions birthday as well, so this email may be a little shorter so that we can go do something fun! Except, there is absolutely nothing fun to do in Woodstock. We really wanted to go to an Art Museum, but of course it's closed on Mondays. So, instead we are going to go Thrift Store shopping! Woot woot! Sister Anderson is also an avid runner. So, she wants to go running for a couple hours. So, while she runs around at the park, I sleep on the grass. Some things never change.....

The best part about this week - Andrea. I have so much to say about her. Where to begin? We went over there on Monday night, to find her gone, so we taught her husband Levingston. When we teach him it is always on his porch. When I think back to Woodstock, all I'm going to remember is teaching Levingston and Andrea on their porch while getting eaten alive by bugs. Haha. We shared with him Ether 12:4 about hope and being on the right hand of God. When we asked him what he thought of it, he said "The right hand of God must be a really BIG hand". Hahah he is so funny. He always says, "You know what I mean?!" while laughing hysterically. You all would love him. So next to that verse in my scriptures I wrote that quote. I will never forget it. 

The next time we saw Andrea we taught her the Restoration. Another funny story with this lesson. We watched the Restoration video and she loved it. She loves reading the Book of Mormon and she always wants to say the opening AND closing prayers. Golden! We made this rainbow calendar for her, so that she can be ready for her baptism coming up. She loves everything rainbow, so we even brought her rainbow cookies, but her son ate them all. When we were talking to her about her baptism she got so nervous about going all the way under water. Haha, she is too funny. 

The next time we saw Andrea was at the Relief Society activity. So here is the story. She was really nervous about coming, so she wanted us to be waiting outside the church for her, so that we could go in together. Well, this was on a Thursday, and on Thursdays we don't have our car, so naturally we were late walking there. We walked into the church and she is already sitting with all the other women. She fit in perfectly! The activity was on getting to know lds.org, and all of the other church websites. When she got home, she immediately downloaded the APP and watched mormon messages about the temples all night. Not joking. Also that night we were talking to her about the Word of Wisdom. It was getting too late to teach her everything so we just gave her the pamphlet. She mentioned how she really wants to quite smoking but she would never give up wine.... haha little did she know...

The next time we saw her she had a completely different mind set. She didn't want tea, smoking or alcohol. She accepted the Word of Wisdom, and right now she is working on the 7 day stop smoking workshop. Such a miracle. She came to church yesterday and loved it. She shared experiences in both Gospel Principles and Relief Society. She completely fits in. She was very emotional during some parts of church because she was feeling the Spirit. It was an amazing Sunday with her. At the end of church I made the mistake of telling her that Sister Anderson or I may be leaving next week, and she broke down crying. So then I started crying. I honestly feel like I'm in Woodstock right now for Andrea. I better not leave! Did I mention how she worked all through the night so that she could come to church? She is incredible. Her husband and her son were supposed to come, but they slept in :( we'll get them soon enough. 

So that's the run down on Andrea. Mom and Dad - she really wants us to come back and visit her. I told her that we would no doubt:) also, I told her that we would all be there when she goes to the temple... soo hope that's okay!

We had one day this week when everything just went wrong. It was Tuesday after district meeting and it went something like this - 

1. 40 degrees Celsius plus humidity

2. Bombed appointment

3. REALLY mean Jehovah's Witness

4. Met a creepy man who made us take a picture of him on his motorcycle for a girl. 

5. We got 'disinvited' to Branch Council

6. Tried to stop by Lisa - she wasn't home

7. Another bombed appointment

It's days like that that make me grateful for days that go well. :)

I don't think I've talked too much about Suzanne and Jade. Jade is 10, and Suzanne is her mom, and they just got baptized back in June. We see them lots, and they are incredible. Suzanne has already read the Book of Mormon 3 times, and the Doctrine and Covenants. They also get so excited when they come teaching with us. They're my favorite!

We had quite the experience with Brother Turkington this week. You can listen to that on my little attachment. It's too hard/funny to write about. 

We stopped by Lisa and Lissy yesterday to find them home. They just had a really crazy couple of weeks, but they are still on board. It was such a relief. We should be seeing them soon.

All of the other investigators are going well. We really refined our teaching pool and are concentrating on getting our investigators to progress and come to church. It's pretty overwhelming to think that Sister Anderson and I have salvation on our shoulders! 

You're probably wondering why the subject of this email is "And it came to pass..." Well, yesterday in Gospel Principles we were talking about enduring to the end. A question was posed about what enduring to the end means to me. It makes me think about how in the Book of Mormon, is says "And it came to pass.." so many times. That phrase has so much meaning. Everything will come to pass. Hard times will pass. Trials will pass. Our lives here on earth will pass. To me, enduring to the end means striving to be able to stand blameless before God and Jesus Christ. It's something that I've really been thinking about recently. So, what does enduring to the end mean to you?

This email wasn't exactly as short as I thought it was going to be. I hope that everyone has an amazing week. I love you all very much. Transfer calls are coming up this Sunday, so maybe hold on the mail until next week just in case. It's weeks like this when I just have to keep telling myself - "I'll go where you want me to go, dear Lord."

Sister Hardcastle

"Have Faith, Have Hope, Like Like His Son, Help Others On Their Way"

Andrea :)