Haag - Week 15

So Family and Friends, 

Yet another week in the books. It's been wild how fast it goes by. I have two more weeks and then there's a sunny beachside waiting for me in California. What a transition. I'll probably feel useless and guilty on the beach. Breaking mission rules everywhere hahaha. Well, let me give you a rundown of the week.

On Monday, we were in Salzburg and went to a main downtown attraction. It was pretty cool. Nothing too exciting, but tons of history. We met 2 couples on the streets who yelled out, 'Elders!' That's another one of my favorite parts about being in a big, tourist city. Random members from all over the world who recognize a black name tag isn't just a new fashion trend. They both served their missions here and it was cool to talk with them.

On Tuesday, we had our district meeting in Linz. We came back afterwards and went dooring in Grieskirchen, a town in our area. It had poured all morning, and usually, when the weather is like that, people are even more mean than usual. But on this day, we found a lot of nice people. 4 people invited us in to talk and were really genuinely nice to us. Usually when they say come in on the door, we stand there with a look of confusion on our faces, like, 'What? Seriously?!' Hahaha just kidding. We had really good discussions.

Wednesday, I got hit with sickness. I'm not sure exactly what it is. There was a sister in our district who was sick last week and I think I got it from her. It's just a super sore throat, with a headache, congestion, and a stomachache. It's been so hard to sleep for the past 5 days. I think I'm close to getting over the worst of it though.

On Thursday, we had a finding day here in Ried. It was pretty successful I'd say. I was still feeling really sick, but we found a lot of people and it worked well for us. That, and it was just great to be with everyone. I love our district. We've been getting along really well with the members, and all of them love us, except for this one lady. We've been trying to figure out why, but she's just all over our backs sometimes. It's really annoying and we've been trying to do something for her.

On Friday, we went to see her husband who is really sick. We talked for about an hour and he cried and cried that the missionaries finally came to visit. I can't believe nobody mentioned this earlier. We gave him a blessing and it just felt good. We hope her heart softens up a little from that experience. That's been about it for the week. Our people took their last week of vacation for vacation. School starts today and thank heavens, praise the Lord. People will finally be reachable and home. I hate the summer break as a missionary.

Funniest story of my life. We ran into the shopping mall on Saturday to go to the bathroom, and Elder Walter was sitting on one of the toilets while I was peeing. Someone came and sat next to him in the stall and totally blew out both ends. Then started blowing his nose. Since I've been sick, Elder Walter thought it was me and he starts busting up laughing and says, "Muss dass sein?" Which is more or less the equivalent of, "Do you have to do that here?" Hahahaha, the dude must have been so embarrassed, but it made it all the more hilarious. I can't stop laughing about it.

So, Saturday and Yesterday was my 2 YEAR MARK!  does it seem like I've actually been gone that long, because to me, it feels like yesterday. To come to the point, that might have been the toughest 24 hours of my life up to that point. Standing in a security line, making the most difficult walk I'd made up the escalator. Waving goodbye until I couldn't see anyone anymore. Not going to lie, I stood at the top of the escalator and froze. Half of me was really excited, the other half wanted to turn back and run home. I stood there with my suitcase for a couple minutes just thinking. At that point, a returned missionary was walking from his terminal back down to his family. As I watched him walk with pride in his step, with 2 years proudly painted on his chest, I realized that was what I wanted. He looked at me and I think he knew. In passing by, he just said, 'It goes too fast.' Dang, was he right. I'm glad I had the courage to make that long, lonely walk, my past thudding with every footstep into a new future. My heart completely torn apart, but knowing what was right and what the only smart thing to do was. I've made walks that are just as tough since then, and I'll make one in 2 weeks yet again. But I'm thankful for the ability God gave me to make that walk. With a promise that He would be walking step by step at my side.

It's been such a cool adventure and I've learned loads about who I am, what my role is in God's plan, what constitutes His plan, His nature, how to work with people, how to speak a new language, about the scriptures, about covenants, and so forth. I've learned that people are ready and looking for the truth, that they want to be closer to God. We don't have to convince them, they want to come.

But the most important knowledge I've gained is from the Atonement, that we aren't alone on the lonely walks of life. That God loves me just as much as He loves the McDonalds worker, the guy doing time in prison, the guy who's struggling with drugs, the lonely man going through a little depression, everyone. Having had the job to walk by other people's sides and to stand in His place for the 2 years and be His hands has been an incredible job, more overwhelming than I could describe here. Everyone can have their life changed with a little Jesus, and just a tiny fraction of understanding the atoning sacrifice. I love that knowledge. It's been the best 2 years of my entire life. 

With love and prayers for the Red Sox, 

Elder Hadfield