6-24-16 Nothing is impossible to overcome

Bula vinaka noqu matavuvale!

First things first, Happy Father's Day dad!! I love you so much, I can't tell you in words how much I appreciate the countless sacrifices you make regularly for my siblings and I, and for the incredible example of love and charity you are to us. I hope that my success in the field and after and forever can show how grateful I am to have you as a father, love you dad.

Mom, thank you for the scriptures! I've found myself turning to the scriptures crazy often in the last two weeks, and wow. Kala'i and Lehia, READ THE SCRIPTURES. There's some amazing stuff in there (everything in it is amazing but lots and lots of things really hit home).

What an awesome week, as always haha. One awesome thing that happened was the new intake of missionaries in our zone! They're all super super good kids with wananavu spirits. I'm certain already that they'll take great care of the zone when we leave. There's one Elder in our zone, whose name I cannot remember for the life of me, that's serving in Hawaii! Marshallese speaking, so I don't know that he'll ever be around our home area but I thought that was way cool. There's also a missionary in the zone FROM Suva, Fiji! I forget his name, but he's super cool and has a great countenance about him. It's nice to have him!

Thank you so much for the brownies mom! It was actually perfect timing, and I feel like you were inspired to send them to me for more reasons than just my halfway mark (which is crazy to think about), because yesterday was Elder Green's birthday! I didn't break the cake open the night I got it because we had JUST gotten home from an Aloha dinner (Shoyu chicken, rice, mac salad and kalua pig, SO GOOD) and I ate A LOT so I couldn't take the cake. We decided to open it last night for Elder Green's birthday, even though he couldn't eat it because he was sick, but we'll feast on it today! My district says thank you, haha.

Congratulations to Alohi!! And Sisi!! (I'm sure you guys have heard, she's serving in Tonga) How exciting! Give my aloha to Alohi for me please, I'm seriously so excited for her. This work is incredible. Incredibly humbling, incredibly enlightening, incredibly joyous and INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT. Anyways, my time is especially limited today as the schedule has changed and I have a session in about two hours, so I'll use that time to eat breakfast and get ready.

I love you guys so much, and I see and bask in the blessings from home every single day, as they are marvelous and endless. Elder Hunkin is a wonderful companion and example. My district mates, my brothers, never cease to amaze me with their faith in trial and error. I love them, I love the MTC, but more than anything I love the work. I love trials haha. ONLY good things come out of trials, really, and I thank the Lord every day for mine, for I should treasure them forever. Bear through them, my family, because they're given of God. I know that. 1 Nephi 3:7 "-for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he hath commandeth them."

NOTHING, no matter how difficult it may seem, is impossible to overcome. Through the Lord, and through faith in Jesus Christ and his atonement, absolutely nothing is impossible. The Lord knows us individually and he knows our needs. I love the quote "When life gets too hard to stand, kneel." It is so true. I don't need to quote my favorite scripture because you all know what it is, but it says that if you trust in God, he shall direct your path. Give yourself to him, and he will give you to the Lord.

Again, I love you guys so much, thanks for all the letters, I'm glad all is well!!
Au lomani kemudou valevu, moce!

Elda Ishibashi

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Thank you so much dad! Same here, I feel the blessings of prayers in my behalf from home SO strongly, and I know I'm receiving them from 'Io in the Philippines as well. I do hold my culture and my aloha spirit extremely dear to me, and I find that it does make it significantly easier to love people with the environment and family I was raised in. I love you dad, thank you so much for everything you and mom has done for me, tell everyone I love them!