Mercy

hiiii fam. :)
how are you? heebs is cold huh? this past week was actually way warm! didnt even wear a coat. but i think this week is supposed to be cold. tomorrow we are traveling to Nagoya (4 hour shinkansen ride) for trainers training. i get to see all my peeps from the MTC. Walsh Shimai is leaving on Monday! sooooooo sad. She is traveling around jp with her parents for a week.
Youre going to garths for thanksgiving?? soo fun! Tell everyone hi and i love them! So this Thur we have eikaiwa! but i still wanted to celebrate thanksgiving!!!!!! So i asked my comp if it would be okay to have a thanksgiving party! We explained what thanksgiving was and everyone is bringing food and we will all go around the room and say what we are thankful for (i told them thats what my fam does) and playing games! Susan, a member in our ward from Hawaii, is bringing a turkey and pumpkin pie and candied yams! STOKEEEDDDD. i love america. like wow i love america. shay....do you LOVE AMERICA??? haha

IKEMOTO SAN IS GETTING BAPTIZED!!!!!!!!! this friday. its happening. super exciting. she will be an awesome member. she is super shy but has opened up a ton. please pray for her. our goal is to have 3 baptisms by Christmas as a gift to the Savior. If you could include these people in your prayers..i think they have the most potential right now and i desperately want them to experience the joy that the gospel brings!!!!!!!!!! Evangeline, Yuu chan, Naoko, Mami, and RURI! Mom...i:ll be honest. I LOVE RURI so much. But i feel so bad that i cant speak to her! I feel like i cant do what im supposed to be doing because i cant speak japanese. This is such a miracle that we:ve met, but i feel so inadequte and what if I fail? What if i cant help her or strengthen her? It was super fun to be with her though. She took us to the dollar store and bought us a bunch of stuff. then to visit her mom..ah it was so sad. she is miserable, so sad. While we were there Ruri pulled out a scrapbook that becky made. hahahah it was so fun to see pics of you! Here I am thousands of miles away in a Japanese hospital looking at pictures of my cute mom. I love that me nad you and dad and shay have all done the same thing. how amazing are missions??? anyway then we went to a japanese italian buffet with her friends. they brought their 2 13 year old daughters and they were thrilled to be with us i think. they kept taking pics of us and with us and trying to speak english. they were darling. it was so much fun. we are going to eat at ruris restaurant on thursday!

Today we had a Nabe Party with the ward. Naoko san came! and a potential investigator came! we have invtited about 50 ppl to the baptism haha .hope some can come. I know with no doubt in my mind or heart that what we teach is true. The plan of salvation is such a perfect plan!
Some tender mercies this week: (might sound cheesy...but they really were so comforting)...
We went to the Ooi family:s home to mogi and have lunch. CUTEST old couple and they served a mission at the Tokyo temple. They dendo all the time.. just really neat members. One of my responsibilites this week as a bean chan was to lead lessons...so talk the most pretty much. I was teaching Lesson 2 and all of a sudden i had crazy de ja vu....the green curtains, the old couple, the brown table, my companion next to me..and i realized that it wasnt deja vu ..its a dream ive had several times before my mission! My heart was almost hurting i felt the spirit so strong right then. i realized that this really is exactly where i need to be. Heavenly Father, through the spirit, made it known to me through a DREAM i had months ago and has been preparing me for a long time. I was so grateful for that little testomony builder . When we left, Walsh Shimai said that was the best lesson ive taught.

Yesterday, we were biking to a PIs house. I was in kind of a bad mood, trying to show it..but still in a bad mood. I was sad and lonely, and a little annoyed. As we were biking, i was praying so hard to be comforted and to be able to be happy about dendo that day. At that moment we were biking across a bridge. I looked to the left, and the sky was dark and gray. Honestly, a lot like how i felt. I then looked to the right. There were rays of sunshine beaming through the clouds and it was refreshing and beautiful. At that moment, i was filled with the spirit. I immediately moved my bike over to the right side of the sidewalk, directly behind my companion. I realized that only if i was choosing the right, choosing the ways of Christ and working with my companion in unity, that was the only way that i could benefit others and share the gospel. I needed to repent of my selfishness and bitterness. I could not be more grateful for such a merciful Father . to get second and third and fourth chances at life. and anything, really. There is always hope. And Christ is always waiting for us. its us that turns away from Him.

I love the mission. I really do. I already feel like a different person. Im so grateful for the things i learn every single day. miss you all so much. love you more than anything. have a suuuuper good week!!!!!!!!!!!!
love, whit shimai

ps mom or dad i need to fill out this family history book. can you send me pics in the mail of grandparents and great grandparents and you guys and my siblings?? thanks soooo much. and i am supposeed to write stories or anything. so if iyou have time thatd be super helpful .

Can't count the miracles!

FINALLY MET RURI! Ah mom it was such a miracle. Walsh Shimai and I were riding our bikes to a less- actives house and some lady came running up to me waving her hands in the air. Literally my first thoughts were `either she needs help or she really wants to get baptized.` She asked `Sister Wilcox???` I said yes and she pointed to herself and said, `Ruri! Ruri! Ruri!` We were stoked! We were both hugging each other and I was spouting out english and she was spouting out japanese but we were so happy! She took us to Starbucks, bought us scones and a drink and we talked and talked. She told us about Moser and Yuri! I was laughing so hard- iremember you telling us all about that Mom. I showed her pictures from your mission- she loved it. She said you were amazing at Japanese and knew more Kanji than some Japanese people! She asked about my siblings, if you work, what dad does for a living, if you still speak japanese...She asked a ton of questions. Im super excited to meet her daughter. We are going to visit her mom in the hospital this week with her and then go to dinner with her and her friend. Super excited. She is darling! So nice and so ready to hear the gospel. I know it! It was truly a miracle. Mom you have no idea how it made me feel to have someone in JAPAN come up to me and love me and hug me- I hope you are already tasting the fruits of your labors. I sure have. You are incredible!

This morning we met with Ikemoto san. She got work off on the 30th and is so excited to get baptized! AHHH so kinjin. Today we taught her the word of wisdom and the rest of L3. I was praying so hard while my comp was telling her about it, then i bore my testimony, then she said she would follow it and is excited to see the blessings that come from following the commandments and getting baptized. HOW COOL!!!! She is so sweet, and one of the most humble people ive met. Just her smile invites the spirit.

The Lords hand is everywhere. There is no doubt that He is the one doing the missionary work. I am just the one who is inviting. I am amazed with what I learn everyday. Stay true to yourself and always follow the Lord. What ive been so impressed with is the love that Heavenly Father has for us. ....I LOVE our investigators. I think about them constantly and always want to help them. I would do anything for them! We may only meet once a week, and after that they may forget about me. But i do not forget them. Heavenly Father is always thinkning about us, loving us, wanting what is best for us. Any maybe we only pray once a day, and then forget about Him. I hope this week we can all work on developing our relationship with Heavenly Father. We are his children. Let Him help you.

I love you all. Thank you for your support. xoxoxox

Love, Sister whit

My wish for you...

Fam and Friends-

My wish for each of you right this second would be for you to be in Japan seeing the miracles and having the same feelings i am having. I truly cant put it all into words. This week was simply amazing! I feel so selfish as a missionary sometimes. I am supposed to be bringing souls unto Christ and helping them get on the path that leads back to Heavenly Father--strengthen THEIR faith and spirituality. And yet everyday, I am the one being strengthened. I honestly didnt even know it was possible to feel this close to Heavenly Father. I didnt know it was possible to have such a close and very real relationship with Him. I have never been more grateful for Jesus Christ and His atonement. He lived such a short 33 year life on earth- he did all he could to do the Fathers will. If I am only called for 18 months, God must believe that I can make a change! I hope I can do my best every single day. I dont want to waste a minute. I love dendo (missionary work)!

Ill try and give you the short version of everything-- ;)

Mom PLEASE go to Sister Walshs homecoming! I adore her. Shes my best friend and my companion--how lucky is that?? I have sooo much to be grateful for! She gets home on December 9. Ill give you more deets later. She wants to meet you! Shay you gotta meet her too. k thanks. :)

Yesterday we had dinner with Susan (member that is SO good to the missionaries. She texted our investigator and invited her to dinner. how awesome is she??!) I love Hien. ahh i wish you could meet her. She is so prepared and has such a sweet spirit. Youd just eat her up shes so cute. Walsh Shimai and I shared a scripture (Mosiah 34:32) and shared our testimonies. Afterwards she was asking us questions about the BOM, please pray for her! She is so ready!

I can:t remember if i told you about evangeline or not. Shay--this is all for you. We are meeting with Evangeline from Hong Kong. She is KINJIN. She doesnt speak Japanese but her english is awesome. so yay. Shes darling. We asked her how she chose Evangeline- its the stars name from Princess and the Frog. I laughed so hard. in elementary school she went by apple. and in highschool she went by dolphin. haha what? She asked about our names- I told her, `in America- people call me Whitney.` She laughed so hard! She said, `Oh like the bear! ..Winnie the Pooh!` hahaha then Sister Walsh said `In america ppl call me Katy.` She started laughing again!! And said, `Like Hello Kitty!` hahah it was the cutest thing. She also said, `Sister Wilcox you are very vivid.` ...thank you. haha She has to go back to China to study more before her test, and in December we will be able to meet with her more often. She asks the BEST questions. She believes in God and prays a lot!! She texted us the other day and said, `I believe God is helping me!` Too cool.

Ikemoto San is still progressing-shes amazing. We asked her if she still felt like she was ready to be baptized on the 30 and she said YES I got work off! YAY. She came to church yesterday and was asking about the sacrament. I couldnt help but think of you, Dad. I remember when I was little, during church you would whisper in my ear and tell me all about the sacrament. You would tell me why we take the bread and why we take the water. I loved being so close to you and having you teach me the gospel. I cherish that memory. Youre an awesome dad. I love you.

Shay thank you soooo much for your gift. I love love love it. I read it everyday and put my own quotes in their as well. I know it will be my favorite thing from my mission. Youre awesome! Remember calling each other `hun` when we were mad at each other?? And watching the Buttercream gang? hahah

FUNNY: I dont think i told you this story- ignore this if i did it was tooo funny though. Last week we had to get flu shots. My comp went into this room for a while and came out with her eyes wide open ..like in shock. I went in there, didn:t understand anything the doctor said, and all of a sudden this nurse behind me and the doctor in front of me were pulling up my shirt! a little awk,...dont know why they basically had to take my clothes off just to take my heartbeat. but anyway we get out shot and go out to the foyer. Walsh Shimai and I were laughing our heads off. _Okay keep in mind that japanese people are very quiet and shy and they dont really speak to each other. We are in this little foyer with probably 10 other nihonjin. I am laughing my head off. You know how I get when I literally just cant stop laughing! Well i look up and EVERYONE is looking at me covering their mouths trying not to laugh. I thought it was so funny that they were laughing cuz in america everyone would just be annoyed! So i said kind of loud, `Gomennasai. Jinsei wa omoshiroii desu.` and everyone just busted up laughing. It was a bonding moment haha. I waved at everyone when we left. Some lady came up and thanked us for making her laugh. Too fun.

sorry i think i already told you that story. but we still laugh about it. :)

I love you all so much. Lee Daniels-- you get a shout out ;) I hope you get to meet my family soon. They`re pretty cool. Thank you so much for the emails. They uplift and inspire me! Miss you and Sister Daniels so much.

Parker- write me and tell me about preference! I was so sad to hear about your chipped tooth! Did that happen during the assembly??

Thank you for supporting me and all the missionaries. Im so happy to be apart of Gods army!
xoxoxoxoxoxox

Love, sister whit wilcox

I'm soaked...

so much love

i loved reading all your emails! you;re all so dang cute haha hiking looked way fun. this week was just amazing. this mission is crazy fun and ive seen so many miracles already. The Lord goes before and after ---i have a solid testimony of that!

So this week I got a package from Nobuaki! So nice right?! hahah It was so cute.. he said, `I thought I would send you a package for halloween! hahah so he sent me a bunch of japanese candy, 2 CD`s, his conversion story, and a picture of us from the MTC and a pic with you guys! (mom, dad, gma and gpa). it was so fun, he`s such a neat guy.

So the elders found a bunch of highschoolers that were interested in hearing the gospel! Elders can only teach boys, and we can only teach girls-- so we all went and played soccer/volleyball and got 3 new investigators! They:re the cutest, we are meeting with them today. super excited! That same day, we were OYMing (open your mouth) and found another investigator! We havent been able to meet with her, but I know the Lord has a plan for her. Whether through us or others, she has a special spirit about her. Her name is Minami san. If nothing happens, I firmly believe in `planting seeds.` No effort is wasted!

The eikaiwa (english conversation) class is so fun! I taught the kids class- taught them happy, sad, angry, sleepy, etc. Ahh its so hard not to just cuddle those kids. So cute! Hien (from vietnam) came to eikaiwa and we went out to dinner with her yesterday. She has been meeting with the sisters for a while, shes having a hard time believing, but i have so much love for her. We had sooo much fun. Laughed and laughed. I would ask her questions in japanese, and she would answer in english. hahah it was so funny. i wish i could have filmed the whole thing. Mom and shay you would looooove her. she reminds me of lorraine dettman haha. so i started asking questions about the church and we got to talk about joseph smith more in depth. I hope she was able to feel the spirit, she says she keeps meeting with us because she feels so happy when she is with us and we are `different.` She`s ready! She is amazing! I know Heavenly Father loves her so much, and every person with such a sincere love. He wants her to remember Him.. to talk and develop a relationship again. Every soul is great in the eyes of God. Please pray for Hien!

Another amazing experience was with a girl from China. Shay- every single person ive met from china or hong kong is amazing.!!!!! Wow!!! So ready to hear the gospel. I was on an exchange with a sister named Omine Shimai in Kanazawa over the weekend. Anyway her name is Tai He He. She speaks english pretty well, so most of our lesson was in english! She talked about a lot of hard times she is going through right now, and I could relate to her pretty well- we read Alma 26:27,37 and she said that really helped her. She also has a hard time believing in God, but she says she wants to! I asked her to read Mosiah 24:13-16 that night. She looked me in the eyes and said she loved me and hoped to see me again...ah i was almost in tears! How can i love these people so much after spending such a short amount of time with them! I want them to find Christ, I want them to know Christ and know the atonement..so bad!! I know it would bring so much happiness and hope. She asked if i could come back to kanazawa over the weekend and go to lunch..wish i could! haha

Ikemoto san is just amazing as always. She asks perfect questions and has been searching for the gospel for a long time. The spirit is incredible in lessons with her. I know the angels of heaven are with us, and when she leaves after lessons, i feel so much peace. I know she is not alone.

I love you all. Im so so blessed to be in japan with Sister Walsh. We have too much fun together! Im so not looking forward to her leaving in 3 weeks! :( . I couldnt be more happy than where i am, and what im doing. `its the best!` (dad mimicking nacho libre). ;). on the exchange this weekend, omine shimai played the song `goodnight my angel` ...i was first imagining dad singing it to me- made me miss you so much dad! then i imagined Heavenly Father-- i know He loves each of you. He desires only your happiness! Do what he asks and do what the Lord asks. Just do it! It truly does bring happiness. He knows something we dont. Trust Him. :) love love love youuuuuuu
love, whit twit sister wilcox

first week...wow!!!

*sorry this letter is so scrambled and random...:)

WOW. Where do I start?! First of all, SHAY! IT IS SO SURREAL THAT YOU ARE HOME!!! Literally everyone i meet i say in my awful japanese, `my sister went to hong kong on her mission and got home yesterday!` then once my companion translates that for them they throw their arms around me and are sad for me. hahah its cute. literally so many people did that. so tell me everything. so happy for all of you. such a happy time!

Okay.....so let me just say I LOVE JAPAN. Why is America so lame? haha It`s been nothing less than perfect. I have not felt sad or overwhelmed or stressed or scared at all! Such a blessing! All my prayers have been filled only with gratitude. I`m so happy here! I dont know how its possible but i feel right at home. I really do. Heavenly Father is blessing us so much, all of us! Can you feel the crazy amount of blessings??? LOOVEE ITTTT. okay i]ll try to give you deets real fast.

The flight--ew. haha but i sat with Humphreys and Kittaka Shimai so we just slept on each other and it was great. When we arrived in Japan, Yamashita Kaicho and Sister Yamashita were soooo sweet! they spoke english ...hallelujah haha... and the assistants and everyone was soo nice. I probably looked like a troll but..sister missionaries are supposed to look stupid right? The mission home was super nice. We felt bad becuase they fed us and wanted to talk but i felt so sick and dizzy from not sleeping so we went to bed early. The next day we were SOO nervous and excited to meet our comps. but lemme tell you..i got the BEST trainer. We are best friends! Its been so so fun. Her name is Kaitland Walsh, she]s from Draper. She leaves in 6 weeks though...so sad about that. So ill have 2 trainers. Anyway, we are 4 hrs away from the mission home in Toyama. Yep its cold here. i looove it though. Kind of in the city, but i love it. I love riding my bike and looking at all the crazy beautiful things here. The cemeteries are huge..and there are a ton. I love to pray and think about everything while riding my bike. So peaceful. Anyway, its just Walsh Shimai and I in our apt. And there is one set of elders in our ward. The shower is so cool, its like an entire room. The food is weird, its good but super weird. I like cabbage pancakes. EW i ate raw eggs and fermented soy beans on rice and was literally gagging. At the train station one day, we walked into the bathroom and there was no toilet! it was like a hole in the ground and you just squat over it. So i go into the stall and kind of just stare at it for about a minute, walked out and washed my hands. hahah i couldnt do it! The spiders are so big.

Okay mom, dad you werent kidding. I thought japan would for sure be more like america. but let me tell you ....its totally not. After leaving the honbu and traveling 4 hours on a train that is like an airplane, a member lady picked us up and we ate at　her house. The cutest old couple! Well we get there and we kneeled...on the floor!!! my legs were NUMB i was in so much pain. and we ate with chopsticks!!! are you kidding me I cant do that!! haha they were all laughing at me. I learned a lot of sarcastic things in japanese in the MTC soooo they thought i was funny. haha We were all just kneeling around this table with us, the old couple, and the elders, laughing our heads off eating fatty meat and weird sushi that is soooo different from american sushi. but i loved that night. haha

as i]m sitting here laughing to myself about everything that has happened, my companion says i do a lot of DAME (not good) things. like i:m just a loud american that waves to everyone instead of bows, i sound sooooo gaijin (foreigner) when i speak its embarrassing.

oh my gosh the WARD . The ward is amazing. truly truly amazing. I spoke on sunday. Yep all in japanese. and he asked me to 20 MINUTES before sacrament meeting. so i got up there and pretty much said i have 6 ppl in my family, my hobbies are running and volleyball, and im from heber. Actually I said this ... haha ...`Zense kara kimashita. ..jodan jodan! America Utah kara kimashita.` (Im from the pre earth life. jokes! i:m from utah). they all laughed, glad it wasn:t one of those awkward try to make a joke but its not funny kind of thing haha.

I can:t believe how amazing the ward is. Its so cute when ppl try to speak english. There is a special spirit here for sure. So on Saturday morning we went and helped set up for the Halloween Party, and there is a young family, they have 2 kids and they both served missions that were helping set up. I needed to buy a bike that day. So they offered to drive us to town like 20 minutes away and help me buy a bike! So them and another member came and it literally took about 4 hours. I felt SO bad but they were SO nice!! AH i love them!! The Halloween party was so fun and a huge success! I finally got to meet all the members and about 4 investigators came. Okay so I have been praying for more confidence in speaking the language and just saying the things i do know how to say. So I went and sat with one of our investigators, her name is Ikemoto san. My comp talking with a member. Anyway we were just talking and she has never been to church before. So i decided to ask her! Be BOLD right? I asked her if she was coming to church tomorrow, it would be fun and I wanted her to come! She said What time?? ....then i had to get my companion. haha So she explained what church was and she said she only needed to stay for an hour. Then Ikemoto san asked `can i stay for all 3 hours??`....uhhhh YES. I was pumped. I was literally hugging on Walsh Shimai and jumping up and down...she probably thought i was a dweeb but i was so excited! After that I asked another one of our investigators! She said it sounded boring...haha. But hey the answer will always be no if i never ask so i:m glad i asked.

My comp is the sister training leader so we:ve had to travel a ton. Iwent on an exchange with a little nihonjin and we visited a cute little old lady who just got baptized. She fed us this kelp tea that literally tasted like boiled sea water, and little chocolates. I played her piano and shared my testimony. Fun. We dont have alot of investigators right now but i am positive we will very soon. We want to get 3 baptisms before Christmas as agift to Christ. Thats our goal as a mission.

This morning i was reading in D&C ,　i read D&C 20:53. I though of Parkers blessing that he gave to Jaren. That moment I will cherish forever. That was so special parker. I hold that close to my heart. Then I D&C23. Boys--what is your duty?? What do you think Gods will for you is?? Then I read D&C 25 and thought of you mom. Read it, its really good. :).

FAMILY i LOVE YOU. So So so much. Im so happy and so ready to work. I know service brings us so much happiness. Im so grateful for this perfect plan of happiness. Im so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father. He is so real to me, I hope you have each found a special relationship with Him and our Savior and Brother Jesus Christ. `Sometimes we should step back and think of the enormity of our potential and the influence and impact we can have in the eyes of others by caring for our own testimonies.`

I love you. God be with you.
Love, Sister Wilcox

shays lasts...my lasts

SO WEIRD that shay comes home right as I'm leaving. ahh i'm going to be thinking about you all over the weekend..it's going to be a crazy weekend for sure. lots and lots of emotions. lots of sad, lots of glad. I'm just grateful that I'm here serving and knowing that the Lord is on my side makes it a little easier. I can't wait to talk to you all on Monday! Let me know what time works for you. My flight leaves at 7:30am so if you don't tell me otherwise, I'll probs call around 6am. Make sure the boys are awake. :) If its easier, I can probs call when we land in Michigan 3:30 (michigan time whenever that is..) Let me know.

Dad- I LOVED hearing about your mish. You never told me that! Crazy! That's like The Other Side Of Heaven material right there! Ah hearing your stories gets me stoooked.

So cool story- at the beginning of the week I got really sick, I couldn't go to class. I felt awful. I did NOT want to be sick while traveling/first few days in Japan! I pleaded with Heavenly Father to heal me and I got a blessing from the choro tachi.The blessing was so powerful and THE NEXT DAY I felt 90% better. It was seriously a miracle, I counted my blessings that day for sure. I have a testimony that God is mindful of each of us!
Hey, I want to share real quick something that means a lot to me. I wrote this to my branch prez, but it is such a testimony to me that God speaks to us.

I've shared with you what I've learned about prayer. I love to pray. It is amazing that there are no barriers between us and God. I can so simply talk to my Father in Heaven whenever I want to or need to. He wants me to cast all my burdens on Him. I should not worry so much while on a mission! I should love to work and work to love the Nihonjin. All I can do is invite. That is so simple! I can do that!

Before the mission, my mom always said, "You can do hard things." That was my motivation for the first few weeks. I can do hard things! But after a while, I changed that motto to "WE can do hard things." The Savior and I. A mission cannot be done alone. I must rely on the Savior to guide me everyday. He is preparing people to hear the gospel, and how can I find those souls who need Christ if I, myself, am not close to Christ? I know with Christ on our side, we can do anything.

I have found out why I have been called on a mission. I know I will plant many seeds in Japan and touch the hearts of many. I know my efforts in Japan will not be wasted. But I am doing this mission for my future children. As I've listened to devotional talks, read my patriarchal blessing, and pleaded to my Father for an answer, He has impressed upon me that I am doing this for my eternal family. From all that I am learning now in these short 18 months, I will be a better mother and a better wife. The adversary will grow stronger and stronger and my children will need a mother whose feet are planted in the soil of truth. My testimony cannot and will not be shaken! I want to lead my family in righteousness and bring up a generation like Helaman's Army!

My life has already changed in countless ways. I will always cherish this MTC experience. This gospel brings true joy. I can never deny the spirit I've felt and the truths I've learned. I'm so grateful for my Savior.

Mom- I read this quote from Pres. Hinckley all the time and i think it relates perfectly for and I.
"Many young women are serving missions. Many are preparing to serve, not because they aren't married or have nothing else to do, but because they have a desire to serve and are therefore being called to the work. The reason so many are going is because in the next generation Heavenly Father will be sending his Priesthood army to earth. He wants to send them to mothers who have been properly trained and taught in the Gospel, and what better training can a young woman have than that of serving a mission?"

I really can't express enough how happy I am to be serving a mission. I thought I had a testimony before, but wow. I can't wait to see how much I will learn in the next very short 16 months. Your friend Mills Kyodai gave a departing devotional to us yesterday. We left the meeting bawling because we were so happy! My heart was beating so fast and I just wanted to jump on a plane and get to Japan that very second. He talked about expectations. A lot of people have the expectation that they won't baptize anyone or hardly anyone will accept the message....sadly I think i did too. But I have been praying and have changed that expectation! The answer will always be no if I never ask! I hope I can find out why Father in Heaven sent me to Japan. I hope I can live up to HIS expectation and work as hard as i can. I hope I can KILL IT in Japan. :) Hey do me a favor--read Teachings of the Presidents of the Church by Heber J. Grant and read the Japan section. and let me know what it says. :)

Sorry for the long email, I've just had so many special experiences!! While we are living in this wicked world, I often get discouraged and feel as if Satan is winning this war. It is so sad! But remember- we outnumber the enemy! The number is STILL 2/3. There are legions of angels fighting with us. I know it. I KNOW if our spiritual eyes could be opened, we would find that we are NEVER alone. I have thought a lot about Bishop Draper and his wife. I've thought a lot about Papa, and all my great grandparents. I have thought about all our unborn children. We are never alone.

Anyway, parks and jare i'm stoked for you to serve your missions. you're gonna love it. shay--how cool that you served a full-time mission. I'm so proud of you. I always want to be like you. i miss you. Gma and gpa wilcox- thank you so much for your letter. i LOVED it. you make me feel loved and special. gma and gpa wadd- i miss you and think of you all the time! hope all is well. I love you!
can't believe BECCA D is already home! ahh so excited for her. becs i love you.

ILOVE YOU ALL. can't wait to get to japan. yep...TOTALLY freaking out but trying not to be afraid. oh heck yesterday in a lesson I said, "Shinko wa Satan kara kimasu."..(Faith comes from Satan). It was during Skype with a nihonjin. i felt SO dumb hahahah. He was like "WHAT???" hahahah. Oh hey he took a pic and told us he'd put it on fb haha so mom check for a guy named Yasuyoshi Miura. :) Also, I'm pretty sure the MTC warmed up raspberry jam and put it on chicken..but it was really good. try it sometime.

ok sorry i have to tell you this funny story- We were trying to SYL (speak your language) like crazy this week. so one day in class we were talking about dogs and in english i was like, "whats that dogs name that starts with shi..??" and Kittaka Shimai says, "OH shinjitsu's!" (means believe/true) and we were crying laughing so hard. we almost had to leave class we were laughing so hard. i know that doesn't sound funny,...i promise it was. haha

I LOVE YOU. next letter will be from NIHON!!!!!!

あいしています！

love, wilcox shimai

10 days

hey fam&friends. げんきですか

how are you? hope you are happy. ok wasn't conference amazing?! WOW keiji wa shinjirarenai desu, ne?! and how cool that some were given in different languages. i thought of shay when hong wong was giving his talk in cantonese! super cool. Mom didn't you love seeing the little Asian kids sing in the general women's meeting? and the nihonjin talk about the temple?! ahh i just seriously can't wait to get back and speak to you and dad in nihongo. legitttt! I didn't bring my conference notes but i loved this quote, "God is not stranger to His servant." I've used that a lot in my lessons. One way to develop a かんけいとかみさま is to serve Him. It's all up to us. It is up to us how far that relationship goes and how well we develop it. God knows us perfectly- we just need to search for Him, pray to Him, serve Him and He will brings things to our remembrance. それわしんじつだとしています！ I also loved to listen to Thomas S. Monson. Yogensha wa keiji o ukeru koto ga dekimasu. We witnessed that all weekend! During kojin benkyo, I read D&C 1:37-38. I realize that we are each entitled to that revelation! How cool is that? We are not here to fail, we are here to learn and grow. Every single day you and I can become better. Are we actively seeking those things that will help us learn and grow? I hope I can practice that more and more.

So dad- haha. this was super awkward. I realize that i really am an awkward missionary..YOSH! haha but the other day before devo, i saw Byron..BJ Hunter. haha i was like, "I'm pretty sure i know that guy." so I ask him "hey are you from heber?"
"my parents are.."
I said, "uhh..do you know Travis Wilcox?" hahah
he was like, "Yaa he was my bishop when i younger! How could i not remember Travis Wilcox!"
..then i just didn't know what to say so i'm like "......cool!"
He said "I'm gonna have to figure out what his number is and give him a call!"
I just said yep! see ya later! haha wow. all i remember is you took me to young mens with you and i had a crush on him when i was 10 years old.

anyyyyyway. only 10 more days in the MTC! what?? No doubt I am so so so so nervous. I don't feel ready to go to Japan! But..will i ever be ready? haha i just need to get there and get to work! I can't wait to start this service and finally be where i'm supposed to be. I'm so grateful to be a missionary. Ah i can't express to you what i've already felt and what i've learned. It's been amazing already and this mission has just begun! I can't wait for the next 16 months. I love love love each of you. Think about you all the time. :) I pray that you feel God's love and know that you have a special place here on earth. You are a child of God! Think about that.

Ai shite imasu! honto ni!!!

love, wilcox shimai