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Sister Collins: Last & First missionary email!

Mid Mission Lucy:)
She'll be home in 3 days :)
 What a beautiful way to end her mission. Portugal is a special place with special people. 
Nothing was lost on her there. 


Her apartment/hotel building in Lisbon. Just 5 minutes away from the temple:)
Anyway, here is her last email home...

 Oi oi amigos!!


Well, that went by fast😅Today I hit 18 months on the mission and I will be finishing up my mission this week! It's a lot of mixed emotions, but I am so grateful for every moment that I have had here! 

Here are some highlights...
 - Lúcia and Sérgio's baptism!! They are like my Brazilian parents haha(after president and sister barcellos), they are amazing!! They were so happy, they couldn't stop smiling! It was definitely one of the best days of my mission
 - 2 divisions woop woop!!
 - I went door knocking with Sister Meredith during our division and one lady opened the door because "não resisti o sorriso", she couldn't resist our smiles haha! So that was pretty cute
 - we went to the temple with Josafat!! It was so amazing, the Spirit was so strong and he was so happy! He said that he wants to go back this week!

I have learned so many things over the last year and a half. I have grown up, come to know my Heavenly Father and my Savior, and I know that Christ brings true joy. It has been amazing to see our friends truly change and become happier people because of Christ and His gospel! I have seen anxiety, addictions, sadness, and difficult life circumstances be overcome through Christ. God is good, He loves us and, because of that, He sent us His Son!

I love you all so much! Thank you for all of your support over the last 18 months! And now, I have a confession to make. So baby Sister Collins, when she had 3 months on the mission, wanted to say "see you later" at the end of all her emails. See you later would actually be "até logo" but, she got confused and wrote "até já" instead, which means "see you soon". Anyway, when I figured that out I thought it was pretty funny so I just stuck with it. So now, for the first time in 18 months, I can actually say...até já!!

Amo vocês muito! Até já(for reals this time)!

Tchau!

Sister Collins 🧡

NOW HERE IS HER VERY FIRST EMAIL:)


Oi amigos!! 
I have just finished my first week of in person MTC!! I love my district and my teachers and I have been having so much fun!! Me and Sister Shoell(minha companheira) have been having lots of adventures including getting stuck on the elevator, not just once, but twice haha. Apparently we weren't allowed on the 6th floor of the building haha. I also played 3 on 3 with Sister Shoell and the Elders in my district this week which was so fun!! 
I've been learning a ton too! My teachers only speak portuguese and we aren't allowed to speak any english either, which I was pretty worried about but I actually understand most of what the teachers say! I guess the 4 years of spanish didn't go to waste haha. I have been learning lots of fun portuguese words including fixe, forte, fofo and desculpe! During testimony meeting this week my whole district said our testimonies in portuguese which was really awesome! Minus the part where I almost fell flat on my face trying to get back to my chair after, luckily Sister Shoell caught me. 
I know you are all wondering how the food is so I will let you know that it is edible, and most of the meals have actually been pretty good(except the "chicken taquitos" which I don't think actually had chicken in them). 
Anyway, I don't think I have ever spent so much time studying the scriptures before but I love it! This week we had a special musical performance with Bishop Causse and his friend! It was amazing!! They played duets on two grand pianos and it was so beautiful! Bishop Causse also shared a message with us, telling us to be like Lehi. When Lehi saw the tree of life he ate the fruit first and then shared it with his family. Bishop Causse told us that we need to learn and grow our testimonies of the gospel so that we can share it with others like Lehi! It was an amazing experience! I hope everyone has an awesome week!
Tchau!!
Sister Collins

Photos: Devotionals, First Class, Cafeteria haha, "The Tree of Life", Temple trip, Stuck in the elevator, Pro vacuum cleaners, mirror pic in our pants haha

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