More Adventures

January 9, 2015 Friday

Stephen had the day off work again today and so we went out sightseeing again!  I developed a terrible cough yesterday, I think the weather is getting to me, but I couldn't let that stop me.  We had the most amazing day!  We went out to Glendalough first thing.  It’s basically Ireland’s Zion National Park.  Haha!  That’s the best way I can think to explain it.  It is beautiful!  So green and there was a gorgeous lake and tons of hiking trails!  So we went for a hike.  About 3 hours long!  It was rainy and wet and windy and freezing cold but that didn't stop us.  On we went!  It was incredible.  So pretty and green and we saw sheep and had a fantastic time.  Stephen is a convert to the church of about a year and is 29 years old.  He just went to the temple and received his endowment.  He is really great.  He’s got an amazing testimony and we get along really well!  I’m so thankful for him.  God truly has been so amazing to me.  Placing such amazing people in my path!  I don’t know what I would do without them.  Maria and Stephen have truly made me feel so very welcome and right at home.  It’s been such a tender mercy in my life.  I had my first lollipop on our hike.  We walked back through the town to return to the car and Stephen got us strawberry and creame lollipops!  They were delicious!  So tasty!  Yum.  They aren't as sugary as the states lollipop.  Still sugary though.  Just not quite as bad.  So that’s nice!  By the time we finished our hike it was about 4 pm and we went to downtown, city center Dublin!  It reminded me so much of New York City!  The tall buildings and people everywhere and hustle and bustle!  Love it so much!  Everywhere I go and everything I do, I just fall more and more in love with this place.  It could not be more perfect.  Seriously.  I love everything about it. We rode the Luas, which is similar to the Trax rail in Salt Lake City, Utah.  And right in front of us these two people were doing drugs.  It was insane.  And nobody was batting an eye!  Welcome to big city life!  Haha.  I love it all!  We found my school and walked around a little bit and then we stopped into a frozen yogurt shop and had the most amazing experience ever!  I was putting the toppings onto my frozen yogurt and started chatting with the lady behind the counter.  I asked her how her day was and she responded by saying that it wasn't going very well and then immediately after she said “I don’t know why I just said that, I’m so sorry, I usually say I’m doing great but today has just been a bad day and I’m real sorry to ruin your day like that”.  I of course said it was okay and asked what was going on.  She told us that she had lost a friend to a drowning accident that morning in her hometown in Australia and that she was really shaken up by it.  I asked her if she had religion in her life and she said she didn’t and basically Stephen and I got to bear our testimonies about the plan of salvation and left her (Tara was her name) with a pass along card with the Elders number on it.  It was an amazing experience.  I walked out of the frozen yogurt shop and was on a spiritual high.  I hadn’t felt like that since my mission.  I remembered how good it feels to share the Gospel!  It’s an amazing feeling.  It’s one of a kind.  And I’m so thankful I got to spend 18 months doing that full time and I’m excited to be here in Ireland and have more opportunities.  I’m really going to make an effort to share the Gospel while I am here.  I really want to so badly.  And after that experience I just want to go do it all the time!  Haha!  After that we met up with the Elders!  Yay!  We were waiting for them at the spire, which is in the city center, and Stephen and I decided to play a joke on the Elders.  Haha!  Kind of mean, but funny!  We told them I was a co-worker of Stephen, from Houston, Texas and I pretended to be a non-member.  We played it off for about 5 minutes and then Stephen pulled out his phone and pulled up a picture on Facebook of me on my mission and showed it to the Elders!  Haha!  They died laughing.  It was priceless!  We rode the bus with the Elders to the church building and met up with a less active girl named Helen!  She was a sweetheart!  So kind.  We had a great lesson.  The elders were incredible.  I loved seeing them in action.  And Helen was the nicest girl ever!  We are all praying she makes it out to church on Sunday!  So that was a great experience and then we made our way back to Stephen’s car and he dropped me off at home!  I’m super exhausted tonight and so ready for sleep!  Today was incredible though.  Everything about this place is just incredible!  Yahoo for life!