Oh my goodness! so much seems to have gone on back home! Alot has gone on here too. I don't have enough time to respond to all of your lovely emails but i do appreciate them and the letters so much. You have no idea. Oh and Happy Birthday to Brock and PJ and Ethan Martin if he reads this :) Love you guys! Speaking of ethan, someone should tell him to write me or get his address for me. please and thank you
I just have to say congrats to DHills football team for beating Pine View. Thats awesome. Brock keep working hard and your time will come. Are you doing b-ball this year? Stacy get better! :) And stay away from all those boys ;) Brock you best be watching out for her haha. hmm ok i guess thats it cuz i don't want to mention the other game.... (byu v u)
Ok so this is a long week with lots of stuff so bare with me :) So to start with the tuesday after i emailed last Elder T got super sick so he slept all day and elder D just had to stay home all day. We taught this guy from nepal that barely speaks english but he asked us how to join our church so we think there is potential haha. We are going to try to teach him english. I feel like i've met people from every country in asia, africa, and south america and parts of europe. One of these days im gonna take a map and mark which countries i have met people from. I bet i could cover most of the world. that is the cool thing about Massachusetts is that its just a big "melting pot".
Wednesday i started to get a sore throat and so did elder dawe but Elder G and i still worked. Elder T was still super sick and was seriously asleep 90% of the day. Thursday i got really quite sick with just a nasty cold but i still fought it. This is my first time getting sick since i've been on a mission (9 months) and my goal was to go the whole mish without getting sick, so i acted like i wasn't sick. But ya i did not feel to hot. good thing it was a weekly planning day (4 hours worth of planning -yum:) That night something... i guess extrodinary happened. I guess all i can really say is that i felt the strongest spiritual prompting i have ever felt. The lesson learned is that when you feel a prompting, follow it without question. I don't know what might have happened but i know we were blessed for following the prompting. Sorry that was a little vague but i just feel like i should keep it at that. The Holy Ghost is real. Always be worthy of its companionship. God is aware of each one of us, i know this to be true.
Friday i gave a training in District meeting on Names and who we represent. The two names we have on our tags are our family names and the Savior's name. We represent something far greater than just ourselves as missionaries. We represent our families- dad this made me think back on all the times you would yell to us as we went to school, "Remember who you are!" Im grateful for the wonderful examples my family has been to me and im proud and honored to carry your name and represent you all. We also represent Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is his work. It is such a blessing a privilege to be a part of it.
Our investigator, R N. who is H's (a member who has also adopted me as a son ha) friend is progressing really well. She is awesome. Everything we teach she just soakes it up like a sponge. She comes to church all the time and never misses appointments and always wants to meet with us. When we taught the Word of Wisdom we asked her what she thinks and she told us that she is ok with it. If she wouldve known before she got to know us and feel the spirit she would not have been ok with it. but that day she stopped drinking tea and coffee just like that! She also gives the best prayers! Oh and she is from Uganda just like H.
We also met with M like every friday and she is going to seminary every day and liking it cept for the early part. She thought elder greer and i were like 25 or 28 years old! haha wow. She said something that reminded me of Nikki soooo much. She asked us, "what is the right way to peel a banana?" we said a few different things and then asked her how she usually peels a banana and she says, "i don't know, i usually make my little brother do it for me." hahaha!!!!! that is soooo Nikki :) Remeber all those times you got Brock and I to do things for you without us realizing it? Love you sis!
Saturday(still sick :( ) Being sick is annoying. especially as a missionary. But with All of us being somewhat sick, we got tons of food from members but even more from A and K (from the gym) They are the best! They have also adopted us as sons so i have like 3 moms out here haha so Mom you don't have to worry, your little Elder Johnson is in good hands :) This day was the day that i finally succombed to being sick and actually resting. I took like an hour nap and it was sooooo wonderful. If you can believe it, its the first nap ive taken since being on a mission. We kinda just took it easy for most of the day so i could get over the blasted cold. That night was T-TEXTS!!!! CRAZY!!!!! the texts came and we are all staying cept for elder D :( he is going to Nashua, NH. Its pretty sad and im gonna miss that ol lug. Its gonna be weird without him. Elder G was so certain he would be going.
Sunday night Elder B came to lynn with me and elder G went to lynnfield for tours/exchanges. I love Elder B so much. He is like a kid in so many ways. He always has to explore and touch things when he comes to a new place. Everything intrigues him haha. He told me that my khmae is very very good so that made my day. So Monday was the tour with him and it was a blast. I really got to know him better and this time i got to teach him some things and give him advice and it was just a super good tour. Everything he does is funny. Everything.
Tuesday was a very crazy day. We taught R again and she is just amazing. We only have a few more lessons for her, plus she is getting baptized on the 1st of October! We are stoked and she is stoked. She can't wait! Her and H made us lunch with just the most random things put together and it was awesome. My plate included: rice, beans, a sweet potatoe, and a sausage pizza. I told them it was a weird combination and their reply, which is H's excuse for everything she does, was, "We are africans." All i know is that i love africans and want to go to Africa way bad now. Later we are back at the apartment with the elders and AP elder T calls and tells us to put in on speaker phone he says, "Im sorry for the mess up and late notice but Elder G is being transferred to Lowell." We all look at each other and then laugh and think its a joke. But it wasn't. Yup Elder G is leaving me. and Elder A is coming to serve with me here. Its weird. I've been with elder G 7 out of 9 months of my mission. What am i going to do with myself without him? He has become a very close friend of mine and im very grateful for the chance ive had to serve with him. I've learned a ton and have changed alot about myself because of this guy. eh who am i kidding, ill probably be serving with him again in a few transfers so i don't need to worry. But ya that was a big shocker.
That night we had our goodbye dinner with K and A and their families. They are probably my two most favorite familes that i've met out here. They both just have such good values and good families. They have really grown attached to us 4 elders and are very sad to see Elders D and G leave. They fed us an amazing dinner(and gave us tons of leftovers) . Elder G just testified about the plan of Salvation and what it means to him and how it will bless their lives to know it and that what we teach is the best thing we can give to them to show our gratitude and love for all that they have done for us. I then asked them if they would allow us to teach them and have them find out for themsleves if its true. (Elder B and Elder M were there with us cuz technically the two families live in their area so they would be the ones to teach them.) I then testified that all of us elders have been called of God and we all have the same authority. I told them that we had full confidence in Elders M and B's abilities to teach and that we trust them with teaching these two wonderful families. They all agreed to learn more! Elder D bore a very powerful testimony and thanked them for everything and there was hardly a dry eye in the house. We then all had a kneeling prayer together and left. It was an incredible feeling. I'll never forget it. Its experiences like this that really let me know that this gospel, this knowledge is true. I know it without a doubt. And i want to share all this goodness with others, for it is all goodness. We are so blessed and if we are true followers of christ we cannot be content with keeping it to ourselves. God's purpose is to "bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man." we are to work to fulfill God's purpose and to help others do the same. We cannot be satisfied with just perfecting ourselves. we have to help perfect others along the way. 
I know this to be true. How could such a good thing, like what we have, not be true?!
I love you all. Leah howy
Love,
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