Happy Monday!

 sorry i'm a little late in writing again today. i hope mom hasn't been calling dad every 30 min. :) don't worry i'm safe and sound. i was at Safari World this morning. it's a magical place. i saw 4 tigers, 300 giraffe (one of which chomped on my shoulder), 5 monkeys in a boxing ring, i bought really expensive ice-cream, touched an elephant, and was kissed by a dolphin. all in one day. i'm set. oh and the taxi drivers tried to rip me off on the way there AND on the way back. good thing i made them feel really stupid when they realized i could actually speak Thai and knew my way around. "200 baht." "no way. we paid 100 baht on the way here. it's not even that far." "....oh...(nervous laugh)."

so this week was transfers meeting. apparently 98% of the missionaries moved. lucky for me and sis. holmes, we are still here in Saphansung. they invited everyone to go to transfers though. i'm really happy about it too, because they announced some pretty big news. In November, Pres. Holland granted permission for us to send in the first missionaries to Myanmar!! THey have actually been there 2 months, but couldn't tell anyone. But it's official now, and everyone can know, which is why i'm telling you. it will be like the missionaries in Laos, where they're not exactly allowed to proselyte, but they teach English class and get investigators through that. so exciting! also, there are two areas that haven't had sisters before, or at least not for a long time, and they just opened them up! Nong Khai and Chiang Rai. Sister Madsen is going to Chiang Rai!! There's crazy things happening in the mission, and i can't wait for March. We're raising the bar again, and hoping to see each companionship have 2 baptisms. the work is picking up, and it really can't be attributed to anything but God. we met a girl named Meaw last week. LAST WEEK. she's baptized now. because she was ready. on Sunday there were so many random investigators that came to church, and 3 of them should be getting baptized this next Sunday. sometimes i think i'm not fit or capable to keep up with God's pace. but then i remember that i am literally just his tool. that's all. so hopefully i don't malfunction and mess it all up. but it can't be messed up. because God's work is perfect. He is perfect. 

love you all!

sis. steele

p.s. aside from all the amazing miracles, we still have 'sit-on-the-curb-and-cry' days. ok that sounds dramatic. but we have this awesome investigator whose husband won't let her get baptized. before we knew this, sis. holmes and i made a pact that we wouldn't eat fried chicken until she got baptized. yeahhhh we should have thought that one through more... i can't decide which one i'm more sad about...the fact that she's not able to get baptized right now, or that i might not be eating fried chicken for the rest of my mission...