Christmas 2012

Christmas 2012

Dearest Family and Friends,

Once again the Christmas season is upon us and I am grateful to be able to take the time to reflect on the past year. I must admit that 2012 has been a challenging, yet wonderful year. I have been blessed beyond measure and have been able to make memories that will last through the eternities.

I am in my fifth year of teaching Medical Anatomy & Physiology at Woods Cross High School and continue to love what I do. My students are great kids and have high expectations. They are motivated and determined to succeed in order to give them any possible advantage as they pursue their career goals.

June found me on vacation in the Los Angeles, California area visiting some friends. I had been to LA before, but hadn’t really done the “tourist” thing. This time I went and saw the Hollywood sign, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, LA Memorial Coliseum, and spent some time on the beach just relaxing and enjoying my Summer Break. It was a wonderful chance for me to spend time with friends, get away from everyday life, and enjoy the sun.

I was also able to go to Moab for a few days in June. I have always loved Southern Utah, and it had been far too long since my last trip down there. The highlights of the trip included going up to Dead Horse Point and spending time in Arches National Park. We didn’t have a lot of time in the park, but we did make the hike up to Delicate Arch in the arid heat of a Utah Summer. I am always grateful for opportunities to spend time enjoying the beauty of the world we live in. It is a constant reminder to me of the love our Heavenly Father has for His children.

In August I took advantage of a cheap airfare and took a little trip to Denver to visit a good friend I grew up with. I have visited her and her family in Virginia and Las Vegas, so it only made sense to visit them in Denver, too. We spent a lot of the time just visiting and catching up on each others’ life. We did get the chance to go to Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, went to the Denver LDS Temple, and also did a tour of Coors’ Field, where the Colorado Rockies play baseball. You all know how big of a sports nut I am, so that was a lot of fun for me.

November 10th a member that I was able to teach during my full-time mission in Japan got married in the Tokyo LDS Temple. I was lucky enough to be able to make a “brief” one-week trip to Japan to attend the wedding and also visit some of the amazing people I love. I would not have been able to make it to Japan if it hadn’t been for a wonderful supervisor that encouraged me to go and got me a buddy pass, parents that support me in my crazy ideas, students that put up with a substitute teacher for a week, and friends that always welcome me into their homes in Japan. This is the fourth time I have been able to return to Japan, but the first vacation I’ve been there in the Fall. I had forgotten how beautiful the Fall is in Kyoto. This trip I went to the wedding in Tokyo, spent some time in Nara, Nagoya, and Kyoto. Not a day goes by that I don’t reflect on my full-time mission serving in Japan. I am eternally grateful for the experiences I had, the friends I gained, the memories made, and the blessings I received.

This year has been a busy one filled with a wide array of emotions and experiences. I have been able to see the hand of the Lord and felt the comfort and peace the Spirit can bring into our lives as I’ve watched dear friends and family struggle through the experiences life places in their path. I have witnessed people that are very close to me go through the Refiner’s fire and stay true to their testimony and the Gospel. I am strengthened daily by the faith, love, and support of these wonderful, dear people in my life.

I am truly grateful for each of you and the wonderful people you are. I am the person I am today because of the incredible people I am blessed to have in my life. You are each a special light in my life and I will never be able to repay you for all that you have done for me. I hope and pray that I can be the kind of friend to others that each of you are to me.

Merry Christmas!

Love,

Rachel