Spiritual Accidents

Hey everybody!
I hope everyone is doing well and warm, unlike the poor kid in Chile who is still suffering from the cold. But things are still looking up. We have been having success in some suprising ways this week. We havent been having the numbers we´ve wanted, but the Lord has been blessing us in unexpected ways.
The other night, Elder Mondalgo and I were at the door of a house when the phone rang. It was the zone leader. He wanted to know the full name of one of people we baptized. I told it to him and hung up the phone. Then I stared at it for a long long time. Its funny really, the way God works. Im not sure if he just lets things happen or if he just guides us ever so slightly in the right direction sometimes. Regardless of the reasons, I ended up calling one of the less actives that we were working with. To this day, if you ask me why I did it, I would not be able to tell you. It might have been the Holy Ghost telling me what to do, or it could be just me running through my normal rounds. Whatever the reason, I called her. She said we could come over later that night.
When we came by later that night, we found the house oddly quiet. This fact is significant, since the house is normally occupied by her four screaming daughters all under the age of thirteen. I feel bad for her sometimes. You can see the battle worn house; marker on the walls of a pretty flower, makeup smeared on the ground and the table, and the TV was always on some loud annoying program. Yet for some reason it was quiet. Only the soft sounds of classical music filled the room. When I walked in, I almost raced back out, afraid I had accidently walked into the wrong house. But the melodeous singing in the next room reassured me that we were in the right place. Susan Ramirez, a single 35 year old mom of four bounced into the room, humming some made up song. Susan was a very outgoing person and is always floating around like nothing is wrong. But having taught her a few times, I know it is only a façade she has created for her children. On the inside she is tormented every day by the dreaded prospect of raising her family by herself. She doesnt ever show it, but she is hurting. She reminds me of the movie "Its a Beautiful Life" how the father never wants to show his son whats really going on. We chatted for a little bit about what was going on with work, Mundial, etc, etc. She had apparently put her kids to bed early. We had prepared to watch one of those little cartoon videos of the book of mormon; it was the only thing that kept the four girls tranquilized with entertainment for a half hour. Being well equipt missionaries and always prepared, we decided to share one of the mormon messages, a new favorite tool of mine. Before we watched it, she turned to me and asked: "Whats the point of going to the temple?" I looked at her with a stunned gaze. She wasnt super active anymore, but she grew up in the church and knew why it was important to go to the temple. "Its the castle where princes and princesses become kings and queens forever," was my simple explination. Then all of the sudden, our purpose for being at her house became clear. "I just dont see any point of going to the temple if I dont even have a family." She responded quietly. "Oh," I accidently said out loud.
We watched Motherhood, as well another one by Elder Holland. By the end of both of the videos, neither of which we planned on watching, Susan Ramirez took off her mask and began crying. Some of the things were very spiritual and powerful, but very sacred and special. I dont think I will ever forget what I learned at that house. I can say that I walked away with an immesly great respect for mothers and understanding some reasons why women and men were created the way they were. I want to thank my mom for what she has given for me and I wanted to say mom, thank you for everything you are.
I dont know why I felt prompted to call Susan, nor do I claim to know how things worked out the way they do. It could be inspired, or it could just be what happened that day. Whatever the case may be, all I know is that we need to just do what we are expected to do, and the Lord will take care of the rest.
Take Care family!
Con Amor,
Elder Westover