Dear family,

I had something I wanted to write to you, a quote from a book, but alas I have forgotten the book at my apartment. It was hilarious, and it was a witty play on scripture, so I will just quickly summarize for I cannot do it justice, write me. As much as I love getting online once a week and having a LOT of emails, it really is nice, this girl would like a letter or two during the week. On days when I am actually working and could use the letter. This however does not mean to stop emailing me, as they are also very appreciated. Is it so much to ask that you write me every detail of your life so that I am not out of the loop? I am so used to gettting letters everyday at the MTC, I think I am having letter withdrawals. And Becca, thank you for all the great pictures, I love getting them, I show my companion all of them.

Well this week has been fun. I did not anticipate how much I would be riding the train, its a lot. So on Sunday we had to wake up at 5 to walk to the station to get on a 3 hour train ride for stake conference, and then 3 hours back. And you know what, it was totally worth it. President and his wife were their and gave really good talks. And our awesome bishop was called into the new stake presidency, so we are sad, but excited to hear who the new one will be. And the area seventy that spoke was Brittish, and his talk was SO GOOD!!! One of his stories he told was when he was out of town on buisness, and his daughter was 4. She was running and fell and cried out for Daddy, saying that daddy would feel bad for her, and help her. Later when his wife told him this story he felt happy not sad. Happy that even when he was not there, when she couldn't see him, or feel him, she still cried out for him, knowing that he would feel her pain and help her. I thought this was really awesome for the obvious comparision you can make. He also said for people who are going through trials, that trials are hard, and sometimes you must stand alone, but they are their to change you. And you need to embrace them, and stay strong until the end. It was really good.

Food in France is pretty good, i'm not going to lie, and my companion makes a lot of food. So I eat a lot, and I think I will be fat pretty soon. Because everything here is like infused with either cheese, or chocolate. Seriously, so much chocolate, its kind of awesome.

Its still kind of slow getting amis, but thats okay, all good things come in time right? President said that the first 4 weeks would be hard and slow trying to find people. Since we aren't allowed to contact men or muslims its a little hard for the sisters to get people. But we are trying. And we actually did a day where we prayed every 30 minutes, and it was a fun day, we felt good, and felt the spirit. But we didn't find any new invistigators, and that was a bummer. But then later that night the Elders called and said that they had contacted a woman for us to go teach. It was a pretty great answer to our prayers. So we went and taught her, and the man with who she is not married but multiplying and replenishing the earth with. She is pregnant with their second child. And they are our progressing amis. We have another appointment with them tomorrow. They are from Romania. So even though we didnt contact them, they were found that day which was pretty sweet;

I think thats about it. Its still pretty cold, and rains all the time here. And i'm getting an Alsacian accent, which is not good. The area I am in is called Alsace. Its so odd, they cant decide if they want to be French of German.

Keep me up to date! I miss you guys, and love you all lots!!!!

 

Well I am here. Sorry for spelling errors, French keyboard are ridiculous. Thanks for all the emails and pictures, i loved all of them, it really made my day to see them all. And I dont know if we get an ensign, so feel free to send it.

So I don't know if they told you, or if you found out from the pictures but I am in Mulouse, and no it is not pronounced like it is spelled. For those of you who know me well you will find it hilarious, Mulouse is boarderline Germany, so Taylor Kirk you totally called it. It is an area that has been a battle whether is belongs to France or Germany. It is totally gangster town.

We are the first sisters to be sent here, and the WHOLE district is white washing, so it has been super out of control. It is less like how you would imagine France, and more like how you would imagine Ukraine, but with people speaking French. Everyone is a little lost right now with it. And I am totally lost with everything, I really can speak like zero French. haha but its all good. I miss you guys so much its ridiculous.

My companion is legit, she is Somoan, her name is Soeur Mataalii, again not pronounced how its spelled.

So Paris and all that was great, we went to St German and saw Notre Dame of Paris, i will try and get some pictures to you, we are on a bad computer today because its a holiday so all the internet cafes are closed. But that was cool, then we got assigned and off we went, but not really cause we missed our train, twice. But we finally got here late Thursday night and all I can say about France is that A LOT of the rumors are false. I almost started crying, the ward is the nicest group of people I have ever met. Our DMP picked us up from the airport, and him and his wife put chocolate and ice cream in the sisters apartment. And ALL of the ward is so happy to finally have sister missionaries here. And they organized a Samedi sport so that we could come and meet people. And on Sunday we got to introduce ourselves, which was hard for me, but they were all so nice. And they kids just think your awesome, and they give you bises, and its adorable.

And the ward has a sign up sheet for when to feed to the sister missionaries. And Soeur Mataalii said that in every other ward she has been in they have to like force the members into feeding them, she's never seen a sign up sheet for it, and lots of people had already signed up. So really this ward is like the best thing ever, they bring joy to my soul.

We've done tracting but not had a lot of rendez-vous because as the first sisters and white washing we didn't even have an area book. I think it has been really hard for my comp because she just came from somewhere with a lot. But as this is my first zone and I don't really know the difference its not that big of a deal for me. I assumed I would be working for it anyways, and not just walking into an area with a ton of appointments set up. Oh well.

So its good, its hard, like really really hard, and cold. And the people really just aren't interested, but all the ones I have met so far have been pretty nice about not being interested, not rude, so so far the French are good....hm....thats all I can think of. I LOVE YOU, and I MISS YOU, again i would put in exclamation points here, but have not yet figured it out on this keyboard... oh my address is 

35, Rue Engel Dollfus

68200, Mulhouse

FRANCE.

Okay let me know if I left stuff out, talk to ya later.

Sister Sarah has arrived in France.

Well this is it, I am departing from the MTC in just a few hours. That is the craziest thing ever. I just have to keep singing the song 'Be still my soul'. The MTC has been super awesome of course, it's just a bunch of classes and I like school. But I am super excited to get out and be doing the work. We just sent off all the Lyon sisters, so our district is now split in half. It was so sad, but exciting at the same time!

So I leave here around 11:30, and we take frontrunner, so i'll be at the airport maybe around 2. So plan on me calling between 2-4. And should I call mom's cell or the house phone? I'm not sure. So mom if you get this try and e-mail me back before I have to get off.

These last few days at the MTC have been super crazy, we've had endless appointments running around and going to last minute orientations, so basically i'm super ready, and super excited!!!

But we had a fireside with Janice Kapp Perry, for those of you who don't know she wrote like 8 super famous primary songs, and did the music to 'As Sisters in Zion'. Anywho she rewrote the lyrics to 'As Sisters in Zion', for what is happening in the missionary effort now, and we got to sing it in Relief Society, we were the first group who got to sing it, and it was awesome. I think every girl in that room was crying. She is putting out a CD for sister missionaries soon, and mom you have to buy it and listen to this CD, it is amazing.

What else...there has been a TON happening.

Oh! So the last day of classes the teachers do like this big tell stories of their missions and show you pictures to get you super excited to go, and it worked of course. But at the end Frere Blosil was sharing his testimony about the work in France. And he was talking about how everybody tells you that you will have no baptisms, but that's not true, their are people in France that are ready for you. And that the work in France is directly related to the Gathering of Israel. Because France has such opened borders and people from every nation come, you get to teach from every single nation, and then they go home and teach. He talked about how the missionaries (and him) baptised a bunch of people from this area in Africa that was closed, and a few months later it was opened. And he taught a man from Lybia, who needed to return to Lybia soon, and would probably be killed. So this man, Bilal, had to be interviewed by the area seventy. And Bilal was firm in being baptised, even if it meant death. And the man told Frere Blosil that somehow Bilal will be intrumental in opening up Lybia for the missionaries. And that we will be teaching from every nation, so that all can be opened. It was amazing, and I had never thought of it that way.

He also mentioned to me that if I know French and English I would be able to travel to like half of Africa and be able to communicate to people. This mission thing just stretches across everything in your life.

At a devotional they were discussing D&C when it says thrust in your sickle the field is ready to harvest. And they challenged us not to use a sickle or a scythe, but to use a combine. Awesome.

So that's about it. I'll call you soon!!! And then the next time I e-mail you I will be in France.

I arrive in France Tuesday at 11 am France time. So subtract 8 hours for your time. And we go and get interviewed. Then that night we get to sleep in a hotel in Paris because we can't all fit in the misison home, and then we get assigned our area and trainer Wednesday morning. I was told I could probably e-mail you when I arrive in France, so I hope so but i'm not sure.

I have some super awesome pictures to send you, but I forgot my camera in the room, sorry. We had a huge feast our last day, and all the other classes were super jealous.

I hope mothers day went super well, and that you got my card. I'll talk to you all soon! I love you guys!!

And i'm off!

One last quote from the MTC

'Shall we not go on in so great a cause?!'

 

Love, your soon to be in France missionary.

N 

Hey mom!!

So i'll see if I can find that talk for MeKett, they show it at the MTC so i'll try and figure it out and let you know. And sorry about Linda's letter, I just sent it in that package to you, so I hope you can get it to her. :) Also Jaclyn writes me and tells me that she tries to read my blog but somebody is not keeping it up to date, come on you guys. What could be more important than things involving me? ;)

Exactly one week from right now I will be on my way to France!!!! CRAZY!!!! So my flight plan is I leave the MTC at 1:30, and then we get to the airport, check in, and I get to call!! I'll e-mail right before I leave for the airport so you know i'm on schedule. I realize most of you will be at work so just dearelder me with what number you want me to call to get a hold of you k? And then I fly to France, zero stops, it's a straight like 15 hour flight. And we found out that although their is a HUGE number of missionaries going to Paris, only 11 are girls. Apparently almost all the girls have been called to the Lyon mission. So it will be a plan full of Elders. Interesting...But 15 hours with 40 elders on a plane, everyone will be converted. haha

This was a good week, their was a bad day thrown in their, but it's all good now. Sundays at the MTC are always wonderful. But other than trying to study like crazy so that I actually know the language nothing huge has been happening. I'm pretty worried about going and teaching people, but eventually the language has to come right? My teacher Frere Blosil was really nice and gave me a compliment the other day, not about my language ability of course haha but he said that I will be a great missionary. The kind of missionary that Elders want in their district, and that the Mission President can trust and will be so happy to have. It was really nice, made me feel slightly better about myself.

Hmm...What else happened this week? I studied some really cool stuff during person study. I studied in Matthew 25:31-46, and something clicked that sadly never had before. It is when Christ is telling the people that when ever you helped someone you were serving him. And before I just thought of it in a way that it brought him joy cause he loved all his people. But it was meant literally. Since Christ suffered for all our sins, pains and tribulations, that when you help someone, and lift some of their burden you are literally saving Christ from having suffered that in the Garden. And the same goes for if I bring someone to the gospel, and they are baptised and stop sinning, I am literally saving Christ from having suffered for those sins. Mind blown. I really just thought that was the coolest thing.

Also I learned something that you and my sisters might find interesting, unless you guys already knew this, in which case I sound dumb. But in 'Come thou fount' when it says 'here i raise my ebeneazer', i'm not going to lie I always thought it was talking about a cane or something. But it is talking about from Samuel, after they win a war, he raised a stone in praise of God and calls it ebeneazer. Weird, I never knew that.

My challenge for what you guys should do this week:

1. Look up mormon messages and watch two of them. One by Thomas S. Monson called Dare to Stand Alone. And also one by Eyring, I believe it's called Mountains to Climb. I think you guys will love them.

2. Look up a dream that Elder Whitney had, it's about Jesus, mom I think you'll especially love it. Although knowing you you have already read it, but I thought it was so beautiful. I don't know where you will find it, we had it shared with us at a fireside.

That it, two simple little things. :) Enjoy.

So I think that's all I have to say. I'll work super hard this week!! It's PVL all week, and so I might want to shoot myself, but that's okay.....i guess....So wish me luck, because it's sort of scary that already next week i'll be leaving for France. I'll miss the MTC a lot, but i'm excited, i'll actually get to be in France. Weird. haha Okay i'll finish up now. :)

LOVE YOU GUYS!!! MISS YOU!!! I can't wait to talk to you in a week!! WOOO HOOOO. Give dad a huge for me. His foot looked so awesome, I showed the Elders and they thought it was crazy.

Love, your excited/scared/nervous/tired/happy missionary. :)