Week 2 -- Squirrels, Persimmons, and Apostasie
November 2, 2017
Hello family!!
Greetings from Madrid! This week was really super duper
good.
Mom:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I'm so sorry I forgot to tell you last week.
I told Frere Thia and he said he emailed you for me! Which was super nice of
him. The teachers here are awesome. I hope your birthday was absolutely
fantastic! Dad said you got to go hiking with your sisters. That's awesome!
I'm taking all my pictures on my tablet. It is very easy to
send them from there.
Elder D'Angou, from Quebec, is the only Elder who has not
yet been in the field.
Elder D'Angou and Elder Bize are both going to Paris with
me, but none of the sisters.
I don't have bedbugs, they were actually tiny ants. But we
got help and we're pretty sure they're gone now.
So, I leave for Paris on Tuesday morning at 10 something. I
will get to email again Monday. Yay!
All of the French elders are determined to properly say the
word "squirrel" in English, but none of them can do it. It is
hilarious. Elder Weimann is particularly persistent. Every now and then, even
during study time, I can hear him saying "skuhwwul" under his breath.
However, I can't laugh too much because they are very kind about our (lack of)
French speaking skills.
I have discovered a new delicious fruit! They're called
persimmons and I'd heard of them before but never eaten one. They taste kinda
like a plum, but also totally different. I eat them almost every day.
They look kinda like bell peppers.
Every time someone in our district makes a goofy mistake, we
say "apostasie!!" which sounds stupid but its actually really funny.
Like when Elder Patea was so excited to go to lunch that he forgot Elder Bize.
Or when we make French errors that totally change the meaning (and sometimes
the doctrine) of what we're trying to say. Or if someone steals the ball from
us in futbol.
Last P-day we went to downtown Madrid (called Sol) and it
was awesome. After being shown some cool architecture, we got to wander around
with our district and eat ice cream and stuff. Soeur Chinain and I bought some
postcards (coming soon!) Elder Weimann was in a wheelchair for the first half
and Elder Bize was pushing him, but then Elder Bize got tired and Elder Weimann
was tired of sitting so he used his crutches, and Elder Patea pushed Eldler
Bize in the wheelchair for the next hour. It's times like these that I remember
that despite their excellent French, powerful testimonies, and experience in
the mission field, I am working with eighteen year old boys here.
Last Saturday I had a powerful and wonderful experience in
the park. I was paired with Hermana Strand, who is Norwegian, and who is
scared stiff of proselyting. Last week everyone she talked to had been really
unkind to her and she didn't want to go back. I had been praying all week
long that we would be led to people at the park who were prepared to hear our
message, whose hearts had been softened. Hermana Strand and I prayed together
the night before, too, and I think it made her feel a little better. But at the
park, it was AWESOME! Everyone we talked to was so
kind to us, even those who didn't want to hear what we had to
say. But so many of the did! The first man we talked to spoke only Spanish, but
we understood just enough that he was asking us if he could have our book! (Of
course he could! And a brochure, too) He thanked us, opened the Book of Mormon,
and started reading it immediately.
Then we talked to an Austrian couple who had heard of
Mormons and also accepted a copy of the Book of Mormon. Later, we met a man by
the lake who was taking pictures with Spanish manikins. He said he believed in
God and would take our picture with the manikins for free (por missionaras). He
accepted a Book of Mormon and asked where the closest church was, and if they
had meetings on Sunday. All in Spanish, but we got enough to help him out.
Hermana Strand doesn't know any more Spanish than I do, so it was pretty
incredible that we were talking to all these people who didn't speak English
and were able to articulate our message to them. And understand them, too! At
the end, we met a girl from Canada who is backpacking through Europe and were
able to share our testimonies with her and give her a copy of the Book of
Mormon. She said she didn't believe in God, but her eyes lit up when we told
her how happy the book made us.
Anyway, those were the four people we were able to share the
Book of Mormon with, which was pretty cool, but there were also six or seven
other people we spoke with who accepted brochures or pass along cards, and they
were all kind and gracious. It was an incredible experience. I have never had
so many strangers open up to me like that in the space of an hour and a half.
And I had several CONVERSATIONS in Spanish, and I DON'T SPEAK SPANISH. I knew
God had truly answered my prayers, and was leading us to exactly who we needed
to talk to, and helping us use our rudimentary Spanish to share how precious
the gospel of Jesus Christ is to us. I know this is his work. I know he
will help us when we pray in faith and go forward with everything we've got,
even if it doesn't seem like much.
I had an interview with President Packer this week and he
asked me what I liked most about the MTC, and I said it was how much easier it
is here to recognize the presence and promptings of the Spirit. He said,
"A lot of missionaries think they have to give that up when they get home,
but it's not true! You won't be set apart as a missionary, but if you really
read your scriptures daily, and pray for guidance from the Spirit, you can
have it for the rest of your life." That really touched me and I
know he's right.
I love you all so much! I am going to send pictures. Let me
know if they come through. Thanks so much for the emails and the prayers. I can
feel your support.
Love,
Soeur Alice Jensen
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| With Soeur Boudin before she leaves. |
