Monday, October 28, 2013

Dear Family! 

Well hello everyone!! This week has been okay. We have basically done nothing but finding people! We did have a zone training meeting which was good. We had a bunch of missionaries over here in Sibiu and it was good to see them all. But yeah other than that all we did was go out and talk to people. These past couple of days we have really tried getting the word out about our english classes. We are starting them again on tuesday so we will see how many people come to the classes. One way we have been getting the word out is through the newspapers here in Sibiu.

But we did have the chance to have one good lesson this past week! It was yesterday actually. One day we were walking through the park talking to people about the english classes when we start talking to this one guy who just starts talking to us in English. We come to find out that this guy isn't romanian. He is actually from the czech republic working here in Sibiu for some company. So after talking with him for a bit he said he was totally down to visit our church and talk with us. So we told him about mormon.org and got his number. Yesterday we were able to meet with Jakub (that's his name) and we got to talk about a lot of things! He talked about how in Czech the majority of the people are atheists because they don't want to belong to a church but that he still believe in a higher power. So we told him about God, Jesus Christ, The restoration, and just a lot of stuff. He looked up a lot of information online on Mormon.org and other websites. So we just answered all his questions. We had an extra book in English so we gave that to him and then ask him to pray. So to close our lesson we knelt down and Jakub said the prayer! And the cool part is that he said that was the first time he has ever prayed! Like ever!! It was really cool. We are going to try and meet with him this weekend when he isn't working. We will see how it goes! 

Anywho, I love you all so so much!!! :) 

Monday, October 21,2013
Dear Family!!! 

Hello there!!! Well I guess first things first, this week we have had transfers. I always love going to transfers in Bucharest to be able to see and hang out with a bunch of missionaries that I usually don't get to see. Although with all the extra meetings and stuff that I have to go to, I spent more than half of last week in Bucharest! But I'm okay with that because it was all pretty fun. It started out with me and Slem traveling to Buch and then staying the night over at Elder Knapps apartment (because Elder Knapp is serving in Buch right now). It was a lot of fun staying over there. It's crazy to think that Elder Knapp is almost done with his mission!! Crazy. Then I eventually got together with Elder Covey and hung out with him for all the meetings and stuff that we had to go to as zone leaders.

It's funny that you say that shopping is boring . . . because something that I have acquired on my mission is that I . . . actually like going shopping now!! ha ha Maybe it's due to the fact that one of the common things we do on p-days is just go to the mall. Like today for example, we are going to the mall sometime today cause Covey wants to get a coat! 

Hey so I actually got the Halloween Package!! Plus!! I also got this other package thing that had a Ranger Rick magazine with some letters from the Primary kids!! I thought that was pretty cool!!! Primary kids are always the best!!

Hmm lets see what else happened this week. Oh so yesterday I gave a talk in Church!!! I did it on Scripture study.  It was funny because all during the talk I thought I was speaking really good and really getting my point out there . . . but then after sacrament meeting (one of the members) came over to me and was like "Hey your talk was pretty good . . . but here is all the things you said wrong" and then just told me about a ton of mistakes that I was making throughout my whole talk!!! Geez right when I think I'm doing great I get reminded that I keep messing up!! ha ha but hey that's how you learn right?! 

I love you so so much!! :) 

Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Dear Family!

Hello!!! So first of all, I found out about what is going to happen for next transfer. I'm going to be staying here in Sibiu as a zone leader and my companion is going to be Elder Covey. The living seven habits of highly effective people. I've been on exchanges with him and Elder Covey is a really nice guy and a really good missionary . . . he's just a machine. 

Hey so this week I got the halloween cards that you guys sent!! It was pretty cool getting 4 letters all at the same time!! And I must have forgotten to tell you guys that I did get the small package that you sent with the In n Out stuff from my hump day!!! I'm kind of surprised that you went out to the Rainbow Sign company to go talk with the people who saw me!! ha ha especially cause I only saw them for like a minute! I feel like they wouldn't really have a whole lot to talk about only after a minute. But hey that's still cool that you talked to them for a bit! Yeah of course she thought that Romania was the most beautiful place!!!! :)

So I had a really cool opportunity to be able to conduct a baptismal interview this past week! So the district leader companionship in Brasov (one of the cities in our zone) had someone who needed a baptismal interview so the zone leaders (meaning us!) had to go and do the interview! Since Elder Slemboski has already done an interview in the past, he let me do this one. It was actually really cool!! The guys name was Jora but for some reason I kept forgetting it during the interview so he said I could just call him John. Anywho, it was kind of cool to be able to see someone who actually wanted to become converted to the gospel and be baptized! I mean, the only convert baptism that I have seen was Elena back in my 2nd transfer in Constanta so it was nice to be able to see another person who wanted to change! 

Also since I am going to go to Bucharest this week I really hope that my halloween package will be there waiting for me!! 

I love you so so much!! :)

Monday, October 7, 2013
Dear Family!! 

Hello there everyone!! I hope everything is going just wonderful for you guys! This past week we basically had our zone conference and then general conference for the weekend . . . so we didn't really have a lot of time for proselyting. Today though before internet we did something that was super duper awesome for P-day!!!! We decided that we would venture out and visit the small little communities that are around Sibiu!! So we went out to the outskirts of the city, stuck out a small piece of cardboard, and stuck our hitchhiking thumbs until somebody picked us up! Hitchhiking was a pretty fun experience!! So (since you guys can google these places) the first place we hitchhiked to was called Cristian. There was this cool church around the center of the city. So we got some cool pictures of that! Then we got another Hitchhike to a small place called Orlat. We stopped there for a little bit and then started to hitchhike to our next destination when this woman in a wooden horse carriage came and picked us up!! A lot of the poorer romanians have these horse drawn carriages and I have always wanted a ride in one! So we got a ride from Orlat to Sibiel. Sibiel was awesome to visit!! Sibiel is one of the most cultural places in all of romania (meaning it has retained most of the original romanian culture). Actually all the places we visited were like that. Then after seeing the streets of Sibiel we hitchhiked to our last destination called Saliste. We just hung out there for a bit and then took our last hitchhike back to Sibiu!! It was a ton of fun! AND!!! I took some pictures!! So I will try to send them if I can!

This is a map of Elder Barney's hitchhiking adventure, seriously!?!

don't know if this is mission approved....

Yeah we were able to watch some of conference!! I watched the two sessions from Saturday and then the first session on Sunday. I still haven't seen the Priesthood session though. Oh so I guess I should tell you that we find out about transfers this week! I'm pretty sure that Slemboski is going to be leaving . . . he only has one transfer left and I don't think they would keep him as a zone leader for his last transfer. But hey I guess we will see what happens!! 

I love you all so so much!!!!

Friday, October 4, 2013

Yeah I am still having some problems with the pictures . . . but I think I was able to send you at least two of them. One of them is a picture with my "dad" Elder Knapp, my "son" Elder Hokkanen, and my "grandson" Elder Lenhart! 

The other picture is of me on one of the streets of Sibiu! 

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Hello there family!! 

Well first of all I just want to say that I love you all so so much!!!! I know it was over a week ago from when I last wrote you guys. I blame President though because he was the one who scheduled zone conference to be on our p-day. It was a really great though!! I had a lot of fun. Although I'm sorry to break your guys' hearts, but I'm pretty sure that I didn't take any pictures at the zone conference ha ha not a single one!!! Yeah I know that I am terrible at taking pictures and sending them home. I just don't have the chef to do it!! Chef means like "willpower" or "energy" or something along those lines in Romanian. And no, it doesn't sound like the english word dealing with people who make food ha ha it sounds like khef (not the ch sound!)

Anywho, the zone conference was great!! Sora Hill talked about the history of what happened during the apostasy and a lot about how the different churches were created and about how paganism affected how a lot of religious work (and especially noting the Romanian Orthodox Religion because that's what we are faced with here!). It was really interesting!! President Hill talked a lot about goals and using our time wisely. The AP's talked about contacting (cause that's like all we do). All in all, it was a very great zone conference!! It dealt with a lot of things that are actually applicable for all us missionaries!! Like in times past they might have talked about something like "how to teach the commandments" or something along those lines . . . but not everyone has investigators to teach the commandments to (like me!). So it was just good that this time around President and everyone talked about stuff that we can actually apply here in the mission! 

So yeah Elder Slemboski is going to be my first companion that will head home! He heads home the day before thanksgiving! The lucky duck gets to be home with his family for thanksgiving!! I really hope I get that halloween package before halloween!! That would be really great!! I'm glad to hear that you guys spotlight a couple of missionaries every now and again. You will have to keep me updated on how all the missionaries are doing while you do this. Ha ha um of course the little kids don't care about the number of people who come to church here!! Ha ha transylvania is a lot more fun for them!!! I really hope to visit Dracula's Castle in the coming weeks. We will try to see if we can plan something to head there!!! Cause there is a 100% chance that I will take some pictures if I go there!!! ;) ha ha 

The english classes are going pretty good!! We barely got back from Arad (the city we went to for zone conference) when we had to head over to the church for english . . . and then only one person showed up! It's because of the rain though. Since half the people walk by foot, when it rains nobody wants to go outside. I mean, I don't blame them!! I'm the same ha ha But yeah english is going good. I wish there were more ways for us do to service though. We don't get a whole lot of chances to do service. Geez with all the work you guys are doing to the house; the house is going to be a whole new place when I get home!!! Partay!! I definitely call mowing the lawn when I get back!!! I will need the extra money!! ha ha 

I'm glad you are proud of me momma!!! That's always good to hear. I absolutely LOVE my mission. Yeah it may be hard with the actual "missionary work" (like only having like 1 lesson [in a language I understand] for the past 2 transfers), but the experiences I have had here are just awesome. The language is aşa şi aşa (meaning so so). To be honest, I don't really have a whole lot of chances to speak Romanian during the day. Like obviously I try to talk to people on the street, but that just involves a couple second/minute conversation about the fact that I am a missionary. So yes I constantly try to learn new words . . . I just don't really have much of an opportunity to use them . . . and then I forget them ha ha but what can I do! I understand almost everything I hear though. That's pretty helpful! Hopefully overtime I can just incorporate all the stuff that I hear. Anywho, Yeah I can't believe that it is already october!!! Not that I'm counting down or anything, but I only have about 10 months until I have HOME!!! Partay!!! Still a ways away, but still time moves sooooo fast that it won't seem like too long. 

Yeah we had another run in with some tourists from the states! All mormons who just treated us like we were the greatest thing ever! They bought us some lunch and then we showed them around the church. I think they might have been a little surprised about the size of us here in Sibiu. 

I LOVE YOU ALL SO SO MUCH!!