Wochen Sechs und Sieben: MTC ✈ ---> München 🚅 ---> Ulm

Hallo Freunde,

 

FOOTBALL: I played football today!!! All the missionaries here are really into Football, okay football is kind of the international sport except in America. Anyway, they were playing and I joined in. My feet were not working well for football but I tried. Some people even passed the ball to me!

 

MIRACLE BAGS: So I only brought one bag of luggage with me and thought that would be fine, perfect, no big deal. Well that made the one bag over weight by like 5 pounds, which is like a billion dollars, and an extra bag would be free (so dumb I know) but it works out!!! I prayed and prayed and prayed for some help because I was stressing hard core that I would have to leave behind stuff I didn't want to leave behind, like my grandma's towels or something. Then my amazing companion was like isn't there a piece of luggage in the lost and found?! AHHHH, there WAS!!! AND THEY LET ME TAKE IT!!!! So I was able to have tons of extra space, which allowed me to help others take their stuff too!!! 
Literally an answer to prayer!!! Obedience brings blessings!!

 

FAMILY PICS: Our District took pictures, and let me say they were adorable!!!! (Nothing else needs to be said. I miss my MTC district because of how amazing they all were!!!)

 

TRANSITION DAY:
Too much happened to be able to adequately describe it. We flew from Manchester to London then from London to Munich. Then met the mission president and his wife and the AP's and the zone leaders for Munich. Then we tried talking to people, and they only wanted to talk in English because we were so bad. One lady didn't speak English and thought that we need money for a ticket. I understood what she was saying and I told her that we had money and a ticket, but I promise I was speaking German, but apparently not. 
Then we went to the stake center; got some training, food and stuff, and slept in a hostel.
Then to the trains and sad/happy/scared goodbyes.

My assigned town is probably the same size as Provo and Orem and similar situation where they kind of blend together. I love it here; it's awesome! I love the people and the weather and .... I am learning to love the language. 

 

FIRST APPOINTMENT:
My first investigator appointment was the second day I got here (my first full day we had four appointments). It went really well. He is a refugee and so he speaks pretty good English, which was nice, and he has a baptismal date!!! We just need to get him to church!!

 

BELLS PROCLAIM TRUTH: Our second Appointment with this gentleman (he was my first lesson too). The lesson started off with the bells ringing, which they always do on the hour, but they didn't stop for 15 MINUTES! It was insane and kind frustrating to try and talk around them. My companion and I said the bells were proclaiming that what we were saying was truth (only as a joke afterwards).

2 Hour Church and less than 35: That's church for you. We have 2 hours because we are such a small branch that in the summer there aren't enough people (they actually just decided to extend it to the end of the summer), and I counted less than 35 people in sacrament meeting, and that counted the children. We actually have quite a few children too. 

I hope all is going well there in America or wherever you are, and that you keep strong in the faith, the Lord needs us more now than ever before!!!

 

 

 

 

Heading into the Field

No email this week from Sister Anderson. Her zone flew out today for Germany. Her mission president reports from Munich that she arrived, has been fed, trained, and tucked into bed. Her first area of labor will be in Ulm, Germany, and her trainer is Sister Whiting.

Woche Fünf: When you know you have been here too long....

Hallo Welt,

 

FAT FOOD: So we eat so much here that I gained 10 pounds in 3 weeks and Elder Kull, an Elder from Hannover, Germany, gained 15-17 pounds in 5 days! Yes we are getting fat ha ha.

 

GERMAN IS A STRUGGLE: Eifer and Teufel are similar (Diligence and Devil). Well Sister Peterson wanted to bless her companion with comfort but she messed up Trost and Eifer and ended up blessing her companion with the devil. Awkward. ha ha.

 

PRANKS: So we have some pranksters in my room... Sister Howsmon and Sister Cain took Sister Rasmussen's clothes and put them in the spare room to get back at her. It was hilarious because it took her forever to find them and she thought it was hilarious!!!

 

SPIN THE BOTTLE: We played spin the bottle in class to learn comparisons with people, but the best part was everyone new what spin the bottle meant except our teacher. She didn't know what it was because she is from Germany. It was obviously an innocent game but it was hilarious.

 

SEWING LESSON 101: Elder Hartle didn't know how to sew more than a button and his tie came a little unsewed. So he asked for our help and I put the string on the needle and Sister Howsmon sewed it for him. He was so funny!!! He was like "it was so intense."

 

POURING OUT BLESSING....: Sister Howsmon, the other sisters in our room, and I were done at the temple and taking pictures and it started to rain so we walked home and it slowly got worse until it was pouring. We started running and everyone was laughing at us; skirts are flying and hair is drenched. The Elders were in front of us and started running and so we went through the gardens, and we run into the building fully drenched. It was awesome, as long as I don't get sick (it's been going around).

 

Spiritual
STORIES: Sister Howsmon and I have been telling each other stories, made up ones about our mission and they are great!!! 

My story... "Sister Howsmon and I have just arrived in Germany, we are on the bus and it's crowded with people. I look at Sister Howsmon and she smiles and says to me "None of these people know the gospel," and I say "That's what we are here for," so we walk to the back of the bus and we see an older women working on a knitting project. I ask her what she is doing and she looks confused so we point to her project. Her eyes light up and she says in a thick Bavarian accent "this is for my first grandchild!" We ask her about her grandchild and her other family and how we have come to Germany all the way from America, leaving our families for a short time, to share a message of peace and happiness. We tell her about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith and the restored gospel. She says she is like I got for a church but isn't sure about the Book of Mormon. Our stop comes up and we hand her a Book of Mormon and a pass-along card asking her to visit the website."

Sister Howsmon's story (to keep it short) was about me, 8 months into the field, I am a trainer and I meet her at the bus, I get the impression to get off the train early and the we meet a guy who lost his job and has to move, we share a message with him and 2 months later, missionaries in Vienna call us and tell us that a man met 2 missionaries at a train station and is now ready to be baptized!!!

 

DEVOTIONALS: We had a devotional by the recently released Leeds Mission President. It was soooo good!!! I learned that we need to be more interesting, like if you were from Utah say "I am from the Rocky Mountains of America". So I would be from the Great Empire State of New York or something like that; obviously I need to work on it. Also I learned I need to not tell how many baptisms I have because the work is eternal so I really don't know. 

 

TEMPLES: I know that Families can be together forever and that simple truth is the central part of God's plan for us who are His literal spirit children! What a beautiful truth to know that we are children of God, a King, the Ruler of the Universe!!
https://www.lds.org/topics/plan-of-salvation/our-eternal-life/video?lang=eng

 

Liebe Sister Anderson
Alpenländisch Mission

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Woche 4: Die Untersucher hören das Zeugnnis des Ferkels

Hallo meine Freunde,

Funny
GREEKERS: All the language learners are really close because we have been here for so long and we have similar schedules like meal time and Sport time and Gift of Tongues workshops together plus we were the only ones here for a little while during the transition. Anyway so often times you will find Greekers in our classroom or German in the English language classrooms. So the Greekers came and "gratified" our desks. Mine says I am Sister Anderson, not very original but cool!

APOSTASY? (just kidding): Sister Howsmon was trying to say that she was going to go to church but she said she is going against the Church by accident. Ich liebe gehen die Kirche. Ich liebe gegen die Kirche.  She was a little embarrassed but realized that she will never mess up gehen and gegen again.

LEARNING GERMAN: I learned how to make long words from Elder Freiman. Apparently in German you can just keep adding words together and as long as you have an order to it, it works and is a real word. Sister Cain and I are going to make one!!!! So excited!!!!

REPETITION FOSTERS CREATIVITY: It's so repetitious that we have themed days where we get our whole district to match like colors or stripes, we have done, blue, black and stripes. We also do weird stuff at night like dress up in winter clothes and run down the hall (only once and only one sister that wasn't me) but let me tell you the new missionaries were a little weirded out  ha ha!!!!

FAKE IT TILL YOU MAKE IT: Sister Peterson taught Elder Wang this phrase and it was so funny. He was trying to say it and it was just the best thing ever. He is trying so hard to learn English, he is picking up on the culture too. 

Spiritual
GIFT OF TONGUES: I have realized that through the gift of Tongues that I can learn and memorize things so much easier than I would have been able to any other way. The gospel is so true. I know how powerful and wonderful our Father in Heaven is and His Beloved Son. I know that He wants His gospel to be preached to every people in their own tongue (D&C 90:11). I can see that in the 5 English language learners. Their faith and testimony is so strong and is an inspiration to me.

TENDER MERCIES: This week I challenge anyone reading this to look for a tender mercy in their life this week. I know that I have had countless tender mercies this week. The Lord is openly raining blessings and His love upon us we just need to look for them. It takes training and prayer but with practice, we will be filled with His love and mercy to us and our testimonies WILL be strengthened.

DEVOTIONALS: Shaquille Walker and his wife came and talked to us about missions and the future and it was so good. I loved how they made it personal and how the mission doesn't stop at 18 months or 2 years. We also had a devotional from 2009 in Provo from Elder Holland and it was sooooo good. I took a record 3 pages of notes on it. All about how the Holy Ghost should be our third companion. So because General Authorities don't come here very often we steal devotionals from Provo and use theirs AND they are SOOOOO GOOOD.

Love you all, you are all constantly in my thoughts and prayers.

Pictures

• My sisters on one of our many walks to the temple.
• We get bored sometimes so we took our last initial and made an acronym, yup! 
• The Greekers' graffiti.
• In order Elder Freiman, Elder Duker, Elder Santos, Elder Hartle (DL). Love all these guys; they make this place so much fun!!! They are amazing spiritually as well. 
• Elder Pèrez, Elder Wang, and I. They are some of the language learners (English). They are amazing!!! They are so happy and their testimonies are just amazing. It is a blessing to know all the English language learners.