Week #23 A Week of Change and Growth

December 19, 2017

Week #23 A Week of Change and Growth

Guten Tag everyone! I hope all of your Christmas plans are going well. Christmas in Germany is so cool. They love Christmas and practice many traditions. For example, advent calendars (A piece of chocolate every day) and Weihnachtsmarkts. It is incredible how much Christmas is a big holiday for Germans. What is weird is that the 24th is more important. I am not sure but it seems to be quite a big deal.

Anyway, a review to this week.

Wednesday the Zone leaders came down for a tausch (exchange) which was awesome. I went with Elder Peterson. He is such a cool missionary. He is well-rounded and just loves to have fun. We got to visit Sister Kasch that afternoon. I remember going to her house the first time and being scared to death of German. It is still kind of that way but it was helpful to see a good relationship grow and see how much my German has improved. We went finding for awhile. We found several potentials and it was snowing so hard! We had to fight our way through the cold but it worked out. I went to the Weihnachtsmarkt with Hao, our former GML. He is a wonderful priesthood holder and leader in this branch. He has been an incredible example to me and I am going to miss him and his family so much!

All bundled up and ready to go work!

Thursday after the tausch was over, we went to the Chinese buffet one last time with the Lackners. We always have deep gospel conversations with them and eat wonderful food. They are a good couple. I got to have one last lesson with Godwin. Godwin has grown so much these last few months and I am so glad that I got to be a part of it. He has a bright future ahead of him and yeah, I am going to miss him a lot.

Friday was transfer day. Transfers in our mission is complicated because often missionaries are going to other countries and need a whole day to travel. Not me:). We got to Stuttgart at 10:30 and then I got my new companion Elder Hansen. He is from Denmark and a really fun guy. He is great to work with and I am excited to see what is in store for us in Waiblingen. The weird thing about this transfer is that it will end in February. I am glad things are going well with Hansen so far because time has flown and this will be a longer transfer than most.

My new companion Elder Hansen

My MTC companion was transferred to Germany (from Switzerland) and we are in the same zone!

I am excited.

Ok, so the thing about Waiblingen. They have an awesome ward and support system for the missionaries. We have quite a few eating appointments scheduled. The truth is the work is really slow. There are really no investigators and finding is not ideal. The odd thing is that it is really motivating for me. Of course the Lord will provide the opportunities to work but I am excited to start from the bottom and see where we go. Elder Hansen really wants to work hard too so hopefully things go in a positive direction this transfer.

Saturday we started our routine with exercise and personal study. Suddenly, half way through personal study, we get a call from our GML (our ward mission leader). He asked us if we were ready to go to the service project. That was a little embarrassing but we rushed into work clothes and went on our way to help a new family move. It was nice to see how many priesthood holders Waiblingen has. There were quite a few helpers. The rest of the day was filled with finding and a vorbei but it went really well. Time is flying by!

Sunday we went to church of course. They have a bigger building here than in Ulm and it is really nice. I introduced myself to the ward and yeah, it was a good three hours. The last hour we practiced with the Primary for their musical number next week. I get to play the piano which I am really happy about. After church, we went to the Strohers and got lunch. It ended up being a few hours but the members here are so kind and helpful. We got to sing some Christmas songs and we ate some good food. The rest of the evening was weekly planning and some studies.

Monday was fun. We are trying to maximize our studies because that is how we will learn the language of German and the Spirit better. We went on a vorbei but sadly, the person was not home. Finding filled the next couple of hours. We had an appointment with our GML, Bruder Metzner. He is such a bro. He really wants to make sure we are doing well and that the work progresses. We went to FHE with an older couple that night. We watched the O holy night video from Gentri and man, that was awesome. I love Christmas music. We played some games and went home.

This week has been interesting with the new transfer and new people. I was sad to leave Ulm but I ended up being more happy than I thought. I can see how much I have changed and grown the last few months. Everything from prayer to scripture study to working hard has helped me closer to my Savior and I can see how it is changing my life. It can still be rough at times but this was a week that I was so grateful I am on a mission.