This palace belonged to "King Karl". Rachel said that he must have really liked the color yellow because there was a lot of it! She and Sister Barnhart went here on their last P-Day and had fun playing at the palace park.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Karlsruhe Palace
This palace belonged to "King Karl". Rachel said that he must have really liked the color yellow because there was a lot of it! She and Sister Barnhart went here on their last P-Day and had fun playing at the palace park.
Power 10
things continue to be tough... but i found a scripture that made us laugh and we put it above our door: 2 Nephi 5:27 - "And it came to pass that we did live after the manner of happiness." ♥
well sister barnhart and i have come up with a game to get the elders out and contacting. its called Power 10. and what we do is we meet the elders at karl's statue and then we go contacting for 10 minutes with our companions. during that 10 minutes you have to count how many people you can get to stop long enough for you to tell them who you are... or who just stops long enough for you to say something to. if they reject you that's fine just move on to someone else. the goal really is to find someone who's interested. but it makes it a little bit more fun to count. both times we've done it sister barnhart and i have won. the first time we got 12 people to stop and the 2nd time we only got 5 but one woman actually stopped and we talked with her for a little bit. but the elders actually kind of like it. so we're going to try and get them to do it... Power 10 every day. maybe it'll make a difference. hopefully!
yesterday morning we got a call from the district leader in frankfurt. he had a referral for us. she's chinese and studying here in karlsruhe. she's friends with some chinese members in frankfurt and when she visits them on the weekend she goes to church with them. she's met with the sisters a few times in frankfurt but she told elder peterson that she wants the missionaries in karlsruhe to come teach her at her home! she's out of town till the 2nd or 3rd so we're going to call her this weekend! how exciting!!!!!! i miss having people to teach and worry about.
jess: hey sweetie. i got your birthday package last week! it came from frankfurt with my christmas packages! thanks!!! i love the bracelet :) and the notebook... i carry it with me it's very handy. and the quote book is great too. i love you!!!! jordan is suppose to be back at greenbrier this coming semester. he's living at apartment 3 again. hahaha
well sister barnhart and i have come up with a game to get the elders out and contacting. its called Power 10. and what we do is we meet the elders at karl's statue and then we go contacting for 10 minutes with our companions. during that 10 minutes you have to count how many people you can get to stop long enough for you to tell them who you are... or who just stops long enough for you to say something to. if they reject you that's fine just move on to someone else. the goal really is to find someone who's interested. but it makes it a little bit more fun to count. both times we've done it sister barnhart and i have won. the first time we got 12 people to stop and the 2nd time we only got 5 but one woman actually stopped and we talked with her for a little bit. but the elders actually kind of like it. so we're going to try and get them to do it... Power 10 every day. maybe it'll make a difference. hopefully!
yesterday morning we got a call from the district leader in frankfurt. he had a referral for us. she's chinese and studying here in karlsruhe. she's friends with some chinese members in frankfurt and when she visits them on the weekend she goes to church with them. she's met with the sisters a few times in frankfurt but she told elder peterson that she wants the missionaries in karlsruhe to come teach her at her home! she's out of town till the 2nd or 3rd so we're going to call her this weekend! how exciting!!!!!! i miss having people to teach and worry about.
jess: hey sweetie. i got your birthday package last week! it came from frankfurt with my christmas packages! thanks!!! i love the bracelet :) and the notebook... i carry it with me it's very handy. and the quote book is great too. i love you!!!! jordan is suppose to be back at greenbrier this coming semester. he's living at apartment 3 again. hahaha
Christmas Day in the Black Forest
On Christmas Day, Rachel, Sister Barnhart, Elder Hafer and Elder Welch went with Schwester Schuster and her family into the Black Forest. Apparently it's called the Black Forest because there are so many trees that it looks black. Rachel told us that evening when we talked to her that she had a great time!
Monday, December 29, 2008
Christmas Day Phone Call
Since the last post, I've had many concerned friends ask me if Rachel is ok.
Yes... and thank you for your concern... she is ok.
We were able to spend almost an hour and a half talking with her on Christmas day.
Because her apartment is just one big room
and a bathroom,
and she and her companion wanted to give each other
privacy while they talked to their families,
the one on the phone camped out in the bathroom and sat on part of the couch.
So, while she chatted with us from the bathroom,
she was in her jammies
with a plateful of cheese and crackers.
She sounded wonderful... happy... positive... funny.
But, Karlsruhe is a very hard area.
There are two sets of elders that also serve there.
They do not currently have investigators either.
No one wants to hear what the missionaries want to share,
and day after day after day that can be very discouraging.
But Rachel is a "glass half full" kind of girl.
She's going to be fine... ♥
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Christmas in Germany
tomorrow is christmas eve and this is like the BIG day for germans. they open all their gifts that evening. we're going over to the Pavels tomorrow after our ward little christmas thing at the church. it's like a christmas devotional thing that all the churches do every year on christmas eve. then on christmas we're going to a part-member family (the husband isn't a member) and we're having lunch and then they are taking us to go for a walk in the Black Forest... i'm SO excited about it. she said we should wear jeans because it's cold and there's some snow :) then the day after christmas (it's called 2nd christmas) we're having lunch at a members home then we're going to the church to hang out with our district and watch movies and play games and such. so i'm really excited about this week i think it's going to be a lot of fun!
sister barnhart and i have been really struggling. on sunday we had an appointment fall out and that was kind of the last straw and sister barnhart started crying so i took her into the bathroom and we just sat on the bathroom floor while she cried. our poor elders didn't know what to do. it's really hard being a missionary here at christmas time. no one cares. and we're so far from other missionares. it takes an hour to get to heidelberg and so we're like a 6 man island with no investigators and no success stories. our apartment is a dump and president doesn't care. i think sister barnhart and i are getting whitewashed out of karlsruhe at the end of this transfer cycle. well she's going home but i don't think there will be sisters in karlsruhe anymore.
we are getting really tired and we struggle not to cry to the point where everything is just funny. we're laughing SO much - i think we're going crazy. our elders can tell that we're just losing it so yesterday they were in heidelberg because one of them had to go see a doctor and they bought us a special dessert that you can only get in heidelberg and told us how great we are. it was sweet of them.
christmas is not a fun time to be a missionary and the bummer part is that it'll get worse after christmas because it'll just be cold and people are going to be grumpyer. every morning i wake up and do what bob does in What About Bob... he rubs his temples on the side of his head and says 'i feel good. i feel great. i feel wonderful'
jame: hey thanks for your email. you know i'm not picky about what people write in their emails to me. i love knowing what's going on with you and how you're doing and stuff. sounds like you're working a lot! money is always good. sorry you aren't on her facebook anymore. i haven't heard from her for like a year so i have no idea what's going on. when do you head to school?? FELIZ NAVIDAD!! :)
Meg. hallo liebe! yeah it's crazy how much snow you have there in redmond!!! don't worry about not sending my package yet. it'll be great to get something after christmas too!!! tell your family MERRY CHRISTMAS from me and to brian too. let me know how jamie's wedding turns out. take lots of pictures and email them to me!! LOVE YOU
Marci: thanks for the email! and thanks for sharing your experince with me. i love being in the temple. it's so wonderful and i'm sad that we're too far south to attend the temple. i know you will love it there when you feel you are ready to attend - it's such a great blessing! have a great christmas!!!
Pierre: that's cool that you get to spend time with pyper and roane - those two are so funny. i met roane when he was serving down here in the south when i first came to germany.tell them i say hi would ya? hafer is a great district leader. we were in the mtc at the same time and came to germany together. well i hope you're doing great and that you have a frohe weihnachten!
(And then on the evening of Christmas, she will be getting a phone call from her loving family!!! ♥)
sister barnhart and i have been really struggling. on sunday we had an appointment fall out and that was kind of the last straw and sister barnhart started crying so i took her into the bathroom and we just sat on the bathroom floor while she cried. our poor elders didn't know what to do. it's really hard being a missionary here at christmas time. no one cares. and we're so far from other missionares. it takes an hour to get to heidelberg and so we're like a 6 man island with no investigators and no success stories. our apartment is a dump and president doesn't care. i think sister barnhart and i are getting whitewashed out of karlsruhe at the end of this transfer cycle. well she's going home but i don't think there will be sisters in karlsruhe anymore.
we are getting really tired and we struggle not to cry to the point where everything is just funny. we're laughing SO much - i think we're going crazy. our elders can tell that we're just losing it so yesterday they were in heidelberg because one of them had to go see a doctor and they bought us a special dessert that you can only get in heidelberg and told us how great we are. it was sweet of them.
christmas is not a fun time to be a missionary and the bummer part is that it'll get worse after christmas because it'll just be cold and people are going to be grumpyer. every morning i wake up and do what bob does in What About Bob... he rubs his temples on the side of his head and says 'i feel good. i feel great. i feel wonderful'
jame: hey thanks for your email. you know i'm not picky about what people write in their emails to me. i love knowing what's going on with you and how you're doing and stuff. sounds like you're working a lot! money is always good. sorry you aren't on her facebook anymore. i haven't heard from her for like a year so i have no idea what's going on. when do you head to school?? FELIZ NAVIDAD!! :)
Meg. hallo liebe! yeah it's crazy how much snow you have there in redmond!!! don't worry about not sending my package yet. it'll be great to get something after christmas too!!! tell your family MERRY CHRISTMAS from me and to brian too. let me know how jamie's wedding turns out. take lots of pictures and email them to me!! LOVE YOU
Marci: thanks for the email! and thanks for sharing your experince with me. i love being in the temple. it's so wonderful and i'm sad that we're too far south to attend the temple. i know you will love it there when you feel you are ready to attend - it's such a great blessing! have a great christmas!!!
Pierre: that's cool that you get to spend time with pyper and roane - those two are so funny. i met roane when he was serving down here in the south when i first came to germany.tell them i say hi would ya? hafer is a great district leader. we were in the mtc at the same time and came to germany together. well i hope you're doing great and that you have a frohe weihnachten!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Misc. Photos
Rachel and Sister Barnhart
cleaning up after the ward christmas party... there were SO many dishes. elder hafer and elder rollins and i did the dishes. our hands were SO pruny.
me, elder kennedy, elder welch and sister barnhart last night at the train station after zone conference
Investigators Needed!
so we still don't have any investigators and apparently the zone leaders were mad about our numbers. we're trying! it's a good thing that i don't have to report the numbers or deal with leaders sometimes because i don't know how well i'd be able to hold my tongue. last week we picked an area to do doors that's near the church and then we prayed and we each picked 3 streets. we didn't show them to eachother and then we looked at what the other had chosen and we had one street in common. so we're doing doors on that street. i really hope we find someone. it's starting to get really depressing.
last week we went caroling with a family in the ward. they have 3 kids and they love the missionaries! the boys and their mom came caroling with us and they were so fun! one of the boys kept wanting to go to his friend's houses and sing there. he reminds me of david. it was snowing while we were there and the boys started a snow ball fight with elder hafer... pretty soon the rest of us joined in and we all had a snow ball fight. it was so much fun! and we got so wet! and then their grandma made us all dinner so we all had nice warm soup! we all laughed and laughed and had so much fun. they're a great family and i love their kids!!
yesterday we had zone conference and for the 2nd half we had like a christmas devotional. i played the piano for an elder while he sang oh little town of bethlahem and after the testimony meeting sister barnhart and i played o holy night (me piano and sister barnhart on the flute).
today we have an appointment in the middle of the day. so we're just doing emails and grocery shopping today and spend the rest of pday like a normal day and we're going to take the rest of our pday time another day. we're so desperate for appointments that we're willing to do it on pday even. christmas is a hard time to be a missionary.
last week we went caroling with a family in the ward. they have 3 kids and they love the missionaries! the boys and their mom came caroling with us and they were so fun! one of the boys kept wanting to go to his friend's houses and sing there. he reminds me of david. it was snowing while we were there and the boys started a snow ball fight with elder hafer... pretty soon the rest of us joined in and we all had a snow ball fight. it was so much fun! and we got so wet! and then their grandma made us all dinner so we all had nice warm soup! we all laughed and laughed and had so much fun. they're a great family and i love their kids!!
yesterday we had zone conference and for the 2nd half we had like a christmas devotional. i played the piano for an elder while he sang oh little town of bethlahem and after the testimony meeting sister barnhart and i played o holy night (me piano and sister barnhart on the flute).
today we have an appointment in the middle of the day. so we're just doing emails and grocery shopping today and spend the rest of pday like a normal day and we're going to take the rest of our pday time another day. we're so desperate for appointments that we're willing to do it on pday even. christmas is a hard time to be a missionary.
Karlsruhe Christmas Market
I asked Rachel to send me photos of the Christmas Market. She's been doing some shopping. Doesn't it look like fun? 
This is the place where "Karl" is "resting" - Karlsruhe or Karl's rest.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Traveling to Karlsruhe
me right after i... well it's called "amelding". it's registering! haha! sorry - sometimes i forget what the words mean in english. anyway this is a picture of me after i registered in karlsruhe. you have to do that each time you move to a new city.
we found this poster in the frankfurt train station. it says: "new heavenly sisters" haha!
you know why karlsruhe is named that? i'll tell you...
karl - name of the king dude
ruhe - rest
karl-s-ruhe - karl's rest
so there's the schloß (palace) where he lived...
karl - name of the king dude
ruhe - rest
karl-s-ruhe - karl's rest
so there's the schloß (palace) where he lived...
and then if you walk away from the schloß into town there's a pyramid thing.
apparently that's where karl is resting.
his dead body is in the pyramid thing in the middle of town.
so that is why karlsruhe is named karlsruhe.
because it's the place of karl's rest. cool huh!
Karlsruhe
well i'm in my new area... karlsruhe is beautiful! i absolutely love it down here! sister barnhart is great! she's from Everett!!!! we clicked from the beginning.
unfortunately we have absolutely no investigators. so guess what we get to to do every day. finding time! it's SO cold outside and everyone is out and about at the christmas market and so people aren't really interested. no worries i'm doing alright! it's crazy even though we have no investigators i'm SO excited to find new ones and to start teaching people. i have this feeling that there's someone here in karlsruhe who's ready to get baptized this transfer. and sister barnhart really wants to get another baptism before she goes home so hopefully we can do it!
i like the ward so far. it's mostly older people. not a lot of young single adults or anything. no outreach center (bummer!) but there is a university here in karlsruhe! i'm excited to get some work there.
our apartment is the smallest in the mission. not to mention the grossest (is that even a word?) i've talked to the appartment directors because elder lange and i are friends. he won't do anything about it! so i'm trying to bribe him with cookies and cakes and we'll see what i can get lange to come do for us. i'll have to take pictures. our bathroom smells like someone smoked in there... all the time. and then the smoke smell comes all over the appartment. it's not strong enough to make us smell like smoke but i'm pretty sure it's not healthy! i think the smell comes from the vent in the bathroom. anyway...
i'm trying to be a good missionary and be diligent and work hard. i'm excited about my new area and for everything that i'm going to learn here. we have an appointment with a woman we met on the street last week. her mother is american and her father is german. she's searching and good thing we have exactly what she needs! i really hope the appointment goes well and then we'll have an investigator! pray for us please!!!!
we went caroling last week with a woman in the ward. she took us around her neighborhood and we sang to people she knew and passed out Joy to the World dvds. it was awesome. then on sunday she bore her testimony in sacrament meeting. she said that she had really thought about calling us day of and cancelling. she thought that it maybe wasn't a good idea anymore, etc. but she had this peaceful feeling that she shouldn't call us and cancel. so we came over and we practice some songs with her and we went caroling. she bore her testimony and said that she was so greatful that she listened and didn't cancel. she told the ward that they would be wise to have us go caroling with them to their neighbors. it was awesome! after the meeting we had some ward members come to us and asked us if we'd come to them and go caroling. and some asked if they could go caroling with us when we go. i love christmas time!!
meg: of course i don't mind! i think that's great and tell them that i say that you're amazing and they should be lucky to have you watch their kids!!! good luck with finals sweetie! love you!
unfortunately we have absolutely no investigators. so guess what we get to to do every day. finding time! it's SO cold outside and everyone is out and about at the christmas market and so people aren't really interested. no worries i'm doing alright! it's crazy even though we have no investigators i'm SO excited to find new ones and to start teaching people. i have this feeling that there's someone here in karlsruhe who's ready to get baptized this transfer. and sister barnhart really wants to get another baptism before she goes home so hopefully we can do it!
i like the ward so far. it's mostly older people. not a lot of young single adults or anything. no outreach center (bummer!) but there is a university here in karlsruhe! i'm excited to get some work there.
our apartment is the smallest in the mission. not to mention the grossest (is that even a word?) i've talked to the appartment directors because elder lange and i are friends. he won't do anything about it! so i'm trying to bribe him with cookies and cakes and we'll see what i can get lange to come do for us. i'll have to take pictures. our bathroom smells like someone smoked in there... all the time. and then the smoke smell comes all over the appartment. it's not strong enough to make us smell like smoke but i'm pretty sure it's not healthy! i think the smell comes from the vent in the bathroom. anyway...
i'm trying to be a good missionary and be diligent and work hard. i'm excited about my new area and for everything that i'm going to learn here. we have an appointment with a woman we met on the street last week. her mother is american and her father is german. she's searching and good thing we have exactly what she needs! i really hope the appointment goes well and then we'll have an investigator! pray for us please!!!!
we went caroling last week with a woman in the ward. she took us around her neighborhood and we sang to people she knew and passed out Joy to the World dvds. it was awesome. then on sunday she bore her testimony in sacrament meeting. she said that she had really thought about calling us day of and cancelling. she thought that it maybe wasn't a good idea anymore, etc. but she had this peaceful feeling that she shouldn't call us and cancel. so we came over and we practice some songs with her and we went caroling. she bore her testimony and said that she was so greatful that she listened and didn't cancel. she told the ward that they would be wise to have us go caroling with them to their neighbors. it was awesome! after the meeting we had some ward members come to us and asked us if we'd come to them and go caroling. and some asked if they could go caroling with us when we go. i love christmas time!!
meg: of course i don't mind! i think that's great and tell them that i say that you're amazing and they should be lucky to have you watch their kids!!! good luck with finals sweetie! love you!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Transfer!
guess what! i'm getting transferred!!!!! i'm going back down south to Karlsruhe!! i've been there before too... we had street preaches there while i was in heidelberg! there' s a castle!!!
i am really sad to be leaving mainz. i love the people here so much. but i am excited to go too. i've been here for 5 months! my new comp is sister barnhart and she's going home after this transfer. i like her a lot!
thanksgiving was good. i got pumpkin pie... that was yummy. the american ward even played football in the morning and the elders went... i asked elder henderson why we weren't invited. he said, oh i didnt think you'd want to go. and i said are you kidding it's football! of course i want to go!! but then we decided it's okay that we didn't go... because it was a bunch of boys... and we're girls. oh well... next year i'm going!
today we have to go to frankfurt at some point and i have to take all my stuff with me. i think we're going to get to stay in a hotel because tomorrow is transfers so we're just staying in frankfurt overnight! it'll be fun!
well it's sad for me to leave mainz. but i feel really good about the time i spent here and i feel like i gave it everything i could. i've learned A LOT and now it's time for me to move back down south to karlsruhe! its not that far from heidelberg... maybe we'll go for a p-day or something and see the christmas market there. i would love to see heidelberg at christmas!!!!
jess: yes sweetie i did get the rolls in the mtc. haha so they aren't rotting. and i did get your package you sent. thanks!!! i love the tape too. i'll try and get one sent out to to you soon! love you and miss you!
meg: i got your package! thanks for the earrings! they are SO cute!!! i miss you too!!! too bad you didn't get to see my family. i saw a picture of my bro. david... he's getting old! crazy how fast they grow up! haha love you!
pierre: hey thanks for the email! did you see the post i had my mom put on my blog a month or so ago?? well looks like i'm going to be down in karlsruhe for a while. my comp there is going home after this cycle. so unless i do a horrible job down there, i'll probably be staying. maybe i'll get transferred up north before i finish. who knows!! christmas is awesome in germany. so far at least.... christmas markets are crazy fun! i haven't tried kinderpunch yet... that's next on my list.... the christmas markets in wiesbaden and in mainz aren't that big... well i haven't seen any other markets but they dont seem that big. but they're still fun! anything i should try at the christmas markets???
i am really sad to be leaving mainz. i love the people here so much. but i am excited to go too. i've been here for 5 months! my new comp is sister barnhart and she's going home after this transfer. i like her a lot!
thanksgiving was good. i got pumpkin pie... that was yummy. the american ward even played football in the morning and the elders went... i asked elder henderson why we weren't invited. he said, oh i didnt think you'd want to go. and i said are you kidding it's football! of course i want to go!! but then we decided it's okay that we didn't go... because it was a bunch of boys... and we're girls. oh well... next year i'm going!
today we have to go to frankfurt at some point and i have to take all my stuff with me. i think we're going to get to stay in a hotel because tomorrow is transfers so we're just staying in frankfurt overnight! it'll be fun!
well it's sad for me to leave mainz. but i feel really good about the time i spent here and i feel like i gave it everything i could. i've learned A LOT and now it's time for me to move back down south to karlsruhe! its not that far from heidelberg... maybe we'll go for a p-day or something and see the christmas market there. i would love to see heidelberg at christmas!!!!
jess: yes sweetie i did get the rolls in the mtc. haha so they aren't rotting. and i did get your package you sent. thanks!!! i love the tape too. i'll try and get one sent out to to you soon! love you and miss you!
meg: i got your package! thanks for the earrings! they are SO cute!!! i miss you too!!! too bad you didn't get to see my family. i saw a picture of my bro. david... he's getting old! crazy how fast they grow up! haha love you!
pierre: hey thanks for the email! did you see the post i had my mom put on my blog a month or so ago?? well looks like i'm going to be down in karlsruhe for a while. my comp there is going home after this cycle. so unless i do a horrible job down there, i'll probably be staying. maybe i'll get transferred up north before i finish. who knows!! christmas is awesome in germany. so far at least.... christmas markets are crazy fun! i haven't tried kinderpunch yet... that's next on my list.... the christmas markets in wiesbaden and in mainz aren't that big... well i haven't seen any other markets but they dont seem that big. but they're still fun! anything i should try at the christmas markets???
FYI: Karlsruhe is on the Rhine River
at the foot of the Black Forest,
just 1/2 hour from France.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Mainz Missionaries
so i get to have thanksgiving dinner at the American ward's bishop's house... without my comp. we're doing a split so i'll be with sister shumway and dottie is coming with me! i'm way excited! it's gonna be fun!!!
today we played games at the church with the elders and then we went to a play in the wiesbaden theater. we saw Robin Hood. the first half was really good... then second half got a little wierd. but it was like a family friendly play... so it was a little cheesy. but it was fun!
transfer calls are on saturday. i don't want to leave mainz! i love the ward. on sunday i was walking around relief society saying hi to everyone and i have relationships with these people. the sweet old ladies love me! and i just love all of them. they found out that my birthday was the day before and everyone was like, oh my gosh we didn't know! happy birthday why didn't you tell us oh we would have done something! it was so sweet. and bruder snieder from the bishopbric said that elder hunsaker and i did such a good job singing that any time we want to sing again he would say yes in a second! he even hinted at us singing for christmas. we'll have to see if i'm staying.
sorry this email is a little random. i'm trying to think of things to say... things are going good. i can't believe it's almost christmas. on the 6th of december it's NickolasTag. the kids put their shoes out the night of the 5th and then Nickolas comes and puts sweets in their shoes so when they wake up on the 6th they have candy!
today we played games at the church with the elders and then we went to a play in the wiesbaden theater. we saw Robin Hood. the first half was really good... then second half got a little wierd. but it was like a family friendly play... so it was a little cheesy. but it was fun!
transfer calls are on saturday. i don't want to leave mainz! i love the ward. on sunday i was walking around relief society saying hi to everyone and i have relationships with these people. the sweet old ladies love me! and i just love all of them. they found out that my birthday was the day before and everyone was like, oh my gosh we didn't know! happy birthday why didn't you tell us oh we would have done something! it was so sweet. and bruder snieder from the bishopbric said that elder hunsaker and i did such a good job singing that any time we want to sing again he would say yes in a second! he even hinted at us singing for christmas. we'll have to see if i'm staying.
sorry this email is a little random. i'm trying to think of things to say... things are going good. i can't believe it's almost christmas. on the 6th of december it's NickolasTag. the kids put their shoes out the night of the 5th and then Nickolas comes and puts sweets in their shoes so when they wake up on the 6th they have candy!
Happy Birthday!
i had a good birthday! while i was in the shower sister davis heart-attacked our room so that was sweet. then i got to open your package that I got on thursday... yes i actually waited. thanks SO much for the package! it was FANTASTIC. we had a busy day but it was good.
(Rachel is wearing the apron her mom made her and showing the poster that Marci made. Rachel requested Hot Tamales candy. Apparently she can't find them in Germany.)
marci: thanks for the poster! it was awesome and came on my birthday so i picked it up from the post and put it up as soon as i got home!
meg: no i haven't gotten your package yet but i am so excited for it! i'll keep praying for you and your finals... good luck! love you!!!
Jameson: sounds like you're busy with work that's good! thanks for the happy birthday :)
marci: thanks for the poster! it was awesome and came on my birthday so i picked it up from the post and put it up as soon as i got home!
meg: no i haven't gotten your package yet but i am so excited for it! i'll keep praying for you and your finals... good luck! love you!!!
Jameson: sounds like you're busy with work that's good! thanks for the happy birthday :)
thanks to: Katie, Bergholms, Sister Wood, Lisa and Grandma Doty for your emails this week!!!
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Everyone I Know Is Pretty Much Amazing!
wow 17 emails today! thanks to everyone who emailed me: Marci, Christi, Sister Halverson, Viv, Gramma, Gramper, Steve, Kim, Meg, Jess, Aubs and Jameson
well because of zoko and president and elder kopischke asking us to do things differently i've been very busy. we're so busy that we don't have time for like lunch or dinner break some days. it's crazy. we're trying to look for more investigators and so far things are going fairly well. we have lots of lessons which is great because we're suppose to be getting 15 lessons a week. i'm getting better at talking to people on buses and trains... i'm less scared. but i'm still kind of having a hard time bringing it to the gospel...but i'm working on it!
on sunday elder hunsaker and i sang in sacrament meeting... in german... about baptism! hahaha i was SO nervous but it went SO well. i'm trying to attach the video we took while we practiced and i'll see if i can email it you. if not then i'll put it on a cd sometime and mail it home.
so on saturday we went to follow up with dottie... but anyway we walked into her bedroom and there was a new picture she had begun to paint and i looked more closely and realized it was ME and elder hunsaker! she was there one time when we were practicing and she took a picture and shes' painting it! i'm a painting! i'll take a picture of it when it's finished so you can see. i'm playing the piano and hunsaker is behind me singing. it's SO cool!!!
today we went to the temple - always nice and wonderful - and tonight we have interviews with president. we'll see how that goes. we get transfer calls a week after my birthday on saturday.
Viv: thanks for sending me the pictures of noah! he's darling!!
Jameson: i got your letter at zoko last week. thanks! it sounds like you're keeping busy! that's good! when does school start??
Meg: oh my gosh i miss you too! i'm sorry school has been crazy - i hate tests. i'm praying for you though so hopefully things turn out alright! i'm excited for your package!! love you!!!!
Jess: i'm glad to hear you got my package! tell everyone at school HI for me and thanks for thinking of me! i miss you too but dont worry... it's all for a good cause. the cia has no idea what's coming ;) love ya!
Aubs: hey i'm glad to hear that CA is getting a little better! be sure to keep me updated! thanks for your package it was wonderful and exactly what i needed! miss you and love you lots!!!!
Marci: thanks so much for all your emails and letters. its great to know that someone is thinking of me! i'm excited to get your package too... thanks a ton! you're great!!!!!
i got two packages last week! one from the ward for x-mas and the other from mom. THANKS!! it was awesome to get packages. it made me feel special. and from what it sounds like i'm going to be getting some more!! everyone i know is pretty much amazing!!!
we had zone conference last friday with Elder Kopischke from the 1st quorm of 70. he's german and he used to be the mission president in berlin, germany. anyway he was fantastic! i loved everything he said and he was really nice to me too.well because of zoko and president and elder kopischke asking us to do things differently i've been very busy. we're so busy that we don't have time for like lunch or dinner break some days. it's crazy. we're trying to look for more investigators and so far things are going fairly well. we have lots of lessons which is great because we're suppose to be getting 15 lessons a week. i'm getting better at talking to people on buses and trains... i'm less scared. but i'm still kind of having a hard time bringing it to the gospel...but i'm working on it!
on sunday elder hunsaker and i sang in sacrament meeting... in german... about baptism! hahaha i was SO nervous but it went SO well. i'm trying to attach the video we took while we practiced and i'll see if i can email it you. if not then i'll put it on a cd sometime and mail it home.
so on saturday we went to follow up with dottie... but anyway we walked into her bedroom and there was a new picture she had begun to paint and i looked more closely and realized it was ME and elder hunsaker! she was there one time when we were practicing and she took a picture and shes' painting it! i'm a painting! i'll take a picture of it when it's finished so you can see. i'm playing the piano and hunsaker is behind me singing. it's SO cool!!!
today we went to the temple - always nice and wonderful - and tonight we have interviews with president. we'll see how that goes. we get transfer calls a week after my birthday on saturday.
Viv: thanks for sending me the pictures of noah! he's darling!!
Jameson: i got your letter at zoko last week. thanks! it sounds like you're keeping busy! that's good! when does school start??
Meg: oh my gosh i miss you too! i'm sorry school has been crazy - i hate tests. i'm praying for you though so hopefully things turn out alright! i'm excited for your package!! love you!!!!
Jess: i'm glad to hear you got my package! tell everyone at school HI for me and thanks for thinking of me! i miss you too but dont worry... it's all for a good cause. the cia has no idea what's coming ;) love ya!
Aubs: hey i'm glad to hear that CA is getting a little better! be sure to keep me updated! thanks for your package it was wonderful and exactly what i needed! miss you and love you lots!!!!
Marci: thanks so much for all your emails and letters. its great to know that someone is thinking of me! i'm excited to get your package too... thanks a ton! you're great!!!!!
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Fun Photos
Rachel saw her old companion, Sister Ranzenberger, last week. Those two are good friends. She didn't mention what she was laughing about. The other picture is of her eating something... maybe a sausage?... at the "fall market".
Meg - I'd love to send you Rachel's address, but I don't have your e-mail address. Mine is: mdoty6@comcast.net
I Met an Old Man Who Stole My Heart
i met an old man last week who stole my heart. i asked him if i could sit next to him while we were waiting for a bus and he started talking to me. he was trying his hardest to speak in english, even though i was speaking german to him. haha. he was like 80 something years old and was so funny. he just melted my heart! after a little while he looked at his watch and said my bus is coming soon. and i said, hey mine too. and he asked the 57 bus? and i said yes! and he said do you live there? and i said nope i live here in the middle of town. and he asked well why are you going to mainz-kastel? and i said we're going to visit someone. and he said me?! and i said if you want! haha. we got off at the same stop too. he said that he didn't think it was chance that we talked and ended up on the same bus and the same stop. he knew we were missionaries but wasn't really interested in our message. he said his name was Rolf. it was wierd i felt like we knew eachother when we were talking. l ike i was talking to an old friend or something. it was a really neat experience. i almost started crying (seriously) when we had to say goodbye. i was so sad. i'll probably never see him again. but he was so darling and funny. i'll always remember him.
well last week as you know i did a split with the frankfurt sisters. it was great!!! we switched wednesday night and so the next morning i went running because there's a track near the apartment and it didn't hurt my knee! and then the whole day was just great. we had a street preach in Offenbach and sister ranzenberger was there!!!!!! so i've been struggling my entire mission with talking to everyone and Ballard contacting (that's when you talk to people while you're going places like on buses and trains and such... elder ballard talked a lot about it a few years ago). none of my companions have really done it and so i've struggled to know what to say, etc. not like that's a good exuse for not doing it but anyway. sister goldthorpe was so good at it. and so i studied like everything she did so that i could do it too. since i've been back i've been working on it. no success stories yet but i'm still trying! anyway i learned a lot on the split and it was so nice and relaxing. it was a great day!!!
Jess: i couldn't look up the picture you attached because i dont have facebook and you have to have facebook to look it up! i haven't gotten your package yet either. did you send it to my apartment or the mission office? if you sent it to the mission office i'll should get it on friday because we're having zone conference and that's the only time i get mail from the office. anyway it was great to hear from you and read your funny stories! miss you tons!! love ya!
Jameson: hey no worries i understand that you're busy! things are going alright. didn't you say a few weeks ago that you sent me something? did you send it to my apartment or the mission office? i only get stuff from the office at zoneconferences. lame. unless one of the elders from the office decides to be awesome and bring me my mail. but only when i get him cookies. haha. its nice to have friends in the office! hope you have an awesome week and get more hours at work!!
well my birthday is next week. i'm not going to lie i'm a little homesick. this is like my first birthday when i won't be home. and as a missionary your birthday really doesn't mean anything. nothing special happens. except that i'm in germany. that's cool
Ok friends and family... Rachel's birthday is November 22nd and she will be turning 22 years old. If you e-mail her before Nov. 18th, she'll get it before her birthday. I know she'd love extra e-mails. ♥ Thanks!
well last week as you know i did a split with the frankfurt sisters. it was great!!! we switched wednesday night and so the next morning i went running because there's a track near the apartment and it didn't hurt my knee! and then the whole day was just great. we had a street preach in Offenbach and sister ranzenberger was there!!!!!! so i've been struggling my entire mission with talking to everyone and Ballard contacting (that's when you talk to people while you're going places like on buses and trains and such... elder ballard talked a lot about it a few years ago). none of my companions have really done it and so i've struggled to know what to say, etc. not like that's a good exuse for not doing it but anyway. sister goldthorpe was so good at it. and so i studied like everything she did so that i could do it too. since i've been back i've been working on it. no success stories yet but i'm still trying! anyway i learned a lot on the split and it was so nice and relaxing. it was a great day!!!
Jess: i couldn't look up the picture you attached because i dont have facebook and you have to have facebook to look it up! i haven't gotten your package yet either. did you send it to my apartment or the mission office? if you sent it to the mission office i'll should get it on friday because we're having zone conference and that's the only time i get mail from the office. anyway it was great to hear from you and read your funny stories! miss you tons!! love ya!
Jameson: hey no worries i understand that you're busy! things are going alright. didn't you say a few weeks ago that you sent me something? did you send it to my apartment or the mission office? i only get stuff from the office at zoneconferences. lame. unless one of the elders from the office decides to be awesome and bring me my mail. but only when i get him cookies. haha. its nice to have friends in the office! hope you have an awesome week and get more hours at work!!
well my birthday is next week. i'm not going to lie i'm a little homesick. this is like my first birthday when i won't be home. and as a missionary your birthday really doesn't mean anything. nothing special happens. except that i'm in germany. that's cool
Ok friends and family... Rachel's birthday is November 22nd and she will be turning 22 years old. If you e-mail her before Nov. 18th, she'll get it before her birthday. I know she'd love extra e-mails. ♥ Thanks!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Haircut Explanation
Some of you may remember not too long ago
Rachel got a short hair cut.
Well, I asked her why
she hadn't sent me any cute
close up pictures since then.
Here was her explanation...
i shouldn't have cut it so short
because it's really humid here
and it doesn't stay straight
but then it doesn't go curly anymore
because it's short
so i have to french braid it back every day.
it's really frustrating! so one of these mornings i'll straighten my hair and take a picture
while i'm still in the apartment and then pull it back before i go outside.
Here is the photo she sent this morning of the darling short hair cut
before she french braided it.
Teaching By the Spirit
i asked one of our investigators to be baptized (after we taught this great lesson about the importance of baptism) and she got this huge smile on her face and said 'nope, sorry to burst your bubble'. we asked her what's holding her back and after lots more talking and trying to figure out what's up, we asked her to also fast about baptism. she just laughed. by the time we left the appointment we told her that she needs to figure out if she even wants to know that the church is true.
anyway so when we left the appointment i felt pretty hopeless. but we had done our part. the Spirit lead everything that was said. every time we meet with her towards the end of each lesson i know when Heavenly Father wants me to be done because the Spirit just fills my mouth and i talk until i have nothing more to say. it's like Heavenly Father tells me, 'Rach good job, we're done for now'. and then we end the lesson. that's what happened when we met last week. at the end i wanted to bear my testimony one last time. i told her what i hope everyone i meet understands... that their Father in Heaven loves them. and i told her how very much Heavenly Father loves her. and then i didn't know what else to say. the Spirit wasn't giving me more. so i said a few more things and then we ended the lesson. it ended on a good note though. she knows that we love her and she said that she's very dedicated in coming to church.
so she came to church on sunday and guess what... she was fasting! we have no idea what for or anything but she said that she had been trying for like 24 hours to talk herself out of fasting but she just couldn't and came to church fasting! so hopefully things will turn around! we're still friends and she'll keep coming to activities. but it was an emotional weekend
Aubs: i got your package today! thanks!! i mailed you a package today too so be looking for it! i love you and miss you too!!
Jess: thanks for the email! i mailed you a package today too to the apartment so be looking for it! love you! btw very proud of you for saying hi to the cute boy - even in your marching band outfit. way to be bold!
anyway so when we left the appointment i felt pretty hopeless. but we had done our part. the Spirit lead everything that was said. every time we meet with her towards the end of each lesson i know when Heavenly Father wants me to be done because the Spirit just fills my mouth and i talk until i have nothing more to say. it's like Heavenly Father tells me, 'Rach good job, we're done for now'. and then we end the lesson. that's what happened when we met last week. at the end i wanted to bear my testimony one last time. i told her what i hope everyone i meet understands... that their Father in Heaven loves them. and i told her how very much Heavenly Father loves her. and then i didn't know what else to say. the Spirit wasn't giving me more. so i said a few more things and then we ended the lesson. it ended on a good note though. she knows that we love her and she said that she's very dedicated in coming to church.
so she came to church on sunday and guess what... she was fasting! we have no idea what for or anything but she said that she had been trying for like 24 hours to talk herself out of fasting but she just couldn't and came to church fasting! so hopefully things will turn around! we're still friends and she'll keep coming to activities. but it was an emotional weekend
Aubs: i got your package today! thanks!! i mailed you a package today too so be looking for it! i love you and miss you too!!
Jess: thanks for the email! i mailed you a package today too to the apartment so be looking for it! love you! btw very proud of you for saying hi to the cute boy - even in your marching band outfit. way to be bold!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Power Knocking
.JPG)
guess what.... on the 23rd (so last week) i reached my HUMP DAY... do you know what that means?? that means that i am now more than HALF WAY done with my mission!! does time FLY by or what!
Picture: me and sister davis eating pink laffy taffy - the american ward had a halloween party and the elders got some candy
so yesterday we went power knocking as a district. there's only 8 missionaries in my district and we had never been power knocking together. power knocking is when we find a tall apartment building and we get in and go to the top floor and then we each go to a door and knock and then ask every one if we can sing to them. and when they say yes then we sing a hymn and then whoever knocked that door goes with their comp and talks to that person and tries to get their contact. i love doing this and it's been months since i've done it. we did it in heidelberg every week and yesterday was the first time since i've been in mainz. anyway it was a lot of fun and we did 2 apartment buildings - each had like 20 floors. haha but we got 3 comebacks! one lady gave us 3 bottles of wine - which we told her we didn't drink it and she insisted and said that we could even give it to someone as a gift. and then this sweet old lady like demanded that we take her money (the elders handled both of these doors) and so we ended up with 3 bottles of wine and 10 euro. so we don't know what to do with the wine... probably dump it and we used the 10 euro to buy icecream. so all in all i thought it was a very successful power knocking session. haha
a few saturdays ago sister davis and i were contacting along the Rhein river and we found a flou market! (it's like a garage sale) tons of people just bring their old stuff and set up tables and then sell it. apparently they do it every 3rd saturday of the month along the Rhein. we're totally going next month! we got there at the end apparently because people were packing up. it's actually really hard to find really german things in stores here - but at the flou market there were TONS and TONS! plus the prices aren't bad either.
i'm so excited - next week is zone conference and sister ranzenberger will be there!!!! i miss her so much and i'm SO excited to get to see her!!
i'm so excited - next week is zone conference and sister ranzenberger will be there!!!! i miss her so much and i'm SO excited to get to see her!!
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Frankfurt Temple
Here's a funny comment from Rachel's e-mail today:question: are people in america mixing brown and black clothing?
it's HUGE here in germany!
everyone is wearing brown with black.
i think it's because they saw
all the sister missionaries doing it
and thought it was fashionable. haha
Staying in Mainz
guess what... i'm staying in mainz! i was actually not too happy about it to be honest. but i heard a talk on sunday and this woman shared a really cool story... and because it was in english i can repeat it to you. (we were in the american ward)
It went something like this...
Pretend that one of your greatest desires is to go to Italy. You've always wanted to go there and you finally have the chance to go there on vacation. so you buy all these tour guides and maps. you learn a little bit of italian and decide all the places you want to visit and all the things you want to see. you pack your bags and get on the plane. when your plane lands the flight attendant announces that you've arrived in Holland! what?! holland! but you're going to Italy. that's what you've been waiting for your whole life! well now of course you're upset and angry. you planned and prepared to go to Italy but ended up in holland. but you're here and on vacation so you decide to stay. you have to buy new tour guides and learn some words in dutch. after spending some days in holland you notice that holland is very pretty. there are windmills and tulips. holland isn't Italy, but it's beautiful and different. you have different experiences and meet people that you wouldn't have met if you had gone to Italy.
how often in our lives do we plan on going to italy but end up in holland instead? and if we are too caught up in the thought of not being in italy, then we would never find out and enjoy all that holland has to offer. we will miss out on experiences and opportunities that we would have never had. so all in all, when we plan on going to italy and end up in holland, just enjoy the journey and be grateful to be in holland instead of italy.
ok so i put my only little spin on that... mainly because i forgot what the lady really said. but i really enjoyed it and really needed to here it... especially because it was right after transfer calls and i wasn't happy. so i decided to be happy that i'm in mainz and not somewhere else... besides, i have 2 very good reasons to stay in mainz:
Bao Bao: she is my ball of sunshine! she's this little chinese woman that we're teaching. i love her to death! she's been meeting with sisters for like 3 years and things are finally clicking! haha she just graduated from the mainz university and she just got a job in darmstadt. she'll be moving there sometime soon, but sister ranzenberger is getting transferred there so i'm ok with bao bao leaving because i trust ranzenberger! bao bao is going to get baptized. i know it and she knows it. she just needs to have a few more things click and she's good!
Dottie: oh my gosh i love Dottie! i will fall apart and die if she doesn't get baptized!! not just because she's someone we're teaching but because we've become such good friends and i will just lose it if we have to stop meeting with her!!! we just finished teaching her all the lessons. she's struggling to let herself believe everything. we fasted on sunday for her.
i'm not falling apart anymore!!!!! i've been trying to go to bed early when i can. i think that's helped!
thanks for the emails!: Marci, Meg, Aubs, Jameson and Pierre
Pierre: danke für Ihre Email! elder peiper wird versetzt on mittwoch. er geht nach Wupertal (whatever it's up north) so Sie konnen ihm ein Hug gaben. ich habe bemerkt dass ich kein Bild von Ihnen haben. Konnen Sie mir ein Bild emailen bitte? danke! so ich habe versucht auf deutsch zu schriben... Sie konnen lachen veil mein Deutsch so schlimm ist und wenn Sie es nichts verstanden haben... too bad! haha
Aubs: i'm so excited for your package! i can't wait! i'm almost done with your tape i promise! where do i need to send it? hope all is well! love you lots!!!!
Jameson: hey sounds like you're working a ton! but that's good! i haven't gotten your letter yet but it'll probably be in the mail today. but if not no worries i'm not going anywhere! haha have you watched the new brian regan yet????
It went something like this...
Pretend that one of your greatest desires is to go to Italy. You've always wanted to go there and you finally have the chance to go there on vacation. so you buy all these tour guides and maps. you learn a little bit of italian and decide all the places you want to visit and all the things you want to see. you pack your bags and get on the plane. when your plane lands the flight attendant announces that you've arrived in Holland! what?! holland! but you're going to Italy. that's what you've been waiting for your whole life! well now of course you're upset and angry. you planned and prepared to go to Italy but ended up in holland. but you're here and on vacation so you decide to stay. you have to buy new tour guides and learn some words in dutch. after spending some days in holland you notice that holland is very pretty. there are windmills and tulips. holland isn't Italy, but it's beautiful and different. you have different experiences and meet people that you wouldn't have met if you had gone to Italy.
how often in our lives do we plan on going to italy but end up in holland instead? and if we are too caught up in the thought of not being in italy, then we would never find out and enjoy all that holland has to offer. we will miss out on experiences and opportunities that we would have never had. so all in all, when we plan on going to italy and end up in holland, just enjoy the journey and be grateful to be in holland instead of italy.
ok so i put my only little spin on that... mainly because i forgot what the lady really said. but i really enjoyed it and really needed to here it... especially because it was right after transfer calls and i wasn't happy. so i decided to be happy that i'm in mainz and not somewhere else... besides, i have 2 very good reasons to stay in mainz:
Bao Bao: she is my ball of sunshine! she's this little chinese woman that we're teaching. i love her to death! she's been meeting with sisters for like 3 years and things are finally clicking! haha she just graduated from the mainz university and she just got a job in darmstadt. she'll be moving there sometime soon, but sister ranzenberger is getting transferred there so i'm ok with bao bao leaving because i trust ranzenberger! bao bao is going to get baptized. i know it and she knows it. she just needs to have a few more things click and she's good!
Dottie: oh my gosh i love Dottie! i will fall apart and die if she doesn't get baptized!! not just because she's someone we're teaching but because we've become such good friends and i will just lose it if we have to stop meeting with her!!! we just finished teaching her all the lessons. she's struggling to let herself believe everything. we fasted on sunday for her.
i'm not falling apart anymore!!!!! i've been trying to go to bed early when i can. i think that's helped!
thanks for the emails!: Marci, Meg, Aubs, Jameson and Pierre
Pierre: danke für Ihre Email! elder peiper wird versetzt on mittwoch. er geht nach Wupertal (whatever it's up north) so Sie konnen ihm ein Hug gaben. ich habe bemerkt dass ich kein Bild von Ihnen haben. Konnen Sie mir ein Bild emailen bitte? danke! so ich habe versucht auf deutsch zu schriben... Sie konnen lachen veil mein Deutsch so schlimm ist und wenn Sie es nichts verstanden haben... too bad! haha
Aubs: i'm so excited for your package! i can't wait! i'm almost done with your tape i promise! where do i need to send it? hope all is well! love you lots!!!!
Jameson: hey sounds like you're working a ton! but that's good! i haven't gotten your letter yet but it'll probably be in the mail today. but if not no worries i'm not going anywhere! haha have you watched the new brian regan yet????
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Electoral Palace
This is the Electoral Palace in Mainz.
It was originally built in 1137 and is one of the important Renaissance buildings in Germany.
Today it is a museum and a place for events to be held.
Rachel would like it to be her next home.
I guess every princess needs a palace... ♥
I'm Falling Apart!
i'm falling apart! apparently i'm too stressed. that's what doctor gardener told me! he said that he thinks i may have irritable bowel syndrom and then something about spazzing muscles in my back. i called him twice in like the past week or so because it hurt to eat and then one day my back hurt SO much so he told me stay in bed for a couple hours so i got a nice nap. that seemed to help. anyway he gave me some relaxing things to do and since then i've been trying to relax more... i just think the 2 hour nap that one day helped a lot. but now i'm sick. haha just a head cold. anyway it's really not that serious but i laugh about it and say that i'm just falling apart! haha
transfer calls are this saturday! i have no idea what will happen. i want to go but then i want to stay as well. i love the people we're teaching.
today we went to the temple! but i had to wake up an hour earlier so we could go to an earlier session. it was wonderful except they don't have kleenex in the celestial room. that's a bummer when you're sick and your nose is running. but other than that it was wonderful. the session ended up being in english cause there were only a few germans there. so that was cool.
i'm doing a lot better... with the exception that i'm falling apart. haha. our investigators are slowly making progress. the weather is getting cold but that still doesn't stop us from getting a scoop of ice cream now and again. haha
thanks to: meg, jameson, karly, marci, wimp and cindy for your emails this week!! ♥
sorry i really don't have much to say. i will next week for sure though cause something exciting might happen for transfers... and if not then i'll make something up! haha
transfer calls are this saturday! i have no idea what will happen. i want to go but then i want to stay as well. i love the people we're teaching.
today we went to the temple! but i had to wake up an hour earlier so we could go to an earlier session. it was wonderful except they don't have kleenex in the celestial room. that's a bummer when you're sick and your nose is running. but other than that it was wonderful. the session ended up being in english cause there were only a few germans there. so that was cool.
i'm doing a lot better... with the exception that i'm falling apart. haha. our investigators are slowly making progress. the weather is getting cold but that still doesn't stop us from getting a scoop of ice cream now and again. haha
thanks to: meg, jameson, karly, marci, wimp and cindy for your emails this week!! ♥
sorry i really don't have much to say. i will next week for sure though cause something exciting might happen for transfers... and if not then i'll make something up! haha
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Correction
I was wrong... the photo Rachel sent this morning was taken in front of the "Mainz Cathedral",
not the Church of Christ.
And for your reading enjoyment... a little info on the Mainz Cathedral:
It was build in 975 AD, but was continually rebuilt and restored.
It currently holds a collection of religious art.
Deutschland
The beautiful church building behind Rachel is called "The Church of Christ"
and is located in Mainz ,
the city where Rachel is currently serving.
Not long after Rachel got to Germany,
she asked if for an early birthday present
(VERY early... this was in April and her birthday isn't until November...)
she could buy a new camera.
We told her yes, but only if she would send us lots of pictures
of her experiences in Germany. ♥
General Conference
Conference was AMAZING this weekend! i got to see ALL sessions, including the relief society session... except that was in german and i couldn't understand a dang thing. well, thank goodness for the conference edition of the ensign! my favorite talk by far was Elder Holland's talk... i bawled through the whole thing. our investigator Dottie was sitting next to me... poor thing, she probably thought i was crazy. his talk helped me remember all of the angels that i already have in my life! every week i get e-mails from my angels that help carry me throughout the week. you are ALL a blessing to me and i thank Heavenly Father every day for you and for the love i feel from Him through all of you!
Dottie came to all of the conference sessions this weekend. she was suppose to go out of town but didn't get paid enough so she couldnt go... Heavenly Father answers prayers... i prayed that she wouldn't go and that she could stay and come to conference. she really enjoyed it! she said it was a little overwhelming and a lot of information but she really liked all of it! i think her favorite talk was the one from president Uchtdorf from the saturday morning session about Hope.
conference was a much needed blessing and i didn't want it to end!! i can't wait till next conference!
hey guess what.... i'm more happy! i've been trying to do what president told me to do and i've been trying to apply the things i learned at conference this weekend and things are looking up!
thanks to everyone for your emails: Jess, Meg, Jameson and Diane!
Dottie came to all of the conference sessions this weekend. she was suppose to go out of town but didn't get paid enough so she couldnt go... Heavenly Father answers prayers... i prayed that she wouldn't go and that she could stay and come to conference. she really enjoyed it! she said it was a little overwhelming and a lot of information but she really liked all of it! i think her favorite talk was the one from president Uchtdorf from the saturday morning session about Hope.
conference was a much needed blessing and i didn't want it to end!! i can't wait till next conference!
hey guess what.... i'm more happy! i've been trying to do what president told me to do and i've been trying to apply the things i learned at conference this weekend and things are looking up!
thanks to everyone for your emails: Jess, Meg, Jameson and Diane!
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
We'll Do Lunch
Rachel's friend Daren is serving a mission in Japan.
This is the picture Rachel sent this week
and here is what she says:
daren's birthday is on monday and so i had my comp take this picture of me... i'm going to mail it to him and say:
meet me here, monday at 1:00. we'll do lunch...
however you're going to have to pay because i don't have any money. hahaha
I Want To Be Happy!
well i think i know what Heavenly Father wants me to do because everyone has been giving me the exact same advice (including my mission president) - lose myself in the work, serve others and don't think so much about myself - well i think it's easier said than done and a little scary...BUT i'm going to do it because i want to be happy!
we had zone conference last week and it was exactly what i needed. president has made lots of changes! i like most of them...however...there's one that could possibly be the death of me....no more soccer on saturday mornings.....AHHHHH luckily i was praying before that i would be okay with whatever changes that president was going to make ( i knew he was going to make lots) so when he told us about soccer... i was shocked but then he gave his reasonings... i wont go into detail about... but he's fasted and prayed about it and he feels VERY strongly that we shouldn't have sport anymore. but he promised blessings and so i'm taking Heavenly Father at His word and i'm going to be good and not do sport. although now i have to find another outlet....
anyway at my interview with president he asked me if i was happy. i told him 'it depends on the day' he asked me if i think a lot about myself... well duh, yes. but then he made a point that when we think too much about ourselves then we aren't very happy. so now i'm trying to focus on others and how i can help other people be happy. so far it's going good... but it's only been like 2 days. haha i know it'll help. i'm already feeling a lot better and there's more purpose to my days now.
oh yeah our investigator with a baptismal date... not going to happen. she needed to come to church on sunday but she didn't. we're going to have to push back the date.
i didn't get to see the womens broadcast - however they're going to show it on sunday at the church while the guys watch the priesthood session. i can't wait for conference this weekend!!!!!!
THANKS for all you do for me! i've realized that Heavenly Father shows His love for me through all of you! and i thank Him every day for that!
thanks to EVERYONE for the emails i got!: grandma doty, gramma and grampa, bergholms, jameson, meg, jess, marci
we had zone conference last week and it was exactly what i needed. president has made lots of changes! i like most of them...however...there's one that could possibly be the death of me....no more soccer on saturday mornings.....AHHHHH luckily i was praying before that i would be okay with whatever changes that president was going to make ( i knew he was going to make lots) so when he told us about soccer... i was shocked but then he gave his reasonings... i wont go into detail about... but he's fasted and prayed about it and he feels VERY strongly that we shouldn't have sport anymore. but he promised blessings and so i'm taking Heavenly Father at His word and i'm going to be good and not do sport. although now i have to find another outlet....
anyway at my interview with president he asked me if i was happy. i told him 'it depends on the day' he asked me if i think a lot about myself... well duh, yes. but then he made a point that when we think too much about ourselves then we aren't very happy. so now i'm trying to focus on others and how i can help other people be happy. so far it's going good... but it's only been like 2 days. haha i know it'll help. i'm already feeling a lot better and there's more purpose to my days now.
oh yeah our investigator with a baptismal date... not going to happen. she needed to come to church on sunday but she didn't. we're going to have to push back the date.
i didn't get to see the womens broadcast - however they're going to show it on sunday at the church while the guys watch the priesthood session. i can't wait for conference this weekend!!!!!!
THANKS for all you do for me! i've realized that Heavenly Father shows His love for me through all of you! and i thank Him every day for that!
thanks to EVERYONE for the emails i got!: grandma doty, gramma and grampa, bergholms, jameson, meg, jess, marci
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
New Hair Cut
I GOT MY HAIR CUT!!! look how short too! my old highlights had come back and my hair was 2 different colors so i finally just chopped it! this time the lady (it was all in german too) cut good layers and she did a good job. so far i really like it but it's only been like an hour since i got it cut. so we'll see how i feel later. haha
Blunt and Honest
thanks to Nancy Jenkins and Grandma Doty for emails! - and Meg too ;)
well today i have been on my mission for 8 months! can you believe it? it's gone by really fast. and on thursday i'll have been in germany for 6 months. this time next month i'll be half way done with my mission. i still feel like i just started
we have an investigator with a baptismal date for october 12th. i don't think she's going to do it (sad huh...but i'm being honest!) at least not on that day. we'll see what happens.
well today i have been on my mission for 8 months! can you believe it? it's gone by really fast. and on thursday i'll have been in germany for 6 months. this time next month i'll be half way done with my mission. i still feel like i just started
we have an investigator with a baptismal date for october 12th. i don't think she's going to do it (sad huh...but i'm being honest!) at least not on that day. we'll see what happens.
the 12 (now 13) year old girl in the american ward that we've been teaching is almost done with the lessons. her bishop suggested that she get baptized soon so she can go do temple baptisms on the 18th of october. she really wants to do temple baptisms, that's why she started taking the lessons in the first place. so she's praying this week about it and on saturday we'll find out what she says. hopefully she'll say yes and she'll be baptized in like 2 weeks!
my companion and i were talking about how we feel we've changed since we've been on our missions and stuff. and i was thinking...how have i changed? well since coming on my mission... i'm more impatient, i'm more stubburn, and blunt, i'm more grumpy and people just drive me nuts. i have less compassion and i'm kind of snotty - ok a lot snotty. but that's really how i feel! if anything i've developed more bad characteristics than good and the even sadder part is...i don't have the patience or desire to fix them! i'm trying to be upbeat and positive. but sometimes i just want to be mad for a while.
Ok friends and family... Rachel could use more e-mails.
I think she probably also needs a really long nap. ♥
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Doormats
Crazy Story
Last tuesday sister davis found out the IRS was giving her a final notice for her 2006 taxes. she had to contact them by that friday or they were going to press charges. well what's she going to do?? she's in germany.
so she called President Ninow and asked if she could call the IRS and get things figured out. he said yes but only if it took less than 30 minutes because it costs big bucks to call from our cell phones. so we had to wait till like 4pm here to call the IRS in the states.
so she called and talked to a guy and then waited and waited and waited for 30 minutes. so she told him she would have to call back on a different phone. we called President and he told us to get on the next train to Frankfurt so sister davis could call from his office phone because it was cheaper.
so now its like 6pm (we're suppose to be out doing missionary work because p-day ends at 6) so we changed into missionary clothes, went to the train station and bought a ticket to frankfurt. and then of course we weren't paying attention and missed our train. so we had to wait another 30 minutes for the next train.
so we're on the train on our way to frankfurt and then the train slams on its breaks and we stop in the middle of nowhere. the train driver gets on the intercom and says that we've hit a person and this person is dead - and we have to stay there and wait for the police and stuff to get there. i don't know the details of what happened, but our train killed someone. the poor driver was like in shock. so we call the assistants and they said that we should continue to frankfurt and then we'll figure out everything from there.
so by the time we got to frankfurt it was like 9pm. but sister davis still needs to make her call before friday and there was no other day that we could do it because we're busy. so the APs come pick us up from the frankfurt train station and sister davis gets to make her call. turns out she's a victim of identity theft! the IRS is giving her 30 days to get things all figured out and worked out - problem is... she's in germany! so she's working on getting the power of attorney to her dad so that he can get everything figured out for her.
so by the time she's done with the phone call its almost 10:30pm. we can't spend the night at the mission home because president has sons at home. and so the APs drove us back to mainz but elder quist has never driven to mainz before and his comp elder carrol hasn't ever driven there at night and i've never been driven to mainz before because we always take a train. so we had a fun time trying to figure out how to get home. so by the time sister davis and i walked back into our apartment it was like 11:45pm. and the poor APs had to figure out how to get back to frankfurt.
that's my story. pretty crazy huh! poor sister davis. everything will work out though. needless to say i have a feeling this is going to be a crazy cycle. ♥
so she called President Ninow and asked if she could call the IRS and get things figured out. he said yes but only if it took less than 30 minutes because it costs big bucks to call from our cell phones. so we had to wait till like 4pm here to call the IRS in the states.
so she called and talked to a guy and then waited and waited and waited for 30 minutes. so she told him she would have to call back on a different phone. we called President and he told us to get on the next train to Frankfurt so sister davis could call from his office phone because it was cheaper.
so now its like 6pm (we're suppose to be out doing missionary work because p-day ends at 6) so we changed into missionary clothes, went to the train station and bought a ticket to frankfurt. and then of course we weren't paying attention and missed our train. so we had to wait another 30 minutes for the next train.
so we're on the train on our way to frankfurt and then the train slams on its breaks and we stop in the middle of nowhere. the train driver gets on the intercom and says that we've hit a person and this person is dead - and we have to stay there and wait for the police and stuff to get there. i don't know the details of what happened, but our train killed someone. the poor driver was like in shock. so we call the assistants and they said that we should continue to frankfurt and then we'll figure out everything from there.
so by the time we got to frankfurt it was like 9pm. but sister davis still needs to make her call before friday and there was no other day that we could do it because we're busy. so the APs come pick us up from the frankfurt train station and sister davis gets to make her call. turns out she's a victim of identity theft! the IRS is giving her 30 days to get things all figured out and worked out - problem is... she's in germany! so she's working on getting the power of attorney to her dad so that he can get everything figured out for her.
so by the time she's done with the phone call its almost 10:30pm. we can't spend the night at the mission home because president has sons at home. and so the APs drove us back to mainz but elder quist has never driven to mainz before and his comp elder carrol hasn't ever driven there at night and i've never been driven to mainz before because we always take a train. so we had a fun time trying to figure out how to get home. so by the time sister davis and i walked back into our apartment it was like 11:45pm. and the poor APs had to figure out how to get back to frankfurt.
that's my story. pretty crazy huh! poor sister davis. everything will work out though. needless to say i have a feeling this is going to be a crazy cycle. ♥
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
California Street
Rachel's parents went to California over the weekend and sent her pictures.
She sent us this picture of "her" California. Cute!
Help Thou My Unbelief
well guess what! i'm staying in mainz for another 6 weeks. sister davis is too. i think this cycle will be long. but i'll get through. i found my new scripture. Alma 34: 41 "But that ye have patience, and bear with those afflictions, with a firm hope that ye shall one day rest from all your afflictions." i like to subsitute at the end "that ye shall one day be transferred from this area - or - that ye shall one day have new investigators"...etc. haha
we're meeting with bruder M tonight and re-committing him to live the Word of Wisdom. if he says no... then we're saying goodbye (or tschüß in german). he's had all the lessons and there isnt really anything more we can do for him. he'll still come to church and everything i'm sure. i'm convinced that he doesn't get baptized that he'll still come to church for the rest of his life anyway. haha coming to church is not one of his struggles.
other then that there's not much that's going on. we went to the temple last saturday. i did the whole session in german and made it through the veil auf deutsch too.
so i was again thinking of what we should pray for this cycle. 2 baptisms came to me. i was thinking... you gotta be kidding me. He told me last cycle to prayer and work towards one baptism and we didn't get one. now we're suppose to be praying and working for 2 baptisms! well, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding. so we're working for 2 baptisms with the hope and faith that it'll happen and that Heavenly Father will help us.
i love the part in the movie The Testaments when they are doing a flash to where Jesus is and this man comes to him with his son. the man asks Jesus to heal his son. Jesus asks him, believest thou that i can do this? and the man says Lord I believe! and Jesus looks at him... and the man says, help thou my unbelief. i've been feeling like that a lot lately - not understanding why Heavenly Father wants me to be here or why He asks me to do things like pray for 2 baptisms. i think i just have a lack of faith. maybe i should pray that Heavenly Father helps my unbelief.
sorry this email is really short. i don't really know what else to say, other than i miss the family a lot. and my friends. and normal life. so let's just say i'm a little trunky today. and i want to go dancing and wear highheels. ♥
we're meeting with bruder M tonight and re-committing him to live the Word of Wisdom. if he says no... then we're saying goodbye (or tschüß in german). he's had all the lessons and there isnt really anything more we can do for him. he'll still come to church and everything i'm sure. i'm convinced that he doesn't get baptized that he'll still come to church for the rest of his life anyway. haha coming to church is not one of his struggles.
other then that there's not much that's going on. we went to the temple last saturday. i did the whole session in german and made it through the veil auf deutsch too.
so i was again thinking of what we should pray for this cycle. 2 baptisms came to me. i was thinking... you gotta be kidding me. He told me last cycle to prayer and work towards one baptism and we didn't get one. now we're suppose to be praying and working for 2 baptisms! well, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding. so we're working for 2 baptisms with the hope and faith that it'll happen and that Heavenly Father will help us.
i love the part in the movie The Testaments when they are doing a flash to where Jesus is and this man comes to him with his son. the man asks Jesus to heal his son. Jesus asks him, believest thou that i can do this? and the man says Lord I believe! and Jesus looks at him... and the man says, help thou my unbelief. i've been feeling like that a lot lately - not understanding why Heavenly Father wants me to be here or why He asks me to do things like pray for 2 baptisms. i think i just have a lack of faith. maybe i should pray that Heavenly Father helps my unbelief.
sorry this email is really short. i don't really know what else to say, other than i miss the family a lot. and my friends. and normal life. so let's just say i'm a little trunky today. and i want to go dancing and wear highheels. ♥
* Rachel could probably use some friendly e-mails *
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
A Tough Week
well it's been a tough week and again i want to hit someone.
bruder M is not getting baptized on the 7th. i don't know when he's getting baptized. i called him last tuesday to ask him if he was ready and stuff for his baptismal interview and asked him if he had drunk any coffee over the weekend. guess what, he had. so we decided to meet with him anyway just not for an interview. turns out he's been drinking coffee at least once a week and drinks alcohol with his friends. PATIENCE. i'm grateful for a compasionate companion, because i just want to smack him. she's really upbeat and encouraging, where as me i feel like the world is coming to an end. Heavenly Father told me that we needed to fast for a baptism THIS cycle. and we did and we worked hard and now we aren't having one. the 12 year old girl that we work with, at our last appointment said that she doesn't want to get baptized anymore. but bishop shumway was there with us and he said that she changes her mind all the time and that we shouldn't worry but keep teaching the lessons and helping her learn and progress. hopefully she'll change her mind again. so i'm feeling kind of down and i'm losing motivation.
transfer calls are on saturday! i have NO idea what's going to happen. sister ranzenberger emailed me and says that she has no idea what's going to happen to her. it's fun we make transfer predictions... haha so today sister davis and i are going to go out and have ice cream and make predictions for the sisters.
Cindy: thanks for the email! Say HI to your family for me too!!!
bruder M is not getting baptized on the 7th. i don't know when he's getting baptized. i called him last tuesday to ask him if he was ready and stuff for his baptismal interview and asked him if he had drunk any coffee over the weekend. guess what, he had. so we decided to meet with him anyway just not for an interview. turns out he's been drinking coffee at least once a week and drinks alcohol with his friends. PATIENCE. i'm grateful for a compasionate companion, because i just want to smack him. she's really upbeat and encouraging, where as me i feel like the world is coming to an end. Heavenly Father told me that we needed to fast for a baptism THIS cycle. and we did and we worked hard and now we aren't having one. the 12 year old girl that we work with, at our last appointment said that she doesn't want to get baptized anymore. but bishop shumway was there with us and he said that she changes her mind all the time and that we shouldn't worry but keep teaching the lessons and helping her learn and progress. hopefully she'll change her mind again. so i'm feeling kind of down and i'm losing motivation.
transfer calls are on saturday! i have NO idea what's going to happen. sister ranzenberger emailed me and says that she has no idea what's going to happen to her. it's fun we make transfer predictions... haha so today sister davis and i are going to go out and have ice cream and make predictions for the sisters.
Cindy: thanks for the email! Say HI to your family for me too!!!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
The Life of a Missionary
please pray for bruder "M"!!!!!!!!!! he told us that he's worried that he's going to drink coffee this upcoming weekend. he makes it sound like his friends are going to shove it down his throat. i WANT to say... bruder "M", you're like 40 years old. no one is shoving the coffee down your throat. and i'm pretty sure your friends will still like you even if you don't drink coffee. patience.... i'm still learning patience. he's getting really excited for his baptism. the ward is awesome with him. someone invited him to a FHE group that they have and he asked us about it and we said that we didn't know anything about it and we weren't going. he looked pretty happy that we had no idea about it and that the ward asked him without us asking them. it's awesome.sister davis is off crutches. we're still a little slow walking but getting a little faster everyday. we get transfer calls a week from this saturday. i have a feeling that i'm staying. i kind of want to go though. not that i don't love mainz because i do and i love the ward and stuff. i just don't know how much longer my patience can go... but it'll go as long as Heavenly Father needs it to. but Heavenly Father has been kind to both of us and has been answering my prayers and this week was a little better. it was nice having sister barnhart with us for a day.
anyway the weather here is cold! it's august for heaven sakes! where's the sun!?! i've started pulling my sweaters out and wearing them with scarfs. i don't want to wear nylons again.
we watched the movie hercules last week with our elders... that is an awkward movie to watch with elders! i had forgotten how flirty the girl character was! everything she said was like in this trying to be sexy voice and sister davis and i almost died! hahaha it was so funny and also really awkward! i still love the movie though...just not with elders. i've realized how many awkward situations i go through every day. pretty much everything i do is socially awkward. sister ranzenberger would always say that she now thrives on awkward situations. it's so true! but hey it's the life of a missionary.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
