Not the Best Week, But More Typical than Most of us Want to Admit.

Well this week was pretty boring for us. We did a lot of finding, and taught like two lessons, so nothing exciting there. On Saturday we were ringing bells on apartments, which I hate, by the way. And seriously every single person in that building only spoke french. It must have been some kind of international housing or something. But I got a lot of  French practice in that day. 

So Sister Wood and I found this sticker a while ago, and it's like this person and it has Jack written across him. I dont know how to describe it but anyway stickers are a big deal  here and he's like the coolest one we've found and for a long time he was super hard to find but on saturday all we had was finding and looking up formers so we were walking, and all of a sudden we start finding Jack stickers everywhere. We found like no people that day, but we did find a ton of those stickers, so at least we got something. 

Sister Wood and I have been having huge problems getting dinner appointments. Like it was pretty bad when Sister Aldous was here, but now we have only one dinner appointment. And the Elders? They are getting fed every single day. And then we ask and talk to the members and everything and they are tell us no, or are like well we already invited the elders.... and we're like seriously? And it is horrible. I am so tired of cooking. And it's worse because meat is super expensive in Belgium so we can't buy it because we dont have the money so then we ha ve to find like other protein sources. Oh my goodness I could never be vegetarian. So I hope next week a miracle  happens and people feed us. :)

I seriously can't think of anything else to write. It was just a normal week. We are going to the temple this week, and Keukenhof? probably spelled that wrong, but thats the giant tulip garden thing. 

the waffles are good, and they do indeed have waffle trucks. 

Have a good week!

Love you!

Karoline 

1 confirmation, 1 big roadblock, 2 Easters

Easter was yesterday and today is 2nd Easter, so Happy Easter again! :) I like how all the holidays here have two days, because then if you mess it up the first time, you just try it again the next day. Easy. Church was  normal, it was just like any other Sunday, and I don't feel like the talks or the lessons were really about anything Eastery so that was lame, but okay. This week Sister W and I spent a ridiculous amount of time making Easter cards for the ward to improve our relationship with them, because there is so much drama, and really this ward just likes the Elders,  but we're working on it. Anyway, they took sooooo long, and then we went and traveled the whole week trying to deliver them all, ah so tiring and long but hopefully something comes out of it. 

Yesterday our new convert did get confirmed. :) And it was awesome, and she's planning on going on the temple trip to go do baptisms for her own family members in a couple weeks, and that is super cool, and she came up with doing that all on her own, we havent even taught that stuff yet. She's great. This week, her member friend who invited her to church was like oh, well now that youre a member things will be so much easier for you. And she's just like, I don't know what youre talking about, my life has been harder than ever since I came to church and decided to get baptized, but now I know how to deal with it because the church is what makes that possible to get through. I thought that was so cool! She figured it out and connected the dots on her own. She knows her life is getting harder and that there have been trials facing her since she decided to get baptized and then became a member, but now she understands how to apply the gospel to help her out. How awesome.

With our other baptismal date, we hit a major road block with him this week. :( We were giving him the baptismal interview questions this week since he was supposed to be baptized next week, and we found out he isn't legally married, only married through the church. So... obviously he can't get baptized until that little problem is solved. It's going to be really hard though, because his wife person doesn't have any papers, so they can't get married, and shes from Georgia, and if she goes back, she won't be able to come back to Belgium. So we aren't really sure what to do about that. And it sucks because he shared his testimony with us this week and  he was talking about how much he wants to be baptized and that he doesn't understand why we don't want him to be or why the church doesn't except him . And then he was talking about how he has always had to work for everything his whole life. It made us so sad, because it''s true. Look at our investigator who just got baptized. All she had to do was walk into church and say she wanted to be baptized, and 3 weeks later she was. But he has been working on it for months and the ward doesn't want him, and he just keeps having obstacles. And that's hard to understand. Why the Lord makes it so easy for some people and so much more difficult for others. Like, he even told us that when he's baptized he's going to be a Mormon for life, so we feel really sad for him.

Sister W and I were walking through the centrum the other day and all of sudden there was a guy walking beside us asking us all about our beliefs and what church we were from so we stopped and talked to him, and now he wants to get together and "philosophize" as he calls it. He thinks he can de-convert us. but something interesting he said was that he believes that theres part of God in all of us and that therefore he thinks that we all have the potential to be Gods. And we're like oh hey, we believe pretty much the same thing, but we didn't tell him that, we just exchanged info and are meeting with him later. 

I can't really think of anything else that happened this week. Hmmm.... oh, yes there are lots and lots of chocolate bunnies and eggs, And they are huge, but we don't really go into stores very often so that's about the only comment I have about them. Next week we have temple conference, and everyone is really excited about it. I think it's cool that so many young people can be so excited about going to the temple. 

May 11 is mother's day, right? So we will be skyping that day as far as I know. 

I'm glad you went to Sister R's homecoming.  I don't really know sister Neilson. We called her one day because Sister R wanted to call and tell her goodbye because she was going home, but was too nervous to make the call so I just called her and said hi and then gave the phone to sister R. ha. 

Well, have a good week.

Love you, miss you,

Karoline 

1 more Baptism, 2 more investigators, 3 sessions of General Conference

So the first week of the transfer is over. :) Yay. We also found two new investigators this week. One of them, is a 79 year old man who has no legs. We found him ringing bells in an inactive persons house trying to look them up. We're not sure what his intentions are  yet, maybe he's just trying to get more information about the church, but he's really interesting. And we got him to pray the other day for us, and it was cute. 

The other one we found is a headquarters referral. There's been this big Facebook campaign thing going on on the Netherlands and Belgium church Facebook page for the finding faith in Christ DVDs for Easter. And the mission is getting buckets of referrals, and so far most of them have been going to Belgium, which is pretty cool. Anyway we go to follow up on the DVD the church sent her, and she actually invited us in, which never happens. Like, she wasn't even wearing clothes, just a bathrobe and her hair wasn't done or anything but she still invited us in. How nice. Then she tells us that she's looking for a new church and we're just like well we can help you with that. But this week has been super interesting with teaching because I realize how good my Flemish has gotten since I came here. Like, now I'm the one who can understand the language and has to tell the companion what's going on instead of the first week in Belgium when you're just like uh, I don't speak Flemish or Antwaarps and what the heck are you people saying? So that's a nice feeling. :) This transfer I decided I need to work on humility, can you tell? haha. 

Yesterday we had our baptism. YAY! She was happy, even though, the same thing happened as the last baptism where we picked someone to baptize her and then we show up to the baptism on Sunday and the ward has picked someone else to baptize her. Drama drama drama. 

Oh yesterday in church there was a business man visiting who is originally from Tonga but now lives in California. I was sitting next to him and he's like I want to bare my testimony can you translate for me, and i panic and look over with a terrified face at the Elder who is doing the translating for the sacrament meeting and then he comes over to ask what was going on and I got him to translate for the guy so I wouldn't have to. Turns out it was the greatest decision ever because the guy's testimony was like crazy. He was telling all these stories from Tonga and using giant words and I'm just like wooo thank goodness sisters can get Elders to do anything for them. :)

Sister Wood and I went out for Chinese this week in china town.

 Guess what the restaurant was called? The Best. We took a gamble and decided to see if it was indeed the best. It was like in Elf, where he thinks he's found the worlds best cup of coffee just because they say it is. Anyway, we had some pretty interesting food. And the best thing was the dessert. Bamboo pie. It's this weirdo thing wrapped in Bamboo leaves. The outside is this sticky white stuff, and the inside is this bright yellow vanilla flavored cakey stuff. It looked like boiled egg but it was tasty. Until and hour later when I threw it all back up. :)

yes, we did get to watch conference, at least three sessions. We did not see the women's session or the last Sunday session. But we did get to see priesthood, it was the best session, I think. 

 I can't think of anything I want/need. I have been looking at some clothes but they cost a fortune, not worth it. Only six more months of wearing the same things all the time. :)

That's all I can think of for this week.

Love you, miss you. Have a good week. be safe.

Love, Karoline 

Another Great Week Serving in Antwerp. And Pictures.

This week felt like it was forever long, and I'm sure this week will to, because that's how the new transfers always begin. :) 

 (But first, a picture from Zone Training two weeks ago)

 

We started the week with a lesson with our baptismal date, who is getting baptized this sunday. She is super awesome. Easiest person to teach ever. She's doing really well, and we dont see why she wouldnt be baptized this Sunday, so that's exciting. On Tuesday, everyone wanted to say goodbye to Sister Aldous and we had 3 eating appointments within just a  couple hours. I thought for sure I was going to throw up. It was so nasty. At the end of our last appointment the person who fed us was just like uh you guys need to go for a walk and then she took us for a walk around a pretty park, so that was nice. 

Bye bye Sis. Aldous

On Wednesday, I was in the train station from 9 in the morning until 430 with  some elders waiting for the missionaries to come down. It was such a long day! And so boring, but it was fun to get to know some people better. Then in the evening Sister Wood had her first appointment here with some recent convert/inactives that we are working with, and the guy was totally drunk and wearing no pants. Welcome to Belgium. But we got out of there pretty quick. :)

The rest of the week was full of finding and some appointments with our baptismal dates, and they all went well. In appointment we were trying to teach the ten commandments to our Assyrian baptismal date, and we had made a matching game with pictures and then the commandment written out so it would be played like memory. He did not get it. no matter how many times we explained it, so eventually just gave up and taught him the normal way. So much for being creative haha. 

Oh! This week I was eaten alive. The mosquitoes are really really bad here, and I now am the proud owner of 38 bites. :) And they are huge! Like seriously the biggest bites ever, and then the welts turn purple and then scar so oh well. But It's been torturous dealing with the itch. Oh my gosh. I won't be able to do this all summer, so for that reason I hope this is my last transfer here. Luckily I still have some of that itch cream that you sent from when I had my run in with stinging nettle. Hopefully we can find some bug spray soon.

The weather has been really nice, but then of course our apartment is a furnace because of the heat in the day, and then our room is right above the oven from the pizza restaurant below us, and we cant even open our windows because of the mosquitoes so that's wonderful. But it is nice not being cold all day, and people are much more willing to stop and listen more often. 

So I think that's about it for this week...

Love you and miss you!

Love, Karoline 

(and a picture of Karoline and some Graffiti)

A New Companion, Progressing Investigators, and an entry which I edited down, a lot, "just in case". A glimpse into the Realities of Mission Life

Hello,

Yesterday was transfer call Sunday, and Sister Aldous is getting transferred to Amsterdam, and I will be getting Sister Wood.  She's very much one of those sisters that the Elders like a lot because she "works hard" and feels guilty if she even eats lunch. Whatever. Sister Aldous thinks I'm getting her to teach her how things are and teach her how to have fun. 

 

We still have our two baptism scheduled for April. One, for the girl on the 13th, and the other for the investigator who got married a couple weeks ago on the 27th. The girl who came to church last week is super super awesome. She's the easiest person to teach ever, and the ward is more willing to help her out because shes Belgian. :) So that's at least good, because whenever we teach someone who is not Belgian, it's impossible to get some support. We taught her a couple times this past week, and tonight we will teach her the last lesson, and then finish some commandments. 

 

I haven't been feeling well lately, and haven't really been able to eat without getting a sick feeling since I came to Belgium,  and we had a dinner appointment this week where they had made us spaghetti, and I walked into the apartment and I thought I was going to throw up and just die, and the guy was dishing up my plate and he's like how much do you want sister western, and I looked at him and I'm like uh, 2 noodles. He looked at me and was like okay... and gave me too noodles and a bread crumb, then he just let me chill out while they all ate dinner. It was really nice of him because a lot of members would be offended but he's just like okay, and carried on. If I had had to eat a whole bowl of spaghetti I would have lost it for sure.

 

We had zone training this past week, and I found it to be a little boring. Like, my only wish is for the leaders to use a different talk everytime. Instead we hear the same subjects over and over again, and we're just sitting there for 5 hours like, come on when is this going to be over. 

 

On Saturday we had an appointment with the other investigator who has a baptismal date, and he is progressing a lot better. Last week we weren't sure if he was getting baptized for the right reasons, but this week, it seemed more genuine. Also his new wife is interested in hearing the lessons. The problem is that she does not speak Dutch, or English. She speaks I think Russian, Georgian, and like some weird language thats close to Turkish but I cant remember what it's called. So we're not really sure what to do with that. She also speaks a little french, like just basic conversation stuff, but nothing that would be okay for us to teach her in. So we're just not really sure what to do. I mean I could read the Russian book of Mormon aloud with her, since I learned to do that in Leeuwarden, but that's not really teaching her, so we'll have to see what happens with that. 

 

The zoo was eh. I would definitely not go again, so I hope sister Wood doesn't want to go this transfer. They didn't even have Polar bears or pandas. Like, even Hogle zoo has polar bears. 

I feel like that's about all for this week.

Thanks for everything. Love you and miss you!

Love, Karoline

Investigators: New, Delayed, and Questioning the Reasons. Pictures Scattered in Between.

The week was okay, and yesterday we had a cool experience. This girl walks into church and we assumed she was the elders investigator because they just took her over so we're like okay whatever, then sister aldous sat next to her and is talking to her during relief society and then the girl is like, I want to get baptized, how do i do that? And we talk to her and find out she isnt really with the elders. She had just met them through a friend in the ward, and she wants us to come teach her. So that's how we stole an investigator from the elders. Shes cool, because shes actually Belgian, so the ward will like that. And she wants to get baptized on April 13th which is super fast but if that's what she wants, then thats what she can have I suppose. 

We had another lesson with the kid we found last week, we went over the restoration, and he accepted the invitation to be baptized, problem is he's moving away for 6 months. Belgium has a lot of weird laws, and this kid has a weird situation, but for some reason he has to go to like a special school type of thing for 6 months and live on his own without help from family or friends. Super weird and he just found out about it last week and has to go this week, so that sucks. But it's okay.

Antwerpen Groenplaats

Our investigator who was supposed to be baptized last week still wants to be baptized, we just arent sure if it's for the right reasons. We met with him this week and he is talking about how he wants to make everyone mormon and then he thinks he can create a better welfare program than the church already has. Mainly for people in like Turkey and Syria and we're like uh, thats not going to happen. so we are still working with him, but his date is pushed back to the end of April.

Sister Aldous and I were out finding the other day when we found an abandoned military base. It's now like a park type of thing. It was super cool though. 

Antwerpen

I can't really think of anything else that happened  this week. It was just normal.

today we are going to the zoo, and I think it's stupid and I don't want to go. Especially because it costs like 11 euros. But whatever. But I don't want to pay that kind of money to go look at animals in cages. whatever. Also, I'm completely out of contacts. Did you want me to look into getting some here? They sell them over the counter. i think they're like 40 euros? Not sure, I can look into it if you want though. 

I think that's everything.

Love you and miss you!

Love, Karoline