October 28, 2013

Bonjour,

This week was a lot more organized then last week for sure! We have met most the people the former sisters in this area were working with and have started teaching them. I feel like we run all day long though its crazy. We wake up in the morning study and then its just non stop from there from one appointment to another. My companion may be small with short little legs, but I have to almost run to keep up with her! This past Thursday it was our turn to go on exchanges with the sister training leaders. They live in Gatineau Québec, an all-French speaking area. I was the sister that went there and my companion stayed in our area. I was really nervous because I hadn’t had to communicate with other people beside missionaries in French a whole lot. It went really well though all of them just tried to talk slow with me so I could get it. Their Québécois accents are so hard to understand sometimes! We met with this older lady and we were talking to her for awhile and she kept feeding us these weird mints and I was trying to follow the conversation the best I could but her accent was so strong! She looked at me and asked me a question my brain kind of just froze so I just yes OUI! (Yes) and my companion looked and me and said no, no she asked you if you were Portuguese. I was like OH oops nope I’m not Portuguese. 

I love missionary work I’m being spoiled right now being able to teach in English people who are around my age that I can relate the gospel to them. My companion and I was teaching a recent convert this week about what was taught at stake conference because he wasn’t able to be to it. It was of course what a lot of talks have been on lately... MISSIONARY WORK. We told this cute Chinese man in very simple English so he could hopefully understand that missionary work is very important and that we should invite our friends to church so they can find the happiness like he did. He said, "Ok I think I understand." Then Low and behold yesterday at church he comes walking into church with six other Chinese people he came up to us and said "look I bring friends!" We were so amazed and happy that he had done what all of us need to be doing. How great would it be if every member could just bring one member to church! Church was really great this week because I got to meet all the members that my companion Sister Houde has been telling me about for two weeks! I am some how with heavenly fathers help getting better at street contact. I still am scared to death to talk to random people, but I can tell everyday that it is getting better and better! Our service project her at Dows Lake is so awesome. Every Thursday we get to feed the homeless dinner. It is so gratifying to be able to do that and help those who cant help themselves! I have been blessed with such a great companion. She is such a great example to me and i have already learned so much from her. It’s so great that she has been back to this area three times in her mission because she knows the area so well. There has been so many times where I have been so lost trying to find directions but she always knows where to go. The other great thing about my companion is she loves to joke. This makes me feel so at home because I have missed my family jokes. The other day we were on the bus and she told me I should try to listen to everyone that is speaking French so that I can become more familiar with it. She said listen to those people over there and tell me what there saying. I listened really hard and looked at her and said "Sister Houde I suck at French I cant understand anything there saying!" she said its ok just try to listen harder she could tell I was listening really hard because she started laughing and then told me I’m just kidding that’s Arabic not French!! She was lucky we were on the bus I was going to kill her!!! She has helped me a lot with my French though and I help her with her English a lot. 

It has started to become colder and colder every day. After emailing’s we are headed to get me a Canadian goose coat I don’t know what it is but it sounds warm to me!! I hope everyone has a fantastic Halloween and enjoy knocking doors for one day so you can feel like a missionary like me :) ha-ha

Love,

Sister Dick