Week 56 (2/24/20): Jeremiah's writing is so flowery my allergies are reacting

^^ just a funny quote from this week 🤣

Hello everybody !!
Oh my gosh, we had such a good week !
So this story is kinda long, but it's SO COOL !!
Tuesday evening was incredible. It started out ordinarily enough. We were out contacting, and we weren't very far from a building with a green spire we can see from our apartment window. Well, why not go contacting over there ? We felt no inspiration suggesting otherwise, so off we went. After admiring the church, taking a couple pictures, and then contacting some people in the street, it occurred to us that there might be less active addresses nearby, and we could try to check if they still lived there and visit them. So we went to one building, and the person didn't live there anymore, but we got inside the building ! We were both planning on going door to door, but we both felt like we shouldn't. So we didn't. We headed towards the next address, contacting on the way. It took us a while to find the building, and once we did, Soeur Gagon had the distinct impression that it was wrong. The spirit prompted her to rearrange the words for the street name, so we got a new address, that felt right to us. We reached that address, got in just fine, and made contact with the son, Nephi ! We talked to him for a couple minutes, got his mom's Chantal's phone number, because she wasn't there, then left.
For some reason I really don't know, we didn't port that building. Which is wildly out of character for us. But we went to the one right next door and rang on the first sonnarie. They let us in, but then mostly just wanted to bash, so we just left. We were both feeling a bit rattled, but we thought, hey, why not finish porting this building, then we'll be done for the night (it was getting late anyways). We got to the bottom floor, and there was a scripture on the door : "ne crains pas, crois seulement. -Marc 5: 36" (be not afraid, only believe). I joked to Soeur Gagon that these people were probably croyant (believing), then rang the doorbell. A woman answered, heard who we were, cheerfully threw open the door, and ushered us in, saying, "we just finished praying !"
They had just prayed, and were having their daily evening scripture study as a family. The spirit the was wonderful. Like, soooo strong ! They're so in tune ! We'd made a goal with our district to give out two copies of the book of mormon that day, and we gave them the two copies we had on us. The father, who initially seemed very closed off, was actually really interested, and asked us to write down Moroni 10: 3-5 for him so he could read it again later. And he says he already has loads of questions. Yay !

So yeah, that was our biggest miracle ! In other news, the weather was in full spring mode. We went on a nice little hike, with a great place to stretch and relax at the top (and eat Subway), and we really enjoyed ourselves. Then we headed back down into the city. We wandered around shops and canals, and bought a few pieces of fancy chocolate and ate them by one of the canals. It was so picturesque ! Life could really be a lot worse.
Oh, and my companion helped me organize my desk, and it looks so much cuter now ! It's a lot more cleared off, so I can see my decorations, which makes me happy 😊. I'm so grateful for her, because goodness knows I don't know how to organize anything 😅
Other than that, it's a lot of contacting. We talk to so many people, so at least we're giving people the opportunity to learn more about God, even if they're not interested right now. God loves them just the same, and if they ever decide to open up their hearts to Him, He'll be right there for them. I know He's there for all of you.
Love you guys, and have an awesome week !!
Sœur Cate

Week 55 (2/17/20): The Sound of Music... and the taste of mousse

So it's been a good week. I'm not dead yet 😅 I'm feeling really ADHD today though, so you've been warned !

Dumb thing I did this week: I was having a lot of trouble with allergies. No idea what to, but it was getting really bad. So I called the mission president's wife, and she was like, "have you tried allergy meds ?" ... duh. But the happy news is that they've worked, so I'm no longer sneezing and itching and blowing my nose all the time. Thank goodness for modern medicine ! The only problem is that one of the side effects of the medicine is that it makes me more drowsy in the morning... and for those of you that have ever seen me first thing in the morning, you know that's one step up from dead. So that's been an extra challenge, but hey, it's worth being able to breathe and think ! I like those things.

We've continued helping teach the temple prep lessons to one of our returning members, and honestly, it's such a privilege. We get to discuss the most incredible, sacred place ever once a week, with this wonderful French woman who loves learning about Christ so much ! I love seeing how happy we all feel after the lessons, because our love for the temple and desire to learn just really brings the spirit. I'm so grateful for those rendez-vous !

We went to a nearby little town called Poisy ! There was a beautiful cathedral, some stunning views that look like where they filmed The Sound of Music. It was so ridiculously pretty. We met a less active member (who has 20 cats... cue allergies), and were able to have a fun conversation with him, so that was cool ! We'll try to set up something with him again soon. There was also a boulangerie with an incredible baguette panini with 3 types of cheese, and then a dessert that involved vanilla mousse, apples, caramel, and something that tasted like shortcake ? I would DEFINITELY recommend it. So overall, Poisy was a very good experience.

We're also continuing to help out in the primary every Sunday (my companion plays the piano for them while I help them with the melodies), which is honestly the most entertaining thing ever. Though the kids are starting to get used to me, so they talk with this adorable kid-french, and it's kind of the best.

We made turtle bread ! It is just normal bread, but you put it in the shape of a turtle. And then we wrapped it up in aluminum foil to give to some members, but we had to leave his head uncovered, so he looked like a little space turtle. So cute !

Anyways, I know God loves us. I know He has a plan, and that His plan allows for all of our imperfections, and still provides a path home for every single person that chooses to take it. Choose to take it !

Love y'all tons !

Sœur Cate

Week 54 (2/10/20): Old towns, mousse parties, and 102

Hello everybody !
I hope y'all are doing dang fabulously. I'm doing pretty good myself 😊
We had district council in Geneva this week, which was slightly problematic for our district leader to get to (strikes make transportation in France more exciting 😊) but it was a REALLY great council. We discussed how inviting people to be baptized was one of the most important things we could do, because it puts them on the path to become like God. So now we're just going to invite everyone we teach all the time. I can't wait to see the what blessings come from being bold and encouraging them to make the most important decisions ! 😁 We also talked about being more consecrated- more focused on what really matters, less distracted, more willing to give things up for God, and submit our desires to His higher will. We'll see how it goes !

We also had a really great lesson with a less active. He's not been to church in a while, and he has a lot of questions, but it was really cool to feel the spirit guiding us as we prepared to answer his real questions, and address some of his concerns. Honestly, the feeling of being directed by God so you can serve someone else is such an incredible feeling. It's a slow and steady work with him, but it's cool to see him changing !

We set a goal this week with our zone (the missionaries in the surrounding region, 11 missionary companionships in 7 cities) to find 22 new people to teach in one day ! Which is a pretty high goal, 2 people per companionship. We went out and started talking to people and inviting them to learn more, and we walked FOREVER, but we talked to over 100 people ! That's pretty crazy ! We didn't find anyone to teach, but I know that God sees our efforts, and he'll bless us in His way, in His time.

Well, for p day we got subway for lunch (God bless Subway), then went to a comic book store, then wandered around old town. I would recommend the old town of Annecy to literally anybody. There are fabulous old buildings, bookstores and clothes stores, souvenir shops, DIVINE food, canals, at least 4 cathedrals.... y'all should put this one on the bucket list.

Anyways, sorry this is short, but I love you guys, and hope you're doing great !
Soeur Cate

Week 53 (2/3/20): Twilight zone wandering

The full title is :

Twilight zone wandering in La Roche up and down super steep one lane roads with sharp turns and no railings in the pitch dark with pouring rain, and blaming it on everything from the unintentional murder of Bubbles, and his subsequent vengeance to 20h20•02•02•2020 opening a portal and sending us to the twilight zone.

But alas, they don't give me enough space.

I hope y'all had a wonderful week, mine was pretty good ! We had zone conference and exchanges in Geneva, which was super cool 😁. I bought and ate multiple fresh pretzels, so that was one of the highlights. And then we had a couple of fun rendez-vous with the people they're teaching, and she helped me set some good goals to improve my work. Honestly, exchanges are such a great opportunity to grow.

This week we went international !
We visited a family that's half Chilean, so they had a church broadcast going in Spanish, which was pretty awesome ! She shared a lot about her culture, and her experience being a member of the church both there and in France, and it was honestly so cool to see the cultural fusion in their family.

We also visited a Romanian family, and they're all super cute. A completely different culture, but fun to learn about as we all communicate in broken french, the only language we have in common 😅

Then we had a rendez-vous with one of our members from Côte d'Ivoire (... the ivory coasts ?), and it was honestly like traveling to Africa. She had invited over one of her friends who was also from Côte d'Ivoire and another friend from Nigeria. They all have little kids (and there was an additional kid there from Cameroon... I guess they were watching her ?), so we ended up having a dance party with them to distract them while her two friends finished the cooking. Oh my goodness, it was so good ! Salad and fries and fish with a tomato sauce and a grain mash (but like... dry ? I can't really explain it that well), and honestly being in that apartment was like changing countries for an hour. I love how many cultures get mixed together in France, it has really opened my eyes to how many ways there are to see the world, and how diverse God's children really are !

My companion and I had a really cool conversation this week that I wanted to share. We talked about how God has a perfect plan. He's all powerful. Technically He doesn't need us to do anything. But at the same time, His goal of having us here is for us to learn and grow and become like Him. And that doesn't just happen if He does everything for us. Which is where commandments and obedience come in. We don't obey because otherwise we're going to ruin God's plan. We obey to fulfill His designs for us, and to become tools He can use to help others. The more people He has out there being forced for good, the more He can do the best case scenarios in His plan, because there are people that will make it happen. So let's become the people we need to be to get those best case scenarios 😎
Love you guys !
Sœur Cate