Week 47 - Girls Camp and Tour de France

Family!!

I have so many things to communicate to you that it is hard to do in an email once a week but here we go anyway! 

Breaking it down by days- gotta stay organized. 

Monday. P day. Normal. Took a nap for like two hours which was heavenly. We'd planned to do some other stuff in ville but that did not happen. That night we had a rdv with "C" and "I". They're so fun. You never quite know what's going to happen, you have to just be ready to respond to anything and sometimes have really thick skin. But that little Chadian firecracker who contacted me on the metro 4 months ago has a pretty big place in my heart. As we were getting up to leave she and "I" start singing this totally African (but in French) hymn and sort of dance us out of the apartment. I would pay a million dollars for a film of that moment. 

Tuesday. I don't really remember but we did some contacting and walked around a lot. Got a referral from the elders. Woot. 

Wednesday. SUCH a good day. We went to Camp Jeunes Filles!! [Girls' Camp] So funny story for the start of this story- we'd been told we were going to to "camp" which in French sounds like "cahn" with a really nice French nasal ending, so we've been thinking this whole time that we were going to Caen, the city for the camp haha so we end up in this little town called Pouance or something and we're like "this is no where NEAR Caen!" duh. Soeurs. So yeah. French is definetly still not my first language. 

But Camp Jeunes Filles. SO fun. Such an amazing day. They asked us, the Angers soeurs and the Nantes soeurs to come up and do some classes, because the youth theme is "oh ye that embark in the service of God...." So Tuesday night the girls received their mission calls and then Wednesday was the MTC. 

When we first got there though, they wanted us to introduce ourselves and talk about why we were on missions, and focus on chapter one of PMG. So we did that, but the Nantes soeurs weren't there yet so we were sort of just filling time so we answered some questions and then sang the mission song and did notre object if [PMG - my purpose as a missionary], and then sang the mission song again haha. 

Then we did our little classes- ours was on effective studies and they wanted us to focus on how to study and apply the sciptures, and specifically the Book of Mormon. And then in the afternoon, the equipes [teams] (they were in trios because there were a lot of non members (10 of the 42 girls weren't members!!)) came and taught us in little spots around the campground and the lake it was next to. 

SO cute. So many just good little moments with those girls. 

And THEN President and Soeur Babin showed up. They were doing a fireside that night for the girls- we had permission to stay, even though it was late (Pres: "well, the president de mission isn't too far so...") but we had to leave with the leader that brought us to camp. But not before we took a selfie with him and sr babs! I love them so much. 

Such a spiritually enriching day. Seriously, Sr Walton and I were talking about it, just it was so fun to get to talk about our missions and how much they mean to us and remember how amazing this whole experience is. And five hours of language study was pretty good too. 

Thursday/Friday. Not nearly as interesting as Wednesday.

Saturday. TOUR DE FRANCE. We had a rdv in town so we thought we could go to it and then also be in centreville for when the Tour passed but when we got in there was NO way we could get to our amis house so we changed the time and then decided to take our lunch hour to wait for the Tour de France and then go off and our other stuff that day. And we ended up talking to this Irish couple for like an hour and a half. It was so so cool. They were very similar to French people (kind of believing but kind of not, lots of really interesting questions about us/belief in general) very tricky questions sometimes - very much a "not be confounded before men" moment which was cool. And it was just really nice to be able to talk and teach and testify in English! Usually its really hard but it was really cool. 

And then the tour passed! Bucket list! 

Sunday. Did some porting, met a peachy old man named Michael. 

And yeah. That was my week. So so so much information dumped on you- please enjoy the pictures. 

love you guys!

sr hansen  

Week 46 - Zone Conference and Peach Cobbler

With Sr Hopkins

 Hellloo

No climbing tree stories this week, sorry to report but we did do lots of other good stuff!

LIKE- zone conference, so fun to see everybody, Mama Hopkins [her trainer] is in my zone now! She's so old haha. We got to practice teach her and she was (in true mama hops fashion) almost in tears about how much my French has improved. So cute.

 

And we got our iPad! (singular) haha we got a call on Monday night from the STLs that the iPads got stolen from the mission office on Sunday night. Kind of a bummer, we've been waiting FOREVER for these dang things but it's just kind of gotten to the point that it's a joke. I feel really bad for President and Soeur Babin, they just looked so tired and stressed at zone conference. I know it's just been so frustrating for them to keep telling us that we're getting them (we had a mission conference about it!) and then to just not have it happen for so long. They redistributed so every equipe has at least one iPad, it's registered to the person who's been in the ville less time so it's technically Sr Walton's, they've started the ordering process again but last time it took like 4 months so I'm not holding my breath haha. 

But anyway, the rest of the week we've been busy downloading mormon messages and liahonas whenever we're at the church. 

Other than that we had a pretty good week, still hurting for some new people to teach but it's been good to get out and do some finding! 

"C" and her brother "I" are awesome, they're both reading and so engaged in our lessons. It's so fun to teach them, it gets pretty intense sometimes but they're just great. It's still cracking us up that we have a guy ami. It just doesn't happen in this mission haha. 

I'm trying to think of some miracles or some funny stories for you guys!

Fourth of July! We proudly wore our red white and blue! Ended up spending most of the day at a relief society activity learning about finding balance in our lives (missionary lives are crazy out of balance haha) and then teaching clarisse and isadore! We made BBQ chicken and baked potatoes for dinner and had peach cobbler! Well it was really like peach crumble/crisp because cobbler is really complicated. But it was so good! We were blasting motab "God Bless America" all day and breaking out into the star spangled banner randomly. It was so fun. 

I love you guys! don't have too many pictures for you this week but i'll get them sent along! You're great and thanks for all the love and support! 

maren

Week 45 - Climbing Trees

Helllooo family!

So. yeah. this week. it was good. and it's starting to get hot so that's fun! and also makes me lament air conditioning (especially in buses) France. its not that hard. 

But anyway! 

Tuesday we had our exchanges and it was really great- did a nice three hour block of contacting which I hadn't done in a LONG time so it was nice to know that I still have that in me! We talked to some really cool people, so it was a good night! 

other than that we just kind of ran around Rennes having a blast being missionaries. 

In honor of Erik's tree climbing story I guess I need to partage one of my own haha made me laugh when I read his. 

SO picture this.

Saturday night. We had frudge city that day (our three rendez vous fell through- which ended up happening to every equipe in Rennes actually, we were 0/9 on Saturday) so we were walking up to a pass-by doing some contacting and I was all bugged because it seems like whenever I pick where we go contacting there are NO people. So we ended up in this park, which I wanted to go into, and it was naturally, DESERTED. So we sit on this bench for a second because it was hot and we'd been walking for like an hour and I notice this beautiful tree with low hanging branches. 

So I climb it. 

With Sr Walton's encouragement. "you need to climb this tree to get out your frustrations at this day" 

It was a good decision.

I've developed this new need to run around on rocks and climb trees. (very safely, of course) We're calling it my midlife mission crisis. I'm also blaming it on the fact that I'm going stir crazy in this ville. Don't worry. I was only like 5 feet off the ground. [looks like more than five feet to me]

Anyway. lesson learned this week- sometimes you just need to do something a little different to keep yourself from going insane. 

love you all so so much! you're the best. 

soeur hansen

"Jacques Cartier Metro steps"

"Look Kip"

Soeur Walton and Pablo Casals

Week 44 - Come what may and love it

"Ten months"

Family!!!!!

Hello everybody!

Not sure exactly what to write you guys this week, to be honest it was one of those weeks where it felt super long but at the same time it's kind of hard to see what you were actually able to accomplish, kind of a frustrating feeling. 

Mostly, it's just because we weren't able to see any of our amis this week, everything got cancelled or changed or bumped at the last minute and it was just a little bit hard. One of our transfer goals is to just love whatever comes our way, laugh, keep an eternal perspective and all that other good Elder Wirthlin talk stuff. But sometimes it's really tough. So we had the chance to learn and grow and make this week a better one. 

Anyway, last Monday we had our super zen chill peace day at St Malo- so we're going back today! We're both at the point in our missions (and I'm at the point with Rennes) where it's really nice to get out of town and go do something different for a day! And the beach is a great option for us!

Tuesday we had district meeting, comme d'habs [as usual], and did some work. 

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday we did work and planning.

Saturday! We had a rdv with our amie, "C", but we had to confirm it so we called and a man answered and we were like ... okay whatever, she's African. And he said he'd tell her we called when she got back. So we were like "yeah. okay, sure you will." BUT then like an hour later we got a call from her!! She calls me "Ansen" and it's really funny. Like it doesn't matter who calls it's always "Ansen." In kind of a grunt.  So we head over there and her brother is there, and he's super interested, we walked in and he was READING THE BOOK OF MORMON. Joined us for our lesson which was about enduring to the end (thank you 2 Nephi 31:20) and we really were pushing her to come to church which she hasn't done yet. So like in the middle of the lesson he's like "so what's your church like, how does it work on Sundays?" AHH so we commited both of them to come and THEY CAME!!!!!!!!!

It was such a miracle. So grateful that they came, it's super hard to get people to church here for some reason so we're saying gratitude prayers for days. 

You guys are great love you lots. Look for the Lord's hand.

Soeur Hansen

Photos from St. Malo

Week 43 - Train adventure

FAMILY! hello! greetings! salutations!

This week - no idea where to start, so so much happened. Super long week but in a good way. There's no way to fit it all in so I'm just going to send two quick stories. But this has seriously been one of the best, funniest, crazy weeks of my mission. 

Wednesday was transfer day, so we took our troisième [third companion] to the gare and put her on a train for Paris. Well, that was the plan at least. Since we were a trio Sr Walton and I didn't need to go into Paris, because she could travel with the elders that were going in. So, Rennes is a passthrough gare, which means that the train to Paris started somewhere like Brest or Quimper and then was going on to Paris, so we get to the car where Sr Stevens' seat is, and start trying to load her suitcases. But it wasn't the first gare so all the space is filled up so I took one of her suitcases and tried to find space in the middle of the car where there are some shelves and Sr Walton was working with Sr Stevens to find some space by the doors. So I'm in the middle of the car and then this TGV noise goes off and the DOORS CLOSED. So I look over at Sr Walton and we just stare at each other and I start mouthing "ARE WE STUCK ON THIS TRAIN" just complete shock sets in. So she starts frantically pushing buttons trying to get the door to open BUT THE DOOR IS CLOSED. so we're stuck on this train and then it starts moving. 

Naturally, the calm, as the level headed capable missionaries we are, we start RUNNING down the aisles of the train cars trying to find Elder Bigler, the DL who's on the train taking Elder Kelley into Paris to get transfered. So as I'm talking to him on the phone and we're running down the aisles we see two other elders who were coming in from Brest and they were just like "oh hey sisters" to which we respond half screaming and with a lot of hand waving "WE'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE ON THIS TRAIN WE DON'T HAVE TICKETS!!!!!!!!!!!!!" and continued running. Ended up finding Elder Bigler, who was trying to figure out how we could pool our money to buy us some tickets (oh another fun fact, my MSF card got hacked last week so I don't have any MSF for a little while) but the elders in Brest have a mission credit card (for buying gas because they have a car) and we ended up using that. So yeah. Sr Walton and I went to Paris on Wednesday. We were just laughing so hard about it the whole day and pretty much everday since. 

Adventures. 

So yeah. Good start to the transfer. Last one Sr Stevens and I were locked out for 6 hours, this one we accidentaly took a train to Paris. 

The rest of the week was really good! I am LOVING being back in a companionship and being with Sr Walton. We are having so much fun just being absolute goofs. Working SO hard and being exhausted all day and then getting into the apartment and going nuts. I was not super excited about staying in Rennes for another transfer but I feel like this is going to be one of my favorite transfers yet. 

Today we went to St Malo, I'd been before but went back with Sr Walton, it's really cool. Spent the day climbing on rocks and getting some fresh air. We ended up just spending a lot of our time sitting on some rocks and being still. So nice. We were just like "I feel so zen right now, so at peace and one with my soul" haha it was great. Sending lots of pictures for you guys. 

 Well. I love all of you so much. Hope you had a good laugh at my expense. Don't get stuck on TGVs. Its really dumb. 

you're all great!

sr hansen

Week 42 - And then there were two

HEY TEAM!

Well the tiny gang that I go everywhere with is being disbanded as of Wednesday morning. Going back to just being a duo. Its going to be so weird to be a normal companionship! But I'm really really really excited. 

Learned lots of things from this trio so I thought I'd bestow some of my pearls. They're pretty much just Sr Hansen pearls so take them as you will. 

1. Bottling it up actually solves problems sometimes.

I know psychologists will probably hate me for that one but hey this is my list of pearls so psychologists you can just get lost. I was talking to Pres in my interview a couple weeks ago about how with the trio, if you have some kind of emotional issue you want to talk to someone about its almost impossible in the trio because its so dang awkward to spill your feelings to two people. So you just don't. And then you get over it. So not bottling up so much as picking your battles. PICK YOUR BATTLES. 

2. Being sassy rarely solves problems. 

It feels good though. But don't do it. Because then everyone is just annoyed. Sometimes you have to remember that you want to be friends with these people after you're out of this high stress situation called a mission. And then you'll be grateful for every day that you were friends ON the mission and not too busy sassing each other off about things that don't actually matter. 

3. Sometimes you just need to buy ice cream. 

it solves SO many problems. yeah. 

4. A clean apartment is a happy apartment. 

Yeah. it turns out John Bytheway was on to something. And my Mom. And those annoying office elders that always do formations on cleaning the apartment. Coming home to a nasty apartment after spending the entire day, every day, with the same two people that you also live with is enough to make anyone (and frequently does make ME) grouchy. So yeah. clean apartment=heaven on earth. But I hate cleaning so that's a pearl I'm still working on. 

These are my pearls so far. Hope you've enjoyed them. 

This week though- not a whole lot to report. Did lots of missionary work. Sr Stevens is going to Orleans to be with her MTC comp and she's SO excited. And we're excited for her but its going to be weird, I've lived with that little goof for four and a half months. and I'm going to miss her like crazy.  

LOVE you fam! have a great week!

Soeur Hansen

"Sr Stevens has an American flag she didn't tell us
 about until she was packing. We sang patriotic anthems this morning." 

Week 41 - "I just love France"

GUYS!

This week was crazy, we went to Nantes on Tuesday after district meeting for a quick second exchange (they wanted to do another one because of the trio thing) it was fun to see Sr Anderson one more time before she goes home!

Got back from Nantes, had PPP with our cute Chinese ami, "G" (well she's not really an ami because we haven't actually been able to teach her but she's come to stuff!) 

Thursday we went to "E"s (the French lady we do service for) she was really really depressed so we just talked for a bit and then offered that we could arrange a priesthood blessing. It was really sweet. We saw her the next day to go grocery shopping and she just seemed SO much better. Just lighter. It was amazing to me to see the power of priesthood blessings for other people, I know how powerful they are for me personally but to see that in someone else's life, especially someone who is not a member was just beautiful. 

Friday ran around Rennes trying to find less actives to invite to the Soiree Dansant. Funniest activity ever. It was basically a stake dance, but for the ward. The whole ward, the adults the youth the primary. And there was a talent show at the end. I just love France you guys. 

Saturday we did some planning. That night we taught this super sweet lady named "N", we were going to teach plan du salut so we asked her about what she thought the goal of this life was and straight away she goes "Je ne sais pas." [I don't know] and proceeds to tell us that she's been praying and had prayed the night before asking God what the purpose of her life was and if there was a plan for her. AHHHh. Missionary work!!!

Sunday we went to church. It was raining. Missionary work...

And today! We're going to L's tonight for family home evening. Made cookies but we didn't have enough flour so I put in oatmeal (sort of worked) didn't have vanilla so we put in almond flavoring (didn't really work at all, don't try it) but non-Americans won't know the difference! 

You guys are great and I love you lots! 

Have a great week!

sr 'an-sen