Well, jokes on us - we got 4 inches of snow last night, and I still can't stop thinking about how cold my feet are right now as I write this. And yes Mom, I'm wearing tights, socks, AND boots to keep them covered. Help.
I'd LOVE to give a shout out to Sister Kim Bosler, Janet and Charlie French, and The Christensen Family. Your e-mails made my day! Sister Bosler, don't worry about Karli and dogs. She probably loves dogs more than I do, so I'm sure she'll be fine! Brother Christensen, thank you for the MTC to mission field analogy - SO helpful. I feel blessed to know all of you and can't thank you enough for taking time out to write your thoughts.
So last week, I COMPLETELY forgot to write you about our latest service activity - entertaining the women of an assisted living home! So a couple in our ward, the Taylors, have a HUGE house out in Great Falls (see attached picture), where they use their basement level as an assisted living home. We get to come once a week and play games with the women like "Hangman", "Big Word, Little Word", and "Boggle". Most of the women don't like to play, just watch. But there is one lady who almost shouldn't belong there, she's too spunky! Her name is Joan and she's from Northern England. Joan LOVES when we come and she plays it all (not necessarily following all the rules). We were playing "Big Word, Little Word" and she loved yelling out and repeating words like "gin" and "piss". A true Brit, right Dana? She actually went to college in Leeds. How cool!
This past week we also decided to sing songs together! We sang some musical tunes (YES), Christmas songs, and old rhymes. Joan knew it all! She amazes me. I feel blessed that the mission is giving me opportunities to do stuff like this! Even though I'm not teaching the gospel to her (not allowed to), I'm trying to be a loving example. And boy, do I anticipate our visits! It such a highlight of my week. I'll tell you about the other women there sometime soon.
I'll tell you about one particular lesson I had this week. My companion stressed to me how important it is that we go on "splits" with the members, where we split up and bring a member along with us to appointments instead. So luckily, I had the Young Women's President that night and she's great! Her name is Sister Ballew and the teaching appointment I had her accompany me to was with a woman named Alena, who lives in the same complex as Sister Ballew (UH, CONVENIENT). Alena is a tradional Catholic, but actually doesn't agree with many things in Catholicism. For example, she can't stand it when people show off their wealth in the church (especially with the money they're being paid with BY the church). She also hated the last pope (the one that resigned). Alena said she would turn him off the TV every time he came on. Lastly, she absolutely LOVES the idea of missionaries and constantly wonders why the Catholics don't invite people to their church like we do. She is SUCH a great lady. At the end of the lesson, I invited her to be baptized and she said she "couldn't promise anything", but she would love to come to our church. Well that's DEFINITELY a start! Pray that she'll come to church on Easter Sunday! I know it's a stretch for Catholics, but it can be DONE.
To close, I had my first Zone Conference this week (see picture), where we heard from our mission president, President Riggs, and his wife. It was amazing! I learned so much...
D&C 3:7-8
7 For, behold, you should not have feared man more than God. Although men set at naught the counsels of God, and despise his words—
8 Yet you should have been faithful; and he would have extended his arm and supported you against all the fiery darts of the adversary; and he would have been with you in every time of trouble.
BE FAITHFUL and He will support you! And let us remember this with Easter JUST around the corner! I spoke in Sacrament meeting yesterday about Christ's reason for overcoming temporal and spiritual death. What I wrote:
"He overcame temporal death so that we may PHYSICALLY stand before God. He overcame spiritual death so that we may RIGHTEOUSLY stand be before God."
His Atonement allows us to do both. I know that to be true.
I LOVE YOU ALL! Have a HAPPY EASTER. Eat lots of candy for me. Especially those Mini Cadbury Eggs. Yum.
Loves,
Sister Hansen
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