Things here are finally returning to normal. Between Christmas, Boxing Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, and an extra day off for everyone on 2 January, our missionary schedule and work in general has been thrown way off. I do no appreciate being thrown off my groove. That said, we have had many sweet experiences, and now I am genuinely grateful to be able to walk around and talk to people for hours at a time.
During the holiday season we spent a few hours as a district (8 elders, 2 sisters) caroling in downtown Kitchener. Missionaries seem to attract the characters in any locale, and bring out the unusual in any one. This is certainly true of downtown Kitchener. One man approached me and insisted on conversing in Polish. When I told him I didn't speak Polish he looked at my tag and said "Nice, nice" over and over, then kept speaking Polish. We sent him on his way with a handful of pamphlets and Church magazines, which he wanted (we determined from scattered English) for his family. I don't know if anyone will be baptized because of it, but I think we brightened things up a bit and maybe helped a few people to remember what the whole point of Christmas is.
We had another fun encounter yesterday outside of Tim Horton's (Krispy Kreme is better, by the way, but that maple donut...). I finished a phone call and returned to my companion just in time to hear the man she was talking to say "Oh Mormons, yeah, I love yous guys. You're real beautiful and peaceful, man." Imagine sharing the gospel with Oddball from Kelly's Heroes; he sounded exactly like that. Nobody told this guy that it wasn't 1965 anymore. One thing I have been taught over and over again, though, is that you absolutely cannot tell who will accept the gospel and who won't, unless the Lord decides to reveal it to you. People I think are golden end up giving us fake numbers. Devout Muslims and determined Atheists agree to meet with us. Our hippy friend at Tim Horton's wasn't interested, but we're here to invite EVERYONE to come unto Christ.
And here in Waterloo and Kitchener we do get to talk to everyone. This week the list of nations has grown to include Malaysia, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. There's a house near the Waterloo campus with a banner that reads "Chabad on Campus: Your Jewish Home Away From Home". They aren't really interested in our message, but I would love to talk with them for a while anyway. And of course there is a massive Chinese community. The University of Waterloo has a well known and extremely well funded engineering program, in addition to math and science programs, and this is what brings people from all over the world. The Chinese people we speak with are polite and often very interested, at least academically. The fact the missionaries are not allowed in mainland China or most of the Middle East does very little to hinder the work there; the gospel is being preached to (almost) every nation, kindred, tongue, and people right here.
A new year isn't that big a deal as a missionary, just another day to teach and preach and work as missionaries do. Mom, I loved your point about the Sacrament. If we prepare properly and partake of it worthily, the Sacrament is an opportunity for a new beginning every week. If we're living the gospel the way we should, then goals and changing our lives should be a constant process. Elder Holland counseled missionaries to "repent every day, every hour". My missionary goals usually fall under the category of consecration: not wasting a minute, talking to everyone, loving everyone as Jesus loves them, turning every thought and breath to missionary work. All are still very much a work in progress, but Elder Christofferson taught that the Lord does not expect immediate perfection, just immediate progress. All of our goals should line up with Moses 1:39 and 2 Nephi 2:25. Do they help us achieve immortality and eternal life? Will they bring us joy? If yes, then we'll have the Lord's help, and with Him, all things are possible.
Thank you SOOOOOO MUCH for the Christmas packages! My last Burt's Bees chapstick broke a few days before Christmas, and I just love Yardley's. Kadilly, I will be putting the paper and pens (especially that shiny silver one) to good use today. I was pleasantly surprised by a package of cookies and other yumminess from the Stewards as well. Thanks to everyone for making it a wonderful Christmas.
On the subject of gifts, we spoke to a man on New Year's Eve that helped me realize what an extraordinary gift the gospel of Jesus Christ is. We stopped him on the street, introduced ourselves, and asked him about his religious views. He replied quizzically that he didn't know our Jesus, and that his Jesus was probably quite a bit different. Well, people who don't know "our Jesus" is the whole reason we're out here, so we asked him what he meant by that. He has an interesting and not uncommon idea that Jesus is the mortal incarnation of God, who emptied Himself of diety to come to earth... and he couldn't explain any more because who can understand God? We were able to bear testimony of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, the Savior of the World. I told Him that we are His representatives, that He has a prophet on the earth, and that the Book of Mormon teaches us exactly who Jesus is and His role in our lives. We talked about Christ's baptism, when the Father bore witness of the Son and the Holy Ghost descended like a dove. The Book of Mormon and the teachings of modern prophets give us a beautifully simple understanding of that event: we believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost.
This knowledge is a great gift, one not to be taken for granted or kept for ourselves. It is impossible to become like Jesus Christ without sharing His gospel, something we covenanted to do at baptism. Even if the people we share it with aren't interested, like that man on the street, our own testimonies grow as we share them. Jesus Christ taught that eternal life is to "know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." He gave us His life; we can give up some of our fears and open our mouths, even to do something as simple as invite a friend to an activity, FHE, etc.
Lots of love to everyone!
Sister Turvaville
SNOW!!! The drifts cover our boots.
Hat hair and rosy cheeks after street contacting in some crazy sauce wind. Ice and snow kept hitting our eyes and going up our noses (that's an interesting feeling). But we got an appointment out of it!
Lamb kafta, taboule, beets, and hummus at Al Madina. The Chinese place we usually go to with Yu Jin was closed, but this place rocked my socks. It's run by a very Muslim (hence Al Madina) Egyptian family. The patriarch passed us with his prayer rug while we were stuffing our faces. We went again the next day for chicken shawarma and fries. Yummy.
Yu Jin! One of our investigators. We go out to eat with her once or twice a week. She comes from a tiny town that I can't pronounce in northern ( think) China. She learned English by watching American movies. I love this girl.
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