Try Me!

TAVIA!   Congrats on the wedding babe!  You look fabulous!  Holy cow, people getting hitched!  I saw a bride at Park Cytadella a few days ago and I'm strongly tempted to call that place Park Cinderella, seriously it's so beautiful and makes me feel like I'm in a fairy-tale!

Speaking of the Henderson side of the family, have I said that my mission president and his wife remind me of the Fleischels?  And my companion slightly of Michelle Henderson.  Yup! :)

Well, here I sit once more at a computer in a Library in the middle of Poznań!  I didn't bring my camera with me into the room so I probably won't send pictures today.  But I wanted to tell you a few things I've been meaning to say about Poland for a while, you ready? O.k.:

1. Poland doesn't really have normal milk... you buy it in these square cartons and it doesn't taste quite right...BUT I still drink a ton of it and love it just the same.  I was a bit worried that it'd taste so bad I wouldn't want to drink it, but it's not bad.

2. The water here I guess would straight up make me sick if I drank it out of the tap (which I'm sorta skeptical about...but according to the rules, not allowed :) ) Więc, we have a water filter and you can only run cold water through it...which sometimes makes things a bit difficult, but it's cool!  What an adventure, eh?

3. We don't have dryers... in fact, I don't think anyone owns a dryer in Poland.  You just hang your stuff up to dry...which has been alright so far, just you get really crusty towels and have to rub them together.  You should try drying your towels hang dry sometime just to understand the effect...haha...

4. We don't have sheets on our beds, well there's a fitted sheet on the mattress and then a "doo-vey" not sure where that word comes from, pretty sure it's not Polish...but???  I've been sleeping on top of the duvej latley cuz it's been straszny gorący here the past week - SUPER HOT!!!

5. The phone numbers have 9 digits... so like 555-333-222 would be a Polish looking number!

 

Besides all this fun stuff, my heart today is really just super full!  I'm so, so, so, SO grateful for where I am and what I'm doing right now.  I am learning so much it's crazy.  Not just language, people skills, and how to be a missionary, but I'm learning so much about the gospel and so much how to LOVE, truly LOVE others.  I'm not saying this job is easy, because it is not easy.  But I AM saying this job is totally worth it and there's nothing else I'd rather be doing.  There is an article from the June 2012 Ensign about Scouting, I want you to all read it...and apply it to your life, and to your mission.  We're all missionaries, remember?  My favorite quote from the article goes something like this, "We have a legacy of doing hard things in this church."  And you know what!  WE DO.

 

More than ever before, I've been realizing lately how much we are asking of people, as missionaries.  We're asking them to give up so much... but in return, they'll recieve 100 fold!  As a missionary I've seen that as I give 100%, I'm given back 200% what I need and when I need it.  I've been asking to love the people more and to be the best missionary I can be, and I've been able to have experiences where I HAVE felt that love and I HAVE felt like I'm contributing to the work here in Poland.  Here's two stories to illustrate that point:

 

Just last night, we sat down next to a man and had what we usually call a 'park-bench-lesson' - he was just outside about to light up a cigarette and we asked if we could teach him about the gospel.  So he said sure why not, and we sat down and proceeded to try to teach about the gospel... Now I say try because for one, the man was smoking, and Sister Folsom said he smelled alot like beer... for another thing, this man was very talkative and didn't really listen when we tried to answer his questions.  As I tried to be patient with this man, and truly see him as the Lord saw him, it was just so interesting how things came to my mind that I could say to him that totally made sense to him and he finally agreed to something we had to say - I actually said it in English.  But he asked, 'So I have to do things God's way, if He exists, that is... You're telling me he won't let me do things my own way.'  I pretty boldly said, 'Yes!' except for I said 'Tak!' and he looks at me increduously and says, 'Tak?'  Then in English I said, "If you wanted to be a doctor..."  "I don't want to be a doctor"  "Well, if you wanted to be, use your imagination with me here, okay?  If you wanted to be a doctor, you'd have to do things a certain way, no?  There's a proven way to become a doctor, you can't just do your own thing and become a doctor... So God has a proven way, that works, and you can be the best doctor."  "I want to be a tatoo artist..." "Well you can be the best doctor, or tattoo artist, EVER, if you do things his way.  And we're here as missionaries to just invite everyone, Zapraśamy wszystke, to just TRY IT."  "O.k."  - ha!  After all this, he says 'Okay!' - it just made me smile.  And it was a light-bulb moment for me to realize that truly, God has blatantly thrown his hands up in the air and said, look, kids, this is how it is, "TRY ME" and all we have to do is DO IT.  Do what he says and you'll realize He's right, He exists, and his way is best.

 

The last quick story is sort of a sad one.  I was on an autobus this week when a man got on the bus who looked and smelled like he hadn't showered in days.  He was covered from head to foot in dirt and probably other things I don't even want to mention.  It was horrible.  His left leg was huge and swollen and had something wrapped around it.  It was the worst smell I've ever smelled in my life.  He looked so sad.  And he sat two seats away from me.  Everyone who got on the bus moved to either end of the bus as to not sit by him and people were holding their noses.  Later, Sister Folsom told me his leg was rotting.  I wanted to cry.  I couldn't help but know that this was one of God's children!  A son of God!  And I urge you to never let yourself go rotten.  Not in spirit, not in body. Take care of yourself, do it the Lord's way and help other people to stay healthy in body and spirit as well!  Please!

 

I know the church is true.  President Monson is our Prophet today!  Joseph Smith SAW what he said he saw.  The Book of Mormon has your answers.  God answers prayers, and I love you!

- Siostra Amber Allen