Tender Mercies

Family!!

I want to start by sharing a Scripture.

I was reading in first Nephi 1 and in the last verse of the chapter Nephi says, "The tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he has chosen."

This week has been a testimony builder of that.

I have been noticing all the little mini miracles that happen all around me every day. Here are some that made my list this week:

* I had multiple warm showers with adequate water pressure. This does not always happen. Sometimes a nice warm shower solves all your problems!

* The chicken salad sandwiches here don't have nuts in them! Hooray because they are absolutely delicious.

* Come Thou Fount is in the German hymn book! Who knew!?! We discovered it the other day. # 74. We sing it quite often because it is such a good one.

* One of our progressing investigators accepted our invitation to come to church. (This made the list not only because it was a great experience but also because I forgot the investigator's name while extending the commitment... I get so so nervous when I invite people to do things like be baptized or come to church. It is the most nerve racking thing ever! Luckily he was kind enough to disregard the fact that I forgot his name. So that was kind of a 2 in 1.)

* We also had wonderful experiences teaching in the TRC. We were nervous to teach people who we didn't know but it was such a fun activity. We were able to have the Spirit with us and find the necessary German words to communicate.

* They brought cranberries back to the salad bar! What is a salad without craisins!?!

* I also was able to memorize the First Vision auf deutsch this week. That amazing feat is the result of a good 100 laps on that indoor track :)

* We went to a wonderful devotional on Sunday night. The night before I had a bunch of questions. I kid you not, every one of my concerns and questions were brought up and answered in that fireside. It was amazing. I know that the Lord hears my prayers!

Ok, so there are those. Some sound silly but all of them are just evidence that my Heavenly Father loves me!

The church has a language learning program that is similar to Rosetta Stone. We get to spend an hour a day on it learning German. A few days ago the Elders were using it to learn how to make a phone call. The fictitious person they were trying to get a hold of was named Sister Brown. So when our teachers showed up later in the day and asked what they had learned they all said, "We learned how to call Sister Brown and find out if she is available." So there's that. Great things you learn in the MTC.

We've had some other great discoveries this week.
 
1. German is the language of the Celestial Kingdom. That discovery comes from a talk we watched from President Uchtdorf. I'm fairly sure he was kidding, but still...

2. The name tags that elders use on their suit coats can be played like kazoos. They have two sides because they clip in their pockets. If you put your lips in between the clips and blow it buzzes. We have been working on arranging hymns. I will keep you posted.

3. The prayer works! This discovery came from a lot of sources but this is one of those primary talk prayer stories. We came back from gym to find the other sister's locked out of our room. They had forgot the room key. This shouldn't have been a problem because I showed up with a key. The problem was that before Sister Hansen and I got there, another sister had tired to help by sticking a bobby pin in the lock. The top of the bobby pin broke and was now stuck in the lock. So my key wouldn't work. We all tried it and then decided to pray. So we did and the very next time we put the key in, the door unlocked. So prayer really works!

Love you all!

Thanks for everything.

Have an amazing week!!!

Love,
Sister Brown

PS I also got to watch the Joseph Smith movie in German. It was pretty cool even if the German voice overs didn't match up with the actors' lips :)

 

Who loves flashcards? Sister Brown and Sister Hansen love flashcards!

 

 

These pictures are right into the sun and a field of super white snow so that explains the looks of pain on our faces.

Plus a million different cameras were going so we are all looking different ways. Sorry. We fail at picture taking.

 

 

 

There has got to be a better method to finding batteries lost in a suitcase...

February 19, 2013

Meine Familie
I wanted to write you guys again but the internet time flies.  I wanted to send pics today so I will opt for the old snail mail.  We have a lot of letter writing time on P-day. We’d have even more if it didn’t take an hour to write the return address.  Why is it so dang long!?!

Just one more of the many things to love about life at the MTC, I guess.  Another one is the sister who institutes the shower sing along every night.  She sings so loud and everyone else joins in.  The songs vary night to night. My favorite is the 1D/Taylor Swift back to back combo.  Who needs the radio!?!

This one’s for reals:  I really like how friendly everyone is. I need practice bearing my testimony in German so at lunch and other meals I find someone to practice with.  Usually it’s just some elder in line.  Where else could you bear your testimony to a stranger in a foreign language?! Pretty cool.

I dropped my garments in the toilet a few days ago. I was changing in a bathroom stall with no shelf. I had placed everything on the toilet paper holders.  I was being so careful about not letting them fall on the floor.  Then I bent down to put on tights and the garments got knocked into the toilet.  Yeah.  The adventures never end.

Cyndie was right.  The MTC is not fun.  Anyone who says so gets a lie-alert called on them.  It is hard work alles tag, jeden tag.  I definitely have had a positive experience.  I don’t want to come home or anything.  But fun is Disneyland.  This isn’t Disneyland.

We have good times though.  I’ve laughed harder in the past week than I have in a long time.  Sometimes that’s all you can do.  We’re a goofy bunch though, so laughing is a must.

German is hard. I’m not gonna lie. This is an adjustment. I have always felt very successful and put together. I’ve always been way on top of things.  It has been hard to be in an environment where even if I try my best I still come up short.  I don’t quite understand or I slaughter a sentence or I preach false doctrine to investigators, totally unintentional of course, that’s been rough.

The good news is that I know this is where I need to be.  I also know my Heavenly Father is loving and helping me every day.  He’s also blessed me with an amazing support system with Sister Hansen and our district and teachers and branch leaders.  We just take it one day at a time and pray, in German J, for help all day long!

You guys are the best! I love getting letters. It seriously makes my day. I always save them until right before bed so I can really read and enjoy them. 

Love you all so much

Sister Brown

Bunch of random after thoughts:

1.       I just re-read the letter and found that I said “lunch and other meals” uhh…not sure what that was.  Could that have been more awkwardly phrased? I think not.

2.       The food here doesn’t even come close to the horror stories. I have loved something every meal.  Plus they use BYU Creamery Ranch so there’s a bonus. They are a little nut crazy though so that ruins some plans. No reactions yet though! Oh and no nuts in the chicken salad sandwiches.  Blessing!

3.       The Dansko shoes are the most comfortable thing I currently own.  Such a good choice.  We do a lot of walking/standing plus I started running so that has been great.  We did good all the way around with shopping.  Lots of mix and match possibilities.

4.       We watch Mormon Messages sometimes in study time and it makes us so excited.  You know you’re TV deprived when you find joy out of watching 10 Mormon Messages in a row.  We watched the trek one I’m in too.  The whole district was like, “What the heck?! There’s Sister Brown.”

5.       Maddie, if you can look up and send me the quote from Pitch Perfect about speaking German and having no fun that would be great.  We get it quoted to us all day when other people find out we’re learning German but we aren’t quite sure of the actual quote.  Thanks Pal!

6.       Dad, you should let Jeff know I love getting notes from his girls.  They just sent me Valentines and some cute heart stamps.  I love writing them back.

So there’s basically a whole other letter.  Enjoy! J

Hooray for MTC Laundry-Room Computer Photo Upload!

 

 

 

Family!!!

So it is time for me to share my favorite part of the MTC!

It is how often we pray.

I say probably 50 prayers a day and at least 15 out loud. Alles Auf Deutsch!

It is such a good habit to have.

I know that Heavenly Father answers my prayers, especially the little ones. Sometimes I just need help conjugating a verb or remembering a word for a lesson. The help I need is just a prayer a way.

A close second though is gym time.

I have started running again. Jeden Tag. It has been SO long since I have run regularly. It is so fun to have that part of my life back. I love it. It is fun to have some semi-alone time to think. It has been a great time to memorize the missionary purpose and the first vision. Plus with the 10 lap to a mile track the mental distraction is wonderful!

I am starting to love German. I think it is so beautiful. Call me crazy... I can't wait until I can speak better, but every day I am learning more and more.

However, there's still a long way to go.

There have been some funny moments in this German learning adventure. Once we were praying with an investigator and I prayed for us to have a "Gut Gemacht" (good job) instead of a "Guten Nacht" (good night). Then in a lesson with a different investigator I asked what he likes to do. He told me he likes to get drunk and party with his friends and I told him "Oh me too! That is so cool." Yeah no way to recover from that one...

I know so much more than I did a week ago though so progress is being made. I love my teachers. They are so patient and never tire of me asking for them to repeat what they say. It has been hard to be in a companionship where neither of us speak German. The other companionships have someone who took a few years. However, it is forcing us to both learn and be active in the lessons. It isn't an option for us to just rely on the other person's language skills. We just study flash cards, say some prayers, and then go teach!

Speaking of investigator adventures... We were teaching this one man in the same room every night. Then one night he wasn't there. We went on a search through the whole building to find him. We searched through three floors. Thank goodness for peepholes! Who loses their investigator!?! When we finally found him we were so excited we skipped down the hall.
 
Side note- They have asked the sisters to be lady like so skipping is not ok. Neither is dancing. I totally understand needing to keep the Spirit with us but it is a hard habit to break. Whenever I get excited or conjugate something correctly or say something that actually makes sense I just have a dance party. Ok well dance party might be a bit generous. It is mostly just me flailing my limbs around. Then the teachers remind me "Wir tanzen nicht Sister Brown!"

Well Valentine's Day was great! It was such a funny day in the MTC. We were eating Dove chocolates and the message on my wrapper was "Be your own Valentine." We hung it up because it made us all laugh so hard. Kind of a depressing message but perfect for missionaries!

Shout out to my doughnut sending friend too!

The sisters I was with were freaking out about the beautiful pink package with a bow and then when we discovered the doughnuts, people almost died!  Best. Package. Ever!

This week has been kind of overwhelming.

I just feel so inadequate.

I often feel like I can't do all of this.

However, I do have a testimony that my call came from the Lord. This is where my Heavenly Father wants me right now. He is over all. If He wanted a perfect German speaker, He could have that. If He wanted someone who knew Preach My Gospel in and out, He could have that too. But he doesn't. He wants me. Even if I never know what is going on. Even if I always get lost and slaughter my German phrases. He has called me to serve in Berlin Germany and will help me. I just need to have faith and keep trying.

So there's that!

Thanks for all the mail. I seriously love getting letters. It is my favorite part of the day.

The Elders who get the mail for us have harmonized a mail song because we all get so excited for that time! I love to see pictures and read how everyone is doing.

Thanks for the packages too.

However, know that treats are not required. After the Valentine's rush we have a treat pile to last weeks!!

Well, have a good week!

The Lord loves us!!
-Sister Brown

PHOTO FEST

 

MTC Day #1: tag with dork dot

Sister Brown and Hansen

 

I realize I am pointing to like West Virginia in this picture. Whatever...

 

 

I love my district. The Elders are so great.  They always take our trays at meals and hold the door for us. Awesome! District unity!!

 

 

Roomies

 

 

 

More MTC News

Family

I can’t believe I’ve only been here a few days.  It seems like I’ve been here weeks.

I love working with Sister Hansen.  We get along so well and she is so sweet.  I love all the girls in my room too. So that’s a huge blessing!

One of my favorite things about Sister Hansen is that we can just laugh together. Sometimes that’s all we can do, especially in German class. 

The German is slow but it is coming.  I love our teachers and they are so great and patient. I’m getting really good at picking out when they tell us we can have a break J  Oh and I’ve mastered how to say Ich habe ein frage (I have a question) and Ich Weiss nicht (I don’t know).

Sister Hansen and I had an adventure when I left my ID card on my breakfast tray.  We had to go back to the dishwashers and search for it.  So I am extra thankful for the cute lanyard!!

We taught our first "investigator" this week… in German!  The first appointment was a train wreck.  No joke.  It was just the German.  We totally approached it wrong.  The focus was on us and our message in German and not on our investigator and his needs.  It was so bad! However the next night we taught him again and it went so much better.  He prayed out loud with us.  The Spirit was definitely there.  Both Sister Hansen and I were crying.  It was so good.

I love all the people I am working with.  It can all be kind of overwhelming so we just take it one class at a time and focus on all the German we know.  3 days ago I couldn’t have prayed or born my testimony in German.  We’re even conjugating verbs!! Every day I just versuche meine besten!

Thanks for the packages!

Love you tons!

Sister Brown

P.S. If you can’t tell it is SO hard to get used to being called and introducing myself as Sister Brown.

P.P.S. My departure date is now March 19.

P.P.P.S. The food isn’t bad at all.  I can find something every meal including fresh veggies and fruits.

P.P.P.P.S. There are indeed 40 sisters headed to Berlin with us and a bunch of Elders.  Bas ist sehr gut!!

 

Email Eins: MTC report

So the MTC...

It has been going great. I love it all!

Saying goodbye was hard but right after I walked away from the car the adventure started and it hasn't slowed down yet.

My favorite part was getting my name tag. It sounds kind of dumb, but that plastic thing means so much. I love being able to wake up each morning and see my name next to the Savior's.

It is hard to get used to being Sister Brown, though. That will definitely take some more time.

My companion is Sister Hansen. We get along so well. I love how supportive and helpful she is of me. My favorite thing about her is how we can just laugh. We have been doing a whole lot of that lately!

I also love my district. I am so blessed to be around such great people all day long. One of my favorite things we do is sing together in German. Thanks for the little hymn book, Dad!

The German is hard but I am amazed at how fast it is coming. I can say prayers and bear my testimony in German. I am learning so much so fast and I know it is because the Spirit is helping.

 

We have already started teaching our first "investigator". His name is Cho and he is from China. I was so excited to tell him about my trip to China and the adoptions. I hadn't even prepared for that but the words came to me and we were able to have a good conversation about families and the plan of salvation. Sister Hansen and I later taught him how to pray. It was such a great experience. We were both crying. It is a powerful thing to be able to teach someone about their Father in Heaven and then hear their first prayer to Him.

Here's my little spiritual note:

Look up D&C 31:3.

It has been my scripture this week.

Anyways, the dang clock on this computer is flashing red at me. I can't believe how fast the time went.

Have a great week!

Thanks for all the love and prayers.

-Sister Brown

Q & A from the MTC

Lee emailed a slew of questions we have all been asking. Here's the list and Sister Brown's replies:

What do you eat?

How is the food?
 

I eat salads and wraps for lunch. They are delicious. I have had to stay away from the desserts becuase they are all nut filled or made on the nut filled equiptment. I have really liked the food though and been able to find somethign every meal that I like. THere are even fresh fruits and veggies... Sunday is mostly cold cereal and sandwiches to help cut down on the staff needed to work on the Sabbath.

Do you know the Noorda twins from Las Vegas? One is going to Berlin and one to Frankfurt. I guess mom has read things from their mother in her little missionary mom's email group.

I do know the Noorda twins from Las Vegas. Elder Kevin Noorda is in my district/class. He is super cool and so helpful with my German. Elder Lowry was also in my district/class but he got fast tracked. That kid passed the German AP test! He knows what's up. He was always so helpful too. We miss him tons and now have a trio.

 

Have you seen Tyler Webb or Skyler Johnson, our temple buddies?

 

I have seen Elder Johnson, Elder Webb, Elder Brown, Elder Bates, Elder Dortch, Elder Bastian, and Elder Buratto. Westlake Partay!

 

 

What are the names of your roommates?

I am companions with Sister Hansen from Sandy, UT. We get along really well and have had such a great time. We share a room with Sister RIcks and Sister Krisser, who are also in our district. Then there's another Sister Hansen and Sister Wallen who are the only sisters in their district. So just the six of us. We have had some good times!

 

My district is all headed to Berlin. There's me and Sister Hansen, Sister Krisser and Sister Ricks, Elder Noorda and Elder Matthews and Elder Gerhartz (trio), and Elder Bingham and Elder Smith. I love them all so much and we are having so much fun together.

 

Which dorm do you live in?

Our building is 17 M and our room is 277.

 

How do you like your German classes?

German classes are fun and I love our teachers. They are so great and patient. However, they are also so hard. There may or may not be tears shed in that closet of a room.... Everyone in my district is great at helping each other out though. I am learning a ton and making flashcards like crazy!

Does it feel like Sunday every day?

The clothes make it feel like Sunday every day but the classes and the roommates and dorms and cafeteria make it feel like college again.

 

 

Do the fast track missionaries have their travel plans? I leave that same day for Chicago. My flight leaves at 11:18 that morning so I will be there. I was told by mom they are leaving that day as well. Just curious to see if they will be there at the same time.

 

I'm not sure about flight plans for the fast trackers. There's just a few. The old German speakers left this morning. The ones going to Frankfurt left through DC and the Alpine ones left through Atlanta and Amsterdam. I'm not sure about the Berliners.

My current departure date is the March 19. No travel plans yet though.

 

~Sister Brown

 

Snail Mail Eins

 

 

FAMILY!
I am writing you from my bed after my first day in the MTC! Crazy right?!?

It has been so great so far. My companion is Sister Hansen. She is so sweet and we've gotten along so well. I even made it through my first "only German" class. I was surprised at how much I was able to understand.

There are 4 sisters in my district. I am the baby. Sister Hansen is almost 21.

My favorite moment so far has been singing "We'll Bring the World His Truth."  They changed the words so we sang "and we are now the Lord's missionaries." So cool!

I AM a missionary!

Pinning on my name tag was so cool too. They're magnetic so no holes!

I forget my name is Sister Brown. I keep telling people Hillary.  That will take some getting used to.

Everything here is great. I never know what is next and I got lost all day long and I had major struggles remembering my German phrases but I do know it will get better. The German will come and I'll figure out the routine.  More importantly I know this is where I need to be right now and I know I have a Heavenly Father who loves me and will help me.

I love you all so much!

Love Sister Brown

Twelve Thirty (young girls are coming to the MTC)

WARNING: this post is quite possibly the longest blog in the history of blogging. 

No joke, I fully expect blogger to email me any minute asking for this to be truncated, divided into several posts, or just deleted altogether.  It's just that long. 

You'll be shocked to know that I only posted a fraction of the photos we took, too.  I know, it's a ton of pictures.  It was hard to leave any out. 

I want to remember every single minute of this day before 12:30pm.

Here's the recap:

This morning started by loading the car with Hillary's three suitcases and getting some yummy breakfast at Kneaders.  Most of us had chunky cinnamon french toast, but Grace chose a breakfast croissant. She's a clever girl, with everyone else having all-you-can-eat french toast, she got to have a little of both.

From there we headed toward Provo and the MTC. Then took a little stop at the mall. 

Maddie is frantically searching for the perfect dress for the Sweetheart's dance this weekend.  She thought she had it all set, but then changed her mind.  We had about half an hour, so we dashed into the mall while Lee and the younger kids went to fill the car with gas.

The mall was a fail on two counts. We have a couple of favorite shops but neither had anything that was Maddie's style.  Dress strike out.  And then I let Hillary go off to the bathroom by herself while I helped Maddie try on dresses.  I guess that fail was not the mall's fault. Just a slacker mom-companion. Hills admitted she considered running away, mostly just to make me realize what a forgetful companion I am.

We had been warned about the quick turn around at the curb-side drop-off at the MTC.

We went to the Provo temple to take some photos and say our goodbyes.

This is our Germany-bound girl with the MTC in the background (through the trees).

Best friends and sisters

After those photo attempts with the MTC in the background, we walked up to the temple grounds. 

Obligatory jumping photos: 

12:30pm was drawing nigh. 

It was time to start saying our goodbyes.

She started with Kai.

Then Gracie Lou.

And Pearlie girl. 

 

I could hardly bear to watch this goodbye. 

These two have always been best friends.

With Maddie's mission plans, they will be apart for 2.5 years.

Hills saying goodbye to Maddie Love Cake.

My heart is breaking.  I know that this is the goal. I have a wonderful, capable, prepared girl ready to serve the Lord. There is nothing more in the world I could want for her. But it still is hard to let her go away. 

I will miss her so much. Every day.

Another difficult goodbye.   

Next stop, the MTC.

Lee timed the drop off and it was literally 5 minutes from when we drove into the MTC until we were pulling away from the curb.

It wasn't as bad as we had been told.

Elder Winkel of Las Vegas, Bulgaria bound, actually opened my car door to help me out to say goodbye to Hillary. We had heard that the missionaries wouldn't let us out of the car, only the missionary.

We were told that they were expecting 830 missionaries today. More than a third and less than half are sisters (we're not sure on the percentage there...we heard these vague statistics from the man at the gate and also from Elder Winkel).

But both confirmed that this is the most sisters ever to enter the MTC in a day.

Hillary walking away with Elder Winkel.

 More walking, more crying

She just kept on walking away. And crying. She is kind of laughing, too because right about now, another elder who was also there to host an incoming missionary, told her how 'fun' the MTC is. This has been our little joke the past week or so. We say, "Disneyland is fun, a mission to Germany will be many things, but fun is an adjective we are saving for Disneyland." So hearing that missionary say it would be fun made us all laugh.  

We decided to go get a treat at the BYU bookstore before we headed home. 

THIS WAS OUR FIRST FAMILY MISSIONARY MIRACLE:

Maddie found the perfect dance dress at the BYU BOOKSTORE!!

When we had an ample supply of chocolate-covered cinnamon bears and m&m's, we drove home.

Hillary had left notes and small gifts for everyone hidden in their rooms.  So, we had another round of tears as everyone read the sweet things Hillary had to say.

Lee and I didn't find notes in our room.  Lee found his at work in his computer bag.  Mine was hand delivered by my sweet friend Mandi, along with this QUILT she and Hillary had been in cahoots on.  I couldn't even read Hillary's note for several hours as I was crying from this competely unexpected surprise.

Mandi made this quilt for me! It is perfect in every way.  I love it and I love that it was made by my best friend. Love, love, love!

This is the detail on the back.  Hillary took some fabric scraps from my stash and they made this heart for the back of the quilt.  I am overwhelmed by this, I love it so much.

Goodbye, my sweet Hildegarde.  I will miss you like crazy but I'm so excited to hear all about your adventures serving the Lord in Germany.  But first I want to hear about the MTC and your success in learning to speak German.

Phew, enough from me!

From now on this blog will be the correspondence sent by Hillary through email. 

I'll post what she sends. 

Let's keep our fingers crossed she sends lots of photos. 

I think we can all agree we want to see lots of pictures of her and what's up at the MTC and in Germany.

Officially a Missionary

 

Hillary is now officially a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

 

And I am her first companion. I have this honor until she enters the MTC tomorrow at 12:30pm. 

 

Only I don't have to live by the same rules she now does, so I can update her blog.  I'll be the one to post her letters and photos on here, as well as update her address, while she's on this 18-month adventure.

 

 

Hillary was set apart to serve as a missionary by our stake president, Mark Jensen.

 

These are the men who participated: Mark Crosby, President Wardle, President Jensen, Lee, Ron, and Bishop Stohlton

 

President Jensen asked us what we would miss most about Hillary. It was a tearful room as we each shared what we would miss most.  This is bittersweet business.  We know she is so capable and ready to serve and work hard as a missionary, but it is difficult to have a piece of your heart so far away from home.

Bishop Stohlton had this plaque made for her. It will hang in our church until she gets home.  I love how unique it is.

Sister Brown and Sister Brown- companions for the night

 

Grandma Linda gave Hillary the moustache mug from her Great-great-great Grandfather, John Schmidt.  The Schmidt family immigrated to America from Germany in 1885.  They are from Kiel, Germany.  Kiel is in Hillary's mission and we recently learned that there are sisters serving in this city.

A close up of John Schmidt's moustache mug

Tomorrow: MTC curb drop-off!