Sunday, 27 March 2011
going home
March 14, 2011
Dear family,
I can't believe this is my last email to you. Just crazy.
Last Monday we went to the Asia Arts Museum. Very fun, very cool. We then spent the evening with an elderly sister in our ward whom I just love. She is so spunky and bought this machine that magnifies the text so that she can continue to read her scriptures. She gave me a necklace with a heart so that I could always remember Evry and my mission :) She is the greatest :)
We saw our ami that is TJ and that rendez-vous actually went really well. Soeur Edgerly and I kept to simple doctrine. Throughout the lesson her point of view changed. She said that she wasn't too prideful to change and the member that was teaching with us suggested that maybe TJ was a stepping stone to becoming a latter-day saint. In her prayer at the end, she asked Heavenly Father to help her know which path she should take and then she told us that she would definitely read the Book of Mormon and pray about it! So exciting!!!!!
We saw Yue yesterday for the last time and explained what the bible is [she asked us for one last week] and taught about fasting because some member had told her about it. She thought that we didn't eat on Sundays. We explained it to her and how we can receive answers through fasting. She said she would fast :) it was fun explaining the bible to her, because she said "so this is a book for us Mormons?" They made us tons of food and it was DELICIOUS!
I still don't quite believe that I am going home, well, leaving my post here in Evry this week. It feels like this is my life and that it always has been and always will be. I love France, I love the people and I love sharing the gospel with this. The last 18 and half months have been filled with so many ups and downs that have helped me recognize more the hand of my Heavenly Father in my life and really understand my faith and the power in my life. This has been the best experience of my life. I can't think of a day in the past 18 and half months where I have thought "this was a bad idea. I should not have come." even on the hardest, coldest of days, I know that this is where I needed to be.
Have a good week, see you soon,
soeur camille pobst
Dear family,
I can't believe this is my last email to you. Just crazy.
Last Monday we went to the Asia Arts Museum. Very fun, very cool. We then spent the evening with an elderly sister in our ward whom I just love. She is so spunky and bought this machine that magnifies the text so that she can continue to read her scriptures. She gave me a necklace with a heart so that I could always remember Evry and my mission :) She is the greatest :)
We saw our ami that is TJ and that rendez-vous actually went really well. Soeur Edgerly and I kept to simple doctrine. Throughout the lesson her point of view changed. She said that she wasn't too prideful to change and the member that was teaching with us suggested that maybe TJ was a stepping stone to becoming a latter-day saint. In her prayer at the end, she asked Heavenly Father to help her know which path she should take and then she told us that she would definitely read the Book of Mormon and pray about it! So exciting!!!!!
We saw Yue yesterday for the last time and explained what the bible is [she asked us for one last week] and taught about fasting because some member had told her about it. She thought that we didn't eat on Sundays. We explained it to her and how we can receive answers through fasting. She said she would fast :) it was fun explaining the bible to her, because she said "so this is a book for us Mormons?" They made us tons of food and it was DELICIOUS!
I still don't quite believe that I am going home, well, leaving my post here in Evry this week. It feels like this is my life and that it always has been and always will be. I love France, I love the people and I love sharing the gospel with this. The last 18 and half months have been filled with so many ups and downs that have helped me recognize more the hand of my Heavenly Father in my life and really understand my faith and the power in my life. This has been the best experience of my life. I can't think of a day in the past 18 and half months where I have thought "this was a bad idea. I should not have come." even on the hardest, coldest of days, I know that this is where I needed to be.
Have a good week, see you soon,
soeur camille pobst
Thursday, 10 March 2011
Hey sisters, do you want some candy?
March 7, 2011
Dear family,
Last Thursday, Soeur Edgerly and I were walking through a large train station in Paris and speaking to each other in English when we heard, "hey sisters, you want some candy?" We stopped and saw a young adult man and in my mind I had the following conflict; yes, I would like some candy, but I have no idea who you are. I asked him what ward he was in and he responded with a ward and we said ok and he proceeded to give us all of that candy that he had just bought which was a thing of 6 twix's and this haribo candy called dragibus. Pretty good stuff. I am always impressed by the generosity of members that I meet here randomly, that don't even know me, but are always willing to brighten my day :)
Last Monday for p-day, we went to Sainte-Chappelle, an old church with really cool stained glass and then we ended upon the Champs-Elysees. I don't know why I always end up on the Champs-Elysees or at the Arc de Triomphe, It just happens! Very fun p-day. We also got a new washer and dryer that day with a wonderful mishap of flooding our apartment. Haha, pretty amusing and I am glad that I was in Paris for that one. We also got a new toaster out it.
Last Tuesday I went to Brussels for exchanges. I was with Soeur Woodruff from West Jordan. She is so great, and like me, had never taken french and so we were able to talk about relate about that. We went and saw a less-active, who I felt really good about. No more appointments so we went to grand place to get a gauffre. Soeur Woodruff had never been there before. That was fun. We also contacted another lady who was pretty funny and were able to get her information! That night we finished off with a rendez-vous with a new ami named Isabelle from Spain. We ended up going to a cafe and getting hot chocolate and discussing the Book of Mormon and why we have it. She seemed really awesome and ready! She just had a baby and her job is at the European union, pretty high up, and she told us that all she really wants to do is be with her baby. I just love how that rings true with everyone, the importance of the family :) The next morning we went to a grocery store and stocked up on Belgium chocolate for you all to taste and enjoy:)
I wasn't there, Soeur Edgerly told me that the rendez-vous with our TJ friend from the train went really well and that she is open to reading and praying about the Book of Mormon! That is so HUGE! I am way excited, we have a rendez-vous with her tomorrow night! soooooo good!
Zone conference was on Friday and it was really good. Very very weird that it was my last zone conference and I got a bit choked up when we sang the mission song. I gave my departing testimony and it was just weird. It is slowly hitting me that I am actually going home and this transfer isn't just like any other transfer. I just don't really know how I feel. so I am just going to keep going along doing missionary work :)
We taught Yue this week in Paris after zone conference. We were talking to other missionaries right after and a former elder in our mission showed up [we had the crêpe fête with him on the train and he lives in Versailles now] and I asked him if he wanted to teach with us. We had a very good lesson on studying the scriptures and the Sabbath Day :) She still didn't understand why God didn't help Joseph Smith and basically why bad things happen to good people. I shared Alma 60:13 and Elder Osman talked about the people of Alma in Mosiah 24 and how as long as we are faithful we are close to Christ and we will feel His love and the bad things won't affect us as much. Very good rendez-vous :) Yue came to church and during sacrament meeting she told me that she had questions about BAPTISM! I told her to keep praying and reading her scriptures and coming to church because it is in doing those things that we receive revelation and once Heavenly Father reveals something as truth it is always truth.
Well family, I love you! Here's to my last full week in Evry!
camille
Dear family,
Last Thursday, Soeur Edgerly and I were walking through a large train station in Paris and speaking to each other in English when we heard, "hey sisters, you want some candy?" We stopped and saw a young adult man and in my mind I had the following conflict; yes, I would like some candy, but I have no idea who you are. I asked him what ward he was in and he responded with a ward and we said ok and he proceeded to give us all of that candy that he had just bought which was a thing of 6 twix's and this haribo candy called dragibus. Pretty good stuff. I am always impressed by the generosity of members that I meet here randomly, that don't even know me, but are always willing to brighten my day :)
Last Monday for p-day, we went to Sainte-Chappelle, an old church with really cool stained glass and then we ended upon the Champs-Elysees. I don't know why I always end up on the Champs-Elysees or at the Arc de Triomphe, It just happens! Very fun p-day. We also got a new washer and dryer that day with a wonderful mishap of flooding our apartment. Haha, pretty amusing and I am glad that I was in Paris for that one. We also got a new toaster out it.
Last Tuesday I went to Brussels for exchanges. I was with Soeur Woodruff from West Jordan. She is so great, and like me, had never taken french and so we were able to talk about relate about that. We went and saw a less-active, who I felt really good about. No more appointments so we went to grand place to get a gauffre. Soeur Woodruff had never been there before. That was fun. We also contacted another lady who was pretty funny and were able to get her information! That night we finished off with a rendez-vous with a new ami named Isabelle from Spain. We ended up going to a cafe and getting hot chocolate and discussing the Book of Mormon and why we have it. She seemed really awesome and ready! She just had a baby and her job is at the European union, pretty high up, and she told us that all she really wants to do is be with her baby. I just love how that rings true with everyone, the importance of the family :) The next morning we went to a grocery store and stocked up on Belgium chocolate for you all to taste and enjoy:)
I wasn't there, Soeur Edgerly told me that the rendez-vous with our TJ friend from the train went really well and that she is open to reading and praying about the Book of Mormon! That is so HUGE! I am way excited, we have a rendez-vous with her tomorrow night! soooooo good!
Zone conference was on Friday and it was really good. Very very weird that it was my last zone conference and I got a bit choked up when we sang the mission song. I gave my departing testimony and it was just weird. It is slowly hitting me that I am actually going home and this transfer isn't just like any other transfer. I just don't really know how I feel. so I am just going to keep going along doing missionary work :)
We taught Yue this week in Paris after zone conference. We were talking to other missionaries right after and a former elder in our mission showed up [we had the crêpe fête with him on the train and he lives in Versailles now] and I asked him if he wanted to teach with us. We had a very good lesson on studying the scriptures and the Sabbath Day :) She still didn't understand why God didn't help Joseph Smith and basically why bad things happen to good people. I shared Alma 60:13 and Elder Osman talked about the people of Alma in Mosiah 24 and how as long as we are faithful we are close to Christ and we will feel His love and the bad things won't affect us as much. Very good rendez-vous :) Yue came to church and during sacrament meeting she told me that she had questions about BAPTISM! I told her to keep praying and reading her scriptures and coming to church because it is in doing those things that we receive revelation and once Heavenly Father reveals something as truth it is always truth.
Well family, I love you! Here's to my last full week in Evry!
camille
Sunday, 6 March 2011
Another week bites the dust
February 28, 2011
Dear family,
this last week was going to be filled with TONS of different meetings and what not. It was a pretty eventful week.
Monday, we went to the Arc de Triomphe. Best view of Paris in my opinion. Then we went to a young adult meeting with Yue. Elder Hallstrom of the presidency of the 70Q and Elder Teixira who is also 70Q and in the area presidency for Western Europe. I forgot young adult meetings were all about getting married. Sister Hallstrom had a very interesting talk on the tree of life and how Christ's way is always clear and straight and simple, Satan works by confusion and grandeur. Very good and it gave me a lot to think about.
We left the meeting early in order to make it home on time. Occasionally during train rides certain people like to come up and start teaching us about the "real" gospel of Christ. That is what happened on this particularly evening. A gentleman who thought that he was well-educated in the bible decided to come and teach Soeur Edgerly about the trinity. In these circumstances I have learned that it is best to just not really say anything, the other party is not interested in listening. While he is instructing us, a woman came up and asked to join our conversation and we said sure and she sat down and said "if God and Jesus Christ is the same person, are you saying that the world was without a Lord for 3 days when Jesus Christ was dead?" The man said that Jesus Christ was not really dead and just kept digging doctrinal holes. Occasionally I would jump in with a "we believe this" and the woman would agree with us. Eventually the man got off the train and we were able to talk to the woman, Monica. She told us that she is TJ, however, she wasn't offended by the articles of faith card that we gave her with the picture of Christ and had no idea who we were. I talked to her yesterday and we fixed a rendez-vous for tomorrow :)
We had a missionary meeting with Elder Hallstrom and he talked about being instructed and edified and how everything we do as missionaries should instruct and edify. It was a very good meeting.
We had leadership training and oh boy did that make me feel prepared to serve another mission! I learned so many things that I could do to be a better missionary and to help my amis! At first I was a bit bummed because I thought "oh man, I only have 2 more weeks!" but then it hit me, "nope, you have longer than that as you have your whole life to be a missionary and to help the missionaries!" It made me more excited to come home and teach with the missionaries! I gave a talk on helping our amis pray to receive revelation and I feel that I learned a lot more on that topic and more fully understand it!
On Saturday, we had a rendez-vous with Yue in the visitor's center and were able to watch Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration with her. I think a lot of time when we teach amis we tell them about all the sacrifice that it took in the beginning, but they don't really understand. I think certain parts of that movie really touched her. At the end we asked if there were any questions, there was another set of missionaries there with an ami, and Yue asked why Heavenly Father didn't help Joseph Smith like he had helped all those other people in the movie. It was a very interesting conversation with her where we talked about the Lord's will and how that is what we are here to do. She did say that she has a greater appreciation and understanding in Joseph Smith's role in the restoration.
On the train to come home and there was a group of boys, probably 17-19 sitting in the seats behind us. There were some magazines for another faith on the seats and one of them said he would read it if it wasn't in another language. I turned around and asked them if they liked reading religious material and they were kind of startled.. I told them we were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and they asked what that was. I told them a restoration of the church that Christ had established when He was on the earth. There was one of them that understood what that meant. They asked if I was from England and I said, America and one of them turned to the one I was talking to and said "you speak English, speak English with her" to which he responded "no, she speaks good French, we'll speak French." sadly we didn't get his contact info, but we gave him our's. I wish that he wasn't with his friends. Another day :)
I am looking forward to this week, lots of rendez-vous, plus I get to go to Brussels for exchanges :)
have a good week, I love you all!
camille
Dear family,
this last week was going to be filled with TONS of different meetings and what not. It was a pretty eventful week.
Monday, we went to the Arc de Triomphe. Best view of Paris in my opinion. Then we went to a young adult meeting with Yue. Elder Hallstrom of the presidency of the 70Q and Elder Teixira who is also 70Q and in the area presidency for Western Europe. I forgot young adult meetings were all about getting married. Sister Hallstrom had a very interesting talk on the tree of life and how Christ's way is always clear and straight and simple, Satan works by confusion and grandeur. Very good and it gave me a lot to think about.
We left the meeting early in order to make it home on time. Occasionally during train rides certain people like to come up and start teaching us about the "real" gospel of Christ. That is what happened on this particularly evening. A gentleman who thought that he was well-educated in the bible decided to come and teach Soeur Edgerly about the trinity. In these circumstances I have learned that it is best to just not really say anything, the other party is not interested in listening. While he is instructing us, a woman came up and asked to join our conversation and we said sure and she sat down and said "if God and Jesus Christ is the same person, are you saying that the world was without a Lord for 3 days when Jesus Christ was dead?" The man said that Jesus Christ was not really dead and just kept digging doctrinal holes. Occasionally I would jump in with a "we believe this" and the woman would agree with us. Eventually the man got off the train and we were able to talk to the woman, Monica. She told us that she is TJ, however, she wasn't offended by the articles of faith card that we gave her with the picture of Christ and had no idea who we were. I talked to her yesterday and we fixed a rendez-vous for tomorrow :)
We had a missionary meeting with Elder Hallstrom and he talked about being instructed and edified and how everything we do as missionaries should instruct and edify. It was a very good meeting.
We had leadership training and oh boy did that make me feel prepared to serve another mission! I learned so many things that I could do to be a better missionary and to help my amis! At first I was a bit bummed because I thought "oh man, I only have 2 more weeks!" but then it hit me, "nope, you have longer than that as you have your whole life to be a missionary and to help the missionaries!" It made me more excited to come home and teach with the missionaries! I gave a talk on helping our amis pray to receive revelation and I feel that I learned a lot more on that topic and more fully understand it!
On Saturday, we had a rendez-vous with Yue in the visitor's center and were able to watch Joseph Smith: Prophet of the Restoration with her. I think a lot of time when we teach amis we tell them about all the sacrifice that it took in the beginning, but they don't really understand. I think certain parts of that movie really touched her. At the end we asked if there were any questions, there was another set of missionaries there with an ami, and Yue asked why Heavenly Father didn't help Joseph Smith like he had helped all those other people in the movie. It was a very interesting conversation with her where we talked about the Lord's will and how that is what we are here to do. She did say that she has a greater appreciation and understanding in Joseph Smith's role in the restoration.
On the train to come home and there was a group of boys, probably 17-19 sitting in the seats behind us. There were some magazines for another faith on the seats and one of them said he would read it if it wasn't in another language. I turned around and asked them if they liked reading religious material and they were kind of startled.. I told them we were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and they asked what that was. I told them a restoration of the church that Christ had established when He was on the earth. There was one of them that understood what that meant. They asked if I was from England and I said, America and one of them turned to the one I was talking to and said "you speak English, speak English with her" to which he responded "no, she speaks good French, we'll speak French." sadly we didn't get his contact info, but we gave him our's. I wish that he wasn't with his friends. Another day :)
I am looking forward to this week, lots of rendez-vous, plus I get to go to Brussels for exchanges :)
have a good week, I love you all!
camille
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