bonjour, ma famille!
oh my goodness, what a week. Soeur England is gone, our apartment is completely rearranged (and feels kind of empty), and I am now a co-companion. whew.
On Wednesday, we woke up ridiculously early so Soeur England could make her 6:40 train to Paris. It's still really hard for me to get up at 6:30 everyday (shocker), so waking up even earlier was special. We made it on time though! It was a classic Sad Goodbye on the Train Platform.... Hugs and tears and "good luck"s and such. And then that was it- she was gone, and Soeur Turney and I were on our own! We walked slowly home in the gray morning light and as we arrived home, the sadness lifted and excitement settled in. Change is hard, yes, but good too. Time for a new adventure!
That night, we had our weekly mangez-vous with Rita. She served us "filet Americain"- nothing American about it! It was RAW BEEF. Yep. Raw. Red. Not cooked. How I forced that stuff down my throat without puking, I will never know. We had major stomachaches by the time we got home!
Thursday was our first full day all alone. It was a little scary being without our mother hen, but we survived :) We went to Visé to visit Isabelle. We read her a chapter from the Book of Mormon and it reminded me of that part in Little Women when Jo and Amy have to read to their Great Aunt March and she starts snoring. It was funny trying not to giggle as we read.
After we read and she woke up, Isabelle wanted to know what I look like. So, I took off my glasses and she felt my face. She got to my eyes then said, "ooh la la! long eyelashes!" All in all, it was kind of a silly visit at Isabelle's :)
On Friday, we spent the day in Ougrée and Seraing. The Seraing area is like the armpit of Liège... Garbage and dog poo everywhere, nazi symbols spray painted on the road signs, and a plethora of creepy men. On the bright side, we saw some lovely bright yellow bushes in bloom!
Seraing is notorious for its hills. We were up and down and up and down all afternoon! Our legs were so very tired that evening. It was a good day, though. we decided to go find some old amis that looked promising. We passed by one, Ano, a 21 year-old African. He wasn't home, but his neighbor Josephine was! We talked to her in the entryway for a few minutes. She said she was religious, so I asked her if she reads the Bible. Then... she bursted out laughing! She laughed for a few minutes while Soeur Turney and I just stood there, absolutely bewildered. She finally stopped laughing, and we took her little outburst as a no. So, I pulled out the Book of Mormon and gave it to her, explaining what it is and how we can know it is true. That got her attention- she said she'd begin reading. We fixed a rendez-vous with her for Wednesday! We're excited.
That evening, we had a lesson with Jacqueline. when we told her the subject of the lesson, (missionary work) she said it mentions that in her patriarchal blessing she just received a few weeks ago. Perfect! It was a great lesson. We read Mosiah 28:3 and talked about developing the missionary spirit. She said it's scary for her, but she knows she needs to share the gospel with others. She said the closing prayer and in it asked Heavenly Father to help her have missionary opportunities and not be afraid to share the gospel. I love her! She is doing so great. She'll be able to receive her endowments this fall... I wish so badly I could be there with her. We're so happy for her.
The weather is slowly starting to change: the cherry blossom trees are blooming, the sun is shining a little brighter, and there are chocolate easter eggs all over the grocery store. I love this time of year! I didn't even wear tights today. Hallelujah.
A new season, new transfer, new companionship. I am excited and joyful and grateful to Heavenly Father. We are so very blessed, aren't we?
let the peaceful, happy moments roll.
amour,
little mish
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