It's all about the little successes in life

October 21, 2013

Okay! So this week I was feeling much, much better. It helped that Monday was my birthday, and my district all went to this awesome outdoors ropes course. My hands got pretty ripped up, and all passersby liked to stop and laugh at us, but it was so much fun. We also followed it up with my first stop at a Ukrainian McDonalds. McDonalds are way fancy here, and everything is phonetically spelled out in Russian, instead of just translating it (ie. instead of a "big Mac" it is a "beeg mac" and instead of Chicken McNuggets, its "cheeken MacNoogets"). We also bought some delicious ice cream, because the smell of cake was still making me feel sick. Fun fact: ice cream comes in a bag here.

Tuesday I went on my first exchange! Sister Pharis is an assistant Sister Training Leader, so she and Sister Halston, the Sister Training Leader, went down to Mariupol to go on exchanges with the sisters there. So I ended up in center Donetsk with Sister Halston's companion, Sister Hassard. Sister Hassard has been out for about six months, so we were both fairly new. We spent most of the day doing the studies we missed, and then we had a lesson that night with a lady named Valentina. We were meeting her at the church building, and then walking with her to the President's apartment to have the lesson. Well, she showed up with a friend, a man named Slav. So on the walk over, I ended up talking, by myself, to Slav. That was kind of scary, but it worked! We actually had a conversation! Not the most beautiful of conversations, but it happened. People, this was a miracle. Then, during the lesson, I actually managed to contribute some, even though we had to completely change plans right then. Slav just had question after question, but thankfully we had a member present on the lesson, who could help answer. The members here really are amazing.

Wednesday I spent pretty much most of the day with Sister Hassard. We made some delicious pumpkin bread (shredding the pumpkin because a can of pumpkin would just be too convenient), to deliver to a less active, with the hopes that if we actually had something to give her, she would allow us in. We had two loaves with us, because we figured we would visit someone else as well. So, even bearing gifts, the lady wouldn't let us in, but while we were sitting outside looking at the map trying to figure where to go next, this babushka comes out from the building and asked us where we were trying to go. After we explained to her the place she was like "follow me," so suddenly (but not so suddenly because she was a babushka) we were following this old women around center Donetsk. She took us through all these strange paths, but eventually we ended up at a bus stop and she told us to take the number 10, and then she hopped on the bus. We gave her one of the loaves of bread though. While at the bus stop though, this other man began asking us questions, and we ended up exchanging information. This would have been great, but we both just got this creepy vibe, and he gave me a holographic picture of his daughter after we gave him a scribbled down English alphabet, and he also drank some of my water. He saw my water bottle, asked if he could have some, and the only thing I could think was how the scriptures are always talking about giving drink to the thirsty. I washed the bottle well. Also, we realized that really only number 2 busses were coming to that bus stop, and we needed to go home anyway because we had spent a long time following this babushka, and Sister Hassard knew where we were. We ended up stopping by the work of an investigator and gave her the other loaf of bread; she gave us some grapes. It was all very exciting.

Thursday morning I went jogging in a prison yard. It was actually a school yard but it looked like a prison. Sometimes, like when I scrub the dirt off my carrots and the rocks out of my potatoes, I realize I'm not in America anymore. That night at English club, a former investigator we invited to come showed up! That was great :) In case you haven't noticed, our teaching pool is very small, so it's all about the little successes in life.

Friday we visited a less active, and attended youth night. My understanding of Russian is constantly increasing, which is encouraging.

 

Saturday was my four month anniversary! And what an exciting day that was. So we had a lesson with a less active set up for at the church. She stood us up, but, it being Saturday, two people were there cleaning the building. They asked if we could help, so we said sure. Somehow they both ended up leaving, and it was just Sister Pharis and I cleaning. Oh ya know. Then we headed over to a member to share a quick message with her, and she gave us a referral of someone she had talked to! I'm telling you, members are wonderful here. A less active woman lived in the same building, so we dropped by to say hello to her. We ended up having a short lesson with her, after an awkward encounter with her not so pleasant daughter (this woman was older). After leaving, this creeper stopped us in the hallway. He had been creeping on us before we went in, and was apparently just waiting for us to come back out. We're supposed to talk to everyone, but there are definitely some situations you just need to walk away from. So then we jumped on a bus to head home, but then it broke down, so then we had to jump onto another, absolutely packed bus. With the busses here, they're not very big and they like to pack as many people as possible onto them. So when I first got on, I was standing on the landing by the back door. Well, the next stop this lady gets on, and just body slams me as she shoves herself on. She didn't even give me time to step onto the main part of the bus, so until the next stop I am in crammed against this pole, standing on my tip toes. I didn't even have room to try to adjust. Then the next stop two more guys crammed on, and I managed to get on the main landing, but then I was increasingly shoved up against the guy in front of me. But really, I cannot properly describe how shoved up against this guy I was, without becoming mildly inappropriate. I was making all kinds of faces, but the people here just have this stone face, like all is normal.

Sunday I hit the grand slam of piano playing at church. The normal organist wasn't there, so I got to play the organ for Sacrament Meeting. It was...interesting. And then I played the opening song for Sunday School, and as soon as I finished playing, I got called in to play piano for - my favorite! - Primary. Primary is great, because the kids are adorable, I can actually understand it (I can share the gospel too!), and they gave me juice. Then after Primary I got to play the opening and closing song for Relief Society. So I can’t speak, but I can at least play the piano.

Well, that's my week! Exciting stuff, I know. :)

I love you all. The gospel is true. If you don't know it yet, I encourage you to find out. :)
Love,
Sister Tanner

In answer to a question I asked Diana about me mailing or her buying sheets in Ukraine she answered I will just buy some here. Right now I am sleeping on the couch wrapped up in a blanket. It's working fine.

 

Fall in Ukraine