Hello everyone,
Well, it has been another rather busy week and lots of good things happening here in Toulon, which is great. Our week definitely had some interesting aspects to it and some good surprises thrown in as well.
On Tuesday, we had a District Meeting in Marseille and I was able to see my MTC companion Elder Wahlquist, because he just got transferred to Marseille. It was good to see him and weird to think that the last time we had seen each other was six months ago! After the district meeting, we headed back into Toulon and unfortunately, one of our rendez-vous had been cancelled and we confirmed another on the train with this young couple who is very promising. We contacted the boyfriend on the street and he said that his girlfriend is actually a less active member and how they had just been mentioning how they should start going back to church and then we met him on the street. It is very interesting how often things like that happen. When we talked to him on the street he gave us everything, his phone number, his address, and we fixed the rendez-vous. We confirmed on the train but when we got to his apartment, two hours later, he wasn't there, no one in the building knew him (but that's fairly normal), and we tried all of the names outside of the building and he wasn't there. We tried calling and there was no answer... So we were a little bummed about that but we ended up meeting Manon (the young member) and Laura (her really good friend) and we had a good lesson about the Family Proclamation. That evening we met Rudi and had a good lesson with him. He struggles so much right now without his family being here with him. He is going through a lot but we can see the little bits of progress that he makes. It is slow but we can slowly start to see changes in his life. We just pray that it will continue and that he will continue to make good choices.
Wednesday started out by going to Horacio's house (the older less active member) and we had a lesson with him. He had us stay and have lunch with him, which was interesting. He kept trying to tell us jokes and we honestly could not understand him. It is like I had just gotten back into France for the first time. He just has a very thick portugese accent, it is like he eats his words. We had a nice rendez-vous with him that we only kind of understood.... Haha! In the afternoon we met with a guy named Allen, who was a contact from the street. We met him at his work which is the interesting "Zen place" where people can come to eat vegetarian meals and get massages and such. He was just a very calm person, very zen-like (go figure!). He accepted everything well, he definitely had his own beliefs that were a bit different but he willingly accepted a Book of Mormon and said that he would read it. Afterwards, we headed to the church for our meeting with the ward missionaries and then went to meet Julien and Jacira. She is the Brazilian less active and Julien is her boyfriend. We talked about baptism and he said that he wasn't ready yet but that is ultimately his goal. Unfortunately, Jacira likes to talk too much and so it is often difficult to see how Julien is truly feeling and what he is thinking. In the end, we fixed another rendez-vous and they said they would be at church on Sunday.
Thursday was a little bit of a long day. We met with a muslim student in the morning and had a good rendez-vous and then fixed a rendez-vous with him for Saturday to meet with four of his friends also. Of course we were ok with that.... just as long as it didn't become a Muslim-Christian Bash. The rest of the afternoon was a bit of cancelled rendez-vous and contacting all the way until English class. Of course "gray haired lady" was there, there is never a week that she misses it and she brought multiple maps of the area of Toulon. Half way through Manon and Laura showed up too and listened as the other lady talked. After the class, we stayed with Manon and Laura and had a little lesson that was really good.
Friday was a normal morning of weekly planning and then a rendez-vous ended up getting cancelled so we went to visit a member in the ward. Her name is Danielle Dubois and she honestly has the most incredible story that is so sad but incredible at the same time. Danielle was baptized in Marseille when she was twenty and just two years before that she started having a sickness that basically started deteriorating her body to the point that now, she can no longer speak and doesn't have too much control of her body or muscles. She communicates using a board that has letters on it and she points to the letters to spell out words. It is honestly very sad but what is incredible is how much faith Soeur Dubois has. She is constantly teaching her nurses and everyone about the gospel and there have been several people over the years who have been baptized because of her example. She loves the Savior more than I think anyone else I have ever met. There is such a spirit in her small little room in the nursing home, where you can see pictures of the temple and of the Savior everywhere. It is very sad to see one of God's children have to suffer like she has for so many years of her life but I am certain that she doesn"t have any feelings of resentment or feelings of being wronged in anyway. It is absolutely inspiring. We spent a little bit of time with her but it wasn't us who helped bring her the spirit it was her who brought us the Spirit. After Soeur Dubois, we went to the church and saw Hasina and watched the Joseph Smith, Prophet of the Restoration movie with him. We then went to the Wutrich's house and had a lesson with them and Laura of the importance of the prophet to help prepare her for General Conference.
Saturday was a very interesting day. The rendez-vous with the Muslim guys and his friends ended up getting cancelled because they were out of town. We ended up taking a boat across the bay to La Seyne -Sur-Mer to find an old ami, he wasn't home so we did some contacting and headed home for lunch. After lunch we went to play Basketball and Laura and Manon and Laura's little cousin came. We then hurried home and got changed because we had a rendez-vous fixed with Gianni, who is a young guy that I met with Elder Meservy and that we taught but weren't ever able to see him again because he has school and lives a ways away. So we fixed the rendez-vous and then bought train tickets to get to his town. We took the train to La Sanary-Sur-Mer and called him and told him we were at the gare. He said he was on his way so we waited there. He called us about fifteen minutes later saying he was there and asking where we were.... well after a bit we realized we were actually in the wrong town! He lives in Le Cyrn-Sur-Mer and I don't know why but I thought it was the town we were in. So we bought tickets to go to his town which were two more towns away and the train was going to take 45 mintues. So we ran to the grocery store to buy something, of course the lines were super long and so we explained that our train was leaving in 15 minutes so a guy let us go in front of him to the front. Of course the lady who was in the middle of checking out, two items didn't ring up and then she had tons of coupons!!! We ended up running back to the train station with a couple minutes to spare and made our train. We got to the right little city and met Gianna, his friend, and his little sister and then his Dad came and picked us up because they don't live right in the city. So we drove a little bit and basically went into the middle of nowhere to this very very large modern house with a HUGE porch along the side the looks over the hills and green forests! We decided we want to convert the whole family!! His parents were very nice but we didn't have the opportunity to teach them. We taught Gianni a bit but he has a hard time feeling like there could be a possibility of God. He has had a very easy and quite comfortable life. We explained pray and challenged him to pray. We had to then hurry back to the train station so that we didn't miss our train so that we could get home on time. Thankfully we made it and made it home on time. It was a bit of a crazy day, that's for sure.
Sunday was the time change so we sprung forward and thus got an hour less of sleep... I know, it is quite sad. Haha. On top of that, it was a very cloudy and rainy day. Unfortunately the only people that were able to come to church were Laura and Rudi but it was great because Rudi was fasting and he wanted to pay fast offerings!!!! He said he started his fast on Saturday night and that helped him overcome his temptations because he was fasting. I was very thankful that he was able to make those good choices. After church, we went and had a rendez-vous with Benedine, a less active member, and then stopped by Anthony's house. He definitely still has a very difficult time focusing on anything but we had a nice simple little lesson. After Anthony, we met back up with Rudi and watched the Joseph Smith movie and I think that really helped him understand everything that he did so that the church was restored for us and helped answer some questions and concerns he had. And to top off the evening, Rudi had Ben and Jerry's ice cream that we ate.... YUM!!!! Haha I couldn't not mention that small detail!
Voilà, that was my week. It really was great and I am truly greatful for all of the experiences I had. I hope that each one of you have had a great week full of happiness, and maybe a couple disappointments to help you grow and progress. If life was always a piece of cake, what would we learn? Thank you so much all for you love, support, and prays. It truly means a lot to me. Have a great week, bonne semaine! Au revoir!
Elder Kirkpatrick
Monday, March 28, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Congrats to Uncle Ethan, he is an uncle again!! Baby Wyatt was born on St Patricks Day (missing Ethan's b-day by one day) My apologies for getting this up a day late, I thought a newborn was a good enough excuse. Enjoy!
Hello!!
La vie est belle, n'est pas??I hope that everyone is doing well and that every week is another pleasure to discover and find the blessings and the miracles. Well, this has been quite a good week here in Toulon with a new companion and thankfully, we have not met the crazies from the hospital again since Tuesday... there goes a grand sigh of relief!
On Wednesday, we went to teach a less active member, who I am pretty sure I described last week (he is the guy we met on the bus and he said he would come to church on Sunday and then he came). So we went to Horacio's house and Elder Milman and I both honestly felt like we had just gotten into France.... Horacio is Portugese and has a very thick accent and it is very difficult to understand him and so we spent a good amount of time just smiling and nodding because we had no clue what he was saying..... Haha! But in all cases, he told us that he wanted to come to church the next Sunday again, so it ended well. In the afternoon, we taught Thomas, who is doing well but still struggles a lot with the Word of Wisdom. He has a very tentative date for baptism but it will need to be pushed back definitely. Afterwards we had a meeting with the ward mission leader and ward missionaries and it was so awesome. They just called two new missionaries and with them and the ward mission leader, it was perfect. It was exactly how those meetings should go, beautifully! After our meeting we had a rendez-vous with Rudi. He is doing very well but sadly still struggling. He knows exactly what he needs to do but he is just having a hard time holding on to the iron rod. I didn't have time to explain everything to Elder Milman before and in the middle of the rendez-vous, Rudi just said to him, "I am not sure if you have heard about my situation but...." and then he continued to tell him absolutlely everything and perfectly outline every single thing that he needs to do... if he can find the spiritual strength to do. He needs a lot of support and a lot of prayers. After the rendez-vous, Elder Milman and I turned to each other and said, "he knows absolutely everything he needs to do to know, but he just needs to do it." So we continue to give him our love and support and do everything that we can to help him and then leave it in the hands of the Lord.
Thursday was a bit of a rough day as far as rendez-vous go. We ended up doing a lot of contacting because some lessons fell through and did some exploring while contacting so that we could familiarize ourselves with Toulon since we honestly don't know it that well. It was rough for getting contacts too but suprisingly we got a contact by doing some door to door, which rarely happens! So that was definitely a good point. In the evening we had English class and then afterwards taught Sebastion. He is a very interesting guy and has some very odd beliefs and a slightly bizarre "out of body experience".... but it was a fairly good lesson. It is definitely very small steps with him, that we need to take. Right after him, Jean-Baptiste, a member, met us at the church and then Rudi came and we had an incredible lesson. At the end, he told us, "I was honestly expecting this to be our last lesson because I continue to do the wrong things when I know what I should do and I don't want to waste your time, but I know that I can change and make the right decision, it is just not easy." It is honestly difficult to describe the spirit that was so present there and how much it touched all of us. I never thought that I could love these people and care for them so much that it makes me absolutely distraught when they make the wrong choices but how much I desire their success in laking the wrong choices when they stumble. I know that that is definitely a blessing that I have received as a missionary.
On Friday, it was my birthday and thank you so much for everyone that sent a card or sent a birthday wish, that was very nice of you. And for all the others... I am still waiting... no I am totally kidding. Even if you thought, "Oh it's the 18th, I know it's somebody's birthday, I hope they have a good day today." That suffices. Ha. Honestly, it was a good birthday because we were so busy. All of the rendez-vous had kind of finally piled up on that day so we were very busy. The morning was weekly planning and then in the afternoon, we taught Benedine, who is a less active member, who is very nice but very much stuck on not doing anything... Afterwards was a quick lesson with Anthony to try and see if he is really engaged and committed in doing anything. Whether he actually is or not... that is something completely different. We then hurried to the church to teach Hasina. Hasina was baptized just about a month ago but he is so solid, and it is great to see. He is a very genuine guy. Directly after Hasina, we met Jocelyne at the church with Frere and Soeur Michel and had a fantastic lesson with her. She is making so much progress that it is absolutely incredible. She said that at first she was content remaining catholic but coming to church as a Latter Day Saint but that it just became evident that she needed to be baptized. And since that decision, her life has started to be so much better, it is incredible to see her testimony grow. We then hurried to teach Jacira, who is less active, and her kind-of husband Julien. It was a good lesson and Julien said he really wanted to come to church on Sunday. He really has a lot of potential and really a desire. It is awesome.
Saturday, that started out by having another rendez-vous with Jocelyne and the Michels and Soeur Didelle. As they came into the building, they were actually planning the program for her baptism... WOW! Honestly, we have done very very little with Jocelyne. The members have taken care of everything... which is perfect and exactly how it should be. We taught the word of wisdom and at first she was a bit hesitant about not drinking wine but by the end, she said she would definitely follow it. We then left to go to Michel Calderini's house. Haha he is a very quarky old man and slightly crazy but I cannot help but just absolutely love him. He makes progress little by little and shows it definitely in his own ways. Afterwards, we played basketball and then taught Anthony a little bit. In the evening we did some contacting and that was about it.
Sunday, as always, was kind of the monitor of the week to see who actually comes to church. We had a great turn out. Jocelyne, Anthony, Horacio (the less active guy) Julien and Jacira and their daughter Jovena, the Langel Family, and Rudi. It was a great sacrament meeting as far as talks go and were really good for Rudi. As far as translating, I translated Priesthood, Elder Milman translated Sunday School, and then I had the pleasure of translating for Sacrament Meeting.... Elder Milman ever so graciously allowed me to translate that. Ha! But much to my surprise it was much easier than the last time and I did a lot better a job too. I definitely said a quick thank you afterwards for the gift of tongues!!!! After church, we taught Thomas, which was a pretty good lesson but still a bit difficult to see exactly where he is at. After that, we had a nice afternoon of contacting ahead of us that I was a bit worried about because we hadn't been too successful all week.... but we got 9 contacts. That was a nice surprise miracle, definitely. In the evening we met a young guy that we had contacted a few days earlier and had a quick lesson with him that was pretty good. The students are usually pretty good about having a lesson and being open... the hard thing is getting them to actually read and find the time for a second lesson. So we will pray for another one in the coming week. All in all it was a good end to a pretty good week.
Today, we went with one of our investigators, Hector, to the Sainte Baume, which is this cave tucked into the cliff of a mountain where Mary Magdelene spent the last few years of her life before she died and she was actually buried there. To get there we hiked through this very ancient forest, supposedly the oldest in all of Europe, and then saw a bit of the end of the mass that they do in the cave everyday. It was a really cool experience and it helped me remember how blessed I am to be in such a beautiful country. I can't say that the work is always easy here but the landscape is always beautiful and there is always something wonderful to discover. I will have to send some pictures of the area we were in.
I hope that everyone is doing well and continues to have a good week. I love you all very very much and want you to know that you are always in my prays. Have a great week and à la prochain!
Elder Kirkpatrick
Hello!!
La vie est belle, n'est pas??I hope that everyone is doing well and that every week is another pleasure to discover and find the blessings and the miracles. Well, this has been quite a good week here in Toulon with a new companion and thankfully, we have not met the crazies from the hospital again since Tuesday... there goes a grand sigh of relief!
On Wednesday, we went to teach a less active member, who I am pretty sure I described last week (he is the guy we met on the bus and he said he would come to church on Sunday and then he came). So we went to Horacio's house and Elder Milman and I both honestly felt like we had just gotten into France.... Horacio is Portugese and has a very thick accent and it is very difficult to understand him and so we spent a good amount of time just smiling and nodding because we had no clue what he was saying..... Haha! But in all cases, he told us that he wanted to come to church the next Sunday again, so it ended well. In the afternoon, we taught Thomas, who is doing well but still struggles a lot with the Word of Wisdom. He has a very tentative date for baptism but it will need to be pushed back definitely. Afterwards we had a meeting with the ward mission leader and ward missionaries and it was so awesome. They just called two new missionaries and with them and the ward mission leader, it was perfect. It was exactly how those meetings should go, beautifully! After our meeting we had a rendez-vous with Rudi. He is doing very well but sadly still struggling. He knows exactly what he needs to do but he is just having a hard time holding on to the iron rod. I didn't have time to explain everything to Elder Milman before and in the middle of the rendez-vous, Rudi just said to him, "I am not sure if you have heard about my situation but...." and then he continued to tell him absolutlely everything and perfectly outline every single thing that he needs to do... if he can find the spiritual strength to do. He needs a lot of support and a lot of prayers. After the rendez-vous, Elder Milman and I turned to each other and said, "he knows absolutely everything he needs to do to know, but he just needs to do it." So we continue to give him our love and support and do everything that we can to help him and then leave it in the hands of the Lord.
Thursday was a bit of a rough day as far as rendez-vous go. We ended up doing a lot of contacting because some lessons fell through and did some exploring while contacting so that we could familiarize ourselves with Toulon since we honestly don't know it that well. It was rough for getting contacts too but suprisingly we got a contact by doing some door to door, which rarely happens! So that was definitely a good point. In the evening we had English class and then afterwards taught Sebastion. He is a very interesting guy and has some very odd beliefs and a slightly bizarre "out of body experience".... but it was a fairly good lesson. It is definitely very small steps with him, that we need to take. Right after him, Jean-Baptiste, a member, met us at the church and then Rudi came and we had an incredible lesson. At the end, he told us, "I was honestly expecting this to be our last lesson because I continue to do the wrong things when I know what I should do and I don't want to waste your time, but I know that I can change and make the right decision, it is just not easy." It is honestly difficult to describe the spirit that was so present there and how much it touched all of us. I never thought that I could love these people and care for them so much that it makes me absolutely distraught when they make the wrong choices but how much I desire their success in laking the wrong choices when they stumble. I know that that is definitely a blessing that I have received as a missionary.
On Friday, it was my birthday and thank you so much for everyone that sent a card or sent a birthday wish, that was very nice of you. And for all the others... I am still waiting... no I am totally kidding. Even if you thought, "Oh it's the 18th, I know it's somebody's birthday, I hope they have a good day today." That suffices. Ha. Honestly, it was a good birthday because we were so busy. All of the rendez-vous had kind of finally piled up on that day so we were very busy. The morning was weekly planning and then in the afternoon, we taught Benedine, who is a less active member, who is very nice but very much stuck on not doing anything... Afterwards was a quick lesson with Anthony to try and see if he is really engaged and committed in doing anything. Whether he actually is or not... that is something completely different. We then hurried to the church to teach Hasina. Hasina was baptized just about a month ago but he is so solid, and it is great to see. He is a very genuine guy. Directly after Hasina, we met Jocelyne at the church with Frere and Soeur Michel and had a fantastic lesson with her. She is making so much progress that it is absolutely incredible. She said that at first she was content remaining catholic but coming to church as a Latter Day Saint but that it just became evident that she needed to be baptized. And since that decision, her life has started to be so much better, it is incredible to see her testimony grow. We then hurried to teach Jacira, who is less active, and her kind-of husband Julien. It was a good lesson and Julien said he really wanted to come to church on Sunday. He really has a lot of potential and really a desire. It is awesome.
Saturday, that started out by having another rendez-vous with Jocelyne and the Michels and Soeur Didelle. As they came into the building, they were actually planning the program for her baptism... WOW! Honestly, we have done very very little with Jocelyne. The members have taken care of everything... which is perfect and exactly how it should be. We taught the word of wisdom and at first she was a bit hesitant about not drinking wine but by the end, she said she would definitely follow it. We then left to go to Michel Calderini's house. Haha he is a very quarky old man and slightly crazy but I cannot help but just absolutely love him. He makes progress little by little and shows it definitely in his own ways. Afterwards, we played basketball and then taught Anthony a little bit. In the evening we did some contacting and that was about it.
Sunday, as always, was kind of the monitor of the week to see who actually comes to church. We had a great turn out. Jocelyne, Anthony, Horacio (the less active guy) Julien and Jacira and their daughter Jovena, the Langel Family, and Rudi. It was a great sacrament meeting as far as talks go and were really good for Rudi. As far as translating, I translated Priesthood, Elder Milman translated Sunday School, and then I had the pleasure of translating for Sacrament Meeting.... Elder Milman ever so graciously allowed me to translate that. Ha! But much to my surprise it was much easier than the last time and I did a lot better a job too. I definitely said a quick thank you afterwards for the gift of tongues!!!! After church, we taught Thomas, which was a pretty good lesson but still a bit difficult to see exactly where he is at. After that, we had a nice afternoon of contacting ahead of us that I was a bit worried about because we hadn't been too successful all week.... but we got 9 contacts. That was a nice surprise miracle, definitely. In the evening we met a young guy that we had contacted a few days earlier and had a quick lesson with him that was pretty good. The students are usually pretty good about having a lesson and being open... the hard thing is getting them to actually read and find the time for a second lesson. So we will pray for another one in the coming week. All in all it was a good end to a pretty good week.
Today, we went with one of our investigators, Hector, to the Sainte Baume, which is this cave tucked into the cliff of a mountain where Mary Magdelene spent the last few years of her life before she died and she was actually buried there. To get there we hiked through this very ancient forest, supposedly the oldest in all of Europe, and then saw a bit of the end of the mass that they do in the cave everyday. It was a really cool experience and it helped me remember how blessed I am to be in such a beautiful country. I can't say that the work is always easy here but the landscape is always beautiful and there is always something wonderful to discover. I will have to send some pictures of the area we were in.
I hope that everyone is doing well and continues to have a good week. I love you all very very much and want you to know that you are always in my prays. Have a great week and à la prochain!
Elder Kirkpatrick
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Bonjour à Tous!
I hope that everyone is doing well and has a wonderful week that has brought you plenty of joy and happiness. Everyone deserves to have a good week.... and even if it is always evident that it was a good week, I know you can all find something good out of the week. This last week, has definitely been good, and as always a bit crazy. I will start out by telling you that I am staying in Toulon for another six weeks so you can continue to send mail here, but I do have a new companion. His name is Elder Milman and I am excited for this next transfer because I really think we are going to get along great.
As far as describing the week, I am going to have a little bit of trouble because I left my planner from last transfer back in the apartment so there might be some holes but I am going to try and remember everything as best as I can.
Monday night we had a family home evening with Soeur Wutrich, her daughter Manon, and her friend Laura. We also brought Rudi along with us too. Not only were the girls more than excited, it was good for Rudi to spend sometime with members. Of course that meant that everything had to be translated, but oh well. Everyone had a good time and it was fun for us because we prepared some activities to do for something a little bit different.
On Tuesday, we started out by having a District Meeting in Marseille that was pretty good. It was nice to see everyone. Since I was in Marseille with another equipe of missionaries in the same apartment and another the city, we saw other missionaries a lot but out here in Toulon we are a bit more isolated, so it is nice to be able to see everyone once in a while. After the District Meeting, I had an exchange with Elder Barber and we headed straight away to Toulon to have a rendez-vous with Pascal. It was really good. Elder Meservy and I had planned to talk about some commandments but I really felt like we needed to talk about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which entails baptism. Apparently they have never even talked to him about baptism before and although he would not engage himself he was glad that we talked about it so that he understood exactly why we come and what our desire is for him.
Afterwards, we headed to the church to go and help Hector prepare for his class that he had to teach on Friday. Before we started helping we talked about baptism and he said that right now he can't commit but that it is something that he would like to do. With him, I am not sure if it will be in a month, a year, or five years, but he will get baptized. It's not just for no reason that he drives all the way to us for help, there are plenty of other people that he could get help from. After him, we went to the Wutrich's house again because Elder Barber stayed in Toulon for about 8 months of his mission and when they found out that he was coming, they made us fix a rendez-vous with them. Anyway, it was another good lesson with them and he said that Laura has really made so much progress since he was in Toulon.
On Wednesday, we switched back companions in the morning and then continued on with our day.... as far as specifics.... I hate to say that I cannot remember them just on head and I am wracking my brain for Thursday too... and nothing is coming, other than after English class, we taught Rudi with Laura and Manon and shared some scriptures, it was a good rendez-vous and we had some pizza with Rudi afterwards.... as usual. Haha
On Friday we had an exchange with the Zone Leaders and so I went to Aix-en-Provence with Elder Yang and then Elder Larsen stayed in Toulon with Elder Meservy. Not only was it that but it was also the much anticipated transfer calls day. Since I was with Elder Yang, we were driving in the car to Aix and President Carter called so I answered and since he was already talking with me he told me that I would be staying in Toulon and that Elder Milman would be coming to join me. So of course, all day the phone kept ringing from all the missionaries in the zone regarding transfers, so it was fun to hear what was happening everywhere. As far as the day in Aix, they didn't have too much fixed so we had a day with quite a bit of contacting. Which isn't always my favorite, but it was surprisingly a good day. It is cool to see how different missionaries contact. It is definitely true that everyone has their own very unique and personal style. We met some very cool people and got quite a few snaps.
On Saturday morning, we drove back to Toulon and on the way it was cool to see the French countryside by the auto route because normally I see it from the train and by the auto route you pass some smaller cities and it was really cool to see just how absolutely beautiful a country this is. This is such a beautiful place and there are so many little vineyards everywhere and hidden châteaux . It was really cool. I would definitely recommend a trip to southern France! :) We met back up with the Elders and they just finished a rendez-vous with Jocelyne and they tried fixing a baptismal date for her but she wouldn't fix it. She said she wasn't yet ready. So after that, we had the zone leaders take us to our next rendez-vous, since it was on the other side of town. It was with Michel Calderini who wanted to have a rendez-vous before Elder Meservy left, we had a good rendez-vous with him and ate lunch with he and his wife and then went to Anthony's house who happens to live right down the street. We talked with him quickly and we left to head back to the apartment to change for Samedi Sportif. We changed and then went to play some basketball with Hassina, Anthony, Manon, and Laura. In the evening we basically spent most of it for Elder Meservy so that he could pack his bags. He was a bit sad to be leaving Toulon but I think he understood that it was definitely time for him to leave.
On Sunday, we had Laura come to church, all by herself too because Manon is in Paris right now and that was awesome. She used to never come to church all by herself. We also had Michel Calderini come, which is the second time in the last couple of weeks since the missionaries have been teaching him for years! Also Jocelyne came of course and then a less active member who we oddly found on the bus the day before and then Anthony came too. At the end of Sacrament Meeting, which is the last hour in France, Elder Meservy went up to Jocelyne to tell her bye and she told him that she decided to fix a date for the 9th of April!!!!! He asked what made her decide and she said that it just came natural, she just felt like it was the right thing and that she needed to do it. YAY!!!!! We are very excited. After church, Thomas came and we talked to him and actually engaged him for baptism too. It was pretty cool. The rest of the day we stopped by a couple people and then that evening we saw Rudi. He actually didn't come to church on Sunday because he had made some poor choices on Saturday night. He said that Sunday was a horrible day for him because he just felt absolutely horrible. We had a good rendez-vous with him and gave him a blessing. He said that he just kept thinking all day, I just want to turn my life over to God, I am so tired of living this way and feeling this way. We tried to fix a date but he doesn't feel like he can fix a date until he knows for sure about all of this and he can't receive his answer as he continually breaks commandments. So in a way it was a good miracle with him. I hope he can continue to progress and to search out the good things.
Monday, we went to Marseille for transfers and then Elder Milman and I got back into Toulon late in the afternoon and did some work in the evening. Today we had some rendez-vous, contacted a guy in the street and he took us to a hospital for crazy people where he actually is in right now.... needless to say, that was an interesting experience. By the end, we had like four crazies surrounding us saying bizarre things.... HAHA! We had quite a good laugh afterwards. And it has been absolutely raining cats and dogs today!!! So we are hoping that clears up soon. As much as I absolutely loved walking around in soaking pants and wet shoes and socks all day....
So anyway, that was my week, I know it wasn't too detailed but I gave you, what I could remember. It is hard to remember all of the details without my planner. Well, thank you all so much for everything. I know I say that everyweek but that is because I truly mean it. I thank you all for your prayers and your letters and the comfort and help that you constantly give me. I love you all and je vous souhaite une bonne semaine!!!! Ciao!
Elder Kirkpatrick
I hope that everyone is doing well and has a wonderful week that has brought you plenty of joy and happiness. Everyone deserves to have a good week.... and even if it is always evident that it was a good week, I know you can all find something good out of the week. This last week, has definitely been good, and as always a bit crazy. I will start out by telling you that I am staying in Toulon for another six weeks so you can continue to send mail here, but I do have a new companion. His name is Elder Milman and I am excited for this next transfer because I really think we are going to get along great.
As far as describing the week, I am going to have a little bit of trouble because I left my planner from last transfer back in the apartment so there might be some holes but I am going to try and remember everything as best as I can.
Monday night we had a family home evening with Soeur Wutrich, her daughter Manon, and her friend Laura. We also brought Rudi along with us too. Not only were the girls more than excited, it was good for Rudi to spend sometime with members. Of course that meant that everything had to be translated, but oh well. Everyone had a good time and it was fun for us because we prepared some activities to do for something a little bit different.
On Tuesday, we started out by having a District Meeting in Marseille that was pretty good. It was nice to see everyone. Since I was in Marseille with another equipe of missionaries in the same apartment and another the city, we saw other missionaries a lot but out here in Toulon we are a bit more isolated, so it is nice to be able to see everyone once in a while. After the District Meeting, I had an exchange with Elder Barber and we headed straight away to Toulon to have a rendez-vous with Pascal. It was really good. Elder Meservy and I had planned to talk about some commandments but I really felt like we needed to talk about the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which entails baptism. Apparently they have never even talked to him about baptism before and although he would not engage himself he was glad that we talked about it so that he understood exactly why we come and what our desire is for him.
Afterwards, we headed to the church to go and help Hector prepare for his class that he had to teach on Friday. Before we started helping we talked about baptism and he said that right now he can't commit but that it is something that he would like to do. With him, I am not sure if it will be in a month, a year, or five years, but he will get baptized. It's not just for no reason that he drives all the way to us for help, there are plenty of other people that he could get help from. After him, we went to the Wutrich's house again because Elder Barber stayed in Toulon for about 8 months of his mission and when they found out that he was coming, they made us fix a rendez-vous with them. Anyway, it was another good lesson with them and he said that Laura has really made so much progress since he was in Toulon.
On Wednesday, we switched back companions in the morning and then continued on with our day.... as far as specifics.... I hate to say that I cannot remember them just on head and I am wracking my brain for Thursday too... and nothing is coming, other than after English class, we taught Rudi with Laura and Manon and shared some scriptures, it was a good rendez-vous and we had some pizza with Rudi afterwards.... as usual. Haha
On Friday we had an exchange with the Zone Leaders and so I went to Aix-en-Provence with Elder Yang and then Elder Larsen stayed in Toulon with Elder Meservy. Not only was it that but it was also the much anticipated transfer calls day. Since I was with Elder Yang, we were driving in the car to Aix and President Carter called so I answered and since he was already talking with me he told me that I would be staying in Toulon and that Elder Milman would be coming to join me. So of course, all day the phone kept ringing from all the missionaries in the zone regarding transfers, so it was fun to hear what was happening everywhere. As far as the day in Aix, they didn't have too much fixed so we had a day with quite a bit of contacting. Which isn't always my favorite, but it was surprisingly a good day. It is cool to see how different missionaries contact. It is definitely true that everyone has their own very unique and personal style. We met some very cool people and got quite a few snaps.
On Saturday morning, we drove back to Toulon and on the way it was cool to see the French countryside by the auto route because normally I see it from the train and by the auto route you pass some smaller cities and it was really cool to see just how absolutely beautiful a country this is. This is such a beautiful place and there are so many little vineyards everywhere and hidden châteaux . It was really cool. I would definitely recommend a trip to southern France! :) We met back up with the Elders and they just finished a rendez-vous with Jocelyne and they tried fixing a baptismal date for her but she wouldn't fix it. She said she wasn't yet ready. So after that, we had the zone leaders take us to our next rendez-vous, since it was on the other side of town. It was with Michel Calderini who wanted to have a rendez-vous before Elder Meservy left, we had a good rendez-vous with him and ate lunch with he and his wife and then went to Anthony's house who happens to live right down the street. We talked with him quickly and we left to head back to the apartment to change for Samedi Sportif. We changed and then went to play some basketball with Hassina, Anthony, Manon, and Laura. In the evening we basically spent most of it for Elder Meservy so that he could pack his bags. He was a bit sad to be leaving Toulon but I think he understood that it was definitely time for him to leave.
On Sunday, we had Laura come to church, all by herself too because Manon is in Paris right now and that was awesome. She used to never come to church all by herself. We also had Michel Calderini come, which is the second time in the last couple of weeks since the missionaries have been teaching him for years! Also Jocelyne came of course and then a less active member who we oddly found on the bus the day before and then Anthony came too. At the end of Sacrament Meeting, which is the last hour in France, Elder Meservy went up to Jocelyne to tell her bye and she told him that she decided to fix a date for the 9th of April!!!!! He asked what made her decide and she said that it just came natural, she just felt like it was the right thing and that she needed to do it. YAY!!!!! We are very excited. After church, Thomas came and we talked to him and actually engaged him for baptism too. It was pretty cool. The rest of the day we stopped by a couple people and then that evening we saw Rudi. He actually didn't come to church on Sunday because he had made some poor choices on Saturday night. He said that Sunday was a horrible day for him because he just felt absolutely horrible. We had a good rendez-vous with him and gave him a blessing. He said that he just kept thinking all day, I just want to turn my life over to God, I am so tired of living this way and feeling this way. We tried to fix a date but he doesn't feel like he can fix a date until he knows for sure about all of this and he can't receive his answer as he continually breaks commandments. So in a way it was a good miracle with him. I hope he can continue to progress and to search out the good things.
Monday, we went to Marseille for transfers and then Elder Milman and I got back into Toulon late in the afternoon and did some work in the evening. Today we had some rendez-vous, contacted a guy in the street and he took us to a hospital for crazy people where he actually is in right now.... needless to say, that was an interesting experience. By the end, we had like four crazies surrounding us saying bizarre things.... HAHA! We had quite a good laugh afterwards. And it has been absolutely raining cats and dogs today!!! So we are hoping that clears up soon. As much as I absolutely loved walking around in soaking pants and wet shoes and socks all day....
So anyway, that was my week, I know it wasn't too detailed but I gave you, what I could remember. It is hard to remember all of the details without my planner. Well, thank you all so much for everything. I know I say that everyweek but that is because I truly mean it. I thank you all for your prayers and your letters and the comfort and help that you constantly give me. I love you all and je vous souhaite une bonne semaine!!!! Ciao!
Elder Kirkpatrick
Monday, March 7, 2011
Week 33
Bonjour,
I hope that everyone is doing very well and that this last week has been incredible for you all. It has been another busy and great week in beautiful Toulon. The weather has been wonderful here and the week has been quite good too. Of course, it is never perfect but we can never expect perfection.
Alright, so last week I left off on last Monday but I didn't tell you that that we went and had a lesson with Rudi, the Rugby player. We went to this barbecue restaurant. First of all, I never thought that I would get barbecue in France, and it was actually good, and secondly, we had a good lesson. He has had several struggles, particularly after his girlfriend and son left. They were absolutely everything for him in his life and now they are gone and he feels very alone. He told us that he feels like we are his only true friends here in Toulon. We talked about the Word of Wisdom and we engaged him to keep it and he said that he would keep it for the next four days while he was away at a training camp before their game on Friday night. We were slightly worried because he would be so far away from good influences that he might have struggles but we knew we needed to have faith in him at all times.
On Tuesday, our week started out interestingly as we went and met an Italian family who we met the day before. We brought a member who spoke Italian and it came down to the fact that they were stranded in Toulon trying to get back to Milan because all of their money and paperwork had been stolen. Unfortunately there was absolutely nothing that we could do for them. People just assume that because we are missionaries that we can just give them money to solve their problems. It is sad that we can't but ultimately there is absolutely nothing we can do for that. Afterwards, we had a rendez-vous with our investigator Pascal, who really enjoys the Book of Mormon and had read everyday that last week. Unfortunately he would not promise us that he would come to church on Sunday. For some reason he really will not commit to that at all. Afterwards, we met with a brother of one of the members in the ward. The member is actually a converted Muslim lady and her brother is still very much Muslim. We watched the restoration video with him and after him just giving us bad excuses and not answering our question about whether he would read and pray about the Book of Mormon. He finally said that he was honestly worried about what answer he would receive. We finally got him to pray at the end of the rendez-vous and then on the way to the bus, he told us that he received his answer that it was sent from God but that he believes that many paths lead to God and that there isn't one truth. So it was kind of like a little bit of progress but a little not at the same time. Ha!
Afterwards,we had a rendez-vous with the Wutrich Family, Soeur Wutrich and her daughter, Manon, and her daughter's friend Laura, who has been coming to church with Manon consistently for basically the last year and a half straight. We had a good lesson talked about obeying the commandements. It is always a bit crazy with them because Soeur Wutrich is this crazy Brazilian lady and then her daughter who is 18 and then Laura is 17, so the lessons are always crazy, but good.
Wednesday was a little bit of a slower day, we met with a very old catholic lady, Madame Eustache that we had contacted on the street and basically she just wanted someone to talk at. Not even to talk to. But I have a weakness for sweet older people, so we went and met with her. It might not have been the best use of our time but we taught a little bit and if nothing else, brought a little happiness into her day. The rest of the day consisted of contacting and then we had a rendez-vous with Hassina, who was baptized a couple weeks ago and then in the evening, we had our missionary coordination meeting at the church.
Thursday we were quite busy. In the morning we passed a lady who is less active. She is actually American and met her husband, who is French, on the internet and then moved out here. She misses the church back in the United States but she doesn't seem to keep on trying to come to the ward here. It is kind of sad. Afterwards, we met up with a young kid, about 18, named Gianni, who we met a couple days before and we had a pretty good rendez-vous with him, although he is very doubtful about the fact that God exists. He is a really nice kid and is honestly quite different from most teenagers here in France. Afterwards, we met up with a Muslim lady named Saida that we had contacted the day before and taught her the first lesson. She is trying to discover more about the Christian religion. She said she would read the Book of Mormon and maybe come to church on Sunday. We then headed to the church and taught a mother and her daughter who are friends of a member in the ward. They accepted the message really well and said they would read the Book of Mormon. Afterwards we had our English Class with the regulars who came. Just after, we taught Sebastien, who always comes to English class. We taught about the 10 commandments and it was a little interesting. He doesn't really seem too interested in the church, mainly the English class. He told me that he wished we could do English everyday. Ha, yeah, he is a little different.
Friday was another fairly busy day, we had weekly planning and then went to the church and taught Hassina again. Afterwards we went and met with Benedine, who is a less active member. He knows the gospel very well but gets freaked out about coming to church. We had a great rendez-vous with him and we told him that we woud pass by Sunday morning to pick him up for church but he told us that he wouldn't make any promises. We then had another rendez-vous with the Wutrichs and Laura that was really good. We talked about fasting and invited Laura to fast. She also told us that she will get baptized but not until next year when she is 18 because that is what her mom said. But she is taking the time to read the entire Book of Mormon. We hurried and got to a less active members house and taught her and her daughter, who is not a member about fasting. It was pretty good and they said they would come to church this next Sunday.
Saturday another busy day. We got to the church at 8:30 to meet members to help a lady in the ward move. We helped for a while and then someone took us back to the church so that we could meet our investigator Jocelyne. We had a great rendez-vous with her and started the plan of salvation. She is really really solid, again another reason why members need to be talking to their friends about the church, and she is continually reading everyday in the Book of Mormon and praying. She said she is just waiting for her answer and for God to tell her what he wants her to do. Afterwards, we met with a lady who was baptized about a year ago who isn't active anymore due to some things she has gotten caught up in. Basically she has been breaking commandments and she told us that she needed to talk to the Bishop about something. It was a good lesson but kind of sad that she got herself into that situation. Right after that, we got home and changed clothes and had our Samedi Sportif, and played basketball with Hassina and Manon and Laura. After we cleaned up and got ready we had a rendez-vous with Rudi, who had just gotten back in town. We had a really good rendez-vous with him. He expressed a lot of his current struggles and things he is trying to overcome. He told us that he was not ready for his date on the 12th. Which I completely understand that he needs more time. But he said he was coming to church the next day.
Sunday, we had a bunch of people come to church. Of course Laura was there, Jocelyne as well, Saida ended up showing up, a couple who the missionaries have been on and off teaching for the last four years was there, but that's fairly normal, and Rudi came too! It was really good, I just ended up being the one in charge of translating for him during all of Sacrament Meeting and let me tell you how tiring that is!!! Yikes! All I have to say about that is, mom and dad, if you are still planning on picking me up, start learning French because I don't want to translate the entire time!!! Haha I am just kidding. After church, I talked with Saida for a long time, teaching her the first lesson again because she didn't retain very much. We then taught the Langells, the couple who have been eternal investigators, and then we went with Rudi to talk to the Bishop because Rudi wanted to talk to him. Rudi expressed some of his concerns and the Bishop helped him out quite a bit, and we translated the whole time. Ha! It was really good and afterwards, Rudi told us that he wanted to completely stop drinking so that he can receive his answer from the Lord about the church. YAY! In the afternoon we taught a cool African man the second lesson and it was really good and then taught a younger african kid but it wasn't too profitable, to be honest. Then that evening, we went and ate dinner with a member at their house. It was a good way to end a crazy busy week.
I hope that everyone is doing well and that life is going well. I hope that everyday you can find the beauty and the wonder in the blessings that we receive. I love you all and want you to know how grateful I am for all of you. I know I say that everyweek but it is 100 percent true. Have a great week and enjoy life. La vie est belle!!!! Ciao!
Elder Kirkpatrick
I hope that everyone is doing very well and that this last week has been incredible for you all. It has been another busy and great week in beautiful Toulon. The weather has been wonderful here and the week has been quite good too. Of course, it is never perfect but we can never expect perfection.
Alright, so last week I left off on last Monday but I didn't tell you that that we went and had a lesson with Rudi, the Rugby player. We went to this barbecue restaurant. First of all, I never thought that I would get barbecue in France, and it was actually good, and secondly, we had a good lesson. He has had several struggles, particularly after his girlfriend and son left. They were absolutely everything for him in his life and now they are gone and he feels very alone. He told us that he feels like we are his only true friends here in Toulon. We talked about the Word of Wisdom and we engaged him to keep it and he said that he would keep it for the next four days while he was away at a training camp before their game on Friday night. We were slightly worried because he would be so far away from good influences that he might have struggles but we knew we needed to have faith in him at all times.
On Tuesday, our week started out interestingly as we went and met an Italian family who we met the day before. We brought a member who spoke Italian and it came down to the fact that they were stranded in Toulon trying to get back to Milan because all of their money and paperwork had been stolen. Unfortunately there was absolutely nothing that we could do for them. People just assume that because we are missionaries that we can just give them money to solve their problems. It is sad that we can't but ultimately there is absolutely nothing we can do for that. Afterwards, we had a rendez-vous with our investigator Pascal, who really enjoys the Book of Mormon and had read everyday that last week. Unfortunately he would not promise us that he would come to church on Sunday. For some reason he really will not commit to that at all. Afterwards, we met with a brother of one of the members in the ward. The member is actually a converted Muslim lady and her brother is still very much Muslim. We watched the restoration video with him and after him just giving us bad excuses and not answering our question about whether he would read and pray about the Book of Mormon. He finally said that he was honestly worried about what answer he would receive. We finally got him to pray at the end of the rendez-vous and then on the way to the bus, he told us that he received his answer that it was sent from God but that he believes that many paths lead to God and that there isn't one truth. So it was kind of like a little bit of progress but a little not at the same time. Ha!
Afterwards,we had a rendez-vous with the Wutrich Family, Soeur Wutrich and her daughter, Manon, and her daughter's friend Laura, who has been coming to church with Manon consistently for basically the last year and a half straight. We had a good lesson talked about obeying the commandements. It is always a bit crazy with them because Soeur Wutrich is this crazy Brazilian lady and then her daughter who is 18 and then Laura is 17, so the lessons are always crazy, but good.
Wednesday was a little bit of a slower day, we met with a very old catholic lady, Madame Eustache that we had contacted on the street and basically she just wanted someone to talk at. Not even to talk to. But I have a weakness for sweet older people, so we went and met with her. It might not have been the best use of our time but we taught a little bit and if nothing else, brought a little happiness into her day. The rest of the day consisted of contacting and then we had a rendez-vous with Hassina, who was baptized a couple weeks ago and then in the evening, we had our missionary coordination meeting at the church.
Thursday we were quite busy. In the morning we passed a lady who is less active. She is actually American and met her husband, who is French, on the internet and then moved out here. She misses the church back in the United States but she doesn't seem to keep on trying to come to the ward here. It is kind of sad. Afterwards, we met up with a young kid, about 18, named Gianni, who we met a couple days before and we had a pretty good rendez-vous with him, although he is very doubtful about the fact that God exists. He is a really nice kid and is honestly quite different from most teenagers here in France. Afterwards, we met up with a Muslim lady named Saida that we had contacted the day before and taught her the first lesson. She is trying to discover more about the Christian religion. She said she would read the Book of Mormon and maybe come to church on Sunday. We then headed to the church and taught a mother and her daughter who are friends of a member in the ward. They accepted the message really well and said they would read the Book of Mormon. Afterwards we had our English Class with the regulars who came. Just after, we taught Sebastien, who always comes to English class. We taught about the 10 commandments and it was a little interesting. He doesn't really seem too interested in the church, mainly the English class. He told me that he wished we could do English everyday. Ha, yeah, he is a little different.
Friday was another fairly busy day, we had weekly planning and then went to the church and taught Hassina again. Afterwards we went and met with Benedine, who is a less active member. He knows the gospel very well but gets freaked out about coming to church. We had a great rendez-vous with him and we told him that we woud pass by Sunday morning to pick him up for church but he told us that he wouldn't make any promises. We then had another rendez-vous with the Wutrichs and Laura that was really good. We talked about fasting and invited Laura to fast. She also told us that she will get baptized but not until next year when she is 18 because that is what her mom said. But she is taking the time to read the entire Book of Mormon. We hurried and got to a less active members house and taught her and her daughter, who is not a member about fasting. It was pretty good and they said they would come to church this next Sunday.
Saturday another busy day. We got to the church at 8:30 to meet members to help a lady in the ward move. We helped for a while and then someone took us back to the church so that we could meet our investigator Jocelyne. We had a great rendez-vous with her and started the plan of salvation. She is really really solid, again another reason why members need to be talking to their friends about the church, and she is continually reading everyday in the Book of Mormon and praying. She said she is just waiting for her answer and for God to tell her what he wants her to do. Afterwards, we met with a lady who was baptized about a year ago who isn't active anymore due to some things she has gotten caught up in. Basically she has been breaking commandments and she told us that she needed to talk to the Bishop about something. It was a good lesson but kind of sad that she got herself into that situation. Right after that, we got home and changed clothes and had our Samedi Sportif, and played basketball with Hassina and Manon and Laura. After we cleaned up and got ready we had a rendez-vous with Rudi, who had just gotten back in town. We had a really good rendez-vous with him. He expressed a lot of his current struggles and things he is trying to overcome. He told us that he was not ready for his date on the 12th. Which I completely understand that he needs more time. But he said he was coming to church the next day.
Sunday, we had a bunch of people come to church. Of course Laura was there, Jocelyne as well, Saida ended up showing up, a couple who the missionaries have been on and off teaching for the last four years was there, but that's fairly normal, and Rudi came too! It was really good, I just ended up being the one in charge of translating for him during all of Sacrament Meeting and let me tell you how tiring that is!!! Yikes! All I have to say about that is, mom and dad, if you are still planning on picking me up, start learning French because I don't want to translate the entire time!!! Haha I am just kidding. After church, I talked with Saida for a long time, teaching her the first lesson again because she didn't retain very much. We then taught the Langells, the couple who have been eternal investigators, and then we went with Rudi to talk to the Bishop because Rudi wanted to talk to him. Rudi expressed some of his concerns and the Bishop helped him out quite a bit, and we translated the whole time. Ha! It was really good and afterwards, Rudi told us that he wanted to completely stop drinking so that he can receive his answer from the Lord about the church. YAY! In the afternoon we taught a cool African man the second lesson and it was really good and then taught a younger african kid but it wasn't too profitable, to be honest. Then that evening, we went and ate dinner with a member at their house. It was a good way to end a crazy busy week.
I hope that everyone is doing well and that life is going well. I hope that everyday you can find the beauty and the wonder in the blessings that we receive. I love you all and want you to know how grateful I am for all of you. I know I say that everyweek but it is 100 percent true. Have a great week and enjoy life. La vie est belle!!!! Ciao!
Elder Kirkpatrick
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