Just another day is Paradise!

Well this week was good and crazy! 

 

Almost every other night I have an awful dream about going home. I go home and I am an awful person, not nice at all and I realize it and I go and hide and I just cry and cry that my mission made me a worse person and not a better one.  weird dreams huh?  I really don't want that to happen.....

 

Found out that one of the Elders here is really good friends with Evan Perry. HIs name is....Elder Walker :) haha I think his name is Dallin...or Dylan....or something. But it’s a small world in the church!  it was funny to think back about all that. I remember me and whit went to their cabin once! 

 

We found some great new investigators this week! it was great! I have had more investigators just show up randomly than ever before!  my companion sister karacheva is just awesome!  she is training me! haha We went to one lady who is inactive and we talked about taking Christ’s name upon ourselves. Her mother in law was there and loved it all! she knows a lot about the church just because her family are members and she said that she would work to baptism! her name is Ludmila and her daughter said she would work to going to the temple.

 

Our investigator Tamara is great but still having a hard time quitting smoking.  We are praying hard for her and making a plan for her to be able to be baptized at the end of the month.

 

On Saturday all the missionaries from Tomsk got on a bus headed to Novosibirsk. it was great fun! we got a few new elders with us so we got to get to know them. Elders are just so great!  the bus was empty in the back so we had a party in the back telling stories showing pictures and playing games....the Russians in the front probably thought we were crazy. speaking half the time in Russian and half in English! and laughing! haha the nerve we have! :) but it was a lot of fun.  Had my first experience with what my companion calls "extreme Russia" haha it was a public toilet...or in other words a hole in the ground.....oh goodness.  and then we got to Novosibirsk!  it’s about a 4 and half hour bus ride.  we had all the missionaries from Tomsk, Novosibirsk, Barnaul, Kemerovo, and Novokuznetsk there! we were just missing Omsk and Krazniarsk.  We practiced for our missionary choir. It was so fun to be all together!  we were all so excited to see each other our practicing wasn't all that focused...poor sister Webb. But it still sounded good.  You know. there is nothing else in the whole world like a room full of missionaries. Nowhere else do you see so many strong young men. The elders are incredible. They love and support each other. They are still crazy and boys but they have a calling from God and it is seen and felt.

 

Went to the sisters to sleep which is always fun to catch up of course! and the next morning back at the branch to practice again. this time we were all able to concentrate and really practice. there are only 7 women voices haha so we get drowned out but that is ok. for our warm up to practice we sang "Called to Serve"  I had goose bumps (just like Joanie Hewitson always used to say :))  and then we had about an hour to mingle and chat.  President took us with him in his new car to where the conference is being held! haha it’s like a running joke through the mission that President is giving me the old van haha! he tells all the elders that I get it and if they want a ride they have to be on their best behavior. every time I see him he tells me something new about the car and how I need to take care of it and secrets of how to run it and stuff.  why? I don't know but it’s funny.  

 

So the conference. It was BIG all the members from all over came in on Buses or trains for the conference and we rented out the "big" conference room at the Marriott which actually was small and we used every chair they had haha. We organized our one very large Siberian District soon to be Stake! haha we don't know how soon but hopefully soon.  we have enough members and priesthood holders they said, we just have to start acting like a stake!  oh goodness! so exciting!  They started by releasing everyone from all callings and calling all new people! it was crazy!  I got to see all the people I love from Novosibirsk! the Omsk people just watched over internet so I didn't get to see them....I’m sad to think that I won't be able to see them before I go....anyways.  The Conference was great. The spirit was so strong.  President said that it was like we were handing the baton over to the members....COOL!  They are ready!  The missionary choir was pretty chill too. I think they liked it.

 

We got to ride back on the bus with the members to Tomsk! it was a lot of fun! we got to know a lot of the member’s way better and in a completely different way. I just stood up talking to people most of the time, or "went to be a guest" with someone in a different part of the bus. it was great fun.  I love the Russian People, I love Russian and I love Russia! haha 

 

Doctrine and Covenants continues to answer my daily questions. haha so funny, I just open it up and it’s my answer, even when I didn't know it was my question :)

 

Studied all about Salvation and saving ordinances today. it was great. I love studying the gospel.  Well I just rambled a whole bunch like usual. :) but I love you all the church is true!  Thanks for all the support.

 

Sister Trottier

so remember that story i told you about that family that i helped last week at internet?....well here is what happened. they left and we sat down and did internet.  after i had the urge to buy a new journal...almost out. and then after remembered we needed an album and then sister margolies wanted to buy some russian movies cause she is headed out and then ijust felt this weird urgency to go and so we got out and right at the bus stop was the dad of the family!!! i just introduced myself, told him that we had message for him about how his family could be together forever and it would bless his life.  he said "i believe you"! oh man, so we exchanged numbers!  we were nervous because we knew we were leaving soon so we called and went over and dropped by his work on tuesday and gave him a book of mormon and got to know him a bit.  told him he would love to meet us with his family when we got back. they are a muslim family and are really strong. he showed us pictures of his little boy and girl and wife. such a good family.

 

we have a lot of potential and people we want to turn into investigators! hope we can help alot of them!

 

We are all just here in Novosibirsk all five sisters! haha we are trying to be effective and use all of our time as the Lord would want us to do. We have tried to meet with alot of investigators and less actives but have also met with a few members. its been a good week but i am trying just not to worry about my people back in Tomsk. we have called a few to keep them going but we will just jump right in when we get back.  i am a little nervous about my new companion and me being a trainer but it will about be good and i am excited!

 

its crazy having 5 sisters in one apartment...but its also good. we have been going on crazy splits the whole time and i am learning to teach and work with all sorts of different sisters. I have already learned a whole lot just in the few days. no wonder elders have 24 hour exchanges...sad it doesn't really happen with us! you learn so much! 

 

i have loved being back and seeing all the people i love! its great seeing how some people ahve progressed and grown already, but also in just the few weeks i have been gone some have gone backwards which is really sad. 

 

this is a pretty lame email this time...but my excuse is that the picture sending was taking so long so thats why haha sorry!  

 

President Misha, the branch president is sending in an application to work for CES and he had to send in a video of him teaching people in english so he asked us if we could be his students.  we read in 2 kings and studied the stories of Elijah and Elisha and also the stories of Josiah.  I LOVED IT!  oh man im such a big nerd, but it was so good!  its hard to just read through it of course but we just had a panel of missionaries all discussing the symbolism and how we can relate it to our day and the callings of prophets etc etc and faith and obedience and it was legit! i wanna take an old testament class when i get home probably. i don't know it very well...lets me honest i know nothing about the old testament except Noah, Joseph and David and Goliath and Moses and that is all just because there are movies about them haha!   but the thing i learned is that we can make the scriptures come alive when we study them with others and when we just all say what we are thinking because someone can learn from it probably!   its great.

 

Everything is good with me.  all is well.  I keep having dreams about me being home...probably because my comp is going home, but soon that will not be the case so it will probably stop i think. :) i love missionary work! it brings me so much joy! even when we get rejected and things don't work the miracls and the things that do work and the people that do accept make it all worth it.  I love the Gospel! 

 

I love you all so much! i hope you have a good week! 

 

Love Sister Trottier

Feb 26th

Hey Family!  

 

Big big week this week!  The first and biggest news is that I got a transfer.  That wasn't a big a surprise because we knew that I would have to get a transfer because Sister Margolies is going home!  But the big surprise is that I will be training.  And I think that it is a Russian sister that I will be training.  My first Russian Companion will be my last companion! Crazy huh?  Well at least my Russian will improve I guess...well maybe...hopefully....But I’m pretty nervous about it.  I felt good about it when president told me and I know that it is what Heavenly Father wants, pretty sure He wants me to learn a lot. I feel like I have to become the best missionary in the whole world in one week but that won't happen.....but anyways I thought that I was ok with it until I couldn't sleep last night haha! I woke up at 3 and couldn't sleep so I cleaned some and wrote some letters and studied some :) haha it was a very productive morning. Because of a lack of sisters and crazy visa trips etc etc we have to leave for Novosibirsk on Wednesday to be with a sister there for a week and wait for my new companion....so I will be away from my area for a long time which always stinks. But Heavenly Father knows where we are and I can do good work where ever. For example there was a family here at internet who just couldn't figure out how to use the computer and needed to type some in English so I helped out. They were amazed that I could understand Russian and English and use a computer! haha so talented :) haha jk. but you can have a good influence where ever you are. 

 

It was Man's Day this week. Ya it’s a holiday here haha so great.  And so we celebrated. on last Monday the elders came over to our apartment and we made them sweet and sour chicken and a cake. They loved it haha. Ya I am such a sister missionary. before my mission I swore I wouldn't be one of the those sister missionaries that just cooked and baked for the elders haha but turns out I have become every sister missionary I swore I wouldn't become haha it just makes the elders so so happy to get home cooked food :)  we were at our investigators house, we teach him and his mom and we brought him chocolate for the holiday.  I asked him "Oleg, do you like chocolate?" and he said as serious as death "I respect Chocolate" haha it was so great! I respect chocolate too! haha and then he showed us he bought a chocolate cake for us to eat with him and he just cut it in fourths and gave us a fourth of a cake! holy cow it was so good but really not..... and then we had a branch party for the men which was so funny. and it was great because they played do you love your neighbor game, it was so funny with all the adults and old people haha.  they loved it! 

 

There was a baptism on Sunday! it was so great! it is this 16 year old boy who has been wanting to get baptized for MONTHS and his dad wouldn't let him and finally he said yes!  his name is Valeri!   he is so great and so strong!  HIs mom, brother and grandma came to the baptism and the Spirit was so strong.   Our investigator Tamara came to the baptism and she loved it. We invited her to be baptized and she accepted!  It will be in a month’s time because she is right now trying to quit smoking. so pray for her to have the strength to do so! she is great and is already doing missionary work! 

 

This weekend was also a holiday. I’m not really sure how it translates but it’s like Oil, or butter holiday. started Tuesday or wed....you have to eat blini (crepe things) every day and feed everyone that comes over blini and on Sunday you forgive everyone that you are offended by haha or something like that. haha I talked to some lady about it and suggested maybe we should do it every week. that way we can always be forgiving people AND always have blini! :) she thought it was a good idea. 

 

we called up an old contact named Elena who knows English...I think I told you about her last week....well the young girl that came with her to meet us invited us over to her house to meet her family and celebrate the holiday with them. She has a great great family!  I don't know but they might be our miracle family. A STRONG HAPPY FAMILY!  haha you don't see that much here!  two girls (3 and 12) and a mom and dad. The mom is a surgeon which here in Russia pays about as much as a teacher in America! pretty bad huh?  I couldn't believe it!  she says that she loves her job but the pay is like a side job. her husband is an engineer and supports the family.  they live in a HOUSE.  and a nice one.   crazy.  never seen anything like it in Russia.  we got to know them and talked about our purpose in being here and how much it means to us. they invited us back over to have us tell about how our church is different from others.  unfortunately that will be in a weekish because of transfers but I hope the interest doesn't die out before that. 

 

I got a letter from Sister Kate Giles in the mail! haha sounds like she is doing good and she loves her mission! haha Kate! she is probably the best missionary in the whole world I am guessing. she is just so bubbly and out there! they probably love her! 

 

hmmm......the members here are great!  the relief society sets up meetings with us and her and calls us to tell us when they are! haha she is the best ever!  and she checks up on all our old investigators and calls every once and awhile to invite them to keep meeting with us haha oh man she is great! her name is Tatiana.  

 

There is a man who just got the priesthood and then was called as the second counselor in the branch. his wife as started to come to church (not a member) she is my next best friend. she is nice.She didn't really like me all that much at first but I think she is warming up.  I had no idea that the secret to life is to just assume that everyone loves you and wants to be your friend!  and you just love everyone and want to be their friend and the world becomes a beautiful place! we should all just try to be friends and assume the best of everyone.   

 

Today I read in the Doctrine and Covenants 51:9 and felt inspired to study about being a steward. We are already given each a stewardship in our lives and I already had one as a missionary but now I feel like I have been added an extra this transfer. I have a lot that I will be asked to account for I think. But it was a good study.  I came up with us analogy...or parable...or something.    So, let’s pretend I decided to start a business of designing and creating earrings.  (which by the way would be really really sweet)  at first I didn't have that many requests and clients but as time went on I got more and more and I couldn't handle it all by myself......soooo I hired some people to work for me and gave them some responsibilities and had others designing and making them for me. But of course I would want them to do it as cool as I would and as good as quality as if I was making them myself.  that is what I would expect from the people that I entrusted to my work.  Or another example. a gymnastics coach. So many people want to come to their gym and so they have to hire more people. This reminded me of Tammy because she is so careful about how she picks people to work with her and what she expects of them.  She looks for people who will work hard and honestly. who have a good attitudes, who know how to love the children and take care of them, are willing to learn and get better and who she can trust to do all she would if she were the coach.   This is how our Heavenly Father is as well. He has a work.  His work is to "Bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man"  and He has called us as His steward to help Him and to be His Hands. We need to work and do what He would do. That is a huge task but He has entrusted us and we are entitled to His help.     That also brings what I learned about accounting to the Lord. We shouldn't just account in the end to Him at the judgment day but if we check in daily with Him and ask Him how he thinks we are doing with HIs work now He can help correct us and teach us daily how we can improve.  for example Tammy can teach and correct a small mistake and they can become better coaches and co workers continually.  and with the earring thing. maybe they could ask me what I thought and I could give a little feed back before it’s too late haha. there are twelve hundred little kids playing games and over my shoulder watching me write in English and wanting me to leave haha it’s hard to concentrate haha so it’s over!

 

But I love you, the church is true! you are great! I love you so much!  

 

Sister Trottier

 

Feb 19th

well....family i think if i calculated right you are currently sitting on a red eye on  your way home from Kauai!  How was it? what did you do?  was it all that we ever dreamed and hoped for audge and jake?  did you rent motor bikes and ride around the island? haha SEND PICTURES! this is important!  the weather here can't decide if it wants to get warmer or be freezing haha but its not bad at the moment. around negative 10 or so. Tomsk is greati love it. and i love being here. People are nice and open....most times :) well sometimes haha i have alot to say and i wrote down alot to write to you, but i have a bad confession. I feel like those elders that right one paragraph home because they have nothing to say :) haha or just because we are too lazy..not sure which one it is.  but at the moment i am listening to that song that i told you i loved the My soul Hungered. its on lds.org under youth and then music and its the last one..if you want to listen....its good. :)  

we went to a russian village this week! ya it was pretty sweet.my first real russian village and it was cool. it was just a 20 min bus ride or so outside of Tomsk. we have two cute new young girl baptisms. They come to church with their newly baptized aunt. their family are all members but inactive, but actually they are being great examples and their mom has come to church two weeks in a row!!! it is great!  These girls are so amazing. one is 9 and one is 12 and we drew and read the dream of lehi and they had all these great insights of what each of the symbols could mean to them in their lives right now that i had never thought about. Young people now really have great capacity to know and understand spiritual things. they are so close to Heaven. 

Speaking of Lehis dream. I love it. i think i have said that twelve million times, but it makes me so so happy.  We read it with everyone and i learn more and more as we analyze it with more and more people of all ages and testimony strengths. 

Last week i hit my one year mark in Russia.  Can you believe it?! I can't. I feel like i have been here for forever!  but at the same time i can't believe a year has gone by! so much has happened to me and to others and everything in the time i have been away. craziness. 

so we went to a new members house, a mom and grandma and 15 year old boy.  They are so strong and great i had no idea that they had only been members for a year! anyways haha we asked for their story and you will never believe this, but this is how it happened!  So this kid he watched South Park, you know that dumb tv show? ya well there is an episode about the book of mormon and mormons in general and he loves to read and he just said he just felt this HUGE desire to read that book. and he said to his mom, i want a Book of Mormon and his mom didn't know where to get one and he just kept buggin her about it and so not knowing, where do you get a book?  a book store of course!  and they went in and ask and the lady said "ugh. we don't like them and we don't have one. but you can find one on Mira 10A"!! haha she gave them our address!  so finally after the boy bugged her some more they went to the address and asked for a Book of Mormon! haha crazy huh!? after they were baptized the mom went to the book store and thanked the lady and the lady was somewhat horrified that they joined....haha but people do missionary work with outeven knowing it! haha so thank you to the writers of South Park.  If for only this one family they helped them find everything they needed. haha

we have found and refound people that used to have lessons with the missionaries. all of them are great.  i hope that some of them we can help.  There are two young girls named Lida and Masha that are just great and a babooshka named Zinaida and a family!  The mom is Elena and she knows english.  She has two little boys 4 and 4 months and a great husband named Artor. They are like no other family ihave met so far here. strong and happy and loving and have hopes and dreams. it will be a slow process but i hope a forward one :) 

so there is this weird thing that they do in Russia. They have their hot water pipes in the bathrooms on the outside of the wall, i don't know why...maybe to like hang your towels on or something so they are warm or something, dn't know. but ours is SUPER HOT! and they aren't supposed to be that hot. just luke warm our is scalding and it is right next to the sink and in the way. so my first day here i had no idea about this danger in our house and i almost burnt my whole arm off!  and got blisters and everything! and like a week later i got my shoulder and yesterday i got it again on my arm but in different place. I told sister margolies i was going to tell people it was part of companionship inventory haha.  but anyways....kinda funny but not....we are trying to think of something to cover it with but we are worried if its a towel it will catch on fire or something..have any ideas?

The Parable of the Pomello

Background info:  I have fallen in love with a fruit called a pomello that is like a grapefruit but not as messy. the way to tell if they are ripe is how orange they are....or so Sister Sanford told me

Story: we were at the grocery store and i was going to buy a pomello and so i looked for the most orange one!  i was so excited! it was a beautiful color of orange. so the next day i get it out to eat it, and i take off the mesh wrapping and guess what else was on there!?!!  orange cellophane!  ya! thats right!  ORANGE! andi took off the cellophane only to find that it was sickly pale yellow color!!  tricky tricky huh? The people that wanted to sell that pomello knew what i would look for

application:  alot of applications you can find her of course. don't judge a book by the cover.  the world makes things look different from what they really are. more and more. think about it.  

I had another parable to tell you about being lost but the time just told me that i am alsmost up!  So quick run down.

yesterday we had a meeting with a lady and we thought we kinda knew how to get there so we got on a bus and got off on our stup and were pretty sure where to go so we just set off and turned left.  we walked and walked and soon realized we should have been there by now,. we asked a few people difreaction on the street and all kinda pointed us the same ish direction but a little off from each other. finally we got out the map and tried to find it ourselves and got on buses and walked awhile and more buses. finally we called the lady and she got us to her house in no time!  we finished the lesson and then went to find the bus stop and low and behold we were right back where we had started!   after like an hour of searching we were just RIGHT of the bus stop!!!  so our problems?

1. relied on our own wisdom and knowledge- didn't ask the owner of the house or even look at a map

2.  Asked the wrong people who also didn't know perfectly - trusted what they said with out question

3. finally used the map but tried with out asking for help,  and after agian asked people who didn't know.

4 FINALLY we called the owner of the house and with her directions and use of the map we got there

so if you want to get to Gods Kingdom, use the fourth step :)  duh 

read a good talk on changing our hearts and it being seen that we changed. Is our change visable?  

Gotta go! love ya! church is true! 

Sister Trottier