Szczecin, Poland - A better week than last! English Club Jenga! Someone Came to Church!! Let Thy Will be Done!

The most incredible sunset!  I love it when the sky performs!

Starszy Einfeldt, Nick, Starszy Garrison

Wielkanocny baranek chleb
(Easter Lamb Bread)

For our "cheat day" we tried waffles!   Love me some waffle!
(Mom - they aren't as good as in Belgium - but still tasty!)

Waffle Love!
(Mom note:  Raquel's last meal before the MTC was a waffle!)

"Chalk Talk"  - Our English Club is growing!  So thankful and so fun!

English Club Jenga!

"Żabka run!"
Żabka's are everywhere here - they are like a Jackson's, 7-11 or a Maverick convenience store.

These are equivalent to our hot dogs in the U.S. - They are a little weird but super good!
Embracing the "foodie" in me, I have wanted to try once since I came to Poland - afterall it is the land of sausage.
Elder Garrison loves them so he encouraged me - (just hoping they are made from meat) - they were super good in a fast food way!  Ha!

A member of our small Szczecin Branch whom I LOVE!!!!!

"Selfie Sunday" with a typical Starszy Einfeldt photobomb! 

A twin (and elder) with model status!

I am always amazed at how much you can grow to love a person in such a short time!
Siostra Sloan is so inspired and encouraging!  I am grateful every day for her!
I wish you could see some of her incredible art - she is an amazing artist!

We eat at Siostra and Starszy Cutting's house every other Sunday for dinner!  
They are so kind and amazing!

We were the chefs this week!!
(I think Siostra Sloan thought it was a Mystery Murder Dinner Theater!)

Sunday Dnner at the charming Siostra & Starszy Cutting!

Cześć Family and Friends!!!!!

I can't believe another week has already flown by!! It was a better week for me than last. I am learning how to be patient with myself and trust the Lord! 

We started off the week really great with English Club!! More people came!! We have really been trying to grow it and we are seeing results! We had the biggest number of people attend since I have been in Szczecin! 

We played Jenga! Each Jenga tile had a question on it that they would then have to answer in English! It was super fun and I was so happy so many people came! We also did a lot of English finding activities and we are hopefully going to have some more people come!

We had some incredible miracles happen this week! 

Sister Sloan and I were contacting and we weren't having much success! There was this young girl who I thought would never even give us the time of day but we stopped and talked with her.  Never judge a book by its cover!  It ended up being a really amazing conversation! We talked about the Book of Mormon and what we believe! She was really interested and wanted a Book of Mormon which we happily gave her.  She said she would love to meet with us this next week! Ahhh!!  Please let us teach you a plan of happiness!

After talking with her, we continued contacting and met this other girl who was so naturally happy!  (One thing in Poland is people don't really smile back at you when you smile at them but her facial expression was so happy and she smiled!)  We maybe talked for two minutes but she was so interested and gave us her number! Ahhh!! It was so incredible and Sister Sloan and I were just so pumped and excited! 

And one of the biggest miracles....someone we invited to church came!! We had been doing area book work and I was looking at the people we had met and just felt like I should call this one number randomly, so I did! She was so willing to come to church and SHE CAME!!! I was so happy I could have hugged her!! 

This week was also a big learning and growing week for me! (When hasn't it been?! Ha!) I have been studying a lot how to do "Our Father's will!" Something my Mom has always taught me was to end my prayers with "Let Thy will be done!" Somewhere along the way I forgot about this! I started to do it again and suddenly I felt like I was doing what I was suppose to be doing and where I was suppose to be! I didn't change anything really but I began feeling more confident that I was doing what my Father in Heaven wanted me to do! I feel different than I have ever before! I don't know exactly how to describe it but I just feel like I am on a better more secure correct path! 

I am trying to be someone that my Father in Heaven can trust completely and be proud of! I just feel happy and good and at peace! I know where I am suppose to be and that is right here!

I wanted to share three little bits of the Polish culture! 

1.  As I mentioned before, it is very strange here to walk around smiling and saying hello to people you pass! Whenever we say "Dzien Dobry" (Good Morning) people look at us like we are crazy! Whenever we get a reply though it is like the best day ever! Siostra Sloan and I always High-five! 

2.  Like the idiom "cross your fingers" - Poles say "trzymaj kczuki " or "hold your thumbs!" They do the action with it and it is so funny! 

3.  I love how my people here say "thank you!"  There is always some type of passion behind it.  They'll say it cutely or beautifully or strongly or with some type of emotion that you feel their gratitude and more.  It is so fun and really adorable!!

I also had one of the most embarrassing moments on my mission so far! I call it my "Best Two Years" moment! For those who haven't seen the movie, The Best Two Years, it is about a group of missionaries serving in the Netherlands (shout out to my Mom)! One Elder is fresh off the train and is out on the street contacting. His senior companion tells him what to say for ma'am or sir.  Of course he goes up to a man and calls him a woman and tries really awkwardly to back track...well this happened to me! 

First a little background information "Pan" means sir and "Pani" means ma'am! We were contacting in a park and I went up to talk to this man.  I said the normal intro and then I tried to ask "if he had heard of Mormons before" but I said this instead, " Czy Pani...oh nie, nie Pani, um przepraszam czy pan słyzał..."  (have you ma'am, oh you're not woman, um sorry have you sir...)  It was so embarrassing!  He looked at me like I was crazy!  Siostra Sloan and I laughed and laughed!  

I love Poland!  I can't say that enough!  and I love Polish even when I make mistakes! 

I am so grateful for the opportunity to be a missionary and to be able to learn and grow and become whom my Father in Heaven wants me to become! 

I know if we say "Let Thy will be done" often throughout the day, He will be guide us and help us!!  (Think about giving this simple statement a try!)I'm off to catch a train for exchanges in Gdansk!

Kocham Was!!

Siostra DeMordaunt