Fløde Ketoffler and Hollansk Waffles

Easter sounds like it was wonderful! Sydney made a strawberry pie? that is awesome! I told my companion about the bunny rolls you  make, and we thought about getting the recipe from you to try it but then we decided it would take too much time. ;) Oh well! 

Did you know in Denmark there is an Easter Bunny AND and Easter Chicken!

Us with S (the coolest girl eva!) and some really cute baby chicks! (this was at our Mission leader's house)

We didn't have anything super fancy happen on Easter Sunday, but Sister McVey and I did go and sing easter hymns on a park bench for a little while! It was totally terrifying - and I'm pretty sure some people laughed at us - but there was a family that sat down at a picnic table close by and could hear us singing. They didn't leave, so we took it as a sign that we didn't sound too bad. ;) 

On Saturday night we ate with our ward mission leader and his family, and I found out that they found my blog last week! How funny and great is that? Now I better watch out when I talk about Odense, since I know people who live here will be reading what I say. ;) Just kidding!! 

But I won't be talking about Odense much longer because yesterday I found out that next Monday, I'll be transferring! Ahhh it's breaking my heart to leave! I love it here and I love all the people we work with. I've made so many good friends and I kind of assumed/counted on staying here! But the Lord has a plan and I am very happy to follow it. :) 

I'll give you 3 guesses to where I'm going.

1. It's on Sjælland. (go look on a map!)

2. It's the biggest city in Denmark.

3. It also happens to be the capital of Denmark.

I'm going to COPENHAGEN! 

Well, to be specific the area is the Frederiksberg area, which is the suburb of Copenhagen where the mission office is located, but it includes downtown Copenhagen! So I am very very excited. From what I've heard it's a great area, and when Sister Hale was there she carried a guitar around on the s-togs (like the metro or the subway) and sang songs - and it got alot of people to talk to her! So I think I'll copy her with my ukulele. :) It'll be fun! 

But I was thinking, would it be possible for you to send me some ukulele music/a print-out of all of the ukulele chords? I used to just be able to look it up online, but now, as you know, I can't! And I can only play one or two songs by memory now, so I need to work on that! 

Søster B and Søster McV at the Hans Christian Anderson home

That also reminds me - I just asked President last week, and it turns out I am not actually allowed to look at the blog. Woopsies! My bad!! So I won't be doing that anymore. Lesson learned: Don't go by word-of-mouth exceptions to the rules! Make sure you hear them from the original source!

And I haven't gotten your easter package yet, but I will next week when I get into Frederiksberg. So woohoo! 2 Easters for me! Did you get my Easter package yet? It should get there soon! Along with a postcard for Emily for her birthday.

This week has been so great. We did a lot of fun Easter contacting (that awkward moment when you ask someone what Easter means to them and their response is "absolutely nothing!" - what do you say to that? Hahaha!). It gave us the chance to bear our testimonies of Jesus Christ and hopefully the people we talked to will remember that. 

Sister McVey and I with the fløde ketoffler we made!

There is a sweet older woman in our ward who made Easter gifts for us to give to the people we work with, so we went around and dropped off Easter eggs as well! Easter is 2 days long in Denmark, so we were still able to give away Easter gifts yesterday - to the H family, who were really cute about it. We told the kids that they couldn't get their easter gifts unless they participated in our lesson, which of course made them very eager to listen and answer our questions, and then they were really cute about saying thank you and sharing the candy with their parents - which I don't know if I would have done. ;) sorry!

This is us with some Hollansk Waffles

The B family is letting us teach them! C & C, the two daughters, are almost 8 and almost 10 and before we started becoming good friends with them they weren't really thinking about being baptized, but their mom told us yesterday that the youngest said she wants to be baptized when she turns 8! We were SO EXCITED to hear that! 

I really hope it all goes well because I am going to really miss going to visit them. C & C let me play barbies with them (it's been a long time!) and we're all just really good friends. We're definitely going to stay in touch! 

Anyways It has been a great week! A lot better than last week, because I decided to stop whimping around and start choosing to be happy no matter what. :) things go a lot better that way! 

Plus it seemed like a lot of people we met with shared with us why God is so important to them, which was a tender mercy to me because I was starting to worry no one felt like they needed God anymore. :) But of course we all do! 

This week we have an appointment with the B family again, as well as a lot of members we want to stop by (we'll be baking lots of cookies! woo woo!). And then I'll be packing up again and transferring away from this lovely city! Ahh it is so bittersweet! 

Søster McVey and I doing some epic walking down a cobblestone street.

It's amazing how close I feel I got to the ward here - I made some really good friends who are my age or close to it, who I hope I can stay in contact with - in just 6 weeks. I love being here! And I am excited to see what will happen in this last week here in Odense.

I hope this week is great! 

Love,

Hannah

Daffodils in Odense

I can't believe it's another week! Time goes so fast when you're having fun and working hard. :))

I am so excited for Easter! We're going over to a member's house on Friday evening for a little Easter party. She invited all 6 of the missionaries, so it'll be a little crowded in her cute little house! It will be fun. 

Other than that we'll just be working away! The bike is holding up just fine, it's in good condition and as fun to ride as ever! 

All of the Søsters from our apartment making faces with daffodils.

The Senior couple here in Odense is fun, but they're going home next week! They're very very kind and helpful, and they've worked really hard to learn Danish which I think is really impressive because neither one of them served missions here when they were younger. 

For p-day today we had a lot of errands to run! We hung out on the gågade (the gagade is a pedestrian shopping street) with the other sisters though, and that was really fun! We also had time to write letters - I sent you all some! :)

We make frikadeller  (Danish meatballs) together!

This week we did a lot of service! We helped a member clean her house because she had a surgery and couldn't do any heavy lifting/cleaning - I vacuumed a whole house! How crazy is that? It was actually kind of fun though, which was surprising to me. 

We also had an appointment with L, who was an investigator before and wants to meet again. She told us that she doesn't want to commit to the church when she knows she can't do it with her whole heart right now, but she does want to learn more - and I am so grateful that she is open to learn! 

Søster Sheridan (one of the sisters we live with) and I!

Anyways sorry this email is rather short! I am running out of time, ahh! I love you all lots and I hope you are praying for me and the Danes, because I'm praying for you! I hope the rest of the family is doing well. 

I haven't really heard from anyone. Sister McVey and I think Dobby is stealing our  mail because we haven't gotten any letters since I got here. ;) (Hannah's mom here - In my defense, I did send an Easter package about 2 weeks ago, and hopefully she will get it this week... Looks like we will write letters for FHE!)

The peep and cookie smore Søster McVey and I made to celebrate her year mark as a missionary!

I am sorry because I sound a little down this week I think. Will you pray for Søster McVey and I and our area this week?  Anyways I don't want to worry you or make you sad, but I could just use your prayers! 

I love you so much! And I hope you have a great week!! I know we will. 

Love,

Hannah 

Hejsa!

Hejsa!

I'm doing great today! And yes I got to watch conference (all but the last session) and it was SO DARN GOOD! Wow! I don't know what they did, but conference got so much better once I came out on my mission!  I took so many notes, and I've been reviewing them during personal study in the morning and ah! There's just so much good to get out of conference, all year long. I just can't believe it's been 6 months since last conference. That was my very first weekend in Denmark, and oh, how I thought the 6 months until April conference would go so slow! But of course it flew. I'm a little worried because I know that means the next 6 months to conference will go even faster. I can't procrastinate anymore! (I want to read Jesus the Christ, and I need to start reading the Book of Mormon in Danish)

Speaking of the Book of Mormon, we're studying Chapter 5 of Preach My Gospel this month, which is all about the Book of Mormon! (shout-out to General Conference - Elder Ballard invited y'all to share with me what you've been studying in preach my gospel so feel free! I want to hear all about it! :) ) So I wrote down how I've come to know for myself that the Book of Mormon is true. I thought I would share it with you!

Apparently, I have known that the Book of Mormon is true since before I can remember. Dad always tells a story about walking into my room when I was 4 years old, and seeing me crying on my bed with the Book of Mormon open on my lap. When he asked why I was crying, I said, "I just know that the Book of Mormon is true!" And I've never really doubted its truthfulness. I think there have been times when I've taken it for granted, but I've always known that the Book of Mormon is really God's word and another testament of Jesus Christ along with the Bible (but my testimony of it wasn't really that sophisticated until the last year). 

So, fast-forward to when I was 14. It was my freshman year of high school and it was a really, really hard time in my life. I just remember feeling so dark and alone inside, even though I went to church every week and had friends and did well in school. In January there was a For the Strength of Youth devotional (it may have been that tacky Brand New Year musical. Loved that thing!). Sister Dalton invited the youth of the church to read the scriptures 5 minutes a day, pray, and smile. I decided I would try it. So I started reading one chapter of the Book of Mormon a day. 

I finished it in May or June of that year, and it wasn't until the end that I looked back and realized in those 5 or 6 months, my life had gotten a lot happier. It was like gradually, day by day, the sun got a little brighter and I filled a little more with light! I know that the Book of Mormon, and scripture study in general, even if it's just 5 minutes a day, can really change lives. 

It changed mine! 

I am so thankful for the Book of Mormon. My testimony of God's word to us has expanded from not just the Book of Mormon to the Bible as well in the last 8 months. I have realized that the Bible is JUST as important as the Book of Mormon, because they really do support each other. In the Book of Mormon we can learn the Doctrine of Christ (faith! repentance! baptism by immersion! the gift of the Holy Ghost! enduring to the end!), but we learn about who Christ actually was in the Bible - I feel like you can't fully appreciate one without the other. And man oh man the Bible is just coming to life for me as I read it! 

I noticed in General Conference that a lot of the speakers referred to stories of Christ in the Bible, but hearing them now I know the context of most of the stories, and what happened before and after them, so they just mean so much more. I know the Book of Mormon is true! I know that the Bible is true as well! And I know that studying them together can give more meaning to the gospel in day to day life. 

We found 2 new investigators this week! And one of them, L, was a previous investigator who had a baptismal date but didn't make it because she has been smoking since she was 12 and couldn't stop. When she told us that her eyes just looked so sad and depressed - she can use the spiritual nourishment that the gospel gives too! I am just really grateful that the Spirit led Sister McVey and I, the timing was right, and she let us in. I know that inviting L to read from the Book of Mormon and pray will help her right now, and that there are resources that can help and support her in the long run. 

Mom I just love it all. And you're right, things are a little hard (or were, I'm getting stronger every week!) but it's helping me rely on the Savior. And it's helping me see just what being a disciple of Christ is - I loved the talk from Elder Holland, where he said being a disciple of Christ often involves weeping, worrying, and something else that starts with a W that I can't remember. Because it's true! It's not pastries and flæskesteg all the time (har har har!). But Sister McVey and I have so much fun and we keep each other positive.

The roomies are great! No huge drama, not even really little drama either. We all just get along! We keep meaning to take pictures together or do a pday thing together but just havent had time. But next Monday we will! speaking of pictures, sorry, I can't find my charger so I don't think there will be any this week :O I am afriad I may have permanently lost the charger! Ahh!

Your story about great grandma is so good! Last week I started filling out my own "My Family" booklet (they showed it in conference) and I learned a lot of things I didn't know about the family. There are pictures of some of our ancestors on familysearch, it's so fun to see their faces and try to see if we look like each other very much. (I think  I look like one of the great-something-grandmas, whose name is Margaret) It's just really cool! If you haven't gotten on familysearch you totally should, there are family stories and pictures and just all kinds of cool stuff on there. (we have permission to get on it during open church time). 

I hope the weather is lovely this week! No more snow!! I have a little easter package to send you all next Monday. I hope you like marzipan! ;) 

Ha' det godt! 

Love ya!

Love,

Hannah

Hej Igen!

Hej igen!

 

I'm great today! It's been a good week and an exhausting one. I don't know why - probably a combination of daylight savings and being a Little sick.

 

Søster Barrett at the Zoo

The Zoo was SO FUN! It was really cool - they had a South America exhibit that was indoors and climate controlled to feel like it was actually South America. It went from the Northern part, with a rainforest area, to the very Southern part, with penguins! It was a really cute exhibit with lots of fun animals. And it was just a very clean and hyggeligt zoo. 

We're doing like 1/3 biking, 1/3 bussing, and 1/3 walking - so a bit of everything. It's a good balance, because with bussing and walking you can contact lots of people, and with biking you can leave when you want and get there fast rather than relying on a bus schedule. So we just do what is most convenient to what we have planned!

 

Søster McVey and Søster Barrett with the Giraffes

The musical number was kind of a little miracle! Turns out no one was really ready to do a singing musical number, so I ended up doing a piano solo. I practiced and practiced during the time we were working the open church (the church is open for tours and Family history and the missionaries do shifts at it throughout the week... unforunately not many people have been coming!!), but my hands just couldn't get it right! Then on Sunday right before Sacrament Meeting I played through it again, and couldn't get through it without stopping. 

Me and a big fish

So I spent Sacrament Meeting having a panic attack leading up to when I was supposed to play (It was very dramatic! I started regretting even coming out on a mission!) and I just prayed really hard. So that I wouldn't embarrass myself, and also so I wouldn't ruin the meeting/take the spirit away by playing bad. Plus the Mission President and his wife were speaking, so the pressure was on! 

Anyways I got up there to play, my hands were shaking super bad, but once I started playing I felt at Peace and my fingers hit the right notes! It was definitely a moment of grace.

 

 

Me and a goat

Right now we're praying to find S again, a lady we met who we made a return appointment with and she never showed up. We met her in the park so we've been contacting there like crazy in hopes of running into her! (we're basically stalkers. Woo!)

 

This week weeeeeeee did more finding! We had splits with the Sister Training Leaders - Søster Orgill and Søster Pearson. They're both really great missionaries! I was with Sister Pearson most of the time - we had lots of fun and did lots of contacting. She is really good at talking to people on the street and having meaningful conversations. Sometimes I feel like we're robots who give a message and a card about our church and then walk on. But since splits I've been working on being more personable! 

This funny sea lion that noticed us coming up to its pool and started posing for the cameras!

You meet some really great people that way. Last night we met a man from Italy who is getting an interview today for a job here in Odense as a neurologist. 

And on the day of our zoo activity we met a girl named Shanny on the bus. It was one of the coolest/scariest contacts I've had! Contacting on the bus can be kind of intimidating - you're stuck next to this person so if they completely reject you you've got an awkward bus ride ahead of you. But usually once I suck it up and try I end up having great conversations with people. 

So on our way up to an eating appointment from the zoo, I sat down on the bus - but no one sat down by me! A little while later a girl sat in front of me, so I decided I would just go for it and try to talk to her from behind. We ended up having a GREAT talk, Sister McVey came over and sat by us (we sit apart on the bus so there's more  of a chance of finding someone), we told her about what we do as missionaries and bore our testimonies, she took our card and said she would text us to talk more about it. 

Then on our way home from the appointment, she was on the same bus as us again! Except it was really awkward, and when we said hi she didn't seem super gung ho about talking to us. But we're going to see her again! And this time it won't be awkward. I really really hope we do see her again because while we were talking I could just see how much the gospel would bless her life!!

 

It's been a really good week! And I know this week will be too. It always is. :) We have a zone conference on Wednesday which should be really good, and we have some really good plans for finding and service. And, GENERAL CONFERENCE! It's almost here! I'm so excited!!

Love you!

Love,

Hannah

 

 The Word fart on a sign! ;) (In Danish fart Means speed... heh heh heh).