Friday, October 5, 2012

A Strong Testimony and Slobbery Kisses

I've been a bit of a lazy blogger lately.  Please don't rat me out in your next letter to Elder Ferguson.  ;) 
I can't believe that I have 4 weeks to catch up on.  Sooo.....let's get at it.  Hope you don't mind my commentary in blue.  

Dear mom,
Thanks for your letter.  
So you bought some classy water huh? ( I bought some pelligrino water for the family to try because he drinks it all the time.  gross.)
I drink it because you should taste the water here.  Straight nasty.  No filter.  Yuck.  Everyone here gives you sparkling water so I'm used to it now.....there is nothing worse then being so so thirsty because there are no water fountains in France and some one gives you that stuff.  Hahaha .....but I'm used to it now.  I get mad compliments on the pointy shoes.  ( He needed to get a new pair of shoes and so he bought some pointy ones which I quickly made fun of)  That's all they have here.  The kids wear black tennis shoes to church because they hate the pointy ones.

This is the answer I got when I asked if people in the ward "double cheek kiss" the missionaries.  

No, the members at church don't kiss the Elders...just the sisters....but some cute girls in the street have tried to double cheek kiss me before and asked me to go out on dates and invited me to get drinks.  hahaha  They are interested in the gospel of Ryan but not the Gospel of Jesus Christ..........but I will change that.  

This week has been really weird because of that thing that happened in Libya.  We're not allowed to go to any areas with Muslims or Arabs....so we lost some of our amies.....and the computer at the church got stolen so right now I'm on the Bishop's laptop.  

I asked Ryan if there was anything that he would like me to send him.

Yes.  I would love some kool aid and a box of poptarts.  Elder Han doesn't know what they are.  Some more pictures of the fam and some of my friends.  Ohhh!!!! American deodorant!!!!!! Old spice fiji si vous plais!!!!!

I also asked him what kinds of things he typically eats everyday.  

I drink a protein milk thing every morning for breakfast and something always different for lunch.  I had a steak sandwich yesterday and taco salad the other day......oh yea...could you send some taco bell seasoning for meat too.  I have eaten snails.  They are so good...too bad they're so small.  (ick)

The other day we were doing some contacting and there was this man on his bike and i felt a strong urge to stop him.  We never stop people on bikes but I asked him if he spoke English......I knew he probably didn't...but people always stop for that stuff.  haha.  He said no so I told him I was a missionary and he said he knew and that he wasn't interested.  He then noticed my Livre de Mormon and said, "oh you're Mormon and not Temoin Jehova ( jehovah's witness)  We ended up setting up a rdv (appt) and after we taught the lesson...without him even praying about it...he said that he knew that Joseph Smith was a prophet.....can you say golden?....shoot dang.  We set a baptismal date right then and there.  The next rdv he got so so so happy because half of his family had just died a few months ago....really sad....but he jumped for joy.  That in turn made me so so happy.  I love bringing joy to other peoples lives. 
( please pause for mom tears.  sniff sniff )

Here's some more....

Dear Mommy,
(That's Ry's way to tell me he love's me ;) )
quoi de neuf?  (What's new?)
Not much new here.  I sent some cool stories to Jordan and Dad so I won't bother to write the same stories in your email.  
I'm sick with a cold ...like hard core sick.  It stinks but today is p-day so I can reposer a peu. ( Rest a little )
We went contacting at the university.  I love talking to people my age.  When we go contacting we take a huge picture of Jesus and the sister missionaries stand by the board and try to stop people while me and Elder Han go and just walk by people and talk to the whole world.  Its funny because if you just try to stop some one by saying "hello, we are missionaries", it doesn't really work.  The sisters will do that and then when someone says no, they will just give up.  Elder Han is just so loving and cares about everyone that they all want to stop for him and at least just talk.  The sisters say I'm enthusiastic and the people see that we're not this crazy church but that we are normal kids just doing what we believe is right....sadly it gets all the crazies to come and talk to me...but I can handle them pretty well.  :) Like the other day, this Italian man came up to me and told me he was God and then he tried to use the force on me....so I used the force back on him and he freaked out and ran away.  Oh well.  There were also these kids listening to classic old school break dancing music...like the kind in every robot dance beatbox scene in the movies...so I walked over by them and started to tie my shoe then busted out in a robot dance.  I did my robot arm wave, hand to my pocket, spun around and gave them a pass along card then moonwalked away.  They called me back and after we laughed a little I bore my testimony and invited them to come to family night for young adults.  They said heck yea, we will come. I try to do a lot of creative stuff like that.  The skate board trick worked pretty well...and also beat box hymns.  lol.  You just have to use your talents in missionary work.  I think Heavenly Father called me AND my sense of humor of France.  Not just a cold body that will recite lines.  I'm glad that I realized that....that's my word of advice for all future missionaries.  Be yourself and have fun with the work.....like Jacob my cuz will rock the house as a missionary.  He can connect with anyone who is creative and likes movies or music.  Our talents....we need to use them. You have to read a statement for David O. Mckay called, A Personal Interview with the Savior.......
..... In 1965, President David O. McKay made the following statement to a group of Church employees: Let me assure you, Brethren, that some day you will have a personal priesthood interview with the Savior himself. If you are interested, I will tell you the order in which he will ask you to account for your earthly responsibilities. 

First, he will request an accountability report about your relationship with your wife. Have you actively been engaged in making her happy and ensuring that her needs have been met as an individual? 

Second, he will want an accountability report about each of your children individually. He will not attempt to have this for simply a family stewardship but will request information about your relationship to each and every child. 

Third, he will want to know what you personally have done with the talents you were given in the preexistence. 

Fourth, he will want a summary of your activity in your Church assignments. He will not be necessarily interested in what assignments you have had, for in his eyes the home teacher and a mission president are probably equals, but he will request a summary of how you have been of service to your fellow man in your Church assignments. 

Fifth, he will have no interest in how you earned your living but if you were honest in all your dealings. 

Sixth, he will ask for an accountability on what you have done to contribute in a positive manner to your community, state, country, and the world. 

(Reported by Cloyd Hofheins in a talk to the Seventies Quorum of Provo Utah Oak Hills Stake, May 16, 1982) 

Viola! There it is for you.  :)  I am loving my mission.  I know what I am doing is the right thing and I love you so much mamma.  I hope you are doing well...tell Aunt Kim that I love her and I hope you guys are having fun.  (I was with my sister in San Francisco when I wrote him)
Love,
Elder Ferguson

In a letter to his sister Jordan......
(Ryan had predicted that something would happen and it did)
.....I told you that would happen...spiritual gifts i got.  Tons gifts of discernment.....like a fortune teller....speaking of fortune tellers......Gypsies. There are tons of Romanian gypsies.  They like to protect us.  I love it.  There were some Arabian kids that were heckling us again and not letting us walk past..boom..2 seconds later 30 Romanian gypsies that don't speak french came to our rescue and were yelling at the teeny boppers.  haha  For some reason they won't shake Elder Han's hand but they shake mine because I give all the little kids stickers. lol. They are so nice and I love them, I can even speak a little Romanian.  Pretty sweet huh? 
Something I have learned on my mission a fo sho avec the French people...be straight up don't beat around the bush.  Put it all out there, they will find out sooner or later so why not give them the full option and not have them wonder what you are there for.  Heavenly Father doesn't make things just happen out of no where.  He gives us opportunities and if you don't act on them ...that was your own free choice. 
p.s. yesterday we went contacting downtown and we got trapped in a crowd and somehow ended up behind stage with a bunch of super models at a fashion show changing......hardest day of my mission......hahaha  jk jk jk...but for real....super models. Had to run away from that Babylon.....my natural man will hate myself for the rest of my life.  :) 

Ok....go ahead and take a snack break...but hurry back 'cause there's more......

Dear Mom,
........I just wanted to tell you that I had an awesome week, we taught a ton of lessons and I dream in French now.  I always seem to have a sweet mustache when I dream in French. I think it is revelation.  haha I also bore a powerful testimony about how I know there is a living prophet on the earth today.  

.........Oh I forgot to tell you....(wait for this one ....)
We had this guy in our ward....well a little crazy....and he snuck into the church on last Monday night....and started to steal stuff.  He didn't know that we were having family night for young adults there  so when the brother in charge saw him, he told him to leave.  The one guy started screaming and swearing in French...then he started to attack the one brother and knocked him out.....there was only one thing to do to save this brother's life....send a tiny Asian Mr. Han to save him, or go myself...so I went and I used my sweet wrestling moves to anaconda squeeze him and hold him down and then we called the police and they came and found tons of drugs and illegal stuff and took him to jail.  Because I acted super fast and was in the right place at the right time I helped to save a life.  cool huh?  (ummmmmmmmm????)
I later found out that Elder Han is a second degree black belt in tae kwan do.  hahaha What a punk.  hahaha

.....I only study and read and think and speak in French.  I really like D and C chapter 18.  Read it.  It's really cool because in verse 9 it says that he talks to us like he talked to Paul because we have the same call and power as him.   Missionaries are boss.   :)

another story...

We were teaching an old ami qui lost contact with the missionaries and regained it with us.  We were teaching the first lecon and he had a really hard time with the prophet today and so me and Elder Han bore some powerful testimony that he was shaken and he couldn't deny it any more.  He said it must be true so we invited him to pray about it to know if it is true.....boom...missionary work.  
Also...yesterday we were going to see our DMP (ward mission leader) and the sisters in our ville saw one of their amies who is a 75 year old woman and lets just say a little bit .....coo coo.  When she was leaving she bised the sisters......that's the double cheek kiss.  We laughed because they were slobbery ones.  Then she came for Elder Han because she was saying how gentil he is....his face was priceless.  He was like, "non j'ai pas le droight" ( I have not the right) but she did anyways.  I laughed so hard....then the unexpected happened.  She came for me.  It wasn't funny at that point and I had a decision to make.  I could go out crying like a little girl like Elder Han ...hahaha....or could one up her.....obviously I chose the latter.  I bised her first haha then told her politely that the Elders don't have the right to bise and she was like, "oh I'm sorry...you are such a great young man".  haha.  Boom.   p.s.  I think our beards got tangled.  hahah jk jk jk. 
( oh boy :)) 
In our mission, President Roney has promised us that if we follow the rules with exactness, we will see miracles. 
Ryan wrote that last statement in response to something his dad wrote him.  I wanted to share a part of that....

"....Have a fantastic week.  Keep doing all the Lord asks you to do.  Follow the mission rules to the letter and spirit of the law.  Do not bend them for anyone or anything.  Stay steadfast in all that you do and you will bring joy to your Heavenly Father, Savior, and your mom and me.  I never understand when an elder wants to follow the rules perfectly that he is labeled a do gooder.  Isn't that what the mission is all about?  It made me crazy in my mission.  I wish I would have been more zealous in my following of the rules and would have counseled some of my fellow elders better.  Remember this.  We all go thru it on the mission.  How you handle it will help you throughout your life.  There is no grey when it comes to heaven.  choose the right.  I love you son. "

Yea.  I agree.  I'm a lucky girl.  












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