A girl with a mission

FRÖHLICHE WEIHNACTEN FROM  SISTER KATE!

It was WONDERFUL to talk with Sis Kate on Christmas.  I loved being able to SKYPE!  Our picture wasn't particularly clear but it was great to see her cheerful, happy, smiling face! There was no denying that she is happy in the work and is her joyful self!  It was great to "meet" the family where she was a guest for Christmas and also chat with her companion, Sister McEwen.  

We talked about lots of things but it was interesting to hear her talk about a couple things that she hadn't written much about.  For example, the challenge of being surrounded by "Schweizerdeutsch"!  I knew this would be an additional challenge serving in Switzerland, because even though she continues to improve daily in her German, the Swiss dialect of Schweizedeutsch is so very different and unique so you really can't even eavesdrop on conversations!  When she initiates a conversation, she is fully aware that they have to switch from their daily language of conversation to the "High German" that they typically only use in reading and writing.  If she gets to stay in Switzerland for the remaining year of her mission, I'm hopeful she'll pick up some Schweizerdeutsch as well! 

She also told us about some of the challenges of doing missionary work during the evening hours because there is a cultural norm of not calling by phone after 8 pm or knocking on a door after dark. So they save dinner until after 8 so they can use the hours they do have most productively. 

I also wasn't aware of how large their district was and the amount of time and effort required to get around to the smaller villages.  There was also a convoluted story about some legal trouble with a bus driver, a camera, an atty, letter to SLC etc.  But it's a bus they HAVE to take to get to a certain investigator in a small village and he is the ONLY bus driver!  During the holiday...the 24th, 25th, 26th, 31st and 1st they are also able to stay out as late as they need to since President Miles did not want them on public transportation late at night and also did not want them inconveniencing members by having to take them home in the midst of festivities, since their homes can be quite some distance from the Sister's apartment. 

All in all, it was a 45 minutes that went by very quickly but joyfully. She told us the Joseph Smith story in German (we wanted to hear her speak German) and that what she loves most about being a missionary is sharing something of such eternal significance that means so much to her in her life with others.  She knows she is doing something that matters and makes her Father in Heaven happy.  She is happy and working diligently to spread the gospel.  We sure love that girl!