"I think Swiss German sounds like German with rocks in your mouth." November 11, 2014 - From Luzern

I'm happy. It's been a good week. Momma I forgot to tell you that last week at stake conference one of my dear Schaffhausen members asked me to say hello to my mother. He is the sweetest. He still remembers the Schaffhausen Chapel gingerbread house you made! 

And Sunday Jon Schmidt and the Piano Guys came to our ward!  They had a concert in Luzern the night before and then they gave an impromptu mini concert after church.  It was amazing!

Click on the link below to see a video of Jon Schmidt playing his famous Waterfall!

Jon Schmidt playing after church in Luzern

Well where to start. Yesterday we went to the Einsiedeln Kloster. Way cool. And yesterday morning we met with a less active who we have been trying to see for so long and she would only see us yesterday. And we already had an appointment with a member family in the evening so we had to do emails today.

The Kloster was amazing.  It is a Benedictine monastery in the town of Einsiedeln in the Canton Schweiz. It is a really important place of pilgrimage dedicated to the Virgin Mary in Switzerland for Catholics. It's well known for the "black Madonna" and the St. James pilgrimage path goes through this monastery as well.  It's over 1000 years old. It was quite something to see and we loved it.  Just Sister Oswald and I went.

  

Did you see the pictures of me at the Freitag store? That was a P-day a while ago. 

(FYI - "Freitag" is apparently a super hip Swiss Brand.  They make products such as bags, purses, laptop cases etc out of recycled tarps that are used to cover large semi-trucks when transporting goods.)

More about our appointment with the less active yesterday. First time we have met with her, first time she has met with missionaries in YEARS, first time her new partner had the chance to learn anything about the church, and yeah it went pretty well. It was just a miracle that we were even able to get an appointment with her. We've been trying for months. But it's just kind of hard with people like that, when they're saying things that are completely incorrect and they have just gotten the wrong ideas. And I don't ever want to offend them . . . you would like there to be a next time . . . but they also have so much misinformation! She kept telling us that there was no need for organized religion and that Jesus didn't actually establish a church while he was on the earth and that he always taught in the outdoors and not at the temple or in synagogues. So false. She acknowledged that Jesus was in the temple twice, when he was a boy and when he overthrew the mini mall on the temple grounds. But he was there way more than that. We just really tried to listen and understand what she was thinking and feeling but I think that she and her partner are coming to the musical fireside! We really think they will come. I also just bore testimony of a living prophet and basically the many reasons why having a church is important to God's plan.  Ingrid is also coming to the musical fireside!!

About the musical fireside . . . Can't remember what I've really told you. Next Sunday at the one in Schwamendingen I'm singing a duet with a member from Solothurn because I didn't want to sing by myself.  And we had planned on singing together in Solothurn but it never worked out. We're singing "Whole Again" by Sally DeFord. Then the Sunday after that is our musical fireside here in Luzern and I'll be singing in "Christ Alone" with the district (which I already sang with two other missionaries at the first musical fireside but now we will be singing it in German and there will be more of us). And I'll be singing "When You Believe." The Mariah Carey/Whitney Houston version. Listen to it and you will understand why I am semi-terrified. I'm singing the Mariah Carey part. Except I cannot sing like Mariah Carey (surprise surprise! ha ha). Pray for me! The less active I am singing with is black and insisted on being Whitney Houston. And she came to church on Sunday!! With her daughter!! It was amazing. She even bore her testimony. And you know who else bore her testimony? The member I told you about who had thought of going inactive but we have been working with her and she's amazing. I want her to be my friend forever. And you know who else bore his testimony? Jon Schmidt. That's right, two of the piano guys came to church. It was such a good Sunday for so many reasons. Except for that another less active, Nancy, PROMISED to come and didn't. That was sad, but we love helping people take even the smallest steps to being closer to the feeling that comes from living in the footsteps of our Savior. 

Another less active is doing SO WELL. She has vacation time from work right now and she has been spending her time studying the gospel. And it is showing. She is incredible. She gets her patriarchal blessing at the end of this month.

I got an email from Jenni today. :-) I will direct her question to all of you and see what you come up with: "By the way, I still cant have fun reading the book of Mormon... any suggestions what might help ?" I have a few thoughts but give me what you have! I am just happy that she would ask me that.

Quote of the week:

"I think Swiss German sounds like German with rocks in your mouth." - Brother Warburton

Today I will give my last testimony to my fellow missionaries at zone training. Really crazy. I'm trying to get time to slow down a little. I still have over 3 weeks!! That's longer than I had in Kenya and that already impacted me for the eternities. I heard from Sister Judd that Elder Teixiera said that trunky missionaries should think about what the Savior accomplished during the last week of His life! I know that I still have much to do and I'm definitely not feeling trunky anyway.  I just hope I can do everything that my Heavenly Father wants me to before I leave.  I really want to own the next three weeks.

Byeeee love you.