Bit će nova godina

Hola. IT WAS SO GOOD TO SKYPE and thank you for the letters, cards, packages, emails I have gotten from recently.

The best story of this week: our two awesome investigators, Visnja and Marta wanted to take us to show us how college is here. They are both studying ENGLISH so we went to two lectures with them, one in English and one in Serbian. They were... semi-boring but cool to see how they work! So we got "coffee" before one of the classes, I was like oh actually I dont drink coffee I'll just take a hot cocoa (which is like hot pudding here) and Visnja was like oh I don't either! So we talked about missions, family, the plan of salvation, tithing, the sacrament. So we were showing pictures of family and stuff and she showed one and she was like this is my dad at his book signing! I was like what book? And she was like it's called "drugs, alcohol, smoking- not friends to life" (well that's how it is directly translated) AND SO WE TALKED ABOUT THE WORD OF WISDOM and she was so excited and said she really wants to come to teach and meet her family. They are so so nice and I am just SO EXCITED. Investigators here and so few and far between (I think that's an English phrase?) and it has been a great week just because we could teach somewhat of a lesson.

This week we taught a lesson about prophets and another investigator and she was just like, "yeah I guess that just makes sense. That God would give a man on the earth to guide us." The most frequent question we get lately is "What will happen to the world? It is so bad." The answer is to do good, and fear not! Yes, Christ will come, but for those who are righteous and repent and believe we don;'t have to fear. And we have a prophet to guide us! On a side note.. you know how they study lives of the prophets each year in relief society? Well they are studying Ezra Taft Benson in 2015, then 2016 Howard W. Hunter, 2017 will be Hinckley, 2018 Monson. Then that will be it.......... so we (my comp and I) are making predictions about Christ's coming.......

CHRISTMAS- we had pizza Christmas Eve at an Embassy family the Rogersons, then the next morning slept in (YES! We got 24 hours "off") and opened packages, stocking, etc. Then we made waffles with the Elders at the church and ate so much, then we bused to the Andrewsens (another embassy fam) house and ate so so much american food, they had starburst, lucky charms, peanut butter, etc etc etc. They made us take home everything we didn't eat, so much food have we now. They bought us tons of presents! Like 20 each! So nice of them, so generous. We went around and opened them one by one and it was just so nice to be in pajamas and in a house. The Skype was so good too! Thank you all! So much!! Sorry I cried for like two seconds and automatedly bore my testimony it just kind of all spewed out.  We just ate and laid around and enjoyed our day off. Obviously no one celebrated here so except for that it felt like a regular day. They will celebrate Christmas on the 7th. There are tons of fireworks going off all the time outside, it just sounds like gunshots all the time. 

We skype-teach a family from Serbia who moved to France and were baptized there. We teach them from the kids picture book "Book of Mormon stories" and I love it. Even though their knowledge is so simple, their faith is so pure and their love for family so deep. We talked about Joseph Smith and the mother was like, "I already know this! Let me teach it to YOU!" So she just taught us! Haha.

This week, as I said I would, I bought myself a dress for P day. They like altered to fit me perfect on the spot. It was great, and free, yeah Serbia!

LOVE YOU. SRECNA (with a thing over the c) NOVA GODINA! Be safe! Be cautious! Pray always!

Sister Richardson

pictures: from Christmas morning (upholding the broom tradition) and at the Andrewsen's house for Christmas, and from yesterday SO MUCH SNOW.

Srećan Božić = happy Christmas

I'm gonna make this as fast as I can we have a lot of P day plans and I will talk to you on the 25th! Lots of pday plans meaning I took out some dollar from my account and Sister Konietz likes to shop and so do I so we are going to buy ourselves Christmas (THEY HAVE THE BEST DRESSES HERE)

Monday: We played basketball with the Elders (no contact basketball is just as awkward as you can imagine it) and Sister Konietz and I dyed our hair. Mine is not a huge difference but hers is very dark brown. I donno why we did this, but it is done! We taught a family home evening to an embassy family, I gave an object lesson with salt and pepper and how through Christ, even thought it seems impossible, we can be completely clean.

Tuesday: We have been visiting those who (whom?) we haven't seen at church in a while and inviting them back and visiting them. We ended up just finding a lot of cats and wrong addresses. I will share the Elder's short experience: they contacted someone on the street, obviously in Serbian, and the guy says back to them in perfect English, "Wait, so you guys are like real latter-day saints?" They say, "Yes...?" And the guy raises his fist to the air and yells, "Joseph Smith, yeahhh!!" Then walks away and says "Have a good day boys." You know Joseph Smith's history how it says:
 33 He called me by name, and said unto me that he was a messenger sent from the presence of God to me, and that his name was Moroni; that God had a work for me to do; and that my name should be had for good and evil among all nations, kindreds, and tongues, or that it should be both good and evil spoken of among all people.

Well, that is so true. Even if people say John Smith, Joshua Smith, Joe Samuel, they know him. Joseph Smith restored the gospel of JESUS CHRIST to the earth, we can forever praise both of their names!

There were a lot of cops everywhere, I asked someone about it, apparently the Chinese President was here?

Wednesday: We had a really, really long day. After Sister K taught her German class (I just sit in the back and study Serbian!) we remembered we hadn't eaten since like 10am (it was 7pm) so we went to KFC- never been before- and it was like the cleanest building I have seen my whole mission! It was so delicious! So we're sitting there and hear these two girls our age speaking English behind us, I turned around and was like hey I'm a native speaker can I help you? And we talked for a long long time with them! Tender mercies. I will keep you updated.

Thurs: The most exciting thing I can really say is that we got in bed at 9:30, get a call at about 11 saying there was a very minor car accident picking up the Montenegro Elders from the airport and travel plans for the next morning had changed to get to the Christmas concert, well we could not sleep after that so we ordered a pizza and talked. Not the most obedient thing I've done on my mission, but I think we both needed it for sanity's sake! Sister Konietz was supposed to go home the end of January but she is extending until February and going to serve in Slovenia!

Friday STARTED AT 3:30AM, I got out of the shower (usually a shower wakes you up) and was still so so tired. The senior couples and so many missionaries in mission cars and rented vans drove to Zagreb. I slept most of the way, we had the CHRISTMAS MISSION CONFERENCE. It was great, a little stressful from so much travel but President and Sister Grant gave great remarks and we took some pictures and sang and it was a time of peace and reflection on the savior. Some of my old MTC companions got me gifts: including a potato and a Muslim prayer hat and a stress ball and much more. It was great though! 

President Grant announces that one of the traditions he heard in Croatia was to have 2 big roasts pigs, so he ordered two and had them arrive at the church in a taxi! Bahahaha. So they carved it and we had a huge feast.

Saturday: More Misionarski rad (missionary work) and lots of it. Contacting, tracting, finding. 

Sunday: We translated for sacrament meeting and taught primary again in two languages and that night Skyped a family we have been teaching who are from Serbia but live in France and were baptized there so we are reteaching them some of the lessons.

LOVE YOU ALL
MERRY CHRISTMAS. It's not super Christmas-y here because Orthodox Christmas is on January 7th.

Christ is our reason to rejoice! 

Sister Richardson

PS Family: make a list of things to ask me or you wanna talk about when we skype! I have no idea I will just talk for an hour straight!

pictures: pig heads, riding the bus sister k took this of me, and Sister Kropushek (to my right) trained me, I trained sister durfee, and now she is training!

Exchange in Novi Sad

Hola,

This week we visited Čačak. The family of 6 there (not sure how they even got baptized, I wish I did) but they will not even let us sit down at their table until they have paid their tithing in full. They wanted to be sure that they were squared and settled in manners concerning the Lord. They own a lot of goats and chickens and a cat and a dog and he really wants to (the father) be self sufficient on his farm. They killed a chicken just for us to feed that day. They hold sacrament meeting on their own and are SO FAITHFUL. We went there with the Morgans, the senior couple. Man, I just took a step back and was like wow. THEY JUST GIVE SO MUCH. They scrimp and save and are saving to go to the temple and get sealed as a family in Frankfurt in April. There are just some amazing people on this earth, so good. The dad kept saying I look like his best friend's daughter and the mom and I made jokes about how we are so good at cooking because we both just using instant potatoes. (even the instant potatoes are better here) but I translated for them and the senior couple and I too spoke for 5 hours straight- our whole visit. Then we visited one more member in that city. So at some point the word "pattern" came up, I sat there for like 8 seconds, and the word just came to me (in Serbian) - uzorak. It was crazy. I do not in any way profess to be good at the language, but God gives us what we need! I always pray before I translate that I can convey to both parties what they are trying to say.

We returned to an appointment made from tracting and the lady opened her door and the dog ran out and then she said she was no longer interested and the dog just disappeared- it ran into her neighbor's apartment. Hahahahahhaa. He just opened the door and it ran in there. It was so weird. I hope you find these things funny that are so random that I tell you! 

The zone leaders here just decided they wanted to look more Serbian so on P day, the day before zone conference we dyed their hair dark brown/black. It was, interesting. Then they went and got it cut after. Hm..

So we had zone conference. Sister Konietz and I gave a presentation about how the restoration is the most important message we have to the world and so important! We have the church of Jesus Christ on the earth- the same on He Himself established. Somehow I am one of the older sisters now in the mission. It's so weird, I feel like I just got here! After that I went to Novi Sad on exchange, that night after we taught English class there we went to an investigator's house. We knock on her door, she lets us in and there are like 30 people all crammed into her house- she brings us fish soup, fish stuffed with rice, fried fish, grilled fish, fish with bread. Oh and some kind of fish you slurp off the bone. Did I mention I don't really enjoy fish? Haha. So then her whole family was there and we go in and just sit and everyone tries to speak English with us and tell us to marry their sons and (I laughed) and was like haha.. maybe after my mission! But we did talk to an aunt at the end of the table and share a Book of Mormon with her in the midst of them trying to give us rokija (some kind of alcohol, I dont even know the english word) and just laughing that all we wanted to drink was juice! They thought we were so sweet that we wouldnt touch the alcohol. You know in Peter it talks about: 1 Peter 2: 9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. So yes, we might be a peculiar people! It may seem, but God is unchanging even when it might seem like we are strange to the world. 

We taught a few family history lessons to members this week, it's really cool to see the spirit of Elijah in the hearts of so many people!

We were in a taxi going to an unveiling art exhibit thing of one of our investigators and the driver  was talking about he had three sons and sister konietz went to say "that's great" in english really loud just as he said that he was divorced and I said "baš mi je žao" (im so sorry) the same time as she said that's great and just right after he said he was divorced. It was so so uncomfortable. Then he gave us a card for his massage parlor. The awkward moments of a missionary. 

LOVE YALL

pics: exchange in Novi Sad this week with Sister Powell, an orthodox temple in Beograd

Chesnuts literally roasting on an open fire

They really have those here, people have little carts and they roast them and sell them! I will buy some and tell you how they are. #authentic

We had leadership council this week in Zagreb. Every time we cross boarders we have to get out passports stamped and so mine is getting quite full! The meeting was really uplifting, we talked about finding all the lost sheep and that the Lord would go out and search for the one until it was found and all were accounted for. We got to drive "the box" (this huge van the mission owns) (and I'm pretty sure the biggest vehicle in all of the Balkans) there with the Zone Leaders and sang Christmas songs most of the 4 hour drive. The bus ride home was 6 hours. I am an expert at travel.

Dad would enjoy this: we skyped a family who were baptised in France this week but are from Serbia so we teach them more! It's great to see technology help and bless the work! It was weird though to be over skype and not be able to do things like turn the book of mormon pages to where they could read or like give their two small kids high fives. Technology is our frienddd!

I finished my study of the gospels this week- Matthew, Mark and Luke. How blessed are we to have the freedoms to read and study the bible and the life of Jesus Christ! My testimony of my brother and savior grows every day.

In random moments from the week: An Elder from Montenegro called us this week and was like hey I'm calling all the old apartments I lived in, is there a piece of long black silk there? We were like excuse me? He was like, it's cape. I lost this cape of mine. Bless his soul.  We went to the local hospital to ask if there was any kind of service we could help with for Christmas and they were like "No?" We were like well can we donate anything? "No." Okay well is there another time we could come back? "No." It was strange. ALSO there was a white rabbit just hopping around in the middle of centar. Just on this big tiled area, with no one around us. I didn't get a picture, but, yeah. Weird.  We played volleyball for a branch activity with some investigators and members and the elders saturday and I am still sore, it was super fun!

I had to translate part of fast and testimony meeting yesterday, the brother who spoke talked about how powerful and great it is that we get to partake of the sacrament. 

Okay another good story: We took a cheesy picture by our little tree in our apartment one night before bed, at district meeting the next day the elders were like wait you took a Christmas picture? Like one with Santa? We just played along with it and were like uh.. yeah yeah? So the next night it's like 8:30 we were doing calls and going through our area book and they called us and were like so like we found the Santa you were talking about in city centar, it's him right? Like you didn't just go to a photo place or anything right? I WAS CRYING I was laughing so hard. They somehow actually found a Santa. They thought we were for real. Oh my. So they got a picture with him I guess! The story goes on, but you will see that story on our Christmas card.

This guy handed me his business card on a street corner and I just said, "trade?" in a Serbian accent and handed him a restoration pamphlet. Hahaha. That was after a long day of contacting and I just needed a laugh. We talked to a couple and the man said he believes in the sun and in nature. I asked him how he knew that the sun will come up each morning. He said "from experience." I asked him if he would try an experiment for himself and read the book of Mormon and ask God if it was true!

God's work goes forward! I love you all and pray that you will be safe for finals and the holidays!

Love, 
Sister Richardson

дан захвалности = day of thankfulness

Zdravo from Beograd, Serbia! I am adjusting to a new country and language which I love just as much!

My last lesson in Rijeka, we taught our investigator Nanci and the lesson before we had kneeled and prayed with her that she could find a job. Well, this lesson she told us that ten minutes after that prayer and we had left, her old employer called her and told her she could have another job! I was sad to leave a lot of really cool people and new friends we were teaching that we had worked hard to find in Rijeka, but I love Beograd too. We are going to work hard here too to find people. It is really cold so we are having a meeting this week with the four elders serving here to see what we can do for finding activities because it's hard to get people to want to stop and talk to you in this cold! I tried to say snow yesterday- it's a slightly different word here. Also asked the landlord about his obitelj and he was confused- the word family is porodica here!

Thanksgiving we spent at the Rogerson's. They are one of four embassy families who are in our branch here. It was so good. We got jello and pumpkin pie which are two things they don't really have here, they have to buy them special from the embassy store. It was really nice to be in a house!

A dog got on one of the buses with us this week. He just hopped on and went person to person smelling them and I think looking for food. One guy was joking and was like where is your bus pass!? And kept asking the dog. I laughed really hard with him at this. Then the next stop the dog just hopped off! They are really smart. There was one we saw yesterday that I was scared was going to run into the road and so waiting at the crosswalk I whistled so it would come near instead of into the road but it just waited, then when it realized the sign was green and the cars were going the other way it walked across with us! Funny.

Sister Konietz, who is from Frankfurt, Germany (lives across the street from the temple) is great! I am excited to learn a few German words from her. She got really sick this week with a cold and aches and congested and I kept getting these weird headaches when I'd stand up and feel like puking when I'd eat. It was weird.. I would get up and work out at 6:30 and then just be exhausted or hurt or anything and end up asleep on the floor and she would try too to come do something and we'd both end up in bed, sleeping literally the whole day.  So we slept almost the whole day for three days. I am feeling pretty good now though, and we are sister training leaders for Serbia so we have leadership meeting in Zagreb today, so much travel! We watched Mr. Kreuguer's Christmas though. I tried to study but it kind of hurt my brain. We did go through a ton of the area book, we are following up and contacting a lot of former investigators.

For church Sunday we got to translate a primary class. Children are so smart. One like got up out of his seat and ran to point at a picture and was like Jesus blessing his disciples with the God's power! I had a smile the whole day after that.

Last P day when I sent a package home they gave me a nun's discount, 10% off, which I saw later on the receipt. Good stuff! 

Love you all!