Dinner with President and Sister Miles

Hey!

Last week was awesome! We saw tons of cool stuff! On tuesday we had a really good zone training in Winterthur. We talked a lot about missionary work just like at your meeting dad! On wednesdays we have lunch every week with a family from peru. It is awesome because the son is crazy and we are constantly trying to stop him from throwing heavy toy dinosaurs at us. But, the highlight of the week was when we got to work with President and Sister Miles! We had a lesson with the Luna family and the Miles' really wanted to meet them. It was a bit hectic getting everybody to meet in the same spot because we were supposed to meet in the middle of the old city where getting lost is far too easy, but it worked out great. The Lunas love the Miles and President gave them a mormon tabernacle choir CD. After the lesson President took us to dinner at a pretty nice restaurant. It was really fun to sit and talk with them outside of a meeting setting.

The next highlight was church! First, I need to tell about our friend B-----. A few weeks ago, a guy, B-----, said hi to us and asked where the church was because he just moved here and wanted to come. That next week he came and he brought his friend A-----. A----- doesn't speak german but he loved church and he said that we wanted to be a member. Well, this week he came again and we made sure that the meeting was translated for him. He was so happy about everything that was said. He lives in switzerland so we wouldn't normally teach him, but because he is from Africa and speaks crazy english, the other german elders can't understand a word that he says, so we are teaching him.

Those are just a few of the many cool success stories from the last week in Konstanz. I really really still love it here and it is getting really pretty with the weather warming up. We were in a place called Allensbach last night and it is right on the upper part of the Bodensee. Luckily the sun was setting just as we got there and we got to see how pretty it was. I am really blessed to be able to work in such a great area and mission. 

Coming up on my year mark is a weird feeling. I am still not sure if I believe it or not. I keep seeing the date on my scripture a day calendar and I keep wanting the date to be the same when I flip the page, but it has never happened so far.

Happy birthday Crew! I can't believe that you are seven years old now! Pretty soon those kids won't be kids anymore.

I am happy that you all seemed to have had a great week full of driving from party to party and all that kind of stuff. I hope that you all have another great week! Love you all!

Elder Eldredge 

 

P-day and Pancakes

Hey everybody!

This was a way good week! It sounds like you all had a great week as well! Sorry that I am writing so late! We had a district P-day and so we had to change up our schedule. We played a bunch of sports today. It was awesome to get out and run around and play again. Sadly nobody knows how to throw a disc so we couldn't play that but basketball and soccer was fun as well. 

Last week I had an exchange with our district leader, elder Georgiev, from Bulgaria. It was really great. We met this girl, V-------, on the street who really wanted to become faithful because she has noticed that we have more energy and hope. After talking for a minute I just asked her if she had time right then to talk, and she did. So we found a bench and had a really great lesson about strengthening our relationship with God.  She brought up that she had questions about what happens after this life because her Grandmother had died so we shared some of Alma 40 with her. After reading it she said that she always feels good and warm inside when she hears things like that. A few days later she wrote us a text message asking for advice because she didn't know when it is right to make changes in her life. It was a really good sign to us that she trusts us and wants to become better.

R----- and L----- have been in Frankfurt for a while so we haven't actually been able to meet with them for a second time, but I call them pretty often to see how they are, and they always let us  know that they still read every day in the Book of Mormon. The baptism will have to be put back a few weeks but they are still doing really well. 

We are just over half way done with this transfer and I am starting to realize that I will most likely be leaving soon. I don't know if I am really happy about that. I love this ward so much. I almost feel like I have always been here and like they are my family. I will be really sad to leave them all. But I am also excited to see what will happen next. When I leave, I will be one of the only americans who knows any of the Swiss missionaries. It is pretty weird but it is almost like there are two missions. It will be nice to see all of my old friends from outside of Switzerland.

Other than that, it was a pretty normal good week. Lots of talking to people and lots of fun. We have started a new tradition in our apartment that we all eat pancakes together on thursday. Elder Schumaier really likes to make these thin pancakes and we just pack them full of nutella and yoghurt and jelly and pretty much anything with sugar. It is really great because Elder Schumaier gets really happy (it is his favorite food) but it is so hard to eat. It tastes really really really good, but I think my taste buds are the only part of my body that really appreciates it. The other night he made them for dinner and I think I stared at the ceiling for two hours before being able to fall asleep because of all the sugar.

So, needless to say, we have a lot of fun together in our apartment. Just a warning, if you want to send those photos, I would do it quick while I am still here. It is rather likely that I am in my last month here in Konstanz. Thanks for those by the way. don't worry that it has taken a bit. I am excited anyway! And, I did get moms E-mail. Love you mom!

I hope that you all have a great week! I pray for you all and I love you all!

Elder Eldredge

Fasnacht and Pictures of the Apartment

Hi!

Hello everyone! It sounds like another great week with the family! Those videos of the kids are pretty darn cute! They are all getting so big!

Everything in Konstanz is just great! The have this really weird holiday called Fasnacht and it last a week. All the really do is wear these giant costumes and get drunk all night. It is really loud sometimes because they have drums and high pitched flutes and they play all night. Luckily it hasn't bothered me too much when I sleep though. But all of the drunk people make contacting really interesting. We tried to go out on thursday and the streets were just full of people falling over themselves and playing flutes and throwing confetti everywhere.

Speaking of contacting, because dad asked, most of what we do in Konstanz is street contacting. We don't really ever go door to door, but we spend our time visiting members and talking to people on the way. We have these things called "family mission plans," and most members have them. They write down the people that they want to work with and we pray for them and support them in anyway possible. So most of our finding is through our members.

R---- and L---- sadly couldn't come to church yesterday because R---- had to work unexpectedly and L----- was on a school trip, but they said "don't worry! we read in the book everyday!" So they are doing really well. We also met with C-----, well I didn't because I was in St. Gallen, but Elder Sardoni met with C----- and they read together in the alma 32 and C----- 

loved it! He said that he now wants to read in the book of Mormon more, and that he wants a new job (he works in a club). We are hoping that he gets a new day job at the mall here in Konstanz.

I worked in St. Gallen on exchange with Elder Bauerfeind on tuesday and wednesday. It was way cool because we went to visit a less active woman and her husband and we had to take a hike up a mountain to get there. They luckily let us in and fed us some spaghetti which was really nice of them. They also gave me a little pamphlet with some great quotes in it. I don't think I told you all but I have been collecting uplifting and inspiring quotes for my whole mission. I think they are pretty great.

So things are going great! We are excited for this holiday to be over on wednesday so that the people on the streets understand us a bit better, but everything is awesome. We have a lot of fun and life is great. I hope you all have a great week! Thanks for starting on those photos! I will really appreciate those!

I love you all!

Elder Eldredge

More Miracles

Hey Everybody!

It looks like you all had a great week! I would have loved seeing my journal that grandma made! I haven't read mine in a while.

We had another great week over here! We have seen so many miracles. On monday evening, we met with a family (a mother and a daughter), and they were so prepared for the gospel. They wanted to know about the book of mormon, so we explained it and bore testimony. When we were done they were just nodding their heads and said "well that makes sense! I like it!" The mother, R-----, was raised in columbia and had an LDS church across the street from her house and she always loved us. The daughter, L-----, is 14 and was raised here and is very very religious. She always loved the Bible and reads everyday. We invited them to be baptized on the 16th of march and they said that they would be baptized if the recieve a testimony by then! I spoke with them yesterday on the phone ( they couldn't come to our stake conference in St. Gallen) and I just asked if they had read in the book of mormon. They said, "we love it and read it everyday!" We will meet with them tonight and we are really excited for them.

We had Stake conference yesterday and on saturday. It was a bit wierd because on sunday, their conference was a broadcast from salt lake. Elder Bednar served in southern Germany so he gave his entire talk in german! It was pretty cool! As we were watching the broadcast, one of the little girls in my ward came up to me and threw a giant bag full of chocolate into my lap. Apparantly, her family is trying to go vegan so we have been getting all of their snacks and other unhealthy things. It is all really tasty but it doesn't help me eat less sugar.

The weather here has been beautiful for the last few days. It feels like an easter morning almost everyday. One of the ladies that I spoke to on a bus said that it won't snow here but will continue to get warmer from now on, which is strange because it still hasn't snowed in Konstanz. I feel pretty blessed that I didn't have to trudge through the snow for the last few months! It got really cold and rainy, but there hasn't been any snow on the ground and that helped us with the work.

President Miles has asked that we read a general conference talk everyday, and i have found it really interesting to read from ancient prophets in the scriptures, and then to read from a modern day prophet. It is great because you see that the prophets today are just as great and powerful as the ones in the scriptures, and that they really do teach the same doctrine with the same authority. I am really glad that we belong to a church with authority from God, and I hope that we all realize what a blessing that is. I don't think I realized it until I spoke with thousands of people that haven't been led by a prophet, and because of that, they are trouble because of the lack of guidance.

Well I hope that you all have a great week again! I love you all and pray for you. I hope that you get feeling well from the cold that is going around.

Love,

Elder Eldredge

Temple Trip and the Mormon Shop

Hello everybody!

It sounds like Bryce canyon was great! It's too bad that there wasn't too much snow this year but you seemed to make the best of it.

We had a really busy week! On Monday we had an eating appointment with our branch president and he has three really cute sons who love to climb all over us. Our branch president is really funny as well. He really loves to laugh and make jokes so it is always fun at their place. On tuesday we went to zurich for our zone conference. It was really great to see all of the missionaries there and to see zurich a little bit. That always takes the whole day though so we got home in time to plan for the next day and go to sleep. We are trying really hard to find out what the best way to travel in our area is because our tickets for Switzerland cost a lot so we don't have any bus tickets in Konstanz. So we are trying to figure out if we can get both. I really hope that we do because if we get bus tickets, our area will see so much progress because we will be able to visit people much easier.

On Saturday we went to the temple! It was a really really pretty day as well. We did the 9 o'clock session and there were some members from our ward there and some missionaries from our district. I even saw some members that were from Salzburg that had visited the Haag ward. It was pretty wierd to see them all the way on the other side of the mission but they recognized me as well so it was cool. Right outside of the temple is a place called the Mormon Shop. It is a lot like a deseret book. They even sell a ton of stuff from america that apparently only mormons eat like A&W and Hot tamales. They also had action figures from the book of Mormon, but the best action figures were the missionaries. That was cool!

We got transfer calls on Saturday as well and Elder Sardoni and I will be staying together for another six weeks. I find that good because I don't want to leave this ward yet. Plus, now I have two companions with whom I have spent more than just six weeks. We are having a lot of fun and we are really excited for the next six weeks.

I will make sure to send photos of the temple in a second E-mail. I hope you all have a great week! I love you all!

Elder Eldredge

Miracles

Hello!

Ya, sorry I didn't write back on thursday! Pres. Miles said I could read them but I didn't know if I could write back or not and I couldn't get a hold of him to ask permission. But I prayed for you all a lot! I am doing well. I am just making sure that we are always busy and that I get lost over here. Experiences like these make you remember how grateful you are for our heavenly Father. The peace and comfort that comes from a knowledge of what happens after this life is one of the most precious gifts that we have.

The work here is going well. We see miracles often, and I know there are more that we don't see. We taught a woman named A---- on Friday and it was one of the best lessons that I have ever had. She didn't want to prove us wrong, or expect us to know everything. She was simply wanting to learn and was open to the spirit. I felt the spirit so strongly through the whole thing and I know that she felt it to. She said that she wants to come to church  and meet again soon. At the end of the lesson she asked a little bit about Joseph Smith. We answered her question and promised her that she could pray and know for herself if he was a prophet. We left that lesson uplifted and excited. The next day she texted us and said thank you for the information but she doesn't want to belong to a religion. But I don't think that will be the last that we hear from her. I am almost certain that she recieved her answer and was a little bit afraid of it. Hopefully she is willing to meet just one more time. Luckily she is very friendly and she likes us a lot so we will see.

The missionaries in Singen called the other day and told us that they met a woman who lives in our area on the train. Her name is R----- and she is from Columbia. She said that there was a mormon church across the street from her house in columbia and she loves the mormons. She then told them about how she couldn't remember being baptized as a child in the Catholic church, and she would like to be baptized in our church. She has apparantly been looking for us for years. We hope to meet with her this wednesday when she has time. she also has a 14 year old daughter who was apparantly also interested. That would be just great for this ward.

Our apartment is fun to be in. Elders Schuhmaier and Stank are pretty funny and Elder Sardoni is a great companion. We will get transfer calls on this saturday so we will see if everybody stays. Also on this saturday, Elder Sardoni are going to the temple with the senior couple in St. Gallen! Their names are the Schwabes, and they are very nice to us. They have only been here for about two months now so hopefully we don't get lost on our way there.

I hope that you are all doing well and that you have a great week! I love you and pray for you!

Love,

Elder Eldredge

Unihockey and a Ukelele???

Hey!

It sounds like you are having a great time in London! All that stuff sounds like tons of fun! I sure wouldn't mind spending some more time there some day.

Everything here in Konstanz is awesome! I really love the ward here. Many of the members feel like family and best friends to me, and when the day comes that I have to leave will probably be one of the saddest days of my mission. I hope that I get to stay at least one more transfer here.

We had a lot of cool experiences on the street this week. We met a woman who, after we began to speak, told us that she already was a member, but she hasn't come to church in a while because she just moved here and couldn't speak german yet. We promised her that if she would begin coming to church, it would help her learn german much faster. We are hoping that she will come this next sunday. We had lost contact with one of our investigators, C------, for the last few weeks and we thought that he dropped us, but as we checked our emails to write to investigators we had a message from him. He said that he was now done with tests at school and that he would like to come to church this week. But he came late to the train station and he didn't know what ticket to buy so he just got lost in switzerland on some random train. It was pretty sad because he was pretty excited.

Once a month we play a game called Unihockey with our ward. It is a lot like floor hockey and it is way fun. I have now gone the last three or four times and it is awesome now that I am getting better at it. The first week was ok but now I can actually play pretty well. C----- came to Unihockey as well and he loved it.

Elder Sardoni and I are still getting along no problem. We have a lot of fun and work really hard. The other two elders in the apartment are getting well trained on how to sound like a cowboy when they speak. They also wrote a song on the guitar that lasts forever and the only lyrics are "Elder Sardoni." So, needless to say, our evenings are very relaxing. Elder Schuhmaier hit his year mark a few days ago so after planning we all wore happy birthday caps and ate popcorn. There was also a concert given by Elder Schuhmaier on the ukelele and elder Sardoni sang. It was actually pretty impressive.

So we had a really great week even though it is getting colder and colder. Luckily there is no snow yet so that is good but i am expecting it in the next week or two. I have a Book of Mormon that I am marking in specific ways. It is really great because one of my goals for this year is to know the scriptures much better. I feel that I am doing really well and I notice the difference that it makes to not only read every day but also to know later exactly what I read and where to find it. Studies on a mission become the best part of the day.

I hope that you all have a great week! Be safe in London and let mom know that I love her even though she couldn't send an email. I will talk to you next week!

Love,

Elder Eldredge

P.S. about the cards, I guess I don't really need the cards that bad but i would like to maybe see some of the photos some time. I actually don't have any photos of our family to show members and investigators which many would like to see. So I don't really need the cards that bad, but some family photos would be sweet.