First Email From Czech, 8-30-10: The Frog-Mouse Wars & Other Petty Tussles . . .

MY FAMILYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!

Jejda, it feels as though it's been a lifetime since we talked while I waited for my flight! So much has changed--and yet, it doesn't feel altogether so different. Maybe the most surprising thing is how normal it does feel, considering how abnormal my life is at the moment. Before I explain, a few items of business: 1) I get AN HOUR to email now, which is just dandy. So definitely email me if you want me to get anything in a timely manner, because we only get paper mail about once a month. Also, if you do send paper mail/packages, make sure you put the church's name FIRST, then put my name underneath theirs. For some reason things that come in any other form are not delivered to them. 2) Tell Beks that really nylons are not needed. Remember how I said we planned on wearing them on Sundays and for the big devotionals on Tuesdays? That was a big ftip (joke). I wore those one time afterwards and never again. No one cares, just look presentable. 3) Tell Beks I love her. I left a letter for her at the MTC--someone should be delivering it to her shortly after she arrives (I hope). If you could forward her emails to me, that'd be great. While she's in the MTC it'll take up too much of her email time for you to forward my emails to her, but you could copy them and send them as a DearElder. That works pretty well. From what I hear, DearElder still works while we're here in the country, but I think it will only come as often as the regular mail comes. 4) I think that's everythiiiiiiiiiiiiiing.g.g.

So. Here I am, in the home of the Hrncirikovi (a great senior couple serving here--they're actually American, but their ancestors are from the Czech Republic, so they have a funny last name), in a city called Brno. Through the lace curtains and out the window to my right I can see a web of branches, a long line of recently-waxed cars, and a neighboring apartment that looks like it could fit well in downtown Provo. I'm typing on a DELL laptop. Things don't seem so different at the moment. But THEY ARE!

First, I must tell you--the plane ride over: I didn't sleep at all--not one wink! I was too excited/nervous/giddy/insertanyagitatedsortofemotionhere. It was interesting walking around in the NY airport and suddenly realizing that the three of us snazzy missionaries together looked about as inconspicuous as a beached norwal. But I suppose we're supposed to stand out. We tried talking to people in the airport, but New Yorkers are suspicious and high-strung and no one wanted to get caught looking at us, even though we knew they were. On the flight we met a women named--uhh, I forget her name--but she lived in Michigan and was flying to visit her family in Macedonia. She was really nice and spoke English really well. We ended up talking with her for the vast majority of the flight--we gave her a Book of Mormon and told her a lot about the Church. Maybe too much...but it was a really long flight. She was pretty excited about reading the Book of Mormon. And we got her address so we could write her and send the missionaries to her. My first contact!

Needless to say, I was already getting tired by the time we arrived in the Czech Republic. And I was feeling very sticky and a little smelly (hence the fatigue in the picture). But the Irwins received us with big smiles and big hearts. The APs were with them, and I already began to feel a little like an ostracized Sister again. It's weird, but a lot of Elders are apprehensive about being normal with Sisters. Sometimes I feel like the odd one out, but it's not all bad. At least they like to carry all my things for me, right?

We spent the day walking around Prague, seeing mostly things that I saw last summer. Which is good, because I wasn't very attentive. Then they made us contact people. By this time, I was ready to fall asleep while standing there. Before they sent us off, the APs told us that the last group had found four new investigators (but no pressure, right?). People weren't very friendly. Some of them laughed. Some of them brushed by us. Some of them humored us. I endured it, but just barely. Finally, the last person I contacted was kind of a creeper. A young guy, about my age. Before I talked to him, I saw him check out another lady walking by, so I should have known better. Apparently two days without sleep can impair one's judgement. But I talked with him and he mostly laughed at me, but listened to what I had to say. I felt like it wasn't going terribly, until he said, "Can I ask you a personal question?" This was follwed by a very inappropriate idea which suggested to me that he knew very little about what kind of women sister missionaries are. So I just walked away. And I felt so tired and defeated--like a joke, after what he'd just said to me--that I began to cry as I walked back to the gaggle of Elders in the middle of the town square. And of course they all put their awkward goggles on and I was embarrassed and apologized and blamed it mostly on the lack of sleep (which I think is accurate, seeing as how I haven't cried over anything else since). And they tried to reassure me in their endearing contact-free, emotion-free sort of way and we all ate knedliky until we could burst, and slept the day's hazards away.

I met my new companion the very next day and we hopped on the next bus to Brno asap. She is WONDERFUL and her name is Sister Jocelyn Wheeler. And this is her VERY LAST transfer. ! She's really nice and lets me do as much as I can here. Somehow, when I contact with her I am nearly fearless--maybe because she understands everything and can say everything. Apparently everyone here is really surprised by all that I've learned as far as the language goes. Elder Gale (the one that had been in the MTC with us for a few weeks because of his bum leg) is serving here in Brno too and the language is a bit of a struggle for him. But it's really fun saying the things I know how to say here. We've made a goal to talk to someone about the Church on every tram ride--we take the trams everywhere! It's really fun. Usually I ask someone next to me a question about Czech and tell them that I'm trying to learn and then they ask what I'm doing here and things just go from there. A lot of people stiffen a bit when they hear that we're affiliated with a church. Most people aren't "believers", as they're called here. Well, at least they say they aren't. Most of them actually do believe in something, they just haven't really figured out what that something is yet. But they all get really excited when they hear that I'm learning Czech and they're all very complimentary of my ability to speak, even though I say almost everything incorrectly. But I think maybe that's an overlooked part of the gift of tongues--receiving the courage to say what you know how to say, which is enough.

We do a LOT of contacting here. We'll have a few lessons a day and then we just go to parks or town squares and talk to people. We went tracting a few days ago because it was raining--not super successful. But we developed a new approach: telling them we're missionaries and asking if I could play a song for them on my harmonica. Hey, it got us an appointment.

I am LOVING missionary work. Really. Yesterday we had SIX investigators at church(the branch here is great...maybe 80 members?! it's really big--and there are 4 sets of missionaries here, including us, and then 2 other senior couples). And then we found a few more. We've found that, when we remember to pray and thank our Heavenly Father for the good experiences we have talking to people, we always have more. It's really neat.

And today we moved out of our apartment into a new one because the land lady's crazy. I was kind of sad because I really liked the old apartment, but I think this new one will be just fine.

I'm taking too long, I must go. I love you! I love it here! Missionary work's not scary at all--it almost feels like a game of sorts. Maybe that's because I only understand a quarter of what's being said to me. It's really hard to understand Czech accents. If everyone spoke Czech the way Americans speak Czech, I would be in great shape. Oh well. I sure love you! I'm so proud of you and all your missionary endeavors at home! Keep it up!

Cau!

Sestra Dean