May 26th Email

hey, I finally got my package and thank you soo much for all the goodies, think I'll have grits for breakfast tomorrow wohoo I like everything in there and another couple were here when I opened my box, they brought it to me so I gave one of the scrabble games to them for their center in Luge, that's about 3 or so hours from here and they do the same thing there that we do here, they just came down to visit with us and see how we are doing, thank you for all the stuff!

May 23rd Email

Have you heard on the news of all the flooding in Poland? There has been so much rain that there is serious flooding in several parts. In Torun, where we went several weeks ago, it is now under water - like over our heads under water! The Visula river flooded way over the banks and there's no president at this time, the election should be in June, but maybe not til Oct or Nov and there's no one to make a decision as to what to do. that's a bit scary for the farmers.

May 21st Email

we finally got home last nite about 11:00pm, it was a wonderful zone conference with Elder and Sister Paya of the Seventy, He talked about obedience as it relates to being better missionaries He used many scriptures as it relates to the promises made by the Lord as we are obedient in teaching the gospel. He and Sister Paya are from France and his Polish is very limited and it was cute how he would ask " how to say" a particular word, He asked how to say Poland in Polish, It's Polska, then he repeated it about 5 times and said see how well I'm learning the language,?. In Sister Paya's talk she talked about the words of Pres. Faust,
Faith is the power.........works
Obedience is the Price.....qualifies to be an instrument in the Lord's hands
The Spirit is the key.....to be effective
Love is the motive....love the people
And Christ is the Reason.... made it all possible and how we can apply each of these to our lives as missionaries.

Such a great conference and so many things brought to our remembrance of why we're in Poland and what our purpose is, Truly we are sent here so specific purposes. so my question continues to be " Lord , thou hast sent me here, what would thou have me do?"

May 17th Email

interesting weather we're having here in Poland this spring, so far there has only been about 2 days with the temp over 60 C. and a comment was made it could be because of the ash from the volcano in Iceland , and it blew again just recently. what it is doing is delaying the planting season and then the growing season is shortened and then the harvest is less. just a vicious circle and then there is less food grown, bottom line is , make sure you have your food storage in, there are many ways food supply is effected. like flooding in New England last year and there was a shortage of pumpkin, and who knows what this will effect??? experts say there isn't enough ash in the air at this point to really matter, anyway just be aware.

here the work continues and is slow but good. there were 2 at FHE tonight and usually 3 in English and 4 or 5 in Institute and 3-5 in YSA..That's a good starting point but not enough yet. The branch president here is very excited about the program and announces every Sunday how much fun we have at the various meetings and encourages the kids to come. and we talk to tons of people when we go anywhere, usually ask if they speak any English and can help us with directions. and we invite them to english to improve their english,some come but most do not. but we'll keep trying and we do meet nice people.
Well keep the faith, and get your food storage in and be strong in the gospel and teach your children the same, and I LOVE YOU ALL BEYOND BELIEF,

Saturday April 24th Email

So got moved to Bydgoszcz on Friday and that was an event, right after interviews with the mission president. my train left at 3:25pm and at 3 pm I reminded the elders I needed to get to the train station, no problem, plenty of time ,only the whole front of the station is being remodeled and had to go to an underground tunnel to get to the station and it was crowded beyond belief and I didn't have a ticket , so the elders literally threw me on the train with all my stuff and the elder had to get off the train so it could leave, he asked the conductor to find a car for me and my stuff. Pres..Embjerg called and said to get in 1st class, but no way to get me and my stuff there, so finally got a seat, bought a ticket,(bilet) met a man from DC that works for global energy and is very familiar with APS and wants to talk to Aunt Starr's Dan, so gave him the number, so all in all it was a very interesting trip. then on Tuesday we left for Gdansk for zone conference and got in trouble for traveling in P day clothes, jeans and sweat shirt, just doesn't set the proper example for the younger missionaries, so now have to travel in mission clothes, all the time, just a big bummer, the trains are not the least bit fancy, rather plain with very historic lavs, no running water, if there's one at all on a 3 or more hour ride. not a lot of fun but oh well, livable.

Gdansk is up by the Baltic Sea near Russia ,I will send the card home and you can see pics of walls crumbling down, and then new hotels build very near there, the cab driver wanted $50. American to drive us to the hotel, which would usually cost about 10-15 zl. that's about $5, we gave him 20zl and told him that was plenty, we did not want to go on a tour of Gdansk, but he kept saying , But please , madam, please madam, so finally sister Marshall gave him another 5zl and we left him still begging for American $. we didn't even have any $. We went to St. Mary's Basilica where there's a very old picture (1450")of St. Peter welcoming the people of the world in to heaven with a very unusual handshake, you will see when you down load the pics.
So back in Bydgoszcz and on to opening the youth center. We had our first YSA on Fri and there were 3 people there, hopefully more will come in time. these centeres take a bit of time to get going, It's hard to believe I've been here almost 3 months already. sometimes seems like for ever and sometimes like I just got here. miss all of you like I've been gone forever.

Tenderizing an Easter Chick

Several days ago I received several packages from my girls with lots of Easter goodies and other things necessary to the ease life in Poland. Among all the goodies was a cute little yellow Easter chick. As I held him in my hand he chirped a very loud CHEEP. then nothing more. I turned him over and over looking for the button to make him cheep again then sat him on my hand to just look at him and heard a faint little cheep. I decided he was frightened about being in Poland and, not understanding the language, was afraid to talk again. So I just sat him on my desk and over the next several days gently massaged him looking for the button to make him talk, not a sound. I finally decided drastic measures were needed so I performed some minor surgery and remove his batteries, and then put them back, still not a sound; not even a tiny little cheep. Poor little frightened chick, very cute but can't say a word.

Then Wonder of wonders, my girls called and asked about the packages and did I like everything? Oh yes, I liked everything even the cute little chick that can't talk, I've done everything I can think of to encourage him to talk. "Um MOM", said Rachel, "just hold him in your hand and it will complete the circuit and he will talk, he has to be sitting on his feet." SO I did and he CHEEPED LONG AND LOUD!

I really think this little chick has been totally tenderized and is just happy to know he is loved.

Pictures!

Here are a few pictures of Mom in Wroclaw, Easter Parachute Eggs with the Elders and the Opera House: