Letter #32 (1-5-09)

This week was crazy!! Germans REALLY know how to celebrate!!

On Monday we had an eating appointment with the Missionary couple here and this old German lady that lives in their building. The couple doesn´t speak German so we were there to translate. I never realized how hard translating was. I never had to do it in Bielefeld because we don´t have a couple and at church we had ward members who would do it for the investigators. It is really good to practice though!! She was super cool and I got to learn about her past. Her husband, who is now dead, was a prisoner of war in WW2. He got taken to the US for about a year or so. She also helped in the hospitals and stuff during the war. What a hard time. I asked her what she did for fun when she was young and she said that she didn´t have time for that. Wow...I could not imagine not being able to have a childhood. She was super cool.

Wednesday was Silwester (New Years Eve) and we had to be home by 6pm for safety reasons. We thought that our area would be dangerous so we spent the night at Elder and Sister Robb´s apartment. The Elders were a little mad and jealous, but we got permission from President...they got over it by the next day. :o) It was fun. We played games and then went to bed at 10:30pm like normal. I had a hard time falling asleep because of the party upstairs, but then I finally did. Although it didn´t last long because of the really loud noise outside just after midnight. See in Germany almost everything is loud. Earlier that day we went and visited some people and these little punk kids threw a firework at us...well at our feet. I grabbed my comp and pulled her back and then for the first time on my mission....I yelled at someone in German. Ok, I didn´t really yell, but I definitely didn´t use my nice person voice. They weren´t very scared of me because they just laughed, but I could have taken them....Lol. I was just surprised that someone would do that....I should work on my scary German voice...I´m not very intimidating with my American accent!! :o) Anyway...so German´s are crazy with fireworks. So I woke up at about 12:10 and the noises and lights were so loud and bright I have no clue how I slept through that. It was so cool...I got up and watched them with Sister Robb. I LOVE fireworks. Everywhere I looked in the sky...near and far...there were fireworks. People were down in the street below us lighting them off too. It was so amazing. Like Disney fireworks, but all over the sky in every direction. The next day there was so much trash on the ground from it that it was crazy!! I love it!! I had a hard time getting back to sleep because the party above us ragged on.

The next day we had breakfast at the Robb´s with the Elders and then went to another eating appointment with my favorite member here. Her name is Sister Hofmann. She is from the Philippians and we speak English together which makes me happy. We played this super cool game together that we will have to play when I get home. It´s called Hair Fight. So cool and fun!! She is awesome. Oh...we also got our new fridge this week...it is so small, but it works!! YEAH!!
On Sunday we ate at the Fritzsch´s and they helped us look for a new apartment. Did I tell you have we have to move?? We have to be out by the 1st of march. We are looking at one tomorrow. It should be interesting. I´m glad to be moving because this apartment it really old and junky!! It´s in the basement which doesn´t help!!

Well be have to run and catch a train to go to Bremerhaven today!! Have a great week!!

Deine Sister Jones