Good morning, afternoon, evening, or night! Or whenever you
happen to read this email. I hope it finds you healthy and happy, and leaves
you more entertained and more uplifted than before you read it! (Quite the
ambitious goal there, isn't it?) This week was some good times. We had 2 whole
days where we didn't need coats outside! That is significant. Here, as follows
are some highlights of the week.
- So. On Friday, the sisters in
our area have exchanges (where other missionaries come spend a day with
each other and learn and what-not from other more experienced missionaries).
We do exchanges too, we did one a few weeks ago in Plzen (I may or may not
have talked about that, I forget).
So with exchanges, we had 6 missionaries here in C-Bud, and we
usually only have 4, we decided to do a singing display. Where 3 missionaries
stand and sing hymns acapella, and their companions go out and contact
alone. Which means I got to contact alone. In case you were wondering,
since my last email I have not actually become fluent in Czech. So that
was an adventure. Some dude told me religious people don't know how to
live correctly. He also explained why, but I didn't catch that part. I
just testified about Jesus Christ, and that was my major contribution to
the conversation. Another lady talked and I was able to understand most of
her questions to me, so I think she didn't realize that most of what she
was saying was going several miles above my head (think of the height of
Mount Everest for reference). There was something about singing and hands,
and she recognized the word Mormon. Then she shook my hand for an awkward
amount of time (Europeans are kind of more comfortable touching strangers
than I am used to) and walked away. I really thought it was heading in the
direction of a lesson/conversation, but then she left. I was a little
confused. Also, I talked to a dude who had to repeat his questions about
three times before I understood it, and then asked me if I had a lighter
and left after I said no. Also, a fun Czech thing, in Czech there is a
formal and casual way to address someone as "you" in verbs and
pronouns. Like Spanish. Tykat is casual, Vykat is formal. (I don't know
about that spelling). But you vykat strangers, unless they are little
kids. But I have noticed that when people realize I don't speak Czech very
well, they just slip into Tykating. I can't understand what they are
saying, but I recognize the verb ending. So that is super fun and random.
Our C-Bud District
Sestra Birkeland photobombing!
Here's our REAL picture in C-Bud town square at the fountain
Starsis Galbraith, Pickett and Sestra DeMann
- Also, Elder Galbraith and I went bus contacting. That is so fun/awkward. Because some of the bus seats face each other. So someone watches you get totally shut down right in front of them, and then you turn to them and start talking to them. It's great. Basically missionaries just break so many social cues and we seem to create awkward situations literally everywhere we go. It's easier when you are doing it in a different language though, for some odd reason.
- We are having Culture Night on Wednesday. We are going to a Czech performance of the musical “Singing in the Rain.” (Monthly mission experience to be part of the culture!)
- From Elder Galbraith: “Our branch is on the brink of being
fantastic! I 100% believe it. The pieces are already there; we only need
to bring together all the people that we already have and are still in
decent contact with the church!”
- We also did some service for
the District President here. He lives here, we run with him in the
mornings, and he is over the entire area of the Church in Bohemia (Western
Czech Republic). We helped them paint a house. And got some paint on
ourselves in the process.
- Also, our city is awesome. I don't think I have bragged about it nearly enough in my past emails, but I love it here. We go to other cities that are super pretty on P-days and for training, but it feels so awesome to get back to C-Bud at the end of the day. It just feels like we have come home. It's great to see how much the area I am serving has grown on me, and how I feel more and more comfortable and more and more attached to the city every day I am here. Being a missionary is so great.
C-Bud is pretty. That's our town hall.
Samson and his pigeons.
-Elder Pickett
Český Krumlov, probably one of the most beautiful cities in
the whole world.
We went there last week.
Overlook of Český
Krumlov
The town square of Český Krumlov is above old town,
which
you have to cross over a bridge to get to.
One perk of going to tourist places in the
winter is that there aren't many other people there.
Cool sundial
Scenes in town- a creepy wax museum and and art stand
Elder Brad gave me a general daily schedule of the day
in response to my request!
6:30am wake up and exercise: nothing special. Push-ups,
we have a few weights, sit-ups, etc.
Then E. Galbraith showers at 7 while I eat breakfast
(awesome Czech cereal). Then I shower.
At 8, we start personal study.
At 9 we start companion study. We sing, read from the
white missionary handbook and then review what we studied personally/prep for
lessons and then study anything we want to work on together.
Language study is usually me working on translations of
the missionary pamphlets/lessons. Every paragraph I switch off from going
English to Czech, and then Czech into English, using the giant dictionary to
help with words.
Then we eat a big lunch from 11-12ish.
Then we go out to work. Takes probably 5ish mins to walk
to the square. Most people we teach at the church building (right off of the
main square).
There is not really such a thing as a "typical
afternoon." We have few investigators, but also meet with a lot of less-actives/2
older ladies in the branch. We contact for lessons, or just contact around if
we have none.
Evenings at 6pm:
Mondays are Family Home Evening (FHE). Tuesdays are English lessons.
Fridays are Game night.
We go back home at 8 for dinner. We have small stuff on
our own.
Then plan for the next day at 9.
10:30 is official bedtime, but depending on how
exhausting the day has been, sometimes we go to bed earlier.
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