The One With the Tausch

Hallo!

I just need to start by saying that I love my family so much. I have really felt it this week for some reason. I JUST LOVE YOU ALL SOOOOO MUCH!!!!! 

So ya, I had my first Tausch (exchange) this week with our Sister Training Leaders!!! It was really interesting. I went to Luzern, Switzerland with a native German named Sister Fischer. She is really cool and very German. She wants to train REALLY BAD. I could tell because she tried to jam like 3 weeks of training and her entire 6 months of missionary knowledge into me in the 24 hours that we had together  It was way funny. It was funny because we went finding and usually how my companion and I do it is that we approach someone and I try and ask some good questions and then when the conversation gets to the point that I do not understand anything she kind of takes over. BUT with sister Fischer, she told me to go talk to people BY MY SELF!  I was really interested to see how this would go because I am not just trying to pull your guys' leg... I legit do not know German BUT I was able to keep a conversation going for like 10 min!!! I have no idea what he was saying, but I did my best to pretend and respond and we even talked about religion! It was terrifying and invigorating all in one! Switzerland was BEAUTIFUL!!!! I loved it! I know why they call Telluride Colorado "Little Switzerland" because it is seriously so beautiful! In Luzern we were surrounded by the alps and I was in heaven!!!

Funny story from this week. So, Sister McClellan and I were taking a train to an investigators appointment and when we got to our destination, like a normal person, I hopped out of the train. I looked back to watch as my companion stepped off the train, but I only saw a closed door and a frazzled companion frantically pushing the open button! My heart sank as the train zoomed away!!! I WAS ALL ALONE!!!! SHE WAS ALL ALONE!!! I was kind of freaking out inside!  Heavenly Father was looking out for us though. We were so lucky because usually that specific train goes for another 45 min after that stop, but that day it stopped at THE NEXT STOP and she was able to take a bus back to where I was and we were reunited within about 40min. Sometimes it is difficult to know why we have some of the goofy rules in the White Handbook, but that day I gained a testimony of the BLESSING of having a companion. There is so much safety in it and your testimony really is stronger when you have 2 witnesses. 

I loved getting to watch President Monson's funeral because the words spoken and the songs sung filled the hole that I had from not being at Grandma Connolly's funeral. I know that there is a lot of stuff happening with the family this week and I pray so hard every day that there will be no hurt feelings or any contention. My Grandma was one of the best examples of that. She was always being a peacemaker and giving others the larger portion of things. She is so selfless. I miss her so much, but I have hundreds of warm memories that I always carry in my heart and I have a couple of beautiful pictures hanging up in my bedroom. 

Random Things:

- My Companion and I teach a German class. We also teach institute every week. And this week the Sunday School teacher was out of town so we taught that too. We did not have very much time to prepare so I had a couple of small parts and then I said that I could just write people's answers on the board. BAD IDEA!!!! They would say an entire sentence and I would play eenie meenie minie mo to pick which word I thought was the appropriate answer to write on the board and most of the time it was a word I had never heard before so I would struggle to spell it and it was just a huge funny mess 

-We had "District P-Day" today and we went Bowling! It was honestly the worldliest thing I have done since I was set apart.  There was normal music playing that I haven’t heard in ages and other teenagers and it was just weird... good times! Our District Leader is so cool! I feel like he is the type of missionary Logan was when he was on a mission! 

- During the District Meeting, one of the Elders did a small German lesson and they used the example sentence "John fährt schneller" and come on... how am I supposed to focus when I feel like I am saying "JOHN FART SMELLER" Oh man, I felt so stupid because seriously NO ONE ELSE NOTICED and I know if my sister or my mom was there, they definitely would have been laughing too! I love German 

LOVE YOU GUYS! Have a blessed week! 

Love,

Sister Reay

This is as close as I am going to get to Mexico for a while. It made me think of Mexico with the Backus family and those sombreros that were so big we couldn't even get a picture with them on! 

The fetching cutest little girl on the planet! I took a video of her speaking German, but I cannot figure out how to attach it 

Our District

Companions that bowl together stay together