Week 18: Two Down!

October 14, 2013

Our companionship photo. She's rollerblading and holding onto my achter op as I’m biking

Geliefde Familie:

So yes, transfer calls happened. I know that's what you want to hear first, so I'll just go ahead and let ya know. My companion is going to Amsterdam.  My companion is just awesome. Such a hard worker. She's going to be the Sister Training Leader in that zone. I'm going to miss her so much. My new companion is Zr Larson. She's Zr Hudson’s age in the mission. And I think she's 21 also. Anyway, I'm staying in Groningen. Idk how much longer, but for now, yay! Amsterdam uses only Metro, which I would LOOOOOOVE, so I hope I get to go there too someday. Oh the Elders. My DL who has been in Groningen with me the whole time and who is just great is going to Apeldoorn to be the ZL with one of his old companions. And his replacement is Elder Bonney from my group. He's cool and he was trained by the other ZL in Apeldoorn so I bet they will fight about who gets to come to Groningen to exchange. The other two Elders aren't changing. I'm going to miss Zr Hudson and Elder Muse a lot, but they are needed elsewhere. 

CHRIS GOT BAPTIZED! He is amazing, people. We went to the house of a lady in our ward with him because we needed a third woman to have a lesson with him, and he basically was telling her that she needs to come to church because nothing is more important than taking the sacrament. And then, I was sitting by him on Sunday, and the lady went to bear her testimony and I leaned over and started saying something to him about it and he was like, "yeah I know! She came!" It was cool. He gets it. I want him to get the Priesthood soon. I was teaching him more about it with another Sister (we were on exchanges) and he was like, "Yeah, this is something I really want to be able to bring into a family." And and and hahaha Zr Hudson was like, "yeeeeah, maybe I won't ever get married." and he basically said, "did you not listen to general conference? You have to." hahah. He gets it. I love it. 

Chris!

I will finish writing later, we are about to have an epic nurf war with the elders. Love you guys! Maybe you'll be awake when I am back. 

I’m back:

                                                           

Dear Dad, thanks for taking me shooting. I know that's not the only reason I can hold my own in a zombie nurf battle, but it was still really fun. 

So we went to Leeuwarden on Saturday because the senior sister is RSP and she needed help for an activity. She and her husband leave Nederland tomorrow, I'm pretty sad about it. Could you add her to the email list?  thanks. Anyway, we could only get a slow train back to Groningen, so we were going to be late for our Chinese appointment (it is so hard to get him to admit he believes in God. I KNOW he does though). So we were running out of the station to our bikes and they were GONE. No, I have not gotten a new bike, by the way. So the city had taken them because they were chained to a fence, and usually in Groningen that's okay (especially because the station parking is completely full now that all the students are back) but we parked them along the path that leads blind people, a path that we had no idea existed. Of course they can take your bike on a Saturday, but you can only pick it up on working days, so the whole weekend we were on the bus because rental bikes were all gone. I'm telling you, now that the students are back, Groningen is PACKED. But probably not even close to as populated as like Rotterdam or something. So we went this morning to go get our bikes and they were 25 euros to get back. I couldn't tell if this was an answer to my prayer and I should just leave it, so I called the sister that's coming here and she said she'd buy it from me even though I told her I didn't want it, so I bought it back, but I may just end up keeping it. It's really not that bad since the seat was raised. And here, you bike or die.

Speaking of, my companion hit a girl on her bike today. After we got them back, we were going to the church to email and she just head on hit someone. My companion of course got up and started asking if the girl was okay, who was in tears, saying that her knee had been hit out of place. A tearful hour filled with calling doctors later, we walked out of her apartment (she is FINE, by the way) and were back on our way.

I finally had real Suriname food. It's delicious. Try to look up a recipe for roti. 

One of our investigators is a ghost buster. Idk, but he can feel spirits around him. I was talking to him about grandpa and he said he was with me because I thought of him. So that was pretty cool. And he said something about how he can feel spirits who never had bodies. And I was like, "so they don't YET have bodies?" in Nederlands, that's "nog niet?" and he said, "nog nooit" meaning they will never have bodies. He says they're bad spirits. Guess what, Gerrie, I believe in those spirits too. Wanna talk about the Plan of Salvation?

Anyway, love you people. So much. I'm kinda nervous for the next week, but then I realized it was basically only because I don't know exactly how to get to our dinner appointment on Wednesday, my first day with a new companion, but it'll be okay. 

IK HOU VAN JULLIE. Seriously, so much. Have a great week. Miss you guys,

Your Favorite Child

Don't worry kids, I'm only the favorite because I'm on a mission. 

Chris

Week 17: I LOVE Conference

October 7, 2013

Haarlem 

Geliefde Familie:   

Hello, hello. The first thing President Monson talked about on Saturday Morning was member missionary work, so I'm going to go ahead and parallel that. If you could be doing more for the missionaries (giving them referrals, going on joint teaches, etc.) DO IT. And do it today. 

I loved conference. Correction: I love conference. I always get a lot of answers to questions. So remember how Elder Ballard said he just got back from Europe? Well, he was talking to my Mission President. A lot of the things he said in his talk, my mission president taught me last week at zone conference (fun fact, on the way to zone conference, I was walking in a pedestrian zone and a biker totally hit me and I fell and got bloody knees but it was funny and I'm not dead). Basically, make the decision now. Seek and ye shall find opportunities to share the gospel. Everybody, invite one person before Christmas!

Since the time difference exists, we haven't gotten to watch Sunday afternoon yet, but hopefully we will. We all gather at the church to watch it. We had a six-sister sleepover here in Groningen, which was horribly uncomfortable since we only have the two beds and a huge house, but it was a lot of fun. 

OSCAR! Hi, will you email me?! I don't know your email address and it's making me so sad! Or write me. Miss you!!!!

What are some of those minute-to-win it games?? I need things like that to use in FHEs...I'm so bad at coming up with stuff to use as object lessons.

People, I don't have a ton of time. I'm sorry. Keep your covenants. Magnify your callings. SACRIFICE for the gospel, and you will be converted. Refiner’s fire. When the bitter cup won't pass, just drink it and get stronger. 

I love you people so much. Annie, please change my fb setting. 

Oh wait, I have to tell you something hilarious. We had this guy come to conference but only stay for the free food (which is weird because he drives an Audi). He wants to talk to President Monson, someone he feels like would be a "fellow" and he wants to convert him. So we turned his talk on on the computer so he could watch it, but he wouldn't even listen to five seconds of it, telling us he was a blasphemous man and that he could tell he wasn't in the "kingdom of heaven." When we went to have out appointment with him earlier that week, he asked me if my parents were in the kingdom of heaven. Idk what this man wants, but we can't just tell him to ask God about things forever, so I think we're dropping him. 

IK HOU VAN JULLIE! Have an awesome week. Can't believe it's already October......

Love, love, love,

Zuster Heilner

Best members ever...getting married!

Week 16: Time differences are kind of a bummer

September 30, 2013

This place is simply beautiful

Geliefde Familie,

Nobody is onliiiiine, but oh well. I'm finally sending pictures this week, so that's exciting. 

DEANNA MY LOVE HAPPY ALMOST BIRTHDAY YOU OLDIE! Wish I could be there to throw it down for your 21st...Mormon Style;) Haha, jk, see you when you're 22 and we will just have a huge party because I love you so much. 

Well, friends, were you ever wondering what it is like to get sick twice in 6 weeks with the same sickness? I wasn't, but it still happened to me. Food poisoning on Sunday morning bright and early. But we could NOT just sit at home that day...more on that later.

Spencer, I met a guy from Brazil! He kinda talks like you, you know how you were like nasally? Are you still like that? I have his phone number and fully intend to teach him.

Annie, can you go on my Facebook and make it so people can add me as a friend? Apparently I got paranoid at some point (for good reason, there are creeps out there and you need to be careful. Especially you because you are such a babe and everybody wants you) and made it so only I could add them, so can you fix it so that people can request me as a friend? Thanks.

MIRACLE! Chris. He is wonderful. I had my first lesson with him on my second day in Groningen. I told you a little bit about him last time. Basically, he's really active in his church, and they help him a lot financially. He's a refugee from Africa. He knows he has to be baptized by someone holding the Priesthood, but he didn't want to have to commit to being active in our church because that would mean disappointing a lot of people at his other church. He called us Saturday Night telling us that he had had a dream. In the dream, he saw a book called "the Book of Abraham" and when he woke up, he was really confused because he'd never heard of that. He read in Genesis again (he knows a LOT about the Bible) but wasn't satisfied with what he found. So he HEARD A VOICE saying, "type it into Google" so he did and he found a link to lds.org. So he called us and we told him that we had just bought him a pearl of Great Price and that we would bring it to church for him. From there, he knew this was true and he is getting baptized on Oct 12. !!!!!!!!!!!!! 

So then I woke up Sunday morning puking.

We had to skip the first hour of church (RS, but Chris wasn't going to be there until the second hour anyway), but after that, I just pushed through and we biked kinda slowly and made it. We were NOT going to miss Chris. He had a great conversation with our District Leader, and it's all good. Last night, we went over there and he brought up temples as we were leaving. We told him that we will talk more about it next time, but guess what. If all goes as planned, I would get to go through the temple with him in a year, and that would make me SOOOOO happy. 

Anyway, I'm gonna send pictures now.

IK HOU VAN JULLIE!

Groetjes,

Zuster Heilner

Dessert at a member's house

Reunited in Belgium with waffles!!! Missed her like crazy

Deventer with mah MTC ladies...I mean sisters

District bowling

My fairy tale lifestyle (where we go running in the mornings except not anymore because it's too dark....bummer, NOT)

Week 15: Geliefde Familie

September 23, 2013

Geliefde Familie:

I should start out by wishing Mom a happy birthday!  Love you so much and I am so thankful for your example for me. You are the strongest woman I know and I am so glad that you're MY mom. Most kids just aren't as lucky as me. 

Norns, you should write me when you're just sitting in the office with nothing to do. Jk, I know you have a lot to do. But I'm not JKing about writing me. OH MY GOSH the picture James sent me of you two together, though blurry, made me so happy. I can't believe it. So much blurry love.

Hill(ner) family--bless your beautiful souls. It was so fun getting your package. Like you guys a lot;) Thank you sooooo much. I forgot it's basically Halloween time until I got that candy! And of course, whenever I wear those socks, I'll think of Meg and me in the back of the car judging how good our day will be based on the socks we are wearing. Ha-ha

We just received news that we aren't supposed to be staying at dinner appointments for longer than an hour, which is kind of hard for Dutch people. It just kind of seems insincere to me, but make sure you're getting the missionaries fed, giving a spiritual thought, and then out of there. Make sure you are having them over though! And find out if it's there birthday if you can email their moms and get a good dessert recipe or something. It would like make my mission if someone did that for me. Speaking of, Dominique Hamson's parents are coming to Plano in October!!! You have to meet them. They're the best ever. She's German. We eat at their house every Tuesday, which I LOVE. I'm sending some stuff home with them, so I'll have them call you when they're in Plano. Any requests for stuff from here? 

Lest any of you thought my opinion changed on cats this week: Nope. I got attacked by a hairless cat on Tuesday. Yes, I DO have the puncture wounds to prove it. The only cats on this earth I like are the Hill’s cats. Idk what you guys do, but they're cute. This one was not, plus it was just plain ugly.

Today I went to a bunch of second hand stores, so it was really fun. Most stuff isn't open on Monday, which is dumb, but whatever. I got some much-needed boots. Annie and Mom, I got you something cool too. Whenever you wear it and people compliment you, you have to be like, "oh I got it from my sister/daughter in the Netherlands! She is a missionary! She talks about....." boom, missionary tool. 

Oh my gosh, I can't believe you guys got Grandma to go to the BYU/Utah football game!  I wish I could have been there! Also to see Andy! What a stud. I have the coolest family.  I’m dying--the pictures of Grandma at the game are so cute!

Grandma at her first football game to support grandson, Andy Phillips,
Ute's amazing kicker!

Miracle of the week: we were going to do a blitz in Assen and in a series of hitting a bunch of red lights and my companion running someone off the road, we missed our train. So we went a little later and ended up having a really cool conversation with a guy next to us! He knows his church doesn't have the full truth. Good thing we can bring it to him, toch?

I am so thankful for the Gospel. I am so blessed to be able to share this good news with the people here. Some (well...most) don't want to hear it, but there are some people that are PREPARED!

Ever thankful that I get to be the one freaking out at my siblings for burping in the car for eternity,

Zuster Heilner

IK HOU VAN JULLIE! 

Week 14: Rockin' my soul in the bosom of Abraham

September 16, 2013

Geliefde Familie: 

Hallo iedereen!

This week was fantastic. Pretty busy, but that's exactly how I like it on a mission. It's kinda funny how much Nederengles I want to use when I'm writing to you, but you won't understand it. Jammer. 

We brought Christian rap to a new level this week by adding CARIBBEAN to the mix! We were doing a service activity for a part-member family from St. Martins. We were doing their yard work and the man (nonmember) turned on music to work with us. It was funny. They call Christ “Cha Cha”! And then every so often, we'd get a not-so-Christian rap song to come on and my companion would usually ask them to skip it haha.

For Christmas, can I get some gardening gloves? Those would definitely come in handy.

Miracle of the week: CHRIS! He is from Africa and he is wonderful. Sierra Leone or however you spell it. He's been living here in Nederland for 11 years and he is very devout in his Christian faith. But this week we set a baptismal date with him! October 12! He is so excited. He usually has to go to Germany on the weekends to work for someone, but this week he surprised us by not going and he showed up to a baptism for another city that comes to Groningen to do baptisms because they don't have a font. The city is Emmen, by the way. But we are so excited for Chris! He is wonderful.

We were sitting in Starbucks doing our weekly panning (yeah, I know...but we were at the train station because we were on our way back from exchanges and we wouldn't be able to go back home before we'd have to leave again) and this 82-yr old lady came up to us and was talking to us. She is the most popping old lady I have ever seen. She was like, "girls, you are so young and beautiful. The world is a beautiful place. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise” she was like this huge world traveler and it was so cool and I want to be just like her when I'm that old. But also like Grandma because Grandma is awesome.

More often than not I show up to District Meeting soaking wet. Literally dripping. I don't even know what I'm going to do in the winter. It was so unpleasant. I need to get black boots really badly because the shoes I was wearing (those black loafers) were so wet I had to take my shoes off to dry. Then I gave a little talk in District Meeting so it was obviously SUPER professional with bare feet...but I didn't feel that bad because the wife of the senior couple told me to do it, so if she says it's okay, it's okay. Love Sister Spek. 

We ride in the rain a lot!

MOM, HAPPY ALMOST BIRTHDAY! For your birthday I will go on a mission to the closest mission to yours. Also, I forgot to tell you, one of the sisters here used to live in Gottingen. She talks about it all the time when we are on exchanges together. Tender. Also, thanks for keeping up with my blog.

"Music and the Spoken Word" continues to hold the title for craziest music I hear on my mission. We were listening to it last night at a members house before we could catch our train and we heard them singing, "rockin' my soul in the bosom of Abraham," so with that ambiguous image, I will sign off for this week.

IK HOU ZO VEEL VAN JULLIE! My family is so cool. Congrats, Mark, on football. 

Zuster Heilner

Week 13: A WHOLE NEW TRANSFER!

September 9, 2014

Geliefde Familie,

Yeah, I'm still in Groningen with Zuster H. I'm so glad, because now I have the groove of the city down and I know how to be a missionary and stuff. I'm still learning, but I'm having FUN this transfer. I had fun last transfer too, but this one is going to be really good. We are going to baptize people, I know it. We have an investigator with a baptismal date! I'm so excited. He is wonderful, but he goes to Germany every weekend to work, so he can't come to church...I need to find him a church in Germany, but we never have time to look it up on the computer...

Dad, guess what. I had a Döner today and it was beautiful. They call the tortilla ones that you can get in Russia "pizza döners" which kinda makes me laugh.  

Doner Kebab

Mom, you'll be proud. I have become an expert at putting the chain back on my bike. It is kind of a bummer that I have had to do that...it falls of about once a day. I need to get it fixed, but we went to Zwolle today for a training meeting for Zr H, so I didn't get a chance. We can go riding a lot when I get back! Not that I do the same kind of riding that you do, but I like biking. Also, thank you for updating my blog frequently. You are wonderful. Really. And not just for that.

Zwolle

 BYU SMASHED UT?! Sweet. I mean, I love UT, but that's kinda cool. So is BYU good this year? I miss those football games! Seriously good times. Too bad my times here are WAY BETTER!

Mom, I don't need a helmet for Christmas. I hardly ever fall, and I would have more accidents if I had a helmet because people would throw rocks at me. 

We did a ton of service this week. It was really good, but we didn't get to teach as many lessons as I would have liked. But it's probably how it would have been anyway because everyone is getting back from vacation and is starting school and is super busy...rough, but we will find time to teach them!

I got to see the stars for the first time this week! I love the stars. My companion was pretty impressed because I was naming off constellations like a boss...while on a bike. I like that it gets dark earlier. Night time is my favorite. I'm also glad I'm getting to know the city better because my companion almost took us the wrong way last night because she can’t tell where we are as well when it's dark. Mom, thanks for that sense of direction. 

You asked about cooking. I eat a lot of pita, hummus, and spinach, with the occasional salami on top. We make pasta a lot because it's fast. We can't really go home for lunch or dinner because we live so far away, so we just bring peanut butter sandwiches and apples a lot. I want to get celery...that's such a good snack. I've never been a raving fan of apples. Is oatmeal healthier than granola?

You also asked about a washer and dryer. We have both! It's quite nice. Today actually the "reservoir" light kept blinking and I remembered from our dryer in Russia that we had to put water in there for it to work. Yay Russia. 

Spence, do you still have all my files? Do you have my mission prep file? Can you email me the PMG lesson outlines from there? If I have them...I should. I made them last semester.

Daniel, I played soccer today in Zwolle. You'd be proud. Maybe. I am prettaaaaaay bad. 

I LOVE YOU ALL! I'm so sorry I don't have tons of time to write and send pictures. I will try to do better. This P-day was insane...I don't like insane p-days.

I'm so excited to hear about this 6-week mission! That's a transfer to me. INVITE! 

Love,

Zuster Heilner

Zwolle

YouTube Video of Zuster Heilner's Arrival in Amsterdam, July 23, 2012

We just discovered a YouTube video of the day Katie arrived in the Netherlands.  Because she was part of such a large group of missionaries arriving on July 23, 2012, the Church's European Area Public Relations crew was on hand to document their arrival.  Be sure and watch to the very end.  She shows her excitement for being in Europe!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIIMbtTPcMs