And Then There Were 46

Bonjour tout le monde!!! 

Has it already been another week! Time is going so fast and I am only in the MTC! 

This week was a bit eye opening! We took a deep dive into French, and let's just say this is going to be a bumpy ride. 😉 I have already learned so much! Last week we learned how to pray, greet people, how to get to know someone, how to share a scripture, how to bare a testimony, give an overview, etc. This week we started learning lessons and the principles in each lesson... IN FRENCH! CRAAAZZZYYYY! At first I thought taking French in the past would help... I was very wrong! 😂 It helps some but dang, this is very different! 

At the MTC we practice SYL (speak your language) where you just try to speak your mission language as much as you can. It is hard but it is also kind of fun! I have begun greeting people in French, asking questions in French, responding in French, and even attempting to have conversations in French with my companions and some of the French natives here. I'm finding that the more French I speak, the less I've continued to think in English. I already find myself speaking Franglish/ Franglais!

On Wednesday we had our first "helping others" appointment in French. These appointments are mock lessons we teach to instructors just to practice and get feedback. That was an eye opener. My companions and I had planned a lesson and we were nervous but excited and as soon as the instructor started their role play and spoke rapid French we knew we were done for! All we could say was chouette and ouais! (cool/nice and yeah) We were however able to ask simple questions, pray, and get our message across but I think the nerves got the best of us. It's okay though - one down millions more to go! We are laughing about the experience now, but after that appointment we were a bit frantic. At least we know what to expect for next time and what to work on. 😊  

Another thing we experienced this week is that there are multiple types of fasting. There is going without food or substance for a period of time, which I'm used to, but this week we conducted an English fast. An English fast is where those who are learning a language will go a whole day without speaking English and will only speak their mission language. For the remainder of my time in the MTC, on every Saturday my district has decided to speak only French. The best way to learn a language is to just speak it and learn from our mistakes, so that is what we are going to do! I will keep you all updated on how that goes! 🤞

Alright, if you looked at the title of this post you read, "And then there were 46." 46 what? 46 MISSIONARIES! At the moment there are only 46 of us missionaries in the MTC. Super small, I know! Tuesday the group of missionaries assigned to serve in English speaking missions left. Our numbers went from about 110 to 46! Honestly, I like how small it is. It is easier to get to know everyone, especially your teachers. We are already pretty good friends! Yesterday we all went to the stake center for sport and played volleyball. It was so chaotic, but so much fun! This coming week though we are about to get more missionaries. A lot of French natives learning English along with German natives learning English. My companions and I already decided that we wanted to befriend the French native soeurs right away so we could help each other with our languages! 😂  

Well, I have to say that the UK has THE BEST sweet potatoes! If you know me and my family you know that we like sweet potato fries, and oh my goodness, they are amazing here! So far they have only served them twice but I am praying that they come around again. The food is still overall pretty bland. There is a tax on sugar to try and help the country be healthier and honestly I kind of like it! They also don't use a lot of salt here. Makes things less flavorful but I guess it's good for my cholesterol or something. 😉 I had some American goldfish the other day and they where too salty! It was so sad because if you know me, you also know how much I love goldfish!! I guess MTC food is pretty average but I think that goes for all of them. I have to say that vegetables, fruits, bread, tea, and water have become my best friends! 

Not a whole lot happened this week, just a lot of studying! We went into town this weekend since we couldn't last week, so the shampoo problem has been solved! 

To leave you all with a spiritual thought I want to highlight the importance of humility. I have learned that one of the most humbling experiences you can have is learning a language, no matter if you studied it before. From James 4:10: "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up." 

I learned that through humility, the Lord will enlighten our minds with the things we need. Through humility I can learn what I need to learn and remember what I need through His spirit. The more I acknowledge Him throughout the day and the more I open myself to Him, I find I learn and understand a lot more. This week try to acknowledge Him more in your day and in all you do. He gives us so much! Become humble and give Him your heart so that your eyes may see more and so that your minds may be open to more understanding. Through humility our weaknesses will become our strengths!

Love you all! À bientôt! - Soeur Hansen