UUUTTTAAAAHHH!!

Bonjour à tous! 

J'espère que vous allez bien et que vous avez passé une bonne semaine!  (I hope you all are doing well and have had a good week!)

I know I say this every week, but THIS WEEK FLEW! It was honestly a really really good week! We had some amazing lessons with our amis and members, some great repas with members, and even some French lessons with some of the amazing young adults in our ward. And to top a great week off, I've made it three months as a missionary! Whoop Whoop! 

Tuesday night we had some French help from one of the young adults in our ward, and my mind was blown! It helped so much and Soeur Beckwith and I learned a lot! The people in France love helping non-natives with the language and a lot of times are super willing to offer corrections - sometimes a little too willing. 😂 But it has been so helpful! 

After that we stayed to help one of the members clean the church and in return they fed us dinner! They made macaroni and cheese! Now, it wasn't kraft macaroni and cheese with the character shaped noodles, but it was still amazing! Maybe even better 👀. You honestly just can't go wrong with any French cooking! As we were all talking and waiting for the oven to beep I looked out the window and saw.... SNOW ! I COULD NOT BELIEVE MY EYES! Soeur Beckwith and I ran to the window and climbed out of it to go run in the falling snow! It was so pretty! It doesn't ever snow in Britagne so it made us even more excited! One of the young adults there stuck his head out the window and while pumping his arms in the air, yelled "UUUUUUUTTTTTAAAAAHHHHH!" It was so funny! I did have to tell him though that I was actually from Colorado, but he was close enough. 😉 I do miss the snow, but the rain is usually as close as we get. 😂

We had some really great meals this week with some older couples in our ward - So good! Some of them were with the Elders too, and when the four of us go to a repa together, it is always a good time! At one of the repas we went to, we had to catch the bus pretty soon after we finished. As soon as we left the house and stepped foot on the street Elder Mason says, "And now we run," and all four of us immediately sprinted to the bus stop, and luckily caught our bus. Just one of those real moments that makes missionary work fun! Soeur Beckwith and I actually end up running catch the bus most of the time, so it's quite a normal occurrence for us! 😂

Miracles - both big and small keep building! The sun is starting to come out more and we are taking advantage of soaking up that sunshine as much as we can! 

We had a lot of great lessons with our amis this week and so many incredible blessings along with that! One is on date to be baptized next week, and another on the 11th of February! Fingers crossed everything progresses as intended!

Favorite Moment of the Week:

The other day we went street contacting and found a part of the city we had never been to before. We saw an older woman sitting alone on a bench in a little park. We walked up to her and I asked if we could sit next to her and she said yes. We started talking with her and just getting to know her. She told us a bit about her family and her life. She was just a super sweet lady. She told us about how she lost her husband to COVID and how much she missed him. We offered the comfort we could and then told her about the plan God has for us, the plan of salvation, and how one day she will be able to live with her husband again or the rest of eternity along with her children and the rest of her family. She seemed to be touched by our message. We asked her if she was interested in learning more about our beliefs and she politely declined and said it was too late for her to change. 😊 We said OK and that we understood. We then ended with a prayer together and she seemed to really appreciate that. We then excused ourselves and went on with the rest of our day. 

Many times as missionaries we get rejected one way or another, but one of the things I'm learning is that one of the things that means the most is how we connect with people, more specifically how we connect with people through Christ. Christ took time with everyone He met; He looked them in the eyes and cared enough to really understand them and their needs. Even though as missionaries our hope is to share the gospel with those who are willing and open to hear it, our true purpose is to simply invite people to come unto Christ and the best way we can fulfill our purpose is by acting as He did. 

Spiritual Thought

Each week more and more I see the beauty of missionary work, and it is amazing! This week I've been reading in both The Book of Mormon and the New Testament and it is so cool to be able to identify Jesus Christ in both and how each set of scriptures relates to the other. One of the aspects of Christ shared in both books of scripture, is how He is our source of rest. In the book of Matthew I love the verses from chapter 11 that say: 

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."  (Matthew 11:28-30) 

I love this passage because it talks about how we are yoked to and with Christ. We don't have to bear our burdens alone. When we humble ourselves before Christ and turn to Him, He can make our burdens lighter. Sometimes in life it is hard to share our burdens and to give them to Christ, to be yoked to Him. But, I promise that as you give the things that weigh the heaviest to Him and allow Him to share the load with you, you will be able to feel His love and feel Him bearing and lifting you up. I have seen it in my own life. 

As always, I am praying for and thinking about you all! Je vous aime! 

À bientôt! - Soeur Hansen

Are You French?

Bonjour à tous! J'espère que vous allez bien!  

Another week has flown by! Quelle Vitesse! This past week was full of many many lessons, a ton of rain, some significant wind, a bit of SUNSHINE, (I know! I was super excited about it too!) running to catch trains, and as always... blessings and miracles! This week I even have some more French food ratings for you!  

This past p-day my companion and I went back to Saint-Malo! We took the speed train (TGV) there and back, which is always so fun! During those train rides you just fly through the French countryside. It is absolutely gorgeous! Saint-Malo is a walled city filled with cobblestone and rich with WWll history. Turns out it was also a huge port and pirate hot spot back in the day! 😂 We enjoyed the day walking along the beach, exploring the town, eating amazing sandwiches from the boulangerie, and sitting by the ocean - soaking in as much sunshine as possible! The wind however was CRAZY! There where times when Soeur Beckwith and I had to walk at an angle as we fought against the wind! But the views of the ocean, the pirate forts, and just the city in general were gorgeous! I truly love that city!

FRENCH TASTINGS with Soeur Hansen 

Okay, this week was awesome because all the new foods of the week came from meals with other Church members! Wednesday I tried raclette, which is super popular here in France, especially during the winter.  It's essentially potatoes, cheese, and meat. You boil a whole potato, then you open it up and cut it the way you want. Using a specific grill, you melt various, and of course specific cheeses - it is France after all!  You then take the melted cheese and put it on top of the potatoes and then add the meat and eat it all together. Super simple,  but I definitely give it a solid 10/10! People will make raclette sandwiches, and the KFC here even sells a raclette burger! 😂  I have yet to try the burger, but I do recommend traditional raclette! 

Another interesting thing I tried this week was Kebab! It's a sandwich filled with a specific type of meat, salad, and fries, then topped with a ranch type of sauce. The bread is kind of like Naan and it's just a beast of a sandwich! It is pretty good though! I tried a homemade version at a member's house, so it wasn't totally authentic, but he is a baker so I'll take it! Not something you would eat all the time so I give this one a 7/10, but it was good! 

This week I reached a milestone! Someone asked me if I was French!!! We were out one night street contacting in La République and started a conversation with a college student we met. My area is full of Universities so it's a huge college town and many of the people we talk to are college students. During our conversation we asked her a question and when she responded all I said was, "c'est ça" which is, "it's that." Soeur Beckwith does most of the talking right now since I don't know the language too well yet and can't completely engage in much of a back and forth conversation, but I do get the jist of things and will interject here and there where I can. But, right after I spoke, the girl turned to me and got super excited and said, "Oh! Your French!" I was not expecting that, and it took all my energy to contain my excitement! I said one of the most simple phrases, but I guess it sounded super French! SCORE! That gave me so much motivation and hope that I truly am improving in my French!

Miracles

This might sound very simple and small, but one of the huge miracles I am definitely counting this week is the repeated appearance of the sun! It's crazy how much a glimpse of the sun can change things! Everything looks so much different when the sun is out compared to when it is just dreary and gray.  Everything just looks and feels so much happier! Being able to see, feel, and enjoy the sunshine is something I have learned to be truly grateful for. 

Another miracle this week came from lessons with two of our amis (individuals investigating and learning about the Church with the intent to be baptized). We taught them about commandments and they accepted them so easily! One is on date to be baptized the 28th of this month, and the other for the 11th of February! I am so so excited for them! Soeur Beckwith and I also started a scripture study class for the Book of Mormon with our amis to help them get excited and create a habit of reading it. The first class turned out pretty well. We shared  the purpose of the Book of Mormon and explained where it came from and what it is. We are so excited to get into the first few chapters with them! 

Spiritual Thought

If you remember from one of my last posts, my Mission President gave us the challenge to read the Book of Mormon in 100 days. My favorite scripture this week comes from  2 Nephi 10:17 

"For I will fulfill my promises which I have made unto the children of men, that I will do unto them while they are in the flesh." 

I love this scripture because the Lord has made us so many promises, and with those promises comes incredible blessings. The promises that the Lord has extended to us will be fulfilled one way or another. It may not always be in the way we think or expect, but I promise you the Lord will always fulfill His promises! He always provides a way for us!  Have faith in Him and in His plan. He loves us and wants us to succeed and He has more blessings in store for us than we can ever imagine! 

I love you all so much! 

À bientôt !   - Soeur Hansen 

High on Miracles

Bonjour à tous!

J'espère que vous allez bien! This week was a wild one! Crazy busy, full of appointments, metro rides, and rearranging our schedule 5 times everyday! 😂  Even though this week was filled with appointments we still managed to have some fun! 

This week I want to highlight the little things that have brought me joy. It's easy to get caught up in the big miracles that happen and to push the small things aside, but I want to recognize the small things too because those are just as important. There are miracles every day, big and small, and they come in all shapes and sizes!

In our Mission we use a lot of social media. Half our success comes from social media, so as missionaries we are required to spend about an hour each day working through social media. It gets pretty routine, so this week we decided to spice it up a bit by doing a lot of our work at a museum! It was so fun being able to sit in a real French museum, enjoy the art and culture while also getting our work done. We have gone to this museum a few times, and I think that I can say that I now have a new found appreciation for museums and art, not to mention that it's been an awesome way to experience the French culture! 

We were able to ride the metro a few times this week, which was really fun! In my area we don't use private cars, but get around completely through public transport, which can get interesting at times. 😂 On this metro ride my companion and I stood at the very front where we could see the metro track and the tunnel. Turns out, metros are just big underground cars! It was funny because as we looked out the metro window at the tunnel, we noticed that there are animated graphic animals that move on the walls! We would randomly see camels or bears walking along the walls as we rode quickly past! 😂 That was definitely a first!

On Fridays we usually have institute, which is like a Bible study class,  with the JA (young adults ) here in Rennes. However, little did we know that it was canceled! So instead of institute, my companion and I decided to join the Relief Society sisters in doing yoga! My chakra felt quite renewed afterward!  

  One thing you should know about Britagne France, is that there is never sun in the winter. Constantcloudy grey skies and the humidity cold is quite bitter! I never thought I would miss the sun this much! In missions across the world where there are long periods without sunshine, the Church as provided the missionaries with sun lamps we call "happy lights". Basically they are these super powerful lights that mimic the sun and help regulate our chemical balance, an artificial sun! These lights can definitely blind you if you aren't careful!  My companion and I find ourselves turning the happy light on for most of the day trying to soak in as much "sun" as we can! We will even stand in front of it saying "make me happy"! Joking aside, we have actually been praying for some sunshine this week, and on Monday our prayers where answered! We had sun! Our miracle this week is the sunshine! There where a few hours here and there where the sun broke through and it felt so nice! Each time the sun came out, we would stop on the sidewalk in the city and take a few moments to absorb as much good old vitamin D as we could!  The other night we went street contacting at sunset and it was absolutely gorgeous! A good sunrise and a beautiful sunset does wonders for the soul! I am so so thankful for these "sunny" miracles I have seen this week. 

This week I begin my second transfer in the field! A transfer is only 6 weeks, about a month and a half, and in each transfer there is a possibility you will be moved to a different area of your mission. However, this transfer I am happy to say I will be staying in Rennes with Soeur Beckwith! I am still in training so we weren't expecting to get transferred anyway, however, President Hansen called us the other night to check on us and to get the full scoop on all the miracles happening in Rennes. He then told us that he isn't splitting up the "dream team" this transfer, but that we should enjoy every moment we have because next transfer there will be changes. We are taking his advice and enjoying every millisecond, and will continue to look for and expect daily miracles! 

This week we also found out who our new mission President will be when the Hansens go home this summer. His name is President Ryan Munns and he is from Florida. He will be coming with his wife and 2 of his 5 kids in July! We also found out he is a lawyer. None of us have met them yet, but the Hansen's seem to really like them. It will be about halfway through my mission when they arrive, so I will spend just about half my mission under each President, so it will be interesting! 

    

I know this week's update was little different, but I wanted to take a moment and talk about the little miracles I have seen and express my gratitude for the little joys in my life. Recognizing the little things in our lives are just as important as the big things. My invitation to you all is to take time, preferably everyday, and express gratitude for the little miracles you see throughout your day. Live in thanksgiving daily and find the beauty in small things! Take time to enjoy the sunrises, the sunsets, and soak in as much of the sun as you can! 

Je vous aime!  À bientôt!  -Soeur Hansen

Unexpected

Bonjour à tous! 

Bonne Année! Happy New Year!!

I feel like this past week went by so fast! This week we had a ton of lessons, which went amazing! We also had in person district council, and I was introduced to a new tradition: The Flan Suck! The goal is to suck a whole flan in your mouth without using your hands. You buy flans that are individually packaged, much like pudding cups or jello cups. You open it and then flip it upside down on a plate and remove the cup. You then slurp the syrup off the top, give it a bisous for luck (kisses on each side), then take a few deep breaths and inhale the flan. Apparently it's a Paris missionary tradition! 😂 Let's just say, I still need a little practice before I master it.  It was really great though to see the whole district in person. We talked about The Restoration and listening to those we teach with love. I can personally say that the more I listen with love and not worry about what to say, the more I am able to share through the spirit. I have learned that in moments when I fully rely on the spirit it is not me teaching the lesson, it is the spirit. I have experienced some great miracles, especially with speaking in French, as  I was able to say the right words in the exact moment I needed them. My French is far from perfect and is still very broken, but I know, and have experienced, that when I fully trust the spirit I am able to convey the thoughts and feelings needed to reach the hearts of those I teach. 

This week was once again filled with Miracles! Here are this week's top hits: 

• Thursday we went out street contacting and we ended up in an area of Rennes that we hadn't been before. While we where walking on one side of the street we saw a guy on the other side who we felt we needed to talk to. We both ran across the street and tried to catch up to him. Good thing he stopped to get into his apartment! We then began talking to him and he turned out to be so nice! I gave him a Book of Mormon, which he took with great interest! We also got his number and are going to stay in contact! That was one of the first times I really felt the spirit strongly tell me to chase after someone and give them a Book of Mormon!

• Being in the rain as a missionary has a lot of mixed feelings, but this particular time was so fun! One night Soeur Beckwith and I decided to go street contacting in the rain. It started out as a drizzle but we later found ourselves in the middle of a downpour with no umbrellas. We were soaked but were laughing and smiling the entire time! I haven't seen any snow here in Rennes yet, but we have had a lot of rain! We still don't know why we felt we needed to go out in the rain, but we did talk to a few people so hopefully there are some miracles to come from that! Moral of the story: it's fun being in the rain as a missionary! Just doing the work of the Lord, soaking wet and without a care in the world feels amazing, especially as I am doing what I am growing to love more and more each day! 

• Okay this is a super cool story! Grab some popcorn! Remember the guy I met on the bus from my very first week in France? Well, he is currently on date to be baptized at the end of the month, but he is also a phenomenal missionary! This past week we got in contact with a woman (we will call her Jane) via text. We had her number and it looked like she hadn't talked to the missionaries very much so we thought we would try reaching out to her. We sent her a text explaining who we were and that we wanted to share a message with her. She responded with a simple "oui". Awesome! We set up a meeting for later in the week. Saturday night we sent her another text inviting her to church. Again, just a simple "oui". Great! 

Sunday came and we didn't know what to expect. Soeur Beckwith and I stayed at the front doors of the church welcoming everyone as they came in. We had never met Jane so we didn't know who we where looking for. Our friend from the bus (we will call him John) arrived and by then it was time for the church meeting to start so we took our seats. A little into our meeting a woman walked in, looking a bit lost, but she sat in front of us and listened to the rest of the meeting. After the meeting we began talking with her, and turns out it was Jane! She had clicked on an add for The Church a few months ago but this was the first time she was talking to the missionaries and she had been searching for Jesus Christ her whole life! PERFECT! John even came up and started talking to her. The four of us then went to second hour classes where Jane was taking notes the entire time! At the end of class we gave her a Book of Mormon and she accepted it so graciously.

 

After class John and Jane talked for 45 minutes and became fast friends while Soeur Beckwith and I made our rounds to different families in the ward. From there we decided to give Jane a chapel tour and John came along too. At different points on the tour Soeur Beckwith and I would explain different things and also bare testimony. John even bore a short testimony on various things too. We then got to the baptismal font where we talked about the importance of baptism and what it means to us. Then, without prompting, John bore his testimony on baptism, why he is choosing to be baptized, why baptism is important in general, and why it is important to him. He then said she could be too if she was interested. She then whipped out her calendar and started looking for a date to be baptized! Our ami (people who we are teaching who are not yet baptized we call "amis") who is on date to be baptized on January 28th invited another ami to be baptized! Soeur Beckwith and I just stood there staring at each other in awe! John is an even better missionary than we are! 😂 Jane then expressed her desire to be baptized and to learn more. She even wants to be baptized on the same day as John!! It was such a sweet experience and truly a miraculous one! This just goes to show that you never know who you will meet and how they will bless your life and lives of others! 

Spiritual Thought: 

Our mission President extended an invitation to the mission to read the Book of Mormon in 100 days. December 31- Easter and to take note of each time Jesus Christ is mentioned. The past two days of doing this challenge have been so sweet. It has really allowed me to focus more on the Savior. One of my favorite scriptures this week comes from 1 Nephi : 

"But the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all His works among the children of men; for behold, He hath all power unto the fulfilling of all His words. And thus it is. Amen." 

(1 Nephi 9:6) 

The Lord knows all things. He understands the things we cannot understand. He knows what is to come and what is to happen, and He has known since the beginning. Because of this He knows who we are, who we need to be, and who we need to become. He has a plan for us, and it is individually and personally perfect. The Lord will provide a way for you to do all things and to become who you are meant to be. Trust in Him and in His plan and let Him guide you in "the fulfilling of all His words." I am learning to really give everything to the Lord and let Him guide me. It's not easy but miracles and blessings come from it. Know that the Lord really does know you individually and He knows what your future holds. Allow Him to guide you in shaping that future. 

I know this was a longer post than normal, so thank you for tuning in this week on Bon Voyage Soeur Hansen! I hope you all had an awesome New Year! This is an exciting year for me as a missionary, as it will be a "black out" year, meaning I am able to be on my mission during an entire year from beginning to end. Not all sister missionaries have one depending on when they enter the mission field. 

Make this year one centered around Jesus Christ!  I invite you all to begin today and finish the Book of Mormon in 100 days leading up to Easter! As always, I appreciate the emails you send throughout the week! I am trying to get to them all! If I don't respond right away, know that I am thinking of you and I will respond eventually! Love you all so much! Bonne Année! 

À bientôt ! - Soeur Hansen