Cranada

Hellllooooo!!!!

   Ho boy am I glad to be emailing you! Unfortunately this computer is all Frenchlike so it is saying that I am spelling everything wrong. That's ok, I will press forward with faith!

   So, before I forget. Send mail to the mission office address. If you want to mail me something, please do it. Haha I'm going to be honest this week was a rough adjustment, but I can do it, I am not going to go on about worries, I am just going to suck it up and forget myself! But yeah, mail would be awesome. And lucky for you all it's just to Canada, so not too far at all! Also, another problem is that I have noooooo time to read and write. And because I love all of your lengthy emails and whatsuch, I don't want them to stop, but maybe you could mail them to me too like Dad has been doing because I sadly don't have time to read and write. I decided to write and then I'll read, but that way I might miss questions... Sorry in advance if you ask questions and I answer them next week. What else... I don't think there were any other questions like that that I needed to answer, so I will proceed to tell you about the week!

   So I got here Tuesday evening and we went to the mission home and ate dinner and had interviews with our mission President (President Patrick- He's super chill and all that). We just kinda sat around and wrote in our journals until bedtime. It was fun. Then we went to bed. The next morning we finished up with the interviews and went on a walk around the block. Then we went on a drive up Mount Royal. It's funny it's called "Mount" because it really is just a hill. Anyway we looked out over the city of Montreal while our mission president read D&C 4 out loud. It was pretty cool and got us all pumped to start working. After that we went to the mission office where there is a chapel in the same building and had a little bit of training from the new assistants to the president (AP's for short). They kind of just helped set some standards for how we want our mission to go and all of that cute stuff. We wrote things down and sealed it up in an envelope and we can open it when we go home. I wonder if I will have done the things that I said I wanted to. I hope so. After that we got our assignments. I don't know if you got that picture of me with my new companion and the mission president, they might send it to you if they haven't already. But anyway, I am with Soeur Ryser, she is from Switzerland and has been on her mission for 14 months. She words all of the time and is really great for me. She has so much love and patience it is incredible. And it has really been such a blessing because like I said, this week was hard. But not in a bad way, just super overwhelming and all of that normal new missionary stuss. Anyway, she has been a great trainer. My first area is Longueuil Sud. Sud just means South in French. So yeah, I am in a French zone. It is nutzzz!!! I do not understand very much, but people know that and are really kind and patient. The person that has been the meanest to me here is myself. I am starting to see that I can have patience with others, but not with myself. So that is something that I have to learn and work on. But, with patience I have to learn patience. This is really nothing like I thought it would be. That's not a bad thing, just crazy and stressful and overwhelming. But I have only cried three times, so it's all good!!

   So after meeting my trainer and getting our area we left to our apartment and planned out the rest of the evening. Luckily, my comp has been here for a few months, so she had things worked out and going for us. But the problem was Wednesday night there is usually ward council, and the first Wednesday night they do a thing where the missionaries go with members and visit less active members. So I had to go on a split the first night with two sister members who I didn't know to visit a lady I didn't know and try to communicate with them all in a language I don't fully understand. When my companion told me the plan that was the first time I started to cry haha. But it's all good! I went and the members were so nice and one of them spoke a little bit of English so sometimes she could fill me in. But really it was all totally fine. The overwhelming feelings are the only things that really make me cry. I wasn't sad or homesick or anything. But now I am realizing how easy the MTC was! Holy cow! But, I am so happy to be here. I am just now patiently waiting to get better.

   Thursday we went and taught people, had a district meeting, I tried my first poutine! It was really good. I think we got like a pizza kind because it tasted like pizza with French fries... I don't know why people wouldn't like that! One investigator we have is Mylene. She is very sweet and I think she may have some mental problems. She wasn't home but we went by her friend's house where she usually is. She was super drunk. So on top of already having some disabilities, she drinks and smokes a lot too. It was so sad. We talked to her on the doorstep and she couldn't hold still and I had no idea what she was saying. My comp just talked a little bit about the word of wisdom and how we have to follow our Savior and his example. We said a prayer after and that was our lesson with her. It was really humbling to see how we all need the Savior, just in different ways.

   Friday I was kind of the same thing, just lessons and visiting with people. We taught a lesson with some investigators Romeo and Veronique. The are mother and son and they are so so kind and just intelligent and great. Romeo is in his twenties somewhere. He asks a lot of questions and his mom kind of just listens. We were teaching them about life after death and how it is a blessing that if we aren't able to learn things here we still have the chance in spirit prison, or to teach in spirit paradise. Romeo was concerened because he didn't think it was fair that some people could change their life right before they were going to die and still be good. I understand how that does seem unfair, but my comp just kind of said after that when we really understand our Savior's love, it won't matter to us. We will want everyone to be happy even if we feel like we worked harder. Ultimately, we just can't judge and have to work on ourselves thrugh service and charity to others. I feel selfish right now because I am so worried about how well I am doing and if my concerns about my ablilities are justified or selfish. But I decided that I have to build myself up in order to help others too. But I can help myself and others at the same time. Then comes the overwhelmed feelings, and I just have to remember to take it all one step at a time and remember that the atonement both helps redeem us and enable us. Elder Bednar taught that in a super awesome talk. I don't know what it is called though... Sorry. Also on Friday we visited the sweetest lady, Soeur Morisette with a member, Soeur Boldelau. They both were so kind to me it was really nice. I should them some pictures of family and whatnot and told them a little about myself, and I felt reassured after that I can do this. We talked about being like children, in regards to following Christ, it was cool (the three or four words I actually understood were cool, I mean... haha). Towards the end (we were sitting outside in this canapy bench and table type thing) a huge spider dropped down in front of my companion and she freaked out. It was so funny and horrifying. I was trying to remain quietly dignified while I cried inside because ho boy do I hate spiders. When we were saying the closing prayer I was praying in my heart that if I tried my hardest not to open my eyes and keep watch for the spiders, Heavenly Father could maybe in return helped the spider stay away from me. I only opened my eyes once and the spider didn't bother us again. What a blessing.

   Saturday was the same type of schedule. Except we visited the Boudo family. The are the greatest ever. So loving and accepting and they are preparing to be baptized and our lesson on that day we talked about the blessing of temple marriage and it was so awesome. I bore testimony how it was been a blessing in my life and just kind of talked about Katie briefly. I realized then that we are so blessed to have trials in our lives because they can help us know how to relate to and help others. We took a member couple with us to that lesson and between them and my comp they taught so well. I understood some and was just happy to be able to be there and feel the spirit and Heavenly Father and our Savior's love for them so strongly. It is the best for sure. My comp towards the end asked them if they would prepare to be sealed with their daughter in the temple, and the dad (Elie) took his wife's (Eliatha) hand and just said, "Bien sur" which is like of course and it was crazy powerful. Many, I hope I can help the lord see this through. He has definitely taught Elie with so much power, it is incredible.

   Sunday was pretty sweet. The members of the ward are so so so awesome! They help the Lord's work so much. More than I think I even am doing. A lot of them have multiple callings, and they willing serve. I love them. The Boudo family came to church, and Soeur Morisette and some other less active members. It was great to see them all there. The bishop got up to start the meeting and after the sacrament to my pleasant surprise he called me and a new Elder up to introduce ourselves. I only died a little bit inside because I kind of expected something like this to happen. I said a little bit about me and then said that I was a missionary because I love the gospel and that I want to help them in anyway that I can. And then I forgot to close "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen" so I just said, it's nice to meet you all then sat down. Oh was embarrassing. I am crazy. But that's ok, I'll learn and get better! Hopefully I get the chance to redeem myself or something! After church we visited a less active family and an investigator Stephane. The family was really kind, I just need to pray that Heavenly Father will touch their hearts. With Stephane it was really interesting. He is really hard to talk to because he doesn't really talk back or with us, and then just randomly he stood up and said, I have to go. So it was weird. But he lives with his grandma who is a member so we talked with her after and hopefully that helped her. She has a really hard life and I hope she can see the blessings or her diligence. She said she thinks our talking with Stephane helps him, so we will keep coming back. They gave us some nasty fruit drink stuff though. That was hard to choke down. And I think I almost feel asleep because we were outside and kind of in these loungy chairs and it was warm and this sister's voice was so quiet so I couldn't hear or understand. But it was all good. We knocked for the first time yesterday. No one let us in. But, it's all for experience! I cried after that though becuase I feel bad like eveerything is up to my companion since I can't understand yet. And also I don't understand why people won't listen. If they only know what we gave up to be here for them!! We will seriously do anything for them! But, it's ok. I just have to remind myself that they will have their time. And with me, maybe it isn't their time.

   Welp, I think that is all. I hope you feel nice and caught up. Now I get to read your emails!! Yay!!! This week was tough, like I said, but just know that I am happy to be here to learn and grow. Keep praying for me though because I really need the strength. Sometimes I think I am too soft because so far I haven't been able to handle rejection well. But I'll get better! I haven't forgotten why I came here in the first place, and that has helped me a lot. I love our Savior and I NEED him. Just like you all do too! Remember to love everyone and treat them kindly. That has really saved me here, when people have just been kind. So I guess this marks the beginning of my mission (technically), I really hope I can make you all proud! I love and miss you all so much and will send some letters today! Stay safe please!

Much love and hugs and glitter and whatnot,

Soeur Kinghorn aka Snooooooooooop

P.S. My comp actually likes to excercise. Thank goodness!!!! She seriously is the best.

P.P.S. I weighed myself and turns out I lost nine pounds in the MTC. Woohaa!