Boboaca mică takes on Craiova

 Buna Buna!!!

I made it to Romania!!! I still have to pinch myself sometimes, I can't believe I'm actually here!! 

Anyways so here's a rundown on my adventures so far...

So on Tuesday (the day before we left), we get an email from the travel office just reminding us that we needed to meet at the office at 8:30 am to leave the next day. No big deal right? Other than we had originally been told we were meeting at 11:30?! So some elders went to go ask about it, and they found out our flights it changed. We were now going with the other elders in our district through Paris. How nice of them to give us a heads up. Lol.

So we meet at the travel office and get our flight info and well another surprise, we were flying to Bucharest not Budapest! The mission home and everything is in Budapest, so we weren't sure if the office just messed up, or if we would actually have someone waiting for us. 

We went to the airport and everything went smoothly (even when we had to get all of our 20+ bags off the frontrunner in under 45 seconds), and my bags weren't overweight (miracles are real people)! 

I then got my last Cafe Rio and Queso for a year and half, and got on the plane to Paris! The flight wasnt bad, I slept through a good amount of it and other than that just studied 😬

We then had a short layover in Paris and got on flight to Romania (I was literally passed out for the entirety of that one). We then got to Romania and were luckily expected to be at that Airport. The Ruckers meet us there and then we went and got dinner. We had a traditional Romanian meal, Sarmele (cabbage rolls) and for dessert we had popanaş (basically in-between a donut and a scone). It was foarte bine (very good)!!! We then stayed in a hotel for the night. 

The next day we went to one of the Churches in Bucharest and all met with the President and did flimed a video with Sister Rucker. After we got our trainers and I got (pause for dramatic effect....) Sora Olsen!! Sora Olsen is a Rockstar! She has been out here for a little over a year and is so so good with the language. She teaches all the senior couples!! We were assigned to white wash (neither of us have ever been in the area) and reopen (they havent had sisters in the area since Decemberish) Craiova!! We are just a few hours west of Bucharest. But anyways we then had lunch, orientation, then went to where they dedicated the mission and read the dedictory prayer. And the we were off! Sora Olsen and I went back to the Church and met her friend Christina! Christina is so cool. She speaks very good English and loves the missionaries! (Not really a fan of church though). We then went with Sora Dabo and Sora Reynolds and their trainers to go get Luca. Luca is fooooooaaaaaaaaarrrrrrtttttttte bine. They are cuvurgi (soft pretzels) made fresh and filled with all sorts of fillings. I got one filled with ham and cheese, and one filled with Nutella. It's safe to say I'm addicted. Then we headed back to Sora Olsens old apartment (she has been Bucharest for the last 7 months), and we stayed the night there so we could go to a baptism the next day! 

The next day the Bucharest sisters left at 6:30 for the church so Sora Olsen and I stopped and got Luca for them on the way over (and of course got some more for ourselves, because they don't have one in Craiova), and met them at the church. The baptism was cool and some of my MTC district was there as well so it was fun to see them one more time and meet a bunch of other missionaries there. After the baptism Sora Olsen and I (and two elders) hauled all our stuff to the train station and Sora Olsen and I set off for Craiova! 

When we got to Craiova we were a little nervous about getting all our bags off, but it was miracle! All these older Romanian guys were so sweet and helped us get our stuff of the train. And luckily the elders in Craiova were right there after we got off the train to help us out as well.

The elders then took us to our apartment, and let's just say it had me in the first half. The outside of the building looked like it was a prison, and then we walked in and it was even worse. The halls and stairs were disgusting and I thought for sure our apartment was not going to look too nice. But to my surprise it is actually really really nice. Like really boujee. We have and extra half bathroom and two living rooms with nice couches. Crazy!!! 

But we couldn't stay for long because we literally had no food so we rushed and headed to the store. We got food for dinner and Sunday and went home. 

On Sunday it was so nice. We didn't have church until 1:00, so we did our studies ans got all of our stuff put away. Then we walked to church and got there around 12. We ate our lunch there and prepared for the meeting. The sacrament meeting went pretty well. We have a branch of 5 members so that was very different 😂I lead the music and it went ok. I thought I could do it, but I didn't realize how hard it is to lead when you literally dont know the words to the song. All good though. I had to give a testimony and I actually did a really good job!! The members told me it was beautiful and the I spoke pretty well. The only problem with sacrament meeting was this one nonmember lady and her two kids. One was a baby and it occupied most of her time, and the other is her daughter that probably is like 6 or so. Her daughter was very disruptive during the whole meeting. This one member family was trying to be patient with them but it didn't last. During Sunday School the disruption continued and finally the father of the mem ber family lost it and started yelling. It was so chaotic for me. I could tell he was angry the whole service but I didn't know why. And when he started yelling I literally did not know what he was saying in the slightest. And I also was sitting between him and the lady he was yelling at so from my perspective this guy I had just met was yelling angry jibberish right over top of me. It was so hard to keep a straight face. What was not funny though is then the lady argued back and then the member took his family and left. Our poor branch president (one of the elders) was just trying to keep the peace and settle everyone down.  So that was eventful for sure. 

After Sunday school us missionaries just chilled at the church, had district council, us sisters met with the STLs and then we did some contacting. My comp helped me write a script and then had me call a contact. (All in Romanian). It went pretty well! I might have accidentally told the lady that it was true that as long as we just love God that's all that matters, like going to church doesnt...but we have a call with her tomorrow so hopefully we can clear that up. But I did do the call basically by myself (other than my comp helping with some translation), so thats cool. We then went on a walk with our other member friend Leonard. He is awesome. He knows some English and tries to help me with Romanian. He also brought his dog Diana with us. It was so good, Diana likes to take her sweet time and Leonard kept on having to yell at her like "come on Diana, come on!" Then Diana would just waddle over just as slow as ever. Hilarious. We also took a picture with Diana. Super fun. 

Today was good. We got a chance to meet with that member family that stormed out of church. We were there for like 2 hours, and they basically just talked to us and explained their concerns and shared stories. I of course only learned this all from my Comp, as I did understood next to nothing of what was said. They seem really sweet though.  They give all the missionaries nicknames and I have officially be dubbed boboaca mică. Boboac and Bobaoca is what they call all the new missionaries here in our mission, so it just means little "freshman" or little new person basically. Super fun. 

After that we walked around Craiova for a bit and got Shoarma. All the missionaries are obsessed with Shoarma. And for good reason. Basically it is this burrito thing. They like have those racks of meat that rotate around and roast, then they shave off the meat and put it in a tortilla like thing with whatever sauce and vegetables you want and fries. I am also officially addicted to Shoarma now. 

But yeah sorry for the long email, but this week has been so eventful!! Ahhh. Needless to say I already love everything. The place, the people, my comp, the food! I excited to get to work this week! 

Spiritual Thought:

2 Nephi 33:1

1 And now I, Nephi, cannot write all the things which were taught among my people; neither am I mighty in writing, like unto speaking; for when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men

So don't think I'm sharing this verse because I've been speaking well. Cause I haven't. But as I've been able to go church meetings in Romanian and even today listening to the conversation with the member family, I could feel the spirit so strong. Like today the wife was just talking and all of sudden what she said just felt different. I knew that she was bearing her testimony. I still didn't know what she was saying but I could feel the power of her words. I am grateful for the spirit and that it breaks through all barriers, even language. 

Vă iubesc foarte mult!!!!!

Sora Hansen

La Sfârșit lui MTC

 Buna!!!!!!

I officially have 2 days left at the MTC! It's crazy how fast time has gone by. The plan is to leave the MTC on Wednesday at 11 am and then our flight is at 5 pm to Amsterdam, Netherlands. We have a 4 hour layover there and then we fly to Budapest to the mission home. We stay a night there and then take a 15 hour sleeper train to Romania. Super exciting!! Until Wednesday we don't have a lot on the schedule. 

Snippets from this week (and the last) :

-Last Saturday we had the chance to talk to a friend named Alin who is a priest in Romania. He was super nice and great to talk to (at least when we could understand). But I definitely realized it is going to take me a bit of time to start understanding native Romanians. 

-Last Sunday I was sitting at the start of sacrament meeting and just listening to the program, kind of dazing off when I hear, "and Sister Hansen will be leading our music today". Sora Dabo and Sora Reynolds are the ones in charge of the program so I looked over at them, and they just shrug and say "sorry we forgot to tell you!" Well the intro for the opening song was starting to play so I didn't have time to complain and I had to just jump up and start randomly moving my hand. It has been a while since I've led music so it was an adventure for sure. Luckily during the second song one of the relief society presidency members in the back was showing me how to start so it went much better. 

- Monday had more service which was super super fun!!!

-Tuesday we had a devotional with Elder Quentin L. Cook, and it was amazing! He and his wife said so many inspiring things, but I especially loved it when he encouraged us to have urgency in our mission work. He told us that when we talk to people that interaction might be the only time in their life they get to hear about the gospel. Mission work is a big responsibility, and I am happy to be able to be a part of it. 

-Wednesday we got our travel plans!! Super exciting! 

-Thursday Sora Reynolds got her hair cut by Sora Dabo (she is a lot braver than me). Also my mom sent me Cafe Rio Queso (AKA my addiction), and the Surori and I had a chips and queso party. 

-Friday P-day! I got busy and was not able to send an email (oops!)  but the temple was amazing, and we got to do initiatories which was awesome! Sora Reynolds also diffused my hair for me which was fun (I've never tried it before). 

-This Saturday was our last day of classes which was foarte triste 😢

-This Sunday was interesting... The Surori and I decided we would do a special musical number for Sacrament meeting, and well we tried. We hadn't had a chance to really practice with the accompaniment so we kept coming in at the wrong times. The first time it happened Sora Reynolds smacked her mouth so hard, and we all started giggling. It just went downhill from there. I will say however I had a tender mercy. So I play piano, and if you I play you know I don't like to play in front of others, and if you don't know I play, well now you know why haha, But I can play hymns so I was asked/offered to play for Sacrament meeting. I have never done this before, and I was so so nervous. But before the meeting I was reminded about all the practice I have put in. Not just this week, but since I started my papers I figured there was a chance I would have to play piano on my mission, so I started practicing the hymns. All summer and the month I spent at home, I tried to practice as often as I remembered to. I was comforted and knew that I had done all I could on my part, now it was just time for the Lord to fill in the rest. I was still nervous, and I didn't play everything perfectly, but I made it through all the songs, and it was probably the best experience I've had playing in front of people. I know that the lord helped me do that, and I'm so so thankful for that. 

Funny moments: 

We scared the crap out of Sora Reynolds this week. Haha it was hilarious. Both times I got her in the hall after she was coming out of the bathroom (videos in the album), the first time was especially hilarious becasue she was singing and running and then came around the corner and almost jumped into a trash can. The second time was also good, I swear she jumped like 5 feet in the air haha. Then another time Sora Dabo sprayed her with my water mister when she walked in the room (video also in the album). After being sprayed Sora Reynolds pasted herself to the wall and then accidentally turned out the lights. It was chaotic and so freaking hilarious. 

Spiritual Thought: 

This week I have missed my family a lot. There have just been things here and there that remind me of them, and then it makes me sad. This Sunday during our 2 hour study time, I just pondered about my feelings, and just what the Lord wanted me to hear. I then read through my study journal and found one of my goals from my first week of online MTC. One of my goals was to have a deeper relationship with my Heavenly Father. Over these last weeks I have has to lean on my Heavenly Father more than ever before. It is hard to be away from family and friends, but it allows me to rely on my Father in Heaven. I'm so grateful for this experience, and the relationship I'm developing from it. 

That's it for this week!! Next time I send and email it will be from Romania!! 😱😃

Va iubesc!!

Sora Hansen

Foarte Distractiv!!!!

 Buna Buna!!

Finished another week here at the MTC! This week it's finally been getting a little bit warmer so that has been nice. I wish I could say Romanian has been getting easier...but it still manages to break my brain everyday. Luckily I've definitely settled into the schedule of the MTC (well other than having to wake up), and it's been easier for me to balance everything. All in all it has been another great week!

Here are some snipets of the week:

-Lots of gym time and playing volleyball (we've noticed though that every time we go someone asks me if I play soccer, because I keep kicking the ball 😬)

-Sora Post and I taught at church on Sunday and our lesson was fire!!!

-Fast Sunday was hard, because they literally don't serve meals or anything until dinner (I guess free agency isn't a thing here), and then the dinner was literally disgusting, but thank goodness for vending machines. 

-On Monday we had service again (#Ilovecleaningshowers), also Sora Post and I led a language review in class and it was so fun! (Check out the album for some of the videos)

-Tuesday we sang in the choir at the devotional again (the song was boring, but it was still fun!)

-On Wednesday we had the "opportunity" to watch the lessons we gave in Romanian the week before...let's just say that I didn't think I could get second hand embarrassment from myself. I also ripped my jean skirt which sucked but shoutout to Sora Saunders who is going to sew it for me!! 

-Yesterday Sora Post and I gave our second lesson in Romanian, and it actually went really well! This lesson had to be longer, so we were nervous, but we were able to share the Book of Mormon and teach her how to pray! We invited our prietenii (friend) to read and pray about the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon this week. 

-Sora Post and I have also started going to the piano rooms this week which has been really fun. She sings and I (try to) play the piano. On Thursday though, these Italian Elders from our branch came in and were talking to us and one of them kept boasting about his piano skills and this one song he liked. So finally I was like "do you want to play it really fast". He then proceeds to play that song and like 5 million other ones, essentially stealing the piano from us. Nu bun. But whatever I'm over it. 

-Also shout out to my sweet mom and aunt for another awesome package this week!! Love you both!!

Spiritual Thought: 

2 Nephi 25:26

"And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for the remission of their sins."

This has been one of my favorite scriptures here in the MTC. I have shared it in so many mock lessons, and in our "real" lesson too. But I just love the message: Christ. That's what it is all about. Especially here at the MTC I feel like I do all these things and more. My whole life is truly centered around Christ, and I have never been happier. I know that when we turn Christ we will recieve happiness, peace, and more blessings than we can imagine. I invite you all to find one way you can come closer to Christ this week.

Va Iubesc!!

Sora Hansen

Cleaning bathrooms? or getting rid of ghosts?

 Buna Buna, 

This last week has been a blast! Me and the Surori (sisters) all get along so well, and we are constantly laughing at ourselves. My district is also THE BEST and we have a great time together. We've had some epic snowball fights and I brought a small soccer ball, so during almost every break in class we do a juggling circle. We also have been playing a lot of volleyball, which has been fun, but arms are starting to look like my companion beats every night. The meals here are not too bad, some of the fruit is questionable though. 

The language learning is coming along pretty well, but Limba Româna (Romanian) is a beast for sure. On top of the regular verb conjugations we have an extra gender (I guess the language couldn't decide), adjective declination (basically conjugating adjectives to match nouns), definizare (instead of using normal articles, Romanians thought it would be fun to put them at the end of words), dative and accusative phrases, and most of the words we use in everyday life are "irregular" so they don't follow the rules listed above 😂 so fun!

Saturday: First full day of classes!! Nothing too interesting, just lot's of work.

Sunday: Sacrament meeting was amazing!! The speakers were amazing and I felt the spirit so strong. We also had this personal study "experience" which was so good too. Our district went to choir practice as well which was super fun too! Also, Surori and I memorized "Our Purpose Statement" in limba Româna!!!

Monday: We had service, which was cleaning other sisters' bathrooms. It was kind of gross but at least they gave us fire outfits to wear while we were doing it.

Tuesday: We had a devotional with Elder M. Russell Ballard. After the meeting we had the opportunity to reflect as a district. We all mentioned how cool it was to hear from an Apostle. A lot of what he shared were principles we had already heard, but hearing them directly from an Apostle was a really special experience.  

Wednesday: Sora Post and I had to teach our first lesson in limba Româna to someone not in our district! It was only 15 minutes and it went surprisingly well! I even was able to share the Book of Mormon with her and invite to read it, even though we had not prepared the Romanian to share that.  The Surori and I decided to all wear pants too so that was fun. 

Thursday: My mom surprised me and sent packages!! My district and I were very very grateful for her! (she's the best!)

Spiritual Thought: 

I've been reading in Helaman this week and I was on the story of Samuel the Lamanite. This story is already amazing but reading this as a missionary brings a whole new light. I'm inspired about how Samuel was literally kicked out of the city, and on his way home, but turned around to preach to the Nephites again. 

The state religion of Romania is Eastern Orthodox. Most people families have been a part of the church for generations, and because of that many will probably not be interested in my message. But like Samuel the Lord has asked me to go, because you never know who will listen. 

I also really liked these verses in Chp 16.

Hel 16:2-3

2)  But as many as there were who did not believe in the words of Samuel were angry with him; and they cast stones at him upon the wall, and also many shot arrows at him as he stood upon the wall; but the Spirit of the Lord was with him, insomuch that they could not hit him with their stones neither with their arrows. 

3)  Now when they saw that they could not hit him, there were many more who did believe on his words, insomuch that they went away unto Nephi to be baptized. 

These verses made me realize the power of God's miracles. I know that I'm here to bring others unto Christ for 18 months. But the effects of my mission will not just last 18 months. The miracles that I experience on mission will be a tool I can use to bring others closer to Christ for my whole life. I am so so grateful for that. 

Love you all!! 

Sora Hansen