Lenise enjoys Thanksgiving

12-2-13

Dearest Family of Mine!
    This past week has been rather adventurous indeed! It was actually really nice outside all this last week, even warm some days, and it was beautiful bike riding weather! I'm starting to enjoy riding my bike more and more and it's becoming a fun way to look at the sky and see the mountains. (I love my mountains here! Sis A and I talk a lot while riding our bikes and we sing every now and then too while riding and that's a lot of fun! 

    There's this amazing thing that I realized yesterday...My milk is ALL MINE! Sis A is allergic so she drinks coconut milk, and I have my own jug all to myself...I've been drinking out of a cup this entire time...and I just realized that I can MUG THE MILK all I want! Wahahaha! (evil laugh implied) It' is a great thing indeed....

    Earlier this week we went over to this older guy's house. He's in his eighties at least and he's from Europe and he has the most awesome French Accent ever! His name is Ivan and he always wears barrettes and flirts shamelessly with Sis A! It's hilarious! Once he kissed her on the cheek before she could even realize what he was doing! She scolded him a lot about that and told him he could give her a hug in 13 months! Hahaha we had a good laugh about that! Well Ivan is amazing because he is a world famous violin maker! He's made hundreds of them and they are amazing sounding and really expensive. He's studied in musical conservatories all over the world and sold violins all over the world! He showed us a few of them and showed us a dvd of BYU students playing his instruments. He's catholic but we're trying to change that ;) But he's very stubborn. Sis A leaked that I could sing and he had me stand up and sing for him right then. I was super nervous because he's this famous musician and violin maker and I'm just a missionary straight out of high school! He just sat there with his eyes closed the whole time and then when I finished he says "You like Italy, no?" and I said "I wish I could go there some day." then he said "You go study in musical conservatory in Italy. You sing from diaphragm. They think you marvelous when you sing from diaphragm. Is very good.”  (She sang the song she sang at her farewell.”  He is such a sweet old man.
    At first I got a little homesick right before thanksgiving, because it was my first thanksgiving ever without my family. But once it rolled around it ended up being a really good day! In the morning we had a turkey bowl, and we played zone vs. zone. I was one of the few sisters who actually got out on the field and played! It was soooo much fun, and we played for 3 whole hours! Our mission president even showed up and played football with us and he ended up getting tackled by one of the elders. It was a super fun morning with all of my mission friends! I was super sore afterwards though! Both Sis A and I could barely get out of bed the next morning, our muscles were so sore! But it was fun, and afterwards the elders had a wrestling match and that was fun to watch and cheer for them. After that we had lunch with our landlords, the Dyers. Bishop Dyer is over one of our wards and they made a huge meal and gave us leftovers afterwards. They have a little granddaughter named Evelyn who is over every day and comes and knocks on our apartment door and we give her candy. She insisted on sitting next to us at the table and chatting our ear off! She's adorable. Then after the Dyers we got picked up by Sis. W (pretty much our mission mom!) Her, her husband, her two daughters, and her son who just got off his mission in Armenia came and got us, and took us into Provo where we had dinner with their very big family! It was great to eat with all of them because it actually felt normal to have so many people crowded in one house with a billion tables set up and everyone eating. That's what it's like at home for Thanksgiving so I was so glad that I felt comfortable there. They went out of their way for us and I'm so grateful. As you've probably seen on facebook, they recorded us singing Count Your Many Blessings with the Spanish Elders and posted it. Haha I love that family! They are amazing and help us so much with missionary work as well. After we ate with them, we were invited to a zone desert party at a member’s house.  We had fun laughing with the Elders and saying goodbye to visa-waiters who finally got their visa's to South America.

    This last Saturday was great, because we got to go caroling!! Our zone got together and we met by Cafe Rio and the market and we sang Christmas songs for a while...but it was so nice outside that we took all our coats off and Sis Child was wearing sunglasses, and we all felt a little ridiculous singing Christmas songs in the sunshine...so we switched to hymns

    Then after caroling...guess what....It was Bryan's Baptism!!! My very first convert baptism on my mission! It was amazing and so spiritual. I gave a talk on the Holy Ghost and Bryan Looked so happy afterwards. He got confirmed yesterday in church and it was an amazing experience.
     This gospel is so amazing. I love watching it make so many people happy and give them hope for their futures! If any of you get the chance read the talk "An High Priest of Good Things to Come" By Jefferey R. Holland. Nov. 1999.  There are good things to come in everyone's future. And to watch the gospel change lives and make people truly happy the way it does is amazing! For example, our amazing referral Gerry just got put on date for baptism yesterday. His testimony is already so strong and his desire so great. We put him on date for Dec. 21st but we're thinking about moving it sooner because he's so eager to be a member of the church! Looking back at my life I wish I would have let myself be happier during different growing experiences and moments for me. I wish I could tell myself "Don't you quit. You keep walking. There are good times ahead." just like Elder Holland says. I love you all so much and I'm so grateful for the love and support you each give me. I pray for you always and miss you tons! Hoorah For Israel!!
Love always and forever,
Sister Lenise Diane Volmer

P.S.
I got this huge pretty advent calendar from aunt Mindy! Tell her thanks for me!!! haha but idk how I can pack it around, so she'll have to store it for me :) But transfers are happening next week and idk if I get transferred until next Monday...I'll keep you updated and let you know.