January 19 First Week in Cheonan

January 19, 2014

First Week in Cheonan J

Hey Family!!

Well, I am officially in my new area,  Cheonan.  The beginning of the week was really hard because it was full of goodbyes to the people that have come to mean so much to me in the past six months. Last meals and visits to investigators, members, and of course a fun wild and crazy last dinner with the Bishop's family.  We even found a miracle new investigator on Monday:)  Thursday morning we headed to Daejeon and met the other missionaries at the bus terminal where I met my new companion, Sister Lee Ki-beum. And before I knew it we were on our way to Cheonan.  My first few days in Cheonan have been stressful to say the least.  It is my first move, first time being senior (5th transfer), and my companion speaks no English, but I am slowly getting accustomed to things and  know my Korean will improve so much this transfer.

Cheonan, well I finally live in a bigger and nicer apartment and in a part of the city with stores and all that good stuff.  I was quite excited.  The bus prices are really high here so we walk almost everywhere and I am trying to quickly get my bearings because Sister Lee isn't good with directions.  I have visited a few members and they all were so welcoming, and the good part is I can actually have a conversation and understand what is happening now (most of the time). 

I am absolutely loving my new ward because they love missionaries and want to do missionary work.  Our ward has about 110 members come out every week and feels like our Highland ward, a very different feel from Heungdeok.  Sunday was the perfect first Sunday, we had a member invite us over to make my favorite treat (heodeok) and get to know each other.  They were super, super nice and had the cutest grandma who just got baptized.  She sat on the couch and her feet were nowhere near the ground, haha!!  When we arrived home the other sisters invited us to visit a less active with them so we headed right back out the door.  We met some members who own a meat restaurant and of course they fed us some amazing meat before we left and then we all went out to a super countryside area together to visit the less active family.  I had the most amazing feeling as we went with these members because it wasn't something we did often in Cheongju.  We sang a song for them and the members gave them some food.  I was so happy to finally be working alongside members and you could really just feel the spirit there.  We talked and sang hymns together on the way home.

There is definitely lots of stress right now and things to figure out and change in my new area but I am so happy and excited to be here and know I am going to love it.  This can be a hard area but I also see so much potential here if we work hard.

Hope Dad had a wonderful Birthday last week, I thought of you the whole day and told everyone it was my Dad's Birthday:)  Love you all so much:)

Love,

Sister Jacklin

 

Sister Lee loves to take pictures, so we will have lots of fun pictures for you this transfer:)

Sister Lee loves to take pictures, so we will have lots of fun pictures for you this transfer:)

 

 

January 12, 2014 The Start of Goodbyes

January 12, 2013

The Start of Goodbyes

Hey Family!!

Well, the goodbyes have started for me here in Heungdeok and it is so bittersweet. We had one last dinner with our recent converts and I literally smiled the whole time. They have completely embraced the gospel and are so happy living it.

Transfer calls came and I am heading to the Cheonan ward which is about two hours from Cheongju but still in the same Stake (but not same zone).  My new companion is Lee ki-beum and she speaks no English so it will be quite the adventure!!  I am so nervous for a new area and the challenges that await me there but know I can handle whatever comes because there is a reason I need to go there.  Plus, I finally get to leave our terrible little house and move into an actually good apartment!! yay!!

This week we were able to meet our investigators and really make progress.  We also have lots of appointments lined up this week with potential investigators.  Always seems to happen the last week of transfers!!  Our biggest focus this week was our big English Village event on Saturday.  Stress could be a good word to describe it but also a blast cause our zone is super awesome!!  The Elders in our ward don't really like to help or be go getters but good thing Sister Son and I are good at being bossy:)  It all came together though with lots of laughs in the middle that probably shouldn't be shared over mass email!!

I am sorry I don't have a lot to say this week.  I was so busy and exhausted that I didn't type my email beforehand!!  I promise a picture next week with my cute new companion!!  I think I am going to end up having Korean companions my entire mission!!

Have a good week:)

Love,

Sister Jacklin

Contacting Like Crazy January 6, 2014

Contacting Like Crazy

January 6, 2014

Happy New Year!!!  Since I am in Korea I am officially 21 years old now:(  They do age based on the year you were born,  not the date;  so you get a year older at the new year. I am not a big fan because it makes me feel so old, haha!!

This week has been a hard one for us.  Because of the holidays we haven't been able to meet a single investigator and all the members are too busy for us to visit.  Let’s just say that I think we have officially wandered our whole entire area this week.  But we were able to prepare for our English Village and hopefully find some new investigators from all the people we talked to.

This week we went with our investigator and her mother (a recent convert of 2 years who we still have to visit a lot) to her father's grave.  He passed away unexpectedly about a year after they we  Baptized.  It was a really good experience to bond with them and a cool cultural moment for me.  It was a family cemetery in a VERY rural area 40 minutes from the city overlooking her husband's hometown.  A bunch of their ancestors were also buried there.  They kind of set out an offering in front of the grave which was fruit and some of his favorite things and played his favorite song, by Simon and Garfunkel.  They did this really cool bow thing in front of the grave, Sister Son said a prayer, and the wife also said one.  It was really cool to experience and to see a bit more into Korean culture.  Afterward we went to eat at a Chinese restaurant and got something called jajjang-mion, which is basically noodles covered in this black sauce that is surprisingly not spicy at all.  Unfortunately they gave me a fork and I gave in and used it so I could eat faster, I felt like such an American:( haha!!  I never realized how much slower I eat when I have to use chopsticks.

Sorry I don't have many good stories this week, but we have a busy week this week as I am wrapping up my time here in heungdeok ward.  I have a week and a half left here unless by some crazy case I end up staying...  We have English Village this week so we will be keeping ourselves VERY busy!!

Love you all:)  Have a wonderful week:)

Love,

Sister Jacklin

December 29, 2013 A Very Merry Missionary Christmas

December 29, 2013

A Very Merry Missionary Christmas

Family,

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!!  We had a great Christmas here and the best part was getting to talk to you all!!  Everyone seemed so happy and I am sure Sister Son was sick of hearing all about my family when we finished talking, haha!!

On Christmas Eve we had our Ward Christmas party:)  Lots of yummy food and good entertainment.  We had quite a few less-actives, investigators, and potential investigators come.  We created our own missionary band for it and sang Far Far Away on Judea's Plains .  Elder Cho, Elder Bowman, and I were the back- up singers and we had ourselves a good time with it:)  We didn't get to stay for the whole program because of curfew, but we did see the primary kids sing and our recent converts did a musical number:)  

It wasn't a normal Christmas for me this year, but nonetheless it was a wonderful day.  We caroled to an older couple in our ward and then headed to the church to play games with a potential investigator.  This next story is for Luke cause it was the Christmas miracle he hoped we would see:)  While at the church a random guy came in (about 23).  It turns out he was baptized three years ago and had finally gotten up the courage to come back to church.  Usually the church is locked so it was lucky that we were there and because we had another girl with us he was able to come in and play and chat.  He came to English class and church this week and it turns out he is a less-active the Elders have struggled to get in contact with.  We are excited to hopefully see him become active again, we have an awesome group of single adults in our ward.

Christmas night we headed to the shopping area with our district to advertise our English village.  It was insane how busy it was on Christmas, it is a different Holiday here.  We just laughed our heads off at the swarms of girls around the Elders making them feel really uncomfortable.  One girl was supposedly going to church yesterday cause she thinks she is in love with our Zone leader, haha!!  Before we finished we went and caroled and handed out wrapped Books of Mormons, and it was the quickest we have ever been able to give away that many Books of Mormon:)  All in all, we had a Very Merry Missionary Christmas.

I am currently reading Jesus The Christ and it has been so amazing to more deeply understand things about Christ and is really strengthening my testimony.  If anyone hasn't read it I highly recommend it.  He is the reason we celebrate this season and as we have been teaching people this week, He will again visit the earth and we must faithfully prepare for his coming by living the Gospel, always remembering Him, and constantly moving closer to him.  I know he is our Savior and that through Him all things are possible.

I love you all!!  Have a wonderful week:)

Love,

Sister Jacklin  

Pictures:

-just me having some fun on some random exercise equipment you see all over Korea.
-Sister son and I at Christmas lunch:)

 

 

December 23, 2013 Merry Christmas!!

 

 

 

 

December 23, 2013

Merry Christmas!!

Hope everyone has had a wonderful week and is gearing up for the best holiday of the year:)

This week one of the cute old grandmas in our ward took us out for delicious cougi (that is meat!!) We were in heaven except she kept giving us more to eat and we thought we were going to explode.  It was all good until she gave me something from a soup that looked like a huge black piece of liver or something disgusting!!  I was freaking out inside and whispered to Sister Son, "Help!!"  She would hurry and quickly take some when the grandma looked away.  It was so funny and we laughed about it for a while.  I did try a small piece of it and...it was not good.  Thursday was also another day full of food, I think everyone is being really nice to us because of the Holidays:)  We had a less active take us to an American buffet for lunch, then next our investigator brought dumplings to our appointment, and then we had dinner at another investigators house.  I don't think I have ever been so full in my life, but the food was amazing.  :)

We had our Mission Christmas Party this week and it was the best day!!  I was able to see my friends from all over the mission and meet a few new missionaries (there were a billion missionaries).  We all chatted a lot, had a white elephant gift exchange, watched Home Alone, and had a wonderful spiritual program.  It was exactly what we all needed and it finally felt like the Christmas Holiday:)  

Yesterday at church our investigator surprised us and showed up at church, we were ecstatic!!  We had a really spiritual gospel principles class and then lots of members helped by talking with her and getting to know her which I think has made for a breakthrough point in her conversion.  Having the members on our side and receiving their help can make all the difference.

This Christmas has been very different than in years past but has made me realize the things I am truly grateful for and remember the true reason for the season.  One thing I have realized is how closely linked the power of the atonement is when we celebrate Christmas.  I have spent so much time pondering the power of the atonement and that this season is celebrating the birth of our Savior who has made all things possible for us.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and I will be thinking of my wonderful family the whole day!!  Can't wait to talk this week:) that is the best Christmas present!!

I love you!!!

Love,

Sister Jacklin   

 

Pictures:

This was a picture of my MTC district at the Christmas party!!  So fun to see them all:)
The next one is me and sister spencer!!  I was so happy to finally see her again!!

 

December 15 My Ramen is Better Than Yours!!

December 15, 2013
My Ramen is Better Than Yours!!

Hello Family!!

Well, this week started off with a phone call from the man who I talked to last week.  He wanted me to help him find an American woman for some rich Korean guy, and he said he would pay us a lot of money to do it.  haha, of course we told him we couldn't but if we have any takers out there...he is rich, haha!!

On Wednesday we had a combined district meeting (basically a Zone meeting) while President Shin did interviews.  We did a round table style meeting and gave input on a bunch of different topics.  It was so great and I learned a lot from the other awesome missionaries in my Zone.  My favorite was talking about humbling ourselves enough to talk to people about the Gospel and to remember that we are talking to people for the Lord not for stats or any other reasons.

Yesterday we were able to watch the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional.  It had Korean translation over the top of the English so I could not hear the messages very well, but hearing the tabernacle choir sing brought so much peace to me and really made me think of why we are celebrating the holiday.  And especially enjoyed hearing the Christmas songs in English:)

 Still, working hard with our investigators to progress and have a sincere desire to learn about the church.  Our recent converts daughter wants to get baptized but not yet...haha, we are all kind of confused  but her parents are awesome and are letting her have the agency in the situation.  She is becoming good friends with the youth and I love watching her and her parents getting involved in the ward.  I have decided that that has been the best part of my mission so far.

Funny story of the week: yesterday we were eating food with members so we were standing by the kitchen of the church and the Bishop's son (maybe 6 years old) walks up to another little boy and starts bragging to him about how he has  jin ramen at his house and it is spicy ramen...me and Elder Bowman were dying of laughter. Only little Korean boys would be bragging about their Ramen!!

Merry Christmas, and I can't wait to tell you all about our exciting week next week (lots of fun plans)!!

Happy Birthday Drew!!  Hope you have a wonderful day:)  Love you!!

Love you all and am so grateful for all the support even when I am halfway across the world in Korea. Have a great week!!

Love,

Sister Jacklin