Claire's Mission in Armenia "The Ladies of the Library"
To my nearest and dearest,
Well the baptism went off without a hitch and Arman was just so happy. He was confirmed yesterday and told me that he just felt so light and happy. That's the hope and joy of the Gospel right there, when we do what God has asked us to do, He blesses us with happiness we can't even explain. The baptism was so great, truly one of the happiest moments of my life so far. It was his birthday, the celebration of his physical life and now he can pair it with the start of his spiritual life. So great.
So this week we had decided that since we had no other investigators, now that Arman is a member, we needed to pound the pavement a little harder, So we bundled up and headed out, talking to literally everyone we met. It was very tiring and we didn't have any serious miracles result, but I know that through showing the Lord our willingness to do his work we are opening ourselves up to receive blessings from Him. We did meet a few interesting characters: a lady with lipstick all over her face, poor dear, and a man who worships the sun, interesting people to be found wandering the streets of Gyumri, Armenia.
We did have an interesting lesson with the "ladies of the Library" as we affectionately call them. Haha. So the elders met Anush, on the street one day and she said that she really wanted the Book of Mormon. Okay, so since the address she gave was in our area, the elders passed her off to us. We walked to the address, only to find a "Grataran" or library. Well there in a little room in a very broken down Soviet era building, were 5 ladies surrounded by books, eating and chatting with heaters going on full blast. No that was not the library, but the library was two little rooms down the hall, the ceilings cracked and crumbling and piles and piles of books in freezer-like temperatures. Turns out those ladies were the librarians, and with no one coming to the library they just got paid to sit and read. pretty nice. But it was great, we taught them about why were were here, so far from our american homes and introduced the Book of Mormon. Some of the ladies were a little argumentative but Anush and this other girl, Armine were listening intently, so we are excited to see how that develops. One of the ladies said she had never seen a real American in real life. And I said Well I am technically half Canadian, but she didn't seem to mind.
The weather is warmer, the mud is monutmental. like sludge everywhere. We were walking out of a meeting and the power was out so all we had was our little cell phone light to guide us and before we knew it we couldn't really move, we looked around and we were in a huge pile of mud and garbage, like halfway up our boots. yuck. But just hosed down the hunters and all was well.
Can you believe I have been in Armenia for 2 months!! AHHHH wow. It feels like forever and feels like yesterday all at once. Time is weird. But the language is really coming and at district meeting this week, which we have in Armenian because we have an armenian elder in our district, I actually understood close to all of it! Wow, it was amazing. Being able to string thoughts together in a coherent way. So amazing.
Today I was reading Jacob 5. I've always been a bit down on Jacob 5, long and lots of branches and vineyards and stuff, but today I decided that I was going to really get something out of it. It was amazing. Its basically about missionary work and the importance, the vital importance of this work and the joy that comes through dilligence. I espeically loved Jacob 5:75. when we do the work of the Lord we can partake in His joy! YAY FOR MISSIONARY WORK!! Man, I just love it. It's super hard but boy is it rewarding when you see that little boy in white being dunked in water and coming up with a huge smile on his face. This work is true! Live it and Love it!!
Sincerely, Sister Claire Haynie
PS. pictures to come next week!
ps. sis, I learned how to make Borsht this week and thought of how I always teased you about eating stuff like that, but I loved it!!
Well the baptism went off without a hitch and Arman was just so happy. He was confirmed yesterday and told me that he just felt so light and happy. That's the hope and joy of the Gospel right there, when we do what God has asked us to do, He blesses us with happiness we can't even explain. The baptism was so great, truly one of the happiest moments of my life so far. It was his birthday, the celebration of his physical life and now he can pair it with the start of his spiritual life. So great.
So this week we had decided that since we had no other investigators, now that Arman is a member, we needed to pound the pavement a little harder, So we bundled up and headed out, talking to literally everyone we met. It was very tiring and we didn't have any serious miracles result, but I know that through showing the Lord our willingness to do his work we are opening ourselves up to receive blessings from Him. We did meet a few interesting characters: a lady with lipstick all over her face, poor dear, and a man who worships the sun, interesting people to be found wandering the streets of Gyumri, Armenia.
We did have an interesting lesson with the "ladies of the Library" as we affectionately call them. Haha. So the elders met Anush, on the street one day and she said that she really wanted the Book of Mormon. Okay, so since the address she gave was in our area, the elders passed her off to us. We walked to the address, only to find a "Grataran" or library. Well there in a little room in a very broken down Soviet era building, were 5 ladies surrounded by books, eating and chatting with heaters going on full blast. No that was not the library, but the library was two little rooms down the hall, the ceilings cracked and crumbling and piles and piles of books in freezer-like temperatures. Turns out those ladies were the librarians, and with no one coming to the library they just got paid to sit and read. pretty nice. But it was great, we taught them about why were were here, so far from our american homes and introduced the Book of Mormon. Some of the ladies were a little argumentative but Anush and this other girl, Armine were listening intently, so we are excited to see how that develops. One of the ladies said she had never seen a real American in real life. And I said Well I am technically half Canadian, but she didn't seem to mind.
The weather is warmer, the mud is monutmental. like sludge everywhere. We were walking out of a meeting and the power was out so all we had was our little cell phone light to guide us and before we knew it we couldn't really move, we looked around and we were in a huge pile of mud and garbage, like halfway up our boots. yuck. But just hosed down the hunters and all was well.
Can you believe I have been in Armenia for 2 months!! AHHHH wow. It feels like forever and feels like yesterday all at once. Time is weird. But the language is really coming and at district meeting this week, which we have in Armenian because we have an armenian elder in our district, I actually understood close to all of it! Wow, it was amazing. Being able to string thoughts together in a coherent way. So amazing.
Today I was reading Jacob 5. I've always been a bit down on Jacob 5, long and lots of branches and vineyards and stuff, but today I decided that I was going to really get something out of it. It was amazing. Its basically about missionary work and the importance, the vital importance of this work and the joy that comes through dilligence. I espeically loved Jacob 5:75. when we do the work of the Lord we can partake in His joy! YAY FOR MISSIONARY WORK!! Man, I just love it. It's super hard but boy is it rewarding when you see that little boy in white being dunked in water and coming up with a huge smile on his face. This work is true! Live it and Love it!!
Sincerely, Sister Claire Haynie
PS. pictures to come next week!
ps. sis, I learned how to make Borsht this week and thought of how I always teased you about eating stuff like that, but I loved it!!
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