Frohe Weihnachten!

Tis the season everyone! This is it. Christmas is actually this week and I can't believe it! The members in this ward are amazing and made sure that we were taken care of for the 24-26 of December. Basically, all we are going to be doing for those three days is eat. That's ok with me though because these people really know how to cook up some really lecker specialties. It's kind of weird being a missionary on Christmas. I keep trying to decide how I feel about it and I'm still not entirely sure. Yesterday at church a lady in our ward talked to me about how sad it must be to be so far from home on Christmas and all of this stuff, but when I walked away from that conversation I decided that this year, there is really no other place I would rather be. Yes, I love my family and miss them and easily think about them everyday, but there is just something about this work that sucks you in like a magnet. I just know that this is exactly where I am supposed to be right now.

Oh! and speaking of places I'm supposed to be, I had a really nice conversation on the tram this morning on my way over here to do these emails. I sat across from an old-ish man and I just got into a good conversation with him. He was actually Italian and spoke really good German (which is good because then I didn't have to try my 8 weeks of BYU Italian on him) and he just told me what he believed, so I got to tell him what I believe. It wasn't a very long tram ride, but I got to give him a Christmas pass-along card, so it was a good start to the p-day. 

Oh! And another thing! Katherina came to church yesterday!!! She is an investigator who we have been working with for about a month. She walked right in and all of the sisters who we have had be joint teaches at our lessons were awesome. They scooped her right up and explained how everything worked. I basically wanted to cry when she walked through the doors because we have been waiting for her to come to church since we met her. I think all went well. She had a positive experience and was all smiles the whole time, so I couldn't ask for much more. 

It's kind of interesting. I came up with this thing in my head last night, but anyone who knows me knows that I really like flowers. I think they are evidence that there must be a God because they are just so beautiful. Over the summer, I really like working in our yard, ask my parents. My favorites are dahlias. If you don't know what they are, google them or something, but they are just so pretty. And at the beginning of every summer, my mom and I hit up Lowe's were we get the plants. We put them in the dirt, and then throughout the rest of the summer we take care of those plants pretty diligently. I usually do about three dahlia's a year. Well every day after they are planted, I like to go out in the morning and water them and make sure they are doing ok. Sometimes they get enough sun, and sometimes it is too much. If you water them too late in the day, the afternoon sun will burn them and if you miss a day or two of watering them, they get weaker. You can still keep them alive, it is just harder. After a while though, they really flourish. There are more dahlias and they are just so pretty. I think about that and I think about the people I work with here. Right now, I am a crew member of the Ship SS Augsburg. I'm trying to care for and help all of the passengers on this ship so that they can have the smoothest possible sailing experience. Sometimes, it's really hard and I just want to do something else, but then something happens like Katherina coming to church and I see how important it is to keep doing this. I love doing this so much. It's flying right by and I'm trying to treasure every bit of it because one day, I won't be doing it anymore. I love being a missionary here doing this work!

But anyways on another note, we had exchanges this week and guess who came to Augsburg with me for a day? SISTER MEHR! It was fun to be reunited a little bit. She's awesome. And then on Monday last week, I took Sister Baker to one of the big Cathedrals in Augsburg. It's called Dom and is really pretty, but yeah, that's my life in a nutshell lately. I hope you all have a great Christmas and make good choices!

Love,

Sister Smiley

Pictures: The cathedral, Sister Mehr and I together, and Sister Baker and I, last p-day