Grapevines

A lot of Ukrainians in Odessa have grape vines

Elder Hilton

Picking and Eating Grapes!!!

Reach a Little Higher & Be a Little Better

 The sign says "End of Odessa" it is at the edge of my area.

 It is cooling off

 Fall is in the air!!!

So this week Elder Hilton and I have been talking to tons and tons of people. I feel a lot happier now even though most people that we talk to just shut us down right away. It feels so good to just walk up to a random person and just tell them why I am on a mission and what I know is true. It is what I have been called to do and I am so thankful for the loving mission president that I have that always pushes us to reach a little higher and to be a little better. I am so grateful for that.

Elder Muir

This week I went on exchanges with Elder Muir here are some of the things that we did:

Game night at the church, it was lots of fun.

We also tracked a building and we started to talk to a babushka in the lift. She was a neighbor of a member. Anyways when we got off the lift she ran to the member’s door and rang the doorbell and then she ran into her house. We didn’t want to go to the members since we were trying to find people to teach.  Anyway the member remembered me from last year when I was on exchanges in her area she thought that I had already gone home. I knew her son; he is on a mission right now in the Moscow West mission she was way excited to see me. I wasn’t wearing a sweater and she asked me if I was cold. I told her a little but that I would be fine. Long story short I ended up leaving that apartment wearing a red sweater. She wouldn’t let me leave without putting it on. It was nice to have since I was on exchanges I didn’t have my sweater with me and it has started to get cold here.

The next morning was the helping hands day. It was combined with the other branch in that area; it was actually the branch from my first area. It was neat to see so many old familiar faces and now I was actually able  to talk with them!   I saw Sergei and his family. He is doing great and is as strong as ever. It made me really happy to see him. For our helping hands project we just picked up trash along the railroad, it was really dirty.

"I Can Do All Things Through Christ Which Strengtheneth Me"

Last night we went tracing, we always pray before we start. The first door that we knocked on a lady yelled through the door. I told her who we were and that we had a message about Jesus Christ she was quite. I yelled back and asked if she was still there. She told us to wait then she came out. We talked for a little bit and pretty much taught her about the restoration at her door step. I had the chance to tell her the first vision. My testimony was strengthened at that moment. God really did restore his church once again on the earth today through Joseph Smith. I know He did. I love this work and I love being a missionary. Yes it is true that it is hard at times and discouraging but it is all worth it. I know that is how we grow and that is an eternal principle. I love this verse in Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

I know that we can put all of our cares on the Lord. He knows what we must become and be. I love you all, I am so grateful for my family and I can’t express enough to our Heavenly Father how much I am grateful for you. You mean the world to me and that is why I am here. To help others know of this good news that we call the Gospel.

New Breed of Dog

We were at Sister Vika's house she wanted me to take a picture of her cat and a stuffed dog. She told me to tell my family that it is a new breed of dog!!

Here is her real dog Melee

Hamburgers!!

We made hamburgers the were they were SO GOOD!!!

 

Elder Plivlishin

I went on exchanges with the mini missionary (a native serving a 6 week mission) that is in my district. He is from a village outside of Lviv, he speaks Ukrainian. He can speak a little bit of Russian though. That was a fun time with him and I was able to learn some Ukrainian while I was with him. His name is Elder Plivlishin.    

While we were on exchanges we saw this cruise ship, he had never seen a ship like this in his life. 

Here are some of the other sights we saw.

A wedding

An American Flag

  

Time For My New Shoes

"My shoes, worn out by service.”   
 Spencer W. Kimball

"Missionary service is not easy, but it is infinitely worth it." 
M. Russell Ballard  

Rat "Tails" The End

I think the rat may be dead.  I found a huge piece of tile in our apartment and it covers most of the hole.   I had to use missionary pamphlets to help hold it in place. There is a little gap at the top but I am hoping it covers enough to keep the rat out. I bought some poison and I shoved it in the hole, I think that has scared it away.....or killed there have not been any signs of the rat inside the bathroom. I still make sure that the bathroom door is shut and we make sure our bedroom door is shut at night. I think a bear trap or that huge trap that Dad saw are the only two traps could take that nasty thing out.

President K was down here in Odessa this weekend to doing training with the Priesthood and a fireside for the members. While he was here he inspected the zone leader’s apartment and the zone leaders told him about our rat problem. President said he hoped it hadn’t died in our wall or it will really stink!

Rat "Tails" Week Two

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So the rat still lives. But he has been stuck in the bathroom all week. We can tell that he has been out because the toilet paper will be on the ground and wood chips everywhere from him trying to get through the door. I put some cardboard on the bottom of the door so the rat would stop destroying the door. So now we just wake up to pieces of cardboard on the bathroom floor. I have tired from time to time covering the hole with cardboard but the rat always makes a new hole and gets into the bathroom. 

 

When the landlord finally got back he came over to look at the hole and to get the rent money. He said that he would come over the next morning and to not tell his wife that there is a rat in the apartment because she has a bad heart and she would probably have a heart attack if she found out. 

Well that was like three days ago and still no word from the landlord. I might need to call him and tell him I am going to tell his wife if he doesn’t come and fix the hole! I am just glad that he knows now what the rat is doing to his door. I bought poison this week but it doesn’t seem to be working so I decided to something else. One night I left the bathroom door open and sat next to the door with a broom in hand and shoes on to stomp the rat.

Well after 30 minutes I gave up and went to bed. About 5 minutes later I heard one of the traps go off (By the way the traps are too small for the rat. I think we just need a bear trap to catch this one) Anyways he hasn’t really been bugging us this week but hopefully soon we can get it figured out.