Week 34: Service Week

This week was a pretty packed week! Packed full of activities and stories! Although not in the correct order chonologically, first I'd like to announce that I'm now AN UNCLE! Aaaah yeah! I've got a nephew! Zachary Aaron Reinert is his name and I'm pumped! Just thought I would throw that in first. Pictures will come next week.

Now back to the beginning of last week. Last Monday, all the elders in Charleroi went with our ward mission leader, Patrick, to see some cool places! We went to Denant, Belgium, which is famous for a few things.

 Denant!

A big cathedral there, it's super tall!

It's the birthplace of the saxophone!

Just me chilling with the guy who invented the saxophone, nbd.

On our way up to the fortress!

At the top!

We walked all through the fortress

And it was like we were in war!

Then I decided to dance. Check it!

Belgium!

So that was last Monday! Then on Tuesday we ate at a member family's home, and it turns out that their daughter was super excited to talk to us because she had served her mission with one of my teachers at the MTC! What a coincidence!

Wednesday was the start of our service! We went over to our ami Jean-Pierre's house and helped him set up his satellite dish haha it was hard! And we ended up not getting the angle right...good thing he has two twin daughters who want to watch tv really badly, because after we left they went out, gave the satellite dish a couple good whacks, and now it works great! haha

Friday, the bishop needed us to come help with some people moving in our ward, so we did even more service! It went really well and they were really thankful for our help. Then that night we went to another member's house to help her move some stuff into her car, because she's handicapped and because she really wanted to feed us. And man it was good haha

Saturday was "Les mains serviables", or "Helping Hands"! It was a huge activity where we collected food, clothes, and had a blood drive at the chapel. It went great!

This is where we did all of the organizing and folding of the clothes haha

These are all the missionaries in Charleroi! And a member that I pulled into the picture haha

It was an awesome day! And the local news came and filmed us for a little while too haha. It was an awesome activity and a great success!

This last week, our mission president mentioned that we can invite our investigators to come to church, and promise them that if they write a question down and bring it to church, that it will be answered. Cool promise right? Well, I decided to try it for myself haha and you know what? It works. I was kind of skeptical, but I paid attention to the lessons and talks and to the thoughts that came to my mind, and I got multiple answers to my question! So my challenge to you, is to do the same thing this next Sunday! And every Sunday!

Well, it was a fantastic week, and now my new week has started with news of me being an uncle, so I'm pretty excited!

I hope you all have an awesome week!

Elder Daniel Anderson

Week 33: Le Don Des Langues

Well, this week sure had its ups and downs! It was full of excitement though! Excitement, nervousness, happiness, thankfulness, tons of things!

This last week I said goodbye to my last companion, Elder Burgess and that was pretty sad. We got to be really good friends! I was also nervous about training, and now I'm amazed at how well it's going!

 Elder Burgess saying goodbye to a member family!

Our last train ride together! haha

Last Tuesday we prepared the apartment all day (putting together beds, dressers, desks, etc) because our apartment changed from being for 2 people to being for 4. So, that wasn't a super eventful day, but Wednesday sure was!

Wednesday I headed to Paris to pick up my new companion! In Paris I got to see my trainer because it was actually the last day of his mission. The day I started training! So that was pretty cool. Then I met Elder Haskell and we headed off to Charleroi!

Me and my new companion, Elder Haskell!

It was an interesting trip, because I was the only missionary going back to Charleroi. All the other missionaries had never been here before! So I was the group leader for 2 sister missionaries and 3 elders. We made it here just fine, don't worry haha.

So, over the past few days we've been going to visit lots of people, eat at their homes, share spiritual messages, and help people move towards baptism! Doing missionary work! It's been great!

This is Patrick, our Ward Mission Leader, cooking us lunch!

What else happened this week...well, while walking around in the city we found this:

Don't worry Mom, it's not dangerous haha

And another Statue of Liberty!

I also spoke in church yesterday, and that went well, and we had a lot of people in our investigator and new convert class! That was awesome!

I titled this post "Le don des langues" because it means "the gift of tongues". Oh boy do I know that's real. When I called home about a week ago, before even knowing that I would be training, my Dad told me that when I train, I will really see the gift of tongues working in me and that I would start learning the language a lot faster. Well, the next day I found out that I was training and my Dad couldnt have been more right! I've seen miracles with the language this week, and I know it's because the Lord wants me to do His work and help the new missionary. I know that I'll keep seeing those miracles too!

I hope you're all doing awesome and you're working hard at whatever you're working on. Always remember that the Lord will help you along the way!

Oh, and shout out to Spencer Riggs who got his mission call to the Scottsdale Arizona mission! I'm so excited for you and proud of you man! You'll love it!

à la prochaine mes amis!

Elder Daniel Anderson

Week 32: Mother's Day and Transfers

It's been an exciting week! A lot of different things happened, and I got to do some cool stuff too!

Cool stuff like what? Like calling my family on Mother's Day! There were a few other cool things too, so we can start with those haha

I had an exchange this week and I was a little worried about it. Why? Because I was going to be with a Tahitian elder who hardly spoke english! I would have to speak frnehc the whole time! Well, it worked out! It was actually pretty great, and we were able to talk the whole time! So thank goodness my french skills are at least where they are haha but that doesnt mean I still dont have a lot to learn! I definitely will keep learning, and I'm being put on the fast track for it too! I'll explain that a little later haha

After the exchange last week, we also got to see our ami Jean-Pierre, and that went well. He still has the desire to be baptized, and he wants to change his life! And he is already starting to! We're really excited for him and I'm excited to keep teaching him!

The other two kids that we're teaching are doing well too, they come to church every week and they're always excited to see us! It's funny because now I'm one of those missionaries that kids love to run up to and talk to haha. My companion and I are both like that!

As everyone knows, Sunday was Mother's Day! It was a great day at church, the men in the ward here sang a song for the women, and then the Primary kids did a little program and everyone loved that more than the men singing, but we cant compete with cute kids! Then after church, it was time to call our families! It was awesome to talk to my parents and my brother and to see them on skype (my call at Christmas was on the phone). It was cool to just chat and talk like old times! I love that my family gets along so well!

Then last night I got a call on the phone, and it was the assistants telling me that I'm going to be staying in Charleroi and I'll be training the next 2 tranfers! Ai karumba! Hopefully I can handle it! I know that if the Lord thinks I can do it, that I'll be able to. So I'll be headed to Paris this Wednesday to pick up the new missionary! I'm excited, nervous, and little scared, and then also sad to see my current companion go, but I know that I'll just need to put in all the effort I can and set a good example for my new companion!

My district this last transfer

Elder Burgess and I in a shopping center here haha it was under construction, but still open!

I dont eat these super often, but I should probably still cut down on it haha

 Just a funny sign by our Ward Mission Leaders house haha

I hope you're all doing awesome! I little spiritual lift for me this week was Alma 58:40, you should read it! Despite all the other distractions and problems in life, we can always remember the Lord is there for us!

Until next week! Keep it classy! And keep being the best you can be!

Elder Daniel Anderson

Week 31: Belgian Travels

This week was pretty exciting, and it started with a trip to Brussels! For zone conference haha so not for vacation, but it was still great! I learned a lot during the conference and it's always good to see the mission president and his wife. The church building in Brussels is in the middle of the city, and so it's one of the tallest chapels I've ever been in! It had about 7 or 8 floors and so many stairs! It was pretty cool!

Just some nice Charleroi scenery from the train haha

Stairs in the church

One of the rooms in the church...not sure why they have a hang out room haha

On Wednesday it was May Day, and a holiday here, so we went out to a super nice park to so some contacting! Our buddy Patrick took us, and it was out in the countryside and by an Abby that had been destroyed in 1794, but a lot of the walls are still standing. It was super cool! There were a ton of people there too! We didnt find anyone to teach, but we got some fresh air haha always look on the bright side!

Friday, our Ward Mission Leader, Patrick, took us out to eat some frites, that are supposedly the best frites in all of Belgium! He had some returned missionaries come back to visit, so we went with them. They were really good frites! And they asked about where in Texas I lived, I told them Katy, and then one of them knew the Allsops, a family that lives there. The world is small! haha

Oh, a scripture that I came across this week that I liked, 3 Nephi 13:34 "Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof." Sounds a little weird right? Well, the french translation says for the last part "Each day has it's own hardships/worries", which makes it a little more clear, at least for me! So we shouldn't worry too much about things that are coming, but do everything we can TODAY to do what we need to :)

This weekend we also visited one of our amis, and he has been having a hard time. He said that we always seem to show up right when he needs someone, so we were glad to be there for him. He wants to be baptized too, so we are working with him to get him ready! That visit made me think about the little things in life. Some people would have never thought that our visits were very special (like me haha I didnt think I was doing anything that great!) but other people recognize the little things. So, I'm going to make an effort this week to look for the little things in life that bring me joy each day! And the day we went to visit our ami, it was that when we walked into his house and the radio was on, he was jamming to some Kool and the Gang and it put a smile on my face! haha "Getcha back up off the wall, dance!" haha

Look for the little things in life that make you happy! There are probably more than you realize!

 One thing that made me happy this week.

Running low on breakfast food, so I had a waffle nutella sandwich, and a banana for vitamins haha don't worry, this isn't my usual breakfast haha

Have an awesome week!

Elder Daniel Anderson

Week 30: A Little Late!

I don't know how many people actually noticed or not, but my email this week is a day late, and I have a fantastic reason for it haha. Yesterday there was a city wide strike here (nonviolent, don't you worry!) so no stores were open and no buses were running, so we were stuck at our apartment. It wasn't all bad, but that's the reason for the delay haha.

It was a good week though, that's for sure! The excitement started right after I sent my email last week! Short story shorter, my bag was stolen...good thing the only things in it were un Livre de Mormon and La Bible, both in french and easily replacable haha so not a big deal. Maybe it'll lead to a conversion haha I can always hope!

So, then on Tuesday I headed to Mons, Belgium (aka America) for an exchange with my district leader! It wasn't really like America, but we went to eat at an American family's house that is living in Mons, and it was pretty crazy! We walked up to the house with a Ford Ranger and a Ford Econoline Van and I thought "This must be their house", and it sure was! The whole dinner was like spending time with people that I knew while living in Thailand! And they loved that I had lived in Thailand before so it was a really great dinner! I even got to drink 2 percent milk, which doesnt ever happen over here, they drink weird milk here haha so that was a treat! Then it turned out that their daughter is about to go to BYU to play the harp, so she played her harp some and it was crazy good! I was a little embarassed that I have no talents like that haha but I have talents, don't worry!

Here are some pictures from Mons:

Just a pretty spot out in the country while waiting for the bus

Out the window of the apartment in Mons

Yeah, the shower was a little tight, so it's a sit down shower haha

Just another view from the wondow haha

On Friday we set a baptismal date with our investigator Jean-Pierre! We're really excited about it! I'll tell you more about it in next week's email haha

On Saturday and Sunday we had Président and Soeur Poznanski in Charleroi giving a fireside and speaking in church, so that was awesome! And who showed up at the fireside? Vincent, our mini missionary from a few weeks ago! It was awesome to see us again and we were all super excited! And his parents said that he said some nice things about us and that he loved being a mini missionary, so that was a relief! haha and he said he wants to serve a mission, so that's awesome! Hopefully I'll have a picture of our reunion for next week haha

This week I've already had a Zone Conference, but I'll save that for next week's email haha because it just happened and I'm scared I won't have anything exciting to talk about next week except for that! We shall see haha

Oh and a couple shout outs!

Congratulations to Crystal and Matt on their graduations! Way to go guys! I thought I should give you a shout out!

Merci beaucoup Mom for sending me that package! It was awesome!

I hope everyone is doing great and loving life! Stay focused on being the best you can be everyday! Chaque jour!

Elder Daniel Anderson

Week 29: Another Week in Charleroi

So this week was just another week of being a missionary in Charleroi! Not that it wasnt full of exciting stuff or anything like that, but I don't feel like I have too many awesome stories to tell...maybe I'm wrong and my life is just so crazy exciting that I can't tell when awesome things happen haha I'll give you a run down of my week anyways though haha.

Last Tuesday night we were invited to a member family's house to talk with their evangelical family members about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, because they had a few questions about us. The conversation went well and the family was pretty happy with how it went, so we earned our keep as missionaries haha just kidding!

Friday was my companion's birthday! So some members had invited us over and fed us some delicious food! Not too shabby of a life haha. Then the Ward Mission Leader here had a cake and a present for Elder Burgess, so that was a lot of fun too!

Elder Burgess and his cake for his 21st!

And it just so happened that that night was also a ward activity, so we went to that for a little bit because we had invited some non-members. It went well! It was Karaoke night haha and no, I didnt sing. I don't have that kind of confidence! Yet. Haha The activity went well and the people we invited enjoyed it! But they were a little perplexed when we left so we could be home by 9, but they understood after we explained. The party just kept going after we left though, so I guess I wasn't really the life of the party or anything.

Sunday was good too! I was asked to give a surprise talk, so that was cool haha it went fine, that's just part of being a missionary! They were really thankful that I could help them out. It was only 5 minutes, and because my french is far from perfect, they cut me some slack and I'm not as nervous giving talks haha if that makes sense. I shared some thoughts about 1 Nephi 3:7, a classic! I talked about how sometimes when we read that scripture, we think that it applies to something big that the Lord might ask us to do. Like, if he calls us to be a Bishop that He will help us to fulfill the calling. It applies to that, but it also applies to everyday life! He gives us commandments and He really does provide a way for us to follow the commandments everyday if we have the faith and the courage to do His will! We can all do it!

The rest of the week was life as a missionary! Here are some funny pictures that I took randomly:

On our way back after Karaoke

Look at that! Even in another language (not English or French) you can understand what it is! Fruit Drank!

I don't know what this street sign is for, but it's a little weird...

I hope you liked my average week haha I'll be sure to have some exciting stuff next week! Keep doing your best, and remember that the Lord always prepares a way!

Elder Daniel Anderson

Week 28: Mini-Mission

I'm gonna start off this week's update with some pictures that I meant to put up last week haha so here ya go!

Day trip to New York! Not really. Otherwise that would be some humongous toilet paper.

These wood frame houses are pretty cool, classic France!

First cathedral I saw in Poitiers.

Just a gorgeous day in Poitiers!

Hotêl de Ville on my last day

So, now I've been in Charleroi for a little bit of time! But sadly, I don't have too many stories to tell. Except that we had a mini-missionary come stay with us for a few days this week!

Me, Vincent Thomas, and Elder Burgess

Vincent Thomas was his name and he is from Nivelle, Belgium. He is 17 and he wants to serve a mission in a little bit, so he came to check out what it's like! It was a little bit of a challenge for me, because I had to speak even more french than usual, but it was great and an awesome few days! We did some finding, some teaching, went to meetings, and just had a blast doing missionary work! I think he really enjoyed it and we all got along great! He put up with my iffy french, so that was good haha and he understood my jokes, so that was even better!

After he left us though, I got sick. My companion had been sick, then a day or two after he got better, I caught the same thing, so we weren't able to get a lot done this week. It was a bummer! But I'm better now, don't you sweat it! But while being quarantined in the apartment, I took a couple pictures of the view from our living room window.

This is Charleroi!

And it looks pretty at night too! haha

I was better by Sunday, and I couldn't miss church either way! They have their own church building here, a full blown chapel! It's really nice too! They have quite a few members here, so it's a lot different than Poitiers. But, the people here are super nice, so that's the same as Poitiers! I met a lot of people! And then got asked if I could lead the music in sacrament meeting because I had done it in an earlier class and they figured I was a pro haha has anyone else noticed that I seem to be doing a lot of musical stuff on my mission? That wasn't really my thing before haha except for playing the guitar a little bit, but I don't really do that anymore haha. But yeah, church was great, and then we went and visited a lot of less active members and it was awesome! Everyone is super nice here and I love it!

That's all I have for this week, I know it's pretty lame! I promise I'll have better stories to tell next week! I have a few from this week, but they're pretty weird haha. Next week I'll have some really good ones!

Keep smiling and keep being awesome! I'm praying for all of you! Yes, even YOU.

à la prochaine!

Elder Daniel Anderson