Back and Forth

Hello everyone! 

This week I was with Elder Gallacher again and we went back and forth between my area (Wettingen) and his area (Kreuzlingen). It was fun for me because we stayed at Kreuzlingen for a couple days and it felt like a little vacation. The apartment is bigger and nicer and it was cool to explore a new area! Kreuzlingen is also right on the border to Germany so we went over the border a couple times to get food since it is way cheaper.

We had a fun YSA activity this week! We basically went up this little hiking trail where at the top we had a barbecue! It was fun to just relax and get to know some of them better. After that, we had a service project with Sister Gysin from our ward. We built her a little greenhouse for her terrace garden. It was windy so she gave us some old sweaters to put on which she said we could actually keep which was really nice. Afterwards we had dinner, and she kept quizzing me to make sure I knew all the stuff she was saying. She would say a sentence in German and then made me translate it to English, and then I would have to say it again in German. Elder Gallacher was laughing the whole time.

On Sunday night, Elder Strömsdörfer who is my actual companion for this transfer, made it out of quarantine! They showed up to Kreuzlingen at 9PM and then Brother Weidmann drove us to Zürich. We stayed the night there at the Palace because we had Zone/District Meeting the next morning. So 6 Elders all slept in the same room and it was actually really fun. Elder Catogni kept talking in his sleep saying "Hey bro" or "what's up bro" basically the whole night.

Overall it was a great week and I'm excited to finally be with Elder Strömsdörfer! He is super funny and outgoing, and we have already had some cool experiences. 

Yesterday we went street contacting and met a homeless woman named Grace. We ended up talking for almost an hour. She told us how she grew up in Jamaica and then moved here and all that she had been through. We tried giving her a Book of Mormon but she said that she couldn't take it because sometimes people pour water on all of her stuff, which was sad to hear. So even though she didnt take it, we felt content knowing that what she might've needed was just a friend to talk to. So I guess my invitation for anybody reading this is to be more aware of those around you who might need some help or someone to talk to, because in reality, we are all going through things and we could all use a little more joy in the world.

I know that God is looking out for us and loves us. I know that we are here on this earth to learn and grow through our trials. Most of all, I know that we are never alone.

-Elder Jarnagin