Sister Shantel Jenna Falslev: 4 months since I left!! Weird!!!

I cant believe it has already been 4 months since I left!!! Time is so weird on a mission. It goes by so incredibly fast. It is the greatest though.

This week has been super hard but so great at the same time. Sister Behunin got to travel around Hungary twice this week while sister Fresh and I tried to hold things together here. It was quite an experience for both of us. I don't think I have ever laughed so much! We had a lot of funny experiences because we have no idea what we are doing or what anyone is saying. So we just laugh and it makes it all better. Laughter really is the best medicine. The first time that Sister Behunin left, we had 2 programs. One was in English and that went really well and the other was with one of our progressing investigators - the one that is getting baptized on June 22. We went over the baptisimal questions with him and it was so funny because he talked a lot but we had no idea what he was saying. We had a member present and we think everything is okay though. The funniest part of the whole program was when he started to try to explain how to get to their house. We were going to meet at their house to teach his mom because his mom wants to also be baptized on June 22 and we hadn't even met with her yet. So we were trying really hard to understand how to get to his house but we couldn't understand anything they were saying. So him, his little sister and a church member decided they would write it in Hungarian in my planner thinking that would help us understand better. They all hovered over my planner and were arguing over the best way to write it in my planner. All three of them were talking at the same time talking about what the best way to explain to us how to get to their house. Finally sister Fresh and I just looked at each other and started laughing and everyone just started laughing too. It really was such a great lesson and it actually helped the investigator and his sister get to know Sister Fresh and I better. We had sister Behunin call them later and she couldn't figure it out either so that made us feel better. They ended up meeting us and taking us to their house. It was forever away!!!

Speaking of going to their house, it was an awesome experience! It was such a good program and such a good experience for me. We are so blessed in America! Their family lived in a little 1 room home and they have 6 people in their family. They are such a kind family though. The dad is atheist and he had a lot of questions for us. and the mom needs to know a lot more before she can be baptized. His dad asked us to come back next week to teach him though so we are teaching his whole family now! And our investigator was helping teach his family with us. It was awesome. He is just so excited to be baptized. It was really good for us to see. He is such an awesome kid. He is 20 and his little sister is his little shadow. They are literally never separated. They are awesome!

So Fresh and I survived the 1st time without Behunin pretty well. The 2nd time was a little bit rougher though. We had a program with a 15 year old girl that is pretty quiet. We had a member there but they didn't speak any english and she didn't say anything. Anyways, it was a really rough lesson and we challenged her to be baptized. That didn't go over to well but she said she would still meet again with us this week. It was a really hard lesson but we learned a lot from it! As soon as the lesson was down we went downstairs in the branch house and the elders asked us how it went. Fresh and I just looked at each other and laughed and laughed and laughed. It was the worst lesson but we did it!!! And we laughed about it after. Then we went to go tabling after that and of course the police would come up when it is just us two at the table because we have no idea what we are doing and we don't speak any Hungarian. Luckily the elders came and saved the day!!! The cops just wanted to know what we were doing and see if we were selling anything without a permit. The elders have been so nice and helpful to us when sister Behunin leaves. Although I haven't figured out if its because they are nice or they just like to laugh at the messes that Sister Fresh and I get in. We make pretty good entertainment when we are trying to speak Hungarian to people. haha!

Also from sister Behunins fun 2nd trip she lost her missionary debit card, over 100 dollars in cash and her pass for the metro everywhere. So that has been a little stressful for us because we cant go very many places and its just been a crazy week!

This week was also trash week. Trash was everywhere!!! You could hardly walk on the streets it is so dirty! The homeless people love this day and people take off work to look for stuff they want from other peoples houses. It is crazy!!!

This week we have been able to see a lot of miracles! We are meeting with another investigator and she is awesome! She is totally going to get baptized. Elder Walker family came and picked him up from his mission this week and while they were here they decided to put on a program for everyone in all the areas he served. It was so awesome!!! It was something the people here really needed. They don't ever see what normal family life is...a lot of people have nothing like the family that we do. I am so grateful for our family!!! His family sang songs and showed pictures and things. The spirit was so strong!!! We had quite a few investigators come and a lot of them were just bawling because they had never seen a family so happy before. 2 of them said that this is what Hungary needs - happy families who love each other. It was awesome! Anyways, our investigatorand her friend LOVED it! They were both crying and taking pictures during the whole program. They had a lot of questions for us afterwards. They said that everytime they come into the church house they just feel a feeling of peace and a feeling that they cant explain. It was so good! We met with her yesterday also and she just kept telling us that there is something here about the people in our church and she is going to find it. We are helping her find it :) And she thinks the law of chastity is the coolest thing ever which was a huge relief to us!!!

A couple of other investigators also came to the walkers program. They are the greatest. We had to hand them over to the pest sisters but they come to english class here and they love doing stuff with us! I love them both! They made us homemade chocolate chip cookies (we cant get them here because there is no brown sugar). They also loved the program and asked if all families were that happy in America. They wanted to have a family like that someday.

Also after the walker program, one of the elders investigators who I have kinda gotten to know pretty well came up to me and told me she had a secret. She whispered to me that she was going to get baptized in July and I am so excited for her!! It was really a tender mercy for me at that time that she was so excited to tell me about it! She said she had been waiting to see me again so she could tell me! She is so happy and I am so excited for her!

Well I think that is about everything that has happened this week. It has been a crazy exciting week! It has made me so grateful that I have such a wonderful family back home where I really know I am loved. So many people want that in their life and I am blessed enough to have that. That is really what is most important in this life. Family is literally everything. I have been given so much and taken so much for granted in my life. It is wonderful being able to be a missionary and help these people feel what true happiness really is and help show them that families can be happy. That families can work out. It is definitely hard being away from such a great family, but there is nothing like helping people everyday and telling them about the Gospel. We are so blessed! I am so amazed everyday at how much the Lord pours out blessing after blessing upon me and on our family. The Lord really does love us so much! He loves all His children. I love being a missionary!!!

Love you all lots! hope you are all doing well!

Falslev Nővér

a good picture of the view of the trash from our house. That was just in one day!

Fresh and I made hungarian breakfast burritos to celebrate us making it through a day without Behunin! It was really fun. We did everything from scratch! They were delicious!

we also got caught in another downpour on the way home from the grocery store. It was so much fun! We finally just stopped running and just walked home and enjoyed it since we were soaked. When it rains, it pours here.

Trash day...the pile just right outside our apartment. THere were piles everywhere!!

sister Behunin is super short...so of course a lot of people makes jokes about her. We all said that there was no way she could give me a piggy back ride because my legs would touch the ground. She proved us wrong. She is one little fire ball!!!! I love her!!!