Dream Dreams!

We had a very inspiring zone conference this week. Our mission leaders saw a presentation of projected new stakes and temples for the North America Northeast Area. Our mission is in blue at the top of the pictures. No potential new stakes or temples.

The top picture is what our mission leaders saw in the presentation. The bottom picture is their dream. They encouraged all of us to "dream dreams" and "see visions." (Joel 2: 28) With our dreams, there will be two new stakes in the Canada Montreal Mission--one each in Ottawa and Quebec City...

and three new temples, one each in Ottawa, Quebec City, and New Brunswick!
Why not?!?

This is God's church and HE can do ANYTHING!

We also watched a video where Elder Jeffrey R. Holland said,
"Whatever you think this church is going to be, it's going to be a LOT more than that! It's the ONE THING that I know for sure is going to succeed. I'm not sure about economies. I'm not sure about politics. I'm not sure about businesses. I'm not sure about universities or hospitals. I don't know what's going to work and what's going to fail. But I know ONE thing that's GOING to work. And I know one thing that is never, ever, EVER going to fail. And it is the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. And so we're supposed to dream our way to the finish...all the way to the end."

You can watch the powerful clip here. 

If we stay focused on our purpose, this can really happen!! In 2022, our mission had 212 baptisms. In 2023 there were 429. And we had 677 in 2024!! In reality, I should say that Jesus Christ gathered that many people to Him in Eastern Canada and He allowed us to work with Him in the vineyard. What a privilege for us!

I've never been one to get too excited about numbers. It's PEOPLE that I really care about. And these numbers represent all of the people in eastern Canada who are being gathered into God's fold. This is the hastening of the gathering of Israel that we're seeing happen right before our eyes. And we are so blessed to be a part of the greatest work that is happening on the earth today!

We had a white Christmas! But it made driving a little sketchy.

The bus says "Happy Holidays!"

I fish tailed my "blue sleigh" out to my Mandarin elders' apartments a few nights before Christmas to deliver packages that their families had sent.

I'm sad that most of our missionaries had to wait until zone conferences--AFTER Christmas--to get their Christmas gifts.

I love this little 3D nativity that one of our elders designed!

It will be part of my Christmas decorations forevermore.

These two sent me a voice message that is among my most treasured Christmas gifts this year. Young missionaries rock my world!!! They are so good to me. And I am continually in awe of their devotion and stamina. Should I mention that it's been really, really cold here? Like the high for the day is around 10 degrees F. And they just keep going out, looking for people who want to come closer to Jesus...because they said they would when they accepted their mission calls.

Sixty-four degrees inside my apartment. And I don't have much of a heater. Lots of sweats and blankets when I get home from the archives.

My cute friend who is from Algeria is moving in a few weeks. He's been a maintenance man in our apartment building. Now he's ready to go out on his own and start his own business. I'll miss him.

Luckily he joined us for Christmas dinner. We had a fun gathering. We enjoyed yummy food together then watched the Christ Child video and talked about its significance for each of us. And our Muslim friend "sang" us a verse from the Qur'an. Then we played games together. We were lucky to have two young elders with us. I love being with our young missionaries.

The day after Christmas one of the members of our Mandarin branch invited me to join a HUGE feast at her house! Look at all of that meat! And there were seven desserts on top of that!

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MeRRy ChRiSTmAs, Everyone!!

I was asked to bear testimony of the Savior in sacrament meeting today. I said that life is pointless without Him. Without Him, there is no Atonement. Without His Atonement there is no forgiveness. There is no repentance. There is no enabling/strengthening power of His Atonement to help us through tough times. There is no resurrection. There is no priesthood which means there is no church organization, no temple ordinances, no eternal families. There is no purpose to this life. There is no returning home to live with Father. Without Him we have no perfect example to strive to become like. 

I also pointed out that one of the few things that is repeated in the sacrament prayers is to always remember Him. Do I remember Him on Tuesday morning at 10:00? What about Thursday afternoon at 2:00? What about when I'm getting ready for my day each morning? What about in my assigned task at the National Archives of Quebec? Do I remember Him when I'm irritated with people?

I love my Savior and I want to discipline myself to stay focused on Him more and more. Christmas is a natural time to give our focus to Him!   . . .THAT'S what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown!  :)

Elder Byerly was one of the first young missionaries I got to know well in this mission. He spent most of his mission in the Mandarin branch. He finished his mission over a year ago. He and his whole family visited the Mandarin branch today! I was SO EXCITED to see him!! 

I'm pretty sure this was my last time to help out in the office on transfer day because I really didn't help with anything this time. They've got enough help and don't need me anymore. But that's OK because I have a big, big clicking goal that I want to reach before the end of my mission so I'll go work diligently at that instead!

I drove to the "English" side of the island to do some grocery shopping this week and was shocked to see the aisle signs in both languages. Most of the time I just have to struggle with the French which, by the way, I am getting better at.

We had a seniors Christmas party which was a lot of fun.

This elder will be the first to tell you that he doesn't ever want to grow up. He decided to wear his white elephant gift on the wrong end of his body.

The elder with the fancy Christmas socks got a fold up bucket for his white elephant. At one point he kicked it across the room. Someone said, "Oh no! One of the senior missionaries just 'kicked the bucket'!" He said, "What am I going to do with a bucket?" Someone suggested he could use it as a feeding trough for when they invite the elders to dinner.

Gifts for the young missionaries in my district

I made these little handmade ornaments for all of the senior missionaries who live near Montreal. It took me a lot longer than I anticipated! But I'm happy with the way they turned out.

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I Admire My Catholic Brothers and Sisters

Had lunch and played miniature golf for district p-day. I love these people!

My brother and sister-in-law visited for a few days this week. It was fun to have them here.

They came to see what I do at the archives.

We ate at Schwartz's Deli which is touted as the best smoked meat in Montreal. It was really good!

We went up to Mount Royal.

And then over to St. Joseph's Oratory on one of the coldest days I've experienced in Montreal on account of the strong winds and cold temperatures.

Meet Brother Andre who started this oratory. He felt that Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus, needed more recognition for his important role in Jesus's life. So he started building an oratory. It was very small and humble during his lifetime and was completed after his death in 1937. He was known for being simple, having a sense of humor, and being compassionate with a listening ear. I think he has a very kind face. I'm impressed with Brother Andre. He had many difficult challenges in his life and yet he chose to turn outward and help others. He was sainted in 2010. He's the first man born in Canada to have that distinction.

 
Canada culture: The snow mountains have started again! 'Tis the season. . .

Only in Canada will you find a stocking stuffer in the shape of a hockey stick. And what a perfect shape to fit into a Christmas stocking! At first I thought it was meant to be the shape of a handgun.

The man that I've been teaching with the missionaries has decided to not get baptized. Well, it's certainly his choice. He's not responding to the missionaries' texts so we don't know what happened.  Ahhh, such is the life of a missionary. I have a feeling that he may return at some point because he loves the Book of Mormon. He says it's so clear. 

The woman who we're teaching moved her baptism date into January because she doesn't feel ready quite yet. Also OK. I keep being reminded that though I'm happy for these people to have a desire to come closer to God, it's not about us. . .it's about their relationship with God, and that is a very personal matter.

It's been a fairly smooth week of clicking, which I'm grateful for after my loooooong hiatus.

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I'm Clicking Again!!

My computer is working again!!!!!

The law of opposition is real. When I'm denied the opportunity to click for over a month and then that opportunity opens up again, it is JOYFUL!  Wednesday morning felt like Christmas morning to me!! I was so happy! It felt sooooooooo good to be about God's business again!

By Friday all four of our computers were finally working again. I only have one word for that...HALLELUJAH! It took an act of God--calling the North America operations manager at Family Search--so that we could FINALLY get some help!

It dawned on me how funny it feels to say that my BIG NEWS of the week is that I'm clicking. Usually I have other news, and by the way, I also captured some documents.

Everything feels brand new again! When we finish capturing a box, we put a green dot on it. This is my first green dot in a very, very long time. 

We got our first snow this past week, only about 2 inches.

This little girl was very proud of her snowball. She looked at me and held it up for me to see her prize. 

Update on my two friends "on date". . .

Our one friend won't make her original baptismal date but I'm not worried about that. She'll keep progressing until she gets there because her desire is so pure. And she's already made a TON of progress! I'm really proud of her and admire her as I watch her steep uphill climb.

C astounded me this week! He was very tentative when the sisters first invited him to be baptized. Then two weeks later, he's VERY committed to being baptized. I asked him why the change. He essentially said that all of the truth of Christ's gospel can be found here in this church. Other churches are good and have some of the truth, but the fullness can be found in the Book of Mormon. He has a strong testimony of that book and will finish reading it in its entirety before his baptism on the 28th of December.

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Three Day Transfer to North Hatley

I was assigned (by myself) to serve in North Hatley for three days! One of the other senior missionaries said, "Heck, if you're "on vacation" from the archives, you should REALLY go on a vacation!"

Done!

I spent Wednesday through Friday in a small town that I visited over a year ago and fell in love with. I only had time for a very short stop on that trip and have always wanted to return.

First stop: St.-Benoit-du-Lac Abbey (Saint Beniot of the Lake Abbey)
I've visited here before as well but I loved it so much more this time because it's off-season for tourists. I spent quite a while in this chapel praying, pondering, and reading Bishop Budge's talk from last general conference.  He talked about being still and seeking God.

I love the simplicity of this chapel.

The charming town of North Hatley is about an hour and a half east of Montreal in what is called the Eastern Townships.

Here's the AirBnB where I stayed. I was in the suite on the 2nd floor. It was 400 sq feet larger than the main floor of my home in Salt Lake!

This is the charming town store which was right next door to where I stayed. The people I met in town couldn't have been more friendly! I told the clerk in the store that I could live in this town!

Fun fact:  It turns out that these LeBarons are related to Ervil LeBaron.

I drove around the area as well exploring several small towns and farmlands. It was EXACTLY what my soul needed, to be out in the country and away from the big city. I felt like I was a million miles away from Montreal.

This is the first covered bridge I've seen in person. It was SO CHARMING!

The first snow I've seen this year made my heart happy. I love snow!

This setting looked like it should be on a Christmas card. It was so stunning!

Had some lovely lunch before I headed back to Montreal. 

This transfer was SUPERB! I needed a complete break from Montreal--physically, emotionally, and mentally-- and the Eastern Townships delivered! As I drove out of North Hatley I thought that these three days had felt like a complete break from everything that's happening in Montreal. Then I thought it would be MORE accurate to say it was a break from all that is NOT HAPPENING in Montreal. Haha!

Update on the two friends we're teaching. . .

G. is progressing nicely and has a strong desire to be baptized. She's working on a few Word of Wisdom items and is determined to lick them! I love her strong spirit and her ease in feeling the Spirit. The sister missionaries who are teaching her have both been serving missions for  just over a year. They both said that G's lessons are some of their very favorite ones on their whole missions so far because the Spirit is so strong when they meet with her. G. is shooting for a baptism date of December 15.

I didn't get to meet with C. and the other sisters this week because they forgot to tell me when the lesson was until 5 minutes before it happened and I wasn't available. 

We did apartment checks this weekend. Elders are some of the funniest people on the planet and I LOVE THEM!!!

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