Week 34: Don't waste time monkey-ing around

So super lame title, desolee, but today we went to the monkey valley which was so so so cool!!! MONKEYS WERE EVERYWHERE!!! Was so worth the money spent haha.... In this valley they aren't in cages and they just
wander wherever they want and it is so cool! We went with a recently returned sister that I had actually served near back when I was in Lyon and that was weird but fun:)

This week was like a dream, it went by so quick! Tuesday we had zone conference where we talked about where our loyalties lie and we made personal title of loyalty to the Lord and we played capture the flag with them and little nerf dart guns because we have the best mission mom! It was so fun, my team won, and I even got the flag running at the end:) Seeing the Browns was one of the highlights of the week, they are the best and they care so much about us and I am so grateful for both of them.

After zone conference we had an exchange where we met the cutest little African lady searching to be closer to Christ and when she saw our badges she asked if we could help her!! It was crazy haha and we were able to pray with her right then and there in the line we were standing in! She was so cute! And we talked with so many people, found a guy with a hammock, and drank bottle after bottle of water because it was HOT. I love Poitiers because even though it is hot, it is still north enough to be coolish and sometimes even cold in August!

When we finally got home to Poitiers we worked our butts off and had 11 lessons in three days, seven on the street which was so cool:) We have a goal of 20 lessons each week in our mission and we might be able to do it next week so we are hoping! It is a goal to help us to teach simpler and always have Christ's name on our lips especially when His name is already there on our shirts:) My bleu is amazing and loves street contacting so that is super fun to do with her, her French is coming along so fast!

The biggest thing from this week was an ami we were going to drop because he was being wishy washy literally saying he wouldn't say yes or no to any of our questions or commitments or anything, we gave him one last chance and when we saw him on Sunday we asked if he comes to know this is true would he be baptized, and he said yes! We were too shocked for a moment to say anything and I asked him the question again to make sure he had heard right and we had too and it was the best:) He has picked the end of November, but I think that will be 
perfect for him:)

That was about it for this week, it just flew by so quickly. I love you all and I am so grateful for this church and this gospel and the chance we have to be together forever past the grave. That nothing will change that. And that we have a living God who is there for us and loves us. Who gave us this opportunity to learn and to keep what we learn and our families. Nothing is more important than the family. 

I just want to finish with my title of liberty that I wrote:)

In His strength I can do all things.
Living what I believe,
Will bring power and miracles.
Walking in faith, Repenting,
Praying, obeying, serving;
I will devote my all to him.
This is the work of the Risen Lord;
And He will reign forever and ever.

I can't wait for the day when everyone will know the sacrifice Christ made to give us the chance to live together forever. That we are all children of God and that he loves each one of us. And we can't do anything to change that fact;)

Have an amazing week!

Love,

Sister Beatty

Week 33: Moving trucks and baseball bats!

So this week we got moved in and played baseball! 

This week was a great week work wise. We met a bunch of potentials on the buses and also had lots of rendez vous with our two amis that have dates for baptism! It was really fun and they are progressing which is so super exciting!!!!! We have been meeting with lots of less actives and a few of them even came to church yesterday!!! 

We also got moved in to our new apartment and it is absolutely amazing and newish and is close to the train station and in the center of Poitiers and it is so cool because we can finally unpack our suitcases and cook our own food! We unpacked in not even one night;p it wen by so fast it was great:) Now these past three weeks seem like a dream... haha but now life is pretty normal although tonight we leave for zone conference tomorrow where I am playing the piano for the musical number with a sister singing, and then an exchange on wednesday:) 

I am excited for tomorrow, we have our interviews with president and the zone conference which they are calling "the title of liberty" conference.

So this week other than moving in, we also had district meeting in this ville called Limoges which is about two hours away from Poitiers and we went and played baseball! not really, but I held a baseball bat for the first time and actually was able to hit every soft toss that was thrown at me which was super cool because I was terrified in front of all the elders but it was good and I did better than some of them! ;) 

This week flew by and I can't remember too many specifics but I know it was good:) Haha... life... in two weeks I hit eight months and then next transfer Halfway!!!! That is absolutely crazy but it is great:) Training is so fun, Sister Merrill is so much fun and seeing France through fresh eyes is amazing:) 

Love you all,

Have a great week!

Sister Beatty:)

Week 32: Vive jesus-Christ!!

Well to explain the heading, we were porting a neighborhood and as we were leaving a guy on a moped stopped us to ask for money for gas and I said we didn't have any and he stopped and stared at our badges and
before we could ask any question he said (translated into English) "thanks anyways, LIVE JESUS CHRIST!" He yelled that last part with a fist pump to the air and drove away on his moped. Leaving me and my little blue laughing really hard because it was so random and funny! XD

This week not too much happened other than trains, and trains, a cold, and more trains!

We are living in a second apartment of a member here up in a city called Chatellerault, which is 15-30 min away on train depending if you get a fast train that stops only at big stations or a slow train which stops at every single station. We are still trying to move apartments but we are having problems with the contract so we don't know if we will move in this week, but I hope so because I hate living out of suitcases! And taking two trains everyday is exhausting, and if we are late leaving we have to run to the train station in our dresses and skirts and that is tiring with bags and water bottles in the heat.

It is a little ridiculous... Haha and one morning it was really cold and I caught a cold. In the middle of August. Like only me seriously, sitting here dying of heat and wanting a blanket and then having cold flashes, my body doesn't understand whats going on haha but it has finally started going away, which is wonderful because it's not like we can just go back to the apartment to rest for a lunch;p

This week we got two new engages(people with baptismal dates) They are a little far away but it is still so super exciting and I hope that they will keep our commitments because it is so important! Its so sad, sometimes people judge us super quickly and won't even let us open our mouths but all we want to do is just share what we believe and then after that, you can accept it or not, its your choice and no one will force you to accept that, but at least we have done our job.

We found a little waterfall in the middle of Poitiers which was super cool! i miss the water and going on vacation to the beach, the hot weather and no air conditioning makes the beach just so perfect haha but not for another 11 months;p It is crazy how fast the mission flies by, it flies by at the slowest pace ever which is something you can
only experience. It is a weird feeling but a mission is quand meme a peculiar thing but it's a good peculiar:)

Training is so fun, I get to see France and the mission through fresh eyes and it is so cool to see how se sees everything:) And trying all the patisseries again with her! And food.... Haha she tried mushrooms for the first time! And a whole lot of other weird french food.... Today we ate at a buffet restaurant which was really good and we split a muscle because she hadn't ever tried it! She is so great and even though she took Spanish before the mission, she has no fear in talking with anyone! She also magically finds every English speaker in Poitiers which is really cool! ;p

I love you all, good luck with your end of the summer plans!:)

Sister Beatty

Week 31: A five week transfer....?

So this week was the most insane week I have ever had ever my entire mission! Basically it was spent outside of Poitiers the entire week!

Monday we took 12 hours on trains to go to Lyon and then we worked with the trainers contacting Tuesday and that was fun, we found a really awesome Mural which was so sweet and lots of sweet people, and then finished off the day with dinner and a training for the trainers!

Wednesday we woke up and headed straight to Ecully to go and meet our blues and it was insane because AirFrance went on a strike(of course) and so they cancelled our blues' flight from Paris to Lyon so they had
to take a train! With all their luggage, By themselves!!! It was crazy.... The poor blues were so tired but also so cute, they were great and used it as an opportunity to contact everyone they met! We were all so proud of them:) 

Waiting to meet them though was awful, we waited to hours in the basement of the chapel during their meeting and then when it was time to find out who would be with who, we walked in and I was too scared to look at them so we avoided eye contact and watched as one by one they opened their letters and read where they were going and who they would be serving with. It was crazy and actually adorable because they couldn't say the french villes at all and it was adorable and I will forever remember the ville Annemasse, which is pronounced (anne-mass) being pronounced by an adorable sister (ann-ee-mass-ee!) 

And that is when I got my blue and she read the ville and I wanted to jump up right then but I had to wait for her to say my name and that was the longest few seconds ever! But her name is Sister Merrill and I love her to death! She is exactly like me in a lot of freaky ways and also complete opposite, like we both have altoids that we carry in our purses which is funny and weird and we have the same things like deodorant, toothpaste, qtips and tastes but
then there are other things like peanut butter that we are exactly opposite! (She loves it, i hate it;p )

Wednesday we went to the office and set up her ipad and then went to get dinner and shopping for some things in the nice Lyon mall before we went off to Poitiers where everything is expensive! Thursday she did legality and I chilled in the office, for hours....it was long,and then we went to get on a train and we had 15 minutes to change
trains but our train was late getting in and literally we were running with suitcases with the elders, the conductor blue the whistle, we stopped at the car we were at and just started literally throwing suitcases on to the car! I didn't think we were going to make it, it was absolute insane. 

But we got them on the train and walked through the cars with all of our suitcases until we got to our car and sat
down just out of breath....it was absolute insane and I know tons of people missed that train... Because it was late getting but still wanted to leave on time, it was only in the station for maybe five minutes tops! But we made it to Bordeaux and stayed with the sister training leaders there!

We finally made it back to Poitiers but we are moving apartments so we are actually in a hotel for the next few days and then a member offered to let us use an empty apartment until the church finalizes all the paperwork for the new apartment they want to buy so that will be fun! And we get some say in the apartment which is really nice:)

Life has been insane this week and we didn't really get any time to work in Poitiers at all so its really just a five week transfer which is absolutely crazy but I know it will all be good.

Love you all, I hope you are enjoying the rest of your summer:)

Sister Beatty!

Mikayla and her bleu, Soeur Merrill

Mikayla and Elder McDaniel

Lyon