Feeling a bit nervous!

Hello my sweet family!

I'm so glad to have heard from you...well Mom & Dad... today!! Brayden, I'd better get a long email from you next week! Wow, where to start... Well the last few days at the MTC just flew by. The closer Saturday got, the more I wanted to stay at the MTC! Haha. I was feeling a bit nervous but not too bad about going into the mission field. On Friday, the whole day at the MTC we had workshops that helped to prepare us for going into the field. It was a LONG day but it was also fun. At the end of the day, all the teachers but on a little skit about working with members. Holy cow! I never realized just how much missionaries work with the members (or at least how much they are supposed to). We said our goodbyes after that and took pictures. I wish I could send some to you, but I don't have one of those cord things that hooks up my camera to the computer. I will try to find one today. It was pretty depressing saying goodbye to everyone. It was weird too because you aren't allowed to hug the Elders and a handshake just isn't a proper goodbye. Haha. We went to bed that night at 10:30 and woke up the next day at 5:00 am to get ready for our bus to come. It arrived at 6:30. There were two separate buses, one going to Birmingham and one going to Scotland/Ireland. Our bus ride was only about 2 hours long and it flew by. There were 11 of us I think on the bus. We arrived at the Mission office and were greeted by President Rasmussen, his wife, and the AP's. They took us into the office and sat us down. We talked about what a cornerstone is and how it is the most important part of a structure and how Jesus Christ is the cornerstone. They have a cornerstone outside the office and we all got to stand on it one by one and announce our names and where we were from. After that, we took pictures with President Rasmussen and his wife. We went inside and then had an interview with President, and we also got our credit cards. That took a while, and slowly, all the trainers made their way in. I was eyeing them all of course, trying to figure out who I would be with. I talked with one of them and was not impressed at all as she was talking really negatively about her area and using not the best words. I prayed in my heart that I would be happy with anyone BUT her. Haha. We went into President's office after that and he talked with us about our purpose as missionaries. He told us that we would all be going through a 12 week training course with our trainers and that we will be given an additional hour of companionship study per day. He also said that we all need to prepare to be the best missionaries we can be because some of us may be called as trainers in as little as 5 weeks. The reason why is because they have a flood of sisters coming into the mission field next transfer and they don't have enough trainers. (I was kind of freaking out at this point).  We then got our assignments. And I am going to Nottingham with Sister Lewis. I was soooo happy because she was one that I would have picked out for myself. We then went and had lunch which was Dominos pizza, fruit and veggies and a dessert. After, we said our goodbyes. I had to say goodbye to Sister Hanks, my MTC companion and it was really hard. I can only imagine how much harder it will be when you have been with them for months! We then jumped in a car with a companionship of Elders and made our way to Nottingham. It was only like a 45 minute drive, so we got their around 3:45. Sister Lewis showed me around the flat and before I could even unpack, we hit the road to go knocking on doors. The members here are really funny- They feel that if they give you the exact address of their friend, then the friend will be offended. So instead, they gave us a street of houses and said that the lady lives on that street and if we knock on the door and she is home then she'll let us in. Haha. So that's what we did. We took a bus to Long Eaton which is about ten minutes away and then got our map out and found Carzon street. We had to knock houses 241-291. And so we began. I was a little nervous but not too bad and Sister Lewis lead out on the first house. We talked to an older couple that was just celebrating their 50 year anniversary. They didn't believe in life after death and weren't really interested but they were very kind and said we can always stop by again if we're in the area. We met a lady who was not interested AT ALL, and a man who declared himself an Athiest. We were having no luck at all and we were only at door 260-something when we noticed that the house numbers jumped from 260 to like 230. We saw a lady across the street who was getting some bags out of her trunk. So we walked over and Sister Lewis asked her if she knew what happened to all the houses. She laughed and said that she has lived here for 20 years and has never even noticed it! Well, we got to talking to her, and at one point her cat came outside. She told us that it was her mother's cat, and she had taken care of it since her mother died about a year ago. She began to tell us that her son's friend of only 15 years died about a week ago of cancer and that she was having a hard time explaining to her son why that would happen to such a young person. I immediately felt the impression that I needed to testify of the Plan of Salvation and of the comfort that it brings. And so, I did. It was miraculous. I can't quite remember all that I said but the spirit was so strong and I could tell that she felt it because she started to cry a little bit. I remember telling her that growing up there have been kids my age that have died and how hard it was, but I knew that there was a life after this and that they were truly happy. She nodded her head, and my companion jumped in and asked her if we could maybe visit her and her son next we and talk to her more about what we believe and maybe offer some comfort to her and her son. She said yes! So we got her name which was Elaine, and we scheduled an appointment for 3:30 on Tuesday. I gave her the Plan of Salvation pamphlet from out of my bag and asked her to read it before our lesson. She said that she would. As we left, we gave her a hug goodbye and she started to tear up a little more. It was so tender. As I walked away, I couldn't help but to tear up a little bit myself. Heavenly Father REALLY is in the details! In just the right moment, Elaine's cat had walked up to us, giving us the opportunity to ask about her and Elaine to tell us about your mother. I believe that we were on that street knocking doors JUST for Elaine that day. It was such a miracle. We made our way back to our flat and had some dinner. I didn't have groceries yet so luckily my companion fed me. :) Sister Lewis then told me that we were going to teach Matt that night and his friend Jerry. They are both from China and are going to school here right now. Jerry got baptized last Monday. He brought a few of his friends to church and after watching the finding faith in Christ video in Sunday School, a couple of them just stood up and said that they wanted to get baptized right away! So, we are now teaching a couple of them and getting them ready for baptism. That night, we taught Matt the Plan of Salvation. He seemed very interested and he agreed to pray if it was true. The next day was Sunday and we woke up, did our studying and then made our way to church. It's a bus ride and a walk away and it takes about 30 min to get there. Jerry and Matt both came with us. It was funny because they both arrived holding a tie in their hands and had NO idea how to tie it. We sat at the bus stop for a good 10 minutes trying to figure out HOW to tie them! Finally, we just got on Jerry's phone and found a youtube video. Haha, it was definitely entertaining. Our ward is about 80 people, I would say. Bishop conducted and invited me and the other new Elder to bear our testimonies. I was kinda bummed that they asked us to do because I wanted to do it on my own free will. Haha. Anyways, Jerry was given the gift of the Holy Ghost that day as well and it was great. It said that he would be a beacon of light and truth to his friends, which is already coming true. There was only about 8 of us in Sunday School and the teacher really tailored it to our new members and investigators. She taught about the Godhead. Then was relief society where we talked about the purpose of relief society. Everyone in the ward was very kind. One man shook my hand and gave me a piece of chocolate. Haha. Sister Lewis says that he does that every week. Brother Thomas is the ward mission leader, and as Sister Lewis says, "He has a heart of Gold, but he doesn't know how to stop talking." Haha. That is quite accurate. Jerry's confirmation was like the LONGEST I have ever heard! Well, after church we stopped off at a less active family that hadn't been visited in a while. The father is from Britian but the mother is from Lima, Peru and they have two cute little kids. They told us that they haven't been to church in a couple years because he works all the time and that on Sunday they like to spend the day as a family. It is a difficult situation and I'm not sure how to handle it yet but we will keep praying for their family. After that, we went back to the flat and did our companionship study, broke our fast, and then did Call-Ins. Sunday nights here are called P-day eves. Haha. Overall, my first day went well. I was feeling quite overwhelmed at church though, with everything that i need to learn about the people and the ward. My companion is lovely but she doesn't really tell me things about the people unless I ask, so I am feeling a little behind still. I'm sure it will all come in time though. Pray  for me as I transition into this way of life. It is so wonderful but it also has it's difficult times. Please also pray for Elaine this week that the lesson will go well and that she will let us teach her again.

I love you all so much and hope to hear from you soon!

Love Sister Jensen

P.S. Just some interesting facts- When you greet people here, you say, "You alright?" and you would respond, "Ya, you aright?" Haha. It's kinda weird, I'm still getting used to it. Oh and "cheers" is like thank you.

My new address:

Sister Jensen

48 Nether Street

Beeston

Nottingham

NG9 2AT