On The Mend

Hi folks, 

I'm on the mend - my broken pinky finger will take a bit longer, but I don't have to wear anything on my wrist anymore, and with the help of my trusty American makeup and a lot of time with an ice pack, my black eye is almost unnoticeable! The words of the priesthood blessing I received are being fulfilled: "You will be healed faster than any of the doctors will be able to explain. The Lord has work for you to do and He will help you do it." And work we did. 

Much of the week was spent in the car going to and from Berlin for exchanges with the Dahlem and Neukölln sisters. It was good to have time to think and enjoy time with Sister Rückauer. Here are a few peeks into the week: 

• Sweet Sister Warner had homemade Mexican food waiting for us when we finally reached the Neukölln apartment after 3 hours of driving in the dark and rain on Monday night. She also had saved me peanut M&Ms that her mom sent in a package, got my favorite yogurt for breakfast, and had a full evening of appointments planned for us to go to. Fabulous! Tobias, the super cool new investigator that we found on our way to an appointment, was the cherry on top of a perfect evening spent in the sketchiest area in Berlin. 
• Sister Israelsen and I also had a wonderful exchange here in Freiberg. No one wanted to talk to us on the street, but we had a great time anyway and we learned a lot from each other. It was so cool to see how what I had been studying in my personal study for the past week was exactly what Sister Israelsen needed. We walked out of companionship study feeling on top of the world. 
• Thursday evening was spent in the Mission Office starting to redo the temple tour video. It felt SO GOOD to be back in my zone: being creative, working with all sorts of movie editing programs, researching, all of it. I think I was so happy that I scared the new office elder with my enthusiasm :) 
• Back in Freiberg, we had an eating appointment with Bruder Adolf, an elderly brother from southern Germany. He had each of us pick out a microwaveable dinner from his bottom freezer drawer and he told us his whole life story, conversion story, love story, childhood stories ... all the while his fake front tooth popped in and out, accentuating the most important parts. He left us with one piece of advice: "There's a reason that the prophets have counseled us to keep journals. Do it. Keep a journal. The most important things to write down are how you feel. I never thought that I would use my journals again, but now they are my most prized possessions. Keep a journal." 
• Sunday was filled with a lot of little miracles. We met with 2 inactive sisters that we've been trying to meet with since we first got to Freiberg and they want to meet with us again this week! We also had a wonderful lesson with another sister in our ward who hasn't been to church in years because she is totally overwhelmed with her four young sons. Amid the chaos (including mashed potato Armageddon, truck wheels tangled in my hair courtesy of 2 year-old Marcus, and Lucian's narration of a monster truck showdown at staggering volume) the Spirit of the Lord was there. This young mother wants to start meeting regularly and her 9 year old son, Sean Lucas, wants to be baptized. Things are picking up here in our charming little city. 

Thank you all for your prayers. I'm feeling very grateful today. 

Liebe Grüße, 

Sister Grace Hendricks