Sister Regan has limited access to a computer now that she is in portugal, so I will do my best to keep her blog updated. After a safe journey, she seems to be finding her feet, although her first email quoted her as not understanding 90 percent of what was going on! With some expertise in reading body language she got that down to 70 :O) Below is an extract from her last email to us, which I leave you to judge for yourself. One very proud and grateful mother.
Last week I went on a 3 day division because my companion is sister training leader and it was literally heaven! The sister that I swap with is AMAZING! We just think the same about everything so it was calm and clean and I got food that I like. We just clicked straight away. Most of the people here hated the MTC and felt like it was prison, but we both just shared all the things we loved about it. It’s the first time I got to wash up with someone straight after the meal. We played music for exercise and just always knew what the other one was thinking. We had a great balance in lessons and I felt really needed because she wasn’t used to leading either, so worked together. Plus, their apartment is like a HOTEL... literally that was what I thought when we went into the hallway. There`s only two of them there, but it was made for 4 sisters so they have their own bathroom, this massive lounge with a fireplace that I don`t even know what it is for! We didn`t cook because the members give them so much food and it was awesome... we even had time for naps!
Anyway, I had some great experiences in Leiria. Both nights our appointments fell through so we prayed in the middle of the street and then pointed to where we were directed. The first night we both felt the same way and knocked this street. Nothing. (door knocking is really hard here because they are either flats that you need to be let into or have massive driveways and you ring at the gate, which feels unnatural) Then we got to this apartment block and rung the bell. Nothing. I try the door and magically it is open! Ahh!!! A whole apartment block of doors to knock!! I was so full of faith because I was sure we were lead there. We knock on all these doors and nothing. Then this one lady looks interested, but nothing. So we go to one of the last doors and this man opens the door and it`s a guy the sisters met on the street and had been looking for but didn`t have his address. Right there in the hallway we gave him a watered down version of the first lesson and made a return appointment. We felt so guided.
We also taught this awesome less active on the second night when our appointment fell through and she even had another less active with her at the time. She made lovely soup for us and we taught a great lesson about preparing for the temple (since the Lisbon ground breaking was last week). The balance between us was perfect and I just knew what to say and shared about Amy and I preparing together and being able to strengthen each other and I just felt it was what they needed to hear!
Back in our apartment, the pipe to the shower broke so we had upset neighbours with water coming through their ceiling and had the elders come so that the plumber could come into our house. The elders were really shocked at how awful our apartment is (apparently they have a maid, who even did a sewing job for one of them in one night) How is this fair?! Maybe one day they will move our lodgings, I hope for the sanity of future sisters that this happens. Anyway, at least the pipe is fixed and we can use both showers!
There was a baptism in our ward this week! Yay! He is really awesome and always smiles and comes to everything so that will be great. We are meant to be having a baptism this Saturday so things are looking good. President Amorim is really helping us with her and she comes to church every week.
Crazy story of the week in our area. We took a bus to see a member that lives a few miles outside of town with another member who has bad legs and my companion has