Learning Japanese

Martha is doing awesome. I can't even imagine how hard it is to learn Japanese but she seems like she is doing great so far.

Hi family!

Thank you so much for all of your emails!  They all just brighten my day.  I'm sorry to hear you didn't get to go boating on Monday, but maybe it was for the best...you can't have that much fun without me.  Just kidding.  Life is getting much better at the MTC.  Japanese is still hard, but sometimes I surprise myself by how much I've already learned in the past two weeks.  This past week was good, but overwhelming.  Our "investigator" turned into our second teacher.  I wasn't a fan.  I thought I would never see him again; my Japanese was so horrible when I taught him.  Then he became my teacher.  No fooling him on how little Japanese I know.  Also he is very intense and doesn't beat around the bush.  Our other teacher is so sweet and patient so it was quiet the adjustment.  However, I think he is good for our district because he pushes us and lays down the law.  Sometime we need that...especially with all of the youngins we have. Like I said before, my doryo (comp) took 2.5 years of college Japanese so she knows a good amount.  Sometimes it is stressful but most of the time it is nice because she helps me leanr the language.  When we learn something new in class, I don't like to learn that subject but I like to connect the dots of every little thing we have learned to try and create new sentences.  99% of the time I am wrong, but then my doryo helps me them and teaches me the correct way, so it is really nice. But I'm finally getting used to having a companion so it's all good.  However, it sometimes seems crazy that we have only been here for two weeks.  It seems as though it's been much longer.  But we are on week 3 of 10.  It seems so far away, but then our teacher said we would be teaching real investigators in Japanese in 8 weeks and we all had a little heart attack.

 

This past Sunday was really nice.  We had devotional and Ellder Stephen B. Allen (Managing Director of the Missionary Department) came to speak.  It was awesome.  He had a whole lesson planned, but threw it all out the window when he arrived and just taught by the Spirit.  It was awesome because he talked about the sturggles of life in the MTC: the time schedule, the companionship, and the langauge among many other things.  I love it because when he talked about leanrning a language, he referenced Japanese.  Out of all of the difficult languages he chose that one to mention.  It sounds stupid, but I honestly think it was an answer to prayers because the whole district has been feeling down about language.  We were all so excited to hear it and we felt as though Heavenly Father was speaking directly to us. 

 

Last night took an unexpected twist though.  My doryo had sharp pains in her side, so we were at the hospital all night last night and got home at 5 this morning.  They found nothing, so hopefully everything remains okay. I'm exhausted though. It was a struggle even to stay up past 10:30 ;ast night.  Luckily it is p-day though, so they are allowing us to take a nap.  \

 

Also I loved getting the pictures of Brooklyn and the video of Addie!  They are both just too adorable!  And I can't believe Addie is swimming without floaties!  She's only 3!  I feel like most kids don't do that for quite sometime.  But I guess that's what happens when you have two swimmers as parents. Also good luck with moving out this next week and congrats on graduating med school Scott! Way to go!  And then Nathan and Mom are off to Germany.  Just make sure to send me some chocolate and gummy bears; that's all I ask.  Please?  It was so good to hear from all of you.  I'll try and write you all letters sometime this week- sorry I would email each of you back but I have limited time on the computer.  Also mom, I'll try and attach the German photos here, but if that doesn't work then I'll just send you home my memory card, as long as you promise to send it back so I can continue taking pictures.  Anyway, thanks again for all of your emails!  Ai shite imasu yo!

 

Ellsworth Shimai

 

Ps.  I have now learned how to read characters, so now I can read the Book of Mormon in Japanese.  Am i very slow at it? Yes.  Can I understand anything? No.  But it's a start!

With all her books

With her companion 

 

さようなら Martha!

So Martha is officially on her mission and since I was on vacation last week she's already been gone for 2 weeks. Bare with me as I play catch up.

Her 1st e-mail:

Hi Family,

 

So I'm finally a missionay and in the MTC.  Not going to lie, it sometimes feels like a prision here.  I am always always studying and Japanese is so so hard.  O and dad in response to your Japanese question- Hai, Genki desu.  Seriously French just keeps coming out!  Japanese is so hard!  They switch their wording up so when you are saying a prayer it literally means this: The Spirit (subject marker like "o") feel so that please bless us.  It makes absolutely no sense to me, but we are finally learning sentence structure tomorrow so hopefully I'll start to catch on.  I haven't learned characters yet but I am trying to memorize hiragana on my own.  So far I can say a basic prayer, bear my testimony, provide an overview, say where I'm from, extend and invitation, o and intorduce myself. We had to teach an investigator on our SECOND day here at the MTC in Japanese.  I felt like an idiot, especially because my comp knows Japanese probably just as well as I know French.  So basically I ready my few sentences and sat their like an idiot while she did all of the talking.  It's getting a little better each day I teach him, but I still turn bright red everytime I open up my mouth to talk.  My comp. is great, but it's a hard adjustment for me.  The Lord is really testing me with her.  First off, I'm used to being one of the smartest in my class, but since she knows Japanese I always feel so dumb. Second, I like my space so just a companion in general is hard. And third she is so excited to be on a mission, to the point that she left her fiance to come and read PMG 6 times before getting here (quite the oposite of me).  But she's really nice.  She was homeschooled and doesn't have much in common with me, but she still is really nice, and I'm learning to become more patient with her and myself.  It will be a process though. But she does have celiac disease which is not cool for her, but I love learning more and more about it.  Also thanks for the package!  I thought about eating all 9 caramel bears, but I gave in a shared them with my roommates (who are great!), since I assumed that's why you gave me so many in the first place.  I was so excited to see those though, especially since you only make them during Christmas.  Oh, and thanks Nathan for putting on the chocolate chips.  I can't believe you're getting mom's iphone though.  Just don't leave it in the sprinkler!! Also, mom, that means you have taken over my phone.  Please take care of it and treat it as if it were your own child.  But other than that the MTC is good and the food isn't that bad.  The sisters are taking bets on whihc elder will gain the most weight.  My vote is for Crook choro.  Anyway, I have to get going, but I'll try and send you a hand written letter later on this week!  Have fun in Texas (also I'm visiting all the time if scott sets up his practice in Maui) and then have fun in Germany. O and don't have too much fun on the boat without me.  I'm so jealous!  I love you all and will write you again soon.  Also I'll try to send pictures if I can figure it out.

 

Ai shite imasu yo! (I love you!)

 

Ellsworth Shimai   

Here we are saying farewell:

I have such a pretty sister!

Farewell Culver's run

They are just too cute together

Will he be taller when she gets home?

The only picture where we were all facing forward and Brooklyn has spit up coming out of her mouth...ha

See you in 18 months!

Transfer Week

Jamie's first transfer and first baptism:

Hi Family!!

Okay so since it is transfers this week, our Pday is on tuesday (today)! Wow I was not expecting this transfer and to be honest I am kinda scared but I know that it will be great! So I am staying in Britannia, the ward I am in now, but... I have a new companion. My companion is Sister Gibson (yes my MTC companion) and we have to train each other!! Ahhh I was expecting another trainer. hahaha I hope I am ready. but hey I guess the best way to learn is to just get thrown into it, right? It really will be great and I have another awesome district! 

Oh I think that it is so cool that Martha and I get to be out serving at the same time. Honeslty it really this the coolest thing ever!

Okay, So, last pday was crazy. We went to do a service project in the morning and we were suppose to to be back to our flat by so that we could make it to the chapel by 11 to teach a transition lesson... ya so on the way back we got totally lost and didn't get back to our flat until.... hahaha I was laughing so hard. It reminded me of the time we were in France and we got lost for like 5 hours. haha too good. 

Okay so enough about that, lets talk about the really great stuff that has happened! We have been finding new investigators like crazy!! I love going and out finding new investigators! honestly it wasn't my favorite at first but I got to the point where I liked it... but now I just love it. Sister Portillo and I do so well together! We have been getting so many step ins! She was telling me the other day that before we became companions she had only had one step in before and now we have been getting a lot! It is so awesome! I can really feel the spirit directing us in our work. There is no way I would be able to do this without that! People feel something different and that is what brings them in.

We met this girl named Greca and she is the sweetest thing! We are meeting with her again this coming week! Also, we met a girl named Jillian and we are meeting here not this week but the next because she is in the states.. It has been tricky finding new people because all of the students are in exams right now and so they don't have time.. but our progressing investigators are doing great! they really are progressing and it is so awesome to see! Oh and we met this new girl named Vicki. So she is from China and she really wants to know more about God and how to feel that He is there and that He loves us. Also, to know our purpose! We have met with her twice and we have another appointment with her tomorrow! She is so sweet and I am so excited to get to teach her!

And last but not least... ANDREEA GOT BAPTIZED!!!! It was so amazing! ahh seriously I love this. She was so excited! but it was so funny. Okay so on sunday we had 2 baptisms and we haven't had one in like 6 weeks and of course, this week the gas in the Visitors Centre broke.. so that means, no hot water. hahaha the elders tried boiling water and dumping it in the font but it was still freezing!!! when both of them came out of the water they had the funniest faces! oh too good! but it was awesome. I was just thinking about how cool it is and really how much it means! They both will get comfirmed next week at church and Andreea is SO excited for that! Also, she keeps saying, "I can't wait to go into the temple!" makes me so happy!

It really has been another great week! The ward here is awesome and I am really getting to know and love the people so much! There is nothing like this and I love it! I am excited to see what this next transfer brings. I know that I will learn SO much and I am excited for it! Well, I love you all so much and miss you!! I hope that everyone has a great week!!!

Love you!

Sister Ellsworth

Andrea and her sister missionaries! Ready to be baptized.

With the other young lady who got baptized. 

Sorry i couldn't get this one to flip...her she is with Andrea after her baptism.

Nametags

Here is a small section from Jamie's last email:

Finally, Andrea. She is getting baptized this coming Sunday!! She is the perfect person. She was the perfect referral. She loves everything that we teach her and is willing to live all of the commandments! She is so excited to get baptized! I will have to take pictures. It will be my first baptism!! YAY!

So all of the investigators are going really well right now and we are meeting a lot of new people. There is a girl we had a step in with and we set another appointment and we are going to meet with her again!

Oh so this past week was my very first Zone Conference. It is so fun. I love them. You get to see so many missionaries and they feed you! There were so many good trainings and talks. People were called on to give spot talks and luckily I didn't have to! haha I was so happy about that!

Then, this weekend was stake conference! On Saturday the stake leaders spoke to us and then yesterday it was a broadcast to all of England from Salk Lake! The talks were so good! It really has been a great week! I can't believe that in one week I will be done with my first transfer! Crazy how fast it went. I am excited to see where I get to go next or if I will stay in the same area! My district leader is leaving to go home and I am so sad about it! honestly, pretty much every single elder in my district is leaving either this transfer or next except for one. I am so sad they are all leaving!! but its okay... I guess. haha I am excited to meet more people!

 

Well not too much other stuff has happened... just the fact that today has been a CRAZY pday. I don't even know if it has been a pday at all.. haha well it has been good and I get to spend the rest of the day with sister Bergy so I am excited!! Well I am glad to hear that everyone is doing good! I love hearing from all of you! I love you all and I will talk to you next week!! LOVE YOU

 

Love, Sister Ellsworth

With some of the other sisters in the Visitors Center

Her new name badge: They added a flag so people can identify which language they speak

With Andrea, their investigator 

Jamie and Sister Portillo, her 1st companion

Her and her bestie, Sister Bergstrom 

Mother's Day!

May 13th:

So I don't have an official letter from Jamie this past week because we got to skype with her on Mother's Day. What a joy. It was so fun to see her face. She was glowing and so happy. I should've taken some screen shots but I didn't. Sorry. We got to meet Sister Bergstrom...her favorite. My mom had actually gone upstairs for a moment when she called so I got to answer the phone. She was able to see baby Brooklyn before we put her down for a nap. Everyone got a chance to talk with her...well those that were here. All of the cousins that were over for Martha's farewell talk and brunch just sat and watched her. She is working hard and having fun and couldn't be happier. Here are some pictures she sent this week:

With her bestie 

With one of their investigators 

Love this bridge

I guess they are always matching 

Tomorrow Martha leaves on her mission and I will be blogging for both of them. Can't wait to hear about Martha's adventures in learning Japanese!

Investigators

Jamie is having a blast in London and in the ward she is serving in. She loves being able to serve in a ward with people her age. She's doing great.

Hi family!!!!

I love getting to hear from all of you each week! It makes my day to see so many people write me and to get to hear about all of your lives back home!! It sounds like things are going great!!

Okay so there have been some pretty awesome things happening here. Me and my companion were the "VIP's" in zone training because our last week was so good. So that was really fun! This past week we taught SO MANY LESSONS. Seriously we had like no time to go out and find people because we were either teaching or in the visitors center. We have like 4 progressing investigators at the moment which they are so fun to teach. I love getting to see them and just building a friendship with them.

Andrea- She is the best! She is a sweet girl from Romania. She comes to church every week. Oh and guess what, I extended a baptismal invitation for her for the 26th of May and she said yes! I was so scared at first but then it was great! She has such a good heart and she knows that the things we are teaching her are true. She just loves seeing us and having lessons and we are planning to have a pday with her next week. She is going to go out and tour London with us!! I think that it will be so fun!

Chris- He is a very very strong catholic and at first he had a lot of questions. After the first lesson we decided that he can still ask questions but at some point we have to take control of the lesson and teach him something. That is what we did this last time and it was awesome! He so so good and he promised to come to church next week but he is pretty nervous at making friends so I hope we can find some good people to fellowship. He says that he really wants to know that the Book of Mormon is true and that he prays about it all the time. I promised him that if he kept doing that that he would get his answer. It is so cool how as a missionary you can promise things! I love it!

Cara- She is from the US and we are kinda having a hard time with her. She wants to get baptized and LOVES going to church but she is having a hard time with the Word of Wisdom. She doesn't see how drinking tea is bad so she is not really willing to stop yet... I told her that instead of just doing that, that she should ask Heavenly Father how this will help her and to help her have the strength to stop. I hope that she will because she is so awesome and I know that she really wants to get baptized!!

Rooshin- He is getting a PHD in Medicine and he has NO TIME to meet with us!! seriously. We get to see him like every two weeks so it is hard. BUT he loves everything that we are teaching him and really wants it in his life. He sees how is can bring him happiness and he wants to be able to feel God's love for him all the time he says. I think that he is really great and I know the Holy Ghost will touch him!

Okay so funny story. This week we traveled a lot to go to appointments. We went to this new part where I have never been before and let me tell you, EVERYONE spoke Spanish. I felt like I stepped into south America of something. Anyway, we met this guy and we were talking to him. Sister Portillo took a phone call so it was all just me. I was trying to talk to him and it was going okay.. at least I thought. To be honest towards the end I had no idea what was going on. haha so he went to say bye and I went to shake his hand. Then he grabbed my hand and pulled me in, but don't worry it was just a kiss on the cheek. hah but I had no idea what was going on and then he started talking about something they do in his country because he could tell I was surprised. haha my companion saw and was so shocked! It was too funny!

This week we had a ward activity and we went to the park to play football (soccer)- I am still trying to get use to that. But it was so much fun! I love being in a singles ward because there are so many fun activities and they are all your age so it really is just so much fun!

Then yesterday was fast sunday and on every fast sunday the bishop has all of the missionaries in the ward over. Man, I never get meal appointments since I am in a singles ward so this was sooooo nice. The food was so good and it was fun because we played a quick game! It was nice to be around a family again! oh and another time we get feed is every saturday by the senior couples here at the visitors center. The meals are always SO good. Probably my favorite day of the week...... hahaha

Well sorry this one is a shorter email but the work here is great! I realize I love it more when I am working harder. Time is flying here surprisingly. I have already been in London for 3 weeks and it feels like I just got here! I seriously LOVE my district. We have the best elders in the whole mission, I think! and this past week we had zone training. I love having that. Seriously I love my district too! I am so close with all of them since I always get to see them and we all always play basketball together. They are like my family here and I LOVE IT!!

I love all of you so much!!

Love, Sister Ellsworth 

at one of the tube stations

With her trainer and companion

The Elders in her District 

The Sisters in her District 

Loving London

So I am a little behind on updates so here it goes:

April 29, 2012

Wow a lot has happened this week! It is crazy how fast the week goes by here. It feels like you are almost counting p-days. I am actually surprised at how fast it is already going considering I am pretty new at this. I haven't even been here for 2 weeks but I feel like I have known everyone here for so long! 

Okay, so the first week that I was here... I'll be honest, we did horrible. Our numbers were so low and we had no one on track to get baptized. SO, we figured that we needed to try harder. We had a mission wide conference call with the mission president and he said the same thing. So we decided to give it a try. This week we decided to fast for 2 days. Not right in a row, don't worry i'm not that crazy. We did on tuesday and on saturday. WOW. It is crazy how just having a little bit more faith and working a little bit harder gets ou so many miracles and blessings! As you know, I do online chat as part of the visitors center. I have always thought that there was no point and that no one would really change from chatting online. But wait, I was wrong, of course. The day we fasted we went out finding on the street to try and get more investigators. I thought that by fasting we would get someone... nope. It was when I was not ready for it. It was on chat. We were talking to a girl for the first time. She was so interested and asked how to become a member and to get the book of mormon. She said she was overwhelmed with the spirit. we invited her to be baptized, sent missionaries to her, and she is being taught right now! Sad that I can't teach her but I am happy that a least someone is! Then, the second time we fasted we got a girl who came to church with her cousin who is a member. Her sister is also a member and she said that she saw a change for better in them and that she wanted what they both had. We taught her a short lesson after church (which she loved) and then we have an appointment with her this week. Honestly it is so great.

I know that I needed to get better... I was so scared to go and talk to people on the street for like the first week haha it is scary! A lot of people reject you and some people talk to you. You have to have a lot of confidence in what you are saying. I made it my goal to stop everyone I passed. okay, I maybe didn't get everyone but I did improve. I am not scared to go and talk to people anymore which is great!! yay finally! and actually because of it we met this really sweet girl named Neha. We invited her to come into the visitors center so we could just teach her for like 10 minutes. She came in and we have another appointment with her this Tuesday! I never thought that we would be able to get a step in but we did! I was so happy! ahhh

Then, in the visitors center this boy came in and me and my companion taught him with the pictures in the center. He is very catholic and is very comfortable in his church but he told us that for some reason he felt a pull to come into our church and see what it was all about. We taught him for like and hour! He ended up leaving with a Book of Mormon, a chapter we wanted him to read, and a return appointment with us!! Seriously, we have been meeting so many people it is awesome! We also still have our other 2 progressing investigators and we are going to invite them to be baptized this week! It is so true when people say the harder you work the better it is. Time goes by so much faster and it is so much fun!

I love it here! I get to meet so many people all of the time and that is my favorite thing! I am always able o talk with them and really get to know them! Oh and also, London is GREAT! I will send you all some pictures of what we saw last week! It was so fun to just be able to walk around and see everything. I am already in love with this city. and don't worry, I will probably weight 500 pounds when I get back. There are some foods here that are just soooo good and people always bring us snacks! hah but I love it. Oh well at least I knew it was coming, right?

Oh and one last thing, I HAVE NOT TAUGHT ONE PERSON WHO IS FLUENT IN ENGLISH / IT IS THERE FIRST LANGUAGE. Pretty sure that we are giving so many English lessons and that my head hurts after every one of them! haha there is his one girl who doesn't know like anything but she is so sweet and she came to church yesterday!! Really though I am surprised at how many people we teach from all over the world! I guess I will come back knowing like 5 languages.

Also, my ward is the best. The people are so friendly and since it is a singles ward, we have so many activities!! I love it. We have institute and FHE and last week we had a talent show! Then this coming Saturday we are playing football (soccer) at the park. so fun. I love playing sports and we always are! I love it so much. 

Well I have to get going but I promise that I will send those pictures!  I LOVE YOU GUYS!!

Love, Sister Ellsworth

Standing next to all the Mormon ads in the tube

She tried fish and chips but didn't say how she liked it

Site seeing on p-day 

With her favorite MTC companion in London

With her trainer and somebody else