Vacation, Sleepover, and Break-ins (update #47)

Yay!   There are pictures from her companion this week!  

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Bonjour tout le monde!!
As you can probably see from the title, it has been quite the week :)

Tuesday we had another miracle rendezvous with Danielle

Wednesday morning we hopped on a train to Toulouse for Zone conference. It was a conference with all the missionaries from Toulouse, Montpellier and Bordeaux, SO FUN! . 

We had our interviews with President on Wednesday and helped Soeur Brown make grilled cheese for everyone. We spent the night with Soeur Kelley (MY TRAINER) and Soeur Cusick in Toulouse and it was so fun to catch up.

Cami with three of her former companions (Soeurs Wilson, Kelley, and Wadsworth)

 Then Thursday was zone conference, during which we found out that during the night the APs' car with all of our packages in it was broken into. A lot of people had packages from home stolen and my replacement iPad was stolen! Apparently j'ai une malediction de tablettes hahah. When I found out I literally just laughed; What are the chances that my iPad would get stolen out of my bag and then two weeks later, my replacement one would get stolen out of the assistants' car? C'est la vie.

So that was fun. We came back to Bordeaux Thursday night and had one normal day to be missionaries before Stake Conference started on Saturday. And I think it was one of the coolest days of my whole mission. Highlights include our rendez vous with Dimitri and Danielle.

Dimitri is an ancient ami we called at the beginning of this transfer. At the beginning he was super honest with us and told us that he wasn't convinced that our church was true and that he was just meeting with us out of curiousity. With every rendezvous he gradually comes around a little more and this time he agreed to be baptized when he feels like God has given him a direct answer and he said that he wants to come to church next week (something he said he would never do before)! It's incredible to see how the spirit works to soften people's hearts and change lives.

Then we had Danielle. Danielle is incredible. We went out and met her at the gat of the chapel then brought her inside to one of the only air conditioned rooms for our lesson. As we sat down she said she had a story to tell us. something "inexplicable." A little nervous about what that meant, we prayed and then listened to her talk. She then goes on to share with us that Tuesday night after our rendez vous she went home feeling really discouraged. She asked herself what the point of even trying was, she felt that she didn't know enough abut the scriptures or religion and that she didn't really want to keep meeting with us. The next day she was on the computer for something else. She said she couldn't tell us what she searched, what she clicked on, or how she ended up there, but she ended up on a website (mormon.org) that responded to all of her questions. She read the entire FAQ page (it's a tab at the top, you should read it too). She said the more she read, the more she felt an inexplicable feeling in her heart. She described it as a "pressure, like a peace" that filled her chest.

What I love most about Danielle's story is that it's so real. The truth is that life isn't all roses. Satan is real and he is doing his very best to stop us from being happy. Right when Danielle was on the verge of discovering something incredible, a message that was going to change her life, Satan tried especially hard to hold her back. To tell her that she was wasting her time, that she wasn't good enough. But Danielle chose to lead with her faith. She chose to take steps forward anyway, and she was blessed by feeling the Spirit stronger than she ever had before in her life. Opposition comes, but when we lead with our faith, miracles come too. And I've really seen that the worst opposition often comes before the biggest miracles.

The day before I contacted Danielle on the bus was one of the hardest days of my mission. Not for any specific reason, I was just struggling. I found myself on my knees with tears running down my face just feeling inadequate and horrible about life. The answer I got from Heavenly Father was that all I needed to do was love people. To focus on loving my companion, loving our members, loving my mission, loving everyone, and everything would work out. That's why I'm here on my mission.

The very next day I sat down next to Danielle on the bus.

Faith precedes miracles, but often, so does opposition.

Our rendezvous with Danielle ended with us fixing a baptism date for July 15!! It probably won't actually be that soon because she needs to come to 3 Sacrament meetings before then, but it was such a spiritual experience anyway.

Saturday (after our rendezvous with Danielle) the Brive and Poitiers sisters came in for Stake Conference! We had the adult session on Saturday and the session for everyone on Sunday and between the two we had all the sisters at our apartment for a sleepover which was a blast.

Anyway, life is great :) I'm really sad because this is Soeur Wadsworth's last week of her mission and I just don't want her to leave at all. But that's life I guess. Stay tuned next week to find out who my new companion will be :)

Love you all! Thank you so much for all your faith and prayers!

Soeur Camille Goold

Spending time with the Le Camus family.  They are wonderful.

Wearing her Christmas PJs!  :) 

District meeting (?)

Christina is an ami that's recovering from cancer....

 

A lunch out...

 

P-Day in beautiful Arcachon! 

 

C'est La Vie (update #45)

Note from mom: Cami's iPad and wallet were stolen this week, so there are no pictures today. :( And she was typing on a French keyboard (and I am sending this from my iPhone), so forgive the typos.
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June 12, 2017

Bonjour tout le monde!!!
Life is pretty good over here in Bordeaux. :)

This Wednesday we had the sisters from Poitiers in our sector FOR AN EXCHANGE WHICH WAS SO MUCH FUN. Sorry that was in all caps... French keyboards suck (and mom's editing from her iPhone), so I'm not going to go back and fix it :) Anyway, Soeur Hendrickson and I went on an exchange together and it was exactly what I needed. Right before I was feeling just a little bit tired and worn out, but then the sisters got here and everything was better. And we saw some super cool miracles!!

On the way to our rendezvous at midi with a member we got to the bus stop early. I was looking at the map as the bus arrived while another lady signaled to the bus to stop, but it drove right by! What?! That meant we would have to wait 30 more minutes for the next bus to come and we would be 30 minutes late for our rendezvous instead of right on time. After about 5 minutes of waiting, a lady walks up to the bus stop saying "oh non, je me suis trompé le bus." Then, as soon as she saw us she says "vous êtes des mormons?" That immediately led to an amazing 30 minute conversation about faith and God and missionary work. Apparently she took all the missionary lessons 10years ago. We got on the bus together and exchanged numbers and she said she would love to meet with us again. Right before we got off the bus she lowered her voice and said the only reason she didn't continue with the Mormons was because she felt too pressured by her baptism date and that she will be baptized when she's ready, but that it was the Mormons who taught her not just to know about God, but to know God. I told her I believed it was God who helped us both miss our bus and meet that morning and she agreed full heartedly.
We should have been on the first bus that came, but for some reason he didn't stop. She takes this bus every day so it was not normal for her to mess up and take the wrong direction and to end up on our bus. But we did miss our bus and so did she. Someone is doing their work over on the other side of the veil because this was not a coincidence.


So that was super cool, then just hanging out with Soeur Hendrickson was fun because we came into the MTC together!! We took a cute picture, but you'll just have to take my word for it ;)


<< C'est la vie>> are definitely the three words I have used the most this week thanks to the unfortunate event that took place saturday morning.
Saturday morning we went to samedi sportif in Bordeaux with all the other missionaries and a bunch of amis. As usual, a bunch of random people that we didnt know came and went throughout the game. They would come play for a few minutes, then take a rest in the shade next to our bags, then come back and play. Nothing out of the ordinary. Almost everyone left about 30 minutes before we did, so at the end it was just the missionaries and a couple of our amis de l'eglise. We went over to get our bags and when I picked mine up I noticed it was weridly light... and then when I looked inside it was also strangely empty. Someone stole my iPad and my wallet with my drivers license, temple recommend and all my cards in it. So that was a fun morning. But all is well, C'est la vie. I got to call my parents to tell them to cancel my credit card which was a huge tender mercy!And everything will work out, we're just going to spend a little more time in the prefecture and police station than anticipated and I'm going to have to go without an iPad and money for an undetermined amount of time... but it really doesnt make a huge difference because Soeur Wadsworth is the best person ever and shares everything with me; Thank goodness for companions :)

So anyway, if you're noticing the distinct lack of photos it's because all my photos are running around Bordeaux with some random dude. And the even higher quantity of spelling and grammatical errors we will go ahead and blame on the French keyboard I'm using instead of my iPad.

It's actually been a little cool to have all my "items of value" stolen because it has helped me realize to what point none of that is important. Is it inconvenient to have no way to buy anything or an iPad to show videos or do studies or qreq book or planning on? Of course. But has it made any difference in my overall happiness or success as a missionary? Not at all.

La vie est belle!! With or without an iPad to take pictures of it :)

Well, I hope you have a great week!!! Love you all

Cami

Miracles in Bordeaux (update #46)

She still doesn't have an iPad, so no pictures this week.

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June 19, 2017

Hello everyone!!!

Life in Bordeaux is absolutely incredible. Soeur Wadsworth is so much fun, we're seeing tons of miracles, all the members and missionaries are incredible. Life is just good. Very hot and sunny, but good.

I'll start off with two of the biggest miracles EVER:

So the first one happened today. First, a little background. Do you remember the last miracle I wrote you about when we met the lady at the bus stop who had already taken all the lessons and only didn't get baptized because she didn't feel ready, but was super excited to fix a rendezvous with us? Anyway, the day after I sent the letter telling you about that miracle, I called Florencine (bus stop lady) to fix a rdv. But HER NUMBER DIDN'T WORK. I was devastated. Would I throw away this huge miracle God handed to us just because I misunderstood or miswrote her phone number? In that moment I just prayed with all of my heart that God would make it so that we would meet her again one day.

That brings us to Saturday: we were at the church for conseil de paroisse (ward council) and then making cupcakes because the Primary president asked us to. It was getting to be lunch time so we decided to go grab a baguette sandwich, but the bakery was out of sandwiches, so we ran to the grocery store to find something to eat. Normally we never should have been at the grocery store Saturday morning... but guess who I see as we're standing in the checkout line?! FLORENCINE!!! She's walking away so the second we finish checking out I just turn to Sr. Wadsworth and say "We need to talk to that lady and we need to run" so with our lunch in hand, we run across this huge parking lot as fast as we can to catch up to her. We take a moment to catch our breath so we don't scare her and then call out her name. Florencine turns around and is SO HAPPY to see us. She said she normally wouldn't have been at the store either except for the fact that she had forgotten something. When I said her number didn't work she said "here, let me call you so you will definitely have it!" Then as we were saying goodbye she said "I'll be waiting for your call, okay!"

It is just one more grand evidence to me that Heavenly Father loves each of His children, but more than that, he is preparing them. And he is not going to let my human weaknesses like messing up a phone number get in the way of His work.

The second miracle is perhaps even better. Monday afternoon we got on the bus to go to the gare to pick up the Brive soeurs for our exchange. As I sat down next to a woman the words just came out of my mouth and I started talking to her. About the weather I think.... We talked a little about how I was a missionary and what our purpose is, but it wasn't a particularly special conversation. I left her with a card and told her to text so we could fix a rdv another day. Fast forward a few hours and my phone meows (my text sound is a cat haha...idk why) and it's DANIELLE! Saying she just wanted to thank me for talking to her about God. No one has EVER responded to one of my cards in the hundreds that I've given out. We fixed a rdv for the next day. The next day Soeur Hughes and I teach her le retablissment/ lesson 0 with a member. It was a really good lesson, but again, nothing super special or out of the ordinary. Until the end. When Danielle turns to me and says "When I was on the bus yesterday, I was feeling completely overwhelmed by life. I was thinking about what I should do to overcome all my problems, completely lost in my thoughts. And then you came and sat next to me and started talking to me about God. And I feel like God is trying to tell me something. etc etc" My eyes filled with tears as I testified to her that Heavenly Father is indeed trying to tell her something: that He loves her and that she is on the right path and that He has more help and hope to send her.

THEN, the next day my phone meows again. It's Danielle saying that she just was contacted by another missionary on the bus!!! We call the elders and it turns out Elder Nelson sat down and talked to her, having no idea that she was our miracle new amie!! Danielle was so touched and really felt like God was showing her that she needs to act.

This morning we called her and she told us about how she has a lot of questions, mostly about how our religion can exist and not contradict the Bible. She said she started the Book of Mormon, read the whole retablissment (restoration) pamphlet and has been looking up articles on lds.org. She said she does not smoke or drink and it surprised her to see that is one of our beliefs in the church. She said it always seemed weird to her that she had no desire to smoke or drink and do "worldly things" even though it doesn't say that those are wrong things to do in the Bible.

It is absolutely breathtaking to be a little witness to all these incredible miracles. If I know anything it's that Heavenly Father is real and that He loves, prepares and takes care of His children. I love the way Nephi puts it:

19 And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted.

20 My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.

It's true that I make a million mistakes (in French and life in general) all the time, but I know in whom I have trusted. I trust in a Heavenly Father who loves His children. I trust in a God of miracles. And with that trust, I feel like I'm slowly starting to see a tiny glimpse of just how powerful His love is in this world.

In other news, this week we are headed to Toulouse on Wednesday for Soeur Wadsworth's last ever zone conference. Soeur Kelley AND Soeur Wilson will also be there and I'm SO PUMPED!!!

And today was such a fun pday at Arcachon (right next to the ocean) with all the elders and Fiona (coolest member in our ward)... hopefully I'll find a way to send pics soon :)

Anyway, sorry for the super long email, I'm just super excited about life. I LOVE YOU ALL!! Thank you so much for your prayers and support, they truly keep me going from day to day and mean the world to me.

Je vous aime avec tout mon coeur,

Soeur Camille Goold

Huit Baguettes... (update #44)

Hellooo!!
Not much to update on this week, Bordeaux is awesome. We do a lot of walking and get a lot of sun. The last two weeks have been a little bit of a shock because there are a lot of young families and young adults here which is super cool. But it's a huge change in noise level during church from Lausanne because almost the whole ward consisted of personnes un peu âgées hahah. It's so fun being able to serve in the different sides (literally) of the mission and see so many different wards.

This week we had MLC which was really cool.

We talked a lot about what's next after the Paris temple consecration. In all honesty, After seeing so many miracles leading up to the temple consecration and being so excited for so long, I was scared that after the consecration I would be disappointed. What would there be to look forward to? I found the (obvious) answer while studying in preparation for the consecration.


In Our Heritage chapter 3, it says:

<< With the completion of the temple, the Lord poured out powerful spiritual blessings upon the Saints in Kirtland, including visions and the ministering of angels. Joseph Smith called this period “a year of jubilee to us, and a time of rejoicing.” Daniel Tyler testified, “All felt that they had a foretaste of heaven. … We wondered whether the millennium had commenced.” >>

It was not just before, but WITH the completion of the temple that the blessings were poured out. What do we have to look forward to now? Powerful spiritual blessings. The ministering of angels. A year of jubilee and rejoicing. A foretaste of heaven. I'm sure that the best miracles are yet to come.

For district meeting on Thursday Elder Hansen asked us to bring 8 baguettes so we went to the little bakery in our neighborhood. It turns out it wasn't open yet but the door into the back kitchen was open so we walked up to them and in our charming American accents asked if any other bakeries were open. They of course asked what we needed and when we said "huit baguettes" they proceeded to pull 8 baguettes directly out of the oven and put them in a bag for us. Anyway, there was absolutely no value or importance of that story, it was just a moment that made me really happy to live in France where there are more bakeries and baguettes than anyone knows what to do with.

Soeur Wadsworth and I are having a blast together. I'm so blessed to be with her for her last transfer, she's literally so cool.

The end of this last week was honestly a little rough for me. Everything with Soeur Wadsworth and Talence is amazing, but I just found myself missing home a little and feeling a little discouraged about how much progression I still have to do to become the missionary/ human being I need to be. A little discouraged by not having any super progressing Amis in this moment and feeling like I'm not a good enough missionary to go find them.


Sunday morning before church I stumbled upon a talk by Elder Scott called "Finding Happiness." I know this is something I've talked about before, but it seems to be something I need constant reminding of. It gave me back the joyful perspective that I lost sight of a little bit for a couple of days.


The perspective that there is no need to be discouraged because of my personal weaknesses because:
"It is a principle of happiness to work hard and to obey willingly the principles of truth, confident that the Lord will open doors of help when needed."


True happiness is so much grander and better than always having what I want. If I want to find new Amis who are truly ready to listen, what do I need to do? "Work hard and obey willingly," trusting that God will make up for everything I can't do. It really isn't the missionaries who make the work happen, its Heavenly Father preparing His children everywhere and we just open our mouths. And that's what makes me happy. I'm so happy to know that we have a Heavenly Father who loves and takes care of His children. Who helped me learn French and helps me to keep learning every day. Who has given me the best companions on the face of the planet. Who has let me be a witness to incredible miracles. Has let me seen the infinite healing and enabling power of the atonement work in people's lives first hand.


Happiness is so much more profound than a passing mood, it's a state of being that comes from how we choose to view our circumstances. Elder Nelson said: "My dear brothers and sisters, the joy we feel has little to do with the circumstances of our lives and everything to do with the focus of our lives."


And speaking of joy, something that brought me so much joy this week was seeing almost all my former companions at MLC!! 

Soeur Jones, Soeur Kelley, Soeur Goreeba. Seriously the best ever. 

While it's true joy can be found in any situation, it's also true that the circumstances of my life are pretty top, I'm so blessed and just so lucky to be here right now.

I love you all, have a great and happy week!
Love,
Soeur Goold