Christmas, Carols, Cookies, Cool Characters, Cabbage soup

Wow! 

Hello everyone! This week has really been exciting. I haven't had one moment to stop and breathe. I love this season! And we have been so lucky this week to share a Christmas message with so many people. Our mission does this amazing thing where we have a little four minute video (this year it was the He is the Gift video in Czech or this other Piano Guys video with nativity scenes) and we carry it around in our little dvd player to peoples homes and share it with them. I have been all over this entire city this week with this little dvd player of joy! Haha yes of joy! We have shared it with former investigators, members, investigators, less actives, and even people we had never met before. It was such a blessing.

One incident, we went to find a woman named Renata who had given us her address. For some reason, it was incredibly hard to find the apartment building that she lived in, and it took us far too long to find it. After searching and searching, we eventually found it, and it was really strange because she did not even have a zvonček (what is this in English? It is like a doorbell but you ring it when you want to get buzzed in...I do not think I have ever known the word. Intercom? I do not know.) and she did not answer the door. Unfortunate but we were UNDETERRED. So we went to the nearest apartment building and I said to Sister Parsons, "We are not leaving this place without sharing our video, so who do you want to ring?" She picked someone immediately, and they answered, and when we asked if we could share our message, they were like, sure, why not? and buzzed us up! What a miracle! We got to share it with this really cool couple, and hope we brought the spirit into their home.

We had the most incredible opportunity to share the video with four different families this week. We are so blessed and privelaged (How do you spell this word I have no idea) to teach families. The spirit is always so strong with them because they are already participating in Gods plan by having a family and a lot of time they do not even know that! Truly it was an incredible experience to pray with them and to testify of Jesus Christ.

Another really weird miracle that happened this week was that I lost my really wonderful red glove when we went to training in Brno, and I was a little smutná, but then, weirdly enough, Ernest had it! Still confused about where he found it because I thought I lost it in Brno but that is cool.

Sister Parsons and I both got evaporated milk in our packages!

Haha so Christmas. What a party. We did not have snow, but it has been snowing ever since the 26th! We went to the Millers house, our senior service couple here in Košice, and they fed us shrimp and shrimp salad on Christmas eve, then when we returned on Christmas, they gave us more shrimp and ham and funeral potatoes (YES) It was fun to get together with everyone. We couldnt go out and proselyte on Christmas because of danger etc etc. But it was still fun! In the morning we went to a seniors residence to sing, and it was fun because when we got there, we had to wait for them to get out of Catholic mass, so I kind of got a taste of what they do in Christmas mass. Then we sang for a little while for a couple people (Literally haha) and it was so much fun to play carols on the piano and sing with everyone. Then we went and took pictures on the namestie (this was before the weather dropped to bitter freezingness) and then to the Millers to skype and play some games (Hooray!)

 hot chocolate and Christmas

We continued work (it seemed like forever before we could start teaching again!) and it was so much fun. The snow is here! And it is pretty cold! This week it is supposed to drop down to -18 C in the night. Woo hoo! I have to admit, I kind of enjoy wearing a gazillion layers and resembling an oompa loompa.

There are fireworks all over for new years! And Fireworks are just one of my most favorite things. They are so loud! There were some literally right outside our window the other night, and it was so exciting and wonderful, but they did not last long enough for me to get my camera, sorry. They were literally right outside our window!

Lastly, we were able to have a traditional Christmas dinner with the Van Dalens on the 26th. Cabbage soup, potato salad, salmon(usually it is carp but nobody actually eats carp because it is apparently very bony), and apple cake raisin dessert thing. And these delicious cookies that I do not know how to describe. They are like butter cookies shaped like crescents. And then the Van Dalens were so cute and gave us presents! A book about Košice and a candy bar. I cannot tell you how wonderful it was to open a picture book for Christmas. It reminded me so much of the books I have opened every year at my grandma abbott's house.


I am so grateful to be here at Christmastime! There is nowhere else I would rather be than representing Jesus Christ at this time of year when we celebrate Him and His life. I know He lives and I have seen His hand in the lives of everyone who we come in contact with! The tender mercies Nefi talks about in the first few chapters are real. In slovak, tender mercies translates to, well, basically Gods merciful love. And that is truly what they are and why we have them. Because of His merciful love.

s laskou,
sestra abbott

ps thank you everyone for the wonderful packages and letters! It made Christmas so good. Especially from my passey grandparents, parents (of course) and the young womens...The advent calendar was the best thing ever. 

Christmas: Lights, Markets, Turtlniks, and Drunks

Another beautiful week in Slovakia. I am literally living in a National Geographic Magazine. I am eternally sorry for not sending more pictures. But I am hore dole hore dole and crazy busy. The work
is hastening! These people here are amazing. They are pioneers and I feel like there are so many people searching for the truth who recognize it when they hear it.

First off, I am with Sister Parsons (From Montreal, MTC companion, best friend for life, etc etc). Second of all, it is Christmas. Which is my most favorite time of the entire year. There is the most wonderful spirit that we feel when we testify of Jesus Christ. We got the He is the Gift video translated into Czech, (still not Slovak, but still UZASNE) and I love it so much. This week, we had our Annual Branch Christmas party. It was such a party. Hahaha we did a Christmas program, watched a lot of mormon messages (So funny because we just have someone translate while it is playing), and played and sang a lot of Slovak and English Christmas songs. The best is that the missionaries have to sing the english songs, but there aren't very many of us, so I still play the piano and sing at the same time, which is sometimes a bit pathetic. President Van Dalen told me on sunday to either sing or play the piano. He wants to be able to hear my voice, so he likes it better without the piano. A Capella for days.

So at the party we had this program, you know, we read scriptures and things, and then we had the best food ever. We had the traditional cabbage soup that Slovaks eat on Christmas Eve (I have really taken a liking to these things: Cabbage/Sauerkraut, Homemade sausages, potatoes, sour cream. Still tolerating pickles.) Then they have potato salad..a little different than american potato salad but you know. Potatoes, potatoes. Then, usually, slovaks would eat Carp for christmas. Our branch was not going to buy fish for everyone. And turns out, most Slovaks do not have Carp. Whenever I am talking to someone on the bus or something about it, they all tell me that there are too many bones and it is too 1) hard to cook and 2) dangerous to eat, so everyone just eats whatever other fish they like. Then we had delicious pastries. I had no idea what was in them.

Anyway, so this week has really been jam-packed. We have so many people to teach that we do not have enough time to teach everyone! We are trying to call a million people to do Christmas visits, and it is really quite an excursion. It feels like I have been running a marathon for a whole week--but the best part is that I can do it! Such a good feeling. And yes, maybe sometimes we only have five minutes to stuff something down our throats for lunch, but it is so worth it.

A goal that I made was to talk to every family with kids that we see, no matter where we are. And what wonderful results we have seen from our sacrifice. We have been immensely blessed. We have gotten so many numbers--I could not believe when we totaled the 9 or 10 numbers we had received in our first 2 days. The best part about Sister Parsons and I being together again is yes, we are both very new. Yes, we have really been thrown into missionary work. But no, we are not drowning, and nothing can stop us! Somehow the language is here. We might not sound super educated and we are not always completely crystal clear, but the language is not a barrier! Which is wonderful! In fact, we travelled to Brno and back! Woohoo! (But really, that was a little intense)

Anyway, speaking of the language, I had to give a 15 minute talk on sunday in Slovak, which was a little intimidating. President Van Dalen said that he "wanted to hear about the Spirit of Christmas from someone who actually had it". So I really tried my best. It was kind of an awkward sacrament meeting since I also played the piano and sang a musical number. It was kind of like "Woo look at sister Abbott" A little awkward. 'specially since I probably said the same phrase in my talk 1000 times. Hahaha

Something that little poor sheltered Utah me did not know came with the holidays is this thing called alcohol. Haha so weird. They just sell so much hot wine and beer at the markets. But the markets are still so beautiful! I will spare you all the drunk/fireworks(really loud fireworks here) stories for now, but haha just something funny that happened this week was that we met this guy to teach him and of course he was in the marketplace, totally drunk and playing his accordian, and wanted to have a lesson right in the middle of the market, so I just thought, okay we will just teach him something really quick. Obviously that was a bad option because he was not listening at all, and I felt like we needed to leave, so (in slovak obviously), I just said quite firmly, We will Not teach you if you are drunk, and this is Not a spiritual place. We left and I was a little frazzled and Sister Parsons was just laughing so hard. It was pretty funny. All I know is that we are so protected by the promptings of the Holy Ghost! haha

Haha I am just laughing about this right now.

Done laughing. So we went to Brno this weekend (in the Czech Republic) for our Christmas training, and it was so wonderful! Although Kosice is so far away--haha, we are closer to the mission homes in Ukraine and in Hungary than we are to Prague--The train ride was fun because there was SNOW!!!!!!!!! We do not have snow in the city yet but going through the mountains was a winter wonderland. It finally felt like Christmas! Ah! And our training was so wonderful--we did a lot of Czech/Slovak traditions, like splitting an apple for good luck, eating wafers with honey and garlic on them, and floating candles in walnut shells. And of course, eating a huge meal. President talked about Christ (samozreme haha) and His life, and about the story of the people lifting their friend through the roof of His house to be healed. It was so inspiring. He talked about how we all need to "lift our corner" and that each and every one of us is a good missionary and we contribute, no matter where we are. He gave us all a kind of mutual blessing--well, it was literally a blessing, and it was really the coolest thing that has ever happened. I felt like I was getting a patriarchal blessing or something. It was really incredible.

Well, I don't have a ton of time to write, but I just want to wish everyone Merry Christmas! I love you all and am grateful for the influence each one of you has had on my life! This year I have thought a lot about the Shepherds, and about how they were really one of the only ones who had to exercise their faith in the Nativity scene. Mary, the wise men, Joseph--all were commanded by someone to fulfill their callings. But the shepherds had a clear choice. To go, to leave their sheep, and exercise their faith, to see a baby and believe that he was their Savior--or  to stay contentedly at their work. And they did. They chose to go and see their Savior, and to be the first to behold their Salvation. And when they did this, they immediately began to spread the word abroad, that a Messiah had been born, and that they had found their Salvation. How incredible they are!

(Sorry, blurry, but totally necessary)

Anyway, before I get too excited,

Merry Christmas,
Vesele Vianoce,

I will talk to some of you soon :)

s laskou,
Sestra Abbott

Here we are at another end...transfer week.

Transfer week! 

This week was completely crazy and remarkable at the same time. We did so much!

We taught so many people! We had so many miracles! I do not have very much time to write, but I just want to say that CAROLING IS AMAZING. That man we caroled up to last week? Yeah. He is amazing. He met with us and is the best human.

Then, we went caroling again this last sunday, and had such miracles. The cutest young mom put her two little girls up in the window to listen to us, and then they all came out and gave us Christmas ornaments, and set up a return appointment. Shortly afterwards we got two more return appointments, one with a family! And we handed out many pass along cards while people tried to give us money.


I finally made halusky by myself and it was a complete success.

We went to the 12 apostles, an amazing restaurant that Elder Bednar supposedly ate at. PS Do you know he has ancestors from Slovakia?

Discovered the cutest little place to tract at and have a return appointment there also.

The Christmas trh is still as cute as it ever has been, and is the most wonderful market. We got trtlniks, most delicious things, and sister seninger bought a hat that looks like a Koala. However, the namestie gets SO crowded and everyone is drinking hot wine at night so we kind of have to stay clear.

Lastly, we had transfer calls. I just put it out of my mind until it finally came. I was so terrified. Really. I had no idea about what was going to happen. But president called, and told Sister Seninger she was going back to Bratislava, where she started her mission exactly a year ago. Then he told me I was going to stay here in Kosice HOORAY and my companion was going to be..

wait, short side note, there is a girl in the library now that is on familysearch.org. We are freaking out and so confused.

Oh, so my companion is Sister Parsons!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can anyone believe this? Surely I still cannot. We are follow-up training each other. Hahahahaha
All I can do is laugh.

Today we went with the senior service couple here in Kosice to Presov to visit this really cool home for handicap people that we have been helping. It is really nice and the people there are wonderful. We sang for them and they all gave us little gifts.

Anyway, I am still as grateful as ever to be here in Kosice surrounded by wonderful people, and especially grateful to be serving the Lord! I know he will help us in this work and will support us after all that we can do. He is my feet, legs, and mind, and I hope I can do His will wherever I am!
I love you and will talk to you, well family, soon!!

happy holidays.



Sestra Abbott