I Just LOVE This Place!!

My dear, lovely, and gorgeous family and friends,

 

Well, I love you. I love you all SO MUCH.

 

Things here in Sheffield are going pretty darn fantastic! I love this place with all of my heart. This city is where it is AT for missionary work. I love teaching the Slovakian people so much. Sure, there are speed bumps, and I'm no where near a perfect teacher, but the love that I have for them is so incredible!

 

WE HAD A MIRACLE THIS WEEKKKKKK!!!! Jan and Jana Pecha got MARRIED!!!! And I would send you pictures of it . . . but I forgot my cord at my flat . . . oops. :/ So those will be sent next week. But it was FANTASTIC!! The greatest smallest soberest gypsy wedding that there ever was! 

I don't actually know if I've explained this to you all, but the peole that we teach, while they are from Slovakia, are not technically 'Slovakian's'. They are actually Romani Gypsy and they speak Roma and Slovakian. They are originally from India and just travel from place to place every couple of generations. But, nevertheless, I just love them all so much! Anyway, Jana is getting baptized on the 11th of August, after her husband gets the Aaronic Priesthood, so he can baptize her. :D

 

Well, not much else. But you all are fantastic and I love you!!

 

Have a fantastic week!!

 

<3,

Sestra Ali Stoutova

I'm Staying in Don Valley!

Hello my beautiful family and friends!!!

 

Man, a ton of stuff happened this week. We got our transfer calls yesterday and I am staying in Don Valley for another transfer with Sister Harrop! So that will be fun! But I know that this is my last transfer here. . . well I don't really KNOW know. I can just feel that my time in DV is coming to an end. Which is so sad, because I absolutely LOVE it here. I am so excited for you to come next year and see all the people I love and adore so much!!! Anyway, the biggest thing that happened is that my district leader, Elder Gee, who is so much fun and nearly my favorite person ever, is leaving the mission!!! :o Which kind of stinks. He is going over to the Manchester Mission for two transfers and an Elder from the Manchester mission is coming to DV. His name is Starsi Sandor and he is from Slovakia! So that will be a huge blessing to the Slovakian group, but to me. . . it kind of stinks. I get so attached to the people I serve with and I hate it when they leave. . . :( My ZL, Elder Pearse, who has been my ZL for three transfers, is going home this week as well. He's probably my favourite ZL so far. So, yeah, sad stuff is happening.

A less-active member, Jan Pecha, and his long time nonmember partner, Jana Pechova, who we have been teaching for FOREVER are getting married on Friday!!! :) Which is so happy! They are so much fun and probably my favourite Slovakian family here. Jan always calls me his Sestra.  They have 6 boys and I love them all SO much!

I don't have much else to say . . . but I LOVVVVVEEEE you!!! <3

Sestra Ali Stoutova

I'm Learning So Much

Heeeellllllllloooo! Another week come and gone. I'm doing well, as is Don Valley. I was super mega tired this week, which was weird, but other then that I am doing SOOOOO fantastically!! I just adore being a missionary.

 

Well, every week we choose one key indicator to focus on and then create a plan of action of how we are going to accomplish our goal and last week we focused on scheduling people for baptism. And normally it takes all week to accomplish our goal, but we were able to do it on TUESDAY!! Miraculous! I think there has been only one other time that my main goal has been accomplished that early. :) So that was super happy.

 

Hey and I'm sorry about how rubbish I am about writing letters. I know some people have written me (and not exactly recently . . . ) and I still haven't replied. Just know that I still love you! I am trying to find time, but everything just happens too quickly here and p-day seems like they end before they even begin. But I should be getting some letters out today, we are taking a more relaxing p-day. One with less elders and more sleeping. :)

I only have 7 months left . . . this is freaking me out. My year mark is in a month.

 

I would like to tell you all about my companions and the things I have learned from each of them. My mom (the sister who trained me), Sister Smith, goes home in a week. I'm actually really sad about it. She taught me so much and she really helped me to overcome my shyness, at the beginning, because I reverted into my shell really bad when I came out into the field. She honestly taught me everything I know about being a missionary.

 

Second Sister Terry, my follow up trainer. She is the most tender girl I have ever met. She taught me how to relax a bit. Even when things get bad, if we just stay calm things turn out pretty much the same as they would have if I had been stressing. She also taught me to just be HAPPY!!

 

Then Sister Evans. She taught me that I don't want to be the dreaded companion. I never want people to be scared around me. I want my companions to feel loved and appreciated, not like they are always in trouble. She also taught me to not care what people think about me and that if I'm just myself, people will like me more. I also learned that I need to take more initiative.

 

With Sister Brown I learned that being LOUD and CRAZY is SO MUCH FUN!! And to not be embarrassed to just laugh and act kind of dumb. I also learned how much I had grown as a missionary and that I actually knew how to follow the Spirit.

 

Then my beloved Sister Freeman. She taught me how to be myslef. I don't need to act different around each person. I learned to love myself. I learned why God loves me. I learned that when the Lord puts you somewhere with a person he wants you to grow. Sister Freeman is ME and I am HER. I know that I am her best friend, and she is one of mine. My life physically altered when I served around her.

 

Then there is my wonderful daughter, Sister Harrop. She has taught me that I actually kind of know what I'm doing and has shown me that the Lord trusts me. :) 

I am a changed person. I am not who I was before. I have a faith and a courage that I never knew was possible.

 

Know that I love you all and that I know that Jesus Christ is our Saviour and Redeemer and this Work is just absolutely inspired!! <3

 

Have a good week!!

 

<3,

Sestra Stoutova

Happy 4th!

Hi family and friends!!

 

This week was pretty fun. We taught Slovakians and ate A LOT of food. Haha. Slovakians LOVE to just feed us at every appointment. Pretty darn hilarious. And my stomach is always stuffed to the max.

 

I absolutely love being a missionary. there is honestly nothing to compare it to. There is nothing else that you can do in this life that can even slightly measure up. We, as members of the church, try really hard to be missionaries, but that can be so difficult with also having real life to take care of. None of us have that here. We just wake up at 6:30 every morning, work out, study, and then WORK. All day, everyday. Glorious, glorious work. I have never been so motivated to try my best at anything like I am motivated to do my best on my mission. And if there is anyone who is unhappy doing the work, it's because they aren't doinng the work. Honestly, the greatest secret of missionary work is WORK. Working has brought me this unknown level of happiness that I never want to get rid of. Thinking about that time makes my stomach churn.

 

Today is P-DAY! And you all know how I love to tell of my adventures on this day, so now I will. :)

 

We went to this national park called the Peak District. It was WAY epic and fun. We played in some forests and on some rocks and we stared at some sheep and some squirels and then I fell in a mud pile. But it was all apart of the wilderness experience! :D We did it as a whole zone, so that was really fun!

 

Also, last week I got to go to Leadership Training, since I'm training Sister Harrop and that was pretty fantastical! President Lindley just dropped all kinds of knowledge on us. And his knowledge is the best kind. Next to the prophet, and, of course first and foremost, Heavenly Father. :) 

 

But I think that's about it for now. . . I love you all SOOO much!!

 

<3,

Sestra Stoutova

ps - The thing with Devon is pretty hilarious!! Haha, unfortunate, obviously, because he chopped his finger off, but funny, nonetheless.

Fish Pedicure... :)

MOMMMMMMMYYYYYY!!!

So, I'm sure you all loved England! It's impossible to NOT love England. This place will always hold a huge place in my heart. My beautuiful, amazing, fantastical second home.

This week was CRAZY!! Alicia was not able to get batized, but we are working with her. It will be soon, hopefully. :)

So, today is P-Day, which always ensues craziness!! Already this morning we went to an English children's park. Which ALWAYS is fun. There is this spinny thing where you run around in a circle and try to not fall. Pretty crazy! And then the elders put me in this metal bowel and just spun me as fast as they could! I almost threw up, but it was fun nonetheless. And I think later we are going to get our feet eaten by fish. I don't know how I feel about it.I have a hard enough time with a regular pedicure, let alone a ton of fish biting at my feet. :/ Should be interesting.

 The rest of this week was good. Nothing really noteworthy, I guess. Which I guess I should think of something. . . . ummm. . . my Slovakian is getting way better! I am figuring out how to conjugate somethings and I'm learning a lor more words which is good!

I love you all and I miss you all as well!!! <3

Sestra Stoutova

So Many Miracles

People of my home,

This week has been rather nice! Last p-day we just spent some time at the chapel playing chair football and watching Prince Caspian, which is SOOOOOO doctrinally accurate. It literally made our little missionary minds explode. And then the elders wanted me to break this board so badly and I did my darndest, but to no avail. The board was SOOOO thick. They were crazy if they thought I could actually do it. It was way fun to try though. :)

As for The Work this week. . . it was wonderful! We are having a baptism this SATURDAY!!!! YESSSSSS. Her name is Alicia and a bunch of her family are already membersand she said that she was finally ready!! She has been taught by the Elders for a long while now, but they said that they wanted to let us work with her and see is we could help her progress. :D  So miracles are happening EVERYWHERE!!!!

I love my mission so much! And I love you all as well!!! Talk to you next week!! :)

<3,

Sestra Ali Stoutova

Sister Harrop and I are bonding, you'll love her!

We Had Another Baptism

So this week has been CRAZY!!! But still epic. We had a BAPTISM!!! Two, to be exact! :) Their names are Anna and Jozef. They are 11 and 10 and are AMAZING! I love them so much!

Taking over the Don Valley area is not easy. I don't speak much Slovakian and we've faced a little adversity, but there is no doubt in my mind that everything is going to work out for the best. Basically, I'm learning how to speak better Slovakian REALLY fast. Haha.

Sister Harrop is great! She and I are really getting along and she is going to be a FANTASTIC missionary!! She is already amazing!

So, today, for p-day, some elders have been DYING to see me break something with my martial arts skills. So they found a 'bit of wood' which is actually a PLANK and they want me to break it. I don't know if I'll be able to, but I'm gonna try my best. :)These little elders are far too excited about it all. It's pretty hilarious.

Well, this email is short. I'm terribly sorry. This whole telling you what happens day by day is going to be alot easier when I'm home and I can just tell you stories. Or read my journal to you, which I have written in everyday of my mission so far. Anyway, I love you all so much!!

<3,

Sestra Ali Stoutova

The baptism of Anna and Jozef!!

My lovely daughter, Sister Harrop :D