The Ukrainian Bear

Week of June 9th-15th

Dear Family and Friends!

This past week has been another awesome one here in Ukraine! Things are going great here and I am just loving life right now! I forgot to tell you but last week was transfer week. I am still staying with Elder Knight as one the Assistants! I am so happy because I love serving with him. This transfer is when we get our new mission president which is so exciting! I cant believe that today is the official beginning of my 10^th transfer! It is so weird because I am becoming one of the older missionaries in the mission. It does not feel that way at all. I still feel so young! It is very strange! Well we had a pretty crazy week!

On Tuesday we had district meeting in the morning. It was very good. Usually we have always had district meetings all in English but we starting doing them in Russian now! It was very interesting but so cool to have a district meeting in Russian. It was a descision from our President because he has realized that we have no young missionaries! Because of the situation here in Ukraine we haven’t received any new missionaries for 4 transfers and aren’t getting any till probably the new year!!!! Before we had a very young mission and with Russian being so difficult district meetings were always in English. It is so cool to see how much our mission has grown! After district meeting we had to go to the train station to buy some tickets for transfer week because there was a mistake with the tickets we ordered!

Wednesday we went to a city called Vinnitsya! It is west of Kiev! It was about a 3 hour train ride! We had to go because we had to deliver some tickets for some missionaries because they had the wrong ones and weren’t going to make it to transfers! While we were there we met with some missionaries and had a little meeting. It was a really good little meeting! So this city Vinnitsya is soooooo beautiful. I want to serve there so bad! It is by the far the prettiest city in our mission! That night we then got on a train to come back home!

So Thursday was transfer day so we had to help a few missionaries at the office with the stuff. At night we had such an amazing experience. So the last few weeks I have been telling you about a member who we have been going to visit who has a non member husband! So we went over there on Thursday and the wife wasn’t home but the non member husband was here alone. He let us in and we got talking with him for a while. It was so amazing cause usually he doesn’t talk to us at all. We talked to him for a solid 45 mins about life and of course we brought up the church and invited him. As we were leaving we got out of the elevator and boom the wife was there. She was shocked to see us and asked us what we were doing and we told her we just met with her husband for the last 45 minutes. She started to cry. It was so amazing. She was so happy and just thanked us so much. It was a moment I will never forget. She has been trying her whole life just for him to talk to the missonaries and he always refused. It was so cool for us to get to have a solid 45 minute discussion with him. We are really praying and hoping that he will start to open up more with us and learn more about the church.

Friday we went to a little city called Brovary right outside of Kiev to do a baptismal interview. Elder knight did the interview. After that we got on a bus and went out to Zhytomyr! It is another city west of Kiev. We went to go on exchanges with the zone leaders out there.

So on Saturday I got to go on an exchange with Elder Boyce! He was my MTC companion. It was my first time on my mission getting to go on an exchange with him. It was so much fun. It was so strange cause last time we were on a lesson together was in the MTC when we didn’t know any Russian! So we had two lessons during the day. It was so awesome to be with him and to get to have some time to talk about our missions so far and everything that we have done. I love Elder Boyce so much and hope that I get to serve around him or with him sometime soon. At night time we got back on a bus and traveled back to Kiev. About 2 hours on bus. It was a good little exchange!

Yesterday Elder Knight woke up way sick so we stayed home most of the day. He has something wrong with his throat and he is all dizzy and stuff! Haha. He is doing better today!

Well that is all for this week! It was another crazy busy week! Only two more weeks with President Klebingat then President Packer is coming! It is going to be a very exciting time! This Saturday we are having our last mission conference with President Klebingat! I am so excited. It is going to be so weird and sad once President Klebingat leaves but It ok because I will see him on TV in a few months at General Conference time…. Hint hint… Well I love you and all hope you all have wonderful weeks!

Love

Elder Grochmal