Thinking about how I would write my email this week I think I'm going to change things up and make it a little easier to write and easier for you to read (I always have my readers in mind :). (I might have stole this set up from Nicole... :)

Something Missionary: This experience happened a little over a week ago and forgot to mention it last week, so a little catch up: Bodily and I were tracting in a pannelok (I'm never sure how to spell that word, I've seen 3 different spellings...) and after 3 floors of NO ONE answering we decided to just come back another day. On the way out we ran into Mia who was walking her dog. Not wanting to pass anyone up we strike up a conversation with her. She is a very strong Catholic but liked what we were saying. I cant remember exactly what was said but she expressed some concern. I followed up with a testimony about prayer and the blessings of knowing God is our Heavenly Father who wants to help and communicate with us. My grammar was jumbled, I mispronounced the words everywhere but after I finished she said that she felt this overwhelming feeling of warmth and comfort. Through my butchered Slovak the Spirit was able to rearrange the word order and make me sound coherent in her ears. I learned that the most important thing is just opening my mouth and let the words come the best as I can form them, the spirit will do the rest. Nothing came out of that contact, no appointment set up, no numbers exchanged, but it was definitely a miracle. Had we stayed in that pannelok we would have missed her. I would have missed out on that experience and she would have missed out on hearing a testimony and feeling something she, no doubt, needed to hear and feel.

Something Slovak: Last week Bodily and I went to Tesco, which is Europes Walmart. Only its a little nicer and doesn't have the connotation Walmart has in the States... So I guess it's like Target.. Anyways, we went to get a cart and I noticed that all of the carts were chained together and the only way to unlock the chain is to insert a 50 cent or a 1 euro coin into it. This is genius. Here's why: When you are finished with the cart you bring it back to the cart return, put the chain back on and out spits your coin. not returning the cart=not getting your money back. The result is a parking lot clear of carts and there are always carts ready to be used.

Something with the Branch: On Sunday Bodily and I unveiled the Branch Mission Plan with the Branch and got everyone's feedback. While I have NO idea what was said or discussed I could tell that it was a lively discussion and everyone was really excited to participate. We made little cards that had reminders for them to pray for missionary opportunities.  Later I learned that they all talked about experiences they had where the opportunities to share the gospel, BUT they didn't take it. Something we could all relate to. Every week we are going to take 5 minutes before Sunday school and let them share any experiences they had throughout the week. We are really excited to see the plan at work. Hopefully I can see the fruits of it before I have to leave Trenčin.

Questions: Some of you sent me some questions to answer, Ill just answer them all here:
-Whats the food like? HEAVY. But good. They have bread with EVERYTHING. (Its definitely a mission for Logan...)
-Whats your companion like? Bodily is so great. So patient and just wants everyone to hear the gospel. Hes been a great teacher, not much to complain about. :D
-Whats your apartment like? Its pretty small, but works for us. I was actually surprised by how nice it was. I would just make a bigger bathroom. The toilet is in a room literally the size of a small closet.
-Weird Customs? There are mostly just two, take your shoes off at the door of someones house and never EVER put anything on the floor. These two seem conflicting to me. The ground it considered the most filthy place for something. Yet the first thing you do in someones house is take off your shoes. My branch president is always on my case about putting my scriptures on the floor. One day I'll learn.
-Can I knit you a scarf for Christmas? Of course! Good suggestions for any package include: Hot sauce (something like Franks mmm), appropriate music (cant go wrong with Mo-Tab), but I really wouldn't turn anything down.

Until next week, Ahoj!

Starši Williams