Belgium Netherlands Mission

Liefde Familie en Vrienden,

Sorry for using the annoying term of Hump Day, but that's the only thing I can think of to categorize HITTING OUR HALFWAY MARK IN THE MTC. What is life? I can't believe how quickly this is going by. I love the MTC and it's so sad that we only have three weeks left!
The Danes left this week, early Monday morning, and we miss them SO much! They were our "Gandalf" to guide us through the MTC. (Our sister training leaders were two of the Danish sisters. We love them so much) But we're getting new Danes today! 7 sisters and 2 elders! I'm so excited to meet them. Our favorite thing to do on P day is to watch people get dropped off. Our window in our res hall faces the drop off zone and we just people watch out the window and watch all of the adorable families. It's the best.

Devotional is my favorite thing here. I think I'll miss that a lot when I'm in the Netherlands. The devotional on Sunday was given by Elder Stephen B Allen, and he was the perfect balance of funny and spiritual. He talked about how Satan and his followers know exactly what to do to push my buttons, and they will try to do those things that can make me discouraged or tempted. But he shared a really really wonderful scripture: Alma 26: 27-30. It just talks about how the sons of mosiah dealt with the disappointments and discouragements of being a missionary and how Heavenly Father comforted them. 
Another thing Elder Allen mentioned that just really comforted me was that I need to turn my loved ones over to the Lord. I can't spend my mission worrying about the health and well being of my loved ones, and I just need to trust that you are all in Heavenly Father's care. I'll never get the chance to be a missionary again. For the next 18 months I need to give 100 percent of my energy, mind, talents, and worries to the people in the Netherlands that need to come unto Christ. I love you and I do worry about you all, but I know and trust that you will be cared for while I'm gone.
In verse 30 of Alma 26, they say that the reason they were willing to go through such difficult trials (being spit upon, cast out, mocked, etc) was that they knew ho important it is to save souls. There are Children of God that desperately NEED the gospel--whether they know it or not. And that's why I'm willing to go through this difficult experience. It's bigger than me or you. It's all for a higher purpose. And it's just so so so wonderful and humbling to be part of this work.

Tuesday Devotional was equally as wonderful. We got to sing in the choir "Jesus, Once of Humble Birth", which is always a wonderful experience. Our choir director pointed out the words of the song are written in a two-part message. The first sentence is about the trials that Christ suffered in His earthly life, and the second sentence always tells of the glory that He is in now. It is so wonderful to consider the meaning behind the words. We're truly able to feel the spirit in the MTC choir. It's a special experience.
The speaker last night was Elder James B. Martino of the seventy. He kindof looks like Grandaddy, although not anywhere near as handsome. It was just such a comfort to look at the speaker and think of my wonderful Grandaddy and how much I love him, and then of course that turned my thoughts to all of my grandparents and how much I love each of them. I have the best family in the world! I love you all so much!
He talked about making goals and the missionary purpose. (page one of PMG if you don't know that. we memorized it in dutch!) It was so good! He talked about how we were called in the premortal life to serve missions and we are fulfilling a glorious purpose. In Luke 17:3,5-10 , the apostles ask Jesus how they can let their faith grow. The APOSTLES that walked with Jesus didn't think they had enough faith! Anyway, Elder Martino talked about how Jesus pointed out that in order for them to gain more faith, they needed to do a little extra. We need to push ourselves and challenge ourselves and do more than our best, and then we will see and increase in our faith. 
"It is fear of sacrifice that stops us from doing things, not the actual sacrifice itself." See yourself with all of the potential Heavenly Father views you with! Such an amazing perspective shift. I love to read my patriarchal blessing so I can know more about the way He sees me.
He also mentioned about how we need to measure ourselves against ourselves! The Lord factors in "Degree of Difficulty". The language might come easier to some people, and might be harder for some people, but it doesn't matter if someone's doing better than you, because Heavenly Father knows what is most difficult for each of us and he judges us by our efforts, not by what we do. We will be judged by who we become, not what we have done.

Last week on P day I started to feel a little itch in my throat, (the Danes all had a cold going around and I guess I caught it), and the next morning I woke up with the most horrible cold I've ever had. I felt terrible and I was just not in the best mood. We went to class that morning and I was just so tired and sick and feeling sorry for myself, when one of my favorite teachers, Zuster Juchau, came over and just asked me if she could fill up my water bottle. That simple act of service made me realize that I needed to change my attitude. I realized how selfish my attitude was! Yes, being sick is not fun by any means, but that doesn't mean I have to make everything else a mope-y experience. I made a decision to be happy. I decided to make it the best day ever and to just smile. I was sitting in the hallway waiting for my companion while she was in the bathroom and I just thought, "You know what? Being miserable is not fun! I'm not happy, but I'm going to just smile until I am happy!" so for the next hour I just smiled. Even though my throat hurt and my nose was dripping, I smiled. I just smiled and smiled and by the end of the day it had become the best, most fun day I've had so far at the MTC. I really really believe that Zuster Juchau was an angel sent by my Heavenly Father so I could realize that I needed to stop sitting in a pity puddle. I really truly know that if we just have a good attitude, that everything will be so much better.
Another gem from Tuesday devo, "if it is to be, it is up to me" He said that in relation to companionships that are difficult, but I think it applies to a lot more as well. We ALWAYS have control over our relationships and over our own personal happiness. It is up to ME to make that difference.
I'm still a little bit sick, but I'm so happy. This past week was amazing, because I CHOSE to be happy. And that's the most important thing. There's a scripture in D&C that says "They are agents unto themselves" I apply that to every situation I possibly can. We can't blame our attitude on our situations. We have to take accountability for the way we react to situations. It's so much better to look up and be positive than to be negative.

quick funny story: In our lesson on Saturday, Zuster Bush gave the wrong scripture to our investigator to read and he was SO confused. hahaha so great when things like that happen.

Love you all so so very much!
Zuster Watts

Dear Family,
I can't believe how fast time is going by here! We've been in the MTC for two weeks now. Time is weird in the MTC because the days feel like weeks, but the weeks feel like days.
It's so much fun.
Saturdays are by far the longest, most difficult days to focus, but then Sunday comes & everything about Sunday is lovely. The devotional on Sunday was by Jenny Oaks Baker (+ her family)--she's an amazing violinist, and also is the daughter of Elder Oaks. It was exactly the thing I needed that I had no idea I needed. To hear her play the violin brought me so much comfort and so much peace. She is so talented, and she told about so many experiences that taught her to trust the Lord's timing and to use her talents to bless others, not to put herself above others. The spirit was so strong. There's something about music that speaks to the soul so much better than words ever can. It's so cool to be able to listen to such uplifting music all the time and to be so open to the spirit all the time. I love being a missionary!

We got our new investigators this week! They're just our teachers, Broeder Wells and Zuster Rosema, acting as investigators they had on their missions, but during the lessons, it's so real. It's so cool to feel of the love that Heavenly Father has for these people that they are portraying. Kind of a weird, but cool experience. 

We're teaching Sherry, who is an Atheist. She's willing to learn, but doesn't see how she can have faith in God when she hasn't seen him. It's a really big challenge, but we're having a lot of fun practicing our teaching skills. It's hard because I know exactly what I'd say in English, but I have no idea how to convey those thoughts in Dutch. haha it'll come with time. 
Our other investigator is Pip. He doesn't belong to a church, but believes in God and has a lot of questions about Jesus Christ. We were able to teach both of them how to pray, and hopefully that will help them. Zuster Bush is so good at teaching how to pray, and she always bears her testimony so sincerely.

We're speaking Dutch, and even though it's very simple, it's amazing how much we've learned. I try not to think about how much we don't know, because it's definitely a lot..... ^_^ haha The most difficult thing is the grammar. It's nowhere near as difficult as Korean, but it's pretty weird.... So weird, but so fun. Zr Bush and I came up with a motto:
"Dit is moelijk, maar dit is mogelijk!"
(This is difficult, but this is possible!)

We are having so much fun together, and I'm definitely grateful that I have a companion. I don't know what I'd do without her. She is so thoughtful and selfless and wonderful & I just adore her!

We see Sestra Abbott (going to Slovakia) 1000000 times a day because she is in our same building on the same floor and it's so much fun! She and her companion are both redheads and are basically the same person. We wave to her every time we pass her classroom which is probably a lot haha We love her so much!

We've been going to choir practice, and this week we sang an arrangement of "Precious Savior, Dear Redeemer" for Tuesday devotional that was so beautiful! I wish I could remember who arranged it so you could look it up, but I can't! I'll try to look at my notes and figure that out. Our choir director, Brother Eggett, is SO amazing! He is such a gifted instructor and the spirit is so strong when we sing. I love it.

Sister Bonnie L Oscarson was the speaker! She is the current YW general President. I loved it! She talked about five things that we should learn on our missions. I'll write my notes out next week if I have time. My favorite thing she talked about was just to expect miracles! We have to do our part and work hard, but it's important to remember that Heavenly Father is in charge of this work and that if we just trust Him, He will make MIRACLES happen! Sister Oscarson is so cute and so sweet. I was thinking of Marley a lot. :)

This week I just had so many experiences that Heavenly Father loves us and is so aware of what we're in need of. It's amazing to me how many times I didn't realize I needed comfort, but it was given to me every time. We get to go to the temple again today and I'm just so so so so excited because the temple is like a big hug from Heavenly Father. Every time I go it's just so wonderful to feel how much He loves us. I'm also so grateful for the gift that is music. Music just makes my soul happy :) Heavenly Father knows us. Personally. My favorite scripture is Proverbs 3:5-6 and it just talks about how we need to realize that our understanding is not ever perfect. "In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths" 
It's so comforting to know that I'm not in this alone. I will always have my family and I will always have my Heavenly Father to lead me and to help me. 

I love being a missionary! 

Doei,

Zuster Aubrey Watts

ps. I love writing hand-written letters whenever I can, so send me your address if you want me to write to you while I'm still in the US :)

Dear Family,
This week was such a whirlwind of experiences, I hardly know where to start or what to include and omit! I wish I could tell you all of the things that happened this week but I only have an hour, so here we go!

First of all, I love you guys. I miss you all so so so much! Don't worry though, my homesickness is a healthy amount, I love and miss you, but I am just so happy right now and so excited to be here on my mission and that is my main focus right now.
I feel so bad for forgetting to tell you that Emilee is my companion!  (or rather Zuster Bush, haha that was a struggle for the first couple of days! I'd say, "Emilee, uhhhh I mean, Zuster Bush!) haha good times.
P day is always wednesday for me here, just btw.

Something funny that happened this week: yesterday was Magic Tuesday. What is that? Well........ It's this lovely thing that we have to do for the Belgium visa. Poop in a cup and now I get to go to Belgium. hahaha so awkward... Those Belgians are weird people. It was funny. We also had to get a tiny bit of blood drawn, and I've never given blood before so I was scared. But I didn't pass out so that was a success, right?!

ELDERS ARE CRAZY. At first I thought it was just the Elders in our zone, but it's definitely all of the Elders. They are just so funny and crazy! They keep us entertained. Our zone is made up of the Scandinavian missions: Nederland & Belgium, Sweden, Norway, Suriname (also speaking Dutch!), Iceland, and Denmark. (We call eachother by the countries we'll be serving in, so if I say the "Dutchies" that means those of us serving in the Bel/Neth mission, the Danes for Denmark, the Ice-ys for Iceland, Swedes for Sweden, etc.) The Danish Elders are insane and are probably the funniest in the MTC. They write poems and meow at everyone... it's awesome. :)

Our Sister Training leaders have been such a blessing to me! We taught our first lesson in Dutch on Friday, and afterward I felt so discouraged because I felt like I didn't understand anything, I was frustrated because I just wanted to be able to teach in English. I wanted to cry. But the sister training leaders (going to Denmark) are just so sweet and they helped encourage me. All of the Dutch zusters were feeling pretty down that night, but we talked about it and cheered one another up. Now, only a few days later, we have taught 4 lessons to our investigator (onderzoeker), Pascal. The lesson we taught yesterday was about the Apostasy and Restoration, and it went so so SO well! We weren't scripted like we had been in the previous lessons, and just had a lesson outline with important vocabulary written down to remind us. That made it easier to teach by the spirit. At the end, we challenged Pascal to pray to know that the church is true and to read the book of mormon, and he said that he had already prayed and knew in his heart that it was true! He said someting along the lines of, "I don't know why but I feel so good when you talk about that. I feel so good when I hear about Joseph Smith and I feel like he is a prophet" I was so grateful for that. I told him that that was the Holy Ghost, and in very simple, broken Dutch, explained that the Holy Ghost teaches us through feelings and impressions. Since he had already done our challenge and knew that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that the church is true, I felt mipressed to challenge him to think about baptism. The gift of tongues is real. I have such a strong testimony of it already. That lesson was just so incredible, and that's because we let the spirit lead the lesson. Missionary work makes me so so so happy! Even though Pascal is just an actor, it's so rewarding to be able to feel the spirit and bear my testimony through the spirit. I love this work so much already. It's so hard sometimes, but it is so SO GOOD.

There are two districts of missionaries going to the BEL/NETH mission: ours is Zr Bush and I, and four elders, and the other is four Zrs and 2 Elders. We talk a lot and eat our meals together though, so it's really fun. I have loved getting to know so many people and making new friends. It's the best.

It's crazy how much Dutch we've already learned! We know how to say simple prayers, bear our testimonies, and teach simple doctrine in Dutch! I love it! But the "G" sound is a little bit of a struggle! It sounds so pretty when our teachers say it, but when we say it it's just really ugly. It requires a lot of saliva to speak this language! ^_^

On Sunday after the devotional (which was amazing btw, but there's too much to tell today) we watched a church video. It was a talk given by David A. Bednar at the MTC on Christmas Eve, so I think it was the one Caden was here for. It was called "The Character of Christ" and was so so so good. One thing that stuck out to me was when Elder Bednar said "Get over yourself. This work is not about you! You are just a wrench in the hand of the Lord. Be a good wrench. If everything was up to you, this work would not go forward. Luckily for you and I, this work belongs to the Lord, and He will not allow it to fail. Get over yourself"
That is just so true. I need to remember to not get discouraged by what I can't do, but to know that the Lord is over everything. It's important to worry about others and not to turn inward and feel sorry for yourself, but to turn outward and ask what you can do for others instead. 

I've seen so many people I know and I love it! There are a lot of Lone Peakers here, as well as friends from BYU and it seriously makes my day to see them. Today, Kalli Abbott reports to the MTC around noon, and we're so excited to see her! The slovak missionaries have class in our same building on the same floor just in the next hallway, so we're so excited to get to see her a lot. There are just so many blessings that I can't even count them all. Zuster Bush is just the best companion. She is so sweet about dealing with how stressed and nervous I get before a lesson and she is so patient with me. I'm kindof shy around people I don't know, but since we've been friends since Jr. High, I feel so blessed that I feel comfortable around her and I just feel free to be myself. I feel like Heavenly Father has been blessing me to be more outgoing and i've gotten to know the missionaries in our zone pretty fast, which has been such a blessing. I'm so grateful for the other bel/neth Zusters because they are all so sweet and kind. Their personalities are all so unique and beautiful. I promise that Heavenly Father really does know us. He cares about every one of us. I have moments every day where I just can't help but cry a little because I'm so grateful for all of the things He has blessed me with. 

I've learned so much this week about myself, missionary work, Dutch, and the gospel. This really is God's work! I'm so grateful that I get to be part of it. It is so so hard, but if I just forget myself and think about my investigators, I know everything will be ok.


Hopefully future letters will make more sense/ be more organized. Sorry bout it.
LOVE YOU

Zuster Watts

Liefde Familie,
These past 30 hours in the MTC have been crazy, but absolutely wonderful! It's kindof overwhelming how much information we've been given, but it's been so much fun already. The second day has been better than the first, and I'm expecting it to just keep getting better. I've been able to see a lot of friends from college and from high school, and it's been so fun to talk to all of them and catch up real quick :) (And it has to be REALLY quick because we have a tight schedule. I can't believe how much I've already learned about myself, the gospel, being a missionary, and about the Dutch language. 

I LOVE DUTCH. It is such a fun language! Some of the words have been kind of hard to pronounce, but it's just so fun! Our sister training leaders are the most adorable companionship. They're going to Denmark & it's so encouraging to see how much they already know. It gives me hope for how much I'll have improved after 3 weeks :)

I'll write more details next P-day, but just know that I love you!!!!

Love,
Zuster Watts

Note from Nannette*
We received the above picture in a text on the third day Zuster Aubrey was there. You can read above that she did not tell us who her companion was. She seemed so certain before the MTC that her dear friend from high school could be her companion. There are so many sisters who entered with them, I thought chances were slim they would even be in the same District. Here they are Zuster Watts & Zuster Bush - a beautiful companionship.