Eli Mail 10/20/14 (Genk, Belgium) Letter 15

Hello fellow Americans. I hope you've all been enjoying the cold starting to set in, especially in Wisconsin because it is still fairly warm here. We had one those heat waves you typically get mid September when you'd be sitting in class, totally regretting being in class because it's so warm. But anyway, if I had to describe this week in one word, I'd say: meetings. Lots and lots of meetings.

I'll start with our exciting Monday last week. We spent the day in Brussels. We kind of wanted a day to just dink around with no real objective, just four missionaries tramping around Brussels. We went through the main central place that all the tourists go through and saw the major let down that is Manneken Pis*. And then something crazy happened. While walking through a narrow street there were four American-looking guys with white shirts and tags – we had randomly ran into Paris, France missionaries! We talked, took a picture, and the whole time they were suspicious a little bit because it's a little debatable whether or not Brussels is in our mission. We spent the rest of the day attempting to get directions from French people and walking over to this big church we saw far off in the distance. We ended up a good chunk of the way out of the city and we eventually found the subway back home. And then amazingly as we were taking an escalator down to the metro, the SAME Paris, France missionaries were coming up the escalator. It was so random to see them once and then to see them again at some random metro station. Crazy.

The next couple of days were a blur. We knocked on a few doors and then had to quickly get back that afternoon to pack for temple conference. Yes, at 3 p.m. on Tuesday we were packing for temple conference that was at 9 a.m. the next morning. After all sorts of trains that evening, we finally arrived in Den Haag (The Hague, The Netherlands). Hungry and kind of exhausted from travel we decided to eat somewhere kind of nice that evening. Let me say, Den Haag is beautiful. It was a nice, warm evening, the red cobblestone roads glistened after a fresh rain, there was gentle hum of chatter from all the cafés, and the trees were all decorated with white lights. It was such a treat after being in Belgium for so long. The following morning we did a session in the temple. The Den Haag temple is small, but of course beautiful. And it was very cool to be able to go through the session in Dutch. I'm surprised how much I understand; I can comfortably listen without worrying about understanding. The zone conference afterwards was great, too. We're focusing on our studies this transfer, and one thing that struck me was when a sister said one of her best study sessions was one verse long and she spent the hour thinking and pondering. And pondering is a commandment of God, or at least it makes it easier for Him to be able to communicate with us.

Thursday and Friday were our only days of regular missionary work, and they were both busy. Thursday was really fun. We took the bikes and looked up referrals around town solely by map navigation. Yes, physical maps. Crazy, I know. I actually really like it, and I can understand why my Dad would always pull out the enormous maps when going on road trips. We have a cool thing going on too with referrals. Some ward mission leader started this in the Netherlands. It's a Facebook campaign. He got the church to buy advertising space for the "My Family" pamphlet, which is a little introduction to family history search and stuff. So, when someone orders a pamphlet we get a text from church headquarters with the address so we can give a little explanation to the pamphlet. It's a really easy way to get referrals, and if we make a return appointment that means a new investigator! A lot more useful than eight hours of knocking doors (which we do, by the way). We also had a first lesson with an African guy. He's here for college and is from Nigeria. He really appreciated us coming over. The poor guy; he's far away from home in a country where the people don't really like him and he can't speak the language. But anyway, he was my second English lesson this transfer, and it was hard. Everything is weird in English now. Praying, talking and things have been in Dutch mostly. But it was cool in English. I can express myself a lot better and be more myself, I guess you could say.

Saturday and Sunday was Stake Conference. Sunday’s session was in Brussels. It was cool to see a lot of church members in one place, and we were able sing "Called to Serve" in Dutch and English for the whole stake. That was pretty much it for this week. I've been a little silent about Joseph, who's getting baptized next Sunday, but that'll be for next week. I'll just say this: I'm probably going to be baptizing here on transfer No. 2, which doesn't happen a whole lot. Super cool.

Calvin, I hope you get the letter I sent you. It may be a little late. Hope your b-day was great. Also, if anyone is thinking of sending me anything in the future, like food, use Amazon.uk. It saves a lot of money on shipping supposedly.

Love you guys, have a good week,

* EDITOR’S NOTE: Manneken Pis "Little man Pee" is a landmark small bronze sculpture in Brussels, depicting a naked little boy urinating into a fountain's basin. It was designed by Hiëronymus Duquesnoy the elder and put in place in 1618 or 1619. (Wikipedia)

P.S. In a separate email, when asked about food Eli responded by saying, “I love Belgium fries. They have these places called Frituurs, and they are everywhere in Belgium. Everyone loves fries, especially with this sauce called Samurai sauce. Super tasty, spicy sauce that's sort of like a spicy mayo, but better. Whenever we are in Antwerpen, we always get Cécémel, chocolate milk in a glass bottle from France. So good, you have to shake it up too because some of the delicious chocolate settles to the bottom. Everyone in Belgium and the Netherlands LOVES broodjes. They are at every train stop and all over the place in grocery stores. It’s just a normal sandwich, but all the ingredients are fresh and they just taste heavenly. The Belgium chocolate is pretty good, too, but I haven't really had much yet. But on a daily basis we make a variety of sandwiches, some sort of cooked meat with rice, or something with eggs. And yes, I do eat eggs now – look at all the things a mission does for ya right there! In the mornings, I love a healthy-sized bowl of Cruseli. Cruseli is a cereal made by Quaker and includes these nice, filling granola chunks with a fair amount of chocolate squares. All “greenies” fall in love with Cruseli, and for now I am under the spell, too. In Den Haag this past Tuesday we ate at a fancy place called Vapianos, an Italian place with pastas and stuff they cook right before your eyes. Super fancy, and reasonably priced. I ate a big calzone, sprinkled with my favorite crushed red pepper. I’ll have to show you guys how you slice bread at a grocery store.

(PHOTO CAPTION: It was a nice, warm evening, the red cobblestone roads glistened after a fresh rain, there was gentle hum of chatter from all the cafés, and the trees were all decorated with white lights.) 

(PHOTO CAPTION: In Den Haag this past Tuesday we ate at a fancy place called Vapianos, an Italian place with pastas and stuff they cook right before your eyes. Super fancy, and reasonably priced. I ate a big calzone, sprinkled with my favorite crushed red pepper.)

(PHOTO CAPTION: The Hague Netherlands Temple, taken by Eli last week)

(PHOTO CAPTION: Temple Conference for Den Haag, Eindhoven and Antwerpen Zones) 

(Brussels)

Eli Mail 10/13/14 (Genk, Belgium) Letter 14

Hello everyone! Just another average week here in little, small-town Belgium. The week started off on a fun note with our barefoot path (bloedevoedepad) adventure in Zutendaal. It had a number of cool views, muddy paths, and all sorts of terrain. You'll just have to look at pictures or something online if you want a better idea.

The following afternoon was pretty normal. I had been waiting to take the "36 bus" to Putersplein, a big neighborhood loaded with doors to be knocked. It sits in between Genk and Hasselt, our two main cities, and for the most part can be overlooked because only one bus travels there. After a fair amount of knocking, a very pregnant lady opened the door with her hand resting on her belly. After a brief conversation, we discovered she was getting induced that day! To no avail, we eventually returned back home to ready for our evening adventure of traveling to Geel. Our whole district stayed over at the Geel apartment (aside from the sisters, of course) because we had to arrive at the Turnhout church building early that morning for interviews with President. I'll just say that there wasn't too much excitement. But funny pranks were pulled; all eight of us raided the Elder's poor apartment, and we even had a little ping pong going. One thing I really liked: one Elder put some bacon in the frying pan with cherry Coke and fried the two together. The sugar in the coke caramelized as the bacon sizzled, which made for a tasty combination of sweet but savory bacon. I highly recommend it, especially because of its simplicity. But anyway, the following morning was swell, with a very insightful district meeting as President pulled people in and out for interviews. I liked one thing that was shared during the meeting: an Elder expounded upon the fact that people have holes in their souls, and they don't know how to fill them. They try the endless cycle of carnal pleasure, but we all know that really only widens the gap between lasting happiness. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ can satisfy the heart's real desire. Some people question the need for religion, but it all filters down to the fact that we need a remission of our sins and only through Jesus Christ can we receive it.

This past weekend was "Genk goes America." All sorts of American flags were hanging up, there were sales promotions, "real" American burgers, an American muscle car and everything. I myself found it very funny. So many people hate on America but I think a lot of Europeans have at least a tiny amount of American pride, and I find that interesting. You would never see Belgium flags flying around America ever. The longer I'm in Europe, the more convinced I am at how awesome America is.

This past Saturday was a hard one. The morning just didn't get off on the right note, and it was pretty gloomy-looking outside. We had a number of things planned for the day, and I was at least hopeful for that. We had a lesson planned, and I had only ever been to this person's house by car with a member so I wasn't certain as to which bus to take. I remembered or at least I thought I remembered passing the apartment when we took the 45 bus to Masseik, a city far from Genk. So we went on a whim, took a little risk, and went on the 45 bus. To my surprise the bus immediately headed for the freeway and with nothing more we could do, we watched as we furthered ourselves from the appointment. We ended up having to cancel it of course, and then I started to fight battles of pessimism for the dumb mistake I had made. Do you want to know what made the difference? The weather didn't just magically let up, we didn't see some miracle happen and have an inspired contact with someone. No, the difference came in keeping a simple prayer in my heart. I prayed that I could just free my mind of the burden of negativity. And low and behold, the day gradually progressed better and better, not because extraordinary things appeared, but because of simple faith and understanding of what God desires of me. That's one thing we also teach investigators, that they can "pray always," and I invite others to do the same.

This Sunday we had an interesting experience, too. Our branch president came in with a friend during sacrament meeting. He spoke English, and Elder Clement quickly became busy translating for him. (Have I had to translate for others? Yes. It's not as bad as you'd think). Anyway, after the service we talked to him, and it turns out he's a BYU professor. He had just arrived in Brussels that morning and has been doing studies all over the place, including Jerusalem. I think it may be part of some church calling, but I'm not sure. He teaches the Book of Mormon and the New Testament, I believe, and he's incredibly insightful. He was curious about learning the basics of Dutch. His last name is Woods, by the way, if anyone knows him. So, yeah – it was just cool to meet an American that was Mormon for once, aside from missionaries.

This past P-day was great, but I'll have more details next week. We have a busy week coming up with Temple Conference in Den Haag and Stake Conference in Brussels. Hope everyone's week goes well. Happy B-day, Calvin – shout out to you!

Love you guys,

Elder Eli Andrew

(PHOTO CAPTION: This past weekend was "Genk goes America.")

Eli Mail 10/6/14 (Genk, Belgium) Letter 13

Hello friends back in the states! Just another normal week in Belgium, aside from General Conference*. The weather has been holding up quite nice this past week, and we've been staying pretty busy teaching a healthy amount of lessons. But I'll first start with the adventure of trying to watch General Conference. For one thing, it doesn't play in our church building, and secondly we have a significant time difference between Utah, obviously. But we were invited for Saturday morning session at 6 p.m. by the amazing Knoops family. They took us in for both the Saturday and Sunday morning sessions, which was really nice. The Saturday morning session was quite good. I enjoyed Todd D. Christofferson and President Uchtdorf's talks the most. Uchtdorf spoke on personal revelation, which is helpful for all of us. The only way to find the truth of the church is through personal revelation, making his topic very applicable. I think I mostly enjoyed the way he ended his talk: "Do your part, and it will come." That instills a confidence in us that as long as we are keeping our half of the deal, God will do the rest for us. So, after an evening of scratching down notes and eating American homemade cinnamon rolls, we retired back to the apartment.

The next morning with nowhere else to go we headed up to watch the prerecorded session of Priesthood in Antwerpen. That was also very good. Elder Cook started it off right and really put pre-mission Eli in his place. He spoke on moderation and reaching your full potential. And what he said is true: if we're distracted on trivial things all the time that aren’t necessarily bad, it just takes us away from reaching our full potential. President Uchtdorf, again with a classic talk on looking inward instead of blaming others. After a quick lunch at the Antwerpen church building we headed off to catch the Sunday morning session at the Knoops’. I haven't seen all the sessions yet, so hopefully there'll be more time during the coming weeks.

One worthwhile story I would like to share from this week: Saturday afternoon we had a lesson with our investigator named Nina. She's a nice, sweet 25-year-old with a boyfriend who was baptized four years ago, named Rafael. It was the second time we met with them that week, and we brought a member both times. The couple both struggle with a lot of things, and it makes her very humble and sensitive. We read through 2 Nephi 31 together and did a quick outline of the gospel of Jesus Christ. During the reading, I posed a few questions, and when I asked how you knew when you feel the Spirit, she started tearing up. It was a very sweet lesson, and it was a testimony builder of the power of the Book of Mormon. We as members use it so much and testify of it because it works. It really does change lives. It makes people want to turn away from sin and begin anew. I'm very grateful to be able to witness stuff like that, and I also have a testimony of the efforts of members. This past Wednesday our ward mission leader went with us to an appointment in the afternoon, had us over for dinner, and went with us to an appointment in the evening. I really do believe that once members get engaged in the work, people come, baptisms happen. The more I'm out here, the more I realize I don't want to stop doing some of these things once my mission is over.

Anyway, we have a lot of cool things lined up for these next coming weeks. Today, we will be enjoying a picnic with our district and going on this famous "barefoot path" outside of Genk. Apparently, it's really cool walking through mud and all sorts of terrain all in your bare feet.

Hope your week goes great back in the States, love you guys!

 *General Conference is a semiannual gathering of members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), held every April and October at the LDS Conference Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. During each conference, members of the church gather in a series of two-hour sessions to listen to sermons from church leaders and inspiring music. It consists of six sessions, one exclusively for female members of the church and one for male priesthood holders. While originating from Salt Lake City, General Conference is considered an international event for the church. The sessions are broadcast worldwide in many languages, primarily through local and international media outlets, and over the Internet.

(PHOTO CAPTION: Saw this spray painted on the side of a train. The graffiti here in Belgium can be pretty awesome sometimes.)

(PHOTO CAPTION: Today, we will be enjoying a picnic with our district and going on this famous "barefoot path" outside of Genk.)

PHOTO CAPTION: Eli’s district poses for a picture after walking the “barefoot path” in Zutendaal, Belgium on September 29. L-R Elder Andrew, Elder Steenblik (Eli’s former companion at the Missionary Training Center), Elder Losee, Sister Riley, Sister Astin, Elder Clement, Elder Eby, Elder Nye (Eli’s current companion), Elder England and Elder Elkins.

 Biking on trails