Can't slow down now

So my new companion is Søster Bartholomew from American Fork Utah. She is 19 and super enthusiastic and likes to take responsiblity and work hard with me. Her Danish is also way good. I am highly impressed. It's cool cause this is our first companionship where both of us can speak pretty good Danish and neither of us are completely new to the mission field. So we work as equals and can get a lot of work done together. I love it.

And boy, the work is picking up fast now. We had several members bring friends to church yesterday and our amazing investigator Nynne came with her son. Sister Bartholomew and I ended up sitting apart from each other during sacrament so we could be sure to talk to all the visitors. We actually are having family home evening with one of the none-members and a member family tonight. I am so grateful to be serving in Odense where the members enthusiam and excitment for missionary work is just picking up and growing. The Lord is hastening His work, I feel like I'm running to catch up and I still can't make it. But in September, the Lord will bring 2 more missionaries to each ward. So by the end of September, there will be 6 missionaries in each ward here in Odense. 2 Sisters and 4 Elders. Plus, the married couple. So a grand total of 14 missionaries.

I am about to officially hit my 6 month mark and I do not like that. It feels like I just barely got out into the field a few weeks ago and so it's stresses me out to think that I'm a third of the way done with my mission. I've also heard that now time is just going to go faster and faster. No more slowing down. Wow.

Finally, I can send pictures again.



Me and Søster Ripplinger on our last weekend together. We went to the magical land of Vissensbjerg to teach Nynne and to see our goats. Oh, I also learned that we can eat these really delicious wild plums and cherries in Vissensbjerg.


For our last P-day together, Sister Ripplinger and I decided to match (haha, that was her favorite thing to do) and we aslo went and saw H.C. Andersen's Hus. That was cool to see where he was born and then go through a museum all about him. It's funny. In The main area in Odense, the street lights (like the green and read walking lights), they are little H.C. Andersen figures, complete with cane and tophat. One day I'll take a picture and send that to you.

Soccer, Strokes and Saying Goodbye

So it is a little crazy how much can happen over the course of such a short time when you are a missionary and I feel like that is how my week has been.

We played soccer this Saturday with some more investigators and non-member friends that members bring and I scored a goal! Et Mål!!!! JAAH! it was pretty cool too cause I scored it with my knee. ja, I'm pretty talented like that. Okay, fine, it was an accident, but I still scored the goal and that is all that matters. Oh, also, I stole the ball away from someone on the other team and they totally hit my nose with their arm really hard and I got a bloody nose again...man, me and my nose on a mission, it just can't take a break...get it? haha, a break? oh the cleverness of me

But going back a little bit earlier in my week, Thursday was a very crazy day, we had a lesson with these two ladies from Ghana and we brought a member from Nigeria who actually served his mission in Ghana. It went really well. Except Africans talk so fast that sometimes I don't even know if they are speaking English or not. But anyways, our Nigerian member just yellled at these two girls for like 30 minutes but it was done in an awesome African man way and so it was really effective and the spirit was way strong. Although at some points in the lesson I almost started laughing because I just thought "wow, is this really happening?" Life as a missionary, we have some fun situations.

Then after the lesson Thursday, we decided to walk by this less active and see what was up with him but we were debating which way to take when sister Ripplinger laughed and told me "that lady cannot pick up her bag. She's tried like 5 times, look at her." So I looked and I could see this lady trying to pick up her purse but her arm was completely limp and her fingers wouldn't move. I could tell that something was not quite right with her so I said "let's go help her" By the time we got up to her, some groceries had spilled out of her bag and she was trying to pick them up with her right arm but she just kinda flopped her arm at the stuff and that's all she could do. We helped her put the stuff back in the bag but she seemed really distraught. I asked her "Er du okay?" and if she needed a doctor. and then she started breathing really heavily and motioning like she was going to throw up. I stopped a nearby Dane and gave them our phone and told them to call the emergency number 112 and then the lady with the limp arm collapsed. It was a really good thing I was right next to her cause I was able to catch her. and just set her head in my lap. Poor Sister Ripplinger was freaking out at this point. I made her help me turn the lady on her side, in case she threw up. Luckily there was this nurse who saw the lady collapse and came and helped us, then a doctor came up and helped us out as well. We had to wait a long time for the ambulance though. We didn't see our less active member but we hope we helped that lady.

on Friday, we went to Assens, a beautiful town on the coast and taught our new investigator Pia. It's funny because she fed us cake and herbal tea. That's something I love about the Danish culture that I want to adopt when I get home: whenever you visit someone, even if you met them the other day, they always have this little tea party set up for you when you get to their house. They have cake and drinks and it's so fancy and nice. I always feel so blessed and spoiled. I want to do that though when I get home is always have some nice little refreshments set out for guests who come visit me.

We also got word on transfers. Well, I'm saying goodbye. Not to Odense but to Søster Ripplinger. It's crazy cause we haven't been together very long and they are already taking her away from me. I am staying in Odense and she is going over to Jylland. My new companion is Sister Barthalomew (i know that isn't how you spell it but oh well)

We also had an amazing lesson Saturday night with our investigator Nynne. We asked her if she had read and prayed about the Book of Mormon and she told us "Well, I actually decided to pray about it before I read it and as soon as I started praying about it I just got this warm feeling throughout my entire body and I knew that this was something that God wanted me to read and learn about." So yes, teaching her is so easy because it really isn't us teaching her. her learning is really between the Lord and herself.

We also had two investigators at church this week! Wooo! record for us missionaries here in Denmark!

Well, Love you all lots! One day I'll figure out how to send pictures, I promise!

Love Søster Briscoe

gå gade & geder (walking street & goats)

So this week has been pretty dull up until the weekend.

On Saturday morning, the Elders and us took a big sign to the gå gade (walking street) with a big picture of Christ that said "Vi har et svar..." and we just tried to contact everyone we could. Søster Ripplinger and I finally found out that we could sing with our guitar and not get arrested so we brought the guitar and sung a bit while the Elders talked to people and it was neat too because every time we started singing, the Edlers were able to give out a copy of the Book of Mormon. Apparently our magical singing did the trick. Nah, but we did have some success with people stopping and listening and talking afterwards...No return appointments so no new investigators. next time.

Then Sunday (yesterday), Søster Ripplinger and I took the bus to this little town called Vissensbjerg to try to contact a media referral. We were way excited too because the referral was from about 6 days ago (normally they are from 6 years ago). Well anyways, the bus takes out to the country. Way in the country. We ended up stopping in this goat field. that was cool. Except I got stung by stinging nettle. Sister Ripplinger threw a plum to feed the goats and accidently hit the biggest one right in the middle of the forheard.

Then things got weird. We laughed about the goat incident but we actually think that the goat may have turned our world into this little fairytale land because Vissensbjerg was not like anywhere we've been before. People were super nice and friendly and open. Our referral wasn't home but we met lots of good people and potential investigators.

And everything, the landscape was GORGEOUS. We ate wild strawberries (this super nice Danish lady invited us to pick some in her yard) and then this lady had the most amazing garden I have ever been in. she lives at the bottom of  this hill that goes up into a forest and she has created all these little paths leading everywhere, with plants just all in our path. We felt like we were in a jungle. She also had 2 little glass houses with comfy chairs and then a little log house full of books. then after she let us wander around her yard, she invited us in and gave us a tour of her house. it was awesome. She lives in this hobbit-like world, with cool homemade artwork and wood carvings. She was way sweet too. We are going to go back and teach her the gospel and hopefully help her in her yard.

Well, I realize now that my adventures may have sounded boring but to me they were the highlight of my week.

I love you all!

Love, Søster Briscoe

P.S. in Vissensbjerg i got to feed a wild bunny too!