жизнь боль (life is pain)

(this is what me and C. E say every day and it's my favorite.  the end.)

today is seriously a crazy day and I don't have very much time, but this week was SO FULL OF MIRACLES and lessons and news and just SO MUCH so we'll try to get this done.  here we go.

- NEW MISSION!  The First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve approved the creation of the Central Eurasian Mission starting July 1, and it'll be comprised of a bunch of countries like KZ, Turkey, Uzbekistan, etc etc.  SO COOL.

We don't know who the President is yet but we're already praying for him.  He'll live in Turkey and the missionaries will be the ones already here in KZ and in Turkey.  Wow.  Just wow.  I'm really sad to be leaving the Novo mission but I am so humbled by and grateful and stoked for this opportunity to work in this part of the Lord's vineyard.  People here are special, for real.  For example...

- this week, we spent a lot of time doing service for members.  Most of our work here has been with members anyway because there are a lot of less/non actives (and something I know exactly is that every soul is precious to Him.  His work isn't just to add more to the fold or to increase the numbers of the church but also to strengthen those who are already here.  He wants us all and no one group is more important than the other.  cool cool.), but this week we didn't even share very many "spiritual thoughts".  It was a lot of service, which was a cool opportunity.  But it was seriously a miracle because at the end of the week, we received two new referrals within two minutes of each other (one woman randomly called us asking if we could meet and after we hung up, the elders sent us the number of another woman who wanted to meet with us) and that night we had a meeting with one of our investigators, G.  She is SO sweet and has such a good heart and all this stuff and we were teaching her the first lesson.  The spirit was so strong and it was just beautiful and it was a privilege to be a part of.  But theeen we started talking about the Book of Mormon and she started testifying to us.  I wish I could paint this picture for you...she's 30 and so innocent and just good and always speaks really matter-of-factly, and was just casually telling us that this book changed her life and helped her quit smoking and protected + strengthened her throughout all these situations.  When we asked her if she would pray to know the truth for herself--to test Moroni 10:3-5--

" 3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.

 4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

 5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things."

she just looked at us and said "I already know it's true.  Through the power of the Holy Ghost." 

....oh.  okay.

hahahah but for real.  SHE IS A MIRACLE.  We invited her to be baptized and she said she already knows she will; she just wants to in America or Korea. Howevaaaaa, after discussing it, we have her praying about getting baptized here in KZ on May 23.  So cool.  So so so cool.  Like I said, people here are ready.  They're finding US (p.s. every person who was baptized here in the last 2 years found the church on their own.  fun fact.) and calling US and showing up with these testimonies and just need to start.  They are ready.  And I really believe that when we do the little things we can do--like service or spiritual thoughts given in imperfect Russian or even smiles--, Heavenly Father does the rest.

- also on Saturday we got to watch the general woman's broadcast and President Eyring's talk was killer.  so so so good.  

This is the highlight of President Eyring's talk. If you would like to watch it in its entirety, please click here. :)

Also, S. Carter (one of the senior missionaries, even though she's swaggier than any youth I've ever met) is wonderful and we had a chat that made my day.  Sometimes I feel really tiny in what I can do.  I speak garbage Russian, I don't know how to communicate with them, I'm not this or that or the other and in general, жизнь боль (life is pain).  But I learned from her that all we really can do for people--in any country, in any language, in any way--is love them.  Love them like the Savior would.  And somehow, that is ALWAYS enough.

- yesterday was the funniest thing ever.  I was wearing this reversible skirt that's kind of big and C. E and I looked great bc it was her last Sunday here aka millions of photos and all this stuff, right?  Well after church ended this adorable older sister asked us if we could help her look for her phone.  We said yes because we're missionaries and human beings with hearts.  We then took a bus to another bus stop where we waited for an hour, and then found ourselves in the mountains of KZ.  We THEEEN walked around in the mountains for 3 hours.  In the mountains.  In our church clothes.  And it started to rain.  A LOT.  And my skirt that had been so wonderful when I hadn't been a mobile object started to slip.  And I was wearing my glasses aka I could see nothing bc rain.  And we didn't even find the phone and we were super hungry because we hadn't eaten for like 9 hours and all this stuff.  And it was seriously one of the happiest experiences EVER.  I was just holding my skirt up with one hand and we were soaked and freezing and looked like trash and everything was just hilarious.  We laughed sooo hard.  And I was reminded of Elder Wirthlin's talk, "Come What May And Love It."  

This is a highlight of Elder Wirthlin's talk. If you would like to watch the full talk, you are welcome to click here.

I have a testimony that it's possible, even when you look exactly like you did when you were 11 years old (think: the photo of me at the San Diego zoo with hideous factor x12).  And life is good :)

anyway.  I'm lame and writing is hard but I love you all so dang much.  I seriously miss you all and music and the ocean and life more and more but at the same time, I am loving this work more than I ever thought I could.  Just know I love and pray for and miss you all but also that all's okay.  And all will always be okay because Jesus Christ already won.  How good the news.

Love you forever.  Keep smiling.

Sister Hansen

"one time we had an adventure in the mountains and then a moscow man we met there took photos for us.  good times (Note: This photo has been cropped to protect the identities of the missionaries, as I was not sure if every one of the missionary's identities needed to be protected, so to be safe, I just put her picture up. Thank you for your patience. -lh)."

p.s. get to serve with Sister W. this week!  so sad to say goodbye to C. E but all will be okay. duh.  life's a good wave.  okay.  bye for real.  bye.

wait p.s. Colossians 2:5-6.  

 5 For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.

 6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:

from me to you :) LOVES!

if you're happy and you know it, tell your face

Hello dearest family!!

Being a missionary is making me a better writer, I think.  I'm learning that it's 100% not possible to just say "hey, that was cool" or "yeah, this week was good" because I'm pretty sure a) every day I experience a week's worth of growth, b) every day I experience the full range of human emotion AND because every day is another day to represent our Savior--the only perfect human that has ever lived and the greatest and only lasting hope any of us have.  So, yeah.  Not sure how I could ever say "life is okay" and leave it at that.  Heh heh.  However, time is also non-existent so that's rough.  But this week I learned a lot about a lot!  For example:

- there is no such thing as a perfect time to do anything.  One day this week I was super frustrated because I felt like I couldn't contribute anything becaaause we had visits and lessons and I was mostly quiet because a) the conversation between these two vats full of Russian words and experiences was out of the range of my baby vocabulary and b) because there wasn't ever a perfect break for me to say something, even when I wanted to.  I was super frustrated and even thought that maybe it was my companion's fault for not allowing me space to say something.  But while I was talking with her about it, she reminded me that there's no such thing as a picture perfect lesson where the breaks are perfectly planned because we are conversing with actual, living people.  Howeeeever, she also told me that if the Spirit tells you to say something, SAY it.  don't wait!  He's telling to do to something and because of that, it will always be on topic.  I think the same thing is true with life.  If we're trying to live in tune with what the Lord wants and always seek to share and do things with love, it doesn't matter if it's perfectly packaged or not--the message will be powerful and always on topic because it is His message.  We're flawed people but that's okay.  He makes of us more than we could ever be when we turn it over to Him.  That I know.  The experiences I had after that were pretty awesome because I tried not to worry about things too much but just to run with what I can do, and especially to listen to what He wants out of me and to do THAT.  Awkward or strange or whatever as it may be, His ways are better than mine and work out just fine.  Always always always.  We just need to try our best, listen and act.  Life is easy. (haaaaaaaahahahahhahashrjkasrs )

- GENERAL CONFERENCE.  Oh my goodness.  I have never been so attentive and so grateful for conference in my LIFE.  I had so many questions and hung on every word and it was amazing.  Seriously such a strong conference.  Loved the emphasis on families (and felt SO grateful for mine) and the Atonement of Jesus Christ.  I especially loved Elder Nielson's talk.  

If we really love people, we'll respect their agency, even if it pains us.  But we can ALWAYS love them.  We can always believe that there is space in their heart for them to come back and let them know, but especially see and feel that we are always ready to welcome them back with open arms.  I just felt the Savior so much in that talk.  His love is so much more than I understand.  He doesn't even feel angry when we're disobedient or choose to live far from us.  Just sad, because there's never a point when He stops loving us.  Oh man.  But how beautiful that there is always a path for us to return.  Also, the more I learn about the Atonement, the more I am just floored.  It's not just for the big sins or for people who are just joining the church or for those of us who have been outwardly far from Him.  It is for ALL of us.  It's not just for our sins, it's for our weaknesses and our discouragements and our pains and our every day lives.  It is so perfectly encompassing, and so so so real.  Like President Uchtdorf said, "salvation is not bought through the coin of obedience, but through the blood of Jesus Christ."

even after our best efforts we are not enough, but that was never why He wanted us to give our best efforts.  He just wants to know that we love Him.  That's almost nothing, but every single day, coupled with the Savior's grace, it is enough.  Mosiah 15:8-9.

8 And thus God breaketh the ^abands of death, having gained the ^bvictory over death; giving the Son power to make ^cintercession for the children of men—

 9 Having ascended into heaven, having the bowels of mercy; being filled with compassion towards the children of men; standing betwixt them and justice; having broken the bands of death, taken upon ^ahimself their iniquity and their transgressions, having redeemed them, and ^bsatisfiedthe demands of justice.

How much He loves us, and how meaningful His love is.  And I'm rambling and that's lame and I'm sorry but seriously, it was such a good conference and I learned so much.  Time to apply is always a little less pretty because knowledge is hard in practice, but in this gospel we're all beginners all the time.  how sweet it is!

- also, been thinking about this quote a lot lately.  To any and all those revolutionaries trying to live by standards or dreams higher than their own, even when it's unpopular and not understandable--hat's off to you.  Carry on.  Keep making that dent in the universe. 

“No man knows how bad he is till he has tried very hard to be good. A silly idea is current that good people do not know what temptation means. This is an obvious lie. Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is. After all, you find out the strength of the German army by fighting against it, not by giving in. You find out the strength of a wind by trying to walk against it, not by lying down. A man who gives in to temptation after five minutes simply does not know what it would have been like an hour later. That is why bad people, in one sense, know very little about badness — they have lived a sheltered life by always giving in. We never find out the strength of the evil impulse inside us until we try to fight it: and Christ, because He was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means — the only complete realist.”

C.S. Lewis

- this morning, I was super super super frustrated.  Especially after yesterday, I understood how I can give more to the work and was torn between feeling super stoked on life and wanting to pull my hair out.  I WANT TO BE PERFECT RIGHT NOW.  I feel like in general, i'm not afraid of having to do work or the fact that I have a lot to learn (I'd like to say these things, anyway) and that's cool, but I ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS struggle with the fact that I'm not perfect RIGHT NOW.  But today I talked with Cectra E. about it and it was actually the coolest thing ever.  how lame and unmeaningful would life be if we were just perfect right now?!  What would be the point?  It is a journey--and one that's MEANT to be lived and enjoyed and worked through.  It's easier to say than to live, but it's important to remember.  so she wrote me a sign that said this:

"today I'm better than yesterday!

Perfection is a process!

Today is the best day of life!

you is kind, you is smart, you is important."

and man.  I was seriously so dang happy.  she then shared what's probably my favorite quote of all of life:

"to be happy is the goal, but it is also the path." :)

Sooo that's the challenge.  Every day, choose to work hard and to look on the Savior and to work with Him and to strive to overcome and all the things.  But also, every day choose to find joy in the journey too.  I wholeheartedly believe that is just as important to Him as our process of refinement.  How great is the plan of our God!

there was something else semi-important too but I don't remember so i'll just leave you with the this precious gem:

"moo!  you know, like the animal, beef"

- C. E trying to talk about cows.  hahahahah I love her so much

okay okay life is great.  and hard and wonderful and straining and man.  to live really is the greatest adventure.  I hope all y'all are enjoying it as much as I am.  to living!

all the love in this tiny world,

C. Hansen

p.s. i have permission to preach!

Sis. Hansen, when she went to Kyrgyzstan (Photo courtesy of KSC, thank you!)

HI FAMILY HII

(I typed this up from a letter that we received from Sis. Hansen today [04/13/2015] She was still in Russia at this time -- lh)


03/30/2015

First of all, sorry for the lack of email today...hahaha I seriously spent maybe an hour pounding something out & then as I was writing my I love yous & such, my computer time ended. Pretty sure I literally just sat there with my mouth open until I started laughing really hard. Sometimes I act like things are super rough but I think Heavenly Father is trying to teach me to take things with humor. Work hard & be all in, but live with joy. I think He wants that for us just as much as we want that for ourselves. How good He is.

Second, it is now April 1st & I'm going to KZ today. It has been amazing, the things I've learned here. I've been in this ideal area with an ideal companion with an ideal apartment & life has been good, but there have been some times that were really hard. Not because the work is especially hard (even though sometimes it does feel that way) but because sometimes it's hard for me to do things the Lord's way. I thought by the act of coming on a mission I was showing Him & myself that I'm willing to do things  His way, but many times I still find myself growing in ways I didn't ask to grow. hahaha But things are only hard when I put MY expectations on a higher level than the Lord's. Slowly slowly slowly learning how to live & love His way, & even though it's a constant process, He is so patient with me. Anyway, I've learned that missionary work - that seeking to follow Christ in general - is hard & happy anywhere, and I'm learning to live with hope in that. Don't worry though, I'm not going to be too much of a crazy rad spiritual giant when I get home. I'm still Nela. Like I learned last week when my companion told me a girl we had contacted had told us she was Pagan (why don't I know this word in Russian?) & I laughed so hard I  hit my head on the table & got a goose egg. By the way, some happy facts I haven't shared with y'all bc my emails have been lame include:

- one time we were contacting & this super sweet woman took a Book of Mormon

& then gave us some delicious peach compote (it's just like fruit juice...kind of...) & I realized I'm the kind of person who would eat peaches given them by a random woman we met one night in Russia. Sorry, parents of the world.

- right now it's pretty much springtime & it's beautiful except that it got cold again one day so errthang froze over & I die on the daily. Also one time 2 weeks ago we were walking on this path through the snow & I barely stepped off the side & was in snow up to my thighs. #siberia

- the strollers here have sled bottoms instead of wheels #siberia

- I love figs now! & I decided that I want to eat what I want but feel good eating it so I'm going to learn how to cook! Who am I? (24601)

- yesterday we had one of the coolest lessons we've ever had with one of our investigators & her - suprise! - Jehovah's Witness friends who were there at the same time. hahaha But it was seriously amazing. More to come.

- one time a woman chewed me out for being an American but honestly, it is usually like a superpower. They love  Americans. I'm like a novelty & it's great bc I can make lame jokes & they laugh really hard bc American. #winning 

Long story short, this work is hard & I am a weenie still, & some days I just want to be home watching movies & eating ice cream with yous, but this work is also beautiful & I am learning to love it. Learning to find joy in the service of others. Thank you for everything you each have taught me about that! Also happy birthday on the 9th, Mum. Wish I were with you but just know you have all my love & prayers & thanks. Mums actually rule the world & I have learned so much from you.  So so so eternally grateful you're mine. Y'all better spoil her! 

Lastly, in the light of this beautiful Easter season, two quotes:

* "When Moroni fretted about the weakness of his writing, the Lord did not tell Him to repent. Instead, the Lord taught him to be  humble & to have faith in Christ. As we are meek & faithful, God offers grace - not forgiveness - as the remedy for weakness." 

Weaknesses are rad, because Christ lives & His strength & love are always enough to qualify our best efforts, small as they may be. Believe Him! [(this is all from a way good article on weakness vs. sin in this month's Liahona) You can click on the article to which she is referring right here -- lh]

* "Restoring what you cannot restore, healing the wound you cannot heal, fixing that which you broke & cannot fix is the very purpose of the Atonement of Jesus Christ...I repeat, except for the exception of the very few who defect to perdition, there is no habit, no addiction, no rebellion, no transgression, no apostasy, no crime exempted from the promise of complete forgiveness. That is the promise of the Atonement of Jesus Christ."  

He lives. He loves us - & each of you personally - with a perfect love, & I know all pain or wrong or sin or heartache is made right through Him. The Atonement - repentance & grace - isn't the backup plan, it IS the plan, & how sweet it is. Sunday always comes.

Love you heaps, my dear family. Mum & Dad & Tay & Mark & Tia & Kula. Pray for you always & miss you lots, but WE ALL GOOD. Have a happy week & talk soon.

Love you with ALL THE LOVE IN THE WORLD,

Cectpa Hansen

P.S. Sadly can't effectively use pouch mail in KZ so don't reply to this address but I'll get you more on Monday! I love you!

my name is sister hansen and i can't breathe out my nose

HELLO DEAR FAMILY!

Fun fact: allergy season is not a respecter of countries aka guess who's still dependent on allergy meds to live with joy. #swag buuut more importantly, it's springtime here and it is beautiful!  Seriously, I feel like I have a new lease on life after this last week.  It could very well be the fact that I now have KILLER eyebrows (thank you my dear companion) and it could also be the fact that the world is alive again, but I think a lot of it is living knowledge that Christ lives.  How sweet that is!  Always always always.  He already won, and His hope and joy and refuge and enabling power is available to us every single day.  Oh man.  I hope someday to really understand that.

This week I learned a lot about love and a lot about faith.  We have some investigators (and they're seriously bomb) but I can't be in on lessons with them until I have permission to preach.  Sometimes that seems rough, because as a missionary I'm just here to baptize people am I right?  WRONG.  Actually, Christ asked us to feed His sheep and to love His people like He would.  Nowhere in that calling does it say "baptize the nations and feed your ego".  I can do His work every day, whether it be with my comp or with how I treat people I pass on the street or with the members of the ward.  Especially with the members of the ward, actually.  Having a Russian comp has been one of the biggest blessings (bc Russian but also because she's a miraculous human being.  SO strong.  So good.  So hard working.  Humor just like April Ludgate. #blessed) but also sometimes really hard because it's easy to be quiet and just let her talk and not be engaged.  THAT'S GARBAGE.  I want to actually LIVE every second and to really love and be with and serve these people myself, too.  And sometimes that's really hard, because sometimes I even feel awkward trying to small talk in English, much less with strangers in Russian.  But we were at this ward activity on Saturday (p.s. ALMOST. CONFERENCE.  THIS WEEKEND.  AHHH) and I was trying to talk to these older ladies and they were lovely but it wasn't a super smooth conversation and I just felt awkward and ehhh.  I asked this one woman in the branch (she's super funny.  She's in her 30s and jokes a lot and knows pretty good English and is just chill all-arounD) how to get to know people in Russian because I want to know them and SHOW them that I love them but also it's scary and she stopped laughing and said this: "every fear comes from Satan.  What do you choose?"  Seriously, I already knew that, but it was like she punched me in the face.  I am a servant of the Lord, and more importantly, I am His child.  He lives!  I know this!  And with faith in Him--with THAT knowledge--what on earth could possibly be scary?  Nothing--unless I choose to doubt Him. *crowd oohs menacingly* but really.  It's still a work in progress, but there is literally a new strength and light and desire and satisfaction that comes when we choose to live with faith.  It takes effort and confirmation doesn't always come the way we think, but I have SEEN that when we look back on life it's always there.  Ah man.  The gospel is the coolest.

Anyway, I'm learning a lot and failing and growing and all that such errday.  But I'm also so happy.  So so happy.  We're on a roller coaster that always goes up.

scripture of the week: 1 Nephi 3:7.  

" 7 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I^awill go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no^bcommandments unto the children of men, save he shall^cprepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them."

He was the primest example of faith.  The Lord asked of him and he never once questioned how or why.  He simply smiled and said "alright, let's do this" and went hard doing all he could do.  I want to be more like that.  Forever the hero.

love you all so much.  Hope you're having a good week.  enjoy the weather, enjoy the days, read your scriptures and know somebody loves you (betty who voice).

ALL THE LOVE,

sister Hansen

hello from kzzzz

hello lovely family of mine!

sorry for the lack of an email last week.  HOWEVER, you should be getting a letter really really soon so hopefully that will count as the big email.  feel free to type it up and post it on the blog because it's hilarious.  hahah.  but hello.  i love you all so so so so much.  i say that all the time but it's worth repeating.  duh.

right now, i'm in KZ and i'm actually loving it.  i miss the people i came to love in Russia and leaving them was hard but i can honestly say that i am happy to be here, good and bad and blessings and restrictions and frustrations and all.  OF COURSE life is hard sometimes (or, there are things in life that are hard sometimes), but it's our choice whether we want to make it more hard or not.  we have the ability to choose, always.  and i think Heavenly Father wants us to live the gospel and to live in general with HAPPINESS.  every day.  so why not? (we bought a zoo voice) 

but seriously.  life is happy, and when i remember to choose to think about it that way, i find that it is true.  the power of the mind is real, yo.  but even moreso, the power of our Heavenly Father is real.  His love is real.  the light of His gospel is real.  and that's something we can always find joy in.  life is a good wave.

i don't have very much time but just wanted to share something i was thinking about this morning.  lately, it's been easy to be afraid.  i think my comp said it best--on the mission, "I've never felt God so near to me or so far from me".  I feel that 100%.  Sometimes I'm stoked out of my mind and full of faith and ready to go and do everything with Him and other times everything seems scary.  The world, being away from you, the things about the gospel that are out of my understanding still (p.s. pretty sure Heavenly Father understands us and our ability to understand and kind of planned that we'll be beginners always.  there's something really nice about that.  more to come later)...it's really easy to give into fear, even as a missionary.  But this morning, I read the scripture Moroni 8:16 again

" 16 Wo be unto them that shall pervert the ways of the Lord after this manner, for they shall perish except they repent. Behold, I speak with boldness, having ^aauthorityfrom God; and I fear not what man can do; for ^bperfect^clove ^dcasteth out all fear."

and remembered that perfect love casteth out all fear.  I am not capable of perfect love, but HE IS.  And there is safety for the soul in that.  Like Ether 12:4, 

" 4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with ^asurety^bhope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which ^chope cometh of ^dfaith, maketh an^eanchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in ^fgood works, being led to ^gglorify God."

you know?  With the Lord and focusing on Him, no matter where we live or what's happening, we have every reason to rejoice and to look to the future--as well as to live life TODAY--with hope and with joy and believing that there is good.  I dunno.  I just have such a testimony that there is safety and peace and happiness in every way and at any time we could need it in this gospel, in the Book of Mormon and especially in our Savior.  Always in our Savior. 

I love you all so much.  Pray for you every day and hope all is going well.  I miss yous a lot lately but I hope you're enjoying your journies as much as I'm enjoying mine.  Life is good TODAY. :) D&C 123:17, 

"17 Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us ^acheerfully^bdo all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the ^csalvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."

ya feel?  

Be good this week little homies.  Talk to you soon.

All my love,

Sister Hansen  

hi :)

Sorry for the lack of a big email last week...I typed for like an hour and then my computer time was up.  hahahaha.  but how are you?  AND HOW WAS CONFERENCE?

I'm in a mall right now and that la la by naughty boy

(This is a mashup version of the song she's talking about. Courtesy Pentatonix)

 
is playing in the background and Tia better be keeping up on music for me.  I miss those nights but we'll have them and more good adventures soon enough.


Yep, I have an address!  Sent it in a different email but I'm pretty sure anything is allowed.  We get General Conference not this weekend but the next and I am dying.  SO excited.  So glad to hear it was good though.  I need to find a cinnamon roll recipe between now and then so I can carry on the tradition...refuse to let that die!  Ah, mum.  Life is still good.  I am just so grateful for our family and for the love and happiness we have with each other.  If I can help even one family feel like ours I'll forever be happy I got to serve here.  But I'll be happy anyway, ya feel?  Joy is a choice and I am slowly learning to choose it.

Anyway.  Sorry for blowing up your inbox, but I love you dearly.

Russia Novosibirsk Mission

Dear Brother and Sister Hansen,

Just a quick note letting you know we just spent a delightful afternoon with your sweet daughter.  My husband and I accompanied her to the airport because she left today for Kazakhstan! We wanted to be with her ensuring she could board the airplane without complications.  She mentioned that she wasn’t able to inform you of this transfer so we told her we would email you concerning this new change.  She is excited to join the Kazakhstan missionaries although she will miss the friendships she’s formed here in Russia.  Anyway, we thought you should be aware of this latest development.

Sister Hansen should be able to email you next Monday on her regular P-day but, if needed, you are welcome to contact us anytime if you have additional questions.

On another note, we just love your daughter.  She is delightful, charismatic, thoughtful and a dedicated servant of her Heavenly Father.  We are so thankful we have been able to get to know her better. Thank you for sharing this valiant missionary with us.

All our best wishes,

Sister Bettie Turman

Office Secretary

Russia Novosibirsk Mission