Week 44: Singing In The Rain

Hoi Zäme!!

I hope that you all had a good Christmas!!

This week was a busy one with us getting everything ready for Christmas. We met with a lot of members this week, and that is always nice because the members here are so loving.

We had another temple p-day, which was really nice. I like to think that it was a little Christmas present to us!! Afterwards, we went to the Christmas market in Bern, and I once again bought a lot of food. I got some macarons, a cinnamon roll, and a bunch of fries.

On Wednesday, we met with a few of the elderly ladies in our ward, so that they could have some visitors before Christmas. I really love getting to visit the elderly. They are always so happy to see us, and they have the most interesting stories. During one of our visits, one old lady threw a Christmas party for us, which consisted of eating cake and listening to Christmas songs in Swiss German. (One of them was called "Es Truckli vou Liebi". You can find it on YouTube if you want to hear some Swiss German) She was just too cute, and she went on to talk for an hour straight about her ex husband. (I'm not even exaggerating lol!! She can talk!!)

We also had an Ausstellung in Biel this week, and it was raining the entire time. That didn't stop us, though!! We sang Christmas carols in English and German to spread some Christmas cheer on such a gloomy day.

On Christmas Eve, we spent the day at the Jägers. It was such a fun time!! We decorated a Lebkuchenhaus, wrapped presents, and watched a movie. I really love the Jäger family, so it was such a blessing to spend Christmas Eve with them.

Christmas day was so wonderful! We had a special Christmas program in French and German with the French branch. Unfortunately, Sister Ferrante was feeling pretty tired from her cold after the meeting, so we had to skip one of our appointments that day. After she was able to rest, we were able to go to the Hess' house for a Christmas family home evening. Sister Hess taught us about some symbols for Jesus Christ in the Old Testament. We each picked a symbol and talked about what Jesus Christ was to us this past year. I picked the "oil of joy" as my symbol (Isaiah 61:3). I've felt Jesus Christ helping me find joy each day, and I know He can help you all feel joy no matter what your circumstances are.

I hope you all have a nice week, and I wish you a happy new year!

Viel Liebe,

Sister Gladwell

1. Dinner at the Jäger

2. Decorating our Lebkuchenhaus

3. Singing in the rain

4. At the Christmas market with the Burgdof Sisters