Cereal is Amazing

I love Korea!!

Let's see, where to start. This week I had my first companion exchange of the mission. I was companions with our sister training leader, Sister Smith. She is from Provo Utah and is just about the sweetest person on the planet. We met her at the subway and then took a taxi to get to English class. English class happens once a week and we always teach. It is held at the church and is a great way to get people inside the church in a non-threatening situation. We always begin and end with a prayer, and a spiritual thought. The sweet ward member fed us an amazing pork dinner. She is great. We have a beginner, intermediate, and advanced class. We teach the beginner class because Sister Gu can communicate with them in Korean when they don't understand what I am saying. It's really fun and I think it will work well in finding people to teach. It was really nice being with Sister Smith for a day, because I could ask her all about language learning ideas, parts of speech, vocab, culture differences, and just all kinds of things that I can't really ask my companion because she isn't from America. My companion is amazing, but asking her why they put a marker here and a word there doesn't make sense, they just do. So Americans understand how my brain works a little better.

 

The bread that our neighbors gave us, that we weren't able to eat because it was greet tea and coffee.. We gave one to the security guard for our apartment building, and another to the lady that sells fish snacks on the side of the road. She seemed confused but appreciated the offer. I told her in English that we see her all the time and wanted to give her a present, and Sister Gu translated. Well, a few days later we decided to buy some snacks from her which are normally 5 for a dollar. She put 6 in the bag with a big smile and told us that way we could each have 3! It was awesome! It was a small thing but we have started to build a relationship with her. It makes me so happy! There is another lady who sells vegetables near our house. We say hi everyday. One day she told us that she saw someone who she thought was us and said hi. It turns out it wasn't, so she was very glad to see us come by. Yay!! We are trying hard to make friends with the people we see all the time. They are all so sweet.

 

I was able to pass off teaching lesson 2 from preach my gospel. WOO HOO! it took about 2 hours because my district leader helped me a lot with memorizing techniques and how to apply things I learned during the day. It helped so much and motivated me to try even harder.

 

This week was Sister Gu's birthday. The elders had a little surprise lunch for her at a members house. We went over and helped cook. She asked if I knew how to cook meat in a pan. I said yes. So she handed me a big pair of chopsticks and a chunk of meat that is kind of a mix between shredded beef and hamburger. And guess what. It actually worked really well! I don't know how awkward it looked but the food tasted delicious. It was so fun in fact that I tried cooking meat with chopsticks again at our home. Practice makes perfect! I need lots of practice but it was so fun. The ward members are so sweet and feed us more food in one sitting than I have ever had probably ever. You eat until you might die, and then you find out that they have seconds and thirds of everything! And somehow it works and everyone is happy. I love it! They end every meal with fruit and that really helps your stomach settle. One ward member also insisted that we try her massage chair, which was wonderful! I love this area and the people here.

 

Yesterday at church we were able to go to ward council! This was very exciting because they hadn't held one yet since we've been here. We were able to talk about missionary needs and how the ward can help. It was a huge step in the right direction. I took notes during the meeting, which meant I wrote down all the words that I understood and spelled them in English and Korean. Not super helpful, but it was a start. We are also singing with the YSA group in a stake conference meeting soon. I'm not sure how that happened but we are. The song is in English so they love having me and the elders to help with pronunciation. The song is beautiful! It's called Homeward Bound by Marta Keens.

 

This week I was reading in D&C 31. In vs 10 it talks about being called to be a physician to the church. I feel like that is a huge part of our mission. Obviously we are called to teach and baptize. But here so many people are recently baptized, and the church members really need help to strengthen the ward they already have. It's hard to explain, but that verse really hit home. I feel like it was written for Korean missionaries. My sister training leader told me this during our exchange, "People are called to America to teach, South America to baptize, foreign lands to learn another language, and Korea to be humbled." Truer words were never spoken. This mission isn't easy. The language is ridiculous and the people don't want to listen. But there are wonderful things happening here. The church is growing stronger and I know things will progress. I am so excited to be a part of it! This week I tried to do street contacts without my trainers help. And I actually had a conversation with a lady on the street! She told me she was Buddhist and I understood!!! Holy cow it was the coolest thing ever!! I only understood a few words, but our mission president says "If you don't know what they said, answer the question they should have asked!" So I did and it was awesome. Baby steps but I am seeing progress.

 

I love Korea so much! Missionary work is hard. It's tiring and it tests every part of who we are. But it is so worth it!! This next week will be amazing, and I hope it is for all of you as well. I love you so much! Thank you for everything! The church is true!

 

-Sister Seegmiller

 

p.s. I have developed a slight cereal obsession. This bag lasted a week

He's Super Tall. Also, Ice Cream is the Universal Language.

You're Number 1!

If anyone has yummy recipes for food or desserts, that wouldn't hurt either. But by mail would be the best way to send them. Also, Emily Bennett says hello! And does anyone have any finding ideas? We are trying to be creative with how we find investigators, but its a little tricky. Any ideas would be great. And, we have a pull up bar at our house. I can finally do two legit pull-ups in a row, no cheating or anything! Small accomplishment but I was so happy!

 

This week has been so good. We had a new family move in next door. They brought us over bread to be friends, so we are going to try to reach them and possibly start teaching the family! We had an interview with President Christensen on Wednesday. Apparently these are scheduled to last about 20 min. each. Mine went about an hour but it was so amazing. We just talked about everything, and he is absolutely the perfect mission president for me. I am so blessed, and he is an amazing man. The Lord has put me in good hands. I told him about Grandpa since he is a surgeon. He said that treatments have become so good for that kind of cancer, and he has seen people live for years after treatments. He has high hopes for his arm and all around health, so that gave me a lot of hope.

 

We were able to teach an English class on Wednesday as well. This is a weekly event but this was my first time teaching. It's interesting, because we try to teach English to people who don't speak English. But my explanations are in English so I really don't know how much they are understanding. But that's okay! They all seem to enjoy it. A sweet lady in the ward made us dinner and said she will bring dinner every wednesday before class. The ward takes such good care of us. We have been fed by them many times, and they are constantly bringing over food or giving us food on Sunday and other meetings. It is great and we feel so loved! We have been able to eat with a few less actives as well, and we tell them that I need to practice teaching the first lesson. So they participate without feeling like a project and it has been really effective! We were going to teach one of the member's mother last night, but she didn't show up. So we practiced with the family anyway. They give really good advice and pointers on how to teach more effectively. One family asked me if there were any Koreans in our family because my pronunciation sounds so good. They also said even though the pronunciation is good, I need to work on saying the correct words so I can make sense. But hey, It's progress!! Another sweet lady made us dinner and then gave me a winter coat that used to be her daughters! I am not sure why since I didn't follow the conversation, but it saved me a lot of money! They are amazing. I have been asked if I'm an islander a few times which is pretty fun. I just love the ward. We did a project where we gave out a Book of Mormon to every single ward member, including the children. We included every pamphlet, pass-along cards, and pretty much everything we use as missionaries. We gave them a scripture calendar with scriptures to read each day and to pray with people in mind. We also made them cookies. They really enjoyed that and I think it may start to get them going. I am excited to see what happens.While we were passing them out, the Lord blessed us so much. A lady ran over and asked us if we taught English, and wants to start the 30/30 program in two weeks. Other people just came over and said we looked different from other people in a good way. And we were able to pass out several Book of Mormons. Just being able to find apartments was a blessing. It was amazing!

 

Some people on the street don't like us a lot, but some love me so much just because I am American. Yesterday I said hello to a lady who looked at me with a huge smile and yelled, "Foreigner!" I wasn't sure what to do, but then she grabbed my hand and yelled several times, "You're number 1!!" And then she walked away. A lady on the subway gave us candy because I reminded her of her son who is living in America. We also saw a gravesite for an American war leader during the Korean war. It's randomly on the sidewalk in the middle of town, but they have honored his site of death so people have to walk around it. I thought that was super cool. We were able to teach an investigator yesterday during gospel principles class. She has a testimony but wants to be baptized by her son, who is currently inactive. So we are trying to figure that out. But it was awesome and she thanked us with tears in her eyes after the lesson. Our ward mission leader also asked me to bear my testimony during sacrament about a scripture that he was explaining during his talk. He asked about 20 min before sacrament meeting and said to just to it in English and my companion would translate. That's what we did and it was awesome! The spirit was so strong and our ward is just amazing.

 

I love it here in Korea so much. It's hard and the people are difficult to reach. I can't understand a word of what people are saying. Yet the Lord has called me here to do a great work for Him. I am doing my best to progress in the language and the gospel so I can be effective for Him. He loves His children and will help us to find them if we are trying our best. I love this gospel. I KNOW that it's true and that God lives. We can return to Him someday if we are faithful! I am so grateful for that knowledge.

 

-Sister Seegmiller

A Whole Bunch of Pictures

Korea Continues!

We were able to eat with members twice this week. Once was a service project where we helped them cook and package food for some of the less fortunate around the area. It took awhile but was really fun. The people were all super nice (at least I think, still can't tell a word they say) and we had fun. They served us some vegetables that no one could seem to identify and fish with the skin and tail still attached, but it was delicious. However, everything they eat here is so spicy. My tongue is still getting used to that. One lady was watching me eat and started laughing at the tears forming in my eyes. She brought me over steaming hot ginger water which didn't really help much. She and her family are the ones who fed us later that week, and as we sat down she pointed at the food and said "Not spicy". I was very appreciative and the food was sooo good! The father is less active, and I was able to practice teaching Lesson 1 to them. It was really cool, and they all participated. I still have a lot of work to do but it was good practice.

We were able to watch General Conference this week. We got permission for me to watch it in English downstairs with the Elders while the rest of the ward, including my companion, watched it in the chapel in Korean. It was AMAZING!! Holy cow, the most inspiring conference I've ever heard. We were all so sad when it was over. President Uchtdorf's talk on Saturday hit me so hard. I just want to print off a million copies and stick it on every door in Korea! There is a place in this gospel for everyone, if they would just give it a chance! I cannot wait until the printed ensign comes out so I can study the talks further. Shalynne and Stuart- The talk by Bonnie L. Oscarson was so good, it made me think of you! A huge theme this year was MEMBER MISSIONARY WORK! Being on a mission has given me so much more perspective on this, but seriously, this work cannot progress in the Lord's way without members and missionaries working together. We are opening this area so we literally have almost no information about anyone or anything. Our only resource is the ward members and trying to meet people on the street. Member referrals is WAY more effective. We are trying hard to get things going here in Korea. But please please please to all you can to help the missionaries in your area. They NEED your help! I can't remember which talk it was, but they asked every member to pray about someone receiving the gospel by Christmas. And if everyone does that, what a wonderful gift that would be to our Savior. I encourage you to take this challenge to heart and really pray and look for missionary opportunities no matter where you are. The Lord will help guide you to who you can help if we just ask. "Ask and ye shall receive, knock and it shall be opened unto you". You will be able to help accomplish miracles! I love all of you and know you will be great instruments in the hands of the Lord.

We were trying to do street contacting the other day and we met two high school aged students. We gave one a BOM but didn't have an extra for her friend. So we made a return appointment. The day we were suppose to meet she texted us and asked if she could move back our meeting by a few hours. We prayed and asked the Lord to soften her heart and have her really show up to meet us. (It is very common for street contacts to give wrong numbers or never show) We went to the meeting area and we were SOO happy to see her standing there. It was raining so I shared my umbrella with her while we gave her the Book of Mormon and walked her to her bus stop. She is so sweet and we have really high hopes for her. It is midterms right now and Korean schools are crazy hard! But we plan to meet with her again in a few weeks.

The ward members are all super sweet. My companion and I are able to communicate in English which is wonderful, because everywhere else I am so confused. Because I know how to say some phrases, people will come talk to me all the time. It's great and I love them, and usually a smile and nod keep the conversation going. But when they pause for a response or ask a question, they quickly realize I have no clue what is going on. Thankfully they are really understanding, and use lots of actions so I can get a better idea. They also have given us rice, 라 면, kimche, and some kind of melon. They laugh at my attempts to use chopsticks, and my other American quirks (often I don't know what I did that was so "American", I just turn to see people laughing.) But I am happy to make them happy and we have a lot of fun. We have been trying to heart attack ward members doors and build relationships. We accidentally did the wrong door and almost gave the poor lady a heart attack when she walked outside to see us hiding behind her door. It didn't help that I was holding scissors like a crazy killer. We quickly apologized, removed the decorations, and found the right house. We accidentally decorated another wrong door, but didn't realize until we were out of the elevator. We went back to correct our mistake, but we decided it was fate and left our phone number and a BOM by their door instead. We will see if anything comes from it.

Funny story. On Sunday, we met with the ward mission leader. He left to pick up his family and bring them back to church. When he came back he apologized to me for lying. I was confused and asked what he had lied about. He said that he went home and his son was still in bed. So he told him that there was an American model at the church, and his son got ready much quicker and they weren't late for church. It was so funny and I was happy to help out the family... I think.

Life is so good here. The work is hard. There are SOO many churches here in Korea. We are trying hard to help people realize in the 20 seconds we have to speak with them that we are different. It is definitely a process, but we are learning and are working hard to push the work forward. My companion is great and helps me so much. When we talk to people on the street, she is able to actually understand and respond when the anwer my questions. She understands the culture and is teaching me a lot. I have given her a few heart attacks when I forget to take off my shoes inside, but things are going really well. I love this work and cannot wait to see what this week has in store. I love all of you! This church is true!

-Sister Seegmiller

Week 1 in KOREA!!

There is so much to say and so little time! First off, sorry I forgot my to bring my camera to write emails so pictures will have to wait. Second, it was harder to leave the MTC than we expected. Three of our elders are serving in Australia, so we had a few tearful goodbyes our last night. We packed and got no sleep because I was helping Sister Berry get her luggage down to the right weight. But that's okay, service is the best! We met at the travel office at 3:30 am and left for the airport! I was able to call home for a short time, and it was fun to talk to all of you. The flight to Detroit was amazing! I sat by the sweetest lady named Lisa. We talked about her life and her family and she really didn't seem interested in the gospel. Then after about an hour, she asked if she could show me her Bible. We looked through it, and then I asked if I could show her mine. She read the Intro to the Book of Mormon, and also Moroni 10:3-5. She told me her favorite book in the Bible was James because it seemed to speak to her personally. It was the PERFECT intro to Joseph Smith and the first vision. I was able to teach her all about eternal families, our modern day prophet, Joseph Smith, our beliefs, and all about the Book of Mormon. She said she wanted to check one out from her library, so I gave her a pass-along card and told her she could have one of her own. We talked until we had to go to different terminals. It was incredible!!! The Lord was absolutely there helping me along. He prompted me to say things that never would have come into my head otherwise. I really hope she decides to join. Holy cow, this church is true!

 

We were able to call home in Detroit and that was really fun talking to all of you. It's weird, because I thought I would get super emotional when I heard your voices. But instead it was as if the spirit was telling me that even though I love you, I know Korea is where the Lord needs me right now. I loved hearing all your stories and you are all so great. Missionary work on the plane didn't go quite as well. I was excited to sit next to the man that I though was Korean. I sat down, said, "Hello!" (in Korean) He just looked at me and said "Nee-how!" Which is hello in Japanese. Needless to say, there wasn't much talking. But I did help him plug in some headphones, and he shared some of his nuts that he was snacking on. So it was good. Korean Air treats you so well, and the food was delicious! Russia looks really cool from the air! We landed safely in Korea, and our mission president was there to pick us up. Dad, Elder Kafusi was also there and is impossible to miss. He towers above everyone and is the nicest elder. I told him hello just for you. We rode to the Seoul temple in the coolest bus I've ever seen, and then stayed the night at the housing there. They gave us a few snacks, and I was able to see Elder Bennett. That was super fun to see a familiar face in a foreign country. Our first full-day there, they had us go out and proselyte in an area they compared to Time Square in New York. It was really big and super busy. They gave us about 2 1/2 hours and 2 BOM and 20 pass-along cards. We really have to clue what we are saying, but we were able to give everything away and also got three phone numbers for return visits. It was SOOOO amazing! Before giving away our last Book of Mormon, we prayed that the Lord would provide us with someone to give it to. About 5 minutes later, a man came over asking about our tags. He wanted to practice English and spoke to us for a long time. He asked if he could have the Book of Mormon and gave us his number. He knew all about Joseph Smith from some friends. It will be interesting to see what happens with him. In the streets, we are not allowed to talk to men unless they talk to us first. (that is a mission rule, not a culture thing. I think it's more for safety than anything)  We will pretty much only teach sisters.

 

I have now taken the Subway, rode in a taxi, and rode on the public bus. Pretty much everywhere is just city, and they have a wonderful public transportation system. Sephonnie, I think you would like it here alot. We were assigned our new companions, and mine is Sister Goo-Soo-Mi (that's how you would pronounce it in English). She is from Pusan and I was SOO happy to get a Korean companion. She is studying English education so we can communicate really well. We are serving in the Do-Bong area, and we are opening the area to sisters so there is a lot of work to do. A member fed us on our first night here and the food was delicious! We met the ward mission leader yesterday and he is going to be such a great help. He challenged us to pass off everything in our books, and memorize all the members names as soon as possible. Building a relationship with members is KEY in missionary work. We bore our testimonies in Sacrament meeting and introduced ourselves. (next week will be general conference because it takes a week to get everything translated) The ward was really welcoming and talked to us a lot, even though I have no clue what they said. They all wrote down their names for me, since that's pretty much the only thing I knew how to say. The ward is pretty small, and about 80% is inactive. There is a lot to do but we are excited for the challenge! Yesterday, a ward member passed away so we went later that day to help make dinner. They served us black noodles, which are noodles with a black sauce on it. I made the mistake of asking what was in the sauce, and the best description they could come up with was slimy sea creature, who is sometimes on spongebob. I think its best not to ask anymore and just eat. But the food is all delicious and the members want us to eat all that we can.

 

We live on the 12th floor in our apartment building, which is pretty common around here. All the buildings are super tall and not very big at the base. Today, we went to get our foreigner cards and were able to see a lot of the other missionaries which was really fun. We don't have any investigators since the area is new to sisters, but we are trying hard to build relationships with the ward and get referrals. Proselyting is hard, especially with the language barrier, but it shows the Lord that we are trying. I am trying hard to learn the language so I can help with conversations and lessons when we are able to teach. But I know that I must be patient and just keep doing my best. The Lord wants me to learn humility and I have never needed it more than right now. This work is truly incredible. My mission president and his wife, all the missionaries, and the ward members are so incredible!! They all have the desire to see this work progress and I am so grateful for the opportunity to help with that. The Lord is looking out for us here. He loves his children, and we are trying hard to find those that he has prepared. I love you all. Wish me luck! You are always in my prayers, and keep looking for your own missionary experiences everyday.

 

-Sister Seegmiller