The latest from Jaren. I looooove getting his letters.
Well Mom, you heard right, the mission is changing the boundaries. President actually called each companionship on Friday and announced the changes that would take place. The Dortmund Stake will now be in our mission, and that means all of Nord Rhein Westpfalen, as well as Nürnburg, and Erfurt. Our mission will be the Central German Mission and will extend from the West Border all the way over to the Czech border on the East. So, the mission will be double the size area wise at the beginning of July, right when I leave. We will have half of Bavaria in our mission by then. Then the Zurich and Austria-Munich missions will combine and make the South German Mission, and Hamburg and Berlin Missions will combine to make the North German Mission. President Ninow will stay, and the Hamburg and Zurich Mission Presidents are leaving as they finish their times in July. So, it will be a smooth transition I guess you could say. But interesting to say the least. By the time July comes around, the mission will be half the size it was when I first got here, so about 70 missionaries total, and then double when the missions combine. Sounds like fun for President Ninow! Anyway, won´t affect me at all, but it is interesting to see how the missions have divided and dissolved over the last several decades, it used to be one, then north and south, then up to 6 different missions, down to 5, where we are at now, and then back to 3. Interesting, yet with about the same amount of missionaries as before, just with larger boundaries.
As far as the work goes, we have accomplished much. Elder Heller and I went through our entire area and visited or went by on all the inactives in our ward in our area, so the northern third of Duisburg. Thank goodness our area is only the city boundaries, making all this work possible. We started out with 56 families, now we are down to 33. 4 want to leave the church, 3 want us to come back and visit or have the home teachers over, and 16 have moved and we have no idea where. We have a lot of information to give the ward on that part. It has been very interesting. Some of the people we have gone by on live in a very industrial part of Duisburg, a part where most don´t want to go. We had about 5 different people who lived in this part who are gone, but so is everyone else. They have abandoned the apartment buildings and left the front doors open and sometimes all the doors in the house. We have heard that thousands have just got up and left Duisburg in search of jobs or are homeless due to the Financial Crisis. It seemed very real in that moment to me, how bad it was. This is a first world country, but I seriously didn´t feel like I was at that time. The buildings were in terrible condition and I didn´t feel safe in them at all! But, if you are desperate for a place to live, that is all there is. So, that was our story this week.
We also found another investigator through our area book and we will be meeting with him on Thursday. All of our other investigators are doing well, and thanks for your prayers on their and our behalf. It is felt. Elder Heller and I have so much work to do right now with Inactives, Less-Actives, Investigators and Finding that there is not much time to rest. I don´t think that I have been so tired like I have in this last week! But it is good to be tired, and we truly have accomplished much in the last 7 weeks together. We also have soooo much more potential as well. All of the missionaries in the District are also happy and have a lot to do with their own work and with inactives and less actives that we have no excuses to say we have nothing to do! It is quite the turn around we have experienced, and I think that the Lord has helped us to understand how little time we have, and how important all of our work really is.
Sakina is doing very well. We were actually surprised on Wednesday when we found out that she actually recieved the Therapy the day before! We had the second date planned for the 11th if it didn´t go through. We were told because of the weather, that it wasn´t going to work for the 26th. We found that out the night before, as we were on our way to Sakina´s for the appointment we had with her. So, we were expecting it to be later. But the sister in the ward that was going to take her called her early Tuesday morning and said that she felt she could do it, and the weather improved, so they went. All of this was covered by the members, and organized by the Neuhäuser´s! They are an incredible family! I did find out her name bytheway. Her name is Ingrid Neuhäuser, and she is in her mid seventies and I believe that her Husbands name is Berndt or Bernhard.
Anyway, I guess I can answer the rest of the questions:
Q. How receptive are the people of Germany to Elder Heller, a fellow native?
A. Very. In fact, I have learned a ton from him, how to get their attention, how to talk to them, how to interact with them more than I have with any other companion, and that is one reason why I feel we are seeing more success. Of course, we have the attitude to work and want to get the work done, but he just has this excitement around him that is just amazing to see.
Q. I have a Valentine's package to send to you. It's in a flat-rate cardboard envelope, if that makes sense, so not a true package like you have received before. Would you like it sent to the mission office or your apartment, or someone's house?
A. You can send it to the Mission Office, it is the best and easiest.
Q. When is your next zone conference? Is it coming right up?
A. It is on the 11th, so next Thursday.
Q. That's amazing that there were no changes in your district! How often does that happen?!?
A. Now that really doesn´t happen very often at all. But I was very grateful that it didn´t change. Everything is going well and it was a critical time for us. I didn´t feel that a change would be good. I guess it wasn´t, because we didn´t have any changes at all. I just recieved to Elders in Wesel to the District because they closed an apartment up there and that district went from 4 to two missionaries. So the district was dissolved and moved into our district. So, our area is now very large! Nothing new to me, nothing can be quite larger than Hanau or Saarbrücken as far as District sizes go!
Q. Who is paying for Sakina's laser procedure?
A. The Neuhäuser´s and some members who know her because of her daughter. Like I said, I have never seen such a determination to help someone in need like I have in this ward. They are amazing.
Anyway, I hope that the week goes well for all of you back at home. I love you all and pray for your safety and protection. “Carry on, Carry on, Carry on!”
Ihre Bruder und Sohn,
Elder Jaren Smith
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