November 10, 2014 - Știu ca tot vă fi bine

Hey hi hello! What the heck. Where do I even start? Okay, well life is crazy. I don't even know. Sometimes I just have to step back and laugh and really ask myself, "Is this real life?" The last three-ish weeks since I have returned to the field since my medical release have easily been the most ridiculously hard, challenging, difficult, rough and all over lousy time of my entire mission....and that's saying something! Mom and Dad have been so good and supportive and give me some killer advice to get my chin up. (Shout out to the best parents ever!) There were multiple times I've broken down in tears and just cried while on my knees, begging Heavenly Father not to take these challenges away from me, but to give me the strength to bear them. I knew that Satan was just getting at me because I just got back to Romania and doesn't want me in the field.... But things were at an all time low...and getting worse. We had every, single investigator lesson that we had scheduled and planned fall through, our most promising investigator, Ana, dropped us and Sora Black and I have both had easily the worst verbal attacks by people on the street than any other time on our missions....and multiple of them! It was after one of these attacks where it came to a point this past week where I felt like I simply could not handle it anymore....I just couldn't stand how hard everything was and how many things were going wrong. It was then that I gave up. I gave it all to the Lord and told Him that I needed to know that this was all going to be worth it. Immediately I got a very strong impression that very hard things happen before very big things happen. Like Dad said in one of his emails to me a couple weeks ago... "Satan is working VERY hard right now. Why? Because he always does so when something spiritually important is about to occur." I just KNOW something big is about to happen in București....and I'm so glad that Heavenly Father trusts me enough and loves me enough to let me go through challenges to prepare me for what's about to happen! I love this work....the highs and lows and everything in between! This is the Lord's work and everything that's supposed to happen will happen if I'm working my hardest and relying on Him! :) Anyway, I love you all and I hope you have a lovely week. Pa pa!

PROFITE DE ZILE.

Sora Schwab

These photos are from a graveyard we had to walk through on our way to a member visit this past week. The cemeteries are beautiful here...complete with crows and crosses everywhere.

Beautiful graveyard.

This is the city map of București right outside of the metro stop by our church building. The chapel is in a suuuuuuuper ghetto part of town. Anyway, I just liked this because someone tagged English words across the whole thing. It makes it a little more home-y, ya know?  ;) P.S. You all probably know I don't like pink a lot....but Sora Bastidas gave me this dress for my birthday and I had to wear it. Hahaha.

The outside cabbage market. They just stack the cabbage on the street and sell it right then and there.

My district at church on Sunday! From left to right it's Sora Black(my companion), me, Sora Trebas, Sora Lee, Elder Bonner, Elder Kennedy, Elder Jarman, Elder Whitehead and Elder Laititi and Elder Chatterton are up front. My district is so fun and I love them all!

Sora Black and I are doing a picture directory for the missionaries of our branch because there are so many members that we don't know. One of the members wanted to try some and here's one that turned out decent. Haha.

Casa Poporului, the "People's House," which is the Palace of Parliament here in Romania. It's the heaviest building in the entire world and second biggest building aside from the Pentagon. We went on a tour of it today for P-day and it was so rad!

Some bomb.com chicken pot pie that Sora Black and I made for a member this week who just got out of the hospital. We had to improvise with the crust.... Haha.

Me with a piece of art in the Museum of Contemporary Art inside of Casa Poporului. It's a cat chair. So great....

One of my favorite pieces from the Museum of Contemporary Art. It's called "Sacrificiu" or "sacrifice" and it's this artist's depiction of Christ on the cross.

 

Sora Bird and I in front of Casa Poporului today.

Sora Bird and I on top of Casa Poporului, selfie style.

Just the lovely architecture of Casa Poporului.

The view from the bathroom inside of Casa Poporului. Only the best view ever... Haha. There aren't cameras allowed inside unless you pay a giant chunk of change.... so the bathroom and roof are the only photos I got!

My favorite piece from the Museum of Contemporary Art. It's called "Ochii care nu văd" or "eyes which don't see." You can't really see it in the photograph, but there are hidden faces that had ribbons wrapped around their eyes... very cool.