These are photos of the gorgeous fall Kelsey is having in Halifax.

Hello All.

I don`t even remember what I wrote last week, but I remember it wasn`t very much, and probably super unsatisfying for most of you.  My bad!  I got caught up in something else and ended up not having time to give this proper attention.

We found out about transfers and I am staying around for another six weeks.  I am not even training!  here I was bing nervous that I would ruin the spirit and expectations of a happy unsuspecting greenie, and that president leavitt remembers everyone he threatens with training.  apparently not.  so that is a relief.

and with that, really, I will not tell you my mailing address because number one I don`t know the postal code, and number two the office is really five minutes away and we go there on a regular basis.  I can pick up my mail there. number three, it would probably be safer there too, because we don`t stop back at our appartment during the day and otherwise it just sits in the lobby waiting for anyone to take it.  super sketch.  use the mission office address, it`s great.

This week was the canadien thanksgiving!  it was weird because nobody really had any traditions for it, no one really knows why it started and it isn't related to fall decorations or pilgrims or native americans, or even turkeys, which in my mind defeats the purpose of thanksgiving.  all the buisnesses were close though, so that was fun.  I actually ended up not doing much more than my laundry last week too because something else  came up.  but we did have dinner at a members house, and I got to have a turkey leg and play with her cat lizard and dog. all good things in my opinion.  I think she said the lizard was like an aramaic armored lizard.  or something.  it looked like a dragon and didn't do much more than lick my arm.  I still think lizards are awesome in case anyone is wondering.

We... lets see here we did lots of running aruond chasing our investigators trying to get appointments with them and failing last week.  that was fun. I think we need new ones, they seem less than enthusiastic to see us most of the time.

I still need to talk to everyone* because my companion is really verbose and good at being professional at the drop of a hat as well, an uncanny and sometimes annoying trait as well but that is my own weakness and I digress.  it is super easy for me to not try very hard to talk to people is what I am saying. and that is a bad thing.  I need to change that.

*but not everyone really because as we found sometimes there are situations where you should have just kept walking.  we were talking to people on the street one night ten minutes before curfew because we had nothing else to do, and paused to talk to a guy lifting an amp into a doorway. we got talking and he found out sqinting at our tags that we were missionaries.  we did the usual "you ever met missionaries before/heard what they have to say/do you want to come unto christ?" and he was not really interested by obvious diversions away from the topic. he then ended up asking the question "you got a boyfriend at home?" and I was like 'no.' and then he asked "do you ever date on your missions?" and I was like 'No.>:| '  and he came back with "how long is that, 18 months? holy cow! I wouldn't ever be able to do that, I can't say celibate for 18 days!" to which we ended up clipping the conversation to that's nice sir, nope we don't do that, do you want a card, no, okay we're leaving.
moral of the story don't talk to people in front of bars, because they try to pick you up on a date.  and not the byu kind. XP

anyway let's try to salvage this with a spiritual thought.  so this week I was reading in the beginning of seccond Nephi, and chapter two talks about the nature of our lives and how there is opposition in all things and that is a result of the plan that was created in heaven by God and the Fall of Adam and Eve.  all of it works by the power of the messiah and his atonement right? and then we come to these two verses, 28 and 29

"And now my sons I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his holy spirit;

      and not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh and the evil which is therein, which giveth the spirit of the decil power to captivate, yo bring you down to that hell, that he may reign over you in his own kingdom."

what all of this comes down to is that we ultimately choose to yield ourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the flesh, what we want, because as nephi later says in chapter 4... oh shoot I can't find it.  well it went something like christ deliveres us from sin, pain, and our frailties... and I really wish I could find it because it said something else about our habbits or our desires or something like that.  huh.  bummer.  well, that was going to be cooler but I am less of a scriptorian than I thought I was.  point is what we want isn't always good for us, and trusting the Will of the Lord helps us avoid our personal faults and pitfalls.

anyway.

send me mail. 

I love you all and am glad things are going well.

Sister Christensen.

Kelsey always takes great notes in conference

I bought a pumpkin. 

I cannot believe that it is October!  I don't feel like it has been nearly six months since I've left.  I still haven't done very much!  D: I have so much left to do.

the fall leaves here are beautiful, I took a couple of pictures with my comps camera, we'll see if I can steal some from her.  it is weird, because when you leave the city the landscape is just solid trees.  and all kinds of trees, like maples oaks, pines, spruce, cedars, aspen, birch you name it, I think there may even be palms in there somewhere. just a solid wall of trees, exploding with color. 

I loved General Conference!  I went in with a couple of questions, and honestly there wasn't anything anyone said specifically but I still felt like I have an answer now.  so that is cool.  for all of those out there who don't know what I am talking about here is a link,  (come here, you will like this), and what it is is a conference where apostles and prophets of God speak to the world.  I have come to know that they are called specifically to lead and guide, and help teach what God's plan and path for us is in this quite frankly messed up world.  I have also come to know, that they are servants of the Lord, and whether it is by Christs voice, or the mouth of his servants, it is his word, and it will always be the same.  sometimes that shocks or puts people off, but that is just the way that it is.  I invite you to watch and see for yourself, to listen with desires to know for yourself if the things that they teach are of God, because you can know but the way you feel if it is true.  for it is by the power of the holy ghost, that we can know the truth of all things.

Other things. I liked Henry B Eyring's talk, for some reason I just thought of Mom and Dad.  it made me giggle a little.  It also gave me peace in some ways.  I also liked D Todd Christofferson's, Dallin H Oaks's, and Neil L Anderson's talks.  They all seemed to highlight something that I've come to know is true on my mission, if we strive to follow Christ and live his doctrine, we can have peace, in the face of confusing and conflicting ideas in the world today.  The prophet also wasn't kidding when he advised us to pray and listen every day.  I don't always listen enough, so that is something that I can work on too. 

That and I loved Elder Ballard's talk on missionary work.  It was so funny to hear a lot of the things that my mission president has been nagging us about lately come straight from an apostles mouth.  things like praying for missionary experiences, talking to everyone we see, involving the members as much as we can in missionary work all were things that struck me.  that and that morning we had had a sisters conference call with our mission president and he committed each companionship to try to find someone willing to be baptized by Christmas, which was something Elder Ballard then said almost word for word.  Chilling how when the Lord wants his work hastened his servants will spread the message, repetitively and unanimously.  I know I can improve in my missionary work, but it is also a simple thing to carry five mormon.org cards in our pocket, to use when we feel prompted.  I know if we all work together, we will be blessed as we follow a prophet's counsel.

okay conference rant over.

I actually ended up making cinnamon rolls from a recipe that I found was similar to mom's. they weren't perfect, but they worked~

so this week was pretty fun, full of ups and downs, rediculously sunny and hot days and cold rainy ones.  kind of poetic actually.  the people we have been meeting with are doing well, Steve is working on his emotional paranoia problems and Lindsey seems to be building faith, they're not supposed to have any verbal contact with each other, but they are both lying and it is dumb.  I will be happy when they finally talk to their lawyers and this whole fiasco can be forgotten.  friends, don't get in a domestic violence dispute in canada, you have no say in the terms of restriction, that is up to the police, and it is also just a terrible thing to let yourself fall to when it could have been fixed through the atonement of christ.

but as madre was correct to learn, we are having a missionary concert this week, and I don't get to be in it, but I get to go to it because it is in my area and my companion is playing the violin in it.  so there, i get to see it twice hah!

people have been asking me lately about Christmas and I don't know where I will be by then, and I don't actually know my mailing address, I will update you guys with that asap.  for now the mission office is fine for letters and stuff, since it is only five minutes away.  and that should be the address at the top of my blog, because I don't remember that one to type it out. 

things I wouldn't mind for Christmas: 

CD's of Mormon Tabernacle choir, especially the show tunes one.

my Ipod and its cord.  I don't know what to do with the music on it, I know that I have the willpower to not listen to it for 12 months, but it might actually be a better idea to buy a cheap MP3 player instead. 
there are lots of them out here that are combined as recording devices, and those are actually kind of cool.  I don't really know how much they are, you should ask Scott if he can find something like what I'm talking about.  it has a usb port to load things like a flash device, and also does voice recording.  I don't know it's a thought.

chocolate

tights (no patterns unfortunately)

chocolate

non-dangly earrings, are always a good gift

skirts.  size wise I'd say nothing less than an 8.  probably 10's. in fact money for skirts would be even better.

Love. you guys don't actually have to send me anything, I'd be plenty happy for good letters and prayers of love.

anyway, so that is my letter today.  I love you guys!  I want to know how you're doing!  I think about and pray for you every day :)

Sister Christensen