May 26, 2014

Dear Mom,

I actually saw two pictures of all you ladies on Sunday when I was over at the Swinefords for lunch. It's so good to see you!  I'm so glad you had a good time, and it's so weird/cool that we were all hanging out at the same time. (You're with them, I'm with their kids.)

 

I only have like an hour for emailing today so I don't know if it will be enough to write everything I want to write about. It's possible I might be able to email again at some point later this week. I don't know. Sorry!

First of all I just need to tell you about last night. We were walking to Center to contact for a few hours before we had to turn in, and as we approached the main street we all heard this very jubilant jazz music playing. There were three double decker busses that pulled up at the light with the tops down, first time I have ever seen that here. The busses were filled with band players in suspenders and hats playing the drums, the saxophone, everything. Everyone out on the street by us was looking up at them wondering what was going on. They all filed out and everyone on board was dressed nice, some in gypsy-esque costumes. (Not like real gypsies, the Esmeralda-type of gypsies.) "That's a свадба," said Elder Prince. (Wedding.) Then I saw the bride and her groom. She was dressed in a very extravagant white frilly dress, complete with a crown-looking thing, and man, for someone who just got married and was having a huge party she did not look too happy. She didn't smile at all. Everyone with her was having the time of their life though, it seemed. They were all laughing and smiling. The band and hoard of people from the wedding continued to follow them around, and we followed as well. There was even a professional camera crew. They stopped to take some pictures at the fountain and continued on. I had no idea what to make of it. "Sister Riddle, you look disgusted," Elder Gierisch said to me.  He then offered himself and Elder Barber to do shirtless fire dancing at my wedding.  But that's not the end of the story!! As we were walking home a nice little summer lightning storm was starting, and once we got in I sat on the couch and watched it through the windows while I killed off the rest of my birthday apple juice. The sky was overcast and pink and blue. The sound of the thunder was awesomely powerful. Then it started to rain. Then it started to rain really, really hard and the wind was blowing so forcefully I was afraid it was going to snap one of the trees outside of our apartment in half. Me and Sister Schofield went out on our balcony to watch it. Then we realized it was turning to hail and our balcony was filling up with ice! I was touching elbows with Sister Schofield and I had to yell at the top of my lungs for her to hear me. The hail started to sting as it hit us so we went inside. The streets started flooding big time. What I at first thought was white foam on top of the water was actually hail floating on top. It was deep and fast enough to have killed a small child. By this time it was pitch black outside. I saw people in the surrounding apartment buildings out on their balconies as well and looking out their windows. Sister Schofield took video of this but I can't send them via email. So one day, you will be able to see what I'm talking about. We had the elders on the phone the whole time just having a DO YOU SEE THIS conversation. It was incredible because it came so out of nowhere. I'm glad we were at home on time. Finally it stopped. But that's not the end of the story!!! We were laying in bed at about eleven o clock and I thought Sister Schofield was jumping on my mattress, and then I heard her from her side of the room say, "Do you feel that?" Her bed was moving too. There was a confused moment where we both sat up and stared and each other. IT WAS AN EARTHQUAKE. YEAH. It obviously was pretty gentle for an earthquake and lasted probably for less than a minute, but still. Whenever there's some gigantic storm like this I always just think that God must be really mad. This morning we got up at five am to catch a bus to Lake Ohrid down by the Greek border, and all the streets were amazingly dry except for a few puddles and deposits of hail. 

Update: President Ford came down to have lunch with us one day and he told us that the request he submitted for two more elders and two more sisters hasn't even been looked at yet. He said he had been thinking they would get here in October if he was lucky, Christmas at the latest, but now it's looking like they won't come until Sister Schofield and Elder Barber leave. So, will I be training three new Macedonian sisters? (Including her replacement.)

Anyway, Lake Ohrid. I wake up at five am every day anyway lately because of the light and heat. We have AC in our apt, don't worry. The bus ride was three hours. The APs (assistant to the president) and Sister Training Leaders from Albania came and met up with us. The Lake, town and surrounding mountains were beautiful. We hiked up to the castle there and took pictures. I bought some earrings made from the pearl found in the lake there. Restaurants advertising lamb. A church that you had to pay 100 denar to enter. Too bad we couldn't get on a boat or in the water. We hung out, took pictures, ate giro. So for a few hours the city of Ohrid housed twelve missionaries. As usual when we go to a new part of Macedonia I think of what it will be like when there are missionaries serving there. Weird again to hear yet another dialect of Macedonian. This is the part of the country where most tourists go. It was so, so hot and we had to run to catch our bus. We were all miserable on the ride back because there was no AC and the windows didn't open.

We continue to have zero investigators.

 

Ether 12:12, "For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; wherefore, he showed not himself until after their faith."

That's all for now.

Love,

Sister Riddle