Sister Alyssa Johnson: GLEN WAVERLEY - Week 10

HOLY COW WHAT THE HECK.

I made it to Australia and it's been pretty good! :) They call us GOLDENS instead of greenies here and I love it. The first few days have been pretty rough not going to lie. Everything is so different here than in America.

It has been pretty funny trying to talk to my trainer the past couple days because I don't know Chinese very well and she doesn't know English very well. But we have figured it out and we get along really well. She has already taught me so much and I love her!

I found out that there are 4 areas where Chinese sisters serve in Melbourne. Most of the Chinese serve in the City (that is where Sister Cahoon is and I miss her a ton), but I am serving in an area called Glen Waverley. We live in this cute little house and I am obsessed. My companion and I are the only Chinese Sisters in this area. I am super grateful to be serving here! It turns out that our church building is the same building as our mission office so we are super close to President Vidmar and that is so comforting. He has helped me so much transition here and start to make this place my new home. I absolutely love my mission president and his wife! They are sooo great and so inspired.

Being a Chinese missionary in Melbourne is pretty slow right now because all of our investigators have gone back to China until March. So we do A TON OF CONTACTING. They call it GQ (golden question) here and we do it for hours everyday. I am honestly so grateful to my MTC teachers for having us practice contacting while at the MTC. I know that I usually complained when we would do it in class, but I am so grateful now.

Me and my companion have a car.. but it stays at the mission office because my companion can't drive. To be able to drive here, you have to pass a driving test with someone from the mission office and you have to be here for at least a transfer. My cute companion Sister Guan didn't pass the driving test, so we walk everywhere and we take the bus. It has been ok though because the weather has been pretty nice. We live in a cute little house and regular neighborhood.

Everyone here is so nice and so excited when I speak the few Chinese words that I know! They are so funny :) I have seen a couple spiders here, but nothing too crazy. BUT I have seen a Kangaroo!! I was pumped.

Well there really isn't much more to write because it has been pretty slow here with investigators and such. But I know I am going to love it here! The homesickness and anxiety have been a little hard as I have been transitioning but I have learned so much about Jesus Christ and God's love and about Faith. I am so loved and watched over and know that I can do all things through Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH

I appreciate the prayers! :)

Have a great week!!

xoxo,

Sister Johnson