Labas!!!

Labas from Vilnius!

Wow, I am here in Vilnius, Lithuania, and it is awesome.  Crazy to finally be here, but is is so amazing. We have had quite the fun week!!

The plane rides were so much fun, I literally slept the entire way on all three plane rides. Except for when I was looking out the windows, flying is so cool!! That was really awesome.  Elder Jones and I had seats by each other the whole time.  At the end of our last flight into Riga, he and his new friend from Texas were making bets on when I would wake up.  There was a lot of turbulence apparently when we were landing, but I didn't wake up until after we had landed haha.  I guess I sleep good on planes :)

Then we had some training with President and Sister Harding. They are so amazing. It was a super short training, but so good. Riga was cool to look at. There is a lot of grafitti there and here in Vilnius; it's cool to look at.  Then we took a taxi to the bus stop.  It was crazy, our driver was going off in Russian speaking so loudly to us the entire way. We were also listening to some weird English music. Plus he was driving crazy, so it was fun.  There are lots of cool buildings to look at too.  IT was not what I expected my first day to be like at all.  It was exciting!!!!

Then we took a four hour bus ride to Vilnius. We drove through fields and tons of trees. IT is so green here, I love it.  Then another taxi to our apartment.  The outside of it is interesting. It is kind of ghetto actually, but the inside of our apartment is way nice.  And it just smells like Lithuania, I love it.  

The next day we bought groceries and then started contacting.  Haha, I can't really understand what people are saying at all.  They talk super fast and with weird accents. I wish they would speak clearly, slowly, and with an American accent, haha. That would help. But that's okay, I know I will understand them one day.  I know Heavenly Father is helping me.

When most people hear we are missionaries, they hurry off. So it is kind of weird when someone stops to listen to what we have to say. Like, oh I guess I need to speak Lithuanian now haha. It is fun though.  We live right next to a pretty river. Like our area is so gorgeous!! It is what you think of when you think Europe. There is a cool tower on a hill and a few castles and cool Catholic churches everyone.  The sunsets are so beautiful here.  We live in a busy and full of life city, so that is fun.  We have a gorgeous view though.  Lots of people to try to talk to.  

My first night here the fire alarm went off a few times during the night, so that was really fun :) We got rid of that real quick.  A lot of people here speak english, which is nice, but I want to learn this language, so I try to speak Lithuanian a lot.
My trainer is so awesome. Sister Madison is super fun and knows the language so well and is fun to be with.  We have good times.  We have talked to quite a few people actually about the gospel.  A girl named Ieva seemed really interested. I also met some asians on the bus that seemed interested, so we are hoping to get some investigators pretty soon. None yet, Sis Madison and I are both new to this area.

On

Sesuo Madison and Sesuo Jerman

On Saturday, Sister Madison almost got robbed by a gypsie lady! She foretold her future by reading her palm, plucked a hair from her head, and asked for a coin.  She tried to grab her wallet out of her purse, but we got away pretty quickly. It was kind of weird, but fun.  We just kept on moving :) We have gotten lost on the buses a few times, it is kind of crazy to get the hang of, but we are doing it :)

It is fun to try to talk to lots of people.  Not easy, but good. The ward members are great! It was so nice to be surrounded by church members, haha. THey are so great. I spoke in church with Mindaugas, my teacher's convert who I heard a lot about. That was so fun. I recognized a lot of people from the branch. Olvydis is also there, an amazing man who is the ward mission leader. 

I get a little tired now and then during studies, but I am almost back to normal. 

Each morning we eat apples with PB or cereal. Their cereal and PB are so good! all food here is so good! We eat sandwiches usually for lunch. We also made homemade pizza. I tried Gira! It is a carbonated drink that tastes like the smell of bread yeast. Super cool. We ate cepeliniai for dinner, which is super good. Pockets of meat and varsk. The food is so good. So many yummy pastries and such everywhere.

It is just so great here. I love the people and the beautiful city.  It has been quite an adventure. I know that Heavenly Father is with me and helping me. I have felt his spirit with me guiding me. I know He hears and answers our prayers. He is waiting and wanting to help us. I know God loves us so much, each one of us.  I know that He is always there.  If we trust in Him, we have no need to worry.  I love you all very much!

Love Sese Dzerman

I wil try to send pictures next week!

Finally!!!

She is finally there!!!
The mission office sent us this picture of Sister Jerman with her 3 traveling companions and Sister and President Harding at the Latvia Airport.

Elder Seegmiller, Elder Jones, Elder Waters, Sister Jerman, Sister Harding and President Harding

Vilnius - capital of Lithuania

Baltic Missionary Mom post

Interesting fact for the day...Sister Halli Bestenlehnerand her MTC group arrived in the mission the first week of Jan. There were 3 (I think) Lithuanian sisters. There have been NO Lithuanian sisters sent to the Baltic mission until this week! Curious..

Tami Y. Bestenlehner 8:32pm Sep 22 Your daughters trainer is a Sister Madison who is from Boise. She and my daughter were MTC companions and are in a threesome this week . Sister Madison is a wonderful missionary. She lost her little brother in June. So her mission has been hard. Your daughter will love her. I grew up in Rexburg with Helen and Byron being in my ward and were my friends. I moved to Utah when I was 10. Then Byron ended up being in my MTC district. Such a small world. I moved to Vernal 18 years ago with my husband. We love it here! I know a few Calders here.

Tami Y. Bestenlehner 8:33pm Sep 22 Oh interesting fact. My daughters group arrived in Jan. Your daughter is the first Lithuanian Sister to come since Jan.

Last Few Days in the MTC!

​My teachers Sis Fish and Ruiz. Love them

​Sis Webb's last day.

Labas!

It has been an awesome week! It was kind of weird to say goodbye to everyone, but we have had a fun week here.  On Monday, the 9 Estonian Elders and 2 Russian Elders left with our 2 Latvians and 1 Lithuanian (Elder Lyon) from the MTC.  They are now in the Baltics, which is so exciting!  The Estonians and Russians weren't in our zone, but we saw the Estonians a lot because they had class right by us.  Elder Lyon's visa came and allowed him to enter the country the 15th.  Elder Hassell's visa hasn't come, so he went by himself to serve in Chicago for a transfer until it comes.  We 4 stayed here another week because our visas won't let us enter the country til the 22nd.  But that means we are going on Tuesday!!! Our flight plans came!! We leave early Tuesday morning.  We report to the travel office at 3:30 am to travel to the SLC airport.  Then our flight leaves from there at about 8.  We fly to Chicago and get there at about 12 pm. We only have about an hour layover before we fly to Frankfurt Germany!!  Then a short flight to Riga, Latvia and then probably a bus ride down to Lithuania.  We are so excited.  

I am still companions with Sister Kaleopa; she is the best.  We miss Sister Webb though.  In class it is just Elder Seegmiller, Jones, Waters, and I.  It is a lot quieter because all the classrooms are empty around us except for the Finns at the end of the hallway.  We have lots of fun though.  We get to travel in a fourpanionship, so that will be fun!

For Tuesday night devotional, Sister Wixom, the General Primary President, came to speak with us.  It was very cool.  I learned that as we seek God's help, we will be strengthened to carry our load.  Becuase Sister Kaleopa said the closing prayer, we got to give her a hug after the devotional ended.  After I told her where I was going on my mission, she said she was coming to Lithuania in October!  Like next month, right after I get there! Super exciting.

I know that Heavenly Father loves each of us and expresses that love to us everyday.  He cares about what we do and think.  We can love others more as we love Christ more.  As we trust in Him, we can do all things!

I love you all so much! 

Love, Sese Dzerman

​Recreating our first Sunday here, but Neville was cut out and Wiley had already left.

​Sis Webb, Trench, and Hartt left us! Now just me and Sis Kal

This is Sis Wesley.  She is our other Polynesian friend :)

Bye to our Georgians!!

​Here is our last district pic together before Elder Wiley leaves

​Love my black friends, haha jokes

​Love Sis Kal

​My Lithuanian Elders

Better pictures of me with my Lithuanian elders! (from a better angle.) This first one is cute . . .

 and this one is the Baltic smile- which is a straight face :)

​Hassell and Lyon leave tomorrow!

​Our new room

​Our small classroom... only four desks!

​This is our class with Sese Ruiz, our teacher. She is awesome

​This is with our other teacher, Bro Erickson. He is super cool. I am awkwardly in front of course.

​We love choir!!!!!

The missionaries from our zone that left on Monday; the Armenians, Georgians, Latvians, and us.

​Hurrah for Israel!

Only a week and a half left :) Is our time increasing???

​Me and Masa Webb

Our cute companionship by the map :)

​Our mission!

Laba Diena Seima ir Draugai

It was another great week in the MTC!  A lot happened, once again :)  So, we are actually not leaving the MTC for another week.  We are not really sure why because the rest our mission is leaving on Monday, but the Lithuanians are being held back.  I guess we didn't pass our language tests, haha.  That's not really the reason, but we will try to step up our language skills during the extra week that we get.  I know that the Lord has a reason for us being here another week, so we are excited for week 10! I am really grateful for the extra time that I have to prepare to help the people in Lithuania.  

It will be really interesting because instead of 7 Lithuanians going to Lithuania in a week and a half, we are down to 4.  Elder Wiley has been permanently reassigned to a service mission here in Utah, and Elder Lyon and Hassell have been temporarily reassigned to the Chicago, Illinois Mission because their visas won't come in time. So those two leave on Monday without us!  Hopefully it is only for a transfer.  It's been an interesting week!  The flight plans should be comingtomorrow :)

Yesterday, we were able to skype again with an actual Lithuanian.  I love it so much because it reassures us that there are actual people that speak this language and that we can sort of speak it too.  It is so cool to feel the spirit as we invite others to come unto Christ.

Last night we were assigned to be the missionaries that teach an investigator in front of some of the new missionaries- the ones that came in yesterday.  I remember being the new missionary nine weeks ago and watching the two Elders teach an investigator in front of us.  I thought to myself that I could never do that.  I could not just talk to a stranger, let alone in front of a huge crowd!! But, with God's help I did do that.  And it was an incredible experience.  I know that if we pray and ask for help, He will help us!  We just need to trust in Him and not fear.  This is His work and glory, and He is not an absent leader.  He is here helping us now.  I was pretty scared, but there is no reason to fear.  Let us not be ashamed of Christ's gospel, for He is the only way and name that we can be saved.  Heavenly Father is just waiting for us to ask Him for help.  He is there with His hands outstretched.  Through Christ, I have been able to learn a little bit of this language and bring others unto Him.

I am excited for this time I get here at the MTC.  We will try to do this week right, haha!  I love you all so much! You are the greatest.
Love Sese Dzerman

​For Laura Rees, this is her friend Elder Jensen from Tremonton

​Me and Sis Kal

​Me and Sis Kho

​Our cute district with the Mangums.

​Our Malay Elders

The Malay Elders are weird:)

​Our temple walk -don't mind my weird arm.

Our trio

​Sis Howell, Sis Kho, me , Sis Kino. These are Sis Kho's companions, and I love them so much!

Here are the three of us. Good thing I look gorgeous :)

With Sister Merkley on her way to the Ukraine

​For our cute mommies :)

​Elder Hassell, me, Elder Lyon.  They are companions now, the zone leaders.  I was companions with Elder Hassell for like more than half of my time here. They are great.

​These are my new compaions. Elder Seegmiller, me, then Elder Waters. They are awesome too!

​These are the Latvians - Elders Neville and my technical companion, Masa Webb.

​These are the other two Lithunanian Elders - Elder Jones and Elder Wiley are companions.

Us again

With one of my USU roommates, Sister Cook

Ready....

Aim.... 

Spike! 

We love to play Spike Ball!

11 days left :)

Sis Webb, me, Sis Kaleopa, Sis Trench, Sis Hartt, and Sis Baron

Laba Diena!

This week was super awesome!! Sorry, I don't have a lot of time!!

Elder Oaks came and talked with us Tuesday night, and it was amazing.  He talked about the importance of teaching with the spirit.  If we don't have the spirit, we cannot teach.  We need to rely on the Lord and let Him guide us.

Elder Hassell took a picture of us when our faces came up on the big screen during choir.  We're pretty famous, as the camera finds us every week :)

We also listened to a film of Elder Holland.  He told us to astonish somebody!!  We can't expect life to be easy because it wasn't easy for the Savior.  Through our trials, we come to know Him better.  

We love our new companion Sister Kaleopa.  We have lots of fun laughing with her and learning about Australia.  

Today we got to move residence halls, so that was fun.  We have been the only ones in our building, so now we get to be around other sisters again.  

We hosted again and welcomed new Malagasys to our zone.  There is an Elder Jensen, I think, from Tremonton, Utah.  He did student council with Laura!  I also know Elder Brown from American Fork.  He is also in our zone, learning Malay.  

  It truly is a blessing to be here right now and be so close with the spirit all the time.  I have to rely on Heavenly Father every day, and that has been truly humbling.  But I know He will help us always with everything and anything if we just ask.

Things are going awesome!  We get flight plans tomorrow!!!! So I will tell you about those next week.  We are so excited!!

I know that God loves us and that through Christ's atonement, we can be clean again.

  

I love all of you so much

Love, Sese Dzerman

My teacher Sister Fish

 My Lithuanians.    Me with our teacher Sis Fish, Elder Lyon, Elder Hassell, Wiley, Jones, Seegmiller, and Waters. 

​Our tripanionship

Sis Kaleopa and her Elders

Sis Kaleopa (from Australia) and her lava lava

Elder Lyon put 16 wafers in his mouth.  Another day he got in 100 skittles!

Elder Seegmiller "double spoons" Elder Neville