Bonne Année! (Happy New Year)
Happy New Year everyone! New Year's was great here in Nice. I guess in France, New Year's Eve is the holiday of Saint Sylvestre, and we live right on the corner of Place Saint Sylvestre in Nice, so there were thousands of people outside our window partying. It was crazy! I woke up at midnight thinking I was in a warzone with all the fireworks going off right next to our apartment, but no, it was the opposite of a warzone, it was thousands of drunk french people lighting off fireworks on new years eve and yelling "Bonne Année!" I couldn't help but join in on some of the fun and jump on Elder Call while he was still asleep yelling happy new year (even though he told me before we went to bed that if I did he would kill me).
The work was kind of slow during the holiday because there are so many tourists here and our investigators are on holiday. I wish I could speak Italian! We weren't able to have a lot of lessons this week, so we did a lot of contacting. But our investigators are doing well. Marcelline is still preparing for the 15th. She came with us to the "Raclette" activity at the church New Year's Eve. Raclettes are a European tradition. You take Raclette cheese (which you can only get around here) and melt it in this little machine, then you poor it over a boiled potatoe with meat on it, and it's amazing! We also ate at a member's house on Sunday. Her name is Dawna and she's from England, and she lives in Francheville (probably one of teh most beautiful places I've ever been, it reminded me of Positano). She made us "death by chocolate" which included chocolate crepes, chocolate fondants, chocolate mousse, and chocolate ice cream. And yes, I did die. But I can tell you that here chocolate fondant is the best desert I've ever tasted! And after I died from that, we had another eating appointment with a member. Death!
We taught a lesson after that, and I was trying not to throw up the whole time. I'm starting to realize how important the members are in missionary work. Ideally, it should be the members who find all of the investigators, and the missionaries who teach them with the members. When a member invites a friend to be taught by the missionaries, that investigator already has a friend in the church, and that is probably the hardest part for a new convert - having a friend after the missionaries leave! There have been a lot of baptisms in Nice this year, but there are hardly any converts who are still active. What's the point of baptizing people if they don't rest active and endure to the end? As members, we all have a responsibility to befriend members, less actives, and nonmembers and to be concerned for the welfare of their souls. Elder Graham and I want to really start focusing on involving the members as much as we can, and I know we're going to see miracles because of it! I encourage all of you to invite people to hear about the church, or if you know someone who is less active, to invite them to come back to church. It is YOU, the members, who have the biggest impact when you invite people. I wish I had a bigger testimony of that before I came on a mission, and now that I'm here I realize that I had a responsibility for the people around me even before I was a missionary. So wherever you are, and yes, even in Utah, you can always find opportunities to invite people to come unto Christ, and I know that as you do, you'll see so many blessings in your life! The First Presidency says in "Preach My Gospel" that missionary work is the most important work in the world, and the work that brings the most satisfaction! As a missionary, I testify that that is true! Have a good week everyone! I love you!
The work was kind of slow during the holiday because there are so many tourists here and our investigators are on holiday. I wish I could speak Italian! We weren't able to have a lot of lessons this week, so we did a lot of contacting. But our investigators are doing well. Marcelline is still preparing for the 15th. She came with us to the "Raclette" activity at the church New Year's Eve. Raclettes are a European tradition. You take Raclette cheese (which you can only get around here) and melt it in this little machine, then you poor it over a boiled potatoe with meat on it, and it's amazing! We also ate at a member's house on Sunday. Her name is Dawna and she's from England, and she lives in Francheville (probably one of teh most beautiful places I've ever been, it reminded me of Positano). She made us "death by chocolate" which included chocolate crepes, chocolate fondants, chocolate mousse, and chocolate ice cream. And yes, I did die. But I can tell you that here chocolate fondant is the best desert I've ever tasted! And after I died from that, we had another eating appointment with a member. Death!
We taught a lesson after that, and I was trying not to throw up the whole time. I'm starting to realize how important the members are in missionary work. Ideally, it should be the members who find all of the investigators, and the missionaries who teach them with the members. When a member invites a friend to be taught by the missionaries, that investigator already has a friend in the church, and that is probably the hardest part for a new convert - having a friend after the missionaries leave! There have been a lot of baptisms in Nice this year, but there are hardly any converts who are still active. What's the point of baptizing people if they don't rest active and endure to the end? As members, we all have a responsibility to befriend members, less actives, and nonmembers and to be concerned for the welfare of their souls. Elder Graham and I want to really start focusing on involving the members as much as we can, and I know we're going to see miracles because of it! I encourage all of you to invite people to hear about the church, or if you know someone who is less active, to invite them to come back to church. It is YOU, the members, who have the biggest impact when you invite people. I wish I had a bigger testimony of that before I came on a mission, and now that I'm here I realize that I had a responsibility for the people around me even before I was a missionary. So wherever you are, and yes, even in Utah, you can always find opportunities to invite people to come unto Christ, and I know that as you do, you'll see so many blessings in your life! The First Presidency says in "Preach My Gospel" that missionary work is the most important work in the world, and the work that brings the most satisfaction! As a missionary, I testify that that is true! Have a good week everyone! I love you!
-Elder Tudor
What cute little missionaries!
Dawna's house
View from Dawna's House
Notre Dame de la Gare
Elder Tudor with Elder Kirkpatrick
Views of Marseille
Chateau D'if
shhhshhing baby
Best kabob in Marseille
Elder Tudor and Elder Dorton with lettuce? 
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