Bonjour ma famille!! Angers is absolutely beautiful! But I will start at the beginning. Disclaimer! I'm using a french keyboard so its really difficult so pardon me for all my grammatical mistakes! It was sooo wonderful to talk to you on the phone last week! Made me so happy! The flight was really long and I didnt get any sleep.Ioove our mission president and his wife. They are the best, so sweet and so kind. Paris is absolutely AMAZING. I adore it! Even though it smells terrible but really its incredible definitely something that everyone has to see someday! We stayed at the mission home the first night and then the next day I said goodbye to Soeur Mason and met Soeur Foster who is an absolute angel! She is from Utah and she is the best trainer ever! We get along super well and she helps me out a lot with my french. Our apartment is lovely, its small butperfect and the only place besides the church that smells good ha we live above a boulangerie which is a bakery so yup comin back fat but these patisseries are practically worth it! We go contacting everyday and porte a porte and we see miracles every time. I can see everyday the hand of the Lord in this work, it is incredible! My first Sunday was great. Everyone here is soo nice and they were complimenting me on my French which was so kind. I was able to go up and introduce myself and bear my testimony which was great but a tad bit scary! The members are really great and I am excited to be able to work with all of them! There are 3 companionships in Angers so all of us are at church together, they are really nice and we get to teach the 16 & 17 year olds sunday school class! All the French stereotypes are WRONG btdubs just so you know :) Except the fact that everyone and their dog smokes here seriously my lungs are getting ruined! But I really do love it here and although the work right now is not progressing very well I know that I belong here and there are lives here that I can change if I just open my mouth and act as an instrument for the Lord! He has a plan and we will find those people who are ready! We meet so many people everyday and the world is full of characters. Yesterday we met with this old lady and she gave us a tour of her entire house then fed us like 20 year old tart gateau that she cut with the same knife that she had once been threatened to be killed with! Ooh la la people here! It is really hard work but it is so good and so rewarding. I love you all thank you so much for your support and prayers!!

Avec amour,

Soeur Hawkes

 

Oh and we take public transportation everywhere but in Angers it really is not that bad the public transportation in Paris was super sketch though.

 

P.S. I am never coming home :) loove youuuuu

 

I forgot to ask you a HUGE favor. So the Mission President said if we want the gift of tongues we have to pray 3x a day for it, and to ask our families to pray for us as well. So please pray for me! Pray that I can understand these people and have the ability to share my testimony with them in French! The language is really difficult but it's getting there, every day is better! but I could always use your prayers! :)

I love you all and I can't thank you enough for your support and prayers!

Avec amour,

Soeur Hawkes 

Also just so you don't worry, I've hardly had anxiety while I've been here. it has been an incredible blessing from Heavenly Father! I'm doing really great, my biggest challenge is understanding people! they talk so fast here! But it'll come :) I know that through God's grace I can do all things!