The longest, but fastest week ever.

Sorry you keep waiting up to get my emails... we keep going hiking and doing our email later. Sister Lichtenberg and I are just trying to squeeze in as much Mongolia mountainside as we can before transfers :)

Solongo, with her cute kids

This was like, the longest, but fastest week ever. I don't know how time does that here... It's scary how another 9 week transfer has already finished. This entire transfer with Sister Lichtenberg has just been a giant party. We have worked so hard and even though we haven't always had a ton of people to meet with and haven't seen any baptisms, we have been so happy and truly found the joy in missionary work and serving others.

Oyun and Gampiil (Brother & Sister) who are awesome!!!

Like on Saturday when we went to visit a lost LA whose ger was way up on a mountain, and we found out she couldn't really walk and didn't have any water. Well, are we missionaries or are we missionaries?? Of course we'll get your water!
Then she was like, "the water station is kind of far, is that ok?"
"It's ok! We can do it!"
"Also, I don't have a cart, so you just have to carry the jugs (25 liters a piece) is that ok?"
*more hesitantly* "....uhh... yeah! We can do it!"
So there we go, tromping down the mountain in search for the water station, and keep asking people along the way, and they keep telling us "just keep going"
Like half a mile later we see the water station, and after we filled up, quickly found out that her jugs both had cracks in them! So as we hiked back up the mountain we got totally soaked in ice water.

This experience could have turned out a lot differently. We both could have had really bad attitudes and complained and dragged our feet as we lugged these heavy containers of water up a mountain face. But in that moment, I was so grateful that I had a strong, capable body that was able to help somebody in a time of need! Sisters and ladies, that is why we do push ups in the morning!

Another power outage

This week I was also so grateful for the opportunity to have met with Sister Tsetsegee's family (the one going to Logan!) Her family is awesome. Dad is on the high council, mom is in the relief society presidency, younger sister in yw preparing for a mission, and little brother who is like 6 and crazy. We just went to have dinner and share a spiritual thought with them, but being in their home was like being back with my own family. It is very rare in Mongolia to see a fully functional, active family. More often then not, the dad is out of the picture, or only the kids are members, or any other situation, but it was the first time in a long time I sat in a home with strong, beautiful family, and it just made me so incredibly grateful and happy to have been raised with the gospel in my life. Because even though this family is still poor and doesn't have a lot, you can just tell by sitting on their floor that they are happy and their family has been blessed by living the gospel of Jesus Christ. It was so awesome!

Stay tuned for transfers next week! Love you!
Sister Hansen

Just.... trying to get a normal district picture.... so difficult....

p.s. I was reading the story of Joseph in the Old Testament and the entire soundtrack of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dreamcoat was running through my head along with the story. Then I had to add it to my post-mission cravings list.

[Note from parents: Jennifer asked us to forego sending her any gifts for Christmas, because she said that after serving in such a poor area, there was nothing she could ever want from home. What she wanted to do was to use the money we would have spent on her to buy a hand carved nativity set from a member. She said the cost of the set would feed the family for a month. Of course we told her to have him carve one for us too and then Becca's co-worker wanted one too! Here are pictures of the set. Pretty cool, huh? We can hardly wait!!]