Week #16 in Osnabruck (23 December 2013).  Reese continued to be upbeat and cheerful in his letter:  "It is fun to talk with a lot of people about Christmas and see what they believe.  (We use it for finding lately.)  I am thankful to remember Christmas for what it truly is - celebrating Christ." He was a bit disappointed because an investigator who has felt such a great spirit about the gospel did not come to Church but the branch had another missionary farewell that Reese enjoyed.  On Christmas Eve, we received the following three photos from the ward mission leader of Reese, Elder Mitchell and Sister Hayden and Sister Brown.  They look like a joyful and good group of missionaries.  Merry Christmas to all!

Week #15 in Osnabruck (16 December 2013).  Reese began his letter with "Wow."  They had an exciting week of missionary work, highlighted by the opportunity to teach three lessons to an investigator who indicated he had a desire to be baptized at the end of the month.  It sounded like a wonderful experience and Reese was plainly joyful.  Reese also had his Christmas Zone Conference in Hamburg this week.  Here is a photo from the mission blog (Reese is toward the back on the right):

At the HoHo ZoCo, Reese was thrilled to learn from Elder Karlen that another college student, whom they had found in Chemnitz, was baptized.  Reese also took these photos with other elders at the HoHo ZoCo:

Reese and Elder Duncan, his trainer

Elder Karlen, Reese and Elder Duncan

 Reese and Elder Dzierzon

Reese and Elder Noorda

Elder Mitchell, Reese, Elder ?, Elder Noorda

The Bremen train station.

On the 14th, the Osnabruck branch had a Christmas party.  Here is a photo of Reese, Elder Mitchell and the sisters singing a part in the Christmas program.

The last highlight of the week was a flood in their bathroom.  A hose broke on their washing machine and resulted in about an inch of water.  Reese said:  "We McGuivered a vacuum hose to make the leaking water go into the sink and then ran upstairs to our landlord."  A couple of hours later, it was fixed by a handyman.  Reese was just happy they made it to the Christmas party that evening.

Week #14 in Osnabruck (9 December 2013).  The work was a bit slow this week with what seemed like more rejection than opportunities to teach.  Still, there was one wonderful event.  One of the sisters' investigator's was baptized.  Reese was able to do the baptismal interview and had a nice experience.  He said:  "The baptism was great.  I am really excited for the sisters; they have been working really hard."  Reese noted how happy the new convert looked and observed:  "Just another testimony that it is true.  It is pretty neat to see others find the happiness they were looking for."

During the week Reese had to travel by train to Oldenburg for a day for "district leader school."  He said it felt a bit strange because he was the least experienced district leader.  Reese said he was looking forward next week to the 1/2 mission Christmas party in Hamburg during the week, which he dubbed "HoHo ZoCo."  He also sent along a couple of photos to show his mother that he had received a recent care package, which included a cheap Christmas table-cloth and paper tree.

 
She also sent some "Reese's" Peanut Butter Cups, a long-time favorite, that were apparently a source of fun for Reese and Elder Mitchell:

Reese also said that it had snowed for the first time during the winter on Friday and he took this photo out the back window of their apartment of the snow falling on their neighborhood:

Finally, Reese said that for p-day they had returned to the Christmas Market and he sent this photo of a large Christmas tree in the city center:

Week #13 in Osnabruck (2 December 2013).  Reese headed his letter this week with "The Gospel Will Find You. Always."  He and Elder Mitchell had a wonderful experience of finding a member who had been baptized, moved soon after his baptism and lost contact with the Church.  He saw Reese and Elder Mitchell at a bus stop, came up to them and said that he and his family had been reading the Book of Mormon every night.  It turns out he was moving to Bremen but he is now in touch with the missionaries and his ward there.  They also had a couple of good teaching experiences with other investigators, one of whom came to church for the third time.

Reese also mentioned that he had been interviewed by a journalist in front of a live audience of 25 students.  The interview will be posted in a local paper and blog.  Before he did the interview, Reese received permission from President Kosak and from his ward mission leader.  It sounds like an interesting experience.  I'm proud of him that he had the courage to do it.

The week also saw Thanksgiving.  Reese commented that the day had been "true American missionary status," with two eating appointments.  They ate a Thanksgiving meal with a kind American family and had a wonderful time.  Reese did say:  "Instead of pumpkin pie :( we had sweet potato cupcakes.  They were awesome, but I miss pumpkin pie."  I think it's the first time he's "complained" about food in Germany, which he has truly loved.  After the Thanksgiving meal, they went immediately to another dinner appointment and managed again to eat plenty of food before, Reese said, they "rolled" home.

Finally, last week, Reese had indicated they were heading off to the Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market) for an evening p-day (they worked during the day so they could take the evening).  This week Reese reported that the market had been "awesome."  Here are a couple of photos from the Christmas Market and a picture of Reese with enchiladas he and Elder Mitchell made and of which they were quite proud: