Letter 13 from Russia

Hello family!

... So... I'm sorry I'm emailing late... It's kind of a long story... I'll tell it in just a moment. First I wanted to say: please! Everyone! Send me a miracle, story, experience that effected you personally in your life so that I can share it with my investigators! Specifically include blessings you received from obeying a specific commandment! (Tithing for example) This will help me connect personally to the story and will provide variety to my lessons and powerful ways you can help spread seeds in Russia! Who knows, maybe it wasn't me that was to help someone, but in fact YOU and your experience! Also! Dad, my companion, as soon as we were done skyping said you reminded him of Harrison Ford. Ya Tak Smeyalsya! (I laughed much)

Soooo... Yesterday as we were headed to the library to write home, my companion turned to me and said his stomach didn't feel well. I suggested we walk to the McDonalds just down the street so he could use the free restroom. As we walked though the pain intensified and he said he didn't think he could make the walk to McDonalds. Deciding a few rubles was no sacrifice to use the restroom in this situation, we went immediately into the next building. I could tell he was in a lot of pain and it was getting worse, so I called te Mission president's wife and had him talk to her while I asked a lady cleaning the stairs where a bathroom might be. She said there was one in the building next door but not in this one, despite it being four stories and quite nice. (that's russia for you.) I asked my companion, who by this point had collapsed against the wall, if he could make it to the next building. He said no. He was still on the phone with sister sartori and was struggling to speak. I tore off his hat and gave him a blessing right there while he was on the phone. People were probably very confused, but none of that mattered. His condition worsened, despite my blessing that everything would be okay. He was pale and laying on the ground. He had hung up with sister sartori and said we neeed to call a taxi to go home and find some pain killers. The lady cleaning the stairs came out and saw my comanion and became very upset. She insisted on calling an ambulance (Socialized health care here. Cheap for Russians, Pricey for foreigners) But I told her a taxi would be enough. Other people were starting to gather and my language skills were proving to fail me. The Russians insisted he sit on a chair in the room, so despite the fact that laying would probably have been better, I helped him into the chair, him looking even worse. His breathing was deep and he said the pain was like someone was stabbing him. At this point, several of the Russians had caled Skora Pomosh (Soon help, ie: an ambulance) and I didn't know what to do. The russians kept talking to me, using words I had obviously never heard before, and my companion was moaning. It was all very overwhelming. I called Sis. Sartori again, but she didn't answer and I had to explain everything to the Assistant to the president. He told me to get into the ambulance and to cal my district leader, luckily a native, so that he could meet us at the hospital and help translate. My companion was paler now and his moaning was louder. He was rocking violently back and forth in the chair. I talked to him about anything and everything to take his mind off of the pain, but all he wanted to know was when the ambulance would come. Finally, the ambulance came and the paramedics came and helped him into the ambulance. I had to answer all their protocol questions, which I only understood because I took my first responder course and knew what kind of questions they were asking... thanks heavens. After getting into the ambulance, they were doing a quick diagnostic, but because my companion speaks no russian, I was forced to do the translating. Again, because I understood the kind of questions they needed to ask in this kind of situation, I was able to tell them the right answers quickly, and I think I had a burst of the gift of tongues... Sersiously. I didn't know any of the words they were saying, but I still knew what they meant... Medical terms and such... At this point, his breathing had slowed and the pain had lessened, thankfully. We went into te hospital and they put us in this room, very un-sterile, Russian like... They did some more diagnostics, with a real doctor this time, me translating everything. Gift of tongues... again. Everyone left the room. We were alone for a bit. A nurse came in and almost gave him a shot, but then realized he was the wrong patient... haha! Russia. Then after a few minutes, a man came in with a doctor and the doctor started doing some sort of examination on the man. The man laid down and pulled down his pants a bit... mooned us... haha. I thought the doctor was going to give him a shot in the bum... but he PULLED ON THE GLOVE!!! SO AWKWARD! I was sitting right next to the guy!! Russian health care has no privacy!!! Afterwards, they both just left the room... so random! Probably the funniest thing that has happened to me in all of Russia so far now that I think about it... haha! My companion was feeling... well... not deathly at this point. Finally my district leader came and he was able to take care of things a lot better than I could... The rest of the day was a lot of sitting in the hospital, running all around Penza, rearranging meetings... the works... My companion is still in the hospital right now, a specialist is coming soon... I'm on splits with elder glad right now and missionary work resumes. 

Anyway... I have to go now though. I love you all! I hope you weren't worried when you woke up and didn't have my email! Pray for my companion! He may have to go home if they have to do a surgery. It isn't his apendix... they think... Could be an ulcer? anyway... Loves!

Elder Swartz!

Letter #12 from Russia

HELLO!

I emailed Mary, let her know how Lucky she is! That really is soo cool that she gets all that in the MTC!

So! There's a rumor in St. Petersburg that Sarah Brunsdale is engaged!!! No way! I would like confirmation on that one please. Also, I got five baptisms this week!!! They were all dead though... haha! Yeah, I went to the KIEV TEMPLE! So awesome!! I can't even describe how great it feels to go to the temple again, not to mention the KIEV TEMPLE! So COOL! Also, so members from Penza happened to be at the temple that week too! I got baptized for the dead by Andrei Panin, one of my favorite members! He is great! We didn't get to do a session, but it was a blessing nonetheless! A really cool experience happened while we were there. An elder had a headache after we were done with everything, so we went to a building on the temple grounds to get something for him to feel better and this lady came up to us and asked us if we could give her a blessing. We all hesitated because we were all new missionaries, and we asked a man if he could help us, but the woman said she wanted us to do it because she prayed that some Elders would come and give her a blessing. There happened to be four of us Elders, (there needs to be at least three men to be in room with a woman) so we followed her to a room and sat her down. I didn't give the blessing, just helped put my hands on her head. It was a sweet blessing, choppy language, totally powerful. Afterwards, we met some sisters from Rostov and they told us that Elder Pehrson, an Elder I loved in the MTC went home after two weeks in the Field. Sad. But I also met a lady who said she remembered Christy from Rostov. She had a crazy eye. She saw Christy's picture and said she definitely remembered that smile.

So I really want to know the name of Heather Christiansen's (Perry's daughter) Husband! The one who served here in Samara! I want to know which cities he was in, when he served, mission president, everything! Also, fun fact: When you're at a stop light and the little green man lights up to signal it's okay to walk, he starts out walking. But instead of it turning into a red hand, the little man starts running to show that the time is almost up! So funny!

My companions their transfer call last night. Anderson is going to be a zone leader!! So cool! I'll miss him! Glad is with a native! And I'm with a second cycler... I have to go! I love you all so much!!

Loves, elder swartz!