The Grande Finale: Au Revoir et À Bientôt

This is it folks. I can't believe that we are now down to my final weekly of my mission. As much as I have liked typing these weeklys out for you all, I cannot wait to actually talk to people about it IN PERSON!

A mission makes saying goodbye so much harder! Last week was just full of goodbyes and it was just sad! We were also fed a ton of food almost everyday too so that was a bonus. Members in the ward fed us on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,  Thursday, and Sunday. All I can say is that everything was delicious! On Monday, we were invited over to the relief society president's house and we ate a homemade salad, with homemade dressing, plus chicken, and finished with pumpkin pie bought from COSTCO!!!!! I was so excited!!!!! The French don't really eat pumpkin flavored things so it was the first time for the husband and wife to be eating the pie and I think it changed their world haha! It was so fantastic!

On Tuesday, we had exchanges with the STLs here in Évry and I got to be with Sœur McBride one last time before we both head home. We went and did some batting in a building near the church and we happened to find two less active members there! That happens almost every time when we are on exchanges! Blessings I tell ya!!!!!! We also ate African food that night at a family's house and that was delicious as well. I've come to have a huge appreciation for African food now and it'll be one of the things I'll miss after I leave. We planned a little lesson for the family on how they can be involved in missionary work. We gave them a list of 100 ideas along with Books of Mormon to give out to their friends. The oldest told us that he would take a selfie and send that to his friends to see how that would work. Well at least the parents promised us that they will go over the list of ideas and have the kids choose something that they will do to share the gospel with their friends. This family is awesome! I learned how to make beignets on Wednesday and I'm excited to be making them at home now for the family. I'm just worried about the popping oil that would get everywhere in the process of making them!

Thursday, all of the missionary teams in Evry were invited over to a family's house and they hosted a Thanksgiving lunch for us! It was so thoughtful and meaningful and I just wanted to cry! The wife went above and beyond to make this meal just like a Thanksgiving meal at home and it was perfect. She made homemade pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes and gravy, all of the good traditional sides a Thanksgiving meal has. Sœur Johnson and I were in charge of decorating the table so we put our creativity to the test and we did a pretty decent job! The wife had some leaves that she gathered from outside and we put them on the table with some pinecones, cute little pebbles, and other fall decor. Before we sat down to eat we all traced our hands on paper, cut it out, and made the hands into turkeys and on each finger we wrote what we were grateful for. Five fingers were not enough for me to list everything I was grateful for but I made do with what I had. It was such a nice Thanksgiving gathering for all of us.

There was a wedding on Saturday and it was...very interesting, I'll just leave it at that. It was an African wedding too so there was lots of food, dancing, screaming, and commotion happening at the church building. We all had a good time with the members and couldn't stay too long because apparently African weddings are known to last until 6 in the morning. Overall it was fun and probably a way to end my last week in France.

The hardest part of the week was saying goodbye to everyone at church on Sunday. Just when I thought I could get away from not giving a talk in the ward (after being here for 6 months) the bishop had asked the missionaries who were leaving (3 total) to go up and bear their testimony. When I got up to the podium I just wanted to tell everyone that instead of saying goodbye, I was the new missionary in town and ready to take on the missionary work. It was hard saying goodbye to everyone. I did a pretty good job not crying until this one lady comes up and squeezes the life out of me. That's when it hit me that next week I would be in my home ward speaking English, doing everything in English, and missionary badgeless. I have loved being in this ward getting to know as many members as I could. I'm so happy for the bonds I've made with others and I look forward to seeing everyone again when I come back to visit. I said goodbye to the Babins who were actually the mission presidents I started with when I arrived in France. This little girl comes up to me and gives me the biggest huga 2 year old could give and it was so tender! The Évry ward will for sure have a piece of my heart when I leave for the states.

All right, what can I tell you about my mission? It was life changing, the best decision I've ever made, adventurous, and my favorite phrase of all: the mission is the hardest thing I've ever loved to do. I've met thousands of new people, talked in a foreign language for 18 months, served in three wards, explored Paris, the list is just endless. One of the most important things I've learned on the mission is how real God's love is for everyone. We are not perfect beings. We are here to learn how to become perfect as He is one day. Heavenly Father chooses the imperfect to teach the way to become perfect. I have loved every single moment being a missionary. I will miss being able to be a missionary. I'm excited for what's in store for me when I arrive home and see my family again. I'm thankful for all of my companions that I served with: Sœur Schade, Sœur Bishop, Sœur Gallant, Sœur Hatch, Sœur Erichsen, Sœur Biggs, Sœur Kabongo, Sœur Fears, and Sœur Johnson. I've learned a lot from each of them and they have been a wonderful impact to me on my mission. It has been a wonderous 18 months being able to preach the gospel of Christ in the land of France. I know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is God's true church restored on the earth today through Joseph Smith. We have a living prophet on the earth today to lead and guide us on the right path back home to our Father in Heaven. The Book of Mormon is true. The promise in it is simple, read and pray to know if this is all true and the truth will be made manifest to you by the Holy Ghost. I know that He lives. He loves us with an infinite love. He is always there for us when we need Him most. He will answer our prayers. I love this gospel and I have been privileged to have shared this message of happiness with others for 18 months of my life.

Thank you all for following up with my adventures in France for the last year and a half. I'm excited to see you guys at home or later on in the future. Thank you for all of your prayers, support, and all of the letters and emails sent as well.

See you soon!

Adieu,

Sœur Hopkinson