Elder Cheng

March 25, 2010

Hey all!

This past week was really good. Nothing too big happened, it was just good. We got to see a couple of people. We had a few people promise to come to church but didn’t make it. Our golden miracle said he was going to make it to church and didn’t show up. Since then we were trying to cal him, but he didn’t pick up. And then we get a text today from him and he said that he was there, but the door was locked. I was quite confused. But he came! That was cool. I was a little scared cuz he might have gotten anti-ed, but he is so good, I don’t see how he could have!

Alice found a job as an accountant and she is asking to borrow money. I told her we aren’t able to help her out because we have rules. We’ll see if she really has the desire to learn the gospel instead of hoping for a meal.

We haven’t been able to see our investigator who has terminal __ cancer. We’re still trying to work on him though.

Sorry, this week’s letter is a bit boring, ill try yo put something else interesting next week!

Elder Stanley Cheng

LB

Dear Loved Ones,

By the miracle of being surrounded by computers all day, I decided to take the opportunity and write to you during the lull of the storm. My companions made me.

The big news on this front is literally tall: Elder Wilson is replacing Elder Crane in our companionship. He`s 6`8`` I think. Elder Crane goes off to Nürnberg, which means my training wheels as mission secretary are coming off on Wednesday. Bleah. Elder Wilson will be trained by Elder Leishman as Finance Secretary, and since us secretaries stay a while he`ll be my companion for about the next six months...way longer than normal. It should be good though.

The work for transfers entails the most stressful part of our job, as we wait for President to decide everything before carrying it out and ordering train tickets. We`re doing it all tonight to make it less stressful the next few days.

Enough with logistics, let`s get to the CRAZY-cool people.

About a week ago on Sunday we visited Ikenna, a Nigerian coming off of cateract surgery. He has to stay at home and can`t look at something for too long, thus he was listening to music and that was it. We gave him some sweet material he could listen too (Elder Leishman had a slew of books on tape) and learned he has a fiancée coming in a couple of weeks from Nigeria. We`re stoked for him. I love the African contingent of priesthood here, it hovers around 50% on most Sundays.

Early in the week we visited the BRADFORDS once more. The time whooshes by every time. Had a good time with Melanie, she joined the church in October and is so solid since she reads and studies all sorts of books.

And then there was Missy. She`s in her early 20`s and is from DANVILLE CA!, only a quick trip from Bezerkeley. Also lived in TX a while, but she came here for a job and referred herself via the internet. We asked her straight up what she expected from everything, and she basically said to learn if this church was true. Very neat experience. We should be meeting this week a little.

Travel down south to the magical land of GARMISCH!! Last week Jonah, a 14 year-old friend from a 12 year-old in the ward named R.J., came to church, which he had done ocassionally in the past. The Hillens said we could teach him at their house if he got permission from his mom, which he did. Friday night we zoomed down the Autobahn and to the appointment, which was smashing. The lesson started slow at the beginning with both of the younguns cracking jokes, but as we progressed through the points the Spirit came into play. The story of Joseph Smith must especially resonate with a person of that same age. He`s also acting in the world-famous Passion play in Oberammergau and has been growing his hair out for a year. The play is put on once every ten years and depicts the whole life of Christ, lasting six hours in total. We took advantage of the fact in the lesson. He`ll be in Thailand for a little while but wants to learn more afterwards!

Yesterday we had two large dinners in a row, and I emerged from the evening not feeling in peak form. That combined with another visit to a concentration camp in Dachau put a damper on the day.

Today nevertheless made up for it. Bruku came to church, we taught him, and during the evening we went to his new digs and introduced the stop smoking program. He`s still on track for the 10th of April and is truly a man of great faith. He`ll take the whole Ghanean nation with him, you`ll see!!

Otherwise, I gave a talk, used some math during it and was teased good-naturedly afterwards. Some people understood though!

That`s it for this side of the world.

Lots of love!

Elder Ek

Elder Tiu

hey all,

i'm sorry i've been absolutely horrible about updating people. i don't really have too much time so let me just tell you some major things that have happened in the last month.

- i did a spanish proposal to the stake president about making spanish magnet groups within the stake. basically that means that all the spanish speaking members and investigator will attend one of the wards and there will be spanish accommodations there.
- we baptized a man john pittman, and three weeks later he was able to baptize his daughter sherrie. one of the most amazing experiences on my mission. the wife, we hope, will soon follow although her mom is constantly telling her that we're a cult. i felt like telling her a joke about sacrifices bears, but instead i bore my testimony. that's how the mission changes you.
- i'm training a new zone leader. way harder than actually training. he's a lot older than me but i'm still senior! sucker. just kidding.
- i had the most coveted privilege interviewing my second born in the wilderness about disobedience to mission rules. turns out he's wasn't being too disobedient but his follow up trainer should have been sent home (if not for the pleadings of his mother and stake president) and the district leader was sent home. i am now the de facto spanish-speaking-interviewer-for-disobedience go to guy. great.
- president granted me special permission to leave early for college. earlier in the year he told all of us that under no circumstances will anybody be allowed to leave early. i guess i'm the exception. i told him that i'd take it. so after some discussion my release date will be august 10th. my application which was already half-way processed for spring 2011 has now been switched to fall 2010 and i am frantically trying to get stuff together. differentials? re-teach me how to add again please.

this area has been great. but i'm definitely ready to leave it. i'm having a difficult time dealing with the fact i'm leaving the mission soon (i refuse to count my remaining time). i'm going to be a wreck when i die (missionary parlance for being released). i love this work and i've literally seen miracles. christ is the savior and the only way to the father. hope everything is going well with you guys!

hope everything in this letter made sense. i'll reread it next week when i have some more time.

simon