So usually in order to write
these blogs I look at my daily planner for the past week and write things from
it. However, since coming to the Honbu, my planner has become full of
notes and plans for things to do in the Honbu, and less and less full of the
things that I have actually done..... Oops. It seems like so much more is
getting packed into each week now, let's see how much I can remember.
So let's start with Sunday. So church is from 10 to 1 here, just like everywhere else I've been, which is kind of weird now that I think about it..... But it was Fast Sunday so all of the new missionaries (there are 3 of us new in the ward) got to bear their testimony and have a short little introduction. I'm the official translator for the ward now, so when it came my turn to go up and bear my testimony, I was somewhere between 'translate mode' and 'japanese mode' so it came out really awkward. In Japanese I said おはようございました、which isn't even a word.... I meant to say good morning in Japanese, and I mostly got it out, but, man, there's really no good way to explain how wrong it is in English, but I was kind of embarrassed... it did however provide a pretty good introduction to the ward. I like to say that it just showed that they have a fun-lovin' missionary who just came in... yeah, let's go with that one. [Carol’s note: roughly translated it meant, “Thank you very much and good morning!] We ended up having 3 investigators at church that day, and it was a really good Sunday service.
One of the investigators we have actually has a baptism date set for the 15th! He's from one of the oldest families around this area in Japan, and actually stands in line to inherit a Buddhist Temple. So that's one of the concerns with how we're going to work with him from here on out. It is possible to be a Mormon and own a Buddhist temple? He's a super good guy. He really just wants to know the truth and know how he can follow God more perfectly. He said that ever since coming to church that his whole life has been changed. He was like, "it's one of those things that you can't really explain, but you've felt it, and I know you know what I mean." It's true. It's really hard to explain exactly what it is that's different from going and being active in the church, but it's different, and once you've felt the difference, it's hard to imagine life in any other way. "It's true isn't it, so what else matters?"
One of the hardest things that I've been trying to balance is working in the office and still finding time to do missionary work. I just got a new assignment to make a weekly newsletter for the mission. So I've been busy making that newsletter, booking hotels for the Mission President’s crazy schedule, and fixing the data in the computer so that it is up to date, and free of holes. It's been a lot of fun actually creating the newsletter and gathering items for it, but it is time consuming, especially when it comes to translating it into Japanese! But I've been getting a lot of practice translating back and forth from Japanese to English, so hopefully I'll be able to get it right (luckily, I have a Japanese companion who can always correct it!)
Well, apparently it's really imperative that I get my license here in the Honbu to shuttle people around, so, I guess I have to take the infamous Japanese driving test. I've heard it called more of an automotive acrobatics exercise. In Japan, no matter where you are, everyone backs up into their parking space. It doesn't matter if you have to cross over into oncoming traffic to give yourself room to maneuver or not, you're going to back up your car. And the streets here are about half the size of a small street in America, so I'm actually really worried about driving the big van around here. I've heard rumors of getting an international license to get around taking the test, but if I can't even get around the streets, maybe the test would be better. Elder Clements is actually going to take me out to practice driving the big vehicles in the Honbu, so it'll end up being some weird trainer/bean situation all over again, only more than a year after the initial fact. When am I going to see Elder Gandy again and teach him to drive?
Somehow I've become the computer guy in the Honbu, fixing internet problems, busted computers, or being the guy that goes through the church's IT support line. I swear, I've learned more about the ins and outs of microsoft works than I ever thought, or wanted to do.... but it's great.
Have a great week and remember...who you are!
Elder Everett
エベレット長老
So let's start with Sunday. So church is from 10 to 1 here, just like everywhere else I've been, which is kind of weird now that I think about it..... But it was Fast Sunday so all of the new missionaries (there are 3 of us new in the ward) got to bear their testimony and have a short little introduction. I'm the official translator for the ward now, so when it came my turn to go up and bear my testimony, I was somewhere between 'translate mode' and 'japanese mode' so it came out really awkward. In Japanese I said おはようございました、which isn't even a word.... I meant to say good morning in Japanese, and I mostly got it out, but, man, there's really no good way to explain how wrong it is in English, but I was kind of embarrassed... it did however provide a pretty good introduction to the ward. I like to say that it just showed that they have a fun-lovin' missionary who just came in... yeah, let's go with that one. [Carol’s note: roughly translated it meant, “Thank you very much and good morning!] We ended up having 3 investigators at church that day, and it was a really good Sunday service.
One of the investigators we have actually has a baptism date set for the 15th! He's from one of the oldest families around this area in Japan, and actually stands in line to inherit a Buddhist Temple. So that's one of the concerns with how we're going to work with him from here on out. It is possible to be a Mormon and own a Buddhist temple? He's a super good guy. He really just wants to know the truth and know how he can follow God more perfectly. He said that ever since coming to church that his whole life has been changed. He was like, "it's one of those things that you can't really explain, but you've felt it, and I know you know what I mean." It's true. It's really hard to explain exactly what it is that's different from going and being active in the church, but it's different, and once you've felt the difference, it's hard to imagine life in any other way. "It's true isn't it, so what else matters?"
One of the hardest things that I've been trying to balance is working in the office and still finding time to do missionary work. I just got a new assignment to make a weekly newsletter for the mission. So I've been busy making that newsletter, booking hotels for the Mission President’s crazy schedule, and fixing the data in the computer so that it is up to date, and free of holes. It's been a lot of fun actually creating the newsletter and gathering items for it, but it is time consuming, especially when it comes to translating it into Japanese! But I've been getting a lot of practice translating back and forth from Japanese to English, so hopefully I'll be able to get it right (luckily, I have a Japanese companion who can always correct it!)
Well, apparently it's really imperative that I get my license here in the Honbu to shuttle people around, so, I guess I have to take the infamous Japanese driving test. I've heard it called more of an automotive acrobatics exercise. In Japan, no matter where you are, everyone backs up into their parking space. It doesn't matter if you have to cross over into oncoming traffic to give yourself room to maneuver or not, you're going to back up your car. And the streets here are about half the size of a small street in America, so I'm actually really worried about driving the big van around here. I've heard rumors of getting an international license to get around taking the test, but if I can't even get around the streets, maybe the test would be better. Elder Clements is actually going to take me out to practice driving the big vehicles in the Honbu, so it'll end up being some weird trainer/bean situation all over again, only more than a year after the initial fact. When am I going to see Elder Gandy again and teach him to drive?
Somehow I've become the computer guy in the Honbu, fixing internet problems, busted computers, or being the guy that goes through the church's IT support line. I swear, I've learned more about the ins and outs of microsoft works than I ever thought, or wanted to do.... but it's great.
Have a great week and remember...who you are!
Elder Everett
エベレット長老
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