It's the end of the year of the Dragon! Upcoming now
is the year of the Snake, and I'm pretty positive I've seen more snake drawings
and items in the last week than at a pottery class at scout camp.
So, this week was CHRISTMAS! ＊<<<<<== And I have to say that it has to be one of the more unforgettable Christmases I've ever had. So as the Recorder I'm in charge of forwarding everybody's mail and all their packages, which, as you can image, has been crazy over the Christmas season. There have been some days when there were so many packages that they couldn't bring in any at all and I just had to go out and make a list of all the packages to be forwarded and then make the stamps for them! One main problem for Christmas packages overseas is that you have to write in all of the contents, so I took the liberty of taking a black marker over everybody's package as they came in (there's no fun in knowing what you're getting for Christmas you know). But here's where the problem came in. Christmas eve is a national holiday in Japan (the day after the Emperor's birthday) so all of the Post Offices are closed, and even if I did send out packages, there would be no way to ensure that the missionaries would get them before Christmas. That's when President Gustafson gave me the assignment to be Santa Claus.
So this is how it worked. We took in all of the packages on Monday that were going to either Nagasaki, Fukuoka, Yamaguchi, or Hiroshima Zones and forwarded out all of the rest (sorry Okinawa, you're just too far away) and Elder Tanaka and I took all of the packages and hopped on a bullet train to go deliver them to the missionaries before Christmas day. We made a stop in Tokuyama (one of my previous areas) and delivered 2 packages, and then made it over to Hiroshima where we had 5 packages to deliver! Through a series of phone calls, plans changing, and a slew of other events, I eventually was greeted by Elder Gandy and an investigator (now a new member) who I had worked with in Hiroshima at the Hiroshima Station. I'm taking that as my best Christmas present this year. The investigator that I had been working with was having a super hard time when I was with him, and now 1 year later, to see him baptized as a new member in the Church, that was amazing. And it was awesome to see Elder Gandy, who has now been with other companions almost as long as he was with me! It was awesome to see how he'd grown and progressed, not only in Japanese, but also as a missionary as well! We were planning on being back in Fukuoka that day, but with holiday travel and missing a connecting train, we ended up staying the night in Hiroshima at the Zone Leaders apartment. I can now officially say that I have spent every Christmas of my mission in Hiroshima, the 2nd being literally 10 minutes away from where I had it last year!
Later that day we had a zone P-day with everybody in Fukuoka, which was a blast. We had everybody come to the Fukuoka Building and watched "It's a Wonderful Life"! It just wouldn't be Christmas without Jimmy Stewart, you know. We set up a projector in the gym and hooked the laptop to an amp left over from the caroling event a couple of weeks ago and it was awesome. It was the first time a lot of people had seen the movie, and everyone agreed that it was definitely a keeper. We also did a sort of missionary superlative list for the zone with such categories as "quickest to get married after the mission" or "Most likely to marry a Japanese person" to "Most rebellious before the mission" or "Most Nerdy before the mission" and so forth. You might be interested to know that I was voted the most nerdy pre-mission, most likely to marry a Japanese person, most likely to have 10 kids, and most likely to return to Japan.... strangely enough a pretty common assessment from what I've heard throughout all my mission (I swear every transfer I've heard somebody tell me that I should marry a nice Japanese girl and come and live in Japan, that or be a TV comedian...)
Here's the big news though! So this coming week is Transfers, and the weird thing about being in the Honbu is that you know all about transfers way ahead of time, and if you are transferring, you'll know at least a week ahead of time because you've got to train your new replacement. That being said, starting from this past Wednesday I have been training my replacement, Elder Trane. That's right, I'm heading back into the field! It's been a great experience and a blast to work in the Honbu, and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. But I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited to get into the field. The past 3 transfers I've been an Office Elder, and it's been a time that was needed, and it was a time for a lot of growth, but now as I head back to the field, it’s time to apply all the lessons I've learned and keep the dendo going strong! I know where I'm going but I can't quite announce it to the world yet (that's on Tuesday) but I can tell you that I am super excited for my new area and my new companion! Honestly though, I'm most grateful for the time that I'm going to be gaining once I leave the Honbu. I do not know how anybody could keep that kind of pace up for any extended period of time, but I know that I've done my best here, and I can honestly say that I am proud of the work that was accomplished. Everything I wanted to see happen didn't happen, but I made great friends, and met people that I don't want to forget for anything in the world!
Well, it's time for a new year and for new ideas. I wish you all have a happy new year and have a great start to next year (the year of the snake). Make your resolutions great!
Love you Lots
Elder Everett
エベレット長老
So, this week was CHRISTMAS! ＊<<<<<== And I have to say that it has to be one of the more unforgettable Christmases I've ever had. So as the Recorder I'm in charge of forwarding everybody's mail and all their packages, which, as you can image, has been crazy over the Christmas season. There have been some days when there were so many packages that they couldn't bring in any at all and I just had to go out and make a list of all the packages to be forwarded and then make the stamps for them! One main problem for Christmas packages overseas is that you have to write in all of the contents, so I took the liberty of taking a black marker over everybody's package as they came in (there's no fun in knowing what you're getting for Christmas you know). But here's where the problem came in. Christmas eve is a national holiday in Japan (the day after the Emperor's birthday) so all of the Post Offices are closed, and even if I did send out packages, there would be no way to ensure that the missionaries would get them before Christmas. That's when President Gustafson gave me the assignment to be Santa Claus.
So this is how it worked. We took in all of the packages on Monday that were going to either Nagasaki, Fukuoka, Yamaguchi, or Hiroshima Zones and forwarded out all of the rest (sorry Okinawa, you're just too far away) and Elder Tanaka and I took all of the packages and hopped on a bullet train to go deliver them to the missionaries before Christmas day. We made a stop in Tokuyama (one of my previous areas) and delivered 2 packages, and then made it over to Hiroshima where we had 5 packages to deliver! Through a series of phone calls, plans changing, and a slew of other events, I eventually was greeted by Elder Gandy and an investigator (now a new member) who I had worked with in Hiroshima at the Hiroshima Station. I'm taking that as my best Christmas present this year. The investigator that I had been working with was having a super hard time when I was with him, and now 1 year later, to see him baptized as a new member in the Church, that was amazing. And it was awesome to see Elder Gandy, who has now been with other companions almost as long as he was with me! It was awesome to see how he'd grown and progressed, not only in Japanese, but also as a missionary as well! We were planning on being back in Fukuoka that day, but with holiday travel and missing a connecting train, we ended up staying the night in Hiroshima at the Zone Leaders apartment. I can now officially say that I have spent every Christmas of my mission in Hiroshima, the 2nd being literally 10 minutes away from where I had it last year!
Later that day we had a zone P-day with everybody in Fukuoka, which was a blast. We had everybody come to the Fukuoka Building and watched "It's a Wonderful Life"! It just wouldn't be Christmas without Jimmy Stewart, you know. We set up a projector in the gym and hooked the laptop to an amp left over from the caroling event a couple of weeks ago and it was awesome. It was the first time a lot of people had seen the movie, and everyone agreed that it was definitely a keeper. We also did a sort of missionary superlative list for the zone with such categories as "quickest to get married after the mission" or "Most likely to marry a Japanese person" to "Most rebellious before the mission" or "Most Nerdy before the mission" and so forth. You might be interested to know that I was voted the most nerdy pre-mission, most likely to marry a Japanese person, most likely to have 10 kids, and most likely to return to Japan.... strangely enough a pretty common assessment from what I've heard throughout all my mission (I swear every transfer I've heard somebody tell me that I should marry a nice Japanese girl and come and live in Japan, that or be a TV comedian...)
Here's the big news though! So this coming week is Transfers, and the weird thing about being in the Honbu is that you know all about transfers way ahead of time, and if you are transferring, you'll know at least a week ahead of time because you've got to train your new replacement. That being said, starting from this past Wednesday I have been training my replacement, Elder Trane. That's right, I'm heading back into the field! It's been a great experience and a blast to work in the Honbu, and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. But I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited to get into the field. The past 3 transfers I've been an Office Elder, and it's been a time that was needed, and it was a time for a lot of growth, but now as I head back to the field, it’s time to apply all the lessons I've learned and keep the dendo going strong! I know where I'm going but I can't quite announce it to the world yet (that's on Tuesday) but I can tell you that I am super excited for my new area and my new companion! Honestly though, I'm most grateful for the time that I'm going to be gaining once I leave the Honbu. I do not know how anybody could keep that kind of pace up for any extended period of time, but I know that I've done my best here, and I can honestly say that I am proud of the work that was accomplished. Everything I wanted to see happen didn't happen, but I made great friends, and met people that I don't want to forget for anything in the world!
Well, it's time for a new year and for new ideas. I wish you all have a happy new year and have a great start to next year (the year of the snake). Make your resolutions great!
Love you Lots
Elder Everett
エベレット長老
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