Hello Hello!
Its been a very exciting week
and Im grateful its p-day today because my companion and I truly needed a
"time to prepare" aka, we needed a nap! haha Im happy to report that
for the first time in a long time I feel rested and well. Too easy!
Well, some interesting
experiences occurred this week worth sharing. hmm, where to start... Earlier
this week, we came across a man cooking over a fire (thats an odd scene, only
women cook around here) and strangely enough, he was roasting an animal very
similar looking to a rat! I chuckled to myself and both my companion and I
stopped to chat with the man to figure out why he was eating a ginormous rat.
Of course, he assured us that its only in the "rat family" but isnt
actually a true rat... regardless, i dont blame him for wanting to eat it, this
thing was massive! Im sure it had some decent meat on it! Truly, it was Texas size.
or rather, African size i suppose. Anywho, we discovered that some previous
elders had once had a few lessons with him and so we set up a return
appointment to visit he and his wife. Elder Lamont and I properly noted next to
his name in our planners as to correctly remember him as "the rat
guy". Lets hope he becomes interested in OUR food as much as we were of
his.
We explored a few different
routes this week in our area as my companion and I are not familiar with the
back roads deep in the country part of our area. We came across a river at one
point and got to experience riding in a handmade african canoe (pronounced
keenue in africa) in order to cross. An old man living next to the river spends
a lot of his time ferrying people across when he's not busy for a few bucks.
pretty sweet job if you ask me! The river is mostly dried up so the majority of
people just walk across. but for us, we didnt want to take our pants and shoes
off like most Liberians do in order to cross. We figured that might not be
appropriate to do in public as missionaries, so we paid the old guy to take us
50 feet across 2 feet of water. Haha the funny part of the story happened
yesterday when we took the same route, assuming the old papay would be there to
ferry us but he was ASLEEP! so... we were forced to use our time wisely and not
take a 1 hour walk back to the main road around the river to our appointment...
We didn't take our pants off, just rolled them up as high as possible and walked
across the river/ stream. I had to tiptoe to keep the water from reaching my
pants! it was a miracle we made it across dry! and dont worry, the dangerous
crocodiles and hippos dont occupy these waters... at least i don't think they
do... regardless, it was a fun experience!
Interesting fact, I finished my
first hair gel this week. Its lasted me since last April when I was at BYU. I
still have 2 more to last me the next year till i come home. I also recently
finished my first stick of deodorant which lasted me a solid 9 months. I
promise, i use both of them every day! I feel a bit like the woman Elisha
visited in the OT whose wheat just kept on coming! too easy!
Our Landowner, Mr.Cole, got a
little lonely I guess so decided to buy some puppies which now live in our
compound. Besides the whining all night long from them, its pretty cute to
watch these two brothers fight and wrestle in the evenings. puppies are cute, no
matter where you are in the world. Although, it is very obvious that the dogs
here seem to be just a tad bit more aggressive and less domesticated than those
at home...good thing these puppies like us :)
Well my brothers and sisters,
Thats all the exotic experiences I have time for this week. Africa is a
wonderful place, I love it here. Mission life, I have come to learn, can be
some of the greatest learning opportunities in a lifetime. Being a full-time
missionary for the Church is a privilege, and a sacred calling. I appreciate
each and every prayer uttered by friends and faithful members all over the
world on my behalf, because I need them. No one will tell you its easy being
out here. But the rewards and blessings from a loving Heavenly Father for
serving Him are worth any sacrifice. I once heard from my grandpa "when
you take care of the Lord's business, he takes care of yours". How true
that is my friends. As we lead our lives in the path He would have us go,
"not knowing beforehand wither we should go" as Nephi says, "but
being led by the spirit", we will be led to those who are prepared to hear
the wonderful message of Christ's atonement. I have faith in this promise,
because nearly every day, after what seems like a multitude of bounces, my
companion and i just start walking, and we always find some
wonderful soul to help and inspire- be it service or teaching, the effect is
the same. May we all pledge ourselves to serve the Lord with more love my
friends.
Till next week,
Elder Fairwell
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