Transfer 4 Week 3

Work has been good so far, and we have a lot to look forward to through the next month. We are already halfway through this transfer and I can't believe how fast time is flying right now. For my companion these will be his last three weeks on mission before he packs up and goes home so this has some significance for him. Elder Lemon has told me that the only things that he doesn't have packed are the items that will wait to the last minute. This is all of course not knowing when he will be asked to leave.

The way things work out here with regards to transfer news is that it begins to be decided about now and then gets finished the last Friday of the transfer. The assistants to the president then have just under 72 hours to figure out how in the world they are going to shuffle all the elders and their luggage across the entire country in two days. I cannot overstate how logistically difficult of a feat this is. These guys only have so many mission SUVs, and the words "public transportation" has a very different meaning out here than it does back in the states. It usually involves a minivan that lost its interior and AC about 20 years ago and leaves you with a wooden bench bolted to the floor with no seat belts, that you then pack in with 12 to 15 people, and a few chickens. Some of you might have been wondering how the world motorcycles got approved as mission transportation out here, you now know why. Although not used for transfers, these "podoapodos" (or that’s what they call them at least), still get used every now and again by elders doing exchanges or other non-typical transportation. This is actually what I took with a ward missionary on the 6-hour trip from Bo to Freetown and back for my dental filling. Believe it or not these bolt buckets are actually registered with the state, and they make sure that before they leave, they write the names of every passenger in their transpo registration book. There is also a space where you write down the name and phone number the police are going to call if your journey goes south. There is nothing quite like the feeling of being handed a formbook and being asked the question:

"Who do you want us to call if you die?"

I guess I should have put President Clawson's number, but I didn't know it at the time, so I just put Dad's. I'm apologizing in advance if you get a scam call from Salone. 

So back to what’s happening now, Sam and Iye, our 60 something year old newlyweds are getting ready for their Baptism on the 10th of August, and we have about 8 other people that are progressing towards an August 24 baptismal date. Barring disease, traveling, or crazy family members, we’re confident we can get them there. The other elders in our apartment, Elder Nwangale and Elder Hefa, are also confident that they will be able to baptize 5 people in Dea soon. This is rather remarkable mainly because they only get to go to the village once a week. 

The most exciting part about this all is the fact that our Branch President Morrison has surveyed bringing the Gospel to a town called Koindu, which sits at the farthest tip of the Kailahun peninsula. This would be like the other elders’ trips to Dea where we would be going probably once a week. But instead of being a 7-8-mile motorcycle trip their it would be a roughly 15-mile ride through the jungle. I told President I'd love to go there as fast as possible. We agreed on planning the trip for the second Monday of August since next week we will be traveling all day to Kenema for zone conference there. I'm thrilled for both of these things, but the reality it is probably going to force our P-day to be on Wednesday instead of Monday next week, which will delay emailing you guys. The trip to Koindu will probably make emailing next to impossible. I hope you know that I'm absolutely THRILLED to go there. We will literally be pioneering the church there. We are the tip of the spear and I can't help but feel that this is what being a missionary in Africa is all about. 

Spiritual lessons: Humility and Patience are everything. I learned these two things independent of each other this week, but the reality is they are really interconnected. While debriefing an exchange I had with a district leader this week, Elder Nwangale pointed out to me that "You want your life to be on time, but it would help a lot if you had more patience and tried harder to be happy. The lessons where you showed those two things went great, and when you didn't, they sucked." Reflecting on the day proved him right on both accounts. Elder Nwangale is a pretty hilarious dude, he happens to be the kind of guy that will also say things like "Nigeria is made up of first class black people, Australia is made up of third class white people" I don't think some of my Mom's family will like that one. It was more of a jab at one Australian who is probably clinically crazy, that was here a few transfers ago. 

Lessons about humility come as you try to study patience, happiness, and charity and Moroni does a good job summing that up for us. The more that you realize that pride is literally the antithesis of God, the more you realize that you need to get rid of it yourself and that it is what is denying you greater peace, happiness, and closeness to the Spirit. 

Bullet Points:

-Bought a Machete

Locally known as cutlasses, I had a black smith forge me one for about $1.75 out of a piece of re-bar. They are thin enough that I can actually sheath it on a carabiner that hangs off my heavy-duty backpack, that hangs on my wardrobe. When I pointed that out to my Nigerian District leader, he looked at it all funny and asked me

"So why don't you just store it under your bed where it is accessible like a normal person?"

-We are living the law of consecration with regards to chicken and bread

Everybody in the apartment pools their subsistence together to buy a 40-piece box of chicken (that somehow manages to stay frozen after being exported from Colombia) and bread every day throughout the week. Much less hassle then buying a pig or goat from Dea, we’re keeping our fingers crossed that they keep importing them. 

“Why would you have a baby at 9 months when you could have one at 10?!” (says Kailahun women)

We have recently had two births in the branch that hit the 10-month mark, and just met the wife of an investigator who had hers at that time as well. I don't know what it about the typical laws of biology that Sierra Leoneans just decide doesn't apply to them but, oh well, whatever. 

So that’s about everything. We are looking forward to reaping in a small harvest baptismal wise before Elder Lemon goes home and then really pulling in the fishing nets with many baptisms planned for shortly after he leaves, which he seems surprisingly okay with. This transfer I will hit my 6th month on mission on the 14th of August. Whoever it is going to be that will replace Elder Lemon is totally up for grabs, and I'm praying to nail another great companion like the last two have been. 

Over all things are good, rainy season is wet, and finally cool. The work is fruitful and I'm loving it.

Sincerely, 

Elder Shill