Sweet is the Work

Dear Family,

It is so good to hear from you again. Only 4 more Sundays after today until I am home! I have to say it is getting hard to not be constantly counting down the days, especially since tomorrow will mark one month left. 

We have had a good week. It's been so nice because we have been invited several times to eat in the homes of members and investigators. It's funny because at the beginning of my mission I had a really hard time eating African food (I could barely swallow it!). And now, I am going to miss quite a few of the local dishes. I doubt that I would even be able to prepare them the way they do here, even if I managed to find all of the necessary ingredients. I've really grown to love this place!

I got to do a split with Elder Jackson (from the MTC). He is in my old sector, in Cococodji so that was fun. President wants us to do a split there every Thursday, so I will have the chance to catch up with an old friend and former investigators (who are now members). This will be a great way to wrap up my last few weeks here.

Since I don't have much news today, I will tell you a little about some of our current investigators. 

Josephine

We met Josephine while my comp was still working with Elder Mutumbo. We were on a split and I accompanied Pellevoizin into his sector. While visiting some of his recent converts, we were introduced to one convert's grandmother, Josephine. She has been in the Catholic Church since she was very young. She has been very friendly and open with us. It is very easy to see that her family is very important to her. While talking about one of her sons, who is now living in New York and hasn’t contacted her in the past 6 years, she couldn’t help but crying. (Side note: You hardly ever see anyone cry in Africa. Young children are beaten for crying, so they learn to not do it, and the habit sticks with them as they get older.)  

She started coming to church with her grandchildren and has really liked everything she has seen. She plans on being baptized soon. We are just working to make sure that she is truly converted and not just coming because she likes the way we hold our meetings. 

Mensah

Mensah is an older gentleman. One day he just wandered into the church building and asked if it was a church. He hasn't missed a Sunday since! He has accepted all of the lessons and seems to be a perfect investigator. He asks good questions, was already living the commandments, and has already introduced us to 3 of his friends. He is planning on being baptized soon.

Kaka

Kaka is the younger sister of Natacha, a recent convert. Kaka has not had much schooling, so we have had some difficulty with the language (people here learn the national language, French, in school). She is progressing, slowly, and comes to church on Sundays with her sister. 

Honorine

She is the wife of a member, who attends church in another branch. She is ready to be baptized, but we have to get their church attendance stabilized. Her husband doesn't want to leave the branch where he was baptized. And Honorine doesn't want to come to our branch without her husband. And the missionaries in Fidjrossé can't come to visit them because they live out of their boundaries. 

We are doing well. I am doing my best to stay focused on the work. (Although, I can't really help but think about home from time to time!) My hope is that this last month will be smooth sailing--no unexpected illness or problems, and I will be able to focus on doing the work! And it is WORK :) I am looking forward to being able to sleep. 

So, I will leave it at that. When I am home, we will have time to talk about everything. 

Love you--say hi to Grandma and Grandpa for me!

Love,

Elder Walls