We actually did a bit of missionary work today: we visited a member. It was a nice visit, I got to spend some time chatting with E.Cole, and I lost him to a food coma. The Chapate that we were given were absolutely fantastic. I kinda want to learn how to cook them that way. The sister was really sweet, and it surprised me that she was willing to feed 6 missionaries: E.Kanda and I, E.Mboyo and E.Cole, and E.Sunu and E.Madsen. It was extremely nice of her. I did my best to share a spiritual thought, but it wasn't that good, mostly just thanking her for the good she has done.
The rest of the day was meh, I cybered (which isn't meh, it's just not interesting to write about), and called home (also not meh for me).
7/16
If Wednesday is Hump Day, Tuesday is "Bounce Day!" (TM) It's nothing surprising, it's what usually happens, but this Bounce Day wasn't as bad as some of the previous ones.
First up: a rule change by Mission President. We have Comp Study first thing in the morning before leaving the flat. Apparently a lot of missionaries had been putting Comp Study as a "Back-up Plan" and it just wasn't getting done as much as it was supposed to be. My comp and I are pretty good about having it, there's just the rare occasion where something pops up and we aren't able to have it, but those occasions are VERY rare. Not to happen anymore with the new rule change.
Second up: bounce. Many, but only two.
Third: Member visit. We visited a member we thought was a Recent Convert, but she was Baptized 2 years ago, so she isn't anymore.
Fourth: a few new investigators, one even seems to have something similar to "a broken heart and a contrite spirit" but we'll see.
Fifth: We taught S.Linda again today. We taught her the last few things she needed to be taught before she can be Baptized. There are more lessons, but they can be taught before or after Baptism. There is an issue that needs to be resolved before she can be Baptized, but once it is we'll dunk her quick. (Lol, never call Baptism dunking)
We taught the Word of Wisdom today, and the only issue is something she has already quit: Tea. She stopped drinking it when her husband suddenly and abruptly refused to drink it (he hadn't exactly told her that he was being taught by missionaries). She stopped because having to boil water twice was a huge pain for her: once for the tea he wouldn't drink, once for his Hot Chocolate. Well, that made things easy for us. She was even able to prove our point when she talked about the headaches she'd get if she didn't drink it. Thumbs up for Word of Wisdom, really easy lesson when there aren't any issues.
Finally finished SMSing the last of the Former Investigators today, that was really nice. Now to repeat the process with the Recent Converts and Other Investigators. Fortunately, I don't have to deal with 100+ people this time around.
7/18
Didn't update yesterday. It was late, I don't remember why it was so late, but it's what happened (checks journal update from yesterday). Yup! Not even this thing helps, but it does remind me what we even DID yesterday. We had DDM, got bounced some, and met with a Recent Convert named Niece, we taught her about temples, and gave her mother a blessing. E.Kanda anointed and I blessed. It was nice. A guy we dropped tried to meet with us after that (with unclear intentions, but what he said stinks to me) he showed up 40 minutes late so we just left. We actually ran into him on the way out.
"Why didn't you just teach him?"
"The impending home safe. Our area is pretty safe, but that's only so long as you obey home safe - 7pm."
You don't want to be out around dark in my area. The dogs alone would tear you apart. They seem all friendly and pathetic during the day, but once night comes they become rabid.
Anyway, today was a bunch of wasted time. We had Zone Leader flat checks so E.Kanda and I rushed out first thing in the morning to buy the stuff we were missing. 45min walk to Naivas, then a 45min walk back. We were back at the flat by 11, mandazi in hands. We then waited, and waited, and waited. The flat check was supposed to be at 11:30. I finished a full nap before they showed up: 1hr and 30min late. It completely threw our plan for today, but I'm not mad about it. There's literally no point.
We met with B.Anthony to check in on how he was doing then had a late lunch, then I did E.Cole a favor and cut his hair. He was thanking me, and I was apologizing. I obliterated his sideburns and did a horrible job edging his ears, but aside from that it wasn't too horrible. He kept telling me to go shorter too, and I always went: "Are you sure?" I even told him about a Seinfeld episode (that I haven't seen) where Jerry decides to "even" out his chest hair. He laughed and told me to keep going. It was fun. Pics included if I got them uploaded. He kept having me take more so he could show enough "pain."
That, plus the Zone Leaders being late led to not enough time for Weekly Planning. We'll do it later. It'll be shorter than last week's since I won't be performing a spring cleaning.
Yeah, I don't learn either. I bought Cadbury brand Hot Chocolate again. I do justify myself in this one though! There were two different ones for sale. The one I bought last time was Cocoa Powder. This one is a "2 in 1" that includes sugar. It's meant specifically for Hot Chocolate. I still add sugar because that's how I was raised. You have no idea how much sugar is in the Hot Chocolate we have back home. I look like a freak whenever I put sugar in my plastic mug. I burn through a Kg of sugar in a few weeks. I may have a problem.
Thought's on this hot chocolate: Ma, iizou. Kore wa mada dame desuyo, danga kore wo moto ii ni narimasu. Boku (Ore(lol)) no itsumo no Hot Chocolate wa saikyou desuyo. Sore wa muteki ni.
Dad, please double check my Japanese. I've forgotten so much that I'm pretty sure most of that (if not literally 100%) is incorrect. I was never that good at conjugation.
7/19
Well, today was A LOT of contacting, mostly door to door contacting too. I ended up falling back into old habits from my days doing door to door sales. There's a lot of little tricks I used during door to door sales that I started using. Nothing unethical or problematic, but stuff like body language and tone. What I said and how I carried myself. The philosophy: "As long as the door is open you can keep talking" came back in full swing too.
Here's an example of something we did today that I learned from my old days:
E.Kanda: "Do you mind if we talk for just a few minutes?"
Homeowner: "No, I'm really busy."
E.Benson: "Oh! Please don't worry about it, we don't want to waste your time since you're busy. We're just missionaries preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ..."
Just give them a shortened version of whatever lines you habitually use to contact and give them a pamphlet. You can probably still get their number. It's not that hard here, the title: "missionary" contains enough weight for people to listen at first. They'll just block or bounce you after that.
Anyway, we ended up contacting 30+ people today. I know that much based off how many pamphlets I took out this morning (29), how many I have left (1), and how many times I vaguely remember E.Kanda giving someone a pamphlet (4? More?).
We did get a few new Investigators out of it all, so I was worth it, but I really hate contacting till I get into it. If I get into contacting I don't mind it, I get into a good zone, but if I'm not in the mood I dearly hate it. I'll still do it because I need to, but that doesn't mean I like it.
We also met with an investigator who I'd sworn we dropped, but he popped back up like a Whack-a-Mole (or a Whack-a-Vole, ehh Mom?). I'm still not sure what exactly he's after, but it doesn't seem like our message.
Here's the exciting thing for the day: we had an Investigator named Job who actually called US. This never happens. He was also 2 hours early to the appointment, something else that also never happens. He had done his assigned reading, something that (almost) never happens. He continued meeting us after he received blessings from the Lord, something that never happens. I like this guy. He even seems to have something like a broken heart and a contrite spirit. I kinda want to beat myself for this, but: I'm feeling hopeful. It happens every time we run into an Investigator with potential. My hope is usually shot in a field each and every single time, but like a persistent itch it always comes back. I suppose that's a good thing since "hope" is a Christlike attribute, but my comp laughs as met a bit for it. Eh, whatever.
At the flat I had to stare at myself in the mirror for a minute telling myself: "You're not hungry, you're just bored." Well, more than a minute. I still ended up making popcorn, hot chocolate, and mango juice (from concentrate). 'Tis the evening of a missionary who suddenly discovered that completing a monumental task (cleaning the area book) leaves one feeling empty. I assume this is a bit like what revenge is like.
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