Fufu and Chicken Noodle Soup- 10/2/17

Dear America,

This week was transfer! The last time I'll have to deal with it during my mission. It was crazy as usual. On Monday we were preparing everything for missionaries to depart on Tuesday morning. We spent hours trying to help the sister missionaries get their luggage below the weight limit. After we took them to the airport, there was a district leader training and we took their companions out proselyting with us. We split up and found several former investigators who we never knew about before. Then in the early afternoon we went to pick up the new missionaries from the airport. We always take the new missionaries to street contact for about an hour on the way to the mission home. It's a lot of fun to see how enthusiastic and innocent they are. 

Wednesday was up and down, up and down. On transfer day, President and the assistants are always in meetings so the office elders are in charge of making sure that all of the missionaries get where they need to go. At one point in the day, we ended up dividing our companionship with some other missionaries so that we could take two cars instead of one. The missionaries from Tamale arrived at the bus station during the most hectic part of the day, but we were able to pick them up in the middle of everything. The best part of transfer day is watching everything click into place because the Lord really helps things work out. We always start out with a plan, but then it gets messed up over and over again. But I'm learning to be more patient with it because those mess-ups always come together to provide a way for us to deal with everything.

On Saturday we woke up to the sound of a wedding engagement party right next door. Our landlord's daughter was the one getting engaged and they were making big preparations that morning. These celebrations are a huge deal in Ghanaian culture and usually involve a lot of food and dancing. We noticed that they were preparing fufu in the morning and we offered to help pound it. We did not know what we were getting into. They made the most fufu I have seen in my life with the biggest mortar and pistil. We took turns pounding but after my first turn I was finished paa. Then there were fifteen more cycles like that. I've never been so sore from pounding fufu before, but it really helped us be good neighbors. There was one guy there who pounds fufu in a chop bar for a living, so he made us all look like wimps. My muscles are still sore from that.

After the fufu ordeal, we took some chicken noodle soup with rice over to Jessica and her family. They are very poor, but whenever we come in the evening time they feed us out of their own food. It always makes me feel terrible to accept food from people who have nothing else, so we told her that the next time we came we would be the ones giving food. I don't know if they liked the chicken noodle soup--Ghanaians are very picky eaters--but it made us feel a little better.

Conference was awesome. I got to watch almost all of the sessions live at the mission home, with the exception of the women's session and the last half of each afternoon session because they were broadcasting in the night. I loved the Saturday morning session. Maybe it was fantastic because it was the first session I saw, but I loved the speakers in it. The gospel just makes sense. I thought that the themes of service, continuous gospel living, and hope were really well pronounced by many speakers throughout the sessions.

Love, 

Elder Nelson

Also, Elder Motloung taped my head while I was talking on the phone.

Area Maps 9/25/17

Dear America,

It's been a sweet week full of long evenings in the office and afternoons trying to keep up with our new and old investigators. Our latest project is to redo all of the mission's area maps. Each companionship in the mission is supposed to have a map of their proselyting area in their area book, but most of the maps are confusing or lost. This has been a plague for my entire time on mission, and missionaries have had a constant struggle with the rumor that the office elders are working on it. We've found out that the maps haven't been updated since 2013 and a lot of areas/wards/branches/stakes are not accurate at all. So we're redoing everything. It takes a lot of time, but in the end it will be a huge landmark that has not occurred for many years. It will help so many missionaries who don't even know where their area boundaries are.

We had some good lessons this week. I've been reminded of the great value in sharing the gospel with the people that you associate with and not only random strangers. The more they see that you care about them as a person, the more likely they will be to listen to you. The same is true even if you are a missionary. For example, we knocked on the door and sat down with two brothers named Isaac and Timothy who probably aren't used to showing much interest in learning the gospel; we laughed around with them for a while and then answered their questions with the restored gospel when they asked us. Another example are a few stubborn neighbors that we met at an investigator's house. They like to ask questions without listening to the answers, and we weren't experiencing very drastic success with them. But over time-- as we go to help them cook or just to chat or teach the other investigator there-- they have started to listen in to what we're really saying. And one young man named Prince asked us a very important question the last time we met him: "How can I know which church is true?" Which is what we've been trying to tell him ALL ALONG but I guess he's getting more and more ready to listen a little bit at a time. Small small a chicken drinks water (Ghanaian proverb).

Have you had the opportunity to give many blessings in Ghana? Yeah, we get the opportunity to perform priesthood ordinances quite a bit. Many priesthood holders don't have a lot of practice or confidence in carrying these things out, so we fill in last-minute in a lot of instances. We do, however, do our best to involve members and teach them how to do it. But it is more often a desperate cry for someone who can do it on the spur of the moment.

Does Elder Crane remember Challin (Elder Nelson) who served in Gilbert? No. He might have left before Elder Nelson was there.

Where do most of the native missionaries in your mission come from? Nigeria makes up a good portion, followed by Ghana and then other African countries. There are a good number of polynesians in the Ghana missions as well.

Anything still on your mission bucket list? Yes, I still would like to teach an entire congregation and have a mass baptismal service. But I don't know if I'm spiritual enough to do that or if God even plans on that happening anytime soon.

Love,

Elder Nelson

Ask the Assistants- 9/18/17

Dear America,

One of the things that isn't fun about being in the office is that you never get time to prepare on preparation day. You're always running errands for other missionaries. So today is another one of those days where my emailing is late and last-minute and short.

We met with a recent convert family that was baptized at the beginning of the year. Elvis, the father, told us about how the gospel was helping his family, especially his little boy named Kofi. In Kofi's school, they have a mandatory religious service on Wednesday and afterwards the teacher takes collection from the children. She was dismayed when Kofi wouldn't put in his coin. When she called his father to inform him about it, Elvis was pleased and told her that his son attends the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and we don't believe that we should have any paid ministry. When the rest of the class stood up for a good old "praise and worship" dance in the service, Kofi remained seated. His father again explained that we believe in being reverent. Elvis was so happy that his son was only three years old and already free of many burdensome traditions that are a part of most religion here. Kofi also enjoys praying at home. It was sweet to be with them and hear their testimonies.

We met an unusual number of people that speak French this week, so we took time to print off the pamphlet about the restoration in French. I don't know if that will help them, but if the really want to know more then at least now they can. Pertaining to office work, we also made huge strides in the realm of area maps for the mission. Each companionship is supposed to have a map of their area that they can use to mark members' houses, important locations, landmarks, and things like that. For my entire mission, we've been suffering with inadequate area maps. They just aren't good. I've always had the desire to make a better system. Well I got my wish and now we're overhauling mission maps that haven't been updated since 2013 and the best part is that it's working. 

We had our own zone conference this week, where we were instructed in portion about using the Book of Mormon effectively. When we were in Tamale, the assistants made the bold invitation to proselyte without the Bible for a week. I don't recommend this in every situation, but we felt that it would improve our work by accepting the challenge. The Bible ends up dominating our teaching here because everyone is so rooted in it. We've spent most of our teaching this week trying to pull every answer out of the Book of Mormon, and it has really helped us feel the Spirit, if nothing else. I'm noticing things inside that I've never considered before.

We also got custom football jerseys to play in. We play every Monday against a different apartment in the mission. Missionaries relish the chance to beat Daban FC. The front of the jerseys is a clever play on a common frustration that we always refer problems to each other. Missionaries will come with a question or problem or complaint and they consistently ask those whose jurisdiction it does NOT fall under. So we are forced to redirect their concern to the other companionship and it becomes frustrating for those who lack patience. See attached pictures. 

Love, 

Elder Nelson

We also had some awesome adventures when we went to pick up luggage from the missionaries that will be departing tomorrow. It had just rained pretty heavily and the road that we were planning to take got swallowed by a river.

Back in the north- 9/11/17

Dear America,

This week has had some hectic days. There were a lot of meetings. We don't really have an important part to play in meetings at all, but we get mobbed when meetings are over. People want supplies and distribution and food and everything else. We were very happy when we were able to attend the zone conference in Tamale. We drove up on Friday and came back on Sunday after church. I was so happy to see people that I hadn't seen in a long time and who--in some cases--I was worried might be less-active. Most everyone is doing well. I had the special privilege to ride with President and Sister Cosgrave and Elder and Sister Dearing while my companion rode with the assistants and the Tamale zone leaders. It was a blast.

What would be your advice or suggestion to someone going to Africa for a bit? What do you know now that you had no idea when packing to go? Along with what Elder Neville said, sunscreen and bug spray are useless. And for goodness sake, we can buy deodorant and soap here. This isn't the middle of the Sahara. I would pack a lot less because if you need it, you can usually find it.
What gospel principle is the hardest for the African people to truly understand? To group it all under one topic, I would say self-discipline. It's hard for them to control themselves in terms of time, money, commitment-keeping, and chastity, to mention a few. I think that everyone in the world probably has difficulty with that.
Do you have a favorite topic/ lesson in the preach my gospel to teach. I really enjoy teaching about the Godhead and the Holy Ghost in particular. Whenever we teach someone what the Holy Ghost feels like and what his roles are, He is always there to give a clear example of what we are saying. And people understand it.
Do you have a weekly calling in your ward? I don't have any teaching assignments or anything in the branch for the first time since the very beginning of my mission. It's neat to sit in class and participate.
What is your  favorite hymn to sing in Africa?  There was just a wave a missionaries from here that left for Africa. Do you know anyone from Eastern Idaho arriving in Kumasi? No. I've looked at the ones coming and I don't know any of them, although there is one from Idaho Falls.
Do you know anyone associated with Australia? Do you know that Australia is 1,000 miles farther from home than Africa? Yeah, I know some missionaries that are from Australia. And Elder and Sister Wood are in New Zealand, which is kind of close.

Brother Bukari, a branch member and the security guard who works here, just told my companion that his hand is "difficult like monkey buttocks" meaning that the skin is not soft.

When I called home on mother's day, mom gave me some advice on what I should start working on to make things work out when I come home. I wasn't ready to start thinking about all of that then, but I'm as ready as I'll ever be now. How should I prepare?

Love,

Elder Nelson

We are pleased to announce....9/4/17

Dear America,

We've been hearing about some weird natural disasters going on... small earthquakes in Idaho, wildfires in the west, hurricanes and flooding in the south, etc. Let me know if anything drastic happens.

I'm forced to email a little late today because we had some unexpected surprises that we had to take care of. But this week was great because we accomplished a lot of our to-do list in the office and also got to see our investigators more. Two of our sweet investigators right now are named Jackson and Jeffrey. They are the ones that Ebenezer introduced us to last week. They are humble and they are easy to teach. They're both very smart and skilled workers; Jackson works at a mattress company and Jeffrey is a heavy machinery operator. We're a little concerned because a lot of excavator operators get caught up with the gallumsey, the illegal mining operation in Ghana that police are trying to crack down on. But Jeffrey's a really good guy and I know that if he had better work he would always steer clear of that. 

I've been feeling a drastically decreasing desire to go home. I never thought that I would be nervous about it, and I still don't feel anxious... it just doesn't sound fun. Sorry. I love all of my family and friends. I just didn't expect to feel this way. It's always been amusing to think about what it would be like after two years, but now there is no amusement. As we would say in the apartment, Aiaiaiaiaiaiaiai!!!! Asemooo! (translates to: Exclamation! That's a huge problem!) 

Elder Crane is from Gilbert, Arizona. He played soccer and rode dirtbikes. He was a desert racer, and that's kind of how he drives the car. He's always fun and cheerful and nice to people. They like to talk to him. 

The funniest quote of the week was in sacrament meeting when the second counselor in the branch presidency said: "We are pleased to announce the funeral of ........ which will be held on..... " Only in Ghana, where the biggest day of your life is your death. We also had an awesome family home evening and dinner with the Rogers family (from Utah). They made mashed potatoes and I almost cried in the first two bites. I didn't realize how much I missed potatoes. 

Keep up the good work! My family is so stable and that's something I'm grateful for. Especially stable in the gospel. The picture is a haircut I gave to another missionary, who happens to be one of the assistants to the President.

Love, Elder Nelson

Garage Cleaning- 8/28/17

Dear America,

The big triumph at the beginning of the week was cleaning out the mission storage garage. Nobody has done that in a long time and it had gotten really disorganized, so we removed everything from inside and cleaned it before putting most of it back. Some of the items we found inside include an aluminum pot lid, six broken water pumps, a copy of the Apocrypha, a water heater, a washer and dryer set, a speaker, area books that we never knew we had, and a broken door. It was great exercise to throw around heavy boxes of books, pamphlets, or water filters all day. It made me miss hard physical labor. Throughout the course of the day, everyone at the mission home noticed what we were doing and we ended up getting lunch from the Cosgraves, birthday cake and ice cream from the Dearings, and 30 cedis for a treat from the Schows (all senior couples here). Sweet.

On Saturday night, the Bantama Stake (which our branch is part of) had a big music festival that all of the branches were invited to attend. We were under the impression that we were practicing to come together and have a sing-along type event. No. This was a competition with score sheets and judges and matching outfits. It reminded me of how I miss real music competitions. When it was all said and done, we got a participation award (!) and a determination to practice diligently for next year. 

At the beginning of your mission, there is a 12-week training course that you go through to help you be an effective missionary. I've started redoing that course recently. It's helping me be better and even see how far I've come. Last week I worked on teaching about the Restoration of the Gospel of Jesus Christ better. One great opportunity came on Sunday when a member named Ebenezer took us to meet his two cousins that he shares a room with. We taught them a very short and sweet lesson about the restoration. We felt the Spirit and were happy to see our practice coming in very useful.

Pictures:

1361 -- garage mess

1363 -- garage, sans mess

1364 -- garage mess

1369 -- the power of the Book of Mormon

1375 -- throwing water filter boxes into the garage

1380 -- newly organized garage

1382 -- office got me like:

1419 -- taking the Rogers' boys to dinner

1421 -- Elder Motloung is full and tired

Ear Ache- 8/23/17

Dear America,

This week our list of accomplishments includes helping missionaries get new non-citizen ID cards, filing a police report for one lost ID card, running up and down on transfer day, fixing a printer, receiving supplies for the mission, taking the Techiman missionaries to the tro station, making sure that Tamale had bust tickets, and getting the mail. All of that happened in the space of two days, which was crazy but really inspiring to see how it all fit together exactly right. God does look out for us. The craziest thing was definitely the one where a missionary lost their ID card and we had to get a police report and the new card all while in the middle of transferring missionaries. There was also another time when we were rushing to take some missionaries back to their area and found a big mountain right in the middle of the road. Random.

We stopped by a long-time investigator family this week. The parents are not married, so they can't be baptized. But the wife and some of the children usually come to church. We met one of the children, Jessica, who qualifies for baptism but hasn't been ready yet even though she's been taught by plenty of missionaries. We a long time discussing with her about what she wants and found out that she doesn't feel like the missionaries have been helping her personally, they've just been pushing her to be baptized. This is a surprisingly common feeling from investigators. They don't grasp how important this is for them. But I got to understand her and I ended up making a deal with her that I would answer her questions and wouldn't push her to be baptized if she kept all of her commitments (to read, pray, come to church, etc). The way I see it, this is a real win-win situation because anyone who will "do his will, he shall know of the doctrine" and end up having the desire to come closer to God. So as long as she continues to keep her commitments, she will definitely end up being baptized when she feels ready.

I had another ear infection this week (#2 of my mission, the last was over a year ago). It was swollen and I couldn't hear very well and I lived off of painkillers for a few days, including transfer. It was the worst possible time for it to happen, but after a priesthood blessing everything turned out fine. 

Something that made all of us laugh this week (it's the kind of thing you laugh about a little while after it happens) was at the end of transfer day when we were sending Techiman to their station. The Techiman station is right in Kejetia, the heart and slums and market of Kumasi. It's a dreaded place if you're in a hurry. Or if you value your sanity. We drove down inside and after spending a long time in traffic, we found a place to park and unload all of the luggage for the missionaries. Unfortunately, the road ends long before the station. So here we are carrying heavyweight luggage through the busiest place in Kumasi with people yelling at us and jostling us with an ear infection and a headache. We arrived at the station and dumped these sweaty, overwhelmed missionaries by the tro to wait while they loaded up the luggage. We watched in amusement as the frightened new missionaries discovered that the tros here don't worry about fitting the luggage inside the car, they just tie it onto the back with some string (picture attatched). We laughed about it afterward with President and Sister Cosgrave.

There was an all-Africa service project this week where every unit of the Church in Africa organized some type of service. We went to clean up a small hospital on the outskirts of the branch boundaries. Quite a few members showed up, so we consider it a success. Elder Crane and I ended up cutting down weeds with cutlasses, which we definitely did not expect to do (hence why we showed up in our white shirts and ties) but we did it enthusiastically anyway. 

Love, Elder Nelson