2 weeks ago

hello mommy! and others

well since lat week was essentially a P-week, we were ready to get back to work. it's kinda weird, we've actually been able to contact quite a few referrals but they dont seem to want to amount to anything. but that just tells me i need to continue to work hard and expect nothing. its all about what the Lord wants. Also a lot has been happening within the branch as well. we've started having branch council, and they are really trying to organize home and visiting teaching. and i think its going to result in a lot more coordination with the senior couple and other members of the branch. i find myself being kind of impatient because i'm realizing all the things that could or should be happening, and i want them to happen right away. its definitely true what you said dad, that all the members here are still very new to the church and that they are still learning, as we all are, how things should work. in fact i think the longest member in this branch (besides kids born into the church) may be about 10 years. so still incredibly new. I also need to slow down because the senior couple and us elders are kind of identifying all these problems, and we have to remember to take it one thing at a time (or at least i have to remember that)

singapore was pretty awesome. i pretty much told you all about that in least weeks email. (haha i hate writing about the same stuff) :D um sibu was ok. i didnt end up going to the leadership training, so i only met pres mains very briefly. like this: i entered the church building, he was in the hall taking pictures, and i came in, saw him, said "hi, President!" shook his hand, he asked "are you here to teach someone or meeting up with companions elder?" "i'm just meeting my companion president :)" "sounds good, elder" and that was literally it haha. he seems like a super awesome guy and the ZLs said he basically said of himself that he didnt really know what he was doing, and that he was still getting used to malaysia. So i think it will be a while before he wants to try to change anything. which everyone pretty much expected. so he will be coming to Tawau on the 26th on his mission tour. pretty excited for that. Some of the ZLs said they missed Pres Clark during the training, and could definitely feel a difference. mission presidents are so cool. they're essentially general authorities. when i had the two chances to listen to Pres Clark it was like listening to an apostle. I'm sure Pres. Mains will be the same way and he will be awesome.

a little bit of adventure this week. we followed some members who were going to get some coconut juice and we followed this guy into the jungle, who proceeded to climb a tree, chop of a branch with a bunch of coconuts, and then he cut them open and we drank and ate straight out of the coconuts! unfortunately they weren't quite ripe yet and the water wasnt very good.. but it was still pretty cool to say i ate and drank coconut about a minute after it came off the tree. Fresh! also we messed with a monkey. he was leashed to a tree root and we were tossing fruit at him and stuff. i got him to take fruit and some nuts right out of my hand. monkeys are so weird and human like. the way they look around and react to stuff is so similar to humans. the best was when the kids would throw stuff at the monkey or poke at him with a stick. the monkey would run at them and grab the stick and use his own momentum to pull the stick away from the kids. so smart.

anyways dont have any picks from the week. oh ya i gave my camera to singapore and they said they would know if it was under warranty or not within a week. that was a week ago so i should know pretty soon. either way it will be a while till a get it back. but i'm pretty sure it'll be all taken care of.

love,
Elder G