Sep 30, 2013 - letter to Mom

Hey Mom!

I am so excited to get the package! It's really great having it to look forward to, I can't wait to get it and see everything. That would be awesome if the package came during this week later on. But either way it will come when it comes. Just have to be patient. I am finding ways and things that help me keep focused on day to day basis or week or with a move-call, but I never try to think larger than a move-call too much, or else it makes things seem impossible or miss too much things. So that will be something nice to look forward over the next week. Like tomorrow is ZTM. Then Wedensdays are English days (yeah we teach English each week). Fridays are weekly planning days (we have 3 hours for weekly planning). Saturday is to get ready for Sunday. Then Sunday is church. Then Monday is P-Day!

So yeah I will let you know when things arrive on what days so you can know how mail works out in a general way.

That is way neat experience to have happened in the math lab. Sometimes I can feel weird trying to talk to people for all sorts of reasons. But I think really if we just say a prayer, start the first few steps of the situation whether it be saying hi or saying something else, then everything else will flow and work out. Like it did with this girl in the math lab.

Couple of examples that happened with me this last week were like we were going to the corner of our area last night to go tract (we had only tract over there once before since Elder Dailey and I have been here in Feng Shan) and I had the thought of an old man from China that we had tracted into several weeks before that had been really nice and said we could come back the following week. However, when we stopped back by the following week no one answered. So we just kind of forgot about him. But so as we were riding bikes towards the corner we were going close by where this old man lives (I have a really good memory and sense of direction, so when we need to go to specific areas sometimes or places we have only been like once or twice or none before Elder Dailey lets me lead). So I just had several times the thought about this old man. So I told Elder Dailey to humor me and go stop at this old mans house. We stopped in the area but couldn't remember exactly which house was his. So we knocked on several doors and found a house where an old man and woman were. The old man came to the door and we found out that he is from China. But we didn't remember if this was the same man or if he looked like the man we talked with the first time. But he ended up not being interested at all really and was saying he baibais (ancestor worship) and everything. So I don't know exactly why I had those feelings to go there, but we went to the corner afterwards and tracted. We got a sit down lesson with a family that was very nice to us and gave us fruit to eat and everything. But they really didn't have interest or want to accept our message. So maybe the Lord just needs me to build up trust right now, and that's kind of what I was wanting to do is to simply act on the promptings I was having.

Another cool thing happened yesterday though that Elder Dailey and I were riding home from church talking to each other in English (we had a lot to talk about from things that had happened that day) but we stop at the light right before rainbow road stopping by a guy on scooter. The set up was this guy on the left Elder Dailey in the middle, and me on the right. But Elder Dailey and I were still talking in English and I notice this guy several times keeps looking over at us. So when our conversation lulled I looked at the guy and said "Li he" (that is Ni3 hao3 in Taiwanese) and Elder Dailey and I started talking with him. He pulled over to the side and we found that he had been studying in Australia for college, he has pretty man2 bu2 cuo4 (not bad) English, and is working on getting a MBA. He also has some pretty rad looking hair. But so we set up to meet with him tomorrow and share more with him. I hope he turns out good. He seems like a really good and nice guy.

So more on the piano is that there was a baptismal service this last week for the Yuan Shan Ward (the sisters serve in both the Feng Shan and Yuan Shan, Elder Dailey and I are Feng Shan, and Elder Vandiford and Turner are Yuan Shan). Elder Dailey and I were at the church and just had a lesson finish. We were already planning to stay for the baptism because we had someone coming (who never showed up!), but so the member conducting came up to me right when we had finished our lesson and before the baptismal service had started and asked if I could play the piano. So I played piano for the baptismal service. I am not the best thought. I still make mistakes and I think the Lord helps the most in making so I can play hymns through.

So to tell you about some of our investigators since I really haven't said much lately about our work. We have an investigator (who is the one we stumbled into by using his family's restaurant's bathroom) is now to a week B status meaning we have scheduled this Saturday a baptismal interview and the following Saturday is his baptismal date. He is really great kid. He is willing to keep the Word of Wisdom (he drinks bitter tea to help him stay awake, but he is willing to stop, we just need to follow up with him). We have taught him the first 3 lessons as well as some other commandments, and plan to teach the other commandments this week. For a while (we started teaching him back in the beginning of August) he kept saying it seems like what we are saying is true but didn't know for himself or was saying he wasn't getting an answer. We talked with him more about this and found that he has been receiving answers that he just wasn't realizing he was receiving answers. So we pray for him a lot and hope that he will progress smoothly.

We have another investigator as well. He is one quite interesting character. He has had several dreams involving Jesus Christ (the first one I feel was truly real that Jesus Christ told him to follow him, and he had asked how, and then Jesus said he would send his two messengers. Then two days later we contacted him). He is really willing to follow and keep commitments (but he is also saying he has other dreams like one where Jesus told him he doesn't need to baptized and such) so that is a little strange. He is going to be a uniquely difficult one to teach. We have on set with a baptismal goal but his parents oppose (even though he is 37). But he also said yesterday in Gospel Principles in response to the teacher at the beginning (granted we have not taught any commandments yet, only the Restoration because he was having a hard time with understanding authority and our church having God's authority) saying it is impossible for him to keep the Word of Wisdom because he is diabetic and I think lactose intolerant, so he can't drink milk at all, so he has to drink coffee (whatever that means, but we will cross that bridge when we get to it), but he also responded to the teacher that the Law of Chastity wouldn't be a problem (we have no idea if he even knows what these are but he acts like he does. So yeah....we will handle those when we get to them.).

Our RC (the hair stylist) is one of the most funny, craziest, and unique persons I have met here so far in Taiwan. Really words can't describe him, so when I Skype in December I will have to try and tell you more about him.

Well, that's a lot of what's been happening. So guess what I got last Monday!?!?!?!??! I got a Lord of the Rings Trilogy Soundtrack CDs as well as the best of Enya CD that we have been listening to all last week and will forever more my mission be listening to. Also, I am sending some pics of one of the members with us. His English is pretty much flawless. Allaina will get a kick out of it. We went and saw it last P-day.

Love you lots!

Elder Dayley

Sep 23, 2013 - letter to Dad

Hey Dad,

So yeah I really try to live in the middle and not looking forward to days and saying it will be better at that point. I am not sure exactly what melancholy means, but it is interesting that you say this happened on Thursday and Friday. Thursday morning was a very hard and rough morning.

Last week I had some hard days though :( I just had a lot of things build up like feeling inadequate with the language, the same sometimes boring routine of missionary life, missing home, missing my dad, missing other aspects of life, so it just really got me down and not wanting to do missionary work (as well as comparing myself to other missionaries that are in my district and seeing how they have like 6 recent converts, already have had several baptisms (he is training my MTC companion), while my trainer and only have one RC working with while the other one dropped off earlier in the year drinking and other stuff that is hard to work with as well as not having really much in the way of investigators or baptisms (haven't had any baptism yet)). But so we met with our recent convert who I love to death and is one of the most interesting characters I have met. He is a very fashionable person and hair stylist (he cuts our hair for free which is normally a 1000 kuai job or $33) and had overcome a lot of things to being baptized. But he could tell I wasn't having a good day and we ended up talking for almost 45 minutes while also getting lunch and he helped me so much in just seeing that although there is maybe a lot of pressure and stretching right now that the Lord is preparing to launch me higher than I could imagine or be able to if I wasn't being pressed right now. He compared me to like a spring how that you are at one level and that when press on a spring it goes lower than your normal level and has a lot pressure and compressing involved. But when it is released it goes much higher than it could ever achieve if it wasn't pressed at all. So he helped me to see how the Lord is working in my life right now. He also told me to see that those other Elders have there own gifts and maybe having these blessings, but that I have my own gifts and my own level and that this is my mission and is just between me and the Lord. To just go out and do my best each day.

So yeah there were some hard days in there. We though had Zone Conference this last Friday. We were taught about conversion and repentance and really have seen blessings from implementing what we were taught there, in particular if an investigator has not been reading the Book of Mormon to rather continue teaching the next lessons instead sit and read the Book of Mormon with them. Really help them see its blessings, its importance, and how it can help them personally.

Cool cool, thanks so much for sending the package. Can't wait to see everything that will be in it :) Also let Mom know to not worry about sending gum. I can't chew gum anywhere because I am a missionary and hardly never chew when I get home. 

Sounds like your Stake goal is going along really well and really working hard to achieve. The stake and wards will be greatly blessed with these efforts and what each members are doing. Really when you can have members working together and helping each other miracles happen. I think people sometimes forget how in Mosiah it talks about when we are baptized we are willing mourn with those that mourn, comfort those that stand in need of comfort. and such. As part of the PMG baptismal interview it says willing to keep the Sabbath Day holy and render service to fellow members. I think people maybe sometimes forget that when you are confirmed and are baptized, its not done, its actually just begun. And one of those key things is service. 

Of course I miss golfing with you and want to do it more. I am sure you really mean that you miss golfing with me and not just kind of miss it. That would be sweet to get a set of clubs, and I would love to go more and play.

So I had no idea you were working on a huge project from May to November. That's huge! I know you will get it done and do well with it. You have learned so much and are progressing at becoming better about balancing your life. Just do your best each day.

Of course as always I miss the puppies. I always see weiner dogs here. But more often or not they are the normal size weiner dogs. So I always miss my weiner dogs. As well as sitting with them on the couch watching movies or netflix and eating cookies. I am honestly going to have to go for the next year and a half without any cookies :(

So to share some more things from my last week as well as some things I missed from the week before that I needed to write in my planner to remember to say today. Sorry I feel like sometimes I don't really share spiritual things in emails. I strive to, but also just want to share what's on my mind, what's happening in my life, and just trying my best to give you a glimpse into what I see each week.

So first off Mom will be so happy and proud that ever since I got here I play the piano each week. I either play it for gospel principles, or priesthood, or sometimes both. But every week since I have been in Taiwan I have been playing. Often times I am playing through hymns I have never played before. But I still manage to play through them (granted no they are not perfect) and help serve.

Next is not this last week but the week before we went to go find a less active (which have just been the hardest people to find here in our area. We have this thing called the map project in a binder that is printed off of all the members in the Feng Shan ward grouped according to areas in our area, so it helps to find less actives. But most less actives have either moved or the ward tells us specifically to not go visit these people. But so we went to this village (which we learned later on actually used to be a drilling ground for the Japanese soldiers when they occupied the island) and were trying to find this less active which house numbers never went up to the LA's house number on the road. But we ended up seeing this house that had a Triumph Spitfire and a MG parked outside of it. So I was admiring the cars and Elder Dailey decided to knock of there door to talk with whoever was home. Some old guy in his 60's came out and we first talked about his cars in particular the Spitfire. He had restored them and he even got his keys and turned it on, lifted the hood up, and revved. Needless to say it was pretty sweet. He even offered to take us for a drive, but we couldn't because it is only a two seater :( But so we got talking more with this guy about religion and that he is very accepting of different religions and respects them a lot, believing that there is really one God even if it's called Allah, or Shen, or Heavenly Father. But so he worked as an engineer for a airplane company up in Taibei. So he has been to many places around the world and he doesn't have bad English either for simply learning through business and traveling to other places. But so to the interesting part that happened is that we were standing around this Spitfire talking about this stuff. Any way, my companion and the guy were standing by the driver side under neath an overhang while I was on the passenger side with nothing over my head. I had kind of been noticing clouds moving in from the east. Then lightning struck over to the east from us and it was fairly loud. Then I saw the lightning strike north of us and it was just as loud as the first one. Then all of sudden I just see in the sky directly over us lightning arc across the sky (literally over us) and Elder Dailey saw it strike down a bit east of us. But it made the guy grab his head with his hands and shake a little bit and no joke when I saw the lightning arc across the sky it sounded right when it was doing that and it was so close that it sounded like a whip cracking. Then about 20 seconds after that lightning it just started dumping rain. So the guy let us into his house and we talked some more. But some crazy lightning and we had two other instances over the next few days where lightning cracked right over us.

Next is last Monday for dinner you will never guess what we had for dinner. Japanese Curry!!! It was so good and no joke is just like the curry we make at home. It tasted just like our curry too. It was yummy and nice little reminder of home.

Also there is a Sister in my district you will need to tell Brynne Lindsley about or tell Steve to tell Brynne. She was here my first move call and will be here through my second move call. It's Sister Peay. She played soccer with Brynne. So I will have to tell Sister Peay where Brynne is serving because I didn't remember where she was going but saw the ward news letter today.

Also on Elder Dailey's birthday after English Proselyting we were eating and one of Elder Dailey's RC's showed up to give him some things and ate with us. He showed us Jeff Stark's facebook because apparently Elder Stark taught him as well. But I see that Jeff went down and drove a Lamborghini. I am jealous!

Next, there are real life airbenders here! Ok not really. But the monks we occasionally see look just like Aang in his attire from the The Last Airbender.

Well that is just some of my week. I will have pictures next week for you to see :)

Love you with all my heart!

Elder Dayley

Sep 23, 2013 - letter to Mom

Sorry, so I was just beginning to write your email and all of a sudden the computer turned off. We have time limits here at the wanka and apparently the people at the front can turn computers off. The lady at the front "an cuo le" meaning she pressed the wrong one. So she gave us another hour to do stuff. So I will email you and then off to do P-day.

Sounds like a great quote. It will be nice to have. Thank you so much for sending the package. It will be so nice to get. I haven't gotten any mail since I have been here except a few things from the mission office like my Alien Resident Card.

You will pass your Calculus Block class. You are already so far ahead. I am right now planning to pass of my phase 1 language study by the end of this second move call. I have my Lessons 1-3 pass off with the Zone leaders to do, Lesson 4 and 5 with the District Leader, and then Lessons 1-5 with the zone leaders. So almost every week I will be doing an evaluation. 

I wish sometimes I could just have your life of school, house cleaning, puppy play time, scripture study, dad. It seems so nice and great. Not going to lie sometimes missionary life can be really stressful, and can really work up my anxieties and nervousness. But I try each day and learn new things each day to help and not feeling these feelings. I don't maybe you have any personal insight or wisdom to share on it. I know that I think and feel a lot of the same ways as you do and have so much I can learn from you in how to live life.

Love you so much mom!

Elder Dayley

Sep 16, 2013 - letter to Dad

Hey Dad!

So won't be taking care of getting me fitted for my suit until next week when we go to pick up Elder Dailey's suit. But I can't wait for it. It will be so nice and slick and hen shuai (very handsome). The money shouldn't be a problem. It will be around from $200 to $300 in US dollars.

Yeah, I try to think everyday as Taiwan as my home, and it usually does feel like it. It's weird and insane to think that I already have 1 move call gone. I am progressing through the lesson evaluations. I already have the first 2 done and am planning to the do lesson 3, the Gospel, later this week. Phase 1 will be passed off and everything before I am done training, at least that is my goal.

Yeah, there are a couple hills to go on our bikes. However, they are not fun to climb. It's because our north boundary is the Train line so the roads either go over or under the train line. We have to go over these because our church is in Nuan Shan outside of our area. So we have two ways we can take. We call one Death Mountain and the other Rainbow Road. Can you guess which one we like more? :) Death Mountain goes up and over the top of the train line. It's a hard climb but you go really fast coming down. I always end up in my highest gear. Rainbow road goes under but its really cool because they have the main road that is much lower going under but then they have a little road that is a about 5 feet across or less that goes down through a little tunnel and then back up. So its really fun flying through the tunnel way fast. Elder Dailey can usually go a bit faster because he doesn't have his box on his bike anymore. I have my box which puts some extra weight there. But yes, even sometimes we pass cars or scooters. The funniest thing I think though is that at a red light its like the start of a Mario Kart race. No joke we can probably get sometimes 40 or 50 scooters waiting at this red light and we are right in the middle of them. So the light turns green and Elder Dailey and I start pedaling and scooters just come flying by all around us. It's like being in a race that everyone is faster than you.

I strive to ask questions and see how I can help people. I say prayers always before we are contacting or going tracting that I may speak what the Lord would have me speak. Many times I ask where people are going and then if they just got off work or school. Still, my vocab isn't the best to be able to ask more about life stuff, but it will get there.

We have had many opportunities for giving Priesthood blessings. After tonight (we are going with the Elders Quorum President who is such a good guy and always trying to do what's right and always wanting to help and really working hard with the missionary effort) we will have now gone to the hospital 4 times and give blessings since I have been here.

Sounds pretty cool on the Legos and thanks for getting things together for me. Sorry I can be a hassel sometimes.

Thanks for the comfort scripture. I really have found many little nuggets of spiritual comfort in Psalms as well as Proverbs.

So I was thinking this a lot this last week. Elder Dailey was there to talk to and helped me feel better. But I miss you. I miss doing everything with you from golfing, movies like Red Box or the theaters, playing board games, Real games, or just doing anything together. I really miss it a lot and miss you. But Elder Dailey helped in talking with him about these feelings and him telling me that you would want me here on a mission rather than this time being spent at home doing things with you. He said that our relationship will grow so much more and expand so much more with me half way around the world than if I was just home right now. So I have my finish line that I know is way out there, but I am running mile 1 right now and will push on till I run through that 13.1 marker.

I love you so much with all my heart!

Elder Dayley

Sep 16, 2013 - letter to Mom

Yeah I tell my comp that all the time, that he is awesome.

So that is pretty much how it is with the Chinese. The tones make it all the much more crazier and much harder. But my ting de donging skills (listening and understanding) have excelled so much. So many members and investigators tell me this. And even say that I am even further along than other Elders. I know the Lord is blessing me and helping me with this.

I know you are capable of handling the work that is given you and you know your limits. The Lord will help you with your school as well as your callings. Just turn to him in prayer and he will help you.

Cool that you marked my requests. Yeah I bought a CD player so I can listen to other music as well. When Elder Dailey and I go to the Suit store next week we will stop at a music store as well. Yeah the Zelda music is good. Elder Dailey told me that Elder Hellberg had Zelda music and they would listen to it. Make sure to get some from all the different games, especially there is one from Windwaker that is really good (it has some clapping and other rhythmic beats like that). But thank you so much for getting this stuff together. I know I can be a bother.

I miss the dogs like none other. I see so many weiner dogs here and I always think of Rusty and Miko and miss them.

Sorry this email will have to be short. Almost out of time. I had 17 emails in my mailbox today when I logged on.

The Lord has blessed me in contacting. It's become better and I have been praying that the Lord would help. I know he has answered my prayers.

Love you!

Elder Dayley

Sep 9, 2013 - letter to Dad

So sometimes it feels like time flies, and other times it doesn't seem like time moves at all. But I just keep trying to work and not think too much about home. Something Elder Dailey has told me that I feel will help is to just tell myself this is home. This is where I live right now, is Taiwan.

That is an awesome goal for the stake to have 100% home teaching for September. I know that you as a stake can accomplish that. It will be of great benefit and blessing to those who live around you. Yeah Taiwan really can't get there. It's something hard for them. But hopefully it will progress as time goes on and become better.

The 11 year old boys don't know how much I really miss them. I am sure Elder Raban feels the exact same way. We loved being with them and teaching them. I also miss teaching Elders Quorum. Both have been such great blessings for me and helping me to be a better teacher. Tell the boys thank you so much and that they are all studs.

Also I miss the puppies so much too. Although Miko doesn't even look like a puppy anymore. She will be so old when I come home. Looks like they needed to be wrapped up and bundled on Timp's peak though. Looks like it was a blast and half to hike Timp though. Also you are ridiculous to bike 30 miles just for the fun of it. I don't know how much I bike a day, but it always feels like a lot, especially since I have a box that is zip tied over the top of my back wheel. So I get that extra weight. But its fun to get going fast on my bike.

Tell Sister Merrill thanks and that she is too kind. 

I will have pics though next week of golfing and in a while I will get some pics of me in my new suit. I think I am going to go with Dolce & Gabbana because I liked some of the colors and such from that one when I was just browsing as Elder Dailey was being measured.

I love you with all my heart and am sorry that I never said thanks enough or appreciated all that you do! We have many much golfing, playing board games, and hanging out to do when I come home!

Elder Dayley

Sep 9, 2013 - letter to Mom

Well hello again from Taiwan!

So I guess first to address about your interest in our miracle scooter guy. Not good.... :( We called him Tuesday night to set up to meet with him and he told us that he feels its not something he needs right now in his life and that he really appreciated talking with us though. That's what he told me and then Elder Dailey talked with him and told him that he is studying for some big like law and government tests. Elder Dailey bore powerful testimony to him and told him that as important as the tests are, our message we are sharing is the most important and will impact and affect his life so much more than the tests could. We told him that we weren't even expecting to use up all of his time to meet only wishing to be able to meet for 30 minutes at a time. But sadly he just said that he feels its not what he needs right now and that he is busy with these tests.

So it sounds like you had a pretty busy week. Just getting thrown right into the fray. Sadly also this last week had one of my hardest days. Last Saturday I was just lacking confidence and feeling anxiety, nervousness, worrying over contacting and finding. I was finding it very difficult to even contact at all or talk. Even though I had an awful attitude and outlook, Elder Dailey at least helped to push us through and that I was at least trying some to contact. Contacting is one of my greatest weaknesses and that I am pleading with the Lord to help me turn it into a strength. I guess to be more specific its just talking with people really or going up to complete strangers and just talking with them is where I struggle. I am comfortable with teaching doctrinal points or bearing my testimony. It's just hard because my personality, character, and nature has never been one of going up to people and just talking with them. Like if people talk to me I will totally talk with them and everything. I never really have been one to initiate things though. So its really outside of who I am and my bubble of comfort. So I am really praying hard for Heavenly Father to help and what I can do each day to take one step at a time of turning this weakness into a strength. 

I love teaching though. I love having a plan made for our investigator that has been pondered, prayed, and studied over to help them and to help their needs. I love being able to do that and to then teach them and share with them doctrinal points as well as bearing my testimony to them. Many times other missionaries have remarked at how powerful my testimony is and how sincere I am and really care for those we teach. It's helped me to feel good.

Some more uplifting things from the week though has been that our ward has really been good over the last couple weeks about attending church and being on time to church as well. Normally we have been maybe having like 55 or 60 people maybe. But the last couple weeks we have had about 80 people each time. It's been such a blessing and am so thankful for it. Especially since they also come on time at 9, which was something that really had been a struggle when we first got here.

On Thursday night we had a ward activity lined up to go find and teach less actives. Sadly only our Elders Quorum President showed up (which he is a way awesome guy and I just love him, he is married and has I believe 3 kids). But it was still good going around Feng Shan for the night with the EQP to find less actives. Sadly we didn't get any lessons with less actives, but we did find out some good information. One of the families we went to visit found out they had moved to Ping Dong and that she is a member as well as her 2 sons but the father isn't. We found out though that her younger son who is 17 had been in a scooter/car accident and is paralyzed now. We don't know how long ago this happened. But the EQP asked if she would like missionaries to come over to give a blessing for her son and she said yes. So we got in touch with the Ping Dong Elders and passed this along to them.

Another great thing was that we had Xu as well as Wayne come to church yesterday. Xu stayed for 2 hours and Wayne only for one hour. Wayne had promised his mom that he would be back at 10:30 (who by the way when we taught Wayne the night before at his family's restaurant we always teach him there (we had asked his mom if she could let Wayne come to church for an hour and she said yes) and it was already 10:10 but the last speaker was still going. So I got up with him because he needed to leave and went out into the foyer. I asked him what his thoughts were and he said that he can tell everyone has a very strong faith and belief in the church and in Christ. I told him that they all really do and that they all have done what he is doing right now, that is praying sincerely and with real intent as well as studying the scriptures. So I just recommitted and urged him again to read and pray with sincerity and real intent. We will be meeting with him on Saturday again. It's hard to meet with him during the week because he has school and many kids, including him, have bu xi ban which is essentially cram school. They go to this at night to pretty much get tutored more on what they are taught in school. It's a little silly though. But Wayne is really great. He is open to hearing our message and being taught. So he isn't straight up rejecting us. But he also doesn't just blindly accept. He really wants to know for himself. Right now he has a baptismal goal of September 28. It might need to be pushed back though.

We also were blessed with last night a referral from the San Ming ward. He is Christian and has believed in Christ over the last 2 years. But he is really interested and wants to learn. He came to FHE last night, that's where we met him for the first time. So we have good hopes for him as well.

I as well passed off my lesson 1 on the Restoration evaluation this past week and plan to pass off lesson 2 this week. It's also crazy to think that new missionaries come this week! Wah! Then I will have my first zone conference next week. Oh and also it is Elder Dailey's birthday tomorrow. So I have given him some presents as well as he got a small package from home with some east coast pastries. Needless to say, they were really good. I got him a little lego guy, a Ford F150 Hotwheels car (he likes trucks, which we don't see very often here, but I have seen a couple Fords and then the rare one being a Dodge Ram the other day. Really cool though was on our way to church we saw a guy washing a Porche 911 Turbo S, so a way expensive nice Porche. We didn't have time to stop and talk though :( ), and I got him a little lego set that is a coast guard truck with a little zodiac. Speaking of Legos make sure Dad gets the ultimate collector series Star Wars legos. I know there is a X-Wing that is coming out this year and I am sure there will be one next year. So yeah....get them.

I have a few pictures to send today as well but I will have more next week. We are going golfing today though! It will be way fun. Sorry Dad, I really miss golfing with you. But now I can say I have golfed in Taiwan (at least hitting at a driving range).

Another few things is that could you actually send some pictures that are from the time when I was home between MTC 1st time and MTC 2nd time. I would like some pictures printed off from those times. Also really people think that you are an older sister in the pictures. They say you look so young and look like sisters to me, Allaina, and Allisa. Then also really an idea for something to send for Christmas package is maybe a few CD's. Like I really want a CD that is music from Zelda. I doubt I will find one here though.

But so that is some of my week.

Love ya so much!!!!!!!

Elder Dayley

Sep 2, 2013 - letter to Dad

Dad,

Yeah I am sure it is nice to be not so busy and overloaded. I have been praying for you and included you in my fast yesterday.

You with your hair like a horseshoe would fit in with many of the old guys over here. Also, while it is on my mind.... first off, tell Mom many of the people I teach I show my family pictures and they say that she can be one of my sisters. They say she looks so young and looks like Allaina or Allisa. Also, send some more recent pictures if you can from right before I left or over the year from when I came home from the MTC until I left again.

I definitely miss being able to teaching the 11-year old boys in our ward. That was a great calling.

So as for language, it is coming along. Elder Dailey says my language is amazing. That my comprehension and listening are extremely good and that my grammar is amazing as well. He says there are even some missionaries that are older that he says I can speak better than. But so the mission has a whole language study system set up. Right now I am on Phase 1. I have phrases, vocabulary, grammar patterns, baptismal interview questions, commitments, promised blessings, definitions of key terms, as well as the whole PMG sections written out in English, Pinyin, and characters for Lessons 1,2,3,4, and 5. I have evaluations for Lessons 1, 2, 3, 1-3, 4, 5, and 1-5. I have to make a lesson plan for each lesson and then pass these off to the District Leader. I am planning to pass of the first one later this week and my goal is to get Phase 1 done by the end of my training. Then Phase 2 is flash cards that deal with more day to day language. And Phase 3 is even more advanced and focuses more working with and learning the characters. Yes people write characters on their hands. Yes I will be learning characters. But right now my language focus is being able to teach all of the PMG lessons by myself in Chinese.

Yeah well this last couple of weeks must have been splits weeks because last Thursday was a meeting for all the trainers and trainees in East Gaoxiong, West Gaoxiong, and Jiayi. So we met over in west Gaoxiongs chapel and had a meeting with President Blickenstaff and his wife. They are so nice and so great. But so the AP's were with them and we had gotten a call that morning from AP Limpansriphong that he would go on exchanges with Elder Dailey and I from Thursday night to Friday morning. Needless to say, it was great and great to have him help with better contacting and learning from him. Also, this last week has been the rain that never stops. So literally no joke from Wednesday morning to Saturday night when we went to sleep it rained the whole time. We never saw the sun. It was awful and got bothersome coming home 4 nights in a row being wet. But so Elder Dailey and I prayed Saturday night that it wouldn't rain Sunday because then a lot of investigators and members wouldn't come to church. It didn't rain Sunday so that was great. Yeah, the Taiwanese people no joke are afraid of the rain. They think you will get sick if you are out in it at all. So many times we have appointments cancel if it rains or if it rains Sunday then not many people show up to church.

Love ya and miss you.

Elder Dayley

Sep 2, 2013 - letter to Mom

Mom,

You were asking about my comp...well, he is great! We get along really well. He goes home right at the end of October. We are looking at going and hitting golf balls at a driving range one of our P-days. He has definitely been helpful.

Also, America still does not have as much Hello Kitty as there is here.

Ok, so first off the words for I Am A Child of God:

wo3 shi4 shen2 di hai2zi, ta1 chai2 wo3 lai2 ci3 ci4, ci4 wo3 yi2 ge shi4shang4 jia1ting2, you3 qin1ai4 di shuang1 qin1. ling3 wo3, dao3 wo3, yu3 wo3 tong2 zai4, zhu4 wo3 xing2 zheng4lu4. jiao1 wo3 suo3 you3 ying1 zuo4 shi4, ta1 ri4 yu3 shen2 tong2 zhu4.

That's the first verse. I can maybe over the next couple weeks get the other verses for times sake.

So that's awesome that Jeff and Ryan came over, sharing their thoughts and feelings about Taiwan. So my jacket is fine that I wear it when it is heavy rain, but for the light stuff it's not even a bother. I'm jealous Jeff can take cat naps during the day though. I have yet to sleep a full night through. On good nights I wake up once in the night. On not so good nights I wake up several times throughout the night. I don't know what is causing me to wake up during the night though. So it's hard now during the afternoons that always around 2 or 3 I get really tired and nod like if we are teaching or in a setting where we are just sitting down. I really wish they could let us missionaries take naps. It makes sometimes hard to do strengthening and workouts in the morning right at 6 (yes, Elder Dailey and I wake up at 6 so we can have an hour of language study rather than just half an hour in the morning) because I am so tired and still haven't woken up or anything.

Yeah we can get copies of the Ensign or Liahona in English or Chinese. We haven't gotten the last couple months though. It might be something we have to tell the office elders about. But yeah we can read them. I have been reading the May issue a lot on all the conference talks. I just looked at the calendar last night and saw that one of the last things Elder Dailey and I will do together before he goes home is watch General Conference together.

I think Elder Vandiford actually might have gotten the psychology test idea from Elder Allen or one of the office Elders.

That is definitely something I miss a lot is watching the RSL games. One of my t-shirts I have with me is my RSL shirt actually. That is sweet though that there season is going really well with having the whole change up a lot of players this year. So to answer one of Dad's questions about the soccer is no I don't really get a chance or anything to play soccer or do anything soccer wise. Soccer is not big at all here, like literally no one really plays it. It's all either Basketball or Baseball. Like you would be surprised actually at how many people I see wearing NBA Basketball jerseys here. Also, you would be surprised at how much English people here actually know. I will share an experience a little later on that happened last night about something like that.

Sounds like a busy Sunday. My Sunday yesterday consisted of going to church at 9 till 12, then afterwards we had ward correlation till about 1:15. Then at 2 we had an investigator come to the church that we taught (went a little over on time with him) then at 4 we met these two kids at the Feng Shan West station for the MRT (the subway) and taught them till about 4:45. Went home then finally to eat, since it was fast sunday. I have never liked fasting a whole lot, but I still do it. Then at 6:30 we had an appointment with a less active that when we showed up his daughter was there but said he wasn't. We got his cell phone number from her since we only had the home phone number and tried calling him. He didn't answer so we started going down the road to tract and call the APR (our Active Progress Record, people we call that are investigators or potentials as well as some less actives we are working with). We looked back down the road and saw a man walking and went walking right up to the house where the less active lives and realized that was the less active we set up to meet with. So we went back to meet with him and met till about 7:15. Then this is where we had a miracle happen. Every Sunday night there is Family Home Evening for the young adults as well as us missionaries invite investigators to it. We as missionaries never go to it unless we have an investigator going or a recent convert. We had called our one investigator Sam or Brother Shang and he had told us he would go, but after meeting with the less active we called him again (we wanted to make sure he was for sure going because its a 25 minute bike ride to the church from our apartment and the less active lived right by our apartment) and he said he was out eating with his family. So he was not going. Another investigator Charlie (who also knows English really well and when we even talk Chinese to him he replies back in English) said he would go but not get there until 8. The FHE starts at 7. So we were already planning to be late. But so we left the less actives home and after about a minute Elder Dailey and I stopped. We didn't know if we should go to the church or not since that is a lot of travel time or if our efforts could be put to better use somewhere else. We were thinking this because Charlie on multiple times because he is busy with school and working for one of his professors has fanged our gezi's (literally Chinese is fang women de gezi which means literally placing pigeons, pretty much getting stood up), so we didn't know if Charlie would actually show up. We called him again and he said he would go. So then we decided to pray and ask Heavenly Father for guidance. After the prayer we both had feelings that either choice we would make would be beneficial that it was something the Lord was leaving up to us to choose. So we decided to go the church because we wanted to meet with Charlie and had faith he would be there. As we were riding along and contacting with people we were stopped at the intersection of Kaixuan Lu (lu means road) and Xingfu Lu. Elder Dailey was talking to one man who right when the light turned green zoomed off on his scooter. But so we both just start pedaling along and all of a sudden a man on a scooter driving next to us was telling us in English that he wants to talk to us. So we pull over to the side of the road and start talking with him. His name is Sean and knows English really well (he majored in English) and right off the bat he said he wants to find peace for the soul. He had tried finding happiness in money and things before but he told us he just wasn't happy. He had investigated churches before, including ours, and was unsure between deciding between Buddhism or Christianity. But so Elder Dailey and I talked to him and testified to him about Eternal Peace and Blessings compared to short term happiness. We even shared a scripture with him, and gave him a Book of Mormon. There are a lot of things he agreed with us on, but also some things he was direct about not agreeing with (he is studying to be a lawyer). But both Elder Dailey and I bore powerful witness and testimony to him about God as our Heavenly Father, the blessings and hope that believing in God bring, and how the Book of Mormon teaches and blesses our lives personally and individually. I invited him to read the introduction last night on his own and told him the promise the book brings of teaching how to obtain eternal peace and happiness. We tried to set up a time to meet then and there, but he was busy tonight with an interview, so we will be calling him either tonight or tomorrow to set up and meet with him. We have to meet with him quickly though because he starts classes on the 10 and will be super busy with those. But so this was our miracle that happened. We were being faithful, obedient, diligent, and fulfilling our calling. And we have someone who wants to talk to us, someone who knows English really well that I am able to bear powerful testimony to making it really personal to him. Very rarely do you have someone who comes and wants to talk to you or is on a scooter and wants to talk to you.

I definitely miss all of your food though. There is no way for me to make cookies here in Taiwan because none of the kitchens have ovens. So I settle for getting Oreo's each week. Also you would be proud of me, I get my protein each day. Pretty much every meal at least has eggs, meat, or both. Like one of my favorites to eat is dong bao fan. It's fried rice (which has meat in it) that they then wrap scrambled/fried eggs around and put ketchup on top. It's so good. Or like yesterday for dinner I had two chua bings (Chinese pancakes) with two scrambled eggs on top of each with ketchup. So I get my protein. But I have a actually lost 5 pounds since coming from the MTC and being here in Taiwan.

I love you very much and miss your food and being home to share life with you and Dad!

Love Ya!

Elder Dayley