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
