26 Feb (27 in Japan) Sennan Japan

Week 86

Mission Log

 

Everything is still super awesome here.  The members here are all really nice and they pretty much all speak English.  I never speak in English to any of them, but they would all understand if I did.  It`s really weird.  In most wards there is one or two people or families from a foreign country (like the US), but everyone else is Japanese and doesn't know English.  This ward is backwards.  There aren't any foreigners, but pretty much everyone seems to be able to speak pretty good English.  In part, I think it`s because there are so many returned missionaries here.  A lot of times, Japanese missionaries will end up picking up English on their missions, even if they serve in Japan. 

 

 

We had a zone conference this week where the mission president and the assistants came and gave training.  We`re trying to focus more on finding and teaching families now. Also, we changed the way we add up our numbers each week so that it`s a lot harder to find "new investigators" now.  The conference was in a church that is right in downtown Osaka.  It was pretty fun going into the big city. 

 

It`s gotten quite a bit warmer now.  It isn't even cold normally.  I don`t have to wear a coat or gloves anymore.  The only exception is when it is windy.  The wind is really cold, especially when riding a bike. 

 

I went back to Wakayama on a companion exchange this week.  It was really cool going back there.  There is a person there named Sister K.....  About twenty or thirty years ago, she went less active.  She didn't just stop coming to church.  She moved and changed here phone number to that the members wouldn't know where she lived.  About seven months ago, the missionaries ran into her while tracting, and they started teaching her.  She wouldn't go to church or talk to any of the members, but she was fine with meeting with the missionaries.  Elder Burhoe and I taught here many times.  Right before Wakayama closed, we told her that it was going to be our last Sunday and that she needed to come this week.  I think she always wanted an opportunity to go back sometime, but she just needed us to give her a little push.  She came that week and we were so happy.  Then, we left Wakayama and I didn't hear anything for three months because there were no missionaries there.  This last week when I went down to Wakayama on a companion exchange I went to her place and visited her.  She was way excited to see me and let us in right away.  I noticed right away that on a shelf by the door, there was a framed picture of two missionaries and one of Mary and Jesus that she`d taken from the Liahona.  Upon going in and talking with here, I found out that she has been going to church every week ever since that day she came with is.  She read the Liahona and scriptures all the time and she is working so that she can go to the temple again.  She was so happy when I saw her.  It was great to be able to see how she turned her life back around and how happy it made her.  It made me happy too. 

 

That`s about all I have for this week.  I`ll write you again next week.  Bye. 

 

-Elder Isaac Swift

19 Feb (20 Feb in Japan) Sennan

Week 85

Mission Log

We had another good week.  I got to go on another companion exchange with Elder Kawamura.  It was cool because we were companions exactly one year ago.  We were working together on Valentine`s Day and reminiscing about what we did for Valentines Day last year.  It was also fun to work in his area.  His area is north of ours.  It`s closer to the big Osaka city area.  It was a crazy feeling to see big buildings all around and people everywhere.  Osaka is such a big city.  I always thought that Seattle was a pretty big city, but in comparison to the size of Osaka, it`s like nothing.  I can`t imagine what Tokyo is like.

The Bishop had us over to his house last night to have gyoza (potstickers).  Gyoza are so good in Japan.  I don`t remember them being this good back in the United States.  You`ll have to let me know.  Are potstickers in the United States any good?  I wonder if I`ll still be willing to eat them or ramen in the United States after getting used to how good it is here.  There are restaurants all over the place that are dedicated to just gyoza or just ramen.  Those are actually two foods that are eaten together quite often.  It`s because they are really both Chinese foods that Japan adopted from them. 

 

It`s gotten quite a bit warmer recently.  During the day time it isn't even cold most of the days.  It did snow just a little bit one day this week, but even while it was snowing, it didn't feel all that cold.  The days are all significantly warmer now.  But, once the sun goes down, it gets freezing cold super fast.  Riding a bike at night is unbelievably cold and my hands get painfully frozen each night, but the days are nice. 

That`s about all I have to say this week.  I`ll write you again next week.  Bye. 

-Elder Isaac Swift

12 Feb 2012 (13 Feb) Sennan Japan

 Week 84

Mission Log

That`s funny that you heard men in Japan spend a lot of money on Valentine`s Day, because men actually don`t spend any money at all on Valentine`s Day.  It`s a little bit different from in the US.  In Japan, Valentine`s Day (February 14th) is the holiday where women get things for the men that they like.  One month later (March 14th) is a holiday called White Day.  That is the day where men get things for women.  Out of all the women they got chocolate or something from on Valentine`s Day, they give some candy or gift or something to the girl on White Day if they are also interested. 

There are going to be two missionaries moving into the Wakayama apartment on Wednesday.  I got to go down there and get it all ready for them.  It felt weird going back to Wakayama again.  I went and looked in the mailbox in Wakayama when I was down there, and it was full of ads for pizza and stuff.  Upon looking thought the ads a little bit, at the bottom of the pile, I discovered, to my delight, two letters addressed to me.  I guess they were delivered after we moved out of the Wakayama apartment and they had just been sitting in that mailbox for a few months.  One of them was a Halloween card from the Barkers and the Pollards.  I was very excited to get the mail, and at the same time thought it was kind of funny that I din`t get it for like three or so months.  

I've pretty much given up on trying to send pictures through an email from my camera.  I`m convinced that it can`t be done.  I`ll just have to send the memory card home again sometime like I used to do.  I hope that you are doing well.  I`ll write you again next week.  Bye. 

-Elder Isaac Swift

5 Feb 2012 (6 Feb in Japan) Sennan Japan

Week 83

Mission Log

 

I`m surprised that I kept addressing my emails in the exact same way each week for the past 82 weeks.  I just jokingly wrote that on the first week.  I didn`t know that I would be continuing it for a year and a half.  I might as well just continue it all the way to the end now.  The end of my mission just feels closer and closer all the time.  I don`t feel like an old missionary, or that I`ve been out here very long, but at the same time, it feels like I`m going to be going back home any day now. 

 

That cord you sent me to charge my camera looks like it can plug into USB as well.  So, I`m going to try to send some pictures home each week with the email if I can. 

 

Last preparation day, we went to a giant slide that`s in the mountains south from the church.  It was a lot of fun.  At one point, the slide goes into a big dinosaur`s mouth. 

 

It`s fun being back in an apartment with Elder Gardner again.  He`s fun.  His companion is named Elder Barney.  He is from West Valley, Utah.  He has blond hair.  He is about the same height as Elder Gardner.  He is brand new to the mission field. 

 

Four different less-active members came to church yesterday.  It made me so happy to see them there.  Something I love almost as much as seeing new members get baptized, is when I see a member who hasn`t been to church in a long time finally come back. 

 

I can`t get the pictures to work.  I`ll send pictures back some other time. 

 

Right when we left the apartment to go email today, it began to rain.  The rain got harder and harder.  It`s a good thirty minute bike ride to get to the email place, and I am now soaking wet and freezing cold.  It is a good thing that there is free hot chocolate to drink here.  This week was definitely the coldest week that we`ve had so far.  It snowed a couple of times.  It was painful to ride a bike outside. 

 

Everything is going well here.  The work is wonderful.  I love you and I will write again next week.  Bye. 

 

-Elder Isaac Swift

29 Jan 2012 (30 Jan in Japan) Sennan Japan

Week 82

Mission Log

                                         American  New Year's Celebration with the mission.

Another great week back here.  It is still quite cold.  Even though it gets light earlier in the morning and stays light later into the night than it used to, it doesn't seem to be getting any warmer.  The cold is especially hard because we are outside all the time on foot or riding our bikes around.  Plus, I got tired of wearing a big bulky coat around while I`m trying to work.  So, I just deal with the cold now.  Japanese buildings don`t have central heating.  There is just a little heater that heats up the room it`s in.  We have one in the bedroom and one in the first study room.  The other two missionaries are in that room.  Our study room doesn`t have any heating.  It's not uncommon for me to be able to see my breath during study, and then to get distracted by watching it and playing with it. 

This morning we had the transfer announcement.  I am going to be staying in Sennan and I will be staying with my same companion, Elder Singleton.  The other two missionaries in our apartment will be changing though.  Elder McKellar is going back to Australia.  Elder Stanford is going to Nara to be with Elder Murray.  In their place, Elder Gardner is going to come here and train a new missionary.  I`m really excited to be with Elder Gardner again.  He was my companion back in Uwajima. 

Things are awesome here.  The mission is great.  It`s such a wonder opportunity to learn and grow myself while giving all my time for others.  It`s so easy to see the Lord`s hand in our lives every day out here.   It`s really hard all of the time, but the Lord supports me.  See 2 Nephi 4:20-21. 

The time is flying by so quickly.  My interview with the mission president went pretty well.  It seems like I will be able to register myself online and that the ecclesiastic endorsement will be taken care of.  I see some people with tablets, but it doesn`t seem like a lot.  Everyone has smart phones. 

Thanks everyone for all of the support and encouragement that you give from back home.  I`ll write you again next week.  Love you.  Bye. 

-Elder Isaac Swift

22 Jan 2012 (23 Jan in Japan) Sennan Japan

                                           An investigator's car with my name on it.

                    A big pink gorilla that towers over the city of Sennan.  We named her Larry.         

                                                 Destroyed building we explored

                                               Rice that`s half way to becoming mochi

                                                               Making mochi    

                                                                 Cooking dinner

                                                     The train station from the outside.

                                                       A big train station in Osaka.

                                    Seijinshiki (20th birthday party)    It was a fun special occasion.

                                              Girls wearing  dresses called  kimonos.  

                                            The drum performance was really cool.

                                                      The sign says seijinshiki

                                              Me at the ocean on a really stormy day.   

                                                 Pokemon center in Osaka.(2 above)

                   I`m eating a food called taiyaki.  It`s in the shaped of a fish and it `s full of custard.

Week 81

Mission Log

I`m sorry that I wasn't able to send an email home last week.  Elder McKellar is going home soon.  So, he got permission from the mission president to go and see Kyoto on preparation day.  I took him up there and showed him around all the good places.  It was really cool to go back there.  I haven`t been there since this time last year. 

In the United States, Japanese restaurants have the chef cooking food right in front of you.  There aren't really a lot of places that are like that here, but there are a lot of places where there is a heat plate or something on your table and you cook the food yourself.  They`re pretty fun.  Maybe, that`s too dangerous in the United States, so the chef comes and cooks it in front of you.  The restaurant does'`t want to be liable. 

I think BYU Idaho will be great for Caleb.  Did he have to pick out a major? 

I have an interview with the mission president on Friday.  I will ask for my ecclesiastical endorsement then. 

There`s some great news.  Two things that I thought might be lost forever are now back to how they should be.  I got the camera cord and was able to charge my camera with it.  I can finally take pictures from it.  The other thing was my right shoe.  I`m on my last pair of shoes already.  The soles started to tear off of my right shoe.  It was nearly completely gone and I had no idea what to do, but I was able to go to the 100yen store (dollar store), buy some multi-purpose glue, and fix it up as good as new.  I hope it holds for another six months. 

I was very surprised to hear about Nathanael and Mary-Anne`s baby.  The picture looked way cute. 

I`m going to end the email here and try to send some pictures.  You`d probably like pictures more than me writing stuff. 

-Elder Isaac Swift

15 Jan 2012 Sennan Japan