Christmas ... Round 2

This week and getting ready for Christmas has been hectic. More so than any other time, or at least so it feels.

As part of being branch clerk, I get to take the deposit to the bank each week. Well someone decided to close the banks in Jamaica at the most ridiculous time of the day. 2:30 p.m.! It has nothing to do with Christmas either, this is for any other Monday through Thursday in the year. So when I went to take care of the deposit on Tuesday, we left Yallahs and reached the bank in Morant Bay at what time?... 2:30 p.m.! The doors are LOCKED! You cannot come in at closing time. I was more than miffed about the matter. I basically wasted $240 JD for nothing. So Elder Snelson and I had to go back on Wednesday. GRRRR

Then most of the week was spent getting ready for our branch Christmas social for Thursday night. Elder Snelson and I pretty much spent Thursday running around getting every last thing that was not acquired during the week. The social was well attended and went fine on Thursday, but getting ready for it was a big pain.

Friday was our Christmas party for missionaries... see photos. There was singing and skits. Pres. Hendricks made the comment that if Pres. Uchtdorf can talk about the Grinch in the Christmas devotional, we can watch it. So we watched the cartoon version and also Mr. Krueger's Christmas. I got a kick that Jimmy Stewart has a cat named George.

Saturday being Christmas was spent with joy and bliss. Getting to talk to family was so nice! Wish some of you could have been there.

TA-TA

Elder Huffaker

Hustle and Bustle

(Brandon's letter from December 20, 2010)

Even though it's Christmas and it doesn't affect us too much as far as getting presents, dinner supplies, etc.; it doesn't change the fact that us missionaries are always on the move.

First off, After emailing on Tuesday last week, Elder Snelson and I went back over to the Meddows yard and worked some more on the pile. We are now halfway through the pile! While going through this pile, we found forty-leggers. These things are deadly if they bite. We found a couple of them and they were killed on sight. Not the biggest ones I've seen, but enough to do some damage. The other thing we found were snakes. I don't know what kind of snakes they were, but they were silver, pink and brown in color. It was kinda a glossy color at that.

Wednesday after district meeting, the zone leaders took Elder Brough and I out to Morant Bay while Elder Snelson stayed in Yallahs with Elder Toutai. While there in Morant Bay we picked up some supplies from a building supply store for a member. It was kinda weird. There wasn't really an order to things and I'm surprised I got through. We had sheets of zinc and lumber going from the tailgate to the cab (on top) it was a sight to see and I had no camera. It was an adventure when we went to take the supplies to the members home. We tried to take the upper road, only to find out that the wall had collapsed at one part. So we had to back up (no space to reverse) and take the lower road. We were stoked that we made it backing up.

Friday was another rain dumping day. Thankfully we were inside when it started and it stopped long enough for us to get out the door and start down the road before it began again. It was kinda miserable Friday just to get wet and dry repeatedly.

Lastly, I dunno if I talked about this last week or not, but Elder Brough and I along with our companions sing the twelve days of christmas, adding one day for each day. Yesterday was seven swans a swimming and today we will add 8 maids a milkin'!

The pics are of Yallahs from the hillside overlooking it. I tried to get a closeup of our house, but there are a lot of trees in the way.

Merry Christmas
Elder Huffaker

12 Days of Christmas

(Brandon's letter from December 14, 2010)

It's getting closer, it's true! In fact Elder Brough and I are singing one more line of the song to each other for every day that we get closer.

Not included in the song is about missionaries in Jamaica! This week we had a service project at the Meddow's house. There is this "pile" in the back yard. They share the house with a couple other tenants, and one of the tenants made this pile! The pile is composed of: decomposing garbage, dirt and rocks. Well the landlord isn't the happiest. So we were asked to come move the pile. The rocks get pushed off to the side, the dirt goes in a ditch around a tree and the garbage.... well it gets raked up for burning. It was quite unexpected to find the rocks, but the dirt and the garbage I expected. I thought it was gonna be easy until I found the rocks.

Wednesday we had zone meeting. This was also part of getting ready for the Christmas party we missionaries have. Each zone is asked to perform a skit. Well, we got one. Our skit is to start off doing a "Christmas can-can" we'll then stop in the middle of it and change to the Haka! I made the mistake of calling it a Samoan Slap Dance. NO! NO! NO! Elder Toutai is a Tongan.

After we practiced the Haka for a while. The Flakes and the Herberts, senior couples, fed us a lunch of waffles and oranges. Oranges aren't always orange down here. They also have green skins!

Hoping for a baptism this week.

Elder Huffaker

What Week?

(Brandon's letter from December 6, 2010)

Since last week, different things have been happening.

First off, Our district meeting was a companionship short. The zone leaders went to zone leader council, so we it was a little quieter in district meeting, but I think it was still a good district meeting. The Flakes, who is the senior couple in our district, gave us missionaries 150 dollars credit at a local members shop. So I bought a huge pineapple and I'll show you how we eat them down here! Then, I got a phone call from Elder Daniels. He's the branch president, in case you forgot. He asked me to call home! WHAT!!! Call Home! you gotta be kidding me. Well it was on church business. I need a fax from my bank back home for a bank down here. It's turned out to be a real hassle.

Then, about two months ago, I mentioned one of our members that grows orchids and gave us some. Well she gave us more and then I saw that some of them weren't growing in pots at all! They were growing in coconut husks! So I had to get a picture of that. How often do you see plants growing in plants?
Finally, today we had a zone basketball in Portmore. That's why I'm emailing so late today. But we had a good time.

Merry Christmas
Elder Huffaker

why......?

(Brandon's letter from November 29, 2010)

So this week has had it's ups and downs. I won't share with you the downs so much as I will the ups.

First off, I saw Elder McGrath, well I guess Bro. McGrath, last p-day. I couldn't believe it. I've never seen a missionary return so soon to Jamaica after their mission. He went home about the first week of October (basically when I was transferred with Elder Jarman). I was so astounded to see him, but it was really cool.

Then, have you ever been asked a question that just makes you go.... what?, why......? Well, if not, just wait till you get 3 separate individuals who come up to you and ask, "What deoderant are you wearing?" Lemme tell ya, you probably have the look of like a deer in the headlights. It wasn't men asking me either. So you really gotta wonder, which side of the breeze are you standing on. Well, at least I know I've got the right brand.

Then we had the zoneleaders over on Wednesday. We travelled around in their truck, which was a nice break from biking everywhere. We did pass the ocean and Elder Emery said, "I gotta get some pictures of this." So I got some too.


Love Elder Huffaker


P.S. the butterfly landed on me!

ummm

(Brandon's letter from November 22, 2010)

Well, I don't really know what to tell you this week because not much really happened.

First off, Elder Jarman left Wednesday morning. The Assistants came and picked him up and dropped off my next trainee. While we were waiting, it was dumping rain. So Elder Jarman and I had a little fun. Then we decided it would be funny if my new trainee saw me in a wheel chair sitting out on the veranda thinking I was incapacitated. So when Elder Snelson showed up he had this look on his face like "this is my companion?" It was really cool. I didn't keep the charade for very long.

I'm still the district leader for Yallahs and Boulevard Elders. Just enjoy the pics from last week and this week!