Wrapping Up

WELL, Well, well, here we are again at the start of another transfer, however, this transfer is my final as a missionary. Amazingly, I have a new companion, Elder Madsen. Elder Madsen is tall, taller than me. Don't get too many of those missionaries. Elder Madsen is related to the basketball player. I don't know much about basketball so don't ask me about it. He's also the son of my branch president from the MTC. Elder Madsen is currently 3 month out on his mission (this is his 3rd transfer). He says it's hard to imagine his companion going home. I asked him, well what do you do when you're a brand new missionary - he said think about home. I said it's the same for an old missionary getting ready to.

It's true you start to think about home a little more often. Yet at the same time, I don't want to. I'm perfectly content with where I'm at, yet, the home you remember is back over the ocean. I guess part of it has to do with the fact that I'm not quite sure what to do when I get back....

Also this week, I went on a trade-off with Elder Brough in the Zoneleader's area. I had to do a couple of baptism interviews. Both of them passed. I interviewed a 9-yr-old Justin Dakin and and Grandpa Dakin. The Dakin family is getting the whole family baptized. Sister Dakin was baptized a few weeks before.

With this trade-off, it went three-ways so that there would be an area knowledgeable person in each area. So Elder Snelson got to return to Yallahs for a day. Well, Elder Madsen also got a package from home so when I came back to Yallahs, I come home to find Elder Madsen and Elder Snelson going at it with sweeties! So I joined in. So now our fridge/freezer is half full of sugar loaded goods!

Bro. Archer and Sis. Clark are still preparing for baptism. We have one concern to overcome and I think it will be done with at General Conference.

Nuff tings me hafa do fore me a leave dis place here yazimme!

Elder Huffaker

A First of Lasts - Again

It's reached that point again. The point when things are reachin' the end, but not yet! NOT YET!

First of all, I have to send some of the photos I was supposed to send last week. The one with Elder Toutai and of us breakin' into the church because I locked the keys inside.


Last week was an adventure:

So After I emailed and shopped last week, I gave Elder Snelson a trim and then I trimmed myself. I actually had no intentions of trimming my hair for the rest of my mission. I thought about getting my hair cane-rowed (equal to what we call corn rows). However, I had a dream in which I was instructed to cut my hair. There was some quotation or prophecy about young men seeing visions and old men dreaming dreams. Somehow I didn't think that I was on the old category for dreaming dreams. But I had a dream in which I was instructed to cut my hair. Better follow the counsel. There are the before and after pics of my hair. No I did not walk around with my hair looking like a birds nest. I have hair gel I used to keep it looking nice and decent.

Wednesday was our zone meeting in Kingston at the Constant Spring building. The whole day was discombobulated. So we go down to the bus stop to get a coaster to go downtown. The conductor calls "town! town!" so we got on. Then the bus starts going the other way. I ask the conductor "you're going to town right?" "yeah". Ok..... Then we sit in Yallahs town square for 20 minutes (at least) I'm not too happy about this, because by the time we were halfway to town, I would have liked to have been there already.

Then we get on another coaster from downtown to Constant Spring. No sooner do we get on the coaster then it makes to leave. At this point I'm thinking YES! we're gonna make it on time. However, there's a police man who stops the coaster driver not more than 2 minutes after we get on the bus. So we now have to sit there for 10 minutes while he writes the driver a ticket. grrrr. We get underway again. Not 5 minutes later when he's making a pickup, he gets stopped by another police man and receives a second ticket. These tickets were for picking up passengers in undesignated places. Now we're definitely late. The zone leaders have called and want to know where we are.

Finally we reach the chapel about halfway through the zone meeting.!

On the bright side. I had one of the best lunches ever. after the meeting we all piled in to two vehicles (13 missionaries in two pickup trucks) hopefully you got the front seat. The meal was worth it however. We ate at TGI Fridays! I ordered a JD chicken and shrimp. It was somewhat costly, but so worth it. I haven't ate good chicken and shrimp like that for a long time... a long time.

But then it took another turn for the worse. Oh the bus ride back downtown was ok. However, the ride to Yallahs was ridonculous. We sat in the bus park for an hour waiting for our bus to leave while at least 6 other buses left! We were the bus at the very front, aren't we supposed to leave first! When we finally reached Yallahs, the driver totally passed up our stop. So I had to stop him at the next road. When I get off, I pay the conductor with $500 only to get $100 in return. He jumps back on before I even have time to ask for the rest of my change. I should have received $220. That day just made me mildly upset.

Friday, brought transfer calls. The last time I will receive a phone call about transfers on my mission. Oh, I still have one more, the transfer home, but the last phone call I will get for transferring. I will be staying here in Yallahs for my last transfer. Elder Snelson will not be here for my last transfer. I will be accompanied by Elder Madsen.

I do want you all to know that my mission is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I'd even put it above an eagle scout award. I always thought that old missionaries and returned missionaries had to be joking when they said, "I'd switch you places in a heartbeat" I could never understand that until now. I would do anything to do this over again.

Elder Huffaker

I Don't Have Them!

This week has been a different week for sure! A few things have happened but first, I must say that I have some of the pictures that go with last week. However, on another note, I forgot my camera so I don't have the pictures that go along with today's email.

First of all. Wednesday I went on a tradeoff with Elder Toutai. I stayed here in Yallahs while Elder Snelson went down to Boulevard. Elder Toutai and I had an enjoyable time together. He's one Tongan you just have to get along with. Not like he forces you to do anything, but hes just a lovable guy.

While on tradeoff with Elder Toutai, we hit a snag. I left the keys at the church from when we were there for district meeting. Well, I locked them in the church. SOooo now we have a slight problem. We can't get in so that we can teach Book of Mormon Night. Well, luckily we left the street gate unlocked, although we did put the lock on the gate. Then, we had a spare key for the veranda. Next we used a knife to open the latch that goes into the hallway. Well, then we hit another snag. We had no way to get into the office where all the supplies are and, not to mention, the keys. This was the real adventure that took us probably a half hour. We first tried using a bobbypin we found on the ground to pop the lock in the office... no dice. Then Elder Toutai found he could open the top of the veranda window however, the bottom part was locked. So now we have to somehow open the bottom. We tried using wire and a wooden stick but that didn't work. Then we found some rebar, bent it a little and after at least 15 minutes of using that we finally got the window unlocked, climbed through and grabbed the keys and supplies so we could have our study night.

Last thing I have to talk about in the email this week is that some people are desperate. Since Elder Snelson has acquired a new bicycle, we've had to go through the process of replacing crappy parts. Saturday, his bicycle was at the repair shop and we were on foot again... grrrrr. Anyways, so as we were walking to go see a member on clerk business, a guy stops us and asks us to do an HIV test. I had to laugh a little and said, "no thanks," he says, "come on it's free and this way you can know." I said, "I already know." He didn't seem to get the point! So to get him to stop following and nagging, I did the stupid little finger prick and now I have a little paper that says I'm HIV free. I don't know how many people can say that they did an HIV test while on their mission.

Law of Chastity is a beautiful thing! Makes you know that you're clean! Don't ever forget it.

Elder Huffaker

I'm sorry, what did you ... ?

This week, a lot of things happened, so you're gonna get a good email.

First! Wednesday after district meeting, we usually like to play a little 3 on 3 two-hand-touch. We only do this for about a half hour to an hour. Well, in our little skirmish this week, I had been in the unfortunate spot - under the tree branch with the wasp nests. So when the ball hits this branch, you can imagine that those little guys aren't too happy. Nope, not one bit! So, this is where the picture comes in. I received at least one bite at the edge of my eyebrow and the other behind my ear. Both on the left side. It stung so bad! So on the ride into Kingston to begin my tradeoff. One of the other missionaries in the car looks at me and says "dang Huffaker, that looks bad" My eyelid swelled up as did my ear. My ear was at least twice as thick. My eye wasn't as swollen as bad that day as it was the next morning. I dunno if you can tell a difference in the photo, but I sure felt it.

This leads to the tradeoff. I went on a tradeoff with Elder Brough - one of the zone leaders. I'm the district leader over them so that means I get to do all their baptism interviews that do not require the mission president. So I did my first baptism interview, ever! Sister Dakin was really quiet at first, but then she lightened up and was even laughing by the time I left. She was baptized Saturday.

Shortly after the interview, we met up with the Assistants for a dinner appointment. Talk about the nicest house you'll ever be in while on your mission. It's nicer than the mission home. We had an extravagant dinner. Cloth napkins and salad plates. WOW! The Langley's were very kind to us. Bro. Langley owns at least one gas station in Kingston and he's worked with Texaco for years.
After I got back, Elder Snelson began taking me around to new investigators that were found while I was gone. One that we didn't see til Saturday, Denny, is an interesting man. Elder Kraus and Elder Snelson answered 8 of his 9 questions. They left the last one to me. Well, needless to say, he didn't like the answer I gave him. I asked the question to other experienced persons and they agreed with my answer. So when he didn't agree, he went off on evolution. Evolution is correct, to an extent. I'm sorry on this but... WE ARE NOT RELATED TO DINOSAURS. He said that we are descendants all the way back from the dinosaurs. So I asked, "we are descended from dinosaurs?" - "yes" - "really? which one(s)" - "well, uh, not actual dinosaurs" - "but you just said" - "no, I mean there were mammals that we descended from. you know, the one percent of life that remained after the last meteor hit the earth."

WHATEVER!

Last thing for this week is Elder Snelson made some delicious cake mix cookies. All you do is make your cake mix like normal, but instead of pouring it all into a pan, you just take out cookie sizes and bake them! They were good and I recommend the chocolate flavor.

I didn't get all the pics I wanted this week, because other missionaries have them. I'll hopefully have the rest of this weeks pics for you next week.

Elder Huffaker