Answer Time!!!!!

One of the coolest, and most annoying things about Uganda is how much people judge you for the color of your skin out here. Some people out here I've realized are actually very racist against whites, and others view us whites as more privileged beings. It doesn't matter where your from, people out here automatically judge you just by what color your skin is. Sometimes it is annoying but other times you can make it work to your advantage.     Missionary work is really doing well out here, I'm glad to be serving in Lira and I hope that I stay here next transfer. This week was zone conference so President Jackson and the Assistants came down to Lira and we got a chance to talk with them. They were telling us about how places like Rwanda and South Sudan are doing with missionary work. Rwanda is just exploding right now, in about 8 months Rwanda went from 1 branch to 3. The most amazing thing about this is that Rwanda doesn't even have a proselyting license yet, which basically means that the only way that missionaries can teach is if someone walks into the church grounds and asks to be taught. But not withstanding this, Rwanda missionaries are baptizing like crazy. As soon as missionaries can start proselyting there, the work is just going to ignite.
    -Elder Grilliot

       ANSWER TIME!!!!!

1.          What is the largest bug you’ve encountered so far?  I know how much you love bugs, especially moths. (Hehehe)

 The biggest bug I've seen so far is the size of Sarah. He's getting prepared to be baptized this week. 

2.      What time do you get up each morning?

Each morning I get up at 6:30 am

3.        You said you had pizza there.. did it taste like American pizza?

The pizza is really good. I don't know how to compare it to American Pizza because it’s been so long since I've had any, but the pizza here is pretty good compared to anything else.

4.      Are you getting a new area transfer this week?

Transfers are next week. Not sure yet if I'm leaving or not though.

5.      What is the most surprising thing that has happened to you this week?  Was there a small miracle you can share that happened this last week?

 One small miracle that happened this week was on Sunday. There was a member of our church who was getting ready to serve a mission and then all of the sudden he completely disappeared. No one really knew what happened to him or where he stayed. Then one day as my companion and i were moving around one day we accidentally tracked into his mothers house. We found him and he was in a pretty bad condition, he had mallaria and typhoid. We were able to give him a blessing, and it was one of the most guided blessings I have ever given, I told him specifically that if he will diligently read his book of Mormon then he will be healed of mallaria and typhoid in 3 days, and that he will never have the diseases ever again in his life according to his diligence in keeping the commandments. It felt pretty cool, I hope I see him at church next week.

6.      How is it going working with your companion?  I feel bad he lost his mom.  Tell him I am praying for him too.

My companion is struggling big time. Honestly some days I have to teach all the lessons on my own just because of how dead he is. I feel really bad for the guy, but working with him can sometimes be emotionally and spiritually draining. Transfers are happening this week, so maybe we will be separated on Wednesday

7.   What is the one thing you've learned about yourself while out in Lira serving as a missionary?

 I've learned that I started my mission with lots of weight to loose. I've also learned how much I love and value the scriptures.

8.     Has the weather changed there like it is changing here, maybe less hot?  We moved our clocks ahead so it is lighter out later now.  The snow is nearly all melted and the weather is feeling a little bit more like spring, but still very rainy here.

 Last week it rained like crazy, but now it's back to being a desert in Lira. The rainy season can't be too far off though, I know that it's in full swing in some parts of Uganda.

9.    I’m hearing from my LDS MOM email group a lot of missionaries are getting sent to Ethiopia.  Are you hearing of new areas being opened?

The mission in Ethiopia got pretty much completely white washed. They're preparing Ethiopia to be its own mission in the next year or so, so they took out alot of people from Ethiopia and just put in tons of new missionaries. They are just kind of a rebirth for the mission in that country.

10.    Do you have primary or YM/YW in your branch/ward?

Yes to all three

11.   If you could sharpen/ improve one quality in yourself what would it be?

I wish that I could improve my teaching skills, I'm not bad at teaching, but I just wish that I was better at it. There in a huge difference between Ugandans and Americans, and you have to really analyze people as you teach, because most people are great liars out here.

12.    What is something in particular you would like to specifically pray for in our Family Prayers for you?

Pray that I can work out every morning, that is one of the toughest things for me to do most days.
 THANKS

    Dear Dad,
 Thanks for the complements on my writing. I think all of the writing I do in my journal has been paying off, ha ha.  Your questions are a lot more difficult to answer than moms are but I'll try my best to answer them.

1.        Can you describe to me where your apartment is located in Lira?  I can bring up a map of Lira on Google Maps with names of all the main roads, so if you can give me a detailed location description, I bet I can pinpoint it.  I can probably even pick out the building on satellite view, since it’s high resolution, you can see every structure, and lots of things are labeled (like the Downtown Medical Centre, and all the schools.  No “street view” though.)  Also, where do the branches meet, and where do the other Elders live?  Also, while you’re at it, where is your internet café located, and anywhere else you frequently visit? 

My apartment in Lira is right next to a small school named Almond Collage. I'm not sure what any of the streets are named so i had to cheat and go on Google maps. So on Google maps there’s a street named Kole Road. if you turn off of Kole road like you’re going to Almond Collage the first house on the left is where we stay. It almost looks like there is a truck in our compound when you look at Satellite view.
     Our Branch is found like this. If you go down Kole Road towards Teso Bar Rd then you will find a school named Karadali Nursery School. Cross Nubi Road and on the Left side of Kole road there is a large building with a blue roof. That's where our branch meets.
      I email from a place called Sankofa Cafe in Lira. It’s a pretty big landmark, I think that you should be able to find it fairly easily by just typing it into Google maps.

2.      Have you heard anything about the number of missionaries in your mission increasing in the near future?  They told us at Stake Conference last week that with the missionary force worldwide increasing from about 60,000 to over 100,000, the number of missionaries per mission will be increasing to 250 (I think the standard number before was 180, but this might just be for the states), and that there will probably be 2 sets of missionaries in every unit.  Not sure how that would translate to Uganda, but do you know if more missionaries are arriving than are going home?

We’re supposed to be getting an increase of 60 missionaries in the next 6 months. Which means that were going to be getting a ton soon, because were losing like 80 missionaries in the next 4 months (which is like 70% of our mission).

3.      What is the approximate ratios of Elders to Sisters in your mission?  Are there many Sisters from the states?

In our whole mission there are like 12 sisters. The only sisters serve in Either Kampala or Jinja, and they are not allowed to be out past 6pm due to potential danger.

Love Elder Grilliot