I'm Going to be Training

My Companion Elder Thomo, from South Africa, Durbin

This has been an awesome week. My companion and I have worked really hard this week and We have been having lots of success here in Seeta. I also got a call this morning from the mission president, and he told me that I'm going to be training (I'm going to have a son). I think that's super awesome. I don't know much about him except that he's from Washington state. I think that they said his name is Elder Sherwood, but I can't quite remember. Either way I'm pretty excited. Update you guys more on it later.

     We had James and his wife Pheobe (last week I spelled in febe on accident) get married this week. It was kind of cool to see. I had never witnessed a wedding before, but I really liked this one. It was a pretty spiritual experience as well. It was a great baptismal service as well. It was really just a spiritual experience and I really enjoyed it alot.

     James also brought us a new investigator this week as well. It's one of his next door neighbors, Paul. Paul is a good guy (super humble), and he's the tiniest semi-truck driver in the whole world. He's like barely 5 ft but he drives around these giant trucks all over Uganda. He came to church this week and stayed to watch James get baptized. Afterwards he came up to us and told us that he can't wait for his own baptism (YES!), it was a pretty sweet experience.

      Love all of you. I have awesome an awesome family/friends.

P.S.It was nice to hear from Grandma Grilliot in my emails this week. Thank you for the Loving support!

Mommy Questions:

What soap and shampoo do you use?  Do you still have the stuff you brought out there from the states?

When you took that picture back in Lira with the chameleon on your shoulder did you really like it or were you like “Hurry and take the picture so I can get this freaking lizard off me!!!”?

Do you have pictures of your apartment in Seeta?  Is your apartment better or the same as the one in Lira? Electricity blackouts?

I haven’t seen your new companion, do you have pictures? 

When are you going to send an SD card?  We can send you one if you don’t have a replacement?

Is the food the same as what you ate in Seeta?

Are you on bikes or walking?

Does your companion like or want to work out in the mornings with you?

- I have a difficult time remembering faces and names. Whenever I meet someone new and I'm pretty sure I'm going to see them again I write down their name, where they stay, and a small description of what they look like so I remember.

- I'm now using Ugandan Soap that I buy in Kampala (they have decent soap bars there), but I still have about half a bottle of shampoo from home that I cherish and love (and makes me a little homesick).

- I loved the chameleon. I played with him all day. he was supper cool. He was like my 2nd companion.

- I like the apartment that I'm staying in. Power almost never goes out there, and I've never seen water go out. It's easy to clean, and we live right next to the 1st counselor in the branch presidency which is way cool.

- I'll send you a good picture of my companion and I.

- The food is virtually the same as in Lira, just with much more variety.

- No bikes in Kampala (or near Kampala). It's just too dangerous. Right now I'm walking.

- My companion works out, but it's more like just a sit-up here and a sit-up there. I work out hard in the mornings. Jump rope and lift weights.

Dad's Questions:

When people ask you where you're from, what do you tell them? The US? Illinois? Chicago? Bloomington? On my mission, I always told people I was from Chicago – it was just a lot easier than trying to explain Illinois geography. Just wondered what you tell them. Also (sorry, two questions), what do you tell them when they ask you what America is like?

   Good question. Usually I tell them I'm just from America (alot of people don't know American geography very well and if you tell them your from Illinois they won't know what your talking about). Sometimes I tell them I'm from Chicago just because alot of people know that Obama is from there, and it helps them to relate a little.

    When they ask what America is like I tell them it's a hard life. I tell them this because in America if you don't have a job or money, you will starve to death. In Uganda if you don't have a job you can build your own hut and eat mangoes all day. I also tell them this just so that they will hopefully feel more contented with what they have.

     P.S. I took out money this week from home. There was a registration fee on the marriage that James and his wife Phoebe had and I didn't want to make them pay for that. I also bought them lunch after the wedding and rings as well. I'm sorry that I used your money without asking, but I figured it was going for a good cause.