Hey family
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY MOMMYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was thinking about you a lot yesterday! You didn't even mention it in the email...hmmmm...testing me to see if I remembered, huh?! haha. to be honest, I cant remember how "young" you are. Isn't it like 35 or something like that. dang, you look good for your age! hahah.
Good news, I finally got the package! YES. It looked like it had been beaten up, but it made it! wow, what a POWERFUL package. The belt is perfect, I noticed dad is wearing MY winter jacket, sweeeet tie and MAP, the USB thingy is nice, good vitamins and candy...but yessie I have enough Q-Tips to last a lifetime! haha. but one thing...we're not allowed to listen to music with headphones..cuz it isolates us from our companion..
Yeah, I got sister Clarks email, I got grandmas address, my $14 tennis shoes are fine, the food here is still good...and yeah that like 30 seconds in grandmas car didn't do to much haha.
Last week was hectic. major car problems. the car is old, like you guys, (haha) and has like 98,000 K's on it. on tuesday night when we were going to our last appointment of the day, in a rough area of the township, right next to a tavern (bar) Elder McD said to me "elder, something bad just happened" and said the car key BROKE! dang it. We got everything eventually sorted out, but we just had to sit for a while and wait for the zone leaders to drive back into town (20 minutes one way) and get the replacement keys. Then drive back to give them to us. We didnt get home till a little after 10, and still had to write in the area book, plan for the next day, and eat. then, the next day, steam was like coming up from under the hood...and we discovered a pipe had a leak. later that day, we were told to come back into town and get it taken care of. long story short, that day we only taught 1 lesson and came back from the area at like 4 o'clock and just hung out the rest of the day, but we did missionary work and studied and stuff. the next morning the car was back into working condition, but it for sure needs to get serviced sooon.
Oh, I almost forgot...we got our TRANSFER NEWS this morning! very unusual, but good cuz now I know that I'll still be here, and that will make shopping today easier. So Elder McD is going to Namibia! Good for him. My new companion is Elder Barlow...from Detroit. he's in my transfer, meaning he came on mission the same time as I did, so I know that chap. He's cool. I'm excited! Sooo that means I'm gonna be doing a boat load of driving! yahoo. haha. Its getting more comfortable to drive a manual, so im not dreading it. I'll be a pro in no time. They really celebrate Good Frinday here. They had like an activity and stuff at church...aka free food for the missionaries! haha that was nice.
Had a good Easter yesterday. No easter bunny though haha. Church was pretty much normal, and so was the rest of the day. Just going around doing missionary work and teaching people the gospel. Lwazi got baptized yesterday! that went well. he was excited and happy to get baptized.
This morning we woke up a bit early, scooped up the other elders, and drove over to the beach for our morning run! It was kinda cloudy, but still gorgeous. Its neat to see the sun RISE up over the ocean, rather than SET like it does back home.
Man, I'm gonna really miss Elder McDonald. the guy is a work-horse, and knows how to have fun! always pulling pranks on people, always happy, always being a missionary. Good thing we like each-other, cuz we're been together alot. Before mission, in the same room at the MTC, the one night we stayed at the mission home we were in the same room, same plane to East London, saw each-other most every p-day, and we were side by side and within sight and sound for 6 weeks! Man, good times!
On April 21, 2010 was when I got my mission call...so it has been one year since that day I opened my mission call. seems like yesterday.
I got lots of pictures I would like to send home, but today I couldnt get a cord/camera to plug into the computer so that I could send them home...hopefully next week! I know you like pictures, but sometimes they take a longgg time to upload.
Well, thats all from here in the mission field. another 6 weeks living in East London and working in Mdantsane. man, I know this town like the back of my hand...but I love it here!
Talk to you next week
BYE!
Elder Haws
Monday, April 25, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
So I had to do 140 push-ups....
Hi Haws family and friends!
How's it? Short email, but thats okay. BAD NEWS..no package, or letter from my sista :( ... it'll get here eventually, just gotta be patient. I'm not worried.
Soo I was at the Lubelwana house, and they mentioned about Elder Munion...remember, the RM from here who stays in Logan and Kelly and I went to his house that one night! Yeah, I guess they knew him. and also, Elder Frost said he saw Elder Munion's name on teaching records! haha cool.
Another cool thing...during conference this weekend..during the priesthood session..the choir director for the Logan institute choir..brother Salmon..yeah, he was my institute teacher!! It was awesome to see him! He conducted "Guide Me to Thee" and I saw a guy named Spencer...he lived on my floor at USU and we went to the temple to do baptisms once or twice.
Email this to Aunt Julie : Hey Aunt Julie…in answer to your question in your last letter about what the young women do here for mutual..my answer is that I don’t really know too well to be honest! Um, I don’t really get to hear what they do, but I do know that here in a township, the young women program is not very strong. Now that I think about it, maybe they don’t even meet during the week?? No one has a car here, and its hard for people here to find money for transport. It is very dangerous for people, especially girls, to walk around the streets of Mdantsane at night, so I'm not sure when they meet for mutual. I do know that boys meet and play soccer at the chapel, and the ward has a small like dance group.
I went on exchanges this week with Elder Thole, from Zambia. I have to admit, I was nervous to have to drive ALL day with a manual, but hey I survived. I was proud of myself. Heavenly Father answers prayers haha. I only stalled it like twice!!! and I drove like 90+ K's! I was wiped out after that day! my brain had to really concentrate and focus all day, cuz it was my area. we had fun together. Now my confidence in driving a manual is alot better.
Witnessed a miracle this week. we needed to visit this guy named Lwazi, but the poor guy doesn't have a phone, and went to town for a while, so it was impossible to get a hold of him, and we really needed to. Anyway, we randomly decided to check up on this one investigator, and she wasn't home, but as we were walking to the car, we just "happened" so see Lwazi running right past us...like perfect timing! It was great. We scheduled a time when we could visit him, and now hopefully he'll get baptized this Sunday!
Oh man, had a stressful moment this week! So President has gone around to each district and zone to teach us the fundamentals of Preach My Gospel...like how to begin teaching, how to ask good questions, teach by the spirit, teach people not lessons, etc. Sooo him and his wife decided to go around with EACH of the companionship's in the entire mission and teach with them! Soo on Friday, the mission president and his wife were our "fellow-shippers" haha! I was scared, and to make matters worse, the person we scheduled to teach bounced us that morning and so we had to change our entire plans to try and find someone to teach! They were coming at noon to teach, so we had to scramble, but after some prayers and phone calls, we found someone to teach! Lets just say I was relieved after the lesson was over! haha. It went really well, and he said we did a great job. It was funny...the person we were teaching picked on President Probst to give the closing prayer! hahaha.
General conference this past weekend was awesome! We got to watch all the sessions! There were some good talks aye?! I especially liked priesthood session, and Saturday and Sunday afternoon! I cant wait till we get the conference editions of the Liahona so that I can go back and look over/study the talks more in depth!
Alright, last time you guys failed on giving me a happy/fun moment from the past week!! Come on now haha. If there's nothing exciting that happened, then dang it do something fun! okay?! I'll be following up next week...just like I follow up with my investigators. I invite, you commit, I follow up. haha
How's it? Short email, but thats okay. BAD NEWS..no package, or letter from my sista :( ... it'll get here eventually, just gotta be patient. I'm not worried.
Glad to hear the Ragnar dinner and race went well! This morning we ran what we call "The Big Kahuna!" haha we had to wake up early cuz the run took like 30 minutes. Yessie, it was a beautiful..to watch the sunrise over the Indian Ocean. House music is sweet. All the taxi drivers BUMP it in their taxi's. and yeahh black people can DANCE!
I only get Dear Elder letters from grandma once and a while. I have no clue who looks at my blog here in SA now haha. Are you guys still marking off the days on the missionary calendar thingy?
Soo I was at the Lubelwana house, and they mentioned about Elder Munion...remember, the RM from here who stays in Logan and Kelly and I went to his house that one night! Yeah, I guess they knew him. and also, Elder Frost said he saw Elder Munion's name on teaching records! haha cool.
Another cool thing...during conference this weekend..during the priesthood session..the choir director for the Logan institute choir..brother Salmon..yeah, he was my institute teacher!! It was awesome to see him! He conducted "Guide Me to Thee" and I saw a guy named Spencer...he lived on my floor at USU and we went to the temple to do baptisms once or twice.
Email this to Aunt Julie : Hey Aunt Julie…in answer to your question in your last letter about what the young women do here for mutual..my answer is that I don’t really know too well to be honest! Um, I don’t really get to hear what they do, but I do know that here in a township, the young women program is not very strong. Now that I think about it, maybe they don’t even meet during the week?? No one has a car here, and its hard for people here to find money for transport. It is very dangerous for people, especially girls, to walk around the streets of Mdantsane at night, so I'm not sure when they meet for mutual. I do know that boys meet and play soccer at the chapel, and the ward has a small like dance group.
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| Relaxing with Elder Thole during our lunch break on exchanges! yeah, steering wheel on the wrong side! Hectic |
We taught the FHE in NU 3 on Wendnsday night. We decided to do it on the Atonement! Alright, I'm gonna attempt to explain what happened. So we baked brownies, and in order for the people to be able to eat the brownie, I had to do 10 pushups. It went well, and everyone thought it was fun to make me suffer and do the pushups. but then after I did like 80, Elder McD offered the brownie to this shy girl, and she felt bad for me, and didn't wanna make me go through the pain, so she didnt accept the brownie. That was fine, but I still had to do 10 pushups! Can you see the point of the lesson? I hope you can. Well it ended up that 14 people were there...so I had to do 140 push-ups! I was impressed with myself! Yeah, the last 20 were tough, but I was surprised with my strength! Not bad for a guy who hasn't really worked out too much for over 7 months! haha. Then, after the pushups, I had to attempt to teach about the atonement haha. I occasionally had to wipe drops of sweat from my face..but it was all good! The lesson actually turned out to be super spiritual! Everyone that was there said they really liked it. I was happy, but yessie I was sore for the next 3 days!
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The NU 3 FHE after I did the pushups |
Oh man, had a stressful moment this week! So President has gone around to each district and zone to teach us the fundamentals of Preach My Gospel...like how to begin teaching, how to ask good questions, teach by the spirit, teach people not lessons, etc. Sooo him and his wife decided to go around with EACH of the companionship's in the entire mission and teach with them! Soo on Friday, the mission president and his wife were our "fellow-shippers" haha! I was scared, and to make matters worse, the person we scheduled to teach bounced us that morning and so we had to change our entire plans to try and find someone to teach! They were coming at noon to teach, so we had to scramble, but after some prayers and phone calls, we found someone to teach! Lets just say I was relieved after the lesson was over! haha. It went really well, and he said we did a great job. It was funny...the person we were teaching picked on President Probst to give the closing prayer! hahaha.
General conference this past weekend was awesome! We got to watch all the sessions! There were some good talks aye?! I especially liked priesthood session, and Saturday and Sunday afternoon! I cant wait till we get the conference editions of the Liahona so that I can go back and look over/study the talks more in depth!
Alright, last time you guys failed on giving me a happy/fun moment from the past week!! Come on now haha. If there's nothing exciting that happened, then dang it do something fun! okay?! I'll be following up next week...just like I follow up with my investigators. I invite, you commit, I follow up. haha
Well, my time on the computer is up. Hope you enjoyed my email this week!
Till next week!
Love, Elder Dusty Haws...missionary...Mdantsane, South Africa :)
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| After Mamma George's birthday Braai! |
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| Sibulele's baptism! |
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| Doin' some service for Zameka and Nosibosiso |
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Here's all the elders working in Mdantsane! We took this picture before zone conference |
Monday, April 11, 2011
....... HaPpY 20th BiRtHdaY .......
Hey best family ever!
Your son is now freakin' 20 years old..how does that make you feel?! I hope old, cuz I sure do feel old! 20, wow. well, I have to admit, I was super bummed when I didn't get my promised letter from Kelly, and I was sad when the zone leaders said I didnt get a package from you guys! darn, this week! Post is just slow all the time, it'll get here. Something to look forward to.yeah, defiantly didnt get any cake yesterday, but I'm glad you guys did, and that the Barkers did!
Aunt Julie sent me a nice card and package that had already been opened a little bit, but the card was sweet. it said "missionary birthday's aren't about getting gifts and cakes..but giving the gift of the gospel." love that! Sister Probst called me yesrterday morning and wished me a happy birthday, that was nice. but yesterday just seemed like a normal day. We taught about the restoration in 3 lessons, back to back!
The batism went well. Elder McD let me borrow his white tie and pants, so that was nice. Sibulele is short...so I guess they decided to only fill up the font a little bit...so the water went up to my thighs! haha it wasn't that bad. I'll send pics next week.
People here do have phones, but everything is based on airtime. Like you have to buy it. and they call texts "SMS's" people never have airtime, so they send us a "please call" which is free, and we normally just call them back. Thats funny grandma Strang read that letter I sent her. haha?
Holy cow, I really had to buckle down and start driving this week! Good heck, Its HARD! haha driving a manual, in SA, on the wrong side of the road, is no easy task. The toughest part is stopping on a hill. and the reason I HAD to start practicing is cuz tomorrow is exchanges....so its ME who will be driving ALL DAY and Elder McD will go work in NU 6 & 9 with Elder Farley. I'm scared! haha. Talk about baptism by fire! haha
Yeah I'm still staying busyyy. Elder McD doesnt know what a 5 minute break is! hahah I love it, we work work work. always gotta be doing something. Me? Nervous for a baptism? No ways! I was excited as heck!
Keep up that running daddy! dang old man, I'm impressed!! You're such a stud. in Xhosa "es koko" means "you're the man" haha! I run every morning, but not as far as you. Keep me updated on your new calling. Conference this upcoming weekend is just like they do it in the states...Saturday and Sunday. You lazy bum, laying in bed, reading the letter from your missionary son! haha doesnt get any better than that! Do you still have the same phone?
Help me out here...I need grandma Haws's address. k, thanks! and you NEVER answered me if Aunt Sue got my letter??
Can you do me another favor...k, sweet, you're too kind! haha one of the Mormon messages by Elder Holland is about a guy and his car breaks down, then he fixes it, then it breaks down again, but the guy is determined, what what what. I cant remember the whole thing...but it would be sweet if I got that talk and like used it in a lesson or spiritual thought..so could you maybe find it and sent it to me..enkosi (thanks in Xhosa)
This past week was April 6th..the day Christ was born, and the day the church was organized all the way back in 1830. and on that day, there were 56 members...and now look at the church! amazing.
Soo I LOVE this talk...read it and you'll know why! its about Nigerian sisters, but it's still in Africa and people here would do the EXACT same thing...and do do it every Sunday when they walk to church.. "Seeing the promises afar off. Anne C. Pingree. November 2003 Sat, AM session"
I like this scripture..Alma 26:27 and the hymn 322.
This morning we had a "deep doctrine" companionship study. For some reason Elder McD loves deep doctrine. but we discovered that on the other worlds and planets, they each have an Adam..look it up! Moses 1:33-34. yeah, for sure wont be telling my investigators about that when i teach the plan of salvation haha.
DAD, HELLOOO?! umm Book of Mormon giving away/being a missionary update! I'm waiting.............................. haha :) come on mfethu!
Yeah yeah yeah mommy I brush my teeth and floss. "cry no more" as Elder Nkutha would say. He talks biblically haha you guys didn't even comment about the crest I sent home with all the elders on it. I'll let you know of the details of the phone call as the time grows closer..dont worry mommy, no need to stress! you'll get to talk to your son!
How could I almost forget, I CLICKED 7 months on Saturday! wow! rollin' rollin' rollin' Tonight we're gonna get ROMANS PIZZA to celebrate my birthday a little bit, that will be fun! that pizza is divine!
Have a great week!
Love your 20 year old son,
Dusty
PS that cake looks GOOOD!!
(We sent him a picture of us eating a piece of chocolate birthday cake and candle, celebrating)
Your son is now freakin' 20 years old..how does that make you feel?! I hope old, cuz I sure do feel old! 20, wow. well, I have to admit, I was super bummed when I didn't get my promised letter from Kelly, and I was sad when the zone leaders said I didnt get a package from you guys! darn, this week! Post is just slow all the time, it'll get here. Something to look forward to.yeah, defiantly didnt get any cake yesterday, but I'm glad you guys did, and that the Barkers did!
Aunt Julie sent me a nice card and package that had already been opened a little bit, but the card was sweet. it said "missionary birthday's aren't about getting gifts and cakes..but giving the gift of the gospel." love that! Sister Probst called me yesrterday morning and wished me a happy birthday, that was nice. but yesterday just seemed like a normal day. We taught about the restoration in 3 lessons, back to back!
The batism went well. Elder McD let me borrow his white tie and pants, so that was nice. Sibulele is short...so I guess they decided to only fill up the font a little bit...so the water went up to my thighs! haha it wasn't that bad. I'll send pics next week.
People here do have phones, but everything is based on airtime. Like you have to buy it. and they call texts "SMS's" people never have airtime, so they send us a "please call" which is free, and we normally just call them back. Thats funny grandma Strang read that letter I sent her. haha?
Holy cow, I really had to buckle down and start driving this week! Good heck, Its HARD! haha driving a manual, in SA, on the wrong side of the road, is no easy task. The toughest part is stopping on a hill. and the reason I HAD to start practicing is cuz tomorrow is exchanges....so its ME who will be driving ALL DAY and Elder McD will go work in NU 6 & 9 with Elder Farley. I'm scared! haha. Talk about baptism by fire! haha
Yeah I'm still staying busyyy. Elder McD doesnt know what a 5 minute break is! hahah I love it, we work work work. always gotta be doing something. Me? Nervous for a baptism? No ways! I was excited as heck!
Keep up that running daddy! dang old man, I'm impressed!! You're such a stud. in Xhosa "es koko" means "you're the man" haha! I run every morning, but not as far as you. Keep me updated on your new calling. Conference this upcoming weekend is just like they do it in the states...Saturday and Sunday. You lazy bum, laying in bed, reading the letter from your missionary son! haha doesnt get any better than that! Do you still have the same phone?
Help me out here...I need grandma Haws's address. k, thanks! and you NEVER answered me if Aunt Sue got my letter??
Can you do me another favor...k, sweet, you're too kind! haha one of the Mormon messages by Elder Holland is about a guy and his car breaks down, then he fixes it, then it breaks down again, but the guy is determined, what what what. I cant remember the whole thing...but it would be sweet if I got that talk and like used it in a lesson or spiritual thought..so could you maybe find it and sent it to me..enkosi (thanks in Xhosa)
This past week was April 6th..the day Christ was born, and the day the church was organized all the way back in 1830. and on that day, there were 56 members...and now look at the church! amazing.
Soo I LOVE this talk...read it and you'll know why! its about Nigerian sisters, but it's still in Africa and people here would do the EXACT same thing...and do do it every Sunday when they walk to church.. "Seeing the promises afar off. Anne C. Pingree. November 2003 Sat, AM session"
I like this scripture..Alma 26:27 and the hymn 322.
This morning we had a "deep doctrine" companionship study. For some reason Elder McD loves deep doctrine. but we discovered that on the other worlds and planets, they each have an Adam..look it up! Moses 1:33-34. yeah, for sure wont be telling my investigators about that when i teach the plan of salvation haha.
DAD, HELLOOO?! umm Book of Mormon giving away/being a missionary update! I'm waiting.............................. haha :) come on mfethu!
Yeah yeah yeah mommy I brush my teeth and floss. "cry no more" as Elder Nkutha would say. He talks biblically haha you guys didn't even comment about the crest I sent home with all the elders on it. I'll let you know of the details of the phone call as the time grows closer..dont worry mommy, no need to stress! you'll get to talk to your son!
How could I almost forget, I CLICKED 7 months on Saturday! wow! rollin' rollin' rollin' Tonight we're gonna get ROMANS PIZZA to celebrate my birthday a little bit, that will be fun! that pizza is divine!
Have a great week!
Love your 20 year old son,
Dusty
PS that cake looks GOOOD!!
(We sent him a picture of us eating a piece of chocolate birthday cake and candle, celebrating)
Monday, April 4, 2011
LOOK WHAT WAS DONE IN 2 - 0 - 1 - 1
Mfethu! (Dude in Xhosa)
Short but sweet email…thanks! No we didn’t watch conference…probably on the 17th or 24th. Didn’t get the package yet..this Friday hopefully! And yeah, the weather has chilled down a little bit..especially in the morning when we go running…but during the day the weather is nice!
I have very few winter clothes…and don’t have any plans in the near future to buy any! Haha. I'm just scared that im gonna be over weight when I have to fly when I eventually get transferred..ya know?
This week was fantastic. the highlight had to have been Zone Conference! here are some facts about our mission...123 elders currently serving, 20 wards and 6 branches, 94 baptisms as of March 17th...and the theme is "LOOK WHAT WAS DONE IN 2 - 0 - 1 - 1" haha
I love zone conference. president said some powerful things. he explained how we were JR apostles. Think about it, the only other people who are addressed as elders are the apostles! he also explained how we literally are the people who decide who gets into His church, and how divine our calling is. When we are representing Him, we have to do it His way. soo that made me want to be even more obedient, even though I already am. president also said how the Lord doesnt make mistakes, and how he hand selected me to serve in this part of the world at this time. and he used a cool scripture found in Acts 17:26 about how God pretty much knows how everything will happen in our lives. He said the purpose of church, and more importantly zone conference/ general conference, heck any conference in the church is to receive revelation!
We watched a kinda "dorky" short cartoon movie clip called "You Are Special" about like this wooden guy who never thought he was good enough, but it didn't matter what anyone else thinks..its what heavenly father thinks, plus other good messages and stuff. it was good and meaningful.
Short but sweet email…thanks! No we didn’t watch conference…probably on the 17th or 24th. Didn’t get the package yet..this Friday hopefully! And yeah, the weather has chilled down a little bit..especially in the morning when we go running…but during the day the weather is nice!
I have very few winter clothes…and don’t have any plans in the near future to buy any! Haha. I'm just scared that im gonna be over weight when I have to fly when I eventually get transferred..ya know?
This week was fantastic. the highlight had to have been Zone Conference! here are some facts about our mission...123 elders currently serving, 20 wards and 6 branches, 94 baptisms as of March 17th...and the theme is "LOOK WHAT WAS DONE IN 2 - 0 - 1 - 1" haha
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| A picture from out baptism yesterday. Axoile is the guy with his arms folded in the middle. the OLD dude walks a longg way to church every sunday, and doesnt speak much english, he's from the zone leaders area. some random people just decided to get in the picture haha |
One thing we had to do for conference was to prepare a 3 spontaneous talks! like president would just call on 3 of us to come up and talk about certain missionary teaching skills and stuff. so the night before, like late at night, elder McD and I were like cramming for the test! haha I just wrote down a few thougths and things, but it felt like school all over again! haha
So during lunch of zone conference, the 16 elders working in MD who were there for the conference sang to me and 2 other elders "Happy Birthday" it was nice. We have a little bit of a different version that we sing! haha. We have a baptism next Sunday..on my birthday..and she asked if I would baptize her! So that'll be sweet! its unreal to think that im gonna be 20! AH!
This week during one of our lessons this crazy/naughty kid was making such a noise! he was really distracting from the spirit, and this was an important lesson, so i had to "make a plan" and take matters into my own hands. I said "izapha" meaning "come here" I sat him down in the chair next to me and had him draw on my planner...and amazingly it shut him up! haha he kept saying stuff to me in Xhosa, but I coulnt understand much, so I could only really say the few same words that I know over and over again. haha I still participated in the lesson, but just glad i could calm that kid down haha.
We visited this sweet super old mamma, shes a member...but has no teeth! haha. I went on exchanges with Elder Farley! We walked pretty much all day, so it brought back good memories from my last area. he's been out only 4 months, so in all the lessons we taught, I was like the senior companion and had to do most of the talking and stuff. it was kinda fun, but more of a responsibility. It was good practice for when I become a senior companion soon. and yessie during one lesson this girl was asking some deep questions..and Elder Farley just looked at me and I smiled and tried to answer them the best that I could! haha.
We fasted starting on Saturday afternoon, but Sunday after church we had 2 DA's! haha one at 3, and then one at 5! we were sufficiently "wounded" as our fellow-shippers say when they get fed a lot of food! haha. and yessie it was AMAZING Xhosa food! yum yum
Last night on "P-Day Eve" we laid out under the stars for a little bit as a district. It was kinda homo, but fun! there's lots of stars here in Africa. I even saw a shooting star!!
For our 2 FHE (family home evening) groups, we watched "Joseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration" I love that movie! At the very end, it shows the picture of the Nauvoo temple, and a part of the verse in D&C 128:22 comes up...it says "Shall we not go on in so great a cause?" that inspired me. its so true! im engaged in this great work!
I've recently thinking how great my family is. I sure have been blessed to be part of a loving family and to have such good friends and relatives supporting me through my entire life. what a blessing.
Mom, Dad, and Kelly, I love you because you are easy to love.
Miss you bunches!
Love...ELDER HAWS
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| That's my new district....shacks |
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| Good day work of service |
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| Cooking dinner at like 10pm after a long day. we put chicken, bacon, veggies, tomatoes with rice...it was gooood |
Monday, March 28, 2011
MDANTSANE baby! its sweet! you pronounce it "don-son-E"
Hey family!
I got both of the emails this time..heck I just spent the last 15 minutes reading haha. To answer some of your questions in the other email...theres no earthquakes here, haven't played squash since, I don't need any CD's, and there's not many massive spiders like that here that I've seen...but sometimes during lessons I see cockroaches and other bugs crawling around the peoples houses! Gross.
Did Aunt Sue get my letter?? Thanks for the updates on things! yeahhhh, MDANTSANE baby! Its sweet! you pronounce it don-son-E the M is pretty much silent.
Haven't gotten any package yet..but thanks for sending one! Cant wait to get it. Elder McD got one and it cost 60 bucks to send it to him. to be honest, I haven't driven yet, but I know I should practice! Its gonna take some time to get used to it. Its normal to drive on the wrong side of the road now...its gonna be super weird to drive "normal" again when I get home.
I think its super cute when small kids call me mlungu! I dont think its offensive. The thing is, they NEVER see white people! the entire township is Xhosa!
This week was hectic and wayy busy! It went by fast. One day we taught 7 lessons! yeah, thats a lot. man, I thought my stats a few weeks ago in my old area were monster..ha! We are pullin BIG numbers here in MD! believe it. sooo, I've kinda tried to find something "cool" every day while in MD...here are the things I saw/witnessed..saw a kid passed out sleeping on his bed with his hands in his pants haha, saw a fast food place called "Hungry Lion' and they bumped House music inside, met a guy who wanted us to help him start a crusade, saw a dunk guy literally laying in the middle of the street! Like it was dangerous. I got a pic, I'll send some next week. In MD people just burn their trash on the side of the road, so it makes alot of smoke....and it stinks! haha its trash! We were in a store called Pick-N-Pay (similar to Vons) and this sandwich fell on the dirty floor, and we picked it up and gave it to the person that worked there, and she literally looked at it, put it back in the little plastic container it was in, and placed it back on the shelf! Yeah, only in Africa! haha.
This week I had some more Mgqushu, but also had this popular Xhosa food called Mphokogqo (Q is a click) it was, ummm, interesting. Its like pop (similar to rice) with rotten sour milk on-top..YUM!!
Umngqusho (Mngqusho) is a favorite traditional dish of the Xhosa people in South Africa made of samp and cowpeas. Samp (or stampmielies, stamp) is very similar to American hominy or posole: both are de-hulled dried corn (maize). In the case of samp, however, the corn kernels are crushed or broken into pieces which are easier to cook and eat. If you cannot find samp, buy dry hominy and use a rolling pin or a mortar and pestle to crush or break the kernels, being careful not to grind them into flour. Cowpeas are a variety of the American black-eyed pea (use whichever is obtainable). In South Africa, dried samp and beans are sold already mixed and ready to use. Samp is sometimes served with fried onions, or as a side dish with any main course that has its own gravy.
Can you find the 7 visions of Lehi? Here are some cool scriptures I came across this week.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-23, Hebrews 12:1, and D&C 42:61
HEY! tell me something that made you smile this past week! I wanna hear it :)
I was just looking in my planner at this upcomming week, and it's honestly pretty booked already! For sure wasn't like that in my last area! Our appointments here rarely fall through! Its great! We get to teach a lot! This week is Zone Conference with President Probst. AND we got some baptisms coming up soon!
Life is goood! Talk to y'all next week! Love ya!
Elder Haws
I got both of the emails this time..heck I just spent the last 15 minutes reading haha. To answer some of your questions in the other email...theres no earthquakes here, haven't played squash since, I don't need any CD's, and there's not many massive spiders like that here that I've seen...but sometimes during lessons I see cockroaches and other bugs crawling around the peoples houses! Gross.
Did Aunt Sue get my letter?? Thanks for the updates on things! yeahhhh, MDANTSANE baby! Its sweet! you pronounce it don-son-E the M is pretty much silent.
Haven't gotten any package yet..but thanks for sending one! Cant wait to get it. Elder McD got one and it cost 60 bucks to send it to him. to be honest, I haven't driven yet, but I know I should practice! Its gonna take some time to get used to it. Its normal to drive on the wrong side of the road now...its gonna be super weird to drive "normal" again when I get home.
I think its super cute when small kids call me mlungu! I dont think its offensive. The thing is, they NEVER see white people! the entire township is Xhosa!
This week was hectic and wayy busy! It went by fast. One day we taught 7 lessons! yeah, thats a lot. man, I thought my stats a few weeks ago in my old area were monster..ha! We are pullin BIG numbers here in MD! believe it. sooo, I've kinda tried to find something "cool" every day while in MD...here are the things I saw/witnessed..saw a kid passed out sleeping on his bed with his hands in his pants haha, saw a fast food place called "Hungry Lion' and they bumped House music inside, met a guy who wanted us to help him start a crusade, saw a dunk guy literally laying in the middle of the street! Like it was dangerous. I got a pic, I'll send some next week. In MD people just burn their trash on the side of the road, so it makes alot of smoke....and it stinks! haha its trash! We were in a store called Pick-N-Pay (similar to Vons) and this sandwich fell on the dirty floor, and we picked it up and gave it to the person that worked there, and she literally looked at it, put it back in the little plastic container it was in, and placed it back on the shelf! Yeah, only in Africa! haha.
This week I had some more Mgqushu, but also had this popular Xhosa food called Mphokogqo (Q is a click) it was, ummm, interesting. Its like pop (similar to rice) with rotten sour milk on-top..YUM!!
Umngqusho (Mngqusho) is a favorite traditional dish of the Xhosa people in South Africa made of samp and cowpeas. Samp (or stampmielies, stamp) is very similar to American hominy or posole: both are de-hulled dried corn (maize). In the case of samp, however, the corn kernels are crushed or broken into pieces which are easier to cook and eat. If you cannot find samp, buy dry hominy and use a rolling pin or a mortar and pestle to crush or break the kernels, being careful not to grind them into flour. Cowpeas are a variety of the American black-eyed pea (use whichever is obtainable). In South Africa, dried samp and beans are sold already mixed and ready to use. Samp is sometimes served with fried onions, or as a side dish with any main course that has its own gravy.
So check this out, the other night, like during the middle of the night, I woke up...wait wait wait, I forgot to tell you we put the beds together to make a bunk bed..okay, soo I woke up and like the top bunk was like falling down on me, and it was heavy! Like I was not all there cuz I was like half asleep so I wasn't too sure what was going on, but eventually Elder McD came down from the top bunk and like we put the bed back together and went back to sleep, but it was weird! haha. When my district leader took my report/interviewed me, he asked what the worst part of the week was....and it was SO GREAT that the only bummer the entire week was when I didn't get any post :( shame haha
Can you find the 7 visions of Lehi? Here are some cool scriptures I came across this week.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-23, Hebrews 12:1, and D&C 42:61
HEY! tell me something that made you smile this past week! I wanna hear it :)
I was just looking in my planner at this upcomming week, and it's honestly pretty booked already! For sure wasn't like that in my last area! Our appointments here rarely fall through! Its great! We get to teach a lot! This week is Zone Conference with President Probst. AND we got some baptisms coming up soon!
Life is goood! Talk to y'all next week! Love ya!
Elder Haws
Monday, March 21, 2011
New area will be in MDANTSANE serving with ELDER MCDONALD
WOW, where do I begin!!!
Thanks for the email, as usual. the pictures were sweet. but actually I think I just got last weeks, and not this weeks? oh well. Alright, I got lots to say, and not much time to do it.
SOOOO, as you know, this week was transfer week. normally, we are called by the AP's (assistant to the president) on tuesday morning between 7 am and 10 am and we are told our transfer news. So on Tuesday morning, as soon as I got out of the shower, like the second I turned off the water, Elder Frost banged on the door and said "hurry up, presidnet is on the phone" I was like ahhh. So I threw a towel on, still wet, and stood there and Elder Frost got his news then handed the phone over to me. now, President Probst's voice is one of a kind. I can still hear and remember what he said. "Good morning Elder Haws, how are ya?" "I'm good presidnet, just standing here in my towel" he laughed! hahah. Then he was like "Well, are you ready for some tranfer news?" "Yes president" "Good. well, we thank you for all the hard work you've done in East London, etc etc,"Then he was scaring me by saying "Are you ready for some more responsibility?" haha then he said you're new area will be in MDANTSANE serving with ELDER MCDONALD!!!!!!!!!!!!
We met Elder McDonald and family in St George before Dusty left on his mission...
Soo then all day on Tuesday Elder Frost and I went around and visited lots of people and got some goodbye pictures with some people. It was kinda sad! I got to see most everyone that I wanted to, so that was nice. and we finished off the night with a nice DA with bishop! Elder Hastings and Olivier are staying the same, and the new elder in the area replacing me is Elder Kyvie or something like that. He's from Kenya and is one of the skinniest person I've ever seen! He also is very shy and new in the gospel. Elder Frost will be doing most of the talking, thats for sure! He's a cool kid. I'm not sure why president put him in a waking area, but they do gets lots of DA's. I wish them the best of luck!
So, that night we stayed up till like midnight signing journals and I started packing up and finished in the morning.
If you look on a map, Mdantsane is very close to East London. so I actually stay in East London, like 10 minutes away from where I used to stay! Its a nice place, no complaints about my new boarding!
Elder McDonald said he like screamed on the phone at president cuz he was so happy to serve with me! haha. weird huh! I've been in his living room, and now we're serving together! He's been in MD (mdantsane) all of his mission, but has been in this part of MD for over 3 months now, so he knows the area really well. This area is a driving area, so that's kinda nice. The car is a MANUAL!! I'll go into more detail next time about more stuff.
MD is a township!! Oh man, it is WAYY different than East London, town.
Alright, so I made this list of things I experienced/saw after only 5 days in MD........we had a drunk guy running after our car and shouting, another drunk guy came in during one of our lessons and just sat down and wouldnt leave, then started talking to himself, I saw a big mamma squat down and start peeing for the world to see, I saw an old guy just walking a goat on a leash down the street, I saw a kid with no pants on just chillin on the side of the road, I've seen many drunk people stumbling in the middle of the street and others just passed out on the side of the road..just wasted, I've had the famous Mgqushu (Q is a click) it tastes good, but very fatening haha, we met this one lady and she said a CRAZY prayer and was like shouting in Xhosa, I've taught a lesson in a shack, and taught a guy who pretty much didn't understand a word we were saying, I've been called MLUNGU (white boy) many many times, and see people just burning their trash in certain places. now remember, its been only 5 days here! there's even more things to say, but I'll stop there.
When I met a member of the bishopric, I didnt know what he looked like, but when we got to his house, a guy was just WASTED!! BUT it was actually him! he was just pretending! dude, he had me going. he was like stumbling around and stuff, but then just was normal and we all started laughing.
Church on Sunday was...umm..different!! thats for dang sure! This ward has more less actives than active members. in church yesterday, me. Elder McDonald, and one other elder were the only white people in the entire place! It was weird. During church, the mostly speak in Xhosa...which they aren't supposed to!
Listen to this...sooo this area is on FIRE!!! Seriously. The work here is bumpin! So this past week they had 8 baptisms, so this week they needed to be confirmed. during sacrament meeting, they called me and Elder McDonald up, plus one other companionship up, along with the bishop to confirm them. I quickly realized that I was going to be confirming someone!! AHHH!! I was scared! hahaha defiantly wasn't expecting to do that! but the bishop looked at me and said "You're turn" haha! lucky, the guy didn't have any clicks in his name! haha I was a neat experience for sure!
Well, I could type a lot more, but time is up! Serving in township is gonna be a fun experience! Talk to you guys next week!
Miss ya!
Love,
Elder Haws
Thanks for the email, as usual. the pictures were sweet. but actually I think I just got last weeks, and not this weeks? oh well. Alright, I got lots to say, and not much time to do it.
SOOOO, as you know, this week was transfer week. normally, we are called by the AP's (assistant to the president) on tuesday morning between 7 am and 10 am and we are told our transfer news. So on Tuesday morning, as soon as I got out of the shower, like the second I turned off the water, Elder Frost banged on the door and said "hurry up, presidnet is on the phone" I was like ahhh. So I threw a towel on, still wet, and stood there and Elder Frost got his news then handed the phone over to me. now, President Probst's voice is one of a kind. I can still hear and remember what he said. "Good morning Elder Haws, how are ya?" "I'm good presidnet, just standing here in my towel" he laughed! hahah. Then he was like "Well, are you ready for some tranfer news?" "Yes president" "Good. well, we thank you for all the hard work you've done in East London, etc etc,"Then he was scaring me by saying "Are you ready for some more responsibility?" haha then he said you're new area will be in MDANTSANE serving with ELDER MCDONALD!!!!!!!!!!!!
We met Elder McDonald and family in St George before Dusty left on his mission...
Soo then all day on Tuesday Elder Frost and I went around and visited lots of people and got some goodbye pictures with some people. It was kinda sad! I got to see most everyone that I wanted to, so that was nice. and we finished off the night with a nice DA with bishop! Elder Hastings and Olivier are staying the same, and the new elder in the area replacing me is Elder Kyvie or something like that. He's from Kenya and is one of the skinniest person I've ever seen! He also is very shy and new in the gospel. Elder Frost will be doing most of the talking, thats for sure! He's a cool kid. I'm not sure why president put him in a waking area, but they do gets lots of DA's. I wish them the best of luck!
So, that night we stayed up till like midnight signing journals and I started packing up and finished in the morning.
If you look on a map, Mdantsane is very close to East London. so I actually stay in East London, like 10 minutes away from where I used to stay! Its a nice place, no complaints about my new boarding!
Elder McDonald said he like screamed on the phone at president cuz he was so happy to serve with me! haha. weird huh! I've been in his living room, and now we're serving together! He's been in MD (mdantsane) all of his mission, but has been in this part of MD for over 3 months now, so he knows the area really well. This area is a driving area, so that's kinda nice. The car is a MANUAL!! I'll go into more detail next time about more stuff.
MD is a township!! Oh man, it is WAYY different than East London, town.
Alright, so I made this list of things I experienced/saw after only 5 days in MD........we had a drunk guy running after our car and shouting, another drunk guy came in during one of our lessons and just sat down and wouldnt leave, then started talking to himself, I saw a big mamma squat down and start peeing for the world to see, I saw an old guy just walking a goat on a leash down the street, I saw a kid with no pants on just chillin on the side of the road, I've seen many drunk people stumbling in the middle of the street and others just passed out on the side of the road..just wasted, I've had the famous Mgqushu (Q is a click) it tastes good, but very fatening haha, we met this one lady and she said a CRAZY prayer and was like shouting in Xhosa, I've taught a lesson in a shack, and taught a guy who pretty much didn't understand a word we were saying, I've been called MLUNGU (white boy) many many times, and see people just burning their trash in certain places. now remember, its been only 5 days here! there's even more things to say, but I'll stop there.
When I met a member of the bishopric, I didnt know what he looked like, but when we got to his house, a guy was just WASTED!! BUT it was actually him! he was just pretending! dude, he had me going. he was like stumbling around and stuff, but then just was normal and we all started laughing.
Church on Sunday was...umm..different!! thats for dang sure! This ward has more less actives than active members. in church yesterday, me. Elder McDonald, and one other elder were the only white people in the entire place! It was weird. During church, the mostly speak in Xhosa...which they aren't supposed to!
Listen to this...sooo this area is on FIRE!!! Seriously. The work here is bumpin! So this past week they had 8 baptisms, so this week they needed to be confirmed. during sacrament meeting, they called me and Elder McDonald up, plus one other companionship up, along with the bishop to confirm them. I quickly realized that I was going to be confirming someone!! AHHH!! I was scared! hahaha defiantly wasn't expecting to do that! but the bishop looked at me and said "You're turn" haha! lucky, the guy didn't have any clicks in his name! haha I was a neat experience for sure!
Well, I could type a lot more, but time is up! Serving in township is gonna be a fun experience! Talk to you guys next week!
Miss ya!
Love,
Elder Haws
Monday, March 14, 2011
This week I clicked 6 months!
.... our email did not get through to Dusty this week!
WOOOW!!! thats cool, my family doesnt love me :( haha what the heck, no email this week?!
Anyway, I've had a good week. it was most likely my last week here in East London, cuz this week is transfer week! we get our news on Tuesday morning, and get on a bus or plane on Wednesday! im not 100% positive that I'll be going, but not many missionaries stay in their greenie area for more than 6 months. so mentally I've kinda been preparing myself to go. I'm kinda sad though, cuz we got like 3 solid baptisms coming up in the month of april, and I probley wont be here! shame. we've worked hard to prepare them, and i wont be able to be there with them on their special day. but, thats just how missionary work is. Im really gonna miss Daz, and he said he'll miss me! haha. (I was just thinking, if I dont get transferred, this email is gonna be weird haha) bad news, Yolanda is pregnant! dumb. like she has been pregnant for a few months now, so thats why she hasnt been coming to church.
On Tuesday we had our zone training with President and Sister Probst! it was great. All the missionaries from the zone, like the ones from Port Alfred and Gramstown came. It was nice to see them. the food at zone conference was wayy good. in the morning we got like trained and practiced stuff by like doing role plays, then had lunch, but then in the afternoon, we watched a movie. "Facing The Giants" wow, what a great movie! I think you've seen it before, but you should watch it again. its about this high school coach who faces all these challenges, but in the end, everything is good and they win the final game and stuff. president applied it to our work here on mission. it was sweet. but it was about high school football, and it brought back some goood memories...back in the glory days of high school football! haha.
Bad news, we kinda made a surprise visit to Daz, and he answered the door with his shirt off, and was drunk! what the heck! haha. it was weird to see him like that, and we'll address the problem, and probley push his baptismal date back a week or so. He'll be alright. it was funny, I said the closing prayer, and he had a big delay when I said amen. haha. and then he gave me and Elder Frost kinda like a awkward long hug when we were leaving haha.
Yesterday was bitter sweet. probley the last sunday in the East London 3rd ward! sad. soo like saturday night and a few night previous to that, I couldnt really sleep cuz I was just pumped to bear my testimony. BUT, the 3rd ward is amazing, and as soon as the bishop sat down, there was a flocking of people to go up and bear their testimonies! like, half of the ward went up. my hopes were crushed. I mean, I wanted to go up, and I guess I shoulda, but it was their time. oh well. my favorite testimony was that of one of the less active girls in the ward. I met her back in october, and she just didnt seem happy with life and hadn't come to church in a longg time. but, with our hard work and her desire to fix her life, good things happened. She hasn't missed a Sunday of church for like almost 3 months now! She now dressed modestly and honestly is just SO much more happy, all of the time! that's the only way I can explain it. She is well on her way to going to the temple when the ward goes in October for their yearly temple trip. Shes the only member in her family, and has to walk like 15 minutes to church. anyway, she got up and bore an amazing testimony. It was great!
After church, that crazy farm lady came up to me and was tearing up a little bit, cuz it was probley my last Sunday. it was kinda weird to see a tough and tough lady like her get emotional, but it was cool.
Yessie I was freakin starving yesterday! I love fast Sunday, but walking in the blazing heat in the afternoon, feeling tired and dehydrated was rough. but I survived, and mama fazeka fed us an AMAZING meal, so it was all good. I was soo full!
I'm starting to kinda understand cricket, just a little bit! it's interesting to watch. A big tournament is going on, but USA doesn't have a team!
This week I clicked 6 months! 1/4th of the way done! crazy aye?! Well, maybe next week I'll be emailing you from a different part of South Africa, and have a new companion!
Miss you guys! talk to y'all next week
Love,
Dusty
WOOOW!!! thats cool, my family doesnt love me :( haha what the heck, no email this week?!
Anyway, I've had a good week. it was most likely my last week here in East London, cuz this week is transfer week! we get our news on Tuesday morning, and get on a bus or plane on Wednesday! im not 100% positive that I'll be going, but not many missionaries stay in their greenie area for more than 6 months. so mentally I've kinda been preparing myself to go. I'm kinda sad though, cuz we got like 3 solid baptisms coming up in the month of april, and I probley wont be here! shame. we've worked hard to prepare them, and i wont be able to be there with them on their special day. but, thats just how missionary work is. Im really gonna miss Daz, and he said he'll miss me! haha. (I was just thinking, if I dont get transferred, this email is gonna be weird haha) bad news, Yolanda is pregnant! dumb. like she has been pregnant for a few months now, so thats why she hasnt been coming to church.
On Tuesday we had our zone training with President and Sister Probst! it was great. All the missionaries from the zone, like the ones from Port Alfred and Gramstown came. It was nice to see them. the food at zone conference was wayy good. in the morning we got like trained and practiced stuff by like doing role plays, then had lunch, but then in the afternoon, we watched a movie. "Facing The Giants" wow, what a great movie! I think you've seen it before, but you should watch it again. its about this high school coach who faces all these challenges, but in the end, everything is good and they win the final game and stuff. president applied it to our work here on mission. it was sweet. but it was about high school football, and it brought back some goood memories...back in the glory days of high school football! haha.
Bad news, we kinda made a surprise visit to Daz, and he answered the door with his shirt off, and was drunk! what the heck! haha. it was weird to see him like that, and we'll address the problem, and probley push his baptismal date back a week or so. He'll be alright. it was funny, I said the closing prayer, and he had a big delay when I said amen. haha. and then he gave me and Elder Frost kinda like a awkward long hug when we were leaving haha.
Yesterday was bitter sweet. probley the last sunday in the East London 3rd ward! sad. soo like saturday night and a few night previous to that, I couldnt really sleep cuz I was just pumped to bear my testimony. BUT, the 3rd ward is amazing, and as soon as the bishop sat down, there was a flocking of people to go up and bear their testimonies! like, half of the ward went up. my hopes were crushed. I mean, I wanted to go up, and I guess I shoulda, but it was their time. oh well. my favorite testimony was that of one of the less active girls in the ward. I met her back in october, and she just didnt seem happy with life and hadn't come to church in a longg time. but, with our hard work and her desire to fix her life, good things happened. She hasn't missed a Sunday of church for like almost 3 months now! She now dressed modestly and honestly is just SO much more happy, all of the time! that's the only way I can explain it. She is well on her way to going to the temple when the ward goes in October for their yearly temple trip. Shes the only member in her family, and has to walk like 15 minutes to church. anyway, she got up and bore an amazing testimony. It was great!
After church, that crazy farm lady came up to me and was tearing up a little bit, cuz it was probley my last Sunday. it was kinda weird to see a tough and tough lady like her get emotional, but it was cool.
Yessie I was freakin starving yesterday! I love fast Sunday, but walking in the blazing heat in the afternoon, feeling tired and dehydrated was rough. but I survived, and mama fazeka fed us an AMAZING meal, so it was all good. I was soo full!
I'm starting to kinda understand cricket, just a little bit! it's interesting to watch. A big tournament is going on, but USA doesn't have a team!
This week I clicked 6 months! 1/4th of the way done! crazy aye?! Well, maybe next week I'll be emailing you from a different part of South Africa, and have a new companion!
Miss you guys! talk to y'all next week
Love,
Dusty
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| just a shortcut to one of our appointments |
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| thats just right outside our boarding |
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| check out that MASSIVE spider..ya, only in Africa |
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| love that sign |
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| we cleared out that entire garden... |
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