"To them we're just big and dumb and slow"-Epic "Where did you get that?"-Pirates of the Caribbean "Are you Drunk?" Transformers

Wow are there a lot of flies out here.   Something about going into summer time is making all the flies come out in force.   Our house seems to be full of them.   They are so hard to swat, or do anything about.   They are fast, and I am not.   That is a fact of life.   Hopefully we will find a solution, or maybe I will just have to get used to it.   I don't really know.   

The native missionaries out here don't seem to understand a few basic principles of life.   Namely; don't take that which is not yours, and no one likes a beg-er.   I mean really.   They will just walk up to your stuff and be like "hey I am sorry, but I am eating your candy." or they will beg and nag at you to try to get you to give them something that you have that they want.   It is like living with a two year old.   I mean me and Brandonburg are getting irritated about it.   We all go to the same store and we all get the same allotment, they just seem like they want us to provide them with everything.  What next?   Am I gonna have to cut their steak?   I mean really.   They are starting to understand it, but it might take some time.  

And for some reason every drunk person in the area is fascinated with bothering the maroundgos.   Like we are walking home last night from a dinner appointment and these two guys walk up, well stumble up and ask me and Brandonburg for money for beer.   We can be sitting eating lunch and drunk people walk up and talk to us.   We usually just hand them a Word of Wisdom pamphlet and tell them to read it and come to church.   It is kind of funny, kind of annoying.   But that is what it is.   

Can you believe that I am almost at my Ten Month Mark?   I sure can't.   It feels really weird to have been out here that long.   Mission goes quick.   When Elder Horlacker told me that and held up all of his transfer books, I thought it would take a long time to get there.   I still have a long time to go, but still, it is weird.   

This week we had Stake Conference ( a meeting for all the members who live in the geographical area f Gweru) and we got a new Stake Presidency (the guys who are asked to help lead the people in the Stake) and so we here in the Mkoba 2nd ward (smaller geographical area) have lost our Bishop (leader of our ward) since he was called to be the 2nd councilor in the Stake Presidency.   I wonder who the  new Bishop will be.   It will be interesting to find out.  We have two people we are baptizing on Saturday.   Ruth, who is a mama, and Bradley who is in a part member family (family where part of the family are members and part aren't) and they are both doing great.   I am super excited for Saturday.   What makes it even more cool, is that we are doing the Baptism together as a District (group of missionaries serving in the geographical area of Gweru Town and Mkoba) so there will be lots of people entering into covenants with our Heavenly Father.

My companion is doing good.   Ever since he got that medicine he has been feeling healthy and we have been doing a lot of great work.   He seems to like trying to get under my skin though.   Don't know why, he just seems to enjoy irritating me.   It is a little bit of a test of my patience and self control, but I guess everything has a purpose so hey, I will go with it.  

"We try to do what is right because we love and want to please our Heavenly Father, not because someone is forcing us to obey."

-Quentin L Cook

"Mans greatest happiness comes from losing himself for the good of others."

-David O Mckay

"I have wept in the night for the shortness of sight that to some body's needs made me blind; But I never have yet felt a twinge of regret for being a little too kind."

-Anonymous

I like these quotes.   I was told in the MTC by my teachers, well me and my fellow missionaries, that there are three things that motivate obedience.   1 Fear. 2 Duty. 3 Love.   We can choose every day whether we are gong to obey God and His divine commandments, or wither we are not.   He will never force us to obey Him, not a single one of us.   We have to choose.   And when we choose to follow Him, we can and must choose wither it is out of fear, duty, or love.   We were told that Love is the greatest and should be our only motivating factor in obedience.   If we obey out of love, we will be happy, and we will be able to see that His commandments, from the Ten Commandments to the Word of Wisdom, are given to us to help us to grow and to be safe.   They are giving to us by a loving Heavenly Father who knows what is best for us His children.   I know that we have a prophet on the earth today.   That through that prophet God reveals His commandments that we need to do to return to be with Him.   I know that that prophet is Thomas S Monson.   And that the prophet of the Restoration was Joseph Smith.   I know that he saw God the Father and His son Jesus Christ in that sacred grove in the 1800's.   And everyone can know if they will just pray about it and ask God.   He answers prayers.   I know it.  We just have to have the faith and love to ask.   

I love you all.

"Ummm, I'm a cow, can I go home?"

"How would you describe her?   Uh, scary beyond all reason."

"While they were learning 'The Itsy Bitsy Spider' I was learning how to dehydrate and rehydrate inanimate objects at will"  

"Did you ever think that this day would come?   Oh no sir, no not in a million, I mean yes I did."