bortaS bIr jablu'DI' reH QaQqu' nay'

The week started well, but towards the end, the temperature shot up to beyond the reasonable temperatures. Of course, the morning we play football, it was up around 30° by the time we stopped playing. And yesterday was pretty toasty too.

On the plus side, we had a good week, and were able to go down to Brussels for another legality trip after a long time not having gone. We took a full van and met several others in Brussels. It was a good group and we had fun in the van on the way there and back.

I may have mentioned it before, but we have next to no Dutch investigators. We do have investigators from Curacao, China-Beijing, China-Taipei, Suriname, Burundi, Aruba, Ghana and formerly Brazil and Nigeria. But I suppose that can simply be explained by the secularism of Europe compared with the very strong religious groups outside of Europe. But this means that a number of our investigators do not speak any Dutch. Too bad that the Wassenaar branch is too far to bring them there.

The office really is the best place to be in this weather. Because even though it gets pretty warm inside, we do have some cooling and we don't exactly do much in the way of physical activity in the office. 

Something I read in a talk recently: Obedience is better than sacrifice. Sometimes we should do what we have been told by our leaders, rather than not do something to give another the chance to do it. Naturally there are times when it does not really matter who steps up, but at other times, *you* are the one that needs to do the task at hand. You have been called, not your friend or your brother or sister or the neighbour, but you. Others may be able to do it too, but sometimes you have what it takes to do it the way the Lord needs it done. 

Additionally, I would like to encourage you to do your genealogy. If nothing has been done, then start with your parents and grandparents. If your tree has been traced back 10 generations, don't despair, there is always more information to find. Just as Elder Andersen said, you can find your cousins too. And now it has become so much easier, with several websites becoming free for members of the church with a familysearch account.

Semper Verum

Late last week, we received permission to watch the Netherlands vs Argentina, in the semi-finals of the world cup, so on Sunday, we told the members in Leiden, and were invited to watch it with the Jongkees family. On Wednesday, we went over there just before 22:00. It was a long game, with extra time and a penalty shoot-out, because neither team had been able to score at all during the game. But in the end, it turned out that my choice of a sky blue tie had been correct, as the Albicelestes beat Oranje 4-2 in penalty shoot-outs. By the time we got home, it was almost 2:00. The next night was also a late night, as we had to drive the Amsterdam elders home after exchanges. 

We had a good time during exchanges, and we taught some really good lessons. We have one investigator from China, that is really really positive. She will not commit to being baptised yet, because she wants to be sure that she will be dedicated once she is baptised, and not divert from the path or fall away from the church. But she has never dropped an appointment, and is excited to learn more. For someone with no background with religion at all, she is really progressing well. Hopefully, she will get baptised before she goes back to China this summer.

Football was cancelled this morning, because people were going to be playing some sort of golf on the field we normally use. But that was ok, because a new sister missionary arrived this morning and we had to go and get stuff taken care of for legality and finance.

Sayonara

Id est quid est

During district meeting (our first with the new district leader), which was about branding season, we had interviews with president and sister Robinson. It is always good to talk with them. They really are concerned about all the missionaries in the mission. 

Later that day, we were able to take the once elder Li (somewhat of a legend in this mission for his remarkable service) on joint teach to the 2 Chinese students we are teaching. He speaks Mandarin too, so he was able to clarify a bunch of stuff they had difficulty understanding. And he could also understand where they are coming from, since he too is a convert to the church.

A few days later, a Chinese member from the ward in Leiden came with us, though she spoke Cantonese. All the same, her participation and presence was such a great benefit to the investigators, I think.

Yesterday, I went with the other Leiden elders to the Stigters. We set off to the station to take the train, but it turned out that all the trains were stopped between Leiden and everywhere else. So we took a bus and ended up taking a bus that got us to a village in the middle of nowhere, with no other buses to anywhere but back to Leiden. The solution was for brother Stigter to come and get us, but he was late home, so we stood waiting for a while. While we were waiting, the son of the 2nd counsellor of the stake presidency accosted us and asked if we were missionaries. It turns out they lived right across from where we got off the bus. They invited us inside and gave us something to drink. Since brother Stigter was later than expected, the members there drove us over to Nieuw Vennep. We had a fun time at the Stigters, as always.

The week has been really busy and we have had a lot of lessons. So that's good.

Have a good week!

Cura te Ipsum

Another group of arrivals and departures come and gone. Only two arrived, to replace six that were going, including my old companion from my mini-mission in Gent (elder Gomez), a former office elder (elder Pimentel) and elder Loorbach! I was sad to see him go, he has been my longest companion (albeit part-time) on my mission, and we were able to relate to each other's situation since we are both from the same group of stakes, and know a lot of the same people, and are not American. On the plus side, that does mean that I will be able to see him more often than I will most other companions or other missionaries in general.

On Wednesday, there was also a switch-up in the Saturday football missionaries: elder Neptune replaced Bean in Leiden, and elder Bishop replaced Sumter as assistant to the president. I was able to see them both in action this morning, during a fun and intense game of football. Well, apart from getting a fastball from Goff to the leg as he tried to kick it as hard as he could past the keeper. Fortunately, my leg bones are still whole.

It is quite interesting to think of the diversity among our investigators at this time: we are teaching a Surinamese, two Chinese, one Curaçaoan, a Dutch-Honduran couple, a Hungarian and a Brazilian. We have a few Dutch potential investigators, but so far, none of them are really solid. But a few are quite open. 

We were able to work outside of the office all day yesterday, since the carpets were being cleaned, so we went to find people at a different time of the day than usual, and looked up a bunch of people, as well as doing weekly planning. It was fun, but I missed the office work. Fortunately, there were crises during our absence, so we did not have to rush off to do anything.

Anybody Can't Do Anything

It is quite humorous listening to my companions sometimes, they have some peculiar phrasing that comes out fairly often. Probably because they are American.

Today has been busy so far: elders Lyman and Goff helped with a service project at a member's place who lives just across the road from us, almost, while I played football in Wassenaar with the other two (Robbins and Bean). After meeting up again (and eating something at the member's house), we went to the Stigters for lunch and so that they could try the Ninja Warrior Challenge, aka the Brian Clark challenge. It was very fun, and we played darts too. Elder Bean became the third person ever to complete the challenge (even though he touched his foot on the ground very briefly, making him the honorary third finisher). He did it pretty quickly too. Everyone thought elder Robbins would make it, but he was stymied by the second crossing underneath the platform. 

This week, we had a good number of appointments and taught a lot of people. We found only a few potentials, but did set 2 baptismal dates and plan on setting another one tonight, with brother Clark as joint teach. I think I should start keep a list of all the different nationalities I meet/teach. 

Tomorrow, we hear about who is being transferred, so that's exciting. And then on Tuesday, three missionaries fly in and we go through the whole process like we do every six weeks (and of course, pancakes!). 

Don't feel like you're on a "one-way train".

Quando omni flunkus moritati

The first full week of the Robbins-Lyman tenure is over and the office is still standing. And the van still looks like it did before. Yeah, they are doing well and seem to have everything under control, so that's good. Fortunately. And elder Loorbach has been teaching them how to drive with manual transmission, and after a few hair-raising moments, they have almost mastered it and are no longer a menace on the road. They have been doing a good job in teaching and finding investigators: they were not district leaders for nothing. I have also been learning a lot from them in regards to proselyting, and also helping them with the office tasks and such.

Yesterday, we had a great zone conference with elder Boom (an Area Seventy), where he talked about his and the Netherlands' past and then about our futures and what we should and should not do after our missions. About the people we should become and the things we should continue doing that we do on our missions. He also spoke about marriage, much to the ire of certain people. And today, we dropped off the orders at the second zone conference, in Rotterdam, and listened to the dying testimonies.

We had a fun time at the Stigter home on Wednesday (where elder Robbins spoke almost the entire time with a Buddhist). We will hopefully go do the "ninja warrior challenge" (aka "Brian Clark challenge") next Saturday. And yesterday, we ate delicious South African food at sister Anneveldt's house: that was fun too.

And this morning, we played first football and then American football (or eggball, as I prefer to call it). I did not really do as well as I have before, but it went alright. I need to work on interception in football, and also passing in eggball.

"Remember, I'm pulling for you. We're all in this together."

It's Just That Simple

I mainly ran out of time for a post last week, and also forgot to write something when I did have a bit of time.

But anyways, the last two weeks have been about as busy as normal, with this last week being a bit busier. Elders Lind and Cockbain finished training their replacements and we send goodbye to the Wassenaar branch, and had a number of really good dinner appointments with members. I will be sad to not be going there anymore and will miss the members, but I am sure that the members of the Leiden ward will be just as nice. Even if we don't eat as much Mexican food as we have eaten with the Wassenaar members, haha

 

The transition to new office elders has gone pretty smoothly, elder Lyman seems to know exactly how to speak to people on the phone and deal with computers and legal stuff. And elder Robbins has picked up the financial tasks, albeit reluctantly, with the necessary dedication. As of Wednesday, I became the senior office elder. Just another 12 months or so and I will be the most senior out of all the people who will then work in the mission office, haha.

 

Times have been tough in the last weeks, but such is life, as Ecclesiastes 3:1 states. But there were also good times, such as driving down to Brussels with elder Lyman on Tuesday and then to Groningen and Amersfoort (via the Afsluitdijk) on Wednesday, with elder Eastmond (to drop off elders Lind and Loorbach and pick up elder Lewis). I got to know both of them a bit more and help out with various matters that needed to be done in the far reaches of the mission. And roadtrips are always fun, of course.

 

As of Wednesday evening, I officially became companions with elders Robbins and Lyman. The second of (probably) 5 or 6 companionships I will be in. Unless the average sentence in the office is reduced or extended.

 

I look forward to what the future may hold.

Aut vita aeterna, aut mortem