If you wanna know one thing about Oakland, it's that everyone here is so diverse, and the town is like that too. We have an investigator from Brasil, who speaks Portuguese the best, Cantonese second, and English the worst, so my companion has been teaching in english the past few weeks. I haven't had the chance to teach him yet. But He's also kinda crazy. But oh well. Oh yeah, and we have a member named Mary; she's 60 something; Born by Chinese parents who spoke a dialect of Cantonese in Cambodia, raised in thailand, married a Vietnamese in vietnam, and lives in Oakland, worked in San Francisco, and speaks Broken English. She's super interesting, and very cool; great cook, but here communication is really interesting. She switches from Cantonese and English when we teach her, and she speaks the best in this order. Cambodian, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Thai=Mandarin, and English. So our last lesson was taught in Cantonese and english while she read out of a vietnamese Bom, So fun!
Packing the night before was a bit of nightmare, stayed up to 2am just worrying about how I was going to fit everything, and even though I had some comfort in prayer, I still worked to exhaustion. Woke up to the sound of my missionaries in my zone shaking me awake and telling me I was late. Dreary eyed and clumsy, I threw on everything and ran out the door. (Dad, you were right, I forgot to grab my flip flops; hopefully they serve the next elders well.) Traveled with some ASL elders, and traveled to the airport. Talked to Mom and Dad, which was a great comfort, and boarded my flight with a 40 lb carry on full of my training books. I do not know now how I will have all the time to read these, or even understand them. Leaving the MTC, the first thing I noticed is that everyone looks at me, and I mean everyone. As I walked down the aisle of that fully loaded jet, I could feel everyone's eyeballs on me (we're all from Utah, duh they know who I am). It was interesting getting used to that pressure, but I've kinda accepted the idea, and I know it won't go away, so I must make sure I look good and represent Jesus Christ the best I can, despite my weaknesses. It didn't help that I was alone, so the feeling simply felt very overwhelming. A lot of thoughts sat in my mind, and I thought of all the things that were in store for me in Oakland, simply pondering how God would have me feel about this mission. Knowing your purpose and that it was your decision is very important, and God's given every man the gift of agency to learn that. I've made alot of bad choices, and alot more good choices, but life is really about making it all right. So look towards our decision to live this Plan of Happiness, and Salvation, and remember your purpose in living with these trying times and situations. I know that this is hard now, but it's easier to handle knowing I can not only overcome it, but I can be stronger in it. Simple truth that I have a loving God for a father, and that he does all only in love and care, as does his only Begotten, and his Spirit. Anyways, President and Sister Meredith picked me up, and stepping out of the airport, I wasn't that scared. Then I stepped outside. First thing I noticed, the overcast sky that chills everything here was relatively nice, the fact that I was in a massive bowl was a bit strange (mountains are so far away). The ride up was interesting, found out our mission has over ten languages in every area, but that the Chinese branch only has three areas in the Oakland/San Francisco mission; Oakland, San Francisco, and Union City. The Mission home is right by the Temple, and it is on Temple hill, overlooking the entire city. A really gorgeous view. Oakland - A Melting Pot
If you wanna know one thing about Oakland, it's that everyone here is so diverse, and the town is like that too. We have an investigator from Brasil, who speaks Portuguese the best, Cantonese second, and English the worst, so my companion has been teaching in english the past few weeks. I haven't had the chance to teach him yet. But He's also kinda crazy. But oh well. Oh yeah, and we have a member named Mary; she's 60 something; Born by Chinese parents who spoke a dialect of Cantonese in Cambodia, raised in thailand, married a Vietnamese in vietnam, and lives in Oakland, worked in San Francisco, and speaks Broken English. She's super interesting, and very cool; great cook, but here communication is really interesting. She switches from Cantonese and English when we teach her, and she speaks the best in this order. Cambodian, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Thai=Mandarin, and English. So our last lesson was taught in Cantonese and english while she read out of a vietnamese Bom, So fun!
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AuthorI am dedicating 2 years to be a missionary for the Church of JESUS CHRIST of Latter-Day Saints. You'll read my stories of dealings with God and with men who I call my brothers. CategoriesArchives
March 2016
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