My Mission in Japan: November 2013

Week 13 - Sanjō-shi (Sanjo City)

Kon'nichiwa!

My dad asked if they have Walmart in Japan and in Tokyo there is Seiyu. Seiyu is Walmart. It has a Seiyu sign but on the inside there are Walmart cards and the same pictures and stuff haha. I had a quick little week. We sung "I am a Child of God" in English to a lady at an awesome looking Japanese house. Their houses are normal. Sometimes a little run down, but with awesome looking Japanese roofs, even on the run down ones haha. Some are awesome and look like the movie classic ones haha. So I just got a haircut, I was super nervous because I cant do that in Japanese yet. But we got there and there was some random fluent Japanese lady haha. She was a stay at home mom and we got her to plan to going to Eikaiwa (English Class). Wooh! so awesome. She actually was all excited to bring her kids. We were at the haircut at the right time it seems like. I love you all so much. The church is true haha. Japanese is improving. Because of the conference it really got me focused on learning Japanese quicker. I need to trust that I really can learn it quicker. I don't have to settle for the end of my mission. I can be more effective and helpful now. I figured out why everyone thinks Japanese are bad drivers. In japan at least its because the roads are so small!!! They like weave around each other and barely miss but its normal haha. So they are actually great drivers just so used to dodging each other that they are great haha. That lady we met could be promising. Don't know yet though. Our investigator Y- is sort of opening up a little bit. Its just hard because they think anything can be a god so when we tell them our religion they are like, Yea what's one more. But once we teach they start to understand. We had a pot luck dinner because an 8 year old was baptized. I would tell you what I ate but I honestly don't know myself haha. Each bite I just hoped that it wouldn't taste gross haha. It was all good. It rains a lot here! Today we are going to a place called Uniclo to get clothes and stuff. I'm excited. Sorry that I don't have much to say. Its only been a couple days. I'm doing my best. Japanese is hard. Yes, this is not the language they taught me at the MTC haha. But every day I understand more and more. If you want to know what its like though. I know what you can do. Watch a movie and every five seconds mute it for like 10 seconds then turn it on for 5 seconds then mute for 10 seconds then just keep doing that and you'll understand how my understanding Nihongo (Japanese) goes haha Well I love you all. you are the best. Ai shite imasu!!

Love

Elder Proctor

Skytree at night - very cool.

6:01 AM | Category: |

Week 12 - Sanjō-shi (Sanjo City)

Ohayōgozaimasu! (Good Morning)

So we had a Tokyo Mission/Tokyo South mission combined conference in Tokyo with Elder David F. Evans who is the Head of the Missionary Department of the Church. We left Sunday early afternoon and got back yesterday afternoon. Five hour bus ride... I've seen all of Japan it seems like now haha. I'm going to send pictures:) So we barely caught the train on Sunday. Slept at the mission home that night. Then the next day was Pday so the elders we were supposed to stay with were doing pday stuff. So we went to Skytree! We did that for our pday activity and today we're doing the emailing and groceries. We didn't get to go up. We didn't have time but still seeing it was cool. After we got lost on the Tokyo trains and it took 3 hours to get to their apartment....Ugh haha. Tokyo is huge. It never ends!!! Just skyscraper buildings going on and on. The conference was great. Got me excited to get back here to Sanjo and work. We are working with a man named Y-. We had a good lesson with him last night. He seems a little more interested in the Book of Mormon now. I also said the most I ever had in a lesson. Wooh! Also, the guy named A from the other pday where I emailed late is doing well. He didn't know what Christmas meant. He thought it was just presents. So Elder Pronk wrote Christmas on the board and underlined Christ. Haha. We then explained it to him in the next lesson. My Nihongo (Japanese) is getting better. I can talk more. Its just so hard sometimes. Especially old people. But for the most part I can follow conversations just not the details. I got my mini Morumon Sho (Book of Mormon) too! We are getting ipads next month!! I'll get to have it basically my whole mission. We are one of the missions to try out the ipads. I haven't been to the temple yet. We're 5 hours away so not yet. There are 20 people in our branch. All fun and Japanese obviously haha. Except for one who's here with his wife for her father. He tells me the BYU game results and other sport stuff haha. We have district meeting every week. The trains in Tokyo are crazy. They're always on time but there are so many. Imagine cramming two Houstons and Dallas into one and that's Tokyo. The buildings keep going. Dallas has like that one skyscraper spot but Tokyo has many. So cool. I love you and truly miss you all. Family truly is where happiness is. Tokyo has so many people just working but I know where true happiness is.

Proctor Chourou (Elder Proctor)

Funny Kid from the Sanjo Branch - Toooo Coool

Tokyo Skytree!

6:14 AM | Category: |

Week 11 - Sanjō-shi (Sanjo City)

So it is freezing!!!!!!!!!!!!! So cold and its been raining for three days. So sick of the rain haha. Hard to ask people to stop and talk to you when they are getting drenched and wet haha. The language slowly gets better. I can understand a little bit more now and I actually am saying stuff to them. Its the hardest thing getting used to the speed. They speak so fast!!!!!! I can understand missionaries but natives are hard. Yes, I sleep on the futons. There is no AC/Heater so yeah, it's freezing all the time! Literally an hour ago my companion figured out this portable heater thing though so yes!!!!!!!! We were so happy. We literally would work out in the morning under our blankets haha. I can cook a little bit now. Rice every time but its actually really good. I like it. We fried peanut butter balls the other day and I choked?!?! My companion did the Heimlich and everything. It was scary. My first thought before I really was choking was wow this would be something dumb to choke on. Then I did it. It was scary but over now haha :P I also said something funny on the street the other day. "Ki o tsukete ne" means like "be careful". Just a nice thing to say to someone right. Well I got in a habit on the street and after we talked to a man about God, he said he was ok and quickly walked away. I said "ki o tsukete ne" and my companion laughed. Then I realized he denied God and I said "be careful....." oops haha. One investigator named F- is our best right now. He's been investigating for a long time. The other 4 or 5 just don't commit. They like talking but not doing. We're working with them though. In Japan they have this notion of everything is true so when we talk about our religion they say that's good stuff. But they don't realize the fact that it is impossible for everything to be true! Its funny. Like in a lesson we said the Book of Mormon is true or its not true. The investigator said it can be both. What?!?! haha were working on it though. Yesterday we talked with this 25 year old or so man who they met before I got here on a train. We ate lunch and he ended up taking a Morumon-Sho (Book of Mormon) and actually might be our best potential investigator for White Christmas! wooh. So that was great. I ate fried octopus the other day. Good, just ignored the octopus part, that's the weirdest I've ate. We taught Eikaiwa (English) class - lots of funny moments there. My companion is awesome. He helps me and teaches me to cook which is good haha. He knows his way around well too. We ride trains all the time. Japanese people ride bikes like crazy!!! There's bike parking at McDonalds?!?!?! Haha Read the scriptures and pray. Christ is our Savior. God is our personal Heavenly Father.

Love

Proctor Chourou (Elder Proctor)

Morumon Sho o yomeba kazoku no kankei o tsuyomerareru to yakusoku shimasu - figure it out haha :P

Just got my sweet ride!
I had to wait a week because they had to special order the height, lol.

Our "deluxe" accommodations - mine is the one on the right.

5:48 AM | Category: |

Week 10 - Sanjō City

Kon'nichiwa from my first area, Sanjō City:

Sanjo City - Japan

I had a busy week to say the least! We made the MTC to Japan transition on Monday and Tuesday. Then spent a couple of days at the Mission Home in Tokyo for orientation and to get our first areas and companions. My first area is in the northern part of Japan about 2 hours regular travel but 5 hours using the transportation system.

So the plane ride was crazy long. Took forever and all the windows were shut so we just sat in a room for 12 hours. I sat next to all Japanese people. all the missionaries were in the back except for me. I talked to the man next to me about how important this was even though I missed my family. I introduced Christ and the Book of Mormon to him and actually gave him a pass along card. The man told me thanks on the plane then after in the airport he came up again. I'll never know what happened but yea it was awesome. So the first time in Tokyo was awesome. I could see the sky tree in the distance. So cool. Then we went to the mission home and stayed in the church so for two days it didn't really feel like Japan. Then we got assigned. I got assigned to Sanjo where I now live. Sanjo is five hours from Tokyo. We winded through the streets in Tokyo to a bus, rode a train before and it was just hectic. No idea what to do. Just followed our Japanese leader missionaries. I ended up in Sanjo though so that's good. Stressful day though. I'm now settled in. The first day I met a less active. This is not the language I learned at the MTC. I can barely understand some things. Sometimes. Ugh! It'll get better though. Just frustrating now. Saturday I taught my first lesson but the man wanted to speak English so yea haha. Went to McDonalds one day. It was the same. I tried to buy my bike but they don't have any my size!!! Soooo funny. So we ordered a bigger one that hopefully I can get on Friday or Thursday. The milk here tastes weird. We need groceries and were about to go do that. First sacrament meeting was good because I could understand more. Still can't understand hardly anything though. After church I went to a elderly home and we did service. These little kids sang and we made this fishing game for the kids and elderly. One old lady caught a fish, cried with joy and said that was so fun. Talk about a joyful heart wrenching experience. The kids are adorable. We tracked last night and are meeting with a lady on Tuesday. Wooh. Language is hard but I'm trying. Prayer is real. I love it. I need it.

Thanks for all your prayers and support. Please write me at the address from this blog as I always love to hear about how everyone is doing.

Until next week:

Sayōnara