Hey guys, I dont have much time, because the ccomputers here are terrible. Ive just spent all of my time making a cd of all of my pictures, only to find out that you cant save to cds on this computer, and its too slow to e-mail, so sorry, you dont get a cd, or letters until i can figure something else out. Again, I need stamps so that I can send pouch mail.Again, I need stamps so that I can send pouch mail.Again, I need stamps so that I can send pouch mail. Do you get the message?
mom, to answer your questions, most of the things that we buy are from street stands, because they dont have grocery stores here. I have been sick twice since Ive been here, but nothing that was too bad, I still went out prosylyting all day, so im fine. You can buy anything you want in Ghana (as long as you have money, which I dont). Mostly we eat rice, noodles, bread and eggs. i havent seen any really big farms yet, just mainly small family gardens, but we havent been out to the real farms so I couldnt tell you on that one. im doing great, and loving it over here. Its really hot and humid, and I dont think that Ill ever adjust to the temp. I put on sun screan, but I just sweat it off in about 30 seconds. Needless to say I look like a big red tomato. THE CANDY IS NOT FOR THE KIDS, ITS FOR ME!!!! sorry, but if I give anything to the kids, they will keep following me and asking for things for the rest of the time im on my mission. that is not a joke either. probably dont send chocolate, it will melt. for Chris and Cam, I havent seen any snakes, but there was and alagator at the mtc that the guard killed in the parking lot and took home for dinner, and I got to hold it and take a picture. it was really neat. Ive got to go, love you all.
Love Elder Russell
P.S. thats really cool about allen emch, tell him I said congrats.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
And another
Hey guys, I don’t have very much time to write. Thanks for all of the e-mails, its really nice to know that you are alive. I spent the last couple of nights writing you a letter that I was going to send with a cd of pictures home, but I left it on the table at the apartment. I guess that Ill just have to send the cd today and the rest next week. To answer some of the questions, The people here are very poor. There have been many interesting experiences so far. Ill just make a short list of things that I’ve seen since ive been here that you wouldn’t see in the u.s.
1: Everybody carries everything on their head. you can see stuff from a notebook to a big basket of food.
2: Everybody here uses a machete for everything, from cutting grass, to cutting pineapple to cutting people...jk not people
3:WE were teaching this lesson on the side of the trail in between peoples houses and all of the sudden we here this loud noise. I look over and there is this chicken beating the (poop) out of this dog. The chicken chased the dog though our feet and down the road, and we just kept on teaching the lesson like nothing happened.
4: I woke up on morning, and looked out the window. It was really peaceful, with chickens eating on the side of the house and everything. All of a sudden, this hawk swoops down and eats this chicken right in front of me and then fly’s away. ( this last week I saw a cartoon drawing of the same thing in a children’s school book, so it must be an everyday occurrence. )
5:The people here wear very “traditional” clothes sometimes which, as one of the elders in my apartments says, “this just proves that they didn’t come from Adam and Eve, because the obviously haven’t partaken of the fruit and seen their nakedness”
6: We will be teaching lessons to ladies and their babies will start to cry. They will just start to breast feed them, without covering up in front of us. As you night guess its very hard to teach when this happens, but I’ve gotten more used to it.
7: they have “KEEP GHANA CLEAN” signs all over, but for some reasons these seem to be the places that collect the most trash.
8: All of the gas trucks have big letters on the back that state “highly inflammable” I still haven’t figured out if that makes sense or not .
9:It is very common for the gas stations to be out of gas.
10: One of the elders in the apartment just told me this story. Ill try to make it sound as good as he did. There are a lot of bums on the streets here that follow some of the missionaries around. He and his companion found this bum that he knew in the ditch on the side of the road one night, with this big chunk taken out of his leg. He was dead. They whent and told the town chief who was a member, and he told them that he would take care of it and for them not to get involved, because it might make the church look bad. The next day they were climbing into a tro-tro to got to town, and another one of the elders started to scream that the dead bum (who was still in the ditch) was moving. Come to find out he had just been sleeping in the ditch and they just thought that he was dead.
It is soooooooooo cool here. Its just one big adventure. There haven’t been to many animals, besides bug. There was this big iguana that the security guard at the mtc killed in our parking lot though. That was cool. I’ve started to get used to the food, but because the people here are so pour, members will actually run away when we come around, because they think that they have to feed us. Pres. Sabey has come out with a rule that we are not allowed to have any free meals unless there is an investigator present, and now the people don’t run away from us, because they know we don’t want food. This means that I don’t have to eat their food, but cook my own. That is both good and bad. My times up Ive got to go, love you lots
Elder Russell
1: Everybody carries everything on their head. you can see stuff from a notebook to a big basket of food.
2: Everybody here uses a machete for everything, from cutting grass, to cutting pineapple to cutting people...jk not people
3:WE were teaching this lesson on the side of the trail in between peoples houses and all of the sudden we here this loud noise. I look over and there is this chicken beating the (poop) out of this dog. The chicken chased the dog though our feet and down the road, and we just kept on teaching the lesson like nothing happened.
4: I woke up on morning, and looked out the window. It was really peaceful, with chickens eating on the side of the house and everything. All of a sudden, this hawk swoops down and eats this chicken right in front of me and then fly’s away. ( this last week I saw a cartoon drawing of the same thing in a children’s school book, so it must be an everyday occurrence. )
5:The people here wear very “traditional” clothes sometimes which, as one of the elders in my apartments says, “this just proves that they didn’t come from Adam and Eve, because the obviously haven’t partaken of the fruit and seen their nakedness”
6: We will be teaching lessons to ladies and their babies will start to cry. They will just start to breast feed them, without covering up in front of us. As you night guess its very hard to teach when this happens, but I’ve gotten more used to it.
7: they have “KEEP GHANA CLEAN” signs all over, but for some reasons these seem to be the places that collect the most trash.
8: All of the gas trucks have big letters on the back that state “highly inflammable” I still haven’t figured out if that makes sense or not .
9:It is very common for the gas stations to be out of gas.
10: One of the elders in the apartment just told me this story. Ill try to make it sound as good as he did. There are a lot of bums on the streets here that follow some of the missionaries around. He and his companion found this bum that he knew in the ditch on the side of the road one night, with this big chunk taken out of his leg. He was dead. They whent and told the town chief who was a member, and he told them that he would take care of it and for them not to get involved, because it might make the church look bad. The next day they were climbing into a tro-tro to got to town, and another one of the elders started to scream that the dead bum (who was still in the ditch) was moving. Come to find out he had just been sleeping in the ditch and they just thought that he was dead.
It is soooooooooo cool here. Its just one big adventure. There haven’t been to many animals, besides bug. There was this big iguana that the security guard at the mtc killed in our parking lot though. That was cool. I’ve started to get used to the food, but because the people here are so pour, members will actually run away when we come around, because they think that they have to feed us. Pres. Sabey has come out with a rule that we are not allowed to have any free meals unless there is an investigator present, and now the people don’t run away from us, because they know we don’t want food. This means that I don’t have to eat their food, but cook my own. That is both good and bad. My times up Ive got to go, love you lots
Elder Russell
New letters
What a slacker of a sister I am-- don't tell Elder Russell. We just moved in to a new apartment that doesn't have internet, so I'm slow putting the most recent letters up. Here they are!! Enjoy!! :
Hey guys,
So before I forget happy birthday to both Nate and Carly. Sorry that I was not able to write to you sooner. I need lots of mail so that I can be happy. The happier that I am the more effective I am as a missionary. So the choice is yours, either you can choose eternal life for the people of Ghana through me, or eternal damnation. (2Nephi 2:27) Anyways, Africa is great, Ive been out in my area for about a week and a half now. I tried writing you an email, but I guess it never whent through. My companions name is Elder Whaikawa. He is from New Zealand, and is amazing. This is his last transfer though, so he only has a bout a month left befor he goes home. Im serving in the Mpintsin area, which consits of two tinny villages that are about a 30 min walk from our appartment. The people here are very humble, and so far we have had quite a lot of suckess with the work. The main food here is called fufu, which is like taking casava, or potatoes and pounding it with a long stick until it becomes a dough, then you add in some mashed plantain and then mash it some more. You eat it raw with a soup that usually has some kind of fish in it. You eat it and the soup with your hands. They say that the first few times that you eat it you hate it and then you love it and you always whant it. Ive had it three times and still don’t really like it. Ghana is most deffinatly the jungle, and very hot. It is also very dirty and there is a lot of garbage here. One of the missionaries was telling me that Ghana is the second most dirty country in Africa, and I would believe it if they told me it was the second most dirty in the world. I love the people here though. They are all so nice and frienly. Everyone that I pass yells out to me and my comapnion, “Abrooni, how are you?” Which means, white guy, how are you? Its really kinda funny. Some of the kids in the ward asked were I was from and I told them the moon, and their eyes just got big. It was really funny.Well Im out of time. Please remember to write.Love Elder Russell
P.S. I don’t know Jons, or grandma and grandpa skousons e-mail address, and Im not sure if grandma russells is right.
So before I forget happy birthday to both Nate and Carly. Sorry that I was not able to write to you sooner. I need lots of mail so that I can be happy. The happier that I am the more effective I am as a missionary. So the choice is yours, either you can choose eternal life for the people of Ghana through me, or eternal damnation. (2Nephi 2:27) Anyways, Africa is great, Ive been out in my area for about a week and a half now. I tried writing you an email, but I guess it never whent through. My companions name is Elder Whaikawa. He is from New Zealand, and is amazing. This is his last transfer though, so he only has a bout a month left befor he goes home. Im serving in the Mpintsin area, which consits of two tinny villages that are about a 30 min walk from our appartment. The people here are very humble, and so far we have had quite a lot of suckess with the work. The main food here is called fufu, which is like taking casava, or potatoes and pounding it with a long stick until it becomes a dough, then you add in some mashed plantain and then mash it some more. You eat it raw with a soup that usually has some kind of fish in it. You eat it and the soup with your hands. They say that the first few times that you eat it you hate it and then you love it and you always whant it. Ive had it three times and still don’t really like it. Ghana is most deffinatly the jungle, and very hot. It is also very dirty and there is a lot of garbage here. One of the missionaries was telling me that Ghana is the second most dirty country in Africa, and I would believe it if they told me it was the second most dirty in the world. I love the people here though. They are all so nice and frienly. Everyone that I pass yells out to me and my comapnion, “Abrooni, how are you?” Which means, white guy, how are you? Its really kinda funny. Some of the kids in the ward asked were I was from and I told them the moon, and their eyes just got big. It was really funny.Well Im out of time. Please remember to write.Love Elder Russell
P.S. I don’t know Jons, or grandma and grandpa skousons e-mail address, and Im not sure if grandma russells is right.
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