August 15, 2011

Mana akory fianakaviako!
Madagascar's amazing!! The people are the nicest people ever. You can
say hi to every person you go by(and that's a lot) and they'll start a
conversation with you. Everythings great. The language is coming, I'm
starting to think in Malagasy a bit. My companion is a native who
knows a little bit of English, but he's great. His name is Elder
Rakotoniaina. Oh, and since the language is coming now, I thinking the
hardest thing is names. I can't seem to say them right or hear them
right. It's pretty funny.
Here's what I wrote Brock about my experience so far in
Madagascar(sorry about the first part haha):

Thanks for the analogy though. They don't have printers here so I had
to write it down in my planner haha. And along with not having
printers, they don't have toilet paper very often. I say that because
while I was reading your email, I had to go use the bathroom (number
2) so I had to ask the old guy sitting outside the bathroom if there
existed any paper and he had his daughter run and get me the newspaper
haha! It was interesting because my companion wasn't with me so thank
goodness I was able to ask in Malagasy ha.
So the language is starting to come a little bit. I'm starting to
think words in Malagasy first instead of English. My companion's a
Malagasy native. He's way nice and way good at helping me along and at
helping me understand how Malagasy's think. On Sunday, they had me and
one other new elder come up and bear testimony(and the other elder was
Malagasy too so it was easy for him), I didn't even know how to
say,"and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ amen" ha. But I
had the other elder of the companion of the other new native, who's
vaza also write it down for me on paper ha. It went pretty well though
I think. We had 16 investigators at church on Sunday, The Sunday
before we had 29. I commited I think 5 investigators to baptism within
the last 3 days. The work is so amazing here. Everyones ready to
accept the gospel and they're all wayyyyyyyyyyyyy friendly. We can say
hey to every person that we walk by and they'll start a conversation
with us. It's awesome. It's gonna take a little bit to get used to the
food though. The other night after a lesson with an investigator they
fed us rice and loaka(the topping that they put on the rice) its
usually like some kind of meat and some vegatables. And that's what we
have every meal of the day besides breakfast because we make that
ourselves. But for that meal, the loaka was pieces of fish, shrimp,
and the fish head with the eyeballs and all. I was able to eat the
fish and the shrimp, but there was no way I was gonna eat that fish's
eyeball and head haha. Maybe later on I'll be able to.
And now it's me again:
so that's what's happened so far since I've been here.
I got my bags the day before I left to come to my area. So that worked
out. And the other two made it here safely. And I was able to get on
the plane without layering my clothes haha.
The trip from Antananarivo to here was 9 hours on a taxibe. Which is a
van that they shove 15 people into; including me, which was
interesting haha. But on the ride I was able to share my Malagasy Book Of Mormon
with a few different people and let them use it, while I read my
English BOM. And I gave a pamphlet to a sister on the bus as well. And
she just happened to be a nun haha. Anyways, everythings going well
here. I almost got to baptise someone on my first day here, but he had
to go take a test so I'll be able to baptise him on Saturday. This
missions amazing. It's the 2nd highest baptising country in the world
for the chruch. Our goal as a mission of 60 elders is 2011 baptisms by
the end of the year. Pretty crazy, but doable here.
And that's not good to here about ----. I'll pray for him. Is he gonna
be ok? And I can testify that trials make you stronger for sure. I got
this in the email from my teacher in the MTC today:
"Joy is an emotion of the spirit. It comes through righteous living.
Joy is not stranger to pain: "Having no joy, for they knew no misery"
(2 Nephi 2:23)."
Trials are hard, but they only prepare us to have greater joy.
And that's awesome to hear about Britt. Tell her to keep up the hard
work, and that I love her! :) And tell Brenton, congrats on being a
college graduate and that I love him too!
Well, I need to go.
I love you all!
Love,
Eldera Waters(Ranoralava)
God be with you till we meet again