Best week yet!

Hello Family!

Thank you so much for your wonderful emails, advice, support, and spiritual thoughts! They help me be rejuvenated for the next week! Something i found is that days are pretty long, but holy fetch weeks go by fast!

 I learned more this week than any other time in my mission so far! On Tuesday when my companion was training me he said something that was very bold and hurt a little, but it changed my whole view on my mission. He said "Companion (African Elders always call their companions that instead of "Elder") there is something that you haven't realized. That is, that you are a servant of the lord. You have to start being serious. No more just going by, you aren't a boy anymore, that ended when you came on a mission. Now you are a man, and need to start acting like one."

So when he told me this I was hurt at first, but everything changed after he said that. I really was serious when I was teaching and when I did role plays.  I listened more to my investigators, and finally realized that I am called by God to represent Christ.

This realization affected my whole week for the better. I stopped being shy around people! One day we got 6 new investigators because we just went out to find people! Also something that was very exciting for me was that 7 of our investigators came to church! seven! We invited 15, but still! Austin you are right that getting people to church brings joy! It makes you feel that your whole week payed off. Also one of the first investigators I met (His name is Obed) came for his third time yesterday and is getting baptized by me this week! He's the one in the picture! Obed is one of the most humblest people I know! He says that he loves the Book of Mormon so much and reads it before work and after work before bed! He is such a great guy and I am honored to be the one to baptize him! I will send you pictures of us in the baptismal clothes next week.

Mom guessed it, we did do the Mormon Helping Hands service project on Saturday! We all wore vests and went to the beach to clean up garbage or "rubbish" as people call it here. Basically what we did was gathered like 25 bags full of garbage into a pile and burned it. Woot! While the rubbish was burning we went farther down the beach where we went last week. One thing that was very interesting to me about the fisherman is that they take a fishing net attached to a rope  2 miles out into the ocean. Then have lots of people pull on the rope all day until it comes to shore full of fish. So when we went up to the beach we saw these fisherman and people pulling on the ropes. So about half of us decided to help them pull. It was fun to see the people's faces as a white man came to help pull. Some of the people were scared that I hurt my hands because they turned red, but I just had to tell them "It's normal, it's normal!" :) what an adventure! That is me pulling on the rope in the second picture.

So a funny thing that happened this week was that we were waiting for an investigator to come in her house so I kind of laid back and closed my eyes. I didn't think it was possible to be tired all the time! Basically what happened is I fell asleep right before she came, and my companion just let me sleep while he taught! How embarrassing!

Another funny thing is that I have been pretty good at learning phrases in 2 local languages (Twi and Ga) mostly just greetings but people are really surprised that can say them haha. So one time we were teaching an investigator who sells drinks, and so a drink truck came up and was restocking the shop. One man in the back of the truck said "Hey Brofonu! How are you?" (brofonu means white man in Ga) So i said "I'm fine! Toyoteh!(which means how are you)" then he said "I'm fine!" not realizing I said it in Ga. Then he realized and said "Queh!!" which is what people say when they are surprised, so it's just fun to surprise people. :)

Sometimes I just think about random things and I just bust out laughing! I thought about Me and Redge's recording where he says "I'm Phil!" and I laughed so hard. Or I just think of movies like it's a wonderful life when Mary's mom is shocked about them kissing and runs off. Little things like that :)

Culture Fact: Africans use their middle fingers to point. This was kind of weird to me at first but I just learned to accept it and move on, same with the other culture shocks.

Questions answered:

Dad:  in that one picture of my ward, he isn't on stilts he is just really tall.

Redge: Yeah I send emails in a cafe, there’s a generator outside running right now so that there's power. Thanks for the advice about uploading photos!

Austin: People don't really use slang unless it is in their own language. But some say Queh or English swear words... but yeah maybe I will learn more as time goes by.

Great Cherokee costumes Dylan and Nat!

By the way the other picture is me about to cook some Idomen or Ramen. They have such huge packs here!

I love you family! Thanks for everything! Hope this week is better for you! I am getting better and better every day! Here's a scripture I found! 3 Nephi:28 9-10

Have a great week!

-Elder Ballard