Arrival in Bo and Njaie Town

Hey parents!

The attached picture is of Elder Priddis (my companion) and me at the cafe where I now compose this email. I tried adding others, but the net here is insufferably slow.

So, plot development. Ready? Here we go:

I left on the 23rd for Salone (Sierra Leone). I went very much alone, and that was pretty nerve-wracking. It wasn't like I was going from an American airport to an African one; it was an African port both ways. Lucky for me, I ran into the LDS building coordinator for the West Africa region, and he was on my same flight. He was a BIG help indeed! God has blessed me with many angels since I’ve left home.

I landed at the Lungi International Airport, and it was like something out of a freak horror movie. The entire place was absolutely dilapidated, yet thronged with masses of people. Seriously, look up pics. You’ll know what I mean. I made my way to where I could get a water taxi ticket, and got on a bus which took me down to it. There I stood on a beautiful beach until they were loaded and ready for the hour-long trip into Freetown. It dawned on me then just how stinkin’ far off the map I was!

I landed at government wharf, where Elders Hickey and Grabou were waiting for me with President Roggia. Uh, best people ever?? They are truly amazing men. We drove back to the mission home (by the way, I’d never advise you to drive here. It is true madness) where we had dinner with Sister Roggia and put away my suit. It was SO nice to disrobe of that thing for the last time! We took care of some business, had pleasant conversations, a brief testimony meeting, and then I left with the Assistants to their apartment for the longest night I’ve ever had here. It's SO loud in Freetown, but it's stunningly gorgeous. At night, the entire city is lit up all along the mountain sides, and it looks like something out of a bizarre dream. Heck, everything here has been a bizarre dream.

The next morning, I prepared for the 4-hour drive to Bo, to finally join with my companion and trainer! I was sad to leave the assistants, as I was truly impressed with their powerful spirits, but I was at ease. Elder Grabou described my companion as 'a cowboy from Wyoming with a big heart.' Needless to say, I was excited. Oh, and at this point, I met Elder Laneri, who is an Aggie, by the way. Elder Vogl is another one too. Most every other American is a cougar though. Tis a shame.

We drove forever to get to Bo. I'm serving in a place called Njaie Town (pronounced 'Jai'). When we at last got there, I was greeted by my trainer, Elder Priddis. He truly is the best. I love him so much! He teaches with such boldness and love, it's astounding. His love of the people is just so inspiring to me. I hope someday be like him. He can speak Krio too, which is nice. EVERYONE speaks it here, except for me. I can understand it, but I can't speak it yet! It's so insane...

We live in a cement house with another companionship, comprised of Elders Allred and Chikwendu. Elder Allred is from Utah, and went to the Y (I know, ick) and Elder Chikwendu is from Ghana. Pretty much all of the Elders here are either American or Ghanaian. We DO in fact have running water (sometimes). It went out today, so we were back to bathing out of buckets, electricity (but not for long, the dry season is upon us), and a toilet (that's probably the only thing I have no complaints about. Thank the stars...). Our apartment is one of the nicest in the mission, because we have luxurious tile flooring. It's awesome. I'm going to attempt to attach some pics.

So, the food: It's generally good. It is pretty much all rice, as was anticipated, but with different sauces. Breakfast is usually white rice with spam and onions in a red sauce. Breakfast of champions, my friends. We had a couple dinners at member’s homes so far, and they weren't bad. EVERYTHING is spicy (like, A LOT). Casava is pretty good, but Elder Allred hates it. I looks like a cow pie on rice. The okra sauce wasn't bad either, it's all just a mess to eat. Thank heavens for that bandana Helen and Heather sent me off with. Seriously, I use it ALL THE TIME.

There's this restaurant named "Sab's", where we go on special occasions to celebrate with some American-ish food. It's as close as it gets around here... But we love it so much. Its air conditioned, and the food is SO good. They even have ice cream!

Now for the people: They are wonderful and lovely! The children flock to Elder Priddis and I in the streets shouting "Abato! Abato! White Man! White Man!" and grasp our fingers as we pass by. We're celebrities around here. EVERYONE loves the white guys. I'm "fine past [Elder Priddis,]" most of them say (i.e. I'm hot stuff past Elder Priddis) He says that'll change as I get darker. I get stared at 24-7 here, but not in a bad way. Just in intrigue. There are NO white people here besides the missionaries.

The work is booming here. Last week, we had 3 baptisms (no, these don't count for me. From here on out). This month, we're looking at another 11. We spend all day hiking through the jungle brush from house to house, teaching all day, roughly 30-40 lessons a week. Then, we get home by 7ish. It's too dark to teach after that, plus the mosquitoes are out, and we have to lock up shop "I am Legend" style so the flesh-eating monsters don't get us. Seriously, I’ve seen some insane bugs here. Most are tiny (oh my gosh, the ants are EVERYWHERE), but occasionally we'll see a spider that's almost 5" across. They're BIG.

Oh, count your blessings. Washing machines don't exist around here, so it's all by hand. I swear, washing so many clothes by hand is like slitting your wrists and doing push ups in salt water. My knuckles are raw and bleeding, and the bleach/detergent just STINGS. But, it's all good. I love it here so much!!!

Josh, watch out. The other American elders here have history in their families of going to strange missions. Elder Priddis' brothers/sisters served ALL OVER THE WORLD. Elder Allred's twin brothers went to South Africa. Josh, you might be next! Or, you could end up in Texas. We'll see.

Until next time, I send my love and gratitude for you. I wouldn't be here without your support. Don't worry for me, Elder Priddis is the best. He takes great care of me.

Oh, speaking of worrying, I figured I should tell you so you don't find out from someone else: Our main mode of transportation around here is motorcycle taxi. Yeah, legit right?? Just pay the man 1000 Le (about 24 cents) and off you go! Cars don't get around here, and we serve in a big area. Seriously, don't worry; God is taking care of us. I see his hand every day guiding us. When we need something, we ask in perfect faith, and He delivers.

I love you my dear family! I'm really losing myself out here. It’s AMAZING. Until next time, my love to you, and all others back home.

Love,

Elder Chris Vaughan

PS: Dad, if you feel like sending me something, ten submersible FloraLytes with extra batteries would be AWESOME. Electricity is sketch at best, and it's so had to see after dark. My flashlight has weird exotic batteries I won't be able to replace out here. The packages I've seen here have been sent in USPS flat rate boxes. Perhaps it’s the way to go. Thanks, and good luck on this beautiful Cyber Monday!

First Assignment: Bo, Sierra Leone

We received word via the Mission President's blog that Elder Vaughan's first assignment is in Bo, Sierra Leone about 235 KM Southeast of Freetown.

Arrival in Sierra Leone

Sister Roggia posted on her blog (http://www.sierraleonefreetownmission.blogspot.com/) today that Elder Gunderson went home to St. George and Elder Vaughan arrived in Freetown. We are happy to know he made it there safely!

Last Letter From Ghana MTC

(We finally received this last hand written letter via snail mail December 2nd, from Elder Vaughan before he left from the Ghana MTC.)

November 21, 2010

Hello Family!

Time for another condensed letter! I know that I will remember things as I write, so I'm planning accordingly. I finally got letters from home on Friday! Sister Froerer handed me a big stack of DearElder.com letters right before I went into the temple! I had begun to forget about home, and that I would even receive letters. Needless to say, it's been busy around here.

Mom, you asked about the temple here. It's BEAUTIFUL! It is a very small temple, but the celestial room and, well, pretty much every room was a spectacle! It made me miss home a lot. Sure, a temple is a temple, and the ordinances therein are universal, but "there's no place like home." Most of the missionaries had never been before, so they all got to go through for the first time last week, and Friday we did all of the different proxies.

Driving back from the temple I saw one of the most incredible things I've ever witnessed. In the main streets of Accra, there are huge trees in the middle of the streets, FULL of huge fruit bats! There were HUNDREDS of them in each tree, swarming all over the place! It was so beautiful. Apparently they're major pests around here that they can't get rid of. I was sure to take pictures. I guess sewer rats are to NYC as fruit bats are too Accra!

Dad, your letter really cracked me up. Man, I could really go for a giant sandwich right now! You have no idea how badly I miss cheese right now. Priority #1 when I get home will be watching movies I missed while I was here, whilst eating a brick of Tillamook cheese and an entire bucket of strawberry gelato. Oh, Mom's beef stroganoff too. Yeeaaahhh... Everything we eat here is some variation of rice, yams (not like any yams you've had, they have no flavor) beans, or spaghetti (yes, spaghetti) in some sort of red sauce. You should have mailed that sandwich to me!

Well, we went proselyting in a community here in Tema yesterday. I thought I was adjusting well to the culture but boy was I in for a shock. The Malden's were right. You don't' know anything. I can't possibly describe the state in which these people live. Sure, there are many who make decent livings here, but the people in the community slums have NOTHING. Chickens and goats wander the streets amongst the people. The gutters (which are 2 - 3 feet deep into the ground) are constantly trickling a pallid green slurry of garbage and human waste, and the air is permeated with the odor of excrement, rotten fish, and exhaust.

Many of the "houses" are nothing more than sections of old freight train cars. There are shops all along the street, which are little more than lop-sided wooden shacks. Dilapidated cars can frequently be found in alleyways. I stepped out of the van into a bizarre and lucid dream amongst the rubble strewn streets and fetid aroma, that for the people here is an ever-present nightmare. It made my heart tear. In my mind, I thought of all the mortal ways that a place like that could be mended, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized that this situation is impossible to fix by any mortal means.

In spite of all the affliction, the people are WONDERFUL! They are so kind and gentle-hearted. They love to talk to complete strangers, and are extremely friendly. The children are the most beautiful though. Elder Momodu and I saw a group of them playing with the innards of a dismantled video tape. They were running around with the tape trailing behind them in the wind like streamers. They smiled so big and started giggling as I passed by. I get a lot of attention as a shell-shocked white man here.

Well, I'm leaving for Sierra Leone (or "Salone") Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. First to arrive, first to leave. And I'm going alone. Eh, I guess that fits the bill just fine. I can't wait to get there and start learning from my senior companion. I feel like such a spiritual infant whenever I try to teach someone. It's definitely a lot of work. Well, until next time, this is me signing off from Ghana for the last time.

Jesse, be a good boy and obey mom for me, and give her a foot massage once a week. Josh, thanks for eating my Special K cereal. I would have cried if that had gone to waste. Dad, I miss going to work with you. Like, A LOT. I'm determined to come home and study business so I can return and help the family business, if you'll take me back. Mom, I miss you like a fat kid misses cake. I miss being able to talk to and depend on you. I love you and the entire family so much! Thank you for the story about Jonathan Harriman Hale. I'm so grateful for our family history, because it's rare for anyone here to know anyone past their grandparents.

I love you love you love you! I pray for my family and friends twice a day. I look forward to seeing you all again.

Love

Elder Christopher Vaughan

Remember Alma 17:2-3, 10

Now these sons of Mosiah were with Alma at the time the angel first appeared unto him; therefore Alma did rejoice exceedingly to see his brethren; and what added more to his joy, they were still his brethren in the Lord; yea, and they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God. UAdd a Note

But this is not all; they had given themselves to much prayer, and fasting; therefore they had the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit of revelation, and when they taught, they taught with power and authority of God.

And it came to pass that the Lord did visit them with his Spirit, and said unto them: Be comforted. And they were comforted.

One Week Left in the Ghana MTC

We have not yet received any letters from Elder Vaughan. As soon as we do, we will post it here. In the meantime, you might be interested to see the mission president's blog where Christopher is mentioned by name regarding his arrival in Sierra Leone next week.

Second Letter Home from Ghana MTC

(Even though he is no longer in the Ghana MTC, we received this hand-written letter on Friday, November 26th from Elder Vaughan at the Ghana MTC dated November 14th. As you can see, it takes about 10 days for a letter to get here using the church's pouch mailing service from Ghana.)

Hello Family!

I'm going to write tiny and condensed so I can tell you of all the wonders here in Africa! But first, I have some thanks to give. Tell Helen and Heather that I am extremely grateful for the bandanna they sent me off with! I use it every day, and it's a nice piece of America. Also, please thank Sister Southworth for her Lullaby album. It's officially my favorite music to listen to here! It's absolutely lovely. Mom, thanks for making me take all of those extra things I didn't think I needed. That Tide-to-go pen sure got its use when I dropped a yam into my tomato sauce and splattered my whole shirt (but not my tie!) in red. I use the hand sanitizer every day before meals, and it was a great blessing when the water was in disrepair.

Thanks again to Helen and Heather for the candy. The Africans here had never heard of any of it, so I shared it all away. They loved it! Same with the Crystal Light drink mix packets. Apparently they don't have anything like that here. Thanks for the MP3 player and speakers. Elder Abbey is the only other Elder with a music player, but even then he does not have speakers for it. I and everyone here LOVE music! I think the best things you sent me off with though are the little hand-written notes you hid in all my books. I cherish them so much! In a place so completely foreign, a little piece of home brings so much joy.

Well, every day is an adventure here! I definitely had one of the NASTIEST foods in my life a few days ago. I can't remember what they call it, but it was basically a huge ball of bread dough mixed with ground cassava and smothered in a sticky red sauce (everyone ate this with their hands). Everything comes in a red sauce by the way. It tasted rather horrible, like a ball of dough in red sauce. The fried chicken here is fantastic though. I shall never eat KFC again. Do you remember the days when you would tell me to finish my food because there were starving children in Africa? Yeah, well I've discovered that people who starve in Africa do so because the Africans who are eating eat like three pounds of rice/beans/pasta every meal!! Their appetites are frightening.

I really like the people here though. Whenever people greet here, they give a firm handshake and use each others middle fingers to snap. It's pretty dang awesome. They also have some pretty awesome word usages. For example, they can't say “ask,” and it always comes out “axe.” Or they will say, “I so much love/hate...” something. The best one though is the word “somehow” which they use as a response to a question, indicating partial agreement or understanding. For example, “Are you prepared to teach tomorrow?” “Eh, somehow,” meaning that they might need to prepare more. I've also discovered I'm pretty good at playing football (yes, soccer) barefoot. That's how most do it around here, barefoot or in flip flops (which I am very much grateful for).

Spiritually speaking, things are very good here. Brother Gardiner, a returned missionary who served here in the Ghana Accra mission taught us about asking inspired questions. He basically pushed us into a situation where we were required to receive spiritually inspired questions to ask our investigators. It was very powerful to really begin handling the Lord's power of personal revelation like that. There are so many things that build great faith. Just like my setting-apart blessing said, there has been no room for fear in my mission. I am unafraid. I just miss my home, family and friends so much.

I've given up so much to be here. The root meaning of “sacrifice” comes from “sacri” and “facere,” which together mean “to make sacred.” You, my family, my dear friends are sacred now to me. It makes life very hard here, now that Thanksgiving is on Friday because you won't likely get this letter until after it's happened. I'll wish you a happy Thanksgiving now! I love you all so very very much and miss you like a flower misses the sun. I'm so very grateful for my family and all that you've done to support me. They say that you find what you love most when you've lost it, and it's definitely true. I don't miss any luxuries of life (except Warhammer, I'll always miss that), or any “thing” that I thought made me happy. I miss my family and friends, as they are who make me most happy. They, the Africans, don't know what Thanksgiving is. Truth be told, Thanksgiving will be the hardest day for me. Nothing says Thanksgiving around here like “dough-balls” do... Well, it's time for me to wrap up. I have yet to hear anything from anyone. Oh, and send Hil's address to me please? Thanks so much! I love you, my family and dearest friends, from here and into the next life.

Remember God, for he never forgets his sheep. I pray for you always.

Love,

Elder Chris Vaughan

P.S. I'll send pictures as soon as I have more! The Lord's errand has a way of keeping me occupied. Oh, and I'm one of the better soccer players here. Thanks Dad!

First Letter Home From Ghana MTC

(From a hand-written letter dated Sunday November 7th, 2010, received, Friday, November 19th)

November 7, 2010

Hallo Family!

Greetings from Africa! I don't know where to start, there is so much to say! Well, as far as the place goes, I am in Tema, Ghana, and it's about a billion (86) degrees here! It is very lovely though, very much like Hawaii. The thunderstorms are rather awesome too. No cool animals of which to speak yet, except for the lizards that sunbathe around the planters. The last group saw an alligator (fingers crossed).

The living conditions aren't bad at all. It's a fairly standard dorm setup with a nice view of the MTC football field (yes,"real" football). All the classrooms are air conditioned, but our rooms just have an oscillating fan to try and beat the heat. It's not bad at all here, except at night when it stays just as hot as mid-day. Oh, and the water pumps are in disrepair here, so we have to haul buckets upstairs to bathe out of until they are fixed.

The food here is pretty awesome. I think my favorite has to be the "pancakes" we had for breakfast yesterday. They tasted like spongy crepes without the fruit. We also have a lot of porridge (one looked like gravy, which was weird), and this horrible ovaltine-esque hot chocolate (it takes 3 scoops of sugar to be drinkable. Everyone here LOVES sugar). There's lots of chicken and rice, which I like, but I don't know if I'll ever get used to watching my companion eat the chicken bones. Ew. They crunch so loud...Nasty!

So, as far as people go, there are only 21 missionaries here (19 elders and 2 sisters). Everyone here just calls me "Elda" (because they can't say the "-er" very well) "Vone", "Vog-han", or "Vogue". I don't really mind, it makes me feel like Elder Groberg. Elder Amoh just calls me "White Guy" because I'm the only American here. Talk about insane! The lunch lady calls me "Bologna", because apparently that's slang for "white" here. My companion is Elder Momodu (pronounced "Mum-oh-due") and he's from Sierra Leone. I'm just getting to know him, but he seems like a great guy. I've become pretty good friends with Elder Amoh (Ah-moe) and Nkonu (Nick-oh-new). They enjoyed trying my bizarre American candy and beef jerky. They've never had that kind of stuff!

So, yesterday all of the African elders (so, everyone but me) got immunizations, and I helped. It was very interesting, because most of them had never had a vaccination before! And today, we taught them how to do family history for the first time. These people are just SO different! As I write here, my room is getting swarmed. They love my American food, and they think my American toiletries smell amazing. Elder Amoh got a hold of my photo album and he keeps saying he's my in-law (watch out Hil!) I've got like 8 Africans in here. You should have seen what happened when I pulled out a pack of gum to share! It's ridiculous! I'm so glad I have so much stuff to share! At first I thought I'd feel like a pompous American with all this stuff, but they love it!

Well, we're going to the temple next week, and I can't wait! I miss the temple so much... So many elders here have never been to one. It's a very special thing for them. They marvel that I'm "close" to four temples.

Well, I must go now. Know that I love you all so much, and that I am growing so much here! Thank you for the wonderful notes too. :) I love you love you love you all, and miss you like a flower misses the sun!

Elda Vaughan

"Eef Yooh tink goood, yooh leeve goood."
(If you think good, you live good.)
Elda Amoh

Arrival at the Ghana MTC in Tema

Christopher's flight into Accra Ghana arrived safely today. Due to some last minute changes by the church travel office, Christopher departed for Africa a day earlier than anticipated. The President of the Ghana Missionary Training Center (MTC) had Chris call home to let us know of his safe arrival. He sounded tired, understandably, after 29 hours with little or no sleep.

Regarding his arrival in Ghana, Christopher reported that he followed the strict instructions he was given to stay put at the airport and not accept any help with his luggage until someone from the MTC arrived to pick him up. He said he was swarmed by people trying to help him, but he resisted. Several individuals shouted, "Elder! Elder! Come stand here! This is where the missionaries wait for their ride." Christopher went to that spot and waited, and waited, and waited...for two and a half hours!

Christopher's Mom asked him on the phone about his patience to which he replied, "I guess I have a loose interpretation of patience." He also remarked that the movie, "The Other Side of Heaven" helped to prepare him for this situation. (If you've seen the movie you will recall how long that Elder had to wait for his ride to show up.) Finally, a kind person let Christopher use their cell phone to call the MTC. The MTC president was surprised to hear from him, thinking that he was arriving the following day. Apparently Christopher's itinerary from the church travel office did not get to the MTC before he did.

When asked about what Accra Ghana was like, he simply stated that he would not try to describe it for fear of upsetting his mother. Adding to his intriguing response, Christopher said that he knew that angels were protecting him as promised in the blessing he received by his stake president the night of his departure.

In the MTC, Christopher is currently the only missionary who is not from Africa. His companion, interestingly is from Sierra Leone and will be going to another country in Africa after his training. In three short weeks, Christopher will be finished with his training and will once again set out alone as he travels to Freetown, Sierra Leone while his African comrades will head to other countries on the continent.

Setting Off on His Own

Last night, Tuesday, November 2nd, Christopher was set apart as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This morning, at 2:30 am our family took Christopher to the airport, where he left for Africa. Christopher will be serving in the Sierra Leone Freetown Mission for two years. He will be spending the next three weeks in the Ghana MTC for training and then he will be on his way to Sierra Leone. He will also be serving in Liberia. He was in good spirits this morning and excited to be in Africa, even though he would be traveling the entire way on his own. As I write he is still in the air, somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean. He will be in Ghana in about 5 hours. We already miss him, but we are so proud of him and his willingness to serve.

This picture is the last one we have of Chris, taken just before he went through airport security. Once he was through the security checkpoint he turned back, gave us a big smile, waved and mouthed, "I love you."

We do not know when we will hear from him next, but we will share his letters with you here on this blog. Thank you to all of you who have been a great support to us and to Christopher.

-Jeff & Deanna

That all may know...

... why I'm going to Africa. (Written by Christopher)

1. There are some things in life that are bigger than you. Sometimes it's literal, and sometimes it's figurative. Literally speaking, dragons are BIG. Much bigger than me, anyways. Figuratively (or perhaps spiritually) speaking, dragons are big. At least mine are. Can you imagine having to slay a dragon? Well, I can pretty easily. I fight every day to do so. Every day I'm not serving the Lord in Africa, I feel like I'm eating a bag of spiritual potato chips. Sure, I'm enjoying the greasy life of luxury, but I'm not the fit champion I need to be to slay my challenges in life. I NEED to go on my mission, that I can become who the Lord wants me to be, and that I may have the strength to slay my dragons.

2. The chicks dig it. I mean, really, what is more appealing to a lovely young woman than a strong, tan, emotional man? A man who knows God, that's what. Going on this mission will not only make me the person I want to be, but it will make me the man my future woman wants me to be. I'll be stronger, more mature, and capable of bearing trials in all patience. More importantly, I'll be able to sustain her in all spiritual matters.

3. The people in Africa need me. Well, no they don't. They need God, and I can introduce them. They've suffered innumerable insufferable tribulations in Sierra Leone and Liberia. Many have lost limb, life, and loved ones to horrid wars and contentions. Can money fix this? Don't be silly. Sure, you can buy prosthetics, buy homes, rebuild and reconstruct a devastated society. But can money mend a broken heart? Can it bring families back together? Can it inspire, give hope, and bring love to a people who so desperately need it? No. It simply can't. That's my job, to teach the good word of God to those who don't know him, and teach them to live in a way that can bring them joy forever. In doing so, they will be a restored people in a way that transcends anything else.

These people are in need. I know that my mission is divinely appointed, and that God had me in mind to help these people. There is something about me that allows me to love and teach them in a way that nobody else can. This is my mission, and my purpose, and I wouldn't have it any other way.