Josh Kelley is going to MOZAMBIQUE?? Wow. That's SWEET. That's the first person I know from home that's going to Africa! WOO HOO!! I'm so happy for him! It's funny that you mention foriegn missions running within siblings. Elder Allred is one example, where he and all his brothers served in Africa, and one in Japan. It's crazy. I hope Josh gets to come here. He'd love it.
Also, regarding all of those guys from Washington that are going to Brazil??? That's INSANE!! I'm so glad I'm here in Africa. You know me, I'm not one to follow the crowd. I still think it would have been amazing to serve in Japan, or somewhere else in Asia or the Pacific, but this is my place. I really like it now, and I really like the peers I'm with here. If I had followed my peers, then I would have missed out on this chance that I have to meet new people that I now love so much.
Not sure about the mail strike. I suppose I'll find out this week when I go to Freetown for our conference with Elder Dickson. Mail rarely comes out here to Bo anyways, so don't stress that I haven't received anything yet. This week I'll get more info.
So, you asked about women in Salone society: A man's property. Literally. When a man wants to marry someone, they have to pay a dowry on them, which establishes a "traditional marriage" (in Krio they call it "tying kola"). Basically, you buy your bride. They are second to men, and are to obey their every command without question. While love CAN exist in marriage here, it often leaves. And when it does, they split, just like that. Traditional marriages are just as easy to end as they are to start. Women (along with the children) are often abused and beaten when they don't submit properly.
The role of a woman here is to cook and clean. That's pretty much it. Every day the man comes home expecting his rice to be ready. Most of the time, the family will have already eaten and have saved some for the man. When a family eats together, they usually eat out of a huge dish together, all using their hands. They offer guests (like us) spoons to eat with. So, my companions and I have always shared bowls and drinking cups. It's just how it's done out here.
The role of the family is highly variable. Often, it's simply to provide a place to stay. Rearing and teaching children is not so common. Children are even below women, and must do everything as their parents instruct, for fear of being beaten.
Elder Lancaster and I had the opportunity to intervene with a beating that was going on yesterday. We were approaching the home of a man who has been investigating the church, only to see him beating the crap out of his kid with a "cane" (stick). I ran up to him and snatched the cane out of his hand, and there was nothing for us to say about it. Rather than the lesson we were going to have, we taught him how he should punish his kids, rather than beat the tar out of them. I made him break the cane. It was a very... ugh, just not a fun lesson. He's been taught by missionaries since this mission opened, but he's never come to church. I don't enjoy teaching him, but we can't drop anyone. Did Christ ever drop any of us?
Anyways, glad all is well (if not real cold) at home. I'm so happy to hear about all these mission calls! I'm going to get home and nobody will be there! I'm pleased with that.
Oh, I just finished filling up a 2GB camera card (I know, not very much, but it's hard to snap pics here! It attracts TONS of attention!). I'm going to transfer everything to one of my thumb drives, and send the card home in the next few weeks via pouch. Elder Lancaster told me that Elder Moss in Liberia has successfully done so, so I shall try likewise. There are a few videos on there I'm sure you'll enjoy. I took one ninja-esque video of a man dancing on his veranda to some tribal music across the street from the church. It's priceless.
Thanks for the recipes you've sent! If you want to eat a butterpear (avacado) Salone style, mash it and pour sugar on it. I have yet to try it, but they say it's tasty. They also say papaya is tasty, but I think most of the time it's just nasty. It purely depends on the tree it came from.
Honestly, my budgeting these past two transfers has been crappy. My first transfer I had loads of money to spare because I was extremely careful about it, but not so much this time around... Budgeting is my goal for this week. We just got subsistence, and so now it's time to put it to the test.
The best way to send money (don't worry about it yet. I still have more than 150 bucks) is through Western Union Bank. Although, this Rokel Commercial Bank that we use has started with Visa Debit. However, I do not have any cards in my posession. I had Elder Patterson put them in the mission safe when I arrived so that they would be kept safe. You don't need to send much anyways, because 10 bucks can go a LONG way (like, transportation for 2-3 weeks, or
breakfast for 3 weeks, etc...).
Elder Lancaster and I met a couple Americans and an English woman who were here to help with some humanitarian aide regarding these "fistulas" (can't remember the first name of the ailment) that women out in the villages get. I remember Mr. Stallons taught us about that in high school, so I was really surprised when it actually came in handy to know! It was neat talking to them about it.
So, zone conference is in Freetown is this week with Elder Dickson. I'm sure I'll have lots to say about that next week. :)
Oh, and this week Elder Lancaster and I saw the legendary "Guana." It's a lightning-fast lizard that's about the size of a crocodile. It was sweet. I started chasing it so that I could get a better look at it, and Elder Lancaster thoroughly chastised me for being dumb. He thinks it could have eaten me (such would be said by a person that's about as small as that guana). It was sweet though. People here eat them, and apparently they're delicious.
There's this one rebel from the war that we visited this week (he's messed up in the head HARD CORE). He told us that there was this report on the radio about a white man that went up in the sky and cut a rope holding a giant stone (think asteroid) suspended above the earth. Now, this stone is falling slowly towards the earth. We asked when it would hit, and he said sometime in 2012. We asked where it would it, and he said that the report said "white man country." We asked if that meant America, and he said he wasn't sure, but that if it did that it would destroy at least 57 states! (oh brother) I turned to my companion, "Oh no! That's almost all of them!" This man continued to explain that the worst was yet to come, and that all of the earth would suffer from 5 years of continual darkness afterwards. He was mad, because "if something is fearful, you shouldn't tamper with it!" (referring to the white man that cut the rope...loosely translated). Oh it was funny!
I think it's interesting that everyone writes me "pick you up and get you going" letters. I'm just dandy here! Nothing to truly trouble me, and I'm having fun. Sure, I miss home, but that's a tiny emotion here. Encouragement is good, but I'm not down on myself at all. I love this mission to death. :)
Alright, time to split. Love you! and miss you lots!
Love,
Elder Vaughan
Monday, February 28, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Bathrooms, Butter Pears & Baptisms
Okay, so first I'll explain the pictures. The first picture is of a Salone shower house/toilet. Yeah, that's where people poop around here (except us, we have toilets at the apartment). This is one of the nicer ones. Then, a picture of my desk (before I cleaned it. I swear, it looks great now). Then, a picture of the "butter pear" tree on our front lawn (avacados). There you go, we could make guacamole here if we had sour cream). The last one is from our baptism last Saturday. The man in the middle is Abraham, the one who was baptized (Elder Lancaster performed it), the man on the right is Festus (our most powerful convert EVER), and the lady on the left is Sylvia, the mom of that family we started teaching.
I have yet to try any recipes that you sent, because Elder Boye-Doe is a cooking MACHINE. He loves to cook, and he's great at it. At first, I wanted to play my part and cook every once in a while like a good Elder should, but his food is great, and the things I cook are typically crap (except for those awesome cake mixes and mac n cheese...keep those coming!). I feel like I'd be rude by detracting from his entertainment and by making something so sub-par to his own skill!
Speaking of food, things are changing around here. The mission will no longer be providing some of the things for us that they have been (canned beef/veggies/beans, bleach, dettol, etc), and are going to require us to provide for ourselves of our subsistence. Yikes. Those things are expensive, so most of us will be going without. I guess there's no need to complain, as that is how most of the missions are anyways. *Sigh*... That means we'll REALLY have to cut back on out at Sab's (It wasn't the Sab's that made me sick, Sister Roggia thinks it was bacterial buildup in my system from unwashed bananas. Go figure). Anyways, I've used a decent chunk of personal money since coming here to cushion life a little. This mission is ROUGH, so it's nice to indulge a little. I've used $70 of the money I came with, and I think I have $150 left or so. I should be fine for the next long while. I'm going to start budgeting my money better too. My first transfer I did a really good job of that, but this past transfer I've slacked.
The excitement never really can die here. Well, I shouldn't say that too hastily... sometimes things get hard, and that's when you look forward to things with a positive attitude and pray you get transferred. I've learned a LOT about how to control my attitude, and how to make the hard times into good times. The hard work never ceases to make me tired, and at the same time, it's never ceased to fill me with satisfaction. I'm loving where I am, I love my companion, and I love the people I'm always around. It makes things easy, because the Lord is carrying what burdens we have to bear.
I think now I'll share about this family that we've started teaching. (Family baptisms are pretty dang rare out here, because families always have mixes of both Christians and Muslims). The mom's name is Sylvia, and she has four daughters and two sons (her husband is a Muslim, so we have yet to see him). I was on exchanges with Elder Svongwa from Bo Branch, and we were teaching two of her daughters who had taken a couple lessons before. Sylvia was walking about the house, cooking (outdoor kitchens, remember...think hut w/cooking fires and large aluminum dutch oven-esque pots) and cleaning, but was kind of listening half-half to the lesson. She'd join some reading, and then bustle off to work some more. After the lesson, I just kind of felt the need to invite her to church on Sunday (this is a rare one for me. Because of the number of investigators we teach, we only contact about 15-25 people a week. And even so, we add 3-5 new investigators every week. It's nuts.). I invited her, and she said she'd come (EVERYONE says that here, but few actually do. They like this phrase "by God een powa" ("by God's power"), which basically means that if they didn't show up, it wasn't God's will for them to do so. (I hate that more than anything else.)
She actually came along with Festus, one of our recent converts who lives in the area. She was talking with him, and told him that she has a high position in her church and has no desire to join us, but is happy to visit. Heeheehee... She had no idea what was coming her way.
She came small late to the sacrament meeting, just as they started singing the sacrament hymn. She sat in the back, and kept to herself, which wasn't out of the ordinary. The service came and went, we had a youth speaker, and two adults, as usual. Then was "investigators class" (Gospel Principles with the investigators), and she also sat in the back, and kept to herself. We had a really great lesson on the Holy Ghost, and the Gift of the Holy Ghost. At the end of the lesson, she asked what it meant for a person if they had been baptized and not confirmed, and she learned that the ordinance was therefor incomplete.
We returned to Sylvia's house that evening, and she was SO EXCITED to see us! She explained to us that she had been searching for a church like this one, where it's for the benefit of the people that attend. She was EXTREMELY impressed with the youth speaker. It was so baffling to her that a church would allow someone besides the leader and pastor to preach to the people. And not only preach, but to TEACH the people. She then expressed her desire to join the church, and complete the ordinance of baptism. We're now teaching her and all six of her children, who have a baptismal date on March 19.
Sylvia has really taught me a lot. First, that I should DO, and not THINK about what I feel I should do. I guess that's how the Spirit works through me, with FEELING. Makes sense. I've also really grown to appreciate just how much the church is there to TEACH people, and make us better. I had never really seen it that way, and now I realize just what a privilege it is to be taught and learn so much in the church, rather than just be preached to.
Anyhow, my time is now short. I hope all things are well with you. I'm not losing excitement here. It just grows. The more and more I learn the people, culture, and language, the more I love it, and the more I grow as a teacher. I wish you could see me and hear my voice, to see what kind of change has come over me. It's so hard for me to see, but when I look in my journal, I can see that I've changed just so much.
As far as I'm aware, the postal strike is still going, but I honestly don't know. Nobody tells us anything. It's time to go now, time's not so plentiful. I love you so much and think of you a lot! :)
Love,
Elder Vaughan
I have yet to try any recipes that you sent, because Elder Boye-Doe is a cooking MACHINE. He loves to cook, and he's great at it. At first, I wanted to play my part and cook every once in a while like a good Elder should, but his food is great, and the things I cook are typically crap (except for those awesome cake mixes and mac n cheese...keep those coming!). I feel like I'd be rude by detracting from his entertainment and by making something so sub-par to his own skill!
Speaking of food, things are changing around here. The mission will no longer be providing some of the things for us that they have been (canned beef/veggies/beans, bleach, dettol, etc), and are going to require us to provide for ourselves of our subsistence. Yikes. Those things are expensive, so most of us will be going without. I guess there's no need to complain, as that is how most of the missions are anyways. *Sigh*... That means we'll REALLY have to cut back on out at Sab's (It wasn't the Sab's that made me sick, Sister Roggia thinks it was bacterial buildup in my system from unwashed bananas. Go figure). Anyways, I've used a decent chunk of personal money since coming here to cushion life a little. This mission is ROUGH, so it's nice to indulge a little. I've used $70 of the money I came with, and I think I have $150 left or so. I should be fine for the next long while. I'm going to start budgeting my money better too. My first transfer I did a really good job of that, but this past transfer I've slacked.
The excitement never really can die here. Well, I shouldn't say that too hastily... sometimes things get hard, and that's when you look forward to things with a positive attitude and pray you get transferred. I've learned a LOT about how to control my attitude, and how to make the hard times into good times. The hard work never ceases to make me tired, and at the same time, it's never ceased to fill me with satisfaction. I'm loving where I am, I love my companion, and I love the people I'm always around. It makes things easy, because the Lord is carrying what burdens we have to bear.
I think now I'll share about this family that we've started teaching. (Family baptisms are pretty dang rare out here, because families always have mixes of both Christians and Muslims). The mom's name is Sylvia, and she has four daughters and two sons (her husband is a Muslim, so we have yet to see him). I was on exchanges with Elder Svongwa from Bo Branch, and we were teaching two of her daughters who had taken a couple lessons before. Sylvia was walking about the house, cooking (outdoor kitchens, remember...think hut w/cooking fires and large aluminum dutch oven-esque pots) and cleaning, but was kind of listening half-half to the lesson. She'd join some reading, and then bustle off to work some more. After the lesson, I just kind of felt the need to invite her to church on Sunday (this is a rare one for me. Because of the number of investigators we teach, we only contact about 15-25 people a week. And even so, we add 3-5 new investigators every week. It's nuts.). I invited her, and she said she'd come (EVERYONE says that here, but few actually do. They like this phrase "by God een powa" ("by God's power"), which basically means that if they didn't show up, it wasn't God's will for them to do so. (I hate that more than anything else.)
She actually came along with Festus, one of our recent converts who lives in the area. She was talking with him, and told him that she has a high position in her church and has no desire to join us, but is happy to visit. Heeheehee... She had no idea what was coming her way.
She came small late to the sacrament meeting, just as they started singing the sacrament hymn. She sat in the back, and kept to herself, which wasn't out of the ordinary. The service came and went, we had a youth speaker, and two adults, as usual. Then was "investigators class" (Gospel Principles with the investigators), and she also sat in the back, and kept to herself. We had a really great lesson on the Holy Ghost, and the Gift of the Holy Ghost. At the end of the lesson, she asked what it meant for a person if they had been baptized and not confirmed, and she learned that the ordinance was therefor incomplete.
We returned to Sylvia's house that evening, and she was SO EXCITED to see us! She explained to us that she had been searching for a church like this one, where it's for the benefit of the people that attend. She was EXTREMELY impressed with the youth speaker. It was so baffling to her that a church would allow someone besides the leader and pastor to preach to the people. And not only preach, but to TEACH the people. She then expressed her desire to join the church, and complete the ordinance of baptism. We're now teaching her and all six of her children, who have a baptismal date on March 19.
Sylvia has really taught me a lot. First, that I should DO, and not THINK about what I feel I should do. I guess that's how the Spirit works through me, with FEELING. Makes sense. I've also really grown to appreciate just how much the church is there to TEACH people, and make us better. I had never really seen it that way, and now I realize just what a privilege it is to be taught and learn so much in the church, rather than just be preached to.
Anyhow, my time is now short. I hope all things are well with you. I'm not losing excitement here. It just grows. The more and more I learn the people, culture, and language, the more I love it, and the more I grow as a teacher. I wish you could see me and hear my voice, to see what kind of change has come over me. It's so hard for me to see, but when I look in my journal, I can see that I've changed just so much.
As far as I'm aware, the postal strike is still going, but I honestly don't know. Nobody tells us anything. It's time to go now, time's not so plentiful. I love you so much and think of you a lot! :)
Love,
Elder Vaughan
Monday, February 14, 2011
Post Office on Strike & Other Small Concerns
It's pretty much the same old song and dance around here, so nothing really too exciting to report. Today marks day one of my third transfer, and I'm still ticking around in Njaie Town. I have a feeling like I'll stay until I've been here six months. That's a pretty common trend around here. Elder Lancaster is staying too, so no changes for us. Our district leader, Elder Chikwendu, is going to Liberia though. Most likely to finish his mission. I'm not familiar with his replacement.
So, the post office is on strike right now, so mail isn't moving as far as packages are concerned. As soon as it lifts, I'm sure Sister Roggia will post it (or you could ask her).
Sounds like it's a pretty crazy change again about to happen at home with Josh preparing for college... Dang, he's pretty much graduated! time passes so fast. Can you believe I've been out for more than three months already?? It's gone so fast. Transfer news came this week, and I'm staying here again with Elder Lancaster. I have a feeling I'll move once I've hit six months here. That's a pretty common trend around here. Elder Chikwendu is leaving the district for Liberia though, so that's a sad loss. I've never met the Elder that will be replacing him... we'll see how it goes.
Oh man, we started teaching a family this week! We NEVER teach whole families! It's so amazing! The mom came to church on Sunday "just to visit" because she had "a high position in [her] church," but now she's absolutely in love with the message. "Honestly, I was searching, and I truly found what I've been waiting for. This church doesn't just preach to people, it teaches them, makes them better, and works together to make everyone better." We're going to her home to have FHE tonight. We're WAY excited! :) It's families like this that make this missionary work so worth it...
So, you asked what I meant about the "I am Legend" lock down being a protection from thieves or from critters. The answer is, both. Thieves have broken into this apartment in the past, so there's that. All of our windows and doors have screens too, so we shut those to help with the pests. They still make their way in somehow.
You asked about the requirements for convert baptisms here. Well, we want people to be converted first. There are no real written requirements like in the U.S., but you can just tell when a person is ready. If they're keeping their commitments, conversion will happen on it's own. This helps us create more powerful converts, rather than the ones we've had in the past who accept baptism and then fall away in a month. We focus mainly on making sure they have that change and desire kindled in themselves.
As far as stumbling blocks to conversion, the Law of Chastity is the number one challenge the people we work with around here. I haven't taught anyone who hasn't had any problems with it, though I don't think that's unique to just Sierra Leone. It doesn't help though that people walk around naked all the time. The Word of Wisdom is a close second, with cigarettes and poyo being readily available. The Law of Tithing is sometimes an issue, but its not one that we the missionaries deal with, since they don't pay til they are members. We teach it, and they accept the invitation to pay when they join. After that, its out of our hands.
Zone conference was really nice. I like it because we get to see the Roggias and the assistants, and they are so great to learn from! They talked a lot about emphasizing the law of tithing to these people to help pull them from poverty, and to focus on finding "the one" (coincidentally the topic of the Liahona this month). We had hamburgers from Sab's, but I can't really eat those anymore. I had one about 4 weeks ago, and got REALLY sick that night (I spent the night projectile vomiting while my companion was sound asleep), so I haven't really been able to eat them since. No worries, that's my only episode with illness. I stick with other foods (see attached pictures). One is of Goat Pepe Soup on yams...SO GOOD!! The other is of "stew" on rice. This is some fine eating here.
Speaking of pictures, I've attached some more. Pictured here is my doxy (anti-malaria pills) bottle after I finished my first small one, demonstrating the progress made. I was pretty excited about that! I also added a picture from our baptism two weeks back, of Sister Agnes, which was WAY awesome! Then the two other pictures are from the top of Simbotown mountain, which looks over the southern part of my area. How's the view? ;)
Love,
Elder Vaughan
So, the post office is on strike right now, so mail isn't moving as far as packages are concerned. As soon as it lifts, I'm sure Sister Roggia will post it (or you could ask her).
Sounds like it's a pretty crazy change again about to happen at home with Josh preparing for college... Dang, he's pretty much graduated! time passes so fast. Can you believe I've been out for more than three months already?? It's gone so fast. Transfer news came this week, and I'm staying here again with Elder Lancaster. I have a feeling I'll move once I've hit six months here. That's a pretty common trend around here. Elder Chikwendu is leaving the district for Liberia though, so that's a sad loss. I've never met the Elder that will be replacing him... we'll see how it goes.
Oh man, we started teaching a family this week! We NEVER teach whole families! It's so amazing! The mom came to church on Sunday "just to visit" because she had "a high position in [her] church," but now she's absolutely in love with the message. "Honestly, I was searching, and I truly found what I've been waiting for. This church doesn't just preach to people, it teaches them, makes them better, and works together to make everyone better." We're going to her home to have FHE tonight. We're WAY excited! :) It's families like this that make this missionary work so worth it...
So, you asked what I meant about the "I am Legend" lock down being a protection from thieves or from critters. The answer is, both. Thieves have broken into this apartment in the past, so there's that. All of our windows and doors have screens too, so we shut those to help with the pests. They still make their way in somehow.
You asked about the requirements for convert baptisms here. Well, we want people to be converted first. There are no real written requirements like in the U.S., but you can just tell when a person is ready. If they're keeping their commitments, conversion will happen on it's own. This helps us create more powerful converts, rather than the ones we've had in the past who accept baptism and then fall away in a month. We focus mainly on making sure they have that change and desire kindled in themselves.
As far as stumbling blocks to conversion, the Law of Chastity is the number one challenge the people we work with around here. I haven't taught anyone who hasn't had any problems with it, though I don't think that's unique to just Sierra Leone. It doesn't help though that people walk around naked all the time. The Word of Wisdom is a close second, with cigarettes and poyo being readily available. The Law of Tithing is sometimes an issue, but its not one that we the missionaries deal with, since they don't pay til they are members. We teach it, and they accept the invitation to pay when they join. After that, its out of our hands.
Zone conference was really nice. I like it because we get to see the Roggias and the assistants, and they are so great to learn from! They talked a lot about emphasizing the law of tithing to these people to help pull them from poverty, and to focus on finding "the one" (coincidentally the topic of the Liahona this month). We had hamburgers from Sab's, but I can't really eat those anymore. I had one about 4 weeks ago, and got REALLY sick that night (I spent the night projectile vomiting while my companion was sound asleep), so I haven't really been able to eat them since. No worries, that's my only episode with illness. I stick with other foods (see attached pictures). One is of Goat Pepe Soup on yams...SO GOOD!! The other is of "stew" on rice. This is some fine eating here.
Speaking of pictures, I've attached some more. Pictured here is my doxy (anti-malaria pills) bottle after I finished my first small one, demonstrating the progress made. I was pretty excited about that! I also added a picture from our baptism two weeks back, of Sister Agnes, which was WAY awesome! Then the two other pictures are from the top of Simbotown mountain, which looks over the southern part of my area. How's the view? ;)
Love,
Elder Vaughan
Monday, February 7, 2011
A Recipe, Some Krio and a Baptism
We had a baptism this past week, and it was really good. This woman is totally converted (her name is sister Agnes), and she asked me to baptize her. It was really neat. I'll send the pictures next time, because I don't have so many to send at the moment. I must apologize for that. It's hard because we're only allowed to snap when we're not proselyting, which is almost never. I did make up for it today by shooting a video from the back of my Honda on the way to the cafe. You'll get that when Elder Tippets goes home in May. :)
I know you like hearing about spiritual experiences, so I'll tell you some more about this Festus guy that we baptized two weeks back. So, we started teaching him from a chain sort of thing. We were teaching one person named Daniel, and a neighbor by the name of Ishmael came and joined him. Later, we went to teach Ishmael, and a man named Kenneth (Festus' uncle) was passing by, and stopped to listen, and invited us to his home to teach him (a place we had never proselyted before). We then met with Kenneth to teach him, and Festus joined the lesson. He was baptized three weeks later. Since then, we've started teaching his sister, a friend of his, and two of his neighbors. This whole new place is opening up because of this one EXTREMELY solid convert. It's so awesome!
It's kinda funny how Elder Lancaster and I joke about how we enjoy stopping by his house. His family is really well off, so they have a nice stereo system in their house, and there's TONS of western music playing (think high school dances). It's nice to hear a piece of 'home'. Last time we stopped by, I heard a movie playing inside (shocker! Most people don't have those here), and it sounded somehow familiar. When he came out and greeted us, I asked what he was watching, and he said he was watching Eclipse with his sister (that Twilight movie that was BRAND NEW soon before I left home). I couldn't believe it! It was so funny to me. He also watched 24 a lot, and watches a lot of other popular western shows like Heroes and CSI. It's almost AMERICAN! He recommended this BBC show 'Merlin', in case you're looking for a new television vice. He says it's really good, and from what he described, it sounds awesome. Needless to say, he's my favorite convert. We're going over to his house tonight to watch The Testaments if he has power (he usually does. We haven't had power in 2 months!).
I was thinking today about asking for some recipes. We have just about everything you'd need to do basic baking, save for a mixer. We get to do that by hand. I made those Lehi Roller Mills brownies yesterday, and they're already almost gone. Those instant baking mixes and boxed mac n cheese are probably the best. Still waiting for power to open the cheese to test that stuff out. Maybe we'll make quesadillas with them using Lebanese flat bread (think pita) and some chicken. I dunno. But yeah, any simple recipes you could send would be great. We can substitute milk with powdered, we have eggs, we have butter, in fact, we have just about anything you'd need for a host of very basic food, minus cheese. We don't have too much though. We don't have canned soup, so we can't do those awesome pastas. Pretty much anything we make has to be from scratch. Any ideas you have would be great! Rice is in overabundance, so anything using that would probably be best. Rice pudding recipe? Though we don't have raisins. Or maybe scratch banana pudding, since those never go out of season, and they're EVERYWHERE.
You asked about my cooking skills. Well they aren't bad. There's 100 + 1 ways to cook rice. I only know a few now. If you want to fix a meal of what we typically have for breakfast, here's the recipe (be careful, it's not very good, but it's pretty much all we have):
1 tin can (a measurement) of dry uncooked white rice
1 can of spam cubed
1/2 onion, diced
2 Tbs veggie oil
1/2 Maggi cube (it's a weird type of bouillon cube)
1 tsp Pepi (Chili powder works)
some season salt
1 can of beans in tomato sauce
Directions: Cook rice (however you want it). Saute everything else minus beans in a frying pan until onions go clear, then add beans to heat. Then, eat it on rice. Not super tasty, but it's food.
Here's some fun Krio for you to try: (say them like they look)
"Mi I no able fo do 'em." means "I can't."
"Boku Tankee." means "Many thanks."
"Mi I no sabi wa ting yu da se." means "I don't know what you said."
"Yu sabi wat side wi da go?" means "Do you know where we're going?"
"I da go now-now." means "I'm going now."
I celebrated my 3 month mark last week. That means I'm 1/8 the way done with my mission! ;) Not that anyone's counting. Til next week, sending you all my love!
Love,
Elder Vaughan
I know you like hearing about spiritual experiences, so I'll tell you some more about this Festus guy that we baptized two weeks back. So, we started teaching him from a chain sort of thing. We were teaching one person named Daniel, and a neighbor by the name of Ishmael came and joined him. Later, we went to teach Ishmael, and a man named Kenneth (Festus' uncle) was passing by, and stopped to listen, and invited us to his home to teach him (a place we had never proselyted before). We then met with Kenneth to teach him, and Festus joined the lesson. He was baptized three weeks later. Since then, we've started teaching his sister, a friend of his, and two of his neighbors. This whole new place is opening up because of this one EXTREMELY solid convert. It's so awesome!
It's kinda funny how Elder Lancaster and I joke about how we enjoy stopping by his house. His family is really well off, so they have a nice stereo system in their house, and there's TONS of western music playing (think high school dances). It's nice to hear a piece of 'home'. Last time we stopped by, I heard a movie playing inside (shocker! Most people don't have those here), and it sounded somehow familiar. When he came out and greeted us, I asked what he was watching, and he said he was watching Eclipse with his sister (that Twilight movie that was BRAND NEW soon before I left home). I couldn't believe it! It was so funny to me. He also watched 24 a lot, and watches a lot of other popular western shows like Heroes and CSI. It's almost AMERICAN! He recommended this BBC show 'Merlin', in case you're looking for a new television vice. He says it's really good, and from what he described, it sounds awesome. Needless to say, he's my favorite convert. We're going over to his house tonight to watch The Testaments if he has power (he usually does. We haven't had power in 2 months!).
I was thinking today about asking for some recipes. We have just about everything you'd need to do basic baking, save for a mixer. We get to do that by hand. I made those Lehi Roller Mills brownies yesterday, and they're already almost gone. Those instant baking mixes and boxed mac n cheese are probably the best. Still waiting for power to open the cheese to test that stuff out. Maybe we'll make quesadillas with them using Lebanese flat bread (think pita) and some chicken. I dunno. But yeah, any simple recipes you could send would be great. We can substitute milk with powdered, we have eggs, we have butter, in fact, we have just about anything you'd need for a host of very basic food, minus cheese. We don't have too much though. We don't have canned soup, so we can't do those awesome pastas. Pretty much anything we make has to be from scratch. Any ideas you have would be great! Rice is in overabundance, so anything using that would probably be best. Rice pudding recipe? Though we don't have raisins. Or maybe scratch banana pudding, since those never go out of season, and they're EVERYWHERE.
You asked about my cooking skills. Well they aren't bad. There's 100 + 1 ways to cook rice. I only know a few now. If you want to fix a meal of what we typically have for breakfast, here's the recipe (be careful, it's not very good, but it's pretty much all we have):
1 tin can (a measurement) of dry uncooked white rice
1 can of spam cubed
1/2 onion, diced
2 Tbs veggie oil
1/2 Maggi cube (it's a weird type of bouillon cube)
1 tsp Pepi (Chili powder works)
some season salt
1 can of beans in tomato sauce
Directions: Cook rice (however you want it). Saute everything else minus beans in a frying pan until onions go clear, then add beans to heat. Then, eat it on rice. Not super tasty, but it's food.
Here's some fun Krio for you to try: (say them like they look)
"Mi I no able fo do 'em." means "I can't."
"Boku Tankee." means "Many thanks."
"Mi I no sabi wa ting yu da se." means "I don't know what you said."
"Yu sabi wat side wi da go?" means "Do you know where we're going?"
"I da go now-now." means "I'm going now."
I celebrated my 3 month mark last week. That means I'm 1/8 the way done with my mission! ;) Not that anyone's counting. Til next week, sending you all my love!
Love,
Elder Vaughan
Monday, January 31, 2011
Sick Companion, No Elephants Here
It's interesting how my mindset has changed so much since I got here. I used to think that it'd be a fine thing to introduce tons of money and bulldoze all the cement homes and build a fine new city on top of it, but it brought me to think: What would this fix? Nothing at all. Really, these people don't need those things. They don't even WANT those things. They just want to eat and live and make it by, living simple and unhindered lives. They have a much better sight on the important things than we do as Americans. I wouldn't want to change anything about this place.
As far as filtered water, that's pretty much what I drink. I really enjoy mixing this Foster Clarks drink powder with it. It's way good! Not as good as Kool-aid though... And I'm eating the safest food I can find. We get a lot of free meals, so those are as safe as imaginable, and we typically refrain from street food (except for oranges and bananas, which can be eaten safely). Mosquitoes are kept at bay as best as possible, and I always sleep under my net. I love my little fortress! Keeps those nasty buggers out!
As far as I understand, there are no elephants left in Sierra Leone due to poaching. I think they've been long-driven out. But, we've seen an abundance of monkey. It's way cool! Most people have them as pets or livestock (good eatin' from what I hear). We're planning on buying one this week, and we'll have a man named Bro. Kallon butcher it for us. I can kill a chicken, but I don't have it in me to kill a monkey!
I had never heard about the origin of Bo before (that you shared in your letter, thanks to Wikipedia). There are a LOT of folk tales around here that explain all sorts of things. I'm sure there are many for the name. For example, it's commonly believed here that the name ''Sierra Leone'' (which translates to ''Mountain of the Lions'') comes from when the first people who arrived in Freetown, and heard the tumultuous thunder in the mountains, and thought it was lions roaring up in the heights. After hearing the thunder myself, I don't blame them for thinking that!
As far as packages go, I'm pretty much in love with everything in them. I have yet to try that cheese you sent, because it says I need to refrigerate it after it's opened, and we have no power. So, I'm going to wait on that so I don't have to eat it all at once. ;)
Regarding the hygiene kits that church members sent over here during the war. Jeez, even the ziplock bag that the stuff comes in is valuable! People reuse the crud out of every last plastic bag here, just because it saves 100-200 le. (1.5-3 cents). It's so crazy. Things like that go to good use here. Don't send money, send things like that. They have everything they need, and they have everything figured out. They just live simple lives, living day to day. They don't need, or even WANT an American lifestyle. Sure, they'd like ''nice things,'' but to them, that's not much. It amazes me how much my mind has changed about this place.
It's pretty routine around here right about now. Elder Lancaster has been sick the past two days, so we weren't able to go out. It was cool to have time to just chill, chat, and sleep. But as far as learning experiences go, I've learned that I need to always endure. Two weeks ago was really tough because of how many times we were bounced every day, mostly in part to lousy investigators. But just in this past week, we've found tons of new ones! In the Lord's time, he makes things easy. He says he'll take upon him our burdens and troubles, but he didn't say WHEN. So, in turn, I need to patently bear the burdens I'm called upon to bear, and when he feels I've learned and gained enough from it, he'll lighten them.
Something I love about my mission? Definitely my companion. If we had met at home, I never would have given him a chance, but we have so much in common it's scary! We have a lot of fun out here.
So, regarding the Sword of Laban: It has come to my opinion that the sword strongly represents the gospel of Jesus Christ. Ever since it was acquired by Nephi, it was used in the defense of the people from evil (meaning the Lamanites in most cases). It was handed down from generation to generation, to represent the passing on of the prophets role to defend the people of the church with the Gospel. This is even so all the way down to Joseph Smith. While he didn't literally defend the people with the sword, I find it significant that the sword was selected to accompany the plates in it's place of rest. The ''sword'' that had defended the people for so long was rejected, and the people fell into apostasy, thereby removing the ability to defend by it (the gospel). I see Joseph Smith acquiring the sword as the symbolic departure from apostasy, where a man was once again worthy and ready (and the world was likewise) to again wield the sword of truth and light in defense of evil.
I see it as a symbol of the gospel. You can observe the wielders of the sword after it came into the possession of Nephi; they were all prophets. The prophets were charged with one primary duty: To lead the church in the name of the Lord, and to defend it. So, in times prior, the defense was more literal, but it represents the significant spiritual defense that is necessary. The sword was designated to ''fight evil,'' and the Lord continually blessed the wielder. It also represents the gospel, signifying how the prophets used the word of God to defend the people. As it was handed down, it went through the hands of only righteous prophets (hence how Moroni was in possession of it. We can assume it was handed down with the plates), who continued to use the plates and the sword to defend the people.
Mom and Dad, I liked your thoughts on the sword of Laban also. They're very interesting. I've kind of formed a fascination with religious artifacts. So, I'll ask: Where are the Urim and Thummim? I think I have my own answer to that one. :)
Well, I must move on.Love,
Elder Vaughan
Monday, January 24, 2011
Let there be Light!
Dearest Family,
It’s so hard to hand write letters to you now! I tell you practically everything I can via e-mail, so when I get home to write, I’m all out of stuff to say! I’ll do my best here.
I'm glad you like the hand-written letters. They're A LOT of work, and I try to get them out every few weeks. The Neves (older married missionary couple) only come for mail once every three weeks or so anyways.
I got the FloraLyte package last week! Ah, I was so excited! The cake boxes were a score, and I ate the Toy Story mac n cheese straight. I've got enough gummi bears to last the next transfer! Thank you so much! :) Additionally, Josh's letter cracked me up, and I really appreciated hearing from Heather. Thanks a ton! Oh, and the FloraLytes showed up right as our generator went out, so we had no lights. I was so glad they came! Our whole district uses them now, and the Sub-9 should last me forever since AAA batteries are readily available here. That's the second one I've received from the family (I've also received one from Grandma Suzi, and one from Kalei, totaling 4). It's seriously the best thing ever to get packages and mail around here. The cakes were genius, the Mac n cheese just might be the best, and I'm loving all the gummis! Oh, I found some Nutella this week! It's pretty expensive though. So, I still wouldn't mind getting some. ;) Thank you thank you thank you!
You would totally dig the theaters here. They are literally huts made from woven palm fronds with a corrugated tin roof. They run off generators, and play movies from projectors onto the walls. It's cheaper than dirt to get into a movie, but from the looks of it, you get what you pay for. Sierra Leone movies are total garbage. I've made better movies myself.
Oh, speaking of the Sierra Leone movie industry, you need to look someone up there in the States. Her name is Mariama Kallon. She's from Sierra Leone, and works for the church as a motivational speaker. If you want a spectacular story about the war, look for the movie that they made of her life story. It's POWERFUL, and highly representative of the sort of things that happened in the war here. The war is a big part of who these people are now. They are a very sobered people, full of love and genuine respect (generally). We don't see TOO many people from the war (as most of them were killed off), but we do have some that we run into, and their stories about what happened. They're WAY intense. I wouldn't say that the war directly attributed to the religious "revival" here, it's just that everyone here believes in God, whether Christian or Muslim, and everyone is one or the other. I've never met an atheist here.
Dad, no worries about not putting in a spiritual message in your letter this time. You think I don't get enough out here? Ha ha ha, not the case! So, this time I'LL send a thought (or a challenge, really). Look for the Sword of Laban, and tell me what you think it represents. I'm curious if you'd think the same thing I do. Why then was it important to provide to Joseph Smith? I think I have my own answer. I'm curious what you think!
The thing that I’ve learned most here is how completely just God is. You may think that in such a poor country the wiles of the devil would be too expensive. It’s simply not so. You can buy alcohol for 500 le (12 cents) cigarettes for pennies, and other unspeakable items at a seditiously low cost. But that’s not how God is fair. Satan levels his playing field by making things cheap, accessible, and worthless. God levels His playing field by making His gospel absolutely cost and interest free. It doesn’t matter where you go on this Earth, between Africa and America, it’s the same challenges for everyone: Obedience to the Lord’s commandments. It’s amazing to me how truly the same all of God’s children are.
You mentioned that Elder Whitney Clayton (President of the Seventy) said in his talk in Everett that he will be visiting Africa in April. He will likely never set foot in Sierra Leone. EVERYONE goes to either Ghana, Nigeria, or South Africa. Pretty much no exceptions (his exception is that he won't go to Nigeria because he's white (well, at least there are no white missionaries there)).
Josh going to USU? Who would have guessed! ;) We'll enjoy. Are you still looking into a family house/apartment there in Logan? I think that'd be SWEET. Jesse would be the most spirited. He'll LOVE high school.
Nate thinks he'll beat me at Warhammer when I get back? It's gonna take more than just a two year break to give him THAT much of an advantage! I just got a letter from him with tons of pictures of new stuff. It made me happy. Like, WAY happy. If he keeps this up, well, I'll think of some way to pay him back. In a BIG way. I have a letter I wrote him in response chilling on my desk waiting to go out. It takes so long to get ANYTHING out.
Dad, I remember those stories about John Layton hypnotizing chickens! Ha ha ha... You've told me at some point in my life. Unfortunately, I haven't had an opportunity to try hypnotizing a chicken again. People are pretty sensitive about their chickens, so I don't touch them. And no, Butch was a "local chicken," so she wasn't so huge. The big ones are the English Hens. HUGE. Someday though, I'll have another chance to try.
Okay, I got some pictures. The first one is of this kid I saw wearing nothing but a fanny pack (I made him put shorts on for the picture). Then a picture of Festus, who we baptized Saturday. He's so great! And the last 2 are of the funeral procession that came through town.
Well, until next time; Mom and Dad I love you both so much. Thank you for helping me get out here. It’s the best time of my life. Hilary, welcome home! I miss you like crazy, and regret having to miss your wedding (you’re not going to wait longer than two years to get married, right?). Josh, we’re going to raise English hens when I get back. They are are chickens that are 2.5 feet tall. HUGE. Can you send me some potential names? Jesse, keep that bear spray on ya to keep the babes away. Sending my love your way.
Elder Chris Vaughan
Monday, January 17, 2011
Lots of Hiking, Bush Rats for Dinner & Small Miracles
Thank you for sending the stories of my missionary ancestors. I love hearing about the people who came before me. I've started reading a book on the history of the restored church, and it's got a lot of really in-depth detail on the people that took roles in the work. It's so fascinating to read all the trials they faced and how they overcame them!
Wow, Jake is going to Brazil on his mission?? That's way awesome! I bet he's flippin' excited. If I remember right, Brazil was his favorite soccer team, and Ronaldo was his favorite player (also from Brazil). That's so cool! Send him my congratulations! I'm so excited for him!
You’re welcome for the pictures. I have a few more, but this computer’s USB port was torn out. The internet is decently fast though. Only about 2 minutes to load a page, and not 15. It's pretty hard for me to take pictures, since we can't snap while we proselyte (which is pretty much ALL we do), and when we're not proselyting, we're brooking (washing) our clothes.
My shoes are holding up alright. They're gonna be WAY trashed by the time I'm done with them though! We walk probably 10 miles a day. Sorry, not walk, HIKE. It's in the rocks and hills of the bush, so the shoes are taking a beating, but at least they're taking it fine.
The food here is fine (if not disgusting). Most of the time I enjoy it, but every once in a while... For instance, we had eel yesterday. I like it. The time before, we had crab. They were tiny little crabs with hard shells. So, not the East Coast delicacy back home. You eat the (did I say it was hard?) shell and everything. Yum? We've also had beef skin, which is pretty dang nasty. I'm pretty certain I had some bush rat three days ago... Wasn't too bad, I just wish I knew what I was eating. I've been well though! Diarrhea once, but that came to a halt when I fed it a heavy dose of Immodium and prescription meds! I've been well.
Requests for a package you ask? Ha ha ha... Well, boxed mac n cheese sounds REALLY good. Elder Allred got lots of instant foods, like mashed potatoes + gravy or instant Alfredo, things like that. Peanut butter and honey is pretty common to see, and that's really good on the Lebanese bread we can get here. Oh, and send Nutella. That's the only one that I'll actually ask for. ;) Other than that, surprise me! :)
Sister Roggia told us about the Arizona congresswoman (and we saw it on Aljazeera when we were eating at Sab's). It's truly sad. When you look at the rest of the world though, it's way worse off (look at the Lebanese government. It collapsed this week). The Millennium is on its way!
So, you mentioned the article in the magazine about humanitarian service missionaries digging wells. Did it mention Elder and Sister Gredding? They're the ones who head that project here, and Elder Priddis and I got to meet them because they had a package for Elder Priddis. We see those wells all over the place, and it's such a blessing for those who take care of them. There are others though, who choose not to take care of them, and they fall into disrepair. Parable of the talents comes to mind.
So, miracles. They're REALLY subtle here. We work with so many people that it's often difficult to see the miracle in the midst of the work. We have one investigator, named Festus that we have been working with this week. He sort of just joined in a lesson with his uncle two weeks back, and ever since has just been on fire! We asked him to read 1 Nephi 1 as a start of an assignment, and we came back the next day to find out he had read all the way past 1 Nephi 10! Getting ANYONE to read around here has been a HUGE challenge because of the dismal literacy level. He's now almost to the book of Jacob, and we are looking to baptize him this week. He gave up a LOT of sin to do so, and that's the miracle to me. He calls every day, asking how we are, telling us how he's been doing, and asking how to better improve things. It's amazing! The change that we see in people is truly the miracle here.
My testimony... Well, it's the same. I know the church is true. How much can that change? What has changed is that I have a deeper understanding of the things I know to be true. I can see more prominently how the gospel can change lives. It's amazing. If I bore my testimony in church now, it would be in Krio (only kidding…that's such an irreverent language), and I'd share my knowledge on how the gospel can change people's lives. It really can. I've seen some amazing turn arounds (in both directions). It only serves to bolster what I know.
Well, that's all I have time for today. Have a wonderful day! :)
Elder Vaughan
Wow, Jake is going to Brazil on his mission?? That's way awesome! I bet he's flippin' excited. If I remember right, Brazil was his favorite soccer team, and Ronaldo was his favorite player (also from Brazil). That's so cool! Send him my congratulations! I'm so excited for him!
You’re welcome for the pictures. I have a few more, but this computer’s USB port was torn out. The internet is decently fast though. Only about 2 minutes to load a page, and not 15. It's pretty hard for me to take pictures, since we can't snap while we proselyte (which is pretty much ALL we do), and when we're not proselyting, we're brooking (washing) our clothes.
My shoes are holding up alright. They're gonna be WAY trashed by the time I'm done with them though! We walk probably 10 miles a day. Sorry, not walk, HIKE. It's in the rocks and hills of the bush, so the shoes are taking a beating, but at least they're taking it fine.
The food here is fine (if not disgusting). Most of the time I enjoy it, but every once in a while... For instance, we had eel yesterday. I like it. The time before, we had crab. They were tiny little crabs with hard shells. So, not the East Coast delicacy back home. You eat the (did I say it was hard?) shell and everything. Yum? We've also had beef skin, which is pretty dang nasty. I'm pretty certain I had some bush rat three days ago... Wasn't too bad, I just wish I knew what I was eating. I've been well though! Diarrhea once, but that came to a halt when I fed it a heavy dose of Immodium and prescription meds! I've been well.
Requests for a package you ask? Ha ha ha... Well, boxed mac n cheese sounds REALLY good. Elder Allred got lots of instant foods, like mashed potatoes + gravy or instant Alfredo, things like that. Peanut butter and honey is pretty common to see, and that's really good on the Lebanese bread we can get here. Oh, and send Nutella. That's the only one that I'll actually ask for. ;) Other than that, surprise me! :)
Sister Roggia told us about the Arizona congresswoman (and we saw it on Aljazeera when we were eating at Sab's). It's truly sad. When you look at the rest of the world though, it's way worse off (look at the Lebanese government. It collapsed this week). The Millennium is on its way!
So, you mentioned the article in the magazine about humanitarian service missionaries digging wells. Did it mention Elder and Sister Gredding? They're the ones who head that project here, and Elder Priddis and I got to meet them because they had a package for Elder Priddis. We see those wells all over the place, and it's such a blessing for those who take care of them. There are others though, who choose not to take care of them, and they fall into disrepair. Parable of the talents comes to mind.
So, miracles. They're REALLY subtle here. We work with so many people that it's often difficult to see the miracle in the midst of the work. We have one investigator, named Festus that we have been working with this week. He sort of just joined in a lesson with his uncle two weeks back, and ever since has just been on fire! We asked him to read 1 Nephi 1 as a start of an assignment, and we came back the next day to find out he had read all the way past 1 Nephi 10! Getting ANYONE to read around here has been a HUGE challenge because of the dismal literacy level. He's now almost to the book of Jacob, and we are looking to baptize him this week. He gave up a LOT of sin to do so, and that's the miracle to me. He calls every day, asking how we are, telling us how he's been doing, and asking how to better improve things. It's amazing! The change that we see in people is truly the miracle here.
My testimony... Well, it's the same. I know the church is true. How much can that change? What has changed is that I have a deeper understanding of the things I know to be true. I can see more prominently how the gospel can change lives. It's amazing. If I bore my testimony in church now, it would be in Krio (only kidding…that's such an irreverent language), and I'd share my knowledge on how the gospel can change people's lives. It really can. I've seen some amazing turn arounds (in both directions). It only serves to bolster what I know.
Well, that's all I have time for today. Have a wonderful day! :)
Elder Vaughan
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