2017 03 12 びっくり (SURPRISED!)

Konichiwa! SO, last week I ended my email with saying that this week was going to be uninteresting, NOPE. I couldn't be more surprised. There were a ton of cool experiences this week but if you want the biggest surprise just skip to the end... actually you'll have to read it to find out. Oh, and we’re still on walking everywhere.

Monday (月 Getsu 曜日yobi):

Normal Pday, we did get a RA (Return Appointment) for Wednesday and that was way cool.

Tuesday (火 Moku 曜日yobi):

We had a pretty good DM (District Meeting) in the morning. Then after that, a member took us out to eat at a WAY nice restaurant and it was WAY good. Evening でんどう (Dendo - tracking) we found Matsuda, who is what we call a 金人 (KinJin - literal translation = gold person ie golden investigator) or prepared person and we have a RA (Return Appointment) with her on Wednesday along with our previous RA.

the food at the restaurant

the member really didn't want to be in the picture

Wednesday (水 Sui 曜日yobi):

We had our RA tonight, (the guy from Monday), but did answer. So we met up with Matsuda and she was home so we taught her the 1 Lesson. She seemed pretty excited to meet with us.

Thursday (木 Moku 曜日yobi):

We also so had a RA today with a young Mother that we had met last week. She was way cool too but.....she is moving, very soon. So, we are going to visit her a couple more times and then refer her to the missionaries where she is moving to. Eikaiwa (english conversation class) was normal, no one was there for the first 10 minutes so we were a little worried.

Friday (金 Kin 曜日yobi):

Remember last we when Elder Lords’ bike broke and we have to walk everywhere? And we found the Book of Mormon battles card game and we were going to challenge each other while we  でんどう (Dendo - tracking)? Well, it turns out that Elder Lords knows his BOM heroes pretty good. So instead of challenging each other while we contacted people, we actually read ALL of the Book of Ether during でんどう (Dendo - tracking) and that was way fun. We also went to go visit Matsuda and finished up Lesson 1. Like I said, she is WAY 金人 (KinJin - golden investigator) because she was asking us questions, like about what she was feeling as we were talking to her!!! 金人!!!!!!!!! She also told us that she never answers the door if she wasn't expecting anyone so that's another miracle that she even did opened the door for us!

Giant bonsai or am I shrinking?

random giant Bonsai tree we found while tracking

Saturday (土 do 曜日yobi):

It was raining WAY hard this morning. It let up just in time for Basketball in the afternoon. We stopped at the church for something and I checked the missionary homepage and saw we had a referral. So, we called the number but there was no answer. AND, no one was there for basketball so we decided to just practice a bit. Then, out of nowhere, we got a call and it was our referral! She lives close by so she came on down to talk with us. We talked with her mostly BRT (Build a Relationship of Trust) but we did answer some questions about the Plan of Salvation. Way cool experience.

Sunday (日 nichi 曜日yobi):

So, a ton of しょくじ (Shokuji - meal, although it may also be missionary slang for a member referral) today. First one was held after church because a family was moving out and some cool people came. The first guy we met was a convert that Elder Lords baptized last year! The other person we met was a LA (Less Active) mom we had been trying to visit since I got to Nago. After that we got a message from Elder Bankester saying I had left behind some peanut butter from our last visit to Okinawa and he was bringing it up to me. We also so had a しょくじ (Shokuji - meal) in the evening with the Kasamura couple. We went ahead an set out to でんどう (Dendo - tracking) before they came and on the way back we got a call from our mission president, President Egan, and he wanted to talk with me..........

When he found out we had a しょくじ (Shokuji - meal) he said to call him later. The しょくじ (Shokuji - meal) was way good and we had another surprise with that. Kasamura Shimai (Shimai means “Sister”) had invited 2 of her students to join us. It was way fun and way good food.

しょくじ (Shokuji - meal) at the Kasamura's

So to recap - We’ve had actual return appointments, we met a golden investigator, we actually met the less active member that we were tracking down, we went to an appointment and they brought TWO extra friends to meet us. Everything is looking great here in Nago. So when we got back we called President Egan right away and you know what he told me? …….

Emergency Transfer!

I'm going up to Sendai on Tuesday. Yep, I am being transfered up to Sendai tomorrow and I have to pack all today pretty much. Right when things are getting way cool in Nago I've got to leave, darn it.

*NOTE FROM BLOG TRANSCRIBER AKA Elder Spencer’s Dad

WHAT!?!?!? So I served my mission in the Sendai Japan mission. I am THRILLED that Spencer was called to serve in the Japan Fukuoka mission, but now he’s being transferred to a new mission?!?! To MY old mission!! This is just AMAZING, and wild, and crazy, and wait… why is this happening? Why didn’t we hear this information from Spencer’s mission president? Or why didn’t we hear from his NEW mission president from the Sendai mission? Spencer sent me an email separate from the big group message. We were able to chat back and forth a bit in that email and I’ll include the information here.

Elder Spencer:

Hey, I'm transferring to Sendai tomorrow

Dad:

WHAT!?!?!?

That's a completely different mission!?!?!!

Elder Spencer:

Not a joke

Dad:

Well, I didn't think that it was a joke for sure, but Holy Cow?!?!? I'm so excited that you're going
to my old mission, but we'll have to get you a winter coat or something!

That's pretty incredible. So I guess that we'll be sending you care packages to Sendai
mission now. I just looked it up and the mission president is President Jeffrey R. Smith

Elder Spencer:

Actually that was a bit misleading. There is an area in the Kagoshima Prefecture called
Satsumasendai but everyone calls it “Sendai”. It’s still in the Fukuoka mission but I
am legitimately getting on a plane tomorrow and fly up to the Kagoshima area to serve
in Satsumasendai.

Dad:

Jerk

JUST KIDDING. I love you anyways. ;D

Elder Spencer:

I have to fly by myself and I can't read Japanese...

Dad:

It can be super scary, but make a note card with the basic sort of questions on it so that
you can have it for quick reference. my first area was a long bus ride all by myself.

Just don't ask people for the flight to Sendai!!  they will be just as confused as we were and
may steer you in the wrong direction. You've been training for this moment my son!
GO! YOU CAN DO IT!!!

So all that crazy stress, and he was just teasing us. LOVE that kid!