July 7, 2013

     Hey guys!! We spent the whole morning with one of my favorite families in the world!! They just got baptized this last year and they've got a really young family of two 3-5 year old kids... a really loud, absolutely adorable little girl, and another really loud, super funny little boy. They're so much fun! To answer the questions:

     -The new companion:

     I could go on forever saying good things about Elder L! He's only on his 3rd move-call and yet he's such an incredible missionary!! As much as I love him (and I love him a WHOLE LOT!!) I can assure you, Mom and Dad, that I will not be marrying a Taiwanese girl. There is a VERY big culture difference! 

     -Able to email with missionaries/friends?

     Yes, I've been talking with quite a few people lately! It's nice to talk to the old crew from High School and to hear from Booth and James and all those others!

     -MTC District?

     No idea! I've talked to Sister O once or twice, but I haven't heard anything from any of the others. I'll see Sister W in the next month or so (at Zone Conference) and I'm trying to get ahold of Elder L, but no answer yet!

     -Food?

     The food is pretty great! A little too great! Same with the members, we have too great of a ward here! I was hoping to cut down a little more weight now that I"m not around the all you can eat curry rice that was in Lingya, but the members are set on fattening me up! We are fed on almost a daily basis!... pray for me.

     -Weather?

     The weather is really different. In Gaoxiong, it's SCORCHING hot, and you sweat a lot because it's so hot. But here, it's not as hot, but I feel like I sweat just as much if not more! I also am not used to the "cold" so I have to wear sweats and a hoodie at the house... my companion thinks I'm crazy.

     -Districts and Zones

     It's a little different here... most Districts have 2 or 3 different wards, each companionship takes responsibility of a ward, usually splitting with a pair of Sister missionaries... but my district has 3 companionships (my companion and I, the Zone leaders, and a pair of Sisters) and we're all over the same ward! Kinda crazy! I'm not sure how many companionships are in our Zone, but quite a few! The Mission has 10 Zones.

     -Mission President?

     Yes, I met him this last Wednesday and he's super great! A little quieter than President Bishop was, but I think that's just because he might have some serious jetlag! He's incredibly smart and he makes you feel super special when he's talking with you... I don't really know how to explain it! His wife is also super great! She made a big cake for all the missionaries... and I couldn't eat it because it was too sweet!!! Taiwan has taken over my taste buds, American dessert is too sweet for me now! 

    

     It's been a pretty fast week!! We've been helping an incredible family ever since I've gotten here, and they set baptismal goals with us now!! I'm so excited! A mom and her son are getting baptized this month!!! They're so great and I love them so much!! Please keep them in your prayers for me that they'll hit their goals! 

     I've got a quick experience to share with you having to do with the title of this email...

Who wants to get their neck scraped with a wooden board until it bleeds?

wow, sounds painful, right? Oh, you guys have no idea!!! It's this thing called "guasha"... don't ask me what it means because I've no idea! Apparently if you're out in the sun a lot, you get this stuff called "sha" in the back of your neck and you've got to "gua" it out or else you'll get heat stroke... at least that's what they tell me. Elder L has been feeling kinda sick all week, and so a sister in the ward recommended that he go and do this "guasha" thing... so on Sunday we went to my favorite families house (the same family we were with today!) to do it. At first, I had no clue what was going on! Elder L started taking his tie off and just told me to relax... so I watched as Brother Y started giving him a massage! I was thinking to myself "huh, I want to guasha!!" I started reading a magazine when Elder L started moaning in pain. I looked up and saw Brother Y had a small piece of smooth wood in his hand and he was using it to scrape Elder L's neck... which was now BRIGHT red!! 10 minutes later he finished and Brother Y looked at me and says: "you're next!" I refused as politely as possible but couldn't get out of it... I've never felt this much pain in my life guys!!! Ok, maybe I'm over - exaggerating, but it really hurt!!! Brother Y kept saying: "Wow!! You are incredible! I've never seen someone take a guasha like this!" while on the inside I wanted to grab that piece of wood and burn it!! Afterwards it felt pretty nice, I didn't feel as tired and I was in a pretty good mood... so MAYBE it actually works... I'm never doing it again though!!! I'll send a picture if Mom promises not to look! Dad and Jessi will probably get a kick out of it... Just wait till I come home and help you guys Guasha. 

"guasha"

     I was reading a talk this morning by President Uchtdorf from the 2013 April Conference. It was all about how to find the Light of God and how to "live in the light." I've thought a lot about what the difference is between light and dark, but this morning as I read this talk, a thought came to me. The difference is in our minds and in our actions. We will only live in the dark if we let ourselves. Of course, many situations are far outside of our own control, but our minds are always our own. This is a God given gift. Agency of thought and actions. By using this agency to "live in the light" we need not dwell in the darkness. I challenge each of you to stay in the light, and if you're not there yet, GET THERE! I promise you that if you try this, you will not be doing it alone. "His hand is stretched out always..." as my father told me in his email today. He will receive you with open arms and He will carry you across even the darkest abyss. This is my Testimony and Promise as one of His servants, and I leave these things with you in His Holy name, even the name of our Savior Jesus Christ, amen.

Loves! Elder Noll