Having Fun Doing Missionary Work in Taoyuan City, Taiwan

Okay. Welcome to the writings of my week two in Taoyuan City. Still getting used to the area and I still am not super familiar with where we are going or the investigators yet, except 2 who we have just chanced to see a lot lately...but it's been pretty fun. Still getting back into the whole bicycling thing. I forgot how much I hated hills. Haha. Luckily the hills here are not like Jilong, and I think in another week or two after getting back into shape, they will be no problem.



My district, being all Taiwanese, doesn't really have the same idea of fun as us, not to mention, at least one person in each companionship...is quite...older. Haha I like how I'm calling them older but when I get home I'd probably date boys older. I guess I'll just say they are older than the 19/20 year-old Americans I'm used to being with, who are always up for fun. I'm just used to doing district activities on Preparation Days..But these ones are a little bit less willing to do much but nap and bum around on Preparation day, so Sister Tedjamulia and I, a little opposed to doing that more than about once this transfer, are going out to find some fun ourselves. Today we are going to Yingge with a member who has the day off. Sister Tedj has never gone, I went back with Sister Hill as a Sister's activity when I lived in Zhongli, but I think she'll like it, and maybe I can make different pottery this time.

In investigator news, yesterday we were able to set a date with an investigator here named Vera, or Sister Zhou. She attends the Advanced English class, which, I am now going to be teaching in this area. Sister Tedjamulia told her she would be able to progress more towards baptism by attending the correct ward, since she goes to the wrong one, and by meeting with us twice a week, so we have set a time twice a week now. I think she'll be great. She's already read in the book of Mormon to Alma, and they had only met with her once before I got here, so she's a really great investigator. She really believes in the Book of Mormon. She just has a couple hard life problems, with a broken family and an abusive brother who she feels like she can't forgive, so at our lesson this week, we talked about how even when she felt alone and abandoned by her entire family and wanted to run away like she was talking about...if she was willing to pray and realize she had a loving Heavenly Father by her side, her views would be able to change, and she would be a happier person. She talks about how unhappy she is a bit. I hope we can help her. She really needs the gospel. I know it will help her a ton.

We also have a young girl named Crystal with a baptismal date. She is 11, and her sister is about 19 and a member. I still haven't met her because this week we did Saturday temple tour and Sunday she had to visit her grandparents, but I'm positive I'll meet her soon. We go visit them at their house, and their mother is very nice to us I heard, so I'm excited to get to meet Crystal and her member sister. It's been awhile since I had a child investigator, since Zhongli actually.

We also spent some time Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with an investigator, Sister Lai Yu Chun. On Friday we called and went to her mother's store and they fed us. We didn't get to teach a first lesson or anything since the purpose was just to introduce us to her mother, but we did get to share a small message and pray with them. Then, on Saturday, Sister Lai took her kids to Taipei to play, but her member friend, Sister Zhang wanted to go to the temple, and said they could play together if they just waited for her while she was in the temple. So, Sister Weng and I were able to take her on a temple tour while my companion, and the other temple tour sister, Sister Beus, went on another tour. It was an interesting experience, but she had a lot of questions and loved looking at the pictures and at the temple book. Then, she said she couldn't come to church Sunday, but ended up showing up for 2 of the 3 hours. That was a nice little surprise. She really likes church. We just need to get her taught the actual lessons. With her having 2 really small kids, she's always running around after them, and it's hard to share a lesson, but we talked a little Sunday, and will call in a day or two to set up a time she can sit down and hear a full lesson. I'm excited to teach her because she is just already really curious about the church and asks a lot of good questions and has made some friends at church in additional to the member friend that referred her.

That's about all the investigators I'm super familiar with. We've had some good people and miracles lately. Once day I called a referral on the missionary referral system, and she set up for a week later, then called back and asked if we were at the church, and said she'd just come see us. I was able to share with her about Joseph Smith a little in the chapel, while my companion and Vera talked about some stuff, since we had a lesson with her that night. A Sister Chen Wei, who I met when I came to Taoyuan for a stake activity, and loved me then and said she wanted me to come back and serve in this area, had found I was back that night, and wanted to hang out with us missionaries, so she helped me talk about Joseph Smith and truth and we invited her to come back for church. That was really cool she just came right down to the church. Her little sister is a member. I hope to see more of her.

Um, something slightly fun we did, is that the Tao ward has this party called the Elder Smith party once quarterly, because someone named Elder Smith was huge on implementing this party. What it is, is a ward activity specifically geared towards bringing family and friends and introducing them to the church in a non stress atmosphere. They played Chinese Chess with human pieces. The ward members were the pieces and two older men, were the ones saying where to move. It was kind of fun. On and off I was the ambulance who came in a picked up the dead chess pieces. We had a blanket they'd sit in and carry them off in. At first people were dramatic and it was super fun, but it did wear off a little as people got tired, so yeah..I would say it was an interesting activity...but once playing was enough. I still don't get it exactly...but maybe I'll learn eventually. I already forget how to play American chess, so maybe that's a reason it's hard for me to get the Chinese version with all these characters and stuff.

Well! That's about it this week. Love you all. See you next time.

Sister Flora Bruno