Hamatan

So, there is something called Hamatan, here, which is where all the pressure and dust and stuff comes down from the Sahara Desert. Maybe I already wrote about this, I can't remember. Anyways, I don't know a lot about it, but that is what someone explained. So, with this it is supposed to become colder. I had heard it would come at the end of December, but it never did. But, the last couple weeks, especially this week, it has gotten a little colder. You see people wearing coats and sweatshirts, and hats and stuff. So, ''winter'' does exist in Africa. Granted, I doubt that it has ever gotten below 60 degrees, but hey, it is all relative. I don't think it ever gets really hot either, probably less than 100, but the humidity makes up for that.

So, at night sometimes it is a little chilly, and I have turned off my fan a couple times at night, and even needed to cover up with my sheet. For me, it seems great, but for the people who are used to the heat, I think it feels cold. My companion, Elder Gondo, was wearing a sweatshirt the other day, and asked me to turn my fan, so that he didn't get sick from cold.

New area, for a while- Akpakpa

I am not in the same area right now. I am in Akpakpa, with Elder Samutamu, who is the zone leader. Elder Schwieger was also a zone leader, and so he left, and they haven't sent a new missionary here yet, so I am here, and the other three in my apartment are working together for a little bit. That should finish in the next couple days, but sometimes things don't work according to schedule. It has been an interesting experience. Most of my stuff is still in Gbedjromede, so that is hard sometimes, but it works out. It is always different to work with a new companion. That is (for me, and probably for all missionaries), one of the hardest things with missionary work.

Translating

Elder Cardon came on Tuesday and Wednesday, which was really cool. Tuesday there was a meeting for all of the members and investigators, and he spoke at that. He basically just talked about the message of the Restoration, and taught very simply, but it was very powerful, and really really good. He speaks English, so Elder Schwieger, who has been here for 8 or 9 months translated. I understood everything (I think), both in English (easily) and in French.

So, this turned out to be good that I was feeling fairly comfortable with French, because on Wednesday, I had to translate for Elder Cardon at the zone conference. That was a pretty cool experience, translating for a member of the Seventy. Elder Schwieger has to go home this last week, since he has been sick for the last two months. So, he wasn't there at this particular moment of the conference which is why I had to translate. He still did most of the translating.

So, the conference itself was really good. I learned a lot of stuff and have a lot I need to improve on. He talked about promising blessing when we teach, and how we can extend commitment invitations better. The Spirit was really strong, and it was a good zone conference, like always.

Baptism

There were 5 people getting baptized, so that was cool. Me and my companion, didn't have anyone we were teaching getting baptized. But, three people that I was teaching before I changed areas got baptized. Marium and Mireille, who both have family members who are members of the Church. And Lazario, and I guess his brother is a member of the Church as well. The first two are fairly young, around 16 or 17 years old, and Lazario is around 25 or so I think. So, that was cool. Those are the first people to get baptized that I have taught very much.

Fish Heads

I have had more ''opportunites'' to eat African food the last month or so, I think that I wrote that before. Last week we were at a member's home, and they were eating fishheads. Oh, we don't really have meal appointments, we just eat at people's houses when they offer us food sometimes. So, here, people eat the whole fishhead, and there isn't much meat there. It is mostly scales, and bone. But, they eat the bones too. I don't really understand how they do that. Oh, and it is with the eyeball too. I didn't really eat very much there. Everyone eats with their hands, and it is really hard to do without practice. I have gotten better, but it is hard.

Greetings in Fon

Fon is the Native language that people speak in the area that Michael is in. Here are some greetings that I found on the internet.

Good morning: AH-FON Ghan-Jee-Ah
Good evening: Kou Do Bah Dah
How are you: Ah-Doh Ghan-Jee-Ah
Thank you: Ah-Wah-Nou
Good bye: OH-Dah-Boh

Transfer of area

So, this week we found an awesome investigator, Cyprien. We found him on Friday, he wanted us to come back on Saturday, and he came to church on Sunday. We ended up teaching him on Sunday since anther rendez-vous fell through. He understands really well, and seems to already believe that it is true, even if he doesn't have a really strong testimony yet. I think that he used to be Catholic, but that he left because he felt like their teaching weren't in harmony with the Bible. I think he might have gone to several churches before. So, it is possible that it won't turn out quite as well as it first seems, since that happens often. But, it is very possible that he will be someone who is baptized two weeks after he met the missionaries, someone who was looking for the truth, but hadn't found it yet.

But, unfortunately, I won't be able to continue teaching him, since the change of areas will be happening today. So, I will now be in an area that I know nothing about. But, really the hardest part is just leaving all of the people that we were teaching. There are some that are getting close to baptism, which is cool, and I'm sad that I will miss out on that. There are others who are really good people, but that I have a feeling won't be taught nearly as often, or at all after the change. Some missionaries are more willing to stop teaching people if they don't come to church, or keep commitments, etc. Others are willing to give them more chances. I think that one of the missionaries who will be working in the area is one of the type that will stop teaching people if they aren't keeping commitments. Which is necessary sometimes. It is hard because I think that most missionaries have a tendency to want to teach the people that they find, and that they started teaching. That is normal, but hard sometimes.

Sorry, that all sounded kind of negative. I really don't think it will be that bad, but I am a little discouraged that it is possible that tons of people I started teaching won't get taught anymore. But, I also think that that is one reason for transfers in a mission, so that the missionaries teach the people who really need to be taught. It is easy for missionaries who have stayed in an area for a while to want to keep teaching people who really aren't that interested in learning, and waste time like that. By changing missionaries, there isn't that attachment there, and it can help things progress. But, there has to be a balance there. Too far to one side is bad, and too far to the other is bad.

So, yeah, hopefully that made sense. I just don't want people to miss out on the blessings of the gospel because the missionaries don't teach them. But, they have to be willing to act as well. Sometimes it just takes time, and it is hard to know how much time is the right amount. I am pretty sure that most of the feeling come every time that you are transfered. But, especially when you are just swapping areas with another set of missionaries, and you are in the same apartment with them, it is hard. I will just have to continue on in faith, and trust the Lord knows what He is doing.