Hey!
It's been another beautiful week here in the Texas Panhandle!
The weather's been clearing up, and it's been getting warmer.
The change in temperature has also brought its fair share of sickness, too. I got a little cold. Fortunately, it is *little*. It won't last near as long as the last one.
The work here has been really picking up. We're doing a lot better than when I arrived.
I'm learning new things everyday. What a wonderful blessing that is!
Some days are tough. Just the other day, it seemed everyone was mean at us. Usually that doesn't really mean much, but sometimes, it adds up. Still, though, some of the most exciting times in missionary work are when you're meeting new people.
I've (re-) learned that you have to look at things positively, and choose to be happy. That's a tough lesson for a cynic like me. I've also (re-) learned that you have to rely on the Spirit if you are to do anything of great worth, or accomplish something of value. If you do, you can do more than you could if you were the smartest or most able person on the planet. It also means that even if you are the lowliest of God's children, you can still do many great and important things here on earth.
The Church is true!
Love,
-Elder Brandon Wong
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Hey!
What's been going on?
Things are going well here. Our work is slowly speeding up and we're getting a lot more done than before. It helps that the weather is cooperating. It also helps that we're bit-by-bit planning more effectively. When you plan things ahead, things go so much more smoothly.
To answer your question from before, this is a geographically small area. It is most definitely one of the smallest in the whole mission, if not the smallest. I really love it. Because it's small, we don't have to worry about transportation, even if we're only on bikes. It's also almost all residential, so we'll never "run out" of work. Most of the local members live in our area. We also have a fair amount of commercial zones, so if ever we want to eat out, we don't have to go far.
One thing I noticed early on when I arrived is how stupid some missionaries (including me) are when biking at night. I was biking along one evening, and it occurred to me: I'm biking on a black bicycle, wearing an all-black coat, an all-black helmet, black shoes, black socks, black gloves, having no rear light, and it's night-time. How stupid! There's not that much I can do about it, and I have a front light (a flashlight taped to my handlebars), but the thought just popped in my mind.
Anyways, I don't have much to say today.
Still looking for a way to send my pictures. Be on the lookout for them.
The Church is true!
Love,
-Elder Brandon Wong
Something I wish I knew before my mission: how to cheaply seal a crack in a shoe.
What's been going on?
Things are going well here. Our work is slowly speeding up and we're getting a lot more done than before. It helps that the weather is cooperating. It also helps that we're bit-by-bit planning more effectively. When you plan things ahead, things go so much more smoothly.
To answer your question from before, this is a geographically small area. It is most definitely one of the smallest in the whole mission, if not the smallest. I really love it. Because it's small, we don't have to worry about transportation, even if we're only on bikes. It's also almost all residential, so we'll never "run out" of work. Most of the local members live in our area. We also have a fair amount of commercial zones, so if ever we want to eat out, we don't have to go far.
One thing I noticed early on when I arrived is how stupid some missionaries (including me) are when biking at night. I was biking along one evening, and it occurred to me: I'm biking on a black bicycle, wearing an all-black coat, an all-black helmet, black shoes, black socks, black gloves, having no rear light, and it's night-time. How stupid! There's not that much I can do about it, and I have a front light (a flashlight taped to my handlebars), but the thought just popped in my mind.
Anyways, I don't have much to say today.
Still looking for a way to send my pictures. Be on the lookout for them.
The Church is true!
Love,
-Elder Brandon Wong
Something I wish I knew before my mission: how to cheaply seal a crack in a shoe.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Thursday, February 4, 2010 - "And since we've no place to go..."
Hello!
Elder Wong here, writing from what I thought was Amarillo, Texas, but I'm not too entirely sure.
Last week, on Wednesday/Thursday, we got tons of sleet - itty-bitty pellets of ice. By Thursday morning, it became slush and snow. All the mission vehicles in Amarillo were parked, and we were stuck in the apartment. We did manage to pass the time by reading our stack of Ensigns and visiting the Ambassador Hotel across the street, and Oliver's Saddle Shop down the block. Friday we were stuck inside also, so we did a lot of planning. Saturday and Sunday we managed to arrange for people to give us rides to appointments and teach with us. (Regardless of weather, how often do missionaries in Montreal do that? Other than my mission prep, I don't remember anyone mentioning doing lessons alongside the missionaries...)
On Sunday, our ward's meetings were cancelled.
Just a few days before the snow, it was sunny and comparatively warm. We didn't need any jackets (or grocery bags lining our shoes). I also got in a bike wreck. My front wheel slipped to the side and I flipped right over the bike. I don't remember it, but I hit my knee somewhere in the process, which got a little cut, and it was sore for a while. Anyways, since the days we were stuck inside, we decided that we couldn't just sit around doing nothing. Elder Pearce had black boots and I had Wal-Mart bags over my socks (I found a crack in each of my new shoes!), so we decided to go walking. After a long afternoon of nothing, we came back with wet feet. Then we decided to go biking. So since that time, we've been riding our bikes in the snow. If it's not too wet and if it's not too slippery, we do fine, and we manage to get places. Sometimes, it's actually kinda fun. It's funny: we can ride our bikes in the snow better than most Texans can drive in the snow.
Then it started to rain. We tried biking out in that, but we got wet and consequently, very cold. Not only that, one man we tried to visit, whom we had been teaching for quite some time, asked us not to return. Needless to say, it was a miserable day.
But I did get the package you sent last Friday. Thanks for all the info and also that talk. Elder Cherrington had a friend that sent him the full version, given at BYU, and there are some things in there that aren't mentioned in the Ensign. You should check it out.
In other news, Elder Christopherson's companion, Elder Butterworth, finally arrived. Elder Christopherson is so relieved to have an official companion. Elder Butterworth is yet another one of those missionaries that came to the mission while I was in the office.
One thing I forgot to mention when I first got here is about the signs all over the city. I've spoken with many missionaries who would tell me about these signs with random messages on them placed all around town. Now that I'm serving here, I've been able to see quite a few, and find out what those missionaries were talking about. They've been put up by a man named Stanley Marsh. He's some rich dude who loves to spend money and is more eccentric than he is rich. He made the Cadillac Ranch, which is a bunch of cars half-buried front-first in the ground, and people are invited to come and spray paint them as they will. Anyways, he also put up signs (all of them diamond-shaped, like construction signs) in hundreds of locations around Amarillo, each with a quote, random saying, picture, or something.
A couple days ago, I got "the call". The call that I used to make while I was in the office. Sister Hansen called and asked which airport I wanted to fly to at the end of my mission. (You could tell she was tearing up a little over the phone.) I told her YUL. (I actually told her PET, which is what I thought they renamed it to. No one told me that the initials didn't change. I could've had a free flight to Brazil!)
Anyways, I hope all is well at home. I'm still looking for ways to send my pictures home.
Take care, and remember that the Church is true.
Love,
-Elder Brandon Wong
Elder Wong here, writing from what I thought was Amarillo, Texas, but I'm not too entirely sure.
Last week, on Wednesday/Thursday, we got tons of sleet - itty-bitty pellets of ice. By Thursday morning, it became slush and snow. All the mission vehicles in Amarillo were parked, and we were stuck in the apartment. We did manage to pass the time by reading our stack of Ensigns and visiting the Ambassador Hotel across the street, and Oliver's Saddle Shop down the block. Friday we were stuck inside also, so we did a lot of planning. Saturday and Sunday we managed to arrange for people to give us rides to appointments and teach with us. (Regardless of weather, how often do missionaries in Montreal do that? Other than my mission prep, I don't remember anyone mentioning doing lessons alongside the missionaries...)
On Sunday, our ward's meetings were cancelled.
Just a few days before the snow, it was sunny and comparatively warm. We didn't need any jackets (or grocery bags lining our shoes). I also got in a bike wreck. My front wheel slipped to the side and I flipped right over the bike. I don't remember it, but I hit my knee somewhere in the process, which got a little cut, and it was sore for a while. Anyways, since the days we were stuck inside, we decided that we couldn't just sit around doing nothing. Elder Pearce had black boots and I had Wal-Mart bags over my socks (I found a crack in each of my new shoes!), so we decided to go walking. After a long afternoon of nothing, we came back with wet feet. Then we decided to go biking. So since that time, we've been riding our bikes in the snow. If it's not too wet and if it's not too slippery, we do fine, and we manage to get places. Sometimes, it's actually kinda fun. It's funny: we can ride our bikes in the snow better than most Texans can drive in the snow.
Then it started to rain. We tried biking out in that, but we got wet and consequently, very cold. Not only that, one man we tried to visit, whom we had been teaching for quite some time, asked us not to return. Needless to say, it was a miserable day.
But I did get the package you sent last Friday. Thanks for all the info and also that talk. Elder Cherrington had a friend that sent him the full version, given at BYU, and there are some things in there that aren't mentioned in the Ensign. You should check it out.
In other news, Elder Christopherson's companion, Elder Butterworth, finally arrived. Elder Christopherson is so relieved to have an official companion. Elder Butterworth is yet another one of those missionaries that came to the mission while I was in the office.
One thing I forgot to mention when I first got here is about the signs all over the city. I've spoken with many missionaries who would tell me about these signs with random messages on them placed all around town. Now that I'm serving here, I've been able to see quite a few, and find out what those missionaries were talking about. They've been put up by a man named Stanley Marsh. He's some rich dude who loves to spend money and is more eccentric than he is rich. He made the Cadillac Ranch, which is a bunch of cars half-buried front-first in the ground, and people are invited to come and spray paint them as they will. Anyways, he also put up signs (all of them diamond-shaped, like construction signs) in hundreds of locations around Amarillo, each with a quote, random saying, picture, or something.
A couple days ago, I got "the call". The call that I used to make while I was in the office. Sister Hansen called and asked which airport I wanted to fly to at the end of my mission. (You could tell she was tearing up a little over the phone.) I told her YUL. (I actually told her PET, which is what I thought they renamed it to. No one told me that the initials didn't change. I could've had a free flight to Brazil!)
Anyways, I hope all is well at home. I'm still looking for ways to send my pictures home.
Take care, and remember that the Church is true.
Love,
-Elder Brandon Wong
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Thursday, January 21, 2010 - Let there be light
Hello!
We just had Zone Conference on Tuesday, and it went very well.
Things are going great here in Amarillo, and certainly much better than last week.
First, we went to the apartment complex managers and asked them to replace our toilet seat, which doesn't stay up. Apparently, it has been broken for months. Next, I went to the store and bought three packs of light bulbs. For the last long while, each room had a single 40-watt bulb, and it was really bothering me. Not only was it annoyingly impossible to see anything, but also the Spirit usually doesn't reside in dark places. Now, each room has at least two 100-watt bulbs (and some, four). The next thing to do would be a really good cleaning of the place, which has been rather tough with me unpacking my stuff.
Other than that, we've been having really warm weather, so bike riding is actually fun. Also, Elder Christopherson, who is in the Amarillo 2nd East area, doesn't have a companion yet, so he's been hanging out with us on and off. Every once in a while, he'd go with other missionaries also in "limbo", but he's anxious to have an official companion. In the meantime, though, he's been staying at our apartment, and we've been splitting time working in our area and his. We also get to use his area's car too sometimes.
That brings up an interesting question. Should I arrange to have my bike sent home at the end of my mission? I've always planned on it. Recently, I've thought that I might not have use for it at home and it would cost a lot to ship, but maybe it would be good to have. What do you think?
Anyways, I know the Church is true, and I love bearing my testimony of it.
I love you
-Elder Brandon Wong
We just had Zone Conference on Tuesday, and it went very well.
Things are going great here in Amarillo, and certainly much better than last week.
First, we went to the apartment complex managers and asked them to replace our toilet seat, which doesn't stay up. Apparently, it has been broken for months. Next, I went to the store and bought three packs of light bulbs. For the last long while, each room had a single 40-watt bulb, and it was really bothering me. Not only was it annoyingly impossible to see anything, but also the Spirit usually doesn't reside in dark places. Now, each room has at least two 100-watt bulbs (and some, four). The next thing to do would be a really good cleaning of the place, which has been rather tough with me unpacking my stuff.
Other than that, we've been having really warm weather, so bike riding is actually fun. Also, Elder Christopherson, who is in the Amarillo 2nd East area, doesn't have a companion yet, so he's been hanging out with us on and off. Every once in a while, he'd go with other missionaries also in "limbo", but he's anxious to have an official companion. In the meantime, though, he's been staying at our apartment, and we've been splitting time working in our area and his. We also get to use his area's car too sometimes.
That brings up an interesting question. Should I arrange to have my bike sent home at the end of my mission? I've always planned on it. Recently, I've thought that I might not have use for it at home and it would cost a lot to ship, but maybe it would be good to have. What do you think?
Anyways, I know the Church is true, and I love bearing my testimony of it.
I love you
-Elder Brandon Wong
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Thursday, January 14, 2010 - Hello from Amarillo
Hi Everyone!
I've been transferred to Amarillo, Texas!
This is the first time in a long while that I've been transferred "normally". That is: on the bus; without knowing where I'm going; without knowing my new companion; and without any special assignment. Because of all this, it was pretty exciting. It also made me really nervous. It took forever to pack all my stuff (I have a lot more than when I started off).
Anyways, I'm in Amarillo 2nd West [ward]. I've been released as a district leader, and I'm in my very first bike area. My new companion is Elder Pearce, and he's from western Idaho. That reminds me, this is the first time in a long while that I got a companion that I never heard of before.
It's rather interesting - I've never served in the Amarillo zone before. My whole mission, I've been slowly going north. Then, after Lubbock, I came down south again. Now, I'm in the northernmost zone in the mission. I wonder if that's symbolic...
The apartment is really dirty. Every time the south winds start up, it carries a certain foul odour from Hereford, which is nick-named "the beef capital of the world" (I think you can guess what that smell is). The library computers don't look like they'll be able to send my pictures home. Not to be pessimistic, but there's a lot that doesn't appeal about this area. But then again, when are we not supposed to face trials? Besides, I'm told that the ward is great. I've already met the new stake president (he just happened to drive by while we were out working), and he's very missionary-minded. I'm excited to really get things moving here.
Anyways, (there's a time limit on these computers - I really don't like library computers) that's all that's been going on around here. I've never been in this zone, so I don't really know any of the other missionaries here, and I'm looking forward to get to know them.
I hope everything is going well for you.
The Church is true.
I love you
-Elder Brandon Wong
I've been transferred to Amarillo, Texas!
This is the first time in a long while that I've been transferred "normally". That is: on the bus; without knowing where I'm going; without knowing my new companion; and without any special assignment. Because of all this, it was pretty exciting. It also made me really nervous. It took forever to pack all my stuff (I have a lot more than when I started off).
Anyways, I'm in Amarillo 2nd West [ward]. I've been released as a district leader, and I'm in my very first bike area. My new companion is Elder Pearce, and he's from western Idaho. That reminds me, this is the first time in a long while that I got a companion that I never heard of before.
It's rather interesting - I've never served in the Amarillo zone before. My whole mission, I've been slowly going north. Then, after Lubbock, I came down south again. Now, I'm in the northernmost zone in the mission. I wonder if that's symbolic...
The apartment is really dirty. Every time the south winds start up, it carries a certain foul odour from Hereford, which is nick-named "the beef capital of the world" (I think you can guess what that smell is). The library computers don't look like they'll be able to send my pictures home. Not to be pessimistic, but there's a lot that doesn't appeal about this area. But then again, when are we not supposed to face trials? Besides, I'm told that the ward is great. I've already met the new stake president (he just happened to drive by while we were out working), and he's very missionary-minded. I'm excited to really get things moving here.
Anyways, (there's a time limit on these computers - I really don't like library computers) that's all that's been going on around here. I've never been in this zone, so I don't really know any of the other missionaries here, and I'm looking forward to get to know them.
I hope everything is going well for you.
The Church is true.
I love you
-Elder Brandon Wong
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010 - Happy New Year!
Howdy, y'all!
It's a cold day here today (and tomorrow). The high today is at freezing.
Missionary-wise, there's not too much going on here. We're working hard to find new people to teach. It's at a time like this that I realize not only how much I appreciated having work to do, but how much I personally value the message of the Restoration.
No matter what Church you go to (or if you feel that "you are your own church", and don't need to go at all), what is taught will have interpretations, opinions, and different views. If you're going to get interpretations, opinions, and views, you might as well get God's. The only way to do that is through current revelation. Hence, a current prophet. Hence, a Restoration.
Anyways, for New Year's, all the missionaries went to the chapel for a mini-party. After we arrived, a bunch of other people came and set up their own party, and we joined in for a while with them. We also had "flamin' diablos", which are steak cubes with jalapeno slices and bacon. It was fun, except Elder Wilson's camera got stolen by somebody.
Hope everything is going well.
(Lucky I got a tuque for Christmas from the ward!)
The Church is true!
I love you.
-Elder Brandon Wong
It's a cold day here today (and tomorrow). The high today is at freezing.
Missionary-wise, there's not too much going on here. We're working hard to find new people to teach. It's at a time like this that I realize not only how much I appreciated having work to do, but how much I personally value the message of the Restoration.
No matter what Church you go to (or if you feel that "you are your own church", and don't need to go at all), what is taught will have interpretations, opinions, and different views. If you're going to get interpretations, opinions, and views, you might as well get God's. The only way to do that is through current revelation. Hence, a current prophet. Hence, a Restoration.
Anyways, for New Year's, all the missionaries went to the chapel for a mini-party. After we arrived, a bunch of other people came and set up their own party, and we joined in for a while with them. We also had "flamin' diablos", which are steak cubes with jalapeno slices and bacon. It was fun, except Elder Wilson's camera got stolen by somebody.
Hope everything is going well.
(Lucky I got a tuque for Christmas from the ward!)
The Church is true!
I love you.
-Elder Brandon Wong
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Thursday, December 24, 2009 - Merry Christmas!
Hey!
Merry Christmas from Texas, y'all!
Even better, it's snowing here today! Full-on, bona fide snow all over the place! That was totally unexpected.
Other than that, I went to the doctor's the night I sent that email (instead of the following week), who confirmed a small case of bronchitis, and prescribed some antibiotics for it. Meanwhile, Elder Cherrington's got something of his own. All six of the missionaries got sick with something in the last week or two. By the time we went to interviews/district meeting on Tuesday, it was a sad sight to see (except Sweetwater). Fortunately, with Christmas around the corner, it's a "slower" week, which makes all of us staying in to recover... not so bad of a thing.
Anyways, I'm looking forward to your phone call.
Talk to you soon! Bye!
-Elder Brandon Wong
Merry Christmas from Texas, y'all!
Even better, it's snowing here today! Full-on, bona fide snow all over the place! That was totally unexpected.
Other than that, I went to the doctor's the night I sent that email (instead of the following week), who confirmed a small case of bronchitis, and prescribed some antibiotics for it. Meanwhile, Elder Cherrington's got something of his own. All six of the missionaries got sick with something in the last week or two. By the time we went to interviews/district meeting on Tuesday, it was a sad sight to see (except Sweetwater). Fortunately, with Christmas around the corner, it's a "slower" week, which makes all of us staying in to recover... not so bad of a thing.
Anyways, I'm looking forward to your phone call.
Talk to you soon! Bye!
-Elder Brandon Wong
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