Clint Mission 99 #10 3/8/99
Dear Family,
I finally feel like a real Missionary! There was a move this last week and some big changes in my life. It was quite a surprise. Elder Hodson was having some troubles. To make a long story short he told Pres. White he wanted to go home. I really felt bad about the situation, I felt that I had failed as a companion. In the month Elder Hodson and I were together his enthusiasm was high at the start. However the last week he stayed in a couple of days sick and kind of miserable. The area was struggling, we were working hard to find people to teach, my attitude was we needed to keep working and do our part and the Lord would help us find people. I was unaware that he was struggling and wanted to go home. I failed in not figuring it out, not being the friend I could of been. It wasn’t like we had a fight, we are good friends, Elder Hodson is the companion that I have even hugged. He got down on his self he said he couldn’t be like me. He said that I have been preparing for a long time for the mission, and that he hadn’t , he was different. He is having a hard time adapting to missionary life and I am an extremist. President White met with Elder Hodson and organized a move. Elder Hodson is now serving with Elder McCormick an Elder who once said send me home, Elder Hoare is my new companion and he and I serve as Assistants to the President ( AP’s) . I laid in bed that night wondering what the Lord wanted me to learn from the 1 month experience with Elder Hodson and what I could have done better. The experience helped me to be humble. I have been serving as an AP most of the past week, since Mar 3. I opened this letter with the phrase I finally feel like a missionary. This is because of the new house. Elder Hoare and I live alone in a little apartment. We cook food together, do laundry, clean together, park the bikes inside at night, take turns in the bathroom. It feels like real missionary life, also kind of like being married.
Elder Hoare and I are best of buds. Elder Hoare is the “Ecky” of my mission. Most nights we turn out the lights at 9:30 and then talk to each other about things in the dark.
Today I had a fun adventure. President White and Sister White are at a meeting in Hong Kong. Today we had the assignment of taking Elder Madden to the airport and to turn him over to his parents. I forgot how fun driving a stick was! I haven’t been back to the airport since that day in March of 98.
We met a family this week proselyting. The wife is the voice who reads the scriptures for the New Life Christian Church radio program here in town.
It is pretty funny they even have gospel music or Christian music. However they never heard anything about us or the Book of Mormon. As we talked we asked if we could come back. We did go back but only the husband was home with the 2 and ½ yr. old daughter. We shortened up the first and focused in on Joseph Smith. After teaching and bearing testimony he asked “ You mean we have prophet now a day like we did in the Bible? We asked him if he would pray with us right then in the appointment and ask if the Prophet Joseph Smith is a true prophet of God. I prayed first and asked that we could please have the Spirit there with us, and then he gave an awesome prayer. The Spirit wasn’t overly strong but we asked him how he felt. He said he felt something new. We were just going to focus on the Book of Mormon, when a youngster with a cut lip and blood on his face and shirt, led by his Mom came in. Sunthaa, our investigator, is also a doctor who works at a hospital and also sells medicine and sees patients at his house. So we slipped out, we will meet again later this coming week.
As AP our schedule is a little different. Tuesday, Thursday, and Sat from 8-12 we are in the mission office, also we can get pulled if President needs us. It is great to work with President White on a personal basis.
My house is on street 410 near the intersection of Monivong and Mao Tse Toung.
Well I’m out!
Love ya!
Your Son, Brother, Missionary,
PS Thank Montrue for the card it was great!