This has been a very interesting week. A lot has happened
in the past few days so I will do my best to give as much information as I can.
Tue: We had DTM (District Training Meeting) in Ebetsu (in between Iwamizawa and Sapporo). It was my first time going
there and it was a blast. We then returned and dendoed. This night we were
calling people and making appointments for the week and such, when suddenly
right after we end a phone call the APs (Assistants to the President - two missionaries that help the mission president run the mission) call us. We were slightly confused. It
turns out the phone call was to inform us that Elder Morse was going to be
emergency transferred down to Kushiro. I was going to receive a new companion
Elder Yamaoka. We were told that they would find a bus for Elder Morse and he
should start packing. We then, in our shock and disbelief, made some phone
calls and then started packing. By the time we finished it was 12:30 :S
Wed: We woke up earlier, went to the church for some
business and also made more phone calls. We were at the train station by 10:00.
I saw Elder Morse off and then had to go on splits with the Inaba's (a senior missionary couple in the area). We ended
splitting with just me and Elder Inaba going to the Library and then back to
their apartment. Sister Inaba made us an amazing lunch and I continued to make
phone calls. We picked up Elder Yamaoka and then had kid's Eikawa (English class). We also
attended the Branch presidency meeting.
Elder Yamaoka is a Nihonjin (native Japanese). Right now he is at transfer 16
and has 5 weeks left in his mission. He was the AP when I first arrived in Japan.
His family is 3 people - him and his parents. We have a lot of the same hobbies.
He was enrolled in the 5th best college in Japan. He likes tennis. He is also
really good at English.
Thursday: We did our weekly planning, got to know each
other, and had Eikawa. We had a new person come who found our Eikaiwa through
looking online and finding the site. We then had a lesson with Masaki San after
Eikaiwa.
Friday: We finished our planning and making phone calls
and then went to Ebetsu again for splits. I was with Elder Uerano who is a
transfer 2 missionary. He's Canadian. We stopped some really
interesting people who might have been a little out of it....
Saturday: We still had splits this day and I got to know
Elder Uerano pretty well. He's a really fun guy and we had a blast dendoing
together. Then around 5 o'clock we headed back to Iwamizawa. We had another
lesson with Masaki San. I also destroyed them in billiards.
Sun: A lot of people were surprised that Elder Morse
suddenly left. They all got to know him super well as he was here for 3
and 1/2 transfers. Everyone loved Elder Yamaoka through. Also an old
investigator of about 16 years ago suddenly decided this day that he wanted to
come to church and showed up half way through sacrament meeting. He stayed all
3 hours and gave us his phone number. We then went on our way to a less active
member because it was his birthday. We were able to get a return appointment doing "Mogi (role playing) lessons". Hopefully we will be able to reactivate him! Then we did
more phone dendo and found some more people. I also found a referral for Ebetsu
sisters. :3
Mon: I got a haircut. Japanese barber shops are legit.
They not only cut your hair but also shave you, trim your nose, trim your ears,
wash your hair, and style it for you. It was also pretty cheap for how well of
a job and all the things they do.
All right out of time
Love you all,
Elder Harvey
They say that it snows more in Iwamizawa than anywhere in Hokkaido (an average of 25 feet of snow per year, which is about 6 more feet of snow than Sapporo gets and 3 times more than the Buffalo/Rochester, NY area, the snowiest places in the US). Sapporo is the snowiest city on earth, but Iwamizawa is not a "city."
The church in Iwamizawa
No comments:
Post a Comment