Chi-pan-ese

Last weekend Keith and I went to a ward BBQ.  As the church is on a busy street, and as free dinner is always a good incentive, the missionaries had set up shop and were trying to lure people over for information and food. 

Although only a couple of walk-overs actually came over to eat, one of them was a woman from Japan.  My neighbor instantly went over to talk to her, since he had served his mission in Japan and they spoke the same language.  Keith and I eventually wandered over to our neighbor and listened to their conversation, even though we couldn't understand any of what they said other than a few words spoken in English.

I was pretty zoned out until the woman said, in English, that she also spoke Chinese.  At that my ears perked up, and I picked up a conversation with her in the dulcet tones of the East.  We talked about her family and about how she learned Chinese and about how I learned Chinese.  We also talked a little bit about the missionaries and our church. 

I don't get to speak Chinese very often.  I am VERY out of practice, struggling and halting way too often as I search for the right word or the correct grammar pattern.  But it was fun to be able to speak to this woman, and I think she even understood some of what I was trying to say.  What was really cool is that she is so comfortable in both Japanese and Chinese, that she would say something to me in Chinese and then turn to my neighbor and talk to him in Japanese.    

In the end, she wasn't very interested in our church, but at least she made a few new friends and got a free meal out of it.  And I got to have a small missionary moment and a Chinese practice session.  It was a win all around.

How do you keep up on your language skills?  I should study Chinese more often, but it gets discouraging because it is so hard to read.  Any suggestions?

Missionary Madness

This is Ryan:

Today we took him to the MTC

Where he will prepare to preach the Gospel

In Brazil.

Adeus, Elder Hinckley!

See you in 2 years!

Taiwanese Commercial, Part 1

This is a commercial for ramen noodles that ran in Taiwan.

If you don't understand, it's okay: it's in Taiwanese.  I don't understand it either.

Do the two boys look familiar?  All they are missing are name tags...

Great free advertising for the Church, don't you think?

This is how it should go:

Missionaries knock on your door,

you let them in,

you feed them noodles,

they teach you the Gospel

and everyone is happy.

I love it!

Taiwanese Commercial Part 2

And just in case you thought they were REAL missionaries,

Here is a news story that says they aren't.

They say that Mormon missionaries have rules that they
cannot participate in commercials and must wear helmets.

They also say that members of the Mormon Church

don't drink coffee, tea, or alcohol.

Excellent!

And I love how the REAL missionaries were filmed

in front of the Taipei Mission Office and Temple.

It makes me miss Taiwan.

And my bike.

And even my stinky helmet.

Can I go back now?

Thanks, Erin, for the links!

Skipping Sunday School

I ran into Carrie in Sacrament meeting yesterday.

Let's just say I didn't make it to my next meeting:

We had too much to catch up on.

Taoyuan Stake Conference, May 2007, Taiwan

Carrie is super awesome. 

One day she was interested in going to English class,

and the next (well, just a really short two weeks later)

she was getting baptized. 

I met her two days later when I moved into the area and taught her a new member lesson. 

She's pretty much one of my favorite people ever.

Called to Serve

Ryan received his mission call yesterday.

He has been called to serve in the

Brazil, Maceio Mission

and reports to the Sao Paolo MTC on August 11, 2010.

From what the internet says,
he is going to a tropical Brazilian paradise.

As Ryan so eloquently put it, "Whoa."

The World Needs More Sister Missionaries

Good Luck, Amanda, as you go preach the Word in Spain.

It's going to be awesome!

The Lord's Mountain

Last night we went here:

It is pretty.

Aren't Temples cool?

The Best Two Years (Or 18 Months)

Today marks the second anniversary of coming home from my mission. I can't believe how fast time goes. It seems like just yesterday I was riding my bike in a skirt, eating rice two meals each day, and preaching the Word in Taiwan.

I miss it. A lot. I miss the smell of stinky tofu and the smell of the even stinkier stinky fruit permeating the air from blocks away. I miss the cute kids with their black hair and ponytails and squeaky shoes. I miss the traffic and scooters and the buses that you would lean against at stop lights. I miss eating with two hands--a bowl in one, chopsticks in the other, drinking my soup, and using toilet paper for napkins and Kleenex for toilet paper. I miss the 7's and convenience stores on every corner, the Buddhist and Daoist temples on every other corner, and the noise of the night markets. I miss the food, the rice, the noodles, the chicken bones and pigs feet. I miss the paddies, the pineapple fields, the banana tress, and more kinds of fruit than you ever knew existed. I even miss the rain, the sun, the humidity, and that feeling of having every square inch of your body covered in sweat while knowing that you did a glorious work that day.

Mostly, I miss the people. I miss conversing with people on their scooters, on the street, in their shops and in their homes. I miss the way they talk, their clashing tones often intermixed with Taiyu, and their sometimes funny attempts at speaking English. I miss their sense of respect, their family pride and reverence, and their kindness and hospitality toward strangers and each other. I miss seeing the light and joy in their eyes as they come to understand the Gospel and know of Christ. I miss hearing them pray for the first time; I miss hearing them haltingly read the Book of Mormon for the first time; and I miss hearing them share their testimony, with dripping hair and shining faces, for the first time.

I miss Wu Mama, who fed us lunch after every weekly appointment, even though we told her not to, because of her love and gratitude. I miss Li Jiemei, who not only paid her tithing before she got baptized but told us she'd need longer skirts to wear to church because she wanted to keep the commandments. And Jian Jiemei, with whom I truly saw the power of the Atonement, repentance, and experienced the power of fasting. I miss Chen Zhujiao, who had the greatest smile, who felt every note and sang with his soul; and Huang Zhujiao, who taught me what it was to love those you serve. I miss Wang Ba, who fixed my bike for free, all because the missionaries brought him the precious truths of eternal families years ago. I miss Chen Wei, who was a bit crazy but shared the Gospel with everyone she met. I miss Zhan Yin Shu and Wu Jia Yin, who, by their example, taught the Gospel to their families and saw them baptized. I miss Li Dixiong and Wei Han, my first baptisms; and Zhong Hui Ru, my last baptism. I miss all of them, and everyone in between, for each has their own story, and yet, each of them is a wondrous miracle.

In just those short 18 months I learned, lived, and loved. How truly amazing the Gospel of Jesus Christ is!

Proclaiming the Gospel

Yesterday, I had an awesome missionary opportunity. We have a consultant for work here from Chicago. The other day she asked me what there was to see in Salt Lake City, this being her first time to Utah. I lost no time in telling her that she should visit Temple Square. I even quickly explained that we had temples all over the world and even had one in Chicago. She thought that was pretty cool, but then really didn’t say much more about it. Yesterday, one of my coworkers decided that it was time for a tour of the Square and asked me to play guide. I was only too happy and excited to comply. We spent two and a half hours touring the grounds and buildings. We first took the Temple Square tour hosted by the Temple Square missionaries and then hopped over to the Conference Center and took a tour there. Can I just say that this consultant, Nikki, is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!!!!! She listened to everything she was told with an open mind and heart and seemed to soak it all in and understand it all, all at the same time. She had a ton of questions about the Church and the “Mormon” culture. When talking of the Temple, Nikki explained to me that her family was from Nigeria. I thought a moment and said, “Oh, I think we have a temple there.” She said, “Yeah, you do. I looked it up.” When explaining about the difference between the Bible and the Book of Mormon and how they are the records of the prophets and people in Jerusalem and the Americas, she asked, “What about the people in Africa and Asia? Did they have prophets too?” As I described Lehi’s dream (very difficult to do, by the way, with all that symbolism. Hey, she asked!), she astounded my by saying, “Oh, I get it!” As we were walking back to work, she said, “Really it is so easy. The more I learn about your church the simpler it gets.” The Gospel is simple!!! She surmised that Gordon B. Hinckley preceded Thomas S. Monson as president, said she loved the feeling and peacefulness of the Square, questioned the Word of Wisdom, wondered about missionaries and mission work, queried the succession of prophets, pondered the Christus, inquired about polygamy, temple marriage and divorce, the number of kids we have, and asked me to define ‘Zion’. I cannot tell you how excited I was when Nikki filled out an information card that the missionaries gave her! To tell the truth, though I am exceedingly glad that I got to share this experience with Nikki, I am a little envious of the missionaries that are going to get to teach her. She is a Miracle waiting to happen.


I love sharing the Gospel and being a missionary. The Spirit testifies to me of the truthfulness of the Gospel each time I open my mouth. Like the stone in King Nebuchadnezzar’ dream, this work is unstoppable and will continue to roll until it fills the whole earth. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the Lord's Church on earth today. Christ lives, God loves us, and the Gospel is true!

"I know that which the Lord hath commanded me, and I glory in it. I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance; and this is my joy." --Alma 29:9