Bike Wars

Elder Lake or Elder Baker

It's been raining a ton.  Luckily we've been driving around all day so I'm nice and dry inside the cyber.  I fixed my bike, then Elder Lake's then Elder Bakers.  It was fun, and we've all got well working bikes now.  We played soccer this morning, I'm not a very good player, and it was super slippery, which made the whole experience muddy.  Now our house is muddy because we had 9 people getting ready for the day there.

Elder Hulme and either Elder Lake or Elder Baker (he didn't tell me!)

News from this week.  We got a new Elder in Suriname, who will be working in Kwatta with Elder Norton.  Elder Baker has joined up with Elder Lake and I.  It's been crazy.  The first day we were together, we taught 12 lessons.  A good day you usually teach 6, bad day is usually like 3 or 4.  But we got 12 on Friday.  Then we all relaxed a ton, and weren't able to match it since.  It's nice working with Elder Lake.  And it's nice working with Elder Baker.  But with the 3 of us, the amount of time spent messing around has increased drastically.  Study time is filled with more stories, and planning time is a disaster.  

In French Guiana to renew Visa (Photo copied from Elder Tullis' website) 

We've instituted a new game(it's not a game though, it's a way of life).  It's called bike wars.   The idea is that you make the other two people fall off their bikes.  There are two ways to get someone out.  1) get them to crash or put their foot down.  2) if they run into you or your bicycle.  You are allowed to hit each other with your shoulders.  You are allowed to run people into the river(I nearly got Elder Lake into a big nasty one, but then was merciful and didn't finish him).  You are allowed to double team.  The game (way of life) stops when cars are coming.  Nobody has crashed yet, we are anxiously awaiting that day.  Mom, you should implement bike wars into Little Red Riding hood.  

Downtown French Guiana (Photo copied from Elder Tullis' website)

We've got 3 good investigators.

Lionel, who is the oddest investigator I've ever had.

ZR Devredis who is still stubborn.

Melton, who is way cool, has a massive girlfriend and a little kid.  He's quiet and works security.  He's also an Indian (not of India but of South America) and thinks the Book of Mormon is wonderful, which it is.  We've got to explain how you need to use Saturday to get ready for Sunday with Melton and Lionel, because they both missed church yesterday.  

I've realized that teaching is so incredibly hard, and I'm not very good at it.  I sometimes think it would be better to just teach the lessons like the olden days, just so that my investigators would be taught well and stuff.  But instead, they receive my personal teaching which is always custom tailored to them but not as clear or powerful as it could be.  I'll be working on that a lot, and studying about it.  If you look at statistics, the written lessons bring far more convert baptisms. As Elder Holland explains, Preach My Gospel was designed to convert the missionaries.  So I use Preach My Gospel as much as I can, and do my best to allow myself to be converted.  My redeemer lives.  

-Elder Hulme

May 23, 2011

We've had a great week, lots of good things happened.  It rained every day, so we've been nice and wet.  I got your package! Thanks so much.  Those Trader joes powerberry dipped things are wonderful.  And gone already.  It was strange receiving a wedding invite to Joey's wedding! That's the first reception I'd ever really want to go to...  it's over now though.  I haven't seen Grandma's package yet. It's probably just sitting in Surpost for no reason - the people there are lazy. 

As far as me saying funny stuff in Dutch, I'm sure I do all the time.  This week I confused a man a lot.  I told him he had a nice looking poncho(I was soaked to the bone at the time. He explained how he got it from his work at the water purifying center near the city.  I misunderstood and heard that he sold them at his water place in the city.  I told him that we'd try to come by on Monday to pick 2 up, and walked away.  He stood there with a confused look on his face for a minute and then went back to fishing.  Elder Lake explained what it was that he had said.  Sometimes I forget to actually hear what people say, and I just assume I already know what they will say.

I fixed Elder Lake's bike this morning, we had to replace the entire bottom bracket and cranks.  Fixing bikes here isn't as fun as it is in a bike shop.  It takes tons more time because you never have the right tools or parts or anything.  After a little bit of bashing the bike with a hammer, I got it together and it works beautifully.  The problem is that I still need to overhaul my back hub and replace my grips.  I guess I'll have time tonight probably.  Elder Lake is great to live with, he likes cooking sometimes and makes tons when he does cook.  I feel bad though because with how much food he makes, I never need to make anything.  I try to make up the difference by making his bed or ironing his shirt and stuff.  It's so strange that three weeks from today his mission will be over.  He'll be boarding a plane to Trinidad, then to Miami, then to Fort Whatever Texas and then to SLC International.   This transfer is going by too fast. 

ZR Devredis is coming along great, yesterday she had to save some Portuguese people from getting thrown out of the country, so that was a bummer because she missed church, but she's progressing still.  We're going over there Wednesday with the Jansens to try and whoop her butt into shape even faster.  We're hoping to get two baptisms before Elder Lake leaves, so we'll see how it goes.  Lionel is sliding backwards, he was being rude on Saturday, and bailed out on the YSA activity and church.  Those three things combined we may be dropping him after the next appointment.  We went to ZR Hek's house(an old member from 2 years ago who only speaks Surinams) with the intention of baptizing her daughter, and/or reactivating her grandson who is missionary aged.  Elder Lake had the Hiccups and Zr Hek offered to pray for him.  She offered this super baptist prayer and asked that he'd be healed.  His hiccups ceased immediately.  We laughed pretty hard, realizing that she was more faithful than we assumed. 

There is this Korean restaurant I want to eat at today, Elder Lake wants to go get a steak.  I think either way will be tasty, but I'd definitely take the Korean place over a steak place.   Zr Devredis gave us some Tamarind cookies she makes for a living.  They weren't cookies, and weren't all that good.  It was more like a big smarty that didn't taste like a smarty but like Tamarind.  There is this other crazy fruit here called Mope' it makes really tasty juice, I think I'd prefer Markoesa juice or Mango Juice, but Mope' is unobtainable in the states as far as I know.  They also have this one called a Zuurzaak.  Sour pocket.  That makes good juice too.  We've got tons of bananas freezing for smoothies and milkshakes right now.  Bananas, coconut milk and pineapple makes good flavors. 

We make a good team you 5 and I. 

Love you all lots

-Elder Hulme