Japan week #20

Hey everyone!

  Hope everyone is doing great!! :D I've had a great week! Otofuke is way fun, and the ward here is way cool. My new companion is awesome as well. :) He is a big goof ball, and we've been having a lot of fun. :) It's way different from Muroran, and way different from Elder Lee, but it's been fun! I'm glad I get to spend Christmas with all the people in Obihiro. :) It's a little hard sometimes, sometimes VERY hard, ;) talking in only Japanese. Shows me how much I really have to go before I'm very good at the language, but it's been improving in leaps and bounds even in just this first week, it's crazy. I've been writing down words like mad to learn. As for grammar I'm pretty good, I just need to know words now to understand and speak moaaah betta! ;) He's been teaching me lots. And he wants to go to BYU after his mission, so he wants me to help him learn English, which I'm more than happy to do. :) So we do an English day every other day. One day we speak only Japanese, and then the other day he tries to use as much English as possible, but we still end up using Japanese most. He's been praying in English though to help, and it's been good practice. :) I'm  looking forward to being way good by the end of this transfer. ;) Haha!

   I'm way bummed that we don't have a tree in our apartment! We've visited a few Daiso's, the 100 yen stores here, and we haven't been able to find any trees!! :( So I might be opening them under my plants instead. :P Have I told you about my plants? I have two of them, Sister Myers, and Sister Payne. :P You wouldn't get it unless you watched those District videos we watched. They were standard in the MTC, and we still occasionally watch them now. Usually just to make a lot of jokes though. ;)

   So, I have a bit of a confession to make. I thought I would be just a little homesick, being away for Christmas. But to be honest, I haven't been even just a little homesick. :P Sorry! I'm so busy as a missionary, that I didn't even realize it was so close to Christmas! I would look at the date, and just think another day of dendo, it's weird. AND MY BIRTHDAY IS SO SOON. O.O I'm gonna be 20. THAT, I cannot believe. I'll officially not be a teen, and I'll be an adult, finally, in Japan. ;) The adult age is 20, so I get to turn adult twice! :P Woot! Apparently in Obihiro they love birthdays, and they do things for you, but I have no idea what, and no one will tell me anything, so I'm gonna get surprised on my birthday me thinks. Can't wait. :)

  So this week we had our Christmas Party, which was a blast! Our investigator Sato San came. She had fun, and made tons of friends, so that's way good! :D She's simply amazing. We had a lesson with her this week, and during it she told us all about these feelings she has while she meets with us, and while she reads the Book of Mormon and what not. She said she doesn't understand them, but just that they're good. So we taught her all about the Spirit, and how it's trying to teach her that this is right. :) We asked her to pray specifically to know that Joseph Smith is a prophet, and that the Book of Mormon is true. So we're praying that she gets her answer, and wants to be baptized. :) Pray for her please to get her answer! She is such a nice lady, and she already has found more happiness in the gospel, and I want her to have all of it! So we're way excited to keep working with her. This week, on my birthday actually, we have another lesson with her, and we're going to try and invite her again to be baptized. So wish us luck! :D That'd be nice, make a baptismal date on my birthday. :)

  This week we have had the ward Christmas party, tonight we have a party with one member, all the missionaries were invited, and we have a zone party Christmas eve, and then some dinners and stuff after Christmas, we're pretty busy this week, it's crazy! I get to see Elder Harper again in our zone party!! He's in Kushiro right now, which is south east of Otofuke and Obihiro. So he's in my zone, that'll be fun, getting to see him again! :D

  It's been fun, I think I'm going to really have a lot of fun this transfer. :) OH! And a student at English class was telling me about this way cool phenomenon that happens in January and February here. Apparently it gets so cold, that the water in the air semi freezes, and creates crystals that you walk through, and then those crystals stick on things, especially trees, and turn them white and all crystally. It's supposed to be WAY beautiful. And they have a big ice festival here in the winter, with huge ice sculptures, and a giant...ICE SLIDE!! :D So I'm way stoked. I'll likely be here for most of winter, so it'll be great. :) Thanks so much for everything!

LOVES YOU ALL!

      Elder Dialogue!

        P.S. I haven't gotten the other package yet, but they might be holding it till the zone party to just give to me then, so I should get it soon! And tell Rachael that there is a letter heading her way, and that I'm sorry it took awhile to get out. I didn't get the package with her letter till 5 weeks after I should have, and then transfers and what not. :P Thanks!! LOVES YOU!

  P.P.S. I was showing Kozuma Choro my pictures, he called Megan a bijin. That's like, crazy. It means like, beautiful amazing, gorgeous, jaw dropping woman. ;) Haha! Just thought I'd let ya know!