Eric's email of March 3rd, 2011

Well well well, another pday already.

 So this week Elder Tingey and I decided to make a more conscience effort to work with members .  Sometimes its been easy and members just happen to be there to help us.  But the past few weeks, our numbers in that section were really, um, unpleasant, and I think it was affecting the progression of some investigators.  So Monday we made a list of members to see and start working with.  And I can say that we have already seen one miracle from it.  Monday we went to visit Soeur Patricia, who has been a member for about 6 years.  And the next day we saw la Soeur Melanie with her.  And Soeur Patricia did something I think would have been impossible for Elder Tingey and me.  She invited Soeur Melanie to the activity of la Societé de Secours this Saturday, and Soeur Melanie also said yes, a real yes!

Also in relation with our working more with members, we have been getting more coordonnées.  The past few weeks we were doing a lot better on asking, but still not getting too many.  But half way through this week and we have already passed what we got the 2 past weeks combined.

Last Saturday there was another football match, Bastos vs Ekounou.  I played a bit, until I went up to head the ball, and some guy took my legs out from under me.  Ekounou won 3 to 1.  I was on the Bastos side.

Frère Jacques is progressing very nicely in the Church.  He was baptized the 5th January, and about 3 weeks ago he got a calling as a teacher in Sunday School.  He traveled to Douala the past two weeks, but was back on Sunday, and he will been teaching in Sunday School this week.  It’ll be the 10th lesson in the Nouveaux Testament, something called « prenez mon joug sur vous... », (Take my yoke upon you) something like that.  I assume you are studying the same thing in Sunday School, right?

I’m still winning the area book/asking for coordonnées challenge.

Yesterday, I overloaded my system, by eating too much ero.  So, for breakfast we didn't have anything really, except for some ero that an investigator gave Elder Tingey and I the day before.  So I had that for breakfast.  Then, I had the genius idea of going to Sister Victorine’s (Blaise’s mom) place to eat ero after district meeting.  I wanted to do that so that we could talk to her and figure out why she doesn't come to church with her kids.  I don't know what I imagined was going to happen, but it wasn't very effective.  We got stuck inside her sister’s boutique waiting for the rain to lessen, and there were 7 people squished in there, so we didn't get to talk to her that much, but she did say she will come to church Sunday.  But I ate another plate of ero there.  But then we went to see the rest of her family later in the evening, and she had left Elder Tingey and I another plate of ero to eat.  So after that lesson, we had to eat more.  We didn't even make dinner last night because we were so full.  I don't want to eat ero for the rest of the transfer, at least.  But Sister Victorine did say I could come learn how to make ero one day, maybe I’ll do it next pday.

Now I’m through Alma 28 in the Book of Mormon.  This is the 3rd time I’ve read the Book of Mormon during my mission, but this time I am understanding things that I never noticed before at all.  At when I read it, compared to maybe the Old Testament, its like night and day.  I’ve also started reading the Ancien Testament (in French) during down time, and I’m about 4/5 done with Genesis.  Its not easy.  Some really weird things are written there.  And it just blows my mind when people read the Book of Mormon and don't feel the same way about it that I do.  Incroyable.

Also, there is one other random thing I studied lately.  1 John 5:6-8.  I first noticed this when I compared King James version to my Louis Segond.  In Kings James, it talks about the 3 that bear witness in heaven, and the 3 that bear witness on Earth.  In french though, it just talks about 3 that bear witness, not specifying in heaven or on Earth.  And I’ve also looked in some other people’s Bibles, and no other ones are like King James.  Even yesterday I looked in the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ Bible and in the Good News Bible, and its like in french.  And I didn't see any Joseph Smith translation, so I don't know if that means that the King James version is correct or what.  So yeah, just some other random nugget there.

Je vous aime,

-          Elder Eric Palmer

 

Hey Dad,
(Are you getting close to another transfer day?  Do you think you’ll still be staying in Yaounde?)  Next transfer is somewhere around March 19th.  Elder Tukuafu goes home the 16th.  I imagine that by this time in 2 pdays I will know about transfers.  I can't say if I'll get transferred, but I will have done 5 transfers in one sector, which is the longest I've done anywhere, but I've heard of plenty people doing longer.  I don't know.
 

(Is there such a thing as daylight savings time in Cameroon?)  There is no such thing as Daylight Savings time here.

 

Whoops, hit the wrong button.
 

(When was the last time you ran and for how far?  (4.75 miles for me this morning))  Honestly, I haven't been running since the end of December.  1 reason I could blame that on no one else in my apartement who will run with me.  But I also haven't tried too much since Elder Kesler went home.  And I cant really gauge how far, but less than what you ran.

And one other question, not that I'm trunky or anything.  But you already did that research stuff for doing J-Sarg and then going to SUU in January.  What about if I were to go to BYU in January, would it be the same thing?  C'est-à-dire, would the stuff transfer the same?

Je t'aime,
- Elder Eric Palmer

Hey Mom,

I bet Scott is super excited for getting into BYU and how its going to be, but chatiez him for me because he didn't email me.

Yes I remember Sister Sedwick.  (The PA who cleared Eric for his mission after mono.)  And I also remember that she told me they have some friends that are or were in Cameroon.  But the city she told me they were in is in the north, unfortunately the church isn't there.

(Has Sister Theresa finished the bobos?)  No, Sister Thérèse (Theresa) hasnt finished my bobos yet.

Do I need anything...  contact solution is the only thing I'm running low on.  And I haven't found any yet, so I could us some of that.

Je t'aime,
- Elder Eric Palmer

 

(Eric's email arrived very early this morning and I was able to ask a few follow up questions- Were you ok when you were tripped up at the soccer game?)  Yeah, I was ok except for my elbow was bleeding and there was a kind of bruise on my lower left back at the point of collision with the ground.  But some guy stretched me out.

(What are your plans for the day?)  Today for pday, I have on our pday list to: develop photos, write letters, shop 4 food, do internet, go to the bank, clean the apartement, teach Tim (the marine at the American embassy), play football or basketball, and I learned that the Thompsons invited us to watch a movie at the end of the day.

Voilà notre plan.  (That's our plan)