Hello! hello!
So everything is just wonderful!
On Monday we arrived here in the New Hampshire, Manchester
Mission.
Our Mission President, President Blair, welcomed us with
open arms. I am very thankful to be here in this area of the world, and with
these amazing people right now.
Within an hour of arriving, we were put with another
missionary and sent off to street contact in Downtown Manchester. We got to
talk with some pretty "interesting" people. and we handed out four
Books of Mormon. After we got to the Mission home we had taco salad prepared by
Sister Blair. I am thankful for non-MTC food. Not that I have anything against
it. But after nine weeks, you get a little tried of biscuits and gravy for
breakfast every morning.
On Tuesday I met my trainer. His name is Elder
Redford. He is twenty months out and two transfers away other than our own from
going home.
He is from Idaho and is crazy good at everything (except
knitting. That's my thing). From what he has told me and what others have told
me. The three things he is a absolute master of are: welding, Gymnastics and
martial arts.
And from what I have seen him do, I believe it.
We get along just great. We have no problems what so ever. .
. at least for now. . .
This mission covers all of New Hampshire. And all most all
of Maine and Vermont. And a little bit of New York and Massachusetts. Elder
Redford and I were sent to open a new area of the mission in Massachusetts.
Right now we live in Ipswich, MA. But we are trying our hardest to move down to
Gloucester, where President Blair really wants us.
It is so beautiful here. we live almost right by the ocean
right now and will be as soon as we move. It is so green and tress everywhere.
And to think that we're in a drought.
It has been a little bit strange and awesome being a Russian
Speaking Missionary state side. In our mission, missionaries are called to
either speak English, Spanish or French. Most of the time what happens is that
we introduce our selves to someone and they look first at my companion's name
tag and then look at mine. Their expression quickly changes as they try to
decipher my Cyrillic name. It has also been a bit hard trying to keep my
Russian only given an hour each day to study it and then not use it the rest of
the day.
In my interview with President Blair the first day (Night. I
was one of the last interviewees and it was super late), he said that he
previously talked with the Stake Presidents and found out that around the
mission, there are little pockets of Russians. And he indicated that we
(Ukrainian Visa Waiters) are to find them.
So far I haven't found anyone one yet who speaks Russian or
Ukrainian for that matter. But I sense that there is someone around here who
only I with my language can communicate with.
Here is a cool story.
On the day that I met Elder Redford, he walked up to
President Blair and asked him that since I had language study every day, if he
wanted him to study a language as well. President Blair jokingly replied,
"How's your Spanish?" Elder Redford said that he didn't know anything
in Spanish. Then President Blair again jokingly said, "Do you want to
learn?"
After some inquiring, we were told that the area in which we
were assigned is almost exclusively English.
However the first day we were in Gloucester, the first
person we talked to was Hispanic and only spoke Spanish.
So that evening, Elder Redford called President Blair and
told him about our experience. After that I learned that President Blair
changed my companion's call to Spanish. Now with four months left, Elder
Redford is now a Spanish speaking missionary.
The Creative finding method we are trying to implement this
week is I will make Knitted hats, scarves or socks. And use that as a door
opener. My companion will kind of be the "Salesman" in this effort
and hopefully we will be able to help someone with this.
Everything is going great. It hasn't been a great challenge
adjusting. But I know that there is a lot more to come. And I am ready. This
work is true, and I am the Lord's servant.
Love you all.
Elder Clawson
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