Dear Family,
You won’t believe how fast this week has flown by! Last week, the night I sent the letter, we had something special happen. The mission president came down to look at our would-be house (he said no, but we didn’t mind), and so that night we set up lessons with our two progressing investigators: Kobayashi and Sakimura. President Yafuso helped Kobayashi commit to baptism! The catch is, President Yafuso picked only five days later for the baptism! So this past week, we spent a lot of time setting everything up. Kobayashi was committed the 7th, baptized the 12th, and confirmed the 13th. That makes three baptisms I have seen in my first transfer! That’s three more than a lot of good missionaries see their entire missions here! The Lord has spoiled me rotten here in Shimonoseki. I don’t know if I will ever want to leave!
And also, I got my mountain bike this week! This should come as no surprise, but I used the credit card. (Thanks, Dad!) Life just got way super nicer. Except I need a lot of practice swinging my leg over the top when getting on. I am very clumsy here all of a sudden.
Today, me and Elder McClure (whom I am getting along with quite well) went to Seyinski (coming of age party). Our Mission President encouraged us to go and mingle with all the 20 year olds. It was fun being the only Americans. We took some pictures with kids in kimono. I’ll send those, once I get the other memory card.
Answers. So yeah, we are moving, but we’re still apartment hunting. We have a gas stove, microwave, small toaster oven, and a rice cooker (of course). I got a good cheap pair of gloves here. When I ride, my face/head is usually the coldest. But I have a couple scarves. So yeah, I got a cheap bag that works. If it eventually falls apart, the Mission Home sells good bags for five dollars.
Well,
Love You All,
Elder Hogge
P.S. The dollar stores here are amazing!
Monday, January 28, 2008
Monday, January 21, 2008
7 January 2008
Dear Family,
How is it going? I hope you all enjoy receiving my letters because I have started to really enjoy writing them! Happy New Years! I hope your celebration was fun. We went to a couple of jinjas (Shinto/Buddhist shrines) and watched people do the ceremonial “prayer” for Shogatsu. We really wanted to take pictures of people in kimono, but it was somewhat of a cold day, so everyone was wrapped in coats.
I have found that using time effectively is super important. When I first came out, I thought we were going to go door-to-door for hours. However, my trainer planned very different activities that I didn’t think were necessarily missionary work at the time. We have done a lot of activities in visiting investigators and members and really helping to strengthen them. Our time is spent much more effectively that way. Granted, I know the importance of getting out and finding, but it is through the members that referrals and church membership can really explode. It is much more effective when a friend asks you to hear the gospel than two American strangers. Remember family (especially Hilary, Spencer, and even Bradford) friends respond much nicer to friends than strangers (missionaries) in hearing the gospel. Make yourselves more valuable to the Lord and the work by inviting your friends to come unto Christ and see what has made our family so happy.
Well, I finally got my Christmas packages this week. They have been trying to deliver, but we have never been home, so we really had to coordinate that. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Hogge for the steki (stylish) new pen and pencil! They will be put to good use. And thank you Grandma and Grandpa Buck and Ladybug for the Christmas goodies, even if they were a little late!
Missionary work in Shimonoseki has been booming. We are going to challenge Kobayashi and Sakimura to accept baptism tonight -- way exciting. On the 1st, we went out and worked with Nakamura Kyodai (Brother) and searched for people for his Samaria Home for homeless people. I thought we weren’t supposed to proselyte to homeless people, but our mission president specifically told us to go and search. So we went out on the 1st and we invited a nice older man named Shigeta-san to Samaria Home. He came, and since he has found a place to live, he has accepted the lessons and even come to church. He really is a nice man, but you can tell that he has been through a lot. He is obviously an ex-member of Yakuza, and he only has 8 1/2 fingers. He was born with only 4 on his right hand, and he had half of his pinky chopped off when he left Yakuza. I hear that is really common. But now, he is just the nicest and genki-est (happy/spirited) old man ever. And he is a very good artist. He drew a really sweet dragon for us, but he’s not finished yet.
Me and my companion have decided that the people of Samaria Home are the most interesting people we may ever encounter. We spend a lot of time with Brother Nakamura and strengthening the Samaria Home gang. Last Saturday, we had a group “lesson” at the Samaria Home office about the Good Samaritan and charity. Since these people have no experience with Christianity, we like to teach about things in the Bible and connect them to the Book of Mormon. So we also read Moroni 7:15, and then ended with John 14:15. It was good. We even had the District President come and doseki for us. His name is Fujinaka Kuicho (President) and he is one of the strongest members I ever met. He only has three fingers (middle-pinky) on his right hand from a childhood accident, so when he and Shigeta-san shook hands, I realized there were only 7 fingers in that handshake! Haha, it’s awesome.
So yeah, how are things? I would like an update! Haha. I also had a couple questions: Dad, how was your trainer like? What kind of experience was it? Also, how is my dearly beloved Paul? I heard he had his reattachment surgery on the 2nd. It’s awesome that he got Wentao to church!! Yeah, also, can y’all make sure to use my Shimonoseki address? I’m pretty sure the mission office is tired of forwarding stuff. Also, thank you so much for your letter, dad. I think that when I focus on myself and think that I am the only one who has experienced this, I get down. Remembering that I am really not alone in this work is important. It’s just my pride that lets me think that.
Oh yeah, I met the rest of my zone this week at zone conference. They’re all young and awesome. About half my zone is younger than 5 transfers. We went to an Indian Restaurant and I had super good seafood curry. I have also realized that I really want to learn how to play sitar.
Well, my time draws to a close. I hope everyone is diggin’ life! I love you all sooooooo much! I miss you all! Take care and be safe!
Always,
Elder Hogge
How is it going? I hope you all enjoy receiving my letters because I have started to really enjoy writing them! Happy New Years! I hope your celebration was fun. We went to a couple of jinjas (Shinto/Buddhist shrines) and watched people do the ceremonial “prayer” for Shogatsu. We really wanted to take pictures of people in kimono, but it was somewhat of a cold day, so everyone was wrapped in coats.
I have found that using time effectively is super important. When I first came out, I thought we were going to go door-to-door for hours. However, my trainer planned very different activities that I didn’t think were necessarily missionary work at the time. We have done a lot of activities in visiting investigators and members and really helping to strengthen them. Our time is spent much more effectively that way. Granted, I know the importance of getting out and finding, but it is through the members that referrals and church membership can really explode. It is much more effective when a friend asks you to hear the gospel than two American strangers. Remember family (especially Hilary, Spencer, and even Bradford) friends respond much nicer to friends than strangers (missionaries) in hearing the gospel. Make yourselves more valuable to the Lord and the work by inviting your friends to come unto Christ and see what has made our family so happy.
Well, I finally got my Christmas packages this week. They have been trying to deliver, but we have never been home, so we really had to coordinate that. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Hogge for the steki (stylish) new pen and pencil! They will be put to good use. And thank you Grandma and Grandpa Buck and Ladybug for the Christmas goodies, even if they were a little late!
Missionary work in Shimonoseki has been booming. We are going to challenge Kobayashi and Sakimura to accept baptism tonight -- way exciting. On the 1st, we went out and worked with Nakamura Kyodai (Brother) and searched for people for his Samaria Home for homeless people. I thought we weren’t supposed to proselyte to homeless people, but our mission president specifically told us to go and search. So we went out on the 1st and we invited a nice older man named Shigeta-san to Samaria Home. He came, and since he has found a place to live, he has accepted the lessons and even come to church. He really is a nice man, but you can tell that he has been through a lot. He is obviously an ex-member of Yakuza, and he only has 8 1/2 fingers. He was born with only 4 on his right hand, and he had half of his pinky chopped off when he left Yakuza. I hear that is really common. But now, he is just the nicest and genki-est (happy/spirited) old man ever. And he is a very good artist. He drew a really sweet dragon for us, but he’s not finished yet.
Me and my companion have decided that the people of Samaria Home are the most interesting people we may ever encounter. We spend a lot of time with Brother Nakamura and strengthening the Samaria Home gang. Last Saturday, we had a group “lesson” at the Samaria Home office about the Good Samaritan and charity. Since these people have no experience with Christianity, we like to teach about things in the Bible and connect them to the Book of Mormon. So we also read Moroni 7:15, and then ended with John 14:15. It was good. We even had the District President come and doseki for us. His name is Fujinaka Kuicho (President) and he is one of the strongest members I ever met. He only has three fingers (middle-pinky) on his right hand from a childhood accident, so when he and Shigeta-san shook hands, I realized there were only 7 fingers in that handshake! Haha, it’s awesome.
So yeah, how are things? I would like an update! Haha. I also had a couple questions: Dad, how was your trainer like? What kind of experience was it? Also, how is my dearly beloved Paul? I heard he had his reattachment surgery on the 2nd. It’s awesome that he got Wentao to church!! Yeah, also, can y’all make sure to use my Shimonoseki address? I’m pretty sure the mission office is tired of forwarding stuff. Also, thank you so much for your letter, dad. I think that when I focus on myself and think that I am the only one who has experienced this, I get down. Remembering that I am really not alone in this work is important. It’s just my pride that lets me think that.
Oh yeah, I met the rest of my zone this week at zone conference. They’re all young and awesome. About half my zone is younger than 5 transfers. We went to an Indian Restaurant and I had super good seafood curry. I have also realized that I really want to learn how to play sitar.
Well, my time draws to a close. I hope everyone is diggin’ life! I love you all sooooooo much! I miss you all! Take care and be safe!
Always,
Elder Hogge
Sunday, January 6, 2008
31 December 2007
12/31/07
Dear Family,
Well, that’s another week. Pretty crazy. Time flies, but not. It’s weird. I can’t believe last week was Christmas. So much has happened since then. Yet, the weeks seem to fly. I guess the term “days are long, weeks are short” really applies. We are nearing the half way point of my first transfer in Japan. It has snowed a little bit here, but nothing really sticks. But still, IT’S THAT COLD! *shiver* The snow here is different from Utah. It’s soooo increadibly windy, and the humidity makes sure the cold goes straight to the bone. It’s wonderful. It does a lot to strengthen character and all that stuff.
Let’s see, well . . . everything is going. I learned that when the Japanese honk, it means “thank you for letting me pass.” It’s amazing how much respect there is around here. The customer truly is always right. A lot of the time, the store owners will literally stand in the entry to their store and welcome you and bow.
The food has been great. We eat lots of curry and my loving companion said he’s going to make some Thai curry someday. Thanks for introducing all that food to me Dad! I think I inherited your taste buds for it. We eat basically all vegetables when we cook. Make a noodle dish or just boil the veggies and dip them in ponzu sauce. My companion was a vegetarian for a couple years before the mission (he isn’t now) so he likes using tons of veggies which I don’t mind. We usually have lettuce, onions, a couple kinds of tasty mushrooms, and tofu with everything. The tofu isn’t all that bad, it just tastes like whatever you put it in. The texture is very much like jello, but I’m good with it.
The work is moving along. We don’t do too much finding because we teach many lessons. We have two awesome progressing investigators -- Sakimura and Kobayashi. Sakimura is a 22 year old guy who is pretty much awesome. He works a ton, and falls asleep a lot. Ha ha. He’s heard all the lessons, but he’s still working on getting baptized. He doesn’t live with his parents, but they don’t want him to get baptized, and he respects their decision. Since he is an only child, if he converts, their family line of Buddhism dies. It’s tough. Almost all Japanese say they’re Buddhists by tradition. It’s tough. But Sakimura really is awesome.
Kobayashi used to be homeless until Nakamura Kyodai (Brother Nakamura) took him in. Kobayashi is one of the nicest people I have ever met, and he is an amazing cook. He’s heard all of the lessons, and he is very spiritually sensitive, but he just doesn’t think he has the faith to let go of Buddhism. Even though he studies the scriptures harder than me and my companion combined!!!
Well, that’s just an update on things here. Hope y’all are puttin’ your shoulder to the wheel.
Love, Elder Hogge
P.S. Shogatsu (New Year) here is ridiculous! Everyone goes to the little Shinto AND Buddhist shrines and claps twice and calls that good for their worship all year. It’s funny how they are all festive a week late! They picked the wrong holiday to connect with their spirituality. Meh. They’ll figure it out.
Dear Family,
Well, that’s another week. Pretty crazy. Time flies, but not. It’s weird. I can’t believe last week was Christmas. So much has happened since then. Yet, the weeks seem to fly. I guess the term “days are long, weeks are short” really applies. We are nearing the half way point of my first transfer in Japan. It has snowed a little bit here, but nothing really sticks. But still, IT’S THAT COLD! *shiver* The snow here is different from Utah. It’s soooo increadibly windy, and the humidity makes sure the cold goes straight to the bone. It’s wonderful. It does a lot to strengthen character and all that stuff.
Let’s see, well . . . everything is going. I learned that when the Japanese honk, it means “thank you for letting me pass.” It’s amazing how much respect there is around here. The customer truly is always right. A lot of the time, the store owners will literally stand in the entry to their store and welcome you and bow.
The food has been great. We eat lots of curry and my loving companion said he’s going to make some Thai curry someday. Thanks for introducing all that food to me Dad! I think I inherited your taste buds for it. We eat basically all vegetables when we cook. Make a noodle dish or just boil the veggies and dip them in ponzu sauce. My companion was a vegetarian for a couple years before the mission (he isn’t now) so he likes using tons of veggies which I don’t mind. We usually have lettuce, onions, a couple kinds of tasty mushrooms, and tofu with everything. The tofu isn’t all that bad, it just tastes like whatever you put it in. The texture is very much like jello, but I’m good with it.
The work is moving along. We don’t do too much finding because we teach many lessons. We have two awesome progressing investigators -- Sakimura and Kobayashi. Sakimura is a 22 year old guy who is pretty much awesome. He works a ton, and falls asleep a lot. Ha ha. He’s heard all the lessons, but he’s still working on getting baptized. He doesn’t live with his parents, but they don’t want him to get baptized, and he respects their decision. Since he is an only child, if he converts, their family line of Buddhism dies. It’s tough. Almost all Japanese say they’re Buddhists by tradition. It’s tough. But Sakimura really is awesome.
Kobayashi used to be homeless until Nakamura Kyodai (Brother Nakamura) took him in. Kobayashi is one of the nicest people I have ever met, and he is an amazing cook. He’s heard all of the lessons, and he is very spiritually sensitive, but he just doesn’t think he has the faith to let go of Buddhism. Even though he studies the scriptures harder than me and my companion combined!!!
Well, that’s just an update on things here. Hope y’all are puttin’ your shoulder to the wheel.
Love, Elder Hogge
P.S. Shogatsu (New Year) here is ridiculous! Everyone goes to the little Shinto AND Buddhist shrines and claps twice and calls that good for their worship all year. It’s funny how they are all festive a week late! They picked the wrong holiday to connect with their spirituality. Meh. They’ll figure it out.
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